Bye-bye, Beckett… (Photo by Keith Allison, c/o Flickr.com)

It’s official… the Red Sox have completed a mega deal that will send Josh Beckett, Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford and Nick Punto to the LA Dodgers for first baseman, James Loney, pitchers Rubby De La Rosa and Allen Webster, outfielder Jerry Sands and infielder Ivan De Jesus Jr.

According to the Boston Herald (who also had the great headline of “Bums Away”):

The deal will be worth in excess of $275 million to the Red Sox including luxury tax savings and salaries for the remainder of this season and beyond. Over the next six years, the Dodgers will receive $12 million from the Red Sox, with the payments to begin next year.

I’m ridiculously excited about this deal. Not so much the Adrian Gonzalez part because I did sort of like him. But Josh Beckett and Carl Crawford? Don’t let the door hit you in the ass on the way out. And what are they really missing by getting rid of Punto? His main roll in this team was to operate the Shredder after a walk-off home run — and those were few and far between this season.

I know this trade isn’t going to fix what’s wrong with this team. There’s still a lot of work to be done. First and foremost — to make this group of selfish shitheads an actual TEAM again. And I don’t see that happening this year. The Red Sox organization needs a major overhaul starting with the manager position. As long as Bobby Valentine skippers this group of guys, there’s going to be discontent.

Hopefully this will end the bad habit the Red Sox have of making big, $100 million plus blockbuster deals that never seem to work out the way they should.

The Red Sox came out strong yesterday in the Bronx, beating the Yankees 4-1 in a nationally-televised game.  Jon Lester put up seven strong innings, allowing five hits, one run (a Curtis Granderson solo shot) and striking out four while allowing only two walks.  Honestly, I didn’t think he’d pitch this well, especially since he let the leadoff guy get on base in each of the first two innings.  But, he turned it around, and the Sox lineup helped him out.  Adrian Gonzalez ripped a first-inning two-run bomb to set the tone, and Nick Punto scored Pedro Ciriaco on an RBI single in the fifth inning.  The Sox tacked on an insurance run when Scott Podednik scored on a wild pitch from Cody Eppley in the ninth inning.

Jon Lester (Keith Allison, c/o flickr.com)

Ciriaco went 4-for-4.  What is it with this kid?  And, Punto had a great day at third base – he flashed the leather a couple of times.

Also, a moment of excitement in my house: when Craig Breslow came on to pitch in the eighth inning, Breslow and batterymate Ryan Lavarnway formed the first all-Yale University alumni battery in the major leagues since 1883.  As the wife of an especially enthusiastic Yalie, this was a Very Big Deal, and we spent most of the time Breslow and Lavarnway used inducing Robinson Cano to hit into a double play facebooking about it.  For God, For Country, And For Yale, and all that.

Here’s a link to the respectable box score, courtesy of the Red Sox.  In tonight’s rubber game, Josh Beckett (or, as McCarver called him yesterday, John Beckett) and his 5-10 record and 5.19 ERA take on Hiroki Kuroda (11-8, 3.06 ERA).

Two other items of note from yesterday:

First, the Globe reports that within the next few days, Carl Crawford will ask the Red Sox for permission to get Tommy John surgery next week.  Crawford’s been playing better lately, but he’ll be the first to tell you that he’s in pain.  There’s a balance that it seems like Crawford’s trying to strike here, between playing through pain if the team’s in contention for a postseason spot (which they are, barely), and thinking of what’s best for his own health if they’re not (which I think is also ok – he does have his own career and well-being to think about, which I can’t say I blame him for).  He tore the ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow in April, and since then he’s received a platelet injection that lets him play through the pain – but that’s never been seen as a permanent fix.

Second, the New York Daily News puts an interesting spin on the ongoing Adrian Gonzalez text message drama: apparently, you see, it was recently-traded backup catcher Kelly Shoppach’s fault.  Kelly Shoppach, who had clashed with Bobby Valentine over his playing time earlier this year, apparently sent the text message to ownership from Adrian Gonzalez’s cell phone.  It sounds like a group of players – probably none of them the impact players that could actually get ownership’s attention – became unhappy with Valentine’s style and convinced Gonzalez to let them use his phone to send the text.  Gonzalez is the highest-paid player on the team, and they apparently thought that a text coming from him would actually have some heft behind it.

So, looks like both the instigator and the leak are Kelly Shoppach.  Or at least, that’s what the Sox would have you believe, since nobody, including Gonzalez or Shoppach, care to talk about the incident any more.  Isn’t that convenient – let’s all just blame the backup catcher after he’s been shipped out of town.

I still think the larger issue is that there’s an issue at all – it’s not who told on who, or who covers for who, or who has the bigger salary and more sway over the ownership.  Fact is, this clubhouse is still in disarray, and blaming Kelly Shoppach for all the team’s problems is shortsighted, inaccurate, and will only take the Sox as far as the next blowup.

Jon Lester just cannot catch a break these days.  Despite giving up only four hits and striking out a season-high nine through 6 2/3 innings against Oakland, Lester took the 3-2 loss for a Red Sox team that sputtered to another extra-inning loss.  Lester gave up a home run to ex-Sox Coco Crisp on the third pitch of the game, but that was it.

Jon Lester (Keith Allison, c/o flickr.com)

The Red Sox lost this game in the ninth inning, following a series of miscues by Ryan Kalish and Nick Punto that were exacerbated by Boston’s overall inability to score.  In the top of the ninth inning, the Sox led 2-1, and had runners on first (Mike Aviles) and second (Ryan Kalish) with no outs.  Punto tried to bunt the runners over so that a sac fly could score an insurance run, but he popped the bunt up instead.  The Oakland first baseman dove, caught the ball, and doubled Aviles off at first.

So, with Kalish on second, the Sox up by one, and two outs, Kalish tried to steal third.  It was a close play, but the umpire called him out, ending the scoring threat.

In the bottom of the ninth inning, Sox closer Alfredo Aceves turned in a shaky performance.  With runners on first and second with one out, Oakland pinch hitter Brandon Moss took an 0-2 pitch up the middle.  Kalish, who was hurrying to beat the runner to the plate, bobbled the ball.  One run scored, tying the game, and the runner that was on first ended up on third with one out.

Of course, after that, Crisp – of all people! – stepped up to the plate and hit a sacrifice fly to Kalish to end the game.

So, yeah – this was a game where one player’s mistakes were highlighted, but as usual, it’s not like the Red Sox did a lot of hitting.  They’ve only scored 12 runs in their last six games.  With this lineup, that’s inexcusable.  It’s hard to blame that on Kalish.

Here’s a link to the depressing box score, courtesy of the Red Sox.

Oh, and also – Daisuke Matsuzaka is back on the DL following his last horrific start.  He claims he hurt his neck.  He is very… middling.  I think that’s the right word.  The Sox called up Mauro Gomez, a third baseman from AAA Pawtucket.  Gomez will chip in while Will Middlebrooks recovers from left hamstring soreness.

The Sox finish up their west coast swing today, when they take on Oakland again.  Aaron Cook (2-1, 4.32 ERA) – who pitched fantastically his last time out – will take on A.J. Griffin (0-0, 1.50 ERA) in what will be Griffin’s third career start.  Griffin hasn’t given up a run in eleven innings, and two-hit Texas over six innings his last time out.

Sorry about the headline – I couldn’t resist.

Check this out: as of June 3, the Boston Red Sox were officially out of the AL East basement:

Exciting – take THAT, Toronto Blue Jays!  The New York Yankees are only a half game ahead, and lately New York couldn’t hit its way out of a paper bag with RISP.  The Red Sox pitching finally seems to be shaping up, the bullpen is sorting itself out, and the lauded hitters are, well, hitting laudably.  Even some rookies and unknowns have started to step up and help the club out.  Most recently, Clay Buchholz and Felix Doubront led the Sox to wins over the (last-place, snicker) Blue Jays with dazzling outings, and unexpected offensive outbursts from the likes of Daniel Nava and Nick Punto put the Sox over the top.  Kevin Youkilis is back, Dustin Pedroia sounds like he’ll play on Tuesday, and even Daisuke Matsuzaka’s had a promising rehab stint in Pawtucket on Thursday.

Daniel Bard will try for the series sweep today.  He’s won his last four decisions.

So, things look pretty darn good in the Nation.  Ben Cherington?  Genius!  Bobby Valentine?  A master of strategery.  Even Wally the Green Monster looks a little more plush these days.

Now granted, this could all turn around again quickly.  The Boston media is ruthless, the Sox have some tough series coming up (Orioles, Nationals, Marlins, and then a showdown with Theo Epstein’s Cubs…).  If Alfredo Aceves blows a save, Adrian Gonzalez grounds into a few double plays, or Youkilis loses his hot bat again, then the mood around here will turn from glass half full to glass half empty quicker than you can say “fourth place… that means we’re only better than one other team in our division, right?”  The histrionics of Red Sox fans and Red Sox media, both optimistic and pessimistic, should never, ever, be underestimated.

But for now, Sox fans, let’s enjoy this moment.  In the past year, we’ve gone from the team that was supposed to win 100 games, to the team that collapsed and missed the playoffs, to the team that lost its manager and its general manager, to the team that took a chance on a green general manager and a has-been manager, to the team with no closer, to the team with no bullpen, to the team with no pitching, to the team with no hitting, to… this incarnation.  A team with some good pitching, a basically reliable, if patched-together, bullpen, and an offense that can string a few hits together.

It seems like now, finally, for some reason, the Sox have a fighting chance at this thing.  Maybe this is how baseball’s supposed to be.  If you won games on paper, there’d be no such things as baseball stadiums.  If you won championships in the off-season, then fantasy baseball would just be called baseball.  Sure, fourth place isn’t really that amazing – but it feels so much better than fifth, and this team feels so much better than fourth.

Friday night, the Enforcer. Last night, the ninth inning Hero! (photo by Keith Allison, c/o flickr.com)

Last night was one of those Red Sox games that leaves you breathless — a real pitcher’s duel that ends in dramatic fashion. My hero of Friday night’s loss, Salty the Enforcer, was again the hero with a pinch hit, walk-off dinger in the ninth to give the Sox a 3-2 win over those dreaded Rays.

The Rays’ pitcher, David Price, managed to keep the Red Sox bats quite through the first five innings. In the bottom of the sixth, they finally broke the scoreless tie scoring one run to take a slim lead late in the game.

Dustin Pedroia led off the inning with a walk and David Ortiz followed with a single, moving Pedroia to second. Adrian Gonzalez smacked a single to BJ Upton in center field who threw a BB to home cutting down Pedy trying to score from second. Will Middlebrooks then shot one up the middle that deflected off the second baseman and allowed Ortiz to score the first run of the game.

On the pitching side for the Sox, Josh Beckett pitched another beauty. He went seven innings, giving up four hits and two earned runs while striking out five. He pitched six innings of one-hit, shutout ball and seemed to be rolling right along. But in the top of the seventh, the Rays took advantage of a tiring Beckett and managed to plate two runs on a combination three singles and heads up base running. Rays up 2-1.

With one chance left for some do or die heroics, the Red Sox had a tough road ahead of them in the bottom of the ninth. The Rays sent in their closer Fernando Rodney who was going for his 16th save in 16 attempts. (Does it annoy anyone else that he wears he hat crooked, because in incenses me! Seriously…shouldn’t there be rule against that?)

Daniel Nava lead off the ninth with an eight-pitch walk. Pinch hitter Nick Punto came in and laid down a successful sacrifice moving Nava up to second. Jarrod Saltalamacchia came in to pinch hit for Marlon Byrd, who had been 0 for 3 with two strike outs, and hit the second pitch he saw from Rodney over the center field fence for his first career walk-off homerun. This happened to also be the first walk-off win for the Red Sox this season.

Needless to say Fenway Park went completely mental and Salty was mobbed at home plate as is the custom with the Red Sox for walk-off wins. He emerged from the pile missing his shirt which was ripped from his body by an exuberant Big Papi. Salty told reporters after the game:

“Well, obviously tonight was awesome. I met the shredder for the first time,” Saltalamacchia said.

The shredder is what the Red Sox call the mob of players who jump all over the walk-off hero.

“Well, the shredder got me good,” Saltalamacchia said. “It got my shirt and my necklace. He got it all tonight. That’s a great feeling.”

Click here for the heart-stopping box score, courtesy of the Red Sox. The Sox and Rays will finish up the series today at 1:35pm with Clay Buccholz (4-2, 7.84 ERA) facing off against Jeremy Hellickson (4-1, 2.73 ERA).

Wow. Just wow. Just for the record this is definitely not a good wow, it’s more like a what-the-hell-just-happened wow. So much for warm fuzzy Easter Sunday baseball. This game was a grind. In 11 innings, the Red Sox and Tigers scored 25 runs on 35 hits. And unfortunately for Boston fans, two blown saves in the 9th and 11th innings put the Sox on the losing end once again. I don’t like this.

The good news (if there is any out of this afternoon’s game) — the offense isn’t the problem. The Red Sox scored 12 runs. Normally 12 runs is going to win the game. Every starter except Kelly Shoppach had at least 1 hit and Nick Punto, David Ortiz and Mike Aviles all had three. Adrian Gonzalez hit his first homerun of the season. Offense looks pretty good.

The bad news? What we thought was just a problem with the bullpen seems to have oozed into the starting rotation. Clay Buccholz continued the starter’s struggles giving up 4 runs in the 1st inning and 7 runs in his 4 inning outing. There was a glimmer of hope today when Vicente Padilla relieved Buccholz in the 5th and pitched 4 scoreless innings, giving up just 2 hits.
» Continue reading “Red Sox Blow Two Saves, Tigers Sweep Series”

Baseball’s back!  It feels so good to watch games that mean something, that count in the standings, that will matter for the playoff picture.  I was getting through a particularly grueling day at work today, and I have to say, turning on my radio (or, fine, my MLB At Bat app) at 1:00 to listen to a real, live baseball game felt like a little bit of welcome magic.

Jon Lester, c/o flickr.com (Keith Allison)

It’s just too bad the game didn’t end the way we wanted it to.  Jon Lester pitched a gem today, allowing one run and fanning four Detroit hitters during a seven-inning outing, but the Red Sox dropped their season opener at Comerica Park.  Justin Verlander threw an amazing game, holding the Red Sox scoreless over eight innings, striking out seven and allowing only two hits.

Today’s game had two distinct story lines in it: first, the pitcher’s duel between Lester and Verlander, and  second, the blown outings by closers Jose Valverde and Alfredo Aceves.   Detroit scored runs off of  Vicente Padilla and a Melancon/Aceves combo in the bottom of the ninth inning (Melancon let the runner on, Aceves let him score – Melancon took the loss for Boston).  But, the Red Sox had scored two of their own in the top of the ninth inning off Valverde, care of David Ortiz scoring Dustin Pedroia on a sacrifice fly, and Ryan Sweeney smashing a two-out triple off the right field corner to tie the game.

In the bottom of the ninth, things went wrong.  After Melancon let up one-out singles to Jhonny Peralta and Alex Avlia, Bobby Valentine brought in Aceves.  Aceves hit Ramon Santiago with a pitch, which loaded the bases.  Then, Detroit’s Austin Jackson poked a single past third base and a diving Nick Punto to seal the walk-off win for the Tigers.

Valentine focused on Lester’s strong work for the day, telling the Globe that ”there was a lot I saw that I liked. Lester was terrific. He did just what he needed to do.”  Similarly, Verlander – the reigning AL MVP and Cy Young winner – seemed happy with just another one of his days at the ballpark.  ”This was the best opening day I’ve had, and hopefully that goes toward all the hard work I’ve been putting in to get off to a better start,” he said. “Long way to go, but it’s good to get that first one under your belt and have it be a good one.”  At one point, Verlander threw a breaking ball that caused Cody Ross to drop his bat and walk away from the batter’s box, even before the umpire had finished calling him out on strikes – so yeah, I’d say today was vintage Verlander.

Also, there’s this: When Jacoby Ellsbury, who came in second in last year’s MVP vote, led off the game (he hit a fly ball to left), that was the first time since 2000 that the top two MVP vote-getters from the previous season faced each other in a pitcher-batter matchup.  The last time that happened, our own Pedro struck out Ivan Rodriguez, the 1999 winner.

Here’s a link to the box, courtesy of redsox.com.  Boston has tomorrow off (mercifully, at least for yours truly, tomorrow appears to be a Friday), before Josh Beckett takes the mound against Doug Fister on Saturday at 4:05, again from Comerica Park.