Red Sox 2008 Game 58 Recap (Manny's 500th)

Final

Press Pass ✠ Box Score ✠ Play - by - Play ✠ Game Recap

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Boston	0	0	2	0	0	1	2	1	0		6	9	0
Baltimore	0	2	0	0	1	0	0	0	0		3	9	2

W: D. Aardsma (2-1) L: L. Cormier (0-2) S: J. Papelbon (16)
HR ➢ Bos: D. Pedroia (4), D. Ortiz (13), M. Ramirez (10) Bal: B. Roberts (4)

☼ Sun - #500 by Manny provided the cushion!!! Ellsbury had 3 steals and a triple!!!
☁ Cloud - Lester - as he made his case once again as a #4 starter. 103 pitches over 5 innings the day after the relievers had to pitch 7 innings. Not the way you want your starter to pitch. First pitch strikes on only 12 of the 24 batters he faced.

Game thoughts!

Lester started off strong with a 9, thats right a 9 pitch, 1-2-3 first inning. This being Lester though, it was being just good enough to keep the team close after that. 4 K's, with the last one coming in the 5th (after he walked two straight O's) and 3 walks in 5 innings is not the stuff of aces. Still, he only allowed the 2 runs in the 2nd and the 1 out home run by Roberts in the 5th.

Of course the big event of the night was in the 7th inning when Manny went deep to right field for his 500th home run. First ballot hall of famer baby, firts ballot.

Factoid - The 500-home run club has only two dozen members, but Ramirez also joined an even smaller fraternity. He is only the seventh player in baseball history with 500 homers, 1,500 RBIs, 1,000 walks, 475 doubles and a .300 batting average. The others are Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Mel Ott, Babe Ruth, Frank Thomas and Ted Williams.

♊ - Morbid and creepifing I can handle as long as we do it quiet like.

Red Sox 2008 Game 58 Preview

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J. Lester		3-3, 3.55		G. Olson		4-1, 4.09
Red Sox		33 - 24		Orioles		26 - 27

Saturday, May 31            Oriole Park at Camden Yards  ✠ 7:05 PM ET

American League

East	W	L	GB	L 10	1 R W	1 R L	X W	X L
Tampa Bay	33	22	-	7-3	8	7	30	25
Boston	33	24	1.0	5-5	9	8	32	25
Toronto	31	26	3.0	8-2	9	10	32	25
New York	27	27	5.5	7-3	8	6	27	27
Baltimore	26	27	6.0	3-7	12	8	25	28

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Red Sox: Lester's first start since throwing a no-hitter turned into his first loss in six weeks when the Oakland Athletics got the better of the left-hander in a 6-3 decision. Nonetheless, Lester allowed three earned runs in five innings, extending to six the number of consecutive starts in which he's given up three or fewer earned runs. Lester had a solid outing in his last appearance against Baltimore on May 14. He allowed two runs on five hits and two walks while fanning four, leaving after six innings with the Red Sox leading 3-2. But the Orioles scored four times over the final two innings, leaving Lester with a no-decision.

Orioles: Olson avenged his only loss of the season by blanking the Yankees through seven innings in his last outing. The southpaw had never gotten through a start without allowing a run before, and he tied a career high by striking out seven batters. Olson wound up retiring 12 of the final 14 batters he faced and handing his bullpen a six-run lead.

As usual all statistics were found at the day by day database at Baseball Musings and this year at Baseball Reference.

Red Sox Batting History vs Olson

Player	AB	Hits	2b	3b	HR's	RBI	BB's	K's	BA	OBA	Slug	OPS
J. Ellsbury	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---
D. Pedroia	8	2	0	0	0	0	1	0	.250	.333	2.50	.583
D. Ortiz	7	2	1	0	0	4	2	2	.286	.444	.429	.873
M. Ramirez	3	2	0	0	0	0	1	1	.000	.333	.000	.333
M. Lowell	7	2	1	0	0	0	1	1	.286	.375	.429	.804
K. Youkilis	5	1	0	0	0	0	4	2	.200	.556	.200	.756
J. D. Drew	4	2	1	0	0	2	1	1	.500	.600	.750	1.350
J. Varitek	4	1	0	0	0	0	2	0	.250	.500	.250	.750
J. Lugo	8	4	1	0	0	3	0	0	.500	.500	.625	1.125
Totals	45	14	4	0	0	9	12	7	.311	.456	.400	.856

Actually pretty good stats vs Olson by the starters. After all any time a team is getting on base almost 50% of the time, you have a good chance of scoring some runs, and on this road trip, runs are at a premium.

Pitching Comparisions Career

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Lester	4	3	0	0	24	24	8	2	10	12	3.00	1.42	6.00
Olson	3	0	2	0	15 1/3	20	13	1	13	13	7.63	2.15	5.11

Lester actually does pretty good against the Orioles, including this year when he left after six innings with a 3-2 lead. The only worr is that 10/12 ratio of BB's to K's. Would like to see him get a better ratio in that category.

Olson on the other hand has never given up less than 4 runs in each of his three starts against the Sox. I like our chances against this guy, then again, I liked our chances vs Cabrera last night but the Sox struggled against him, but for some reason, I expect them to come out hitting vs Olson.

Pitching Comparisions this year

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Lester	12	3	3	1	71	62	28	6	33	45	3.55	1.34	5.92
Olson	6	4	1	0	33	36	15	1	13	26	4.09	1.48	5.50

Olson has been pitching very well this year, but Lester actually has better numbers except for the home runs and the k/bb ratio. Still, if Lester can attack these hitters, then he should be able to outlast the O's. One other thing, Orioles are 5-7 vs left handers this year while the Sox are 6-2.

♊ - When all else fails, get a bigger hammer!

Red Sox 2008 Game 56 Preview

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T. Wakefield		3-3, 5.19		E. Bedard		3-3, 4.70
Red Sox		32 - 23		Mariners		19 - 34

Wednesday, May 28                 Safeco Field  ✠ 10:10 PM ET

American League

East	W	L	GB	L 10	1 R W	1 R L	X W	X L
Tampa Bay	32	21	-	7-3	7	7	29	24
Boston	32	23	.5	6-4	9	7	31	24
Toronto	28	26	4.0	7-3	8	10	28	26
Baltimore	26	25	4.5	4-6	12	8	25	26
New York	25	27	6.0	5-5	7	6	25	27

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Red Sox: The veteran knuckleballer will try to recover from a rough start in Oakland, when he gave up eight hits and eight runs over four innings. Wakefield said after that outing that there are some mechanical things he needs to work on. In six road starts this season, Wakefield is 1-2 with a 5.88 ERA. He is aiming for his first career win at Safeco Field, where he is 0-2 with a 3.73 ERA in six outings. In fact, Safeco is the only American League venue Wakefield has never won in.

Mariners: The left-hander got his wish and worked with backup catcher Jamie Burke in his last start, hoping to duplicate his previous start when he allowed just two runs over seven innings and struck out 10 in a game against the Padres. But the tandem did not click against the Yankees as Bedard was pummeled for eight hits and nine runs in less than five innings. In 11 career starts against the Red Sox, the lefty has a 4-4 record and 4.95 ERA.

As usual all statistics were found at the day by day database at Baseball Musings and this year at Baseball Reference.

Red Sox Batting History vs Bedard

Player	AB	Hits	2b	3b	HR's	RBI	BB's	K's	BA	OBA	Slug	OPS
J. Ellsbury	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	----
D. Pedroia	9	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	.111	.200	.111	.311
D. Ortiz	22	5	1	0	1	4	5	5	.227	.379	.409	.788
M. Ramirez	20	4	1	0	0	3	2	8	.200	.261	.250	.511
M. Lowell	14	1	1	0	0	3	2	0	.071	.176	.143	.319
K. Youkilis	18	1	0	0	0	1	5	9	.056	.261	.056	.316
J. D. Drew	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---
K. Cash	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	.000	.000	.000
J. Lugo	30	8	1	0	0	0	3	2	.267	.333	.300	.633
Totals	116	20	4	0	1	11	18	25	.172	.283	.233	.515

A .172 BA, yeah, my team has lost 4 out of 5 and that is what I want to see from my offense. Does the word Fugly ring a bell?

Pitching Comparisions Career

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Wakefield	13	3	8	1	111 1/3	115	54	15	52	78	4.37	1.50	6.72
Bedard	10	4	4	0	60	49	33	4	33	47	4.95	1.37	5.60

The vagaries of the Knuckleball, 3-8 for Tim, and yet his ERA is not that far different then his career ERA. Still, you have to like the fact that he goes out and gives this team almost 7 innings per start vs the Mariners. Hey, we are grasping at straws here!

Pitching Comparisions this year

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Wakefield	10	3	3	0	59	58	34	9	30	36	5.19	1.49	5.90
Bedard	8	3	3	0	46	40	24	8	20	40	4.70	1.30	5.75

Not a good outlook when you compare the two pitchers this year. Bedard has Tim beat in just about everything. Fugly!!!

♊ - When all else fails, get a bigger hammer!

Red Sox 2008 Game 55 Preview

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D. Matsuzaka		9-0, 2.40		M. Batista		3-6, 6.47
Red Sox		32 - 22		Mariners		18 - 34

Tuesday, May 27                 Safeco Field  ✠ 10:10 PM ET

American League

East	W	L	GB	L 10	1 R W	1 R L	X W	X L
Tampa Bay	31	20	-	7-3	7	7	29	22
Boston	32	22	.5	7-3	9	6	30	24
Toronto	28	25	4.0	7-3	8	10	28	25
Baltimore	25	25	5.5	4-6	11	8	24	26
New York	25	26	6.0	5-5	7	5	25	26

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Red Sox: Matsuzaka struggled mightily in earning his eighth win of the season May 22 against Kansas City. The righty went 5 2/3 innings, scattering six hits for three earned runs while surrendering six walks and two wild pitches. Still, Matsuzaka pitched out of jams when necessary and earned the victory in an 11-3 win. His eight wins lead the American League. Matsuzaka will get the nod against Seattle having gone 1-1 with a 4.33 ERA against the Mariners in his career. His lone win against the Mariners came at Safeco Field.

Mariners: The first-inning blues that have haunted Batista this month were somewhat solved in his last outing as he held the Tigers to one run. But a three-run second inning, and another run in the third, sent the veteran right-hander to another early shower, the third time in his past six starts that he never made it to the fourth inning. He has used a short-arm technique since tossing 7 2/3 scoreless innings against the Angels on April 20 and it might be time to scrap it and go back to his old style.

As usual all statistics were found at the day by day database at Baseball Musings and this year at Baseball Reference.

Red Sox Batting History vs Batista

Player	AB	Hits	2b	3b	HR's	RBI	BB's	K's	BA	OBA	Slug	OPS
J. Ellsbury	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---
D. Pedroia	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---
D. Ortiz	17	6	2	0	2	7	6	1	.353	.522	.824	1.345
M. Ramirez	22	9	2	0	2	6	2	4	.409	.440	.773	1.213
M. Lowell	19	5	2	0	1	3	2	5	.263	.391	.526	.918
K. Youkilis	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	.000	.200	.000	.200
J. D. Drew	24	6	3	0	1	3	5	2	.250	.379	.500	.879
J. Varitek	14	4	0	0	0	2	3	4	.286	.412	.286	.697
J. Lugo	22	5	2	0	0	1	2	3	.227	.292	.318	.610
Totals	122	35	11	0	6	22	20	20	.287	.397	.525	.922

A .922 OPS, I like the way those numbers look! Of course most of the damage has been done by the big two, but the last couple of games it looks like the big two of Ortiz and Ramirez are starting to hit at the same time. Would be sweet to see #499 tonight!

Pitching Comparisions Career

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Matsuzaka	4	1	1	0	27	22	13	2	9	23	4.33	1.15	6.75
Batista	8	4	5	0	53 2/3	69	37	5	34	33	6.20	1.92	5.50

Daisuke has actually pitched very well against the Mariners in Seattle. Last year he went 15 innings striking out 18 while only walking 3 batters at Safeco. Oh, yeah, he also only gave up three earned runs in those two outings. If he can just come close to those numbers tonight, you have to like the Sox chances.

Pitching Comparisions this year

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Matsuzaka	10	8	0	0	60	41	16	4	38	53	2.40	1.32	6.00
Batista	10	3	6	0	48 2/3	65	35	4	31	35	6.47	1.97	4.77

Batista has made 1 relief appearance this year (a save vs texas), which actually improves his stats. The man has been horrible this year, and since he is historically bad vs the Sox, you have to like the teams chances.

♊ - When all else fails, get a bigger hammer!

Red Sox 2008 Game 54 Preview

A Prayer to all in Harms Way, and a thank you to those who have paid the Utlimate price.

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B. Colon		1-0, 3.60		F. Hernandez		2-4, 3.34
Red Sox		31 - 22		Mariners		18 - 33

Monday, May 26                 Safeco Field  ✠ 10:10 PM ET

American League

East	W	L	GB	L 10	1 R W	1 R L	X W	X L
Tampa Bay	30	20	-	7-3	7	7	28	22
Boston	31	22	.5	7-3	9	6	30	23
Toronto	28	25	3.5	7-3	8	10	28	25
Baltimore	25	25	5.0	4-6	11	8	24	26
New York	25	26	5.0	5-5	7	5	25	26

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Red Sox: Colon performed exactly how Boston wanted him to heading into his last start against Kansas City. After having his contract bought from Triple-A Pawtucket earlier in the afternoon, Colon gave up two runs in five innings while striking out four. He hurled 74 pitches in the outing while sprinkling six hits throughout. And while he didn't hit the high-90s velocity he did during his dominant years, Colon managed to escape jams in the third and fifth innings. Lifetime against the Mariners, Colon is 12-10 with a 4.40 ERA. But he tends to pitch well in Seattle; the righty is 8-1 with a 2.17 ERA at Safeco Field.

Mariners: The young right-hander, whose start was pushed back two days because of a calf injury, has pitched better than his record indicates. The 22-year-old has allowed two or fewer runs in six of his 10 starts but takes a three-game losing streak into his start against the Red Sox.

As usual all statistics were found at the day by day database at Baseball Musings and this year at Baseball Reference.

Red Sox Batting History vs Hernandez

Player	AB	Hits	2b	3b	HR's	RBI	BB's	K's	BA	OBA	Slug	OPS
J. Ellsbury	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---
D. Pedroia	6	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	.167	.286	.167	.452
D. Ortiz	8	3	0	0	0	1	1	1	.375	.444	.375	.819
M. Ramirez	6	1	0	0	0	0	0	3	.167	.167	.167	.333
M. Lowell	9	2	0	1	1	4	0	1	.222	.222	.778	1.000
K. Youkilis	6	2	0	0	0	2	1	2	.333	.429	.333	.762
J. D. Drew	9	3	0	0	0	0	0	3	.333	.333	.333	.667
J. Varitek	6	1	0	0	0	0	0	3	.167	.167	.167	.333
J. Lugo	7	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	.143	.250	.143	.393
Totals	57	14	0	1	1	6	4	13	.246	.295	.333	.628

In the Navy we would call those number Fugly, think about it and the name fits. After getting killed in Oakland, I just don't have a lot of faith in the Sox going into Safeco and doing any damage. In the last five years the Sox were 12-11 in Oakland, and they just got swept. During that same time period the Sox were 8 and 16 in Seattle. In fact not one Sox starter has more than 1 win in that time period. Needless to say, Safeco has not been very safe for Sox pitchers.

Pitching Comparisions Career

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Colon	26	12	10	0	161 2/3	165	79	17	42	111	4.40	1.28	6.22
Hernandez	3	2	0	1	21 2/3	16	7	2	6	17	2.91	1.02	7.22

King Felix has never been beaten by the Sox, in fact he has had two stellar games against the boys in red. It would be nice to see him get hit around in this game, but I am not counting on it.

Pitching Comparisions this year

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Colon	1	1	0	0	5	6	2	0	2	4	3.60	1.6	5.0
Hernandez	10	2	4	0	67 1/3	70	25	6	28	57	3.34	1.46	6.73

Even though King Felix has a losing record that 3.34 ERA looks pretty good. His walks appear to be up this year, so I would expect the Sox to try and be patient tonight against the young pitcher.

♊ - When all else fails, get a bigger hammer!

Red Sox 2008 Game 51 Preview

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T. Wakefield		3-2, 4.33		R. Harden		2-0, 2.91
Red Sox		31 - 19		Athletics		25 - 23

Friday, May 23                   ✠ 10:05 PM ET

American League

East	W	L	GB	L 10	1 R W	1 R L	X W	X L
Boston	31	19	-	7-3	9	6	29	21
Tampa Bay	27	20	2.5	6-4	6	7	26	21
Baltimore	24	22	5.0	6-4	11	7	23	23
Toronto	24	25	6.5	7-3	8	10	24	25
New York	22	25	7.5	4-6	6	5	21	26

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Red Sox: After getting shelled at Minnesota, Wakefield made a nice recovery in his last start, surrendering six hits and three runs over 5 1/3 innings. Wakefield left in position to get the win, but the bullpen couldn't hang on, so he was left with a no-decision. In four May starts, Wakefield is 1-2 with a 4.70 ERA. Lifetime against Oakland, he is 9-5 with a 4.03 ERA. At McAfee Colisuem, Wakefield is 5-3 with a 5.47 ERA in 15 starts.

Athletics: Harden baffled Atlanta on Saturday night, Braves manager Bobby Cox said Harden was "as good as advertised." Tim Hudson, who was teammates with Harden in Oakland, said his team saw firsthand how devastating Harden's stuff can be. Harden allowed one run on four hits in seven strong innings for the A's, who snapped a season-high four-game losing streak. Making just his second start since returning from the disabled list, Harden struck out eight and walked one. He is showing no ill effects from the strained right shoulder that landed him on the DL.

As usual all statistics were found at the day by day database at Baseball Musings and this year at Baseball Reference.

Red Sox Batting History vs Harden

Player	AB	Hits	2b	3b	HR's	RBI	BB's	K's	BA	OBA	Slug	OPS
J. Ellsbury	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---
D. Pedroia	6	1	0	0	0	0	0	2	.167	.167	.167	.333
D. Ortiz	8	5	1	0	2	4	3	2	.625	.727	1.500	2.227
M. Ramirez	8	3	0	0	3	5	3	4	.375	.545	1.500	2.045
M. Lowell	5	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.200	.200	.200	.400
K. Youkilis	4	0	0	0	0	0	2	1	.000	.333	.000	.333
J. D. Drew	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.500	.500	.500	1.000
K. Cash	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	.000	.333	.000	.333
J. Lugo	13	3	1	0	0	0	3	6	.231	.375	.308	.683
Totals	48	14	2	0	5	9	11	17	.292	.433	.646	1.079

48 at bats is about a game and 1/2. Still 1.079 OPS is pretty good. Of course the main batterers are the usual duo of Ortiz and Manny, and so far this year when one is hot the other is not, but maybe, this matchup will get the juices flowing in both of them.

Pitching Comparisions Career

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Wakefield	24	9	5	0	174 1/3	158	78	24	64	120	4.03	1.27	6.38
Harden	4	1	1	0	18 2/3	18	16	5	20	24	7.71	2.04	4.67

Wakefield has a solid record vs the A's in his career. With all of the decisions being as a starter (made 11 relief appearances). The only worry would be his ERA which is a so so 4.29.

Harden has not been great against the Sox in Fenway, but at home he is lights out. Both of his home starts are this year and his .82 ERA is, needlessly to say, quite good. So is his 12.273 K's per 9 IP. The good news is that he only won the one game this year, his first start and the Sox won his second start (a no decision) against him. A tough pitcher but they do have some success against him in the past.

Pitching Comparisions this year

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Wakefield	9	3	2	0	54	50	26	7	26	32	4.33	1.401	6
Harden	4	2	0	0	21 2/3	19	7	1	12	28	2.91	1.431	5.42

Except for ERA I really think Tim has done a better pitching job this year. Remember, that 6.0 IP/GS includes a game that he only lasted 2 2/3 innings. If Wakefield can just keep the score close, the bats should chase Harden and then it is the bullpen time.

I expect the Sox to make it 8 straight tonight.

♊ - When all else fails, get a bigger hammer!

Red Sox 2008 Misc. Post 2

There are times when being a dad, can make you miss certain things. Last night was one of those nights. B-fly had an induction ceremony for NHS, so of course being the dad, I went to that instead of staying home to watch the Sox. After the ceremony a quick check of the score had the Sox up 5-0, but nothing was said about a no-no. Still, the after ceremony was followed by meet and greet and general milling around while sipping coffee, eating treats so we didn't get out until the bottom of the sixth.

Driving home the Sox were up to bat, and J.D. Drew got hit by a pitch that was quickly followed by a Varitek home run to right field. Hand slaps were given in the car, but still nothing about a no-no until we pulled into the driveway. Being a dad also means you get to sit with the family and watch the last 9 outs of a no-no. It is great to be a dad!!!

Be sure to check out Joe Posnanski's blog entry on this game. A must read.

Red Sox 2008 Game 45 Recap

Final

Press Pass ✠ Box Score ✠ Play - by - Play ✠ Game Recap

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Milwaukee	0	0	0	0	0	3	3	0	0		6	9	4
Boston	2	0	2	0	1	0	2	0	-		7	6	3

W: C. Hansen (1-2) L: S. Torres (3-1) S: M. Timlin (1)
HR ➢ Bos: M. Lowell (5) Mil: C. Hart (2)

☼ Sun - Milwaukee's defense in the seventh which placed runners at 2nd and 3rd with no outs on zero hits.
☁ Cloud - Boston's middle relief which entered the game with the score 5-1 in the 6th and allowed both inherited runners to score, then allowed three unearned runs to score in the 7th. Aardsma, Hansen and Lopez have got to start getting outs.

Game thoughts!

This game moved along pretty well until the sixth inning with the Sox scoring runs in the 1st, 3rd and 5th innings while Wakefield kept the Brewers in check. Even though Timmy only had one 1-2-3 inning (3 k's in the first) he kept the bats in check. Only Counsell was able to reach third and that was with two outs, so overall he was looking good those innings.

Trouble though struck in the 6th as he allowed Hart's homer with one out and then allowed a Gabe single and hit B. Hall. 5-1 when he left and I thought, the Sox should be able to escape but Aardsma decided he would make the evening interesting.

Double A struck out Rivera on three pitches then hit Counsell to load the bases. The HBP was followed with a single by Weeks, and then he walked Cameron but escaped further damage by getting Braun to foul out to Youkilis over by the camera wells on the first base side. Six innings in the books and the Sox were holding onto a tenuous lead.

Francona brought in Hansen to start the 7th and for once the Sox defense started acting like little leaguers. With Fielder on 1st with one out, Lowell made a throwing error, followed by an error by Cora, which loaded the bases. Rivera knocked in a run on a fielder’s choice and then reached second on a wild pitch by Hansen. Counsell then doubled down the right field line scoring both Kapler and Rivera and all the previous good feelings were gone for the night.

In the bottom of the 7th though, the Sox were able to capitalize on errors themselves. First Weeks made an error, which allowed Ellsbury to reach 1st, and then Hall threw the ball into right field on Pedroia's grounder, which allowed Ellsbury to reach 3rd and Pedroia to reach 2nd. An RBI ground out by Papi and a Youkilis's single allowed the Sox to retake the lead and it was up to Lopez and Timlin to hold onto the lead. Thankfully both were able to get through the 8th and 9th without any further runs scoring.


Factoid: After losing three straight games in which the Sox led 3-0, the Sox got out to 4-0 leads in both games of the double header and were able to achieve the victory in both games.


♊ - Morbid and creepifing I can handle as long as we do it quiet like.

Red Sox 2008 Game 45 Preview

			@
D. Bush		1-4, 6.06		T. Wakefield		3-2, 4.25
Brewers		20 - 22		Red Sox		25 - 19

Saturday, May 17 (game 2 of Double header)        Fenway Park  ✠ @8:35 PM ET

American League

East	W	L	GB	L 10	1 R W	1 R L	X W	X L
Tampa Bay	25	18	-	8-2	4	6	24	19
Boston	25	19	.5	4-6	7	6	25	19
Baltimore	22	19	2.0	6-4	10	5	20	21
Toronto	21	23	4.5	5-5	6	9	21	23
New York	20	23	5.0	3-7	5	5	21	22

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From MLB.Com Scouting Report

Brewers: Bush put together his best start this season against the Cardinals on Monday, allowing a Rick Ankiel home run with two outs in the first inning but then blanking St. Louis through the end of the sixth. It was his first win this season and his second win in 11 starts dating to last year, when Bush tied for the team lead with 12 victories. It's been a much tougher road this year, but Bush found success in his most recent start by using the inner half of the plate, somewhat of a departure from pitching coach Mike Maddux's philosophy.

Red Sox: The knuckleballer is coming off his shortest outing since Sept. 2003, allowing seven hits and seven runs -- six earned -- in just 2 2/3 innings last Sunday night at Minnesota. Wakefield has had an up and down month, going 1-2 with a 4.58 ERA in three starts. Wakefield is looking forward to returning to Fenway Park. The right-hander is 3-1 this season with a 2.95 ERA on grass in five starts. He is 0-1 with a 7.36 ERA in three starts on turf.

As usual all statistics were found at the day by day database at Baseball Musings and this year at Baseball Reference.

Red Sox Batting History vs Bush

Player	AB	H	2b	3b	HR's	RBI	BB's	K's	BA	OBA	Slug	OPS
J. Ellsbury	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	---	---	---	---
D. Pedroia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	---	---	---	---
D. Ortiz	8	3	1	0	0	4	1	1	.375	.444	.500	.944
M. Ramirez	5	3	1	0	1	4	3	0	.600	.778	1.400	2.178
M. Lowell	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	---	---	---	---
K. Youkilis	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	---	---	---	---
J. D. Drew	3	3	2	0	0	2	0	0	1.000	1.000	1.667	2.667
K. Cash	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	---	---	---	---
J. Lugo	14	1	0	0	0	3	0	1	.071	.167	.071	.238
Totals	30	10	4	0	1	13	4	2	.333	.436	.567	1.003

Basically one game, of course results like that for one game would be a blow out with those 13 rbi's. Not sure what to think about these results, but some players should feel comfortable, and winning the first of the double header games should help. Will have to see.

Pitching Comparisions Career vs teams

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Bush	4	0	3	0	16	22	16	3	8	9	9.00	1.88	4.00
Wakefield	10	5	2	0	67 2/3	67	24	6	26	54	3.19	1.37	6.77

Bush has been horrible vs the Sox in his career (all with Toronto) so you have to like the Sox chances. In two games at Fenway he has been even worse with an 11.25 ERA / 2.13 WHIP and is 0-2. Yep, I like are chances!!!


Pitching Comparisions this year

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Bush	6	1	4	0	35 2/3	36	24	7	16	21	6.06	1.46	5.78
Wakefield	8	3	2	0	48 2/3	44	23	6	23	27	4.25	1.38	6.08

Really the only terrible start for Tim was his last start. Giving up 6 runs in 2 2/3 innings in Minnesota was horrendous. In all of his other starts this year he has gone at least 5 inning (once) and has went 8 innings twice. If you take out the Minnesota start he has a 3.33 ERA with a 1.26 WHIP. So, taking his usual solid starts and his career record vs the Brewers into consideration, I am saying look for Mr. Timothy Wakefield to come out smoking tonight!!!


♊ - When all else fails, get a bigger hammer!

Red Sox 2008 Game 44 Recap

Final

Press Pass ✠ Box Score ✠ Play - by - Play ✠ Game Recap

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Milwaukee	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	1		3	9	1
Boston	1	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	-		5	11	1

W: D. Matsuzaka (7-0) L: J. Suppan (2-3) S: J. Papelbon (12)
HR ➢ Bos: D. Ortiz (8) Mil: M. Cameron (4), R. Braun (11)

☼ Sun - Going with Daisuke here, though Papi's 3 run dinger certainly helped.
☁ Cloud - Offense, kept on getting double plays or wasted chances when they could have tacked on as Mr. T. Francona says.

Game thoughts!

Started off good as the Sox started a 2 out rally in the bottom of the first. Papi walked, Manny got hit, Youkilis then singled to load them up for J.D. Drew. A patient Drew got the free pass on the 8th pitch and it was 1-0. Of course the only bad thing, was that meant bases were loaded for Tek so that meant 1 would be all that we would get in the first.

In the second inning the Sox decided to get things going earlier as Lugo singled with one out, Ellsbury reached on a bunt single and then Pedroia popped out to right. This brought up Big Papi and he delivered with a three run home run into the monster seats on a 3-2 count. 4-0 after two and for the first time in 4 games the Sox didn't stop at 3-0.

The only frustration with the Sox bats were later in the game. A leadoff double in the 4th resulted in no runs as Casey was stranded at second. The fifth inning saw men on 1st and 2nd with no outs but ended on a 4-3-6 double play on J.D. Drew's at bat. The 6th had another lead off double and had men on 1st and 3rd with no outs only to have Lugo ground into a 3-2-5 double play that left Casey at second base with 2 outs. Just frustrating as a fan to watch those wasted chances.

As for Daisuke, well, he was good, very good until the 7th. Six K's and only 2 walks in the first six innings led to shut out ball. In the 7th, he retired the first two batters and at 95 pitches, it looked like he might have a chance to start the 8th inning. Except Youkilis made an error at third base on a hard shot by Weeks, and then Cameron hit his home run over the. A single by braun then had Francona calling for the pen and it was good night Daisuke. Still, a good outing and I would love to see 20+ more starts just like this one.

Factoid: Tek 0-4 with bases loaded this year.

♊ - Morbid and creepifing I can handle as long as we do it quiet like.

Red Sox 2008 Game 44 Preview

Update: Its Saturday and they will play two!! Will update the game links after I know for sure the correct ones for each game.
Game 1 is still this match-up!!

			@
J. Suppan		2-2, 4.63		D. Matsuzaka		6-0, 2.45
Brewers		20 - 21		Red Sox		24 - 19

Friday, May 16                 Fenway Park  ✠ 7:05 PM ET

American League

East	W	L	GB	L 10	1 R W	1 R L	X W	X L
Tampa Bay	24	17	-	8-2	4	5	23	18
Boston	24	19	1.0	4-6	7	6	24	19
Baltimore	21	19	2.5	5-5	10	5	19	21
Toronto	21	22	4.0	5-5	6	9	21	22
New York	20	22	4.5	4-6	5	5	20	22

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From MLB.Com Scouting Report

Brewers: Suppan will be facing the team with which he broke into the Major Leagues in 1995 and spent parts of three seasons, going 7-9 with a 6.10 ERA in 29 outings at Fenway Park. He will hope for better results as the Brewers begin Interleague Play and is coming off one of his best starts this season, a seven-inning, one-run performance against the Cardinals at Miller Park. The win snapped Suppan's two-game losing streak.

Red Sox: Matsuzaka is looking for his seventh win in eight starts this season. After a season-high eight walks on May 5 in Detroit, Matsuzaka settled down last Saturday in Minnesota and issued three over his seven innings, allowing six hits and two runs while earning his second win of the month. The right-hander will look to become the fourth Red Sox hurler this decade to start a season 7-0, joining Josh Beckett (9-0 in 2007), John Burkett (7-0, 2002) and Pedro Martinez (7-0, 2002).

As usual all statistics were found at the day by day database at Baseball Musings and this year at Baseball Reference.

Red Sox Batting History vs Suppan

Player	AB	H	2b	3b	HR's	RBI	BB's	K's	BA	OBA	Slug	OPS
J. Ellsbury	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	---	---	---	---
D. Pedroia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	---	---	---	---
D. Ortiz	27	9	2	0	1	4	2	5	.333	.355	.519	.873
M. Ramirez	21	7	1	0	3	7	4	5	.333	.440	.810	1.250
M. Lowell	11	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0.000	0.000	0.000	0.000
K. Youkilis	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	---	---	---	---
J. D. Drew	17	6	2	0	1	5	1	3	.353	.421	.647	1.068
J. Varitek	16	8	1	0	1	1	1	1	.500	.529	.750	1.279
J. Lugo	11	5	2	0	0	2	1	1	.455	.500	.636	1.136
Totals	103	35	8	0	6	19	9	16	.340	.391	.592	.984

.984 OPS for the starters, I'll take that everyday of the week and twice on Sundays. I also would replace the 0 for 11 Mike Lowell and play S. Casey, who's lifetime is .333 / .368 / .556 /.924 in his career vs Suppan.

In fact replacing Lowell changes those to .373 / .423 / .645 / 1.068 for the team. As much as I like a .984 OPS, trust me I like a 1.068 that much better.

Pitching Comparisions Career

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Suppan	8	3	3	0	49	28	26	8	18	21	4.78	1.35	6.13
Matsuzaka	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Suppan has pitched well at times vs the Sox. He has two complete game victories and his last win he only gave up 2 runs in six innings. Overall in his eight starts he has only given up more than three runs in three games. So, even though his ERA is fairly high, he has done very well, except in Boston. Three games in Boston and he is 0-2 and only lasted 13 innings while allowing 15 earned runs. Would be nice to see him get shelled tonight.

Pitching Comparisions this year

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Suppan	8	2	2	0	46 2/3	54	24	6	19	21	4.63	1.56	5.83
Matsuzaka	8	6	0	0	47 2/3	28	13	3	30	40	2.45	1.22	5.96

The only area that Suppan beats Matsuzaka is in his walks. Of course that has been the main complaint vs Daisuke all year.

♊ - When all else fails, get a bigger hammer!

Red Sox 2008 Game 43 Recap

Final

Press Pass ✠ Box Score ✠ Play - by - Play ✠ Game Recap

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Boston	1	0	0	0	1	1	0	0	0		3	12	0
Baltimore	0	0	0	0	0	2	4	0	x		6	8	0

W: D. Cabrera (4-1) L: C. Hansen (0-2) S: G. Sherrill (15)
HR ➢ Bos: J. Varitek (4), M. Lowell (4) Bal: J. Payton (3)

☼ Sun - Payton - Grand slam in the 7th off of Okajima changed a 3-2 game to a 3-6 game.
☁ Cloud - The relief could not get it done as Hansen couldn't get anybody out, and Okajima gave up the grand slam to the first batter he faced.

Game thoughts!

What looked like a win quickly became a loss as the Sox middle relievers and the setup arm coughed up the lead in the seventh. Lopez got the first two outs and then gave up an infield single that Pedroia smothered on the outfield grass. Hansen strode to the mound but did not retire a batter by giving up a single, then walking Roberts to load the bases.

Mills called for Okajima with the bases loaded and on the second pitch to Payton it was deposited into the left field seats and that was the ball game.

Factoid - Okajima has now allowed 11 of 14 inherited runners to score.

Eckersly is killing Mills, that was Hansen's inning, he should have faced Payton, not Okajima. If Hansen can't get out Payton, he shouldn't be in the big leagues.

4-6 on this road trip and blown saves littering the trail, most notably today's and the two blown by Papel-bot. That is the difference between this being a good road trip and a fragging huge disapointment.

♊ - Morbid and creepifing I can handle as long as we do it quiet like.

Red Sox 2008 Game 43 Preview

			@
J. Lester		2-2, 4.06		D. Cabrera		3-1, 3.54
Red Sox		24 - 18		Orioles		20 - 19

Wenesday, May 14  Oriole Park at Camden Yards  ✠ 3:05 PM ET

American League

East	W	L	GB	L 10	1 R W	1 R L	X W	X L
Tampa Bay	23	16	-	7-3	4	4	22	17
Boston	24	18	.5	5-5	7	6	23	19
Baltimore	20	19	3.0	4-6	10	5	18	21
New York	19	21	4.5	5-5	4	5	20	20
Toronto	19	22	5.0	5-5	4	9	20	21

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From MLB.Com Scouting Report

Red Sox: The left-hander looks to rebound from Friday's performance in Minnesota when he allowed eight hits and five runs -- three earned -- over 5 1/3 innings. He had allowed just five hits and one run over his two starts prior to Friday. Lester will be making his fifth start on the road, where his ERA (4.87) is more than a run higher than at Fenway (3.52). On the positive side, Lester has gone at least five innings in each of his last five starts overall.

Orioles: It's going to be tough for Cabrera to improve from his last outing. Manager Dave Trembley called it the best of his pitcher's career. Cabrera threw a complete game, allowing just one run and three hits against the Royals on Thursday. Using mainly his fastball and sinker, he forced 18 groundouts and struck out seven batters. Trembley said Cabrera has been steadily improving since Spring Training.

As usual all statistics were found at the day by day database at Baseball Musings and this year at Baseball Reference.

Red Sox Batting History vs Cabrera

Player	AB	Hits	2b	3b	HR's	RBI	BB's	K's	BA	OBA	Slug	OPS
J. Ellsbury	6	2	0	0	1	1	0	1	.333	.333	.833	1.166
D. Pedroia	5	3	2	0	0	0	0	1	.600	.600	1.000	1.600
D. Ortiz	17	4	0	0	0	2	8	3	.235	.480	.235	.715
M. Ramirez	10	2	0	0	0	3	3	2	.200	.385	.200	.585
M. Lowell	10	5	1	0	1	7	3	0	.500	.571	.900	1.471
K. Youkilis	13	4	3	0	0	3	3	6	.308	.412	.538	.950
J. D. Drew	9	3	1	0	0	0	3	1	.333	.500	.444	.944
J. Varitek	15	3	1	0	0	3	3	9	.200	.333	.267	.600
J. Lugo	19	3	0	1	0	1	3	3	.158	.273	.263	.536
Totals	104	29	8	1	2	20	26	26	.279	.417	.433	.849

Ok, not bad numbers but lets assume that Lugo and Crisp and Drew can't go in todays game, further more, since it is a day game after a night game lets assume that Tek isn't also playing. By starting Cora, Cash, Casey and playing Youk in right field, we would have a team that would have a 33 for 91 with .363 / .446 / .571 / 1.018 against Cabrera. A man can dream.

Pitching Comparisions Career

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Lester	3	3	0	0	18	19	6	2	8	8	3.00	1.50	6.00
Cabrera	11	1	9	0	49 1/3	59	43	3	43	51	7.84	2.07	4.48

Lester has looked good against this team and each time his start has been better than the preceeding start against the O's. If we followed a progression we should see an eight inning start by Lester of shut out ball and only allowing two hits.

Cabrera on the other hand is a disaster waiting to happen vs the Sox. 7.84 ERA! 2.07 WHIP! Almost as many walks as strike outs, the Sox must be salivating to face this guy.

♊ - When all else fails, get a bigger hammer!

Red Sox 2008 Misc post 01

Filed under hmmm from 2003 to 2007

Loc	G	CG	W	L	Sv	Sho	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA
Home	405	15	261	144	101	4	3679	3778	1936	1769	373	1140	2750	4.33
Away	405	8	209	196	100	1	3546	3624	1928	1780	435	1226	2701	4.50
Total	810	23	470	340	201	5	7225	7402	3864	3549	808	2366	5451	4.42

I was surprised when I looked at this that the team ERA at home is lower, that the pitchers in more innings had given up fewer HR's and had walked fewer batters. A hitters park, has actually been better to the pitchers than the road.

Red Sox 2008 Game 42 Recap

Final

Press Pass ✠ Box Score ✠ Play - by - Play ✠ Game Recap

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Boston	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0		4	9	0
Baltimore	0	1	4	0	0	0	0	0	x		5	11	2

W: J. Guthrie (2-3) L: J. Beckett (4-3) S: G. Sherrill (14)
HR ➢ Bal: L. Scott (2)

☼ Sun - Scott - 3 Run HR with two outs in the 3rd was the nail in the coffin.
☁ Cloud - Ramirez - Bases loaded, 0 outs in the 7th and its a 1 - 2 - 3 gdip.

Game thoughts!

Beckett made one huge mistake in the 3rd but that did not decide this game. The third inning started with two singles, but Josh bore down and got back to back K's before facing Millar. On the 1-2 pitch, his fast ball broke over the plate and Millar stroked it to left for a run scoring single. One batter later on the 1-0 pitch, on a very good pitch down and inside to the leftie, Scott crushed one over the scoreboard in right. That would be the last Oriole run of the night.

Still, the Sox had a chance to either tie or get closer in this game. The 7th inning started with a single by Casey (who replaced Crisp in the 6th), a single by Pedroia, and a walk to Ortiz (a wild pitch on the 5th pitch moved up the runners). Bases loaded and the man child was striding to the plate. Tremblay brought in the right handed J. Johnson to face Manny with the game on the line. After four straight foul balls on the 2-2 count, Manny hit a one hopper back to the mound and it became an easy 1-2-3 GIDP. Rally over.

Another road loss, another blown game by the starters and now the Sox need to win the last game of the road trip to make it a non-losing trip. After 42 games the Sox fall out of 1st place behind the Tampa Bay Rays who beat the Yankees in the 11th inning.

Factoid - 2003-2007 the Sox on the road was 209-196. This year the sox are now 10-13 on the road. This includes two 3 game sweeps and one series where they went 1-3. The other four series they have went 3-1 twice, 2-0 once and 1-1 in the last. I'm not ready to jump off the bridge, but it would be nice to see them get back to .500.

♊ - Morbid and creepifing I can handle as long as we do it quiet like.

Red Sox 2008 Game 42 Preview

			@
J. Beckett		4-2, 3.70		J. Guthrie		1-3, 4.32
Red Sox		24 - 17		Orioles		19 - 19

Tuesday, May 13  Oriole Park at Camden Yards  ✠ 7:05 PM ET

American League

East	W	L	GB	L 10	1 R W	1 R L	X W	X L
Boston	24	17	-	6-4	7	5	23	18
Tampa Bay	22	16	0.5	6-4	3	4	21	17
Baltimore	19	19	3.5	4-6	9	5	18	20
New York	19	20	4.0	5-5	4	4	19	20
Toronto	18	22	5.5	5-5	4	9	19	21

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From MLB.Com Scouting Report

Red Sox: Beckett turned in one of his best starts of the season against a Tigers lineup that ranks among the toughest in the Majors. He put runners on in the early innings, but allowed just one run before retiring the final 10 batters he faced. He also struck out eight, including the 1,000th strikeout of his career. Beckett has six career starts against the Orioles, going 4-1 with a 2.95 ERA and 38 strikeouts in 42 2/3 innings.

Orioles: Guthrie's been consistent but not spectacular so far this season. His last start went so much like his previous ones. He went 5 2/3 innings and gave up four runs as the O's lost to the Angels. That outing came after his best of the season, when he went seven innings and picked up his first and only win of the season.

As usual all statistics were found at the day by day database at Baseball Musings and this year at Baseball Reference.

Red Sox Batting History vs Guthrie

Player	AB	Hits	2b	3b	HR's	RBI	BB's	K's	BA	OBA	Slug	OPS
J. Ellsbury	3	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.333	.333	.333	.667
D. Pedroia	5	3	1	0	0	0	2	1	.600	.714	.800	1.514
D. Ortiz	9	3	2	0	0	1	1	2	.333	.400	.556	.956
M. Ramirez	7	2	0	0	0	1	0	1	.286	.286	.286	.571
M. Lowell	7	1	0	0	0	2	0	1	.143	.143	.143	.286
K. Youkilis	10	2	1	0	0	0	1	2	.200	.273	.300	.573
J. D. Drew	5	1	1	0	0	0	1	0	.200	.333	.400	.733
J. Varitek	6	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	.167	.167	.167	.333
J. Lugo	7	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	.000	.000	.000	.000
Totals	59	14	5	0	0	4	5	9	.237	.297	.322	.619

Not a lot of success against Guthrie. Which makes it all the more surprising that he has no record vs the Sox.

Pitching Comparisions Career

Pitcher	GS	W	L	Sho	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	IP/GS
Beckett	6	4	1	0	42 2/3	36	14	4	4	28	2.95	.94	7.11
Guthrie	3	0	0	0	20 2/3	21	6	2	8	12	2.61	1.40	6.22

Good matchup tonight, so Joshie needs to bring his A-game, because Guthrie has had some good success against this team, including Mothers day of last year. Oh, yeah, its the exact same matchup pitching wise. I want the result, just don't wait until the 9th this year.

♊ - When all else fails, get a bigger hammer!