Ryan Dempster is Probably Retiring, So Am I Supposed to Be Sad or Something?

He seems like a nice enough guy (especially for a baseball player) but am I honestly supposed to be upset that Ryan Dempster is apparently retiring? His one year in Boston was completely forgettable (8-9, 4.57 ERA, 1.45 WHIP, 157 strikeouts) save for the time he hit Alex Rodriguez with a pitch (his greatest contribution as a Red Sox) and oh by the way, the team won the World Series no thanks to his mediocrity.

Boston returns its entire rotation from last season: Jon Lester, Clay Buchholz, John Lackey, Felix Doubront and Jake Peavy. Plus, they have Brandon Workman and Henry Owens among other young arms on the cusp of joining said rotation should any of the previously listed guys get hurt or really struggle.

Spring Training-the most boring time of the year-officially began yesterday with pitchers and catchers reporting to Fort Myers, Florida for five months (or so it seems). The lazy Red Sox writers were surely thrilled to have their first real news item fall into their laps like this. I look forward to all the hot takes telling me how important Dempster really was on Yawkey Way. Haha yeah right.

Dempster (who will turn 37 in May) pitched parts of 16 MLB seasons with five different teams which is amazing when you consider his lack of stuff save for a decent fastball. Fittingly for a guy that I would describe as slightly above average, his career record is 132-133 with 87 saves. The highlights of his career had to be 2008 with the Cubs when he was an All-Star (after he converted back to starting from closing) and last season with Boston where he captured his first World Series crown.

The only part of this sappy story that interests me (hence why I bothered to blog about it) is that Dempster forfeited $13.25 million that he would have earned this season. The Red Sox are now free to use that in other ways. I'm guessing that Dempster (a proud Canadian) retired this week so that he could fully concentrate on what he really cares about: Team Canada hockey in the Sochi Olympics.

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Red Sox Will Have To Wait Another Night To Clinch A Playoff Spot, Oh Well

Tonight, the Red Sox had a chance to clinch their first playoff spot since 2009 but they couldn't do it. Boston (92-60 overall, 50-26 home) lost 3-2 to Baltimore (80-70 overall, 38-37 away) at Fenway Park. It also turned out that they needed an Indians loss as well but they won 5-3 at the Royals so I guess it wasn't meant to be after all.

The Red Sox led 2-0 following Dustin Pedroia's lead off homer in the first then a sacrifice fly by Xander Bogaerts in the fourth inning. Orioles starter Scott Feldman was wild (6 walks) but he only allowed the two runs in five innings before giving way to five relievers who combined to put up four shutout innings. Former scrub Tommy Hunter (6-4) got the last two outs in the eighth to earn the win. Baltimore closer Jim Johnson has been very shaky at times this season but he struck out Bogaerts to end it (for his 46th save), stranding pinch-runner Quintin Berry at second base.

I pray that these are the final days of Ryan Dempster in Boston's rotation in 2013 so enjoy the mediocrity while it lasts. He actually pitched well, going six innings and allowing two earned runs on three hits with five strikeouts and four walks. Brian Roberts' grounder scored former Red Sox great Danny Valencia (two walks) in the fifth and Chris Davis tied it with his 51st homer of the season (a new Orioles record), a solo shot to center in the sixth.

Craig Breslow did an incredible job to work out of a jam (runners on 2nd and 3rd with no outs) in the eighth without allowing a run. You knew Koji Uehara's (4-1) mind-boggling stretch would end at some point and I'm happy that it occurred in September rather than October. Valencia led off the ninth with a triple against Uehara to end his streak of 37 straight batters retired. Matt Wieters' sacrifice fly meant Uehara allowed his first run since July 7 (30 2/3 innings and 27 scoreless outings ago) and he was charged with his first loss of the season.

Jake Peavy (11-5) and Wei-Yin Chen (7-7) get to do the honors tomorrow night (7:10, NESN). With tonight's victory, Baltimore pulled to within two games of Texas and Tampa Bay for the AL Wild Cards. In other words, this series means plenty to both teams hence why it felt like a playoff game in the opener.

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Red Sox Outlast Rays 7-3 in 10 innings thanks to Carp's Pinch-Hit Grand Slam

Tune into a Red Sox game on almost any given day or night and odds are that this season you'll them do something spectacular. Tonight, Boston (89-58 overall, 42-33 away) beat Tampa Bay (78-66 overall, 44-28 home) 7-3 in 10 innings at Tropicana Field. Koji Uehara (4-0) set a team record as he has now retired 34 consecutive batters while ho hum Mike Carp cranked the first pinch-hit grand slam in extra innings in Red Sox history.

The win put Boston 9.5 games up on the Rays which means that the race for the AL East is all but officially over. It also helps that the Red Sox are 12-6 vs. Tampa Bay this season with just tomorrow night's game remaining in the regular season at least. Ryan Dempster (5 innings, 4 hits, 1 earned run, 5 walks, 7 strikeouts) was OK but the real story in terms of pitching for the Red Sox was Franklin Morales (1-2-3 6th), Uehara and Junichi Tazawa (scoreless 10th inning).

The Rays handed the Red Sox their first two runs in the third inning when Wil Myers bungled Mike Napoli's sinking liner into a two-run double. Daniel Nava's (2 hits) ground out scored David Ortiz (2 walks, 2 runs) to make it 3-0 good guys. David Dejesus got Tampa Bay on the board in the home half of the third with an RBI double. Evan Longoria (double, walk) cut it to 3-2 with an RBI double in the seventh and former Red Sox great James Loney tied it with a solo homer off Brandon Workman in the eighth.

Roberto Hernandez (don't call him Fausto Carmona) had the honor of giving up Carp's ninth home run of the season, which came on the first pitch he saw. Batting leadoff for the second straight game, Dustin Pedroia reached base three times (2 singles, walk, 2 runs). Boston has already clinched another series win and they continue to open up their lead on other AL contenders (5 more wins than Detroit and Oakland) for the best record in the league.

Jake Peavy (11-5) takes on Jeremy Hellickson (11-8) tomorrow (7:10, NESN) in the series finale. The Rays desperately need a win since they've gone 3-7 in their last 10 games and the Yankees have pulled within a game of their spot as the second AL Wild Card. What's more, the Indians and Orioles are only 1.5 games back and the Royals are just two games behind Tampa Bay.

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The White Sox are So Bad That Even Ryan Dempster Can Beat Them

Tonight was one of those blah games that the Red Sox just have to grind through to ultimately get where they want to go: October. Boston (80-56 overall, 43-24 home) beat the White Sox (56-77 overall, 24-43 away) 4-3 in the series opener at Fenway Park and it turned out to be pretty important after the fact since the Rays fell 4-3 at the A's. That gives Boston a 3.5 game lead over Tampa Bay for first place in the AL East.

Ryan Dempster (7-9) returned from his suspension and extended break between outings. He benefitted from a 4-0 lead built up by the fourth inning as the Red Sox hung on for the win thanks to a four-out save (his 15th overall) for Koji Uehara. Before the roof started to somewhat cave in on him, Dempster went 6.1 innings and allowed three earned runs on five hits with five strikeouts and three walks.

Junichi Tazawa pitched a scoreless inning, Franklin Morales retired the lone batter he faced then manager John Farrell went to Uehara earlier than normal but it paid off.

Mike Napoli earned a bases loaded walk in the third inning to get Boston on the board then Shane Victorino (2 hits, 2 runs, walk, stolen base) had an RBI single and David Ortiz added a two-run base hit in the fourth. Ortiz's was extra important since it snapped his 0-for-23 drought (tied for the longest in his Red Sox career).

Dayan Viciedo drove in Chicago's first run with an RBI single in the fifth then Avisail Garcia hit a solo homer in the seventh and Alejandro De Aza cut it to 4-3 with an RBI triple in the same frame.

It's hard to get much juice out of a Red Sox-White Sox game this season but Jake Peavy (10-5) should make it a little more interesting tomorrow night (7:10, NESN) as he faces his former team and teammate John Danks (4-10). Keep in mind ex-White Sox reliever Matt Thornton was just activated for Boston and I'm sure he'll face them too at some point this weekend.

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Ryan Dempster's Biggest Contribution To The Red Sox Results In A 5-Game Suspension

I chose not to write about Sunday night's Red Sox-Yankees game because I was already sick of what I knew would be the stupid angle that everyone would focus on: Ryan Dempster hitting Alex Rodriguez with a pitch in the second inning of New York's eventual 9-6 series finale victory. The circus surrounding A-Rod and PEDs bores the hell out of me and since the Red Sox choked to drop the series, I didn't feel like rehashing that shitty loss (editor in chief's discretion!).

Today, as expected MLB suspended Dempster but it was only for five games. Given that Boston has off days on Thursday and next Monday, he might not even miss a turn in the rotation although truth be told he doesn't really deserve to be there anymore (6-9, 4.77 ERA) in the first place. He was also fined $2500 while Yankees manager Joe Girardi was hit with a fine of $5000 for his excellent hissy fit after the plunking that resulted in his ejection. Keep in mind that Dempster can always appeal this and we all know that usually works out in the player's favor (ask A-Rod who is currently waiting out his basically lifetime ban).

What does this all mean? Nothing really, MLB has created this whole mess by overlooking steroids and PEDs for years but then deciding to be heroes after the fact and trying to "clean up the game." Please, by this point nobody really cares what players did or didn't use. Some people claimed in the aftermath of this much-needed drama in the stale Red Sox-Yankees rivalry that they actually began to feel sorry for A-Rod. Haha seriously? That bozo makes LeBron James look like a humble, self-aware model of humility.

Red Sox honks also would like us to believe that this proves Dempster has the team's back. Still, this might have been a personal beef between him and A-Rod so who knows? Plus PS, he has been awful all season so this one small action won't make me love him. Win games in August and September when Boston really needs them, then I will care more about Dempster. If Clay Buchholz ever returns this season (something which seems more improbable with each passing day), Dempster would rightfully be shifted to the bullpen.

Nothing to see here folks, time to move on from this entertaining but albeit mostly meaningless act.

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Another Game, Another Walk-Off Win (No. 11 of the season) for the Red Sox

As far as I know, tonight's incredible comeback win by the Red Sox occurred but for the life of me, I couldn't find a picture of it hence why I had to use a picture from Jake Peavy's press conference earlier in the day. Sorry! Boston (66-44 overall-season-high 22 games over .500, 37-20 home) was down 7-1 in the eighth and 7-2 in the ninth before mounting one of the craziest rallies you'll ever see in MLB. Daniel Nava (2 hits, double, run, walk) ended it with a walk-off single as the Red Sox beat the hapless Mariners (50-58 overall, 21-30 away) 8-7 at Fenway Park for a three-game sweep.

It was the 11th walk-off victory of the season for Boston which leads MLB (2 off their team record set way back in 1940) and is their most since 1978. Did I mention that they also have the most wins in MLB since the Pirates lost? I dare say that this is the most likable Red Sox team since 2004, care to disagree after they won in 15 innings and did this less than 24 hours apart?

For so many reasons, this will go down as one of the best wins of the season. Seattle had no business losing this game since Felix Hernandez (7 innings, 1 earned run, 6 hits, 8 strikeouts, 2 walks) shut Boston down and Ryan Dempster (6 innings, 7 earned runs, 9 hits, 6 strikeouts, 5 walks) got shelled. Things got so bad for Dempster-why did they sign him again?-that he gave up a grand slam to scrub backup catcher Henry Blanco in the fifth for a 7-1 Mariners lead.

Kyle Seager's (2 hits, 2 runs, walk, stolen base) bunt single scored a run in the first and Justin Smoak (2 hits, run, walk) drove in another with an RBI single in the third. Boston got a run in the home half of the third on David Ortiz's sacrifice fly but nobody could have predicted what happened in the eighth and ninth. Kendry Morales' (4 hits, run) RBI single preceded Blanco's grand slam over the Monster.

Victorino's solo homer in the eighth was his sixth of the season, cutting it to 7-2. The Mariners couldn't have choked worse in the ninth: it started with closer Tom Wilhelmsen (4 earned runs) failing to get anyone out (closers are useless in non-save situations) and extended to interim manager Robbie Thompson (Eric Wedge had a minor stroke last week) bringing in the wrong reliever (Oliver Perez).

Brock Holt started the comeback with an RBI double in the ninth and Victorino greeted Perez with a two-run single. Dustin Pedroia brought the Red Sox within one thanks to an RBI single and Jonny Gomes (who made a diving catch earlier then had an outfield assist in the same inning) tied it with an RBI single of his own. By the time Nava came up with the bases loaded and one out, you knew it was over.

Steven Wright (2-0) earned the improbable win with three scoreless innings of relief. The knuckleballer only allowed two hits and struck out two on the same day that he was recalled. It's been that kind of season for Boston, everyone is positively contributing. Jacoby Ellsbury was 2 for 4 with two runs, a double and walk. Even Ryan Lavarnway was 2 for 4 with a run.

Boston gets another taste of interleague play with Arizona (55-53 overall, 2nd in NL West) coming to Fenway for three games this weekend. Say hi to the cheerful Cody Ross for me! Jon Lester (10-6) faces Randall Delgado (3-3) tomorrow night (7:10, NESN), Peavy makes his Red Sox debut on Saturday night (7:10, NESN) vs. rookie sensation Patrick Corbin (12-2) and Felix Doubront (7-5) wraps it up Sunday afternoon (1:35, NESN) vs. Brandon McCarthy (2-4).

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Red Sox Are 1st AL Team To 50 Wins This Season, Thanks To Walk-Off Error By Blue Jays

Who knows if they'll keep it up the rest of the season but for now, we can reasonably conclude that things are going the Red Sox' way when it comes to wins and losses. Boston (50-34 overall, 28-16 home) beat Toronto (40-41 overall, 18-24 away) 5-4 at Fenway Park to take three of four in the series and keep the best record in the AL. This is only the fourth time in franchise history that they've reached 50 wins before July, the last time was in 2008.

The Red Sox concluded June as the first team in the American League to reach 50 wins and it happened in bizarre fashion since Shane Victorino's easy chopper to first baseman Josh Thole (a defensive sub for Adam Lind who left with back tightness) went under his glove and allowed pinch runner/journeyman Jonathan Diaz to score the winning run. Did I mention that Brandon Snyder (2 for 4) had a two-run double in the second for Boston? Or how about how Ryan Dempster (5.1 innings, 2 earned runs, 7 hits, 2 strikeouts, 3 walks) and Craig Breslow wiggled out of a bases loaded no out jam in the sixth without allowing a run?

Ryan Lavarnway fittingly began the strange game with an ground-rule RBI double in the second. Toronto cut it to 3-2 in the fourth on Colby Rasmus' (2 hits) RBI single and a ground out by Maicer Izturis.

Jonny Gomes put Boston back up by two runs with an RBI double in the fifth. The Blue Jays tied it with solo homers for Jose Reyes in the seventh and Jose Bautista (3 hits) in the ninth which spoiled the fourth save in five days for Koji Uehara (1-0).

Daniel Nava was 2 for 4 with a run in the victory while Edwin Encarnacion (2 for 5 with run) and Rajai Davis (2 for 5 with run and stolen base) each had multiple hits in the loss.

Andrew Miller pitched 1.2 scoreless innings of relief for the Red Sox with a pair of strikeouts, his sixth hold of the season.

Boston gets tomorrow off before they wrap up the final series of this long and productive homestand (5-1) with an interleague matchup: three games against San Diego (40-42 overall, 3rd in NL West). John Lackey (5-5) faces rookie Robbie Erlin (1-0) on Tuesday (7:10, NESN), Jon Lester (8-4) is scheduled to take on Edinson Volquez (6-6) on Wednesday (7:10, NESN) and on the Fourth of July (1:35, NESN) rookie Allen Webster (0-2) gets the ball opposite Eric Stults (6-6).

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Red Sox Clobber Rockies With Season-High 20 Hits In A Convincing 11-4 Win At Fenway

As far as most people were concerned, the Red Sox' 2013 regular season unofficially started tonight as the Bruins lost Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final last night thus ending their excellent campaign. Boston (46-33 overall, 24-15 home) acquitted themselves quite nicely in its first game under the true spotlight as they rolled 11-4 over Colorado (39-39 overall, 16-22 away) during interleague play at Fenway Park.

To start a nine games in 10 days homestand, the Red Sox had a season-high 20 hits while Ryan Dempster (5-8) turned in a quality start: six innings, two earned runs on six hits with four strikeouts and two walks. The immortal Juan Nicasio (4-4) gave the Rockies no shot as he was roughed up for seven runs (six earned) on 12 hits in 2.1 IP.

Everyone in Boston's lineup had at least one hit, led by Jacoby Ellsbury (3 runs, double, walk), Dustin Pedroia (4 RBIs, two runs, double, stolen base), Daniel Nava (RBI) and Jose Iglesias (2 runs, double) who all had three hits. Shane Victorino was 2 for 5 with a double, run, RBI and stolen base, Mike Napoli was 2 for 5 with two RBIs and a walk and Stephen Drew was 2 for 5 with a triple (that should have been a homer) and a run.

By the time the third inning was over, the Red Sox were comfortably ahead 7-1. Pedroia and Nava had RBI singles in the first before Wilin Rosario (3 for 4) had a solo homer off Dempster in the second. Pedroia and David Ortiz added RBI doubles in the second for a 4-1 Boston lead. Napoli had an RBI single later in the frame followed by RBI singles by Victorino and Pedroia in the third.

Nick Arenado's (3 for 4 with double) RBI single in the fourth cut it to 7-2 but Iglesias answered with an RBI double. Colorado pretended to make it a tad interesting in the seventh with a run coming in on Victorino's error and Carlos Gonzalez's RBI single but the Red Sox tacked on three additional runs in the seventh and eighth. Pedroia drove in another run with a sacrifice fly, Napoli hit an RBI single and a run scored on Victorino's ground out.

Colorado's Michael Cuddyer was 2 for 5 with a run which was more than enough to keep his MLB-best 22-game hitting streak alive and well. The Rockies' first visit to Fenway since the 2007 World Series is a short one since the series finale is tomorrow afternoon (4:05, NESN) with John Lackey (4-5) taking on Roy Oswalt (0-1) who makes his second start for Colorado.

UPDATE 6/26: Beato was sent back to Pawtucket with reliever Clayton Mortensen reinstated from the DL.

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The Orioles Still Completely Own The Red Sox, For Whatever Reason

Don't get me wrong, I know the Orioles are a good team but I'd be lying if I told you that I can rationally explain why they have dominated the Red Sox the last three seasons (23-8) and are the only opponent with a winning record (4-1) against Boston so far this year. Tonight at Camden Yards, the O's (39-29 overall, 19-14 home) blanked the Red Sox (41-28 overall, 20-14 away) 2-0.

This came on the heels of Baltimore's 5-4 win in 13 innings on Thursday night. Did I mention that the Orioles have pulled within 1.5 games of the Red Sox so if they sweep Boston this weekend, they would take over first place in the AL East? Yikes, that could definitely happen.

Four pitchers combined on the shutout for the Orioles: starter Chris Tillman (7-2) threw six scoreless innings with three strikeouts, Darren O'Day (seventh), Tommy Hunter (eighth) and Jim Johnson (ninth, 24th save) all had 1-2-3 innings, hence why this game finished in a crisp 2:43.

Ryan Dempster (4-7) pitched one of his better games for the Red Sox but it wasn't good enough: 7.2 innings, 2 earned runs, 5 hits, 4 strikeouts and 5 walks. His arm might fall off (he labored through 122 pitches) but he saved Boston's bullpen since Koji Uehara only faced one batter-J.J. Hardy (who he retired on 3 pitches to end the eighth with two men on).

Baltimore had five hits, led by Manny Machado (3 for 5 with 2 doubles). Boston only had three hits as a team, two by Jose Iglesias (who extended his hit streak to 15 games) including a double.

Chris Davis, who has morphed into Miguel Cabrera Jr., hit an opposite field solo homer in the second (his 22nd of the season) and Nate McLouth scored in the third on Adam Jones' infield single.

Before they drop the puck on Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals (8, NBC), John Lackey (3-5) faces Freddy Garcia (3-3) tomorrow afternoon (4:05, NESN) as the Red Sox try to find a way to beat the Orioles.

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Hey, Let's All Gather Round The Dumpster Fire-I Mean The Los Angeles Angels In 2013

The Angels are proof that you can spend a shit ton of money in MLB and assemble an All-Star lineup yet come nowhere close to being .500. Every time you see Los Angeles (haha them or the Dodgers) you think "hey, they'll turn it around at some point." This weekend at Fenway Park is a statement that no, they probably won't.

The teams split a day-night doubleheader yesterday (after Friday's game was rained out) but Boston (39-25 overall, 21-14 home) beat Los Angeles (27-36 overall, 12-18 away) 10-5 this afternoon. With the win, the Red Sox moved a season-high 14 games over .500, improved to an MLB-best 13-6 in day games and 13-6-2 in all series. Oh and they have the best record in the American League.

I'm not saying it's all Angels manager Mike Scioscia's fault since by and large, I think that baseball managers are mostly useless but after 14 years in charge (longest tenured in MLB), hey maybe it's time for a new voice. Just a thought.

Whatever is going on with the Angels, it's clear that this current group isn't working. They missed the playoffs last season and at this pace, they look like they'll out of contention by the All-Star break this year. Explain to me how that's possible with Mike Trout, Josh Hamilton, Albert Pujols, Mark Trumbo, Howie Kendrick, Jered Weaver, etc on your club. Weird.

Anywho, Boston took the rubber game by smashing four home runs. Pujols (.241) showed that he's not completely washed up with a solo shot to right center in the first inning but Joe Blanton (1-10) was given the task of winning a game. Haha yeah good luck with that. In five innings of batting practice, he allowed seven runs (six earned) on eight hits with six strikeouts and a walk. He allowed three of the four homers by the Red Sox.

Daniel Nava tied it with an RBI single in the third then David Ortiz crushed a three-run bomb, his 13th of the season, to right center that gave Boston a 4-1 lead it wouldn't relinquish.

Ryan Dempster (4-6) got the ball for Boston and he did enough: six innings, three earned runs, six hits, six strikeouts and two walks. He notched his 2000th career strikeout (which I never would have guessed), only the second Canadian to have done that in MLB (what up Ferguson Jenkins?). If there's one thing that Dempster loves more than strikeouts, it's solo homers. He gave up another one, this time to Alberto Callaspo in the fourth.

Jacoby Ellsbury (walk, run, stolen base) answered with an RBI triple (his sixth of the season) in home half of the fourth. Mark Trumbo (2 hits, 2 walks) had an RBI single in the fifth but that's all the Angels would get until garbage time in the eighth.

Blanton gave up back-to-back solo homers to Mike Carp (6th of the season) and Jarrod Saltalamacchia (8th of the season) in the sixth. Salty added a two-run bomb in the seventh.

J.B. Shuck-the guy with one of the best names in MLB had a two-run single in the eighth for Los Angeles. What a waste of Mike Trout's (3 for 5 with 2 doubles, run) many talents.

Boston finished 4-2 on this homestand vs. Rangers and Angels with two more series victories against AL West opponents. Looking ahead, their next 14 games are no joke: three at Tampa Bay (34-28, 4th in AL East), four at Baltimore (35-28, 3rd in AL East) then three at Fenway vs. Rays and four in Detroit. Ouch babe.

The Red Sox are 5-1 against the Rays this season but I don't really expect that to stay so one-sided. Tomorrow night (7:10, NESN), John Lackey (3-5) faces Alex Cobb (6-2)-Tampa Bay's next great young pitcher. On Tuesday (7:10, NESN) Jon Lester (6-2) faces the artist formerly known as Fausto Carmona (now Roberto Hernandez who is 3-6) and Wednesday (7:10, NESN) is Clay Buchholz's spot in the rotation but at the moment he's TBD vs. rookie Chris Archer (1-1).

UPDATE 6/10: Will Middlebrooks was recalled from Pawtucket and Pedro Ciriaco was designated for assignment.

Franklin Morales will start on Wednesday for the Red Sox vs. Tampa Bay. Buchholz is supposedly questionable for a start on Friday which doesn't sound very promising.

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Red Sox Should Have Paid Jonathan Papelbon, End Of Discussion

Jonathan Papelbon is a supreme bozo but more importantly, he's durable, consistent and he can play in a tough market. Any smart Red Sox fan appreciates what he did when he was here and we can't begrudge him getting paid by the Phillies while Boston didn't want to commit long-term after his rookie deal ran out.

Tonight was a reminder of what the Red Sox (32-21 overall, 17-12 home) have been missing since Papelbon left two winters ago, namely a good reliable closer. The Phillies (25-27 overall, 14-15 away) beat Boston 3-1 at Fenway Park behind Cliff Lee's (6-2) lights out performance and a 1-2-3 ninth by Papelbon for his 10th save of the season (during his first appearance at Fenway in an opposing uniform).

Lee (8 innings, 1 earned run, 4 hits, 8 strikeouts, 0 walks) absolutely cruised, Dustin Pedroia's RBI single in the first inning was his only mistake of the night. David Ortiz and Stephen Drew both hit long fly balls to center but each were tracked down by Ben Revere (2 hits, stolen base) before they could do any damage. If the Phillies don't improve by the trade deadline, there could be quite a market for Lee. Who wouldn't want a lefty that throws strikes, works quickly and has long outings almost every time he gets the ball?

Ryan Dempster (2-6) had three crappy starts in a row so even though he was charged with the loss, tonight's performance was definitely something to build on. Granted Philadelphia's offense is rather putrid. Dempster went seven innings, allowing two earned runs on six hits with four strikeouts and three walks.

Michael Young hit a solo homer in the first over the Monster. Erik Kratz had an RBI single in the seventh then Domonic Brown added an insurance run in the ninth with a solo shot to right center off Junichi Tazawa.

After the game, reports came out that the Red Sox will recall outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. tomorrow and send reliever Alex Wilson back to Pawtucket. With goofy National League rules in effect in Philadelphia, Boston needs as many outfielders as they can get for double switches and all that jazz. Plus they were basically carrying an extra reliever or as I like to say, "anyone's better than Jonny Gomes."

Boston heads to Philly for two games at Citizens Bank Park beginning tomorrow night (7:05 p.m., NESN) with John Lackey (3-4) taking on Kyle Kendrick (4-3)-destined to be an instant classic pitching matchup for the ages.

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Red Sox Finally Add To Their Pitching Rotation: Sign Ryan Dempster To 2-Year Deal

At long last, the Red Sox have finally at least started to address their biggest need: their pitching rotation. After he supposedly turned down a two-year, $25 million deal last week with Boston, Ryan Dempster has reportedly agreed to a two-year, $26.5 million deal this afternoon with them.

He was apparently looking for a three-year deal so after turning down the Red Sox and Royals, the Canadian righthander circled back to Boston. You have to think that maybe winning had something to do with his final decision since the Royals offered him a two-year deal for $26 million and while they have improved thanks to the James Shields trade, Boston has more potential moving forward.

So what are the Red Sox getting in him? Basically, he is the perfect guy to slot into the number three spot in the rotation behind Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz. In his 15 years of MLB service, he has thrown over 200 innings seven times (including four years in a row). More than anything, that's what Boston needs: a pitcher that they know will take the ball every fifth day and not spend half the season on the disabled list (like Buchholz or Josh Beckett).

Dempster is getting up there in age, he'll turn 36 on May 3 so that is why they were probably hesitant to offer a third year. Plus he had two different trips to the DL last season with a strained quad and strained lat that cost him another 200-inning campaign. He got off to a real good start (5-5 with 2.25 ERA and 1.038 WHIP) last season for an awful Cubs team before getting traded to Texas at the trade deadline.

Predictably for a player that had spent his whole career in the inferior National League (no DH, facing pitchers), he struggled with the Rangers. He got shelled in his first two starts but then won five games in a row before regressing at the end when the games mattered the most and Texas ended up missing the playoffs. For 2012 between the Cubs and Rangers, he was 12-8 with a 3.38 ERA and 1.179 WHIP in 173 innings. He struck out 153 and only walked 52.

A two-time NL All-Star (2000 with Florida and 2008 with Chicago) that is 6-foot-2 and 215 pounds, his numbers certainly won't blow you away and he's more control pitcher (he loves the slider and sinker) than a power pitcher. In his career, he's 124-124 with 4.33 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, 11 complete games, three shutouts, 87 saves (he was Chicago's closer for three years), 1918 strikeouts and 998 walks.

The Red Sox will be his fifth and possibly final MLB home after time in Florida, Cincinnati, Chicago and Texas. He's known as a clubhouse leader and a mature guy that is along the same lines as Shane Victorino, Jonny Gomes, David Ross and Mike Napoli in that regard. You can see where Boston is going this offseason: they are trying to distance themselves from the overpaid, underachieving, injury-prone jackasses of the last few seasons. In their place, they want dependable guys that have been around a while and had success in MLB. Dempster hasn't been on many winning teams but that's not his fault. As he showed last season, it might take some time here but I wouldn't hesitate to count on him for a very respectable 2013 season.

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Jon Lester Is A Lost Cause In 2012, Might As Well Put Him On Ice Until Next Season

2012 has been a nightmare for Jon Lester (5-10) not to mention his employers. Even when he pitches decent like his last two starts, he can't get the run support from his teammates. The bottom line remains that he is 0-5 in his last five starts at Fenway Park after a 6-3 loss to the Rangers tonight in the middle game of a three-game series.

Texas (64-45, 30-24) received a great outing from Ryan Dempster (1-0) who picked up his first win a Rangers uniform (2nd start). He went 6.2 innings and allowed three runs (0 earned) on six hits with six strikeouts and one walk. Dempster likely wouldn't have given up any runs except that Ian Kinsler kept the seventh inning alive for the Red Sox (55-56, 29-33 home) with a gift error. Pinch hitter Will Middlebrooks delivered a clutch pinch-hit home run (his 14th of the season) which cut the Rangers lead to 4-3.

Lester matched zeroes with Dempster through five innings but as it usually does for him, he became unraveled by allowing two runs in the sixth and being charged with two more in the seventh. In 6.2 innings, he gave up four earned runs on six hits with four strikeouts and two walks.

Kinsler and Josh Hamilton (2 hits, walk, run) broke the deadlock with RBI singles in the sixth. David Murphy had a sacrifice fly in the seventh and Kinsler added another run-scoring single in the frame. Nelson Cruz's RBI single in the eighth made it 5-3 and Elvis Andrus rounded out the scoreline with an RBI single in the ninth.

Texas was 5-for-11 with runners in scoring position while Boston went 1-for-6. Cody Ross and Jarrod Saltalamacchia (run) each had two hits in the loss.

Mike Adams struck out the side in the eighth for his 20th hold which was bullshit because Dustin Pedroia was called out on one of the worst calls (checked swing) that I've ever seen in MLB. Joe Nathan picked up his 22nd save in 23 chances for Texas; I thought his career was over a few years ago but it's funny what a change of scenery to an outstanding team can do to a player's career.

The Red Sox are 4-5 on their longest homestand of the season which ends tomorrow afternoon (1:35 p.m., NESN) with the Texas Toughguy (5-9) facing Matt Harrison (13-6). I could pretend that Boston a chance but unless Beckett gets hurt in pregame warmups (always a possibility), this has loss written all over it.

UPDATE 8/8: Vicente Padilla was put on the 15-day DL with a bicep strain, Clayton Mortensen was recalled from Pawtucket.

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