« Lester outstanding
Main
Today's notes from Fort Myers: Beckett feeling better today »
March 11, 2008
AP Photo
SURVIVOR TO SAVIOR? That was the headline Joe McDonald composed over his blog entry on Jon Lester yesterday and it told the story so well that we used it in the newspaper today. With the news on Josh Beckett not good -- "I was a lot more optimistic (Sunday) than I (was Monday),'' said Beckett (Boston Globe) -- the Sox are suddenly in the market for an Opening Day starter. Lester staked his claim for the job with a superb four-inning, two-hit, one-walk, five-strikeout showing at Port St. Lucie in a 1-1, 10-inning tie with the Mets. That he did it against Johan Santana, the ace for whom he was almost traded over the winter (projo.com), provided some sort of symbolism, though I can't say I know what, exactly. With Daisuke Matsuzaka also uncertain for the Japan trip because his wife is about to give birth, the Herald's Steve Buckley writes that a one-two Tokyo duo of Lester and Tim Wakefield (or Wakefield and Lester) is Plan C.
THAT'S NOT ALL, PART ONE: Lester wasn't the only Sox pitcher to fare well yesterday. McDonald notes Hideki Okajima turned in two solid innings.
THAT'S NOT ALL, PART TWO: And Beckett isn't the only injured Sox. McDonald reports on the health status of Julio Lugo and Coco Crisp.
YES, IT'S TRUE: This is confirmation that Dan Shaughnessy's report on the destruction of Joe McDonald's computer is accurate. ("I didn't even get the ball," said McDonald.) We're working to get it fixed in time for today's game.
DIFFERENT POINT OF VIEW: While the Sox fixated on Lester's strong performance, the Mets were joyous about Johan Santana. (New York Post)
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Nothing really new in this SI.com profile of Jacoby Ellsbury, but it's noteworthy in that Ellsbury continues to draw national attention. Meanwhile, the Miami Herald lists Ellsbury among 10 athletes ''most likely to become cultural touchstones over the next decade''.
DETAILS, DETAILS: Old friend Steve Silva says everything is just peachy with the Sox except for the complete lack of pitching and hitting. (Boston Dirt Dogs)
UH OH: Medical News Today reports that only ''45 percent of baseball players were able to return to the game at the same or higher level after shoulder or elbow surgery.''
NOT SO MAHVELOUS: The news that Billy Crystal would play in an exhibition game for the Yankees (New York Daily News) was reported thusly by the New York Post's George King: ''On the night the Yankees and commissioner Bud Selig made a farce out of the game by signing all-time foof Billy Crystal to a ludicrous one-day contract and foolishly announcing he will play in an exhibition game Thursday, the club found time to watch two-thirds of Generation Trey pitch last night against the Reds at Legends Field. Perhaps Crystal, a legendary jock sniffer, will stop by Joba Chamberlain's and Ian Kennedy's locker to hang out. More likely, he will tie up the massage table, something he has done in past visits to Legends Field , an act that ticked off the real players.''
EVERYTHING'S COMING UP ROSES: Alex Rodriguez couldn't have been more upbeat -- about being with the Yankees, his relationship with Derek Jeter, you name it -- in his appearance on Mike And The Mad Dog. (Newsday)
NOW THAT'S MORE LIKE IT: Joba Chamberlain was back on track yesterday against the Reds. (New York Daily News)
SURPRISE! When asked which veteran Yankees helped him out when he first joined the team, Mariano Rivera praised Steve Howe. (New York Times)
THE BLUEPRINT: A Super Bowl championship moved Tom Coughlin from the firing line to Easy Street. The New York Post's Joel Sherman says Willie Randolph should take heed.
HEART HEALTHY: The Cubs' Mark DeRosa tells yahoo.com's Jeff Passan the story of his irregular heartbeats, and how the surgical procedure performed recently makes a recurrence unlikely.
'I REALIZE VERY WELL THAT I COULD REGRESS TO THE MEAN': While we can't imagine those words coming out of the mouths of Ducky Medwick or Hill Billy Bildilli, that's a direct quote from the Royals' Brian Bannister, who's a student of sabermetrics. (yahoo.com)
REGRESS TO . . .WHA'? THE MEAN? HAH? Dusty Baker continues to make the stat geeks' heads explode as he tells Adam Dunn and Joey Votto to stop taking pitches and be more aggressive. (Cincinnati Enquirer) At the other end of the spectrum, the Twins' Denard Span may be winning the center-field job by developing more plate discipline. (St. Paul Pioneer Press) Meanwhile, Joe Posnanski, as only he can, points out that "there are NO stats more convoluted and manufactured than the basic statistics that baseball has been built around for more than 100 years.''
SIGN OF SPRING: Old pal Alan Embree has a 15.75 ERA, but says he's not worried. ''In the regular season, I have a different game plan,'' said the A's reliever. (San Francisco Chronicle) My question: Does a pitcher with a 15.75 exhibition ERA ever admit to being worried?
OH, SHADDUP: Twins manager Ron Gardenhire isn't a fan of the new practice of having managers and players talk to radio and TV broadcasters during games. (St. Paul Pioneer Press)
VOICES OF EXPERIENCE: John McLaren, who spent a season on the Red Sox' coaching staff in the 1990s, felt like "I had to earn my respect every day" during his many years as a coach because he never played in the big leagues. So when he got the Mariners' managing job, he loaded his own coaching staff with men who have tons of major-league playing and managing experience. (Foxsports.com)
NOW HERE'S WHERE SPYGATE COULD COME IN HANDY: On his Mets Blog, Matthew Cerrone notes that Mike Pelfrey may have been tipping his pitches last year and asks why the team the pitcher plays for is the last to find out.
LOCAL BOY: Pawtucket's Chris Iannetta wants to stick in the big leagues with the Rockies, and he hopes the team feels the same way. (Denver Post)
HERE AND THERE: Randy Johnson was pleased with his first spring outing, even though he allowed a three-run homer to the aforementioned Iannetta (Arizona Republic) . . . FoxSports.com's blind item that the Dodgers are interested in Esteban German is news to German's current employer, the Royals. (Kansas City Star) Or so they say . . . John Lackey thinks he might be able to make his Opening Day start, after all (Los Angeles Times) . . . The Orioles and Angels are interested in Rockies infielder Clint Barmes (Denver Post) . . . The Rangers will be without Brandon McCarthy, who has a strained forearm muscle, for four to six weeks (Dallas Morning News) . . . B.J. Ryan will pitch in a 'B' game today, his first action since undergoing Tommy John surgery last year (mlb.com) . . . The Phillies are optimistic about Brad Lidge's return after watching him throw on Monday (Philadelphia Daily News) . . . A happy Noah Lowry is eyeing a mid-April return to the Giants' rotation (AP via projo.com) . . . Kris Benson has been a surprise in the Phillies' camp. (Philadelphia Daily News)
OLD FRIENDS: Nomar Garciaparra, who still has swelling in his right wrist after being hit by a pitch last Friday, won't accompany the Dodgers to China for their exhibition series (mlb.com) . . . The recuperating Mike Maroth pitched a 'B' game Sunday and is about to rejoin the Royals' exhibition rotation. (mlb.com)
AND FINALLY . . . Best wishes to our many friends at The Score, whose 10 1/2-year run as Rhode Island's only all-local sports talk radio show came to an end yesterday. Good luck to one and all; click here for producer John Crowe's classy and upbeat goodbye.
-- ART MARTONE
Posted by Art Martone 
at 6:33 AM | Permalink
