Red Sox Take 2 Out of 3 from Reds

Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz were missing from the lineup, but the Red Sox offense did not seem to notice, rolling to a 9-0 victory over the Cincinnati Reds yesterday. With Josh Beckett on the mound, 9 runs is far more than they ever would have needed. The offense got started with speed, when Jacoby Ellsbury lead off the game with a single and promptly stole 2nd base, and then 3rd base. Exactly what the Sox need to do with less firepower in the lineup. Dustin Pedroia did his part by hitting a sacrifice fly ball to score Ellsbury for the winning run. That's right, the second batter of the game drove in the first batter of the game for the winning run!

Ellsbury's 2 steals set a new record for steals for a Red Sox rookie with 33. The previous record was set 100 years ago in 1908 by Amby McConnell, remember him? With the season not even at the half way mark, Jacoby should be a shoo-in to break the all time Red Sox stolen base record of 54, set by Tommy Harper in 1973! As long as Ellsbury stays healthy, this one is well within reach.

After getting things started with speed, the Sox fell back on their true love, power! Cincinnati is known as a home run friendly park, and the Red Sox sure would agree with four players hitting home runs yesterday. Jacoby Ellsbury hit one to prove he is not only about speed, and Coco Crisp, JD Drew, and Dustin Pedroia all joined in with home runs of their own. Crisp had a nice day, accounting for 4 RBI's, and JD Drew refused to cool off, belting his 11th home run of the year.

All of this offense just made it too easy for Beckett. Josh went 7 innings, allowing no runs on 6 hits and 6 strike outs for his 7th win of the season. His best outing in a few starts. With Dice-K Matsuzaka still on the DL, it is good to see the Red Sox Ace step up and take charge! Speaking of Dice-K, he is scheduled to make a rehab start with the Pawtucket Red Sox on Monday. If all goes well, Dice-K is penciled in to come of the DL and make a start with the Sox on Saturday against the St. Louis Cardinals. That gives Justin Masterson time to squeeze in one more start this Wednesday in Philadelphia before swapping places with Matsuzaka. I expect Masterson will make the most of it.

The Red Sox will kick off a 3 game series against the Phillies beginning tonight, when Bartolo Colon will continue his terrific comeback. Now, before you go and start putting this one in the win column consider two things. The first is that the Phillies are having a great season. They are in first place in the NL East with a 41-30 record (compared to to the Red Sox record of 44-28). They are a slugging team this year, leading the NL in most offensive stats. If the Sox are going to win in Philly, they will have to prove their pitchers can stop a truly potent offense. Are you listening Colon, Lester, and Masterson? That goes for the bullpen too! And with Ortiz still on the DL, and Manny possibly sidelined with a strained hamstring, the Sox will not be bringing the same punch to the table. The Sox will be facing good pitching as well, including an old nemesis, Janie Moyer. I know, you thought he had retired and become a cross walk guard a long time ago. But, no, the crafty 45 year old lefty is actually still pitching, and pitching well, as his 7-3 record this year shows.

While the Red Sox often play in friendly ballparks when they are on the road (Baltimore and Tampa Bay spring to mind), Philadelphia will not be so welcoming. In fact, they've pretty much had it with our Red Sox Nation, and seem to be very tired of the Red Sox winning. They liked us when we lost as often and as painfully as they do. But, now that we have built a solid team capable of winning championships, they feel left out. In fact, Bob Ford, an Inquirer Sports Columnist, seems to feel that Red Sox Nation is a scourge on the country. Sheesh, talk about jealous whining! Especially from a team in first place. Maybe they just want more attention?

Well, if I were you, I would not miss this series - a battle of first place superpowers, the winner securing bragging rights!

Red Sox Top Reds in Extra Innings, 6-4

The Red Sox headed into yesterday's game with a big offensive handicap, missing both Manny Ramirez and Big Papi, their number 3 and number 4 hitters, from the lineup. In addition, playing in a National League Park, there would be no designated hitter so the pitcher would be taking the 9th spot in the order (and the Sox got 5 strike outs out of the 9th place in the order, as it turned out). The weakened lineup would then have to face one of the brightest young pitchers of 2008, Edinson Volquez. The edge the Sox needed to take advantage of was speed, with Jacoby Ellsbury and Coco Crisp both in the outfield.

Ellsbury got things running right away. He lead off the game with a single and advanced to second base on a wild throw, possibly due to Volquez worrying about a steal. The steal was coming - just one batter later, with JD Drew at the plate, Ellsbury stole third base and the throw got away, allowing him to score the first run of the day. JD Drew scored the Red Sox' second run in the fourth inning when he roped a triple to deep left field, and two batters later, snuck home on a wild pitch. Leading 2-1 in the 8th inning, JD Drew got things going again in the 8th with a lead off double, and scored on a Mike Lowell single to center field. Unfortunately, third base coach, DeMarlo Hale, thought Lowell was one of the team's speedsters and sent him home from first on a double by Kevin Youkilis. Predictably, Lowell was easily thrown out.

But, with a 4-2 lead, the Sox looked to be in good shape. Tim Wakefield had a very good game, only allowing two solo home runs in 7 innings to go with 6 strike outs. But, the bullpen was not able to keep the lead for Wake. The one time sure thing, Hideki Okajima, replaced Wakefield in the 8th inning. He faced three batters allowing a single, a strike out, and a walk. But, Terry Francona, wisely keeping Okajima on a short leash for a while, decided to change direction and brought in Manny Delcarmen. Manny immediately gave up a single to Javier Valentin, scoring a run from second base. But, before things got out of control, he thankfully induced Ken Griffey, Jr., to ground into a double play.

So, ninth inning, 4-3 lead, no problem, right? Well, almost. Jonathan Papelbon got the first two batters of the ninth out on consecutive ground balls. Then, Edwin Encarnation stepped in and waged a fierce battle with the Sox closer, fouling off some very good pitches. Papelbon, hoping to catch Edwin looking for a 98 mph fastball, opted for an 89 mph slider. Unfortunately, the slider did not have enough bite on it, and Encarnation sent it into the left field seats for a game tying home run. Papelbon finished off the 9th, but earned his 3rd blown game of the season.

The Sox needed runs, and the got them in the 10th on back to back solo home runs from Youkilis and Coco Crisp. For the Sox to get a rare road win, they needed someone to take care of the Reds in the 10th. Enter, Craig Hansen, and begin some National League roster moves. With the pitcher due to lead off, Corey Patterson was sent in to pinch hit, and Hansen got him to ground out, and then struck out Jay Bruce for two quick outs. But, to keep things exciting, Jolbert Cabrera singled to center field, and was then allowed to steal 2nd base, and then 3rd base with no throw from Kevin Cash. With a two run lead, the batter was all that really mattered. The batter was Ken Griffey. Hansen wisely was careful with Griffey, but maybe a bit too careful, walking him on 5 pitches. To speed things up on the bases, Bronson Arroyo, our old pal, was sent in to pinch run for Griffey. But, all the interesting strategies went for naught when Brandon Phillips flied out to JD Drew to end the game, which earned Hansen his very first save as a major league pitcher! Congratulations to Craig Hansen!

This afternoon, the Sox will attempt to take 2 of three on the road, a rarity these days. But, there are a lot of fathers out there looking for joy on Father's Day. With Josh Beckett starting for the Sox, you would think this was a sure thing, but Beckett has not been dominating lately. But, he has pitched well enough to keep them in the game. The Sox will again be dealing with a weakened lineup, so look for more of the same today - aggressive base running, low scoring game, and attack the bullpen.

(Photos Courtesy of ESPN)

Reds Beat Red Sox in Opener

The Cincinnati Reds took the first game of the three game series by the score of 3-1 yesterday. The game featured a good pitching match-up with Justin Masterson starting for the Red Sox against Aaron Harang for the Reds. Masterson has been terrific in his 5 starts for the Red Sox, and continued that excellence yesterday. He lasted 6 2/3 innings only allowing 3 runs, which is normally good for a win when you are a starter on the Red Sox. Unfortunately, Harang was just a bit better as he went 7 innings allowing only one run, an RBI single by Manny Ramirez to score Jacoby Ellsbury who had doubled in the fourth inning.

Reds' fans must feel encouraged today. Harang entered the season as the ace of their pitching staff, but has had a rather disappointing season thus far. Going into last night, Aaron had a record of 2-9, and had not had a win since May 12. Since then he has been struggling right up until his last start against the Marlins on June 8, when he gave up 7 earned runs in a 9-2 loss. But, last night, Harang pitched like the pitcher the Reds had expected him to be. Harang held the Red Sox to 4 hits, struck out 7, and did not walk anybody. The Red Sox do have a history of faring poorly against pitchers they have never faced, and that may very well have played in Harang's favor. Whatever the reason, he simply kept the Red Sox from getting any momentum, and spoiled a fine outing by Masterson.

Manny Ramirez had proclaimed that his leg felt good enough to play left field, and it was a good thing as he drove in the Sox' only run. But, late in the game he tweaked the hammy again and was replaced by Coco Crisp. Manny will sit out today's game, and the timing is not great with the Red Sox going up against Edinson Volquez (try saying that 5 times fast). Volquez is having a super season boasting a 9-2 record with a minuscule 1.56 ERA. That is not the type of pitcher you want to face with both Manny and David Ortiz out of the lineup. Not only are both of the Sox marquis sluggers sidelined, but there is no DH while playing in a National League park, so Tim Wakefield will be batting ninth. The Sox lineup will be significantly weakened.

The key to the Red Sox scoring runs today may be to leverage the speed this lineup can offer with both Ellsbury and Crisp in the outfield, and Julio Lugo at short. Those three can all create trouble on the bases. If they can get on, steal bases, get in scoring position, the Sox may be able to squeeze in a run here and there - particularly if JD Drew, Mike Lowell, and Kevin Youkilis decide to wage another game of who can hit the most home runs this year. All three are currently tied with 10 a piece. If the speedsters can get on base, the sluggers may be able to do some damage.

The last piece of the puzzle will be shutting down the Reds' offense. The Sox will have an excellent defensive alignment today, so it will come down to how effective Tim Wakefield's knuckle ball is. The Reds probably don't see very many knuckle balls, so if Wakefield can make it dance, he ought to have a solid outing.

Now get out there, get the lawn mowed, get your chores done, and head back in at 3:55 to watch the battle begin!

(Photos Courtesy of ESPN)