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Baseball Today: Monday, June 30

AP Photo

SURPRISE! The marketing folks who brought you "September To Remember" and "Soxtober" last year have been flooding the NESN airwaves with their newest creation -- "Division Collision" -- in anticipation of this week's back-to-back series against the Rays and Yankees. But first there was the little matter of a weekend in Houston, and the Red Sox aren't exactly heading to St. Petersburg with a full head of steam. After a routine 6-1 win in Friday night's opener that gave no hint of the struggles to come, the Sox blew leads of 4-0 and 9-6 in losing to the Astros, 11-10, Saturday night, then were betrayed by Hideki Okajima -- yet again -- and their own offensive inefficiency in a 3-2 loss on Sunday afternoon in which Miguel Tejada (above, looking as stunned as anyone in the park) scored the winning run on a two-out, eighth-inning single off Okajima by old friend Mark Loretta. Sean McAdam provides all the details.

So when the Division Collision finally begins tonight, after a week of hype, it'll be the Red Sox chasing the Rays and not the other way around. Surprise, indeed.

OKIE-DOKIE . . . NOT! Okajima's weekend of discontent began Friday night when, entrusted with a 4-0 lead in the eighth inning, he gave up a two-out homer to Reggie Abercrombie followed by a hard line single off the left-field scoreboard by Tejada, which prompted Terry Francona to summon Jonathan Papelbon for a four-out save. Yesterday they had to do something -- bring in Okajima with a runner on base -- they hadn't done since since he'd surrendered the grand slam to Jay Payton back in May. It was a low-leverage situation (Tejada on first, one out), but Okajima promptly wild-pitched Tejada to second. Then, after recording the second out, he surrendered the game-winning hit to Loretta. Rob Bradford of the Boston Herald reports that "[since] returning from a sore wrist that sidelined him in mid-May, Okajima hasn’t been able to finish off his go-to pitch" -- the split-fingered fastball -- "on a consistent basis." It was a flat splitter that Loretta hit for the game-winner yesterday, and one of his Astros teammates described it as "a batting-practice fastball."

THE GRASS IS ALWAYS GREENER: McAdam wrote Saturday that, in light of Okajima's struggles, the Sox are, for the second time in as many years, casting covetous eyes at Colorado's Brian Fuentes. Fuentes, however, is looking a little like the one-eyebrow, wart-covered gal in the peanut commercial these days after he destroyed a miraculous Rockies' comeback Saturday night in Detroit by allowing two runs in the bottom of the ninth (Denver Post); Colorado had scored four runs in the top of the ninth, three of them after two were out, to take a 6-5 lead. It had the Rocky Mountain News' Sam Adams advocating the Rox dump Fuentes on anyone "looking for save-blowers." Even so, MLB.com reports Colorado's asking price for Fuentes is two quality prospects.

ALTERCATION: McAdam broke the news last night that Manny Ramirez was involved in an argument with Jack McCormick Saturday over ticket allotment that resulted in Ramirez' pushing the Sox' traveling secretary to the floor. McAdam reports Ramirez later apologized, McCormick accepted the apology, and all sides -- Terry Francona included -- say there are no problems.

CURSES? The blog Center Field thinks it's a case of The Curse of the Astros claiming another victim. But old friend Dan Lamothe of Red Sox Monster isn't going there.

HE WAS A CONTEST-WINNER, AFTER ALL: ShysterBall's Craig Calcaterra thinks of George Costanza every time he sees the phrase "traveling secretary."

FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH: Loretta calls the Sox "as good a team as we've played all year" (Houston Chronicle), but, of course, he may be biased; he spent 2006 in Boston and often calls it his best year in baseball.

IT'S 'GO' TIME: The Sox have no time to mope over their disappointing Texas weekend because now it's on to central Florida for a three-game series with their newest rival. Steven Krasner recaps the three previous series between the teams this year, and the Sox players told McAdam they're going to The Trop to play baseball, not to resume hostilities. Maybe they are, but the Tampa Bay fans -- if their comments on this St. Petersburg Times blog are any indication -- are ready to rumble.

YOU'RE ON YOUR OWN: Like their Red Sox brethren, the Rays players say what's past is past and these next three nights will all be about baseball. (Tampa Tribune)

THE UPPER HAND: And so far, the baseball has been all good for the Rays. They enter the series in first place after yesterday's 4-3 win over the Pirates (Tampa Tribune) and now they're ready for what the St. Petersburg Times is calling "potentially the biggest series ever played at Tropicana Field." More good news: Closer Troy Percival looks like he's back to 100 percent after being sidelined with a chronic hamstring injury. (St. Petersburg Times)

PINCH ME: In first place? At the end of June? A big series at The Trop? Finally, writes the blog DRays Bay, "it feels good to be a Rays fan."

PINCH ME TWICE: Another sign the Rays are in contention: They plan to be buyers, not sellers, at this year's trading deadline. (St. Petersburg Times)

ONE BATTLE TAMPA BAY IS ALREADY WINNING: Chad Finn writes that while he admires Jacoby Ellsbury as much as anybody, there's no way Ellsbury deserves the Rookie of the Year award over Evan Longoria. Besides, Ellsbury has hardly looked like a Rookie of the Year candidate lately. (Boston Globe)

REALITY INTRUDES: On a (far) more serious note, the Boston Herald reports black and Latin players on the Red Sox, two of whom were mentioned by name, were the targets of threats in this upcoming series in a letter mailed to the team with a Memphis, Tenn., postmark. Security teams from MLB and the Red Sox are with the club in St. Petersburg, and the FBI, along with the police departments in St. Petersburg, Boston, Memphis and Baltimore, have been apprised. The suspect is believed to be a Baltimore native living in Memphis.

IN OR OUT? That's the question the Boston Herald's John Tomase posed to a number of Hall of Fame pitchers regarding the Hall candidacy of Curt Schilling.

TAKING OVER THE TOWN: The Mets are the second team in New York, and that's not the boast of some braggart Yankees fans; that's according to according to none other than Mets manager Jerry Manuel. (New York Daily News) So he had to be pleased that the team WFAN's Steve Somers insists on calling "the Metropolitans" won the Subway Series from the Yankees for only the second time in 12 years with a 3-1 victory yesterday. (New York Post) Of course, Alex Rodriguez almost pulled it out for the Yanks, but his ninth-inning drive to left fell just short. (New York Post) The New York Daily News' Bill Madden says that if you're thinking these teams will meet again in October, well, forget it.

GROW UP: That's what many in New York are telling -- or screaming at -- Jose Reyes after his Little League-like, on-field tantrum in the wake of an error he made against the Yankees yesterday (New York Daily News) The LoHud Mets Blog's John Delcos says the reason Reyes acts like this is because the Mets let him, and have never moved to curb his behavior.

TALKING THE TALK: Another great interview on It Is About The Money, Stupid, this one with Yankee pitcher Darrell Rasner.

SEE YOU SOON . . . MAYBE: The Yankees have optioned Ian Kennedy to Class A Tampa and say he'll have have to earn his way back to New York. (LoHud Yankees Blog)

GOOD PLACE FOR HIM: Joe Posnanski's suggestion that the Royals sign Barry Bonds is drawing plenty of commentary on joeposnanski.com. That's the place for such talk, thinks Peter Abraham of the LoHud Yankees Blog, because his opinion is there's no way the Yankees should sign Bonds, as some are suggesting.

IF WE HAD TO DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN . . . who would be in the first class of Hall of Famers? That's Posnanski's question and he gets some interesting answers.

YOU HAVE TO STRIKE WHILE THE IRON IS HOT: Baseball Musings' David Pinto thinks Billy Beane may have waited too long to pull the trigger on a Joe Blanton trade and that the haul the A's may get for Blanton won't be anywhere near as big as it would have been a few months ago.

MY MOMENT IN THE SUN: In light of the Dodgers' beating the Angels Saturday night despite being no-hit, the Los Angeles Times tracked down the last pitcher to throw a no-hitter and lose: Ex-Red Sox lefty Matt Young, who pulled the trick in while pitching for the Sox against Cleveland in 1992. Young remembers it well.

THEY MADE IT: There were times when it seemed impossible, but yesterday's victory over the Rockies got the Tigers back to .500. (Detroit News)

BEATS THE ALTERNATIVE: "Let's face it," writes the Seattle Post-Intelligencer's David Andriesen, "the San Diego Padres stink. Not only that, they stink in the National League, which is considerably stinkier than stinking in the . . . American League." Still, he adds, sweeping a team that stinks is better than losing to them, so the Mariners are content after yesterday's 9-2 win, which completed a weekend three-spot in San Diego.

LOCAL BOYS: Rocco Baldelli is finished with the Vero Beach portion of his rehab and the Rays are studying baseball's rules to see what the next step should be (Tampa Tribune) . . . Paul Konerko is still in too much pain to begin a rehab assignment. (Chicago Tribune)

MEDICAL REPORT: Chipper Jones is headed to the disabled list (Atlanta Journal-Constitution) . . . So is Magglio Ordonez (Detroit News) . . . And Michael Cuddyer (Minneapolis Star-Tribune) . . . And Lastings Milledge (mlb.com) . . . The Marlins' Dan Uggla will be sidelined a few days because of a sprained left ankle (Miami Herald) . . . Juan Pierre will have an MRI on his left knee. (Los Angeles Times)

HERE AND THERE: The Cubs will be without Aramis Ramirez the next three days as he returns to the Dominican Republic to tend to a family matter (Chicago Sun-Times) . . . Jay Gibbons is alive and well and playing in the Atlantic League (Baltimore Sun) . . . The Cubs are looking for pitching (Chicago Tribune) . . . The Mets and the Yankees are both interested in Freddy Garcia (nj.com) . . . Could Juan Rivera be headed from the Angels to the Dodgers? (Los Angeles Times)

OLD FRIENDS: The Brewers have activated Eric Gagne (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel) . . . Tony Armas Jr. is headed back to the Mets. (New York Daily News)

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 6:55 AM | Permalink

Ramirez apologizes after altercation with Sox' traveling secretary

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

HOUSTON -- Maybe it's something in the water in Houston.

Days after Houston Astros pitcher Shawn Chacon tackled general manger Ed Wade in the home clubhouse at Minute Maid Park, the visitors clubhouse was the scene of another player-club employee altercation Saturday afternoon.

Manny Ramirez shoved Red Sox traveling secretary Jack McCormick to the ground in an argument over Ramirez' ticket allotment. Several onlookers moved quickly to separate the two.

Ramirez had asked McCormick for 16 tickets for Saturday night's Red Sox-Astros game, an unusually high number for day-of-game. In addition to handling all travel details for clubs, traveling secretaries also take player ticket requests for both home and away games.

When McCormick cautioned Ramirez that he might not be able to fulfill his request, Ramirez responded by shouting: "Just do your job!"

An argument ensued and Ramirez pushed McCormick, sending him to the ground.

Later, the two met behind closed doors and Ramirez apologized to McCormick, who accepted the gesture. No further disciplinary action is expected against Ramirez.

Asked on Sunday to comment on the altercation, Ramirez responded: "That's over. We're fine now."

"Sometimes things happen," said Terry Francona, "and when they do, we choose to handle them internally. I'm satisfied with how we handled this."

Added McCormick: "It was an unfortunate misunderstanding and it's over with as far as I'm concerned."

Posted by Art Martone  at 7:20 PM to Projo Mannybeingmanny | Permalink | Comments 21

Red Sox-Astros lineups

BOSTON

Ellsbury LF
Pedroia 2B
Drew RF
Ramirez LF
Lowell 3B
Youkilis 1B
Varitek C
Lugo SS
Lester SP

HOUSTON

Bourn CF
Pence RF
Berkman 1B
Lee LF
Tejada SS
Loretta 2B
Wigginton 3B
Quintero C
Backe SP

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 4:52 PM | Permalink

Rays -- and their fans -- unhappy with the reduction in Crisp's suspension

The news that Major League Baseball cut the length of Coco Crisp's suspension from seven games to five for his role in the brawl between the Red Sox and Rays early this month was not well-received in central Florida, especially since Akinori Iwamura's appeal to have his three-game penalty reduced was denied.

From the St. Petersburg Times: "I’m kind of baffled by it," said Rays manager Joe Maddon. Added pitcher James Shield, who sat out six games for hitting Crisp with the pitch that triggered Coco's charge to the mound: "I'm not happy about it at all . . . He's the one that instigated the whole thing (with his slide into second base the night before the brawl)."

From the Tampa Tribune: Jonny Gomes, one of the more enthusiastic participants in the fight that broke out, declined comment. Maddon said: "We're not going to cry about it, we're not going to raise a stink over the fact that the Red Sox were reduced and we were not."

The crying was left to the bloggers. Such as Rays Index, which said, "Huh wha?!? Crisp was the one that bowled over Aki. Crisp was the one that charged the mound. And he had his suspension reduced? By two games? Unfortunately Crisp will miss the upcoming Rays-Red Sox series at the Trop. We would love to see that idiot get another ball in the backside."

Posted by Art Martone  at 11:29 AM | Permalink | Comments 1

Late Red Sox notes

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

HOUSTON -- Some postgame tidbits . . .

-- Kevin Youkilis enjoyed the first four-hit game of his career last night with three singles and a double. Strangely, despite the four-hit effort, Youkilis didn't score or knock in a run. Over his last 11 games, Youkilis is hitting .432 (16-for-37).

-- Dustin Pedroia had his second straight three-hit game and is hitting .514 since June 18.

-- J.D. Drew's homer in the third snapped an 0-for-14 slump.

-- The Red Sox became the first team in the majors to reach the 50-win plateau this season.

-- Games in NL parks are usually shorter, but last night's clocked in at 3:22. "When the Red Sox come to NL parks," said Drew, "things change. We have a lot of fans coming to see us and we want to give them an extra 45 minutes or so."

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 12:26 AM | Permalink

Sox ground Astros, 6-1

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

HOUSTON – Last weekend, when Daisuke Matsuzaka was shelled for seven runs and failed to get a single out in the second inning, the Red Sox maintained they weren’t concerned.

The Sox preached patience, claiming Matsuzaka’s poor start was merely the result of some mound rust after a three-week stay on the disabled list, and not, as some feared, a sign of lingering shoulder issues.

Last night, they were proven correct as Matsuzaka tossed five shutout innings, during which he allowed just two hits, in leading the Sox to a 6-1 win over the Houston Astros.

"The ball came out of his hand real good, nice and crisp," said Terry Francona.

"Much better," said catcher Jason Varitek, comparing this start to Matsuzaka's last. "He had a good feel through the zone with his fastball and his breaking stuff. It was nice to have the same guy back."

Matsuzaka left after five innings as the Sox want to be careful to slowly rebuild his arm strength. Of his 87 pitches, he threw 54 strikes. He walked three, two in his final inning when two walks and a single by Houston catcher Humberto Quintero loaded the bases.

He managed to leave them full when he got David Newhan to pop to short, but by then, he was "gassed," according to Varitek.

Matsuzaka struck out the side in the first, with each strikeout swinging, and through the first four innings had allowed just two Astros to reach against him. He improved to 9-1 and is a strong candidate to be selected for the upcoming All-Star Game in New York on July 15.

Matsuzaka got the only offensive support he would need in the third when, with Coco Crisp (walk) and Dustin Pedroia (double) on base, J.D. Drew hammered his 11th homer this month, a deep belt to right.

The 11 homers match Drew’s total for all of last season, his first season with the Sox. Moreover, the 11 homers are tied for the third-most during the month in Red Sox history and the most in June since 1979. Jackie Jensen holds the franchise mark with 14 in June of 1958.

Drew, who will surely be named American League Player of the Month, came into last night leading all major-league hitters in homers, total bases, extra-base hits and slugging percentage. He drove a slider from Astros starter Runelvys Hernandez out for his 15th homer of the season.

"It’s been a nice month," said Drew. "I’ll just try to transition into the rest of the season when it’s over."

Drew sat Wednesday night against Arizona lefty Randy Johnson and said the two consecutive days off were helpful.

"That was huge," he said. "I was hanging in a little bit and I think Tito knew that. I was able to regroup a little bit and come back and keep things nice and simple."

The homer continued a pattern from last season, when Drew seemed to enjoy his best games in National League settings. He spent his entire major league career in the N.L. before signing with the Red Sox.

"I didn’t realize that," said Drew. "Maybe it’s some familiarity with the ballpark and I’m kind of comfortable in the environment."

Until the seventh, Drew’s blast was all the Red Sox had to show for themselves on the scoreboard.

Then Pedroia (three hits) singled to center with two out, scoring Julio Lugo with the fourth run. The Sox added two more in the ninth on a bases-loaded single from Mike Lowell

With Matsuzaka out after the fifth, the Sox needed four innings from their bullpen and got quality ones – for the most part.

Craig Hansen pitched a scoreless sixth and when Manny Delcarmen followed with a perfect inning of his own in the seventh, the Sox seemed on their way to their second straight shutout and ninth of the season.

But after Hideki Okajima recorded the first two outs of the eighth on flyouts, he gave up a mammoth homer to Reggie Abercrombie, followed with a hard line single off the wall for Miguel Tejada. The run ended the Boston’s bullpen string of 12 straight scoreless frames and represented the first run scored against the Sox pitching staff in 22 innings.

Francona said Okajima was having difficulty "finishing" his split-finger fastballs.

Jonathan Papelbon came on to strike out Lance Berkman with the potential tying run on deck and recorded his 24th save of the season.

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 12:24 AM | Permalink

RED SOX PREGAME: Notes on Casey and Ortiz, and an ominous stat

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

HOUSTON -- On the flip side of the suspension coin from Coco Crisp is Sean Casey, who completed his three-game suspension Wednesday at the end of the Red Sox homestand and is eligible to play tonight. He's not, however, in the starting lineup.

-- David Ortiz is on the trip and hit again off a tee this afternoon.

The plan is for him to gradually increase his workload, making sure that he suffers no pain and risks a setback as he returns from the wrist injury he suffered at the end of May.

-- Ominous stat of the night: The Sox are 2-10 under a roof this season, permanent or retractable.

Posted by Art Martone  at 7:08 PM | Permalink

RED SOX PREGAME: Francona catches up with Astros GM Ed Wade

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

HOUSTON -- Terry Francona spoke for several minutes on the field with Houston general manager Ed Wade during batting practice.

Wade was attacked by Astros pitcher Shawn Chacon earlier this week in a clubhouse confrontation. The Astros released Chacon Thursday for insubordination.

Wade was the Phillies GM when Francona was fired as the team's manager, but the two have always enjoyed a good relationship.

"It happened," said Francona of the dust-up. "It could happy to anybody."

Posted by Art Martone  at 7:06 PM | Permalink

RED SOX PREGAME: Crisp will play tonight in advance of his suspension

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

HOUSTON -- The Red Sox thought that Coco Crisp's suspension -- five games, reduced from seven after an appeal hearing earlier this week -- would begin tonight. But in an an apparent effort to keep Crisp out of the entire Tampa Bay series which begins Monday at Tropicana Field, Crisp's suspension won't begin until tomorrow and run through next Wednesday.

Eligible for one more game, Crisp is back in the lineup tonight before his mandated five-game suspension begins Saturday.

"That just makes the most sense," said manager Terry Francona, who added that Crisp wasn't originally going to play tonight.

"It's better than seven," said Crisp of the reduction. "They could have easily said seven."

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 6:00 PM | Permalink

Lineups

Crisp CF
Pedroia 2B
Drew RF
Ramirez LF
Lowell 3B
Youkilis 1B
Varitek C
Lugo SS
Matsuzaka SP

HOUSTON

Bourn CF
Newhan 2B
Tejada 3B
Berkman 1B
Lee LF
Blum 3B
Pence RF
Quintero C
Hernandez SP

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 5:55 PM | Permalink

Crisp's suspension reduced to five games

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

HOUSTON -- The Red Sox announced moments ago that Coco Crisp's suspension for rushing the mound in a game against the Tampa Bay Rays has been reduced from seven to five games.

Crisp will begin serving the suspension Saturday, and thus will miss all three games of the Sox' series in Tampa Bay next week. He will miss the final two games of the series against the Astros and all three against the Rays. He will be eligible to play again on Thursday, July 3 in New York against the Yankees.

Crisp's appeal was heard earlier this week.

Posted by Art Martone  at 3:00 PM | Permalink

Baseball Today: Friday, June 27

Journal photo / Kris Craig

'A TEAM WITH NO CENTER': In years to come, when we reflect on this slice of the Red Sox tale, many names will be inextricably linked to the history-altering success of the 2004-and-beyond teams. David Ortiz. Manny Ramirez. Curt Schilling. There are some we'll remember at one end (Kevin Millar, Keith Foulke) and some at the other (Josh Beckett, Jonathan Papelbon).

Yet one name that probably won't come up is Mike Timlin.

Timlin has been here since 2003. He has begun to work his way onto the franchise's all-time lists in select categories. (Did you know, for instance, that only Bob Stanley, Tim Wakefield, Derek Lowe and Roger Clemens have pitched in more games for the Red Sox?) But his role -- setup reliever -- is a secondary one, and his contributions get overlooked, or lost, in the grandiose moments we'll never forget. Like Dave Roberts' stolen base, or Big Papi's extra-inning heroics, or Foulke's strikeout of Tony Clark, or J.D. Drew's grand slam, or Papelbon's pickoff of Matt Holliday, or . . . well, you get the picture.

Timlin, however, didn't just have a front-row seat to history; he helped shape it. In a fascinating conversation with Joe McDonald last night at McCoy Stadium, where's he rehabbing with the PawSox, he talked about how -- and why -- things finally changed:

"When I played against Boston" -- Timlin, don't forget, had been around for 12 years before he ever got to Fenway, and had competed against the Sox as a member of the Blue Jays, Mariners and Orioles -- "it was a team with no center. Guys would just go out and play and then scatter in the wind. When I first got here in 2003 it was more of a collective agreement among guys that we need to change things. All the guys who were there in 2003 started working together and it started showing. Things started to go in the right direction . . . "

Did they ever. And Timlin says he knows why.

"It’s always about the team. You have to get the concept of the team is greater than the individual. Even though the individual does most of the work, the team is still greater. That’s not a theory; it’s a fact."

I'm not one to overemphasize the importance of character and spirit and togetherness towards a team's success; talent is almost always more important, and there's no question the 2003-to-the-present Red Sox had/have plenty of that. But I'm not one to underemphasize it, either, because there were lots of Red Sox teams in my lifetime that had talent. These are the ones that cashed in on it.

Timlin's 42 years old now, and his days with the Sox are coming to an end. This is his second Pawtucket rehab stay this year -- the first was in April (above) -- and, truth be told, there's no guarantee he'll be part of an another October run this time around. His pitching this year has been so erratic (that's a kind way of putting it, eh?) that the Sox may not have a roster spot for him come playoff time.

But after it's over for him, I'll still remember Mike Timlim. And maybe I'll remember him most for the attributes he talked about to McDonald last night, attributes that led to one of the touching moments of the 2007 postseason:

Yes, they talked the talk. And then they walked the walk.

"We didn’t just verbalize it," Timlin said. "We did it."

Yes, they did.

THE TRUE LEGACY: And if Timlin had anything to do with this, then his memory will really live on at Fenway Park:

LOOKING AHEAD: The Red Sox sit where they sit this morning -- 49-32, first place in the A.L. East -- not due to the contributions of 42-year-olds, but in great part because of the success of pitchers at the other end of the age spectrum. Steven Krasner takes a closer look.

JUST DANDY: That could be what the J.D. actually stands for in Drew's name. Krasner tells us why.

CASHING IN: The Sox hope the home run he hit Wednesday night in an indication they'll soon be getting more power from Kevin Cash, who shows plenty of it in batting practice. (Boston Herald)

EASING INTO THINGS: This doesn't figure to be a smooth road trip for the Sox -- they play the Rays and the Yankees next week -- but Krasner says it's starting in just the right place: Houston. The Astros have begun the process of attempting to release Shawn Chacon (Houston Chronicle); resistance is expected from the Major League Baseball Players Association. (Bugs and Cranks reports Chacon's banishment means there are no longer any active MLB players who were born in Alaska.) The Houston Press blog Ballz thinks the problems in the team's clubhouse go far beyond Chacon, and wonders how much culpability management deserves for all this. The Astros did manage to put the whole smelly episode behind them for a night as they beat the Rangers, 7-2, in advance of the Sox' arrival. (Houston Chronicle)

COMING OF AGE: Josh Byrnes, one of Theo Epstein's assistants from 2003-05, is running a very successful operation these days in Arizona. Jed Hoyer and Ben Cherington, two of Epstein's current aides, could be on the short lists of teams looking for GMs this offseason. Epstein talks to Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald and says he hopes Hoyer and Cherington -- and others in the Sox' front office -- soon get the chance that he and Byrnes received.

THE GRADES ARE IN: And any one of us would be proud to receive a report good as the one Chad Finn gave the Red Sox.

YO! I have a friend who's perhaps the world's biggest David Pauley fan, and he must be pleased that Pauley raised his record to 10-2 last night with a victory over Richmond; details are provided by McDonald. But whenever I think of David Pauley, all I can picture is the hysterical Boston Dirt Dogs photoshop you see on the right. END OF THE LINE: Tonight we bid a fond farewell to Hazel Mae, whose days at NESN are at an end. (Boston Herald) Rumors persist, however, that she'll land somewhere in Boston before too much longer. NOT OUR COLOR: The Boston Globe is sensing a growing backlash against pink hats, a term which has come to represent bandwagon fans.

THE HITS JUST KEEP ON COMING: Life is good in Tampa Bay. The Rays closed to within a half-game of the Red Sox as Matt Garza allowed no hits through the first six innings before settling for a one-hitter in a 6-1 dispatch of the Marlins. (Tampa Tribune) It was, reports the St. Petersburg Times' Marc Topkin, the sixth series sweep of the year for the Rays, a franchise record. To top it all off, Carlos Pena will return to the lineup tonight when the team plays in Pittsburgh. (Tampa Tribune)

BACKSTOPPING THE WHOLE THING: Gary Shelton of the St. Pete Times calls catcher Dioner Navarro "the most improved player on the most improved team in baseball."

DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS: Interleague play (mercifully) concludes this weekend, and in New York that means the final four games of Mets-Yankees. The New York Daily News reports the teams are coming into the series from opposite directions.

RAIN AND FURY: The Yanks were rained out last night after starting the game against the Pirates (and jumping out to a 3-1 lead), and Mike Mussina voiced the anger of many Yankees when he blasted . . . well, someone (even he wasn't sure who) for not scheduling yesterday's game in the afternoon in light of the fact the Yanks have a day-night, separate-stadium doubleheader today. (New York Daily News) The weather was beautiful all day and the game would have been played without incident, but the Pirates wanted the game to be at night for greater television ratings.

THE SWORD SWINGS BOTH WAYS: Players/coaches/managers aren't the only ones to be disciplined by Major League Baseball for on-field disputes. Umpire Brian Runge was handed a one-game suspension for his actions during a dispute with Mets manager Jerry Manuel the other night. (New York Post)

CHANGE IN PLANS: First he wanted to manage the Mets. Now, angry because they didn't hire him, Gary Carter wants to manage someone else "and beat the heck out of [the Mets]." (New York Times)

STILL FLYING: Those waiting for the annual Orioles collapse -- like me -- are still waiting. Yesterday the O's beat the Cubs, handing Chicago a rare series loss at Wrigley Field. (Washington Post)

THE SWEETEST REVENGE: Joe Posnanski says baseball has kicked the Royals in the teeth for the last 20 years, so it's time for them to kick back by signing Barry Bonds.

SHOOTING FOR THE STARS: Carlos Zambrano says he hopes to be recovered from his shoulder woes in time to pitch in the All-Star Game. (Chicago Tribune)

STAR SWITCH: If Zambrano is able to make it back in time, he'll be joined in New York by his manager, Lou Piniella, who yesterday was named to replace Willie Randolph on the N.L. coaching staff by this year's National League manager, Clint Hurdle. (Denver Post) MLB, meanwhile, is trying to figure out a way that Randolph can still participate in the activities. (New York Post)

'THE MEAT HAS AGED. IT'S BETTER MEAT': That was Charlie Finley's chortle when he raised the price on some of his players during his Kuhn-aborted attempt to sell off his stars in 1976. The present-day A's, though, might be saying the same thing about Rich Harden after his dominant performance last night against the Phillies. (San Francisco Chronicle)

HERE AND THERE: The A's and Rockies could be cooking up a multiplayer deal involving Matt Holliday (San Francisco Chronicle) . . . The Pirates have placed Ian Snell on the disabled list (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) . . . The Nationals swapped pitchers on the DL, putting on Shawn Hill and taking off Odalis Perez (Washington Post) . . . Ryan Church has begun to work his way back to the Mets (New York Post) . . . The Yankees may have to put Hideki Matsui on the disabled list. (New York Post)

AND FINALLY . . . Many thanks to Tim Daloisio and Paul Testa, who invited me to be a guest last night on one of their Fireside Chats on the blog Fire Brand of the American League. I had a great time, guys, and hope we can do it again soon.

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 6:59 AM | Permalink | Comments 1

Timlin makes rehab appearance

Red Sox reliever Mike Timlin began his rehab stint with the PawSox tonight at McCoy Stadium. The veteran right-hander worked the top of the eighth inning against Richmond and retired the side in order. He threw 10 pitches, seven strikes. He reached 92 MPH on the radar gun.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 9:20 PM | Permalink

Projo SoxTalk with McAdam: Halfway home

Click the play button below to hear Sean's comments, recorded this morning. Sean reflects on the first 81 games of the season and considers what some of the big hurdles will be for the Red Sox in the second 81.

Here are some excerpts from Sean's comments:

The club's biggest concern:: "I think in the regular sseason it's going to be mostly about getting the seventh and eight inning in the bullpen taken care of. ... Certainly if they get more innings like they did out of Manny Delcarmen in the eighth last night, where he just overpowered people, some of those issues will go away."

On next week's stern test: "Starting Monday, seven road games against I think the two teams that they really are focused on, at least in the short term, for the division: the Rays and the Yankees. ... The Rays continue to hang with the Red Sox halfway through and show that they're a legitimate contender, and the Yankees -- although they have not had the best week -- have been able to creep a little closer and get above .500, and I think show people that they're still in the conversation for the second half. So playing those two teams back-to-back to kind of wind down the first half will go a long way I think in setting things up for post-All Star break."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 11:17 AM to Projo SoxTalk with Sean McAdam | Permalink

Baseball Today: Thursday, June 26

AP Photo

HALFWAY THERE: They hit the 81-game mark last night, the exact midpoint of the season, and while it may not seem like the Red Sox have done what former Packers running back Travis Williams once (delightfully) described as "anything fantabulous," they're on pace for 98 wins. That's how they'd finish if they repeat their 49-32 first-half record, a mark they reached with a 5-0 win over the Diamondbacks that, Joe McDonald writes, was the result of some stout pitching by Tim Wakefield and a nice performance from his personal catcher, Kevin Cash. Cash's contributions included a put-it-away three-run homer in the eighth -- for which he received congratulations in the above picture -- that put the game into the "safe" category.

As impressive as 49-32 may be, it's actually a game behind the 50-31 record they had at the midway point in each of the last two seasons; in neither year were they able to maintain that performance over the second half. But there's a big difference this time around. They played their 81st game this year on June 25. Last year they didn't play No. 81 until July 2. In 2006, it came on July 4. And that's pretty much when it always falls -- July 4 in 2005, July 6 in 2004, July 1 in 2003, etc. The fact that it came more than a week early this year means there's a lot of air built into the second-half schedule . . . time the Sox can use to a) rest their everyday players, b) get extra days off for their starters, c) better manage their bullpen, etc. Did you realize that the longest consecutive-day stretch the Sox have from now until the end of the year is 13? (They'll do that twice, from tomorrow to July 9 and then again from Aug. 8-20.) They'll be off on 10 of the remaining 14 Thursdays this year (counting today), and 3 of the remaining 13 Mondays.

These Sox aren't particularly old and creaky, but some of the regulars do show some age; the more time off they can get, the better. And Peter Gammons had a particularly telling quote on this topic during his last ESPN Radio appearance -- more on that in a moment -- when he said: "I’m still firmly convinced that the reason the Red Sox won the World Series was the 50 less innings pitched that Josh Beckett threw as opposed to C.C. Sabathia and Fausto Carmona. I think those guys just hit the wall in that series and Josh Beckett was pitching in the World Series like it was April 20."

The more rest you have now, the more energy you have later. That's why it may be easier for the Sox to continue to play at their current pace in the last three months.

IT STARTS NOW: Speaking of rest, the suddenly slumping J.D. Drew got some last night; McDonald gets Terry Francona's reasoning. Drew was replaced by Brandon Moss, and perhaps there's no more telling sign of Randy Johnson's mortality than the fact that the Red Sox were willing to start a rookie left-handed hitter against the Big Unit. Can you imagine that happening in 1997 or so?

AS FOR THE GAME . . . Steven Krasner breaks it down, with explanations of Wakefield showing why he's more than just a knuckleballer, how Manny Delcarmen benefitted from following Wake's soft tosses with some heat of his own, more failed strategy from Arizona manager Bob Melvin and a Red Sox rally that wasn't in the fifth inning.

BACK IN ACTION: Kevin Youkilis returned to the lineup last night, missing only a day after getting hit in the eye with the Mike Lowell throw on Monday. (projo.com)

STILL WAITING: The Sox have yet to receive word on the appeal of Coco Crisp's suspension. But the Boston Herald's Jeff Horrigan reports the Red Sox should be covered if Crisp's ban begins this weekend because it looks as if Manny Ramirez is good to go in left field.

THE FIRST STEP ON THE LONG JOURNEY: David Ortiz took 25 easy swings off a tee Tuesday night. Krasner reports it went as well as expected and that Big Papi is two or three weeks away from returning.

IT'S POSSIBLE: Curt Schilling thinks he'll be able to pitch again if he wants to following successful shoulder surgery. (projo.com) He's still unsure if wants to, though.

NOTHING'S OVER UNTIL I SAY IT'S OVER: If you thought the end of Schilling's season, and perhaps his career, would at least put his feud with Dan Shaughnessy on hold, guess again. Schilling updated his "Not a thing in the world to be upset about" entry on 38pitches.com to call Shaughnessy a liar over a specific piece of Shaughnessy's farewell column the other day -- in which Dan said Schilling announced his impending surgery on WEEI Radio without telling Red Sox management he was doing so -- and then went on to a number of remarkably personal insults, which, if nothing else, will play spectacularly to Schilling's target online audience.

Your serve, Mr. Shaughnessy.

THE CUTTING EDGE: Peter Gammons' latest appearance on ESPN Radio, as reported by Joe Haggerty on his Hacks With Haggs blog, deals with the Red Sox' strengths in protecting their pitchers and in helping players adjust to the big leagues once they arrive in Boston.

KNOCKING ON THE DOOR: Clay Buchholz doesn't want his stay in Pawtucket to be a long one, apparently. Paul Kenyon reports he was dominant last night as he pitched the PawSox to their sixth straight win, 10-1 over Richmond. Speaking of the PawSox, McDonald has news that Mike Timlin will throw an inning for them tonight.

DUELING POLLS: The Red Sox are No. 1 in SI.com's power rankings, but sit third, behind the Cubs and Angels, on foxsports.com.

DEDICATED TO THE ONES I LOVE: One of Chad Finn's most entertaining features on his Touching All The Bases blog is the Random Baseball Cards. Writing for Baseball Analysts, he composes An Ode To Baseball Cards and he concludes with something I've always thought: "The Great American Baseball Card Flipping, Trading, and Bubble Gum Book is a literary classic and should be taught in all high schools throughout the United States and certain parts of Canada."

FISH FRY: James Shields won his first game in more than six weeks last night, but that news got lost in a barrage of hits and runs as the Rays romped to a 15-3 win over the Marlins. The bad news in Tampa Bay: Troy Percival's balky hamstring is still barking and it "could limit his availability indefinitely." (Both stories St. Petersburg Times)

SIGN OF THE TIMES: Our friend Terry Nau, the sports editor of the Pawtucket Times, is a Yankee fan. So what does it say when he writes the Rays are a bigger threat to the Red Sox this year than the Yankees?

FORESIGHT: It's a hot topic today, but Joe Maddon was warning us about maple bats back when his team was still known as the Devil Rays. I had to go to Google to get the cached version of a Tampa Tribune story from July 24, 2007, in which he raised the issue "because I really believe somebody's going to get hurt if there's nothing done about it."

JOBA RULES: "The debate is over," declares Peter Abraham (LoHud Yankees Blog), and it certainly appears that way after Joba Chamberlain pitched 6 2/3 shutout innings in picking up his first win as a starter as the Yankees blanked the Pirates, 8-0. (New York Daily News) The Yanks, point out Abraham, have won four of the five games started by Chamberlain (even though last night was the first time he got credit for the victory) and the evidence is incontrovertible that the best utilization of his skills is in the rotation. Now, he adds, all they need to do is find another starter.

THE LINE FORMS HERE First up in the audition: Sidney Ponson, who will pitch Friday night against the Mets. (New York Daily News) The New York Post says reports of Ponson's being loud and drunk in a St. Petersburg bar the night before he pitched for the Rangers against the Rays last month are greatly exaggerated.

WAS THAT HANK WHO JUST WALKED BY IN THE 'GOT RINGS?' SHIRT? After hearing Hank Steinbrenner say he might feel different about rehiring Willie Randolph had Randolph gone off to manage the Red Sox, ShysterBall's Craig Calcaterra asks, "Does anyone else find it disturbing that the owner of the biggest franchise in American sports sees the world in such a simple, provincial way?" If Hank's father felt that way, we'd have been spared the sights of Wade Boggs, Don Zimmer, Roger Clemens and Johnny Damon in pinstripes. Not to mention Alan Embree and Mike Myers. Or Joe Kerrigan.

SO SORRY: Umpire Brian Runge apologized to Jerry Manuel for his actions during their argument, which led to Manuel's ejection, Tuesday night. (New York Post)

'MAYBE IT SHOULDN'T HAVE HAPPENED': That's about as close to remorse as Shawn Chacon would get after he was suspended for grabbing general manager Ed Wade by the neck and throwing him to the ground during an argument that ensued over the Astros' removing Chacon from their starting rotation. (Houston Chronicle) The Chronicle's Jose de Jesus Ortiz, writing on his blog, thinks "[in] time, I really believe Chacon will regret his actions, but all sides agree there's no way Chacon will ever play in Houston again. On ShysterBall, Calcaterra had a more succinct reaction: "Forgive me for being a lawyer, but when I read [Chacon's comments] . . . I think 'wow, Wade's lawyer could win this one on summary judgment right now!' "

HECK, NO, I WON'T GO: There's no independent-league stint in Barry Bonds' future, according to his agent, Jeff Borris. (espn.com)

HAH? It doesn't appear as if Jim Thome will reach the 664 plate appearances he needs to guarantee his 2009 contract, but he says "stuff like that doesn't cross my mind." (Chicago Sun-Times)

'THAT'S A FIRST': So says Jim Leyland to the news Brandon Inge is headed to the disabled list because he reinjured his oblique muscle while fixing his 3 1/2-year-old son's pillow. (Detroit Free Press)

'THE AGES' IS A RELATIVE TERM: The Rockies made a comeback for the ages last year in reaching first the postseason and then the World Series. Thanks to their puny N.L. West foes, Tracy Ringolsby thinks another one could be in the offing. (foxsports.com)

ONE OUT OF THREE AIN'T BAD: SI.com's John Donovan thinks the Mets may be helped by last week's change of managers, but the other two firings -- by the Mariners and Blue Jays -- won't make any difference at all.

THEY LIKE MIKE: Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports has a nice feature explaining the success of Mike Scioscia with the Angels.

IN DEFENSE OF JOE MORGAN: Joe Posnanski knows it will make him an Internet pariah, but he explains -- and defends -- Morgan's aversion to statistics.

HERE AND THERE: The Nationals have offered Christian Guzman a two-year contract extension (mlb.com) . . . Andy Phillips is the latest big-leaguer to spend time in both New York boroughs as the Mets claimed the ex-Yankee off waivers (foxsports.com) . . . The Pirates have acquired Denny Bautista from the Tigers (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) . . . Francisco Liriano took another step backwards last night, allowing nine hits and six runs in 5 1/3 innings in a start for Rochester against Louisville (Rochester Democrat and Chronicle) . . . Scott Proctor's elbow is apparently why he was "(bleeping) pathetic" (self-description) the other day, and he's headed to the disabled list. (Los Angeles Times) Incidentally, the blog Fifth Outfielder looks into the numbers and is astounded at the love Joe Torre has shown Proctor in both New York and Los Angeles, considering what Proctor has actually delivered when he's pitched . . . Looks like all the optimistic talk was just that, as now the Mariners say Felix Hernandez will miss at least one start because of the sprained ankle he suffered Monday (mlb.com) . . . Hank Blalock's hand is still swollen and he doesn't know when he'll be able to return to the Rangers. (Dallas Morning News)

OLD FRIENDS: Carlos Pena is joining Rhode Island's Rocco Baldelli in Sarasota on rehab (St. Petersburg Times) . . . Jay Payton hit a pair of home runs off Ted Lilly (and is now 10-for-20 in his career against veteran left-hander) in the Orioles' loss to the Cubs (Baltimore Sun) . . . The Dodgers have moved Gary Bennett to the 60-day disabled list (Los Angeles Times) . . . Josh Bard is still at least two weeks away from returning to the Padres. (San Diego Union-Tribune)

AND FINALLY . . . All those "Hi Don and Remdawg!" signs don't cut no mustard in Cleveland, where Orsillo and Remy -- unable to ride Manny Ramirez' coattails, apparently -- had a tough time getting into Jacobs Field one day:

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 6:20 AM | Permalink

Pregame notes: Drew not playing

By Joe McDonald
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON _ Red Sox manager Terry Francona has decided to give J.D. Drew the night off.

The Sox’ right fielder had been scorching at the plate this month – until his last five games. Drew is hitless in his last 13 at-bats, but has hit safely in 17 of 22 games in June with 10 homers and 23 RBI.

During the club’s recent home stand, Drew is 2 for his last 19.

“I thought it was the right thing to do,” said Francona. “The two days will be huge for him.”

Francona does a good job giving players a day off here and there. It’s not like he wakes up in the morning and makes that decision. He will discuss it with the player and his staff before making a lineup change.

Giving players a day off don’t always work for everyone’s benefit.

When Francona was managing in Philadelphia in the late 90s, he spoke with Scott Rolen a week before he wanted to give him a certain Sunday game off. The two agreed it would be the best thing for the player and the club.

Well, the day before Rolen approached Francona and explained the Phillies had scheduled Scott Rolen Bobblehead Day in Philadelphia. Francona, knowing Rolen desperately needed a day off, didn’t relent and stayed with the original plan. The manager was criticized for sitting the fan favorite, but he earned more respect from Rolen and the rest of the players in the clubhouse.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 5:36 PM | Permalink

Pregame notes: Timlin to make rehab appearance

By Joe McDonald
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON _ Red Sox reliever Mike Timlin (knee tendinitis) will make a rehab appearance for the PawSox on Thursday.

The right-hander will throw one inning. According to manager Terry Francona, Timlin had a really good bullpen session on Tuesday. The manager said pitching coach John Farrell was pleased with the session and it’s time to get Timlin going again.

“I think it will be great for him,” said Francona referring to the minor-league rehab. “I think it will be great for him to pitch a little bit. Sometimes you can take advantage of some time to make something better.”

In 24 games for Boston this season, Timlin is 3-3 with a 7.06 ERA.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 5:19 PM | Permalink

Pregame notes: Papelbon bruises arm

By Joe McDonald
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON _ When Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon walks by with a huge bruise on his right arm, it’s very difficult not to notice.

In the clubhouse this afternoon the right-hander, who earned his 22nd save of the season on Tuesday, said he was hit by a line drive off the bat of Sean Casey during batting practice last Saturday.

Red Sox manager Terry Francona was standing and talking with Papelbon behind the second-base screen when the closer got hit.

“I’m glad it hit him and not me,” Francona said jokingly. “Until I saw it was his right arm.”

Papelbon said he's fine.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 5:15 PM | Permalink

Pregame notes: Youkilis back in the lineup

By Joe McDonald
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Red Sox first baseman Kevin Youkilis is back in the starting lineup tonight.

He did not start on Tuesday, but was a ninth-inning defensive replacement. Youkilis was drilled in the right eye when a ball thrown by third baseman Mike Lowell during between-inning warmups on Monday took a short hop and hit Youkilils.

Youkilis suffered a contusion and says he’s fine.

He sent manager Terry Francona a text message this morning and said he was ready to go.

“That was good news,” said the manager. “He still looks like he got beat up.”

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 5:13 PM | Permalink

Pregame notes: Ramirez ready for the outfield

By Joe McDonald
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON _ Red Sox left fielder Manny Ramirez has been bothered by a sore right hamstring for a while, which makes the upcoming interleague series with the Astros at Houston a little more interesting.

During the recent interleague series at Fenway, Ramirez was able to serve as the club’s designated hitter due to American League rules. When the Sox travel to the National League Park there will be no DH, so Ramirez will have to play left field with the sore hamstring.

Red Sox manager Terry Francona said the chances are good that Ramirez will be able to play left field. The slugger’s hamstring is feeling better, and the off-day on Thursday will also help.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 5:10 PM to McDonald , Projo Mannybeingmanny | Permalink

Starting Lineups, June 25

RED SOX

Ellsbury lf
Pedroia 2b
Youkilis 1b
Ramirez dh
Lowell 3b
Crisp cf
Cash c
Moss rf
Lugo ss

Wakefield p

DIAMONDBACKS

Byrnes lf
S. Drew ss
Hudson 2b
Jackson 1b
Tracy dh
Reynolds 3b
Young cf
Montero c
Upton rf

R. Johnson p

-- Steven Krasner
re so

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 4:14 PM | Permalink

Ortiz Swings Lightly

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- David Ortiz, on the disabled list because of a torn tendon sheath in his left wrist, took 25 light swings off a tee Tuesday night.

It was the first time Ortiz had swung a bat since he suffered the injury on May 31 in Baltimore and had to leave the game in the middle of an at-bat.

"It's not ready. It's just weak," said Ortiz a few minutes ago in the Red Sox clubhouse.

"There's a little bit of pain, but it's better than when I hurt it. Then I couldn't even hold onto the bat. I didn't take a full swing. It was very light. I was trying not to miss it," he said.

The session gave Ortiz and the Sox' medical staff a baseline for where he is in his recovery. That information will be helpful in determining at what pace Ortiz will be able to rehab the injured wrist. Ortiz said he thinks he's probably "a couple, three weeks away" from playing in a game, and he acknowledges that he will need some at-bats in rehab games in the minors before he'll be able to rejoin the Red Sox.

"We're pretty much where they expected," said Ortiz of his medical staff. "I was a little disappointed. I want to be playing. There's not too much I can do about it but wait. It's a healing process. It's better than what it was."

Ortiz is expected to join the Red Sox on their trip to Houston, Tampa Bay and New York, which begins with a night game against the Astros on Friday night. He was batting .252 with 13 homers and 43 RBI when he suffered the injury.

Manager Terry Francona was pleased with the session, taking it for what it was, a first step.

"His swings were not real aggressive. There's got to be a place to start. Before we go on the road the (medical staff) wanted to see where he was. It's slow at first, but everything is going as planned," said Francona.

"David did what he was supposed to. Players want to go from zero to 100, which they can't. Down deep, David knows it went pretty well. He wants to be in there now. We'll build up his reps and intensity leading to soft toss, batting practice and eventually into some games," said Francona.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 3:43 PM | Permalink

1912 Red Sox World Series trophy soon to be auctioned

June 25 (Bloomberg) -- A trophy commemorating the Boston Red Sox' 1912 World Series victory and bestowed to the manager by John F. Kennedy's grandfather will be auctioned in the next four months.

The 11-inch sterling silver piece was given to Jake Stahl, who managed the Red Sox and played first base, and is inscribed with his name. John Fitzgerald, the Boston mayor known as "Honey-Fitz," presented Stahl with the award and hosted a reception honoring the team at Faneuil Hall.

Boston capped its first year at Fenway Park by defeating the New York Giants to capture the championship, the second in franchise history. It's not an official World Series trophy because Major League Baseball didn't begin giving those out until 1967.

Arlan Ettinger, president of New York auction house Guernsey's, which is conducting the sale, said he's not sure how much the piece will sell for because there is nothing comparable from that era.

"It's impossible to say," Ettinger said in an interview. "For the team that gets the most fan interest up there, this is like the Holy Grail."

World Series trophies have sold for varying amounts at auction because prior to 2000, teams would produce replicas for owners, players and club executives. A Pittsburgh Pirates' World Series trophy from 1960 sold for $8,600 at auction, while the club's 1979 trophy went for $25,066.

Mike Heffner, president of the auction house Lelands Inc., said the Red Sox trophy has "a little more pizzazz to it," though it's not worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Red Sox spokeswoman Abby DeCiccio didn't immediately comment.

A Second Trophy

The trophy was in the Stahl family's possession until 1996, when it was sold at an estate auction, said Ettinger, who is selling the piece for an unidentified collector. A second trophy awarded to Red Sox owner James McAleer is believed to be lost, he said. A photograph of the championship club featuring Hall of Fame players Tris Speaker and Harry Hooper accompanies the item.

Boston beat New York in eight games in the 1912 Series, with one of the contests ending in a tie due to darkness. The Red Sox defeated a Giants squad led by pitchers Christy Mathewson and Rube Marquard, who were both inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 1:41 PM | Permalink

Projo SoxTalk with McAdam: Varitek busts out

Click the play button below to hear Sean's comments, recorded this morning. The topics: Mike Lowell's clutch-hitting prowess; Jason Varitek's slump-breaking, game-winning single; the slumping Drew brothers; and tonight's meeting with Randy Johnson.

Here are some excerpts from Sean's comments:

On Lowell: "While he missed essentially three weeks and didn't hit his first home run until the first week of May, he has made a number of his hits come at particularly critical times for the Red Sox, and last night was no exception."

On Varitek: "He has always been a very up-and-down guy at the plate. His swing tends to get a little long when he's not going well -- certainly 0 for 24, 4 for 47 is the very definition of not going well. But he's always working at it, even though it's sometimes difficult to find time for him to staighten things out at the plate because he has so many responsibilities behind the plate as a catcher, kind of calling the game, and preparing and looking at scouting reports. ... Then you add in the fact that he's a switch hitter and almost has to approach each side of the plate individually in terms of his swing, mechanics everything else. It's been a pattern throughout his career that when he gets into a free fall it lasts for a while, but the flipside of that is that he can get hot for an extended period, and maybe ... it is starting to turn around for Varitek."

On Johnson: "Even though he's 6-10, throwing in the 90s, that slider doesn't have the sharp break to it that it once did. The fastball has lost a few miles per hour on the radar gun. He's still, I would imagine, not very fun to hit against, but he's not the dominant guy that he was, and clearly were seeing the winding down of a Hall of Fame career."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 12:51 PM to Projo SoxTalk with Sean McAdam | Permalink

Projo blogs upgrade set for Saturday

Saturday morning we plan to upgrade the active projo blogs to a new version of the Movable Type software. All blogs will remain available during this process. Afterwards you’ll see a new look and some new features, and we’ll welcome your comments about them.

Posted by Sheila Lennon  at 7:00 AM | Permalink

Baseball Today: Wednesday, June 25

Journal photo / Gretchen Ertl

CAPTAIN CRUNCH: "It’s frequently said about [Jason] Varitek," writes Sean McAdam, "that his main contribution comes from behind — not at — the plate and that any offense he provides is purely a bonus. But this was getting ridiculous."

That it was. According to calculations from Baseball Musings' Day By Day Database, Varitek entered last night's game hitting .127 (10-for-79) in the one-month period since May 24, with correspondingly horrid on-base (.198) and slugging (.190) percentages. Those numbers didn't get any better in his first three at-bats, either, as an 0-for-3 dropped Varitek to 10-for-his-last-82 (including 4-for-his-last-47). So when Mike Lowell walked to the plate in the eighth inning with runners on second and third, two outs, and the Diamondbacks holding a 4-2 lead, a lot of people -- yours truly among them -- expected Arizona manager Bob Melvin to defy baseball dogma and intentionally walk Lowell, putting the go-ahead run on base, because the on-deck hitter was Varitek. But Melvin, writes Steven Krasner in his Inside The Game feature, didn't bite, and he paid for it: Lowell doubled off the wall, tying the game. (Had he been up on his stats, Melvin might have been even more reluctant to pitch to Lowell.) And then, reports Joe McDonald, Varitek came through anyway with a single to right (above), driving in Lowell and giving the Red Sox a come-from-behind 5-4 win.

McAdam says the relief in the stoic Varitek's demeanor was almost palpable after the game, and there's no questioning how happy Terry Francona was. You don't have to hit much when you're as valuable to a team in as many ways as Varitek, but you do have to hit something. Last night, that "something" enabled the Red Sox to come away with a victory on a night when, reports Krasner, they were baffled for the first seven innings by the soft-tossing Doug Davis.

AND THE BENFICIARIES WERE . . . Justin Masterson, who avoided being saddled with a loss after six laborious innings, and Chris Smith, who got his first major-league win with two sterling innings of relief. Krasner and McDonald have the details.

QUITE A SIGHT: Kevin Youkilis (left, shown in the dugout during the game) reported to the ballpark with a shiner, some swelling, and, writes McAdam, an attitude in the wake of being hit in the eye by an errant Lowell throw during between-innings warmups Monday night. He didn't start the game, but he did come and play first base in the ninth inning to finish it out. ALSO ON THE RECOVERY LIST: David Ortiz may begin hitting off a tee today in anticipation of his return to the lineup, which is still a couple of weeks away. McAdam has the report. SUSPENSION UPDATES: Coco Crisp is still awaiting word on his appeal and McAdam notes it could cause a problem; if the suspension kicks in this weekend and Manny Ramirez is still unable to play the field because of his hamstring problems, the Sox could be short of outfielders during their three-game series in Houston. Sean Casey, meanwhile, is in the middle of his three-game ban and Krasner reports he's chomping at the bit to get back.

SWEET: There are people around here who are getting sick of it, but the nightly Sweet Caroline chorus is really something to people -- like the Arizona Republic's Nick Piecoro -- who've never heard it. Check the column on the right for his take.

IT'S REACHED THESE EARS . . . That Jerry Remy isn't too thrilled with NESN's latest hire, Heidi Watney. At least that what Baseball Musings' David Pinto is hearing; he passes it along in a post saluting Remy, who -- as you know if you watched any of last night's broadcast -- was honored by NESN and the Red Sox yesterday. You can see some pictures from the ceremony, and the game, in last night's projo.com slideshow.

HOW FAIR IS THAT?? The blog Fire Brand of the American League isn't happy about the disparity in the quality of interleague schedules for the Red Sox and Yankees; taking away their common opponents (the Reds and Astros), the Sox' N.L. foes are a combined 27 games over .500 and the Yanks' are 17 games under .500. Maybe so, but it's hard to muster much outrage since the Sox are 9-5 in interleague play this year and the Yankees are 7-5.

MINOR MONSTERS: In case you haven't noticed, the Pawtucket Red Sox are having quite the season. Rob Lee tells us about it.

HOME RUNS: Ex-Sox star Mo Vaughn is buying two threatened apartment complexes in Boston as part of his expanding campaign to preserve low-cost housing. (Boston Globe)

WALKING THE WALK: The Rays were the beneficiaries of a pair of two-out, bases-loaded walks in the eighth inning, which enabled them to take the lead, and then survived a four-walk peformance in the bottom of the ninth by closer Troy Percival as they beat the Marlins, 6-4, in a sloppy game in which some uncharacteristic Tampa Bay defensive lapses aided almost all of Florida's rallies. (Tampa Tribune) Joe Maddon wasn't basking in any all-that-counts-is-the-final-score glow afterwards, warning his young troops that "we're not going to beat the Red Sox, and the Yankees as they're coming on, and all these really good teams, if we continue to make these kind of mistakes. They've got to go away. Mistakes of assuming. Mistakes of assumption. Just mistakes (that) have to be eradicated. Mental mistakes." (St. Petersburg Times) But Maddon didn't escape criticism, either; the blog DRays Bay chided him for sticking with Percival during the closer's ninth-inning walk on the wild side.

TIMING IS EVERYTHING IN LIFE: And it appears the Rays will survive the anticipated serving of Akinori Iwamura's suspension this weekend just fine thanks to the return of Ben Zobrist and the fact that Jason Bartlett's wife will have their baby in time for him to get back to the team by Friday. (St. Petersburg Times)

SPIRIT OF '60: The Yankees hadn't played a game in Pittsburgh in nearly 48 years; the last time they were there, Bill Mazeroski was homering over Yogi Berra's head in the bottom of the ninth inning of Game Seven to give the Pirates one of the most improbable World Series victories of all time. (baseball-reference.com) But there was no revenge forthcoming last night, as the Bucs -- who trotted out Mazeroski to throw out the first pitch (mlb.com) -- routed Darrell Rasner and coasted to a 12-5 victory. (New York Daily News) Joe Girardi, for one, wasn't very pleased. (New York Post)

EVER HEAR OF REASSESSING YOUR OPTIONS, JOE? While Peter Abraham admires Joe Girardi's loyalty to (or, as he puts it, "blind faith in") his players, he thinks continuing to send Kyle Farnsworth out to pitch the eighth -- in the absence of any evidence Farnsworth is actually good at that particular job -- is getting ridiculous. (LoHud Yankees Blog)

DON'T WORRY ABOUT ME: Sidney Ponson's already tarnished reputation was marred further by recent goings-on in Texas -- prompting the pitching-poor Rangers to a) release him and b) say they were better off without him no matter how well he was performing -- but he's with the Yankees now (actually, with their Triple-A team in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre) and he promises "to be low key . . . a ghost if possible." (New York Post)

ON PROBATION: Phil Allard of NYYFans.com hands out his midseason Yankee report card. I doubt it's going to be pasted on anyone's refrigerator.

ONE OF US: Hank Steinbrenner says that if Willie Randolph "had left [the Yankees] to [manage] the Red Sox, maybe I would have had a problem with that." But it was only the Mets, so Hank says Randolph -- "a Yankee, and he'll always be a Yankee" -- can have a job with the Yanks any old time. (New York Post)

WELL, THAT DIDN'T TAKE LONG: The love-fest that seemed to be building for Jerry Manuel in Mets Nation over the weekend came to a screeching halt after back-to-back drubbings at the hands of the woeful Mariners, and now Manuel is warning that "tough decisions" are in the offing if things don't improve very soon. (New York Post) It looks one of those tough decisions may be determining the fate of hitting coach Howard Johnson (New York Daily News), whose job can't be too secure after Manuel declared the Mets are a "bad offensive club."

FIRED UP: At least the Mets -- or some of them, anyway -- are still playing with passion. Carlos Beltran got tossed for arguing balls and strikes and called umpire Brian Runge's actions "weak" and "brutal," adding that "[if] I get suspended, he also should get suspended." (New York Daily News)

KID STUFF: First he angered the Mets by appearing to angle for Willie Randolph's seat when Randolph was still sitting in it. Now he's taking on the Yankees, claiming Joe Girardi's main qualification for their managing job is "[the] pictures . . . [he] must have on Steinbrenner." (New York Post) In these politically correct times, Gary Carter is a breath of fresh air . . . or something.

COINCIDENCE . . . OR NOT: The epidemic of broken maple bats was addressed by MLB yesterday -- or at least MLB started to address it -- with a conference call in New York of baseball's Safety and Health Advisory Committee to discuss player and fan safety. Among the results: The committee will consult with bat manufacturers and experts in the field, conduct field studies, conduct laboratory tests of bats, and gather information about protective measures in Major League ballparks. And then last night, to underscore just how urgent this issue is becoming, umpire Brian O'Nora was hit in the head by a piece of a broken maple bat in the Kansas City-Colorado game and had to be taken to the hospital for observation. (Both stories mlb.com)

EVERYTHING'S OKAY IN MY WORLD: The New York Daily News has a nice piece on Astros farmhand Koby Clemens, who isn't letting his father's troubles distract him as he strives to reach the major leagues.

'GETTING RIDICULOUS': That's Pinto's take on the gap between the American League and the National League, as A.L. teams now have a 109-76, .589 edge in this year's round of interleague play.

GET YOUR CHECKBOOKS READY: With the state of pitching being what it is in the major leagues, any decent starter figures to make a killing on the open market. And so it is that Ben Sheets announced yesterday he has every intention of becoming a free agent after the season. (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel)

WELCOME BACK: It's hard to say who was more emotional, Omar Vizquel or the Indians fans, as the veteran shortstop returned to Cleveland for the first time since his 11-year run with the Tribe ended in 2004. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)

NEVER HAPPENED: Adam Dunn says that, prior to reports out of Toronto, he didn't call J.P. Ricciardi to discuss Ricciardi's swipe at him on a radio show last week. (Cincinnati Enquirer) Nor, he says, does he intend to.

HOW DARE YOU? The blogosphere, particularly in Chicago, is up in arms over Joe Morgan's insinuation on national television Sunday night that Ernie Banks' career home-run total was inflated by the "basket" placed atop the bleacher walls at Wrigley Field (Walkoff Walk blog) The "basket," they point out, wasn't put up until 1970, only a year before Banks retired, and some, like Bleed Cubbie Blue, want Morgan fired.

HERE AND THERE: It's official: Nick Johnson is out for the season (Washington Post) . . . More bad news for the Nationals: Shawn Hill appears headed for the DL (Washington Times) . . . Josh Hamilton left last night's game because of left knee inflammation, but even though it's the same knee on which he underwent surgery in 2006 the Rangers don't seem to think it's anything serious (Dallas Morning News) . . . Erik Bedard may be headed back to the disabled list because of a bad back (Seattle Times) . . . Jon Lieber, wasting away in the dustiest corner of the Cubs bullpen, is talking retirement at the end of the year (Chicago Tribune) . . . Like Curt Schilling, John Smoltz isn't quite ready to say he's all done (Atlanta Journal-Consititution) . . . The Astros' Kaz Matsui is headed for the disabled list. (Houston Chronicle)

OLD FRIENDS: Johnny Damon's foot hurts and he admits he may need to go on the disabled list (New York Daily News) . . . Bronson Arroyo's been talking recently like he doesn't want to leave Cincinnati, and he may not have anything to worry about anymore. His trade value is probably negligible today after he was pounded for 11 hits and 10 runs in one-plus innings as the Blue Jays routed the Reds, 14-1 (Dayton Daily News) . . . The rehabbing Eric Gagne pitched a perfect inning for the Nashville Sounds last night (oursportscentral.com) and will make one more minor-league appearance before rejoining the Brewers . . . There was a rare Andy Marte sighting in the Indians game last night, and rotoworld.com thinks Cleveland needs to figure out what to do with the one-time phenom . . . Speaking of the Indians, they signed Tony Graffanino to a minor-league deal (Cleveland Plain Dealer) . . . Phil Dumatrait, who was placed on the disabled list by the Pirates on Sunday, has been diagnosed with left shoulder bursitis (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review) . . . For the second time in a month, Julian Tavarez appeared to accept, but then ultimately rejected, an assignment to the minor leagues. This time he turned down Milwaukee's request to go to Triple-A Nashville and is now once again a free agent. (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel)

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 6:46 AM | Permalink

Postgame notes: Pedroia going yard

Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia crushed a solo home run in the first inning and now has three homers in the last nine games to bring his season total to seven.

He also has six homers in his last 33 games after just one through his first 45 games this season.

Pedroia's roundtripper Tuesday night landed in the Monster Seats.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 11:33 PM | Permalink

Casey Sitting Out

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Sean Casey is sitting out the second game of his three-game suspension for his part in the June 5 brawl with the Rays.

Watching the first game wasn't easy, on two counts, for Casey, who dropped his appeal on Monday.

"It was weird because you feel alienated from the team," said Casey, the Sox' backup first baseman. "That's the way it will be for a couple of days."

Adding to Casey's restlessness was the fact that starting first baseman, Kevin Youkilis, had to leave the game before the start of the fifth because an errant throw during infield practice from Mike Lowell struck him under the eye.

That thrust rookie Brandon Moss into the game. Moss, normally an outfielder, was making his big-league debut at the position, and his inability to come up cleanly with a grounder in the seventh gave Arizona what proved to be the winning run.

"When that happened to Youk I wondered if I could re-appeal my appeal," said Casey with a laugh.

Casey could sympathize with Youkilis.

"I never got hit in the eye like that, but I've been hit on the lip," said Casey. "You know, it's between innings, you're not really grinding to go out and make that "pick" and boom, something like that happens."

Casey will return to the active roster on Friday, in Houston.

"You've got two more days and then out of jail," good-naturedly yelled Alex Cora to Casey in the clubhouse this afternoon. "Eating pizza, drinking beer and watching a game. That would be nice."

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 8:14 PM | Permalink

Photo: Sliding home -- and the game hasn't even started

Journal photo/ Gretchen Ertl
Arizona Diambondbacks starting pitcher Micah Owings slides into home at Fenway Park as the rain begins to let up before tonight's game against the Boston Red Sox. The game was being delayed because of the wet conditions.

Posted by Andrea Panciera  at 7:33 PM | Permalink

RED SOX PREGAME: Youkilis -- his eye swollen and his vision blurred -- out of the lineup

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- First baseman Kevin Youkilis remains out of the lineup, a day after leaving mid-game when he struck in the right eye by an errant throw during between-inning warmups.

Youkilis was struck in the eye by a throw from Mike Lowell Monday night and immediately suffered significant swelling. Today, the eye remains swolen and because of watering in the eye, he's experiencing some blurred vision.

The Red Sox have sent him to Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary to be examined, where it's expected the eye will be dilated.

"He looks like he got beat up," said manager Terry Francona.

The swelling and blurring "would make it hard to hit," said Francona, so the Sox hope that by Wednesday, he'll be ready to return to the lineup.

Brandon Moss, who made his major league debut at first Monday night, is the starting first baseman. Alex Cora is the backup option, with Youkilis unavailable and Sean Casey serving the middle game of his three-game suspension.

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 4:31 PM | Permalink

RED SOX PREGAME: Still no word on status of Crisp's suspension appeal

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- There is still no word about the status of Coco Crisp's appeal of his seven-game suspension.

The fear is that, even if Crisp gets some reduction, he might have to start serving the suspension this weekend in Houston, where, without the use of the DH, the Sox will need to put Manny Ramirez (hamstring) back into the lineup.

Without Crisp, that would leave Moss as the only extra outfielder. If Ramirez felt any tightness, that would put Moss in left and leave the Sox with only Alex Cora and/or Julio Lugo as outfield possibilities.

Manager Terry Francona said the team has given thought to just that scenario, but for now, the Sox believe that Ramirez will hold up.

If the team needs to summon an outfielder, it could choose from among Jonathan Van Every or Chris Carter from Pawtucket.

Posted by Art Martone  at 4:30 PM | Permalink

RED SOX PREGAME: Ortiz to make road trip; Sox to proceed slowly with Colon

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- David Ortiz (wrist) will travel with the team to Houston, Tampa Bay and New York when the club departs Wednesday night for its 10-game road trip.

Before he leaves, Ortiz might take some swings off a tee Wednesday, so doctors can evaluate him before the road trip.

Ortiz has had the cast removed from the wrist but is still two weeks from returrning to the lineup.

* * *
Manager Terry Francona said the team will proceed carefully with pitcher Bartolo Colon, who is on the disabled list with lower back tightness.

"We're going to slow (his rehab process) down for another week," said Francona, "just to make sure we don't have a problem like last time."

Colon had an oblique strain earlier this season, but suffered a setback that slowed his progress.

Posted by Art Martone  at 4:29 PM | Permalink

Sox-D'backs lineups

BOSTON

Ellsbury LF
Pedroia 2B
Drew RF
Ramirez DH
Lowell 3B
Varitek C
Moss 1B
Crisp CF
Lugo SS

Masterson SP

ARIZONA

Byrnes LF
Drew SS
Hudson 2B
Jackson 1B
Tracy DH
Young CF
Ojeda 3B
Salazar RF
Snyder C

Davis SP

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 4:20 PM | Permalink

Projo SoxTalk with McAdam: Bats silent at Fenway

Click the play button below to hear Sean's comments, recorded this morning. The topics: whether the Red Sox are missing David Ortiz more now than a week ago, the odd situation at first base last night, and the prospects of a trade for a second starting pitcher.

Here are some excerpts from Sean's comments:

On missing Ortiz: "I think it is starting to catch up to them. They seemed to be OK for the first couple of weeks. They were certainly riding J.D. Drew for the first couple of weeks of June, as he slid into that number-three spot and for a while at least there was no dropoff. But I suppose that it's inevitable that if you take a run producer of that magnitude out of the lineup for this long, it starts showing some effects, and I think we've seen it in the last week."

On the market for starting pitching: "Last year and the year before there was virtually no quality starting pitching available [at the trade deadline]. This year it looks like there's going to be a number of guys, including a number of left-handed guys, who are usually at even more of a premium. There will be some opportunities if the Red Sox want to upgrade. It will not be cheap of course. ... There will be plenty of teams looking -- the Yankees, Philadelphia, a number of teams are going to be in the market for starting pitching, and the Red Sox have to, like every other team, weigh the cost."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 1:31 PM to Projo SoxTalk with Sean McAdam | Permalink

Baseball Today: Tuesday, June 24

AP Photos

FACEOFF: They say reality never matches anticipation, but that wasn't the case last night. We figured we'd get quite a pitching duel between Josh Beckett (above left) and Dan Haren (above right), and did we ever. In the end, reports Joe McDonald, Haren was just a shade better as he pitched the Diamondbacks to a 2-1 win over the Red Sox, but it wasn't easy. He escaped a second-and-third, two-out jam in his final inning, the seventh, by striking out Jason Varitek. Then, in the eighth, after reliever Tony Pena had surrendered the only Boston run on a bases-loaded sacrifice fly by J.D. Drew, Manny Ramirez almost beheaded Mark Reynolds with a scorching line drive that, writes Steven Krasner, knocked the Arizona third baseman to the ground; Reynolds, however, held on for the final out, preventing the tying run from scoring.

The Diamondbacks scored both their runs in the seventh, which Krasner says was the result of a good piece of hitting by Chris Young and a good piece of strategy by manager Bob Melvin. Not to mention some good Arizona fortune; Kevin Youkilis was forced from the game in the fifth after a bounced throw from Mike Lowell during pre-inning warmups hit him in the eye (projo.com) and the inexperience of his replacement, Brandon Moss, may have been a factor in the Diamondbacks' second run. And Moss was only in there because Sean Casey last night began serving his four-game suspension for his role in the fight with Tampa Bay earlier this month. (projo.com)

In the end, it lived up to its billing. And how often does that happen?

OCTOBER IN JUNE: The Diamondbacks came to town on the heels of three straight losses to the Twins, and perhaps for that reason they were reveling in last night's win a bit more intensely than you'd expect. Or maybe it was just because it came against the defending World Series champions at one of baseball's shrines. Whatever, the Arizona Republic's Nick Piecoro said that, for the D'backs, the victory "felt nearly as meaningful as any playoff victory." On his Diamondbacks Blog, Piecoro talks more about how much some of the young Arizona players were soaking up the atmosphere at Fenway . . . and he seemed awed by it himself, particularly during Ramirez' at-bat in the eighth inning.

SAVIOR: Thanks to Daisuke Matsuzaka's one (inning)-and-done on Saturday, and the 13-inning game Sunday, the Boston bullpen had a severe case of the shorts last night. The Sox needed Beckett to give them a long outing, and he delivered. (Boston Globe)

FEELING IT AT LAST: Baseball Musings' David Pinto notes the Red Sox have scored only 25 runs in their last seven games and wonders if David Ortiz' absence is finally catching up with them.

FOLLOWING IN THE FOOTSTEPS: You hardly ever hear anyone say surgery went worse than expected, so Dr. Craig Morgan was a true baseball traditionalist when he announced that Curt Schilling's shoulder operation "was a success." (projo.com) The Herald's Rob Bradford was in Delaware with the Schillings and has a more detailed report.

YAY, CURT! Terry Francona tells McDonald he's never really thought whether or not Schilling belongs in the Hall of Fame, but says he'd be "a cheerleader for [Schilling's candidacy] because he’s pitched for me for so long."

YEA, CURT: Tim Marchman of the New York Sun delivers another 'yes' vote in the Schilling-for-Cooperstown debate.

NOW WHAT? The news that Schilling is finished for the season, and maybe forever, prompted everyone to look back at his sterling career. Now Sean McAdam looks ahead and asks if, with Schilling gone, the Red Sox will be in the market for a No. 2 starting pitcher at the trade deadline since you can't help but wonder if they "have enough experienced starting pitching to withstand three rounds of baseball in October." This is, of course, based on the notion that Jon Lester is still battle-untested, at least when it comes to the postseason (Game Four of last year's World Series notwithstanding), and they have absolutely no idea what to expect out of the riddle wrapped in mystery inside an enigma that is Dice-K.

SLOW IT DOWN: On his Hacks With Haggs blog, Joe Haggerty talks with pitching coach John Farrell about Lester. Among the more interesting tidbits: The Sox may lessen his workload in the weeks ahead to bring down his innings total; right now he's on pace to throw 211 this year, and they think that might be too high.

FAREWELL TO THE BIG LUG: No one can accuse Dan Shaughnessy of being Curt Schilling's best friend -- or vice-versa -- but Shaughnessy gives Schilling his props in a goodbye column. (Boston Globe) And at the risk of offending "the fragile psyches of Schill-o-phants, blog-boys, and others who worship at the altar of Curt," that goodbye includes inquiries to ownership as to whether they regret the $8 million contract they gave him last November, for which they received absolutely nothing.

BEST WISHES: Also on Schilling's not-my-best-friend list is Randy Johnson, his partner at the top of the Diamondbacks' starting rotation in the early part of the decade. But the Herald's Steve Buckley reports the Big Unit also has nothing but good wishes for Schilling, and even hopes he'll be able to return so he can "go out on his own terms, like I’m doing."

THE NEW TRADITION: From here on in, we can be fairly certain a weather delay at Fenway Park will mean only one thing: A showing of the Jonathan Papelbon/Manny Delcarmen video "Blame It On The Rain." Haven't seen it? (Don't worry; you will.) Well, it you can't wait, check it out on Ian Bethune's Sox and Dawgs site.

ENOUGH, ALREADY: The nationwide backlash against Boston's recent sporting fortunes -- and, more specifically, the fans who are basking in it -- is reaching epidemic proportions, which prompted Red Sox fan Russ Smith (who lives in Baltimore) to offer a defense for his fellow Nation members. Shysterball's Craig Calcaterra thinks the bandwagon fans will abandon the Sox eventually and says "it's those marginal fans ["I spent two years of grad school in Boston, so I'm a total Sawx fan!"] who are the most annoying."

ACCURACY IN POLLING? Derek Jeter, the most overrated player in baseball according to SI's player poll, is playing like it so far this year. (New York Daily News)

MELK DELIVERY: Steven Goldman, writing for the New York Sun, thinks the Yankees may have gotten about all they're going to get out of Melky Cabrera and says they should trade him for pitching.

IF THAT'S THE CASE, THEN ANYTHING'S POSSIBLE It's possible Carl Pavano will be pitching again for the Yankees before Phil Hughes. (New York Post)

THE INSIDE STORY: SI.com's Jon Heyman takes a closer look at what went into the firing of Willie Randolph. Meanwhile, Mets owner Fred Wilpon defends the move and the man who made it, Omar Minaya. (Newsday)

WATCH YOUR MOUTH: The 'fertilizer' incident has taught new manager Jerry Manuel there are things he can say, and things he can't say, now that he's managing in New York. (New York Daily News)

CAN'T WIN FOR LOSING: Three innings after becoming the first American League pitcher to hit a grand-slam home run since 1972, Felix Hernandez suffered an ankle injury that forced him out of the Mariners' game at Shea Stadium. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer) The M's still beat the Mets, though, and Hernandez vows he won't miss a start.

WHAT IT'S LIKE: Our friend Jason Rosenberg of the blog It Is About The Money, Stupid has a fascinating interview with player agent Matt Sosnick. Among the interesting tidbits in Sosnick's remarks: That there's no organized conspiracy to keep Mitchell Report players out of baseball ("the risk doesn’t equal the reward"), that the level of competition and bitterness between agents competing for players is incomprehensible ("worse than you can ever imagine") and what's the most important character trait to be a successful agent ("character, not deception"). A very good read, and well worth the time to click the link.

LAYING IT OUT THERE: Dennis Manoloff of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reaches no conclusion as to whether they will or not, but he examines all the factors that would go into the Indians' deciding whether or not to trade C.C. Sabathia.

FIRST UP: As McAdam noted, there could be a lot of big-name pitchers -- Sabathia, Erik Bedard, Rich Harden, Roy Oswalt, Greg Maddux -- available next month. That being the case, expect to hear about many teams lining up to acquire them. Beating the rush and getting right in line: The Phillies (Philadelphia Inquirer) and the Cubs (Chicago Tribune).

(11:30 a.m. update) MOVE OVER, BUCKNER: Our buddy the Tao of Stieb saved us from ourselves: The Keith Law-J.P. Ricciardi dustup we had linked to in this spot earlier in the day is a couple of years old. (Since Vernon Wells signed a long-term deal with the Blue Jays in 2006, we kinda should have known that.) Now I know why Kevin Youkilis gets so frustrated when something goes wrong; unlike Youk, however, I have no umpire to blame. Sorry, folks. (And thanks, Tao, for the heads-up!)

HERE AND THERE: It looks like Gary Sheffield's return from the disabled list will come sooner rather than later (Detroit Free Press) . . . It doesn't appear Ian Snell will need to go on the DL (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review) . . . The snakebitten Nick Johnson may miss the rest of the season because of a wrist injury (Washington Post) . . . The Mariners don't expect J.J. Putz to return until the All-Star break (Seattle Times) . . . Omar Vizquel may be losing his starting job in San Francisco. (San Jose Mercury News)

OLD FRIENDS: The St. Petersburg Times lists Eric Hinske as one of the four unheralded Rays who've helped Tampa Bay so far this year . . . The Rays think Carlos Pena is still a week away from returning to the lineup (Tampa Tribune) . . . The Cardinals are moving Matt Clement to the bullpen due to his inconsistency as a starter during his rehab. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

AND FINALLY . . . Our thanks to Pinto for tipping us off to this incredible catch by a ballgirl at a minor-league game:

http://view.break.com/524970 - Watch more free videos

Word is filtering in that it's a fake, but so what? It's still worth watching.

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 6:30 AM | Permalink | Comments 1

Arizona 2, Boston 1

By Joe McDonald
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON _ It was slated as a pitchers’ duel. It was a pitchers’ duel.

The Sox’ Josh Beckett and the Diamondbacks’ Dan Haren painted masterpieces. The pair of right-handers entered lMonday night's interleague game at Fenway with matching 7-4 records. Haren was slightly better in the ERA department with a 3.26 compared to Beckett’s 3.87.

The clash was everything it was hyped up to be – and then some.

In the end, however, it was Haren who was a little bit better as Arizona barely defeated Boston, 2-1. Haren completely dominated and finished seven solid scoreless innings and allowed just two hits with one walk and five strikeouts. He threw 98 pitches, 61 for strikes.

“I’ll tell you what, he can reach back for a fastball when he needs it and his off-speed stuff is so good, along with the deception he creates in his delivery, he really did a good job against us,” said Red Sox manager Terry Francona.

Beckett was almost equally impressive with his eight-inning performance. He allowed only two runs – both in the seventh inning – on five hits with two walks and eight strikeouts. He threw 115 pitches, 75 for strikes.

“He’s tough,” said Beckett referring to Haren. “It don’t matter who he is pitching against. He throws the balls on the black pretty much the whole time with all of his pitches. That’s why he is regarded as one of the best.”

Both hurlers were bringing it from the start to thrill the 37,694 in attendance.

“Sometimes it’s better when we score nine,” said Beckett as Boston combined for only four hits. “It seems like we win a lot more of those games. It’s fun to sit over there when you’re pitching because you’re more locked than any other day when you’re not pitching. It’s fun to watch a guy work like that, obviously it’s a little more fun when you’re on the winning end.”

Beckett, making his 14th start of the season, allowed only three hits through the first six innings until he surrendered a pair of runs in the seventh as Arizona gained a 2-0 advantage.

Haren completely kept the Red Sox off balance all night. He retired the first six batters he faced before he allowed his first hit of the game to Sox’ Jason Varitek in the third inning. Varitek doubled to snap a 0-for-24 skid, the longest slump of his career. It went for naught, however, as he was left stranded.

The only other hit Haren allowed was a single in the seventh inning to Mike Lowell. Haren was done after seven full innings, but the Diamondbacks’ bullpen couldn’t keep the Boston bats quiet for long.

After Beckett retired the side in order in the top of the eighth, the Red Sox loaded the bases on Arizona reliever Tony Pena.

With one out, the right-hander walked Julio Lugo and surrendered back-to-back singles to Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia. J.D. Drew drove in Boston’s only run of the game with a sacrifice fly to center field before Manny Ramirez lined out to third.

That ball was hit so hard it was as though he shot it out of a Civil War cannon. Fortunately, Diamondbacks’ third baseman Mark Reynolds was able to snare the scorching liner before it decapitated him.

“Manny’s at-bat was a great at-bat,” said Francona. “You’ve got a guy throwing 97 and Manny hit a ball about as hard as you can hit it. He almost hit it through the third baseman. It was disappointing it was an out, but not disappointing in his approach.”

Pena was out of his jam, but Boston’s deficit was cut to one, 2-1.

Another reason Beckett’s eight-inning performance was key for Boston was due to its overly taxed bullpen, which had worked a total of 13 innings on Saturday and Sunday. So, Red Sox reliever David Aardsma was given the ball in the top of the ninth.

The hard-throwing right-hander loaded the bases, including a single, walk, sacrifice bunt and intentional walk. With one out, Aardsma struck out back-to-back hitters, both on 97 MPH fastballs to end the threat.

"He's always had the arm and there's a lot to like," said Francona. "Now he's starting to throw the ball where he wants to a little bit more. We're seeing some pretty good results."

Former Red Sox reliever and Diamondbacks closer Brandon Lyon retired the side in order in the bottom of the ninth to hold on to the win.

The only thing missing in this pitchers’ standoff was the Old Western music playing in the background as Beckett and the Red Sox lay on the ground with Haren and the Diamondbacks standing over with a smoking gun – Haren’s right arm.

“That was a good one,” said Francona of the pitchers’ performances. “Beckett was outstanding, also. That was two really good pitchers.”

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 11:28 PM | Permalink

Late Red Sox Notes

J.D. Drew drove in the only Red Sox run on a sacrifice fly in the eighth inning. It was Drew's 23rd RBI in 21 games this month. Drew, however, had his second straight hitless game...Arizona, which swept the Red Sox in interleague play back in 2002, is now 4-0 in four games at Fenway. The Diamondbacks are the only team the Sox have hosted at Fenway and never beaten...When Dustin Pedroia struck out in the third inning, it snapped a stretch of 72 straight plate appearances without striking out, the longest active streak in the major leagues. His last strikeout had come back on June 4 against Tampa Bay.

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 11:24 PM | Permalink

Postgame: Aardsma Becoming Mr. K

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- David Aardsma was pitching on fumes.

But the right-hander ignored his fatigue, took the ball and blazed his way out of trouble in the ninth inning, racking up a couple more dominant strikeouts with his blazing fastball.

Aardsma worked out of a bases-loaded, one-out jam by whiffing Justin Upton and Eric Byrnes. His last pitch, a 97 mph heater that was up, simply blew away Byrnes, keeping it a 2-1 deficit.

It was yet another in a string of eye-popping performances by Aardsma.

He was working for the third time in four days, and he had been up and throwing lightly in the bullpen in the 13th inning of Sunday's game, though he didn't get into that one.

Aardsma worked a spotless inning on Friday night against St. Louis, whiffing all three batters he faced. He did the same the next day against the Cardinals. And last night made it an amazing eight punchouts in his last three innings, running his season total to 38 strikeouts in 35 2/3 innings.

He has been impressive of late, working a total of 7 1/3 scoreless innings in his last seven outings. Aardsma has 12 strikeouts over that stretch, which has lowered his earned-run average from 3.18 to 2.52.

"I thought what we asked from Aardsma tonight was pushing it a little bit but obviously he wasn't backing off on his velocity," said Boston manager Terry Francona.

As he sat in a chair in front of his locker, ice packs on several parts of his body, Aardsma admitted he was tired.

"I'm absolutely wiped out," said Aardsma. "You just want to go out there and give everything you have. I don't feel fresh, obviously. I've thrown a decent amount lately. But if they were going to get a hit, it was going to be off my best stuff."

Aardsma had a simple explanation for his rash of Ks recently.

"Getting ahead of the hitters helps out a lot," said Aardsma. "A lot of the strikeouts were on pitches that were out of the strike zone when I was ahead in the count."

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 11:21 PM | Permalink

Postgame notes: Youkilis update

By Joe McDonald
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON _ Red Sox first baseman Kevin Youkilis was removed from Monday's game after being hit in the eye by the baseball. He suffered a contusion under the right eye and was taken for a precautionary CT scan.

Red Sox manager Terry Francona said after the game the test came back negative.

In between the fourth and fifth innings, Red Sox third baseman Mike Lowell short-hopped a throw to Youkilis. The ball bounced off the clay and drilled him in the right eye. Youkilis was attended to by team trainer Paul Lessard and Francona and removed from the game.

"His eye was getting puffier and puffier pretty much by the second," said Francona. "By the time I got out there he wanted to stay in, he always wants to stay in. The way it was swelling, and as quickly as it was swelling, there's was no way we were going to let him go hit."

Youkilis will be examined again Tuesday morning.

"If it get too swollen it will certainly limit his eye sight, which wouldn't be good to play him (Tuesday night), so we'll see how he's doing."

Because backup first baseman Sean Casey began his three-game suspension Monday night for his involvement in the bench-clearing brawl with the Tampa Bay Rays on June 5 at Fenway Park, he was unavailable to replace the injured Youkilis.

"The timing. . . that's the way it usually works," said Francona.

So, Brandon Moss was inserted into the game. An outfielder by trade, the Red Sox began to work him out as a first baseman late last season. This year in Pawtucket he played 32 of his 37 games for the PawSox at first. Monday night was his first MLB game at first.

"We're fortunate we had him here tonight," said Francona. "We would like to see Moss play more, but we have Casey here. We didn't have Casey tonight, but at least we had somebody to play first."

dfue

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 11:09 PM | Permalink

Postgame: Moss Blames Himself

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Brandon Moss knew he was the backup plan at first base because Sean Casey dropped his appeal of a three-game suspension for his part in a brawl with the Rays and began serving it last night.

"I didn't expect anything to happen," said Moss. "That always when something happens."

That "something" turned out to be a bruise under first baseman Kevin Youkilis's right eye, the result of a bad hop during infield practice before the fifth inning, costing the Sox the services of the Gold Glover.

So Moss was thrust into the game at first base, his major league debut at the position. And Moss was unable to make a play in a key spot in the seventh inning, costing the Red Sox a run that proved pivotal in Boston's 2-1 loss to Arizona.

The Diamondbacks, leading by 1-0, had runners at second and third with one out. The infield was in. Chris Snyder hit a broken-bat grounder to Moss, with Mark Reynolds taking off from third base on contact.

Moss bobbled the ball and was forced to settle for the out at first when he finally latched onto it. He was kicking himself after the game.

"I took my eye off it. I looked up and saw the runner going home," said Moss, an outfielder by trade who didn't start playing the position until last winter and had 32 games of experience at the position in Pawtucket.

"As soon as I did that, the ball got away from me. If I field that ball cleanly, I know I'll (throw him out) at home," said Moss.

And while it appeared as if the ball had a lot of spin on it, a function of being hit off the end of the bat, Moss was having none of that as an excuse.

"It was a candy hop I got," he said. "It couldn't have been an easier grounder to field. It was right to me. I tried to do too much too soon. It's a shame the game turned out the way it did. It ended up being the freaking winning run. That's my responsibility."

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 11:09 PM | Permalink

Oakland's Haren Shuts Down Sox

by SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Matched against Josh Beckett last night, Dan Haren knew he couldn't afford to make many mistakes. So he didn't.
Haren held the Red Sox scoreless on two hits over seven innings and outdueled Beckett as the Arizona Diamondbacks edged the Sox, 2-1.
``Every run is at a premium in games like this,'' said Haren, who improved to 8-4 and recorded his first career win at Fenway. ``Every pitch is a grind. It's a tough place to win in general.''
Facing Beckett -- who was nearly as good, limiting the Diamondbacks to two runs over eight innings -- made the night an even bigger challenge.
``He knew,'' said Arizona manager Bob Melvin, ``he had to be really good and couldn't give much up.''
Until the seventh, Haren had allowed just one hit -- a Wall double by slumping Jason Varitek in the third. It helped that he walked just one hitter.
``Against a lineup like that,'' said Haren, ``you can't fall behind or walk guys. I was pretty aggressive with my fastball and when I was ahead (in the count), I made sure I stayed ahead.''
Haren threw 98 pitches through seven innings, but Melvin didn't consider sending him back out out for the eighth.
``He was cooked,'' said Melvin. ``I think he threw 24 (pitches) in the seventh and the last four or five, he had to work very hard (with runners at the corners).''
``In a 0-0 game,'' said Haren, ``so much effort goes into every pitch. It was a max effort game.''
After retiring the first six hitters he faced, Haren yielded Varitek's leadoff double in the third and issued a two-out walk to Jacoby Ellsbury later in the same inning.
But he fanned Dustin Pedroia to strand both baserunners and retired the next 11 in a row before laboring to get through the seventh.
``That might have been (the best stuff) Danny's had all year,'' said Mevlin. ``He was 94-95 mph (with his fastball) with a good breaking ball and a good split.''

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 11:07 PM | Permalink

Schilling update

By Joe McDonald
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON _ Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling underwent successful surgery to repair his damaged biceps tendon and right shoulder this afternoon in Wilmington, Del. The procedure was performed by his personal physician Dr. Craig Morgan.

“Everything went well,” said Morgan.

The doctor also said Schilling was experiencing some pain after the surgery, and because of the late afternoon hour in which the surgery was completed, Schilling will remain in the hospital overnight and will fly back to Boston on Tuesday.

Morgan explained Schilling had a disease in his biceps tendon, which was the primary diagnosis back in January when Morgan first examined the pitcher. Schilling also had a tear in his labrum – similar to the one he had in 1995. He also had “tiny, tiny” partial tear in his rotator cuff, which Morgan fixed with a small stitch and didn’t think it was anything significant.

“The rest of the stuff in his shoulder was healthy,” Morgan said. “His prognosis to have all those things heal is good. Now, whether he wants to go through the rehab to be able to pitch at the major-league level at age 41 remains to be seen, and it’s his decision.”

Morgan explained the rehab process would be daily four-hour exercises for the next six months if Schilling has a chance to pitch in the big leagues again. If he can mentally put himself through that, then Morgan said Schilling has a good chance to pitch again.

Red Sox manager Terry Francona called Schilling yesterday morning to wish him “good luck” before the procedure took place.

Schilling suffered the injury sometime during the offseason after he signed a one-year $8-million contract with the Red Sox, which included incentives. The club can not pinpoint exactly when it occurred, but Schilling began to feel the pain when he started to throw in January to prepare for spring training.

Schilling was examined by Morgan and the doctor recommended and was quite adamant that Schilling should have surgery. The Red Sox wanted to take the conservative approach of strengthening the biceps and shoulder. The reason Morgan suggested immediate surgery was so Schilling could begin his rehab and possibly be ready to pitch at some point during the 2008 season.

“The best treatment was for him to have surgery,” said Morgan. “The rehab would be about six months, which if he would have had in January he would have been able to pitch the last part of the season and probably into the postseason. Now that option is not available for this year.”

Ultimately, Schilling and the Red Sox decided to go the conservative route until last week after Schilling experienced discomfort while throwing a bullpen session.

Schilling met with GM Theo Epstein, Francona and the club’s medical staff and decided on the season-ending surgery. Epstein admitted last week that when he spoke with Schilling, the three-time World Series champion said he felt like he has already thrown his last pitch.

Ironically, at the exact moment Schilling was having the surgery, Francona was in the midst of a discussing with the local media whether or not Schilling should be a Hall of Famer.

“I should be better informed because he’s pitched for a long time,” said the manager. “I think it’s more of that I’ve never stopped and thought about it. I kind of get the sense because of the timing of everything – with the surgery – that argument is starting to go up. It’s a fun argument for baseball people and people who care about baseball. I need to look at it better.”

Schilling pitched for Francona while the two were in Philadelphia back in the late 90s, and again here in Boston. So, it’s safe to say Francona is hoping some day the big-game pitcher has a plaque hanging in Cooperstown.

“I would be a cheerleader for him because he’s pitched for me for so long,” he said. “I haven’t looked at enough stuff to give an unbiased opinion because I’ve never stopped to think about it.

Discussing the history of the game comes natural for Francona. He has spent his entire life involved in the game. He is a son of a former major-leaguer, he played, coached, was a scout and has managed, so the game has become his life. To talk about the game is honoring the game.

“Our game is the greatest game to talk about in the world,” he said. “There’s so much history, and that’s part about being a baseball fan. . . “There’s so much to argue about, maybe argue is the wrong word, it’s part of what makes our game so special.”

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 9:13 PM | Permalink

Game update: Youkilis injured

By Joe McDonald
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON _ Red Sox first baseman Kevin Youkilis has just been removed from the game after being hit in the eye by the baseball. He suffered a contusion under the right eye and was taken for a precautionary CT scan.

In between the fourth and fifth innings, Red Sox third baseman Mike Lowell short-hopped a throw to Youkilis. The ball bounced off the clay and drilled him in the right eye. Youkilis was attended to by team trainer Paul Lessard and manager Terry Francona and removed from the game.

Brandon Moss is now playing first. Moss is a natural outfielder, but the Red Sox began to work him out as a first baseman late last season. This year in Pawtucket he played 32 of his 37 games for the PawSox at first. This is his first time playing first in the majors.

The reason Moss is playing first base is due to the fact that backup first baseman Sean Casey began is three-game suspension tonight for his part in June 5 bench-clearing brawl against Tampa at Fenway Park.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 8:49 PM | Permalink

Pregame notes: Schilling has surgery

By Joe McDonald
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON _ Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling underwent surgery this afternoon in Wilmington, Del., to repair his damaged biceps tendon and shoulder.

Rob Bradford of The Boston Herald first reported the story earlier this afternoon, and Red Sox manager Terry Francona just confirmed the veteran right-hander was under the knife. Francona didn’t have an update, but said he called to wish him “good luck” before the procedure took place.

Ironically, at the exact moment Schilling was having the surgery, Francona was in the midst of a discussing with the local media whether or not Schilling should be a Hall of Famer.

“I should be better informed because he’s pitched for a long time,” said the manager. “I think it’s more of that I’ve never stopped and thought about it. I kind of get the sense because of the timing of everything – with the surgery – that argument is starting to go up. It’s a fun argument for baseball people and people who care about baseball. I need to look at it better.”

Schilling pitched for Francona while the two were in Philadelphia back in the late 90s, and again here in Boston. So, it’s safe to say Francona is hoping some day the big-game pitcher has a plaque hanging in Cooperstown.

“I would be a cheerleader for him because he’s pitched for me for so long,” he said. “I haven’t looked at enough stuff to give an unbiased opinion because I’ve never stopped to think about it.

Discussing the history of the game comes natural for Francona. He has spent his entire life involved in the game. He is a son of a former major-leaguer, he played, coached, was a scout and has managed, so the game has become his life. To talk about the game is honoring the game.

“Our game is the greatest game to talk about in the world,” he said. “There’s so much history, and that’s part about being a baseball fan. . . “There’s so much to argue about, maybe argue is the wrong word, it’s part of what makes our game so special.”

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 5:19 PM | Permalink

Pregame notes: Suspension updates

By Joe McDonald
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON _ Red Sox first baseman Sean Casey has dropped his appeal and will begin to serve his suspension tonight. Center fielder Coco Crisp also had his appeal heard and no decision has been made yet.

Both players were involved in a bench-clearing brawl with the Tampa Bay Rays on June 5 at Fenway Park. Crisp was suspended for seven games, pitcher Jon Lester for five games and Casey for three games. Lester already served his suspension.

The appeals were heard this afternoon via a web conference.

“I’ve never been in one before, but everything went fine,” said Crisp. “Is there any news? No. I should probably hear in a few days. There’s really nothing to talk about now, because I don’t have any information.”

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 4:48 PM | Permalink

Weather update from Fenway

Per the Red Sox:

The current weather forecast (provided by the Red Sox private weather service, Meteorlogix) in the vicinity of Fenway Park calls for a possibility of scattered rain showers during the afternoon and evening hours.

The Fenway Park gates will open at the regularly scheduled time of 5:05 p.m., and the Red Sox hope that tonight’s game with the Arizona Diamondbacks will begin at the scheduled time at 7:05 p.m. However, the Red Sox want to alert our fans to the current forecast and the possibility of delay.

This forecast is of course subject to change as the day progresses. Additional updates will be provided as necessary.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 4:17 PM | Permalink

Starting Lineups, June 23

RED SOX

Ellsbury lf
Pedroia 2b
JD Drew rf
Ramirez dh
Lowell 3b
Youkilis 1b
Varitek c
Crisp cf
Lugo ss

Beckett p

DIAMONDBACKS

Byrnes lf
S. Drew ss
Hudson 2b
Jackson 1b
Tracy dh
Reynolds 3b
Young cf
Snyder c
Upton rf

Haren p

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 4:09 PM | Permalink

Pregame notes: The tarp is on

The grounds crew here at Fenway Park just put the tarp on the field. The forecast doesn't look too promising.

One of the most impressive things to see a pitcher do is play long toss. Red Sox right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka and pitching coach John Farrell are playing right now in the outfield. Farrell is standing on the warning track just behind Pesky's Pole. Dice-K is standing in left-center field and the throws from both guys are right on target. Pretty impressive.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 3:11 PM | Permalink

Projo SoxTalk with McAdam: Red Sox work overtime to avoid sweep

Click the play button below to hear Sean's comments, recorded this morning. The topics: yesterday's long afternoon at Fenway Park, Jonathan Papelbon's recent troubles, Daisuke Matsuzaka's disastrous start on Saturday, and the coming series with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Here are some excerpts from Sean's comments:

On Papelbon: "I thought he threw the ball very well yesterday. He particularly overmatched the first two guys [he faced]. Ankiel was absolutely no match for Papelbon's fastball when he got it going. I'm more inclined to chalk up yesterday as a bit of an aberration, and perhaps a false first step on Coco Crisp's part to initially come in on Kennedy's ball and then have to scramble back and not get it. That doesn't change the fact that the ball was hit almost 400 feet, but I wouldn't be too concerned about Jonathan Papelbon."

On Matsuzaka: "Certainly when a guy who's been sidelined with shoulder problems comes back and is as ineffective as Matsuzaka was Saturday, it raises some eyebrows. So I think all eyes will be on him Friday night, when he makes his second start [in Houston].

On the Diamondbacks: "Arizona is where it is [first place in the NL West] because of starting pitching. The front two of [tonight's starter ] Dan Haren and Brandon Webb are as formidable as any two in the National League, and Randy Johnson has actually been pretty effective since coming back -- he'll go on Wednesday. ... They may be a typical National League team these days, where offense doesn't play much of a part, but their pitching makes them a team to be reckoned with."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 10:42 AM to Projo SoxTalk with Sean McAdam | Permalink

Baseball Today: Monday, June 23

Journal photo / Mary Murphy

ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL: By the time Kevin Youkilis came to bat in the 13th inning yesterday it was pretty obvious that the Red Sox-Cardinals game was only going to end with a home run; both teams had demonstrated to the satisfaction of everyone there wasn't a clutch hit to be had on this day. (And when there was a semblance of one, like Adam Kennedy's 13th-inning single, someone in the field -- in this case, J.D. Drew and Jason Varitek -- would take care of it; more on that later.) So Youkilis pulled down the curtain on the 5 1/2-hour (rain included) day at the ballpark with a two-run shot into the Monster Seats in left-center, enabling the Red Sox to escape with a 5-3 win that salvaged the finale of the weekend series. Joe McDonald has the details of a long and unfruitful day at the ballpark, which included, among other things:

-- The Red Sox wasting leadoff doubles in the 10th, 11th and 12th innings.
-- Three members of the Sox (J.D. Drew, Alex Cora and Jacoby Ellsbury) striking out in extra innings with the winning run on third base, Drew and Cora doing so with one out.
-- The Cardinals squandering a pair of first-and-second, one-out opportunities in extra innings, one of which morphed into a bases-loaded, two-out chance.
-- There was even a little bad luck thrown in on the Sox' side, as well, as Steven Krasner relates.

But, thanks to Youkilis, the Sox were dancing at the end (above). "I know it’s a heck of a lot better hearing the music" -- the trilogy of Dirty Water, Tessie and Joy To The World that accompanies each Fenway Park victory -- "than coming in frustrated after a long day," sighed Terry Francona.

STOP THE MUSIC: But the reason the Sox missed hearing the Standells, the Dropkick Murphys and Three Dog Night about an hour-and-a-half earlier may actually have been the news of the day. Jonathan Papelbon blew his fourth save of the year, and the second in his last four chances, and this one was perhaps the disconcerting of them all. Krasner has a detailed breakdown of how it happened; it involved Papelbon abandoning the fastball that had blown away the first two hitters in the ninth and going to his splitter. The result was a four-pitch walk to .234 hitter Chris Duncan and a run-scoring double to Kennedy -- who came to the plate with a .305 on-base percentage and a .306 slugging percentage -- that tied the game. (In Papelbon's defense, Kennedy's ball, as well hit as it was, probably should have been caught by Coco Crisp, who's not throwing the leather the way he did in 2007.) The Globe's Nick Cafardo looks a little closer at the bullpen and notes, "When you couple Papelbon's blown saves and the struggles of set-up man Hideki Okajima, the concerns are clear. "

NO, KEEP THE MUSIC GOING: The Herald's Tony Massarotti, on the other hand, thinks the fact the Sox win games like this makes the question not can they win another World Series, but can anybody else beat them?

'DISGUSTING': The good news, bullpen-wise, was the five-up, five-down performance of Craig Hansen, who kept the game tied in the 11th with a three-pitch strikeout of Ryan Ludwick with the bases loaded. Krasner reports Manny Delcarmen judged Hansen's performance as "disgusting." If you think that's a bad thing, you're showing your age.

NOT SAFE AT HOME: When Hansen was lifted one batter into the 13th, the Cardinals arose. Duncan greeted Javier Lopez with a double off the wall and Kennedy followed with a single to right, prompting third-base coach Jose Oquendo to wave Duncan home. But Drew and Varitek combined to keep the score tied, Drew with a throw that beat Duncan to the plate by about 15 feet and Varitek by hunkering down and absorbing the knock-him-over, knock-it-out collision without
dropping the ball. Krasner tells us all about it, with reaction from the Sox' principles.

OTHER NOTES OF THE DAY: Crisp's defense yesterday wasn't all bad; he and Ellsbury both turned in some nice plays in the field . . . Lost in the excitement -- or whatever it was yesterday turned into -- was another fine start from Jon Lester . . . Dustin Pedroia had a four-hit afternoon and has lifted his average from .260 to .282 over the last 10 games . . . Krasner has all the details.

IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER: The blog Bird Land thinks yesterday's was one of the greatest games in Cardinals history.

THE BIG PICTURE: Apparently that's a majority opinion in Cardinal Nation. Tony La Russa was proud of the way his team battled over the weekend and Bernie Miklasz -- a sometimes critic of the manager -- thinks La Russa deserves much of the credit because, as he says, "I don't know if we realize how difficult it is for a team to go into Boston and win two out of three." (Both stories St. Louis Post-Dispatch) Which, when you step back and think about it, is true; the only other series the Sox lost at home this year was to the Angels in April.

OTHER NOTES OF THE WEEKEND: The series began Friday night with the Sox honoring the Celtics for winning the NBA championship, but -- in a sneak preview of yesterday -- wasting scoring opportunity after scoring opportunity in a 5-4 loss. McDonald recaps it all . . . Saturday was a disaster, Boston-wise, as the back-with-the-big-club Daisuke Matsuzaka was routed in the second inning of a 9-3 defeat. Sean McAdam, though, tells us of Chris Smith's major-league debut, which looks pretty good in the box score but -- in true, other-than-that, how-did-you-like-the-play-Mrs.-Lincoln? fashion -- was marred by a grand slam allowed to the first batter he faced.

WHERE THEY RANK: Speaking of the Celtics and championships, Chad Finn ranks the six Boston titles of the 21st century. Not surprisingly, Red Sox 2004 comes in on top. Me, I'd put the 2001 Pats a little higher.


AP Photo

END OF THE LINE? Just about the same time we were signing off here last Friday, Curt Schilling was on WEEI Radio announcing the end of his season, and possibly his career. (weei.com) While yours truly had the news, Sean McAdam had the more important piece. He put the Boston portion of Schilling's career into perspective and demonstrated how -- with his fearlessness in big moments and willingness to tackle situations that past Red Sox teams, and players, had shrunk from -- he helped turn Boston into a place where "October isn’t something to dread, but to welcome." The bloody sock (above) is the iconic symbol of all that; it forever reminds us of a night when he limped on one leg into what Theo Epstein called "the belly of the beast" and did something -- beat the Yankees, in Yankee Stadium, in a game that meant everything -- that no Red Sox pitcher, or team, was allegedly capable of doing.

The temptation is to attribute too much credit for what's happened here since 2004 to one guy, and that's wrong because Schilling certainly wasn't alone. Nor is it accurate to whitewash Schilling into an heroic knight on a steed; he had plenty of moments when he was more blowhard than braveheart, especially since there didn't seem to be anything he could refrain from commenting on, sometimes inappropriately. But there's no underestimating what he did in Boston, either, and he's inextricably intertwined with the change-of-fortune success the Red Sox have had since 2004. Like him or hate him -- and, truth be told, most Boston fans adored him -- you can't deny him his place in this franchise's history.

As we speak today, he's undergoing shoulder surgery; his baseball future hinges on the outcome. Good luck, Curt. We'll never forget you.

'NOT A THING IN THE WORLD TO BE UPSET ABOUT': Sometime Friday afternoon Schilling took to 38pitches.com to say his own goodbyes and said that if this is end, he has no regrets.

KNEW IT WAS COMING: McAdam and McDonald report that the Sox, both in the front office and the clubhouse, were saddened, if unsurprised, by the news.

GENTLEMEN, START YOUR ENGINES: And now the Schilling-In-The-Hall-of-Fame debate begins. The first salvo is fired by The Sporting News' Sean Deveney: He says yes.

THE BEST TRADES ARE THE ONES . . . Remember how close the Sox came to picking up Todd Helton? If this story in the Denver Post is any indication, be thankful they didn't.

QUIET FINISH: A homestand that picked up steam with a sweep of the Cubs ended on a down note for the Rays, who lost to the Astros yesterday and dropped two out of three in the series to Houston. (Tampa Tribune)

HANG ON A SECOND: Yankee fans had double reason to celebrate yesterday: Andy Pettitte beat the Reds, avoiding a three-game sweep, and their favorite whipping boy, Kyle Farnsworth, hurt his finger. (New York Daily News) But the blog River Ave. Blues says Farnsworth isn't "totally useless. Yet."

THE DEAD HORSE SHOWS SIGNS OF LIFE: The New York Daily News' John Harper says "there is a very real sense these Mets are in good hands with Jerry Manuel taking over for Willie Randolph. Smart, relaxed and self-assured, Manuel's ascension seems to have loosened the atmosphere around the Mets and helped them refocus on baseball." In what may or may not be a related incident, Manuel compares Mets fans to fertilizer. (New York Post)

LET'S GO BACK TO BEATING IT ANYWAY: The Daily News' Bill Madden says Randolph had no chance with the backstabbers in the Mets front office. And his former teammates, Jim Kaat, says Willie deserved better. (yesnetwork.com)

TURNAROUND: Right after being swept by the Rays, the Cubs come home and sweep the White Sox. (Chicago Tribune) The vanquished manager, Ozzie Guillen, salutes the victors. (Chicago Sun-Times)

HE DID IT ONCE (ACTUALLY, TWICE), SO . . . The Blue Jays are giving Cito Gaston the chance to do it again. (Toronto Star) Our pal the Tao of Stieb is aghast. As are we.

NUMBER ONE: The Jays won their first game for Gaston -- after two defeats -- yesterday. (Toronto Globe and Mail) One last Jays note: Matt Stairs is happy Gary Denbo was shown the door, along with John McLaren and Ernie Whitt. (National Post) Well, one really last Jays note: Whitt's firing drove the long-time Blue Jay to tears. (Toronto Sun)

NOTHING'S CHANGED: His high school graduation was covered live on national radio, and Bob Feller henceforth acted like someone who felt his high school graduation deserved to be covered live on national radio. (Which should be a lesson to all who think athletic self-absorption is a novel concept.) Shysterball reports the years haven't mellowed him any.

HERE AND THERE: The Pirates' Ian Snell has a sore elbow (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) . . . After his latest dismal outing, the Dodgers' Scott Proctor described himself as "(bleeping) pathetic" (Los Angeles Daily News) . . . The Astros have lifted Shawn Chacon out of their starting rotation (Houston Chronicle) . . . Mark Teixeira had a three-homer day for the Braves yesterday (Atlanta Journal-Constitution) . . . The Tigers still don't know when Gary Sheffield will return (Detroit Free Press) . . . Moises Alou's career may be over. (New York Post)

OLD FRIENDS: Bronson Arroyo has heard the rumors that have him headed to the Yankees and sounds like he's lukewarm about it, since he's come to enjoy life in baseball's slow lane (New York Daily News) . . . Justin Duchscherer has a big fan: Baseball Musings' David Pinto . . . Ken Harrelson talks about his career, and his life, with the Chicago Sun-Times.

AND FINALLY . . . It's not really baseball news, but interesting nonetheless: Newsday reports that the end may be near for WFAN's Mike And The Mad Dog show.

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 7:04 AM | Permalink

Postgame: Crisp/Papelbon Blown Save

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Jonathan Papelbon was seeking the save but he hung a splitter and Adam Kennedy crushed it with two outs in the ninth inning.

The ball was scalded, and it headed toward Coco Crisp in center field.

Crisp did not get a good jump on the ball, maybe even taking a half-step in before trying to track down the ball. The ball, though, sailed over his head, hit the base of the wall and the double knocked in Chris Duncan with the run that tied the game at 3-3.

"I was playing deep, no doubles defense," said Crisp of the alignment that pushes the outfielders back so no ball can go over them for extra bases.

"He crushed that ball and I didn't see it right away," said Crisp. "I shuffled a bit and when I finally saw it, I had no chance. I ran back and threw my glove up for a prayer, hoping the ball would find it, but I wasn't even close. The ball hit a couple of panels (of padding) to my right."

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 8:01 PM | Permalink | Comments 1

Game update

The first pitch is scheduled for 2:25

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 2:00 PM | Permalink

Rain delay

It's raining at Fenway Park and the tarp has been placed on the field. The showers are supposed to end soon.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 1:16 PM | Permalink

Pregame notes: Quiet day at Fenway

The clubhouse is usually quiet when there's a day game after a night game. That's the case this morning.

Red Sox manager Terry Francona spent about six minutes talking with the local media this morning. On the agenda were Daisuke Matsuzaka's health, an update on David Ortiz and rookie Chris Smith's major-league debut.

Matsuzaka suffered his first loss of the season on Saturday during an awful start where he allowed seven runs in only one-plus innings of work against St. Louis. Both Francona and Dice-K said after the game that the pitcher's health is fine, it was just a bad outing. This morning Matsuzaka was working out.

"We always find a way or a time to talk to guys after they pitch, and it won't be any different with him. The day after they throw is real important. I'm not dying to go in and interupt his work day, but at some point we'll visit with him, like we do with anybody. It's our job to do that."

Smith, a 27-year-old rookie, made his debut on Saturday and had a interesting day. He worked four innings in relief and allowed one run on three hits with three strikeouts. When he replaced Dice-K with no outs and the bases loaded in the second inning, Smith gave up a grand slam to the Cards' Troy Glaus. Smith then retired nine of the next 11 batters he faced.

"It was nice to finally get him in a game," said Francona. "It's hard not to route for guys like Smitty. He's been through a lot and you can tell he loves to pitch. He's a polite kid, so it was fun to watch him do his thing. I wish we were up 8-0. That kind of put a damper on the day, but it was exciting to watch."

Ortiz is running in the outfield and should be able to pick up a bat in about a week.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 11:14 AM | Permalink

Starting Lineups, June 22

RED SOX

Ellsbury lf
Pedroia 2b
Drew rf
Ramirez dh
Lowell 3b
Youkilis 1b
Varitek c
Crisp cf
Lugo ss

Lester p

CARDINALS

Barton lf
Miles 2b
Ludwick rf
Glaus 3b
Stavinoha dh
Ankiel cf
Molina 1b
Larue c
Ryan ss

Pineiro p

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:44 AM | Permalink

Chris Smith is his name

In case you just put the game on and noticed Red Sox starter Daisuke Matsuzaka is already out of the game, and you wanted to know who is pitching for Boston, his name is Chris Smith.

This is his major-league debut and he's already had an interesting outing. He surrendered a grand slam to the Cardinals' Troy Glaus in the second inning, but since then Smith has retired five straight batters.

He's an interesting kid. Here's a story I wrote about him on Aug. 6, 2006.

By Joe McDonald
Journal Sports Writer

PAWTUCKET - A witch's eye almost ended the professional career of Chris Smith.

Originally selected by the Boston Red Sox in the fourth round of the 2002 draft, the right-handed pitching prospect suffered a compound fracture in his right forearm prior to the 2003 season. He was driving an off-road vehicle in the sand dunes of California when he was swallowed up by a large hole, also known as a witch's eye.

His arm was caught outside the vehicle as it tumbled and rolled numerous times. Surgery with screws and a steel plate was needed to repair the damage.

At the time of the accident, Smith had just completed his promising rookie season with Single-A Lowell, and now the prospect's career was in jeopardy.

He made a dramatic comeback and was able to finish the 2003 campaign, before another roadblock occurred in 2004. He suffered a bout of tendinitis in the throwing shoulder after just 14 starts for Double-A Portland and missed the remainder of the season.

Last summer was much of the same as he continued to battle tendinitis and needed surgery to repair a torn labrum. Finally, this season he has returned to form and once again is considered a pitching prospect in the organization.

"Smitty definitely had the ability to be a major-league pitcher before he got hurt," said Red Sox vice president of player personnel Ben Cherington. "We're starting to see that ability again. He's someone who really loves the game and to see how hard he has had to work to get back on the mound, at first when he came back he wasn't the same guy. To see him having success again, especially at Triple A, is nice to see. It's just nice to see guys who have had to overcome adversity."

The Red Sox farm system has produced many young arms that have enjoyed success at the major-league level, including Jonathan Papelbon, Manny Delcarmen, Jon Lester and Craig Hansen. Before his injuries, Smith was considered to be among that elite club, and now that he's healthy again and enjoying success, he's back in the fold.

"I don't know about that," said Smith. "In '04, it was something special, but I got sidetracked and a lot of things happened. I had to put the bad stuff behind me and move on. They can have all the limelight, I'll just come in the back door and let them get all the publicity. I'll just keep doing what I'm doing and it's a little less stressful."

Smith throws a two- and four-seam fastball, an above-average changeup and a curveball, and that repertoire has allowed him to have success this season. He made his Triple-A debut on Friday and earned a three-hit shutout victory in seven innings of work. He can change speeds effectively, has good command of the strike zone and is able to keep the opposition off balance.

Pawtucket manager Ron Johnson managed Smith in Portland in 2004, where the young hurler recorded 85 strikeouts in 741³3 innings of work.

"He's faced adversity and he's battled back," said Johnson. "That's a long road back and realistically if he didn't get hurt he would have been up here two years ago."

PawSox pitching coach Mike Griffin hasn't seen much of Smith, but was impressed with his outing on Friday.

Before he turned pro in 2002, Smith played three years at University of California-Riverside where he set a school record with 127 strikeouts, while posting a 2.91 E.R.A. Even though his pro career took a bit of a detour, he's back where he needs to be physically and mentally and has his sights on a major-league job.

It's safe to say he'll be staying away from those nasty witch eyes.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 4:55 PM | Permalink

Timlin to DL, other early Sox notes

BOSTON -- Red Sox reliever Mike Timlin has been placed on the disabled list with tendinitis of the left knee.
Taking his spot on the roster will be Daisuke Matsuzaka, who returns from the DL today to make his first start since last month.
It had been thouht that the Sox would return Chris Smith to Pawtucket to make room for Matsuzaka's activation. Instead, Smith will stay -- at least for a while -- and Timlin will make his second trip to the DL this season.
``It's something he's been pitching through,'' said manager Terry Francona. ``I think it has something to do with the inconsistency.''
Timlin is 3-3 with a 7.06 ERA and has given up 29 hits in 20 1/3 innings.
``We all ended up agreeing that this is probably the best thing for him and the organization,'' said Francona.
Francona said the Sox will have Timlin rest for the rest of the homestand, then probably be sent to Pawtucket to begin a rehab program.
``He'll go out, try to pitch effectivelly and we'll see how that goes,'' said Francona.

Manny Ramriez, still hampered by a hamstring pull, is restricted to DH duty for the rest of the homestand.
The Sox are hopeful that the time out of the field will help him heal so that he can play left field again when the Sox begin an interleague road series Friday in Houston.
With Ramirez as the DH, Brandon Moss gets the start in left.

Julio Lugo, who made two more errors Friday night to up his 16, more than double the total of any other Ameircan League shortstop, is on the bench this afternoon with Alex Cora getting te start at short.

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 1:16 PM | Permalink

Red Sox lineup

Ellsbury CF
Pedroia 2B
Drew RF
Ramirez DH
Lowell 3B
Youkilis 1B
Moss LF
Varitek C
Cora SS

Posted by Sean McAdam  at 1:13 PM | Permalink

Postgame notes: Lugo's night

By Joe McDonald
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON _ Julio Lugo had an eventful night.

The Red Sox shortstop drove in two of the club’s three runs with a sacrifice fly and a solo home run. That was the good news.

“At the time it was a one-run game and he got us back even,” said Red Sox manager Terry Francona. “It was a good swing. He got his legs under and drove the ball. At the time it was a huge swing.”

The homer was his first in a 69-game span, which tied the third longest streak of his career. His longest skid was a 97 games when he played for the Astros in 2001 and 2002.

The bad news is he made two errors in the field that allowed an unearned run to score in a tie game.

The first one he made was attempting to turn a 3-6-1 double play. He rushed his throw and Tim Wakefield couldn’t make a play on it as the ball traveled to the screen in front of the Sox’ dugout, allowing a run to score.

On the second one he just made a bad throw.

“The one where he’s coming across the bag there’s a lot of movement,” Francona said. “You have to make a perfect throw because you have a pitcher covering. The other one was, I don’t know if he followed his throw because he had time and he got square and then he let it fly.”

It was Lugo’s second multi-error game of the season for the Red Sox. He has now made a total of 16 errors this season.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 12:03 AM | Permalink | Comments 1

Rain delay

Due to the inclement weather at Fenway Park, tonight's game has been delayed. The first pitch is scheduled for 8:15.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 7:50 PM | Permalink

Pregame notes: Crisp update

By JOE McDONALD
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- After being removed from Wednesday's game in Philadelphia with a left-hand injury, Red Sox center fielder Coco Crisp is back in the lineup tonight. He's hitting seventh and playing center.

Red Sox manager Terry Francona said Crisp is doing okay and that the training staff called and talked to him on the offday on Thursday. Francona said Crisp thought the injury was a lot worse when he came out of the game on Wednesday, but after icing it and receiving treatment, Crisp is fine.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 6:08 PM | Permalink

Pregame notes: Ortiz update

BY JOE McDONALD
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- For all the talk of Curt Schilling, the Red Sox were quick to put situation behind them and concentrate on baseball. Francona discussed other items concerning the club.

In particular: David Ortiz. The slugger, recovering from a wrist injury, is about 10 days away from picking up a bat, according to the manager.

"David is doing real well," said Francona. "He’s doing his strength and conditioning and has mobility with his wrist. He has very limited pain and he’s doing okay. He still knows it’s there, but he seems to be getting better every day."

Ortiz hasn’t been sitting around doing nothing. He’s been pushing it really hard, according to the manager. Still, the training staff doesn’t want to push him too hard and suffer a setback.

"It needs to heal and we’re going to let it heal," said Francona. "So when he does come back he can come back and be David and not limping through his at-bats; we don’t need that."

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 6:02 PM | Permalink

Tonight's lineups

ST. LOUIS

Izturis, ss
Schumaker, rf
Ludwick, lf
Ankiel, cf
Glaus, 3b
Duncan, 1b
Molina, c
Kennedy, dh
Miles, 2b
Lohse, sp

BOSTON

Ellsbury, lf
Pedroia, 2b
Drew, rf
Ramirez, dh
Lowell, 3b
Youkilis, 1b
Crisp, cf
Lugo, ss
Cash, c
Wakefield, sp

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 4:57 PM | Permalink

Pregame notes: Epstein on Schilling

BY JOE McDONALD
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein just made it official that Curt Schilling’s season is over.

The veteran right-hander will have season-ending surgery soon and the 41-year-old’s career could also be over.

"He worked hard for a couple of months trying to strengthen his shoulder, and he actually did get stronger," said Epstein. "It went pretty well and he was able to play long toss, and initially got up on the mound, but when he started to let it go in bullpens he hurt and really wasn’t able to let it go."

Because Schilling experienced the pain again he was examined by team physician Dr. Thomas Gill and it was decided the best course of action now would be for the veteran right-hander to have surgery, which Epstein said it’s not known at this point what type of procedure Schilling will have.

"It’s disappointing," said Epstein. "We reached a point where we weren’t counting on Schill. In the back of our minds we hoped, ‘Yeah, maybe this guy will come back and really provide a big boost for us, giving everything he’s done in the postseason.’ We would never bet against Curt Schilling, but always knew this was a possibility. Something was wrong with his shoulder and we didn’t know how it happened. It happened during the offseason. The most appropriate treatment was what our doctors recommended – the conservative route."

Earlier in this process Schilling’s personal physician Dr. Craig Morgan explained to the pitcher and the Red Sox that he thought it would be best if Schilling had the surgery. The Red Sox decided to take that conservative route Epstein talked about, attempting to build up the strength in the arm.

In the end, however, the torn biceps tendon did not responded well enough.

"Maybe because I’ve been watching it day-to-day it’s not such a shock today," said Red Sox manager Terry Francona. "I know the announcement was made today, but we’ve been living through it. We’ve been trying to fight this since January. . . We tried to put him in the best position where he could pitch for us and when it ultimately came down to it, it wasn’t happening."

Schilling is not at Fenway Park today.

"He made a tremendous impact here," said Epstein. "When we were sitting in his living room in November of 2003, we talked about a lot of things and among those was him coming here and helping us win a World Series, handling the Boston market, pitching effectively and leading a rotation. All those things came true and then some. He certainly lived up to his end of the bargain. It was a very effective marriage while it lasted, that’s for sure. He left his mark on this organization."

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 4:55 PM | Permalink

Pregame notes: Luck of the Irish

BY JOE McDONALD
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Just arrived at Fenway Park and here are just a couple of early observations: The Red Sox will honor the NBA champion Celtics in a pregame ceremony tonight and already the field here at Fenway has a unique symbol cut into the center field grass -- a giant shamrock. It's actually pretty cool.

Also, there's a sign at one of the local establishments near the park that reads: "Welcome to the sports capital of America."

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 3:00 PM | Permalink

More on Curt Schilling

Read a detailed story on Curt Schilling to have season-ending, and possibly career-ending, surgery here.

And Schilling himself has weighed in on 38pitches.com in an entry entitled "Not a thing in the world to be upset about"

Posted by Art Martone  at 1:11 PM | Permalink

Projo SoxTalk with McAdam: Learning to love J.D. Drew

Click the play button below to hear Sean's comments, recorded this morning (before the news of Curt Schilling's surgery broke). The topics: J.D. Drew's terrific weekend in the place where he is hated the most, whether Drew can sustain his hot streak, Manny Delcarmen as the hot hand of the moment in the bullpen, and the Celtics-Red Sox bond.

Here are some excerpts from Sean's comments:

On Drew's big series at Citizens Bank Park: "He has always risen to the occasion playing in Philadelphia when he returns there. In fact his performance, or his history of success in Philadelphia, was one of the things the Red Sox looked at closely when they signed him to that landmark $70-million deal a few years ago. They saw that as evidence that if Drew could succeed in the face of people throwing batteries at him, as has happened in Philadelphia, then certainly he could withstand the rigors of playing in Boston."

More on Drew: "One thing you see him doing this month, that you haven't seen him do much of in his brief Red Sox career, is really drive the ball, whether it be to center field, where a lot of his home runs seem to go, or some doubles and extra-base hits that he's hit the other way off the ball at Fenway. He needs to use the whole ballpark, and he's been doing that more the last month."

On the Celtics and the Red Sox: "I think there is a bond. There's a lot of guys [on the Red Sox] who are basketball fans, they have enjoyed the run as much as the fans have, and I think there also is a bond between players who play in the same city. Even though you may not run into each other much because of conflicting schedules and seasons, but there's an identiy that's shared, that you kind of represent Boston. And I think there's some pride on the part of Red Sox players who are rooting for the Celtics, even though they may have grown up in other parts of the country, they now share Boston as their place of work."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 11:25 AM to Projo SoxTalk with Sean McAdam | Permalink

Schilling to have surgery, will not pitch in 2008

Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling, on this morning's edition of the WEEI radio show Dennis and Callahan, said that he will have shoulder surgery on Monday, ending his chances of pitching this season. The 41-year-old right-hander went on to say that "there's a decent chance that I have thrown my last pitch, forever."

Following last year's Red Sox championship season, the club signed Schilling to a one-year deal that includes $8 million guaranteed, with a possible $6 million in additional bonuses for making weight, plus pitching incentives that Schilling will not reach.

WEEI plans on posting the full audio of Schilling's comments later today on its Web site.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 10:04 AM | Permalink

Baseball Today: Friday, June 20

Journal photo / Bob Breidenbach

IF THIS IS AN OFF-DAY . . . it must be time for examinations of all sorts of things that normally get lost in the normal crush of news. With the Sox not playing yesterday, we now have time to look at . . .

-- Manny Delcarmen (above), whose resurgence in the Red Sox bullpen is analyzed by our own Steven Krasner.

-- The lack of good young catchers in baseball, with the Boston Globe's Amalie Benjamin talking to people about why that's so. She also looks at Jason Varitek and notes how lucky the Sox have been not to have had to worry about their catching situation for the last 10 years.

-- Jacoby Ellsbury, whose speed, says Terry Francona, has brought the Red Sox "a brand of baseball we’re not accustomed to." (Boston Herald)

The games resume tonight and when they do the Sox will have a special ceremony to honor the Celtics for winning the NBA championship. (Boston Globe) And they may be catching the Cardinals at the right time: St. Louis is coming off three straight home losses to the Royals. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

MYSTERY SOLVED: Ever wonder just what in the world Hideki Okajima (right) and several of the other Red Sox wear around their necks? Rob Bradford of the Boston Herald finds out what they are: Phiten titanium necklaces, brought over from Japan by Daisuke Matsuzaka to "keep the evil spirits away." Says Dustin Pedroia, who now wears two during games: "I don’t know if they do anything, but Daisuke swears by them." WHO NEEDS 'EM? We've yet to see one on J.D. Drew, whose recent hitting exploits have gotten Manny Ramirez' attention. (Boston Globe) WELL, HOW ABOUT A.L. PITCHERS? Because Jim Donaldson thinks their inability to run bases or swing bats without injuring themselves is a disgrace.

ALL GROWN UP NOW: Foxsports.com's Ken Rosenthal says the Sox' success without David Ortiz is proof that they're no longer dependent on the Ortiz-Ramirez axis and are instead a deep and multitalented team that can beat you many ways.

Q AND A WITH . . . Justin Masterson, conducted by SI.com's Holden Kushner.

NEVER MIND: The Chicago Sun-Times shoots down a report that the Cubs have a renewed interest in Coco Crisp, quoting one insider as saying Chicago hasn't talked to the Sox about Crisp since spring training.

READY TO SHOP: Even though he says they don't need much -- right-handed middle reliever, veteran bat off the bench -- Yahoo.com's Steve Henson lists the Sox as "buyers" in his look at who'll be buying and who'll be selling come the trade deadline.

DOUBLE FEATURE: Joe McDonald reports the PawSox are both developing players and winning games this year. Usually, they can only do one or the other.

SWEPT AWAY: The St. Petersburg Times' John Romano says the Rays have "evolved from curiosity to phenomenon. They have reached the point where a pennant race is not just a possibility, but an expectation." The Tampa Tribune's Martin Fennelly concurs, asserting the Rays are "no fluke. They show no signs of wilting under pressure . . . They're dreaming big." And what prompted all this? An 8-3 comeback win over the Cubs that completed a three-game sweep of the team with the best record in baseball, in front of another 30,000-plus crowd at The Trop, no less. (Tampa Tribune) The blog DRaysBay lists all the records the team set last night, including "most facetime . . . on Baseball Tonight." Get used to it; with each passing day this Rays team reminds me more and more of the 1967 Red Sox, a young and talented group with no history of success that gradually found its footing and discovered -- to its delight -- that it could, indeed, stand toe to toe with the big boys.

THE DOWNSIDE OF SUCCESS: Another sign the Rays have arrived: Their fans complain strenuously about the umpires. (Outs Per Swing blog)

CAN'T BLAME THE STAT GEEKS FOR THIS ONE: Analysts have never seen Derek Jeter as being bathed in the same golden hue as some fans, and criticism -- any criticism -- of Our Captain has drawn quick and angry rebuke from the Mystique and Aura crowd. (Their take is pretty accurately summed up on the blog Blogging The Bombers.) But now it's fellow major-leaguers saying Jeter is the most overrated player in baseball. (New York Daily News)

The best take is provided by Josh Alper of AOL's Fanhouse: "He's never been as good or as bad as either side would have you believe. And if he didn't play in New York no one would care half as much."

THE RIGHT MOVE: Joba Chamberlain still doesn't have a win as a starter, but that doesn't mean his move to the rotation is going poorly. He kept the Yankees in yesterday's game with 5 2/3 strong innings before reaching the 100-pitch limit, enabling them to go on and defeat the Padres, 2-1. (New York Post) Just another example, says the Post's Kevin Kernan, of why "Yankees Universe is so much more of a respectable place than the Bizarro World of the Mets."

WHAT'S THAT YOU WERE SAYING THERE, HANK? The Daily News' Bill Madden looks back with amusement at Hank Steinbrenner's rant about interleague play, noting that the Yanks' current hot streak is the direct result of the Yanks' feasting on some National League cupcakes.

LOOKING (WAY) AHEAD: Newsday's Johnette Howard says the Yankee resurgence has added some juice to their upcoming series with the Red Sox, even though it's two weeks away.

MY TURN: Willie Randolph writes -- or had someone ghost-write -- his take on his firing by the Mets for the Daily News. "I won't lie to you," he says. "I don't like the way the Mets handled my firing. I think it was pretty weak. I think I would've deserved better if my record had been 0-555, not 302-253." Still, he absolves Omar Minaya of any malicious intent. And in one of the more amusing sidenotes, he cites Brian McNamee -- and not Bill Belichick -- as the source of the saying "it is what it is."

OUR TURN: With the Mets off yesterday, it gave the media one last chance to go over the Randolph firing. The Post's Phil Musnick says Randolph's indulgence of the team's lazy play cost him his job. And colleague Jay Greenberg thinks the combination of a paranoid man (Randolph) and a paranoid organization (Mets) was a doomed match.

ONE DOWN, ONE TO GO: Tony Bernazard is emerging as the hidden villain in all this, at least in media accounts of how it all went down. And now the Daily News is reporting Bernazard may be in line to replace Minaya if the GM doesn't survive . . . which apparently is possible.

BUT STILL . . . The Post's Mike Vaccaro thinks the division title is still there for the taking if the Mets can regroup.

NUMBER TWO: Joining Randolph on the unemployment line is John McLaren, fired yesterday by the Mariners. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer) David Pinto of Baseball Musings normally blames the general manager "for putting a terrible team on the field," but concedes that "[as] far as I can tell, however, McLaren did nothing to get the most out of a weak squad."

BACK UP THE TRUCK: Former Seattle Times journalist Bob Sherwin, now writing for examiner.com, makes a bunch of recommendations to the Mariners, which include releasing Richie Sexson ("not a leader") and trading Erik Bedard ("a flake and a bit of a fake . . . his act is tired . . . a fraud").

NEXT! With the first two managerial casualties of the season recorded, the Toronto Star's Richard Griffin makes his recommendation for the third: John Gibbons of the Blue Jays.

SORRY DON'T FEED THE BULLDOG: J.P. Ricciardi has apologized for disparaging comments he made about the Reds' Adam Dunn on his radio show Wednesday night. (Vancouver Sun) But that didn't stop Dunn -- the "affable" Dunn, according to the Columbus Dispatch -- from firing back at the Blue Jays' GM, calling him a "clown."

OH, SO THAT'S WHAT THAT MEANS! Joe Posnanski says the J.P. in Ricciardi's name stands for "Judging People."

BUT WOULDN'T THAT BE H.D. RICCIARDI? Pinto thinks Ricciardi has been a huge disappointment.

CODE YELLOW: The Chicago Sun-Times says the Cubs' season "could hinge on the outcome" of Carlos Zambrano's MRI today. Zambrano was 2-2 with a 4.67 ERA in the seven starts he made after developing stiffness in his neck that radiated into his shoulder, and on Wednesday against the Rays he said he "couldn't go back over the top with my arm" because of the pain.

PULL THE PLUG: The Cleveland Plain-Dealer's Terry Pluto declares the Indians' season to be "over."

OH, WELL: Chipper Jones' average has dropped below .400. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution) And that doesn't surprise Tracy Ringolsby. (foxsports.com)

BREAKING IT DOWN: The blog Baseball-Intellect has analysis and visual evidence of "the gradual decline and sudden collapse of Dontrelle Willis."

WHISPERS: Now that Rhode Island's Chris Iannetta has taken over as the Rockies' starting catcher, Colorado may trade Yorvit Torrealba. (Denver Post)

OLD FRIENDS: Eric Gagne tabs June 27 as the day he'll be back with the Brewers (mlb.com) . . . In order to activate David Riske -- who made an inauspicious return to action yesterday (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel) -- the Brewers designated Julian Tavarez for assignment. (mlb.com) But they hope Tavarez will accept a demotion to Triple-A Nashville, because they say he needs innings to work his arm back in shape and that they'll make him a starter in the minors to build up his strength . . . The Nationals appear to be the latest team to reach the end of their rope with Wily Mo Pena. He's been benched by manager Manny Acta after his batting average dropped to .205 and his slugging percentage to a shocking .265 (Washington Post) . . . Adam Everett, reports the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, is a long way from returning to the Twins . . . Dave Roberts is about two weeks away from beginning rehab and could return to the Giants by the third week in July. (San Francisco Chronicle)

AND FINALLY . . . Click the link to see how Frank From Gloucester dressed for the Celtics' victory parade. It's amazing he survived. (Boston Dirt Dogs)

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 6:59 AM | Permalink | Comments 1

Former Sox player, oldest living major leaguer, turns 100 today

From Scott Fowler, in the Charlotte Observer:

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Happy birthday, Bill Werber.

The oldest living former major league baseball player turns 100 years old on Friday in a south Charlotte retirement community. In front of about 85 friends and family, with a plate of fried chicken and barbecue, he will celebrate hitting the century mark.

Check that.

“I’m not celebrating it,” Werber said. “I’m tolerating it.”

Werber is by turns merry and cantankerous. He boasts a full head of white hair, zips around in a motorized wheelchair and lives alone in an apartment at The Carriage Club retirement complex.

He remembers playing alongside Babe Ruth 75 years ago more easily than he remembers his daughter’s address. A conversation with Werber opens a fascinating window into a world most of us never experienced — a world where roads were unpaved, haircuts were 35 cents and baseball on the radio was king.

Click here to continue reading.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 5:37 AM | Permalink

Baseball Today: Thursday, June 19

AP Photo

PAPI WHO? Let's say David Ortiz had never gotten hurt, and had simply stayed in the lineup from June 1 to today. What would you have said if he'd put up these numbers in 17 games, and 59 at-bats, from that day until now:

DOUBLES: 7
TRIPLES: 2
HOME RUNS: 9
RBI: 21
BATTING AVERAGE: .441
ON-BASE PERCENTAGE: .547
SLUGGING PERCENTAGE: 1.085
OPS: 1.631

Unrealistic, right?

Well, as you've probably guessed, those are the exact statistics from June 1 to today of none other than J.D. Drew. (Numbers provided by the essential Day By Day Database on David Pinto's Baseball Musings.)

The Red Sox have gone 12-5 in Ortiz' absence and Drew is one of the main reasons why. It was more of the same yesterday as he went 4-for-5 -- including a first-inning home run (above) -- in the Red Sox' 7-4 conquest of the Phillies. Steven Krasner examines Drew's torrid stretch and gets reaction from both Drew and Terry Francona about how well he's performed over this period. Drew has suddenly become a center of attention, both locally (Nick Cafardo of the Globe does his own piece on Boston's newest baseball hero) and nationally (Dave Cameron of Fangraphs writes that Drew "has been absolutely sensational so far in 2008, putting up a .315/.424/.576 line that is the best of any American League outfielder). While it's a truism that anybody can be replaced over the short haul, no one anticipated Ortiz could be replaced by someone who would outhit him over a 2 1/2 week -- and counting -- stretch. Yet that's exactly what Drew has done.

And Cameron concludes by telling people who criticized the Red Sox for Drew's signing that "you can all apologize now."

THE BENEFICIARY: Justin Masterson had the worst outing of his brief major-league career -- five innings, 92 pitches -- but, thanks to Drew and friends, still got credit for the win. Krasner finds him appropriately grateful.

PERFECT TIMING: Coco Crisp's offensive resurgence on the road trip (Day By Day Database) couldn't have come at a better moment. The Chicago Tribune reports the Cubs are interested in Crisp again and sent special assistant Ken Kravec to scout him during the Sox' journey through Cincinnati and Philadelphia. In addition, the Tribune says the Cubs may be willing to part with Rich Hill in a multiplayer trade involving Crisp. In that light, the Sox hope the optimistic take on the hand injury that forced him out of yesterday's game is accurate.

'STICK WITH THE PROCESS': That's the mantra of both Manny Delcarmen (projo.com) and Dustin Pedroia (Boston Herald), and it worked for them yesterday.

CONGRATULATIONS . . . AND WE'LL GET A LITTLE SOMETHING OUT OF THIS, TOO: Krasner reports Terry Francona was delighted the Celtics, coached by his friend Doc Rivers, won the NBA championship. The Sox have plans to honor the Celts before Friday night's game with the Cardinals and they may use the event to trot out those green jerseys again, which they try to do once a year to boost merchandise sales. (Boston Herald)

TAKE THE DAY: They're both ailing, and the scheduled day off today would give them a bit of extra rest, so Francona held Manny Ramirez and Kevin Youkilis out of yesterday's lineup. (projo.com)

LET'S GET REAL: Five Red Sox players lead the All-Star voting at their various positions, but only Ramirez makes Dayn Perry's A.L. All-Star team. (foxsports.com)

HE KNEW THEM WHEN: Joe Haggerty, on his Hacks With Haggs blog, talks to Mel Zitter, who coached both Ramirez and Julio Lugo when they were teenagers in New York City. He said Ramirez was "quiet," Lugo "cocky" as youngsters.

BUT WHO KNEW HE'D COME TO THIS?: Lugo gets a mention on Bugs & Cranks' All-Worst Contract Team. You might be interested to know that Mo Vaughn is the starting first baseman on that particular nine.

LOOKING AHEAD: The Chicago Tribune talks to the folks at accuscore.com. who say the Cubs have the best chance of any National League team of making the World Series. As for playoff chances, accuscore lists the Red Sox as having an 83.2% chance of qualifying for the postseason. The Rays? 38%.

NON-BELIEVERS: Las Vegas oddsmakers apparently aren't too impressed by the Rays' first-half success either, as they only have them listed at 10-1 to win the American League pennant. (Los Angeles Times) That does, however, beat the 75-1 odds they were given at the start of the season. The Red Sox remain the favorite, at 7-4, followed by the Angels, Yankees, White Sox and Indians before you get to the Rays. (Indians?)

LOWER THOSE ODDS: Las Vegas may have to keep rethinking things if the Rays continue playing as they did last night, when they beat Victor Zambrano -- more on him below -- and the Cubs, 5-4, in a nationally televised game. (St. Petersburg Times) And today Tampa Bay welcomes back James Shields, whose six-game suspension is over just in time for him to pitch the series finale against Chicago. (Tampa Tribune)

NO, NO, HE'S GOING TO THE YANKEES. JUST ASK ANYONE IN NEW YORK: The blog Devilrays Locker -- time to change the name, don't you think? -- wants Tampa Bay to make a run at C.C. Sabathia, drooling "wouldn’t it be beautiful to have a playoff rotation that starts with Scott Kazmir, James Shields and C.C. Sabathia?"

WISHFUL THINKING: Indians assistant GM Chris Antonetti says Sabathia's not going anywhere because Cleveland's still in the race. But several scouts say they're not good enough to make a run at the division title. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)

WEBSTER'S DEFINITION OF 'DESPERATE': Signing pariah Sidney Ponson -- which is what the Yankees did yesterday (New York Post) -- would seem to qualify. Or maybe they missed Joel Sherman's spot-on description of El Sid: "David Wells, minus superior talent . . . Bloated, boozy and disruptive . . . " The blog It Is About the Money, Stupid calls the signing one of the Yanks' "stupid decisions du jour."

THANK GOD FOR INTERLEAGUE PLAY: By my count -- and I could be wrong; I quickly added up the numbers in today's newspaper -- the American League is 66-44 against the National so far this year, and no one's benefitted more than the Yankees . . . at least in this latest round of matchups. After losing two straight to the Mets last month in the in-and-out interleague weekend, they made it five in a row over N.L. teams, and six in a row overall, with an 8-5 win over Jake Peavy and the Padres last night (New York Post), which puts them six games over .500. The offense was led by Alex Rodriguez, who homered for the fourth consecutive game and the victory was nailed down in the end by Mariano Rivera, who, before the game, talked about the fact that he and his San Diego counterpart, Trevor Hoffman, have combined for over 1,000 career saves. (Both stories New York Daily News) And while it may be more because of the Mets than anything they've done, Shaun Powell of Newsday says the Yanks are once again "the undisputed baseball heavyweight in town."

TIME AND A PLACE FOR EVERYTHING: In Boston, dancing means the Celtics are on the verge of another victory and the dancers -- especially good old Gino (right) -- are folk heroes. (Riverside Press-Enterprise) But in New York, dancing, at least on the baseball field, is poison to old timers like Goose Gossage, who thinks the antics of Jose Reyes and his ilk are one of the reasons Willie Randolph got fired. (New York Daily News)

THE HIGH ROAD: Though he thinks "I deserve better" than to be fired in the middle of the night -- or, actually, late at night on the West Coast, which is where he got the word -- Willie Randolph wouldn't rip the Mets or Omar Minaya as he met reporters outside his house yesterday. (New York Daily News)

THE LOW ROAD: But Randolph's friends think his replacement, Jerry Manuel, angled for the job by undermining Willie to Mets management, particularly vice-president of player development Tony Bernazard, whom, the New York Post reports, is "a known Randolph detractor." When asked about it yesterday, Manuel denied the charge. (As for Bernazard, Newsday's Ken Davidoff didn't hear many kind words when some well-connected friends offered their opinions of him.)

THE LOWEST ROAD: Furious at what he considers the cowardly way they fired Randolph, Mets fan Martin Silver sent five whole chickens to owner Fred Wilpon. (New York Daily News) He also says he plans to return his season tickets.

THE ROAD BACK: The Mets won their first game under Manuel, beating the Angels in 10 innings on Damion Easley's home run. (New York Post)

THE ROAD TO GLORY: Writing on sportingnews.com, David Pinto notes that Randolph was dismissed 30 years after the Yankees fired Billy Martin in midseason, lists the similarities between the situations and wonders if a Yankee-like resurgence is in the Mets' future.

ZAMBRANO REVISITED: More on Carlos Zambrano: He had to leave last night's start against the Rays in the seventh inning because of shoulder discomfort and he's flying back to Chicago to be examined. (Chicago Tribune)

THE TIME IS NOW: Saying that every major-league game "is an accident and lawsuit waiting to happen" because of the danger represented by the flying shards of broken maple bats that we see several times every night, SI.com's Tom Verducci urges MLB to ban the use of maple bats immediately.

TAXMAN COMETH: Prince Fielder has no comment on reports he owes the IRS $409,149. (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel)

IT'S NEVER GOOD WHEN 'TOXIC' IS A WORD USED TO DESCRIBE YOUR CLUBHOUSE: But that's the word Jose de Jesus Ortiz uses in talking about the Astros. (Houston Chronicle)

LOCAL BOYS: In his second rehab game at Vero Beach, Rocco Baldelli hit two home runs. (Outs Per Swing)

WHISPERS: Jason Lloyd of the Journal-Register News Service thinks the Indians-Rockies series could help Cleveland decide whether or not to make a run at Matt Holliday or Garrett Atkins . . . Some scouts think the Giants' Randy Winn could draw some interest at the trade deadline, particularly from Atlanta (San Francisco Chronicle) . . . The Mariners may soon release Richie Sexson (Everett Herald) . . . Judging by J.P. Ricciardi's comments, you can be fairly certain the Blue Jays have no use for Adam Dunn. (National Post)

THIS IS HOW IT'S DONE: It's rare that a trade helps both teams, but Bob Nightengale of USA Today says last winter's Reds-Rangers deal that sent Josh Hamilton to Texas for Edinson Volquez and a minor-league prospect was, in the words of fired Cincinnati GM Wayne Krivsky, "the perfect trade, the perfect match."

HERE AND THERE: Pirates catcher Ryan Doumit suffered a concussion after taking three foul tips off his mask (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) . . . Hideki Matsui sat out last night's Yankees-Padres game after getting fluid drained from his knee (New York Daily News) . . . The new Yankee Stadium will feature a year-round Hardrock Cafe. (AP via nj.com)

OLD FRIENDS: Even though Dave Trembley says the bleached hair makes him look like "a box of Crayola crayons," Kevin Millar delivered the game-winning hit for the Orioles in the 10th inning last night (Baltimore Sun) . . . One day after hitting a two-run homer in a rehab game for Las Vegas, Nomar Garciaparra woke up with discomfort in the strained right calf that landed him on the 60-day disabled list and didn't play yesterday. Nor will he play today (Los Angeles Times) . . . Derek Lowe bested Bronson Arroyo as the Dodgers beat the Reds. (Los Angeles Times)

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 7:08 AM | Permalink

Coco Leaves Game -- Left Hand

Coco Crisp came out of the game for a pinch hitter in the third inning.

He left the game because of discomfort in his left hand, a problem that occurred on a swing in his first-inning at-bat. Crisp grounded out to second base. His condition is listed as day-to-day.

Brandon Moss batted for Crisp with the bases loaded and two out. He delivered a two-run single to right-center, boosting Boston's lead to 6-1.

Jacoby Ellsbury moved from left field to Crisp's spot in center, with Moss taking over in left when the Sox went back on the field in the bottom of the third.

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 2:17 PM | Permalink

Projo SoxTalk with McAdam: Running wild on the base paths

Click the play button below to hear Sean's comments, recorded this morning. The topics: Jon Lester's outstanding showing in Philly, Terry Francona's mild reprimand of Jacoby Ellsbury, Curt Schilling's setback, and the dismissal of Willie Randolph (which Sean saw coming months ago).

Here are some excerpts from Sean's comments:

On Lester: "The top of that [Philadelphia] lineup is as formidable as any in the game right now, and an outing like last night's is another reminder of what Lester is capable of."

On Ellsbury, who was caught stealing last night: "It's funny, it was only a few days ago that Ellsbury was talking about how the team trusts him now more, in terms of when to go and when not to, than even at the beginning the year. But last night was a reminder that, as good as he is and as good a base runner he is and as fast as he is, sometimes he makes mistakes in judgment."

On firing Randolph: [The Mets] did it in a highly unorthodox and decidedly unclassy way -- making him fly across the country and then Omar Minaya flies out during the game and then waits for Randolph and a couple of coaches at the hotel after the game to dismiss them at about 3 o'clock in the morning Eastern time. It was highly unusual and I think it's kind of symptomatic of an organization that's really in a mess, and that's why I don't think changing from Willie Randolph to Jerry Manuel is going to change much there."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 12:45 PM to Projo SoxTalk with Sean McAdam | Permalink

Francona Happy for Celts

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

PHILADELPHIA -- Red Sox manager Terry Francona watched with a smile on his face as the Celtics destroyed the Lakers in winning the NBA Championship Tuesday night.

Francona has forged a friendly relationship with Doc Rivers, the Celts' coach.

"I was happy for him. That's really good. I'm happy for the whole organization," he said. "The people I know over there, not a lot of them, but they're always just nice."

By the time Francona got back to his room after the Red Sox' game Tuesday night, he said there were nine minutes remaining in the game. The outcome had long since been decided.

"I just wanted to watch to see how people reacted to it, the fans, the players. It was kind of cool to watch," he said.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:40 AM | Permalink

Schilling Examination

Curt Schilling, who has hit a plateau in his attempt to rebound from a serious shoulder injury, was scheduled to meet with Red Sox team physician Thomas Gill Wednesday morning, but that date was pushed back until later in the day.

So instead of being examined at 9 a.m., the exam is now scheduled for 4:30 p.m.

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:38 AM | Permalink

Ramirez, Youkilis Not Starting

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

PHILADELPHIA -- Opting to err on the side of caution, manager Terry Francona elected not to put Manny Ramirez and Kevin Youkilis in the starting lineup for Wednesday's game.

Factoring into his decision was the Sox' regularly scheduled day off on Thursday, which in essence provides two days off for them.

Ramirez has been battling a hamstring problem that is low on his right leg, behind his knee. He aggravated the problem when he took a mighty cut and missed a pitch in the seventh inning of Tuesday night's game.

Francona asked him after the at-bat -- Ramirez flied to left -- how he was and Ramirez said he felt the hamstring tighten up. So Francona took Ramirez out of the game, replacing him in left field with Jacoby Ellsbury even though there was the possibility Ramirez might have gotten another at-bat in the game.

The Sox will be going home after Wednesday's game and will open a three-game series at home against the St. Louis Cardinals. Ramirez likely will be back in the lineup, as the designated hitter.

Youkilis, meanwhile, is out for the third straight game because of a sore back. He felt spasms in the back Monday, and has been getting better, but Francona, using "common sense," is keeping him out of the lineup again Wednesday and expects him to be ready to play Friday, as well.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:27 AM | Permalink

Starting Lineups, June 18

RED SOX

Ellsbury lf
Pedroia 2b
Drew rf
Lowell 3b
Casey 1b
Varitek c
Crisp cf
Lugo ss
Masterson p

PHILLIES

Rollins ss
Victorino cf
Utley 2b
Howard 1b
Burrell lf
Jenkins rf
Dobbs 3b
Ruiz c
Kendrick p

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:25 AM | Permalink

Baseball Today: Wednesday, June 18

AP Photo

My apologies for the delay in posting this; as I mentioned earlier, Cox Cable's Internet access went down for about an hour this morning. But we're here, and so with no further ado . . .

'WE HAVE THE FULL PACKAGE HERE': That's Coco Crisp's assessment of the Red Sox, and last night that package included a team-record six stolen bases (including one from Julio Lugo, above). It also included shutout pitching from Jon Lester, Hideki Okajima and Jonathan Papelbon -- quite a feat in the bandbox known as Citizens Bank Ballpark -- as the Sox defeated the Phillies, 3-0. Steven Krasner has the details, focusing on Lester's more-than-impressive seven-inning, 99-pitch performance. He also has a separate blog item on Papelbon, who rebounded from Saturday's blown save in Cincinnati by blowing away the three batters he faced in the ninth, striking them all out on fastballs in the 95-97 mph range. And they weren't chopped liver, either; Papelbon's victims were Ryan Howard, Pat Burrell and Jayson Werth.

They play again this afternoon as they attempt to complete the road trip with two wins in three games against the Phillies and four wins in six games overall. Check back for all the details.

INJURY UPDATES: Bartolo Colon was forced to the disabled list because of the back injury he suffered while unhinging himself with his nuclear batting swings the other night. Chris Smith was recalled from Pawtucket for the second time this year, and he'll probably be here until Daisuke Matsuzaka is activated on Saturday; let's see if he gets into a game this time. Curt Schilling, meanwhile, is headed back to Boston to have his balky shoulder checked. Terry Francona says he hopes it's just "a bump in the road" in Schilling's rehab. Krasner has both stories.

DROPPING A BOMBSHELL . . . MAYBE: I assume this is a typo and that he meant "weeks" and not "days," but Jim Rice did say he expects David Ortiz to "get back into games in the next 4-5 days. Maybe sooner." (ask14.sullivantire.com)

SIGN OF THE TIMES: It's all good when none of your players are on anybody's All-Overpaid Team, and none of the Red Sox show up on Yahoo! Sports' Jeff Passan's squad. Derek Jeter does, though.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: The New York Times, for goodness sakes, has discovered our own Charlie Zink. He celebrated his day in the national consciousness by subduing those Iron Pigs, 5-1. (projo.com)

ONE OF THESE DAYS WE'LL FILL THE JOINT WITH OUR OWN FANS: The good news is there were 31,607 at The Trop last night, which at first glance would indicate that Rays Nation is finally getting excited about its young -- and very good -- ballclub. The bad news is about half of them were there to root for the Cubs. But the home half went home happy as Tampa Bay pulled out a 3-2 win over Chicago. (Tampa Tribune)

WHO CALLS ME DUMB?? The blog DRays Bay is discovering that a "team's winning percentage in directly proportionate to the amount of dumb in it's fanbase." But the blog Rays Index is personally offended at the notion that Rays fans are dumb. I know, I know. F Troop references are a sure sign of age. Wonder if my friend Repoz still regards me as "ever-hip"? (Repoz . . . now he's hip!)

YEAH, WE TEASE HIM A LOT 'CAUSE WE GOT HIM ON THE SPOT, WELCOME BACK: Now to further bury myself with Welcome Back Kotter references. But it fits -- I guess -- as the Rays celebrated the return of ex-manager Lou Piniella. (Tampa Tribune) The St. Petersburg Times' Gary Shelton was happy to see Piniella, but is happier that Joe Maddon, and not Piniella, is now in the Tampa Bay dugout.

GLAD ALL OVER: Okay, how about The Dave Clark Five? (At least this'll please Sean McAdam, perhaps the world's biggest Dave Clark Five fan.) It described the feelings of yet another ex-Rays skipper, Larry Rothschild, who's also with the Cubs these days -- as Piniella's pitching coach -- and is happy his old team is doing so well. (Tampa Tribune)

TO WHICH ALTERNATE UNIVERSE HAVE WE BEEN TRANSPORTED? Big League Stew is wondering if this Rays-Cubs matchup will prove to be a World Series preview.

IF THE RAYS ARE TO GET THERE . . . they'll have to overcome their schedule, which the blog Baseball Playoffs Now describes as the toughest in either league.

ACE AUDITIONS: With Chien-Ming Wang sidelined, the Yankees are looking for a new No. 1 starter. Andy Pettitte put in his bid with seven shutout innings, his second straight strong performance, in an 8-0 win over the Padres. (New York Post) Joba Chamberlain, incidentally, says he wants no part of the 'ace' moniker. (New York Daily News)

DUELING OPINIONS: Wang says he'll do everything he can to pitch again for the Yankees this season. (New York Daily News) But Peter Abraham, reading a report from a doctor who was contacted by Baseball Prospectus' Will Carroll, says there's a good chance the next time Wang throws a baseball will be next February in Florida. (LoHud Yankees Blog)

SHAMELESS: The president of Teamsters Union Local 202 in New York is furious that the Yankees keep asking for taxpayer subsidies as they complete construction of the new Yankee Stadium, saying the money the Yanks want is "the money we've been asking for from the city to save our members' jobs from leaving the Bronx." (New York Daily News)

CONDITION AS EXPECTED: When you fire your manager via press release at 3 a.m. Eastern time -- in New York, no less -- you can be pretty sure you're not going to be lauded for your organizational skills. So as Omar Minaya was on the Left Coast explaining that his early-morning axing of Willie Randolph was just an example of his take-charge, up-front, be-honest-with-people style (New York Times), media outlets in the Big Apple were feasting on a Minaya shishkabob. The Daily News' Bill Madden, repeating what he'd said on the radio yesterday morning, called the manner of Randolph's canning "shameful, indecent, undignified [and] ill-conceived." The Post's Joel Sherman says Mets ownership has done the impossible: "They have made Hank Steinbrenner appear the level-headed baseball owner in town." The Daily News' Mike Lupica, meanwhile, thinks yesterday's beheading of Randolph was just a warmup to the inevitable execution of Minaya, whom he doesn't believe can survive this nightmare.

CHANGE OF HEART: On Sunday, Randolph told a friend he felt like a "dead man walking." But yesterday he describing himself as "stunned" and surprised" at his firing. (New York Daily News)

WE'LL SURE MISS 'OL WHATZ-IS-NAME: Mets players were, ah, less than emotional at Randolph's dismissal. (New York Post) Randolph's friends, however, were a bit more upset. (New York Daily News)

'THIS IS DOG EAT DOG': The seeds for Randolph's fate were planted last September when the Phillies overtook the Mets and won the N.L. East. There wasn't a shred of remorse in the Philadelphia clubhouse, however, no matter how much they may like Randolph as a person.

WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL? Yogi Berra feels bad for Randolph but says being fired is part of the gig for a manager. (New York Post)

UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES: So how often is a manager fired after he's already been named to his league's coaching staff for that year's All-Star Game? Randolph's one of the few, if not the first, and N.L. manager Clint Hurdle will probably replace him with someone else. (Rocky Mountain News)

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: The Jerry Manuel Era started inauspiciously. Jose Reyes threw a mini-tantrum when Manuel took him out of the game after he tweaked his hamstring in the first inning -- though they appeared to kiss and make up later -- and Johan Santana got clipped around in a 6-1 loss to the Angels. (New York Daily News) It was, says the Post's Mike Vaccaro, a fitting end to the Mets' day.

ALL IS NOT LOST: In spite of all this, Michael Salfino says the Mets aren't out the playoff picture. (sny.tv)

YOU'RE ALWAYS WELCOME HERE: Randolph -- whom Jorge Posada apparently calls "Will-o" -- could wind up back with the Yankees in some capacity, according to Hank Steinbrenner. (New York Post)

REPLACING RANDOLPH ON THE HOT SEAT . . . is the Brewers' Ned Yost. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel's Michael Hunt wonders whether or not Yost will join Will-o on the unemployment line soon.

MY KIND OF PLACE: Trade rumors have been flying, but Ken Griffey Jr. says he'd like to win a championship with the Reds. (Cincinnati Enquirer)

BASEBALL'S ALGONQUIN ROUND TABLE: The Baltimore Sun's Roch Kubatko gives us a glimpse into the raconteur that is Dave Trembley.

LOCAL BOYS: Rocco Baldelli went 1-for-3 with two walks and drove in two runs in his first rehab appearance for Class A Vero Beach last night (Tampa Tribune) . . . Paul Konerko is on the disabled list for the first time in his career. (Chicago Sun-Times)

MEDICAL REPORT: The Dodgers have plenty of injury issues, what with Brad Penny headed to the DL and Hiroki Kuroda headed to the doctor's office; now news comes that Rafael Furcal won't be back before the All-Star break (Both stories Los Angeles Times) . . . Alfonso Soriano hopes to be able to recover from his broken hand in time to play in the All-Star Game (Chicago Tribune) . . . The Cardinals' Chris Carpenter is give the okay to restart his rehab. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

HERE AND THERE: Jose Canseco is being sued by his lawyer (New York Daily News) . . . Freddy Garcia, who attracted some mild interest from the Red Sox this spring, may be headed to the Tigers (Detroit Free Press) . . . New Reds GM Walt Jocketty disputed a New York Post report that he's about to clean house, saying "it's not necessary." (Cincinnati Enquirer)

OLD FRIENDS: Matt Murton is back with the Cubs, though they may only be showcasing him for a trade (Chicago Tribune) . . . David Riske struck out the side in his first rehabilitation outing at Nashville and could be back with the Brewers as soon as today (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel) . . . The Braves will activate Mike Gonzalez today. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

AND FINALLY . . . Congratulations to the Celtics, whose 17th NBA championship is celebrated by old friend Chad Finn. (And, not to be selfish or anything, but now that the quest is finished it'll be good to have Chad back on baseball again.) The Boston Herald's Rob Bradford says talk in the Red Sox clubhouse after their game was all about the Celts . . . and he also has an interesting anecdote about a Philadelphia rooter whose bitterness at Boston's overflowing sporting fortunes was self-evident.

One last note: Joe Posnanski says the Celtics' 39-point win -- or, rather, the Lakers' 39-point loss -- should, once and for all, put an end to the Kobe Bryant/Michael Jordan comparisons.

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 8:59 AM | Permalink

Red Sox aren't the only team that can't win on the road

By Rick Hummel
St. Louis Post-Dispatch

ST. LOUIS - The only three teams in the major leagues that had winning records on the road before last weekend all would be in the playoffs if they started today. The Los Angeles Angels (21-12) and the Philadelphia Phillies (19-15 entering last weekend) lead their divisions, and the Cardinals (19-15) lead in the early stages of the wild-card race in the National League.

For a team to have a winning record on the road - no mean feat these days - one of its star players generally leads the way. In the Angels' case, reliever Frankie "K-Rod" Rodriguez has been almost unbelievable with 17 saves in 18 road games, a 1.06 earned-run average and a 0.97 opponents' batting average against.

Philadelphia reliever Brad Lidge has been almost as good on the road, saving 11 games in 15 appearances on the road with a 0.60 ERA and .151 opponents' batting average.

Then there is the Cardinals' Ryan Ludwick, who, apparently, has reached star status now. He is hitting .333 away from home with 11 doubles, 12 homers, 36 runs batted in and a .746 slugging percentage.

Inasmuch as there are 30 big-league teams, you no doubt have surmised that there were a stunning 27 teams that didn't have a winning record on the road before the weekend, including the once proud Atlanta Braves, who had lost 17 of their last 20 road games and carried a dismal 7-24 road mark into Anaheim last weekend.

While there were 27 road non-warriors, 25 teams had winning records at home. Not surprisingly, four of the five defectors were last-place clubs - Washington, Kansas City, Seattle and Colorado - although Colorado is at least at .500 at 16-16.

Before this latest rash of interleague play, the home winning percentage this year was .576.
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, this is the highest since the era of the liveliest ball ever, 1931, when home teams were at. 582. The only year close to that was 1978 at .573.

The reasons?

"I've been asked this many times by people in baseball and people outside it," said Cardinals manager Tony La Russa. And? "No clue," he said.

Two of the three teams with the best records in baseball, the Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox, have the best home records at 29-8 and 28-7, respectively. It would be easy to ascribe some of the advantage those teams have to the peculiarities of their own ancient parks except that the Cubs have had dozens of losing seasons at home in the long and storied history of Wrigley Field.

This theory doesn't hold water in Atlanta, where by-the-book Turner Field seemingly has no real home-field advantage, yet the Braves are 25-11 there.

In the Braves' case, notably, and perhaps in others, the methods in which managers use their closers may make a difference. Generally, a manager on the road won't use his closer until he gets ahead - even in extra innings - while at home he would use him in the ninth inning of a tie game.

The relief-strapped Braves are exhibit A of that theory because they entered last weekend with a ridiculous 3-18 record in one-run games and 21 straight one-run losses on the road dating to last August. No wonder oft-injured John Smoltz wanted to come back as a reliever and then got hurt again in the first game he pitched as he blew a lead.

Chipper Jones, who has hit .400 throughout all this, is as puzzled as everyone else. Speaking to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Jones said, "Everybody else executes. We don't."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 8:41 AM | Permalink

Postgame: Papelbon Rebounds in Style

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

PHILADELPHIA -- In his last appearance, Jonathan Papelbon coughed up a save, serving up a two-out, 2-and-2 ninth inning homer to Edwin Encarnacion in Cincinnati last Saturday.

Last night he was called in for the first time since that game.

And Papelbon didn't just earn the save, he turned in one of the most dominant outings of his career.

First, he blazed his way past Phillies slugger Ryan Howard, who couldn't catch up with a full-count 97 mph heater. Pat Burrell was next. Papelbon blew him away with a 95 mph fastball. Jayson Werth was the last obstacle between Papelbon and his 20th save of the year. Papelbon fanned him on another 95 mph heater.

The save was the 92nd of Papelbon's career, moving him into third place on the Sox' all-time list. Papelbon is one of three Red Sox to post 20 saves in three different seasons, joining Dick Radatz (4 times) and Jeff Reardon (3 times).

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 11:00 PM | Permalink

Postgame -- Sox Tie SB Record

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

PHILADELPHIA -- The Red Sox were up to their thieving best on the basepaths in Tuesday night's 3-0 victory over the Phillies.

Boston swiped six bases, tying a record the team set on May 30 this season in a game in Baltimore.

Three of the Sox' most likely stolen-base threats were able to contribute to the record-tying performance last night. Coco Crisp swiped a pair with Jacoby Ellsbury and Julio Lugo each contributing one. Dustin Pedroia racked up one on the back end of a double steal with Lugo, and the other came from a highly unlikely source -- Sean Casey.

Casey was at first base in the eighth inning when the count went full on Brandon Moss. The lumbering Sox first baseman took off on the pitch, Moss struck out, and Casey beat the throw from catcher Carlos Ruiz, claiming his first stolen base of the year. It was his 18th steal in 1,367th big-league game.

All was not perfect in the stolen-base department for the Sox, though. While Ellsbury successfully swiped second base in the ninth inning for his major-league-leading 34th of the year, the rookie got a little uncharacteristically greedy in trying to steal third, too.

Ellsbury was gunned down at third for the first time in eight attempts at stealing that bag. It was the final out of the inning, and it took the bat out of Mike Lowell's hands when he already had been in scoring position.

It was an attempt the Sox didn't need to make, intimated manager Terry Francona.

"One too many chances," said Francona. "It was the first time (Ellsbury) was kind of wild. (Stealing bases) is part of our game. That's been helping us. We're trying to be efficient. We like the idea of being safe. We don't want to run just to run. We want to run to win."

Ellsbury has been caught only four times. As a team, the Sox have been successful on 70 of 83 stolen-base attempts (84.3 percent), the top percentage in the league.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:48 PM | Permalink

Youkilis (back) still out

BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sport Writer

PHILADELPHIA -- Kevin Youkilis will be missing his second straight start, replaced at first base by Sean Casey for Tuesday night's game against the Phillies.

Youkilis said he felt his back tighten up on him during Sunday's game in Cincinnati. He said when he took batting practice on Monday, his back "locked up' on him as he ran the bases.

"It's just tight, no spasms," said Youkilis this afternoon as he sat on a couch in the Sox clubhouse. "It's not like it's a disc or something. It should be nothing big."

Youkilis said he was hopeful he'd be able to play in Wednesday's series finale, but manager Terry Francona, noting that the Red Sox have a scheduled day off on Thursday, didn't seem to want to push Youkilis too soon.

"We'll see," said Francona of Youkilis returning Wednesday. "He's better. But with the off day, we don't want to take the chance on setting him back."

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 5:33 PM | Permalink

Ortiz update

BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

PHILADELPHIA -- David Ortiz, who had the hard cast removed from his left wrist on Monday, was able to do some range of motion exercises on Tuesday.

Ortiz is wearing a removable splint. Manager Terry Francona said he's making progress.

"The medical people seem so positive about how this is going. It's good to hear," said Francona.

Don't expect to see Ortiz in the lineup soon, though.

"I don't know that anybody really knows," said Francona when asked when Ortiz might be healthy enough to return to his role as the Sox' designated hitter.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 5:29 PM | Permalink

Francona sympathizes with Randolph

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

PHILADELPHIA -- Terry Francona wasn't in Willie Randolph's shoes over the last month or so when the New York Mets manager was publicly twisting in the wind, his job in jeopardy.

But Francona, who was fired in 2000 after four years in Philadelphia, had a perspective on the process that ultimately claimed Randolph at 3 a.m. EDT Tuesday after the Mets had won a game in Anaheim. New York general manager Omar Minaya has been scorched in the media and on blogs for the way he handled the situation.

"Way more often than not, regardless of how it's perceived, people are trying to do the right thing. Who knows? There's no easy way (to fire a manager)," said Francona.

Francona then recounted how he was told that he would not be coming back. Phillies GM Ed Wade called Francona into his office before the final game of the 2000 season and gave him the bad news. Francona then went back downstairs and managed the final game of the year, his pink slip in his pocket.

"Ed took some heat (for the timing of the firing)," said Francona. "But he knew I had a four-day golf outing planned right after the season, and he didn't want me (thinking about the job status) the whole time. He knew he was going to do it. He was trying to do the best thing, the best way he could. I appreciated that."

That didn't make managing that last game easy, though.

"That wasn't the best day, but that's the way it goes," said Francona.

He wished Randolph well.

"What I know of Willie he's a great guy," said Francona. "The harder thing (than getting fired) is going through all of it. It's so public in New York. I hope he's able to take a deep breath."

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 5:14 PM | Permalink

Beckett to get extra rest

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

PHILADELPHIA -- The injury to Bartolo Colon (back) forced the Red Sox to make some alterations in its starting rotation.

Some of the changes already had been planned, notably extra rest for Josh Beckett, but Colon's injury likely has spared rookie right-hander Justin Masterson a return trip to Pawtucket.

Boston enjoys a day off on Thursday, making it easier to give Beckett a breather of sorts. So the starters for this weekend's series at Fenway Park against the Cardinals will be Tim Wakefield (Friday night), Daisuke Matsuzaka (Saturday afternoon) and Jon Lester (Sunday).

Matsuzaka will be taken off the disabled list for his start in the 4 o'clock game, and Lester will slide up into Beckett's spot for the Sunday outing. Lester, who starts Tuesday night against the Phillies, will be pitching on normal four days' rest.

Beckett will pitch Monday night in the opener of a three-game series against Arizona at Fenway. He'll be pitching on seven days' rest, his last outing having come last Sunday in Cincinnati.

Manager Terry Francona said that there is nothing wrong with Beckett physically, but that the Red Sox want to make sure they give their pitchers extra rest whenever possible to keep them stronger down the stretch.

"We really think that helps," said Francona.

Masterson will pitch the second game of the series against Arizona, with Wakefield pitching the finale next Wednesday night. And if the Sox want to make any further alterations of the rotation after that series, they will have another day off, June 26, to use to their advantage in that regard.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 5:03 PM | Permalink

Schilling sent home for exam

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

PHILADELPHIA -- Curt Schilling's comeback from a serious shoulder injury has been stalled.

The veteran right-hander was sent back home to Boston, where on Wednesday he will be examined by team physician Thomas Gil.

Schilling threw last Friday in Cincinnati and was not encouraged by his progress. His session was termed "blah" by manager Terry Francona.

Schilling did not want to comment on his shoulder or anything else this afternoon.

"Nothing new to report. I'll let Tito (Francona) talk before I say anything," said an uncharacteristically tight-lipped Schilling.

Francona later talked about the immediate plans for Schilling.

"Hopefully he's just hit a plateau," said Francona. "It may be a bump in the road. We'll send him back to be examined before he does anything else. It has been a frustrating week for him. He's just kind of stuck. We'll just have to wait and see what the next move is."

Schilling was not available to talk after Francona's media session.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 4:54 PM | Permalink

Colon (back strain) on DL; Smith recalled

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

PHILADELPHIA -- Bartolo Colon, who had to leave his start Monday night because of a lower back strain, has been placed on the disabled list.

He's being replaced on the roster by Chris Smith, a right-hander called up from Pawtucket. Smith will provide manager Terry Francona with another arm out of the bullpen for three games. It is expected that Smith will be returned to Pawtucket on Saturday, when Daisuke Matsuzaka will be activated from the DL for a start that day at home against St. Louis.

Colon suffered the injury during one of his overly aggressive swings, the force of one of which caused his helmet to fall off. Colon whiffed both times, swinging and missing six pitches, his second at-bat coming with runners at second and third with two outs in the fourth.

The corpulent right-hander pitched the fourth, but Francona said he and pitching coach John Farrell saw a change in his arm angle and didn't want him to risk further injury by going back out for the fifth.

Colon spent time on the DL in 2006 because of rotator cuff issues, and time last year because of elbow woes. He already had been shut down once this year because of an oblique muscle strain.

But the veteran has gone 4-2 for the Sox. So the feeling of Francona and the organization is a better-safe-than-sorry philosophy.

"We're being somewhat cautious not only with him, but all of our pitchers," said Francona. "We want them to be healthy and productive and we think that goes hand in hand. We want to have him all year. We kind of like the way he has been throwing."

Colon's injury, plus the serious foot injury suffered by the Yanks' Chien-Ming Wang, has caused more debate about the fears American League managers have when they participate in interleague play in National League parks where the designated hitter is not used.

"I know anyone can run the bases. (Wang) was just bad luck. You're asking people to do stuff (hitting, running the bases) they're not used to doing. That's difficult," said Francona.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 4:39 PM | Permalink

Starting Lineups, June 17

RED SOX

Lugo ss
Pedroia 2b
Drew rf
Ramirez lf
Lowell 3b
Varitek c
Casey 1b
Crisp cf
Lester p

PHILLIES

Rollins ss
Victorino cf
Utley 2b
Howard 1b
Burrell lf
Werth rf
Feliz 3b
Ruiz c
Moyer p

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 4:35 PM | Permalink

Colon goes on 15-day DL

Steve Krasner reports that the Red Sox have placed pitcher Bartolo Colon on the 15-day disabled list. Colon has back stiffness following hard swings he took during last night's Red Sox-Phillies game. The Sox have called up relief pitcher Chris Smith to take Colon's spot on the roster.

Colon's next scheduled start was to be Sunday against the Cardinals. The Sox plan on using Daisuke Matsuzaka, who will be coming back from the DL, on Saturday, and plugging Jon Lester into the Sunday start.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 3:40 PM to Krasner | Permalink

Projo SoxTalk with McAdam: World Series preview?

Click the play button below to hear Sean's comments, recorded this morning. The topics: Bartolo Colon's swing-for-the-fences plate approach, the debate over whether the National League should adopt the designated hitter, and Cole Hamels' prediction that the Sox and the Phils will meet again in October.

Here are some excerpts from Sean's comments:

On Colon, and his injury: "I guess it could have been worse, if you're the Red Sox, because look at what happened to Chien-Ming Wang, who got on the bases and then ended up breaking his foot, and is going to be out until September at the earliest."

Will the NL go with the DH? "I think the only way this changes is if you get an influx of younger National League owners. As it is now there are teams and owners in particular who would I think fight to the death before adopting the designated hitter in their league."

On the Phillies' World Series hopes: "It just seems like offense has to carry so much of what they are and point them to success. But the National League is so wide open ... I would put the Cubs as probably the best National League team, but that doesn't mean that it's impossible for the Phillies to get in and perhaps knock them off."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 2:23 PM to Projo SoxTalk with Sean McAdam | Permalink

Baseball Today: Tuesday, June 17

AP Photo

WHEN YOU'RE RIGHT, YOU'RE RIGHT: It's Hank Steinbrenner, so everybody laughs. His pitcher (above) gets hurt running the bases -- (much) more on that later in our show -- and Little Stein goes off on how ridiculous it is for one league to play by one set of rules and the other league to play by another set. (New York Daily News) And he demands the National League join "the 21st century."

Ha, ha. 'Ol Hank, always good for a laugh. All because his pitcher can't travel from third base to home plate without incapacitating himself.

And then it hits a little closer to home, when Bartolo Colon makes a cartoonish spectacle of himself flailing wildly at various Cole Hamels deliveries and has to come out of the game because he hurts his back on one of his corkscrew swings. (Boston Herald)

Forget the sideshows -- Hank Steinbrenner, the ridiculous way Colon was injured -- and focus on this: Nine times a season (the nine games A.L. teams have to play on the road during the interleague period), you're asking a subset of professional athletes, in this case American League pitchers, to utilize a set of skills they've let atrophy over the years. Most times they can handle it, at varying degrees of competency. And sometimes, as Chien-Ming Wang and Bartolo Colon can attest, they can't . . . at the cost of their livelihood and their team's on-field chances.

And why? Because one league plays by one set of rules, the other by another.

I don't want this to be interpreted as a big-market whine about losing a pitcher. I understand that pitchers, even if they don't have to do it very often, should be able to swing a bat or run the bases without suffering debilitating injuries. And I understand that position players get hurt doing the very same things, even though they work on those tasks daily.

Fact is, though, that neither Wang nor Colon would be injured today if they hadn't been playing in a National League park. That, in the end, winds back to what is -- and always has been -- my point: One league plays by one set of rules, the other by another. People ask me why I hate interleague play. That's why. You build your team to play the game a certain way and then, for the nine games a year you have to play on the road during the interleague period, it all goes out the window. It's utterly absurd. Do the Celtics lose players on four fouls when they play in the Western Conference? Do the Patriots have to play with 10 men on offense when they face an NFC team? Sounds ridiculous, right? Well, how is that any different than what baseball actually does?

Most times it's just annoying. And sometimes, like in the last two days if you're a Red Sox or a Yankee, it's infuriating.

I don't often hear Peter Abraham of the LoHud Yankees Blog say he agrees with Hank Steinbrenner, but he did today.

Me too, Pete.

SIDESHOW: Colon's injury didn't have much of an affect on the Red Sox game last night, except that it forced them to use Mike Timlin when the outcome was still in question . . . and that, sad to say, isn't a good thing these days. Timlin allowed four runs in two-thirds of an inning and Steven Krasner has the gruesome details of the veteran reliever's 2008 season in the aftermath of last night's 8-2 defeat: 40 baserunners (29 hits, 11 walks) in 21 2/3 innings, with a 7.06 ERA.

AP Photo

AS ONE DOOR CLOSES, ANOTHER OPENS: The news of Colon's injury was tempered -- at least a little -- by Daisuke Matsuzaka's more-than-encouraging rehab start for the PawSox (above). Tom Robinson, writing for the Providence Journal and projo.com, said not only did Dice-K dominate the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs -- not allowing a hit until he appeared to tire in the fifth -- but reported that Matsuzaka had no problems with his shoulder. There was already talk Matsuzaka would start Saturday in Boston against the Cardinals; if Colon's on the shelf, that would seem to be a certainty.

It all speaks to the Sox' pitching depth, something Peter Gammons discussed on ESPN Radio as transcribed by Joe Haggerty on his Hacks With Haggs blog.

AND YET ANOTHER CLOSES: They'll need that depth. Krasner says the news on Curt Schilling isn't good and wonders if the thin chance that Schilling would actually pitch this year has gotten "even thinner."

ALMOST IN THE SWING: A pain-free David Ortiz had the hard cast removed from his wrist and, Krasner reports, will begin some range-of-motion exercises to help in his rehabilitation. The Phillies' Pat Burrell, who had a similar injury in 2004, is glad Ortiz didn't have surgery; he decided against surgery after he got hurt and was back in the lineup in five weeks. (Boston Herald)

MR. REINCARNATION: When he was managing the Red Sox, Jimy Williams used to say that Nomar Garciaparra was such a throwback that "it's like he's been here before." Now he's a Phillies coach and he's saying the same things about Chase Utley.

PHILLY PHAVORITE: J.D. Drew -- who refused to sign with the Phillies after they made him their No. 1 draft choice in 1997 -- has always been held in a special ring of hell by Philadelphia fans. They gave him their normal venomous greeting last night but he had the last laugh when he homered.

HE'S BACK! Manny Ramirez returned to left field.

THE VERDICT: Out until September . . . at least. That's what both the New York Daily News and the New York Post are reporting about Chien-Ming Wang, who suffered a partially torn tendon and a sprain of the Lisfranc ligament in his right foot. So, naturally, the lonely eyes of Yankee Universe turn to C.C. Sabathia, but the New York Post's Joel Sherman tells them to forget it, that these Yanks aren't about to back up the minor-league prospect truck for a free agent-to-be. As of now there appear to be few external options, as Brian Cashman says there is no trade market at the moment. (New York Post) But Abraham -- the voice of reason, as always -- says there doesn't need to be, since the Yankees will only need a fifth starter four times between now and July 24. That, he says, gives Cashman some time to explore options.

BUT THE BIG NEWS IS . . . I can guarantee you Chien-Ming Wang and Hank Steinbrenner and C.C. Sabathia and God knows what else will not be Topic One on New York sports talk radio today.

And why?

Because the Mets (finally) fired Willie Randolph.

At 3 a.m. Eastern time.

After they'd won a game, 9-6 against the Angels in Anaheim. (New York Daily News)

Can you make this stuff up?

The Daily News has the down-and-dirty report of the firing -- pitching coach Rick Peterson and first base coach Tom Nieto were also let go -- as does the Post, which called it "a bizarrely timed housecleaning." Mets GM Omar Minaya isn't scheduled to meet the press until 5 p.m. EDT today, so speculation and opinion will rule the day until then. And it's already started:

-- On his Matthew Cerrone's Mets Blog, Cerrone says he's "embarrassed this morning, and I feel a little dirty . . . [The] Mets took so long to make this decision that it made them look foolish, classless and disorganized."

-- The blog It Is About The Money, Stupid reports reaction from various folks, none of whom particularly praise the Mets. (The Daily News' Bill Madden, on a radio appearance, calls it the most "undignified, atrocious" firing he's seen in 30 years of covering New York sports, and that includes all of George Steinbrenner's dismissals.)

-- The blog Can't Stop The Bleeding says that "for all the credibility the Mets purchased with their acquisitions of Carlos Beltran, Pedro Martinez and Johan Santana, there isn’t enough money in Flushing to erase the sort of ill will their handling of this episode will generate."

-- The blog Sportsthodoxy says Omar Minaya "has used his last bullet. He's out of cover, and the next body to hit the floor will be his."

-- The blog Sliding Into Home sums it up in succinct, NSFW fashion.

And so forth and so on, etc., etc.

Shysterball's Craig Calcaterra has the best take on it all. The Mets, he says, turned Randolph -- who he thinks deserved dismissal -- into a sympathetic figure by deliberately timing his firing until after the print media's final deadline had passed, meaning it would miss today's newspaper news cycle. But it reality it means "the bloggers, while not nearly as widely read and heard as the traditional outlets, are going to be twice as shrill as they try to fill the void; and . . . the print and radio people" -- who won't be far behind, since they all have online outlets -- "are going to level about five times as much artillery at the Mets due to the shoddy way in which this was all handled."

In fact, it's already started. Mike Vaccaro of the New York Post posted an online column in the last 15 minutes in which he absolutely eviscerates the Mets. I wanted to cull through it for the most inflammatory comments, but there are so many of them I don't know where to begin. ("Disgraceful. Utterly, completely, disgraceful" . . . "miserable cast of miscreants" . . . "sinister men, cowards" . . . see what I mean?)

Just brilliant, guys.

ONE LAST NOTE: The Mariners fired GM Bill Bavasi (Seattle Post-Intelligencer), but before you read the story after clicking this link, check the picture. All I could think was: Kevin Youkilis in 20 years.

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 9:00 AM | Permalink | Comments 1

Photos of Dice-K at Lehigh Valley

AP photos / Steve Klaver

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 8:45 AM to PawSox | Permalink

Postgame: Okajima Works Spotless Inning

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

PHILADELPHIA -- Hideki Okajima has been struggling lately, making things problematic for manager Terry Francona as to when to being him in.

It's difficult to trust a guy who has allowed 11 of 14 inherited runners to score to come in with runners on base. And in a late-inning setup role, with Manny Delcarmen pitching so well, it's also difficult to stick with him at the first sign of trouble even if he starts an inning.

Last night, though, Francona found a relatively stress-free opportunity to give the left-hander some work. And Okajima, who had been scored upon in his last two outings -- 4 runs in only 2/3 of an inning -- worked a spotless inning last night.

Okajima fanned two, including Ryan Howard, who already had homered twice and tripled.

It may not have been much, considering the Sox were trailing, 8-2, but it sure couldn't have hurt Okajima's confidence.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:31 PM | Permalink

Youkilis Scratched -- Back Spasms

Kevin Youkilis has been scratched from the Sox' starting lineup because of muscle spasms in the middle of his back.

Catcher Jason Varitek has been moved up from seventh to sixth in the batting order. Sean Casey will replace Youkilis at first base, and he'll be batting seventh.

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 6:13 PM | Permalink

Schilling setback?

BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

PHILADELPHIA -- Curt Schilling, who struggled through a throwing session Friday in Cincinnati, apparently has had a setback in his attempt to come back from a serious shoulder injury.

Manager Terry Francona, who described Schilling's session Friday night as "blah," rather somberly sidestepped a question this afternoon about the next step for the veteran right-hander.

"He's stuck for the moment," said Francona. "We'll have to get with him the next day or so and figure out where we need to go (in his rehab)."

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 4:59 PM | Permalink

Ramirez returns to left field

BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

PHILADEPHIA -- Manny Ramirez, who was unable to start the last two games in Cincinnati because of a tight right hamstring, is back in the lineup in left field tonight against the Phillies.

Manager Terry Francona said Ramirez approached him on the flight from Cincinnati and told him he was ready to play. That, to Francona, meant that Ramirez felt he could play an entire game and not have to leave in the middle because of hamstring issues.

Ramirez was in good spirits in the clubhouse this afternoon, where his teammates were intently watching the Tiger Woods-Rocco Mediate U.S. Open playoff round.

He was asked how he was doing.

"I'm alive!" said Ramirez with a great big smile. "I'm alive!"

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 4:55 PM | Permalink

Ortiz swaps cast for removable splint

BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

PHILADEPHIA -- David Ortiz, who had been in a hard cast since June 2 to protect the partial tear of the tendon sheath in his left wrist, had the cast cut off Monday and replaced with a removable splint.

This will enable the Sox' designated hitter to perform some range of motion exercises to help with his rehabilitation. While it is far too soon to place a timetable on Ortiz's return to the lineup, manager Terry Francona said the switch from a hard cast to a removable one constituted a step in the right direction.

"I would say this is a very good thing. They (doctors) weren't going to do it unless he was pain free, so I'd say that's a real good sign."

Francona said he wasn't going to assign any specific date to pencil Ortiz back in the lineup.

"It goes on how he feels, not our estimated time of arrival," said Francona.

Ortiz suffered the injury in an at-bat in Baltimore on May 31. He had to leave the game after taking a swing.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 4:43 PM | Permalink

Starting Lineups, June 16

Late Change -- Youkilis out (back spasms), Casey in

RED SOX

Ellsbury cf
Pedroia 2b
Drew rf
Ramirez lf
Lowell 3b
Varitek c
Casey 1b
Lugo ss
Colon p

PHILLIES

Rollins ss
Victorino cf
Utley 2b
Howard 1b
Burrell lf
Jenkins rf
Feliz 3b
Ruiz c
Hamels p

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 4:38 PM | Permalink

Baseball Today: Monday, June 16

AP Photo

MISSED THE MEMO: They don't have David Ortiz, obviously, and Manny Ramirez' balky hamstring prevents him from playing the field, which keeps him totally out of the lineup in National League parks. So, naturally, you'd think the Red Sox would have trouble generating offense. Well, that may have been true Friday night, when they managed just a single run in a 3-1 loss to the Reds, but the Sox were operating on all cylinders the rest of the weekend. They got back-to-back, 10th-inning home runs from Kevin Youkilis and Coco Crisp on Saturday, erasing the pain of a particularly irksome Jonathan Papelbon blown save, as they pulled out a 6-4 victory. (Over at Joy of Sox, Allan Wood has more info on the Sox going back-to-back in extra innings.) And yesterday they got home runs from four different players -- including both Dustin Pedroia and Jacoby Ellsbury (above, meeting at home plate after Ellsbury's homer) -- to back the shutout pitching of Josh Beckett, David Aardsma and Mike Timlin as they ran away with the rubber game of the series, 9-0. All the games are recounted by Steven Krasner, who points out that Boston's batting exploits may have been aided by the Great American Ballpark, also known as the Great American Smallpark for how it plays. ("This place is a bandbox," writes Steve, "a pitcher’s nightmare but a hitter’s delight, especially to right-center.") But the Sox needn't worry. Now they're in Philadelphia for three nights and, writes Kraz, "[the] Phillies’ ballpark is another bandbox."

DOESN'T MATTER: Or maybe it's not the venue. David Pinto of Baseball Musings shows that the Sox' team batting average and slugging percentage have gone up since Ortiz went down.

DARE WE SAY IT? The Boston Globe's Nick Cafardo wonders if these next three games might prove to be a World Series preview.

GOD SAVE US: Even if they are, Bob Ford of the Philadelphia Inquirer isn't looking forward to them because they signal the "annual invasion of the denizens of Red Sox Nation. (Motto: In Us We Irritate.) It is a nation whose currency is based on being cloying, self-important, pompous, overly loud and, regrettably, ever-present, and the economy is great. Axis of Evil? You make your list of nations that belong and I'll make mine."

GETTING SO MUCH BETTER ALL THE TIME: Francona reports Ortiz' wrist is now pain-free, and he'll be examined today to see what the next step in his rehabilitation will be. (Boston Herald)

SIDE ORDER OF SPEED: Lost amid the fireworks yesterday was Ellsbury's breaking of the franchise's 100-year-old record for stolen bases by a rookie, with details provided by Krasner. Ellsbury's on a never-before-seen -- at least by these eyes when it comes to Red Sox players -- baserunning roll, with 14 stolen bases in his last 14 starts, and the proof of just how unique it's been is in the pudding of the names he's erasing from the record book; who's ever heard of these guys? (I mean, Amby McConnell? Really.) At the rate he's going Ellsbury will finish the year with 74 steals, which won't just break the Sox' record for stolen bases in a single season (54, by Tommy Harper in 1973) but shatter it into a million pieces. As it is, he's two bags away from tying Patsy Dougherty and Tris Speaker for 10th place on the Sox' single-season list . . . and that milestone (35 steals) was last reached 98 years ago. The Worcester Telegram's Bill Ballou says Ellsbury has a chance to be "a once-in-a-generation player," but I wonder: How many generations back do you have to go to find Amby McConnell and Patsy Dougherty?

NUMBER ONE: Papelbon was one strike away from his 20th save Saturday afternoon, but Edwin Encarnacion drove a hanging splitter into the seats in left field for the game-tying home run. All that did, however, was give Craig Hansen the chance to record the first save of his big-league career, and he delivered.

NEVER LET ANYONE OUTSIDE THE FAMILY KNOW WHAT YOU'RE THINKING: Speaking of Papelbon, Terry Francona was none-too-pleased with his public pronouncement that hostilities between the Red Sox and Rays aren't over. As for the Rays, they were more surprised than anything else. (mlb.com)

IRON PIGS ON DICE-K'S MENU: Daisuke Matsuzaka will make a rehab start for the PawSox tonight in Lehigh Valley.

FATHER'S DAY TALES: The holiday gave J.D. Drew a chance to be thankful for his 2-year-old son's return to health. (Boston Herald) Closer to home, it also gave PawSox manager Ron Johnson a chance to reflect on how baseball has enabled him for forge a bond with his son, Astros farmhand Chris Johnson. Laura Meade Kirk tells how RJ -- who divorced Chris' mother when Chris was very young -- credits baseball for allowing the two to reconnect. "I do wonder sometimes, if it hadn’t been for baseball, if we’d have been able to come back around," he told her. And Chad Finn of Touching All The Bases -- sitting in seats remarkably close to where a friend and I had season tickets for 25 years -- tells a touching story of taking his daughter to her first game.

MISSED OPPORTUNITY: The Rays failed to complete their sweep of the Marlins as Edwin Jackson was hit hard in a 7-3 loss. (St. Petersburg Times) Martin Fennelly of the Tampa Tribune says that for Tampa Bay to stay a contender, Jackson -- and the Rays' other young players -- "have to step up and stay up."

NOW THAT WOULD BE A FIRST: When did you ever hear a star player -- in this case, Ken Griffey Jr. -- say he'd waive his no-trade clause to go to Tampa Bay? (Tampa Tribune) Griffey's agent, though, says there's nothing to it. (St. Petersburg Times)

BOY, WE SURE DON'T MISS YOU: The blog Rays Index is watching Elijah Dukes' latest incident with the satisfaction of knowing that he's someone else's problem now.

LOSE WHEN YOU WIN: The Yankees won 13-0 yesterday and completed a three-game sweep of the Astros, but there are no smiles in Yankee Universe this morning. Not when Chien-Ming Wang injured his right foot and had to be helped off the field. (New York Daily News) The New York Post is reporting the Yankees think it could be a Lisfranc fracture, which would probably end his season. So the C.C. Sabathia talk, which was loud enough before Wang went down (nj.com), will now begin escalating to 130-decibel levels. But Shysterball's Craig Calcaterra wants to know why the Indians would trade Sabathia at all since they're only "5.5 games out . . . I probably don't think about unloading Sabathia until the All Star break, and then not at all if the margin is around the same or smaller. Why? I know my team is better than it has shown, and I have no faith in the While Sox keeping it up all year." The LoHud Yankee Blog's Peter Abraham looks at the various options to replace Wang, Sabathia included.

MEANWHILE . . . Sabathia, still in an Indians uniform, outpitched Greg Maddux and led Cleveland over the Padres. (Akron Beacon Journal)

UH, OH: It's never a good sign when a manager begins publicly blaming players and players answer by subtly blaming the manager. But that's the scenario that seems to be unfolding in Houston in light of the Astros' three straight losses to the Yankees. (mlb.com) Phil Allard of nyyfans.com thinks Cecil Cooper, the manager in question, deserves some blame, especially for a specific tactical decision in Friday night's game.

THE NEVER-ENDING DEBATE: Now it's Jim Kaat who thinks Joba Chamberlain should have stayed in the bullpen. (yesnetwork.com)

IF IT'S MONDAY, HE MUST BE SAFE: In the minute-by-minute referendum on Willie Randolph's job performance, yesterday's doubleheader split with the Rangers means he's still on the job . . . at least for today. (New York Daily News)

STATE OF THE GAME: Many of my favorite baseball writers -- some of whom I link to on a regular basis -- participated in a "State of Major League Baseball 2008" discussion on The Biz of Baseball blog.

THE UNSPOKEN TRUTH: Peter Abraham -- one of the people who was part of that discussion -- says the end of the performance-enhancing drugs era "is changing baseball in ways both subtle and conspicuous." And, in light of the ban on amphetamines, one of them is that "young players -- the kind who don't need a prescription to have energy -- are quickly becoming the biggest factors in the game." It's a fascinating take, and well worth your time. (Journal American)

STAND UP AND BE COUNTED: Allen Barra, writing in the New York Sun, says the players he helped over the years should push for Marvin Miller to be enshrined in the Hall of Fame.

AT LAST, REINFORCEMENTS: Fernando Rodney has rejoined the Tigers and Joel Zumaya may be there by the end of the week. And Gary Sheffield could be just days away. (Both stories Detroit Free Press)

TRAGEDY AVERTED: It looked a lot worse than it ended up being, as the Cardinals say Yadier Molina has a mild concussion after an horrific home-plate collision with the Phillies' Eric Bruntlett. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

LOCAL BOYS: Rocco Baldelli is recovered to the point that he'll soon begin a Class A rehab assignment. (minorleaguebaseball.com)

TRADE TALK: Suddenly there's a lot of it floating around, and not all of it involves C.C. Sabathia and the Yankees. To wit: A.J. Burnett says he'd accept a trade from the Blue Jays to the Cubs (Toronto Globe and Mail) . . . The Angels are looking for offensive help (Orange County Register) . . . As the Pirates' season disintegrates, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette expects teams to make pitches for Jason Bay and Xavier Nady, among others . . . Now it's the Mets allegedly interested in Brian Fuentes. (Denver Post)

OLD FRIENDS: Trot Nixon is back in the majors, having been picked up by the Mets (Newsday) . . . Billy Werber, who played for the Red Sox way back when, celebrates his 100th birthday. (Palm Beach Post)

AND FINALLY . . . Tim Russert, the NBC journalist who died suddenly Friday, was a Red Sox fan and the team mourned his passing. (Boston Globe)

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 6:55 AM | Permalink | Comments 1

Ellsbury sets rookie SB record

CINCINNATI -- It didn’t take long Sunday for Jacoby Ellsbury to break his tie with Amby McConnell (1908) for the Red Sox' rookie stolen-base record.

Ellsbury, leading off in the top of the first, smacked an 0-and-2 single through the left side and promptly stole second on Homer Bailey’s first pitch to the next hitter, Dustin Pedroia.

The stolen base was his 32nd of the season, putting McConnell in his rear-view mirror in the Sox’ record books.

The speedy outfielder didn’t rest on his laurels, though. He swiped third base on Bailey’s 1-and-1 pitch to Pedroia, boosting his major-league-leading total to 33. He has been caught only three times. He has been successful in all seven of his attempts at stealing third.

Ellsbury’s speed helped the Sox to a quick 1-0 lead. He trotted home on Pedroia’s sacrifice fly to right.

Ellsbury has been on a stolen-base tear. The first-inning steals Sunday gave him 14 stolen bases in his last 14 starts.

-- STEVEN KRASNER

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 1:22 PM | Permalink

Matsuzaka primed for rehab start

CINCINNATI -- Daisuke Matsuzaka, who hasn't pitched since May 27 because of a strained right rotator cuff, will be starting for the Pawtucket Red Sox Monday night in Lehigh Valley in a rehab start.

It is expected the right-hander will throw 70-80 pitches, or roughly five innings.

"It's a transitional start for him, is what it is," said manager Terry Francona.

If all goes well, Matsuzaka will rejoin the Red Sox rotation for a start at home against St. Louis this Saturday.

Matsuzaka will be accompanied on the roughly one-hour trip from Philadelphia, where Boston will be playing the Phillies, by his translator, Masa Hoshino; his massage therapist, Takanori Maeda, and assistant trainer Masai Takahashi.

-- STEVEN KRASNER

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:58 AM | Permalink

Varitek, Lugo in lineup; Manny out

CINCINNATI -- Jason Varitek, who missed the last three games because of strep throat, is back in the starting lineup on Sunday. He still looks a bit under the weather and a bit thinner, but he will be catching Josh Beckett.

Shortstop Julio Lugo, who missed Saturday's game because of an upset stomach, is back in the starting lineup as well.

Manny Ramirez, still nursing a tight right hamstring, is not able to play left field. Manager Terry Francona is hopeful Ramirez will be able to start Monday night in the opener of a three-game series in Philadelphia.

-- STEVEN KRASNER

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:51 AM | Permalink

Starting lineups, June 15

RED SOX

Ellsbury lf
Pedroia 2b
Drew rf
Lowell 3b
Youkilis 1b
Varitek c
Crisp cf
Lugo ss
Beckett p

REDS

Bruce cf
Cabrera ss
Griffey Jr. rf
Phillips 2b
Dunn lf
Encarnacion 3b
Votto 1b
Ross c
Bailey p

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:48 AM | Permalink

Lugo scratched from Saturday's lineup due to an upset stomach

CINCINNATI -- Julio Lugo has been scratched from an already thin Red Sox lineup. He is said to be suffering from an upset stomach.

Alex Cora is replacing him at shortstop. He'll bat seventh.

So the Red Sox bench now includes Lugo (upset stomach), Jason Varitek (strep throat) and Manny Ramirez (hamstring). The only healthy body off the bench manager Terry Francona can turn to is rookie outfielder Brandon Moss.

-- STEVEN KRASNER

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 2:07 PM | Permalink | Comments 1

Francona on Manny, Trot Nixon and replays

CINCINNATI -- Manager Terry Francona touched on several items in his pregame meeting with the media.

-- Manny Ramirez is struggling with a tight right hamstring, down where it attaches to the knee. Ramirez is not starting today and won't start in the National League cities where the designated hitter is not used until Francona is sure that he can play a full game and not have to be replaced in the middle of a game.

-- Trot Nixon was traded from the Arizona organization to the New York Mets where he'll have a chance to return to the big leagues. "Good for him," said Francona.

-- Major League Baseball is hoping to implement instant replay for use on home run calls. The date Aug 1 has been mentioned. Francona isn't necessarily against the concept, but the timing has him baffled.

"I don't know how you change the rules in the middle of a season. I don't know how that works. It's hard to understand," said Francona.

-- STEVEN KRASNER

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 1:53 PM | Permalink

Francona mum on Sox' plans for Masterson

CINCINNATI -- Though Justin Masterson has been throwing the ball extremely well, manager Terry Francona wasn't ready this afternoon to say whether the rookie right-hander may have pitched his way into a more prominent role on the staff at an earlier stage than anticipated.

There has been talk that Masterson may be shifted to the bullpen later this season in order to cut down on his innings and to help out the relievers. Francona didn't want to get into any such specifics.

"He's pitched great," said Francona of Masterson, who lost for the first time in his budding big-league career on Friday night despite allowing three runs on only four hits to the Reds in 6 2/3 innings.

"He continues to progress. But I don't think we need to map out his progress here today. One of the things that may come into play is the health (of the other pitchers). Why would we even talk about that in June. A lot of things can happen between now and August and September. How do we know where we'll be situated (with the pitching staff) then. But he has done an outstanding job," said Francona.

Francona has been impressed that Masterson not only has shown a very good, sinking fastball, but also that he has started to effectively mix in his slider and a changeup.

-- STEVEN KRASNER

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 1:46 PM | Permalink

Varitek, still suffering from strep throat, finally arrives

CINCINNATI -- Jason Varitek, who is suffering from strep throat, finally made it here late Friday night after a nightmare of flight issues.

Varitek spent roughly seven hours in the airport in Cleveland before landing in Cincinnati around 11 o'clock Friday night.

The catcher still looks weak, and he said Saturday afternoon that his throat still is very sore. But he's hoping he'll be able to play Sunday in the series finale against the Reds.

"I don't know. though," said Varitek, who hasn't played since Wednesday. "I thought for sure (Friday) night that I'd be fine for (Sunday). But today I'm not feeling so good. I'll take batting practice and see how it goes."

Varitek said there were several ways in which he may have contracted strep throat. He caught back-to-back days in 95-plus-degree weather, then shook hands with hundreds of fans at his putt-putt charity tournament last Monday and took his kids to a community pool two days in a row.

"When could I not have caught it?" joked the weary Varitek. "My immune system was down (from catching in the heat). But I'm feeling a little hungry right now, so that's a good sign."

Kevin Cash started Thursday and Friday and will be behind the plate again Saturday when he catches Tim Wakefield as usual.

-- STEVEN KRASNER

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 1:38 PM | Permalink

Starting lineups, June 14

RED SOX

Ellsbury lf
Pedroia 2b
Drew rf
Lowell 3b
Youkilis 1b
Crisp cf
Cora ss
Cash c
Wakefield p

REDS
Bruce cf
Janish ss
Griffey Jr. rf
Phillips 2b
Dunn lf
Encarnacion 3b
Votto 1b
Bako c
Volquez p

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 12:05 PM | Permalink

Postgame -- This and That

-- J.D. Drew's hitting streak was snapped at 11 games. Drew, who had pretty much been carrying the Sox offensively during his streak, went 0 for 4, including three strikeouts.

-- Justin Masterson has thrown at least six innings in each of his first five starts in the majors, the seventh Red Sox pitcher since 1965 to be able to make that boast.

-- Dustin Pedroia, who was 2 for 26 on the homestand, went 1 for 4, a one-out single to right off Cincinnati closer Francisco Cordero in the ninth.

-- Jacoby Ellsbury has hit safely in each of his four games since missing three starts because of a jammed right wrist. But he has had only one hit in each of those games, going 4 for 18 over that stretch. His hit last night was a double. He was robbed of another, most likely another double, on a superb defensive play by first baseman Joey Votto.

-- The Red Sox are only 4-11 in their last 15 road games.

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:32 PM | Permalink

Postgame: Varitek No-Show -- Flight Issues

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

CINCINNATI -- Jason Varitek, who has been stricken with strep throat, did not fly with the Sox to Cincinnati after Thursday night’s game.

He tried to make it here last night, but flight issues left him stranded in Cleveland for a while, so he did not make it to the park during the game.

Francona wasn’t expecting him to play, but thought he’d be available as an emergency in case something happened to Kevin Cash. Cash, though, made it through last night’s game without a problem, and he’ll start today, too, catching Tim Wakefield as he always does. Varitek is expected to back him up today.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:27 PM | Permalink

Postgame: Casey Ovation, 1,500th Hit

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

CINCINNATI -- Sean Casey played eight years in Cincinnati, and when he was with the Reds, he was called “Mr. Mayor” for his affable personality.

The fans remembered him fondly when he came to the plate for the first time last night, giving him a long ovation. Casey acknowledged it by stepping out of the batter’s box, doffing his helmet and holding it out to the fans.

“That was special,” said Casey afterward. “I had a great relationship with the fans and to get that kind of ovation was one of the best moments of my career.”

Adding to career moments, Casey dunked a single to left in the seventh inning. It was the 1,500th hit of his career.

Earlier, Casey said he would appeal the three-game suspension he was given for his part in the June 5 brawl with the Rays at Fenway Park. His appeal will be heard on June 23, the same day Crisp’s appeal of his seven-game suspension will be heard.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:26 PM | Permalink

Postgame: Ramirez (Hamstring) Leaves Game

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

CINCINNATI -- Manny Ramirez, who started in left field despite a sore right hamstring, had to leave the game in the seventh inning when it tightened up on him.

Manager Terry Francona said Ramirez will not play in today’s game and he said the Sox would be cautious about returning him to the lineup before he’s ready.

“We’ll wait until he’s better rather than put him in there and have to take him out in the middle of a game,” said Francona.

While he was in, Ramirez drilled an RBI single to right in the fourth inning for Boston’s only run. It was the 1,653rd RBI of his career, breaking a tie with Tony Perez and moving him into 24th place on the all-time list. It also was his 140th RBI in interleague play, tying the Mets’ Carlos Delgado for the top spot in that category.

Ramirez had been able to spare his right leg extra strain by serving as the Sox’ designated hitter for the previous 10 games, given that luxury because David Ortiz (left wrist) is on the disabled list. But the designated hitter is not used in National League parks, and the next five Boston games will be in N.L. cities – two more games in Cincinnati and then there in Philadelphia.

With Ramirez out of the lineup, Coco Crisp, who took over Ramirez’s spot in the batting order, came to the plate representing the tying run in the ninth against closer Francisco Cordero. He flied out with a man on first and two outs.

So the Sox now are down two sluggers – Ortiz and Ramirez – possibly the best one-two power-packed punch in the history of the game.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:24 PM | Permalink

Schilling "Blah;" Varitek Still Sick

-- Curt Schilling threw in the bullpen before torrential rains soaked Great American Ballpark. It wasn't much to write home about.

Schilling didn't want to discuss it as he grabbed a pen and began to work on a newspaper crossword puzzle.

"Not now," said Schilling.

Manager Terry Francona offered a critique of the session.

"He had kind of a blah day," said Francona. "I don't think he was real thrilled about it. It wasn't one of his better days."

The next step on Schilling's plan wasn't clear.

-- Catcher Jason Varitek, bothered by strep throat, was expected in the clubhouse late this afternoon. Francona said he would be all right to serve as the emergency catcher backing up Kevin Cash, but not ready to start.

Saturday Cash will catch Tim Wakefield, as usual, so Varitek will get another day off.

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 5:28 PM | Permalink

Youkilis Holds Court

Kevin Youkilis, a native of Cincinnati and a star at the University of Cincinnati, admitted this afternoon that he was disappointed at not having been drafted by his hometown Cincinnati Reds.

The Red Sox selected him in the eighth round of the 2001 draft.

He will have 138 family and friends in the stands for Saturday's game. Friday he met with the local media.

"When I didn't get drafted by the Reds there was definitely some bitterness. But we've won two World Series rings in Boston so maybe I was better off being drafted by Boston," said Youkilis.

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 5:21 PM | Permalink

Francona Unhappy With Papelbon

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

CINCINNATI -- On his weekly appearance on the Mohegun Sun Sports Tonight, Jonathan Papelbon had some harsh words and not-so-veiled threats for the Tampa Bay Rays for when the teams meet again June 30-July 2 in the wake of the teams' brawl at Fenway Park on June 5.

"In my opinion it is a bunch of bull what they did. All I got to say is what comes around goes around. Payback is a bitch. In my opinion, and the way I feel right now, this thing isn’t all settled and done. We still got to play them a few more times and I know when we go into Tropicana things will be a little different than when went in there last time," said Papelbon during the show.

The words were not music to manager Terry Francona's ears.

"I'll speak to him," sighed Francona when the topic was brought up. "We don't need to go there. I'll talk to him."

Francona was upset because Papelbon's words not only could serve to fan whatever flames are leftover, but also from the standpoint of the umpires, who especially now will be on the watch for anything that constitutes further paybacks. One likely fear from the Sox' point of view is that one high and tight pitch from Papelbon, even if it's not meant as payback, could result in the closer's ejection.

Papelbon said this afternoon he understands that concern, but he still seemed steamed by the the James Shields fastball that drilled Coco Crisp, touching off the brawl that occured a day after Crisp had issues with shortstop Jason Bartlett and the Rays had issues with Crisp for his takeout slide of Akinori Iwamura on an unsuccessful stolen-base attempt.

"All of it is (standing up for Crisp)," said Papelbon. "We go through war during the season. If we don't have each other's backs, we'd be worthless as a team."

Papelbon kept on going.

"The play where Bartlett dropped down his knee when Coco slid in headfirst (and suffered a jammed thumb) and then Coco hit their guy, that should be it, a done deal. But they wanted to carry it over (hitting Crisp with a pitch), play their little game and take their cheap shots (punches in the pile). That's why I said it wasn't done. That's what I'll tell Tito. The way I feel isn't going to change," he said.

Papelbon said he wasn't worried about the umpires, hoping they would know the difference between a payback pitch and a purpose pitch to move a hitter off the plate to set up the next pitch, maybe down and away.

At that point, Francona happened by. He leaned over to Papelbon and said, "When you get done holding court, could you come in and see me?"

Papelbon started to say something and Francona playfully but purposefully grabbed a handful of Papelbon's T-shirt and dragged him out of the clubhouse to his office for a brief chat.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 5:01 PM | Permalink

Ramirez in left field

Manny Ramirez still has a tight right hamstring, but if Friday night's game is played here in Cincinnati, he will be back in left field because the designated hitter is not used in National League parks.

Ramirez has been able to stay in the lineup as the Sox' designated hitter because David Ortiz (left wrist) is on the disabled list. Ramirez had started the last 10 games at DH. He batted .389 with five homers and 13 RBI.

Manager Terry Francona said that Ramirez sat down with him and bench coach Brad Mills and talked about his health, something Francona said Ramirez likely wouldn't have felt comfortable doing a couple of years ago.

"He came in and talked about it and I didn't want to talk him into playing a game he's not supposed to," said Francona. "He's got a hammy that hurts. That doesn't make him a bad person. But how do we get around it because he's such a good hitter."

The plan heading into this series is to play Ramirez Friday night, sit him out Saturday and then, if he's feeling okay, have him back in left field for Sunday's game.

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 4:51 PM | Permalink

Dice-K Rehab Outing in Lehigh Valley

As reported first in the Journal two days ago, Daisuke Matsuzaka will be throwing a rehab assignment for the Pawtucket Red Sox Monday night in Lehigh Valley against the Iron Pigs.

Manager Terry Francona made the official announcement this afternoon as Dice-K threw a side session in the indoor cage, unable to throw outside on a mound because of rain here in Cincinnati.

Francona said Matsuzaka would throw 70-80 pitches for the PawSox. If all goes well in that outing, Matsuzaka will start for Boston Saturday, June 21, at home against St. Louis.

Matsazaka hasn't pitched in a game since leaving his May 27 start in Seattle after four innings because of a slight strain of his right rotator cuff. His record is 8-0 and he has a 2.53 earned-run average.

"Instead of worrying about whether it is the major leagues or the minor leagues I'm just going to approach the game (Monday night) as I regularly would," said Matsuzaka.

"It was a good and useful break. The big thing was it gave me a chance at this time of year to rest my body. Not just my body, but my shoulder and elbow," he said.
-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 4:45 PM | Permalink

Starting Lineups, June 13

The starting lineups for Friday night's game, weather permitting

RED SOX

Ellsbury cf
Pedroia 2b
Drew rf
Ramirez lf
Lowell 3b
Casey 1b
Lugo ss
Cash c
Masterson p

REDS
Bruce cf
Janish ss
Griffey Jr. rf
Phillips 2b
Dunn lf
Encarnacion 3b
Votto 1b
Ross c
Harang p

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 4:22 PM | Permalink

Rain Threatens Tonight's Game

A thunder and lightning storm, accompanied by heavy rain, has invaded the area, and the forecast is for similar storms throughout the night, putting tonight's game in jeopardy. There is a lull in the storm at the moment, but the radar looks ominous.

If the game should have to be postponed, it will be interesting to see how and when it will be made up because this is Boston's only visit to Cincinnati this year.

Saturday's game will be at 4 o'clock because it is scheduled to be telecast by FOX-TV, which makes a day-night doubleheader possibility problematic that day, but do-able, as the Sox discovered a few weeks ago when a similar situation occurred when they hosted Milwaukee.

The Sox-Brewers were rained out on May 16 at Fenway and they played a day-nighter the next day, at 4 and 9.

On Sunday, the Sox and Reds can't play a day-nighter. They have a 1:30 start because the game will be televised by TBS, and they can't play a night game because ESPN has exclusive rights to telecast a game that night.

The only other option would be to have Boston fly back to play the game on a mutual open date.

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 3:09 PM | Permalink

Casey Files Appeal

Red Sox first baseman Sean Casey this afternoon officially filed an appeal of a three-game suspension handed down to him by MLB for his part in the June 5 brawl with the Rays at Fenway Park.

Casey's appeal will be heard on June 23, the same day Coco Crisp's appeal of his seven-game suspension will be heard.

-- Steven Krasner

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 3:07 PM | Permalink

Baseball Today: Friday, June 13

Journal photo / Glenn Osmundson

ALL'S RIGHT WITH THE WORLD . . . IN BOSTON: Combatants on one Thursday, friends on the next (above); Manny Ramirez and Kevin Youkilis making nice after Youkilis' eighth-inning home run last night is just one more symbol of the smooth seas the Red Sox are currently sailing. The journey continued with a 9-2 rout of the Orioles, recounted here by Joe McDonald. It was the finale of a 7-2 homestand, which lifted their overall Fenway record to 28-7 and increased their A.L. East lead to 2 1/2 games. But the sailing's been a lot smoother in Boston than elsewhere this year -- as their 14-20 road record indicates -- so now, says Sean McAdam, it's time for the Sox to show they can be just as successful away from the friendly confines . . . because if they can't, it's "something that could prove to be a serious obstacle to their repeating as World Series champions."

HERE IT COMES AGAIN: And that quest begins in Cincinnati, of all places, as interleague play resumes tonight and continues for the next two weeks. McDonald and McAdam report Terry Francona still isn't an interleague fan -- you're hardly alone there, Tito -- even though the Sox have been pretty successful at it in recent years; they're 31-8 against National League teams since 2006. (And that's not counting last October.) But Sean Casey (who played there) and Kevin Youkilis (who grew up there) are looking forward to visiting Cincinnati. (Boston Herald) The Reds are eagerly anticipating the Sox' arrival, too -- probably more for the crowds they'll attract than anything else -- and they warmed up for the series with a 6-2 win over the Cardinals that features that rarities of rarities: A Bronson Arroyo home run. (Cincinnati Enquirer)

REMEMBER WHEN? When the Red Sox last were in Cincinnati, Reggie Cleveland was their starting pitching, Juan Beniquez was in left field batting leadoff and Carlton Fisk was hitting cleanup. (baseball-reference.com) It was Game Five of the classic 1975 World Series, and the 6-2 Reds victory gave Cincinnati a 3-2 series lead. The Enquirer's Bill Koch remembers '75 from a Reds perspective; co-worker Joe Fenton, a New Englander, looks at it from our point of view.

THE BIGGEST VICTORY: Bernie Carbo played for both the Reds and Red Sox, and the teams' matchup gives him another chance to talk about how he overcame his drug and alcohol addiction. (Cincinnati Enquirer)

GET READY FOR ROUND TWO: Jonathan Papelbon -- saying "it is a bunch of bull what [the Rays] did" -- warns that "this thing isn’t all settled and done" between Boston and Tampa Bay, adding that "what comes around goes around." (projo.com)

DOWN ON THE FARM . . . Jed Lowrie is alive and well and riding a 14-game hitting streak for the PawSox. Mike Szostak has the details.

GRAND FINALE: The Yankees closed out their series in Oakland with a 4-1 win highlighted by birthday boy Hideki Matsui's grand slam. (New York Daily News) They play tonight in Houston and Joba Chamberlain will have a longer leash than he did in his first two starts. (New York Post)

LET'S MAKE A DEAL: The LoHud Yankees Blog's Peter Abraham wonders if the Yankees will make a run at C.C. Sabathia, even though he'll be a free agent at the end of the season. The New York Times says it could happen.

OUT FOR THE YEAR: The Yankees will be without rookie reliever Jonathan Albaladejo until 2008; he has a stress fracture in his right elbow. (New York Daily News)

THEY'RE HEARTBROKEN ABOUT THE PAST, UNENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT THE PRESENT . . . and now Michael Salfino talks to a scout who examines their team's draft and concludes Mets fans have nothing to look forward to in the future, either. (web.sny.tv)

ANOTHER TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE: Red Sox-Reds isn't this weekend's only World Series rematch. The Orioles and Pirates will meet in Baltimore for the first time since the 1979 Series. (Baltimore Sun)

NOT SO FAST: Shysterball's Craig Calcaterra isn't so sure the wave of talent that will eventually flow out of Cuba will be as robust as some people think.

THE LONG ROAD TO NOWHERE: Wondering how the Mariners got to be so horrible? David Cameron of Baseball Analysts says "the foundations for this failure were laid years ago" and goes over all the bad decisions that landed them where they are today.

POWER OF THE PEN: One day after ESPN publicized the job-seeking letter he sent to all 30 major-league teams, Jay Gibbons says he expects to sign with an Atlantic League team. (Baltimore Sun)

NOW THERE'S A REASON TO CHANGE YOUR REPRESENTATION: The blog It Is About The Money, Stupid talks to player agent Matt Sosnick, who says he was dropped by Josh Hamilton -- just as Hamilton appears to be on the verge of a huge payday -- because Hamilton said Jesus told him to switch agents. I can only wonder how this guy would have reacted if Vincent Chase told him the same thing . . .

YOU'RE IN THE NAVY NOW: And, so, a Cardinals draftee is going to have to pass up a baseball career. (AP via nbcsports.com)

MY GUYS: Regis Philbin has adopted the Marlins. (mlb.com)

IT'S THE WOOD, STUPID: The president of a company that makes maple bats -- the kind that are constantly shattering; the kind that MLB will discuss at a June 24 meeting with the union -- says maple is a safe ingredient for bats. He thinks companies trying to capitalize on the craze are using inferior grades of maple and that, not the maple itself, is what's causing the problem. (New York Times)

'GET TO KNOW ME': Milton Bradley says he wouldn't have fought Ryan Lefebvre had he gotten to the Royals broadcast booth the other night. He said he only wanted "to give the two TV announcers a chance to meet the person who was referred to on the air as someone who 'clearly has no control over himself.' " (Dallas Morning News)

HERE AND THERE: The Phillies have released Steve Kline (mlb.com), which may mean the veteran left-hander's big-league career is over . . . The Brewers informed Jeff Weaver they wouldn't be recalling him from New Orleans, so he asked for and received his release (mlb.com) . . . Jason Isringhausen will return to the Cardinals today and could be activated this weekend (St. Louis Post-Dispatch) . . . The Indians have placed Victor Martinez and Josh Barfield on the disabled list. (Cleveland Plain Dealer) Martinez needs elbow surgery and will be out six to eight weeks (mlb.com) . . . This may be Ray Durham's last year (San Francisco Chronicle) . . . Moises Alou should just take up permanent residence on the DL (New York Daily News) . . . The Cubs may be interested in Scott Podsednik (Denver Post). . . The Royals have cut loose Brett Tomko. (mlb.com)

OLD FRIENDS: Kevin Millar's x-rays were negative and he's listed as day-to-day after having to leave last night's game against the Red Sox because he fouled a ball off his knee. (Baltimore Sun) There's talk the Mets may be interested in Millar, but Matthew Cerrone's Mets Blog isn't so sure . . . Freddy Sanchez is hitting .239, which is bad news since rotoworld.com says he's "entirely without value when he's not hitting for average" . . . Kason Gabbard is back in the major leagues with the Rangers and will start on Saturday night (mlb.com) . . . Chris Coste is slowly wresting the Phillies' catching job away from Carlos Ruiz. (Philadephia Inquirer)

AND FINALLY . . . We haven't linked to Chad Finn much recently because he's been focusing on the Celtics. And, boy, did he ever have something to focus on last night. (www.boston.com/sports/touching_all_the_bases)

WELL, ALL RIGHT, ONE MORE: At the end of a long post in which he tried to identify The Greatest Play Ever, Joe Posnanski writes of getting completely caught up in the emotion of last night's Celtics-Lakers game and having "no idea why I’m so happy" about the Celts' win, especially since "I have despised the Celtics my whole life, going back to ‘76, when they beat the Cavaliers in the playoffs."

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 6:30 AM | Permalink

Photo: Manny, Youkilis make nice

Journal photo / Glenn Osmundson
A week after they fought in the Red Sox dugout, Manny Ramirez and Kevin Youkilis celebrated a Youkilis home run on Thursday night.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 10:32 PM to Projo Mannybeingmanny | Permalink

Pregame notes: Varitek has strep throat

Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek will not play tonight because he has strep throat, according to manager Terry Francona.

"He's not feeling too good," Francona said. "He shouldn't have played (Wednesday) night, and that's why we like our team so much. He had no business playing and he hit a three-run homer and caught a good game. He needs to not play tonight."

Francona said the captain is taking medication and should feel better on Friday.

"Tek's always available," the manager said. "That goes without saying."

"From what I understand, from having a lot of children, it's really contagious," Francona said.

Varitek is here today. If needed, Francona said Varitek could play.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 4:09 PM | Permalink

Projo SoxTalk with McAdam: Colon keeps on winning

Click here to watch the video of Sean's comments, recorded this morning. The topics: Bartolo Colon's 150th career win and the ball that struck him in the arm last night, the Red Sox' pitching depth and how it will help them rest starters for the rest of the season, Sean Casey appealing his suspension and Jay Gibbons appealing for a job.

Here are some excerpts from Sean's comments:

The ball that hit Colon: "I think it just stung him a little bit, got him right kind of on the back of the wrist as he tried to either field the ball or get out of the way; I'm not sure which. He took a couple of warmup tosses but seemed to be OK, and obviously finished out the rest of the start, so there don't seem to be any concerns."

On the Red Sox' philosophy of giving pitchers extra rest: "They can look down the road a little bit and perhaps not be so concerned with game number 70 on the schedule, but rather look at what benefits the team in the long run and make some decisions that way. It certainly I think helped Josh Beckett last year that he ended up missing a couple of starts with the avulsion on the finger. I think those were, you know, 15 to 17 innings that he didn't have in October that benefitted him, and they'd like to do it with all their starters at some point."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 3:41 PM to Projo SoxTalk with Sean McAdam | Permalink

Papelbon: It's not over between Red Sox and Rays

During his weekly appearance on Mohegan Sun Sports Tonight, Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon praised the Tampa Bay Rays . . . but also warned that he and his teammates haven't forgotten the bad blood between the teams.

Papelbon on the fight:
"In my opinion it is a bunch of bull what they did. All I got to say is what comes around goes around. Payback is a bitch. In my opinion, and the way I feel right now, this thing isn’t all settled and done. We still got to play them a few more times and I know when we go into Tropicana things will be a little different than when went in there last time."

Papelbon on the Rays staying in the race:
"Those guys have a lot of talent over there. As you can see, it’s a war when we go play those guys. It’s the big leagues and you got guys that can pitch over there and you got some guy that can hit so we’ve got to do everything we can to stay atop of those guys and keep fending them off because they can play."

Posted by Art Martone  at 3:27 PM | Permalink

Tonight's lineups

Baltimore
Roberts 2b
Mora 3b
Markakis rf
Millar 1b
Huff dh
Hernandez c
Jones cf
Payton lf
Cintron ss
Guthrie p

Boston
Ellsbury lf
Pedroia 2b
Drew rf
Ramirez dh
Lowell 3b
Youkilis 1b
Crisp cf
Lugo ss
Cash c
Lester p

Jason Varitek is not in the lineup tonight because he is not feeling well, Sean McAdam reports.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 3:13 PM | Permalink

Fenway Park food stands failed inspections

Fenway Park food stands on opening day failed city health inspections on more than a dozen health and safety measurements, according to a report in today's Boston Globe. The violations were significant enough to cause potential food poisoning, and followed the discovery of similar violations and a demand for corrective action a week before opening day.

The City of Boston threatened to shut down the park's food stands at a municipal court hearing, and 19 home games went by until a subsequent inspection found the food stands to be in compliance.

Red Sox team officials told The Globe that the food services contractor for Fenway, Aramark, did not inform them of the violations and that they were unaware of them until contacted by a reporter.

The findings by health inspectors included sausages thawing in stagnant water, employees handling raw burgers without changing their gloves, and rodent droppings underneath service counters, The Globe reported.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 9:15 AM | Permalink | Comments 1

Baseball Today: Thursday, June 12

Journal photo / Mary Murphy

ALL SMILES: And why not? Bartolo Colon (above) improved his record to 4-1 with a 6-3 win over the Orioles last night that Joe McDonald said started with Colon's Al Bundy impersonation and ended with his resembling "his former Cy Young self." Not only that, but the Red Sox picked up ground on all their A.L. East brethren, as everybody but the Sox lost yesterday. Want more? David Ortiz became an American citizen . . . even though McDonald said he wouldn't own up to it.

But there's a bigger element in play here, and it goes beyond winning individual games. Sean McAdam has a very interesting piece about the Red Sox working to keep their starting pitchers rested and refreshed so they're better able to withstand the demands of October. He wrote it on the same day Paul Kenyon was reporting (and demonstrating) from Pawtucket how the organization has, in the words of director of amateur scouting Jason McLeod, "implemented a system, and everybody's bought into it at every level." The underlying theme -- of both stories -- is that the Red Sox' focus goes beyond winning individual games, and toward building a structure that gives the major-league team the greatest chance for sustained, and sustainable, success. And, as it happens, we simultaneously have Filip Bondy of the New York Daily News writing about the other end of this spectrum: Yankee manager Joe Girardi overusing his aging core players in an attempt to avoid falling too far behind in the postseason races, which, he thinks, creates "a worrisome situation which may grow worse by August or September, if you are inclined to think negatively."

There's a danger in thinking you've reinvented the wheel; it leads to the sort of hubris that was the backdrop to the old saying "Pride goeth before a fall." I point all this out not to laud the Red Sox for creating a revolutionary new approach to the grand old game -- other teams are pretty smart and do similar things -- but just to illustrate that sometimes we get a glimpse of a very sound organizational philosophy that usually flies pretty far below the radar. When it does surface, it's usually when the major-league team is in crisis and there's a lot of pressure to do something different.

Nice to take a calmer look at it on a day when the sun is shining.

TWO-TRICK PONY: Colon helped the Sox win last night's individual game, and Steven Krasner goes Inside The Game to show us how. David Pinto of Baseball Musings wonders what the Red Sox saw in him this spring that other teams didn't, and recommends a raise for the scout who advocating Colon's signing.

THE BAD NEWS: There's always some, and last night's revolved around the continuing struggles of Mike Timlin, as reported postgame by Krasner on this blog. He also reported that the torrid J.D. Drew shattered his bat during his fifth-inning plate appearance, and wonders if -- like Robert Redford in The Natural -- his luck will turn now that the bat is in pieces.

GETTING READY I: McAdam reports Daisuke Matsuzaka will make a rehab start for the PawSox next Monday.

GETTING READY II: Interleague play resumes tomorrow, so McDonald has details of how Sox pitchers are preparing.

WILL HE BE READY? Manny Ramirez' hamstrings are still bothering him, and there's no guarantee he'll be able to play left field when the Sox arrive in Cincinnati tomorrow night. (Boston Herald)

APPEALING: Sean Casey is officially appealing his four-game suspension for his part in last week's fight with the Rays.

MORE PLAYERS IN THE MIX? On the same day Sarasota held an open town forum to debate whether or not to build a new spring-training facility for the Red Sox, McAdam reports "at least one other Florida city has demonstrated serious interest in the Sox." No one from Arizona has come calling yet.

TURNING IT DOWN A NOTCH: In the wake of last week's shoving match with Ramirez, widely believed to be a result of Manny -- among others -- getting fed up with his emotional explosions when things don't go his way, Kevin Youkilis says he's "trying to be a little more mature about his outbursts, while not surrendering his passion for the game." (Boston Herald) Youk admits some teammates have gotten on his case about his screaming and flinging of equipment, but says others have told him not to change a thing.

THEY ALWAYS FAILED THE TASTE TEST . . . but now, reports The Boston Globe, Fenway Park's concession stands also failed preseason city health inspections. They're back up to code, as they fixed the problems and passed a May 16 inspection.

BASKETBALL? WHAT IS THIS BASKETBALL OF WHICH YOU SPEAK? Curt Schilling has another blog entry in which he doesn't mention Kobe Bryant or the Lakers. (His Monday entry turned Bryant into a Yankee fan.) In this one he talks of his Tuesday bullpen session, which he says "wasn't a great day" but one he's willing to write off to the vagaries of rehab.

NOT ALWAYS SUCCESSFUL, BUT NEVER BORING: It was quite a nine-game road trip for the Tampa Bay Rays. First there was the fight in Boston. Then there was the fight among themselves in Texas. And yesterday they turned their ire on the umpires -- Derryl Cousins, specifically -- in their 4-2 loss to the Angels in Anaheim. (St. Petersburg Times) And you wonder if more suspensions are in the offing, since, according to Times writer Marc Topkin, Rays starter Scott Kazmir "[complained] not only about missed strike calls during several key at-bats but [questioned Cousins'] reputation and integrity, accusing him of making certain calls to make up for others." Joe Maddon wasn't happy, either, and his unhappiness resulted in the eighth ejection of his career (Tampa Tribune); four of them have come against the team he once worked for as a coach, the Angels.

So the Rays finish 3-6 on their cross-country road trip. Not much of a record, but they made memories that will last a lifetime. (St. Petersburg Times)

TAKE A BREAK: Carl Crawford now begins serving his four-game suspension for his role in L'Affaire Coco, but he doesn't mind because the Rays are returning to Tropicana Field and staying off the artificial turf will ease the strain on his sore legs. (Tampa Tribune)

THE JOY OF BEING A BALLPLAYER: It's a glamorous life, eh, Troy Percival?

OH, YEAH? The Rays could take a lesson in rapid response to those nasty Torontonians from Jonathan Papelbon:

CONSISTENTLY INCONSISTENT: That's Peter Abraham's take on the Yankees, who fell back to .500 with an 8-4 loss to the A's that spoiled Darrell Rasner's sort-of homecoming. (New York Daily News) He grew up in Carson City, Nev., which is 3 1/2 hours from Oakland.

'YOU CAN NEVER COUNT THE YANKEES OUT': So says Tino Martinez, but he adds that "they can't dig themselves too much more of a hole then they're in right now . . . There's too many teams playing good." (New York Post)

MAY WE PRESENT . . . "Your 2008 Toronto Blue Jays: Crushing your spirit, shredding the crushed remains, then lighting the whole shredded heap into blazing inferno. Rinse. Repeat."

Think our buddy Tao is frustrated?

THE CHIPPER JONES WATCH: Pinto has one started on Baseball Musings. But both SI.com's Tom Verducci and The Wall Street Journal's Carl Bialik tell us a .400 season is unlikely.

CRISIS AVERTED: Milton Bradley attempted to confront Royals broadcaster Ryan Lefebvre over comments Lefebvre made about him on the television broadcast of the game. He was intercepted before he got there, then screamed at his teammates and finally broke down in tears in the clubhouse. (Dallas Morning News)

JOB SEEKER: Former Oriole outfielder Jay Gibbons, who was named in the Mitchell Report, has written letters to all 30 teams saying he's sorry for his mistakes and is asking to redeem himself. "[All] I need is a chance and I will prove that I can be an extremely productive player and a great addition to your organization." (espn.com)

HERE AND THERE: Alfonso Soriano will be out four to six weeks after suffering a broken hand when he was hit by a pitch last night (Chicago Tribune) . . . Albert Pujols' calf strain will sideline him for at least three weeks (St. Louis Post-Dispatch) . . . The Marlins have designated Jaque Jones for assignment (Yahoo!) . . . As if the Mariners didn't have enough problems, J.J. Putz has a sore elbow (Seattle Times) . . . Manny Acta and Elijah Dukes got into it in the Nationals dugout Tuesday night, but Acta says the incident is over. (Washington Post)

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 7:07 AM | Permalink | Comments 1

Postgame -- Drew's Broken Bat No "Wonderboy"

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- In the movie, "The Natural," the main character, played by Robert Redford, breaks his bat, nicknamed "Wonderboy." There was concern his hot-hitting luck would disappear with the splintered "Wonderboy."

Last night, hot-hitting J.D. Drew shattered his bat on a soft liner to shortstop in the fifth inning. Was that the end of his magic?

Drew didn't think so.

"It is of no consequence. It's not the arrow that's the difference," said Drew with a chuckle.

Drew, who extended his hitting streak to 10 games with a run-scoring double over the first-base bag in the first inning, is batting .500 (16 for 32) with five homers, four doubles, a triple and 13 RBI over that stretch. He said he doesn't recall if all of that damage was done with the bat that shattered last night.

"I don't know how long I was using that bat. II usually use a bat until it breaks, but I have no idea the last time I broke a bat," said Drew.

In his final at-bat last night, a new piece of ash in his hands, Drew walked in the seventh.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:29 PM | Permalink

Postgame -- Timlin's Struggles Continue

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Veteran Mike Timlin struggled once again, turning a 6-1 game in the ninth inning into a save situation for Jonathan Papelbon.

Not that all of it necessarily was his fault last night, but Timlin's 1,032nd career outing was a continuation of the troubles the 42-year-old right-hander has been having all season.

Last night Timlin was touched up for two runs, one of which was earned, on three hits, inflating his earned-run average to 6.16 in 21 appearances totaling 19 innings. Timlin has allowed a whopping 34 baserunners (25 hits, 9 walks) in those 19 innings.

The damage last night came on back-to-back doubles by Aubrey Huff and Kevin Millar, opening the inning. Of the leadoff batters Timlin has faced in his 21 innings, 10 have reached base safely.

Timlin then racked up two outs on a groundout to second and a scorched line drive to first, but second baseman Dustin Pedroia botched an hard-hit grounder for an error, keeping the inning alive. And pinch hitter Oscar Salazar ended Timlin's night by rolling a seeing-eye single through the shortstop hole, making it a 6-3 game and forcing manager Terry Francona to use Papelbon, who earned his 19th save.

Timlin and his catcher, Kevin Cash, were left bemoaning some bad luck.

"He made some good pitches," insisted Cash, who entered the game in the sixth for Jason Varitek (sick). "Probably the only pitch he might want back would be the one to Millar. He left that out over the plate a little too much."

"That's the way it has been all season," said Timlin, in his 18th year in the big leagues. "I've been throwing good pitches and not getting a lot to show for it. I got a couple of ground balls tonight. I believe in my guys behind me more than you'll ever know, but when I pitch, it doesn't seem to be happening for me. That's all."

Timlin was working for the first time in six days and only for the second time since May 30. That, though, wasn't a factor, he said.

"That's an excuse. You gotta be prepared every time you come in. You've got to be sharp, throwing strikes. I'm just getting beat up. That's all," said Timlin.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:16 PM | Permalink | Comments 1

Pregame notes: Matsuzaka's bullpen session goes well

BY JOE McDONALD
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Daisuke Matsuzaka spent the afternoon throwing a bullpen session, which he says, went well. He'll throw again on Friday. Manager Terry Francona said he will sit down with Dice-K after batting practice today to discuss next week's plan, meaning a possible minor-league rehab start.

Francona did not watch the session, but pitching coach John Farrell reported Dice-K had a very aggressive bullpen.

***
Red Sox pitchers participated in a session of pitchers' fielding practice, commonly known in the baseball world as PFP. With the upcoming interleague games against the Reds and Phillies, Francona felt it was best to "refresh" the practice. Defenses will likely see more bunting during interleague play, so the Red Sox wanted to spend some time today working on fielding.

The pitchers have also been in the batting cage this week. Josh Beckett, Tim Wakefield and Jon Lester can all handle the bat pretty well. Justin Masterson and Bartolo Colon have interesting swings.

Prior to PFP this afternoon Wakefield was describing his only career home run, which he hit whole playing for the Pirates in 1993. He hit it at the old Astrodome, some 420 feet into the left-center field seats.

Beckett, who played five seasons in the National League with the Marlins, has two career homers. He hit one for Florida in 2005 and the other came with the Red Sox, when they were playing in Philadelphia, in 2006.

***
Manny Ramirez is serving as the club's designated hitter again tonight. His hamstring is still sore, but come Friday he'll have to play through it or his bat will not be in the lineup due to the interleague games.

***

AP Photo

As the earlier post on this blog reported, David Ortiz was sworn in as an American citizen today in Boston. The Red Sox slugger denied the report when asked about it in the clubhouse -- even though photographers captured the moment at the courthouse (left) and Ortiz spoke to reporters there -- but Red Sox spokesman John Blake confirmed the story. Francona didn't even know. When asked about it during his afternoon meeting with the local media, the manager asked, "Is that why he had a sports coat on? I didn't know." Fellow Red Sox slugger Manny Ramirez became a U.S. citizen in May of 2004 and then ran out to left field to start the game with a small version of an American flag in his hand.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 4:25 PM | Permalink

Tonight's lineups

BALTIMORE

Roberts, 2b
Markakis, rf
Mora, 3b
Huff, dh
Millar, 1b
Scott, lf
Hernandez, c
Jones, cf
Bynum, ss
Olson, sp

BOSTON

Ellsbury, lf
Pedroia, 2b
Drew, rf
Ramirez, dh
Lowell, 3b
Youkilis, 1b
Varitek, c
Crisp, cf
Lugo, ss
Colon, sp

-- JOE McDONALD

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 4:21 PM | Permalink

David Ortiz sworn in as U.S. citizen

BOSTON (AP) - A Red Sox Nation slugger has found a new nation to call home.

David Ortiz and 220 other immigrants became U.S. citizens Wednesday at a ceremony at the John F. Kennedy Library in Boston.

The 32-year-old slugger from the Dominican Republic held an American flag in one hand as he recited the Pledge of Allegiance with the other new citizens. He was joined by many members of his family, including his father, Americo, who said in Spanish afterward he was proud of his son.

Ortiz has been out of the Red Sox's lineup since June 1, when he injured his wrist. He has been with the Red Sox since 2003, helping to power them to two World Series championships in the past five years.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 2:59 PM | Permalink | Comments 1

Projo SoxTalk with McAdam: Everything's not okey dokey

Click here to watch the video of Sean's comments, recorded this morning. The topics: Last night's loss, the struggling Hideki Okajima and his accountability issues, the improved state of the bullpen in general, and Kevin Millar's inability to cut the cord with Boston.

Here are some excerpts from Sean's comments:

Teammates' reactions to Okajima not answering questions about his poor outings: "I've got to believe that most of those guys in there -- who are standup guys, and who are around and are acountable for what they do and don't do -- take note of the fact that Okajima does not feel the same responsibility, and I think a number of them were struck and perhaps offput by Okajima's puzzlement a few weeks ago over why he still comes into games in the middle of innings. ... Rather than express frustration over his own inability to perform in such situations, he seemed kind of angry that he was put in them in the first place, and that seems to be misplacing the problem there and blaming it on someone else."

On Millar's continuing affection for the Red Sox: "If I'm an Orioles fan, I'm wondering what side is this guy on. I don't think he means any harm by it. He clearly enjoyed his few years here in Boston and has a hard time letting go, but if I'm a teammate or a fan, I'm probably looking at it differently in Baltimore."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 2:20 PM to Projo SoxTalk with Sean McAdam | Permalink

Baseball Today: Wednesday, June 11

Journal photo / Gretchen Ertl

LEAPIN' LIZARDS: For the longest time last night, it looked like a bull market for the Red Sox. Coco Crisp made a spectacular catch to end the fifth inning (above). Josh Beckett survived without his best stuff and, says Steven Krasner, turned in an ace-like performance without ace-like numbers. Manny Ramirez moved into sole posession of 22nd place on the all-time home-run list with No. 505, which, reports Joe McDonald, delighted Eddie Murray, the ex-teammate and friend he was tied with at 504. Krasner tells us Jacoby Ellsbury had a more-or-less successful return to the lineup. The Sox had a 6-4 lead after six innings and handed the game over to Hideki Okajima in the first step down a path that would inevitably lead to Jonathan Papelbon in the ninth.

And then came the explosion.

When it was over the Sox, relates McDonald, were 10-6 losers to the Orioles but, far more importantly, a disconcerting issue was raised: Wither Hideki Okajima? He had another abysmal outing -- one-third of an inning, two hits, two walks, three runs -- and it had Sean McAdam asking if Okajima "was . . . a one-year flash in the pan?" When Okajima "can’t locate with precision," writes Sean, "his stuff isn’t good enough to overmatch hitters." He certainly didn't overmatch anyone last night, making the 2007 words of some scouts -- "who predicted [Okajima] would become more hittable the more opposing teams saw him" -- prophetic . . . and worrisome.

He wasn't the only bullpen culprit last night. Krasner reports that, at least partially due to a ninth-inning misjudgment by Dustin Pedroia, Craig Hansen had his scoreless string snapped as the Orioles tacked on three more runs. (It was part of a six-run outburst against Sox relievers, only the second time in the last 16 games the bullpen's been scored upon.) But because of the role he occupies -- Tonto to Papelbon's Lone Ranger -- Okajima's failures were the ones that raised the most warning flags.

There's a danger in overreacting to one bad outing or even a series of bad outings; it could be nothing more than Oriole hitters having Okajima's number this year. (The Baltimore Sun reports Okajima "has a 13.50 ERA and three blown leads in five appearances against the Orioles this season . . . [and] a 0.40 ERA, having surrendered just one earned run in 22 2/3 innings, against everyone else.") But when a team that had lost only six home games all year prior to last night coughs one up in such gruesome fashion -- and with such an obvious goat at the middle of it all -- well, a little overreaction is understandable.

DON'T ASK US: Oriole hitters say they have no idea why they're so successful against Okajima. (Washington Post)

ON THE OTHER HAND . . . There's always good news to offset the bad in baseball, and Krasner reports that last night's ray of sunshine was shining on the comebacking Curt Schilling. And Terry Francona threw a little sunshine at Clay Buchholz, while he was at it.

IT'S JUST A BASKETBALL GAME, FOR GOD'S SAKES: Folks in Baltimore are so phobic about Kevin Millar's not-so-secret affection for all things Boston that they come down on him for something as innocuous as attending Game Two of the NBA Finals between the Celtics and Lakers. (The Loss Column Baltimore Sports)

COMPARISON TEST: Remember when Jim Rice claimed Papelbon was the only member of the current Red Sox who could have displaced a starter on Rice's 1975 American League champion Sox? Both AOL's Josh Alper and SouthCoastToday.com's Jon Couture look at the rosters and find Rice's analysis to be a little skewed . . . specifically at first base, second base, third base and the pitching staff.

C.C. OF SURPRISE: On his Hacks With Haggs blog, Joe Haggerty reports ESPN's Jayson Stark threw the Red Sox into some C.C. Sabathia trade talk, saying on the Mike and Mike In The Morning radio show that the Indians are "heavily scouting" the Sox. And since they don't play Boston until September, it can't be game scouting.

DO AS I SAY, NOT AS I DO: Curt Schilling has long skewered media members who make categorical statements with just a surface knowledge of the situation. Then he does exactly what he claims to hate in a 38pitches.com entry about Kobe Bryant and the Lakers, even though, as he admits, "I have no idea how the guys in the NBA play or do things . . . " And that gave T.J. Simers of the Los Angeles Times the opportunity to tear into Schilling, saying there's "no bigger sissy than a hit-and-run blogger."

DO THE RIGHT THING: There's some controversy over who caught Ken Griffey Jr.'s 600th home run Monday night, as two fans in Miami are claiming ownership. (Miami Herald) But Damon Woo hopes that whoever has it does the same thing he did when he caught Manny Ramirez' 500th: Return it. McDonald talked to Woo, whose life has been a whirlwind since he brought the historic ball back to Ramirez in the Red Sox clubhouse that night.

HE DID JUST THAT: Griffey -- widely regarded as baseball's greatest player in the 1990s -- has slowly slid into the background in recent years, partly because injuries limited his playing time but also because his numbers never shot into the chemically aided stratosphere of the late '90s and early '00s. And Griffey's clean-as-a-whistle reputation was suddenly front-and-center yesterday as Number 600 prompted the baseball world to rediscover a player it had all but forgotten. His name, wrote Hal McCoy in a story reprinted in the Chicago Tribune, "never has appeared on a police blotter, has never been listed among those who cheated to gain an unfair advantage, has never been listed on any delinquent tax lists or bankruptcy lists for flushing his money away on drugs." SI.com's Jack Wilkinson concurs, saying Griffey's achievement "was not only extraordinary, but untainted" The Seattle Times' Jerry Brewer remembers a childhood spent idolizing Junior, and notes the reality of what Griffey actually did was always better than the fantasy." Even players, like ex-teammate Todd Jones, were delighted. The Seattle Times, which covered Griffey over the early part of his career, compiles a list of his 10 most memorable home runs. And Mike Greenberg of ESPN Radio's Mike and Mike In The Morning compares Griffey to Barry Bonds . . . and gives the edge to Griffey.

Six hundred home runs is quite a milestone -- only five other players (Bonds, Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth, Willie Mays and Sammy Sosa) have ever done it, and Bonds and Sosa are widely believed to have had medicinal help in clearing the bar -- and just getting there is an achievement to be celebrated. But this was more. This was the virtual rediscovery of a player deserving of the praise we'd unfairly heaped on others during baseball's blighted past.

Congratulations, Junior. You earned it.

MAINTAINING THE PACE: The Red Sox lost no ground to the Rays in the A.L. East standings, as James Shields was knocked around a bit in a 6-1 Angels win over Tampa Bay. (Tampa Tribune)

NEW MEANING TO THE TERM 'ON THE BUMP': The Tampa Bay Rays can do with more with their fists than pummel Coco Crisp:

RIGHTING A WRONG: Remembering the time Cito Gaston left him warming up in the bullpen without bringing him into the game -- and thus depriving Mike Mussina, then with the Orioles, of pitching in front of his hometown fans in the 1993 All-Star Game at Camden Yards -- Cameron Martin of ComcastSportsNet wonders if Terry Francona would select Moose to start this year's All-Star Game, which is being played in Mussina's current baseball home (Yankee Stadium).

MOOSE TALES: John Feinstein's latest book, Living On The Black, focuses on the 2007 seasons of Mussina and Tom Glavine, who were both in New York last year and were both staying in the major leagues on their brains and guile thanks to fastballs that had long since deserted them. Ken Davidoff of Newsday relates some of the Mussina stories, which include examples of his contempt for Carl Pavano and how then-pitching coach Ron Guidry stopped speaking to him when he was removed from the starting rotation last August.

BACK IN THE GROOVE: Chien-Ming Wang was his old sinkerballing self as he pitched the Yankees over the A's in Oakland last night. (New York Post)

NO, THEY'RE NOT: The New York Daily News' Filip Bondy says nobody "is talking about the Yankees as a championship team anymore -- not this year, anyway -- and that means the arrow continues to point in the wrong direction for this franchise." And he bemoans the fact that "[over] the past eight years, the Bombers have slowly devolved from perennial champions to chronic playoff disappointments, then to a wild-card team and now to a mere wild-card contender."

OH, SHADDUP: Tino Martinez has a piece of advice for those -- like Johnny Damon -- who feel the need to comment on the Joba Chamberlain situation: Zip it. (New York Daily News)

REACHING OUT: Andy Pettitte says he hasn't spoken to Roger Clemens since the controversy over performance-enhancing drugs erupted over the winter but says he hopes they'll talk soon. (New York Daily News) As for whether that will happen this weekend, when the Yanks go to Clemens' (and Pettitte's) hometown of Houston, Pettitte replied: "I have no idea. I don't know what to tell you about that."

UPS AND DOWNS: Speaking of PEDs, Yahoo! Sports' David Brown looks at how all the players mentioned in the Mitchell Report are doing this year.

WHOA! There's been a Phil Hughes blog sighting!

PROUD MOMENT FOR MY PROFESSION: The Sporting News is reinventing itself as a print/online hybrid and it's making a part-time journalist out of Hank Steinbrenner. (AOL Sports Fanhouse)

LET ME PUSH THE DETONATOR BUTTONS: Tim Marchman of the New York Sun, in an interview with the blog The Biz of Baseball, provides an antidote to the flood of tears being shed over the imminent demises of Yankee Stadium and Shea Stadium by saying he's "utterly appalled" by both parks. He's particularly appalled by Yankee Stadium: "Yankee Stadium is on the merits one of the worst places in the country to watch a ballgame, and there’s really little that’s more hilarious in baseball than the pretense that this giant concrete bowl is some magnificent cathedral and monument to the glories of the game."

'L' BEFORE 'W': The New York Daily News reports the Mets had a players-only meeting before last night's game against the Diamondbacks and passed around a sheet that contained such inspirational phrases as "team above self" and "We B4 I." Then they went out, blew a four-run lead and lost to Arizona, 9-5. Even so, Moises Alou says the Mets "definitely" are a playoff- team. (New York Post)

PLENTY OF BLAME TO GO AROUND: With the Mets' season swirling down the sink, focus is beginning to shift away from Willie Randolph and onto Omar Minaya. (New York Daily News)

AND FOR MORE THAN JUST THE TEAM'S ON-FIELD PLAY: John Delcos, on the LoHud Mets Blog, rips into Minaya and the Mets for their "shameful" handling of Ryan Church's concussion. "Just dumb and arrogant from top to bottom," he concludes.

HOW LOW CAN YOU GO? As low as Class A if you're Dontrelle Willis. That's where the Tigers sent him in an attempt to see if he can regain his lost pitching skills, which have deserted him to the tune of a 10.32 ERA. (espn.com) Baseball Musings' David Pinto wishes Willis the best because baseball "can use characters like him."

BI-POLAR: Last winter, Peter Robins-Brown of Bugs and Cranks admits he "joined the chorus of cheers" when the Tigers traded for Edgar Renteria and was so euphoric about acquiring Willis and Miguel Cabrera from Florida that he "made an allusion to taking the deal itself out for a fine dinner and trying to make love to it. Or something like that." Now, on June 11, his tune is a little different: "They’re done. Stick a fork in ‘em. And all those other cliches. The 2008 Detroit Tigers can no longer be considered a team with any chance of making a run to the playoffs."

AT THE OTHER END OF THE SPECTRUM . . . : SI.com's Jon Heyman says this year's Philadelphia story will be as good, if not better, than it was in 2007.

JET LAG: The Washington Post has results of a study that shows teams lose 60 percent of games played in a time zone three hours from the time zone they just left, and 52 percent of games in time zones one or two hours away. But the study also shows teams "only rarely have to play games right after traveling across the country . . . In fact, for only about 16 to 20 times a season did [all MLB] teams [combined] have to travel three time zones and then promptly play a game."

R.I.P. Eliot Asinof, author of the essential Eight Men Out -- the story of how the White Sox threw the 1919 World Series -- has died at age 88. (AP via Yahoo!)

HERE AND THERE: Albert Pujols had to be helped off the field after straining his calf in the Cardinals' win at Cincinnati last night, and the team fears he'll be out a while (St. Louis Post-Dispatch) . . . The Orioles, as expected, designated Steve Trachsel for assignment (Baltimore Sun) . . . Tom Glavine, who avoided the disabled list for the first 20 years of his career, is headed there for the second time in three months because of a strained left elbow (mlb.com) . . . It doesn't look as if the Dodgers' Rafael Furcal will even be starting a rehab assignment for at least two weeks (Los Angeles Daily News) . . . Francisco Liriano had another strong outing in Rochester as he tries to make his way back to the Twins (Rochester Democrat and Chronicle) . . . Troy Tulowitzki has begin his rehab assignment (mlb.com) . . . The Braves say there are "a lot of unknowns" concerning John Smoltz' future after his shoulder surgery (Atlanta Journal-Constitution) . . . Juan Uribe's buried on the bench, but he says he still wants to stay with the White Sox (Chicago Tribune) . . . Gregg Zaun's about ready to return to the Blue Jays. (Toronto Star)

OLD FRIENDS: Anibal Sanchez, recuperating from shoulder surgery, is close to being able to pitch in a rehab game (Miami Herald) . . . Because of Furcal's injury (see above), Nomar Garciaparra is going to play some shortstop (Los Angeles Times) . . . Trot Nixon has 10 home runs in Tucson and rotoworld.com wonders if it isn't time for someone, like the Mets, to give him a look . . . Wilfredo Ledezma has been designated for assignment by the Padres (San Diego Union-Tribune) . . . Cliff Floyd can't get back into Tampa Bay's lineup. (St. Petersburg Times)

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 6:30 AM | Permalink | Comments 1

Postgame notes

BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Notes from last night's game . . .

-- The Sox' bullpen coughed up six runs to the Orioles, only the second time in the last 16 games that the opposition has scored against Boston's pen. Baltimore also turned the trick on June 2, scoring four runs at Hideki Okajima's expense.

-- J.D. Drew has homered in three straight games, the fourth time in his career that he has done so, and the first time since May 12-14, 2004. Drew has a nine-game hitting streak. He's batting .517 (15 for 29) over that stretch with five homers, three doubles, a triple and 12 RBI.

-- Drew and Manny Ramirez hit back-to-back homers in the fifth. It was the sixth time the Sox have hit consecutive homers.

-- Ramirez's hitting streak has reached 14 games. Ramirez is batting .389 (21 for 54) with seven homers, two doubles and 20 RBI in his streak.

-- Manny Delcarmen served up the tie-breaking sacrifice fly to Kevin Millar, the first batter he faced in the seventh. But the right-hander worked 1 2/3 shutout innings, stretching his scoreless streak to 7 1/3 innings.

-- The double by Dustin Pedroia in the first inning snapped the second baseman's 0-for-18 drought. Pedroia went 2 for 3.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:14 PM | Permalink

Postgame: Hansen's scoreless streak comes to an end

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Craig Hansen's scoreless streak came to an end at 6 2/3 innings, spread over six outings.

The right-hander was nicked for three runs, two of them earned, in the ninth inning as the Orioles expanded a one-run lead and turned it into a 10-6 victory.

An error by second baseman Dustin Pedroia, who dropped a forceout throw from shortstop Alex Cora, didn't help. Hansen, though, wasn't about to blame his ineffectiveness on Pedroia.

"Pedey makes great plays for all of the pitchers on this team and I'm sure tomorrow he'll be out there doing the same thing," said Hansen.

"I felt I mislocated a couple of fastballs that were base hits. Then I got some ground balls, and they got hits. I was unlucky for some of it. I can improve," said Hansen, who gave up four hits in his one inning.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:06 PM | Permalink

Postgame: Ellsbury 'not too bad' after first game back

By STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Jacoby Ellsbury, who hadn't started the previous three games in the outfield because of a sprained right wrist, was back in the lineup Tuesday night.

Ellsbury went 1 for 5. His hit was a single to center leading off the first inning. He also was robbed of a single when his hard-hit ball up the middle defelcted off pitcher Daniel Cabrera to third baseman Melvin Mora, who threw him out.

The game ended when Ellsbury waved an missed an 0-and-2 pitch from left-hander George Sherrill.

Ellsbury said his wrist was sore, but "on the whole, not too bad."

Ellsbury admitted the wrist was on his mind when he was at the plate.

"When you have something like that and come into a game you can't not think about it," said Ellsbury. "There were a few swings (foul balls) where I felt it. My last fouloff (the pitch before the whiff in the ninth) I felt it. And any time you swing and miss, when it's not fluid and you make contact, you're going to feel it on that. But I'll get some ice and be back in there tomorrow."

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 10:00 PM | Permalink

Ramirez passes Murray with his 505th home run

BOSTON -- On a night when his former Indians teammate Eddie Murray was at Fenway Park to honor him for passing the 500-homer plateau, Ramirez moved past Murray into 22nd place on the all-time home-run list when he hit No. 505 in the fifth inning last night.

The homer gave the Red Sox a 6-4 lead over the Orioles.

Ramirez' shot came moments after J.D. Drew had put the Sox ahead, 5-4, with a two-run home run of his own.

Posted by Art Martone  at 8:06 PM | Permalink

Umpires need love, too

BY JOE McDONALD
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- The game time temperature at Fenway Park tonight was a steaming 93 degrees. It felt much hotter on the field during batting practice.

If you want a true indication of how hot it is here, all you have to do is look at home-plate umpire Greg Gibson.

His blue shirt is completely soaked. Between each half-inning, Gibson drinks a complete 12-ounce bottle of water and Red Sox trainer Paul Lessard puts a cold towel around Gibson's head to cool him off.

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 6:59 PM | Permalink

Murray helps to honor Manny

BY JOE McDONALD
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Hall of Famer Eddie Murray stood at home plate tonight at Fenway Park and presented Manny Ramirez with a plaque to commemorate his 500th career home run. The Red Sox slugger reached the milestone on May 31 at Baltimore and entered tonight's game against the Orioles tied with Murray with 504 homers.

Ramirez told Murray before the game that he was planning on passing his former teammate -- they played together in Cleveland from 1994-96 -- in the career homer category. Either way Murray said he was honored to be part of the pregame ceremony.

"You knew once he learned to think with the pitchers and the catchers, this was something that was just going to happen," said Murray, referring to Ramirez’s 500 home runs. "He’s a hard worker when it comes to hitting."

Murray hit his 500th career home in September of 1996 at Camden Yards. Ironically, Ramirez’s landed in the same section in the right-field seats.

The days leading up to Ramirez’s milestone, he admitted he was thinking about it too much. Fans would ask him constantly when he thought he would hit 500. Murray admitted it’s tough to accomplish.

"It’s pain in the butt," Murray said. "I would walk up to the plate with my head down and then when I would look to see the pitcher, I would see a sea of orange. [The fans] think I can do this on command. That went on for about two or three long weeks. It’s a tough thing to do."

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 6:49 PM | Permalink

Woo: As I did with Ramirez, person who caught the 600th home run should return ball to Griffey

BY JOE McDONALD
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- There’s been some controversy surrounding who owns Ken Griffey’s Jr.’s 600th career home-run ball.

The Reds slugger notched the historic homer at Florida Monday night and already a few different fans say they caught the ball. Certainly a piece of memorabilia like Griffey’s ball will draw a lot of attention and could make some fan instantly rich.

Damon Woo doesn’t see it that way.

Woo, 40, is best known around these parts as the New York City resident and Red Sox fan who caught Manny Ramirez’s 500th career homer in Baltimore on May 31. Even before that game was over, Woo and his and brother, Jason, were escorted to the Sox’ clubhouse because Woo felt the honorable thing to do was to return the ball to its rightful owner.

The Brothers Woo presented Ramirez with the ball, took pictures and were able to meet the rest of the Red Sox players. The next day the brothers were invited by the club to sit right behind the visitors' dugout at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Along with the club’s hospitality, Damon Woo received a number of signed balls and bats from other Red Sox players, but ironically, he didn’t get anything signed by Ramirez.

It wasn’t that Ramirez wouldn’t sign anything; it was simply that everyone got caught up in all the excitement and Woo forgot to ask. The team told him to send along any pictures he had of himself and Ramirez in the clubhouse that night so Manny could sign them.

Everyone on the Red Sox, including bench coach Brad Mills, spoke the next day about how rare in today’s world it is that a person would give up a sure lucrative pay day to do the right thing as Woo did.

Woo spoke with the Journal this afternoon and he has some advice for the person who caught Griffey’s ball – give it back. He's confident he did the right thing and many people are telling him as much. He just hopes the lucky fan in Florida follows his lead.

"It’s better for baseball if people followed the course," said Woo.

In the days and weeks following his historic grab, Woo said his life has been filled with a lot of nice surprises.

"It was certainly an interesting week, to say the least," he said. "It’s been really great."

He’s received a ton of e-mails from friends around the globe, some of whom he hasn’t spoken with in a while.

"As [the story] slowly circled the globe, folks I have lost touch with over the years have called or dropped me an e-mail," he said. "People have been telling me I did the right thing and I’ve certainly been on a high from that."

That was the biggest question Woo faced over the last week-and-a-half. Newspapers and websites have asked readers to answer survey questions whether or not Woo did the right thing by giving Ramirez the ball back.

"The company I keep, [people approve by] about 98 percent," Woo said. "The responses from friends has been overwhelmingly that I did the right thing. That put me on a life’s high as well."

Still, there’s been that little dugout devil on his shoulder telling him he should have kept the ball.

"The first couple of days it hit me once an hour where I had the reflex, ‘Oh, God! What did I do?’ I’m now happy to say it’s down to about once a day."

His brother would call him at least once a day just to remind him that he did the right thing.

"He provided that moral support," said Woo. "The entire moment was priceless and God bless my brother was there to share the whole experience with me. We talked to our mom three days later and she was saying how proud she was of us. It would have been a tremendous event had I been there on my own, but having my brother to share it with me real made it special."

Since that special weekend in Baltimore Woo has not had any contact with the Red Sox organization, but he has an open invitation to Fenway Park later this summer. When that time comes he plans on bringing his girlfriend’s 15-year-old son, Ryan, to whom he dedicated the historic catch.

"It’ll be his first to Fenway and he’s looking forward to it," said Woo.

It will probably take a while for all of this to actually sink in for Woo and everyone involved. He’s just thrilled that he was sitting in Section 94, seats 15 and 16 at Camden Yards on May 31.

"They are memories of a lifetime," he said. "I will preserve them."

Posted by Joe McDonald  at 6:20 PM | Permalink

Clay Buchholz' arm slot

BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Clay Buchholz, the rookie right-hander who was optioned to Pawtucket a few weeks ago to work on his arm slot and consistency with his fastball command, has not been dazzling anyone with his results.

Monday night Buchholz was lifted after three innings and 73 pitches, but the goal, explained manager Terry Francona, was to work especially on his fastball, even though he may have been able to get more outs and work more innings by using his devastatingly effective offspeed pitches to get out Triple A hitters.

"He can be special," said Francona. "He's healthy. He has a few things we would like him to work on. He can get frustrated, but we're not frustrated."

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 3:35 PM | Permalink

Schilling, Dice-K updates

BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Curt Schilling threw 40 pitches off the mound today, and while there didn't seem to be any physical problems, the veteran right-hander was not happy with his command, said manager Terry Francona.

"The good news is he's ramping it up," said Francona.

The plan for Schilling is to for him to throw again off the mound on Friday in Cincinnati, and the step after that, if all was progressing as the Sox hope, would be for him to face hitters.

Daisuke Matsuzaka did some throwing Monday on the Red Sox' day off. He'll throw a side session Wednesday and then another side session a few days after that one, presuming everything has been going well.

Then, said Francona, the Sox will figure out what to do next with Matsuzaka, options that could include a rehab stint in the minors, though that plan has not been set in stone.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 3:29 PM | Permalink | Comments 1

Ellsbury returns to lineup

BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Jacoby Ellsbury, who suffered a sprained right wrist last Thursday and missed the three-game series against Seattle, is penciled in to start tonight's series opener against the Orioles.

Manager Terry Francona said he spoke to Ellsbury this morning and was confident that his rookie outfielder would be able to play. Francona also said, though, that if ElIsbury felt "any hesitancy" during batting practice, he would sit him out and start Brandon Moss.

Ellsbury is slated to play in left field, with Coco Crisp in center, because Manny Ramirez (right knee/hamstring) still is ready to play in the field. Ramirez will serves as the Sox' designated hitter, as he has in each of his last eight starts.

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 3:23 PM | Permalink

Starting lineups, June 10

RED SOX

Ellsbury lf
Pedroia 2b
Drew rf
Ramirez dh
Lowell 3b
Youkilis 1b
Varitek c
Crisp cf
Cora ss

Beckett p

ORIOLES

Roberts 2b
Markakis rf
Mora 3b
Huff dh
Millar 1b
Scott lf
Hernandez c
Jones cf
Bynum ss

Cabrera p

-- STEVEN KRASNER

Posted by Steven Krasner  at 3:20 PM | Permalink

Projo SoxTalk with McAdam: Off-day news and notes

Click the play button below to hear Sean's comments, recorded this morning. The topics: Clay Buchholz's mission in Pawtucket, the Red Sox' ability so far to overcome injuries, Josh Beckett's streak of good outings, and Ken Griffey Jr.'s 600th home run.

Here are some excerpts from Sean's comments:

Buchholz in Pawtucket: "They sent him there because they wanted him to get back to relying primarily on his fastball, which he has gotten away from. ... They wanted some mechanical adjustments to his delivery with his fastball to get him back sort of in sync a little bit and not relying on the secondary pitches too much. So I don't know if I'd read too much into the results here, he is working on some things and changing his delivery and his arm slot a little on his fastball, and that may have resulted in him getting hit around a little bit [last night]."

On Griffey: "I started covering baseball full-time in 1989, and I can say without fear of contradiction that Ken Griffey Jr. is the best player I've seen on a regular basis in that 20-year span. ... There's no question in my mind that, had the injuries not taken their toll, last night would have been home run number 700, if not a higher number."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 11:52 AM to Projo SoxTalk with Sean McAdam | Permalink

If the Rays win it all, they should thank Coco

Journal photo / Bob Breidenbach

That's what King Kaufman of salon.com thinks, saying that Coco might have helped save the Rays' season when he ducked away from James Shields' big punch after charging the mound on Thursday night. Shields may be getting a suspension as a result of the big brawl, but thanks to Coco, the excellent young pitcher won't be spending time on the disabled list because of an injured pitching hand -- as he might be already had his punch actually made contact.

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 10:40 AM | Permalink | Comments 2

Baseball Today: Tuesday, June 10

Journal photo / Glenn Osmundson

NOT SO HOT: They say that into each life some rain must fall, and -- record-setting temperatures to the contrary -- it's pouring in Clay Buchholz' world right now. All the talking in the world (above) couldn't stem the tide of a three-inning, six-hit, two-run struggle against Buffalo at McCoy Stadium last night that, Paul Kenyon reports, was a) abruptly cut short by PawSox manager Ron Johnson and b) then explained by Johnson in the middle of the game's local television broadcast. The heat and humidity was part of it, Johnson said, but so was the fact that it took a Matsuzaka-like 73 pitches for Buchholz to labor through those three innings. Buchholz was singing a happier tune afterwards -- he felt better physically than he has all year, he feels "it won’t be much longer" before he's ready to return to Boston -- but with the Red Sox' starting rotation clicking on all cylinders at the moment, it'll take more than three-inning/six-hit/two-run performances to punch his ticket back northward. So I guess the message is, fear not if you weren't able to get out to McCoy to see Buchholz last night; odds are you'll have more chances this summer.

YIN AND YANG: Buchholz was part of a good-news/bad-news smorsgasbord at McCoy last night, according to Kenyon. Among the good news: Chris Carter continues his torrid hitting. Among the bad: Bobby Kielty (strained oblique) is back on the disabled list.

LABOR DAY: Buchholz' former Red Sox teammates had a break in the schedule yesterday, but that didn't stop a few of them from getting some work in at Fenway Park anyway. (projo.com) Most notable: Matsuzaka playing long-toss in preparation for a Wednesday bullpen session as he works his way back from his rotator-cuff strain, and Jacoby Ellsbury taking batting practice in advance of a return to the lineup, perhaps as soon as tonight.

OH, WHAT A RELIEF: Craig Hansen has allowed just one hit and no runs in his last six appearances and Jim Donaldson explains why.

JUST LIKE THE WEATHER: J.D. Drew's hot streak was the subject of off-day stories by the Boston Herald's Michael Silverman and the Boston Globe's Amalie Benjamin.

BEYOND THE NUMBERS: Josh Beckett's 6-4, 4.07 record heading into tonight's start seems a comedown from his 2007 season, when he won 20 games and put himself in position to be remembered as one of the all-time great postseason pitchers. But he tells the Herald's Rob Bradford that very little has changed for him since last year.

MOVE YOUR CLOCKS BACK: Just as they did last Thursday, the Red Sox have pushed the starting times of tonight's game and Thursday's game back to 6:05 p.m. to avoid conflict with the Celtics in the NBA Finals. (projo.com)

ANOTHER FIRST: The Rays continue to do a lot of things they've never done before. Last night they hit back-to-back-to-back home runs -- Evan Longoria, Willy Aybar and Dioner Navarro -- for the first time in franchise history in a 13-4 win over the Angels, which also was Joe Maddon's first victory at Anaheim in three years at Tampa Bay's manager. (St. Petersburg Times)

LESSON LEARNED? The Times' Gary Shelton thinks Sunday's dugout scuffle between Navarro and Matt Garza will prove to be a good thing if it makes Navarro more assertive and forces Garza to grow up . . . two things the Rays want to see happen.

'A BASEBALL NECROPOLIS': That's how the New York Post's Mike Vaccaro describes the Big Apple, what with the Yankees sitting at 32-32 at 64 games and the Mets at 30-32 after 62. The Yanks are back at .500 after yesterday's 3-2 loss to the Royals, a game decided on a ninth-inning Jose Guillen home run off Mariano Rivera. (New York Daily News) The homer was a continuation of two factors: Guillen's astounding four games in the Bronx (Daily News) -- 9-for-16, 4 homers, 11 RBI -- and Rivera's inexplicable struggles in tie games this season, as related by Peter Abraham on the LoHud Yankees Blog. The good news for the Yanks was the continued excellence of Mike Mussina (New York Post), who continues to make monkeys of those -- like me -- who thought his days as an effective pitcher had passed. And, for those who want to continue to avoid looking in the mirror, there was umpire Ed Montague, with whom the Yanks had their second dispute in four days. (New York Post) But accentuating the positive and blaming the umpires would obscure some hard truths, as laid out by the Daily News' John Harper: "Monday's loss dropped [the Yankees] to .500 for the 22nd time this season, which tells you they haven't been a team of ups and downs so much as one playing to its level." Harper notes the Yanks have recovered from slow starts before -- particularly last year -- but can't help asking: "Is this the season the magic runs out?"

If it's not, Mussina has some sage advice: "We've been saying for a month that [a takeoff] is inevitable . . . If it's inevitable, it better happen soon." (New York Post)

AP Photo

NUMBER 600: There are better venues to celebrate baseball history than the sparsely populated Dolphin Stadium, but the 10,000 or so who were there last night were witness to a great moment: Ken Griffey Jr.'s 600th career home run (above). (Cincinnati Enquirer) The Dayton Daily News' Hal McCoy said Griffey was rendered nearly speechless by becoming only the sixth player in history to reach the 600-homer plateau. Four of the other five are still alive; Griffey said he's heard from Willie Mays and Hank Aaron, but not from Barry Bonds or Sammy Sosa. FoxSports.com's Dayn Perry says, as great as this achievement is, he can only wonder what Griffey would have accomplished had it not been for all his injuries. Joe Posnanski, focusing on what Griffey did and not what he might have done, has a very nice tribute to Junior in a short (for him) 600 or so words.

THE HITS JUST KEEP ON COMING: The Daily News yesterday linked Roger Clemens to yet another performance-enhancing drug: Viagra. How is that a PED -- baseball-wise -- you ask? The newspaper also explains.

FOOD COURT: The New York Times has a great interactive map, showing the best and the worst food at each major-league ballpark. I must say, I never even knew the Red Sox sold what the Times considers to be the best Fenway has to offer. Under Section 7, eh?

SHARE AND SHARE ALIKE: Tigers manager Jim Leyland says he plans ro alternate Ivan Rodriguez and Brandon Inge at catcher on a daily basis. (Detroit Free Press)

OH, PLEASE: Shysterball presents "Great Moments in Melodrama," Detroit-style.

WHAT TOOK YOU SO LONG? To all those wondering how the pitching-starved Rangers could cut loose Sidney Ponson, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram's Jim Reeves has another question: Why didn't they do it sooner? And then he runs through the incidents that led Texas to cut ties with the erratic right-hander.

MEASURE THIS: The Huffington Post's Dave Hollander -- while claiming he's not anti-analysis and that you need to understand statistics to understand baseball -- says there are certain baseball intangibles that simply can't be measured and holds up Cliff Floyd as an example of someone whose "presence" makes his teams better. I'd laugh at this argument anyway; I'm laughing harder because I didn't see where Floyd's "presence" did a damn thing for the 2002 Red Sox, who brought him in at the trading deadline to bolster the postseason drive and went 30-26 the rest of the way (compared to 63-43 before they got him), falling from a tie for the wild-card lead to finishing six games out of a playoff spot.

LOCAL BOYS: Rocco Baldelli went 1-for-4 with a sacrifice fly in an extended spring-training game. (draysbay.com)

MEDICAL REPORT: David Pinto has a breakdown of the day's injuries on Baseball Musings.

HERE AND THERE: The Mariners replaced hitting instructor Jeff Pentland with Lee Elia (Seattle Post-Intelligencer), then went out and beat the Blue Jays (Seattle Times) . . . The Brewers deny a report that they're interested in the Orioles' Brian Roberts (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel) . . . The Blue Jays' interest in Erik Bedard is said to be cooling (Seattle Times) . . . The Royals' Gil Meche, who has a no-trade clause, laughs at rumors that have him heading to the Cubs (Kansas City Star) . . . Noah Lowery says he hopes to pitch again this year, contrary to what the Giants said the other day. (San Francisco Chronicle)

OLD FRIENDS: Doug Mientkiewicz nearly got into it with Randy Johnson yesterday (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) . . . Ponson's release may mean a return to Texas for Kason Gabbard. (rotoworld.com)

AND FINALLY . . . At last, a baseball promotion you can actually use: A woman at a minor-league game won a free funeral. (cbs11tv.com)

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 7:03 AM | Permalink

Red Sox' off-day workout notes

BOSTON -- What the Red Sox did on their day off . . .

-- Daisuke Matsuzaka played catch, making 60-70 throws at distances of up to 180 feet. He will play catch again on Tuesday and is scheduled to throw a bullpen on Wednesday

-- Jacoby Ellsbury took batting practice in the cage. He reported he had no problems, and will be evaluated again tomorrow.

-- Others who worked out at Fenway Park included Josh Beckett, Bartolo Colon, Justin Masterson and Manny Ramirez.

Posted by Art Martone  at 2:44 PM | Permalink

Sox change starting times for Tuesday and Thursday games

Having changed the starting time of last Thursday's game to accommodate fans who wished to watch the Celtics in the NBA Finals, the Red Sox will do it again this week.

With the Celts scheduled to play Game Three on Tuesday night at 9 p.m. and Game Four on Thursday night at the same time, the Sox are moving the starting times of their games against the Orioles on those nights to 6:05 p.m. Both games, obviously, will be played at Fenway Park.

The gates will open at 4:05 p.m. on both Tuesday and Thursday. NESN’s pregame coverage will begin at 5:00 p.m. both days.

Posted by Art Martone  at 1:54 PM | Permalink

Projo SoxTalk with McAdam: J.D. Drew is as hot as the weather

Click the play button below to hear Sean's comments, recorded this morning. The topics: J.D. Drew's hot streak, John McLaren's ill-fated decision to pull Erik Bedard after five innings of work, whether Dustin Pedroia is primed to break out of his slump, and Justin Masterson's continued good work.

Here are some excerpts from Sean's comments:

On Drew: "Drew's numbers historically, or over his career, in the number-three spot have been far better than any other spot in that batting order. He has more power, more homers, more RBIs, higher OPS -- whatever way you want to measure. There's something about the number-three spot that agrees with J.D. D