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Baseball Today: Wednesday, March 26

Journal photo / Bob Breidenbach

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER: We're a few hours past our deadline for posting this, but it couldn't be helped: Sean McAdam and I were working feverishly throughout the morning to get today's report online. (Sean had very little time to write after the game, as everyone had to catch the bus to the airport after the game.) Here's what we have from today's 5-1 Red Sox loss to the A's:

-- Game story: Rich Harden was the difference as the A's won, earning a split of the two games in Japan.

-- The trip is complete and, all in all, the Red Sox say they enjoyed their time in Japan.

-- Coco Crisp replaced Jacoby Ellsbury in center field for the second game of the series, but Terry Francona says he can't tell Crisp exactly how he'll be used this year because he doesn't yet know himself.

-- J.D. Drew missed his second straight game because of back spasms . . .

-- . . . which means Brandon Moss played again. But after the game, he was shipped to Pawtucket.

-- David Aardsma did his part to avoid joining Moss on the Fenway-to-McCoy shuffle by pitching 1 2/3 scoreless innings Wednesday.

-- Bartolo Colon's scheduled to pitch Friday night in Los Angeles and other notes.

-- And finally, the A's felt like they were treated as the Red Sox' poor cousins during their time in Tokyo.

ONE MORE TIME: And in case you missed it, here's a quick list of all Sean's stories from Tuesday's 6-5 Red Sox victory over the A's:

-- Manny Ramirez gets off to his quickest start in years with a pair of two-run doubles, including a two-out shot in the 10th that breaks a 4-4 tie, and leads the Red Sox to a season-opening win over the A's.

-- Daisuke Matsuzaka overcomes a rocky start to pitch five solid innings and leaves the game with a 3-2 lead.

-- The red-hot J.D. Drew can't answer the bell, as a bad back forces him to the sidelines.

-- A complete list of postgame notes.

-- Commissioner Bud Selig attends the game and is non-committal on whether or not punishment will be meted out to players named in the Mitchell Report. He also has little to say about the Sox' threatened boycott of the Japanese trip, concluding, "All's well that ends well."

-- Prior to the game, Sean accompanies representatives of the Red Sox and A's to a reception at the home of Thomas Schieffer, the U.S. Ambassador to Japan. "They'll let anyone in here, I guess,'' jokes A's general manager Billy Beane when he spots Sean.

NO PLACE LIKE HOME: Japan's a nice place to visit, but Kevin Youkilis, to quote the Beach Boys, can't wait to get back to the States.

SORRY: Daisuke Matsuzaka apologized to the Japanese fans for lasting only five innings on Tuesday. (Boston Herald)

THE TURNING POINT: SI.com's Tom Verducci has a fascinating piece about how both the Red Sox and Yankees shifted their focus to player development in 2005, and the benefits they've derived from that decision.

NOT SO FAST: ESPN's Jonah Keri says the Red Sox may not be the dynasty-in-the-making they're being described as in many circles.

THE WISDOM OF CROWDS: On the blog Fire Brand of the American League, Tim Daloisio is trying an interesting experiment. Quoting a book that says "in the right situations a crowd can produce decisions and answers to questions that are more accurate in average than all but a very few of the individuals that make up that collective intelligence," Daloisio wants to test the theory, and has set up forms for people to fill out trying to determine how Red Sox players will perform this season.

DON'T WORRY: Andy Pettitte says he'll be back in the first week of the season. (New York Post)

NOTHING FUNNY ABOUT IT IF IT'S TRUE: Humorist Joe Lavin claims to have found an early copy of Jose Canseco's new book and says Canseco accuses Magglio Ordonez, Roger Clemens and Alex Rodriguez of steroids use. (joelavin.com)

ELEPHANT MAN: The Republicans on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform release a statement defending Roger Clemens and claiming the Democrats produced a report that was a "prosecutorial indictment" of Clemens. (New York Times)

WAITING FOR AN EXPLANATION: David Scott promises to pass it along when he gets one from ESPN regarding what could be, at its best, an unexplainable gaffe or, at its worst, a very cruel inside joke regarding the late Cory Lidle. (shots.bostonsportsmedia.com)

TWO PLUS TWO EQUALS . . . When Brian Roberts was scratched from yesterday's Orioles' exhibition game before batting practice, speculation immediately started that he'd finally been traded to the Cubs. But it was just a bad back. (Baltimore Sun)

HERE AND THERE: There's been a change at the top at the Hall of Fame (bloomberg.com) . . . The Angels' Kelvin Escobar (shoulder) joins John Lackey, Scot Shields, Chris Bootcheck and (perhaps) Gary Matthews Jr. on the sidelines (Los Angeles Times) . . . The Giants' Kevin Frandsen will miss the season after suffering a torn Achilles' tendon (San Francisco Chronicle) . . . The Astros' new second baseman, Kaz Matsui, will miss at least the first two weeks for an injury that I really don't want to recount here (Houston Chronicle) . . . The Rangers have named C,J. Wilson as their closer. (Dallas Morning News)

OLD FRIENDS: It looks like Trot Nixon will stick with the Diamondbacks (East Valley Tribune) . . . The Cardinals placed both Matt Clement and Joel Pineiro on the disabled list, though neither move was a surprise. (rotoworld.com)

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 12:28 PM | Permalink

A's 5, Red Sox 1: One-stop wrapup for all eight stories from Tokyo

A quick list of all Sean McAdam's stories from Wednesday's 5-1 Red Sox loss to the A's:

-- Game story: Rich Harden was the difference as the A's won, earning a split of the two games in Japan.

-- The trip is complete and, all in all, the Red Sox say they enjoyed their time in Japan.

-- Coco Crisp replaced Jacoby Ellsbury in center field for the second game of the series, but Terry Francona says he can't tell Crisp exactly how he'll be used this year because he doesn't yet know himself.

-- J.D. Drew missed his second straight game because of back spasms . . .

-- . . . which means Brandon Moss played again. But after the game, he was shipped to Pawtucket.

-- David Aardsma did his part to avoid joining Moss on the Fenway-to-McCoy shuffle by pitching 1 2/3 scoreless innings Wednesday.

-- Bartolo Colon's scheduled to pitch Friday night in Los Angeles and other notes.

-- And finally, the A's felt like they were treated as the Red Sox' poor cousins during their time in Tokyo.

Posted by Art Martone  at 11:53 AM | Permalink

Sox option Moss to Pawtucket

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

TOKYO -- Well, that didn't take long.

Immediately at the conclusion of Wednesday's game against the A's, the Red Sox -- as expected -- optioned outfielder Brandon Moss to Pawtucket (International League). Moss played in both of the games here against Oakland in place of the injured J.D. Drew and hit a game-tying home run in the ninth inning of Tuesday's opener.

The Sox now have 26 players on the active roster.

Posted by Art Martone  at 10:21 AM | Permalink

Red Sox lose to A's, 5-1 as Lester falters

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

TOKYO -- It began in a familiar way -- an early deficit resulting from a struggling starter.

But this one did not have the same happy ending for the Red Sox that Tuesday's opener did. Handcuffed by Oakland A's starter Rich Harden, the Sox' offense was checked on five hits and fell to the A's, 5-1, Wednesday for a split of their season-opening series at the Tokyo Dome.

The two teams will resume their series next Tuesday in Oakland.

Boston got five innings of quality relief from four different relievers, but the four runs the A's managed off Jon Lester were enough to stand up.

The Sox' lone run came on a majestic solo shot from Manny Ramirez in the sixth, giving him five RBI for the first two games.

The rest of the heart of the Sox lineup, however, was feeble. David Ortiz was 0-for-3, Mike Lowell had two singles and Brandon Moss, in his second inning of fill-in duty for J.D. Drew, couldn't continue the magic, fanning in three plate appearances.

Even Ramirez produced nothing beyond his homer, striking out three times. He wasn't alone -- the Sox went down swinging (or looking) a total of 13 times.

Of the Sox' five hits, three were singles.

If the Sox thought that getting Harden out of the game after six was going to open the offensive spigot, they were wrong.

In the eighth, an error by Bobby Crosby on a sharp one-hopper by Kevin Youkilis gave the Sox some hope and Youkilis moved into scoring position on a wild pitch.

But former Sox reliever Keith Foulke retired Ortiz on a flyout to right and then slipped a called third strike on the outside corner past Ramirez for the final out.

In the seventh, Santiago Casilla had allowed a two-out double into the right field corner by Coco Crisp, but Crisp was stranded there when Julio Lugo grounded meekly to short.

Oakland added a solo run in the eighth off Bryan Corey. A two-out double by Kurt Suzuki and a single to center from Mike Fiorentino produced a cushion that the A's wouldn't need.

Yet another former Sox reliever, Alan Embree, turned back the Sox in the ninth. A leadoff single from Lowell was wiped out when pinch-hitter Sean Casey rolled into a double-play. Jason Varitek then fanned for the final out.

Blanked for the first five innings by Harden, the Sox finally showed some life in the sixth as Ramirez drove a deep drive into the seats in left for his first homer of the season and career shot No. 491.

Ramirez stood and admired his handy work, watching the ball soar and land before he began his home-run trot.

When Lowell followed with a long flyout to left, that was end of the night for Harden, but he had stifled the Sox offense, limiting them to a single run over six innings while recording nine strikeouts.

Like Daisuke Matsuzaka the night before, Lester had some long innings in the early going.

A one-out double by Crosby in the second and a two-out walk to Suzuki gave the A's the first scoring threat of the night and former Wheaton College standout Chris Denorfia cashed in, singling to right to deliver Crosby.

Lester limited the damage by catching Travis Buck looking at a called third strike. But the A's went right back to work against him in the third.

A leadoff walk to Mark Ellis and a one-out single from Mike Sweeney set the stage for Brown, who ran into an out representing the potential tying run in the ninth inning Tuesday night.

This time, Brown more than made up for his baserunning gaffe, taking Lester out to left with a booming three-run homer.

Lester then settled down, retiring the side in order in the fourth, but his struggles in the second and third came back to cut his night short. After four, having thrown 83 pitches -- just 47 of them strikes -- Lester was through.

The Sox got little done off Harden in the early innings, held hitless through the first three.

The hard-throwing A's starter, limited to just 13 starts over the previous two seasons, had some command problems, but the Sox were unable to capitalize.

He fanned two in the first, two in the second and one in the third. He issued a one-out walk to Julio Lugo in the third and a two-out pass to Dustin Pedroia in the same inning, but got Ortiz to pop to third for the final out, stranding two.

Not until Lowell singled sharply to left with one down in the fourth did the Sox collect their first
hit.

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 9:00 AM | Permalink

Photo: You've never seen this at Fenway

A young woman paints lettering on the field before Wednesday's game.
Journal photo/Bob Breidenbach

Posted by Peter Phipps  at 8:41 AM | Permalink

Photo: Manny gets Red Sox on The Board

Manyy celebrates his blast.
Journal photo/Bob Breidenbach

Manny Ramirez -- who else? -- has produced the first run off Oakland's Rich Harden, hammering a homer deep to left, a solo shot, with two out in the sixth.
It was career homer No. 491 for Ramirez and the first this season.

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 7:57 AM | Permalink | Comments 2

Lester out, Aardsma in

TOKYO -- Jon Lester is through for the night, having gone four innings, allowing four runs -- all earned -- on five hits with three walks, four strikeouts and one homer.

David Aardsma is in to pitch the bottom of the fifth.

Oakland still leads 4-0.

-- SEAN McADAM

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 7:46 AM | Permalink

Oakland grabs 4-0 lead

TOKYO -- The A's lead 4-0 in the bottom of the third.

Emil Brown, whose baserunning gaffe in the ninth inning helped sink Oakland in the first game, just clobbered a 1-and-1 fastball from Jon Lester and deposited into the left field seats for a three-run homer.

The A's had nicked the Sox for a run in the second on run-scoring single from Chris Denorfia, scoring Bobby Crosby who was on with a one-out double.

Oakland starter Rich Harden looks locked in, with five strikeouts and no hits allowed through three.

-- SEAN McADAM

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 7:13 AM | Permalink

Notes: Colon to pitch Friday in L.A.

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

TOKYO -- Bartolo Colon will start Friday's exhibition game against the Los Angeles Dodgers and is scheduled to throw anywhere from 60-75 pitches.

"It depends on the workload and how his innings are,'' said Francona.

Josh Beckett, who enjoyed an excellent side session Tuesday, could join the Sox in Oakland even though he's not eligible to come off the disabled list until April 3 when the Sox are enjoying a day off in Toronto.

***

A group of about 12 players from Single A Lancaster will join the Sox in Los Angeles for the exhibition weekend against the Dodgers.

The Lancaster team had to fly from Fort Myers to California anyway, so the Sox will take advantage to provide some depth for the series.

Joining the Sox: pitchers Lincoln Holdzcom, Hunter Jones, T.J. Large and Jose Vaquedano; infielders Lars Anderson, Argenis Diaz and Joe Thurston; and outfielders Reid Engel and Jason Place.
***
The Sox succeeded in convincing the Dodgers to allow the Sox to utilize the DH for all three games in Los Angeles . . . With a single Tuesday, Mike Lowell extended his Opening Day hit streak to nine straight seasons. Lowell is hitting .314 (11-for-35) in Opening Day games in his career . . . The four RBI for Manny Ramirez Tuesday was the most for a Sox player on Opening Day since Jack Clark had four on April 8, 1991, his first game in a Sox uniform.

Posted by Art Martone  at 6:55 AM | Permalink

A's grumble about second-class status

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

TOKYO -- Though they haven't complained publicly, the A's privately are feeling like second-class citizens here.

Officially, the A's are the home team, wearing the home uniforms and batting last. But somehow, the Sox were given the home dugout and the home clubhouse, which is significantly roomier with additional trainer's rooms.

The fans have been solidly behind the Sox, unsurprising perhaps given the presence of Daisuke Matsuzaka and Hideki Okajima and the team's standing.

But the playing of "Sweet Caroline,'' the Red Sox' unofficial them song, in the middle of the eighth inning may have sent the A's completely over the edge.

Posted by Art Martone  at 6:52 AM | Permalink

Crisp gets his first start, Ellsbury banged up

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

TOKYO -- Boston made one lineup change for its second game, inserting Coco Crisp into the starting lineup, replacing Jacoby Ellsbury.

Ellsbury banged hard into the center field wall robbing A's outfielder Emil Brown of extra bases Tuesday, but Francona said that wasn't a factor in his decision and added that he had planned to play Crisp all along.

"With our schedule,'' said Francona, "we want to get as many players in (the lineup) as soon as possible. And with a hard-thrower like (Oakland starter Rich) Harden (pitching Wednesday), we wanted to get Coco (a good fastball hitter) in (Wednesday) rather than (Tuesday).''

Francona still hasn't been able to tell Crisp what to expect in terms of his role and use.

"I told him to be patient,'' said Francona. "I can't promise him anything yet because I'm not sure we have all the answers.''

When Francona was asked if Ellsbury, a left-handed hitter, would play against righties and Crisp, a switch-hitter, against lefties, the manager dismissed the scenario.

"I really don't envision that,'' he said. "There are ways to get good players into games.''

More likely, Crisp will continue to see playing time against hard-throwing starters.

Posted by Art Martone  at 6:49 AM | Permalink

Ramirez, Crisp and Moss in the outfield

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

TOKYO -- J.D. Drew remained out of the lineup for the second straight game Wednesday, sidelined by a sore lower back.

Brandon Moss, the unlikely hero of the opener, was back in right again.

"It didn't get worse,'' said manager Terry Francona of Drew's condition, "but as far as playing, no. We don't want to take a step backwards.''

Drew first felt a twinge during batting practice before Tuesday's game.

"It had tightened up and he was able to swing (before gametime),'' said Francona. "But he just couldn't run.''

The Sox are concerned about the upcoming 10-hour trip to Los Angeles, which they'll begin immediately after the game ends, and the effect it will have on Drew's back.

"I don't know that that is the best thing for it,'' said Francona, "but we'll do what we can.''

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 5:38 AM | Permalink

Lineups For Game 2

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

TOKYO -- Just one change for the Sox, with Coco Crisp taking over for Jacoby Ellsbury in center field.

BOSTON

Dustin Pedroia 2B
Kevin Youkilis 1B
David Ortiz DH
Manny Ramirez LF
Mike Lowell 3B
Brandon Moss RF
Jason Varitek C
Coco Crisp CF
Julio Lugo SS
---
Jon Lester P

OAKLAND

Travis Buck RF
Mark Ellis 2B
Daric Barton 1B
Mike Sweeney DH
Emil Brown LF
Bobby Crosby SS
Jack Hannahan 3B
Kurt Suzuki C
Chris Denorfia CF
---
Rich Harden P

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 5:27 AM | Permalink