Mistake-Prone Angels Can't Get it Done

You've heard that pitching and defense wins championships? The Angels brought their pitching to the ALDS, but not so much their defense. As the Angels learned, mistakes are incredibly costly in the post-season. Last night, in the bottom of the 5th inning, the Red Sox had runners at first and third with one out. Jacoby Ellbury hit a text book double play ground ball to Howie Kendrick at second base. A double play ends the inning, and keeps the game scoreless. However, Kendrick, perhaps worried about Ellsbury's speed, rushes the play, bobbles the ball, and only manages to get one out at first base, allowing Mark Kotsay to score from third base, and Jason Varitek to move up to second.

True story. I'm watching the game by myself and as Dustin Pedroia steps up the the plate, hitless so far in the playoffs, I look him in the eye while adopting my best Vito Corleone voice and say to the television, "Pedroia, I told you one day you would owe me a favor. Today is that day. Do this for me." Moments later, I leapt off the couch as Dustin lofted a shot off the Green Monster, sending Varitek home to give the Sox a 2-0 lead. Kendrick's mistake turned a scoreless inning into a 2-0 lead for the Sox, much to the obvious dismay of his starting pitcher, John Lackey. Favor repaid, Dustin!

Jon Lester was amazing, yet again. I am always concerned when a team faces the same pitcher twice in such a short span, but Varitek and Lester worked a plan that kept the Angels guessing. I had my eye on the pitch count, not wanting to go to the bullpen at all if possible. Lester had thrown 96 pitches through 6 innings. Not great. But, Lester breezed through the 7th on 13 pitches, bringing his count to 109. Mid-season, that would be all. Give the shoulder a rest, and get your 8th inning guy out there. But, this is the playoffs, and the bullpen was gassed. So, I was shocked that he did not come out to at least get the 8th inning going. Lester had just retired 8 straight batters, and had shut down the Angels all night. A pit of dread settled into what had been elation only moments before, as I saw Hideki Okajima come in to face the top of the Angels order.

Okajima got the first two outs, but walked Mark Teixeira. With the Angel's big righties coming up, Francona played the odds and brought in Justin Masterson. This worried me even more. Masterson tried to stay away from Guerrero too much, and somehow walked the free swinger. A wild pitch then put runners on 2nd and 3rd, all set up for Tori Hunter's single to right to tie the game at 2. Images of 2004 flashed through my mind, recalling the Red Sox finally exorcising their demons with a huge come from behind rally over their nemesis, the Yankees. Were we witnessing the same for the Angels? Was this the hit that would ignite them? (I thought it was funny later when Masterson, in discussing his contributions, claimed credit for setting up the situation for Lowrie to hit the game winner).

No. Why? Mistakes! Masterson, not being very effective, came back out for the 9th and promptly gave up a double to Kendry Morales. Francona left him out there, correctly guessing the next batter was bunting anyway. Sure enough, a perfect bunt sent Morales to third base with one out, and Manny Delcarmen came in for Masterson. Now it gets fun. The Angles, loving to put pressure on a defense (unfortunately for them, the Sox defense was not making mistakes), decided to go for one of the most exciting plays in baseball, the suicide squeeze.

For anyone who is unfamiliar with the suicide squeeze, here's what happens. The batter is told to bunt to score the runner from third. With a bunt, the ball will be close to home plate, so the runner is heading directly at the ball, thus the "suicide" part. In order for this to work, the runner has to take off with the pitch to get as big of a jump as possible, also part of the "suicide". If the batter fails to lay down the bunt, the runner is dead. Well, that last sentence just gave away the ending. Delcarmen threw a nasty 96 mph fastball right into Erick Aybar's gut. Aybar would love to bunt towards first, but that pitch is impossible to do that with. Regardless, the play is on and the runner is on his way, so Aybar takes a swipe at it and misses. The runner, Morales, was dead meat, halfway down the third base line. Jason Varitek caught the pitch cleanly and charged down the third base line like a mother rhino protecting her young. After a fake throw to third, 'Tek dove towards Morales, tagged him cleanly and landed on his chest in the dirt. The ball, after the glove contacted the ground, skipped away, but too late. The tag had been applied, the bases were clear, the threat was erased. Man, talk about exciting playoff ball.

Now I thought, maybe we can win this. Maybe the Angels are just too tense, too nervous, thinking too much about their own demons to win. Ninth inning. JD Drew strikes out - not his night to be a hero. Jason Bay then sends a shot down the right field line. Another Angels mistake. The right fielder, Reggie Willits, tries to be a hero and dives at the ball, but he never stood a chance. He landed on his face as the ball shot past. He did catch a break when the ball bounced up into the stands for a ground rule double. Had the ball stayed fair, he would have had a long run to chase it down, and Bay would surely have ended the series with an inside the park home run! But, alas, Bay was forced to stop at second base.

Up steps Mark Kotsay. Now, Mark's wife's grandmother has just passed away, and Mark is in Boston, fighting for his team, but missing the funeral. He has had a terrific night, making two terrific outfield-like defensive plays at first base, and scoring the first run of the game. This one felt right. Another true story. I looked to the sky and implored to his wife's grandmother. I said, "Grammy, you know he wanted to be there for you. Help him honor your memory, help him put some power into his bat". Sure enough, Grammy sends a jolt of spiritual energy shooting into the bat (you could see the blue flame on high-def), and Kotsay rips a shot down the 1st base line heading towards the corner, sure to score Bay from second easily. But, using angels to battle the Angels does not work. Mark Teixeira must have an angel of his own, because his body lunged with cobra-like speed to his left, and with his body fully stretched, the ball somehow snapped into his glove for out number two. Luckily the play happened so fast that Jason Bay had no time to take off from second.

Remember Hank Steinbrenner whining that the Yankees failure this year was all due to injury? All that money apparently cannot allow them to buy enough depth to overcome that. Hopefully he watched last night as the Sox moved ahead to the ALCS, even though they had to suffer through injuries. Mike Lowell has been officially put on the injured list and is out for the next series too. The starting shortstop, Julio Lugo, has been out for months and will miss the playoffs. JD Drew missed most of September, Josh Beckett was reduces to one start in the ALDS from an oblique injury. How'd that work with the Sox missing the 2007 ALCS MVP at full strength, and their starting left side of the infield out? It worked pretty well.

Jed Lowrie, a minor league call-up, filling in at shortstop, and playing in his first post-season, stepped up to the plate in the 9th inning, two outs, and Jason Bay at second. Lowrie did not carry a bat to the plate. He carried a pen, and he used that pen to write his name on the pages of Red Sox lore. The Angles were still pumped up from Teixeira's terrific catch (finally, some clutch defense) when Lowrie's sharp ground ball found the hole between first and second base. Jason Bay was waved home, running faster with each step. In what took a split second to us mere mortals, must have lasted minutes to Bay. Like in those dreams when you are trying to run, but never seem to get closer, that's what home plate must have looked like to Bay. But, run he did, and as he approached, he dove with every ounce of power in his body, slapped the plate with his left hand, and flew into the arms of his new, proud, teammates.

I felt all along that, if the Sox were to have hopes of repeating, they'd have to go through the Angels at some point. I'm glad it was in a short 5 games series. The big 7 game series is looming now, and it is against our very own AL East Rays! Can you believe it?

I know, everyone is wondering, "is Josh Beckett hurting, or is he truly healthy, like they want us to believe?". Well, here is how you can tell. The first game of the ALCS is this Friday. Josh Beckett is the Red Sox ace (apologies to Lester who has become at least a co-ace). Beckett pitched on Sunday, and his next regular start on 4 days rest would be Friday. Having your ace start in the first game of a series is the best possible scenario. So, here's how you tell if Beckett is truly healthy. If he gets the start Friday, he's healthy (or has fooled the Sox medical staff). If he is not healthy, and would benefit from more rest and rehab, then he won't get the start. Simple as that.

I love this time of year! What a series - thank you LAA Angels! You made this tough, fun, and incredibly entertaining. Head home, heads held high, and get ready to do it again next year. By the way, don't be foolish and let Teixeira get away - you need him.

(Photos Courtesy of ESPN)

Red Sox Crush Orioles

September is crunch time, and the crunching sound you've been hearing so far is the Orioles being crushed underfoot by the Red Sox. Last night's match up seemed to strongly favor the Red Sox, but these things don't always play out the way you expect. However, last night's game did indeed play out the way we expected. Orioles' starter, Radhames Liz, is simply not sharp enough with his control to contain a lineup like Boston's. As a result, the Sox jumped all over him in the 3rd and 4th innings to give Jon Lester a more than comfortable 10-1 lead. The Sox would add some insurance in the latter innings to take a 14-2 victory.

The Sox have taken the first two games of the series with one more win needed to sweep. In the last two series against the White Sox and Yankees, the Sox also snatched the first two games, only to drop the third game each time. Daisuke Matsuzaka will try to reverse that trend this afternoon.

Like I said yesterday, we need to keep an eye on Jon Lester to make sure he does not burn out in his first full season. Lester pitched well yesterday, but not great. He only allowed one run in the 5 innings he pitched, but he surrendered 6 hits and 4 walks. That helped get his pitch count up to 99 by the end of 5 innings. Thankfully, the Sox had a 10-1 lead by that point, and Terry Francona made the right move by taking Lester out at that point. If the game had been against the Rays, and the score was 1-0, that choice would not have been so easy to make. So, the scoring barrage truly helped allow the Sox to sit Lester so early in the game, while still giving him the win.

The bullpen did a nice job of wrapping things up. It was nice to see rookies, Chris Smith and David Pauley fare well. There is simply too much offense to go into any details. The Sox had 20 hits and 8 walks, and no one was left out. Dustin Pedroia batting in the cleanup spot again and drove the nail into the Orioles' coffin with a 4th inning three run home run, amazingly, his 16th of the year. Pedroia also has 188 hits this season, and I'm watching to see him top 200, which is quite a milestone.

If you have been wondering how to treat the Yankees-Rays series, I'll tell you. You hope for the Yankees to win, period. Notice I said "hope" and not "cheer for". There's no reason you need to like the Yankees, and no reason to show them any love. However, if the Yankees beat the Rays, and the Sox win on the same night (which is something you ARE cheering for), then the Sox gain critical ground on first place, while the Yankees get no closer. This is what happened last night. The Yankees beat the Rays, and the Sox won. The Sox are now 4 games behind Tampa Bay, while the Yankees are still stuck 7 games behind Boston for the Wild Card. Let's hope for the same thing today!

The Sox' injury situation seems to be improving just in time. Tim Wakefield has already returned, and the Red Sox confirmed that Josh Beckett will pitch on Friday against Texas, although he will be limited to as few as 75 pitches in that first outing as a precaution. Mike Lowell is also nearing a return, and could get into the lineup during the Texas series as well. Finally, Bartolo Colon is expected to make one more rehab start and the Red Sox hope to use him next weekend when they host a double header against Toronto. With rosters expanded, no moves would need to be made to use Colon, and Colon would help prevent the double header from messing up the starting rotation. The Sox, with the return of Beckett, have a full starting rotation again, so I see Colon helping by being able to give key playoff pitchers some rest as the season begins to wind down.

So, let's hope for another productive day against the Orioles, and a Yankee win over the Rays.

(Photos Courtesy of ESPN)

Red Sox Show Off Depth in Second Route of White Sox

When David Ortiz was shown the lineup for yesterday's game, he shook his head in mock disgust, and claimed that it was time for him to retire. No, Big Papi was not demoted in the lineup, he was penciled in to bat 3rd, as usual. His surprise was seeing that, batting right behind him in Manny Ramirez' number 4 spot, was Boston's own Mighty Mouse, Dustin Pedroia. Before you start flooding the Red Sox front office with calls for Terry Francona's head on a platter, you need to know two things. First, Kevin Youkilis was forced to miss yesterday's game with a flu-like ailment. With JD Drew and Mike Lowell still on the DL, Tito needed to mix things up a bit. Yes, there are other interesting players to consider for the cleanup spot though. Jason Bay perhaps, or Mark Kotsay maybe? What about Jeff Bailey, one of the best hitters in Pawtucket, called up to help fill in for all the injuries?

Well, that leads us to the second thing you need to know. That is that Dustin Pedroia, in a recent announcement by his agent, completed his contract agreement with the devil himself. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. A photo of the historic deal is provided here.

Okay, maybe he did not actually sign a contract with the devil (especially a record contract, like the one in the photo), but you can't prove he didn't, can you? How else can you explain Pedroia, all 5' 9" of him, suddenly raking the ball with impunity? The day before, Dustin went 4 for 4 with a double and a walk, and he simply went out yesterday and repeated the exact same feat! He has reached base safely in his last ten plate appearances! Not only is he beyond hot, but he somehow swayed the manager to bat his diminutive frame in the cleanup spot, a lifelong dream, no doubt, and something only the devil would be able to accomplish. You can picture the devil (imagine the part being played by Scott Boras and it is pretty easy) waltzing into Francona's office like a mafia boss. "Tito, my friend, you remember how we helped you beat the Yankees in 2004 when the outcome appeared hopeless? We said one day we would ask you for a favor. Well, my friend, today is that day." See, that explains it all!

But, let's not let all this devil talk overshadow the fantastic major league debut of yet ANOTHER minor league prospect who took advantage of his opportunity to shine. Michael Bowden took the mound yesterday, filling in for Josh Beckett, and completed a day to remember. He must have had a good dose of butterflies in his stomach, but it did not show. He walked Orlando Cabrera to start the game, and probably thought, "uh oh". But, when the next batter grounded into a double play, he surely breathed a sigh of relief and knew this would turn out to be a good day.

Remember, this is a 21 year old kid, facing some historic MLB hitters; Ken Griffey, Jr., Jim Thome, Jermaine Dye, Carlos Quentin. He kept his composure, pitched like a big league pitcher, and gave the Red Sox what they needed, 5 solid innings. After 5 innings, Bowden had given up 2 runs on 7 hits and a walk, struck out 3, and left with a 5-2 lead. In the bottom of the 5th, the Red Sox scored two more runs to help out his mind at ease that the lead would last. Bowden had only thrown 89 pitches, but I think Tito did not want to push it too far. I think Terry felt, if Bowden leaves now, he is uplifted and excited with his first major league game and should surely get a win. But, if he goes back out there, we run the risk of having him get knocked around and put a chink in his confidence. So, that was it for Bowden, who is currently on the Buccholz track - get a few spot starts in September to get your feet wet, them come back to Spring Training and complete for a regular starting job.

The Rays won, yet again, so the AL East battle remains at status quo, the Rays holding their 4 1/2 game lead. The Yankees, however, let one slip through their fingers in a 7-6 loss to Toronto. The loss puts the pinstripers 7 games back in the Wild Card race. Not looking good for them. The Twins also lost yesterday, increasing the Red Sox' lead in the Wild Card to 3 1/2 games over the Twins. But, another win over Chicago today could create another flip flop in the Central Division. The White Sox are only 1/2 game ahead of the Twins. The playoff picture out west is not very interesting. The Angels are going to be the Division Champions, and that's it.

This afternoon, we'll see how Tim Wakefield does in his second start after coming off the DL. His last one was a successful outing against the Yankees, and today he faces a good pitcher in Gavin Floyd, who is 14-6 with a 3.70 ERA. Floyd has never pitched at Fenway Park. He is 1-0 against the Red Sox, but he did give up 5 runs in the process, squeezing out a 6-5 victory. Beautiful day for a ballgame, so let's get out there and warm up those brooms!

(Photos Courtesy of ESPN)

Matsuzaka Owns Chicago

Daisuke Matsuzaka pitched his best game of the season against the Chicago White Sox earlier this month on August 9th, in Chicago. In that game, Dice-K went 8 innings, allowed 4 hits, 3 walks and one earned run, while striking out 4 batters. Boston won that game 6-2. Yesterday, Dice-K topped that game with an even more impressive game against the White Sox, this time in Fenway Park.

Dice-K, again, went 8 full innings yesterday, this time allowing no runs while giving up only 2 hits and 2 walks while striking out 7. In 8 innings, the minimum number of batters a pitcher can face in 8 innings is 24. Thanks to a double play, the Dice-Man only faced 27 batters yesterday. Just a brilliant day for the Red Sox' leading Cy Young candidate for 2008.

While Dice-K was mowing them down, Dustin Pedroia was lighting it up. Yes, our own Mighty Mouse had a field day, going 4 for 4 with a double, a walk, and 2 stolen bases. When Pedroia got on base, Kevin Youkilis, David Ortiz, and Jason Bay each took turns driving him in. Youk and Bay were the big run producers, driving in 3 runs a piece. Our newest acquisition, Mark Kotsay, has played in two games, and hit two doubles. He's on pace to hit 30 doubles in his short time with the Sox (don't you hate those silly "projected to..." things that writers come up with, as if today's pace will continue uninterrupted).

The Red Sox' win only allowed them to remain in a holding pattern, as the Rays, Twins, and Yankees all turned in wins as well. The Rational Sox Fan playoff calculation indicates that the Sox must go 16-12 to finish the season and guarantee a playoff berth. With 19 games remaining at home, that sounds very doable!

Quite a bit of roster juggling took place yesterday as well. The Sox recently acquired David Ross, a catcher with 8 years of big league experience, primarily as a backup catcher. In order for Ross to be available for the playoff, he needed to be added to the 40 man roster prior to August 31. So, yesterday, the Sox did just that. Sean Casey was moved to the 15 day DL, joining JD Drew and Josh Beckett. That, plus a move that send Julio Lugo from the 15 day DL to the 60 day DL, created room for Ross, and allowed the Sox to keep recently called up David Pauley in the bullpen, and open up an opportunity to call up Michael Bowden from Pawtucket.

Bowden will be making his major league debut tonight as the starting pitcher against Mark Buehrle. Bowden is a very promising young right handed pitcher, and with Beckett out, and Colon not yet ready, this gives the Sox a chance to give Bowden a taste of the big leagues, just like they did with Clay Buchholz last year. Buchholz made the best of his 2007 call-up, let's hope Bowden follows suit!

(Photos Courtesy of ESPN)

Jays Win the Battle of the Birds

In this case, the Red Sox' bird is spelled with a 'y', as in Paul Byrd. Byrd made his debut for the Red Sox, and certainly did better than Clay Buchholz has been doing lately. While Byrd was no Jon Lester, he looked like a reliable 4th or 5th man in the rotation. His pitching repertoire is not overpowering, rarely touching 90 mph. He does not strike out a lot of batters, instead, he gets them out with ground outs and pop outs, keeping the batter off balance enough to keep balls from being hit too hard. That approach allows him, on good nights, to conserve pitches and go deeper into games.

Last night, Byrd pitched into the 8th inning holding the Blue Jays to 4 runs. Not a bad outing, but Roy Halladay, pitching for Toronto, was in the midst of pitching a shutout. Halladay was on his game, and he is a workhorse. If he is pitching well, you have little hope of getting him out of the game and attacking the opposing team's bullpen. Halladay held on to the 4-0 shutout until the first batter of the 9th inning, Dustin Pedroia, sent the first pitch of the inning up into the Green Monster seats. Halladay managed to get the next three batters out to end the game for a final score of 4-1.

After the offensive barrage the Red Sox put on the Texas Rangers, it was no surprise that they would have an offensive letdown, especially against a "real" pitcher, like Roy Halladay. The loss did not harm the Red Sox in the AL East chase as the Rays also lost last night. The Yankees won, but there are more worrisome teams than the Yankees right now, particularly the White Sox and Twins, both team winning last night, and both of them now 1.5 games behind the Sox in the Wild Card standings.

But, with Josh Beckett taking the mound this afternoon on an extra day of rest, thanks to Friday's rain out, I like their chances to win this one!

(Photos Courtesy of ESPN)

Lackey Misses No Hitter, Takes Pedroia Off Christmas Card List

Last night was a beautiful night to be at the ballpark. Perfect weather, nice seats, and a near historic pitching outing by John Lackey. Lackey did not look like he was throwing anything overpowering, primarily throwing a low to mid-90's fastball, and mixing in a slider, occasional curve, and a rare change up. He really wasn't throwing overpowering pitches, nor was he drastically mixing up speeds. Lackey only struck out 4 batters the entire game. Red Sox batters were generally putting the bat on the ball, but they could only muster looping fly balls to the outfield, or ground ball aimed right at infielders.

Inning after inning would pass and we'd keep waiting to see a base runner in a white uniform, and the potential for a rally. Other than JD Drew being hit by a pitch in the second inning and Dustin Pedroia drawing a walk in the 6th inning, no Red Sox batter reached base. Unfortunately, I broke the cardinal rule of a no hitter. I spoke the fatal words "no hitter" while the no hitter was underway. In fact, I said the words as often as I could casually bring them up in conversation starting around the 6th inning. You know, things like, "could you pass the ketchup, I don't want to get up and miss any of this no hitter", and "what a nice night to try for a no hitter, isn't it?".

So, if I jinxed it for John Lackey, I apologize (NOT). There was really not too much buzz about the on-going no hitter in the crowd until the bottom of the 8th inning. I guess people didn't think it would last that long, and when the 9th inning came around and the Sox were losing 6-0, I scanned the crowd and noticed that I could not find a single empty seat. Even though the Sox looked certain to lose, the Fenway Faithful understood that a piece of baseball history was unfolding before them, and no one wanted to miss what would happen.

Another interesting tidbit. I have seen home crowds actually being to cheer for a visiting pitcher in the 9th inning when pursuing a no hitter, even when their team is the one to suffer the loss, like when Curt Schilling chased a no hitter against the Angels last season in Anaheim. Sox fans? no chance. Everyone was interested that a no hitter was in progress, but not a single solitary clap or voice of encouragement went out to Lackey. I have no doubt whatsoever that, had Lackey completed the no hitter, he would have received a warm standing ovation in recognition of the feat (and the first no hitter by an opposing pitcher in Fenway Park in 50 years). However, up until that final out, every Fenway fan was cheering for one thing, and one thing only...a hit that would ensure there would not be a no hitter in our house, and a hit that would fire up a last minute rally.

So, with one out in the ninth, Dustin Pedroia laced a ground ball single through the infield into left field for a clean hit, and the crowd let out a huge roar. Pedroia will never again receive a Christmas card from John Lackey, but he made everyone in Boston happy with that hit. Lackey was getting high on pitch count, and when Youkilis stepped up to the plate, I imagine Lackey felt just a little deflated. Youk did not pause to ponder that, instead he went for the kill, clobbering the second pitch he saw into the Green Monster seats, putting the Sox on the board 6-2. With the meat of the order coming up, and only one out recorded, the crowd suddenly had visions of a dramatic last minute come-back. But, alas, it was not to be.

Clay Buchholz, the Boston starter, had an up and down outing. He looked terrific opening up the game, and after two innings, he also had a no hitter going. But, with one out in the third, Mike Lowell misplayed an easy ground ball, and the inning unravelled for Buchholz. Before you knew it, there were two runs in, bases loaded, and still only one out. Not only that, but Vladimir Guerrero, the Angels power hitter, was at the plate. My stomach sank. one swing of the bat and this game was over before it got going. But, Clay showed some moxie forcing Vlad to ground into a blessed inning ending double play.

Clay started off the 4th inning by allowing a single and a home run. Everyone was waiting for Francona to get him out of there before everything caved in. But, Varitek went out for a chat, soundly slapped Clay across the face and said "snap out of it man, your team needs you". With that, Clay realized he was right and proceeded to retire the next 10 batters in a row, taking the Sox into the 7th inning and saving the bullpen some wear and tear. So, a mixed outing for Clay, but he is showing signs of being a valuable member of the rotation.

Meanwhile, I attended the game with my daughter, and my sister and her son. Baseball is a game of streaks, trends, and records, and my sister has one going that we pray will end. She has never attended a Sox game in person and had the Sox win the game. So, next time she goes to a game, I'll let y'all know so you can adjust your wagers accordingly. The kids had fun though, and it was, for them, a pleasantly quick game, ending in 2 hours and 28 minutes!

Now, can the Sox get back on track behind Beckett tonight?

(Photos Courtesy of Yahoo Sports)

Red Sox Bullpen Collapses - Hands the Broom to Tampa Bay

That was one of the worst, and most depressing games the Sox have played this season. Dice-K Matsuzaka started out shaky in the first inning, walking three batters, but was fortunate that it only cost the team one run. After that, he settled in nicely, holding the Rays scoreless through 5 innings. But, with the walks come a higher pitch count. After 5 innings, Dice-K had thrown 101 pitches. Normally, there is a good chance Terry Francona would have sent him back out for the 6th inning, but this was only his third game since coming off the DL for shoulder weakness. That being the case, Tito made the prudent move to be cautious and go to the bullpen holding on to a 4-1 lead, and the nightmare was looming ahead.

First out of the pen was Hideki Okajima who has been like a Forrest Gump box of chocolates this season (you never know what your gonna get). Yesterday was a good day, and Okajima pitched a scoreless 6th. Next up, Manny Delcarmen (cue the gloomy music). Manny had been very shaky early in the season, and then settled in to a very nice rhythm. But, that rhythm has been faltering lately. Manny faced three batters, resulting in a double, and two singles. With the score now 4-2, Tito made the right move and yanked Manny before the game could get out of hand.

So, Craig Hansen came in with runners on 1st and 3rd, no outs. So what does he do to help? Nothing! He walks the first two batters to score a run, then gives up a double to Evan Longoria, scoring two more runs. There goes Dice-K's opportunity for a win, the score now 5-4 in favor of the Rays, and still no outs. David Aardsma got one out on a ground out, and Javier Lopez got a second on a strikeout, but gave up a two run single before getting out of the inning.

The 6 run 7th inning was devastating. The Red Sox tried to claw back into it, but lost by 1 run, the final score 7-6. The Sox needed some hitting, and Dustin Pedroia decided he was the guy. Here's how Pedroia's at-bats went: Home run, triple, double, fly out, double. Just a single shy of hitting for the cycle! JD Drew also hit a triple and drove in a run. So, some of the Sox cylinders where hitting, but not all of them. Manny Ramirez went 0-5, but he did bring in a run from third on a ground out.

Jason Varitek is still in a funk at the plate, and the Rays took advantage, in embarrassing fashion. In both the 5th and the 7th innings, the Rays intentionally walked Kevin Youkilis with two outs to pitch to Varitek. Varitek did not make them pay, grounding out once, and striking out the other time. He'll snap out of it, but right now, Jason is a hole in the lineup, and the other teams see that. Let's hope he finds his stroke in NYC this weekend.

That's right, while the Rays proudly hold the best record in all of baseball, the Sox and the Yankees finally meet up again, but this time in a battle for second place. This is not time for the Sox to be on a losing streak. Red Sox fans have been proclaiming they are not afraid of the Yankees, and the Yankees do not have the pitching to compete this year. Well, let's find out! Today's game features a lefty-lefty match up with Jon Lester going up against Andy Pettitte. Sounds like a fair fight. So, let's hope the Sox find some fight in them and keep the Yankees from climbing back into the race.

(Photos Courtesy of Yahoo Sports)

Brewers Short on Braun, Swept by Boston

No, the title does not have a misspelling. Milwaukee Brewers' left fielder, Ryan Braun, had an impressive afternoon yesterday, hitting two home runs off of Red Sox ace, Josh Beckett, accounting for 4 RBI and 2 runs scored. Shortstop JJ Hardy also had a 2 run home run, and Prince Fielder contributed with a solo home run of his own. All four home runs came off of Beckett, who was not his usual masterful self, yet amazingly, the Brewers would need more brawn than that if they hoped to beat the Red Sox yesterday, as Boston completed the three game sweep with an 11-7 victory.

David Ortiz led the way for the Red Sox offense, and with Manny Ramirez' bat acting a little bashful lately, Ortiz had to look for another dance partner. He found one in Dustin Pedroia, and what dance partners they made! In the first inning, Pedroia walked and Big Papi drove a beautiful double into the left center field gap to score Dustin from first base. In the third inning, Pedroia lofted his second home run of the year into the Green Monster seats, and Papi followed with a solo home run of his own around the Pesky Pole in right field. The dance continued in the fifth inning when Pedroia led off with a single and Papi drove his second home run of the day into the right field seats, this one 3 rows behind the visiting bullpen. Between the two of them, Papi and Pedroia drove in 6 runs and scored 5! Quite a 1-2 punch. But, they were not the only ones with offense. Jacoby Ellsbury drove in two with a bases loaded single in the 4th, and Kevin Youkilis hit a 2 run home run in the 7th, his 9th of the year.

With all that offense, Josh Beckett did not need to be brilliant, and he really was not as bad as the score looked. He went 7 innings, saving a tired bullpen, and struck out nine batters while only walking one. Three of the four home runs he gave up came on curve balls, and the fourth was on a change up. The curve balls all stayed up in the zone, and when they do, they are very vulnerable. The fact that it was the curve ball that got Beckett in trouble is better news for Sox fans than if the home runs came off of ineffective fastballs. But, this is something to keep an eye on. Beckett pitched reasonably well for the Sox in 2006, but a rash of home runs (36) prevented him from having a stellar season. Last year he kept the ball in the park much better, only giving up 17 home runs, and nearly won a Cy Young award. Let's hope this is just a blip on the radar, as he has now given up 9 so far this year.

Jacoby Ellsbury, even with his blinding speed, finally got thrown out stealing in the 4th inning on a perfectly executed pitch-out by the Brewers. The pitch-out was the only way they could have caught Jacoby, and it was inevitable that someone would time that play right.

We talked about this briefly yesterday, and at the time I thought it was only a one-time oddity. But, for the second day in a row, Terry Francona pulled Julio Lugo out of the game prior to the 9th inning in favor of Alex Cora, presumably only for defensive reasons. I am struggling to recall a time when a starting shortstop was ever pulled late in a game for defensive reasons only. Starting shortstops become starters because they are good and don't need to be replaced for defensive reasons! Typical defensive substitutes are terrific batters who are playing first base or outfield, but are defensive liabilities (think Jason Giambi), but not your starting shortstop! I am surprised I have not heard anything about this yet, but after you all read this, spread the word and let's get the talk going.

Every relief pitcher, other than Hideki Okajima who was resting a mild wrist sprain, was used on Saturday, so the Red Sox called up pitcher Chris Smith from Pawtucket as an insurance measure on Sunday. Van Every was sent back to the minors to make room. Smith did not get in to the game on Sunday, and that is unfortunate as he'll most likely be headed back to Pawtucket shortly. It appears the Red Sox were indeed planning on bringing up Bartolo Colon to pitch on Tuesday to take Clay Buchholz' spot. But, with the rain out Friday, Daisuke Matsuzaka was bumped up to Saturday. If Dice-K takes his next scheduled start on Wednesday, he'd be doing it on only three days rest, something the Sox would rather avoid. So, rather than have only one start to fill, the Sox now have two to fill. So here's the plan...

Justin Masterson will be called up for the second time this year to pitch Tuesday's game, and Bartolo Colon will pitch on Wednesday. Justin will be sent back to the minors after his start to make room for Colon, and it is clear that Smith will be sent back to Pawtucket to make room for Masterson. As long as the plan holds up, get ready for the Bartolo Colon experiment to begin! At least we are going up against the Kansas City Royals, so a little experimentation does not feel as risky as if we were going up against serious contenders, like the New York Yan....wait, strike that, I meant the Tampa Bay Rays!

(Photos Courtesy of Boston.Com)