Bucholz wins duel vs. Greinke with shutout

Ty Hampton
Sox Swagger

A fiery Clay Bucholz had his hands full facing off with 2009 AL Cy Young Award Winner Zack Greinke on the mound in Fenway Saturday. But Clay brought the good stuff and was just ever so slightly better than All-Star hurler in a showdown of elite young arms.

Greinke was great, but Bucholz was greater…matching the American League ace at every opportunity until the Sox got one break and seized the chance. Mike Lowell drove in the Sox’s only run on a bases-loaded fielder’s choice grounder to take a 1-0 lead that would be the difference maker.

Clay gave up only 4 hits over 7 innings to cement himself as Boston's most consistent starter in 2010 -- standing at 7-3 with a 2.73 ERA. This has been a welcome refreshment to the Sox staff with Josh Beckett not only struggling on the mound early, but with injuries that could potentially keep him out until the midway point of the year or later.

Another key play in the game came when Dustin Pedroia snagged a ripped hit up the middle to his right off a high-hop and made a great throw to first to prevent the runner from getting on base. Even more crucial was this play as it came with 2 outs in the bottom of the 8th and a runner attempting to score from third base to tie the game up. Pedroia said ‘nay-nay’ to that though.

Yet another great example of how defense sealed this one for Bucholz and the Sox was when V-Mart gunned down the Royals’ Scott Posednik attempting to steal second base after he led off the 6th inning with a single. Posednik takes that base and who knows? It’s a momentum thing, and Victor wasn’t letting anything like that fly on Saturday night.

Red Sox Record: (28-23)
Today’s Pitching Matchup: Jon Lester (5-2, 3.09 ERA) vs. Bruce Chen (1-0, 2.77 ERA)

Nay’s:
- After only throwing 25 pitches in a Friday workout it became apparent that Josh Beckett's strained lower back is not healing as fast as anticipated, not only will he not be activated this week but it appears that he may be facing a more extended time on the DL.

Yay’s:
- The Sox have found a way to win without Beckett and Ellsbury (and Cameron to boot for a good portion as well) – key members of past year’s successful teams. Players like Clay Bucholz, Jeremy Hermida, J.D. Drew, Darnell McDonald, and now resurgent David Ortiz have made this ship keep its sails up when it looked to be sinking.

- Papelbon got his 12th save on a smooth, ideal 1-2-3 9th inning. Good to see he’s on top of his game now, especially against the lineups (like the Royals) who should give him no trouble what so ever.
Daniel Bard also shined as Paps’ setup man, getting through a threatening 8th inning to leave nothing as else for Big John to do other than slam the door in the 9th.

The timeless knuckler get slammed

Ty Hampton
Sox Swagger

A majority of the time Tim Wakefield has taken the mound over his lengthy and proficient career, his trademark knuckleball has knuckled with wild wonder and bewildered batters around the league. At the very least the unpredictable nature of the pitch kept the damage to a minimum. Friday was not one of those days for Wake.

His knuckler wasn’t moving near enough and was the ideal kind of beefy meat that the Kansas City Royals batters didn’t hesitate to jump all over. Wake gave up 9 runs over 3-2/3 innings in the 12-5 loss at Fenway.

To accurately describe how bad it got and how fast, there is really only one stat: 7 runs in the first 2 outs of the 4th inning alone. This of course included a grand slam that took matters from bad to worse quite quickly.

But that’s the gamble you take with knuckleball pitchers, whether great or average, there are days they will get hit hard. It’s up to the coach to pull them before it gets to the point of no return and Francona left Wake in too long Friday night – probably out of respect for the 43-year-old veterans’ wishes…but who knows. Sometimes you think you can shake something and get yourself out of trouble and ya can’t. He’s done it a number of times, but that wasn’t going to fly that evening.

Yay’s:
- Victor Martinez, in only his second game back from a foot injury, homered and drove in 4 of the Sox’s 5 runs Friday night.

Nay’s:
- After playing just 3 games after returning from his severe rib injury in April, Ellsbury returned to the DL Friday after admitting to staff that he was not able to give it 100 percent in his current condition. The Sox organization did not immediately announce a timetable for his rehabilitation or return to the squad.

Sox Record: (27-23)
Today's Matchup: Clay Bucholz vs. Zack Greinke

Dice-K loses his command

Ty Hampton
Sox Swagger

-- Dice-K threw 9 pitches to his first batter on Thursday for a leadoff walk.

That's about how Matzusaka's night went, struggling to gain command of his pitches throughout. Frankly its mildly amazing that this only a 4-3 loss.

All-in-all Dice lasted only 4-2/3 innings givng up 3 runs on 2 hits and a lethal 8 walks (5 of which came in the Royals' 3-run 5th inning. Dice is now 3-2 with a 5.77 ERA even after throwing a stunning 1-hitter in his last start in Philadelphia.

The Sox bats didn't look to shabby but definitely weren't on fire, in that respect, either. Beltre and Varitek had RBI nights, Tek's coming off a double, and Bill Hall had a solo shot.

Sox record: (27-22)
Yay's:
- The bullpen stand of Joe Nelson, Manny Delcarmen and Ramon Ramirez looked strong over 4-1/3 innings only giving up 2 hits and 1 run.

- One loss in a Kansas City 4-game set is nothing to signal the alarm about. If the Sox take the next 2 or 3 I think Sox fans have to remain happy about the way things are going for their team who are really on a tear here in May.

Nay's:
- Dice-K's lack of consistency is something I'm sure the Sox staff would like to see level out as the season progresses.

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Sox gettin' their sweep on

Ty Hampton
Sox Swagger

-- Just 5 weeks after falling victim to the Rays in an embarassing 4-game sweep at Fenway, the Sox have returned the favor.

Given it was only 3 games, but the BoSox did come into St. Petersburg on a roll and put it on the MLB-leading Rays harder, and harder each night.

The latest stomping was Wednesday when the Sox hitters jumped all over ace Matt Garza, who gave up 6 runs in the 11-3 Boston win. Five of those runs came on longballs, 2 of which came off Adrian Beltre's bat. A third was served up by none other than the red-hot, tongue-scorching panini that is David Ortiz on a 2-run shot.

Just one more thing on Beltre though, just to be clear, the man did have 2 homers, a triple and 6 RBIs Wednesday. That's just scary! Even better Beltre is leading the team in hitting with a .341 ERA -- impressive when he was brought in for his glove.

John Lackey also had a good day throwing for 8 hits and 4 walks but getting out of some big jams to end up only giving up 2 runs over 6-1/3. Lackey improved to 5-3 with a 4.84 ERA.

Red Sox record: (27-21)
Key stat: Sox now 5-1/2 games back of the AL East leading Rays

Yay's:
- Boston just finished a 13-game stretch against the Tigers, Yankees, Twins, Phillies and Rays -- five strong postseason contenders -- with a 9-4 mark...not bad. They also had a 1.33 ERA against the Rays this series.

- Big Papi is officially BACK! He hit his 10th homerun tonight hitting in his old spot, the 3-hole. Not only that, but Ortiz is looking like the fun-loving Papi of old who swings a big stick and carries a bigger smile with him on the field and off.

This guy is a Boston institution, so its good to see him back in the groove again.

Nay's:
- Nothing, I'm absolutely thrilled by the way my boys are playing these days! Go Sox!


Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Lester rules Rays

Ty Hampton
Sox Swagger

-- Have I mentioned lately how the Boston Sox are playing some damn good baseball?

Jon Lester had something to say about that Tuesday night, improving his ERA to 3.15 and his record to 5-2 as he helped shutout the Rays 2-0. The southpaw hurler threw for 7 strikeouts, 5 walks and only a single hit.

The game was still truly won by great pitching and defense, but David Ortiz's 2-out, 2-run double in the 3rd inning made all the difference for Boston. Papi is really, really doing great things at the plate the past few weeks -- slump no more I say.

Then Jon Papelbon also came in and finished it off for his 11th save of the year.

Red Sox record: (26-21)
Wednesday's matchup: Lackey vs Garza

Yay's:
- Over the past four games, Boston's starting rotation is 4-0 with a 0.32 ERA. Oh yeah, and all the games were in either Philly or Tampa. That's downright amazing.

- Boston is now 6-1/2 games behind the Rays in the AL East and is going for a sweep of their division rivals Wednesday

- Manny Delcarmen, Daniel Bard and Paps all came in relief during an intense, close game and followed Lester's lead, kept things rolling and cemented the shutout win of the best offensive team in baseball.

- Jacoby Ellsbury will reportedly be taking his rightful place back at the helm in centerfield, named the team's regular at that spot with Mike Cameron coming off an injury plagued month and thus making an easier return transition into left field on Wednesday.

Nay's:
- The Sox will undobtedly have their hands full on Wednesday with Rays ace Matt Garza on the mound. Hopefully John Lackey can right his ship and bring his A-game to this potential pitcher's duel.

- Ellsbury is 1-for-14 since returning from his injury on Saturday. Sat out Tuesday with a sore hip. Eventually the Sox will need this guy to be the catalyst for runs on the base paths and that requires getting on base first.

I just hope his injuries aren't still more severe than the Sox organization has let on.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Papi, Youk punish Rays

Ty Hampton
Sox Swaggerista

-- It's not an overstatement to say that the Sox are red hot right now!

David Ortiz trade? Thing of the past. Pitcher problems in a star-studded rotation? What pitching issues? The only baggage the Sox appear to be carrying these days are sacks full of beatdowns for their opponents.

Boston came off 2 wins in Philly into a predictably tough road series in St. Petersburg, but pulled off a concincing 6-1 win Monday night behind longball blasts by Kevin Youkilis and Big Papi.

More impressive was how Clay Bucholz went about collecting his 6th win of the year. The rising star for the Sox threw for 8 strikeouts, 6 hits and 1 run, in 6 innings. With a plethora of confidence and newfound maturity on the mound Clay is having an All-Star caliber year, now posting a stunning 3.07 ERA.

Bucholz has now also won eight straight starts on the road. Nuts, absolutely nuts I tell you.

Red Sox Record: (25-21)

Yay's:
- Any remnant of doubt with David Ortiz should now be gone. This guy is more than making up for a bad April and doesn't look to be cooling off again anytime soon. Viva la Papi!

Nay's:
- Victor Martinez drilled himself with a foul tip right on the big toe and suffered a deep bone bruise on the toe. The Sox have Tek, who has played great this year, so I'm not too worried if V-Mart has to take a week off.
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Sox rock the Halladay

Ty Hampton
Sox Swaggerista

The Red Sox jumped all over NL ace Roy Halladay in an 8-3 road clobbering of the Phillies.

The Sox took 2 of 3 from the Phillies in this Philadelphia series, proving that they do indeed still have the pitching and the bats to make some serious runs this season. Lookout Rays and Yanks – we’re gunnin’ for ya!

Halladay hit the showers early Sunday after only 5-2/3 innings, his shortest outing of the season. The Cy Young Award Winner and ace for the NL champion Phillies gave up 8 hits and 5 runs to the Sox in a very, very short time frame.

This is not uncommon for Roy when the Sox are in town, having a 14-15 record against Boston.

On the other side of the mound, 43-year-old Tim Wakefield threw 8 innings of shutout baseball, with a strikeout and only giving up 5 hits to improve to 1-2 with a 4.44 ERA. Wake also threw only 99 pitches, 62 for strikes – this is a knuckleball pitcher were talking about here remember. Amazing.

Red Sox Record: (24-21)

Tomorrow’s matchup: Clay Bucholz (5-3, 3.26 ERA) vs. Wade Davis (4-3, 3.35 ERA)
-Tuesday’s matchup: Jon Lester () vs. James Shields ()
-Wednesday’s matchup: John Lackey vs. Matt Garza ()

Yay’s:
- Kevin Youkilis is a true beast of Viking lore! A home run (9), triple, and a walk – the 2 hits being off of Halladay. I’d say Youk’s got his number alright. Good for my Sox and even better for my fantasy team. Gotta love this guy.

- A 4-run 6th inning for the Sox was what really broke the dam and opened the flood gates, knocking Roy out of the game and tacking on 2 runs thereafter.

- The Sox have now won 4 of their last 5 against some of the best teams in baseball.

Nay’s:
- Ramon Ramirez came in for Wake in the 9th and gave up 3 hits for 3 runs, including back-to-back doubles to Werth and Ibanez and a homer to Ross Gload. I say let Wake finish it off there Francona, he knows how to pace himself and the Sox need to not tap the bullpen unless it’s completely necessary these days.

- The Sox have played very well lately against the Yankees, Twins and Phillies – but the test isn’t over yet for this eventful road trip with the next stop in Tampa. The Rays are in my opinion the best team in the AL East and will win the pennant. However the Sox have to win games against the Rays and the Yankees respectively to make it to the postseason.

I feel it will ultimately come down to the Yankees and Red Sox for the wildcard this year, so every game between this 3-headed division rivalry will count big time. New York is the team to beat, but you want to bring you A-game if you’re playing the Rays these days and it’s going to take exactly what the Sox have dished out this week already, plus some, if they want to win this series.

Dice-K dominates!

Ty Hampton
Sox Swaggerista

My Red Sox ARE back baby! I’m tellin’ you haters out there, start payin’ attention and you might learn something. We don’t roll over, we don’t die and you can never, ever count out the Boston freakin’ Red Sox.

Dice-K Matsuzaka put on a masterpiece of a pitching stand last night, flirting with a no-hitter (just four outs short) into the 8th inning and collecting his third win of the year in a powerful 5-0 statement victory for the Sox in Philly. That’s right, Dice-K did that to the Philadelphia Phillies all-star batting lineup – undoubtedly the best NL team for the past two seasons. And Dice-K? Ripped through them. Destroyed their lineup time and time again, with ease.

Juan Castro was the only Phillies hitter to get a hit off of Dice-K, and by about 2 inches. He got a bloop single into shallow left field that nearly grazed off of a diving Marco Scutaro’s glove. Close, so close.

But in the end the Sox hit well off of Kyle Kendrick and Matzusaka still collected a quality shutout of the toughest hitting team in the National League. Dice-K just gave up the 1 hit, 4 walks and threw 5 K’s in his 112 pitches.

Not a bad way to start interleague play for the Sox if I do say so myself.

Yay’s:
- Dice-K was the highlight for sure, but let’s not forget that the Sox gave him some run production tonight as well. David Ortiz showed some serious hustle for the first run of the game, busting his ass to home plate on a close RBI sac-fly from Jeremy Hermida. Then a string of hits – including an RBI single from J.D., an RBI double from Big Papi and a 2-RBI double from Beltre – gave the Sox the 5-run buffer for insurance.

An all-around big win, nobody how you slice it.

- But let me make something clear, Dic-K pitched great, but you do NOT throw a no-no or flirt with a no-no by yourself. The Sox’s defense made a number of great plays on ripped line-drives and shots that could’ve easily been a base-hit if not for clutch, timely consistent glove work.

Nay’s:
- This is the most ludicrous decision I have seen Manager Terry Francona make, and he doesn’t make many. When Varitek is behind the plate with Dice-K, the Japanese ace has thrown for 2 wins with a .60 ERA. The other three starts in 2010 where V-Mart is behind the dish Matzusaka has posted a redonkulously scary 11.05 ERA.

Yet Coach Tito is NOT ready to make Tek, the team’s captain, both Beckett and Dic-K’s designated exclusive catcher. Francona stated the V-Mart is the Red Sox’s catcher and the team’s #3 hitter, and if he’s not in the lineup everyday that’s a problem for the offense.

- Yes, this is a great show of confidence for Dice-K bouncing back now and hopefully a momentum changer…but there is no guarantee and let’s face it, the guy has been inconsistent, if anything, for the past 2.5 years.

Lackey loses grip in Philly

Ty Hampton
Sox Swaggerista

After starting the season with a few great starts John Lackey has begun to waiver through late April and May and continued in that vein Friday night in the Sox’s 5-1 loss to the Phillies, dropping Big John to 4-3 with a 5.06 ERA.

I mean certainly this is no Josh Beckett kind of crisis situation, but with Beck really struggling it would be nice to have the Sox’s biggest off-season import on top of his game right now. Regardless, it’s tough to snap out of a slump when you’re facing the 2-time NL-champ Phillies at home. Good luck.

Over the last three starts Lackey has given up 17 hits, 15 runs and 12 walks over 18 innings showing obvious issues with command of his pitches. Friday John gave up 6 hits for 4 runs.

The blame must go around accordingly though, as the Sox’s bats had nothing in reply to a more than decent outing from Cole Hamels – only giving up Victor Martinez’s solo-shot home run in the top of the 1st. The BoSox did however mount a considerable comeback effort in the 9th against former Sox reliever J.C. Romero. With the bases loaded and 2 outs, Big Papi drove a deep fly to the warning track in the farthest depths of center field only to be robbed by Shane Victorino of a potential game-tying grand slam.

Close but no cigar is all you can say in that situation.

Red Sox Record: (22-21)
Today’s Matchup: Dice-K (2-1, 7.89 ERA) vs. Kyle Kendrick (2-1, 5.24 ERA)

Yay’s:
- Coach Tito did entrust a great deal in David Ortiz Friday night, having him pinch-hit for Bill Hall with the bases loaded in the 9th – and it was crazy enough of a move that it almoooooost worked. Damn! Still, I was happy to see Big Papi at the plate in that kind of situation and it’s a for sure vote of confidence.

- J.D. Drew showed some flash of glove Friday night, making a great grab at the wall to prevent a sure double or triple off the bat of Victorino.

- Reliever Joe Nelson was brought up from Pawtucket AAA for the trip and made his first 2-inning appearance of the season, doing a decent job of cleaning up after a poor inning from Big John.

- Jacoby Ellsbury looks to be inserted back into the lineup Saturday night and that does a number of things whenever this young star is in the lineup. 1.) He has an outstanding career on-base percentage 2.) He is always a threat and potential game changer on the base paths – crucial for a team that has stranded a lot of runners this year 3.) He can be a bit reckless with his body but is tough to beat defensively in the outfield

Nay’s:
- Lackey did not look good and hasn’t looked good recently. That combined with Dice-K and Beck’s struggles does not bode well for the Sox even amongst the resurgence of their offense and play in the field. Youngsters Lester and Bucholz are carrying this stacked rotation and shouldn’t have to be with all its star-studded veteran leadership.

- Now that Ells is back in the lineup apparently, Darrell McDonald’s playing time is ultimately threatened. This guy has been a god send for the Sox as of late and needs to be kept up in the majors at least until Mike Cameron has returned and is 100% clear of his injury troubles.

Pitching, Papi in good form vs. Twinkies

Ty Hampton
Sox Swaggerista

So other than David Ortiz’s continued improvement, hitting a crucial homer Wednesday night for the go ahead run, and both Bucholz and Lester having fantastic back-to-back starts what else does America need to stop doggin’ on the Sox?

How about two big wins against the AL Central dandies, the Minnesota Twins? Maybe. What do ya say to a legitimate 3-game interleague set with none other than the Phillies? Now that’s more like it.

As has been my mantra for the past month: I’ve kept repeating over and over that it was still I indeed “very early.” But no, none of you had any faith. Everybody bailed on the Sox, Big Papi, Jon Papelbon, Tito, Theo and all those involved when the season was still under a quarter of the way complete.

Well, well, well…is that Mr. Ortiz I see coming up around the bend hitting .405 with 5 home runs and 15 RBIs in his last 11 games and .358 for the month of May? Improving his batting average a mere 99 points? Is that the youth of the program in Lester and Bucholz going the distance throwing for 8 or 9 innings and both posting overall ERAs of between 3.2 and 3.5 to this point? Are Youkilis and Pedroia not both having solid all-star/MVP-potential year?

All true, very true. Yes they may be a less than impressive 22-20 on May 21 heading into a weekend in Philly, but I say if the Sox can stand up to a team that is clearly the NL’s best and when a game or two – anything is possible for this club in 2010. This is most certainly a statement series for a hot Red Sox team if there ever was such a thing.

Those of you who are counting my BoSox out in May…think again who you’re talking about. This is the comeback king, down 3-0 to the Yankees, resilient, brut-tough, never quit, never die Boston freakin’ Red Sox (“everybody in the congregation say A’men!”).

Anyways, my sermon will cease for now. Back to some stats.

After not getting back into Boston from New York until Wednesday morning at 4 a.m., Clay Bucholz put on an astonishing 8-inning, 2-run display to hold the Twins at bay, lower his ERA to 3.26 and collect a club-leading 5th win of the year. Daniel Bard came in and slammed the door in the 9th for the save as Paps was unavailable after a couple strenuous outings in the Big Apple.

The following night Jon Lester squared off in a duel of the lefties with Franciso Liriano, getting the upper hand and the win. Not only that, but JL went the full distance and Liriano was pulled in the beginning of the 5th. Lester gave up 6 hits, 1 run and absolutely looked dominant with 9 Ks. Terry Francona (aka “Tito” – I guess they call the man Tito in Boston…found that out this week) said John’s frontside cutter was moving very well Thursday.

Aside from great pitching against the Twins, the Sox also have had great defense with several double plays from the 1-2-punch of Scutaro-Pedroia and a bounty of long balls from Ortiz, Beltre and Youkilis.

Sox record: (22-20)
On the mound tonight: John Lackey (4-2, 4.86 ERA) vs. Cole Hamels (4-2, 4.29 ERA)

Yay’s:
- The Sox are about as in-stride as they could be heading into this week with the Yankees, Twins and Phillies and are playing well.

- Plus Jacoby Ellsbury will reportedly be available to play for the BoSox come Saturday night’s game, adding another interesting element to this puzzle – do you throw him back in right away and if so what do you do with Darrel MacDonald? Too many options is never a negative, but I say if anybody has to go back down to Pawtucket make it Van Every or Bill Hall and keep D-Mac swingin’ with the big boys – he’s earned that much.

Nay’s:
- Red Sox GM Theo Epstein skipped the trip to New York this week and stayed at home in Boston. Why? He had backstage passes to meet Pearl Jam at a Boston show. Don’t get me wrong, I looooove me some Pearl Jam (I aint hatin’ on ya EdVed), but when your teams flirting with .500 and playing the Yankees and you’re the head honcho…you show up to the game.

Now if the Royals, A’s, Indians, O’s or Jays are in town – yeah, skip it, give Mike McCreedy a high-five for me. But the Yankees? C’mon man, I know you’re like this Wunderkind 35-year-old but ya gotta make that one, no excuses bud…even if it’s Pearl Jam.

Playing under protest: Why the Yankees are a bunch of elitist cry-babies

Ty Hampton
Sox Swaggerista

You may not have caught this last night amongst the epic 9th inning comeback victory from the Boston Red Sox, but the Yankees were playing that game under PROTEST.

Why you ask? When Josh Beckett almost bit the dust at the 5-1/3 inning mark, coming up wincing in pain from a re-aggravated lower back strain, Yankees Joe Girardi came out to home plate and argued with the ump stating his team’s protest with the Sox starter being relieved for the injury.

Girardi implied that when Manny Delcarmen was given near two minutes to warm-up and get in the game to replace the injured Beckett, the Sox pitching staff had collaborated on a scheme with the ailing starter “pretending to get hurt” so that a reliever would be given more time to get in the game. The Yankees manager protested that the injury replacement was not gone about in the correct manner and gave the Sox an advantage at that point in the game.

Mind you this is when the Yankees were up 5-1. Thus the New York home team played the game in official protest. However, it looks like they won’t be taking up the matter with the league as of Wednesday.

If anyone has been following Beckett’s well-documented woes, they would already know that he has been struggling with a lower back strain and was pulled from last Thursday’s start for just that. Now today Beckett was placed on the 15-day disabled list.

So, yes Yankees fans, I’m sure our ace pitcher put on one hell of a show to get pulled from the game just as he is now faking he’s hurt to sit on the DL. Pleeeeease people, get in the real world. Josh may be struggling, but he if he is nothing else to you Yanks, you must acknowledge Beckett as a competitor.

So stop your crying Yankees. After all, you did have a 4-run lead through the 8th until you blew it in the 9th on your fancy new home field. Sacrilege, absolute sacrilege. Stop whining, and keep in mind we’re only 5.5 games back and intend on improving that number with Cameron and Ellsbury returning to the lineup in early June.

The comeback kings take care of biz in NY

Ty Hampton
Sox Swaggerista

Hallelujah, it looks like the old Boston Red Sox are BACK! At least they’re never going down without a fight this season.

Last night’s down 5-0 comeback stand against the Yankees, the second in their two nights in the Big Apple, could not be interpreted as anything other than a team that is not rolling over and will not be dominated by their bitter rivals no matter what kind of adversity they’ve faced in early 2010.

Monday night’s comeback to fall short on a blown save in the bottom of the 9th was gut wrenching and depressing for Sox fans everywhere -- but Tuesday’s glorious come from behind victory was a welcome feeling of redemption no doubt.

CC Sabathia looked dominant early, throwing some serious smoke and building a 5-0 lead that was still a 5-1 buffer when he left the game after 8 innings. Then Jaba Chamberlain took the mound in the top of 9 and let’s just say things didn’t work too well for him.

The comeback surge began with a 1-out single by the ever-so-clutch Darnell MacDonald. But the key turning point was when NY right-fielder Marcus Thames, the hero from Monday night, lost a routine fly ball by Marco Scutaro the next at bat. Then Dustin Pedroia got on base, followed by a clutch RBI-single from JD Drew and a 2-RBI bloop hit by Youkilis.

The second out of the top of the 9th came only when Big Papi drove a deep fly ball to center for a sac-fly. Then Jeremy Hermida came up big with his league-leading 16th and 17th RBIs in a 2-out situation for the Sox to take a 7-5 lead.

Jon Papelbon then came in looking still a bit shaky, but slammed the door after giving up one run -- ending the game with a powerful 94-mph slider for the game-sealing strikeout.

The Sox are still 5-½ games behind the second place Yanks (8-½ behind the Rays), but these head-to-head matchups are important not only for momentum’s sake, but when it comes down to the AL wildcard race--which appears to be a huge factor for the top 3 teams in the AL East these days.

Tonight Clay Bucholz takes the mound in Fenway versus the Twins’ Scott Baker. The Sox need to play stronger against the Twins after getting shellacked their first series in Minneapolis.

Red Sox Record: (20-20)

Pap rocked in 9th for loss to Yanks

Ty Hampton
Swaggerista

Just as the Sox looked to have pulled off an epic comeback and statement game against their bitter rivals, the Yankees took Papelbon deep twice in the 9th inning to tack on 4 runs in a 11-9 loss in the Bronx.

Dice-K fell behind 5-0 in the second inning as the Yanks strung together a series of singles, walks, and one big double to take a commanding lead. But the thing I like most about the Sox is that they never, ever panic – that’s what makes them the comeback kings after all.

Boston kept up, adding a run here or there to keep themselves in the game: A towering solo shot by Papi in the 4th, a leadoff double by Pedie in the 5th followed by a JD Drew 3-run homer, then followed by back-to-back home runs by Youk and V-Mart in the 8th to take a 9-7 Sox lead.

All in all the Sox had 5 homers of their own in Monday’s contest, but the only 2 longballs in the game that mattered when it was all said and done were those launched by A-Rod and Marcus Thames in the bottom of 9. Papelbon has blown a few games before, but I don’t know if any of those blown saves hurt as much as this one.

After winning 2 out of 3 with the Jays and having a disappointing 1-2 series with the Tigers, the Sox needed to take advantage of their high-profile rivalry to make a statement that they are still on the up-and-up. Instead, they fell a game under .500, dropping to 19-20 as the Yankees continued to live the dream at 25-13.

The Beantown Bombers will get another chance to redeem themselves tonight with a rematch of the season opener – Beckett vs. Sabathia. Beck has had a little more rest than he’s accustomed to lately with back scares encouraging Francona to take him out of the rotation last week to insert Tim Wakefield for an evening.
Beckett is 1-1 with a 7.46 ERA while Sabathia is cruising at 4-2 with a 3.71 ERA. But if the Sox bats give CC the same treatment they showed Yankee young-gun Phil Hughes last night, things could get interesting as long as Beckett keeps things close.

One thing is for sure, now is the time to get on the horse and start winning because the Sox have 2 more games in this series with New York before heading to Minnesota and the Phillies next. So nothing is going to get easier or be handed to them from here on out. It's time to get 'er done.

To HELL with those damn Yanks! Let's GO RED SOX! Let's GO RED SOX! Let's GO RED SOX!

Will Ferrell Express

Somebody please get Theo on the phone pronto! We got a fiery young arm to pick up in Texas by the name of Randy Ray "Rojo" Johnson! Beef up the pen a bit! Make it hap'n cap'n!

Pen bails out Lackey for close win

Ty Hampton
-Swaggerista

A combination of the bats, the bullpen and some good old-fashioned luck bailed out John Lackey (4-1) as he collected his 4th win of the year in a close-fought 7-6 Red Sox victory Monday.

Lackey came out and gave up 4 runs in the first 2 innings, luckily the Sox countered with 3 of their own to stay in the game early. While the Sox didn’t go deep, David Ortiz had a clutch 2-out, RBI-single in the middle innings and Pedie and V-Mart added 2 RBIs and 3 RBIs at the plate respectively in the effort.

Over 6 innings pitched, Lackey gave up 8 hits, including a homerun, for 6 earned runs with 3 walks and 6 strikeouts. The bullpen however was about as efficient as we’ve seen them all year. Okajima, Bard, and Papelbon came in and did their duty for an inning each to close this thing out without as much as a hit – only giving up a walk between the three of them.

The luck came into play when the Sox again picked up a walk-in run with Pedroia at the plate in a crucial spot in the game. That run ended up making all the difference, and Boston’s continued patience at the plate could never seem more appropriate.

Red Sox record: (17-16)

Yay’s:
- The pen finally looked spectacular – something that is going to be crucial with Josh Beckett having a rough start and on nights where Lester, Lackey, Dice-K or Bucholz aren’t up to snuff.

- The Sox just finally eeked back over .500 with this win for the first time in nearly a month, pulling within 5.5 games from the AL East leading Rays. See people, adjustments need to be made but those of you who are counting the Sox out already this year just need to chillax my man.

Nay’s:
- JD Drew missed action Monday undergoing bouts of vertigo. This guy sure has some luck. If it’s not a nagging shoulder, he comes down with a debilitating case of the dizzies. Holy schnikes man!

- The worst news from Monday however was that Josh Beckett aggravated his back worse in throwing practice. Luckily, you’ve got a guy like Wake just sittin’ around in the pen thirsty for some more starting opportunities.

Sox avoid Yanks sweep with 9-3 victory

-- Just when the Sox looked like they would roll over for the Yankees this 3-game set, they went and completely redeemed themselves with a 9-3 win at Fenway Park Sunday night.

Jon Lester is beginning to look like more of an ace than Josh Beckett these days after collecting his third win of the season with a 7 strikeout, 4 hit performance over 7 innings.

The Sox supported Lester with their best bats of the season, including RBI doubles from Youkilis, Beltre and Ortiz as well as a long-ball compliments of Hermida. Keep in mind this was primarily off of AJ Burnett, whose been one of the hottest starters in the majors this season.

Lester improved to 3-2 with Burnett getting his first loss of the year at 4-1. The Sox host Toronto Monday night with John Lackey taking the mound and hope to dip over .500 for the first time in May.

Sox record: (16-16)

Sox pitching slammed by Yanks

-- Just as Boston was building confidence with an 11-6 Thursday thrashing of the Angels to complete a 4-game sweep, the Sox are now trying to avoid a devastating home sweep at the hands of those damn Yankees with Sundays showdown.

If it wasn't bad enough watching an improving Josh Beckett fully collapse to give up 9 earned runs in 5-1/3 innings for a 10-3 Friday night loss, the Sox pitching found a way to unravel completely on Saturday.

The Sox managed to put up 3 runs in 3 innings as Victor & D-Mac both went deep. The Yanks had a 6-3 lead with 2 outs in the bottom of the 5th when the rain poured down on CC Sabathia, causing a full-tarp rain delay that lasted a good hour.

Still, at this point there was hope. Then the Yankees went on to blow out Boston 14-3 with 3 homeruns from Mark Texeira alone.

Red Sox Record: (15-16)

Yay's:
- Ya know, a win's a win's a win--but it's just a win in the singular fashion no matter how many runs are tacked on. I have confidence the Sox are gonna be in this thing Sunday, with a heating up Jon Lester on the mound. Expect it to be low scoring though because unfortunately AJ Burnett is pretty hot right now as well.

- And ya know what? The Yankees didn't start out the 2009 season overall as bad as the Sox have this year, but I do believe the Sox-Yanks matchup started 9-0 in favor of Boston. And who went on to win the World Series? My point: it's a long season. It doesn't look great right now, but don't ever, ever count out ballclubs with as much stockpiled ammunition and talent as the Sox or the Yankees.

- Friday night Beckett started with dialed-in control, striking out 6 of the first 9 batters. Its taking another approach to maintain that control over 6, 7 or 8 innings that Beck must find now.

Nay's:
- When Beckett's meltdown began in the 6th inning Friday night he not only gave up 3 walks, with 2 batters beaned, but 2 runs walked in. Then there was a 2-run single, followed by a homerun. It was about the ugliest 1/3 of an inning I've ever seen.

- Obviously Beckett and Bucholz's performances were less than great, but other than a couple outbursts of power, the Sox havn't been able to string the bats together against the Yankees the way they did with the Angels last week.
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Boston pulls to .500 with Lackey win over former club

-- John Lackey didn’t show any mercy on his former team of the 8 seasons last night as he threw a 2 hit, 1-run game against the Halos for a 3-1 Boston win.

The Sox have now won all three of the games in the Angels series (heading into another tough game tonight) due to clutch pitching, tight defense on the diamond and timely bats in the latter innings.

Lackey stole the show in his third win of the season (3-1) though with 4 strikeouts and 2 walks over 7 innings of play. Lackey also worked efficiently, only throwing 103 pitches in the outing.

To make things better for Boston, setup man Daniel Bard came in firing his best triple-digit heat to blow through the 8th and Papelbon collected the save without any trouble in the 9th – basically the Sox are finally winning games ideally the way they draw them up.

Adrian Beltre was huge for the Sox Wednesday, going 3-4 with a homer and 2 RBIs. To top it off David Ortiz hit his 4th home run of the year, continually instilling more and more hope in the fans and organization one series at a time.

After pulling to .500 on the season at 14-14 with last night's win, the Sox are now going for a Boston sweep of the Angels -- the team that knocked them out of the playoffs in the ALDS last fall. The final game of the series is tonight with Dice-K taking the mound for his second start of the year.

Clutch 8th leads to Sox win

-- Tuesday's game could not have been any more opposite than the prior night's double-digit Fenway slugfest, quickly turning into a pitching duel between Jon Lester and Angel hurler Ervin Santana. That is until the flood gates opened up in the 8th inning to propel Boston towards a clutch 5-1 victory.

Lester looked great, going 8 innings only giving up 1 run on 5 hits, two walks and collecting 5 strikeouts. But the wall the Sox have been facing all of April has been making that extra push to get the victory in tight games.

Thanks to a 2-out, base-clearing 3-run double by Jeremy Hermida the Sox jumped ahead with plenty of breathing room in the bottom of the 8th. Before the Halos got out of the inning, Hermida was also brought in to score and make it 5-1 on a J.D. Drew RBI-single.

Other than Lester's greatness on the mound, defense was a consistent theme throughout the game. Perhaps the biggest play may not have even been Hermida's double in the gap but a huge double-play by Pedroia to escape an Angels assault in the top of the 8th.

The bases were loaded with 1 out. With Eric Aybar on first Bobby Abreu hit a rip of a grounder towards right field, but it wouldn't get there as Pedie swooped in snagged it off an extremely short hop and still had the knowledge to tag the passing Aybar before shovel passing it to Youk for the unconventional double-play to get out of the inning and sustain the 1-1 tie game at that point.

It seems that no matter how much we see of Dustin Pedroia, his skill and impact with both the bat and the glove is still underrated and underappreciated in the game of baseball. Plus he's proven time and time again to be clutch in just about any situation the Sox need him. Props Pedie, much props buddy!

Yay's:
- Tuesday's victory was at last the masterpiece breed of victory the Sox have been struggling to get. A close-fought victory against a serious contender where the Sox's pitching clicked, defense made game-saving plays, and the bats were alive enough to get it done in the clutch.

- A lot of people missed two other HUGE defensive plays that saved the day for the Sox other than Pedie's clutch double-play in the 8th. With a runner in scoring position Marco Scutaro made a running, one-hop, fading the other direction throw from the outfield grass to hose the runner at first and steal a hit from the Angels.

Then with a runner on second and third with 2 outs in the 7th Victor Martinez attempted a pickoff play at third. The thing is his throw was short by about 5 feet and inside the baseline, and if it were not for a full-body layout dive from Adrian Beltre to snag the errant throw, that runner and maybe the runner at second could've scored on the sure error.

- Papelbon looks to be in stride as well now as he come in and slammed the door without any trouble on the last three games he's appeared in.

Nay's:
- Ortiz was given yet another shot at redemption Tuesday with the bases loaded and no outs in the bottom of the 8th. However, he grounded out into a home-to-first double play to complete his 0-4 performance for the day. Could've used ya there Papi. I feel for the guy though because he knows that more than anyone. You can bet if this trend continues we're going to keep seeing Ortiz pulled off the on-deck circle for a Mike Lowell pinch-hit in crucial game situations, which is sad, but necessary at this point.
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Beautiful words for a beautiful game

-- Longtime news reporter, sportsman, and play-by-play announcer Ernie Harwell passed away at his home in Michigan today at the age of 92. Harwell was best known for being inducted in the baseball hall of fame for calling over 8,500 major league games over 55 years of service to the sport -- primarily with the Detroit Tigers.

Ernie gave the following speech at his induction ceremony to the Cooperstown, NY, Baseball Hall of Fame in August of 1981. It was Ernie's own definition of baseball and perhaps some of the most beautiful words ever written about the game or any sport or that matter.

In remembrance of a great baseball man, here are his own iconic words to remember him by today and forever:

...Baseball is the President tossing out the first ball of the season and a scrubby schoolboy playing catch with his dad on a Mississippi farm. A tall, thin old man waving a scorecard from the corner of his dugout. That's baseball. And so is the big, fat guy with a bulbous nose running home one of his (Babe Ruth's) 714 home runs.

There's a man in Mobile who remembers that Honus Wagner hit a triple in Pittsburgh forty-six years ago. That's baseball. So is the scout reporting that a sixteen year old pitcher in Cheyenne is a coming Walter Johnson. Baseball is a spirited race of man against man, reflex against reflex. A game of inches. Every skill is measured. Every heroic, every failing is seen and cheered, or booed. And then becomes a statistic.

In baseball democracy shines its clearest. The only race that matters is the race to the bag. The creed is the rulebook. Color merely something to distinguish one team's uniform from another.

Baseball is a rookie. His experience no bigger than the lump in his throat as he begins fulfillment of his dream. It's a veteran too, a tired old man of thirty-five hoping that those aching muscles can pull him through another sweltering August and September. Nicknames are baseball, names like Zeke and Pie and Kiki and Home Run and Cracker and Dizzy and Dazzy.

Baseball is the cool, clear eyes of Rogers Hornsby. The flashing spikes of Ty Cobb, an over aged pixie named Rabbit Maranville.

Baseball just a came as simple as a ball and bat. Yet, as complex as the American spirit it symbolizes. A sport, a business and sometimes almost even a religion.

Why the fairy tale of Willie Mays making a brilliant World's Series catch. And then dashing off to play stick ball in the street with his teenage pals. That's baseball. So is the husky voice of a doomed Lou Gehrig saying., "I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of this earth.”

Baseball is cigar smoke, hot roasted peanuts, The Sporting News, ladies day, "Down in Front", Take Me Out to the Ball Game, and the Star Spangled Banner.

Baseball is a tongue tied kid from Georgia growing up to be an announcer and praising the Lord for showing him the way to Cooperstown. This is a game for America. Still a game for America, this baseball!

May-hem! Sox open month with 17-8 slaughtering

-- "Boo" and "ya" were the only two words to describe the Sox's 17-8 win over the Angels Monday night at the Fen.

Boston hit 4 homers on 20 hits Monday to bring down a mighty reckoning of vengeance on their west-coast rivals who knocked them out of the ALDS last October. Defense, again, was not a premium in this one – but Clay Bucholz's start was variably better than any of the Angels pitchers could manage last night. Clay got the win, but gave up 8 hits and 4 runs over 5-2/3 innings.

Bill Hall and Adrian Beltre hit their first home runs as members of the Red Sox and Pedroia and Youkilis contributed dingers to the pummeling as well. It seemed no matter who was up to the plate, the Angels starter Saunders and multiple bullpen members could just not avoid giving up a hit and couldn't buy an out to get out of troublesome innings.

Sox record: (12-14)

Yay's:
- After missing action and being scratched from the lineup Sunday with a sore groin, Youkilis stepped back into action and slammed a pitch over the monster in his first at-bat to ignite the Sox's offensive onslaught for the evening.

- J.D. Drew was about the only guy who had a good series in Baltimore last weekend, hitting 2 homeruns in 3 games. His quality at-bats continued Monday going 2-3 with a walk. Call me crazy, but I've noticed that the Sox have traditionally gotten a couple hot months per season out of Drew and when he's on, the whole team gets a boost. I'm not saying Drew is the X-factor in the lineup that decides Boston's fate, but he certainly has a big impact at times.

- Mike Lowell was inserted in the DH spot for Ortiz in the series opener, a great move by Terry Francona for the outing as the clutch veteran matched up with Saunders better than Papi and went 4-4 with 4 RBIs. Even though the Sox organization has officially resisted to call the Papi-Lowell mix a "platoon", it appears to be nothing else than that. Which in my mind, works perfectly. It gives you options for matchups and if one guy gets hot, hey great leave him in. If not? Well then you've still got options and with Papi getting better at-bats as of late and Lowell continuedly proving his value – that's the best solution for the Sox.

- Being swept by the Orioles in Baltimore over the weekend noticeably didn't sit well with the Red Sox players and staff. They made no excuses, stayed focused, used it as fuel and clearly made a statement in their powerful win over the Halos.

Nay's:
- I believe the Sox's whole emphasis this offseason was defense. They still appear to have too much offense and not enough of the big D. Even in overpowering wins like 17-8, that is still not the kind of baseball the Sox want to playing. Baseball's an endurance sport, and it's a 3-game set with the Angels here even in the short term. Scoring 17 runs one night and not having enough in the tank for the next 2 nights is not the goal.
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Sox swept by O's in Baltimore

-- After a road sweep of the Blue Jays earlier last week the Sox fell victim to a flipped sweep of themselves while in Baltimore Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

April ended about as badly as the month felt for the Sox, who have high expectations for this season to yet again be in the run for the pennant and the World Series.

The 3-game road set with the Orioles began Friday with a disappointing, close 5-4 loss in 10 innings. The Sox had just taken a 4-3 lead in the 8th with J.D. Drew's second solo-homer of the night, when slugger Migel Tejada blasted a solo-shot off of Red Sox setup man Daniel Bard to tie the game up and send it to extras. Lackey would've collected the win, but the O's got to the Sox bullpen in the late innings to stretch out a victory.

In Game 2 Dice-K started out strong but cracked up in the fifth inning giving up four runs, followed by another 4-run inning in the sixth with Wakefield making his first bullpen appearance. So things got worse on the mound for the Sox, real fast! Ultimately the O's bats prevailed 12-9.

The Sox continued to just miss the mark amongst decent play Sunday in a 3-2 loss. Josh Beckett struck out 6, gave up 6 hits and 2 runs, but no walks in a 7-inning effort. Boston had a chance with runners on in the top of the 10th but yet again squandered the opportunity.

Then in the bottom of the 10th a Jon Papelbon walk led into an by the closer attempting a pickoff move at first base. Mike Lowell was filling in for Youkilis at first Sunday, so that may have been part of the error – but regardless the throw was way off. This terrible timing moved the runner to second for the eventual walk-off scoring run when Ty Wiggington knocked an RBI-double into deep center off of Paps.

Yay's:
- The Sox drew 10 walks in the game Friday, and that kind of patience at the plate will eventually payoff. However that game the Sox stranded a ton of base-runners as 3 of their 4 runs came off of solo home runs (Pedie hit the other).

- In game 2 David Ortiz blasted 2 homers off of Kevin Millwood to keep the Sox in the slugfest that turned into a 12-9 loss. Positive signs of life from Papi that may signal his snapping out of a truly epic slump.

- In game 3 Beckett had a quality start for a no decision, that could've easily been a win if the ball had rolled the other way.

- The Sox have played all three of theses games in the sweep tight. However frustrating that is, a team their amount of talent will eventually click and find a way to finish

Nay's:
- The Sox are currently in fourth place in the AL East with an 11-14 record. To say the least the Sox may not be able to have another off month like April if they expect to even grab the wildcard spot

- Errors at crucial points in the game have been a key reason why these close games have not gone in favor or the Sox last month. This does not exactly go well with the team's aim of improving defensively over the off season, but it's still early and all the pieces are there to have a fine defensive lineup

- The Red Sox were just SWEPT by the Baltimore Orioles. Whether it was on the road or at home does not matter as the O's currently have the worst record in the majors at 7-18. Another nice fun fact is that this was the first time the Sox have been swept in Baltimore since September of 1974. Ouch!

- The Sox are now 1-5 in extra-inning games for the 2010 season. Not a good stat from a team that spent a lot of the last few years mastering the almighty comeback – which does require pulling out a lot of close games.
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A few highlight flix from April

-- So the month of April may have seemed like a bit of a down month and a slow start for the Sox, but there were some memorable moments without question.

The four videos below are just a minor sampling of some of 2010's early magic within Red Sox Nation. Enjoy!

Ty Hampton
- Sox Swagger

Breakin' out the lumber!

Welcome to Boston D-Mac!

The Diamond rocks the Fen

Pedro returns to Fenway