Two Losses to The Stripers--Peter

Well, Friday night was hard to take. When you get a guy giving up only a single run in 7+, you generally expect to win. However, Mr. Hankie's Yankees went us one better. They got the best effort yet from Joba Chamberlain, no runs in seven, including seven K's of our heroes. Big Mo followed up in the 9th and closed things out, in spite of our guys getting a couple of hits and mounting a final threat. Manny was no-where to be found; apparently his knee is bothering him again (more on that later). Papi returned to the lineup and although he got a single, looked pretty much like a guy who's been gone for 40 plus games on the DL. His swing is coming back, as his brief rehab assignment indicated, but it's not all the way there yet. A real shame that JB has to lose a game like that.

Today, the misery really arrived! Here we are in Fenway where the Sox have the best home record in baseball and the Yank-Me's have now taken the first two of the three game set. After breaking on top against a guy who usually torments them, Pettite, the Sox found themselves up two zip at the end of the first. Both Papi and Manny (he's back) each drove in a run. This was starting to look like Red Sox baseball in Fenway is supposed to look. Unfortunately, a game has nine innings. Gradually, the Yankees ate up our lead, then went ahead by one in the 4th. Then came the 6th. Pretty much batting around, the guys in the stripes added a four to the score and now had things pretty much in hand. We countered with a solo shot by JD in our half of the inning, making a comeback a realistic possibility with three innings to go, but after Lopez gave us an inning and two thirds of perfection, Hansen came on in the 8th and it was like tossing a canister of gasoline on a small fire--it exploded. When the inning mercifully came to an end, we were now trailing by seven and the game was for all practical purposes over. Timlin actually finished out the 8th and added a scoreless 9th (see, Jenn), but it was far too little too late. Mr. Hankie's are now just a single game to our rear, and, as I write this, Tampa is leading KC 2-1, delayed for rain.
Hopefully, tomorrow we can at least salvage a win and use it as a launching pad for a final push through the final two months of the season. Do you believe the season's almost 2/3 gone?

Now for Manny. He skipped the last game of the Seattle series and the first of this set with NY, claiming his right knee was sore again. That's not the issue. What is, and Terry said it very clearly, is that at this staged of the season, everyone has some ache or pain, but if you say you want to sit one or two out for that, then seek diagnosis and treatment. Manny did neither--he just sat. Terry apparently talked with him and he was back in the lineup today, but no-one was happy. Theo, when asked by the folks at Fox Sports about a possible trade to end the whimsy, said Manny has a no trade clause and wants to stay, so no-one's sending Manny anywhere without his OK. However, when pointedly asked if that clause were not an issue, would the Sox be looking, Theo was reported to have replied with a nod of the head. Of course, that's Fox Sports speaking and I don't know if they report sports like their brethren at Fox News report the news. Should be interesting around the Fens in the coming weeks.