Apparently The Red Sox Don't Learn From Their Recent Mistakes

Nothing like waking up on a Monday morning, after a marathon Patriots loss on Sunday night, and finding out that the Red Sox have signed a complete piece of garbage that you can't stand. Boston and free agent shortstop Stephen Drew have agreed to a one-year deal worth $9.5 million plus $500,000 in performance bonuses.

If the name is familiar, it is because he is the younger brother of former Red Sox whipping boy J.D. Drew. So yes, after one glorious season without a Drew in Boston, we are going to be forced to suffer through another campaign from an injury-prone, overpaid, underachieving lifeless Southern robot.

Stephen and J.D.'s careers have followed similar paths: they were much hyped first-round picks out of Florida State, represented by superagent Scott Boras and somehow they've hoodwinked numerous MLB teams out of millions of dollars for years. I'll give Stephen credit that he had four decent seasons in a row (2007-10) but true to his heritage, he played 86 games with Arizona in 2011 and 79 combined between the Diamondbacks and A's last season.

The frustrating part with the Red Sox is that much like J.D., for some unknown reason, they've been obsessed with Stephen for as long as he's been in MLB. I just don't get it beyond the fact that they need a short-term fix at shortstop. Jose Iglesias is hopeless at the plate and seems destined to be Rey Ordonez Jr. at best while their top positional player prospect-shortstop Xander Bogaerts is probably a year away from reaching the Red Sox.

Stephen's best season to date was 2008 in Arizona: 152 games, 91 runs, 178 hits, 44 doubles, 11 triples, 21 homers, 67 RBIs. He hit .291 with .333 OBP and .502 SLG. For his career, he's a .265 hitter with .328 OBP and .433 SLG.

One of the ironic things is that he's probably no better than Mike Aviles who the Red Sox had no interest in retaining (they shipped him to Toronto for manager John Farrell). Aviles was later dealt to Cleveland so I guess nobody wants the poor guy. Given his last name, his brother's struggles in Boston and hefty price tag for such an average player, it's not hard to predict that Stephen's short stay with the Red Sox will be painful for both the team and fans alike.

UPDATE 12/19: The Red Sox designated right-handed reliever Pedro Beato for assignment. He was obtained from the Mets in the Kelly Shoppach trade in August. Beato went 1-0 with a 4.70 ERA in four games with seven strikeouts and three walks in 7 2/3 innings for Boston.

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Yawn, Red Sox take another game from the Yankees

It was so considerate of the Boston Red Sox to get out to a big lead last night on the New York Yankees, meaning that you didn't have to worry about them while we watched the Bruins dominate the Canucks in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals.

Boston (35-26) was up 7-0 in the top of the fourth and hung on for a 11-6 win over the Yankees (33-26) last night at Yankee Stadium. It gave the Red Sox six wins in the teams' seven meetings so far this season and also catapulted Boston a game ahead of New York for first place in the American League East.

The game that figured to be dominated by hitters with Tim Wakefield and A.J. Burnett on the mound, turned out just as you'd expect with both teams using them as batting practice.

Wakefield (3-1) at least saved some face and survived for 5.1 innings, earning the win. He allowed five earned runs on five hits with three walks and three strikeouts.

Alfredo Aceves, the former Yankee, picked up his first save of the season by getting the final 11 outs. He allowed one earned run on four hits with a walk and four strikeouts. More importantly, with Bobby Jenks back on the DL (what a useless tub of goo) and the Red Sox bullpen taxed, Aceves gave them some much needed rest in the brutal heat.

Burnett (6-4) used to own Boston when he was in the no-pressure zone of Toronto. Since he's been with the Yankees, he can't do anything positive against the Red Sox. Last night in 5.2 innings, he allowed eight runs (seven earned) on seven hits with four walks and three strikeouts.

Jacoby Ellsbury (3 hits) led off the game with a single, he stole second and moved to third on an error by Yankees catcher Francisco Cervelli (3 hits, 2 runs, 2 RBIs). Adrian Gonzalez drove Ellsbury in for a 1-0 lead. For the second straight game, David Ortiz went deep (his 15th of the season) with a two-run bomb in the first. There was no bat flip so Joe Girardi will have to find some other inane thing to cry about.

J.D. Drew made it 4-0 with a sacrifice fly in the second. The Red Sox tacked on three more runs in the fourth, including an RBI double by Ellsbury.

Alex Rodriguez really stepped up in the clutch with a solo homer when his team trailed 7-0 in the fourth. After Cervelli's RBI double, Derek Jeter's RBI single and Mark Teixeira's sacrifice fly, New York cut it to 7-4 in the fifth.

The teams both scored one run in the sixth before Boston put it away with a pair of home runs in the ninth. Carl Crawford (sixth of the season) had a solo homer and Drew hit a two-run bomb off somebody named Lance Pendelton (Joba is on the DL and is going to have Tommy John surgery).

Teixeira's RBI single in the ninth made it 11-6 which was the final margin.

Josh Beckett faces CC Sabathia tonight in the series finale. A win would give the Red Sox their second straight sweep in Yankee Stadium and it would plant some serious dobut in the Yankees' minds.

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It's about time: J.D. Drew hits his first walk-off hit for the Red Sox (in the 14th inning)

It's only fitting that a game that goes 14 innings (the longest Boston Red Sox game of the season), complete with a four-run lead blown in the ninth and having two players ejected, that J.D. Drew delivered the first walk-off hit of his Red Sox career.

Things were going well for Boston (32-26) as they went into the bottom of the ninth up 7-3 yesterday afternoon at Fenway Park on the Oakland A's (27-32).

Then closer Jonathan Papelbon started giving up hits in a non-save situation like he always does and before you knew it, he was tossed along with catcher Jason Varitek for arguing balls and strikes.

Oakland tied it up at 7 in the ninth and both teams scored a run in the 11th before Drew (2 hits, 2 RBIs) drove in Carl Crawford (4 hits, 3 RBIs, 2 runs) in the 14th for the winning run.

Alfredo Aceves (3-1) was the unsung hero and turned out to be the winner as he went the last four innings for the Red Sox. He allowed one earned run on three hits with two walks and two strikeouts.

It's hard to remember since this game went five hours and 17 minutes but this started out as a tasty pitching matchup between A's stud Trevor Cahill and Red Sox ace Josh Beckett. As usual, that's not how the game unfolded.

Cahill went seven innings but he allowed five earned runs on eight hits with a walk and eight strikeouts.

Beckett went six innings, allowing three earned runs on four hits with three walks and four strikeouts.

Things got off to a good start for Boston as Adrian Gonzalez hit a solo homer (his 11th of the season) in the first. Drew added an RBI single, driving in Crawford in the fifth, for a 2-0 lead.

Josh Willingham tied it up in the sixth with a two-run single in the sixth. The Red Sox responded with three runs. Dustin Pedroia had an RBI single, Kevin Youkilis had an RBI double and Crawford had an RBI single in the frame.

Cliff Pennington drove in a run with a sacrifice fly in the seventh but Crawford's two-run double in the eighth made it 7-3 good guys.

You knew something was up in the ninth when Pedroia let a routine grounder go through his legs, scoring a run. Pennington had an RBI double and Conor Jackson tied it with an RBI single as Papelbon melted down literally and figuratively (the first ejection of his career).

Ryan Sweeney put Oakland ahead with a sacrifice fly in the 11th but Jacoby Ellsbury (4 hits, 2 steals) tied it with an RBI double which knocked in Jarrod Saltalamacchia.

Boston goes for the sweep today but I wouldn't bet on them since John Lackey returns from the DL and his rehab stint in the minors. He faces Oakland lefty Brett Anderson, who is good and typically gives the Red Sox trouble.

Sorry Justin Verlander, even you cannot stop the Boston Red Sox right now

Another game, another win for the Boston Red Sox. Carl Crawford continues to toil at the bottom of the lineup but he still delivered his third walkoff hit in May as Boston beat Detroit 4-3 last night at Fenway Park.

The Red Sox (23-20) have won a season-high six in a row thanks to contributions from everybody: great starting pitching, timely hitting, excellent relief and plain old luck.

The Tigers (22-21) came into Boston hot but left after a two-game sweep with interleague play starting for everybody this weekend.

A pitcher's duel between Detroit ace Justin Verlander and Red Sox stud Josh Beckett was overshadowed by Crawford's heroics. With the bases loaded and one out in the ninth, Crawford (2 hits) crushed a single over the head of Tigers center fielder Austin Jackson which plated pinch runner Darnell McDonald. Detroit porn star and reliever Al Alburquerque (0-1) was charged with the loss.

Neither starter got a decision as Verlander went eight innings, allowing six hits, three earned runs with nine strikeouts. Beckett departed after six innings (with a stiff neck, man baseball players are warriors), five hits, one earned run, two walks and three strikeouts.

Andy Dirks (what is with these names?) gave the Tigers a 1-0 lead with an RBI single in the second.

J.D. Drew tied it up in the bottom of the second with a sacrifice fly which scored Kevin Youkilis.

Things looked to be turning in Boston's favor as Drew hit a solo homer in the fourth and David Ortiz (3 hits, quietly having a very solid season) followed with a solo shot of his own in the seventh.

Matt Albers got a scoreless seventh (1 hit, 2 strikeouts) but Detroit hit a pair of solo homers off Daniel Bard in the eighth. Brennan Boesch and Miguel Cabrera did the honors.

No worries though, the Red Sox are finding every possible way to win right now and this time, it didn't even take extra innings. Just another ho hum walkoff.

The Chicago Cubs come to Fenway for a three-game series which kicks off tonight. It's the first time since the 1918 World Series (remember that classic?) that the Cubbies have been to Boston. I can feel the collective boners from all the baseball nerds across the world. It promises to be a memorable weekend in Boston.

Cowboy Joe West: ruining baseball one game at a time

The Boston Red Sox have enough problems on their own without worrying about the biggest clown umpire in MLB.

This does not excuse the fact that they would have lost anyway last night to the Twins but West had to be front and center as usual in Minnesota's (12-18) series-opening 9-2 beatdown of the Red Sox (14-18) at Fenway Park.

Boston manager Terry Francona got ejected in the second inning after arguing a balk call on starter Tim Wakefield (4.1 innings, 9 hits, 8 runs, 6 earned, 4 walks, 1 strikeout) by home plate umpire Angel Hernandez. Francona went to argue with Hernandez but West planted himself in between the two and even bumped him a few times. It was a strange scene especially considering Francona rarely gets thrown out. Tito was more heated than I think I've ever seen before.

After Wakefield (0-1) had pitched so well on Sunday against the Mariners (the game I was at), he predictably came down to earth in a big way against a Minnesota lineup that was more like a Triple A team.

Somebody named Trevor Plouffe led the Twins with three runs, two hits, an RBI and a walk. Another nobody called Danny Valenica had two runs, two hits and two RBIs while Denard Span (2 hits, 2 RBIs) and Michael Cuddyer (2 runs, 2 hits) also had good games.

Jacoby Ellsbury extended his hitting streak to 15 games but he was the only Red Sox with multiple hits (2).

Twins starter Scott Baker (2-2) went eight innings, allowing seven hits, two earned runs, one walk and eight strikeouts.

Plouffe got the party started for Minnesota with a solo homer off Wakefield in the top of the first. Span made it 3-0 with a two-run single in the second and then Ben Revere (haha really?) scored on Wakefield's disputed balk for a 4-0 Twins lead.

J.D. Drew got Boston on the board with a solo home run in the second and Adrian Gonzalez followed suit with a solo homer in the fourth which cut it to 4-2 Minnesota.

Valencia cranked a two-run double in the fifth and Drew Butera scored on Jed Lowrie's error. To end it, Plouffe scored on a balk by Red Sox reliever Alfredo Aceves (4.2 innings, 3 hits, 1 earned run, 1 walk, 2 strikeouts).

Brian Duensing faces Clay Buchholz this afternoon. Buchholz is due for a solid start since he's been so shaky so far this season

Red Sox decide to finally win a road game in 2011

It doesn't get any uglier than the 0-6 and then 2-10 starts for the 2011 Boston Red Sox.

However, going 0-7 in their first seven road games was similarly unforgivable. Boston (6-11) finally notched a road win yesterday afternoon, 5-3 against the A's (9-9) at Oakland Coliseum.

Clay Buchholz (1-2) picked up his first win of the season too after his first two starts were nothing short of disasters. He wasn't great yesterday but he got the job done. He went 5.1 innings, allowing six hits, one earned run, four walks and two strikeouts.

Oakland starter Gio Gonzalez (2-1) came in on the opposite end of the spectrum after being basically unhittable in his first two starts. The Red Sox got to him though somehow as he went six innings, allowing eight hits, four earned runs, one walk and nine strikeouts.

Boston's offense righted itself with three home runs: by Kevin Youkilis, Jed Lowrie and J.D. Drew.

The real star of the game was reliever Daniel Bard who inherited a bases loaded situation in the sixth with one out and the Red Sox clinging to a 4-1 lead. He got out of that unscathed and also pitched a scoreless seventh. That made up for Bobby Jenks and Jonathan Papelbon who each allowed an earned run. Papelbon settled down and recorded the last two outs in the ninth with runners on first and third.

Coco Crisp gave Oakland an early (and I mean early 1-0 lead) as he homered on Buchholz's first pitch of the game.

Carl Crawford answered with an RBI single in the top of the second which tied it at 1. Youkilis' solo shot in the fourth, Lowrie's two-run bomb in the sixth and Drew's solo homer in the seventh gave Boston some breathing room.

They were able to withstand Crisp's RBI single in the eighth and Landon Powell's RBI single in the ninth.

From here, Boston travels to Anaheim with four games scheduled against the Angels. Josh Beckett faces rookie Tyler Chatwood tonight in the series opener.

Extra, Extra: Red Sox Win!

It only took a week and seven tries but the Boston Red Sox finally won a game yesterday afternoon.

They beat the Yankees 9-6 at Fenway Park at their home opener despite John Lackey's best efforts to sabotage the game.

As is the custom on Opening Day at Fenway, nobody got booed on the Red Sox (1-6) even the players that deserved it like Lackey, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Marco Scutaro, J.D. Drew, etc.

Nope, the day is all about the C-list celebs and Boston's elite rubbing elbows with each other while enjoying Fenway's newest garbage food (sushi).

Lackey (1-0) went five innings, giving up six earned runs on seven hits with two walks and two strikeouts. Sadly, that pathetic display earned him a win on this strange day.

How bad was Yankees (4-3) starter Phil Hughes? Well in just two innings, he allowed six earned runs on seven hits with two walks. New York's prized young pitcher is clearly hurt or something since he has no velocity right now and he made Lackey look like a quality MLB pitcher (a nearly impossible task).

As expected, it was a slugfest. The Red Sox had 12 hits and the Yankees had eight.

Dustin Pedroia led Boston with three hits and three RBIs, J.D. Drew had two hits and two RBIs while Adrian Gonzalez, David Ortiz and Saltalamacchia each added two hits.

The Red Sox bullpen stepped up with four scoreless innings. Alfredo Aceves was followed by Bobby Jenks, Daniel Bard and Jonathan Papelbon (they all threw scoreless innings). Papelbon was the most impressive in his first save opportunity of the season. He struck out two, didn't allow a hit or walk in an economical 11 pitches.

Brett Gardner led New York with two hits, two runs and two walks while Robinson Cano had two hits and two RBIs.

Cano gave the Yankees a 2-0 lead in the first with a two-run double.

Pedroia answered with a solo homer just over the Monster in the bottom of the first (second straight year he's homered on Opening Day).

Gardner's RBI double in the second made it 3-1 New York.

The Red Sox offense finally exploded for a big inning, five in the second inning. Marco Scutaro's fielder's choice cut it to 3-2. Pedroia put Boston up 4-3 with a two-run single, Gonzalez and Ortiz followed with RBI singles.

Lackey is nothing if not giving and he gave up a run in the third (Nick Swisher groundout), fourth (Derek Jeter RBI single) and fifth (A-Rod homer) to tie it up. Thanks you Muppet-faced bum.

Two of Boston's biggest liabilities came through with the two biggest hits. Saltalamacchia had an RBI double in the fifth and Drew delivered a two-run single in the seventh.

Clay Buchholz opposes Ivan Nova this afternoon in a matchup that obviously favors the Red Sox. Hopefully they can take advantage and rack up another win.

Scutaro and Lackey to the rescue

These are strange days at Fenway Park and with the Boston Red Sox in general. The team claimed former star Johnny Damon off waivers from the Detroit Tigers yesterday but he has 48 hours to make his decision.

In the mean time, the Red Sox (72-54) won their third straight and moved a season-high 18 games over .500 with a 6-3 win at Fenway over the Seattle Mariners (49-76) last night.

John Lackey (12-7) submitted one of his best performances of the season, against Seattle once again. He almost no-hit them in July at Safeco Field. Last night in the cold and rain, Lackey went eight innings, giving up three runs (two earned) on six hits with two walks and a season-high 10 strikeouts.

Marco Scutaro continued his injury-plagued but fine season, driving in a career-best four RBIs.

The Mariners went up 1-0 in the third on an infield single by Chone Figgins (3 hits, stolen base) and an error by Jed Lowrie.

Scutaro's first two-run single put Boston up 2-1 in the fifth inning and then J.D. Drew (2 hits) made it 3-1 with an RBI single.

Doug Fister (4-9) held the Red Sox in check for the first few innings but then he unraveled thanks to his crappy stuff and even worse defense behind him.

He went 6.1 innings, allowing five runs (two earned) on six hits with a walk and six strikeouts. Ryan Langerhans dropped a pop fly in left that bounced into the stands for a ground-rule double.

Casey Kotchman tied it at 3-3 in the sixth.

Scutaro was money in the seventh with a two-run single and Victor Martinez pushed another run across with a sacrifice fly.

Jonathan Papelbon gave up a hit but struck out two in the ninth for his 31st save.

Josh Beckett takes on former Sox youngster David Pauley tonight as Boston tries to keep the good times rolling.

The Yankees lost last night but the Rays won so the Red Sox trail both teams by 5.5 games.

Bill bleepin' Hall

Remember when you wrote the Boston Red Sox off this season?

Well it's time to jump back on the bandwagon because this team is playing well and they're inching closer and closer to an improbable playoff spot.

The Sox (66-49) smoked the Blue Jays (59-54) 10-1 last night at the Rogers Centre.

Clay Buchholz (13-5) just did what he's been doing for the last year: embracing his role as the best Red Sox starting pitcher.

He allowed Jose Bautista's sacrifice fly in the first (scoring an unearned run) but other than that, he went eight innings, allowing five hits with two walks and four strikeouts.

Shawn Marcum (10-6) is a good pitcher but he was no match for Buchholz or Boston. In four innings, he allowed eight earned runs on seven hits with three walks and three strikeouts. A 36-pitch first inning was a sign of ominous things to come for Marcum.

I don't know what it is about the Rogers Centre but the ball is flying out of there for the Blue Jays (most homers in MLB) and the Red Sox (second most homers).

Boston slugged four home runs last night, including two from Bill Hall (3 hits, 4 RBIs).

Mike Lowell (3 hits) walked with the bases loaded in the first as the Sox grabbed a 1-0 lead.

Hall hit two towering shots to left field in the second (solo) and fourth inning (two-run). The Sox knocked out Marcum and sewed up the result with five runs in the fifth: J.D. Drew had a solo homer, Adrian Beltre had an opposite field three-run bomb and Hall had an RBI single.

Victor Martinez (2 hits) closed out the scoring with an RBI single in the eighth.

Adam Lind had three hits for Toronto in the one-sided loss.

John Lackey opposes rookie Brad Mills this afternoon as the Red Sox look for the sweep. They enter today, 3.5 behind Tampa Bay in the wild card and five games behind the Yankees.

Beltre and Dice-K help Red Sox split with Indians

The bad news seems to come daily for the Boston Red Sox and yesterday was no different as Kevin Youkilis will miss the rest of the season with his random thumb injury.

Every time you want to bury this team you can't though as they emerge from their shallow grave with a nice win. Last night, the Sox (62-47) earned a split with the Indians (46-63) thanks to a 6-2 win at Fenway Park.

There were basically two reasons why Boston won this game: Daisuke Matsuzaka and Adrian Beltre. Dice-K (8-3) had probably his second best start of the season (behind the near no-hitter at the Phillies) as he went eight impressive innings, allowing one earned run on five hits with two walks and six strikeouts.

For much of the game, Cleveland rookie Josh Tomlin matched Dice-K, starting out the first three innings with a perfect game. However, with one swing, Beltre gave Boston all the runs they would need as he crushed a fourth inning grand slam over the Monster.

Shin-Soo Choo had given the Indians an early 1-0 lead in the first with a solo homer to center.

J.D. Drew added two important insurance runs in the eighth with a clutch two-run single.

Even a 6-1 lead at home isn't safe for Hideki Okajima (2 hits, 1 run, 1 walk). Luis Valbuena hit an RBI single in the ninth and when two runners were on base, Terry Francona had to go to Jonathan Papelbon since they needed this game bad.

Papelbon made it interesting as usual, walking the bases loaded (putting the tying run at the plate in the form of nobody Trevor Crowe) but striking out two batters to end it. It was his 26th save of the season.

For the first time since before Memorial Day (it's an absolute joke that it's been that long), the Red Sox will play the Yankees. The two teams have four in the Bronx this weekend, starting tonight and ending Monday afternoon.

Clay Buchholz faces Javier Vazquez tonight at Yankee Stadium. The Bombers come in six games ahead of Boston and half a game ahead of Tampa Bay (the wild card leaders). Needless to say, the Red Sox have to win at least a couple games in the series to stay alive. They simply can't afford to be swept.

Lackey nearly throws no-hitter, Sox almost suffer worst loss in years but end up winning in 13 innings

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Friday, July 23, 2010
Lackey nearly throws no-hitter, Sox almost suffer worst loss in years but end up winning in 13 innings


To nobody's surprise, John Lackey has largely been a disappointment for the Boston Red Sox so far this season.

Last night though, he was on and he nearly threw a no-hitter. Lackey went 7.2 innings before giving up a hit and left with a 6-1 lead after eight innings (2 hits, 1 walk, 6 strikeouts). Game over right? Not so much with this car crash version of the Sox.

Boston (54-42) gave up five runs in the ninth to the awful Mariners (37-59) but somehow recovered to win 8-6 in 13 innings after Safeco Field thanks to Eric Patterson's two-run double.

Milton Bradley had walked, stolen second base, moved over on a grounder then scored in the second on a passed ball so Seattle had a 1-0 lead without a hit. It was crazy that they almost got no-hit after that.

Bill Hall gave Boston a 2-1 lead in the third with a two-run homer and David Ortiz (2 hits) drove in Marco Scutaro (2 hits, 2 RBIs) with an RBI single.

J.D. Drew added to the Red Sox tally with a two-run bomb in the sixth and Scutaro notched a solo shot in the seventh.

Manny Delcarmen completely melted down in the ninth against Seattle's pathetic lineup. Delcarmen gave up four runs (three earned), two hits and a walk; he didn't record an out.

Franklin Gutierrez cut it to 6-3 with a two-run homer and Casey Kotchman notched an RBI double. Jack Wilson grounded into a fielder's choice, allowing Bradley to score but then Hall threw away the relay to first and the tying run scored. With that, Jonathan Papelbon blew the save.

Hideki Okajima (3-2) pitched his best game of the year, getting two scoreless innings in the 11th and 12th, including wiggling out of a bases-loaded, one out jam in the 12th.

Ramon Ramirez pitched a clean 13th, with a strikeout to get his second save of the season.

So this game went from a revelation from Lackey, to the worst loss in years and then finally, an incredible win when it looked over.

Josh Beckett returns tonight and faces Jason Vargas, a quality lefty.

Red Sox salvage split in the Bronx

Baseball is the only sport that allows you to play the next day, giving you the quickest time to recover from epic defeats the previous day or night.

The symmetry of last night's Red Sox-Yankees game at Yankee Stadium was unmistakable since Boston (20-20) once again recovered from a 5-0 deficit but looked poised to blow it in the ninth with closer Jonathan Papelbon on the mound.

Somehow though, he got out of a jam (1st and 3rd with 1 out) as the Sox held on 7-6 over the Yankees (25-16).

The game couldn't have started off worse since a nearly 1-hour rain delay and Josh Beckett's early ineffectiveness and supposed back injury put New York up 5-0 in the fifth.

Jose Miranda (RBI single) and Randy Winn (groundout) drove in runs in the second inning, Miranda hit a solo homer in the fourth and Robinson Cano's two-run double in the fifth spelled the end for Beckett, possibly for a long time.

J.D. Drew spurred the comeback with a solo shot in the sixth off C.C. Sabathia (7 innings, 1 earned run, 4 hits, 3 walks, 5 strikeouts) and then the Sox tied it with four in the eighth off bobo Joba Chamberlain. Drew had an RBI double, Youk drove in two with a single and David Ortiz (who's been hot for the last week) nearly missed a home run but settled for a tying single.

Jeremy Hermida, Mr. Clutch this season for Boston, came through once again with two outs against some guy named Mariano Rivera (0-1). He drove in Darnell McDonald and Marco Scutaro with a double to left field over Randy Winn's head in left field. Marcus Thames-the hero the night before-dropped an easy popup from Scutaro when he tried to make a basket catch.

Papelbon allowed an RBI double to Cano but he was able to escape New York with his tenth save of the season. Josh Bard (1-1) got the win after facing just one hitter.

The Sox come back to Fenway for two games against the Minnesota Twins beginning tonight (weather permitting) with Clay Buchholz facing Scott Baker.

Yanks win on walk-off bomb in epic fashion

After being down 5-0 in the first inning last night at Yankee Stadium, the Sox were poised to pull off their best win of the season.

Boston (19-20) led 9-7 going into the ninth but one-trick pony closer Jonathan Papelbon couldn't end it as he gave up the tying two-run bomb to A-Rod and a walk-off two-run homer to Marcus Thames.

The swing of emotions was dramatic as the best win turned into the worst loss , something that the Sox might not recover from this season that always looks fated.

In true Dice-K fashion, he gave up one run in the second but settled down enough to get into the fifth inning.

David Ortiz's solo homer cut it to 6-2 in the fifth and J.D. Drew made it 6-5 New York (25-13) with a three-run homer off Phil Hughes.

Marcus Thames showed Dice-K the door in the fifth with an RBI double, giving the Bombers a 7-5 lead. Matsuzaka gave up seven earned runs in 4.2 innings with three walks and three strikeouts.

Hughes wasn't good either: five earned runs on six hits in five innings with a walk and three strikeouts.

The long ball was Boston's friend as Victor Martinez hit a solo shot in the sixth (7-6 NY) while Youkilis (two-run) and V-Mart went back to back in the eighth to give the Sox a 9-7 lead.

It was Papelbon's first blown save of the season but he fell to 1-3. He gave up four earned runs on three hits and threw 19 pitches so who knows if he's available tonight.

I'm not feeling good about Josh Beckett's chances tonight when he faces C.C. Sabathia. Beckett has been nothing short of pathetic this season and this does not look like the night to get untracked.

He's Dice-K, he doesn't have to make sense

Daisuke Matsuzaka is one of the great mysteries in sports. He has the ability to completely baffle hitters but he's one of the most frustrating athletes because he rarely lives up to any sort of expectations.

Like a friend or relative that's a screwup, I guess we have to go start by start with the Diceman and not dwell on past success or his recent failures. Just living in the moment.

So there he was last night at Fenway Park, toeing the rubber and unleashing a gem against the Blue Jays. Matsuzaka (2-1) went seven innings, giving up one earned run on three hits with no walks and nine strikeouts.

Boston (18-16) won 6-1 over the Blue Jays (19-16), their fifth straight win vs. Toronto this season.

The Red Sox' scrappy offense (ie. no power) continued to scratch runs out of not much substance. They got two runs in the first off a groundout and sacrifice fly.

Jason Varitek continued to swing a hot bat, crushing a solo homer in the second inning. It's his sixth home run of the season, haha he's batting .342

Boston added a run in the fourth on Darnell McDonald's RBI double and two in the fifth on a wild pitch and fielder's choice.

Toronto finally solved Dice-K in the sixth with an RBI double by Fred Lewis but that's all they get on the night.

The Sox go for the sweep with an afternoon matinee pitting Tim Wakefield against Shawn Marcum.

The Red Sox played last night, really?

Last night's Red Sox game vs. the Angels had to have been Boston's lowest rated game in years.

Not only did they go up against a Bruins playoff game and a Celtics playoff game but the Sox have gotten off to a terrible start for what looks to be a very forgettable season.

I won't bore you with all the tedious details but Boston (12-14) beat Los Angeles (12-15) 17-8 at Fenway, snapping a three-game losing streak.

The Sox pounded out 20 hits, led by Mike Lowell (4 for 4, 4 RBIS), J.D. Drew (4 hits, 3 RBIs, 2 runs), Adrian Beltre (3 RBIs, 3 runs. 2 hits), Kevin Youkilis (3 runs, 2 hits, 2 walks), Bill Hall (2 hits, 2 RBIs) and Dustin Pedroia (3 RBIs).

Pedroia cranked a three-run homer, Youk had a solo shot while Hall and Beltre both collected their first home runs for Boston with two run bombs.

Clay Buchholz (3-2) didn't pitch well (5.2 innings, 4 earned runs, 8 hits, 3 walks, 2 strikeouts) but that's much more than can be said for LA's Joe Saunders (1-5), who gave up seven earned runs in four innings or relievers Matt Palmer and Brian Stokes who combined to give up ten runs in three innings of work.

With the Bruins and Celtics off tonight, the spotlight will fall back onto the Red Sox. We'll see what they can do as Jon Lester faces Ervin Santana.

Love you Theo, but what were you thinking last winter?

Since we can already say that the Boston Red Sox aren't going anywhere this season, who can we blame? Answer: GM Theo Epstein.

The Brookline native delivered two World Series championships so he's bulletproof for locals but someone has to be held responsible for the poor construction of the 2010 Red Sox.

As many things as you can make fun of the owners for, one thing that is not debatable is that they spend money. It's Theo's job (and his legion of minions) to put that money to good use and clearly they didn't in the off-season, as their obsession with statistics has led them astray.

That was a long introduction to a completely forgettable weekend in Baltimore. Boston (11-14) got swept for the first time since 1998 by the terrible Orioles (7-18), who won 3-2 in 10 innings yesterday at Camden Yards.

Ty Wigginton won it for the O's, who are 4-2 against the Sox this season, with an RBI double off Jonathan Papelbon (1-2) that scored Nick Markakis (2 hits, 2 runs, walk).

Boston wasted a strong effort from Josh Beckett: seven innings, two runs on six hits with no walks and six strikeouts.

Kevin Millwood matched Beckett, going eight innings and allowing two earned runs on five hits with four walks and four strikeouts.

Jason Varitek and J.D. Drew provided the only runs with solo homers in the fifth and seventh respectively. Baltimore had jumped ahead with two runs in the fourth.

It will not get any easier for the Red Sox even though they come home for another 10-game homestand. They play the Angels, then Yankees and Blue Jays.

Clay Buchholz takes on Joe Saunders tonight.

Farewell Red Sox, see ya in the spring

Well that didn't take long. The Red Sox' 2009 season ended abruptly yesterday afternoon at Fenway Park as they suffered their most bitter loss of the season, 7-6 to the legit. Los Angeles Angels.

The Angels proved (like I said after game 1 of the ALDS) that the one-sided past history didn't mean anything as they rallied from a 5-1 deficit and scored three runs in the ninth against Boston closer Jonathan Papelbon (who had never allowed a run before in 27 postseason innings).

As surprising as the loss was, it looked like game 4 was a certainty, it didn't take long to move on after the loss since you knew this team wasn't winning three in a row against the Angels and also, the Patriots played just minutes later at the Broncos.

There is no sport like baseball. With 162 regular season games, not to mention spring training and the playoffs, you spend way more time with your team than in any other sport. Like family, friends and co-workers, you get to know the players since you are right there for their ups, downs and everything in between.

Dustin Pedroia gave the Sox a 2-0 lead in the third with a two-run double. Victor Martinez knocked in Pedroia with an RBI single. Angels starter Scott Kazmir was on the ropes but he held on to go six innings. He allowed five runs on five hits with three walks and a strikeout.

In his postseason debut, Red Sox youngster Clay Buchholz pitched well given the circumstances. He went five innings, giving up two runs on six hits with a walk and three strikeouts.

Kendry Morales cranked a solo homer to right in the fourth to get the Angels on the board but J.D. Drew more than answered in the home half of the inning with a two-run bomb to dead center.

The Angels scored in the sixth on a double-play ball since they had the bases loaded.

Los Angeles' real damage started in the eighth as Papelbon was touched up for a two-run single by Juan Rivera which cut it to 5-4. Papelbon inherited the runners from Billy Wagner.

Pap got out of the eighth by picking off Reggie Willits and it really looked the Sox would survive as Mike Lowell's opposite field RBI single in the eighth made 6-4.

The Angels' rally in the ninth started with the bases empty, two outs and No. 9 hitter Erick Aybar at the plate. He singled, Chone Figgins walked, Bobby Abreu hit an RBI double, Torii Hunter was intentionally walked and Vladimir Guerrero hit a two-run single, making up for a terrible series by him.

Papelbon was yanked in favor of Hideki Okajima and the Fenway Park crowd was stunned, the season was over. Boston went 1-2-3 in the bottom of the ninth as Angels closer Brian Fuentes recorded his second save of the series.

The Yankees also advanced last night with a sweep of the Twins and they'll host the Angels in the ALCS beginning on Friday in what should be a great series.

The biggest question facing the Red Sox in the off-season is whether to re-sign Jason Bay. He's been a very durable, productive player and he deserves a big contract. Hopefully, another team (ie. the Mets) doesn't throw a ridiculous offer at him.

David Ortiz and Mike Lowell continue to rapidly age while Tim Wakefield and Jason Varitek might not be back next season. The pieces are there for another great season and a better run in the playoffs. Josh Beckett wasn't himself for the second half of the season. Jon Lester was a rock and Buchholz finally showed his ability on a consistent basis in Boston.

Once the starting pitching fell apart in the middle of this season, this team's margin for error got smaller and smaller. Other than Bay and Kevin Youkilis, no other offensive player exceeded their expectations at the plate. Jacoby Ellsbury had 70 steals, Pedroia was very solid and Victor Martinez was a revelation after coming over from the Indians.

Papelbon is still good but there were plenty of signs during the season that something like yesterday was inevitable in a big moment. He's not Mariano Rivera, a robot that is impervious to age and still as unhittable as ever.

Thanks Angels, see you losers next week

In what has to go down as one of the lamest clinches in sports history, the Boston Red Sox lost to the Toronto Blue Jays 8-7 last night-their fifth straight defeat-but still obtained the American League wild card as the Rangers lost to the Angels 5-2 early this morning.

It is the sixth time in the last seven seasons that the Red Sox have made the postseason.

It would have been a perfect way to win it as the Sox (91-66) rallied from a 8-2 deficit with five runs in the eighth at Fenway Park. Kevin Youkilis struck out looking to end the game with two runners on base.

Oh well, none of this matters one iota. Nobody has to think about the Red Sox for the next week or so, before the real games start against the Angels in the ALDS. It'll be the third straight season that the two teams have met in the first round and it's hard to forget how dominant the Sox have been over the Angels in October.

Clay Buchholz was shelled last night after having been spectacular for the last month or two. In five innings, he allowed seven earned runs on eight hits with a walk and four strikeouts. The loss dropped him to 7-4 and he gave up five home runs.

Adam Lind-who should be AL rookie of the year-had three homers for Toronto (74-84).

In the first, Jose Bautista hit a homer on the first pitch of the game and Lind followed shortly after that with a two-run bomb. Travis Snider's RBI single made it 4-0 Blue Jays in the first.

Victor Martinez drove in Dustin Pedroia (3 hits) with an RBI single in the bottom of the first.

Aaron Hill (his 36th, HAHA) hit a solo homer in the second and Jason Bay scored on Ricky Romero's wild pitch in the bottom of the second.

After struggling so much against Boston this season, Romero (13-9) finally had a decent start. He went five innings, allowing two runs on seven hits with a walk and three strikeouts.

The Blue Jays hit three more solo home runs: Kevin Millar in the 3rd, Lind in the 5th and Lind in the 7th to make it 8-2.

That's when the Red Sox bats came alive and it looked like they'd have one of their most memorable wins of the season. Youkilis and David Ortiz (2 hits) both had RBI doubles in the eighth. Ortiz just missed his 29th homer as his drive hit a bullpen wall. J.D. Drew had the big blast as he cranked a three-run shot over Toronto's bullpen.

Jason Frasor nearly blew it but he recorded his 11th save.

With so much going on elsewhere in the sports world: Bruins open up tomorrow, Patriots-Ravens on Sunday and Celtics starting training camp, it's nice that the Red Sox games are completely irrelevant for a few days.

The playoffs will be here soon enough.

We own the Rays (for one night)

Considering how one-sided the Rays-Red Sox battles have been in recent memory, last night was a promising start to what hopefully will be a pivotal series for Boston at Tropicana Field (good seats still available).

The Sox (77-54) looked like the better team and won 8-4 in game one of the three-game series. Their lead in the wild card stayed at 3.5 games over Texas and jumped to six games over Tampa Bay.

Jon Lester (11-7) pitched six solid innings before departing a little early with a minor groin strain. He stuck out nine and gave up two earned runs on seven hits and two walks.

Boston got some outstanding relief work from Billy Wagner, who pitched a 1-2-3 seventh (with two strikeouts) and Jonathan Papelbon, who recorded his first six out save of the season (his 33rd save overall; no hits, three strikeouts).

In between, Hideki Okajima made things tense as he gave up two runs on four hits (three bloopers) and a walk in the eighth. He couldn't get anyone out and Papelbon was forced to come in with the bases loaded and no outs in the inning. No problem as Pap picked his most impressive save of the season with a huge assist from Jacoby Ellsbury's diving catch on Jason Bartlett with one out in the eighth.

Tampa Bay (71-60) grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first on Carlos Pena's RBI single.

The Sox tied it in the second on a Jacoby Ellsbury RBI single. J.D Drew hit a two-run bomb in the third and Kevin Youkilis made it 4-1 in the fourth with a sacrifice fly.

Pena cut it to 4-2 in the fourth with a solo homer but the Sox continued to do damage against Andy Sonnanstine (5 runs, 8 hits).

Jason Bay hit his 30th homer of the season in the fifth. Mike Lowell's sacrifice fly in the sixth and Youk's solo homer in the eighth gave them a 7-2 lead.

After the Rays cut it to 7-4 in the eighth, Ellsbury added an RBI triple for the final margin.

You can always count on J.D. Drew

Fielding probably their best lineup of the season last night in Toronto, the Red Sox swept the hapless Jays with an 8-1 win.

The most frustrating athlete on the planet J.D. Drew was the star of the game, going 4 for 4 with two home runs and three RBIs.

Jon Lester (10-7) was outstanding after he escaped a bases loaded, no outs jam in the first while only allowing a run. That would be the only run he gave up in eight innings of work. Toronto (55-64) had three hits off him, he walked two and struck out five.

Drew hit a solo shot in the third to give Boston (69-51) a 1-0 lead.

Mike Lowell's RBI single in the fourth and Drew's two-run blast put the Red Sox ahead 4-1. They added two more runs in the fifth, one in the seventh on a Victor Martinez homer and one more in the eighth before departing from their neighbors to the North.

The red-hot Yankees are in Boston for the weekend and the Sox find themselves 6.5 games behind the Bombers and a game ahead of the Rangers in the wild card. These three games likely won't mean much since New York is almost a sure thing to win the division but taking two out of three or heaven forbid a sweep, would make things interesting coming down the stretch.

The pitching matchups in the first two games do not line up favorably at all for Boston as tonight Brad Penny goes again Andy Petitte.