Texas Take Two

Dad --

The reason the Rangers took two games out of three was because of one thing and one thing only - Red Sox pitching.

The first game, our pitcher on the mound was Penny. He was great for the first four innings. Unfortunately in the 5th he gave up four runs. Then a fifth run came in the sixth. And that's when Francona pulled him. But of course by then the damage had been done and the Sox lost.

In the third and final game of the series Dice-K was on the mound. And unfortunately he was the Dice-K we've seen this season - constantly putting men on base and giving up home runs. As a matter of fact, he's been so "good" at putting guys on, the NESN commentators joked that the odds of you ever seeing a 1,2,3 inning when Dice-K was on the mound were pretty slim. Sad statement, but true. Dice-K gave up a run in four of the six innings he pitched. And of course by the time Francona pulled him, it was too late for the Sox. They lost.

But while pitching lost us the first and final game of the series, it's what helped us win the middle game. Lester was awesome. He's definitely returning to the Lester of last year. The young southpaw was perfect through 6 and a third. And the only reason he probably gave up his first of just two hits was because of the long wait he had in the sixth while the rest of his team tacked on another four runs to their 4-0 lead. It was awesome to watch.

Based on this series, it's too bad we can't have just Lester and Beckett pitch all the time. Dad, what do you think we should do about the Sox pitching staff and how do you feel about spending close to $100 million for Dice-K now?

Jenn