May Schedule

The Red Sox resume play tomorrow as a new month starts.  In May there are no inter-league games.  The home stand continues with 3 against the Yankees & 3 more against the Rays.  A long road trip follows to Toronto for 3, Oakland for 3 & Seattle for 4.  Then back home for 3 against the Rangers & another 3 against the Angels.  The Sox then finish the month on the road in Minnesota for 3 & in Texas for 4.  Due to the lesser competition this month I am predicting a record of 16-13.  What do you think?   

No Fans in Baltimore

A very odd afternoon game in Camden Yards with no fans.  Was it the right thing to do?  Depends on your point of view.  In this liability-conscious world the O's management felt that they could not protect their fans coming or going to the game.  For the fans it was a surrender to the idiot Baltimore rioters & looters who gave & continue to give the city a black eye.  This weekend's series against the Rays will be played in Tampa Bay instead of Baltimore.  Not only are vendors, parking lots, hotels, restaurants & bars losing income, just think of 4 home dates lost for the Orioles with no park revenue.  It's a shame that outside agitators & a few idiots take a serious social issue & escalate a problem with violent protests.      

A Series Win Via Shutdown Pitching

Yes, I called it on Twitter before the game that Rick Porcello would chew up the Jays offense last night & he did just that.  Sox win 4-1 limiting the Jays big hitters to just 3 hits.  Porcello pitched 7 strong, followed by Tazawa & Uehara to close it out.  If you can have a big win in April, this was one of them.  Hanley Ramirez backed up Porcello by hitting another bomb into the monster, his 10th homer of the month.  Whatever you're eating or drinking, Hanley, keep it up!  I predicted the Sox would go 11-11 in April & they finished 12-10, 1 game out of 1st place.  This pace would result in 88 wins which could be enough to win the East.  Starting pitching is a problem that Ben said he would look internally to fix first, but WEEI reports the Phillies are scouting the Sox farm teams which would lead you to believe that a Hamels deal is still in play.  Onto May which could be more of the same roller coaster ride.

Ineffective Pitching Again

To say the Red Sox pitching was "ineffective" is an insult to the word ineffective.  Clay Buchholz - 5 runs.  Edward Mujica - 3 runs.  Anthony Vavarro - 1 run.  Craig Breslow - 1 run.  Junichi Tazawa - 1 run.  11 runs given up in an 11-8 loss to the Blue Jays.  When your offense scores 8 runs you should win, period.  The NESN postgame show mentioned 8 or 9 starts is what Farrell uses to evaluate pitchers.  Well, 5th time through the rotation doesn't show improvement, in fact it shows deterioration.  Another week or two of these wishy-washy effort by Buchholz & Miley & it may be time for an unknown injury to place them both on the DL for awhile.  Let's try internal prospects like Wright, Johnson & Owens for 3 or 4 starts before the trade deadline.  The fact that Buck was standing around the pitcher's mound again instead of backing up home is an indication that his head is not in the game.  A good offensive effort goes by the boards again because of ineffective pitching.  It's only April & we sound like a broken record already. 

Mookie Gets A Walk-Off

Nice win.  Give Mookie some kudos for getting his 1st walk-off hit to help the Sox beat the Jays 6-5.  It was a catch-up game all night until Hanley's sac fly in the 8th tied it 5-5.  Koji pitched a scoreless 9th - shame on all you doubters.  And Betts knocked in the X-man with the winning run.  Give Kelly a little credit for settling down after giving up 3 in the 1st.  Panda was the offensive star with 3 RBI & a nice layout catch on a bunt.  He did leave with neck soreness & hopefully it is nothing more than that.  A much needed win in another 1-run game.  Mark my words - these 1-run games will determine a playoff spot or not.  Good way to start the homestand.

John Thomase - Stop With Pap"s Return

WEEI's John Thomase wrote an article saying the Sox should bring back Jonathan Papelbon to be the team's closer.  John, stop the insanity!  We don't want to go back to the future.  Pap is 34 years old & he has 2 years & $26 million left on his contract.  Way too much money, even if the Phillies pick up half.  Let's give Koji a chance to get his feet under him in decent weather.  April has been like spring training for Uehara, coming back from a hamstring injury in March.  If troubles persist with the Sox closer, I would go young.  Find a hard throwing guy like Matt Barnes or Brian Johnson & see if they can take the reins.  There is also Mujica who has closing experience.  Koji was the Sox 4th choice in 2013 before he nailed down the closer's job with unbelievable results.  I would rule out all internal options before looking outside the organization.  And Pap would then be a very last resort. 

Sox Lose Another Series to O's

Word of the day - ugly!  Ugly from the start today as Baltimore built a 12-0 lead before Pablo & Hanley combined for 3 homers & 7 RBI.  It was a total embarassment for Wade Miley who lost it in the 3rd inning.  Ben has to be rethinking this pitching staff who have the worst ERA in the AL.  Even the bullpen was ugly today, most of the damage done off of Heath Embree.  The Sox return to Fenway on Monday to start a 9-game homestand against the Jays, Yankees & Rays.  We have to pitch better & we have to pitch more consistently.  Period. 

Baltimore Protesters - Go Peaceful

Going off script.  Last night Camden Yards was surrounded by protesters who want "justice" for a black man who died in police custody.  So far the police chief has achnowledged that his employees did not follow protocol.  All 6 police officers have been suspended.  The Mayor has asked for a transparent investigation.  The investigation is on-going & no decision has been reached yet.  I guess that's not good enough for protesters & the media covering Baltimore.  My own opinion is that the media fans the flames of violent protests by waiting, almost encouraging, something non-peaceful to happen.  So last night pictures emerge of protesters breaking car windows.  Back in Missouri Michael Brown's family advocated for non-violence & community leaders helped bring calm to their situation.  The same is not happening in Baltimore.  Peaceful advocates in Baltimore, get out there please.   

O's 5, Sox 4 in 10 Innings

Wow!  Where to start in this game?  Starting backwards, Koji looked ineffective as he blew a save, given up a game-winning homer on a 3-2 pitch to a kid named Lough.  Allen Craig made a "do or die" attempt on a liner to RF.  He "died."  Xander Bogaerts put the Sox up by 1 in the 10th with a homer to left.  Manny Machado's error in the 9th pushed the game into extras.  Mike Napoli showed signs of life, going 3-4 with a 2-run homer.  Justin Masterson pitched well enough to win over the 1st 7 innings.  And protesters were outside the park, making for a tense situation for fans entering & exiting.  All in all, the O's were due to break out of their 5-game losing streak.  2 games separate the tightest division in baseball as the Sox & 2 others stay atop the AL East with a 10-8 record.  After a 7-3 start the Sox are only 3-5 in their last 8.  I think that 1-run games will be the difference between making the playoffs or not.

Red Sox Power Over O's

It's a good night when you can win in Camden Yards.  That's exactly what the Red Sox did on Friday, beating the slumping O's 7-5.  2 more errors by the left side of Baltimore's infield gave the Sox extra outs to work with.  And Brock Holt took advantage of a Machado error in the 8th to launch a 3-run homer to put the Sox ahead for good.  Ortiz & Ramirez went back-to-back earlier in the game.  Panda went 2-3 & Mookie was on base 4 times.  A good showing by the offense.  Porcello went 6+ & he was effective enough for the win, although Ogando got the actual win by getting a big strikeout in the 7th with the game tied.  It's not perfect by any means yet (a la Hanley in LF), but scraping out team wins like this are important in the early goings.    

Coverting to Facebook & YouTube

Hey fans, we are moving into the 21st century - finally!  I will continue to use this blog while we convert over, but please start following me on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/?sk=welcome#!/pages/3nohitters/1656205674609639 and YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPUPm3nLx4OWUnLPolL7Ddw/feed?view_as=subscriber.  Thanks for your patience as we work out the kinks. 

Yordano Ventura - Grow Up

Royals pitcher Yordano Ventura is once again showing his immaturity.  It's nice to possess a 100 mph fastball, but you need a brain to go along with that talent, something lacking by Ventura lately.  Adam Eaton hits a ball back to Ventura last night & the pitcher stares down Eaton running to 1st.  A brawl ensues with 5 players being ejected.  This comes after Ventura hitting Abreau with a pitch earlier in the game.  Like Manny Machado last year, these young players sometimes think that they are in a playground & they can do anything they like.  Not so!  I hope MLB slaps a good suspension, maybe 10 games or 2 starts, on Ventura.  He is still paying off his fine from last week's dust up with Oakland.  This kid is going to seriously hurt someone if nothing is done.

Sox Lose 1st Series of Year

Sox lose their finale in Tampa 2-1.  Close games have no margin for error.  A diving catch by Kiermeyer & a ground ball past 3rd base were the difference in the game.  Buchholz pitched well.  This series, however, changed on Wednesday night when they Sox blew their 5-1 lead in the 6th.  Now the AL East has 3 teams tied for 1st at 9-7.  With each series & each week of play the AL East positions will shift back & forth as the pack stays together.  Last week the Yankees were in last, now it's Baltimore in last at 7-9.  Sox start a tough weekend series in Baltimore.  2 out of 3 would be nice before they return to Fenway to play the Blue Jays.  Every game counts.

One Got Away

All indications are that the AL East will be a tight race all year long.  That's why losing a game when you are up 5-1 is one that you would like to have back.  Joe Kelly, like most young pitchers who throw hard, is prone to control issues.  Kelly was cruising into the 6th & then he lost his command & control.  Before you know it the score is 5-5.  The bullpen has been overworked lately &, unfortunately, Edward Mujica gave up the go-ahead runs.  Sox lose 7-5, but they remain in 1st by a game over the Orioles & Yankees.  Good to see Papi & Pedey go yard & very good to see Nap get a couple of hits.  The goal is to win series & that's what the Sox can do tonight if Buck can rebound from a couple of poor starts.     

Reversal As Pitching, Defense Help Sox Win 1-0

We haven't been talking much about pitching & defense lately, but both of those elements led to a 1-0 win last night in Tampa Bay against the Rays & Chris Archer.  Wade Miley went 5 2/3 scoreless, followed by 3 1/3 scoreless by the bullpen.  The lone run of the game was scored by Ryan Hanigan in the 3rd inning.  Hanigan came home on a sure inning-ending double-play ball hit by Pedroia that was thwarted when Mookie Betts went into 2nd hard & he produced an errant throw by the Rays from 2nd to 1st as Pedroia went down the line hard.  Brock Holt continues to impress at every position, last night being SS.  His play in the hole was a beauty.  Another small point - Daniel Nava playing 1B & scooping Pablo's low throw out of the dirt for the final out of the game.  You have to love the Sox bench of Nava, Holt, Craig & Leon.  They are giving starters a rest & contributing to wins when they play.  Sox are pretty good in 1-run games so far this year.  And it's always nice to beat Archer who whines about other players antics, but not his own jumping around on the mound.

Jim Palmer Versus David Ortiz

Pretty boy Jim Palmer is tweeting out crap about David Ortiz.  As an announcer for the Orioles, shouldn't he have to reel in his own personal thoughts without going public on games he has to broadcast?  It doesn't seem very professional, in fact more "Felger & Mazz" ish.  At this point in his career Ortiz has seen & heard it all.  Big Papi responded to Gordon Edes that he's an easy target to get bigger ratings for any announcer.  Both should just let it go.  Let's get back to baseball.     

Sox Still Talking to Phillies About Hamels

Evidently, dialogue continues about Cole Hamels & the Red Sox.  At a 6.22 ERA, highest in the majors, the Red Sox experiment of no clear cut #1 ace is a bust in the early goings of 2015.  Blake Swihart, Mookie Betts, Henry Owens - would you give up any of these guys for a pitcher like Hamels under contract until 36 years old?  Depends.  How far away are Stephen Wright, Brian Johnson, Matt Barnes & Henry Owens from the big club?  Can we weather the storm for 3 months until one of these guys is ready?  That's why Ben gets the big bucks.  Not an easy decision.  I keep Swihart because the catching position is not easy to fill, especially for a switch-hitter with power like Swihart.  Most catchers bat 9th in the order.  Mookie & Rusney have similar skill sets, so I could move one of them.  Owens is a pitcher who pitches to contact, so I could move him if necessary.  With only so many swings left in Big Papi's bat I would look to make the 2015 team as competitive as possible.  If the team can stay in contention until July, then we could get a rental like Cueto, Zimmermann or Price for lesser prospects.  No easy decision.  And the starters aren't making it any easier for Ben in the early going.  I say stay the course for now & re-evaluate in May.     

Early Thoughts

The baseball season is just 2 weeks old.  Here's some early thoughts.  Let's get Nelson Cruz tested for PED use since he is hitting a home run per game.  Same with Chris Davis.  A liitle unnatural.  Miami is a bust thus far at 3-10 & Stanton is calling out his team in post-game interviews, never a good thing to do.  The SI cover of Brantley & Kluber continues to be a hex as Cleveland starts the year 4-7 & they still can't beat Detroit.  Milwaukee has the worst start in team history at 2-10.  San Francisco only wins championships in even years, so their 4-10 start in 2015 is somewhat expected.  Like it or not, A-Rod is back & he is productive.  With so much natural talent why does a guy like A-Rod take PED's?  Ask Barry Bonds I guess.  It looks to be an interesting season.  Houston is in 1st place in the AL West at 6-6.  Lots of parity.  85 or 86 wins may get several teams to the playoffs.   

Comparison of MLB to NFL

I like Christopher "Mad Dog" Russo.  I agree with most points that he makes on the MLB Network, although some not so much.  However, I really enjoyed his analogy of a baseball season as compared to a football season.  Mad Dog said that every 10 games in baseball equates to 1 game in football.  Isn't that a great perspective?  The Red Sox were 7-3 after their 1st 10 games.  That would equate to a win in game #1 by the Patriots.  This reminds me, & should remind you, that the season is young & records don't mean to much at the outset of a new season.  Do I like that the Red Sox are 8-5 & in 1st place in the AL East while their starting pitchers have the highest ERA in the league?  Yes.  Let's see how the next 10-20-30 games go, or the next 3 games by NFL standards, before we make any kind of decisions about the future.  April & May are "feel out" months to see what your team has & what they may need going into the trade deadline.  Let's keep that football perspective as we go through April & May.   

Sox Lose Again, This Time 8-3

In their 2 straight losses neither Clay Buchholz nor Rick Porcello could shutdown the Orioles offense.  Both gave up 11 hits in short outings.  An the O's pitchers have kept the Red Sox offense in check, save for a 3-run blast by Hanley Ramirez.  As more short, uneffective outings mount up so will the theory that the Sox do need a dependable #1 starter like Cole Hamels.  But the price will be steep, so that's the quandry.  Some combination of Swihart, Owens &/or Betts are in the mix if the Sox are serious about a trade.  And, if they trade for Hamels, the Sox pick-up the large financial commitment for a pitcher in his 30's which goes against their stated philosophy.  I predicted the Sox to go 11-11 in April & at 7-5 thus far they are outpacing my prediction.  While talks with the Phillies are on-going I expect Ben to want a few more turns around the rotation before pulling the trigger on a Hamels trade.     

O's Win, Hanley Subpar

The Baltimore Orioles used a familiar formula to beat the Red Sox 4-1 this afternoon.  Good defense, good relief pitching & use of the long ball.  A 2-1 O's lead in the 8th went to 4-1 on a Chris Davis homer over the monster off of Robbie Ross.  For the Red Sox no one hit with RISP.  But Hanley Ramirez had an all-around subpar day.  He went 0-3 at the plate, swinging for terrible pitches & grounding out with men in scoring position.  In LF he is a terrible fielder when any ball is close to the wall.  He misplayed 2 more balls today & cost at least 1 run.  Where's all that defensive work he did with Butterfield?  When Hanley is hitting you can put up with his defense, but today he was not.  I wonder where this LF experiment is going.    

Ubaldo Ejected, Bogaerts Gets Walk-Off Hit

It was a typical tough game against the O's.  For going in hard to 2nd base to break up a double play, the Panda got hit high on the shoulder his next time at bat.  Jimenez was promptly ejected from the mound as the home plate umpire felt that Ubaldo intentionally threw at Sandoval & the pitch itself was very close, too close to his head.  Fast forward to the 9th in a 2-2 game (thanks to a 2-run shot by Ryan Hanigan) & Xander Bogaerts collects his 2nd hit of the game, a bloop to right that scores Mike Napoli.  Red Sox win 3-2.  Joe Kelly worked hard to get through 5 2/3, but he gave a solid outing.  Then the bullpen kept the O's off the board the rest of the way.  Small point - Daniel Nava's sacrifice bunt in the 9th got Nap to 2nd, paving the way for the walk-off win.  You have to do the little things right to win tight games.  This was an excellent game by 2 good teams.  But we won!    

Offense Producing Against Good Pitching

Average runs scored by the Red Sox per game is 6.22 through the early season, best in MLB.  Who wouldn't want to pitch for this offense?  Early on, it appears the Ben Cherington did fix the lackluster offense from 2014.  Ramirez & Sandoval bolster the middle of the order around David Ortiz.  Pedroia is healthy & hitting the ball with power again.  Bogaerts is swinging free & easy.  Nap is healthy also & he has just started to hit again.  Mookie is a force at the top of the order & on the bases.  And super subs Holt & Nava are contributing at the plate.  It's a nice order.  So far the Sox have beat good pitching -- Cole Hamels, Jordan Zimmermann & Stephen Strasburg to mention a few.  I'm sure that the Sox lineup will come back to earth during the year, but the chances of 8 or 9 guys with quality bats all going cold at the same time is not a high percentage.  This impressive offense has lived up to its billing. 

Bloopers - Jon Lester & Robinson Cano

Baseball can be a humbling & embarassing game at times.  Take Jon Lester trying to live up to the big Cubs contract.  For the first time in years Lester makes a throw to first to keep a runner close.  On his 2nd throw over to first he air mails the ball to RF, badly.  Embarassing.  Last night Robinson Cano is on 3rd with another Mariners runner on 2nd.  Batter walks.  Cano starts trotting to home like the bases were loaded & he eventually gets tagged out.  Embarassing.  Both players are superior athletes & both will end up having good years.  I think Lester needs to settle down & forget about his contract.  In Cano's case I have never liked his cool & casual attitude towards the game.  Even Mariano Rivero said that he prefers Pedroia as a 2nd baseman because Pedroia plays all 27 outs.  Both guys will make the blooper reel at the end of the year. 

Pitching???

Let's talk about the starting pitching of the Red Sox.  First time through the rotation things looked pretty good.  This 2nd time through has looked pretty bad, even ugly at times.  Buchholz, Masterson & Miley could not reach or pitch past the 5th inning.  Here's my thoughts.  It's early, only 9 games in the books out of 162.  No team is as good or as bad as they seem through 2 weeks.  Buck just didn't have it against the Yankees.  Masterson & Miley may have had opening game jitters in front of the Fenway crowd.  Or the Nats could have found their hitting shoes.  After all, they are a good team picked to go to the World Series by most prognosticators.  We need more time to judge how the pitching staff will shake out.  My definition of more time would be until the end of May or roughly 10 starts into the season.  By then Cherington, Farrell & the brass will have a more solid idea of what they need to do before the trade deadline at the end of July.  So be patient, hang tight with the current staff for now.       

Bigger Picture

For some reason the 2nd anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombings is hitting me today.  Yes, the Red Sox lost 10-5.  Poor pitching which we can talk about on tomorrow's off day.  But let's not lose the bigger picture, namely victims who were killed & victims who survived who are coping with a forever altered life.  The pre-game ceremony celebrated the survivors as heroes - which they truly are, as are the caregivers & family & friends who help them adjust to life without a limb or two.  On the same day that Aaron Hernandez is found guiltry of murder & will face life in prison, we think about Martin Richard - a symbol of innocence & about a young life taken much too soon.  There will be another game on Friday.  But the families of the fallen & the many survivors go onto living another day as best they can.  They are Boston Strong.  God bless to all! 

2nd Anniversary of Boston Bombings

It's hard to believe that it was 2 years ago today that the Boston Marathon bombings took place.  I saw an ESPN E:360 show which updated the progress of a few victims.  One survivor - a husband & a father - had endured over 16 trips to the ER & over 30 surgical procedures in the past 24 months.  Their pain, their lives will never be the same.  And sometimes we forget that, so shame on me & shame on us.  Our worst day is nothing compared to theirs & their families.  The Red Sox halted their game today at 2:49 with a moment of silence to pay tribute to the 4 souls who died.  In 2013 a force large than life - call it fate, call it God - propelled the Red Sox through the regular season, through the playoffs & through to another World Series Championship to help bring the city back to life.  Sometimes the right thing happens.  We will never forget 2013.     

Pedroia Looking Healthy

Isn't it nice to see the little guy healthy & hitting balls out of the park?  Dustin Pedroia has 3 homers in 8 games.  He is hitting the ball with power for the first time in several years.  The hand injuries suffered over the past few seasons have finally healed.  And it shows as Pedroia boasts an OPS of almost 1.000.  A productive Mookie Betts & Dustin Pedroia make life easy for Ortiz, Ramirez & Sandoval.  I have said many times that there are very, very few professional athletes who value winning more than personal stats.  Tom Brady is one.  Derek Jeter was another.  And Pedroia is the next name that comes to my mind.  I believe in the quote that personal stats are for teams that lose.  Al Davis had it right - just win, baby, just win.  A winning attitude is what Pedroia brings & it's nice to see him healthy & productive.

Koji Closes Out Red Sox Win

It was nice to see the smiling, happy-go-lucky Koji Uehara back closing games for the Red Sox.  Koji got his 1st save of the year yesterday in an 8-7 Red Sox win over an error-plagued Washington Nationals team.  Ian Desmond seems to be in the middle of every big error early in the year for the Nats.  Yesterday, with the scored tied 7-7 & the infield in, Desmond gets a grounder & goes to 1st instead of home, allowing the go-ahead run to score.  It's not often a team can beat Jordan Zimmermann & Stephen Strasburg in back-to-back games.  It's another series win for the Red Sox who have won all 3 series thus far in 2015.  Wade Miley goes for the sweep against Gio Gonzalez this afternoon.  Unfortunately, the injury bug is creeping up on the Red Sox as Bogaerts & Sandoval are dinged up for the big team & Rusney hurt his shoulder at AAA on a diving catch.  Hopefully, none are long-term. 

It's All About Runs

The Red Sox offense last year was below average for sure.  However, this year is another story, at least in the early goings of the 2015 season.  The Red Sox have scored 43 runs in 7 games, or just over 6 runs per game.  Opponents have scored 33 runs for a +10 differential.  If we delete the 14-4 loss on Sunday night, the run differential is +22.  So other than 1 bad game over the 1st 7 outings, the Red Sox are scoring more &, as a result, winning more.  The game of baseball is all about runs.  Not any other stats is as germaine as runs -- those scored versus those allowed.  The pitching has been stable.  Defense has been above average.  And offense has led the way to a 5-2 start.  This formula may get the Sox to the trade deadline where decisions will have to be made about improving the team's chances for a long playoff run. 

Mookie Has A Day!

Mookie Betts had one of those days.  A double steal - first of 2nd base, then onto 3rd because of the shift on Big Papi.  Mookie slid headfirst into 3rd just before the tag by Nats P Jordan Zimmerman.  Betts bangs into the RC bullpen wall to take away a home run from Bryce Harper.  Then, for good measure, he hits a 3-run homer into the monster seats.  And this is all happening in the 1st 2 innings of a game that the Sox would eventually win 9-4.  Big Papi added a homer.  Rick Porcello pitched 8 workmanlike innings to get his 1st win as a Red Sox.  Tom Brady threw out the 1st pitch.  Weather was great.  Sellout crowd.  What more can you ask for on opening day?  Great start to this homestand. 

No Sweep in Gotham

Aren't we all a little greedy at times?  A sweep of the Yankees would have been nice, but we'll take 2 out of 3 anytime.  It wasn't to be for the Sox on Sunday night as they fell 14-4.  Clay Buchholz gave up 7 runs in the 1st inning.  Realistically, game was over from there on.  Hanley Ramirez added an HR in the 5th, his 3rd of the year in week 1.  And Mike Napoli got the monkey off his back with his 1st hit of the season.  We will take a 4-2 road trip to start the season.  Now the Sox have a 7-game homestand against the Nationals & Orioles, a couple of very good teams.  A winning record of 4-3 or better would be a good result to me.  We'll see how well this Sox revamped offense responds against quality pitchers from Washington & then we'll see how well Sox pitchers do in keeping the O's offense off the scoreboard.  A good test of where this team is early in the season. 

Lots of Questions Surround Today's SPs

Clay Buchholz versus Masahiro Tanaka.  Lots of questions surround both starting pitchers.  Can Buck duplicate his great opening day performance & prove he is back to his 2013 form?  If so, maybe he can become a legit #1 starter for this staff.  It's still early, but 2 good outings in a row would certainly quiet the critics.  On the other side, can Tanaka & his fragile right arm comeback from a poor opening day showing of only 4 innings?  On MLB Pedro Martinez said he thinks Tanaka is at 65% health & it's difficult to throw when you are injured.  If Tanaka is only a figment of his 2014 form, the Yankees are in for a long, long season.  So lots to prove for both pitchers.  Pressure is off Buck since the Sox already won this series with 2 wins on the Friday night / Saturday morning marathon & Saturday afternoon.  More pressure on the Yankees & Tanaka who are tring to save face by not getting swept at home & starting the new season 1-5.  A sweep would be great!    

Red Sox 8, Yankees 4

The Yankees looked like a Little League team in the field.  The Bronx non-bombers had more errors than hits for most of this game & the game was not as close as the score indicates.  The Red Sox rested Ramirez, Betts & Victorino.  The replacement outfield of Nava, Holt & Craig did a lot of damage at the plate & in the field.  Meanwhile, the Yankees replacements of Young, Jones, Petit & Murphy scuffled on both offense & defense.  Even Brett Gardner may a big error early in the game on a Daniel Nava fly, only to be outdone by a 3-run error in RF by Garreth Jones in the 8th.  A-Rod looked like cement hands at 1B.  But enough about them.  Joe Kelly had a great 1st start, limiting the Yankees to 1 run on 1 hit through the 1st 7 innings.  Let's say that the experiment of not having a #1 starter is working so far.  This game was about the depth of the Red Sox roster & how good several of the bench players are.  And by the way, Rusney is still hitting the ball well in AAA.  Deep, deep, deep.  This roster will serve the Red Sox well over the course of a long season.  A 4-1 start on the road is nothing to scoff at.

New York Marathon Goes to Boston 6-5

19 innings.  That's how long it took for the Red Sox to win game 1 of 19 against the Yankees.  To be honest I turned the game off after watching Mujica give up the tying HR in the bottom of the 9th.  2 hours later I get a text from my niece saying that Steven Wright is pitching.   I turn the game back on in the 18th inning & the Sox score a go-ahead run 5-4, only to have the Yankees tie it up in the bottom of the 18th with no outs.  I turned it off again.  This morning I see the 2 Boston B's - Betts & Bogaerts - helped score the game winner in the 19th.  Mercy!  Now the Sox play an afternoon game, followed by Sunday night, then the home opener on Monday.  Can't ESPN start their Sunday night game earlier than 8 PM EST?  It makes for a long Monday for any team traveling.  All 4 Red Sox pitchers have looked good, including Wade Miley last night.  Good news - Big Papi hit his 1st homer of the year.  Also a good test of wills, mental fortitude if you will, & the Red Sox players won this matchup.  A tough loss for the Yankees after dropping 2 out of 3 at home to the Blue Jays.  Could be a long year for the pinstripers.         

Time to Make DH Universal

How long are we going to continuing playing with 2 sets of rules?  If Rob Manfred wants to increase offense, you don't need to disallow shifts.  How about making the DH position universal in the NL parks as it is in the AL ones?  It is such a disadvantage for any AL team to go to an NL park & have their pitchers hit.  The lineup is in flux & a good player, like Mike Napoli or David Ortiz, sits the bench.  Is that what fans want to see?  Clay Buchholz at bat instead of David Ortiz?  No, no way.  The NL teams have no problem adding an extra bat to their order when playing in an AL park.  No disruption there, in fact it's a bonus for their team.  So let's get the National League into the 21st century, Rob, & make the DH universal in both leagues.   

Victorino Proving He Can Still Play

A nice running catch by Shane Victorino last night on a ball over his head shows us signs of that Gold Glove from 2013.  If Vic doesn't get to that ball, it's a 6-4 game.  Victorino seems healthy, except for the fact that he is no longer hitting left-handed.  He still has speed.  He still plays a mean RF.  There is no chance that the Sox re-sign him for 2016, but Vic is giving the Sox a veteran presence to help 2 new outfielders in Mookie Betts & Hanley Ramirez.  He is also giving Rusney Castillo more at-bats in AAA before joining the big team.  And Rusney gives the Sox insurance should injuries occur to Vic, Betts, Craig or Nava.  As Jerry Remy said last night, it's pretty increedible that Victorino is healthy again so quickly after back surgery.  The guy likes to play & he plays hard.  Maybe we all were too quick about trading him away.  I know I was.  Sorry, Vic.     

Red Sox 6, Phillies 2

Another nice win last night to capture the 1st series of the year.  Masterson seems like the same guy that pitched for Cleveland again - good for the most part, but always 1 bad inning.  Last night he stopped the damage at 2 runs in the 3rd after the Sox scored all of their 6 runs in the top of the inning.  A windswept fly ball to RF by X-man with the bases loaded was misplayed by Francoeur from a single into a bases-clearing triple.  That was the difference in the game, Francoeur on the wrong side of being the difference-maker this time.  The Phillies defense looked horrible.  If Ryan Howard can't hit, he is of no use to the Phils as his glove at 1B is awful.  It looks to be a long year for Philadelphia.  You can't argue about winning a series, but I think the Sox need to sweep some of these lower-tier teams to maximize every win for a chance at the playoffs.  That's my parting negative "Felger" comment of the day.   

Phillies 4, Sox 2

Here's my take on game 2's loss in a nutshell.  Crappy weather.  Home plate umpire with big strike zone made Harang look better than he was.  One bad pitch by Porcello led to a 3-run homer to Francoeur.  I was surprised Farrell left him out there as long as he did after 90+ pitches.  Papelbon lucks out in the 8th as Hanley's ball dies on the track for an almost grand slam.  Game could have gone either way.  Infield play by Sandoval & Napoli was poor, mostly because of the weather.  Overall, nothing to worry about.  That's it.

Joe West, Retire Please

It didn't take long for Cowboy Joe West to insert himself - once again - into a controversy by calling Torii Hunter out on a check swing to end the game for the Minnesota Twins.  Hunter asked West to check with the 1st base umpire, but West refused.  Hunter went on a bit of a rant aftter the game, saying West probably had dinner reservations.  My question - why is Joe West still an umpire?  He is horribly out of shape.  In my view he has said things to the detriment of baseball.  Yet he still gets to umpire year after year.  A good umpire is one that you don't notice.  But every year Cowboy Joe gets his face into some controversy to show he's the man.  Well, Joe, your past your prime - way past your prime - & it's time to do everyone in baseball a favor by retiring.  So retire, Joe, just retire.

Lester for Cespedes for Porcello

I was thinking today about how Ben Cherington got a top-tier pitcher like Rick Porcello & locked him up for several years during his prime.  You might say it was a trade of one pitcher for another - Jon Lester for Rick Porcello with Yoenis Cespedes as the player in-between.  Moneywise, Porcello makes about $17 million less than Lester in 2015 & about $6 million less each of the next 4 years.  So the Sox saved over $40 million & they have a younger version of Lester to anchor a staff for the next several years.  Cespedes was never going to fit into the Red Sox plans since he would only play LF & he seemed determined to go the free agency route.  He gets to play his option year in Detroit where he can compliment Cabrera & Martinez.  Cespedes may get a long-term deal from the Tigers, but most likely he will try for big money in free agency.  To each their own.  But I think these were great trades by Ben & we get a good return on the dollars.   

A-Rod Back, Yankees Fall

On opening day in the Bronx the Yankees had no offense, losing 6-1 to the Jays.  Masahiro Tanaka labored through 4 innings & he got the loss, giving up 5 runs.  His arm is a big question mark this year.  And A-Rod returned to mostly positive fans at Yankee Stadium.  You can bet that he will not be well-received at any other park in America.  Several reporters agree that the Yankees are in rebuilding mode this year & they need to get out from under several onerous contracts to Teixeira, A-Rod, CC & others.  They also need to get younger which didn't happen in the off-season.  It looks like a long, long season for the pinstripers.  Couldn't happen to a better team!   

Porcello, Red Sox Agree to Extension

Nice going!  Rick Porcello, age 26, will be a Red Sox for 4 more years thanks to an extension signed for $82.5 million.  Porcello has over 1,000 big league innings under his belt & is now coming into his prime.  At $20.5 million per year Ben Cherington paid him #1 or #2 type money as that's where they feel Porcello is in his career.  And they sign him before he hits free agency where the money & years could have been much higher.  Earlier, Porcello said that he would not talk contract extension during the year.  After the Lester failure to resign last year, Ben made he & his agent one last offer that they couldn't refuse.  Win, win.  Porcello hits the open market again at age 31.  Red Sox lock-up a young talent for his prime years while their young pitchers mature in the minors.  That leaves Justin Masterson as the only starter from this year's staff not signed for next year.

Red Sox Win Opener 8-0

Things went right in Phillie today.  Clay Buchholz pitched like it was 2013, going 7 strong innings without giving up a run on 3 hits with 9 K's & 1 walk.  The offense went off by clubbing 5 home runs -- 2 by Pedroia, 2 by Ramirez & 1 by Betts.  Pedroia put the Sox on the board with his 1st inning solo shot & Ramirez capped the scoring with his 2nd homer of the day, a grand slam in the 9th.  Nice, nice win to settle down Red Sox Nation as Cole Hamels just wasn't good today.  A great way to start the season.  Too bad we have to wait until Wednesday for the next game.

Nothing Like Opening Day

Other than the Cubs who lost 3-0 last night, 29 teams start today in first place.  Opening Day is unique.  If you haven't been to opening day, you have to go.  Lots of buzz from reporters on the field, fans are buzzing in the stadium, players are pumped & ready to go.  Sometimes it's easier to be a visiting club, like the Cardinals last night, because the home team has pressure to get off to a good start.  Let's hope that that's true today as Clay Buchholz takes the mound this afternoon against Cole Hamels.  Maybe Hamels will be pressing to impress the Sox, perhaps his next team.  It would be nice to get a good start from Buck, some timely hitting from the new & improved offense, good defense & good work from the bullpen -- a recipe for a win anytime.  Let's see if we can get this season off to a good start.  Baseball is back & we're ready!   

Kimbrel, BJ to Padres

Craig Kimbrel & BJ Upton have a new home in San Diego.  The Braves get 4 players & a future pick in return.  This deal, reported by NESN, went down today literally hours before the start of the new 2015 season.  The Padres new management is sure throwing around a lot of money!  Matt Kemp, James Shields, Justin Upton, Wil Myers & not-to-be-forgotten Will Middlebrooks are just some of the new faces in Padres uniforms.  Kimbrel is arguably one of the best closers in the game.  BJ was a throw-in & salary dump for the Braves who are building for the future.  John Hart has scrapped the bulk of his team from last year in order to get a competitive team for 2016 & beyond - when the Braves move to their new stadium.  Glad I'm not a season-ticket holder in Atlanta! 

Time for Real Games to Begin

Spring training is over.  29 games is way too many, but it's over.  Yu Darvish, Cristian Vazquez & a Mets pitcher are among the early casualties of a lost season due to Tommy John surgery.  A-Rod is back playing for the Yankees.  A number of players are getting use to wearing a new uniform, including Hanley Ramirez & Pablo Sandoval.  The Cubs & Jon Lester start the season tonight against Adam Wainwright & the Cardinals.  We start in Phillie tomorrow with no DH due to NL rules.  Cole Hamels is pitching against the Red Sox.  You wonder if he will be in a Red Sox uniform before the year is over.  Clay Buchholz gets to prove that he is the good Buck from the first half of 2013, not the subpar pitcher from 2014.  Look for lots of work out of the bullpen in these early games, including work from new faces Vavaro, Ogando & Ross.  Time for game 1 of 2015 - finally!  Bring it!     

Barnes, Workman Sent to Triple-A

We all thought that Matt Barnes would earn a spot in the bullpen, but he got triple teamed by 3 lefties - Breslow, Layne & Ross.  All 3 lefties will make the starting roster while Barnes gets stretched out as a starter in Pawtucket.  Brandon Workman will remain in the bullpen in RI.  The Sox bullpen brigade was the last piece of the puzzle for setting the opening day roster.  So now we get ready for the regular season with Kelly & Uehara set to come off the DL around April 11th.  No sense rushing them - it's a long season.  Both will probably be ready for the 2nd series in New York.  Let's get ready for Monday in Phillie! 

Rusney, JBJ Sent to AAA

No surprises here.  Rusney Castillo & Jackie Bradley, Jr. get sent to AAA, leaving Mookie Betts in CF & Shane Victorino in RF to start the season.  Daniel Nava & Allen Craig will be bench players.  Both Castillo & Bradley had excellent springs.  Given the propensity for Hanley Ramirez & Shane Victorino to injure themselves, it won't be long before both guys are back with the big club.  Craig & Nava will give Ramirez, Victorino & Napoli a break every 5th day or so.  As I said earlier, this is a 1-year dilemma since Victorino will not be resigned next year & who knows about Napoli & Ortiz.  I'm glad that we have stockpiled talent like Craig, Nava, Castillo & Bradley.  As the saying goes, things tend to work themselves out over a long 162 game season.

Clay Buchholz - What to Expect?

Clay Buchholz has pronounced himself physically fit.  Earlier this week, he had to deal with criticism from Curt Schilling who said Buck lacks the temperament to be an ace of this staff.  Let's look at Clay's body of work.  For 7+ years Buck has a 3.93 ERA.  His best complete year of action was back in 2010 when he was 17-7, 2.33 ERA & 173 innings of work.  2013 could have been a monster year, but Buck was injured, a mysterious neck thing, & he never came back after an unbelievable 1st half.  His numbers were 12-1, 1.74 ERA in 108 innings.  In 2014 Buck had his worst year as a big leaguer - 8-11, 5.34 ERA in 170 innings.  So who's the real Clay Buchholz - the dominating guy from 2013 or the below-average pitcher from 2014?  My opinion - he will hit his average numbers this year of 3.93 ERA, 170 innings & 15-10 record.  With this powerhouse offense, though, that may be enough.

Vazquez Out for Season

Another player falls victim to Tommy John surgery.  This time it's Cristian Vazquez of the Red Sox who will miss the 2015 season.  Like Orioles C Matt Wieters, Vazquez needs to repair his elbow which started hurting after throwing out a Yankees runner in early March.  Now Ryan Hanigan & Sandy Leon will share duties for the Sox behind the plate.  Both have above-average defensive skills & the Sox lineup can accomodate a light-hitting catcher this year.  It's a blessing to have a deep roster at every position.  I hope Vazquez makes a full recovery & he is ready for the 2016 season.

What I Learned From Spring Training

Spring training is a boom to those cities in Florida & Arizona that house teams.  The Cactus League has set an all-time attendance mark in 2015.  New ballparks have all the amenities of a big league stadium, just a smaller number of seats.  And there's nothing like bringing a blanket, setting on the grass past the outfield fences & letting the kids run around.  Speaking of kids, I disagree with those who would say that baseball is not the national pastime.  I see brothers & sisters bringing their parents to a game.  I see very elderly couples walking carefully to their seat & then scoring the game.  I see a little boy's eyes light up when he is given a foul ball caught by an adult.  I see autographs from players still being coveted by all ages of fans.  Baseball has no age limit.  It's for young & old alike.  It's still America's pastime to me. 

Victorino In, Castillo Out

That's the latest report from the Fort & the Red Sox website.  John Farrell said earlier in March that Shane Victorino is his starting right-fielder if he is healthy.  And Victorino is breaking camp healthy, so it appears that Rusney Castillo draws the short straw, going to Pawtucket until one of the starting outfielders - Ramirez, Betts, Victorino - gets injured.  Even David Ortiz backed up the manager's choice of Victorino saying that the Flyin' Hawaiian gets hurts because of the way he plays & he plays hurt a lot.  Big Papi says that Vic is someone you want in your lineup & as a teammate because he helps you to win.  That's pretty big praise from #34.  Rusney did all he could to impress & he did just that with his bat, glove & arm.  It won't be long before the Cuban outfielder is called up.  Too many good players - what a great problem for the manager!