It's Been Ten Years!

It's sometimes amazing how time flies when you're having fun--or not. Yes, the 2014 season is long over as far as Sox Nation is concerned. However, some things are always worth noting as they occur. This is one of those times. Today marks ten years to the day since the Red Sox completed a comeback from being down three games to zip against the Evil Empire. The only time in MLB history that a team has returned from a three zip deficit in any post season play, the Sox took their fourth in a row from the Stripes, 10-3, ten years ago today.  You all know what happened then. The Sox continued the sweep mentality and took the World Series in a sweep from the Cards, winning their first World Championship in 86 years! Although we've won another pair of Titles, it always feels good to remember. Like the man said (although he wasn't talking baseball), you never forget your first!

Another Season Gone!

Well, another season gone as we all sit here trying to figure what happened since last October to our Sox.  Papi still produced his 30/100 season, something that's come to be expected from him. Pedey was Pedey, in spite of a season long wrist injury that finally forced him under the knife for the final month of the year. Vic was out injured most of the entire season, so was missed. The overall Sox offense, last year's highest run scoring contingent in the league was dormant until the final few weeks when it was too late to save anything. The mound staff varied from good to not so much, depending on the support it did or didn't have from game to game. Within this, last year's Mr. Automatic as a closer was fine early on, but seemed to lose something the final month and change, while the lead setup guy, Taz, also had periods when he was not setting anything up. Nap and a number of others were also out fore extended periods of time with various injuries, and the final month, the best starters were starting--and winning--for other teams: Lester in Oakland (still could return to the Fens via Free agency); Lack in St. Lou and Peavy in SF. So all three Sox starters will be in the post-season in one way or another.
On the plus, Pedey looks to be ready for Opening Day 2015, as does Papi. A number of the large rookie class started to demo what they may be capable of in the final month, with Castillo fresh from Cuba and showing both power and percentage from his bat. If the Sox keep Yo (I'm on the fence here as he's got an unbelievable arm, but an eehhh BA, to go with some power), he could share the OF with Castillo and either Betts or Bradley in center--I'd go first with Betts, based on how he performed since his callup. Another definite future star is Holt, who was steadily around .300, maybe just under, and can handle any position in the field, until his concussion. If there's nothing permanent, he should be a definite keeper. Ditto, Brentz, even though his final game was a 4 K disappointment. Catcher: Vasquez, whether he hits or not. He has shown he can handle pitchers and that arm--look at how many would be base stealers he threw out like he'd been here forever!
As we head through the falling leaves and into the snow (except for those of you in warmer climes), I'll do my usual and try to keep you posted on whatever Sox news pops up--from trades to free agency--and see you guys in February for Spring Training. It's only 4.5 months away.

Another Sox Laugher

Boy! If the Sox had played all season the way they've played the last week and change, we'd be thinking World Series again!  For the second consecutive night, the Sox delighted Fenway fans and Red Sox Nation at large with a laugher win over the Rays.  They scored the same number of runs tonight as last, but only allowed a single run tonight for the Rays.  Piling up 16 hits, five for extra bases, and two of those settling into the cheaps, the Sox settled this one early. Opening with a single 1st inning run that was quickly tied by the Rays, the Sox quickly tacked on a pair in the 2d and four in the 3d to break it open, and then went on from there.
Five players had at least a pair of hits, with Betts getting three and Vasquez going 4/4, including his first MLB shot. Of the other Sox multi-hit players, Yo had a pair, and picked up his 97th ribbie. He still has a chance at a century as the Hose have three games remaining, all against the Evil Empire (and more on that series later).
The pitching looked just as good. Starter Webster pitched his best game since coming up to the club, going seven innings and allowing just seven hits and a lone freebie, his game WHIP a very respectable 1.143. He finishes the year at 5-3.  The guys from the pen looked as good as they have at any time this year, with Wilson tossing a one hit shutout inning that included a pair of K's and Koji showing his form of early season and all last season, going a perfect 9th that included a K. Wilson's ERA now sits at a minuscule 1.98, while Koji's is a very respectable 2.52.
Tonight's win is the Sox' fourth in the last six games, with the others coming against the Rays (last night) and a pair against the Division champ O's last week. Before that, they split a series with playoff bound KC.
Looking from the end of this season to 2015, the Sox have gotten a solid look at some of the best that the Pawsox have, and it appears that a number of these guys will be in the Fens for good come next year. Vazquez has proven to be all of a defensive catcher that he was expected to be, even throwing out opposing baserunners like he's been doing it for years. His hitting is a bit on the weak side, but even there he has had his timely moments. Wilson could be a regular in the rotation, and Holt, once he's recovered from his concussion, has shown that he can play anywhere and do it at a consistently high level, both at the dish and in the field. Bogaerts is starting to show signs that the real guy was the one who burst on the scene late last year, and could very well return to those levels in 2015. There re others as well. Of the vets, Pedey will be up and raring to go after his recent surgery, and Papi should be right in place to pick up where he left off after this year's 30-100 year. Nap also should be in good shape to continue from this season. As for Y, I'm still debating. I never thought much of his hitting hen he played in Oakland, but with that wall in left and his power, he could truly blossom. Defensively, his arm is like a howitzer. You advance on his throw totally at your own risk.
Three games to go and then it's over--where has the year gone?

Which brings us to the final series of 2014 against the Stripes.  It's rare that we get here and not just one, but both teams are eliminated from the post season, but here in 2014 that's the case.  Will that make it any less intense? Hell, NO! It's the Red Sox vs the Yankees. And with that in mind and then some, I'm going to do something that I almost never, and I mean NEVER, do here. I'm going to praise a Yankee.  As everyone anywhere in the world probably knows by now, the Yankees shortstop, The Captain, Derek Jeter is retiring.  He played his final home game at Yankee Stadium tonight, fittingly getting a walk-off hit to win it for his team.  Bob Costas, discussing it after the game, compared it to another final game by another Hall of Famer--our own Teddy Ballgame. On what became his final at bat of his career, TW drove a ball deep into the cheaps for his 521st HR and last hit, disappeared into the dugout and, true to form, refused to come out to tip his hat to the cheering fans. He'd played; he'd done his thing; and now it was time to go.
Jeter, likewise finished his Yankee Stadium career tonight. He played; he did his thing and left, as he usually did, more often than not a winner, left the field never to be seen as a player in the Bronx again.  He did come out to accept the fans' cheers.  Now, the fact that he's a sure bet first ballot Hall of Famer and is sixth on the all time career hits list and is oh, so many things that I couldn't even begin to mention them is not the reason I want to recognize him here. No, the simple reason is he is the ultimate definition of the word 'class'.  Yes, he's the enemy; yes, I hated it every time he came up and broke the Sox hearts.  But he not only played the game--he respected it and all of its long standing traditions.  Even his comments tonight after the game reflected that class. Asked how he felt about closing out his career in Fenway, and if he'd play there, his response was simple. He'd played his final game ever as the Yankees shortstop. That distinction he wanted leave where it began--in Yankee Stadium.  But he'd definitely play the three in Fenway out of respect, as he put it, for the rivalry and the Red Sox fans, who are wonderful and deserve nothing less.
He is a great player, but more important, he's a true gentleman and totally class. I'll miss him.

Sox Take Laugher

Well, after collapsing in the 8th of last night's game and losing after having held a one zip lead most of the game, the Sox tonight took out their frustrations on the Rays in an 11-3 laugher. Playing, as they have for much of the past couple of weeks a team that is a mix of veterans and guys just up from the farm for a 2015 look-see, the Hose quickly fell behind two zip in the 1st. However, they wasted little time in getting even, picking up their own deuce in the 2d.  It remained knotted until the-Sox sent ten to the plate in the 4th, picking up  fiver to take a lead they never lost. The 7-2 lead became 11-2 in the 6th, when the Hose tacked on an additional four runs, using only a single hit coupled with four freebies and a couple of Rays miscues to ratchet up the count.  The score remained there until the Rays' half of the 9th when a Zobrist double sent home the Rays' final run.
Among the Sox offensive heroes for the game were Cecchini, who got his first shot  into the cheaps, the blow coming in the Sox 2d; Bogaerts, whose pair of hits drove home three and Nava, who plated a pair with a ringing double. Other multi hit Sox players were Cespedes, his 36th to bagger among his pair of hits and Brentz, who also had a pair, including a double.
The Sox mound staff acquitted itself reasonably successfully as well. Starter Renaudo ended a three game losing streak to go to 4-3, allowing just six hits and a lone free pass in seven frames, a quality game WHIP of 1.0. His outing also included a pair of K's. The pen duty was split by Britton and Escobar, giving up a total of three hits between them. The former allowed two of those, but held the Rays scoreless for his inning, while Escobar was looking very good except for one pitch that regular Rays thorn in the Sox side Zobrist used to double home the Rays leadoff man who'd gotten on by an HBP.
In winning tonight, the Sox got within one game of the season total under the disastrous Valentine season of 2012. With another game against the Rays, followed by a season ending series against the Stripes, the Hose at least have the opportunity to finish ahead of that 2012 disaster.

Papi Does It Again!

Well, apologies for dropping from sight the past week--included a three of four W's from the playoff contending Royals, followed by a loss sweep by the Bucs in Pitt. Off last night to the newly crowned AL East champ O's and after a brief deficit to the home town team, the Sox shot ahead quickly on cheap seats shots by Papi and Yo, the first of which gave Papi another century ribbie season, his eighth, and the latter of which put Yo within four of the Sox having a two century guys in a season for the first time since Manny left. Midway through the game the home towners tied the score at three, and I began to think not again.  Game went extras and in the Sox 10th, Papi came up with a man on and quickly settled the issue. He drove this one into souvenir land and the Sox had what ultimately became the winning runs and Papi had his 34th shot of the year and his 102d RBI. In getting to this level, Big Papi tied for the most career 30-100 years in Sox history with none other than--who else--Teddy Ballgame. That's pretty unique company. Am I saying he's TW's equal? Don't even ask the question! He's a HOF player as soon as he's retired five years, but equal to TW? Sorry! Taking nothing away from Papi, there wouldn't be anything close to a tie had the Sox all time hitting hero not been snatched from the Fens for service in two wars, losing almost five years in the process right at his prime. Even with that, if Papi were "only" in second all time for the team, he'd still be very special. Papi still has a slim shot at an AL RBI title, trailing LA's Trout by a five spot.
Not to forget, the Sox pen looked good last night as well--perfect ball from the first pitch, with the exception of Breslow, who faced a pair of O's hitters and allowed both to reach and score.

It Only Gets Worse!

Well, with today's early game, the Sox were the victims of an O's sweep at the Fens. Down eight zip before they even scored, the team just keeps going downward and at this point looks to be a very good bet to set a new MLB record--one that no-one would want. If they don't escape the division cellar, they'll be the first team ever to go from dead last to a World Series championship and back to last in consecutive years.
Today's game had the Baltimore hurler, Chen, perfect through five and a third, the string broken when Sox catcher Butler doubled for thew first of his three hits. The Sox did eventually put six on the board, the final five of those in the 9th when they sent ten men to the plate and included doubles by Bogaerts and Nava and a shot to the seats by Rivero (another 'free trial' arrival from the Pawsox--of which there are many these past several weeks). Tonight the team is off to KC to try to do the Bengals a favor and kick the Royals out of first in the Central.
As bad as things have been, including major injuries, among them Vic's absence most of the season, they have gotten worse. Vic was moved to the 60 Day DL, ending his season and now Pedey is having surgery to try to remedy a hand/wrist injury that's been plaguing him most of the season. So his season is also over.
The Sox pitching today was as bad early on as the O's was good. Workman took his ninth loss, giving up six runs, five of them earned, in just three frames. He 'accomplished' this by allowing six hits and three freebies for a game WHIP of 3.0. He was followed by Breslow who only allowed 3 hits and no walks, and picked up three K's in his two frames. Unfortunately, one of the three hits settled into the seats and brought home a pair of O's runs.
After that the Sox pitching was much improved for all but the final inning when Mujica allowed a pair on four hits. Unfortunately, the horse was well out of the barn by then. The Sox surge in the bottom half of the inning was just able to take some of the embarrassment out of the results--maybe.  Without it, the final would have really been a laugher.
On the positive side, Bogaerts continues to drag his BA upwards toward some form of respectability, getting a homer and a two bagger today to bring him to .237--still a long way from legit respect, but heading in the right direction. If he keeps it up, he could see the better side of .270 by month/season end. Nava continues to get his BA up as well. He's now at .265. Too bad he didn't start hitting earlier in the year.
On the positive side, Papi and Yo still have legitimate shots at 100 ribbies apiece, but the number of games is dwindling down to a precious few--only 17 left now, I believe. Papi needs 2 to the century mark and Yo needs a fin. Fingers crossed. Also, once the season is over, the Hose will have the opportunity on the free agent market to reclaim Lester. For all of you who think he's gone for good, remember he was very loud and clear right up to the trade that he would like to return to, and finish his career in the Hub. His thoughts also included a statement that he'd take less cash to come back than he'd want from another team. Am I whistling past the bone yard or can it happen? We'll see.

Sox Win in Ten

Well, after losing  a real heartbreaker last night to the Stripes in the last of the 9th when Koji gave up not one, but two long shots into the cheaps at the Imitation House That Ruth Built, the Sox took their turn tonight and, after being behind from the start and most of the game, put up a trey in the home half of the 10th at the Fens to beat the Jays, 9-8 and put a crimp in the Jays hopes for the post-season.  The Sox began down two zip, but gradually worked their way back via single runs in each of the first three innings to a lead, only to drop behind the Jays when the guys from north of the border tacked on a pair on Bautista's 30th dinger of the year to center. The Jays expanded to a 6-3 lead in the 8th and things were looking like a possible third loss in a row for the Hose. But, never lose faith--in their half of the 8th, the Hose tied it up at six via four hits that plated three runs, the big blow coming from the bat of Bogaerts in the form of a two run two bagger, one of his three hits on the evening.
Comes the 9th, things go nowhere for either team, and we move to the 10th where, things turn south quickly. By the time the smoke clears, the Jays have retaken the lean--by a pair, no less--on three hits and a sac fly, and once again--how many times have we heard this this year?--things are not looking for the Bosox.
But, as mentioned a little bit earlier, never lose faith. Sox take their turn in the bottom of the 10th and their first four batters get singles, cutting the deficit to one with the bases still jammed and no-one out. Pedey, back for the first time since his possible concussion of last week, sends a sac fly to the outfield, adding to his earlier pair of hits, and plates the tying run. The Sox still have a couple of guys on base and only one gone. Papi comes up, and I'm praying anything but a grounder. What does he do? A grounder, but due to an error by Tolleson of the Jays, the Sox find themselves with sacks jammed again and still only one out. Up comes YoBaby. He wastes little time, singling to center and bringing home pinch runner Weeks with the winning run. Game over. Sox win!
Now, I'm not claiming the Sox still have a chance at October (mathematically they actually DO),  but some of the rookies they've brought up in the past six or eight weeks do look like definite players as the team builds back in 2015. Add Vasquez, Betts, De La Rosa, Ranaudo and Holt to a core of Pedey, Papi, Nap, Bogaerts and maybe Cespedes and Bucky. Get Lester back in free agency, and toss in the new Cuban outfielder they won out with a few weeks back, and the Sox very well could show a return to post-season play. I can hope can't I?

Sox Beat Yanks After Rays Series Split

Well, after pulling off a Trop split of four against the Rays, narrowly missing taking the finale in a 10 inning loss, the Sox opened in the Imitation of the House That Ruth Built by grabbing an early lead and finally blowing out the Stripes, 9-4.  It was six zip after two and a half, and quickly became 7-1 an inning later. The Sox put a dozen hits on the board, topped off by eight extra base knocks, three of which were shots to the cheaps. Danny Nava, continuing his late season hitting recovery, had a three run shot followed by Bogaerts's solo job a moment later. Rookie Mookie Betts added his solo rocket an inning later. According to info from the team, this is the first time two rookies have homered in the same game at Yankee Stadium since 1952 (Ted Gernert and Faye Throneberry for you trivia buffs). Overall, Bogaerts went 4-5, missing a cycle by a triple. The new Sox left fielder, YoBaby, again had a productive evening, going 3-5 with a two bagger, a trip and another ribbie. He now stands fifth in the league and looks to be a cinch to join Papi over the century mark in that category. Betts was also 3-5 with a ribbie, and that aforementioned shot in the Sox 4th.
Pitching and defense featured a solid game from recently acquired Joe Kelly, who showed what pitching means. He was in control most of th4e way, but often by pitching himself out of jams he'd gotten into. IN 6 2/3 innings, he allowed five hits and four freebies, but kept things under control by picking up a half dozen K's, many of them when it really counted. The Sox pen, Layne and Koji, closed things out, although not without a little drama from the Sox closer. After Layne went 1 1/3 no-hit innings, allowing just a single freebie, Koji came on just for some work (he'd not pitched in over a week), and opened things up by presenting Stripes catcher McCann a fat pitch that the catcher quickly deposited over the wall. After that, Koji took control, and although allowing a single, effectively ended the Yankees evening with a pair of K's.
Backing up the Sox hurlers, Yo made one of his classic artillery launches from left to assist on nailing a Yankees runner who went too far, thus ending the possible Stripes big inning.

Another Three Zip Lead

Well, the Sox again started off three zip, this time after three innings at a run apiece. However, after a few more innings, the Jays chased Rubby de la Rosa and tied the score at three. I'm thinking, 'not again', but the Hose had a couple of surprises in store for me and thee from that point on. They picked up another run to take the lead at 4-3--then allowed the Jays to again tie the score. Hey, guys--forget about courtesy and consideration! Get the lead and screw the other team!  Anyway, from that point through the 10th nothing they did was enough to take the lead again and possibly win. Then came the 11th.
Led by Nap and Craig, the Sox put two in the cheaps. Nap's was an unbelievable shot, landing in the fifth (no typo here) deck and plating three runs. A couple of batters later, Craig put his out with a man aboard. Between them that accounted for five Sox runs in the 11th. Add in a pair of others for good measure and the Sox had snatched another fragment of last season and placed it squarely into 2014.  In doing so, they dropped the Jays to .500 for the first time since mid-May. The Sox are now still 18 back and thirty to go.
While we're at it, Pedey also had a homer, his second in two nights.
Sox leaders last night were Holt, Pedey, YoBaby, and Nap, each with at least a pair of hits, Yo getting three. And while we're on Yo, he picked up another ribbie as well, leaving him at 87 and withing shouting distance of team leader and 2d in the AL, Papi. Since coming to the Sox, Yo's looking as if he may be a real RBI machine of sorts, and could make it to the century mark on the season. That would likely give the Hose their first pair of 100 RBI guys in the same season since Manny left.
Sox pitching also gets some of the credit. Layne, Mujica, Badenhop and Taz collectively threw 4 1/3 shutout innings, with Taz getting the W and dropping his ERA under 3.0 again. Had his successor not allowed three runs in the home half of the 11th, the Sox margin would have really been more of a laugher.

Sox Break Skid--Defeat Jays

Well, tonight started off with the Sox getting a three zip lead (sound recently familiar) in the 5th on homers by Betts and Pedey, coupled with some excellent pitching by Bucky going through the 8th. K's were not very high, but the way he was getting the powerful Jays lineup to beat the ball into the ground more than made up for the relative lack of K's. Came the 9th--Bucky got the first batter he faced; then gave up consecutive singles and a walk to load the sacks. On comes Koji. He quickly dispatches with the first hitter he faces on a fielder's choice grounder that scores a run, but is the second out, and leaves runners at the corners. The next guy up drills a two bagger to left scoring both runners, tying the score and giving Koji another BS (though he ultimately did get the W), a total that's getting uncomfortably high in recent weeks. Then he closes out the inning, score: three all. I'm thinking, "Shit, not again! Oh me of little faith! Sox 10th: Holt gets a one out infield single, steals BOTH second and third and waits for new Sox outfielder YoBaby (Cespedes) to single him home, which he does. Sox back on top! Jays' 10th and we get the closer who used to be--long, long ago--at least it feels that way (2012 for the A's)--Breslow. He puts away two of the first three batters, sandwiched around the tying run on a freebie, then closes out the Jays and the game on a foul pop to Craig at first--Game Over--So's the Streak!! Sox creep back to within 17 below .500--Ugh! Now I'm not at this stage going to put my rose colored glasses back on and say the Sox could still pull it off.  But, hey--the reverse is how they missed the playoffs in 2011 when it was such a sure thing.  I can hope, though!
In addition to the two Sox shots, YoBaby got a pair of hits, one getting home the winning run, as did Nava.  Overall, YoBaby's gotten 19 ribbies since arriving in the trade for Les, seven of those ribbies giving the Hose the lead at the time. Overall, the Sox had eight hits, so the runs all came on three of them. Papi sat out the game due to a bruised foot suffered against Seattle when he fouled a ball of the foot. Farrell hopes he'll be back in the lineup tomorrow. We do to, but only time will tell.

Well, as previously noted, the Sox were getting deeper into their latest losing streak, and it hit 8 in a row with the weekend sweep at the hands of the M's at the Fens. seems no matter what the Sox did to grab a lead or come from behind to tie and then take a lead, the Mariners went them one better. I think the one that hurt the most was Friday's loss to the guys from Seattle when the Sox, armed with a three zip lead into the 9th gave up five and the game, the M's getting to Koji wholesale. As I've previously noted here, I went elsewhere in Sox Nation history Friday night while this was going on. Went to see the local San Rafael minor league team, the Pacifics, featuring former Sox hurler Bill 'Spaceman' Lee. He was supposed to be retiring that night, but also got into the game as a PH, and grounded out. I seized the opportunity, went down to the dugout and got a selfie of he & I together. As we snapped the pic, he said make sure to tell all of RS Nation he's still rooting for the old team. Here's the pic. Enjoy!

Sorry, but it won't go in upright. Wonder if that's the effect of the two guys in the pic or the glass of beer.

Sox Comntinue to Sink; Blow 3-0 Lead in 9th

Well, tonight there are two different things Sox to report. Unfortunately, one of them is tonight's game against the Mariners. The other was a brief trip back in Sox history to the Spaceman. But more on that in a moment. Tonight, against a guy who is arguably one of the half dozen best pitchers in the AL, "King" Hernandez, the Sox took a three zip lead midway through the game on a couple of hits followed by a shot by Cespedes that cleared everything in left, the Monster and everything else, giving the Hose that 3-0 lead. The Sox pitching was just as solid, staring with the Hose starter and continuing through the guys from the pen. Of the latter, Badenhop and Layne tossed 1 1/3 hitless, allowing only a single freebie between them. Enter the 9th with Koji on the mound. Should be lights out, no? Exactly! NO! At least not tonight. Koji worked it to two outs and a man on, the Sox still holding that three zip lead--and then he surrendered five (count 'em) runs, and the game. Too bad. This was a real waste. In a twinkling he went from almost untouchable to unbelievably touchable. That's the way the season's gone for our team.
The only good news today was the aforementioned Cespedes shot, and Papi's continued consecutive hit streak, now six for six, counting yesterday's four for four. Away from the Fens, some good news for the Sox: maybe very good news. The Sox won the bidding war among eight teams, including the Evil Empire, for Cuban outfield superstar Castillo. Seven years for a total deal of about $78 million, most of it back loaded. Next year could be an interesting year in the Hub outfield--Havana northeast.

Now for the other bit--Sox history with the Spaceman.  For those of you old enough to remember the Sox of the late 60's through the 70's, one of the outstanding characters was a southpaw by the name of Bill Lee. Better known as "Spaceman" due to his antics and outspokenness on a wide variety of issues from baseball to politics, to counterculture issues, he was a pretty damn good starter, probably a number 2 or 3 on one of today's rotations in MLB. His career stats were 119-90 and a 3.62 ERA, with 713 K's. The career lasted until early 1982, and of the roughly thirteen years he was in the Show, Spacemen pitched for the Sox for ten years. He also was an All Star in 1973. He is a member of the Red Sox Hall of Fame, holding the record for most games pitched by a lefty (321), and the third highest total W's by a Red Sox southpaw at 94. He's also written four books on baseball, the general tack of them being the more 'unusual' stuff and people ijn baseball from his point of view. So, you ask, what has Bill Lee got to do with Sox baseball today? Well, simple. At the age of 65, a time when most former MLB players are showing up aty old timers days, if anywhere, Lee at age 65 signed a contract a couple of years ago to pitch for the San Rafael Pacifics, an independent minor league team. Tonight, at age 68, the Pacifics had a Bill Lee Retirement night, and the Spaceman actually pinch hit during the game.  Figuring Sox Nation citizens would find the news interesting, I snuck down to the Pacifics 'dugout' and walked up to Lee between innings. I introduced myself as a "Boston native', whereupon the Spaceman grabbed ny hand for a good solid shake. I asked if he'd do a selfie for the Duffys Cliff site and he was happy to oblige. Keep your fingers crossed; it should be up tomorrow. Tried to upload tonight and no luck, but we'll get it done tomorrow.

Papi Joins Teddy Ballgame

Well, looks as if I spoke too soon about the Sox' appearance of returning to the methodology and success that marked last year's wonder season. Since then, they've lost four in a row and are mired deeper than ever in last in the AL East. However, that doesn't mean nothing positive's happening. Papi has in recent days propelled himself into the lead in RBI's not just in the AL, but all of MLB. With last night's rocket into the cheaps, he now has 93. More interesting, that shot was Papi's 30th of the year, leaving him in third in the league. BUT it also allowed him to tie the all time great Sox hero, Ted Williams, for the most seasons of thirty or more homers. The total is eight seasons.  I'm not suggesting that Papi is the equal of Teddy Ballgame--nobody could be--but Ted had 521 career homers in his military shortened career. Papi's blow last night is his 461, and counting. He has averaged 36 homers per year for his career. Last night's shot came as part of a 4-4 evening, which raised his BA into the mid-.260's. Unfortunately, it was the final Sox run in an otherwise disappointing evening and one more loss for the Hose.

Six of Eight--Sox Looking More and More Like 2013!

Well, after losing last night by giving up a pair of runs in the 10th--after coming back to tie at 3, tonight the Sox returned to last year's frequent methodology.  They didn't let the fact that they were down five one early on preclude victory. Starting with a two run shot into the center field cheaps by--who else--Big Papi in the 3d, and then, having fallen behind 6-3, sending nine to the plate in the 5th, accented by another two run shot off Papi's bat, and adding four runs in all to take the lead for good, the Sox pulled away to win 10-7.  Papi also had a hand in the last trey the Sox put on the board. he added a two run two bagger to his totals for the day, finishing with a career tying six ribbies on the day.
Equally important, he wasn't the only show in town--just the biggest.  Danny Nava continued his return from oblivion, going 3-4 with a pair of ribbies and a double to raise his BA to a season high .267--finally respectability!  Pedey and Nap each also had a pair of hits, their BA's respectively rising to .284 and .270.
defensively, the Hose moundsmen did a creditable job after De La Rosa left them behind 6-3 after four. His game WHIP was a horrible 3.25, coming on the combo of nine hits and four freebies he gave up.  But the relief that followed was, overall, awesome! Wilson and Badenhop were each perfect, the former going 2 1/3 and the latter adding in his own 1 2/3 innings, more than covered for the softness today by Layne and Koji. The former faced two men, got neither out and left for Badenhop.  Koji finished up, allowing a homer, but as it wasn't a save situation, it likely isn't an issue. Wilson got the W.
Papi's pair of homers mean that he becomes the third member of the Bosox to have 400 homers in a Sox uniform. The others, naturally are Teddy Ballgame with 521 and Yaz with 452. Both of those totals are also career totals, while Papi has a career total now of 459, the others coming in his prior days with the Twinkies.
Both the Rays and O's lost, so the Sox picked up a game on each of them. The team remains in last in the AL East, but, at the risk of sounding like I'm afflicted with a classic case of Sox Hope, the team still has forty games or so to continue their recent surge.  Who knows?  I mean this is the team that was down three zip to the Evil Empire in 2004 and won it all!

Sox Win 3d In A Row--Conclude Winning Road Trip

Well, it's been a while since I posted and I apologize. Had been on vacation for a while, and got distracted. Anyway, with today's win over the Reds, the Sox have won three in a row and four of their last five. In fact, the only loss in this period was a nineteen inning defeat in Anaheim that Jenn attended.  This morning's win completed a sweep against the Reds, and featured another of the Sox rookie pitchers. It seems that in order to get a sense of a variety of young hurlers they have down on the farm, the Hose have taken to bringing them up for a start and then sending them back to the Pawsox once the game is over. Today's rook pitcher was Tony Ranaudo, who is now 2-0 with the big club. He went six, allowed eight hits a a lone freebie, but scattered them fairly well. Danny Nava continues his steady climb up the BA charts with a pair of hits today that left his average for the year at .25.
Ranaudo's only uncomfortable moment for Sox fans came in the Cinci 4th when both the opposing hurler and Schumaker each had a solo blast to briefly give the Reds a 3-2 lead. However, the Sox wasted no time in remedying that, with Yoenis driving in a ribbie on a single and Nap going yard in their half of the 5th to put the Sox back in the lead, 5-3. Nap's shot complemented his other ribbie for the game. Although the Reds did get back a run in their half of the 5th, the Sox pen made the lead stand up for the W.
It did get nervous again in the bottom of the 9th when the Reds opened with their first two batters getting hits, leaving them with tying and winning runs on and nobody out. However, Sox reliever Mujica got the Reds' leadoff hitter to K on three consecutive bunt fouls. It doesn't come up very often, but a foul ball on a two strike bunt counts as strike three, and so that cut the host team's chances a bit. Then Mujica got the next batter, the very swift Hamilton (think Cinci's answer to former Sox player Jake) to harmlessly fly out to Bradley, followed by a simple grounder back to Mujica by the previously most effective Reds batsmen for the day, Negron. Up to this point, he'd had a pair of hits on the day, including a triple, and scored two of the Reds' runs.

The Sox pen looked good overall, staying perfect for the first two innings of the three innings' relief that it worked. Other than Mujica's pair of hits allowed, the pen gave up absolutely zip, both Taz and Badenhop staying perfect and Taz punching out a pair of K's to boot. This is an improvement over his recent work, and a good sign.
From here, the Sox go back to the Fens, opening Friday night against the Astros. Biggest opposing threat there is the current league leading hitter, Altuve, his BA being at .339. The Sox return to Boston playing sub-500 for the season by double digit numbers. However, there are still 43 games left, and that's enough for a comeback to the post season. I admit chances are thin for that to actually happen based on the yaer to date, but, being a life long Sox fan, never say never. I mean remember 'The Impossible Dream' in '67 and even better, the playoff comeback against the Stripes in '04. As the Stripes' catcher-philosopher once said, "It ain't over 'til it's over.
With that in mind, new Sox outfielder Cespedes has now reached base in every one of the ten games since he's arrived from Oakland. He's also contributed a pair of HR's and eight ribbies over that span. If he can pick it up playing to the Monster once the team gets home, and Papi and Nap continue to follow their recent pace on getting balls in the cheaps, coupled with a continued renaissance from Nava and continued increase in BA by Pedey, the Hose may have a reasonable chance

Sox Beat Yankees

In the first game after the wholesale bloodletting of yesterday and the earlier part of the week, the Sox took an early two zip lead and held off the Stripes for a 4-3 win.  In spite of homers by Beltran and Jeter, the Sox managed to never trail, winning their third straight over the Evil Empire. Starting in the 3d with a trip by Holt, followed by a solid two bagger by Pedey, and then followed in order by one by Papi, the Sox grabbed a quick lead. Papi's ribbie is his 78th of the year.
The lineup was like a new team, Middlebrooks arriving after missing 78 games for a broken finger and starting at third, which allowed Bogaerts to play short, where he's eminently more at ease. Betts, an infielder by trade, did something of a Holt playing center and then right, and showing his natural ability to good advantage with a highlight reel diving catch of Ellsbury's hard drive to center that had extra bases all over it.
All of this supported rookie starter Anthony Ranaudo's first big league start, giving him the W after six innings in which he scattered a mere four hits. He did give up a Beltran homer, but kept things pretty much in control, then allowed the Sox pen to nail it down.  He even got a K off Jeter in the Yankee Captain's final year tour of the Fens. Although Taz allowed a homer by Jeter, he held the Yanks in check until he could pass the ball off to Uehara for his 22d save of the year in a perfect inning, including a single K.
The heavily rookie laden Sox showed well tonight, and it would be sweet if they could put on something of a run at least to respectability over the balance of the season.

And The Players Are????

There used to be a saying, "You can't tell the players without a program." Well, as of yesterday's trading deadline, that is the perfect description of the Red Sox. As they continued to flail around in the depths of the AL East, trade speculation heated up--in fact, was the almost exclusive dominant theme of all local Beantown papers and TV and radio stations. I was "back home" for the past week, just getting back to the Left Coast around midnite last night., and was able to suffer through the activity and speculation first hand.
Anyway, the major players who are still members of the Sox are Pedey, Papi, Nap, Vic and Uehara, along with the bulk of the rookie/soph group of young players who have come up the past 1-2 seasons. The group that has gone, and where, (what we got in return in parens) are Lester to Oakland (Cespedes--a horribly over exaggerated sometime power hitting, BA average .250-ish outfielder who MAY benefit with the Monster--I mean who gives a shit if he wins the All-Star Home Run derby?--It's just glorified batting practice; something Teddy Ballgame would have never even acknowledged, much less participated in.); Gomes (part of the Lester deal); Lackey to St. Louis (we get an outfielder I never heard of and a pitching prospect); Dubront (who appeared to have already thrown in the towel); and Drew to the Evil Empire (a part time infielder). Peavey departed a day earlier for the Angels and has already lost his first start in Anaheim.
Now I understand the need to get some more run production out of the team, but it's a cardinal rule that you build championships with your pitching, then add the hitting to complete the mix--NOT the other way around! When I saw a TV assembled pic yesterday afternoon of Lester in O's Green and Gold, I had to restrain myself from vomiting all over the floor of the Logan airport restaurant I was in at the time.
There is a possibility that Lester could return to the Sox for next year, as he's a free agent at the end of this season, and has publicly stated as recently as this week in the Globe that he'd be very happy doing so, even for less money than other teams might offer. He WANTS to be a Red Sock for the rest of his career, but only time will tell. It's a sad day at the Fens.

Five Straight--Eight of Nine--Papi Passes Yaz

Well, if there's any question as to whether the Sox are acting like it's 2013 all over again, tonight's latest addition to the latest streaks should hopefully put the issue to rest.  Piling up both their highest total in runs and hits for the season, the Sox put the Jays away early.  When the smoke cleared away, they'd amassed 14 runs and 18 hits, 17 of them by six guys in the lineup.  Included in the hit total were four shots to the cheaps, two by Papi (more on that in a little bit), and four doubles. This offensive onslaught gave Lack his eleventh W on the year, although the way he pitched tonight, he likely could have won even in most close situations. He allowed two hits over seven innings, and handed out no freebies--not a single one.  That leaves his game WHIP at a minuscule 0.29.

The Sox hitters with round trippers were Papi, Nap and Drew, Papi's second and Nap's coming back to back, the fourth time the Sox have gone back to back this season. Both of Papi's were two-run blasts, and with the second one, he passed Yaz on the all-time list, taking over sole possession of 36th place at 453.  In strictly Red Sox history, however, he still trails Yaz, as Yaz had all of his 452 in a Boston uni, while only the last 395 by Papi have come wearing the Red Sox colors. First place in Sox history, of course, is the guy many baseball historians consider the greatest natural hitter in history, Teddy Ballgame. Yaz is second and Papi is third.  One other honor Ted and Yaz have that Papi doesn't have yet, but will most certainly receive once he's five years retired is membership in a small private club in Cooperstown.  Its initials are HOF. It's also worth noting that Papi trails only ARoid in career homers at Toronto's Rogers Center.  He's got 35 and only needs one more to catch ARoid. Thank you, Theo.

Other Sox players getting multiple hits tonight were Holt, Drew and Bradley, with a pair apiece; and Nap, Nava and Bogaerts, each having a trey.  As I've noted a number of times in recent weeks, Nava's been returning to his reliability with the stick, continuously raising his average. Tonight's three hits gets him to his highest this season so far, at .255.  Likewise, Bradley is bringing his average up from its early season meanderings, and he's now at .234. Bogaerts is at .239.  Now neither of these sounds terribly impressive, but when you consider where they've been most of the season, including Jackie spending the early months under the Mendoza line, they're beginning to look pretty good.

The Streaks Continue--Sox Now Seven of Eight & Four Straight!

Well, today the team as a whole, supporting the stellar pitching by Jon Lester, took charge almost from the start and never let up.  Beginning with a fielder's choice ribbie by The Dustman in the first, and continuing with a ground rule two bagger by Danny Nava a couple of innings later that plated a pair, the Sox jumped on KC early and just kept on going as the game rolled on. The 3d inning pair by Nava were the first two of his three for today, the third coming as a sacfly for the Sox final run of the afternoon. Sox catcher Ross had set up this finish with a two run shot into the second row of the Monster Seats.  Together these runs accounted for what became the final six zip score. Four Sox batters each picked up a pair of hits, spreading the wealth nicely.  Included in the Sox total were doubles by Nava and Vic, as well as the aforementioned homer by Ross. Vic, by the way, in his second game back from the DL, was one of those with a pair of knocks, and Nava has now raised his BA to .246 while Vic's return has raised his to .255.  Now, all we need is Papi to get going again.

Meanwhile, there's Lester.  His work today, aside from his 10th W, also accounted for eight more K's, balanced against a rare (for him) pair of freebies.  Even taking these passes into account, his WHIP for the game was a sparkling 0.75! His ERA dropped to a solid 2.50, an excellent level at any time. Lester may still have a new contract to get worked out to avoid free agency after the season, but the way he's pitching now should make that easy for all parties involved--he and the Sox brain trust.  He's indicated a number of times he wants to finish his career in Boston, and efforts like today's should only lend further support to the idea!

Three Straight--Six of Seven!

With the return from the DL of Vic, the Sox, on a limited number of hits, 6, and some great pitching from starter Rubby de la Rosa, setup man Miller and closer Koji, the Sox extended their current run toward a hoped for repeat of last season's position.  The Sox, after trailing early, one zip, came back on the strength of a run by Nap on a fielder's choice grounder after he'd singled, and a 6th inning shot to the cheaps atop the Monster (actually the Monster Seats are not so cheap).  Although Nap was the only Hose player with a pair of hits today, the rest of the Sox knocks were spread between four players, Holt, Gomes, Vic and Bradley. So there is some team-wide sharing of the offense, even in a day when the overall total was somewhat limited.

The hurling was stellar. After allowing a leadoff trip by KC's Dyson, Rubby pretty much scattered the rest of KC's attack, limiting the to just five other hits over seven innings. He did allow four freebies as well, so he had to pitch on occasion, but did well at it, and now has cut his ERA to an impressive 2.64.  The support from the pen was excellent, as the two Sox relievers matched each other. Each pitcher produced a full inning of perfection on eleven pitches, each one including a single K, and nothing to worry about. Miller got his eleventh H, and Koji picked up his twentieth Save.

Tomorrow's game is an afternoon start, mid-morning out here on the Left Coast, and is a live pickup on TBS.

Sox Now Five of Six with W Over KC

Well, for the second game in a row, the current edition of the Sox played as if this were 2013 all over again. Trailing one zip and then a few innings later four one, the Hose relied on all of their lineup to pick up a 5-4 victory over the always pesky Royals.  In their half of the 2d, the Sox used a flurry of hits to knot the score at one. With Bogaerts on third, Drew on first and two gone, Holt lined a single that got the tying run home.  A few innings later, the Hose having fallen back behind, 4-1, they assembled a rally that looked for all the world like it came from last year. With one gone, Danny Nava singled, followed by a Bogaerts blast deep into the center field cheaps to make it 4-3, KC. But the Sox were far from done.  Drew followed with a solid two bagger. After Ross K'd, Johnny Gomes pinch hit for Jackie Bradley and pretty much duplicated Bogaerts' cheap shot into the center field seats and suddenly, the So had the lead, 5-4.  As it turned out, this was the final tally.
The Sox pen took over from there and was sparkling.  Bucky departed, a chance at evening his record for the year, and was followed by Badenhop came on. He only got credit for a third of an inning as the second batter he faced reached on one of two Sox errors. Enter Miller. He made it look simple--two batters up; two batters K'd; end of inning.
In the 8th, Taz came on and initially made things a bit more exciting than necessary. His first batter got a hit and advanced to second on an errant pickoff throw to first. With no-one out and the tying run on second, he buckled down and a few minutes later had set down the next three batters in order, two on harmless groundouts. That brought the game to the 9th and, as expected, the Sox' newest All-Star, Koji.
With two outs, he surrendered a double to Infante and found himself facing one of KC's more dangerous batsmen, Hosmer, already 3-4 on the day. Tying run on second, he got Hosmer to ground out harmlessly to Pedey and the game was over.
Sox starter Bucky wasn't as sparkling as in his prior start just before the break, but he p itched when he had to and was able to limit the damage to the four early runs KC picked up. Although he only collected three K's, he allowed no freebies and allowed the team a chance to fight its way back for the win.
Besides Bogy and Gomes, the big offensive producers tonight were Drew and Nap, each with a pair of hits, including Drew's double.  This performance is a further throwback to the type of play demonstrated last year by the team, and is what is needed to get them back into post-season contention again.  This appears to be something that they have brought themselves back to in recent weeks, and, hopefully, a habit that will continue.

Sox Take Series--Now Three of Four

Well, with today's win, the Sox head to the All-Star break with three of four, including the series victory over Houston. Credit goes everywhere except the pen, but the pen being left out isn't their fault--they weren't needed. Bucky threw a three hit shutout! Better yet--he also had no freebies and picked up a dozen K's.
The offense began with the first batter. Holt, hitting leadoff drove a shot into the cheaps on a full count and just like that the Sox had a lead that they weren't to relinquish.
Papi added a pair of ribbies although he had no hits today. The hits were scattered, all sixteen of them, all along the lineup. Even better, led by Danny Nava, who I've recently noted is showing signs of getting his batting eye back, the bottom half of the lineup had seven of the sixteen hits, led by a pair apiece from Nava, Drew and the Sox newest rookie, their catcher, Vasquez. The last of these is hitting like he was born with a bat in his hands, and is at .455 with a slugging average of .727. Of all the hits, all were by the Sox, but only a trey--a double by Vasquez, a triple by Carp and the aforementioned tater by Holt. But what is more important, the hits were constantly coming in clusters.  Someone got on and the Sox moved him around and got him home--whatever the situation. THIS is how they played last year! It may bot be too late.  Keep your fingers crossed and look forward to the rest of the season after the break.

Bosox In Second Straight Walk-off Win

Although the method isn't what Hub Hose fans would like to become the norm, the spirit and form that the Sox used last night to beat the Chisox was followed again tonight. After staking themselves to a 3-1 lead by picking up three runs in the 6th, the last pair coming on Papi's solid double, the Sox rolled along into the top of the 9th looking for all the world that they'd get Lester his tenth W of the year. Lester was spectacular, allowing a single run in the 1st and scattering seven hits over seven innings. He gave not a single freebie and struck out an even dozen, two per inning in the first five frames. His game WHIP was an even 1.00, pretty good. But this performance, when added to his numbers over his prior five starts are little short of amazing! Over these six starts, the portsider is 3-0, has a 1.01 ERA , 39 K's against a mere six walks and 33 hits in 44 2/3 innings. If that's not enough for you, he extended his streak of homerless innings to 45 in a row. His WHIP for these six games is a meager 0.87! That's pitching!
Continuing in the hurling vein, he left to Tazawa and the quality continued. Taz went an inning perfectly--nothing and no-one got anywhere, and he picked up a pair of K's while he was at it. Cue Koji for the 9th and we should be home free. Unfortunately, not tonight. For only the second time this year, he blew a save.
Ramirez led off with an infield hit, after which Koji looked normal. Translation, he quickly K'd the next batter. Unfortunately, the batter after that, a pinch hitter named Gillaspie, hooked one of Koji's offerings just inside the Pesky pole for a two-run shot and the game was tied. After that was over, Koji quickly closed out the inning with a K and a grounder. But the damage was done, and that meant the Sox would go into the 9th (and, as it turned out, extra innings) with only two hits to that point. It was again looking like a situation of the Sox potentially dropping a game due to no hitting to speak of.
Not to worry. They did fail to get anything going in their half of the 9th, but Miller came on and, in spite of giving up a single and a free pass, got out of there in eighteen pitches with a zero on the board next to Chicago's name.
Then, the Sox again acted like it was 2013 all over again in their half of the 10th.  Danny Nava worked a walk, and was sacrificed to second by the new rookie, Mookie. Drew, even though in the clutches of his latest slump, this one 0-15, was intentionally walked. Guess the Chicago mob was worrying about his genes. That brought Carp to the dish as a pinch hitter for Ross. He wasted little time driving a ball between third and short, allowing Nava to score the winning run for the second consecutive evening. This is a habit I could get used to, although I'd rather have things locked away a little earlier. But, hey! Beggars can't be choosers. I'll take the W any way I can get it.
Sox are off to Houston for their final three before the All-Star game, where two Sox hurlers--Lester and Koji--will be the Beantown contingent.

A Win--2013 Style!

Finally, after four straight losses, and only two W's in nine games, the Sox won one--2013 style.  Facing one of the best starters in the AL for the Chisox, Sale, a guy who's been on the All-Star squad the past two years and came in at 8-1, the Sox limited their opponent's offense to four runs on just six hits and no freebies. The problem was that while doing so, the hits were all extra bases, including a pair of round trippers. Mujica gave up the fourth Chisox run in relief.  Nevertheless, the Hose were starting five rookies for the first time since 1952 as a way to try to get some life into the lineup.  Featured among these were Betts, playing in only his sixth MLB game and Christian Vasquez at catcher, just called up to replace Pierzynski. Pierz was designated for assignment earlier in the day, his time with the Sox clearly not working anywhere close to what the team had hoped for in the pre-season when they picked him up in the absence of last year's lead catcher, Salty, when he went to the Maarlins as a free agent.

The five rooks went only 3-18, but included a pair of ripping two baggers by Betts, playing as noted in just his sixth game.  Jackie Bradley, Jr. made a diving catch in center in the 2d to snare a hard liner for an out, while in the 7th, Bogaerts took a hard throw from Gomes and made a perfect relay to cut down a Chicago runner at the plate on a perfect reception and tag by the new catcher, Vasquez.

Then came the winning heroics, a la last year. Trailing four zip entering the 8th, the Sox put a trey on the board taking full advantage of the Chisox reliever who came in--and got only the final out in the 8th and one in the 9th. Then, in the last of the 9th, the Sox finished business.  They scored the tying and winning runs when with one gone, Betts was hit by a pitch and then scored the tying run on Danny Nava's double.  Holt then finished things off with a walk-off single scoring Nava. As I'd noted a few weeks ago, Nava gradually seems to be regaining his hitting eye, his BA rising to .226, a good distance above his sub-Mendoza numbers of the first couple of months.

On the pitching side of things, while de la Rosa, also just recalled today, gave up the first three Chi runs, he allowed just six hits and no freebies. Meanwhile as the Hub Hose moved back in breathing room in the 8th, Koji, showing exactly why he was added to the All Star squad today, struck out the entire Chicago side in the 9th to get the win.  Typical Koji: he needed just a total of thirteen pitches to get the job done.

Now, does this mean things have turned around? The Sox are still mired in the Division cellar, a half game south of the Rays, and they still have a bit of a distance to catch the first place O's, but if tonight is a sign of the team returning to its ways of last year, it could be a signal and a turning place for the season. Only time will tell. Papi and Gomes each had a pair of hits, each including a double, and the ribbies ran from top to bottom of the order. There is hope.

Swept--By the Cubs!?

Well, as if losing the first two games of the series to the Cubbies--the only team going longer than the Sox 86 year famine between WS titles (now 106 years and counting)--weren't bad enough--the Hose getting a single run in those two games and consequently wasting some excellent pitching from the entire staff, tonight they were blown out from the start of the game, finally losing 16-9. How else can you explain how a team that collects 16 hits in a game and includes a few extra base hits among those could lose?  Hell, it was so putrid the Sox were in the hole three zip before the Cubs even made their first out! As good as the hurling was the first two games, it was worse than that terrible tonight! Badenhop was the only Sox hurler to get out unscathed, going an inning and two thirds scoreless.
Tonight's abortion also witnessed the end of the Sox streak of allowing three runs or less in fourteen straight home games. You can say so what to that, but it's the longest such streak in MLB history since the White Sox did it in 1917. In case your math isn't too good, that's 97 years! I'm not going to dwell on the rest of the game here. It's so bad you can pick it up in the morning paper's boxes.
The only good thing, other than the fact that Sox bats did get those sixteen hits, was another Papi stat. He had a ground rule double, which was his one thousandth extra base hit of his career.  Besides making him the only active left handed batter with such a total in all of MLB, he also becomes the 36th player in MLB history to reach that exalted plane.  Congrats to Papi! Too bad it had to come in such a miserable thrashing such as this.

Papi, Pedey Lead Sox 2d Straight W Against Stripes

Well, beginning early by building a four zip lead in the Bronx, punctuated by Papi's 19th Shot, the Sox took their second in a row from the Stripes tonight.  Papi's drive, more of a moon launch, which landed thirty odd rows deep in the cheaps was the true definition of a no-doubter. When it left the bat, the only question was how deep into the cheaps it would land.  For you stats freaks, it was not only the nineteenth of the season for the big man, it is also the 450th of his career, which places him 37th all time.  Not too shabby at all.  The Stripes briefly drew close a few innings later when, already having scored one run thanks to an error and some solid base running by Ichiro, they fired off a small artillery salvo, getting a pair of solo shots in their half of the 4th, complements of Tex and Beltran.  The score was now close, Sox 4-3. Not to worry. The Sox responded by adding a three spot to expand to 7-3 midway through the 5th. After a few more innings of trading runs, the ultimate score of 8-5 was reached and the Sox pen turned out the lights.

Keeping Lack's lead in hand at all times, thus giving him his ninth W for the year, four pen members covered the final four innings allowing a collective three hits, a lone free pass and no runs, while tacking on four K's. Miller struck out the side, and Koji did his usual slam the door, throw the lock and threw away the key on any NY hopes. He got countryman Ichiro on a K, and finished by getting the always dangerous Gardner on a weak grounder to Pedey who tossed to Nap at first, and that was the ball game.

Interesting news for the team: first announced last evening after that game, the Sox brought up Mookie Betts from Pawtucket. He plays infield and outfield, has speed to burn and just hits the cover off the ball in terms of hits and BA.  He's also a damn good fielder, even though his outfield experience is very limited. First evening up and he went 1-3 with a freebie and a run scored. Welcome to the Fens, Mookie! May you prosper and help the Sox thrive. Oh, by the way; should you ask, he is not, thank God, named for the Sox nemesis of the 86 Series, Mookie. Rather, he is named for the former NBA (Atlanta Hawks) roundball player, Mookie Blaylock.
Overall tonight, Pedey is looking like he's healthy again, going 3-3 and getting a sacfly and three ribbies.  Defensively, Pedey made his usual assortment of stunning plays around the keystone sack and out in the deeper reaches of the field, Jackie Bradley, Jr. made an absolutely stunning throw home to nail Beltran trying to score on a single from second. Jackie threw an absolute strike on the fly directly to the center of home plate and into Pierzynski's mitt, and the ball was waiting for Beltran's arrival. This heave took the starch out of what could have been a serious Stripes rally. According to Kruk up in the booth, the throw was his ninth outfield assist of the year, and leads the league in outfield assists. Shades of Yaz!  It's almost like having a professional sniper out in center.

Nap HR beats Tanaka, Yanks in 9th

Well, after getting embarrassed last night at the home of the Evil Empire, six zip, the Sox came back tonight to beat the Stripes in a classic pitching duel, 2-1. Both Sox runs came on solo shots into the cheaps, one by Ross in the 3d and one with two gone in the 9th. Both were off Yankees ace, Tanaka, who leads the AL in starting ERA and wins.  Nap's HR, by the way, is his second against the Japanese ace, the prior one coming at Fenway in May.  The Sox outhit the Stripes, seven to five, had four extra base hits amongst their hit total, and were further supported by excellent pitching from both the starter and winner, Lester, and their closer, Koji.  Lester went eight solid innings, allowing only the five hits and a pair of freebies, for a game WHIP of 0.87--excellent numbers for anyone. the only run he surrendered cam in the Yanks' 3d and was unearned. So Lester's ERA has now dropped below three for the first time this season, at 2.92. Koji was classic Koji, and what else can you say. The man is so efficient with his pitches. He threw a perfect 9th, including a pair of K's in his stats, while tossing only a total of eleven pitches, eight of which were strikes. This is his seventeenth save in 18 chances for the season.
With tonight's victory, the Sox have completed 81 games--half the season, and are under .500 for the first time since 1997. Hard to believe that in the horrible Year of the Valentine they weren't under at mid-year, but apparently had managed to keep afloat until the last half of that season when they then totally collapsed under his management and "leadership", eventually losing 93 games, including the last eight in a row and 12 of the final 13. But it's true--their halfway record after 81 games in 2012 was 42-39. 
Looking forward to the second half, the Sox expect to have Vic back from the DL, as well as a number of others who have spent long periods on the list. Also, they now have Bucky back in the rotation and, if his first start this past week In Seattle was any indication, should be able to count on him to complement the continued quality hurling shown thus far by Lester and Lackey.
Can they return to the post-season? Well, with today's W and the corresponding Jays loss, they're now seven behind in the AL East, not at all an insurmountable gap. but they have to get improved hitting throughout the lineup, as well as have more team members return from and/or remain off of the DL. These are all possible goals, and only time will tell how well they do at this. However, I have faith. After all, I'm a Red Sox fan. What else would I have?

Sox Finally Take One in Seattle

Well, after a pair of very forgettable losses to start the series in the Pac northwest, the Sox finally got one turned around and took the W tonight. Not by much, to be sure, but a win is a win, and it was accomplished in the manner that the Sox used to get to their championship last year. Both sides of the game actively contributed. Right from the tart, the offense contributed, with Papi putting the first pair of Sox runs on the board with a solid shot to the cheaps in right plating Pedey ahead of him. This is Papi's 449th career shot, and he climbs closer to the magic five hundred, something to look forward to in 2015.  Unfortunately, the lead didn't last very long as the M's grabbed three runs in their half, but the So didn't cave tonight. Bucky got ahold of himself and went 7 1/3, allowing seven hits and no freebies at all--a game WHIP of 0.95, a very good number. Hell, anything under 1.0 is good! He did allow four earned runs, but even that will cut his early season ERA by a little bit, as it was in the high sixes, low sevens. the Sox pen finished up, Miller closing out the 8th and Koji shutting things down in the 9th, in spite of allowing a hit and a pass.
Other Sox hitters doing well tonight were, once again, the sparkling rook, Holt. He got a pair of hits, raising his BA to .323. Danny Nava continues to show hints that he may be regaining his 2013 form, picking up three hits and a ribbie, simultaneously raising his BA to .227. he fact that it is still so low after a 3/4 evening shows you just how slow the year has been for him up until the past one or two weeks. Even Pierzynski picked up a pair of hits, and Bradley added a ringing two bagger to get his miniscule BA up to a season high .211. Hopefully, his offense of the past two weeks is sn indication that he may eventually reach a respectable level with the bat for the year. If he does, it could go a long way to helping the team make a late run for the Div.
Also, the Jays lost tonight, so the Hose regained one of the games back that they had surrendered in the early part of the week, and are now 7 1/2 back.

Sox Win in Seattle!

Well, there WAS a long coverage of tonight's Sox W in Seattle, including detailed info on Bucky's successful return, Koji's save and the Sox offense, led by Papi's 449th career shot, and two hit nights by Holt and Pierzynski, as well as Dan Nava's three hit evening and what it may portend for the team for the rest of the year. Unfortunately, when I was spell checking, something--God only knows what--happened and  the whole shebang went out into the ether, probably never to be heard from again.o, be satisfied the Sox took a win, Bucky looks almost like 2013 and Papi is still dropping them into the cheaps. WHOOPS! Guess what just showed up--after I posted this piece! The original posting of tonight's win in Seattle. So, all of you out there in the ether, get two for the price of one. Enjoy!

Sox Save Finale In Oakland

Well, since last we talked, the Hose came to Oakland for four, yours truly attending game 2, and all four were one run games. The A's took the first three, #'s 2 & 3 being won by former Sox player Coco Crisp with 8th and 9th inning RBI singles for the winning runs. However, today, the A's, holder of MLB's best record to date couldn't make it all the way back. The Sox built an early and growing 6-1 lead behind the pitching of Lester and the collective hitting of the team. Most notable to that point were HR's by Nap and Ross, plus a screaming three bagger by Herrera. Lester left after 7 2/3 with what was a 6-1 lead at that point, but men on base. Badenhop allowed the two of them to score: 6-4, Sox. Into the 9th comes old reliable Uehara. Koji starts his normal routine, getting the leadoff batter on a simple unassisted grounder to Nap. Then the fireworks begin. Next A's hitter gets taken to 1-2 in the count by Koji and looks a cinch for a quick K, when, instead he drives the ball deep into the right field cheaps--Sox, 6-5. Another former Sox vet, Nick Punto, followed and popped to short. Two gone, and it looks as if we're home free. But wait! Jaso comes up to pinch hit and picks on the first pitch he sees from Koji. BAM! Score's tied at 6. Koji gets the next former Sox player, to dribble the ball back to him and he tosses to Nap to end the bloodshed.
Enter the 10th and after the A's virtually replace their entire infield and right fielder, Papi leads off.  Suddenly it's 2004 again and on a 1-2 count Papi leaves no doubt sending the ball deep into the center field sun seats for what bedcomes the final score, Sox 7-6. It's Papi's 448th career shot, and also helps the Hose pick up a game on the Jays, who lost today. Hopefully, once everybody's back from the DL and no-one else goes there, the Sox can turn the season around and play as we know they can. The continuity they can generate from the DL returns should go a long way to generating that kind of quality.

Papi & Nap Go Yard-Sox Streak At Three!

In a game in which it looked as if the Sox were to be shut out, one zip, complements of Parmalee's solo shot in the top of the 10th, the Sox relied on a classic Red Sox response in the home half of the inning. First Papi, then the next batter, Nap, rifled solid shots into the cheaps for a walkoff win, their third W in a row. It's a win that moves them a game closer to Division leading Toronto.
Parmalee's drive, and again as when the Hose were in the Twin Cities a few weeks ago, what's a .230's hitter doing always providing the power against our Hub Heroes, was the first run off Sox closer Uehara in 21 2/3 innings. As the teams were tied, zip - zip, at the time, he doesn't lose his streak of successful saves. Instead, complements of the Sox Lumber Company, Koji gets the W.
The Sox course to get there was some great pitching by starter Lackey. Lack went the full nine innings, allowing just three singles and a lone freebie, a game WHIP of 0.44, an outstanding figure! As if that weren't enough, he also picked up nine K's for his efforts. Tonight's game marks six straight starts and a dozen of fifteen where he's allowed three or fewer runs. That my friends, is what they call Pitching--with a capital P!
As for hitting, beyond the two launches in the 10th, the only offense the Sox were able to mount was Danny Nava's ground rule two bagger in the 5th. Although he's still in the very low .200's, Nava has recently been showing signs of getting his eye back. A couple of weeks ago, he was stuck well below the Mendoza Line, and has steadily brought it up. A few more weeks of this, and his BA may even reach respectable levels.
Other Sox news: Grady Sizemore, who was designated yesterday, was given his outright release today. It was a noble attempt on the part of the Sox to take a chance that he might be able to come back after a few years absence from injuries, but, other than a homer on opening day, he hasn't been able to get back for the most part. A game try, though. Good luck, Grady--just not against the Sox.

Lester Over .500; Holt Continues to Shine!

Well, tonight, in winning their second one run game in a row and their fourth game out of six overall, the Sox grabbed a pair of early runs and made them stand up.  Holt scored both Sox runs, as a part of a 2-4 evening, including a double and a swipe, raising his BA to .338.  He also played center tonight, which, according to AP, is his sixth position this year. I'm not certain what the all of the other five were, but he's now played all three outfield spots and also started at both corners of the infield. As if all of this weren't enough, he also made the fielding gem of the day, possibly the month, during the Twinkies' 3d. The ball was in left and Gomes was camped out waiting to make the catch and lost it in the lights. Looked like a hit would drop in when out of nowhere, Holt flashed across the field and, glove and body fully extended, made a diving catch to end the inning. Had he not made it, it's quite likely that the ball could have gotten past the Sox outfield and rolled to the wall leaving a Twins hitter at least on second, if not third. Instead, it was high five city in the Sox dugout for the next several minutes. 
Sox pitching was, overall, also very good tonight. Although it took Lester 33 pitches to get out the 1st on a very hot, muggy Fenway evening, his line for the game was excellent. He went 6 1/3, allowing only four hits and one freebie, while ringing up another six K's and getting him over the one hundred mark for the season once again. In fact, tonight's K total put him ahead of none other than Cy Young (yes, that Cy Young) for fourth place in career K's in Sox history with 1342 overall. His game WHIP, by the way, once again an excellent 0.79.  He was then followed by members of the Hose pen. In order, Badenhop, Breslau, Tazawa and Mujica collectively allowed no hits and just a single free pass balanced against five K's over the final 2 2/3 innings. Not too shabby, to say the least.
In addition to Holt's already mentioned performance, the Dustman picked up a pair of hits, including a solid two bagger, his 22d of the season. He remains in the top five in the league in this stat. When he gets his BA back up to traditional Pedey standards, it's going to be scary to see where he ends up in total doubles for the year.  Fifty is not beyond possibility.

Sox Finally Win One Run Game

Well, after the frustration of losing a pair of games to Terry's Tribe, each after leading late by 2-1, the Sox pulled out a W in a one run game. In fact, their margin of victory was the game's only run, produced on a sac fly by Pierzynski. The Sox had a few batters get a pair of hits apiece, but the real story here was Hose pitching. Starter Rubby de la Rosa is looking like a Fenway lock, while not doing to well on the road. This was his second start at the Fens, and, as in the original, he pitched seven shutout innings, giving up not very much. Tonight that translated to one hit and three freebies in seven innings, a game WHIP of 0.57, which as you all know is fabulous! his season ERA dropped to 2.84, also an excellent mark. After he left, the Sox pen took over. Miller K'd the only hitter he faced, then gave way to Badenhop, who extended his consecutive streak of shutout innings to 15 2/3. You KNOW what followed--RIGHT! Koji got his fifteenth save in as many chances, at the same time extending his successful save streak to thirtyone over the past two seasons.
And while we're talking streaks, let's return to the offense, where the Dustman extended his streak of games against the Twinkies with a hit to 29 games--every one he's ever played in in his entire career. Incredible--but definitely Pedey!
The other Sox hitter who looked good offensively was Drew, who went 2-3 on the night.

Sox Bagel the O's

Well, after losing a shutout last night coming into Baltimore after taking one from the Tigers, the Hose showed off their pitching tonight.  Sox starter Workman went 6 2/3 and allowed just a lone single and one freebie for an awfully impressive game WHIP of 0.3 (and that's rounding up the fraction).  The Sox had more hits, but could never, save the 3d inning, get anyone across the plate. However, their mound staff was nothing short of awesome! They started with Workman, then turned things over to the pen. First Miller closed out that remaining third of the 7th with a four pitch K. hen, in their usual order, Taz and Koji each threw a shutout inning punctuated by a pair of K's. Taz's was perfect, while Koji allowed a harmless single to start the inning and then slammed the door.
Offensively, the big hitters (and that's relatively speaking) for the Sox were Nap, who drove in the lone run, and Holt and Pierzynski, each getting a pair of hits. As Toronto lost, the Sox have climbed back to within nine of the Division lead, and added a game to their margin over the Rays as he guys from Tampa lost again.

Sox End Skid Against Bengals

Well, as I noted a couple of days ago, the Hose were on their latest steak--this one a negative which eventually reached five. Tonight they drew first blood, but the quickly dropped behind, 2-1. Fortunately, Lackey was doing a pretty good job of minimizing he Tigers' offensive efforts and, when Nap, in his return from the DL, fired a shot into the cheaps, they knotted things at two. Unfortunately, the Tigers responded and snatched the lead again, 3-2.  This is where Papi found things as he strode to the dish in the top of the 9th with a pair of runners on. Having made a loud out a couple of innings earlier about 400 feet away, he made sure this time. One swing and the ball settled about halfway up in the seats and the Sox had the lead again, 5-3. Koji came on in the bottom half and slammed the door with  13 pitch piece of perfection, his twelfth save.  The shot by Papi was his fourteenth of the season, getting his ribbie total up to 38. Other offensive stars were Nap, who had three hits, including the 'tater and Holt. The Sox rookie went 4-5 including a triple, and is now hitting .339. Now, having gained a game on every other East Div team, the Hose head to Baltimore to face the Birds.

On The Roller Coaster

Well, after successive streaks of ten (losing), followed by seven (winning), the Sox are back on the downhill run. Getting swept in Cleveland for the first time in over a decade, they received Terry's revenge. After a year away from the field the Sox former manager is now the manager of the Tribe, and has them of late on quite an upward trajectory. Although still hovering at/near just .500, they've climbed within range of their division lead, now just 4.5 back of the Tigers. Yesterday's loss, completing the Indians sweep, was probably the most painful of this latest run. After coming back from 4-2 down, the Hose went into extra innings before Mujica finally gave up a walk-off three run shot to, of all people, Asdrubal Cabrera, he of the low .240's batting average. This was a waste of some pretty good Sox pitching, particularly from the pen up to Mujica's appearance. In fact, Koji even went two innings of near perfect pitching, allowing only a sole freebie for his work. The pitching and Papi's 13th drive to the cheaps, which had the Sox briefly up, 2-1, all were for naught.
They have the day off to get out of this slide and try again to turn things around, and, with the way both the Jays and O's are playing, they'd better not waste a lot of time getting it in gear. However, it's difficult when what seems like a daily occurrence is another player sent to the DL. The latest are Carp, broken foot and Lavarnway, surgery for hamate bone removal from his hand. These latest come on top of Bucky, Vic, Napoli and Middlebrooks. Carp, Lavarnway and Middlebrooks are listed as 15 day DL, but you know that with fractures and/or surgery, it isn't, unfortunately, going to be anywhere close to that. A month or more, particularly with Lavarnway, is far more likely.  The only good to come from this is that Holt has been one of the callus, and is doing pretty well, managing to stay above .300 so far, including his four double day in Cleveland.  Still, all of these injuries, coupled with walking wounded in the persons of Pedey and Papi, aren't helping the team in its defense of the World Championship.

Four Managers--Sox Streak At Five

Well, tonight the Sox had their tempers up due to a series of hit batters--and in the end did the hitting that won their fifth in a row.  Very early on Papi was hit by Rays ace, David Price, leading to warnings to both teams by the home plate umpire. When Sox manager Farrell came out to argue over Papi's getting hit and Price staying in, he was tossed. As the game continued, Carp got hit by Price and some pushing and shoving followed. Sox substitute manager, Bench Coach Luvollo complained as Price was allowed to stay in even though this was his second 'hit' of the game and he'd already been warned. Result: Luvollo gets tossed. At least Farrell had some company in the clubhouse. But it wasn't over yet, not even close! Comes the Rays 6th and Sox hurler Workman sent a message pitch about three feet behind Rays third sacker Longoria--and Workman predictably gets tossed--along with Sox third base coach Butterfield, although I'm not certain what the logic was in the case of Butterfield. Maybe the umps felt they were getting in the swing of things and it felt good to do the "throw" motion.  If you have any idea, let me know.  Anyway, now the Sox are down to their hitting coach, Greg Colbrunn, doing the managing. So, eventually the Sox tie the score and we roll into the bottom of the 10th. Koji's already come and gone, preceded by Taz and Badenhop, and it's still two all. But, never fear--the turnaround mojo post-ten game losing streak is still working. Gomes comes to the plate with one gone--and, you guessed it--gets hit. After a very understandably long hard stare at Rays reliever Oviedo, Gomes takes his base. He doesn't have to wait long. Pierzynski grabs a bat and takes matters into his own hands. Driving a pitch deep into the right center field triangle, he collects a walkoff triple. Gomes scores, the Sox win and everyone is happy--with the possible exception of the Rays--and various and sundry members of the Sox team and coaching staff. Papi after the game said it very clearly.  If Price holds a grudge over Papi's pair of shots in last fall's playoffs and wants to repeat his throws at Sox batters, then he and Papi will have to put the gloves on outside the park and settle matters.
Stats-wise, the Sox outhit the Rays, 8-4, with Papi getting an RBI and Bogaerts going 3-5, including his 14th double of the season and Pierzynski going 2-5, his aforementioned trip and a two bagger doing the damage. As for pitching, Workman did a decent job for the five and a third he was in before getting an early shower, compliments of the umps. He gave up four hits and three freebies, but balanced it with four K's. The pen crew was even better! No runs, no hits and just a pair of freebies total from all five Sox relievers. If that's not enough, throw in an additional three K's for good measure, topped off by Miller getting the final out on the only batter he faced on just two pitches.  Oh, yeah! He also got the win, a fitting payback for the lousy luck he had to endure during some fairly good pitching during the losing streak.
So the win streak's now at five, and Sox pitcher Rubby de la Rosa is set to get his first start of the year tomorrow. Here's to making it a victorious one!

Spox Sweep Braves--Streak At Four

Well, as previously noted, I'd said the recent losing streak would stop at ten and then the Sox would turn things around. Since then they've played their former fellow Bostonians, the Braves, four times and swept them. Tonight's was the best example, in my humble opinion, of how a winning team makes things happen and takes advantage of errors or miscues of their opponents. Sown 2-1 entering the 8th, they gave up another run and things looked like the Braves might get away with one. Not to worry. In their half of the same inning, the Sox added a pair to tie things up, taking full advantage of a pair of errors to go with singles by Holt, Bogaerts, Pedey and Pierzynski.  Papi, held out of the lineup due to a bruised calf then pinch hit, and rather than try to deal with Mr. Clutch, the Braves intentionally passed him. The Hose couldn't get his pinch runner home for the lead at that moment, but the win was just a few minutes away. After Koji tossed a shutout inning on nine pitches, including a brilliant K on a pair of 'up the ladder' fast balls, as opposed to his trademark killer cutter, the Sox took their turn.  Wasting no time, they struck. Bradley and Holt both grabbed freebies, followed by an infield single by Bogaerts. The Braves could have held things there with crisp clean fielding, but their second sacker, La Stella, screwed it up and Bradley never stopped running when he reached third on the hit. He just kept churning those legs and slid head first across the plate a good five feet ahead of the ball for the winning run. It's the type of aggressiveness that winning teams always employ to pressure the opposition into careless mistakes that produce runs. Bradley may not have Jake's legs, but he's not slower by very much, and when he's on the move, if you're not ready to gun him down, get the hell out of the way because he's crossing the dish no matter what.
The Sox pitching was also pretty damn good overall. Peavey threw eight solid innings, giving up eight hits and a free pass, for a game WHIP of 1.125--very respectable, especially when you add in his four K's along the way. Then, Koji came in, threw nine pitches and headed for the shower, freshly minted W firmly in his grasp. He probably didn't even break a sweat--as always.
On the negative, Nap and Vic now have company on the DL, as the team yesterday put Bucky on the DL, his injury very possibly being related to his horrible no control effort the last time out. Hopefully, he'll get better fast and get back to being the Bucky we expect to have out there. Drew is busy on his rehab, and hopefully, will add some oomph to the roster on his return to the parent club.

IT'S OVER!!!!

Well, I called it--lose ten in a row and then the rebound will begin! Sox just closed out Atlanta, 8-6 to end the losing streak. Down 6-1 after four and looking worse, the Sox exploded for five in the 5th, punctuated by Papi's three run shot to the center field cheaps after the Dustman had driven a pair with a very timely hit. In the 7th, the Hose added a pair for the winning runs, Papi accounting for one of those as well. As if all of this weren't enough, with the Sox holding that two run lead to open the last of the 9th, Atlanta's leadoff hitter, Justin Upton, sent a solid liner into the outfield for a hit. He kept on running hard for second, looking like a good bet to end up with a double. However, Sox center fielder Jackie Bradley, Jr. had other ideas. A perfect pickup and recovery followed by a bullet to second arrived a nanosecond too late to get Upton. BUT, N O T  S O  F A S T! Because of the accuracy of Bradley's throw, coupled with Pedey's excellent coverage of the base as the throw came in, Upton slid past the bag and Pedey was ready. Not wasting a second, he pounced. Instead of a leadoff double, Upton became a loud out. Uehara gave up a single to left that barely cleared a leaping Bogaerts, but then slammed the door with a cutter that brought up a solid ground ball to Pedey for a 4-6-3 DP--Game Over; STREAK OVER! Now let's keep it rolling and take back the Div! Lester goes tomorrow against the Braves, and says he feels at his best. Go JL!

Seven and Counting

Well, things sure have gone south in a big way! With today's loss to the Jays, the Sox have now dropped seven in a row, and are only slightly ahead of the Rays in avoiding the cellar. A short week ago, they were a half game out of first in the AL East. It's no one thing that seems to be hurting them. The pitching hasn't been good, for the most part, and when it has, no hits, at least timely ones with men on base, have come. And speaking of hitting, a  number of team members averages have plummeted, while others still haven't started hitting yet. Papi was playing like this was the World Series a week ago in the Twins series, and now he's dropped to .275 from over .300.  Pierzynski has been deep in a major slump, something now like 4 for 40, or somewhere in that neighborhood. Vic has dropped from over .300 to .253 after today's abortion, and so on and so on. As for pitching, Lester, who up to today was pitching far better than his record showed, gave up ten hits, a pair of freebies and seven (not a typo) runs in 6 2/3, and got only 3 K's, which for him is a disaster. The streak is now more than twice as long as the worst losing streak of last year, and is the worst steak since the Hose lost their final eight games in 2012. You remember 2012--well, maybe you've deliberately built a mental wall against ever remembering that Valentine tainted year, but trust me, it wasn't pretty. Which is the way that this short season so far is beginning to look.
On the plus side, as the rest of the Div hasn't done overwhelmingly well, the Sox are still well within reach of the other teams, but they can't let this go on for too long. Drew finally signed a contract, having given up getting paid NOTHING for his free agency try, and Holt is not only holding above .300, he's actually climbing. PREDICTION: streak goes to 10 (hello Billy Jurges) and then the team turns it around. If they don't....

Sox Beat Twins--Papi Incandescent!

Well, in the two games the Hose have played in the Twin Cities, they lost one on a walk-off 2 run shot last night, but then engulfed the Twinkies tonight 9-4. Dubront tonight was very good,only allowing a single run in 6 1/3, on seven hits and a freebie. The big story of both nights, however, is, as noted in the headline, Big Papi. The man is on fire over his last few games. Starting in Texas, he had (after a scoring correction against Darvish) the only hits that night, followed next day by a shot to the freebies, and followed again by back to back two homer games against the Twinkies. In this short span, his B. A. has shot up from .257 to over .300, and he's now tied for second in the league in HR's with eleven, and has raised his ribbie total to be in the top ten in the AL.  Almost reminds one of his World Series performance of last year.
What is even more interesting is where he now sits on the larger scale--or, in this case, scales, since there are at least two of them. In the entire history of the team, Papi is now the sole possessor of career Red Sox home runs with 384 as a Sox member. He's over 400 total for his career. Yaz is second and Teddy Ballgame is, of course, in first. While Papi will never approach TW's numbers, he could with a couple of 30+ years after this year, get close to a solid challenge to Yaz.
The second scale I alluded to is the number of four ribbie games he's piled up. Over the past ten years, he has more games with at least four ribbies per game than anyone in MLB. People trailing him include Pujols to kind of give you an idea of the rare neighborhood he's now inhabiting. This is classic Papi. Historically with the Sox, every so many games, he suddenly goes on a tair of unbelievable proportions when the HR's seem to come as naturally as breathing. So it is for now. May it continue for a good while.

Over .500; Sox Take Texas Series--Lackey looks Great!

Well, today's game resulted in another Sox win and the taking of a series from what has become, over the past several years, a real nemesis, Texas. Today, the punch came early with Nap and Pierzynski bringing home the runs and giving the Hose a three zip early lead, upped to four an inning later. After that things kind of progressed bit by bit. The Rangers got a HR from Chin that made it 4-1, Sox and after Pedey added a shot to the cheaps, the Sox rode home to a 5-2 final on the collective arms of Lackey, now 5-2 for the season and the pen, which contributed a pair of perfect innings to slam the door on any thoughts Texas may have had about coming back. Both of the last two Sox hurlers, Miller and Koji, picked up a pair of K's, Miller in fifteen pitches and Koji in fourteen. Koji got his ninth save for his efforts as well.
As all other AL East teams lost today, the Hose picked up a game everywhere, and should now be two games out in third, a half game behind the Stripes, and a game and a half ahead of the Jays.

Back to .500--Another Team Victory!

Well, after dropping below .500 last night due to the near no-no by Darvish (only Papi got a hit--with two gone in the 9th), the Sox rebounded to pummel the Rangers tonight, winning 8-3 on an across the board effort by the Hose.  Offensively, Papi showed the way with a shot to the cheaps and a ribbie producing two bagger, while Vic substantially backed him up with a solid 3-4 effort that produced four ribbies and a run scored for the feisty right fielder. As always, Dusty was also in the mix with a pair of hits backed by two freebies and a run scored, followed at the other end of the order by Bradley's pair of hits.
As far as hurling goes, Sox starter Lester continued on his solid K-producing path, adding eight to his season total to move into a tie for the AL K lead with Detroit's Scherzer at 66 K's on the season.  The Hose pen did a good job closing out the game after Lester finished his seven, Miller finishing the final batter on a three pitch K--game over.
Incidentally, Papi's homer is his 380th with the Sox, breaking a tie for franchise positioning with Dwight Evans. Pap's now alone at fourth in franchise history, just a pair behind Sox number three, Hall of Famer Jim Rice, at 382. Total career HR's: Papi is well past 400 and counting.

Back to .500! A True Team Victory!

Well, the Sox got back to .500 tonight. Up to now, it seemed that every time they got within a game of breakeven, they'd then lose a couple of close ones and have to start the climb all over again--kinds' like Sisyphus. Not tonight. Hosting the Reds again at the Fens, the Hose allowed their guests to get on the board first and then proceeded to play catchup for the remainder of the evening, finally putting the winning score across the plat in the bottom of the 8th. While Middlebrooks drove home the clincher, the 10 hit offense was pretty much spread across the entire lineup.  Papi had a pair of hits and added a ribbie; Vic and Pierzynski were each 2-4 with the former scoring a run and the latter plating one. Nap had a two bagger for a ribbie, and for once, the timely hit showed up often enough (like last night) to make a difference.
As for pitching, Peavy took the ball to start and, although he gave up four each of hits and BB's, he also matched the freebies with 4 K's and kept the damage under control through six, until the Sox bats could take over. Then the pen took control--four pitchers, no hits, a single freebie and, frosting on the cake: Koji K'd all three batters he faced on a total of just thirteen pitches, ten of which were strikes. So, in this case, the Sox have won a series before the final game is played, a trend that has taken some time showing up so farm, unlike last year when the Hose Heroes started right out of the gate doing that for the most part.

Pap, Nap, Sizemore & Pedey Lead Sox to Victory

Sounds almost like a law firm: Pap, Nap, Sizemore and Pedey. But no case here of Dewey, Cheetum and Howe here! Tonight's game was won by a solid combo of Sox bats and, for the most part, shut down hurling from the pen.  In the former case, the Hose had, in spite of mid-game lack of timely hitting, followed the lead of the aforementioned batsmen to first build a lead of three to one that held until the 8th, and then, finally in the 12th, get a quick string of hits to walk off with a W.  Although the Sox overall pen work was shutdown, and in the cases of Badenhop and Miller even perfect, the Reds made everyone in the Fens tonight start to sweat as Taz was reached for enough baserunners to allow the tying runs and earn a rare BS for himself.  While this was transpiring, our Hub Heroes were constantly leaving men on base and frustrating the Hell out of this observer.  Not to worry, though. After our resident Yalie held the Redlegs scoreless in the top of the 12th, grabbing a pair of K's while allowing a lone single that just cleared a leaping Dustman's glove, the Sox came to the plate. Someone must have figured that this had gone on long enough.  I mean although the pay in MLB is excellent by any standard, the guys don't earn overtime, and the game was now over four hours old. Papi led off with a sharp single past a diving second sacker, the ball cutting into the outfield almost surgically in its line to the grass. Nap followed him to the dish and, bingo--another hit and men on first and second. Up comes Sizemore, he of the injury-lost last couple of years, and with one solid swing of the club, the game was over. He banged one off the Monster right between two Reds outfielders. Normally a double, when he saw it hit the wall, knowing that he had driven in Papi with the winner, he quit his dash toward second, costing himself the two bagger and settling for a single, just so he could more quickly join Nap in a game winning hug in mid-infield. As for Pedey, oh, yes. All he did was once again show what Mariano Rivera (see my earlier post today) was talking about. As Mo said, there's never a time when Pedroia isn't trying as hard as he possibly can to win the game; always aggressive and on the attack to help the Sox walk away fists clenched in victory. Tonight he played his usual killer second base and at the plate, went 3-5 with a pair of ringing two baggers. In fact, the second of these was his 200th of his career, another trophy to place alongside his 100th homer and 100th swipe of his career. As noted when he got there last week, he is now second only in Sox history, along with Yaz, in having at least 100 of each, homers and steals. Can't be too many guys in Hose History with those stats and the additional one of 200 dubs.  In fact, once again it's Yaz that he shares this lofty position with.

Praise for Pedey!

Normally, you get a review of the latest Sox game. Today, it's about praise for The Dustman--from a most unlikely source! Call him Pedey, call him The Dustman; whatever you prefer, he's Dustin Pedroia and he's the BEST second sacker in the game today. Yes, there are other 2b's who'll be on the wall in Cooperstown that are playing today, Cano among them. But, Dusty's the best! And from an entirely unexpected source, more praise of that type. Mariano Rivera, yes that Mariano Rivera, came out in his soon to be published memoir and said if her were picking his second baseman, the one he'd most definitely want before any other is our guy, Pedey! Asked about his former teammate, Cano, he said that he's good, but that Mo isn't sure about his commitment to winning. On the other hand, he said no-one has a stronger passion for winning, no matter the circumstances than our guy. Mo says, "you know that you'll get total attention to trying to win for all 27 outs." What more can be said? Always thought Mo was one of the very few members of the Evil Empire who was not only a good player, but also a true sportsman and gentleman.