Jake, Cap & A Perfect Pen

OK< so I haven't been faithful for the last few games (four vs A's {3-1 including a rain soaked doubleheader} and last night's loss to the Stripes), but I've got an excuse. Last weekend was my 50th -- that's right, Five O, high school reunion back just outside of Boston. Add to that an overriding awareness of Hurricane Irene AND a pending birthday (yesterday), and I was a trifle distracted or pre-occupied, or whatever else you want to call it. I did watch all or listen to all of the games live, including the four hours plus of rain delays in Saturday's double header (do you believe ten plus hours of baseball by the time game two was safely in the W column?). Well, the reunion was swell, the Sox play, except for the first A's game last Friday night and last night's loss to Mr. Hankie's Yankees, was really impressive, particularly their perseverance through all of the moisture in the twinbill. I mean, it almost never stopped raining once it got going and that wasn't even part of Irene. She came on Sunday and for this long time veteran of New England hurricanes, was pretty much a non-event (not so for the unfortunate folks in Vermont who will be feeling her watery sucker punch for quite some time).
Anyway, that all brings us to tonight's fabulous game against these same Stripes. JB was pitching, and for the first five innings was looking pretty vintage Beckett. True, he did briefly allow a one zip Stripes lead for about a half inning, but then the Hose reclaimed the lead, 2-1, in their half of the 3d on some timely hitting with men on base. Two innings later, Big Papi came to the dish with Gonzo on first, and proceeded to launch one deep into the cheaps in dead center field just to the right of the 420 foot mark--4-1, Sox. It was looking pretty good at that point for the Hose, but this is Sox-Yanks, and nothing is ever over until its really over. Came the Stripes 6th and JB got a bit off course. He hit Texeira, WP'd him to second and after Cano drove that run home, things got quickly worse. A combo of NY hits, an error in right by Reddick, and before you could blink, the Stripes had taken over the lead, 5-4. NOT TO WORRY!
In their half of the inning, once again showing their ability to come back, the Sox struck. With one gone, and a man on, Tek, the Sox Captain and emotional heart of the team, doubled in the tying run. A couple of batters later and the Sox second MVP candidate stepped to the plate. One swing later and Jake had deposited the sphere into the cheaps and it was again the Sox in front, this time 7-5. When the Fenmen returned to the field, to almost everyone's surprise, JB was still on the mound, in spite of the previous inning's troubles. Followers of this blog have long heard me talk about what it really means to pitch, as opposed to just throwing the ball plateward. JB's 7th inning was a classic example of what pitching really is. Not only that--it'll give him even more gut strength the next time he faces a serious situation that requires good solid, stare in the face of death pitching. Facing some of the Stripes most dangerous hitters, he calmly set down Jeter, Granderson and Texeira in order, just like it was the most natural thing anyone could ever expect.Jeter grounded out; Granderson struck out on a 94 mph heater and Texeira popped weakly to The Dustman. Sit down, Stripes!
In the 8th, Bard took the ball and just as quickly set down Cano, Swisher and Chavez in an inning of perfection. Got Cano on an amazing 'WebGem' stab of a screaming shot to short, followed by a perfect throw to Gonzo at first, followed by Swisher hitting an equally scorched on to Dusty, again ending up in Gonzo's glove for the out, after which Bard took things into his own hands and blew away (literally) Chavez on 98 mph heat. The trouble with trying to hit Bard is that he has such an effortless motion, it's damn near impossible to believe that he's really throwing these miniature cruise missiles past you until you swing and realize that you're about two seconds too late--it's already settled in Varitek's mitt. Inning over, Tek drives the final nail in the NY coffin--with a drive into the Sox bullpen that also plates Reddick, who'd opened the Sox half of the 8th with a double that just kisses the left field foul line. In fact, it was so on the line, the third base ump at first was incorrectly signalling foul before he changed his signal and, correctly, motioned it as fair. Nine-five, Sox. With no further offense to follow, The Laser takes over for the final inning, and is even more perfect than Bard had been. Two K's and a fly ball, just seven pitches, many of them over 95, and the game's over--no question about it. Definitely a team win, and the Sox heart really showed with everyone stepping up to make sure that no matter what happened, the Sox would close on top. Jake, The Dustman and Cap were each 2-5, and Papi had the aforementioned monster shot into the cheaps. Overall, the Sox offense garnered a dozen hits, six of which were either two baggers or seat shots.
Final Fenway game of 2011 tomorrow against the Stripes. The win tonight guaranteed that no matter what the outcome then, the Hose will finish this series still in the division lead, not to mention extending their season series lead over the guys from 248 miles to the south to 11-3.

A Pain in Someone Else's Neck

Well, a couple of games ago, and prior to their latest loss to Texas (yesterday) I had devoted a good part of this site to a worrisome and growing list of Sox injuries. I'd forgotten to include Gonzo in the list. Seems he'd strained his neck and, as a result, was altering his swing just enough that it was robbing him of a lot of his power. Well, after tonight's 11-5 win over the Rangers, the Hose' first of the year, I might add, it appears safe to say that Gonzo is back to what he had been for most of the first half of the year-- a pain in everyone else's neck and a wonderful feeling to the members of Red Sox Nation. Leading the way, he went 3-4 tonight with 2 homers and three ribbies, allowing him to get closer to reclaiming the league lead in that category. While he'd been hurting, the lead had been claimed by a couple of Stripers, Granderson & Texeira. After tonight, Gonzo has narrowed the gap behind Granderson to one, 98-97. Other members of the Sox also played big parts in the W, but it was Gonzo leading the way. Jake came back to the lineup and promptly got a hit and then stole his 35th base of the year, later to score on the first Gonzo drive. Newcomer Lavarnway went 2-5 including a run scoring two bagger. Salty and Lowrie also had two-hit evenings and Scoots picked up three ribbies with his 11th double of the year.
Defensively, Lackey dropped below 6 for his ERA, while getting his 12th W. He also dropped out of the running, at least for now, of being only the third pitcher in history to have at least ten wins and also have an ERA over 6.
The other benefit of tonight's victory is the most important of all. We are again tied for first in the Division with the Stripes. They had to lose to Oakland to complete the gain for the Sox, and being the A's it was in doubt until the final out, a catch against the Yankee Stadium center field wall by a former Hose hero, Coco Crisp. Until that catch, I was afraid a Sox success was going to again be cheated out of its full pleasure for Sox fans.

A Stinker of An Inning and A Return of Concern

Well, today's game can be summed up in one inning. Leading 4-1 in the 6th and apparently on his way to his 200th career W, as well as move past the Stripes back into first in the Division, the Sox gave up eight runs to the Royals, who sent 12 men to the plate, took the lead, 9-4, and eventually won the game by that margin. Other than 2 hit games by The Dustman, CC and new arrival, Lavarnway, the Sox offense was fairly calm. The Hose bullpen was shutout--EXCEPT for Albers, who, in just one third of an inning, allowed three hits, a pair of freebies and five runs, all earned, resulting in the loss.
As for the 'returned concern', last year's season was destroyed by the injury bug. Virtually everyone and anyone of the Sox major players was out for a substantial amount of time, anywhere from a month to, in Jake's case, virtually the entire season. For most of the season this year, there have been the usual assortment of mostly minor dings and bangs, with the lost for the season situation of Dice. Now, in the past few weeks, things have gotten progressively ominous. First Bucky stress fractures his lower back and is gone for at least until mid-September. Then, Drew has shoulder problems and likely won't be available until early September. Now, on successive days this week, Papi has had a walking boot placed on his foot for bursitis (no DL yet, but it don't look good (apologies to my English teachers), and Yoouukk goes on the DL with a stiff back. If that isn't bad enough, Jake now is 'day to day' because of his back. He got hit with a pitch in the back, came out after an additional inning in Friday's win, and wasn't in the lineup today. I Hope we're not seeing a return to 2010.

Back to Winning Again

Well, as those of you who visit regularly know, I've been AWOL for the past week or so. No excuses, but late work hours have taken their toll. Anyway, we missed three consecutive games in which our heroes only managed 3 hits per game, and while winning one of those on Jake's home run, left the Sox out of first by a half game and winning only two of their last seven. Yesterday's game, hopefully, began a return to normalcy, although the injury bug that ruined last year, suddenly appears to have returned to some degree. I'm hoping that it's now at its worst and things will get better for the final forty-odd games. Yesterday, it was a combo of post-early innings JB and The Dustman that won things for the Sox. Having a bit of trouble adjusting from the bullpen mound to the real one due to the dramatic differences in slopes of the mounds, JB gave up three early runs, but then settled down, allowing just a total of seven hits over seven innings and no freebies at all. Got his 10th W. The offense was dominated by a combination of Sox base speed, four swipes overall, including a pair by Crawford, and some timely hitting by the Dustman that accounted for three of the Sox four runs.

Another Twinkie Tweak

Well, it wasn't quite like last night, but when it was over the results were the same. The Sox beat the Twins coming from behind to take the lead and then giving the ball to Papelbon to slam the door. Tonight's win, the Hose' fourth in a row, and sixth of eight, also gained them another game on the Stripes, who lost to the Angels in Yankee Stadium. Tonight's game had Bedard making his second start for the Sox and he showed better than last time, although still not getting the W. Albers blew a save with two hits and a walk in the one inning he pitched, allowing the Twins to tie it at three. However, in the 7th, Big Papi plated the winning run with an RBI single. After that, it was Bard and The Laser, each throwing a perfect inning.

Sox Tweak Twinkies

Well, for the fourth consecutive time this year, the Sox played the day after a long night game of over four hours and won. In fact, the only time this year they've come in exhausted and lost was the first time it happened. Tonight it was Big Papi's night to lead the team's efforts. After the Hose had dropped from a one zip early lead to a 5-1 deficit in the 5th, the team's offense came awake. Picking up a four spot, they tied the game. Wake, who was making his third attempt to win his 200th, suddenly was back in the hunt and when the Hose picked up run number six a bit later, it looked as if he were going to realize his goal. But, it was not to be tonight--Papi or no Papi. Aceves came on to pitch the 8th and gave up the tying run, ending up with a rare blown save. Although he did eventually get the W, it was another tough outcome for the oldest active player in MLB today. Unwilling to play extra innings tonight on top of last night's thriller, the Sox immediately went to work in their half of the 9th. Papi, as part of his 4-5 night ( he missed the cycle by a triple) drove what turned out to be the winning run. Up to that, he'd also had his 22d HR and 30th double of the year, the former of which was followed back-to-back by Salty's HR, the sixth Sox back-2-back this year. The Laser finished up with a 14 pitch perfect inning, including a pair of K's, for his 25th save of the year (in just 26 chances). The man is pitching as much like the Pap of a few years ago as he ever has. Scoots also had three hits and Crawford continued his recent binge with a solid triple. Not to be forgotten, Gonzo added his 92nd ribbie to maintain his lead in that category, while going 2-3 with the stick. With the W, Sox are now up 1.5 over the Stripes and a season high 28 over .500 for the year.

Sox Heroics Against Mo & Others

Well, tonight the Sox showed what makes champions. Every night someone will pick up the flag and lead the team to victory. Yesterday Jake personally destroyed Mr. Hankie's Yankees. Tonight, he was O-fer, but still played an important role in the eventual win (I'll get there later). JB was pitching and doing well, as he had only one pitch he'd like back, and left after six tied at one. He had five K's, allowed 6 hits and a pair of freebies, lowering his ERA to 2.17. But that one bad pitch cost him the chance at the W. While this was happening, the Hose were continuing their recent maddening habit of leaving lots of baserunners on base. Their first run came after they opened the inning with the sacks jammed and no-one out. They finished the inning with them jammed. Later, they got the first two hitters on base in the 6th, had the bases loaded with two gone, and failed to score. Meanwhile, in the Stripes 7th, Albers was looking great--through the first two batters. Then, Gardner absolutely crushed one of Albers pitches and suddenly the Hose trailed. After hitting Jeter, he was gone and Morales came on--with absolutely no command or apparent confidence in his pitches. Granderson walked and Texeira followed on four pitches; bases loaded Stripes. Fortunately, Morales recovered enough to get Cano on a grounder to end the threat. However, the Fenmen weren't getting anybody across the dish. Finally, the Hose half of the 9th arrives, and with it Rivera. Now, this is in many cases not a good thing if you're trying to come back and avoid a loss. However, with the Sox, I have at least some faith, because of the total of Blown Saves in Mo's career, 72 of them, the Sox have more than any other team in MLB--14. That's just shy of 20% of the total. So, Scoots leads off with a solid double. Jake, making up for his collar, drops a sac bunt toward third and as he is thrown out by an eyelash, Scoots takes third. Can they get him home, or will it be another LOB? Not to worry. The Dustman rescues the run with a sac fly to left and it's tied. The Hose have just passed the twenty percent mark of BS's for Rivera. On the way to here--top of the 9th, The Laser was almost lights out, giving the Sox the chance to present Rivera with the BS. On to the 10th: Bard, throwing them well into the high 90's, sandwiches K's of Texeira and Swisher around a harmless broken bat ground out by Cano. Seventeen pitches later and it's the home team's turn. Another scoreless string for Bard has now officially begun.
Sox turn: against the planned Stripes starter for Tuesday, the Hose start off with a fly out by Yooouuukk. Then the fun continues. Big Papi steps up, and suddenly, it's 2004 post-season again. He didn't drive one to the cheaps, but he bounced one in and is standing on second with a ground rule two-bagger. McDonald came in to pinch run, and the Stripes pitcher decides the better part of valor is to intentionally walk Crawford, who finally is starting to look like the guy the Hose acquired for that $140 Mill in the off season. Between last night's 4-4, Friday's couple of hits and tonight's 3-4 to that point, he approached the plate on a nine for ten tear. Can't say I blame the Stripes. Fortunately, all it did was piss off the Sox' newest young hot player. Following Crawford was Reddick, and while he may not be maintaining the torrid pace of a month or two ago, he's still a dangerous man with a piece of northern white ash in his hands. Pitch comes in, pitch goes out toward the left field corner, and it's obvious to everyone in attendance or watching on the tube the game is over even before the ball lands on Fenway's lush grass. Sox win and everyone goes berserk.
Sox are back in first by themselves, have won four of six and have clinched the season's series against the Stripes with six yet to play. After over four hours, the Hose are now off to the Twin Cities to face the Twinkies, and Wake makes his third attempt for his 200th win.
Individual achievements: in addition to Crawford's previously cited 3-4 for the night, Scoots went 4-4, including the aforementioned double. Papi went 2-4. The moundsmen also had an overall good night, the two HR's aside. Collectively, they allowed a well scattered eight hits and four BB's, against a total of eleven K's.

Sox 10 (Jake 6), Stripes 4

I know I've been recalcitrant over the past several days--splitting with the Tribe; Stripes moving closer and finally tying in first, but now they're HERE (Fenway) and last night's game was a heartbreaker. Lester had a two zip lead going into the 7th and then gave up a three spot to the Stripes, who made it stand up for a 3-2 win and sole ownership of first--even though the Hose got almost twice as many hits. They had their chance to break the game open and unfortunately, Gonzo K'd with the bases loaded. OK< so fast forward to today's afternoon get together at the Fens. Mr. Hankies Yankees led today by arguably one of the two major Cy contenders for the year, Carsten Charles (if those were your first two names, you'd go by 'CC' too) Sabathia against Lackey, who, while looking much better since the All Star break, still has an ERA over 6. Not looking great, but then, CC's lost his previous three against the Hose this year. So, Sox take an early two zip lead, only to have the Stripes tie it in the 4th. However, by then the headline above was already beginning to be written. Jake had one of those career days--everything goes right and you look like the classic world beater. He'd driven in the Sox first run on a sac fly, but it was just the beginning.With the score still close in the home 4th after the Sox had picked up a pair, and another pair on base, Crawford among them (more on that later), Jake launched one deep into the right field seats on a 2-0 count and suddenly, the Hose had a bit of breathing room, 7-2. Now Jake's got a quad of ribbies for the game and 19 HR's on the year. Not bad--but not finished--not by a long shot! Mr. Hankie's Yankees crept stealthily closer-- a single run in the 5th, bolstered later by a solo shot from Texeira in the 8th off Bard on a ball that took a small miracle to get any serious wood on. The Bard was shooting literal rockets over the plat in the high 90's and, in a few cases, into triple digits, and this pitch was across the inside corner on Texeira's wrists--nice and tight. It would normally be a feat just to get a tiny bit of bat handle on it. The NY first sacker did more than that, however. Somehow in a fraction of a second, pulled his wrists in closer to his body and then swung, getting most of it and streaking it into the cheaps. Understandably, if you know me at all, I'm starting to get a little nervous. Yes, we're still up, 7-4, but the Stripes are now well inside that 'one swing of the bat can tie (or lead) zone of under five runs' margin. Worse, there's only one out in their 8th and they still have the whole 9th to go. This, I'm worriedly thinking, is far from over. Shame on me. I should have checked the box score to that point and the Sox 8th batting order. Bard closed out the 8th with no further damage and then the fun began in the Hose' half. Reddick, Crawford and Salty reached base on a pair of singles and a full count walk. After Scoots popped out, Jake took his stance and--bang! A sharp single to center, scoring another deuce and moving Salty to third where The Dustman could get him home immediately thereafter via sac fly, boosting the score to a very comfortable 10-4. The Laser, who'd begun the inning warming up to enter in the top of the 9th was able to take his seat again and enjoy the finish as a spectator.
As for Jake, he had six ribbies on the day, his 19th HR and garnered a few more comments about looking like a legitimate MVP candidate if he continues his mode of play. My opinion is he's been spectacular, but the MVP, as of now, is still Gonzo's. Would be nice to see the Hose grab the top two places in the voting, though. Not sure if that's ever happened before, but I'll have to check.
I did mention above that Crawford also had quite a game. He had his best game since coming to the Fens--4 for 4, including a double, one RBI, a run scored and a steal.
All of this insured Lackey would win his 10th of the year and send CC to his 4th loss to the Hose on the season. He's 0-4 vs the guys from the Fens, and 16-2 against the rest of the world. While Lack now has double figures in W's, he still possesses an ERA over 6. In all of MLB history, right since the first pitch was ever thrown, there have only been two, that's right, just two pitchers finishing with winning records for a season in which they had 6 plus ERA's. One was in the 1930's named Wes Farrell and the other was in the 1990's, name escapes me for the moment. This is not a club you especially desire to belong to, but, HEY, it's better than having said 6Plus ERA and having a losing record. So, the Hose are tied for first again and can retake sole ownership with a 'W' tomorrow. Catch you tomorrow night.