Playoffs Kickoff Today! WWRD?

WWRD (What Would Rooster Do)? Okay, this series is going to be tough. The Angels are the top team in the American, which is hard to argue given their 100-62 record. The addition of Mark Teixeira to the lineup has given them more offense, but they are still a team that likes to be aggressive on the base paths and put pressure on opposing defenses with frequent displays of small ball. Their pitching across the board, and been very good, particularly in the bullpen. So, where do we go from here?

Okay, first of all, the Sox do not want to let the Angels take control of the game with small ball. To do that, they need to keep the Angels off the bases. Jon Lester is an excellent option for the first game. Being a lefty, he can also keep a sharper eye on runners at first base. So, I think the strategy to focus on is defense. The Sox need to give Lester all the support they can. Mike Lowell is the Red Sox' best option at third base, but he is still hobbled. Unless the medical staff indicates he is near 100%, I'd sit Mike and reserve him for pinch hitting duty. We all saw Lowell come up lame when he had to field a slow grounder barehanded and make the quick throw to first. The Angels saw that too. They know he is vulnerable to a bunt. We do not want to open that door for them, nor do we want Lowell to re-aggravate the injury on the first inning of the first game.

Instead, play Jed Lowrie at third, with Alex Cora at shortstop. That is their best defense on the left side of the infield right now. That also allows Kevin Youkilis to play first, where he is having a gold glove caliber year. First base will be important, and Sean Casey and Mark Kotsay are only adequate backups there. Of course, Dustin Pedroia and Jason Varitek round out the infield.

The question in the outfield is JD Drew. Drew claims he is 100% ready. The Sox definitely need some power in the batting order, and Drew is a very good outfielder, so I'd be inclined to use him in right. The only worry I have for Drew is his lack of playing time this September causing his timing to not be sharp yet. I am encouraged that he got two tune up games in before the season ended, but he did nothing special in those games. It is a bit of a chance, but we've seen the impact his bat can have in the post season.

So, obviously Jason Bay plays left field. Who is in center? That's easy, Jacoby Ellsbury. Coco Crisp went on a tear in early September, but has cooled off since then. From September 9th until the end of the season, Crisp only had 8 hits, batting .210 with 3 doubles, but no triples or home runs, and he also had no stolen bases. Contrast that with Ellsbury who ended the season with a 16 game hitting streak going back to September 10th. In that time, Ellsbury had 28 hits batting .389 with 2 home runs, 1 triple, 7 doubles, and 5 stolen bases. They are reasonably close defensively, so clearly the nod goes to Ellsbury.

Then, you manage the game situations. Crisp is now available to pinch run in late game situations, or to take over for Drew if Drew's back flares up. Sean Casey and Mark Kotsay are available to pinch hit in late innings with the game on the line, as well as Mike Lowell. If we are ahead in the game, keep the solid defense all the way. If we are tied or trailing, try firing those bigger guns to get the late inning lead.

Lastly, what about John Lackey, the Angels starter? I just can't get to worried about that somehow. Lackey has had a good year, but not a great year. This season he went 12-5 with a 3.75 ERA. That is good, but last year he had a 19-9 record with a 3.01 record. That is better. Last year the Sox rolled over Lackey in the playoffs. But, this year Lackey beat Boston twice in two starts. At home he went 7 innings and gave up 3 runs, and in Boston he went 9 innings giving up only 2 late game runs. And yet, in his last regular season start, he got destroyed by Texas giving up 10 earned runs in less than 3 innings.

So, which Lackey are we going to see? Who knows. But, I would be surprised if the Sox do not get to Lackey at least by the 6th inning. But, if you are concerned about Lackey, I'll support your concern with this tidbit. In 2008, only three Red Sox batters have gotten a hit off of Lackey, and one of those three is Manny Ramirez (who went 2 for 5). That's right. Dustin Pedroia is 3 for 6, and Kevin Youkilis is 2 for 7. No other Red Sox batter has a single hit against Lackey in 2008. Granted, Jason Bay, Jed Lowrie, and Coco Crisp have yet to face Lackey this year, so perhaps there is a surprise coming from one of them?

So, you are armed and ready. Nothing left for us to do but watch, cheer, and be fascinated by the unfolding events. The Red Sox have historically been part of some incredibly exciting and memorable playoff moments. The 1975 World Series. The 1986 comeback against the Angels in the ALCS, and the dramatic World Series loss to the Mets. The 1999 ALDS battle with Cleveland, the 2003 dramatic loss to the Yankees, and the 2004 incredible comeback for revenge. Even last year, we watched as the Sox, behind Josh Beckett, erased a 3-1 game deficit to the Indians to go on to win a second 21st century World Series. I don't necessarily expect another World Series this year, but I do expect some excitement.

Let the games begin!

Matsuzaka is Back!

Daisuke Matsuzaka had the worst start of his career in his last outing, which was his first start after coming off the 15 day DL. Fans were clearly worried after that outing, but Dice-K assuaged any concerns with a nifty 5 inning shutout of the Astros in Houston last night. Terry Francona pulled Dice-K after 5 innings, and only 87 pitches, most likely just to ease him back into things. But Dice-K looked good, striking out 4 and only allowing 2 hits. He did allow 3 walks, but that is what he does when he tries to force batters to swing. In the 4th inning, Dice-K almost provided some offense as well. On an 0-1 count, he squared around to bunt, then as the pitcher went into his motion, Dice-K pulled the back back and took a hack at the pitch launching deep down the left field line. For a minute it looked like the ball might carry for a home run, but it tailed foul, short of the fence. That would have been fun!

Terry Francona had given JD Drew a day off on Wednesday, knowing that Thursday's day off would give him two days of rest. I had thought the idea was great and could give JD a lift and keep him hot. Well, you have to tip your cap to Francona for that one, as JD clobbered a 3 run home run in the 3rd inning to give the Sox all the runs they would need to win yesterday. Dustin Pedroia drove in a run in the 7th, and Mike Lowell singled in the 9th with the bases loaded to drive in the final two giving the Sox a 6-1 victory. Houston's only run was a solo homer off of Hideki Okajima in the 8th inning with two outs. Oki followed the homer by allowing a single to Miguel Tejada, and Francona got nervous. Okajima has had a tendency to collapse quickly at times this season, and before that could happen, Terry sent Jonathan Papelbon in to get the final four outs.

Coco Crisp had his suspension reduced from 7 to 5 days after his appeal was heard. That is good news, and he will be serving his suspension when the Sox visit Tampa Bay this week. So, that may calm things down between the two teams, but I'm sure there will still be tension between them, especially if anyone is plunked accidentally. With Coco out, that will leave the Sox one player short in the outfield, which will be fine if Manny's hamstring is well mended, which it may not be. The Sox are not allowed to call up a player to replace Coco while he's on suspension, so think good thoughts for that hammy. You've got to wonder if something is wrong with Manny Ramirez though as he has turned as cold as JD Drew has been hot. For the second game in a row, he has gone 0-4 and is only 6-34 since June 13th. Let's hope he snaps out if it soon.

Tonight, stay tuned as Jon Lester continues his emergence as one of the AL's finest young pitchers with a commanding performance slicing through the Astros lineup like melted butter.

Lester Shuts Down Phillies' Potent Offense

Apparently Jon Lester stopped by this site yesterday and got the info he needed to pitch to Ryan Howard. Howard had almost single handedly destroyed Red Sox pitching the night before, and we did not want to see a repeat of that performance. But, Howard seemed vulnerable to left handed pitchers throwing curve balls, so we devised a strategy that Lester worked to perfection en route to a Red Sox 3-0 victory.

Ryan Howard stepped to the plate to face Lester in the first inning with a man on second and two outs. Following the game plan I outlined, Lester started him off with a curve ball to get him thinking, and followed that up with a fastball and a change up to show him some different speeds and keep him off balance. Then, two curve balls in a row, both of them in the dirt, brought the count to 3-2. Howard was thinking fastball, Lester threw change up, Howard struck out swinging. In the 4th inning, Lester fed Howard 3 curve balls and a change up to bring the count to 2-2. With a pitch to waste, Howard was surely thinking curve ball (or change up), but instead got a fastball that we swung at and missed for his second strikeout.

Howard had one more chance to get to Lester in the 7th inning, but two straight change ups, followed by two straight curve balls resulted in another swinging strikeout. Looks like we have solved the mystery of how to pitch to Ryan for a left handed pitcher. But, what can you do if you are a right handed pitcher? Well, if you are Jonathan Papelbon, you challenge him with power versus power. Papelbon did not try any fancy tricks in the 9th to strike out Howard for a fourth time in the game, but he did need 8 pitches to get there, finally blowing a fastball past his swinging bat.

Lester was brilliant, shutting down the Phillies through 7 innings, with Hideki Okajima turning in another strong inning in the 8th, and Papelbon wrapping up the 9th for his 20th save of the year. Much different results from the night before.

The offense came, once again, from Coco Crisp who belted a 2 run home run off of the crafty Jamie Moyer in the 2nd inning. Coco has been turning on the power recently with home runs in 3 games in a row! Julio Lugo drove in the 3rd Sox run in the 6th inning. Crisp had singled and stolen second base. With two outs, Lugo doubled to give the Sox an insurance run, one they would not need.

So, the series between these two powerhouses is even at one game a piece. Justin Masterson will try to win the series this afternoon for the Red Sox before a timely day off tomorrow. The Red Sox will take advantage of the day off to heal some wounds and get some rest. Kevin Youkilis is mending well from a back spasm, but will probably get today off as a precaution, and the day off tomorrow will ensure he'll be ready to return to the lineup.

Speaking of back issues, the Red Sox opted to err on the side of caution with Bartolo Colon, who strained his back swinging at a pitch on Monday. No major damage was done, but the Sox are afraid that Colon may alter his delivery to compensate for a stiff back and possibly put his recently healed shoulder at risk. So, they had opted to put Colon on the DL. This is good news for Justin Masterson, who will surely get to extend his stay with the big club while Colon rests up. To fill Colon's spot on the roster, the Red Sox called up right handed reliever, Chris Smith, from Pawtucket. Smith will add some insurance to the bullpen, but will only stick around until Daisuke Matsuzaka returns from the DL on Saturday.

But, Josh Beckett is scheduled to pitch Saturday! Well, the Sox are trying to build in a breather for Beckett. With the day off tomorrow, and Dice-K's return, the Sox are doing some juggling to get Beckett a little preemptive rest. Dice-K will take Beckett's start on Saturday, Lester will pitch Sunday on regular rest, and Beckett will get the ball on Monday against the Diamondbacks.

Got all that? The way things are going, I think we can expect more nagging injuries, more call-ups, and more role players getting a chance to contribute all through the season. The good news is that the Red Sox have a deep enough roster to make that work. So, now that the Celtics have joined the Red Sox as world champions, just sit back and enjoy some great baseball!

(Photos Courtesy of ESPN)

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!

Mariners Domintate Listless Red Sox

Let's take a brief look at yesterday's analysis here of the opening game of the Mariners - Red Sox series. Last night's game held low confidence. There were concerns about the Red Sox overall emotional recovery from the night before, as well as facing a team on a losing streak, with their number one starter on the mound to break the streak. There was one last key point, that the depleted lineup (particularly Manny's hamstring and Ellsbury's wrist) would hurt the offense quite a bit.

Unfortunately for the Red Sox, those assessments came true. Felix Hernandez pitched an effective game last night, throwing 6 shutout innings, and the Red Sox lineup (apart from JD Drew and Sean Casey) looked as lifeless as Count Dracula in the middle of a sunny day. JD Drew continues to shred opposing pitchers, going 2 for 3 last night, and Casey followed suit, going 3 for 4 with a double. But, with both Big Papi and Manny Ramirez out of the lineup, there was no clout to take advantage of the base runners. We had the battle-weary Coco Crisp in the lineup, who can add speed in Ellsbury's place, but Crisp never even reached base.

Brandon Moss rejoined the team, and as usual, played with a smile. He got a hit, and provided solid left field defense, and looked like he has not missed a step after his appendix surgery just last month. But Brandon was not enough of a spark to recharge the Red Sox batteries last night.

Bartolo Colon was off of his game as well. We knew he would not win every game all season, and if you are going to have an off day on the mound, you might as well do it on a night the offense has no interest in scoring runs. Losing 1-0 is much more frustrating than losing 8-0, like they did last night. Colon looked mortal last night. His fastball was, on average, a little slower than it had been, and he was getting it up in the zone too often. His other pitches were not as effective as usual, but he was able to battle reasonably well and left the game after 5 innings behind 6-0. Now, before his next start, can the coaches work with Colon on throws to second base? He made two throwing errors last night, one would have started a double play, and the other was a pick off attempt. Both throws ended up in center field!

David Aardsma gave up the other two runs, but the surprise pitcher was Javier Lopez. Terry Francona saw this game was getting out of reach, and did not want to deplete the entire bullpen. He needed someone to hold their ground, and eat up a few innings. Enter Lopez. Javier pitched the final three innings of the game, only allowing two base runners from one hit and one walk. Very impressive, and that saved the bulk of the bullpen to be ready today.

The brawl review committee has quickly sent down their punishments. Not surprisingly, the cheap shot Rays got hit the hardest, with 5 players earning suspensions. The Red Sox had three suspensions handed down. Coco Crisp got 7 games, not a big surprise, but the other two Sox players were more of a surprise. Sean Casey will be suspended for three games, and Jon Lester for a ridiculous five games! Further review of the melee showed that Casey threw a few punches and was an active participant in the battle. Okay, so we can see that punishment. But Jon Lester???? Lester did not join in the fray, which is wise for your starting pitcher, and he was never ejected from the game. Lester hit two batters, Carl Crawford with a curve ball (obviously not intentional), and Iwamura got grazed with an inside pitch. The umpire never saw intent, and no warnings were issued to Lester. So where the heck does MLB come off deciding that Lester needed to be suspended.

All players suspended can appeal their suspension. If Lester appeals, I think he'd have a good chance of reducing it. Now, Lester is a starter, and starters only pitch once every 5 days. They may have preferred to suspend Lester for one game, but for a starter, that does nothing. They simply take the suspension on a day they are not pitching anyway. So, the 5 day suspension is basically a one day suspension for a starter - they are forced to miss their next regular start, but would probably just pitch the next day on an extra day of rest. But, MLB should not have been suspending a pitcher who was not involved in the brawl, and received no warning or ejection from the umpiring crew!

Today, hopefully Manny and Ellsbury can rejoin the team and help generate runs. Tim Wakefield takes the mound, and has been pitching well of late. you never can predict what you'll get out of Wakefield, but you know you'll always get 100% effort, and it is tough to ask for more than that. I still think the Sox need to find a way to get back on the emotional track they had laid out prior to the foolish brawl. Sit Coco, let him spend a day with his therapist and get it all behind him, and let Ellsbury burn up the bases so Manny can drive him in.

Sox Sweep Rays as Emotions Boil Over

Yesterday I wondered if Joe Maddon would follow in Lou Piniella's footsteps and retaliate for Coco Crisp's hard slide into second base the night before, or if Joe would keep a level head and focus on leading his Rays to a win over the Red Sox to regain first place in the AL East. That question was answered quickly last night when Coco came up to bat in the second inning. Tampa starter, James Shields, fired his first pitch right at Crisp, grazing his leg as Crisp jumped out of the way. Crisp was waiting for that, and charged the mound setting off a bench clearing brawl. Thankfully, no one was hurt in the scuffle that ensued. Who is right and who is wrong in all of this? I'll tell you. Everyone was wrong, no one involved was right.

Let's start with Coco. When he slid into second base last night and shortstop, Jason Bartlett, blocked the bag with his leg, Coco jammed his thumb. Bartlett's blocking of the bag with his leg was not incredibly honorable, but not illegal. If the runner slides in feet first, you won't see it happen. However, I don't believe Jason was trying to hurt Crisp in any way, he was only trying to ensure the out. Crisp over-reacted, and for some reason let that mild offense just eat at him. Later in the game, he had set his mind on revenge. Now, on his next attempted steal, if Bartlett was again covering the bag, and Crisp slid in hard to take him out, that would not be so bad - eye for an eye. I don't even think Bartlett would have been surprised, and as long as no one got hurt, it probably would have ended with a few choice words. But, Iwamura covered that bag, not Bartlett. This did not matter to Coco - he jammed his thumb - someone was going to pay. First big mistake. Coco did slide in hard, and the Rays took offense, BUT, no one got hurt, Crisp made his point, and the Rays got to tell the world what a jerk Crisp was.

That brings us to last night. Joe Maddon obviously gave the green light to plunk Crisp. A win last night would have put the Rays in first place. Perhaps Joe thought back to the battle between Jason Varitek and A-Rod a few years ago and how that seemed to spark the Red Sox. Maybe. But Joe, throwing at a batter intentionally, and knowing it would incite a riot, would surely get your starter ejected from the game. Why do that in the second inning? Why not wait until late in the game? As it went, Shields did get ejected, and Maddon had to use 6 pitchers to get through the game - a convincing 7-1 spanking. Lucky the riot did not injure anyone Joe! Shields did do one thing right. He threw at Crisp's thigh area - not his head.

Why Crisp got so hot headed over all this is a mystery. He has generally been very calm and rational since joining the Red Sox. Crisp let it eat him up the day before and carried in to last night's game, just waiting for the fireworks to begin. Either he has a bad temper that rarely comes out, or he has some pent up issues that have been waiting to burst out (sharing time with Ellsbury maybe?). Crisp also knew that he'd be ejected. With Big Papi already out, and Manny Ramirez nursing a sore hamstring, why get yourself thrown from the game? He could have taken the first base, stolen second (feet first) and third and scored. At that point you glare back to say - "take that!". But, no, he goes and gets thrown out of the game, and will likely be suspended.

The bizarre night continued when Manny and Kevin Youkilis got into some kind of fight between innings in the Red Sox dugout and had to be separated. We may never learn what incited that one, but something odd is going on here. If not for that foolish incident, I may have crowned Manny the hero of the game. He did go 2 for 3, hit a 3 run home run, and a two RBI single filling in for Big Papi as the DH. But, fighting in the dugout strips you of that award. Manny was also removed in the 7th inning when he tweaked his hamstring jumping back from an inside pitch. He went to first and wanted to stay in the game, but Francona wisely pulled him, just to be safe. Apparently, he is doing okay, and I expect he'll be in the lineup as DH again tonight.

But the hero of the game, in my book, was Jon Lester. Lester pitched a very nice game, allowing only one run in 6 1/3 innings, giving up 8 hits. but no walks and 5 strike outs. Lester wins the hero award, not only for pitching well, but for playing with intensity, but appearing oblivious to all the craziness around him. Case in point...in the fourth inning, Cliff Floyd came up to bat. Lester threw a pitch inside that came close to hitting him. Floyd jerked back and avoided the pitch with relative ease, but with tensions already stretched, that was the sort of thing that could set another melee in motion. Floyd squared his shoulders, puffed up a bit, and glared at Lester taking a slight move towards the mound - trying to judge Lester's intent. Lester was a rock. He stood his ground, stared right back, but not with an malice whatsoever. He stared back as a competitor, as if to say, "are you done now, can you get back in the box so I can strike you out?". Lester was not to be intimidated, and Floyd saw that. He crawled back into the batters' box and did indeed strike out. On his return to the dugout, he glared at Lester the whole way. Lester did not even notice - he had a game to play. "This is not hockey", he thought, "this is baseball. I'll do my talking with my pitches". He kept up his intensity all game. He even hit two batters as the game progressed, but made it clear through his demeanor that neither was with intent. Hero of the game, Jon Lester.

But wait, there's more. Also in the 4th inning, Jacoby Ellsbury made a sweet diving catch of a ball hit to center field. As he slid, his glove rolled under, much like what happened to JD Drew earlier in the season, and he sprained his wrist. Ellsbury came out of the game. His wrist is sore but seems to be structurally intact. I expect he'll get a day or so to rest it, depending on how it feels each day. With Manny's hammy hurting, Crisp ejected, and now Ellsbury out, Francona looked down his bench and did not see any outfielders he could send in. So, for the second time this season, Kevin Youkilis was recruited to play right field, Chris Carter (also primarily a first baseman) was already playing left field in Coco's absence. I wager that may be the first time in Sox history the outfield corner positions were both being manned by first basemen.

With the outfield situation looking questionable, the Sox had to, unfortunately, send Chris Carter back to Pawtucket after the game in order to call up Brandon Moss, an actual outfielder. Carter enjoyed his first games ever in the majors. Last night he had two hits and scored two runs, and will hopefully get a chance to contribute some more in the future.

Tonight, our Great Hispanic Hope, Bartolo colon, goes for his fourth win for the Sox. I'm not sure I feel confident about this one. There are a couple of things that worry me. The first is the mental and physical state of the Red Sox. Can they mentally settle back down and get back to solid baseball tonight? And how will Manny's hamstring and Ellsbury's wrist affect the lineup? If they are both out, it will hurt quite a bit. Also, the Mariners are on a 4 game losing streak, and have their best starter, Felix Hernandez, going tonight. Losing streaks always end, and number one starters are usually the ones to end them. Hopefully, the Sox got a good night's sleep, and Brandon Moss comes up with energy to give them a spark to get right back on the attack. The Mariners are in possession of the worst record in baseball right now. Let's keep it that way!

(Photos Courtesy of ESPN)

Sox - Rays Rivalry Heats Up

Over the past few years, under Lou Piniella, the Sox and Devil Rays have had their share of heated scuffles, but the smoldering emotions never quite lit into an all out fire. Those smoldering embers got fanned into a dull red glow last night when Coco Crisp, during an attempted steal in the 8th inning, slid hard into second base with a take out slide of Akinori Iwamura. Coco's slide was intentionally hard, and was done in retaliation for Rays' shortstop Jason Bartlett who blocked second base with a knee in the 6th inning when Coco slid in head first in a successful steal. The dropped knee caused Coco jam his hand and sprain his thumb. He stayed in the game, but may get a night or two off, depending on how the thumb feels today.

Coco had hoped Jason Bartlett would take his own medicine and cover second in the 8th, but Crisp was ticked off enough that whoever was covering was going down. Ray's manager, Joe Maddon, was not pleased and let Crisp know it. Keep your eye on this situation. If Lou was still in charge of the Rays, there would be a price to pay tonight, but I'm not sure what will happen under Joe Maddon. The Rays are trying to convince the world they are for real, and deserve respect. They have been beaten down these past two games as they watched the Red Sox strip them of first place. Their star slugger, Carlos Pena, has just been placed on the DL with a cracked finger bone resulting from being hit by a pitch from Justin Masterson on Tuesday night, they have watched as the Sox have terrorized them on the bases, and now have this situation to deal with. This young team may not be able to contain their composure. Tensions are up, will the Rays handle it and simply play hard to regain first place with a win, or will they blow up and let emotions get the best of them?

And what did manager Terry Francona think of all this? "I went down to the bathroom", said Terry after the game. "I missed the rest of it. I was trying to get my zipper up. It wasn't going as fast as I wanted it to", he added. Man, getting old is tough!

Josh Beckett pitched well, but not great last night. He avoided a scare when his mud-clogged cleat slid on the mound during a pitch. Luckily no damage was done, but out of caution, Terry Francona pulled Beckett after 6 innings with the score 4-1. Three of the Sox runs had come in the 3rd inning, with Jacoby Ellsbury, JD Drew, and Manny Ramirez each driving in one run. JD has been turning up the power with Big Papi out of the lineup. Enough so that Francona inserted him in Papi's #3 spot in the lineup. Drew did not disappoint, going 2 for 3 with a walk, 2 runs scored, and a run batted in.

The bullpen, barring Hideki Okajima's meltdown a few days ago, has been stellar lately. Last night was more of the same. Manny Delcarmen wiped the Rays out with 3 straight strike outs in the 7th inning. Okajima looked more like his old self in the 8th inning, allowing a leadoff single, but setting the next three batters down in a row. Craig Hansen, giving Papelbon a night of rest, was able to mop things up in the ninth inning with a leadoff walk the only damage done. Hansen continues to look like a valuable addition to the relief corps. The Sox already have a top rate starting rotation. If the bullpen continues to perform as they have this past week, there will be no stopping this team.

Jon Lester takes the hill at an early 6:05 start time, and I am guessing that Coco Crisp will get a night to rest his thumb, Manny will return to left field, and Chris Carter will get his first start for Boston in the DH slot. The Red Sox, in a gracious gesture, have moved up the start time of tonight's game by one hour in deference to game one of the Celtics - Lakers NBA Championship game at 9:00. They are trying to give fans a chance to watch the Red Sox game, without overlapping the Celtics game. The Boston sports scene is simply buzzing. Within 12 months we've had the Sox win a World Series, the Patriots reach the Superbowl on the back of an unbeaten season, the Bruins at least made the payoffs, and now the Celtics are renewing an old rivalry in the NBA Championships.

In the DVD Giveaway Contest, the Red Sox won last night, scoring 5 runs, but had no home runs and Jacoby Ellsbury did not steal a base. While things will certainly certainly continue to change, the leader today remains Insight, with Fenway West in a close second. Rich M and MCG from Spain are right behind. As the stats pile up, those who guessed on the high side will begin to keep into the lead. Stay tuned.

(Photos Courtesy of Yahoo Sports)

Sox Lose Mother's Day Battle to Twins

The Red Sox lost last night 9-8, in a hard fought battle against the Minnesota Twins. Red Sox starter, Tim Wakefield, got the action going early...for the Twins, unfortunately. Somehow, Wakefield followed up his best outing of the season (a 5-0 win over the Tigers), with easily his worst of the season. After a quick 1-2-3 first inning, things looked promising. But, in the second inning the knuckleball went suddenly flat and the first three batters of the inning greeted Wakefield with a single, a double, and a home run to get the scoring started. Then, with one out, Wakefield walked Mike Lamb (you'll be hearing this name quite a bit) to set up the second home run of the inning, a 2 run shot for Adam Everett, his first of the year. The Red Sox escaped further damage in the inning, and saw a long road ahead of them staring at a 5-0 deficit heading into the third inning.

Twins' starter, Nick Blackburn came out a little wild to start off the third inning and hit the first two Red Sox batters, Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia, putting runners on first and second base. The free passes would leave bruises, but allow the Sox to get on the scoreboard in an inning where the Sox' bats and the Twins' defense waged quite a battle. David Ortiz followed Pedroia with a single to load the bases with no outs. The battle picked up when Kevin Youkilis stepped in and ripped a line drive to the gap between short and third. It looked certain to score at least one run, until third baseman, Mike Lamb made a highlight film dive to his left to snare the ball for the first out. Mike Lowell then put some wood on the ball send a shot to right fielder Michael Cuddyer. Now, get this straight, Cuddyer does not have a limp noodle throwing arm like the Yankees' Johnny Damon. Cuddyer has one of those throwing arms you treat with respect and don't test very often. Unless, that is, you are blessed with little wings sprouting out of each of your ankles. Jacoby Ellsbury, who was tagging up at third base, has such wings. It felt like there was a moment where time stood still for just a fraction of a second. The ball had settled into Cuddyer's glove and his eyes had just popped up and focused on Ellsbury at third. Ellsbury had one foot on the bag, body braced to explode out of the tall grass like a cheetah after his prey. Their eyes met for just that split second and they both knew the race was on. Suddenly time sped up again. Ellsbury launched his body towards home, Cuddyer's arm launched the ball on a perfect arc to meet him at the plate. They both arrived at home at nearly the same time, but the fraction of a second the catcher needed to secure the ball and apply the tag was all the advantage Ellsbury needed as he slid across the plate just ahead of the tag for Boston's first run. The Twins defense ended the inning as Adam Everett reeled in a JD Drew flare.

In the bottom of the third, the Twins continued to take advantage of Wakefield. A single, a walk, a passed ball, and a wild pitch all added up to a situation where the Twins had runners on second and third with two outs. Wakefield could not get out of the jam as Mike Lamb laced a single to center scoring both runners. That was all Terry Francona could handle. With the Sox now trailing 7-1, Wakefield got an early shower as Julian Tavarez came in to try to settle things down long enough for the Sox to catch up. Tavarez would do his job, ending the third inning, and only allowing one unearned run on the fourth on an error by the usually steady Mike Lowell that would have otherwise ended the inning.

In the top of the fourth, Coco Crisp would remind us that Ellsbury is not the only Red Sox player on the team with speed as he hit a ball to deep left field and raced all the way to third base for a lead-off triple. You won't often see a triple hit to left field! The Sox pounded on Blackburn in that inning scoring two more runs. David Aardsma then came in for Tavarez and did a terrific job of holding the Twins scoreless through the 5th and 6th innings. Blackburn also held the Sox scoreless and Boston was now behind 8-4 going into the 7th.

Yesterday, Coco Crisp was swinging a pink bat as part of MLB's efforts to raise breast cancer awareness on Mother's Day. Players may opt to play with pink equipment which is signed and auctioned off afterwards to raise money towards the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation. Maybe Crisp should swing a pink bat every day! In the 7th inning, with 2 outs, and JD Drew having singled before him, Coco used that pink bat to launch his second home run of the season to edge the score closer to 8-6. But, in the bottom of the 7th, Mike Timlin surrendered a lead off home run to Craig Monroe, his second homer of the game, to provide the Twins with the insurance run they would end up needing to win.

In the ninth inning, with the Twins still leading 9-6, closer Joe Nathan came in to ice the game. The Sox did not make it easy for him. After Ortiz grounded out, Youkilis and Lowell hit back to back singles, which JD Drew followed with a clutch double to center field scoring both runners and closing the score to 9-8. This set up another dramatic moment, as Crisp stepped in with his powerful pink bat ready to do more damage. Crisp scorched a pitch back up the middle that glanced off of the pitcher and rolled towards third base. JD Drew already had a sizable lead off second base, and when he saw the ball get away, his instincts kicked in and he took off for third. A runner at third with only one out would greatly help the Sox tie the game. But, Joe Nathan somehow made a fantastic play, as he managed to quickly recover the ball and toss it to third base just ahead of Drew for the second out. Kevin Cash was due up next, and although he was 2-4 so far that night, manager Terry Francona thought that sending Manny Ramirez in to pinch hit would be the safer bet. Manny had the night off with a sore quad, but made it clear he could pinch hit if needed. But, the odds did not play out for the Sox this time as Manny hit an easy ground out to end the game.

Lots of drama on Mother's Day. It is a shame when you can score as many as 8 runs, but not get the pitching to line up for an easy win. Wakefield had a tough night, but he'll bounce back, he always does. Alex Cora started at short for Julio Lugo, who was given one more night off. As expected, Jed Lowrie was sent back to Pawtucket to make room for Cora, and get more playing time in. Cora did not disappoint, playing flawless defense and going 3 for 4 at the plate.

Tonight, Sean Casey will be added back to the lineup and all expectations are for a reliever to be cut to make room. The question is, who? A good bet would be Craig Hansen, since he still has options to be sent back to Pawtucket. However, Manny Delcarmen, Julian Tavarez, and Mike Timlin have all had struggles this year. If the Sox are confident in using Hansen steadily now, we might see one of those players cut, which would require putting them up for waivers. My guess is they'll feel it is too early to make that strong of a move and simply send Hansen down for now. If not, I'd put my money on Timlin getting the cut. He's been fabulous for the Sox up until now, but his time in Boston is clearly winding down, and this might be the moment the Sox chose to part ways.

Stay tuned.

(Photos Courtesy of Yahoo Sports)

Twins Knee to the Head Leads to Red Sox Win

After a disappointing loss the day before to the Minnesota Twins, the Red Sox were able to bounce back yesterday with a 5-2 victory behind the solid pitching of Daisuke Matsuzaka, who improved his record on the season to 6-0. In Dice-K's last outing, he defeated the Detroit Tigers 6-3, but had to survive an amazing 8 walks in the process. Last night started out eerily familiar. Dice-K walked one batter in the first inning, and in the second inning he walked the lead off batter, and later with the bases loaded, he walked in the Twins' first run of the night. Three walks in two innings was sounding ominous. But, Dice-K was able to straighten things out and complete 7 innings without walking a single other batter. He countered those 3 walks with 7 strikeouts, while limiting the Twins to only 2 runs on 6 hits.

Good thing too, since the Twins' starter, Glen Perkins, was also having a great night and found himself clinging to a 2-1 lead heading into the 7th inning. Last night was Perkins' first appearance in the majors this season, and his first start ever for the Twins. In a situation like that, you are typically hoping to get 5 innings, maybe 6 from your young starter. Last night the Twins liked what they saw and thought they could stretch their good fortune to 7 innings. They were wrong.

Coco Crisp, leading off the 7th, got a hold of a Perkins fastball that came in too high, and sent it deep into the left field stands for his first home run of the year. With the game tied, the ninth batter for the Sox came to the plate. No, not Julio Lugo. Were you wondering about the title to today's post? The night before, Julio Lugo took a knee to the head on a close play at second base. After the game he was feeling "woozy" and was given the night off as a precaution. Jed Lowrie was given the start at second base, and again, showed Boston fans why he should be considered the shortstop of the future (possibly the near-future?). Lowrie followed Crisp with a home run of his own - his first one in the Major Leagues to give the Sox a 3-2 lead. All told, Lowrie went 3-4 last night, scored two runs, and completed a nifty double play to end the 5th inning. A big knock on Lugo has been his errors. Lowrie did go error-less last night, but he only had the one opportunity on the double play. Funny story about the home run. The Red Sox managed to retrieve the home run ball for Lowrie, but had to do a little negotiating to get it. They managed to swing a trade for an autographed Josh Beckett baseball in return for the home run ball. Lowrie commented with a smile, "Apparently, [Beckett's] signed ball is worth more than my first home run."

In the 8th inning, Mike Lowell hit a solo home run to add to the Sox total. For the second time in the past 3 games, both Lowell and Kevin Youkilis hit home runs on the same night. Youk continued his hot hitting with a solo shot of his own in the 2nd inning. The four solo home runs last night were the most by the Sox this season, and had there been a few more base runners, the game surely would have been a blowout.

Hideki Okajima confidently nailed down the 8th inning, as we are so used to seeing him do. He really does seem to perform much better when he is brought in to start off an inning, rather than get sent in with runners already on base. And finally, the ninth inning was wrapped up by Jonathan Papelbon, who showed no ill effects coming off of two straight blown saves. He was sharp, and even mixed his pitches up more than usual, but with solid results. Consider this, with two outs in the ninth, Papelbon welcomed pinch hitter Craig Munroe with two straight curveballs! I am not sure he has done that in his entire Red Sox career (I've got my stats people researching that one). Papelbon's line shows he gave up one hit, but the hit was actually a high pop up that hit a cable near the ceiling of the Metrodome and deflected away from the awaiting Jason Varitek. Also a positive sign that Papelbon has bounced back quickly, of his 20 pitches last night, seven of them went for strikes untouched - either called strikes or swinging strikes. Those numbers are more in line with his usual performance, unlike last night when only one pitch went for a strike untouched.

Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz will try to take turns with the new home run combo of Lowell and Youkilis. Last night Ramirez and Ortiz went a combined 0-9 and served only as casual observers to the victory. Perhaps tonight will be their turn to provide the power.

Keep an eye open today for player moves. Both Alex Cora and Sean Casey have completed their rehab assignments and are due to be added to the roster today. You can count on a pitcher being moved, as the Sox are currently carrying 13 pitchers. The easy move would be to simply send Craig Hansen back to Pawtucket, but if the Sox want to keep him and continue his progress, there will have to be a bigger, more permanent move of a player like Mike Timlin or Julian Tavares. We'll have to see how confident the Sox are in Hansen at this point in the season.

Unfortunately, the other move would have to be last night's hero Jed Lowrie. Lowrie should not be wasting too much time sitting on the bench as a backup. Smarter move would be to get him playing every day in Pawtucket. Only chance to keep Lowrie for a few more days would be to move Lugo to the DL, but I would not hold my breath for that. If Lugo needs one more night off, I expect we'd see Alex Cora start at short tonight. Terry Francona likes to get people involved right away.

Tim Wakefield faces off against Nick Blackburn tonight. Wakefield is coming off his best outing of the year. No reason to think he'll have anything other than a solid night, as his knuckleball generally enjoys the indoor environment.

Beckett to the Rescue?

While I hope the title of this post is true, I don't want to imply that pitching was the problem last night. Clay Buchhulz pitched the second best game of his young career last night throwing an 8 inning complete game only allowing 2 runs on 3 hits to go with 9 strike outs and 2 walks. The big problem was that the Sox could only muster 1 run, forcing Clay to take the loss for a brilliantly pitched game.

I'm sure there are fans out there who are questioning Terry Francona's decision to leave Clay in to face Rays' hero, Akinori Iwamura with a runner on and two outs in the 8th inning and the Sox clinging to a 1-0 lead. The alternative was to bring in a well rested Jonathan Papelbon to get the final four outs to preserve the win. The result was that Iwamuri guessed right in his chess match against the tandem of Buchholz and Varitek and was sitting on a curve ball that came in a little too high in the strike zone and left the ball field very high into the right field stands for a home run.

In hindsight, you'd love to have seen Papelbon come in, but at that moment Buchholz was still pitching very strong, and had the game well under control. If Terry had pulled Clay at that point, I would have thought, in that moment, that he should have let Clay get the last out in the 8th. Iwamura was 0-3 with two strikeouts against Buchholz up to that point. After allowing the home run, Buchholz struck out Carl Crawford on three straight pitches to end the inning, so you can see he still had it. It was just a chess match where Iwamura got in the last move. It is a shame Clay could not get a win for such a great night.

Big Papi was out of the lineup tending to a sore post-operative knee suffered from his desperate, noble, but ill-advised head first dive into first base the night before. That, combined with Sean Casey being placed on the 15 day DL, was enough to silence what had been up to now, a rather loud Red Sox Offense. But, Tampa Bay youngster Edwin Jackson had a terrific night as well only allowing a single run on 5 hits in 7 innings to keep pace with Buchholz.

The one run the Sox scored, they were lucky to score, thanks to a wild pitch. Speedy Coco Crisp was on first with one out. Jackson may have been distracted by Coco's threat to steal second, but he unleashed a wild pitch that rolled far enough away from the catcher that Crisp was able to sprint all the way to third. Jackson still almost escaped the inning but after striking out Julio Lugo for out number two, Jacoby Ellsbury hit a sharp grounder deep to third. Evan Longoria made a fabulous play off the ball to his right and fired a rifle shot to first that beat Ellsbury to the bag. But with Ellsbury running, he had to rush the throw and it pulled Carlos Pena off the bag. Ellsbury was safe, and Crisp scored the only run of the night.

Prior to the game, the Sox called up outfielder, Brandon Moss, to replace the injured Sean Casey. An interesting move, because the Sox are down to only 4 infielders on the active roster, so how does calling up an outfielder help? Moss has been doing some work at first base in Pawtucket to give him some more versatility for Boston, but he's still very new to the position. I suppose in an emergency, Moss would play first, and we almost got to see that strategy in action. In the fifth inning, Julio Lugo had issues with the home plate umpire's view of the strike zone, and got in a heated argument, not thinking that getting kicked out of the game would be the worst thing he could do for the team. Terry Francona was out of the dugout faster than chicken running from Colonel Sanders to get Lugo back in the dugout. Smarten up Lugo!

A loss today would allow the Rays to pull into a tie in the standings with the Sox. But, they have to get past a well rested Josh Beckett first. Just watch out for Beckett to keep from over-throwing. When a power pitcher is feeling too strong, he can overthrow and ride too high in the zone and get into trouble.

(Photos courtesy of Yahoo Sports)

Red Sox Bullpen Lets Masterson Down

This must have been one of the best days of 23 year old Justin Masterson's life - his very first appearance in a major league game! This wasn't just any game either. It was a game pitching for the reigning champion Boston Red Sox, in Fenway Park, in front of 37,848 rabid baseball fans, against the AL West leading Angels. What could make it any more perfect? How about pitching your very best and getting your first big league win?

Well, Justin certainly did his part impressing Red Sox fans everywhere. He showed off an impressive repertoire of pitches, featuring a fastball in the low 90's, a change up in the low 80's, a slider, a splitter, and an occasional curve ball. Only Dice-K has more pitches in his bag of tricks. He lasted 6 innings facing exactly 4 batters in every inning except the 6th, when he only faced three. He never really got into trouble, his only mistake being a solo home run on a slider that stayed out over the plate to Mike Napoli in the 5th inning. This kid appears to be for real, and left the game with a 3-1 lead, thanks to a based loaded RBI ground out by Coco Crisp in the 2nd, and back to back ground rule doubles by Crisp and Kevin Cash in the 4th.

But, turning the game over to the bullpen, especially a bullpen battling the flu, is a risky proposition these days. Javier Lopez got the damage started in the 7th by allowing the only two batters he faced to reach base with a walk and a single. Manny Delcarmen was summoned to help out, and looked like he was still suffering flu side effects as he walked his first batter on four straight pitches to load the bases with no outs. We all knew this would not end well. Manny allowed a single to the next batter, scoring a run. This brought on the usually dependable Hideki Okajima, who gave up back to back singles allowing 3 more runs to score.

David Aardsma and Julian Tavares each gave up a run in the 8th and 9th innings respectively, leaving the Sox in a deep 7-3 hole going into the bottom of the ninth.

But, David Ortiz gave the Sox one last glimmer of hope. With two outs in the 9th, and Ellsbury on with a single, Ortiz thrilled the crowd with a home run to right field, further boosting everyone's hopes that the real Big Papi is finally back. The home run made the score 7-5, but it was too little too late as Manny Ramirez, who was a terrific 3 for 5, flied out to center field to end the game.

The Sox are lucky they have been winning as much as they have with the health issues they have been battling. Maybe what they need is a trip down south to Florida for a little R&R, as Tim Wakefield will kick off three games against the "Rays" (formerly known as the Devil Rays). That is unless Wake gets the flu, then it is anyone's guess who'll pitch!

Game On!

It is here at last - opening day! By the time you read this, the game may very well be over. But heading into the game, let me give you something to chew on.

The batting order that has been communicated at this point is as follows:

Pedroia
Youk
Papi
Manny
Lowell
JD Drew
Varitek
Ellsbury
Lugo

If it does not jump out at you, let me give you a hint. Look at the top of the order. Wouldn't you expect Jacoby Ellsbury to lead off? He did a great job of getting on base last season, and when he gets on base he creates all kinds of trouble for the defense. With his speed he can practically score from first on a sacrifice fly! While that is an exaggeration, he DID score from second base on a wild pitch last year.

So, what gives? Pedroia is a fine batter, but a s...l...o...w runner. To tell you the truth, I'm not sure exactly why the order is the way it is. You may hear that they don't want to put Ellsbury right in the spotlight to start off his "official" rookie season. Well, I would not give that theory much credit. They put Jacoby in the lead off spot as a replacement for the injured Coco Crisp in the World Series! There is no bigger stage than that. If they are willing to bat him lead off in the World Series, then opening day is not a big deal.

Here the real (most likely) reason. Jacoby has not had a great spring offensively. He is not their regular lead off batter (ala Johnny Damon for a few years). So, they are playing him relative to how he is playing right now. I guarantee he will not spend much time batting 8th this season. Terry Francona is simply putting him in a low pressure part of the order while he is looking for his groove at the plate and letting him get his stroke back with less urgency than if he was batting lead off.

Look for Dice-K to have a great game. He is at home, in comfortable surroundings, playing in front of an adoring home crowd. This should be a great game for him. The one thing to watch there is removing a starter during a game is a bigger deal than in the US. I'm sure that won't sway Francona, but I wonder how the Japanese fans will react to it. This time of year, I don't expect starters to go more than 6 innings.

Game On!

A Rational Look at Center Field

This is actually a tricky subject. We have a very talented 28 year old veteran gold glove caliber center fielder in Coco Crisp. But, we also have Jacoby Ellsbury - a terrific looking 24 year old rookie center fielder who played a key part in winning the World Series last year. What do irrational fans scream about this? Well, they scream about the last thing that happened of course. The last thing that happened is that we saw Coco having some struggles at the plate, but playing some tremendous outfield. When he got banged up, Jacoby Ellsbury went in and lit a spark under the team. He hit, he ran, he fielded, he looked great. So, the irrational fan says, "Dump that bum Coco Crisp. Put that amazing kid Ellsbury in there!".

So, what does a rational fan think? I think we are in great shape. From where I sat, Coco Crisp deserved to win a gold glove last year, and he saved quite a number of hits, and runs, with some amazing defense. I would expect we'd see a repeat of that great defense this year too. His defensive weakness is a mediocre throwing arm. But, if you make the catch, you may not need the throw! His arm is average, but that won't cost the Sox too much. On the base paths Crisp is a stolen base threat who can be counted on for about 20 or more thefts per year. But, at the plate, we should not expect too much. He hit .300 once with the Indians, and you probably should not expect him to be more than a .285 hitter on average. That said, he did hit below .285 the past 2 seasons. He is not a real power hitter, but managed to hit 15 and 16 HR's in his last two seasons with Cleveland. That is probably his upper end. So, where does that leave us? Well, he would be a very valuable center fielder on any team. You want him in there for solid defense, which is critical. Offensively, you might want to bat him leadoff to take advantage of his speed, but his on base percentage doesn't look like a leadoff hitter's. So, you'll probably use him toward the bottom of the order unless he's on a hot streak, but keep in mind there is value in his being a switch hitter too.

What about Ellsbury? I loved watching him last year. Young, fast and fearless are three words that come to mind. He is just as fast, if not a step faster, than Coco. He showed he can steal bases, and will only get better at that with good coaching. He looked good in the outfield, but I have to be honest, he is not as good as Coco yet. He has speed, which gives him the range Coco has, but last summer you could see Coco's glove was more of a vacuum - the ball just stuck better on diving and reaching plays. This is a small difference, but the biggest difference was playing fly balls that scrape or hit low off the wall. Jacoby missed at least 3 balls off the wall last summer that Crisp would have reeled in. I honestly think this is just a matter of practice and coaching, but Jacoby was very hesitant going up the wall for a fly and did not judge it well.

Offensively, he looks intriguing. He is still young, and I think he's still feeling his way around to a final batting stroke. Right now he's primarily focused on reading the pitch and getting the bat on it any way he can. He has a nice level swing to maximize the opportunity for contact, but it gives him a tendency towards being a slap hitter - ala Ichiro or Johnny Damon. Nothing wrong with that! As a speedy left handed batter, he (like Ichiro and Damon) will be able to fight off tough pitchers by just getting a piece of the ball and beating out the throw. Then, he can create havoc on the bases. He's strong enough to hit for power on occassion, but won't pull out that swing unless he sees a meatball coming. Probably good for 10-15 HR's a year. Hard to tell how he'll compare to Crisp yet - there's simply not enough evidence - but I think he has a terrific upside and lots of potential.

Okay, enough of all that. Who plays center field this year?

The answer... Too early to tell. Francona is saying the right things. Crisp is the incumbent. He is, at the moment, the Red Sox center fielder. If the season started today, it would be Crisp in center. If Crisp struggles (like Duston Pedroia did for a spell last spring) Francona can always give him a rest with Jacoby going to center. If Jacoby is hot, he may stay until he cools off. Crisp, like last year, would realize that was the best thing for the team. But, the season does not start today. The Sox coaching staff will follow this closely. The player who looks the best to them will get the nod by the end of Spring Training. A tie will go to Coco.

Coco has indicated he wants to start, he wants to play. So do all players. He says he'd rather start for another team than sit on the bench for the Sox. I can't blame him for that. He's only been here 2 seasons. He is not a lifetime Sox guy (yet). He's also at the age where he needs to play or get rusty and settle to finish the rest of his career as a bench player.

Theo Epstein should be thinking about this for only one reason. If Jacoby truly stands out in Spring Training, and the Sox are willing to hand the job to him, it would be a smart strategy to leverage Coco in a trade to help fill other needs, keep Coco happy, and retain a happy locker room. But that is putting the cart before the horse right now. Remember how we always worry about having too many starting pitchers, and then find ourselves short on pitching due to injuries? Same thing can go for outfield. Right now, we have a terrific groups of outfielders. Let them play themselves into or out of a starting role, and take it from there.

Besides, if JD drew got injured or was simply having another bad year (which I do not expect), how would we like to see Manny in left, Coco in center, and Ellsbury in right?

So, this one is not worth the stress right now, and it won't be for a while. Odds are, unless Theo sees a trade out there that involves Coco that he can't refuse, we'll open the season with Crisp in center, and Jacoby on the roster ready to fill in. Jacoby will get plenty of playing time giving guys a rest, filling in for an injury, spelling guys who are in a slump, and pinch running. But, once he gets in, we may find he sticks there!