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Clubhouse reaction after losing nightcap

Red Sox reliever Eric Gagne, who blew a save opportunity after he allowed three runs in the top of the ninth inning, was no where to be found in the clubhouse after the game. In fact, it was a very quiet clubhouse.

Manager Terry Francona on the eighth and ninth innings:

“It ended up being a frustrating inning all the way around."

Francona on the eighth-inning rally only to loss in the end:

“The place is electric and the same things that will make you laugh will make you cry. They turned right around and did it to us.”

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 11:19 PM | Permalink | Comments 6

Mirabelli placed on DL

BOSTON -- General manager Theo Epstein cleared up the roster mess moments ago:

-- Doug Mirabelli has been placed on the 15-day disabled list because of the strained right calf suffered in today's first game

-- Catcher Kevin Cash has been purchased from Pawtucket and is scheduled to arrive at Fenway Park at about 7:50 p.m. (''No police escort this time.'') He will be eligible to play when he arrives.

-- Clay Buchholz has been optioned back to Pawtucket, and Jacoby Ellsbury is recalled.

-- JOE McDONALD

Posted by Art Martone  at 5:52 PM | Permalink

Clubhouse reaction to Buchholz

Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek when asked if Buchholz is a major-league pitcher?

"No question. No question at all."

Manager Terry Francona:

"I thought he kept his poise really well. . . . I thought that was about what we were expecting."

Angels manager Mike Scioscia:

"Oh, you can see that he has got great stuff. With a little refining this guy looks like he's gonna be good for a long time. I was very impressed."

Clay Buchholz on Buchholz:

"It's something that I have been working for since I joined the Red Sox. No words can really descibe it. That's what I have wanted to do for the past three years in pro ball, and today was the day and I had a great time with it. . . I will remember this forever."

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 5:44 PM | Permalink

Friday night lineup: Ellsbury playing center field and batting leadoff, Epstein to meet media at 6 p.m.

BOSTON -- Jacoby Ellsbury, as he said moments ago, is in the starting lineup for the second game of tonight's day-night doubleheader:

Jacoby Ellsbury cf
Dustin Pedroia 2b
David Ortiz dh
Manny Ramirez lf
J.D. Drew rf
Mike Lowell 3b
Jason Varitek c
Eric Hinske 1b
Julio Lugo ss
---
Josh Beckett p

The Red Sox still have made no roster announcements. General manager Theo Epstein is scheduled to meet with the media at 6 p.m. to provide information. We will post the info on the blog immediately.

Posted by Art Martone  at 5:17 PM | Permalink

Update: Kielty also summoned to Boston; Ellsbury to play tonight

BOSTON -- It appears Kevin Cash isn't the only PawSox player heading to Boston. Bobby Kielty is also on his way from Ottawa.

When he will be activated, however, is unclear.

Jacoby Ellsbury said moments ago that he will play in tonight's game against the Angels. (The lineup has yet to be posted.) That being the case, it seems likely Clay Buchholz will be sent back to Pawtucket before the game starts, which was the original plan.

Doug Mirabelli, who suffered a calf injury in the first game that necessitated the recall of Cash, was in a walking cast in the clubhouse. Cash is leaving Ottawa on a 6:20 p.m. flight and is not expected to arrive in Boston until after 8 p.m. It is not known if Cash will be activated prior to tonight's game, making him eligible to play once he arrives at Fenway Park.

For him to be activated, the only option -- it would seem -- would be placing Mirabelli on the disabled list. Buchholz' roster spot apparently is being taken by Ellsbury.

The original plan was for Ellsbury to be with the Red Sox until Sunday, when he would be sent back down and Kielty activated. It remains to be seen if that plan is still in place, since Kielty is on his way to Boston now.

Brendan Donnelly, who is sidelined for the remainder of the season because of Tommy John elbow surgery, was moved from the 15- to the 60-day disabled list to make room on the 40-man roster for Cash. Players on the 60-day DL do not count against the 40.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 4:23 PM | Permalink

Game story: Red Sox 8, Angels 4

BOSTON -- If Clay Buchholz' stay in the major leagues really does last only one day -- at least for now -- it'll be one he remembers.

The rookie right-hander surrendered four runs, only three of which were earned, over six innings and -- thanks to a six-run outburst by his teammates in the bottom of the first inning -- coasted to an 8-4 win today in the first game of a day-night doubleheader.

David Ortiz gave the Red Sox the lead for good with a two-run homer in the bottom of the first inning, his 20th homer of the season, and Dustin Pedroia added his sixth home run, a solo shot, in the eighth. J.D. led the Sox' 14-hit attack with three hits, lifting his average for the season to .263, and Ortiz, Pedroia and Manny Ramirez had two hits each.

Buchholz gave up eight hits, with three walks and five strikeouts, in his 91-pitch debut. Hideki Okajima recorded five outs before giving way to Jonathan Papelbon with two outs in the eighth. Papelbon closed it out for his 29th save.

Posted by Art Martone  at 4:23 PM | Permalink

Mirabelli injury update: PawSox catcher Kevin Cash summoned to Boston

It appears Mirabelli's strained right calf is worse than first thought as PawSox catcher Kevin Cash is leaving Ottawa and is on his way to Boston for tonight's game.

Cash, 29, signed with the Red Sox as a minor-league free agent last January and has 114 games of major-league experience. He spent parts of three seasons (2002-2004) with Toronto and played 13 games for Tampa Bay in 2005. He spent all of last season with Triple-A Durham in 2006 and is hitting .176 with seven homers and 25 RBI in 59 games for the PawSox this season.

Fellow PawSox catcher George Kottaras has been banged up of late and has not played that much on the club's current road trip (2-for-10).

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 3:16 PM | Permalink

Mirabelli update

Red Sox catcher Doug Mirabelli left the game after the first inning with a strained right calf. He suffered the injury running the bases.

With Boston's backup catcher now hurt, maybe the Red Sox will have to call up a catcher from Pawtucket instead of inserting outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury after today's afternoon game.

The only problem is the PawSox are playing in Ottawa and it would be a close call to get Kevin Cash to Boston on time for tonight's game. Another solution, the Sea Dogs are at home, so getting Dusty Brown here would be more logical. This scenario, of course, is only speculation.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 2:09 PM | Permalink

Mirabelli pulled from game

Red Sox catcher Doug Mirabelli, who was limping noticeably after rounding third base and heading home while scoring one of Boston's six runs in the bottom of the first inning, has been pulled from the game and replaced by Jason Varitek. Because of today's doubleheader, manager Terry Francona said this morning he would spilt the battery duties between the two catchers. Mirabelli was running hard until he reached third, but then began limping as soon as he turned the bag. There's no word on the extent of Mirabelli's injured.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 1:44 PM | Permalink

Hitting for the cycle

The Red Sox hit for the cycle in their first five batters. Dustin Pedroia led off with a double, Kevin Youkilis struck out swinging, David Ortiz belted a two-run homer, Manny Ramirez singled and J.D. Drew collected the triple.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 1:28 PM | Permalink

Pena traded

The Red Sox just announced they traded outfielder Wily Mo Pena and cash considerations to the Washington Nationals for a player to be named later.

With Clay Buchholz added to the roster to make a spot-start today, the club needed to make a roster move, so Pena has been shipped to the Nats. Buchholz will be optioned back to Pawtucket after today's game, and it's expected Jacoby Ellsbury will be called up from the PawSox.

Pena was hitting .218 with five homers and 17 RBI in 73 games for the Red Sox this season.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 1:20 PM | Permalink | Comments 5

Sox Streakers for August 17, game one

Hot Streaks
-Chone Figgins leads the majors in batting average since June 1. He's hitting .405 in that time. Figgins also has a 14-game hitting streak.

Cold Streaks
-J.D. Drew has not homered since June 20.

Red Sox vs. John Lackey
-Wily Mo Pena, 1 for 1 (1.000), 2B
-Doug Mirabelli, 4 for 9 (.444), HR
-Manny Ramirez, 9 for 21 (.429), 3 2B, 4 HR, 7 BB
-David Ortiz, 8 for 23 (.348), 3 2B, 3B, HR, 4 BB
-Dustin Pedroia, 1 for 3 (.333)
-Alex Cora, 4 for 13 (.308), 2B
-Jason Varitek, 5 for 17 (.294), 3 2B, 3 BB
-Kevin Youkilis, 2 for 7 (.286)
-J.D. Drew, 2 for 8 (.250), 2B, BB
-Julio Lugo, 4 for 18 (.222), 2B, 2 BB
-Mike Lowell, 2 for 9 (.222)
-Coco Crisp, 4 for 20 (.200), 2 HR, 2 BB
-Eric Hinske, 1 for 13 (.077), 2B, BB
-Lackey is 1-5 with a 5.75 E.R.A. in 10 career starts against Boston. He lost to the Sox on April 13 at Fenway, giving up three runs in 5.2 innings.

More Stuff
-All-time series: Boston 305, Los Angeles 262. At Fenway Park: Boston 170, Los Angeles 113. This season: Boston 4, Los Angeles 2.
-The Angels are 8-14 on the road since July 3, and 6-15 at Fenway since 2003.
-The Angels and the Red Sox rank second and third, respectively, in most wins in the majors since 2005. The Yankees are first.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 12:03 PM to Projo Sox Streakers | Permalink

Projo SoxTalk with McAdam: Doubleheader day; remembering Tony C.

Sean McAdam joins us for another version of projo SoxTalk today, as the Red Sox prepare to begin a big four-game series with the Los Angeles Angels. Click here to listen to the audio file. The topics of conversation: today's pitching matchups, Dustin Pedroia's Rookie of the Year candidacy, MLB's decision to forgive Jason Giambi, and the 40th anniversary of Tony Conigliaro's gruesome injury at Fenway Park.

Here are some excerpts from Sean's comments. By the way, I want to correct something that I said to Sean -- the anniversary of the Conigliaro play is tomorrow, not today:

On the Rookie of the Year competition: "The number of rookies who have an impact on teams every year seems to grow exponentially. You used to kind of get used to guys getting a lot of playing time for second-division teams ... because they were not in contention and they could afford to run some young players out there. But now, I think in part because of the economics of the game, where even a team with a big payroll like the Red Sox at $135 or $140 million or so sees the value in having one of their starters be a 380,000 a year player. ... I think it's going to be a very close balloting between the pitchers on the Red Sox [Okajima and Matsuzaka], [the Angels' Reggie] Willits and [the Devil Rays' Delmon] Young and Pedroia, and I'm sure one or two others as the season plays out. But it's a pretty crowded and competitve field."

MLB's decision not to suspend Giambi: "I think it's probably the smart thing to do for Bud Selig, because otherwise you'd be sending the message that if you have information to give us that would help us to sort through this mess, we're going to take it and then we are going to turn around and discipline you and punish you for your past involvement in steroids or other enhancements. I think some of these guys need to have the signal that there's a statute of limitations in place here, and that they're not going to be putting themselves in any sort of professional or legal liability or risk by coming clean when they're asked the question."

On Conigliaro: "Everyone remembers that grotesque picture of Conigliaro in the hospital with his eye totally black, and the seams of the baseball visible still a couple of days after. It was as sickening a feeling as you can get. ... Of course the thought that we continue to have some 40 years later is, what sort of career might Tony C. have had? There are people, including Jim Palmer, who believe that Conigliaro -- given his power, the ballpark in which he played and his youth -- was going to be a 500-plus home-run hitter by the time his career was over, and maybe even someone who would threaten the all-time home run record."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 11:10 AM to McAdam | Permalink

Clubhouse Confidential

*To make room for today’s starting pitcher, Clay Buchholz, the Red Sox must make a roster move. We just met with manager Terry Francona and he said the club has not made one yet, but something will be announced before the Game 1 of today’s doubleheader.

It is expected Wily Mo Pena will be designated for assignment. The utility outfielder was not seen in the clubhouse this morning.

*It’s no secret Clay Buchholz will make his major-league debut today for the Red Sox. The 23-year-old right-hander will face the Angels in Game 1 of a day/night doubleheader, and he brings with him a lot of anticipation.

“This kid is still on the fast track of development, but it’s a great opportunity today to watch him pitch,” said Francona. “He’s going to pitch and go back down; he knows that. . . His development is not over. That’s not to say he can’t get people out, but he’s still a young kid learning the game. It’s exciting and it’ll be fun to see how he reacts today, but there’s still a lot of development still left.”

*Looking at the previous post with today's lineups, you'll notice Doug Mirabelli will be Buchholz's batterymate today. The simple reason is because today is a doubleheader it does not make sense for Jason Varitek to catch two games, especially at this point of the season.

Mirabelli and Buchholz met at Fenway Park yesterday, the club's off-day, to formulate game plan and play catch. The rookie even threw a couple of pitches off the mound, according to Francona.

Buchholz arrived at the park about an hour ago and looked very comfortable in the clubhouse.

*The Sox still have not named their starter for Sunday, but it's likely it will be Julian Tavarez as Tim Wakefield will be given an extra day off.

Francona was asked why Buchholz today, while Sunday remains TBA.

“When you add a pitcher who is not on your roster, like a Buchholz, whatever he gives you is free innings. We have 18 innings minimum to account for today, and you go with Tavarez and say he goes five, which would be great because it eliminated five our of your bullpen, this gives you an extra pitcher. Plus, it’s a starter to boot going into a doubleheader.”

*Francona was asked this morning how important it is for a rookie to feel accepted by the players, manager and coaches, and how long does that process take?

“Not in an hour,” he said. “I spoke with him yesterday and he understands he’s here for one start.”

The manager explained the importance of meeting all the players, especially all the highly-touted prospects, during the spring training.

Yesterday “I didn’t have to introduce myself,” Francona said. “We were getting reacquainted. This is his first major-league start. He’ll have a ton of butterflies, but he has the best chance possible to show what he can do. He may not, but this is better than him coming in cold, not knowing anybody and feeling like a rental player. This is one start and he’s going back to Triple-A, but we’ve done everything in our power to make him feel comfortable.”

*When Red Sox ace Curt Schilling decides to call it quits, he has the ability to become a NASCAR driver. On my way up to Fenway this morning, Schilling was behind me in his black BMW and when he hit a little bit of traffic on the parkway, he moved to the inside lane and blew by me. I caught every traffic light and he was no where to be seen. I asked him about his driving when I got to the clubhouse, and wasn't surprised when, again, he blew me off.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 11:01 AM | Permalink

Today's lineups for Game 1

LOS ANGELES
Chone Figgins, 5
Orlando Cabrera, 6
Vladimir Guerrero, 9
Garret Anderson, 7
Gary Matthews, DH
Casey Kotchman, 3
Erick Aybar, 4
Jeff Mathis, 2
Reggie Willits, 8
John Lackey, SP

BOSTON
Dustin Pedroia, 4
Kevin Youkilis, 3
David Ortiz, DH
Manny Ramirez, 7
J.D. Drew, 9
Mike Lowell, 5
Coco Crisp, 8
Doug Mirabelli, 2
Alex Cora, 6
Clay Buchholz, SP

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 10:56 AM | Permalink

Baseball Today: Friday, August 17

AWARD-WINNING DEBUT? Steven Krasner takes advantage of the off-day to look at the rookie season of Dustin Pedroia (above, Journal photo by Kris Craig), who could have a trophy with the engraving ''Rookie of the Year'' sitting on his mantle when it's over. (projo.com)

IMPRESSIVE COMPANY: If he wins it, he'll join a few pretty big names -- and one Hall of Famer -- who won the Rookie of the Year award as members of the Red Sox. (en.wikipedia.org)

IT WAS FORTY YEARS AGO TODAY . . . that Tony Conigliaro was hit in the eye by a pitch from the Angels' Jack Hamilton, derailing what could have been a Hall of Fame career. Conigliaro, of course, has passed away, but the Boston Herald's Steve Buckley talks to Hamilton, who now runs a restaurant in Bramson, Missouri. Hamilton says the pitch to Tony C. simply got away from him -- he wasn't throwing at Conigliaro -- and that he's sorry it happened. His wife asks Buck to ''please tell those people in Boston that what happened in 1967 was an accident, and that he’s a good guy.”

MIND GAMES: The Boston Herald's Rob Bradford talks to the Cleveland Indians' sports psychologist, who says Manny Ramirez ''is at an elite level in terms of being able to focus and go pitch to pitch. What he is able to do that separates him from other players is his ability to keep his mind in the moment . . He doesn’t get caught up in what is happening around him.”

SACRIFICIAL LAMB? Ervin Santana, who never pitches well at Fenway Park, will be the Angels' starter tonight against Josh Beckett. (Los Angeles Daily News) They'll throw their ace, John Lackey, against Clay Buchholz.

WE KNOW, JOE, WE KNOW: Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon always used the quirky 3-4 defense when David Ortiz was at the plate, but not anymore. ''He's just a different hitter," Maddon said. "It is just an entirely different chart than last year.'' (St. Petersburg Times)

FLAW IN THE ARGUMENT: Joe Posnanski says a ''brilliant reader and [Jim] Rice lobbyist [named] Paul White'' (who I believe was a regular on projo.com's old Off The Wall site years ago) has ''softened'' Posnanski's views on Rice's Hall of Fame candidacy, though he still doesn't think Rice belongs in. However, Posnanski says White's basic point -- that there are 20 left fielders in the Hall, Rice compares favorably to all of them, and therefore the writers are flaunting the standards that they've established by not electing Rice -- is incorrect, because 9 of the 20 were not voted in by the writers but put in by the Veterans Committee. ''If we as writers use our own standards set through the years,'' says Joe, ''we absolutely would not vote for Jim Rice.'' (thesoulofbaseball.blogspot.com)

PROBABLY NOT: The blog One More Dying Quail notes that Sporting News Radio's Dave Smith says the Red Sox' first-round playoff opponent will be either the Detroit Tigers or the Milwaukee Brewers.

THAT'S JUST SICK: The Yankees posted a sign in their clubhouse prior to last night's game: ''Do not interact with the Detroit Tigers players at any time. They are experiencing medical issues.'' But in the end it was the Yankees feeling ill as Detroit jumped out to a 4-0 lead off Mike Mussina in the first inning and cruised to an 8-3 win. (Detroit News)

BASEBALL'S A HUMBLING GAME: And the New York Post's Mike Vaccaro says the previously scorching Yankees have indeed been humbled these last five days, which include three straight losses and two other games they very easily could have lost.

IF YOU GO, YOU'RE GONE: Brian Cashman reiterated yesterday that the Yankees won't pursue Alex Rodriguez if he opts out of his contract at the end of the year. (Newark Star-Ledger)

TAKE YOUR PICK: SI.com's John Donovan lists five reasons why the Yankees will make the playoffs, and five reasons why they won't.

PILING ON: Gary Sheffield just can't stop talking about Joe Torre; now he's calling the Yankee manager a phony. (New York Post)

DANGER, DANGER! Seth Mnookin says Torre is abusing the now-fragile Mariano Rivera with the way he uses him and wonders why no one in the mainstream media has mentioned it. (sethmnookin.com) Purely coincidentally, I'm sure -- I seriously doubt Joe reads Seth's blog -- Torre said he's giving Rivera a couple of days off. (New York Post)

OFF THE HOOK: Jason Giambi won't face punishment from Bud Selig over his admission of steroid usage, thanks to both his cooperation with former Sen. George Mitchell's investigation and ''his public-service work.'' (New York Daily News)

WHAT'S THE DEAL? In a chat with readers, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Bob Smizik says Roger Clemens' accomplishments after the age of 40 are just as impressive as Barry Bonds', making him wonder why Clemens has escaped steroids scrutiny. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

GET OVER IT: The brilliant Roger Angell defends Bonds -- ''the Lord Voldemort of baseball'' -- in a New Yorker essay: ''[Home]-run totals are determined not just by the batters but by different pitchers, in very different eras, and, most of all, by the outer dimensions of the major-league parks, which have always varied widely and have been deliberately reconfigured in the sixteen ballparks built since 1992, thus satisfying the owners’ financial interest in more and still more home runs. Bonds has been called a cheater, but the word should hardly come up in a sport whose proprietors, if they were in charge of the classic Olympic hundred-metre dash, would stage it variously at a hundred and six metres, ninety-four, a hundred and three, and so forth, and engrave the resulting times on a tablet.'' (newyorker.com)

THE REAL REASON: On his blog, Tim Kawakami says the A's don't need Barry Bonds because Jack Cust is better, and he tells you why. (www.mercextra.com/blogs/kawakami)

JUST A BALLPLAYER: Rick Ankiel says he's looking forward to the day when he's not such a big story for his transformation from pitcher to outfielder. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

NOT ON SPEAKING TERMS: The agent for troubled pitcher Scott Olsen says he'll never again talk to Marlins owner David Samson after Samson said Olsen would not be welcome on the team if he is convicted on July 21 charges of driving under the influence, resisting an officer with violence and fleeing and eluding a police officer. The agent, Matt Sosnick (who represents seven Marlins total), added that Samson was an "absolute joke" and a "totally hated guy." (Palm Beach Post)

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH: Willie Randolph ripped into the Mets after they blew a 5-0 lead and lost to the Pirates. (New York Daily News)

QUICKLY: The Angels are hoping Bartolo Colon can rejoin them for the stretch run (Los Angeles Daily News) . . . Alfonso Soriano insists he'll be back playing for the Cubs before the Sept. 1 target date (Chicago Sun-Times) . . . Carlos Zambrano showed no signs of injury during his Thursday throw day (Chicago Sun-Times) . . . Nick Johnson, who's still recuperating from a broken leg suffered last September, won't be back this year (Washington Post) . . . Pirates shortstop Jack Wilson has cleared waivers, leaving open the possibility of a trade to Detroit (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) . . . The Rangers have placed Brandon McCarthy on the disabled list because of a fractured shoulder (mlb.com).

OLD FRIENDS: Derek Lowe pitched ''seven dazzing, shutout innings'' as the Dodgers beat the Astros (Los Angeles Daily News) . . . Tony Armas Jr. was nowhere near as dazzling for the Pirates, but, as noted, they still beat the Mets (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) . . . ESPN.com reports the Dodgers and Rockies are interested in David Wells . . . Pedro Martinez will make his third rehab start Monday (New York Daily News) . . . Edgar Renteria is recovering nicely from his high ankle sprain (Atlanta Journal-Constitution).

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 7:00 AM | Permalink