It’s almost hard to believe that the Red Sox have just won another World Series. Four years ago, in 2003, it seemed like they would never get there or if they did, they would somehow manage to let it slip through their fingers- or roll between their legs. Yet somehow, Boston has won its second World Series since then, earning their second trophy tonight after a 4-3 win in Denver.

 

After being down 3-1 in the ALCS against the Indians, the Red Sox came surging back. In the last seven games, they have never trailed by more than one run. The Rockies did score in the first inning off Curt Schilling in game two, but Boston battled back- offensively with the help of Series MVP Mike Lowell (who scored the tying run and knocked in the winning run with an RBI double) and defensively with some stellar pitching from Schilling and young relievers Hideki Okajima and Jonathan Papelbon.

 

Although the Rockies managed to come within one run last night (with Matt Holliday hitting a three-run homerun off Okajima) and again tonight (with Garrett Atkins hitting a two-run homerun off… Okajima), it never felt like Colorado was really in the game.

 

The Red Sox struck early in game four with rookie Jacoby Ellsbury hitting a lead-off double and then scoring on a David Ortiz single, and it seemed like the series was over for Colorado (and believe me, as a Red Sox fan, I know perfectly well that a 3-0 series lead guarantees nothing). Rockies starter Aaron Cook did not even have that bad o####ame- in his first six innings, he allowed just two runs on five hits before Lowell homered to lead off the seventh.

 

Jon Lester had an excellent start for Boston, though, after nearly a month since his last start. He pitched five and two-thirds scoreless innings with just three hits and struck out three.

 

The only time it really felt like maybe there was going to be an exciting turn of events was in the bottom of the ninth when Jamey Carroll hit a high fly ball that took Manny Ramirez back to the wall. Ellsbury made the catch, though, and Papelbon struck out pinch hitter Seth Smith to end the game and earn himself a ring.

 

Although I think Lowell is deserving of the MVP trophy (and contributed both offensively and defensively in the series), Papelbon would be my pick as MVP. He earned three saves in this World Series through four complete scoreless innings. He allowed only two hits, struck out three, and walked none in those four innings. He also pitched a two-inning save in game seven of the ALCS to help the Sox get to the Fall Classic.

 

I’m glad that Lowell got some recognition for his contributions, though, and for his excellent October. In the last fourteen games, he’s had 18 hits, including 7 doubles and 2 home runs, for a .350 (18-51) average. He had 15 RBI and hit .400 in the World Series. I hope that the award is a sign that the Red Sox will do what they can to bring him back next year.

 

Alex Rodriguez managed to make an #### of himself twice during tonight’s game without even being there. His absence was tacky originally when he was not present to accept the Hank Aaron Award from Hammerin’ Hank himself before the game, along with NL winner Prince Fielder. It was even more tasteless when he and his agent, The Great Satan, chose to release the announcement that he will opt out of his contract with the Yankees during the seventh inning of the game. As Peter Gammons pointed out, it displayed a total lack of respect for the game of baseball.

 

I’m going on record right now, though, that if the Red Sox make a deal with him and his sleaze ball agent, I am washing my hands of them.

 

For now, though, I will enjoy this championship. Go Sox!

 

And, oh yeah- Lasorda for Commissioner.

There was no offensive explosion, but the Boston Red Sox proved they still had the pitching they needed to get the job done in a close game, pulling off a 2-1 victory.

The Rockies actually struck first tonight with leadoff hitter Willy Taveras reaching after being hit by a pitch by Curt Schilling. In my honest opinion, Taveras was crowding the plate and it was his own damn fault he got hit, but either way, the damage was done. He advanced after NLCS MVP (and regular season MVP candidate) Matt Holliday singled down the third base line. Both runners ended up in scoring position after a throwing error by Mike Lowell, who didn’t seem to know whether it would be shortstop Julio Lugo or Schilling covering at third. Taveras then scored when Todd Helton grounded out to first.

 

The Rockies maintained their lead into the bottom of the fourth. The Sox went down in order in the first and did not even get their first hit until the fourth inning. J.D. Drew was hit by a pitch in the second, and the top of the lineup drew a pair of walks in the third, but the runners were all left stranded. Lowell scored Boston’s first run after taking a one-out walk in the fourth. Jason Varitek hit the sacrifice fly that scored Lowell and sent Drew to third.

 

With two outs in the bottom of the fifth, Colorado rookie Ubaldo Jimenez gave up a walk to David Ortiz. Never the speediest of runners, Ortiz has been slowed down lately by his knee injury. He advanced to second on a Manny Ramirez single. Lowell came through with a double to deep left field that gave Big Papi plenty of time to get home and score the go-ahead run. That RBI double was the end of Jimenez’s night, and Clint Hurdle handed the ball off to Jeremy Affeldt who quickly gave up a walk to Drew to load the bases. Affeldt was quickly replaced by Matt Herges who got the final out another long bottom of the fifth.

 

Curt Schilling did not last much longer when he gave up a single to Holliday and walked Helton with one out in the top of the sixth. Hideki Okajima was brought in to take care of business. It was pretty early for set-up work, but he kept things under control until it was Papelbon time. Through two and a third innings, he did not allow a single hit. He struck out four, including the final two batters he faced in the top of the eighth. With Holliday due up to bat and a slim 2-1 lead, Terry Francona opted to bring in closer Jonathan Papelbon. Holliday was already 3-3 on the night and wound up getting an infield single. Papelbon narrowly escaped getting hit by the ball. Dustin Pedroia was able to grab the ball and hold Holliday to a single but had no play at first. Papelbon and Pedroia were both lucky to avoid injury on the play, with Pedroia rolling on his wrist and Papelbon doing some kind of backwards somersault while diving out of the way. Papelbon ended up picking Holliday off at first to end the inning.

 

Helton, who was at the plate when Holliday was picked off, struck out when he led off in the top of the ninth. After Garrett Atkins lined out to centerfield, Papelbon struck Brad Hawpe out to deliver the save and a Game Two victory for the Red Sox.

 

Through the series so far, the Red Sox have held the Rockies to just two runs. Schilling, Okajima, and Papelbon combined tonight to allow only five hits and two walks with ten strikeouts.

And, oh yeah- Lasorda for Commissioner.

Red Sox fans could not have asked for a nicer way to being the 2007 World Series. Josh Beckett struck out the first three Colorado batters he faced (even after falling behind Kazuo Matsui 3-0) in the first inning, and rookie Dustin Pedroia led off the bottom of the first with a homerun on the second pitch he saw. By the end of the inning, Boston was leading by three after four more hits in what would eventually be a 13-1 blowout win.

In the top of the second, Colorado narrowed the Boston lead to 3-1 when Garrett Atkins and Troy Tulowitzki hit a pair of doubles off Beckett. That was the closest the Rockies came to a rally, though, as they only hit four more hits off Beckett in the next five innings and none off relievers Mike Timlin and Eric Gagne in the final two. David Ortiz knocked in another run for Boston in the bottom of the second with an RBI double that scored Kevin Youkilis.

 

After Colorado starter Jeff Francis gave up a single, double, intentional walk, and ground rule double- all with two outs- that put Boston up 6-1 in the fourth inning, Clint Hurdle prepared to bring in Franklin Morales, who had been demoted to bullpen duty. After giving up a lead-off single, he had two outs and seemed to be in control before advancing the runner on a balk. He then proceeded to give up three doubles, two singles, and a walk before being pulled with the bases loaded and the Red Sox up by nine. Ryan Speier came in with three inherited runners and proceeded to walk in all three of them without recording the much needed out. Matt Herges finally got Kevin Youkilis- who had already doubled to drive in the first run of the inning- to fly out and end the inning (the bottom half of which lasted over half an hour).

 

In all, eleven of the Red Sox’ thirteen runs were scored with two outs. I’m not sure whether that says more about the Boston bats or the rustiness of the Rockies’ pitchers.

 

Everybody had great numbers tonight, with every Boston starter but Mike Lowell having at least one RBI. And Lowell went 1-3 with a double, two walks, and a run scored. Six different Sox had doubles, with Ortiz and Youk getting two each. It almost seems odd that they only had one homer. And even though they stranded a dozen base runners, they still scored thirteen runs on seventeen hits and eight walks.

 

Big blowouts make me nervous, but the Red Sox have been on such a roll since game five of the ALCS that I won’t lose too much sleep yet. We’ll see how it goes tomorrow night with rookie Ubaldo Jimenez facing off against Curt Schilling before this series heads out west to snowy Denver.

 

And, oh yeah- Lasorda for Commissioner.

I've been sick for the last two weeks and been without my computer for a good chunk of that time. Still need to update my ALCS stuff...

 

For the, I think ten thousandth time since I started my new job, I missed the Red Sox game because I had to work. And, unlike Sunday, I couldn’t get away with keeping one eye on the game at work because I actually had to work pretty hard tonight. I was at least ten minutes behind the curve after the third inning.

I hope this game erased any doubts about whether or not Josh Beckett deserves to win the American League Cy Young award, though. I realize it is a regular season award, but Beckett’s ERA is barely a quarter of a run higher than the league leader, John Lackey (and six hundredths worse than C.C. Sabathia). His twenty regular-season wins also came in just thirty starts, fewer than any other pitcher with at least fifteen wins except for New York’s Chien-Ming Wang and Anaheim’s Kelvim Escobar (with nineteen and eighteen wins, respectively, in thirty starts).

It’s also worth noting (although maybe it wasn’t really worth the time to figure it out), Beckett’s twenty wins came against opponents with a combined record of 1070-1037. Sabathia’s nineteen wins, on the other hand, were against teams that combined for a record of 860-922.*

I’m not going to dog on C.C. Sabathia, because he is one of the best pitchers in the game today. …And he certainly had a pretty good outing against the Yankees last Thursday, which doesn’t hurt him in my book. Still, I think it’s hard to deny the talent Josh Beckett has. It’s pretty incredible when a two-run outing (Beckett left the game with a 10-2 lead in what would eventually be a 10-3 victory) actually raises your career postseason ERA from 1.74 to 1.87.

And, oh yeah- Lasorda for Commissioner.

* - that’s counting each opponent only once.

Big Papi strikes again... and the Red Sox are going to the ALCS with a 9-1 win in game three of the Division Series against the Angels.

Although Anaheim starter Jered Weaver had held the Red Sox to just one hit through the first three innings, David Ortiz led off the fourth with a home run to put Boston on the board.

Not to be outdone, Manny Ramirez followed it up with a solo shot of his own.

Even though they were less than ten outs from elimination, the Angels kept themselves in the game up until the eighth inning when things started to spiral out of control. Julio Lugo drew a lead-off walk before Scot Shields was relieved by Justin Speier, who promptly served up a double to Dustin Pedroia. Pedroia, in turn, scored on a sac fly from Kevin Youkilis. Before Speier was relieved, he gave up another double (to Mike Lowell), a single (to David Ortiz), and a walk (to Manny Ramirez) without another out. Before Darren Oliver got Pedroia (in his second at bat of the inning) to ground into a fielder's choice for the third out, three more runs had scored on three consecutive hits, bringing Boston's lead to 9-0.

Eric Gagne, who took over for setup man Hideki Okajima in the ninth, spoiled Schilling's shut-out. Maicer Izturis, who had reached on a ground-rule double (and advanced on a wild pitch) scored on a sac fly. Even Gagne couldn't botch a nine-run ninth-inning lead, though, and retired Anaheim's final two batters of the season. With a 9-1 win, the Red Sox complete their sweep of the division series.

Now it's time to turn my attention to New York where Roger the #### is taking the mound in what could be Joe Torre's final game as the Yankees manager...

And, oh yeah- Lasorda for Commissioner.

Yoooouuuuuuk!

PAPI!

Beckett!

Red Sox fans had a lot to be thankful for tonight. More than anything else, they've got to be grateful for nothing- as in the number of runs allowed by Josh Beckett, who continued his post-season dominance after having the past three Octobers off.

It seemed as if the Angels might be getting off to a good start when Chone Figgins led off the first inning with a single off Josh Beckett tonight. After giving up that first hit, though, Beckett went on to retire the next nineteen batters he faced in what would eventually be a four-hit, complete game shutout for Beckett and 4-0 victory for the Red Sox.

Boston did not get a leadoff hit in the bottom of the first inning, but Kevin Youkilis, batting second in the lineup, quickly put them on the board with a solo homerun. David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez followed up with back-to-back singles but were left stranded.

In the third inning, Youkilis notched his second postseason hit with a double that bounced off the Monster. Ortiz didn't leave him standing out there long, though, hitting a homerun off the second pitch he saw.

Angels starter John Lackey appeared to struggle with control after that, walking Manny Ramirez and allowing him to advance on a wild pitch to Mike Lowell. The Red Sox picked up their final run of the game when Ramirez scored on a single by Lowell.

Lackey seemed to settle down after the third inning, but the damage was already done.

Beckett did not allow his second hit of the game until the seventh inning when Vladimir Guerrero singled off of him. All four Anaheim hits were singles, and Chone Figgins was the lone Angel to reach third base.

After his first twenty-win season, Beckett can add to his already impressive post-season resume. He lowered his ERA to 1.74 and recorded his third complete-game shut-out in just seven appearances.

It's only one game, but it's an awfully nice way to start things out.

One down, ten to go...  

And, oh yeah- Lasorda for Commissioner.

Updating the backlog - from May 27:

I finally managed to wrest myself away from the office long enough for a baseball game, just in time to see the Boston Red Sox in their last game in Arlington this season (barring a miracle on the part of the last-place Rangers, at any rate). Fortunately, baseball is one of the few sports where, on a given day, you can match up the best team in the league against the worst and still have an interesting, competitive game, as was the case with Boston's 6-5 win over Texas today. That's probably most true when you're watching a duel of the #5 starters. Of course, Julian Tavarez is ostensibly not even the true fifth starter for Boston but is filling a spot left open by Matt Clement's prolonged stint on the disabled list.

The disparity in the two teams' starting pitching is rather large, otherwise. The Rangers rotation has the worst ERA for starters of any team in recorded history, while Boston can boast MVPs of two World Series and the inaugural World Baseball Classic.

When the Sox went up 3-0 in the top of the fourth, it looked like my father might be a baseball genius. Before the first pitch was thrown, he had set the over-under on Texas starter Kameron Loe at 3 1/3 innings. After starting the fourth with two consecutive singles to J.D. Drew and Mike Lowell, followed by a home run to Jason Varitek, Loe received a visit on the mound. Loe stayed in the game, however, and even outlasted Tavarez (by one out). He allowed only one more single (in the fourth) and retired the Sox in order in the next two innings before Joaquin Benoit relieved him in the seventh.

Tavarez, on the other hand, surrendered the lead in an ugly sixth inning. Kenny Lofton drew a lead-off walk, making him the Rangers' third baserunner since he led off the first with a single to left field. The other two had reached after being hit by a pitch and a fielding error. Tavarez followed up Lofton's walk with a single to Michael Young and a home run to Mark Teixeira, nearly copying the Red Sox pattern of three-runs in, no outs from earlier. Tavarez did not have quite the same luck ending the inning as Loe had and, after Sammy Sosa grounded out, allowed three consecutive base hits that drove in the go-ahead run for Texas. J.C. Romero was brought in to get the final out.

 With a one-run lead in the eighth inning, Ron Washington brought in his set-up man Akinori Otsuka. Prior to today's game, Otsuka had only allowed two earned runs this season. He doubled that total, however, blowing the save and getting tagged with the eventual loss. Kevin Youkilis led off the inning with a single, and despite striking out Manny Ramirez, Otsuka gave up two more hits to Drew and Lowell, surrendering the lead. During the inning, David Ortiz, who had been resting a sore hamstring, could be seen up in the dug out, talking to Terry Francona (even from club-level seats near the right-field foul pole, Papi has a distinctive presence) and picking up a bat. Youkilis was batting in his usual third spot in the lineup that day, but he appeared ready to pinch hit if necessary.

 Joel Pineiro, who had relieved Romero in the seventh, retired the Rangers in order in the bottom of the eighth, recording his third strikeout in 1 2/3 innings of work. When Eric Gagne took the mound in the ninth inning, I had slightly mixed feelings. I had been clamoring for the opportunity to see Gagne up close (relatively speaking) since the Rangers had signed him in December, and I was eager to see what progress he was making in returning to his once-great form. However, I didn't really want to see him pitching to one of my favorite teams.

Gagne encountered a battle with the first batter he faced. With a 2-2 count, Dustin Pedroia continued to foul off another eight pitches (without taking another ball) before sending a homer beyond the Southwest airlines banner in left field and tarnishing Gagne's ERA with his first earned run of the season. Julio Lugo and Coco Crisp sent two more shots way deep into the outfield but not far enough before Youk struck out to end the inning.

The insurance run proved valuable to the Red Sox as Hideki Okajima gave up a pair of hits, including an RBI single to Mark Teixeira with two outs in the bottom of the ninth. Sosa flew out to end the game, however, and Boston came away with the win, sweeping the three-game series.

 And, oh yeah- Lasorda for Commissioner.

Tonight’s game between the Red Sox and White Sox was riveting… if you are a devotee of old-school / National League-style baseball. The pitching match-up between Chicago’s Javier Vazquez and rookie Kason Gabbard, who picked up his first career victory, was less exciting if you are a fan of the home run, as Boston’s 1-0 shutout win featured none of them. Even with an error charged to the Red Sox, the game featured excellent pitching and defense for both teams.  

The starting pitchers allowed a combined total of only six hits. Vazquez and Gabbard each had three hits, with Gabbard pitching seven innings and Vazquez going all eight for Chicago. Boston reliever Mike Timlin, who picked up the win in last night’s overtime effort, allowed just one hit in the two-inning save.  

Although Mike Lowell had the error with the poorly fielded ground ball in the fourth inning, he was also involved in two of the Red Sox’s three double plays of the evening. The first came quickly after the error, with Paul Konerko grounding into a bases-loaded 5-4-3 double play. The latter was more remarkable, with Lowell fielding a liner from Joe Crede and turning it to Kevin Youkilis to get Tadahito Iguchi out to end the top of the sixth. The fielding efforts were more impressive in the later innings as the Red Sox protected their very narrow lead while contending with increasingly heavy rainfall.  

Tonight brought the return of David Ortiz after he was cleared to play following treatment for heart palpitations. Big Papi received a very enthusiastic welcome from the crowd at Fenway in all four of his plate appearances. He did not make any direct contribution to the Boston victory, however, going 0-3 with a walk. Coco Crisp had the only RBI of the night with a single to score Trot Nixon, who only returned from injury himself in last night’s series opener.  

Although Boston’s heavy hitters are healthy once more, with Ortiz, Nixon, and catcher Jason Varitek all returning in time to take on the defending World Series champions, the pitching staff is still suffering mightily. Starters Tim Wakefield and Matt Clement have both been out since midsummer, Clement with a strained shoulder in his throwing arm and Wakefield with a fractured rib. Rookie right-hander David Pauley, who had been called up from AA Portland, was also placed on the disabled list last week with a shoulder strain, and closer Jonathan Papelbon frightened fans on Friday when he left in the ninth inning of Friday’s victory over Toronto, also with an apparent shoulder injury. Papelbon had expressed his desire to return earlier today, pending the results of an MRI, but it looks like his injury, while not severe, will require more rest and rehabilitation than that. Of course, the most serious concern for Boston is the health of rookie pitcher Jon Lester, who was diagnosed with a form of non-Hodgkins lymphoma last week.  

Curt Schilling was scratched from his scheduled start last night, as well, with a mild strain of his own. The rotation also lost 43-year-old David Wells last week, when he finally got his wish of a trade to hometown San Diego. Of course, in my opinion, Boston is better off without Wells, who has been inconsistent and injury prone in recent years, but it does leave the Red Sox, who received a minor-league catcher (and cash, not his weight in ground beef, as I had suggested) in the trade, even more short-staffed in their pitching rotation.  

It’s still too early to say that Boston should pack it in and wait for next year, but the picture still looks rather bleak. With tonight’s win, they are still 8.5 games back in the American League East (eight if the Royals can defend their five-run lead in the top of the ninth inning against New York) and six games behind Minnesota (and a game and a half behind Chicago) in the wild card. To have a chance at playing October baseball, the Red Sox will need for September to be as good as August was bad. If they can put together twenty or more wins, they may actually pick up enough ground, particularly if they can do some damage in their series against the Twins and Yankees.  

And, oh yeah- Lasorda for Commissioner.

GRAPEVINE, Texas. Die-hard Red Sox fan and blogger, Laura (AKA Ellesie99), has suffered a setback in her rehabilitation efforts after experiencing heart palpitations, faintness, and a possible case of “the vapors”. She attempted to get through Monday night’s game in Oakland but lost consciousness sometime after the Athletics took a 2-0 lead in the third inning. She revived briefly after the game but felt her energy lag even further after learning that the Sox and rookie Kason Gabbard had suffered a 9-0 loss.

Laura did not feel that she had the energy or fortitude for tonight’s game, even with Josh Beckett getting the start for Boston. She kept herself updated of the score via phone and ESPN’s Baseball Tonight from a training facility near her home in Grapevine, Texas.

Medical personnel have not yet determined the cause of Laura’s problems or even diagnosed her condition. One popular theory is that the Red Sox fan is suffering from a broken heart as her team has lost 20 of their last 28 games this month. Possible causes of the blogger’s heartbreak include David Ortiz’s recent hospitalization, Manny Ramirez’s recent knee soreness, Wily Mo Peña’s aching wrist, Jason Varitek’s knee injury and subsequent surgery, Trot Nixon’s bicep strain, or Tim Wakefield’s fractured rib.

 

The blogger exhibited signs of stress and exhaustion in the days preceding Boston’s five-game series against the New York Yankees. However, concerns were dismissed as such feelings are typical when the pin-stripers darken the dugout of Fenway Park. She had hoped that the change of scenery and weather of the Sox’s current west coast road trip might improve her condition, but despite a promising visit to Anaheim, a subsequent sweep in Seattle and another two losses in Oakland have offered no respite. 

 

The prognosis is not good, and there have been rumors that Laura has lost her will to blog. Although Laura was unavailable for comment, her spokesperson vigorously denied those claims. However, if improvements are not seen during Boston’s upcoming homestand against the Blue Jays and White Sox, Laura’s and the Red Sox’s season may well be over.

And, oh yeah- Lasorda for Commissioner.

The Red Sox managed to avoid the sweep at the hands of the Tigers tonight. After two frustrating losses, the offense managed to rally around… David Wells. He managed to pick up his second victory in an ugly outing, which included a two-homerun sixth.

Detroit drew first blood when Omar Infante scored on an RBI single from Craig Monroe in the third inning. Mark Loretta drove in Javy Lopez in the bottom of the inning to even up the score, however. In the fifth, David Ortiz put Boston up 3-1 with a two-run homer after Loretta led off with a walk from fourteen-win starter Justin Verlander.

The Boston lead was short-lived, however, when Maglio Ordoñez led off in the next inning with a home run of his own. Before the side was retired, Wells gave up a single to Brandon Inge and another homer to Brent Clevlen. In the bottom of the sixth, the Sox managed to scratch out a few more runs to regain the lead. Verlander gave up a single to Lopez and a pair of walks, loading the bases for Coco Crisp. With two outs, Crisp hit a double to deep left field. Lopez and Mike Lowell both scored. Boston might have built onto their narrow one-run lead, with Loretta on deck and Big Papi due up behind him, but Alex Cora was thrown out. He was trying to score from first, but Pudge Rodriguez had him out at home with the throw from Monroe.

After Wells and Verlander had both left the game, Boston picked up one more insurance run off of Jason Grilli in the seventh. With one out, Grilli loaded up the bases with a walk to Ortiz and back-to-back singles to Manny Ramirez and Kevin Youkilis. Ortiz scored Boston’s sixth run of the night on a sac fly by Lowell.  

Craig Hansen, who had relieved Wells for the final out of the seventh, put the Tigers down rather quickly in the eighth with the help of a 4-6-3 double-play on an Inge grounder, and Jonathan Papelbon threw a six-pitch ninth inning for the save.

The Sox have tomorrow to rest before a double-header on Friday that will begin a five-game series against the Yankees.

 And, oh yeah- Lasorda for Commissioner.

It's short, but I had to write something! I'm back online and the Sox are back in the win column. 

Mike Lowell was a one-man highlight reel in tonight’s game against the Orioles at Fenway. In the first inning, he took a pitch to the head that knocked him to the ground and raised doubts whether he could finish the game. Lowell insisted, however, and continued his spectacular play. Taking the field in the top of the third, he went charging after a foul ball from Nick Markakis and toppled into the first row of seats, making the catch. In the bottom of the inning, he had an RBI single, stole third, and scored on a hit by new teammate (and former Oriole) Javy Lopez.

That third inning was an ugly one for the Orioles. It began with back-to-back walks to Mark Loretta and David Ortiz off starting pitcher Adam Loewen. Ortiz actually walked TWICE in the inning, but not before Loewen and Rodrigo Lopez, pitching in relief between starts, gave up six hits (including a triple to Alex Gonzalez) and seven runs. Loretta had a great night, as well, going 3-4 with a walk and two RBI. 

Despite my fears, David Wells actually had a good outing in his third start since returning from the disabled list. He picked up his first victory of the season and had fair numbers of his own in addition to the plentiful run support provided by the offense. Through seven complete innings, he gave up nine hits and one walk, allowing just one run. I still can’t say I’m at ease with Wells in the rotation, but he was on the mound when this nasty five-game losing streak finally snapped.

We’ll see tomorrow if Jason Johnson has any luck putting together a new streak in the W column. He faces off against Kris Benson in the afternoon game and will try for his first victory since joining the Red Sox in June and his first victory overall since May 28.

And, oh yeah- Lasorda for Commissioner.

It took them more than a month, but A####mp;T finally got me back online! I'm about to head off to work, but look for a real post SOON! For now, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that my Sox don't let the Royals complete a sweep tonight...

In my boredom, I finally gave in and created a MySpace page. If you feel like arguing about something that's not sports related, feel free to check that out.

During tonight’s Red Sox game at Tampa Bay, Rays TV broadcasters Dewayne Staats and Joe Magrane encouraged fans to avoid long lines at the box office by going to devilrays.com to purchase their game tickets. Now, of all the problems facing the Devil Rays franchise, are long lines at the box office that high up on the list?

The Red Sox avoided the sweep at the hands of the Devil Rays in rather vehement fashion. The game featured four home runs for Boston (in addition to three for Tampa Bay), including by David Ortiz, and a ninth inning in which the Red Sox scored as many runs as they had in the first two games of this series put together.

Boston got off to a quick start against Rays pitcher James Shields. Lead-off batter Kevin Youkilis was hit by a pitch in his first at bat, and Manny sent him home with a two-run home run later that inning. Through three innings, Sox starter Tim Wakefield allowed just two walks, with no hits or runs scored. Aubrey Huff led off with a homer in the top of the fourth, but Doug Mirabelli came back with one of his own in the next inning. Papi brought the Boston lead to 5-1 with a two-run shot a few minutes later.

Wakefield struggled some in the subsequent innings, allowing two more home runs (first to Carl Crawford in the fifth and then another to Jorge Cantu after a Huff double in the sixth). He was relieved by Craig Hansen at that point who did fairly well, allowing only two walks in the next inning and two thirds. Javier Lopez took over in the seventh with two outs, after Hansen allowed a lead-off walk to Julio Lugo. When Lopez gave up a single to Huff, Lugo scored and brought the D-Rays within one run.

In the eighth, both bullpens held their opponents hitless, but things took a turn for the worse in the top of the ninth after Shawn Camp took the mound for Tampa. He struck Mirabelli out for the final out in the eighth, but gave up consecutive singles to Alex Gonzalez and Kevin Youkilis to start the next inning. After that, Mark Loretta drew a walk, bringing Papi up to the plate, and he came through to get some insurance runs for Jonathan Papelbon by providing a grand slam. Still with no outs, Camp had a second chance when Ramirez came to the plate with the bases freshly cleared. He gave up another single to Manny and a walk to Trot Nixon before getting his first out of the inning, striking out Mike Lowell. After Camp walked the bases loaded with a base on balls to Coco Crisp (who was 0-4 on the night), Joe Madden decided it was time to make the call to the bullpen and bring Travis Harper in. Another run scored when Mirabelli hit into a fielder’s choice that forced Nixon out at third. Gonzalez, who had led off the inning with a single, came back up with an RBI double before Youk struck out to end the inning with the lead up to 12-5.

When Jonathan Papelbon came out of the bullpen in the bottom of the inning, the crackerjack broadcasting team from Rays TV announced his current season record of 25 saves in 27 attempts before telling us “We’re doing some research, but this does not seem to be a save situation. Papelbon probably just needs the work, as he has not appeared in the previous three games of this series.” The Sox, sadly, had not had a ninth-inning lead in the current series, and Francona probably did not need to call upon Papelbon, with his 0.42 ERA just then with a seven-run lead (we checked, and it turns out that is not a save situation), but the closer was loosened up and did his thing nonetheless. He retired the side in order and struck out his forty-second batter in forty-two and two-thirds innings. It was not a save, but it was a win for a Red Sox team that has dropped four of their last seven games.

And, oh yeah- Lasorda for Commissioner.

I am almost sorry to discuss the ####-kicking the Red Sox handed to former teammate Pedro Martinez at Fenway tonight. I loved Pedro when he pitched for Boston- his pitching was phenomenal and he was, for the most part, extremely congenial with fans and a funny guy. I continued to like and respect him after he left, as he handled his departure particularly well- the crowd at Fenway who greeted him with a standing ovation upon his return clearly agreed. I especially appreciated the gracious way he has discussed his former team in recent statements. He described himself, essentially, as one of Boston’s biggest fans and gave no indication of any animosity between himself and his former team and its fans.

As long as he is not pitching against the Red Sox- or for one of their division rivals- I certainly wish Pedro well in his current and future endeavors. That said, I felt only the slightest regret when the Red Sox shellacked him tonight, chasing him with eight runs- six of them earned- in only three innings of work.

They wasted no time against Pedro, with Kevin Youkilis leading off with a single and Mark Loretta following up with one of his own. Manny Ramirez drew a walk from his old friend, and Trot Nixon drove in the first run of the evening with a sacrifice fly. He and Jason Varitek- who had an RBI single- capitalized on Lastings Milledge’s fielding error, to make it a four-run inning for Boston. They added another four runs in the third- all of them earned this time- including a two-run homer for Alex Gonzalez before the Mets even got on the board.

New York scored the first of their only two runs in the fourth with a solo home run by Carlos Delgado. Jose Valentin contributed another homer in the seventh inning, but with Youk and David Ortiz tacking on two more runs in the sixth- to bring Boston’s total to ten for the night- the game was well in hand for the Red Sox. Josh Beckett picked up his tenth win of the season, giving up just five hits and striking out seven in seven and two-thirds.

I have a lot of respect for Pedro- I even dusted off my old #45 (Red Sox) t-shirt to wear today. Still, I’m glad he didn’t bring the Red Sox winning streak- up to eleven games now- to a screeching halt. Just as he said he still cheers for Boston, I will be pulling for him now that he will be facing other teams. If he pitches in their next series against the Yankees (which I don’t think is supposed to happen), I’ll be cheering that much harder.

And who knows- maybe we could celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the 1986 World Series with a rematch. This time, the Sox can get it right.

Until then: Vote for Pedro*

And, oh yeah- Lasorda for Commissioner.


*Yeah, I know fans don’t get to vote for All-Star pitchers. Flippin’ idiots…

For the second consecutive game, David Ortiz has come through for his teammates with a game-winning hit in overtime. Saturday afternoon, it was a two-run shot off of Tom Gordon in the bottom of the tenth inning. After Sunday’s game was postponed due to rain, Ortiz came back today and sent Kevin Youkilis home for the game-winning run against Clay Condrey in the twelfth.

It was a well-pitched, close game for over five of the first nine innings. Through the middle of the sixth, Philadelphia and Boston combined for just seven hits and two walks. In the bottom of the sixth, however, the Sox got things going quickly with a lead-off walk for Big Papi and a base hit for Manny Ramirez. They burned through three pitchers with a six-run, seven-hit inning.

That six-run lead was not safe for long, however, as Tim Wakefield had his own share of problems in the top of the seventh. Lead-off batter David Dellucci reached on an error by Mark Loretta who had just taken over defensively at second base after pinch hitting for Alex Cora in the previous inning. Wake struggled with his control, hitting Shane Victorino with a pitch and walking David Bell. Rudy Seanez took over with three men on and promptly gave up a single to Chris Coste and a bases-loaded triple to Jimmy Rollins. By the time Mike Timlin got the ball (after the Phillies had batted back around and Javier Lopez relieved Seanez), the lead had been shaved down to a single run, at 6-5.

In the top of the ninth, Jonathan Papelbon allowed a lead-off homerun to Chase Utley for the second blown save of his career (and the first that was clearly his fault). The Sox were not able to battle back in the bottom of the frame, sending the game to extra innings once more.

The Boston bullpen, sending Julian Tavarez, Manny Delcarmen, and Craig Hansen was less than impressive. Tavarez gave up a single, walk, and wild pitch in the tenth, and Delcarmen had a walk, single, and sacrifice hit in an inning and a third. When Hansen took over in the top of the twelfth, Victorino was already on second. He advanced on Coste’s ground ball (properly fielded by Loretta this time) and scored on Rollins’s double.

Fortunately for Hansen, former Boston closer Gordon could not get the job done this afternoon. Coco Crisp started off with a ground-rule double against him. With two outs, Youkilis sent him home on a base hit. He made it to second on the throw home. With the score tied back up, he was ready in scoring position when Ortiz came to the plate. For the second time in as many days, Papi delivered. In the past week, he has had nine RBIs, with three homeruns- including Saturday’s game winner and Wednesday’s grand slam. Not a bad week for Ortiz or his team, now riding a nine-game winning streak into a series (at home) against the best team in the National League and the city of New York.

And, oh yeah- Lasorda for Commissioner.