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June 13, 2008
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
