Lackey Looking to Make It 3

After great starts by Clay Buchholz & Jon Lester, John Lackey looks to make it 3 in a row as the Sox open a 3-game weekend series in Baltimore. The Sox recently took 2 of 3 from the O's at Fenway. Another win tonight would give the Sox a winning 12-11 record for the month of April.

As you turn the calendar to May, the Sox could really use another road sweep in Baltimore. May is a tough month with seies against their AL East rivals - including 5 against the Yankees & 3 at the Trop. Other upcoming games in May include the Angels, Tigers & Phillies. We will see if the Sox pitching has turned the corner by the end of May. Defense by Beltre & Hall continues to scare me. Hopefully, both Cameron & Ellsbury will be back soon.

With the Celtics & Bruins moving deeper into their playoffs the Sox are flying a little bit under the radar. We need a 15 or 16 win month in May, though, to make up for a poor April.

Sox Pitchers K the Jays

15 strikeouts out of a possible 27 outs. That's what Lester, Bard & Papelbon did to the Toronto Blue Jays last night in a shutout win to sweep the series.

Since the offensive explosion in Game 1 by both teams the Red Sox starts by Buchholz & Lester have been super. OK, let's say it now, good pitching does equal run prevention. Theo isn't looking so bad over the past 2 games with 2-1 & 2-0 wins.

I think that Jon Lester is all about his cutter. When he's throwing that pitch for a strike, 11 K's will occur like in last night's game. I also thought that Lester making it through the 7th saved extra work for Bard coming in too early. Tito wasn't going to take any chances with Oki or Delcarmen in the 7th.

When is the last time we had a sweep on the road? Let's hope that Baltimore, a/k/a Fenway South, is as accomodating this weekend.

Big Papi in Limbo

What to do with David Ortiz? Terry Francona has been using the big guy sparing as the Sox have faced several lefties lately. He has also pinch-hit Mike Lowell twice & each time Lowell has reached base via walks. Last night the walk scored the winning run.

If you watched the game last night, it was interesting that Tito made the switch for Lowell, even though Ortiz had good career numbers against Scott Downs. Once Lowell was announced the Jays brought in their righty closer to face him, a move that Francona would have anticipated. But a 4-pitch walk brought the winning run home. It worked & I guess that's all that matters.

Personal situations, like Ortiz's & now Wakefield's, are easier to deal with when you are winning.

Buchholz, Ramirez Quiet Jays

An opposite game to last night's 13-12 win, but the same result as the Red Sox squeak past the Jays 2-1 tonight.

8 great innings of 1-run pitching by Clay Buchholz. In the 8th, after a flub by Beltre which put a runner on 2nd with 1 out, Buchholz struckout Overbay & got Gonzalez on a lazy fly to center. That impressed me.

Ramon Ramirez looked sharp in the 9th & got a 1-2-3 inning with no dramatics. It's the first time I've seem him use 3 different pitches with good command.

Jeremy Hermida knocked in David Ortiz for the Sox only run until the 8th. Mike Lowell, who pinch hit for Ortiz in the 8th, drew a 4-pitch walk with the bases loaded for the winning RBI.

This is the 3rd series in a row that the Sox win. Lester goes for the sweep tomorrow.

Red Sox -13, Jays -12

Two words that haven't existed yet in the young 2010 season -- "run prevention." Theo, you are way off so far!

One of my brothers like high-scoring games. He must have loved the one last night with pitchers on both sides giving up lead after lead. With 25 runs scored I guess you can say the best news is that we won.

The win brings the Sox back to 9-11 with 3 games left in April. 3 wins would put the Sox above .500 which would be a huge accomplishment after a poor, poor start. They could finish April 12-11.

May looks to be a very tough month with series against the Angels, Yankees (2), Tigers, Phillies & yes, Tampa Bay. We will see by the end of May if the Sox have made enough adjustments to better their April start. Or perhaps it will be time to start talking trades.

Where Is Josh Beckett?

Has anyone seen the old Beckett in 2010? I haven't.

Beckett just gave up 6 runs in 3 innings to Toronto. Even if the Sox win this first game, it's terrible & it's hard to watch your ace get roughed up every time out. Last outing it was 7 runs to Texas.

What's the problem with Beckett? I say it's that his pitches are generally high, not down in the zone, & he's in the middle of the plate too much. You can't give that many good pitches to major league hitters & be successful.

Beckett needs to figure it out soon. Even with Varitek catching for him, Josh is not throwing very ace-like. More like a 4th or 5th starter. And we have Beckett signed for 4 more years.

New Catchers Coming?

One of my sources told me that the Red Sox are searching for new blood at the catcher's spot. He said that a sports show reported that the Sox have signed a catcher from Cuba. The report went onto say that the Sox are also interested in Chris Snyder from the Diamondbacks.

I've said before that Martinez & Varitek are not the answer at catcher for the future. Heck, they may not be the answer at catcher for the rest of 2010. Come the trading deadline in July, you may see the Sox make a move to improve at that position.

I think the Sox really need to look at all options when it comes to catching. A big part of the game, especially playoff ball, is pitching & catching. Right now, we're not very good at either.

Sox Take 2 Of 3 From O's

Just when you thought the ship was being righted it turned off course again today. The Sox bullpen wasted a good effort by Tim Wakefield & lost 7-6 in 10 innings. The Sox had one the previous 2 games, each by a run, on Friday & Saturday. Their rally fell short today in the 10th.

At least this is another series win, even though the homestand turned out 4-6 & overall the Sox are a mere 8-11. The 4-game sweep by Tampa Bay really set them back & the Sox have been swimming upstream since.

Off to Toronto now for the start of a 6-game road trip. The return of Dice-K should be an interesting sidelight.

Buchholz Shines In Loss

Clay Buchholz had it goin' on for the first 6 innings. Too bad C.J. Wilson was matching him by putting up zeros on the scoreboard. The Sox lose the finale 3-0 to the Rangers who snap a 6-game losing streak. The Sox take the series, however, 2 games to 1. That's what they need to do, win series.

Next up for the Sox is Baltimore for 3 games at home. The low-flying O's are in last place in the AL East. Let's hope the Sox beat up on the birds like last year. We can use another series win &/or a sweep before heading out on the road to face a hot Blue Jays team.

I think Buchholz showed that he belongs in the rotation. Any other night & his performance is good enough for a win.

Scutaro - Good Play or Bad?

Marco Scutaro tags up on a long fly ball to center & beats the throw into second, barely. Was that a good decision? Obviously yes since he was safe & he scored the winning run.

What about if he got thrown out? Scutaro would have made the 2nd out of the 12th inning & bases would have been empty with Pedroia & Youk coming up. Fans & sportswriters might not have called that a heads up play if it turned into an out. It might have been called bonehead baserunning.

Sometimes you have to take a calculated chance & Scutaro did. Not by any means to the same magnitude, but it did remind me of famous Dave Roberts steal of 2nd base against the Yankees. It's one of those bang-bang plays. Great if it works. Not so good if it doesn't.

Last night it worked.

Dice-K Ready to Return

According to the Red Sox website, Dice-K has completed his rehab stint at Pawtucket & is ready to return to the big club. Given how anemic & inconsistent the starting pitching has been, it may be a good thing to have Dice-K back. As of yesterday, the Sox starting rotation had the highest ERA in the majors. The 7-runs off Beckett last night did nothing to bring it down.

The question becomes who will the Sox move out of the rotation when they head to Toronto next week. If the decision was solely based on performance to date, it should be Jon Lester who has yet to put together a decent start. Beckett & Lackey have had a couple of good performances. Wakefield & Buchholz each had one. But no one has been consistent.

I'm thinking that Wake will go to the bullpen as a long reliever. I think that makes the most sense for right now. I'd carry an extra pitcher & keep Cameron on the DL a little longer to see how that works out. Reddick or McDonald will probably be sent down.

Dice should have a fresh arm & it would be nice to see him eat some innings. Time to earn that paycheck after being out just about a full year now.

Youk, Bullpen Heroes Tonight

Kevin Youkilis got the game-winning hit in the 12th to finish a walkoff 8-7 victory. The Texas Rangers intentionally walked Dustin Pedroia to pitch to Youkilis. That move backfired.

Bullpen was excellent tonight. Daniel Bard - 2 scoreless. John Papelbon - 2 scoreless. Hideki Okajima - 1 scoreless. No run production for the Rangers after tying the game in the 7th.

J. D. Drew had a grand slam earlier in the game. Mike Lowell also hit his first HR of the season.

Let's see if a sweep is in order tomorrow night. Texas has lost 6 in a row now.

A Classy Gesture

Sometimes it's the little things that make a big impression. I saw one that struck me last night. Big Papi congratulated Mike Lowell on his walk after Lowell pinch-hit for him.

Ortiz was enduring another brutal night at the plate with no production & 2 more K's. The big man was so frustrated that he broke a bat over his thigh on the way back to the dugout.

With time running out in the game & a lefty-lefty matchup looming Francona decided to pinch-hit for Ortiz with Lowell. It didn't produce a run, but Lowell did reach base via a walk to keep the inning alive. Lowell later got up in the 9th & was intentionally walked.

Instead of sulking after being lifted, Ortiz was the first guy at the top of the dugout steps to give Lowell a high-5 after the inning was over. A lot will be made of the lifting of Big Papi due to his offensive struggles. But let's give Ortiz his due for being a classy guy & a good teammate. You don't see that happen in pro sports very often today.

Old McDonald Had Quite A Night

Darnell McDonald ties the game in the 8th with a 2-run homer& wins it in the 9th with a bases-loaded, 2 out, wall ball single. How about that for a spark! Josh Reddick drives in 2 runs earlier in the game with a double. 5 of the Sox 7 runs are driven in by 2 Pawtucket farm hands. E-I-E-I-O!

A win is a win. Forget the walks by our pitching. Forget the stolen bases by the Rangers. In the end a 7-6 come from behind win is just what the doctor ordered.

I thought Francona did a great job of using the whole roster & putting the team in the best position to win. He pinch-hit Lowell for Ortiz against Oliver. He has Billy Hall bunt. He pinch-hit McDonald for Reddick against Oliver. He has Pap pitch the 9th. I think Tito was on his game tonight.

Let's see if Beckett can keep the ball rolling tomorrow.

Ingredients For A Win

I always felt that there were 3 necessary ingredients for a team to win any ballgame.

1) You have to want to win. A/K/A mental toughness. A/K/A being disciplined.
I haven't seen many Red Sox hitters being mentally tough lately. Most obvious was the bases loaded, no outs situation the other night. Instead of Ortiz & Beltre looking for a ball waist high or higher to drive to the outfield, they both swung for low balls with less than 2 strikes. No patience. No discipline. 3 outs.

2) You have to prepare to win. Successful &/or correct repetitions equal competence. Competence equals confidence.
Not much confidence in the field lately. Not much run prevention. Nothing that extra ground balls & fly balls can't solve.

3) You need luck.
There has been no luck lately. Every ball that's hard hit for us goes directly to the defense. An "at 'em" ball as we use to say. Can't find holes in the field. Players need to keep making good contact. Beltre & Co. needs to stop swinging for balls out of the strike zone. Stop making other pitchers look better than they are. This is correctable.

The real question is who will step up & do the extra work to get a win. I think we have a lot of players who care & are tired of losing. If I had to guess, I'll go with Tim Wakefield throwing a great game & Kevin Youkilis coming up with big hits with RISP. Let's see if I'm right tomorrow.

Red Sox D.O.A. Against Rays

As Jerry Remy said, the Rays are a much better team than the Red Sox right now after sweeping the Sox 4 straight at Fenway. Monday's score was 8-2, all 8 runs coming off John Lackey. Only Jeremy Hermida's 2-run homer got the Sox on the board.

Have you played or coached through a slump? If so, you know what has to happen.

- Players need to get extra work in -- either pitching, hitting or defense. They need to look at tape to see what went wrong. They need to make better decisions & adjustments.

- As coach, you can give a vote of confidence & tell players you are sticking with them. Or you can shake things up & make changes to the lineup. It's a psychiatrist's job with players today.

One coach told me during a slump that you are never as bad as you think. The Sox need to do whatever - even bunt more - to get a win against Texas tomorrow. Focus on one win tomorrow. The rest of the games will take care of themselves.

Sox Skid Continues

April has not been kind to the Red Sox so far. A blowout 7-1 loss today leaves the Sox 4-8 & searching for answers during the early going of the 2010 season.

Enough people have said it. You need pitching, hitting & defense to come together to win. And very few times have all 3 come together so far this year.

John Lackey gets a chance to be the stopper on Patriots Day. It was Lackey who last won for the Sox.

Tito has to let the boys play it out until it all clicks together. Once it does, the Sox need to go on an 8-4 run to get back into the race. Right now only Baltimore has a worse record in the AL East.

The weather was as bad as the Sox played this weekend. It didn't seem to bother Tampa Bay though.

Petey & Youk The Future

It was an unlikely combo of Pedroia & Youkilis hitting in the #3 & #4 holes of the batting order the other day. But we could certainly do worse. Both guys homered in yesterday's nightcap.

Dustin Pedroia & Kevin Youkils have transitioned into the heart of this Red Sox lineup & Red Sox team. You can count on both to be out there everyday. You can count on both to be dirty & give it their all - in the field & at the plate. The team of Curt Schilling, Manny Ramirez & David Ortiz has shifted to these 2 non-atletic looking guys. Petey & Youk are "the" players now. We look to them for a big play or a big hit. Who else would you like to see at bat in a critical situation?

Now if we can just get 7 more guys like them.

Chump Awards for Suspended Game

The Red Sox lose 3-1 in a suspended game from Friday night.

"Chump" awards go out to:

- David Ortiz for grounding out with the bases loaded in the 11th for the 1st out. All we needed was a fly ball.

- Andrian Beltre for grounding into an inning-ending double play in the 11th with the bases loaded. Same deal. All we needed was a fly ball.

- Manny Delcarmen for always pitching behind in the count & throwing a Grade A meatball to Pat Burrell on a 2-0 count. Burrell deposited the pitch into the Monster seats. Game over. Delcarmen also walked his first batter he faced. Terrible relief.

Not a good way to start the homestand.

Varitek Continues Power Surge

Jason Varitek has caught 2 games & has 3 home runs. Go figure!

It could be that part-time play suits him best at this age. His body doesn't take such a pounding on a regular basis & his swing may have a little more speed & crispness to it.

Varitek can still call a good game & he handles Josh Beckett well. I'm OK if Jason catches Beckett all year. If the results are there, do it.

Like I mentioned in an earlier article, I wouldn't be surprised if Victor catches a little less until he figures out how to throw to 2nd. Varitek could go 2 out of 5 days instead of 1 out of 5. It'll be interesting to see how Francona handles the catching rotation as the season wears on.

Anyways, it's nice to see Varitek contributing on a part-time basis.

Cameron, Ellsbury Doubtful

Mike Cameron may have a kidney stone that needs to pass before returning to active duty. That report comes from the Red Sox website as the explanation why Cameron was out of the lineup in Minnesota yesterday.

Jacoby Ellsbury is also a doubtful starter tonight. He continues to have breathing problems from his injured ribs, the result of a collision with Adrian Beltre. The Sox miss his speed at leadoff & Ells was swinging a hot bat before he went down.

Let's hope both get back to action soon.

Victor & Hall Are Liabilities

OK, I don't mind losing 8-0, but I don't like it when we look foolish losing 8-0. At least the Sox went 3-3 for a .500 record on their first road.

Victor Martinez is proving that he is not the answer at catcher. Thus far, he has shown a very poor & very inaccurate throwing arm. Victor has also allowed runners to score from 3rd with poor decision-making by making ill-advised throws to 2nd. His bat will make-up for some of these inadequacies. But, long-term, the Sox must eye Martinez first as a DH or 1B & second as a part-time, fill-in catcher. I see this season playing out with Varitek getting more time behind the plate. The Sox still need to develop a young catcher that can throw & at least hit .250.

Billy Hall is a utility guy that has not impressed me wherever he plays. At SS he ran into Ellsbury on a pop-up that was clearly the outfielder's ball. Reminded me of Johnny Damon getting knocked unconscious at Yankee Stadium. He made an error in CF today & has not really shown anything at the plate. I'll take Jed Lowry for utility infielder & leave Hermida as the 4th outfielder.

Both Victor & Hall need to step it up if they are to be part of Theo's run prevention scheme in 2010. Not much run prevention today.

Magic Number 5

I like numbers. Who can't in baseball with OBS, WHIP, ERA, BA, etc.

One number that stands out to me is 5. When the Red Sox score 5 or more runs they win. In their 4 wins this year they have scored 9, 8, 8 & 6 runs. In their 4 losses they scored only 4, 1, 3 & 2. 31 runs scored in 4 wins. 10 runs scored in 4 losses.

Theo's theory is that better pitching & defense (a/k/a run prevention) will help the Sox win the 1-0, 2-1, 3-2 type of games. It just hasn't worked out that way so far, probably because the starting pitching has only been average at best & the bullpen has not been solid.

I'd like to see the Sox win a few games where they score less than 5 runs. It just hasn't happened yet. I'll monitor the magic number 5 throughout the season.

Righties Get Start Today

With lefty Francesco Liriano starting for Minnesota today Tito is pulling out his best right-handed lineup against the Twins. Mike Lowell gets the start at DH over Big Papi. Billy Hall gets the start in LF over Jeremy Hermida. The sole lefty to start the game is J.D. Drew.

With Jacoby Ellsbury resting bruised ribs Marco Scutaro will hit leadoff again. Scutaro has proven to be a versatile guy in the lineup, hitting last & first. He singled & scored a run from the leadoff spot yesterday.

Tim Wakefield pitches again today. You wonder if Wake isn't headed for the pen once Dice-K is ready to get back into action. He would be an excellent long man or someone who could start a clean inning.

A win today would mean 2 road series wins for the Sox before they start a 10-game homestand against Tampa Bay, Texas & Baltimore. Let's get it done.

Sox Beat Twins 6-3

Life is good again. Lackey pitches into the 7th. Hermida gets a big 3-run double late. And Big Papi doubled for good measure. A win on the road, even a win that's not pretty like this one, is a plus. I'll take it.

How good is Theo looking with the pick-up of Jeremy Hermida? He is a solid corner outfielder & has chipped in some mighty big hits so far this year. At this rate we may be seeing Hermida as the successor to J.D. Drew in the Sox outfield in another year. He has been solid through Spring Training & it has carried over into April. Good for him.

And how about mighty man Pedroia with another home run today? He saved Lackey from another no-decision with that bomb.

Bard has been off & on, giving up a homer in the 8th, plus Pap is a little scary. We'll take the win though. Oki got the biggest out of the game in the 7th with the bases loaded.

Let's finish the series with another win tomorrow.

Lackey Equals Stopper

If John Lackey can pitch as well as he did against the Yankees last week, the Sox will put a check mark in the win column today. How great is it to have Lackey as your #3 starter!

According to ESPN Boston, the Twins hit righties much poorer than lefties. If so, we should be in for 2 afternoon games that slant the odds in our favor. Lackey goes today & Wakefield tomorrow. In the early going Lackey & Wakefield have the best command of their stuff. Beckett, Lester & Buchholz are giving up too many free bases via walks. But that should change as they get more starts.

I'm ready for a win today. High scoring, low scoring - it doesn't matter. As Al Davis of the Raiders says, "just win baby."

Talk Continues to Swirl Around Big Papi

The natives are restless. 7 games into the season & you can't pick-up a newspaper or read a sports blog without hearing the words "Big Papi & slump." One of my commenters just said it's time for Ortiz to sit.

There is no shortage of comments, pro & con, about David Ortiz & his ability to remain in the #5 spot in the order. It is "the" hot topic of the early season for the Red Sox who, as a team, are off to a slow start. Besides the slow start at 3-4, the Otiz issue is magnified since the bench is so strong this year. Guys like Lowell & Hermidia are looking for more at bats.

My opinion about Big Papi is more of a long-term view. Given enough time, I feel players will gravitate towards their historical averages. Reacting after a small sampling of games was never my coaching style. More times than not, I found that trust in players paid off.

Having said that, I think Tito hears the clock ticking if the Red Sox do not start winning on a more consistent basis. Red Sox Nation can put up with a struggling Ortiz much, much better when the team is winning. After 2 more games in Minnesota the Sox are home for a number of games. If the Sox are still struggling after this long homestand, I could see Francona making a move then.

Sox Drop Opener to Twins 5-2

The Red Sox just didn't seem to play with a lot of life today. They looked tired & results were not good. Mustering only 2 runs off Carl Pavano, who they crushed in Fort Myers, is a poor showing. The only good thing today is that the hometown fans in Minnesota got to christen their new ballpark with a win. It looks like a beautiful field.

Couple of observations:

- Victor Martinez needs to improve his throwing arm. Lots of singles are turning into doubles with a steal of 2B. Victor puts a lot of pressure on the pitchers from the stretch.

- Jon Lester is off to another poor showing in April. This is 2 sub-par outings in a row. Last year it was Wakefield & Brad Penny that pitched well during the first 4-6 weeks of the season. This year it maybe be Lackey & Wakefield. They pitch the next 2 games in Minnesota after an off-day on Tuesday.

- It was nice to see Big Papi almost hit one out. He has had more than a fair number of called strikes that could have gone go either way. But he needs to cutdown on the strikeouts & start driving the ball more consistently. No excuses.

Let's hope Jacoby is back in the line-up on Wednesday. He brings a little fire & energy to the game. We can still win the last 2 of this series.

Sox Take Series With 8-6 Win

The Boston Red Sox win their first road series of the season with 2 out of 3 wins in KC. There were not many road wins last year, so this is a good sign, even if it is against the Royals.

Sox bats stayed hot again for a 2nd day with 8 more runs. Clay Buchholz sqirmed out of trouble all day & lasted 5 innings for his first win. Even with a shaky 8th inning by Ramon Ramirez, Bard & Pap finished the game off by recording the last 6 outs.

Jacoby Ellsbury experienced 2 collisions in the same game, one with Billy Hall at SS & one with Adrian Beltre at 3B, on in-between balls. Both times it appeared that Ells had called the infielder off. He may have to get a megaphone out there so he can be heard. Let's hope he has no serious injury as Jaboby's bat has been hot.

No luck for Big Papi yet. Maybe getting back to Minnesota will get his offense going.

I predicted 4-2 on this road trip & so far I'm still in the ballpark.

Offensive Explosion for the Sox

Sox get a much needed win by beating Cy Young Award winner Zack Greinke & the Royals in KC 8-3.

5 home runs. 2 by Jason Varitek, 1 by Jeremy Hermidia, 1 by Kevin Youkilis & 1 by Dustin Pedroia.

Good starting pitching by Josh Beckett. We finally have a starter who earned a win. That makes 2 games in a row where the starters go 7 innings.

The depth of the bench was shown today. Mike Lowell was very sharp in the field & contributed a hit. Varitek made his first start behind the plate. Hermedia started in the outfield & looks to be a valuable upgrade from Baldelli in the field & at the plate. This is a very deep bench as currently constructed.

Maybe things are starting to change.

Beckett, Greinke Square Off Today

If Josh Beckett is the ace, which he is, his job today is to pitch his team to a win. Knowing that Greinke is taking the ball for KC, that means Josh's job is to mow down the Royals' order for at least 6 or 7 innings. With the way the bullpen has been in a funk lately Beckett may need to throw a complete game.

With Greinke on the mound it might be a good day for an extea lefty bat in the lineup. Maybe Hermedia plays for Cameron to start the day. Maybe Varitek plays for Beltre with Youk & Victor playing the corners. It would be a great day for lefties Ellsbury, Ortiz, Victor & Drew to get hot. Let's at least get 4-5 pitches per batter & move Greinke's pitch count up so he doesn't go more than 5 innings.

It's early. There's 158 games left. But it's still frustrating to see the Sox stumble on offense & relief pitching right out of the gate. Last Sunday's win has been long forgotten at this point. But a win tonight erases the memory of 3 bad games in a row.

How Do You Spell Relief?

It's a crappy start to a 1-3 season so far as the Sox blow another lead & lose 4-3 to the lowly Royals.

Where is the relief pitching? It certainly hasn't shown up yet in the past 3 losses in a row. No one has been able to pitch a 1-2-3 inning. Tons of free bases given up via walks. Lots of hits & inherited runners scoring as well.

Tim Wakefield pitched the best game of the year. He has nothing to show for his efforts. Okajima & Bard are the culprits tonight as they change a 3-2 lead into a 4-3 loss.

And what's with that umpire Mike Estabrook. His strike zone is as erratic as Angel Hernandez. If I was a pitcher or a hitter, I'd be guessing what's a strike or ball with him behind the plate. Everything is more frustrating when you lose.

And we get Zack Greinke tomorrow. Bahhhh!

Sox On the Road

Well, the Sox squandered opportunities in Games 2 & 3 against the Yankees at home, so maybe the road will be a kinder place this year. Tonight the Sox start a 3-game set in KC, then off to Minnesota for 3 more with an off-day thrown in on Tuesday.

Tim Wakefield gets the start tonight. Let's hope that his knuckler is dancing & the Sox bats heat up with runners in scoring position. By the time this road trip is over, all the players should be back into the grind of the regular season. All the hype about the first series with the Yanks should be well into the rear view mirror.

I like what I see from the defense so far. Only Scutaro made an error that came back to bite him. Cameron, Beltre & Scutaro are solid improvements. It will be interesting to see when Tito gives Varitek his first start.

Offensively, we are still waiting to see if Big Papi & J.D. can get hot. Not much from either so far. Another interesting twist will be when Mike Lowell sees action & where - at DH? at 3B? at 1B? All I know is Lowell got a well-deserved ovation on Opening Day.

I predict that the Sox go 4-2 on this road trip. Let's see if I'm right.

Yanks Take 2 Out of 3

It was an interesting opening series for the Red Sox vs. Yankees to start the season.

- No starting pitcher for either team got a decision. Every game was determined by the bullpen.

- In the final 3-1 loss yesterday the Sox offense squandered numerous scoring opportunities off Pettitte & Park over the first 9, only to lose in extra innings.

- Big Papi got an RBI single of Pettitte to get the early season monkey off his back. Maybe he'll relax now & start hitting on a regular basis.

- John Lackey proved he can handle the Yankees. Mariano Rivera proved he is still the best closer in the world.

As one of my brothers said, he hopes the Red Sox lose the first 9 games to the Yankees & then beat them down the stretch - kind of reversing what the Yankees did to us last year. There's a lot of baseball to go. There's a lot more Yankees-Red Sox to go.

Let's see if the Sox can win road series in Kansas City & Minnesota.

Ortiz Not Happy With Reporters

David Ortiz is 0-7. We have only played 2 games. According to the Red Sox website, Big Papi couldn't believe he was being asked about a slump after 2 games.

Game 1 against Sabathia I give any lefty a pass. Ellsbury went hitless as well & Drew had one small single.

Game 2 saw Big Papi hit into the shift a few times & fly out. Francona was asked about using Lowell when Marte was brought in to face Ortiz. Tito said it's too early to start tinkering with the lineup.

Jerry Remy mentioned the same thing during Tuesday's broadcast. It's too early to start making moves based upon one or two games.

With a victory tonight the Sox will win their first home series of the year against the Yankees. The big picture emerging from this first series is that the Sox can & will compete with the Yankees this year. And that's without Big Papi getting hot yet.

Red Sox Fall 6-4

Game 2 of the season went to the Yankees tonight. The Sox missed a few late opportunities & the Yankees relievers came through - which they did not do on Sunday.

Ellsbury had a couple of hits & stolen base. Victor had a big 2-run homer. Ortiz hasn't got going offensively yet.

Unfortunately, Jon Lester fell into the same trap as Beckett with a high pitch count. The starters need to go more than 5 innings if we are to increase our chances for a win. But it's early yet.

Did Angel Hernandez have a horrible strike zone? Yes, he always does.

John Lackey gets his first start tomorrow night. Welcome to the Red Sox-Yankees series, John!

Beckett Gets 4 More Years

The Red Sox website is reporting that Josh Beckett signed a 4-year, $68 million deal which will keep him in a Red Sox uniform through 2014.

Even though it wasn't a Beckett-like performance on Sunday night, the big picture for the Red Sox is better with Josh in it for the future. Beckett joins Lester & Lackey for the next several years in a Red Sox uniform. Beckett-Lester-Lackey have a chance to rival the old Braves threesome of Maddux-Glavine-Smoltz.

I know. You are only as good as your last start. But trust me. Beckett will be worth keeping around for 4 more years. It a win-win for the Sox & Beckett.

We Win!

Late-inning hitting by Dustin Pedroia & excellent relief by Daniel Bard & Jon Papelbon sealed a hard-fought win over the Yankees 9-7. This was a great season opener.

It was a typical up & down, 4-hour game between the Yankees & Sox. Up 5-1 with CC Sabathia on the mound you thought it was not going to be the Sox night. But the Sox kept chipping away, tying the game 5-5 & 7-7, before going ahead to stay.

Couple of observations. (1) Victor needs to work on his throwing with runners on base. It was embarassing to see Gardner come home on a double steal. (2) The Yankees middle relief is horrible. That could be their Achilles heal this year, getting from starter to Rivera. (3) CC found out that he needs to be on his game if he is to beat the Sox this year. We have more right-handed punch this year.

Finally, all the new guys contributed. Beltre, Cameron & Scutaro were excellent in the field & kept the line moving at the plate.

For Game 1 it was a good team win, especially against the Yankees.

Happy, Lackey

During the Presidential campaign a frequent slogun heard on the campaign trail was "no drama, Obama." I think the Red Sox version could be "happy, Lackey."

John Lackey has finished up his first pre-season campaign as a Red Sox with a "no drama," low-key approach. He is "happy" to be a major cog for his new team.

Lackey has been serious about his work & looks very sharp. He has been sharp all throughout the spring. No testosterone issues about being the #3 starter. Just another workmanlike, blue collar guy who is a competitor.

Lackey could be the one player who puts the Sox over the top in the playoffs this year.

Thank You, Blog Readers

Here's a big "thank you" to our most consistent blog readers this year.

First Place - Mountain View, CA

Second Place - Concord, NH

Third Place - Charlotte, NC

Honorable Mention -

Goodyear, AZ
Woburn, MA
Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India
Ellsworth, ME
Goffstown, NH
Dublin, Ireland

Other readers range from Lake Mary, FL to Manila, Philippines to Burlington, VT.

Thanks for your support in the pre-season as we get ready to start the real games for 2010. It's going to be a great year.

Lowell's Role

How ironic is it that Mike Lowell is part of the Sox's 25-man roster as they head north? I call them fortuitous injuries, but Mike's hand surgery & recent foul ball off his leg have kept him in a Red Sox uniform by depressing the interest of other teams in acquiring him. Good for us!

Lowell can hit. It will be an adjustment for him to play part-time, but what a great bat to have available off the bench. Should Beltre, Youk or Big Papi need a day off, there's your guy. Let's not mention injury to one of these 3, but it could happen.

It would be quite the great storyline for Lowell to play a major role in a successful Sox season this year. Stranger things have happened. And if it does, it couldn't happen to a nicer guy who remains a fan favorite.

Scott & Scott Make Bullpen Squad

A pair of Scott's locked up the final 2 bullpen spots as the Red Sox depart from the Fort later today. Scott Atchison & Scott Schoeneweis became members of the 25-man squad heading north.

Atchison pitched in Japan for the past few seasons. He had a great Spring, sporting an ERA under 2.00. Schoeneweis was released from the Brewers team last week & impressed enough to win the 2nd lefty role out of the pen.

The Sox travel to Washington, DC to play the Nationals on Saturday. Then it's back to Friendly Fenway to open the season on Sunday night against the NY Yankees. It doesn't get any better than Beckett versus Sabathia to start the year off.

Spring training is over. Time for the real games to start.

Beckett Nears Extension With Sox

Josh Beckett & the Boston Red Sox are close to announcing a contract extension. The deal is reportedly worth $70 million for 4 years.

Since 2007 Beckett has been the ace of the Red Sox staff. He took over the reins as the #1 ace from Curt Schilling. Schilling had taken over the top spot from Pedro Martinez.

Beckett & Lackey, along with John Lester, will be the first 3 in the rotation for the next 5 years. Not too shabby. All 3 have playoff experience as well.

I like Beckett & his determination. Boston seems to be a good match for his personality. I'm glad that he will be in a Red Sox uniform for the future.