Red Sox Beat A's 4-2 In Series Opener With More Help On The Way-Matt Thornton

You couldn't possibly ask for anything more (within reason) from the Red Sox at the moment: thanks to their 4-2 win tonight against the A's at O.Co Coliseum, Boston (58-37 overall, 27-21 away) moved to a season-high 21 games over .500 while also opening up a 4.5 game lead over the Rays for first place in the AL East (Tampa Bay lost 2-1 to Houston). Oh by the way, they also flipped something called Brandon Jacobs (not the former Giants running back) and cash to the White Sox for reliever Matt Thornton. Damn.

Thornton will be 37 in September but he's still one of the better lefthanded relievers in MLB and a more than suitable replacement for Andrew Miller. He was an All-Star in 2010 and has a career line of 32-41 with 23 saves, 169 holds, 3.53 ERA and 1.27 WHIP. Keep in mind that it's hard to gauge numbers for setup men, especially ones that have been on some really bad teams-like this year's edition of the White Sox. He is a big guy (6-6, 235 pounds) that throws in the mid-90s and should be a welcome addition to Boston's ragtag bullpen that only had one lefty (Craig Breslow) remaining in it since Miller got hurt on Saturday.

It has gotten to the point where I'm actually expecting a good start from John Lackey (7-6) every time out. He went seven innings, allowing two earned runs on three hits with five strikeouts and four walks. Don't be surprised if a pitcher pulls out of the All-Star Game for the AL in the next few days that Lackey could be heading to Citi Field. Seriously.

Oakland (54-39 overall, 28-15 home) got a fine outing from Jarrod Parker (7 innings, 2 earned runs, 3 hits, 3 strikeouts) but reliever Sean Doolittle (3-3) was the weak link as he gave up a two-run single to Dustin Pedroia (2 hits) that made it 4-2 in the eighth. Former A's closer Andrew Bailey pitched a scoreless eighth with two strikeouts for his eighth hold and Koji Uehara struck out the side for his eighth save of the season.

Boston never trailed as Brock Holt opened the scoring with a two-run single of his own in the second. The A's chipped away with an RBI single by John Jaso in the fifth and former Red Sox great (stop laughing) Jed Lowrie tied it with a solo homer off Lackey in the sixth.

Mike Napoli was 2 for 4 with a triple and run in the win, the fourth straight for the Red Sox who improved to 5-3 on this endless West Coast road trip.

Tomorrow night (10:05, NESN) Jon Lester (8-5) tries to end his first half on a good note as he takes on A.J. Griffin (7-6).

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Well At Least The Red Sox Didn't Grossly Overpay Daisuke Matsuzaka, Oh Wait

There is nothing left to say about Daisuke Matsuzaka other than I sincerely wish he was out of our (Red Sox fans) viewing lives and we were never again subjected to his awful pitching for another game.

Like usual, Dice-K (0-3) never really gave his team a chance as he spotted Oakland a 5-1 lead in the second inning on their way to a comfortable 6-1 win over Boston (42-38, 21-17 away) in the series opener tonight at O.co Coliseum (that's really what it is called).

The A's (39-42, 20-19 home) decided to score some runs for a change and it was a memorable contest for Josh Reddick (2-run homer, sacrifice fly) and Brandon Moss (3-run homer, single) who are both former Red Sox.

For the second time this season, Oakland rookie Jarrod Parker (5-3) held the Red Sox to one earned run in 6.2 innings. He did the same thing on May 1 at Fenway, a 5-3 triumph by the A's. Parker doesn't have great stuff but he works quickly and gets outs. What more can you ask for? He allowed six hits, struck out three and walked three.

Matsuzaka was lifted after 1+ innings of "work." The ball-washing Red Sox beat reporters have already quoted him as saying he had some issue with his neck but I'm about three years past making any more excuses for this complete bust. After five earned runs on four hits with two walks and no strikeouts, Bobby Valentine had seen enough in 28 lousy pitches. It was the best move he'll make all season.

Clayton Mortensen saved Boston's bullpen by going five innings in relief. He only allowed one earned run on two hits with two strikeouts and two walks on a season-high 71 pitches.

There is talk of Will Middlebrooks (out with a strained hamstring) going on the DL along with Matsuzaka. Mortensen might be sent down to Pawtucket to make room for another infielder but it would likely be a short stay with Saturday's day-night doubleheader against the Yankees looming on the horizon.

Daniel Nava doubled to lead off the game and Dustin Pedroia (2 hits) drove him in with an RBI single in the first.

Reddick (19th of the season) tied it with a solo homer in the first, followed by Moss's (9th of the season) three-run blast in the second and Reddick's sacrifice fly later in the frame. Not to sound like a honk but I don't understand why A's rookie reliever Ryan Cook was named an All-Star over Reddick. Cook is having a nice season but come on, Reddick is playing out of his mind in a lineup with no protection or help not to mention at a cavernous park.

Oakland's other run came on a Brandon Inge sacrifice fly in the sixth.

A's reliever Sean Doolittle threw 2.1 clean innings, including three strikeouts to end this misery in only two hours and 39 minutes.

Boston is 2-3 through five games on this West Coast road trip that looked so winnable (Seattle, Oakland) when they left. However, when you score 10 runs in your first five games, you clearly have major issues.

Jon Lester (5-5) faces former Red Sox Bartolo Colon (6-7) tomorrow night (10:05 p.m., NESN) in the middle game of the series.

UPDATE 7/3: Dice-K was put on the DL with neck stiffness and Clayton Mortensen was optioned to Pawtucket while infielder Mauro Gomez and pitcher Justin Germano were called up to the Red Sox.

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Red Sox Rally Falls Short In The 9th, A's Win 5-3

With cold temperatures, rain and windy conditions, tonight was a miserable time to be at Fenway Park. The Red Sox didn't help matters as they sleepwalked through most of the game.

Oakland (12-13, 6-6 away) held on for a 5-3 win after they almost squandered a 5-1 lead in the ninth with closer Grant Balfour on in a non-save situation. Boston (11-12, 4-6 home) made it very interesting with a two-run single by Mike Aviles but Jordan Norberto was able to strike out Lars Anderson and get Dustin Pedroia (potential winning run) to ground into a fielder's choice to second to end it with runners on first and second.

A's rookie Jarrod Parker (1-0) was impressive as he picked up his first MLB win. He went 6.2 innings, allowing one earned run on four hits with four strikeouts and two walks.

Cody Ross (3 hits, run) was the only Red Sox with multiple hits including a pair of doubles.

Red Sox rookie Felix Doubront (1-1) gave tangible evidence for why strikeouts are one of the most overrated stats in baseball (not to sound like Bull Durham). He struck out eight but since his pitch count (94) went way too high, he was done after only four innings. He allowed five earned runs on six hits with two walks.

Oakland jumped on top early with a run in the first then four in the fourth. Yoenis Cespedes (yes, he's real) had an RBI single in the first before Cliff Pennington (2 hits) hit an RBI double and Jemile Weeks (2 hits, 2 runs) knocked in two with a single. Weeks later scored on Doubront's wild pitch.

Dustin Pedroia scored in the fourth on a ground out by David Ortiz.

Forgotten in the loss and comeback that fell short was some superb relief by Scott Atchison (2 innings), Southie resident Rich Hill (1.2 innings) and Matt Albers (1.1 innings) who combined in five innings of work to give up no runs, four hits and strike out six with no walks.

A's de-facto ace Brandon McCarthy (1-3) takes the ball tomorrow night (7:10 p.m., NESN) in the series finale against Daniel Bard (2-2). Both teams will be looking to clinch the series 2-1. Runs should be at a premium.

There was a flurry of roster moves today by the Red Sox and expect at least one more tomorrow. The Red Sox sent reliever Junichi Tazawa to Pawtucket and called up Jose Iglesias. It was a strange move since Kevin Youkilis is hurt (out of the lineup for the third straight game with back trouble) and a DL trip appears imminent for Youk who's body is rapidly breaking down. Will Middlebrooks couldn't be any hotter at Pawtucket and he plays third base. Weird. After tonight's game, Anderson was sent back down (yeah!) which seems to indicate that Aaron Cook will be called up (today was his deadline for opting out). It'll be interesting to see what role they use him in. He's been a decent MLB starting pitcher so I don't know how much he'll want to relieve-his likely role. I would love to see him go into the rotation and Bard go to the bullpen but that's not going to happen, at least at this time.

UPDATE 5/2: Try to keep up. Middlebrooks was called up today, along with Cook who will start on Saturday (the Texas Toughguy is skipping a start). Youk went on the DL and reliever Clayton Mortensen was also called up. Middlebrooks will make his MLB debut tonight, hitting eighth and playing third base.

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