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)

Red Sox Bullpen Falters as Red Sox Lose to Houston

That game was not what we expected. Jon Lester has been pitching very well lately, and so has the bullpen. But, neither one could keep the Astros from scoring yesterday, even when the Red Sox offense was willing and able to put lots of runs on the board. Lester actually did a bit better than the score would indicate. He had good innings in the 1st, 2nd, 4th, and only gave up a solo home run in the 5th on a curveball that stayed up to Carlos Lee. But, the 3rd inning was his downfall.

The inning started off with a hit by pitch and an infield single to put two men on, but Lester came right back to induce a ground out and a strike out. But, to get out of the inning, he'd have to retire Carlos Lee, who was having a hot day. Alas, Lee got a hold of a fastball for a single to drive in two runs. The next batter, Miguel Tejada, hit a ball off of Lester's ankle for a single. Lester was a bit hobbled but stayed in the game. I have to think the ankle was still throbbing when he threw his next pitch to Mark Loretta (remember him?). Loretta is not a power hitter, but Lester threw him an 88 mph meatball that Mark launched for only his third home run of the year. If not for the ball off the ankle, Lester's night may have gone much differently.

The five runs by the Astros in the 3rd were an answer to the Red Sox, who had just scored 4 runs in the top of the inning, all with two outs, thanks to back to back RBI doubles by Manny Ramirez and Mike Lowell and an RBI single by Kevin Youkilis. The Red Sox also had a big rally in the 6th inning, scoring 5 runs to take a 9-6 lead.

Now, a 9-6 lead against the Astros heading into the bottom of the 7th inning would seem like an automatic win for Boston, whose bullpen has been terrific lately. But, every once in a while, a pitcher just can't get it done. We've seen it happen to everyone, including Hideki Okajima, and even Jonathan Papelbon. Last night, it was Craig Hansen and Manny Delcarmen who were the culprits. David Aardsma had pitched a nifty 1-2-3 6th inning, but started the 7th off with a walk and a single. Terry Francona tried to be careful by bringing in Hansen, but Hansen allowed two runs to score in his first two batters. The first came off a single to Lance Berkman, and then a passed ball with Carlos Lee batting. The passed ball was charged to Jason Varitek, but it was a poor pitch that was no where near where Varitek had set up. That brought the Astros to within 1, with the score now 9-8.

We'd normally love to see Okajima and Papelbon wrap up the last two innings, but Francona went with Manny Delcarmen this time. He waged a tough battle against the first batter, Ty Wigginton, but Ty won the battle in a big way with a solo home run to tie the game. Manny kept battling and had runners at first and second (a single and a walk) and two outs. But, the pesky Lance Berkman came up again and went the opposite way to double in two runs. The pitch that Manny threw was a good one, it was low and away, tailing away from Lance. But, Lance went with the pitch and did a nice job of hitting. In my opinion, the batter won that batter (as opposed to the pitcher losing the battle).

But, the damage was done, and Mike Lowell's solo home run in the 9th was just a teaser as the Astros held on to win 11-10.


Luckily for the Sox, the Rays lost yesterday in extra innings to the Pirates, allowing Boston to hold on to a 1/2 game lead for first place. The Sox have one more game today against the Astros, with Josh Beckett on the mound, before heading to Tampa Bay tomorrow. Josh not only has a chance to win the game, but also has a chance to become the first Sox pitcher of 2008 to get a hit! Today is the last inter league game for the Red Sox, so until we get to the World Series, this is it for pitchers to hit.

(Photos Courtesy of Yahoo Sports)