Blog Title: The Hot Corner

Here's a great idea...

...let's take a tie game in the bottom of the 11th inning and put in a relief pitcher who's really blown opponents away with a 1.68 WHIP and all the control of the local softball ace after happy hour. This was not a game that the Rays won, it was a game Terry Francona lost. He lost it in the 8th inning when Coco Crisp doubled to center to put the winning run on and left Jacoby Ellsbury try to break his 0 for 5 night instead of pinch-hitting Drew, and he did it when he put Timlin in the game over Tim Wakefield or Paul Byrd.

Look, I know that it's tough for a starter to come into a game as a reliever and achieve the same mentality as when it's his normal day of work, but Mike Timlin has been 100% godawful this season. Red Sox fans nationwide uttered a collective groan when it was announced several days ago that Francona's countermove to Maddon's addition of Edwin Jackson (who kills the Sox) was to add a washed-up Timlin who, after the ALDS, was considering retirement.

Retirement? Seriously? This is the guy we're putting in our bullpen over Chris Smith, or, I dunno, anybody? It's one thing to stick with veterans over the course of the season, its another to bring someone as out of gas as Timlin (who, for the record, I love as a player) into a situation this important.

I'm sorry, this is not a game we should have lost, and that's why it's even more frustrating.

Give the Man Some Love

I've give Coco Crisp more than his fair share of guff over the last two years, and Lord knows he's deserved it. From the day in 2006 when he broke his finger sliding into third base at Baltimore until just recently he has been nothing more than an automatic out. When he's gotten on base he's been a serious threat to run, and he's played a mean center field... but that's about it.

That was before now.

Check this out. Over the last thirty days Crisp has cracked 28 hits in 69 at-bats for an average of .406 and an OPS of .974; when you compress your sample size a little more, he's hitting .514 with an OPS of 1.250 over the fifteen days. No, you didn't misread that. Exactly. He's been hitting like a cleanup hitter from the bottom of the order.

All of this hullabaloo, highlighted by the 3 for 3 night he had today against the Rays, has given the season of our once forgotten center fielder new life. His season stats of .284/.344/.416 have him approaching the line Theo and the front office anticipated when they dealt away Kelly Shoppach and Andy Marte to Cleveland in the winter of 2006. It's a good thing, to be sure, because it's allowed Tito more flexibility with his outfield, as he's no longer forced to play a slumping Jacoby Ellsbury (much to the chagrin of my fantasy team).

Today's win over the Rays really has highlighted the success of this team over the last few weeks. The Sox had one of the best records in baseball for the month of August, coming in just behind the Rays, who have managed to lose 6 of their last 7 games, and are now in danger of coughing up the lead in the AL East. The Sox have been able to stay on the heels of Tampa Bay because of the efforts of Superma--- I mean, Dustin Pedroia, Jed Lowrie, Mark Kotsay and Paul Byrd. After his home run of a deadline deal for Jason Bay, Theo has managed to add the latter two names on waiver deals and give what was a floundering team a much-needed spark. When that spark can meet the fully healthy fuel that his Josh Beckett (my metaphor goes too far, I know), we're now talking playoffs instead of groaning about all the bad breaks we get.

It's a good thing, too, because otherwise we'd have nothing to focus on except the fact that Tom Brady is out for the season.

Yea, good thing.

Gut Check

Let's be frank, shall we? This was not the greatest weekend for the Sox. After having his start pushed back to yesterday on account of Friday's rainout Paul Byrd lost a decent game to the Blue Jays and Roy Halladay, 4-1. Today's game was much more shameful, with last year's ace Josh Beckett getting lit up for eight runs over two and a third innings before losing 15-4 to give up both games in the rain-shortened home series. To just ice over this cake of bad luck, J.D. Drew left the game with tightness in his back.

Oh, the things that go wrong.

This weekend perfectly summed up the troubles of this year's team. Saturday's game was an example of the pitching being passable but the power being out in the lineup, and today's game was just a shitty outing by the guy who should be our ace, and again a slight power outage. In the hindsight of the Manny trade (because I know so many people think Manny's absence in the order has affected everyone) we still made the right move. But until this team can get itself on an offensive tear, we'll be going nowhere in the standings thank you very much.

Today is August 17, and the first place Rays have just started their game against the gopher-prone Texas rangers. The club that has for so long been the floor sweepers in the AL East are now the club that can't lose. Explosive offense, superior starting pitching, outstanding bullpen... all of them check. Heck, they've even started to perfect their own late inning rallies to keep their lead at a very healthy four games (and 4.5 if they win). Everybody's seen what it takes to win a World Series, and the biggest thing is made up of all the little ones. It's the bloop singles, the walks instead of groundouts, the effective relief work, the lucky bounces and and the hair-close calls that fall your way. Tampa Bay has all of those things working  for them and the Red Sox, the talented, well-paid, loveable Red Sox, are on the other end.

Until that changes (and we avoid the mistakes of this weekend), we'll be looking up Joe Maddon's but all the way to October.

Sigh Your Relief, Sox Win 2-1

Jason Bay, welcome to the Red Sox.

Talk about a young man overwhelmed by the sight of Fenway ready to rock itself off the foundation after an extra-innings win. Bay was gracious the entire day, and even when they labeled him the hero of the game and megawatt sideline reporter Heidi Watney took him aside for a party-line postgame candid, he made sure to give credit to everyone else. What a difference, huh?

In the field, Bay looked like what we expected. His first several ABs produced two walks, a HBP, and two strikeouts. Then in the twelfth he promptly sent a moon ball off the Monster for a triple and his first Red Sox hit.  An intentional walk to J.D. Drew brought up Jed Lowrie (who already had the only Sox RBI of the game, as he scored Bay), who promptly bounced one over the mound that bad-hopped Bobby Crosby for an infield hit, and the winning RBI, scored (again) by Bay.

Bay's biggest impact came not at the plate, but in the field and on the basepaths. In the fifth inning, with the tying run on third, Bay made a smooth sliding catch of Ryan Sweeney's bloop down the left field line to preserve the lead. With Manny in the game, there's a very good chance that Sweeney would've picked up the RBI and the game would've been tied much earlier. On the basepaths, most hitters on the Sox would've had Bay's hit stand at a triple, but Bay combined decent speed with heads-up baserunning to turn it into a triple. Both of these are encouraging signs that Bay will indeed contribute to this team, even if it is in a much different way than Manny.

Intangibly, the absence of Manny Ramirez and the presence of his replacement produced a visible change in the makeup of the club. The dugout looked much lighter, and Francona looked a little healthier. No joke.

Before closing, one thing really irked me about the trade, and it has nothing to do with Manny or the Sox. Nomar Garciaparra is a whiny little bitch. Here's a guy who went from one of my absolute heroes (and first bobblehead purchase) to just an immature, narcissistic veteran with a napoleonic complex. When asked about the acquisition of Manny and the slugger's displeasure with the Sox, Nomar had this to say:

"There's a lot of truth to what he said," Garciaparra said at his Dodger Stadium locker Thursday, two hours after the Dodgers acquired Ramirez. "I can definitely understand and relate. Maybe he'll be next to me [in an adjacent locker], and we can chat and laugh about it."

The Red Sox rid themselves of a contract dispute by trading Garciaparra at the deadline four years ago, and they rid themselves of another one Thursday.

"Manny said he didn't want to leave there," Garciaparra said. "I didn't want to leave there. . . . Were we the only ones that have gone through it? There's a track record. I played with Mo [Vaughn]. I played with Roger [Clemens]."

Manny-Go-Round

It happened: Manny Ramírez is on his way to the Los Angeles Dodgers and outfielder Jason Bay is en route from Pittsburgh to take #24's place in front of the Green Monster. Here are the specifics (player origins in parentheses):

Red Sox: 
Jason Bay (PIT): .282/.375/.519, 22 HR 0.69 BB/K

Dodgers: 
Manny Ramirez (BOS) .299/.398/.529, 20 HR 0.60 BB/K
est. $7 million (Manny's remaining salary)

Pirates:
Brandon Moss (BOS) .295/.337/.462, 2 HR
Craig Hansen (BOS) 5.58 ERA/29 H/23 BB/25 K, 30.2 IP
Andy LaRoche (LAD/AAA Las Vegas) .293/.452/.439, 5 HR
Bryan Morris (LAD/A Great Lake) 3.20 ERA/74 H/31 BB/72 K, 81.2 IP

Immediate observation produces skepticism from those of us in New England, simply because there is zero way to replace the all-around presence of Manny Ramirez in a lineup. No matter what Jason Bay does, he won't be able to generate the aura of intimidation that Manny has built up over the span of his entire career. That being said, I think this is a great deal. Let's see why.

First of all, the FO got an impressive return on a publicly disgruntled, overpaid, aging, declining superstar. Manny, while one of the best righthanded hitters to ever play the game, isn't the same hitter he was 4 years ago. He can't catch up to the best fastballs in the league, and it's doubtful he'll be able to jack 40+ homers again (unless of course he sees more mediocre cheese in the National League). His defense outside of Fenway made him a liability, and his persona made him a pain in the ass for everybody. So going into today's deadline looked like we could expect an aging 4th outfielder and a bag of old BP balls. Instead, we got Bay.

Bay is the anti-Manny at this point. He's 29, has been in the league for three full years (last year was cut short by injury), hits for average and decent power, and is at least average on defense. Oh yea, and he's a lot cheaper than Manny. Interestingly, his offensive numbers are the result of a lineup with zero protection. He's been the one superstar in the Pittsburgh offense, and now he's just one of the guys. When you factor in his defense, the Jason Bay of today is more valuable than Manny.

The Dodgers here get a totally free upgrade of their offense for the next two months because the Sox are picking up the bill for the remainder of the season. Their defense in expansive Dodger Stadium will suffer pretty severely, in my opinion, but I think they're willing to trade that for somebody (other than James Loney) who can swing a bat. The funniest part of this for the Dodgers is that new manager (and all around nice guy) Joe Torre has to handle a 2004 reunion of Derek Lowe, Nomar Garciaparra, and Manny Ramirez. I feel bad for that guy.

The Pirates got the most questionable end of this deal. The prospects are interesting enough, I guess. Andy LaRoche has been slighted by the genius leadership of a Ned Colletti front office, and he had too few AB with LA to mention. At AAA he's hitting for a high average and getting on-base constantly. Playing in Pittsburgh with his brother with no serious threat to cut his playing time might be good for him. The other minor leaguer, Bryan Morris, is still a pup in Class A ball, but he's been impressive thus far. He causes a few whiffs, as you can well see, but it's still far too early to pass judgement on anything.

Brandon Moss and Craig Hansen, the other two headed to the Bucs? If you've been watching at all this season, you don't need much explanation. Moss is a 5th outfielder who plays average defense and is nothing special at the plate. Hansen's another matter. This kid has potential, but he hasn't shown much of it here. His fastball is total gas, and his slider can be absolutely filthy... when it's working. Otherwise he's a liability. His first pitch strike percentage is the worst on the staff, and he's king of allowing inherited runners cross the plate. He definitely has an upside, and it's possible that he'll flourish in the dead zone of Pittsburgh, but it was clear he ran out of slack on his rope in Boston. Together with the prospects from the Dodgers they helped clear some salary for the Bucs...oh yea, and they're not named Buchholz, Masterson, Anderson, Lowrie, or Ellsbury. Theo pulled the trigger on a great trade but saved the core of the farm system.

In short, this is a good trade for the Sox. They clear the air in the dugout, eliminate an enormous distraction, improve their defense, get a look at a potential free agent before he hits the market in the offseason, and they didn't have to give up any of their top prospects. In a sense I'm sad that the Manny era is over, but mostly I'm glad that we've cleared what appears to be the last bitchy superstar for the next little while... I hope.

Manny Things To Consider, One Thing To Do

In light of my previous post, whereby I supported sitting tight as the clock strikes 4 PM this Thursday and the trade deadline passes, I have come to a contrary conclusion.

If at all possible, Manny Ramirez should be traded.

There has been oodles of character assassination in the Hub over the last week from both Manny's camp and that of his arch-nemesis, The Front Office and Everybody Else. It started when Manny missed the last game of the Seattle series with a sore knee, something that in itself was relatively innocuous, but became troublesome when Manny returned to Boston and sat out the first game of the series against the hard-charging Yankees. In case you haven't heard, his presence on the bench was a surprise to everyone in the clubhouse and FO, and he was penciled into the starting lineup before pulling himself out. After the game Ramirez was sent for an MRI on both knees and it was uncovered that nothing appeared to be wrong. By all accounts Manny was confronted by John Henry, Larry Lucchino, Tom Werner, Theo and Tito, who told him to put up or shut up. He's played the three nights since that confrontation on Friday, but his absence on Friday night, the night David Ortiz returned to the lineup, was just too much. Theo allowed FOX broadcaster Tim McCarver to state on national television that the Sox would trade Manny if he waived his no-trade clause. Manny's response was to play the "no respect" card held previously by Pedro, Nomar, and Damon, and tell ESPNDeportes that he was tired of the Sox, and that they should just tell him they're not going to pick up his option. What's happened since then?

Well, he's played, sure, but he's also found himself the unmistakable target of Peter Gammons, one of the most respected baseball writers still going. Just yesterday Gammons posted an article that ESPN has since made free to all readers (and you can find it here) in which he called Manny out behind the woodshed. The gist? Everybody's tired of the act. The players, coaches, executives, even Manny's agent Scott Boras, who is trying to convince his client that it's in his best interest to shut up and play out the season. Manny's getting torched in the papers like he's never seen before, and even his most ardent "But try and replace his lineup production" supporters are starting to fall. It's clear that this is the end of the line for Ramirez in Boston. According to Gammons, Manny is ready for his new contract now, thank you very much, and that contract jingles to the tune of a 4 year, $100 million deal for the soon to be 37 year old slugger. Seriously? This guy is completely delusional.

Manny isn't having a bad year per se, but he isn't having a year worth $20 million (his current value) either. His line is decent reading at .304/.400/.538, and he's already matched his homer total (20) from last year. Unfortunately, when you reach 36 years old teams start to look not only at your plate production but also at the long-term benefit for the team. His defense is shoddy and has been more frequently punctuated by goofball antics. As Gammons and numerous others have pointed out, he's sat out against some of the hardest-throwing pitchers in the league, including twice against New York's Joba Chamberlain, resting comfortably on the bench when his presence would have infinitely helped the team (we all saw the 1-0 loss on Friday that could have been different with Manny in the four-hole). He's managed to get into an aired shoving match with Kevin Youkilis, has thrown a sexagenarian traveling secretary to the ground when he didn't get his way, and pouted to the media (both English and Spanish) about his contract.

It's gotten so bad, Dennis Eckersley called him out on TV, and I think most people wanted to pat Eck on the back.

It's time for all of this garbage to end. The Sox are unquestionably a better team with Manny than without him, and the likelihood of a trade before Thursday seems very unlikely. The front office is reportedly offering to pick up the majority of his contract for this year to give another team a 3 month rental of one of the best hitters in baseball, but it still seems like most teams aren't going to want the distraction of Manny-being-Manny in their dugout and on their field. Because you see, that's the problem. Manny might be on your team and he might be in the field and at the plate, but as we all saw in 2006, Manny has zero problems taking a little personal time when he thinks he needs a mental health day. There's no guarantee you're going to get the 100% you see out of players like Mike Lowell, Kevin Youkilis, or even David Ortiz. You might just have to settle for a temperamental superstar who wants his binky when it suits him.

Boy, I sure am sick of those. I was sad to see Pedro and Nomar go from the standpoint that they so clearly represented the best the sport had to offer to this city on the field, but I felt like a great weight had been lifted from my shoulders when their tired acts of "I get no respect, Player X has a contract worth twice mine, etc" and other incessant complaining hit the road. I realize what Manny is worth to this team, and I realize what we would be losing in terms of production, but I can't believe people think that chemistry and intangibles won't have an effect on the morale of a team. If they can get a decent return on Manny, his ass should be grass. Let him bitch and moan somewhere else. I'd rather cheer for a team that I know takes the games personally. At least then I feel better about it.

Manny needs a good smack upside the head. I'm tired of the act.

Huff and Puff and Blow the Deadline Down

It's a big weekend for people who love hot air. It's the end of July, meaning the sun is hot, the trade rumors are absurd, and the spin machine from the Hall of Fame is in full swing for Induction Weekend. Yet since 2004 (burned into my mind for eternity, I guess) I can't remember a trade deadline for the Sox that has been of any consequence. It probably has something to do with not being able to ignore the shipment of your favorite franchise bitch, piss and moan shortstop to Chicago for a couple of .250 hitters and infield hoovers. Yea, that was a big one. Especially with the World Series..

But everyone around here has got the right idea this summer. Other than the reported swaps of Alex Cora for assorted backup shortstops, nothing big has been cooking. I don't personally put much stock in the reports that Brian Fuentes and Damaso Marte are topping the FO's list of targets for two reasons: 1) they'll each cost an arm and a leg, but Fuentes especially and 2) once burned, twice wise, or something like that. We all remember Eric Gagné. Sometimes those relievers from the NL get a tad nervous in the big, bad AL.

Other than that, it's Sox-Yankees at Fenway, and it feels much more sane around here.

Shaking Feathers and Scales Off Our Sox

Well, the break is here, and everybody can breathe easy for the next four days with the Sox on top of the East by half of a game. It really is funny how the cozy confines of home can put a team as close to right as possible, despite the fact that it plays almost neutral (1.097, according to ESPN's numbers). Tampa Bay traded streaks with the fire-sale Cleveland Indians, and somehow the All-Star Game having a Boston tilt to it doesn't look so silly. Two thoughts about the last few games.

First, I know it sucks losing Julio Lugo for 4-6 weeks, but it sure is nice to see Jed Lowrie's shining face in the dugout again. His defense is just about the same as Lugo's, but it'll be nice to have somebody put a ball over the infield instead of bounce it in front of the grass into the welcome, waiting hands of the other team.

Finally, Jonathan Papelbon needs a little bit of a talking to. Yes, he has 28 saves, but he's already given up 32 hits, two more than all of last year, and it's only the midpoint of the season. Fact of the matter is, he's not fooling batters quite like he has the last two years. He's been leaning on his fastball to the point where he appears to be rearing back and firing it home as hard as he can, hoping he gets the swing and a miss. We're seeing a lot of full counts and bloop hits. Just today, if it hadn't been for Alex Cora covering for Jacoby Ellsbury's misplay the Orioles would've had bases loaded and no outs. Whole different game. Now, in saying this I'm not accusing him of losing his lustre or anything, but he needs to start using his head a little more.

Here's the hint: Two fingers are being pointed at you, but they're not on the same hand. Which fingers are they?

For the rest of my thoughts on the last two Sox-Yankees games (whereby the Red Sox had the winning runs in scoring position with less than one out both times and lost), please see Chad Finn's lovingly written "Touching All the Bases" post on Boston.com today.

LINK CLICK LINK!

Third Post's a Charm

Read Bob Ryan's column regarding Manny. I should've seen it earlier.

One More Thing

Classless Sox fans and classless Yankee fans and classless Rays fans are one thing, but playing "Sweet Caroline" at the end of the game in Tampa Bay is just about the least classy thing I have ever seen on the part of a professional team. Not the athletes, not the coaches, the trainers, just the organization.

Absolutely without class.

Helloooooooo, 3.5 GB

Here's the question we should all be asking:

If Manny Delcarmen, with an ERA approaching 4 (it should be far over that but for the way inherited runners are attributed to a pitcher's line) and 32 hits in 34 innings pitched cannot get an out or even remember to cover first base in a standard play, should he be allowed to fuck up continually?

Ok, so that's a rhetorical question because the answer is a really loud "NO!", but that's not the point. The Sox are on the downside of their touted "even keel", and unfortunately the timing has them on the verge of slipping to almost 4 games back. The problem with what happened in the 7th inning is the timing. The Sox go into New York this weekend and are going to be facing a Yankee lineup that has suddenly remembered that, well, they're the Yankee lineup, and our bullpen has thrown more in the last three days than in the last three weeks (I exaggerate, but it's probably pretty close).

Here's the point of all this. I think Tito needs to hang Delcarmen or Hansen (his clone) out to dry once in a while. Too often they come in to a close game and let it get blown open, or they put men on base who shouldn't be there, unable to set down the Punch and Judy's of the league. For once they need to bear down and pitch themselves out of the holes they dig. It really has to be the only way they're going to learn anything, because theyr'e too busy riding high on whatever hype or good feeling that is in that bullpen. Somebody has to go the extra mile and give the other pitchers some rest.

As I'm sitting here writing this, Mike Lowell is thrown out in an attempted steal of second. Mike Lowell. After the first hit and run or whatever attempt was ruined by a foul ball by Jason Varitek.

You know what, at this point the only question we should be asking is, "why?"

I'd Like to Have That One Back

Yesterday was one of those days during the season where I wish I'd never woken up. It all started with scanning the headlines to read about Manny and the tantrum he threw when he couldn't get all the tickets he wanted to the game, and the traveling secretary who took the brunt of this the slugger's second fit (the first being when he exchanged words with Kevin Youkilis during the last Tampa Bay series. Dan Shaughnessy brought up a decent point regarding the aftermath of this incident (nothing tangible, as of yet).

Sorry, that just doesn't cut it this time. The Sox promote themselves as a public entity. They sell memberships in Red Sox Nation. When an episode like this goes public, they have some obligation to tell us that it's not OK for a 36-year-old athlete to put his hands on a 64-year-old club executive. On the street, that gets you arrested. In most workplaces, it gets you a suspension at the very least. Not at Fenway Park. Not if you can hit .300 with 35 homers and 120 RBIs. Not if you make $20 million per year.

C.C. Loves Prospect Cookies!

We're just a few days away from July 1 and the countdown to the most overhyped moment in baseball: the trading deadline, and Cleveland is already abuzz with swirling rumors that C.C. Sabathia, their beloved lefty starter, is on his way out the door. Although Sabathia signed a two year extension in 2006 worth $17.75 million, the team's recent inability to get anything done right has GM Mark Shapiro looking for ways to restock his farm system instead of jumping into a nasty free agent bidding war for the ace's services this offseason. The Red Sox are reportedly holding one of the most coveted farm systems in the Tribe's front office, and with good reason. The system is stacked with prospects like Michael Bowden and Justin Masterson that are bubbling to the top levels, and don't forget that this is all due to the knockout blow the Sox delivered to Eric Wedge & Co. last October. It's an ALCS hangover, like whoa. We saw it in Detroit after they were annihilated in the 2006 World Series. Once down, they just can't get up.

But enough of that, the real question is whether or not the Sox should reciprocate the interest. Quick answer, yes, mulled over answer, maybe. Look, it's hard to argue with Sabathia's dominance.

Year Ag W L G GS IP H R ER HR BB SO ERA *lgERA *ERA+ WHIP
2001 20 17 5 33 33 180.3 149 93 88 19 95 171 4.39 4.48 102 1.353
2002 21 13 11 33 33 210.0 198 109 102 17 88 149 4.37 4.38 100 1.362
2003 22 13 9 30 30 197.7 190 85 79 19 66 141 3.60 4.39 122 1.295
2004 23 11 10 30 30 188.0 176 90 86 20 72 139 4.12 4.36 106 1.319
2005 24 15 10 31 31 196.7 185 92 88 19 62 161 4.03 4.19 104 1.256
2006 25 12 11 28 28 192.7 182 83 69 17 44 172 3.22 4.52 140 1.173
2007 26 19 7 34 34 241.0 238 94 86 20 37 209 3.21 4.61 143 1.141
2008 27 6 8 17 17 114.3 110 49 48 11 32 118 3.78 4.16 110 1.24

Even a quick peek at those numbers will you that, especially lately, Sabathia has been dominant. An ERA+ of 140 and higher in '06 and '07 (plus a Cy Young Award) are nothing to laugh at, and even though he's sub-.500 this season, he's still pitching mostly like he has in the last two. So specifically, why should the Sox pursue him?

First, he's an all-around ace. He's got a dominant sinker to compliment his fastball, slider, and change-up, and he's a workhorse to boot. His lowest IP for a season was the 180.3 in his rookie year. Last year's Cy Young accolade was more a tip of the cap to his ability to save the Indian buillpen from overuse more than anything else, as he topped out at a whopping 240 IP. While his strikeouts aren't spectacular, they're great when held next to a WHIP that's dropped like a stone every year but 2004. He's built like an ox with the strength to match it and, oh yea, and he's all this and more at the ripe young age of 27.

So, then, if he's this good, why any hesitation at all? If he's bigger and stronger than Johan Santana and having a downish year, why not capitalize on Shapiro's interest and trade-and-sign him? Well, while one of his strengths is his durability, it also means he's put 1520.7 innings on that left arm of his before the age of 28, a feat that leaves him in such loveable company as Dan Petry, Tony Cloninger and Dave McNally (I skipped Greg Maddux because nobody's really like Maddux). He could have a lot left in the tank or he could not, but with that large of a load (pun possibly intended) this young, it's a big risk. Also, while Sabathia has shown regular season dominance, we all saw just how ineffective he was in the postseason against the Sox. Giving up 17 ER, 27 H and 18 BB in 21 total postseason innings isn't impressive. Although it's very Yankee-esque of me to say it, you're worth nothing until you've done it in October. Just ask Josh Beckett, who's been everything since doing it twice in the Classic.

His services aren't going to come cheap either way you cut it, but he might be worth pursuing given Schillings surgery and Daisuke's spottiness. The it'll really come down to just what the Indians are going to want, exactly. A top prospect and maybe 2 second tier would be ok, but when you toss in the huge paycheck his agent is going to demand, C.C. might just find himself stuck in Cleveland until December. We've seen just how rewarding it is to wait on the products of the farm system. It's very easy to go to one extreme or the other with these prospects, either spending them too quickly or hoarding them too greedily.

In the end, if you ask me, Sabathia is good enough to pursue right now at the midpoint. This Sox team is standing in first place without one of their best pitchers and without their All-Star DH. They should be percentage points behind the Rays this morning, but are in fact in the exact opposite place thanks to a late showing by the Pirates. You can't hope to get into, much less move through the postseason like that. Sabathia would put the Sox over the top a time when they need it most, and with Beckett clearly the ace on this staff, C.C. would set himself up to be the best number 2 starter in the league.

This isn't Santana and this isn't offseason speculation. We know what we have and we know where we need to be. I think a deal would get us there.

The Case for Chris Smith

Sunday's loss to St. Louis was a downer, to be sure. The Cards used a severely off-game Daisuke Matsuzaka as their own personal launching pad for the first two innings, and though they were held to only one run after that, the Cardinals still came out on top. The story of the day for me, however, was the debut of young Chris Smith.

Prior to his call-up last week as a replacement for the DL-bound Bartolo Colon, Smith had pitched himself to a pretty line in Pawtucket, the result of 2+ solid years in the system. Let's have a look.

Season Team W L ERA G GS IP H R ER HR BB SO
2006 (AA) 9 6 4.05 20 20 115.2 114 57 52 9 29 78
2006 (AAA) 1 1 3.21 7 6 33.2 33 16 12 2 9 23
2007 (AA) 6 9 4.41 30 14 104.0 126 57 51 10 42 80
2007 (AAA) 0 0 1.80 2 0 5.0 5 1 1 0 0 2
2008 (AAA) 1 2 1.52 22 4 41.1 29 8 7 3 7 40

If you can read through my horrible table, you'll notice that despite a few inflated ERAs at Portland during 2006 and 2007, Smith is not a bad little pitcher. True, they are his largest samples, representing his longest seasons in professional baseball, but as a middle reliever with sold command of his off-speed pitches and a passable fastball, he has upside. Also, both AA seasons saw him used as a starter, and he certainly doesn't have the makeup to have exception success or utility in such a role. This season's numbers from Pawtucket are, I believe, a a greater indication of his usefulness in the 'pen. He averaged just under a strikeout per inning, and only gave up 29 hits in all of his 41.1 IP. That line is nothing to sneeze at, and those numbers combined with his performance on Saturday, give him upside.

He came into the game in the second inning with the bases loaded and no outs, and promptly sends Rick Ankiel to the bench on three swinging strikes, none of them fastballs. Unfortunately, Troy Glaus does his best imitation of his 2000 season and deposits the ball beyond the fence for a grand slam. Now, we've all seen what can happen when a young reliever makes his debut and stinks up the place within the first few pitches (Cla Meredith, anyone); it can be a difficult thing to recover from. Smith, however, has his wits all about him and goes then next 3.2 innings without letting up a run, and only two hits after that bomb by Glaus. My mother-in-law also pointed out something that should be all-important. He made the plays at first base, scampering over several times to take the feed from Youkilis, something several of our upstanding prospects have failed to do in similar situations.

Chris Smith is a kid with some promise. Given the recent movement of Mike Timlin to the DL and his overall ineffectiveness, Smith is my homer pick to stick with the big club.

Home with Jekyl and Away with Hyde

Seriously? Is this team really this bipolar?

The East-leading Sox hold the reins by two games, but this despite the enormous disparity between their home and away records. Inside Fenway they've managed to pitch, hit and throw their way to a 28-7 mark, best in all of baseball. On the heat-soaked trails of the summer road schedule they've floundered at 14-21, seven games under .500. Last night's 3-1 loss to Cincinnati perfectly represented the struggles they've had. We've managed to pick up decent starting pitching off every part of the farm and from underneath every rock in free agency... ok, well, not really, but we've been ok. Haven't we?

Let's look at the way our nine hold up to the rest of the major league baseball:

Batting average: 3rd
On-base percentage: 2nd
Slugging percentage: 4th

Earned runs: 12th best
Walks: 24th

Maybe that pitching hasn't been as stellar as we think. Manny Delcarmen, Mike Timlin and are each hovering around one hit per inning pitched (Timlin's actually higher than that). Craig Hansen, while impressing of late, has still given up 17 runs in only 18.1 IP. David Aardsma has been effective, though the ability to locate something other than a fastball would be very helpful in the second half, I'd imagine. Jonathan Papelbon has been his usual self, with the exception of those blown saves and all the "work opportunities" that Tito has handed him, much to the chagrin of my entire fantasy roster.

On the front end, the first-place run has been in spite of the fact that Curt Schilling, Daisuke Matsuzaka, Josh Beckett and Clay Buchholz have all spent or are currenty spending time on the DL. Justin Masterson and Bartolo Colon have filled in nicely, but the constant makeshift patchjobs are really going to have to end.

Offensively, we've all reveled in Manny's 500th home run hoopla, but we've seen Mike Lowell and now David Ortiz sit on the DL, taking a lot of pop out of the lineup. Julio Lugo has sucked more than anybody should suck at his payrate, while Coco Crisp has only managed to post an OBP that most players would want to improve as a batting average, a whopping .295! The overall effect of all the shuffling and power mitigation hasn't been too terrible, but this team has, as a whole, been lacking in overall clutchiness, if you will.

If you ask me (and so few people read this site, I doubt anyone really will) a big part of the home success has to be chalked up to the Fenway mystique. I can't explain it, but it works.

And they won tonight. That helps.

Lester Leaves Nothing Unfinished

Cancer, clinching games of the World Series, no-hitters; Jon Lester does it all. It was something incredibly special to watch Lester, the highly touted prospect that managed to overcome seemingly insurmountable odds, throw a little bit of history up last night in addition to a complete game shutout of the Kansas City Royals. In my opinion, the most touching moment (and I'm sure you'll agree) came when Terry Francona came out of the dugout to embrace the young hurler with tears in his eyes. Say whatever you want, but I think we were all wrong about Francoma, don't you?

It's so funny how awkward the last two innings of a no-hitter are for fans, even those sitting at home on their couch. You get nervous, fidgety, start to flip between channels in an attempt to take some of the pressure off... but it's still incredibly tense. Every pitch, every swing is a chance to ruin everything. One millimeter too much over the plate or something just a little too flat and we all exhale or disappointment. It's tough.

Strangely enough, both with Buchholz's and Lester's no-hitters I wasn't even watching the game until one of my in-laws came through the door to let me know. Both times I had decided to forgo the game in favor of something more interesting or, at the very least, less sedentary. Still, for both games I caught the last two innings, and history was made.

This is starting to become old hat around here. Who would've though?

Holes In Our Sox

It's been quite the turnaround for the Red Sox. One minute you're on top of the AL East winning games day in and day out in "late and close" situations, the next you're watching your All Star closer blow (undeserved) back to back saves. Sprinkle in two outfielders, one shortstop, one starting pitcher fighting off injury and illness and one reliever being designated for assignment, and you have the perfect recipe for losing five of your last six games.

For the first time that I can remember, Tampa Bay is in first place by half a game. No wonder my head has this weird buzzing feeling. The good news? Tomorrow is an off day and the kids come back home before opening up the first interleague series of the season against the Milwaukee Brewers.

I bet Eric Gagné thought he'd never have to see us again, huh?

Du retour d'une amante

Here's the funny thing: I used to hate the Boston Bruins. As a kid growing up just outside of Hartford, Connecticut, my dad used to take me to Hartford Whalers games. If you've any sort of NHL knowledge, you know that the Whalers were one of the truly terrible league expansion teams, a minor league club in a market that was much too small, with terrible management and an inability to push past the first round of the playoffs. Still, they were the lifeblood of Connecticut sports, the blue and green littered my youth. I still vividly remember trying to convince my folks that I could play youth hockey for real, despite my size; and I will never forget the day they traded Ron Francis to the Pittsburgh Penguins for a bag of pucks and a roll of tape. It was the only time outside of 9/11 that there was a moment of silence in the classroom. Peter Karmanos (may he burn in hell) held the carrot in front of the fans' collective mouths, promising to keep the team in Hartford if only he could bleed a few more full-season ticket plans out of them. I remember being in awe of the kid at my new middle school whose father was part of the coalition attempting to buy the Whalers and keep them local. But it didn't work out, as we all know, and the blue and green forever left the Civic Center, taking with it the true meaning of "Brass Bonanza" and the hearts of too many hockey fans.

The NHL did everything in its power to alienate me after that. With the Whalers now the Carolina Hurricanes, I had nobody to root for, and it was just as well. The league became, essentially, irrelevant with the infusion of expansion teams in born and bred hockey cities like Tampa Bay, Anaheim, Nashville and Phoenix. The strike two years ago was just proof positive that it was a screwed up sport on the decline, and that there was no reason to go back.

Until last week.

I hated the Bruins growing up a Whalers fan, but there was no way in hell I could allow myself to root for the Rangers or Islanders, so with the distancing of my Whaler allegiance, I adopted the Black and Gold as my own. Loosely, mind you, very loosely. Occasional games are fun to watch, but the Bruins under Jeremy Jacobs seemed destined to repeat the mistakes of their former rivals to the south. Joe Thornton, a lightning rod young center was sent packing to San José for the same bag of pucks and Marco Sturm, who would end up being the only part of the trade that would work out for the B's.

When Patrice Bergeron went down this October with a concussion, I figured that the season would be more or less the same as the rest, but something about Claude Julien's salt-of-the-earth Canadian face and X's and O's system kept the young Bruins pressing onward into the playoffs to face, of all teams, the Montreal Canadiens.

After a miserable opening period in Game 1, the Bruins put on quite the show, going toe-to-toe with the best offense in the east, and losing some hard-fought and unlucky games, eventually ending up down 3-1 at the Bell Centre. There they staged a massive third period rally to rattle rookie goalminder Casey Price and send the series back to the Hub with a 5-1 win. At the new Garden, the old denizens of NHL seasons past came out from their hazy, dust-covered shelters and filled as many seats as they could around the contingent from Canada, just in time to witness a stunning 5-4 victory to force a Game 7 back on the road...

...where, tonight, the Bruins were shut out, 5-0. I am by no means a diehard hockey fan, but for the last week I was unable to rip my eyes from the ice as I came to love Milan Lucic, Phil Kessel, and Zdano Chara. I was comforted by the paternal image of Claude Julien so cool behind the bench. I was able to deactivate my automatic translation of PK to "penalty kick" and activate the automatic response of "penalty kill". I dug up the definition of icing and remembered all the hand signals for the various penalties. I let myself be at ease, surrounded by French Canadian names so similar to my own, like Bégin, Bouillon, Julien, and Carbonneau, while waiting for the return of a savior named Bergeron. I found myself kneeling on the floor screaming at the television as the B's created a lot of traffic in the Habs' zone but couldn't find the net. I finally figured out why they were called The Habs.

It is truly unfortunate that the Bruins were unable to finish off Les Glorieux in a remarkable first round comeback, but somehow, it's OK. My love of hockey was never able to mature. I never learned the subtleties or the nuances of the game, grew to cling faster to my first love, baseball. But this week has brought me back to hockey in a way that so few other things could, so much so that I will be waiting for next season; and while my heart will forever hold tight to blue and green, it now finds itself wearing a sweater of black and gold.

Huge Night in the Hub

Before I hit the Sox game I think everyone should take a moment to tip their caps to the Bruins tonight. This is a team who, after finishing six games under .500 in 2007 and have been without their star player since the end of October, has managed to bump, thump and crash their way back from a three games to one deficit and force a Game 7 on enemy ice. The climax is Monday night in Montreal, and the Sox won't even have to be bumped off of NESN because of the early Patriots' Day start.

On the diamond it was another disappointing outing for Jon Lester. He managed to get one out into the sixth inning but gave up 10 hits in the process. The fact that he only allowed 3 runs speaks more to the defense and the suckitude of Gerald Laird than it does to Lester's ability to pitch effectively. Luckily, the bats woke up in the late innings and managed to scrape out a 5-3 win on the back of Manny Ramirez yet again.

Until Lester can move in and out of the strike zone with confidence and consistency he's going to continue to struggle against big league lineups. His stuff isn't overpowering, though he can be deceptive enough to miss bats. Still, it so frequently seems as though he's just crossing his fingers and hoping it gets into the zone.

Buchholz goes tomorrow in the third game against Texas.

Who Says Baseball Is Just a Game?

From today's New York Post, "High 'Jinx' Hits Yankees."

Evidently one can claim that Red Sox Nation has spies, spies everywhere when a construction worker seals a piece of Sox memorabilia in the concrete beneath the future visitors' clubhouse of the new stadium. Some people may write it off as silly rumor or just plain stupid, but I for one am super-psyched for the possibility that we got to the very core of Ruth's House early. Maybe it can counteract the effects of the good luck charm placed in the framework of the current stadium during construction in the 1920s. Either way, it's a fun read.

Last night's game was, frankly, not very interesting. The Bruins and BC Eagles were playing postseason games on the ice, and the Sox managed another run-of-the-mill game, one where Wakefield was decent, the offense very quiet until the final innings, and where the middle relief was just freaking god-awful. The good news is that the Sox will activate Mike Timlin off the DL before the start of today's Yankees game, and though he may be 80 years old, I trust him more than 75% of the bullpen right now.

Tonight's matchup of Chien-ming Wang and Clay Buchholz could certainly prove to be a nailbiter. Buchholz has been at times dominant and always streaky (as is a young pitcher's wont), and facing the potent Bomber lineup will be a test of the highest caliber. Wang, on the other hand, is dominant with most of the league but has a tendency to get lit up when pitching against Boston. The cold weather will benefit both pitchers, but Wang a bit more just because of his prevalent sinker/slider use.

It's All About Going Home

The Red Sox were finally able to breathe a sigh of relief today. Beating the Detroit Tigers 5-0 today was sweet, sweet success behind the masterful dealing of Daisuke Matsuzaka, who allowed nothing across to move to 2-0 on the season. Add to the win the receipt of World Series rings and the redemption of Bill Buckner, and it was, at the very least, a moving early spring day in the Hub.

It's always great to fête the accomplishments of seasons past, particularly when those accomplishments include winning the division for the first time in 12 years and winning the second world championship in four years as well. Unlike in 2004, this year's ceremony hit the amount of pomp and circumstance just right. The banners, the rings, the city celebrities were all just to the perfect degree, without any of the oversentimentality so common with the events of Charles Steinberg. The best moment for me was by far the walk of Bill Buckner from the outfield to the mound to throw out the first pitch. He was absolutely buried in standing applause, and it was incredible to see a man so publicly reserved about his time in Boston moved to tears as he was asked to throw out the first ball. Really, just incredible. Whoever managed to pull off that coup deserves free coffee for a week.

The game itself was encouraging. Despite walking four men he managed to strike out seven in the free-swinging yet (theoretically) potent Tigers lineup. Going into the game I had a sinking feeling that we could possibly have ended up the slumpbuster for the recently impotent Detroit nine, but Matsuzaka impressed early. His fastball, though not perfectly located, he kept down in the zone and was thrown consistently for strikes, which set up his devastating changeup and off-speed pitches. His biggest jam came in the sixth, when he loaded the bases with two outs, but managed to get Carlos Guillen to fly out to center.

The offense came in spurts, though there was resounding encouragement from David Ortiz, who missed a grand slam in the early goings by barely five feet, a difference caused by the wind blowing in from center.

The best part of today was the knowledge that tomorrow night will be a 7:05 pm EST start, with Jon Lester toeing up with Jeremy Bonderman, praying to God he's as effective as he was in Oakland. It's taken 19 days and three countries, but today, finally, felt like true Opening Day.

Post script: Steve Tyler singing "God Bless America"? Not that impressive.

Help A Friend

Got this in the HC inbox this evening:

LOST RED SOX HAT!
Hello my name is Chad Dolby from
New Jersey. On a cold Friday night
there was trouble in the Bronx Zoo. A
Red Sox fan had decided to wear his
Red Sox hat to Yankee Stadium. As usual
the crowd went wild with hate. His hat then
preceded to be thrown down level by level until
it somehow reached the concourse area, where
it was found by a friend of mine.
We are looking for the owner of this hat.
It was lost during a Tampa Bay Rays game
against the Yankees on 4/4/08 in Bronx, NY.
Any help from Red Sox Nation in finding
him would be great! It looked like his favorite hat.
Well-worn and probably precious.
I am a Met fan looking to heal open wounds
who was tossed in the middle of a heated rivalry.
If you could post the poster on your website that
would be great!
Thank you all very much for any help you may give
on this vital search.
~ Chad Dolby

When The Man In The Middle Is DFA'ed

Ever want to take a pitcher who has blown a close game in the span of less than an inning and cut him from the roster straight away? Well, we all got our chance today when Kyle Snyder, after promptly coughing up whatever hopes the Sox had of keeping the game against Toronto close, was designated for assignment. Out of minor league options, Snyder will linger in Waiverland until another team (like Detroit, Kansas City, or many others) decide to take a flyer and try and help their miserable bullpens. Either that, or he'll go to Pawtucket in hopes of some sort of midseason callup miracle. Thanks for the dimishing K:BB ratio, Bronson Arroyo Lite.

It's been a damn shame to watch a team that seemed to really warm up in Oakland fizzle north of the Border, but there has been a silver lining. In five innings of work Clay Buchholz managed to strike out 7 Jays and pitch himself out of some serious jams. His line of 6 hits, two walks and 4 runs allowed (3 earned) are not at all indicative of the kind of game he had. It all unraveled with a textbook bunt single and a cringe-worthy error by Sean Casey at first base that chased the young starter from the mound. If it had been Youkilis, there's a chance the Sox would have escaped the inning unscathed.

Still, Buchholz was good. His changeup was disgusting, his fastball was decent, and when his curveball was in the strike zone, it was mind-blowing.

Back to Normal

The Sox return to Oakland was a happy one, with two satisfying victories over the A's. Both starting pitchers threw exceptionally well, something that is not often said about Daisuke Matsuzaka and Jon Lester, considering they're known for being high pitch-counters.