Projo Sox Blog

Ah, normalcy.

If the Red Sox aren't beating up on the Orioles, then the order of things is truly disturbed. And with their second straight win Thursday, the Red Sox won this weekend's series, and finally pulled ahead in the season series, 8-7.

Last year, the Red Sox demolished the Orioles, 16-2, in the season series. This year, every Oriole win has been seen as evidence that this Sox team is flawed: when Baltimore swept Boston in three games in early May, it capped off that difficult first month, and the chastened team put their horrendous April behind them and set things right from that point on.

Now, with a month of dubious importance left to go, the Sox showed that they won't be putting their tail between their legs and simply playing out the string, rebounding from a poor Tuesday night loss with two strong wins. They head back to Boston Friday to face Manny Ramirez' Chicago White Sox.

That doesn't mean it was easy, of course. Neither Wednesday nor Thursday's games were easy wins, with the Sox needing to claw their way back Wednesday, and dodge a late Baltimore charge on Thursday.

While yet another Adrian Beltre home run got the Sox going early, and big hits by Ryan Kalish and David Ortiz widened the lead in a five-run second inning,

"We got after them early. David's two-out hit was huge. Bases loaded, we'd already scored three, but it had chance to stay there. David takes that nice swing, and hits the ball to left field, which was really big for us."

Unfortunately, staked to a big lead, starter Daisuke Matsuzaka and closer Jonathan Papelbon made it a little too close for comfort.

As usual this year, Daisuke Matsuzaka was perplexingly uneven, dominant one minute and troubled the next. This time, he thinks he knows why -- his balky back.

"I think I did a good job through the first five innings of holding off the opposing hitters. It was the first time since I aggravated my back that I really threw at full strength, and I think I rushed it a little in the sixth.

Whatever the causes, for five innings, it was great Daisuke, taking a no-hitter into the fourth, and a shutout into the sixth. From that point on, he was lucky to escape with the lead - the five runs his offense spotted him was barely enough.

The Orioles went single-double-single to start the sixth inning and get themselves on the board. Then Matsuzaka got an out by knocking down a comebacker, but a second run still scored as the pitcher picked up the ball and tossed it to first base.

A walk and a strikeout later, Matsuzaka was on the verge of getting out of the inning - or letting it get out of control. It was the latter, as Orioles catcher Matt Wieters golfed a ball deep to left center. Matsuzaka was lucky it didn't leave the park, instead caroming off the wall as left fielder Daniel Nava awkwardly gave chase. Two runs came in to score, and suddenly it was 5-4, Red Sox. Matsuzaka's brilliance was a long-ago memory.

"It was just a couple pitches that missed, that was it," said his catcher, Victor Martinez. "They put good swings on it. Nobody's going to be perfect the whole game. That's what you get when you make a mistake."

Scott Atchison came on to relieve Matsuzaka, and he bailed his starter out with an inning-ending strikeout. Atchison went on to pitch another 1.2 innings, turning the ball over to Hideki Okajima to match up with powerful Baltimore lefty Luke Scott in the eighth. Scott popped out to end the inning, and it was up to Papelbon to close out the game.

With a two-run lead, Papelbon gave up consecutive singles to start the ninth. Corey Patterson sacrificed the runners over, but Papelbon struck out Cesar Izturis and Josh Bell to finish off the series. Boston is eight games out of the division lead, and 6.5 back of idle Tampa.

That's a lot of games to make up in September, but Atchison said that with these wins, this team isn't out of it yet.

"We got off to a rough start on the road trip, but we were able to finish strong, and win these last two. Hopefully we'll take it home, get a little momentum going, and get on a big roll. You never know what could happen from there," Atchison said.

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It's not the big hardware that Clay Buchholz is chasing, but it's something.

Clay Buchholz, a top contender for the AL Cy Young award, was awarded the AL's Pitcher of the Month award for August, the first time the young pitcher has been so honored.

Buchholz, 26, went 4-0 with a 1.03 ERA in six August starts, earning three of his wins against AL East rivals. At one point, he went three full starts without allowing an earned run, and almost made it through a fourth, until a series of mistakes doomed Buchholz and the Sox in Tampa this past weekend.

Buchholz has 15 wins with a league-leading 2.21 ERA this season.

One of Buchholz' chief competitors for the Cy Young, Seattle's Felix Hernandez, was the runner up for the best August pitcher.

Teammate Jon Lester also won the award earlier this season, marking the sixth time two Boston teammates have won in the same year, the last being Derek Lowe and Pedro Martinez in 2002.
Toronto's Jose Bautista won AL Player of the Month, with Paul Konerko the runner up.

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There were days this season - a lot of them - where it seemed like utilityman Eric Patterson was on the roster bubble, and the persistent injuries would force the Red Sox to put him on waivers and probably lose him to another team.

But right around the trade deadline, the Red Sox held off making a roster move as long as possible, and they were able to hang on to Patterson into August. Then, when a minor neck issue cropped up, Patterson was placed on the disabled list - a precaution for his health, yes, but also a way of keeping him in the organization until rosters expanded in September.

"As a player, when an organization does things to keep you around, it definitely makes you feel good, makes you feel comfortable. That said, moves are being made every day, so you can't feel too comfortable," Patterson said.

With that in mind, Patterson is hoping to add to his skill set with the ability to play a little shortstop if the Red Sox need it with Marco Scutaro's throwing shoulder ailing. Patterson traditionally plays second base, center field, and left field.

"I've actually talked to [third base coach Tim Bogar] about taking some ground balls at short and third, just to give us more options. I think anytime you have one guy on the roster who can play all over the place - and in our case, we have a few guys - you give the manager options, and you also give yourself, the player, more options to get out there and contribute.

"For me, it's something I'm looking to do," Patterson continued. "I've played shortstop growing up, and I've played in the minor leagues at third base. So I'm just going to continue to get reps in the spots where I know I'm going to play, and then try to open up my horizons a little bit."

Patterson is hitting .254 with two home runs and six RBI with Boston since being acquired from the Oakland A's in June.

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"I don't really care what he does offensively," Triple-A Pawtucket manager Torey Lovullo said on Thursday afternoon about newcomer James Kang. "He's a young kid. He's 22 years old. He's going to be excited with each at-bat that he gets."

Kang had plenty of reason to be overwhelmed on Thursday night. The infielder was just finishing his career at a Division III baseball program in California this spring, and he didn't hear his name called until the 45th round of June's draft. He had spent most of his time since he signed playing for the Lowell Spinners of the short-season Single-A New York-Penn League -- and he was hitting .202 in just over 100 at-bats for the Spinners.

But when Lovullo asked the Red Sox for reinforcements on Thursday morning, Kang got the call. The jump from low-level Single-A to Triple-A might not be the most typical of jumps, but the drive from Lowell to Pawtucket made Kang the most convenient option as a short-term fill-in.

The first time Kang came to the plate in a PawSox uniform, he ripped a line-drive double into the left-field corner. When he got to third base on a fly ball to right field, Lovullo -- who already had taken the ball out of play to save as a souvenir -- greeted him with a warm congratulatory handshake.

Lehigh Valley third baseman Greg Dobbs even leaned into the conversation, presumably to find out what the big deal was. Ransom gave Kang a subtle way-to-go swat on the hip with his glove on his way back to his position.

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Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Clay Buchholz has been named the American League Pitcher of the Month for August.

Buchholz went 4-0 with a 1.03 earned run average and 28 strikeouts over six August starts. The right-hander finished the month second in the A.L. in ERA, tied for second in wins and tied for third in innings pitched (43.2). He is also the Major League-leader with a 2.21 ERA on the season and ranks among the A.L. leaders in wins (t-3rd, 15), winning percentage (4th, .750) and opponent batting average (4th, .222).

Of Buchholz' four wins in August, three came against A.L. East rivals (Toronto twice, New York). The 2010 All-Star tossed at least seven innings in five of his six starts on the month and allowed no more than one earned run in five of the six.

In August, Buchholz pitched a career-high 26.2 consecutive scoreless innings. During that stretch, the 26-year-old made three consecutive starts without allowing an earned run (August 11th at Toronto, August 17th vs. Los Angeles, August 22nd vs. Toronto). This is the first career monthly award for Buchholz.

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With reports swirling that he was going to have surgery Friday to insert a screw in his broken foot, Dustin Pedroia would not confirm that surgery was planned -- but he didn't exactly deny it, either. And he said he expected that surgery would happen at some point, no matter what.

"I think that putting the screw in is probably the best idea," Pedroia said. "It's a 90 percent chance that the bone heals. I don't want to get to January, and get to my workouts, and don't feel good and then miss some of next year. None of us want that to happen. So I think putting the screw in is probably the best idea."

Pedroia wants to be certain that the bone heals for the long term, and doesn't want a relapse. He injured the foot in late June, and tried to return to the field last month. After only a few games was forced back onto the disabled list. A screw, doctors have told him, would prevent those kinds of situations.

"I think that would make it heal more. I think they said there's a 50 percent chance that I could feel better, and still just like what happened last time, not be able to walk the next day. Putting the screw would help it heal. So there's a good chance that I'll have the surgery at some point."

Pedroia is scheduled to have an all-important CT Scan Friday morning. If the Friday morning scan shows little healing, then Pedroia would have the surgery later in the day.

"Yeah, then I'll have it tomorrow," Pedroia said.

Pedroia's comments come after some very optimistic words by manager Terry Francona on an exam Pedroia underwent Wednesday. Pedroia joked that his manager is no doctor.

"Yeah, Tito took a CT scan of me, and then he told me they showed some healing," Pedroia said, laughing.

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Alex Rodriguez has dropped agent Scott Boras, and is now represented by Jay Reisinger and Jim Sharp, according to USA Today.

Boras negotiated the 10-year, $275-million contract A-Rod signed with the Yankees, which has seven years remaining.

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The Boston Globe's Nick Cafardo reports that second baseman Dustin Pedroia will have surgery tomorrow at Massachusetts General Hospital to have a screw inserted into his right foot.

The report, which cites an unnamed big-league source, follows comments last night by manager Terry Francona that a foot specialist had noted substantial improvement over the last week in Pedroia's foot.

The surgery would end Pedroia's season, but would probably prepare him for spring training 2011.

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Will Middlebrooks has had to learn to be more of a leader on his Single-A Salem team this year. He hasn't had any choice. He's just too good of a player.

"Last year, he was kind of in the background and wasn't really much of a leader," Salem manager Kevin Boles said this week by phone. "But he's feeling his way out, and he's taking charge a little bit. He's starting to realize how much potential he has. He's one of the most talented players that we have."

Many players have to learn to be patient at the plate when they start playing minor-league baseball. Middlebrooks already was a patient hitter when the Red Sox drafted him in the fifth round of the 2007 draft. The Red Sox had to go the other way with the third baseman and teach him how to be a little bit more aggressive.

The aggression has paid off for Middlebrooks this season to the tune of 31 doubles and 12 home runs in fewer than 450 at-bats. (He was named a Carolina League All-Star on Thursday.) The 22-year-old third baseman, who likely will make the jump to Double-A Portland next season, also has struck out 118 times against just 33 walks. But that's something the Red Sox will take for now if it means he's not holding anything back.

"He's been more aggressive this year," Boles said. "That's something that's been a process as far as being more aggressive with his overall game -- being aggressive at the plate and being aggressive on defense and taking charge. ...

"Major-league ballplayers are aggressive players. Most guys in the big leagues were leaders along the way in their minor-league careers."

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The Portland Sea Dogs, the Double-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, are offering free tickets to tomorrow night's ballgame at Hadlock Field to anyone named Earl. The Sea Dogs are scheduled to host the New Hampshire Fisher Cats at 7 p.m.

What is the chance the game is actually going to be played? Well, it doesn't look real promising, but then again the forecast for Portland isn't nearly as bad tomorrow night as it is for Rhode Island and Massachusetts -- right now the outlook is for showers with light winds at gametime. The value of a free ticket to a Sea Dogs' game? $8 for adults and $7 for children (in other words, not worth the gas cost).

To take advantage of the Sea Dogs' offer, call 207-879-9500 and say "My Name is Earl." Proper identification will have to be presented at the ticket window.

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