Before I delve into recapping last night’s game, I just want to throw out a big Get Well Soon to Jerry Remy who has been noticeable absent from the broadcast booth these past few games. Not that Don Orsillo doesn’t do a fabulous job, and the replacements (Nick Cafardo, Peter Abraham and Peter Gammons) have done fine providing lots of great stats and info, but I miss Jerry. It makes me nervous when he’s out — I hate the thought of him missing the majority of the season like he did a few years ago. Those were dark days… So come back soon, Remdawg!

Ok… let’s get down to business. The Red Sox beat the Oakland A’s last night 11-6, once again unleashing an offensive onslaught that bailed out some less than impressive pitching. Mike Aviles, Darnell McDonald and David Ortiz all bashed home runs (Ortiz hit two) to power the team to the win and back to .500. The Sox had two big innings – the second and the fifth.

I bet Big Papi feels like he's batting with a tennis racket!

Ortiz lead off the second inning with a solo home run. After Kelly Shoppach struck out, McDonald hit a double to right field. Marlon Byrd, Aviles and Pedroia all had singles and Adrian Gonzalez reached on a throwing error. In the end, the Sox pushed four runs over the plate in the second, and took the lead for good at 4-1. Ortiz and Aviles both homered in the fifth to finish off the scoring and giving the Red Sox a commanding 11-1 lead. Safe, right?

Well, that’s where Clay Buccholz comes in. Through the first six innings, he looked… not bad. He allowed one run on four hits while striking out five and walking three. Not horrible. But then the seventh inning rolled around and the wheels fell off the bus in a hurry. I can’t stomach reliving the mess that ensued so I’m just going to giving you the results — he gave up five runs to bring the A’s to within striking distance. Are you kidding me? According to Dan Shaughnessy of the Boston Globe, Monday night Clay Buchholz became the first Red Sox pitcher to give up five or more earned runs in five consecutive starts in 72 years. Not a good stat to be known for and his ERA is now at 8.69.

Junichi Tazawa and Vicente Padilla finished off the seventh without further damage. Scott Atchison and Franklin Morales combined for a scoreless eight and Alredo Aceves closed out the ninth, striking out two of the three batters he faced. This entire pitching staff baffles me.

Here’s the link to the box, courtesy of the Red Sox. Felix Doubront takes on the A’s tonight, going for his second win. First pitch is at 7:10pm. Here’s hoping May kicks off a little better than April did!

In other news…

On Sunday, the Red Sox six-game winning streak came to an end in the final game of their series with the Chicago White Sox. The bats never got going enough to get Josh Beckett the run support he needed and they lost 4-1. It was a tough loss for Beckett, but again, it’s not like he’s pitching lights out either… Here’s the link to the box for this game, courtesy of the Red Sox.

Also, today is the deadline for the Red Sox to make a decision on what to do with Aaron Cook who, after five games with AAA Pawtucket, is 3-0 with a 1.89 ERA. If they don’t promote him to the big leagues, he could opt-out of his contract and go elsewhere. At this point in the season, the Red Sox can’t afford to lose a promising arm and could be used in the bullpen or as a spot starter when needed.