A Whole New Season!!

Well, it's a new season and the Sox have started as if they plan to reverse last year's woeful season and return to the year before--2013.So far, they have taken 2 of 3 from the Evil Empire--in NY, no less, including a 19 inning marathon last Friday night, and their new members via free agency, Panda Sandoval and former Sox draftee Hanley Ramirez, have been showing the way. Dusty is looking like pre-2014 as his off season surgery appears to have alleviated the thumb injury that dogged him all last year, and yesterday, Koji Uehara was activated  from the DL to assume his role as the team's closer. Papi is already hitting HR's (2 so far), and his low season start BA appears to be creeping northward.  So, let's raise a glass to our heroes and a toast--GO SOX!! Here's to a successful '15 season!

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!