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6.1.08, 2:17 AM
Red Sox 6, Orioles 3 Mr. 500

Ramirez Hits Number 500, Sox Take Second Straight
By: Jared Carrabis

Cooperstown, prepare yourself. Five years after number 24 decides to hang up his spikes, you are about to open your gates to one of the most lethal offensive forces to ever play the game. He is unique with his style and he is unique with his personality and oh yeah, he’s hit a few home runs in his day. On Saturday, May 31st 2008, Manuel Aristides Ramirez stamped his ticket into the Baseball Hall of Fame when he became the twenty-fourth member of the 500 home run club.

Embarking on a journey that began on September 3, 1993 in Yankee Stadium when the young Manny Ramirez hit his first career home run off of Melido Perez. The ball would land in left field 390 feet later and Manny’s road to 500 home runs had begun. Ramirez blasted 262 home runs in his years with the Cleveland Indians before coming to the Boston Red Sox.

Manny then came out of his shell some might say and became the Manny that we all know him as today. You know what I mean, the “Manny being Manny” stage of Manny. Ramirez signed as a free agent in 2001 with the Boston Red Sox and has since hit 238 home runs in a Red Sox uniform.

In a game infested with scandals and ruined reputations, Manny Ramirez did things his way. No steroids or corked bats here. Not only did he do it the natural way, he did it the Manny way. He never took the game too seriously, he played the game the way it is meant to be played, just have fun.

When the Red Sox were down 2-0 in the top of the third, Dustin Pedroia and David Ortiz went back-to-back to tie up the game at two. After the sac fly, a pitching change was made and out came former Red Sox reliever, Chad Bradford with the game tied at 3-3. The flash bulbs went off at about 300 flashes per second and up came Manny Ramirez. In his first at bat, Manny flew out deep to left missing his 500th career home run by a few feet and his second at bat was a groundout to third. There was a buzz in the ballpark that this could be it.

The first pitch out of Bradford’s hand…BAM. Up and away it sailed, and the elevation the ball had, you could tell that it was number 500 before it was even close to the fence. Manny knew it, the fans knew it, it was a great moment and I can’t even begin to describe how amazing of a feeling it was to be able to experience that moment as a Red Sox fan.

Papelbon came out of the pen to nail down the save in the ninth and Manny Ramirez nailed down his place in not only Red Sox history, but baseball history. 500 home runs, 1,639 career RBI, and the fourth highest career batting average to have hit 500 home runs. If Manny Ramirez plays two more season in Boston and retires as a member of the Red Sox as he has openly expressed he would love to do, it’s going to be really hard not to one day see number 24 (Sorry Dewey) up on the right field façade among the immortals of Red Sox history.

-Jared Carrabis
5.31.08, 12:49 AM
Lucky 13

13 Innings, 3 Errors, 3 Runs, 1 Win
By: Jared Carrabis

In a thirteen inning marathon of a baseball game, this contest started out similar to a handful of other games played by the Sox this season. Boston jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first and then the bats would not do much of anything for the rest of the game, at least not until way, way later in the game in this case.

In the top of the first, Red Sox leadoff hitter Jacoby Ellsbury doubled to left to put a man in scoring position with no outs. Dustin Pedroia sac bunted Ellsbury over to third and David Ortiz knocked in the Red Sox starting centerfielder on an 0-1 fastball. The birthday boy, Manny Ramirez, strolled to the plate looking to become a member of the elusive 500 home run club but instead stroked his thirteenth double of the season to put two men in scoring position. Mike Lowell followed Manny’s double with sacrifice fly to plate Ortiz from third.

Looking to turn his season back in the right direction and return to the form of the pitcher that has the offense shaking in their cleats, Josh Beckett took to the mound with dominance on his mind. Beckett pumped out 118 pitches through six strong innings giving up two runs on four hits while striking out ten. One of the earned runs was the eleventh home run allowed by Josh Beckett this season off the bat of Aubrey Huff. Beckett had some control issues in his last inning of work when he walked the bases loaded with two outs only to come back and record his tenth and final strikeout of the night to end his outing.

The Red Sox bullpen (Okajima 2, Delcarmen 1, Lopez 0.1, Hansen 1.2, Timlin 1, Papelbon 1) pitched phenomenally in relief of Josh Beckett. Hideki Okajima pitched two scoreless to begin the bullpen’s fantastic night, Craig Hansen contributed an inning and two thirds scoreless, Mike Timlin gave us all a scare with a bases loaded two out jam and a deep fly to left to end the inning, and Jonathan Papelbon nailed down the save in the bottom of the thirteenth.

Well, you can’t get a save if you don’t have a lead. In the top of the thirteenth, you can pin this loss right on the defense of the Baltimore Orioles and there is certainly no disputing that accusation. The Red Sox scored more runs in that inning than they had the previous twelve innings combined. With one out, the hustling Manny Ramirez reached base on a throwing error by Melvin Mora who had all the time in the world to stop and make an accurate throw (let’s face it, that was no Coco Crisp or Jacoby Ellsbury running down that line).

Mike Lowell came up to bat next and knocked in Ramirez from second to give the Red Sox a 3-2 advantage in the top of the thirteenth. Kevin Youkilis then came up and ended an 0 for 18 drought with an infield hit to Orioles shortstop Freddie Bynum that he could do nothing with. With the captain Jason Varitek at the plate, Lowell and Youkilis would pull off the double steal to put two men in scoring position. Varitek would later strike out but Coco Crisp would send a groundball Bynum’s way and Freddie Bynum’s throw was no where near first base. Lowell would score and in behind him was Youkilis. The three run cushion was enough for Papelbon to nail down his fifteenth save of the season.

-Jared Carrabis

5.28.08, 2:41 PM
499 And A Loss

Manny Blast Puts Him One Away From 500
Timlin, Sox Drop Close One In The Ninth 4-3
By: Jared Carrabis

The following updates are from Rotoworld.com

CLAY BUCHHOLZ
"Clay Buchholz (fingernail) is scheduled to make his next minor league rehab start Friday at Triple-A. With Bartolo Colon pitching well the Red Sox won't rush Buchholz back to the rotation and manager Terry Francona has said that he's not an option in the bullpen, so he could stay in the minors for a while."

Source: Boston Globe

DAISUKE MATSUZAKA
"Daisuke Matsuzaka left Tuesday's game due to shoulder fatigue. Matsuzaka said he experienced something similar in his second or third year in Japan and pitched through it but then said he paid the price in his next start. It sounds like he'll miss at least one start. Clay Buchholz could come off the DL to replace him. The Red Sox have Thursday off, so they wouldn't need a fifth start until next Tuesday."

Source: Boston.com

JULIO LUGO
"Julio Lugo was ejected from Tuesday's game in the fifth inning for arguing balls and strikes. Angel Hernandez, universally regarded as one of the game's worst umpires, tossed Lugo after Lugo, from his position, took exception to a check-swing call from Raul Ibanez (Hernandez ruled from third base that Ibanez didn't swing). If Lugo did anything other than yell out as a result of the call, the cameras didn't catch it. Manager Terry Francona was also thrown out by Hernandez after coming out to restrain Lugo. Alex Cora took over at shortstop."

MANNY RAMIREZ
"Manny Ramirez's 499th career homer was a three-run shot off Miguel Batista on Tuesday. Unfortunately, it was Boston's only offense of the night. Ramirez, who hadn't homered since May 12, also made a great play to throw out Adrian Beltre at third base in the loss."

BOBBY KIELTY
"Bobby Kielty went 0-for-2 with a walk Tuesday in the first game of a rehab assignment with Single-A Lancaster. Kielty is on Triple-A Pawtucket's disabled list after undergoing hand surgery a month ago."

The Clay Buchholz update I guess you could say is "bittersweet" in a sense that sure Buchholz could be missing some time in the bigs but his "replacement" (if you can even call him that) is pitching phenomenally. Colon is 2-0 in two starts since making his Red Sox debut. I'll take production like that any day. Buchholz was untouchable at Fenway but his numbers on the road were the exact opposite. Colon has won on the road and at home already in just the short amount of time he has donned the Red Sox uniform.

Since Matsuzaka seemed to have injured himself last night, or maybe he tweaked something in a previous start and just aggravated it worse last night, regardless Buchholz could be the man to take Daisuke's next start to give him some time to heal up.

For anyone that didn't see the game last night, the whole Lugo ejection situation was the most bizarre occurrence I have seen on a baseball diamond since the days of crazy Carl Everett. Raul Ibanez checks his swing, and the next thing you know the camera pans to Lugo flipping out and I'm reading his lips as he's screaming "I didn't do anything!" We later learned that Lugo got booted for arguing Raul Ibanez' check swing.

How a third base umpire could hear a short stop is beyond me but Terry Francona also got the boot in Lugo's defense. What I love most about Tito is that when he gets tossed, he will get right in the umpires face and scream every last word of what he has to say and when he's done he will turn and run back to the dugout the second he's done speaking his mind. He won't stick around for your side of the story, he just flips out and your face, pivot, dugout, end of story.

For some reason I just felt career home run number 499 on the exact pitch. I was talking to a few people during the game (two to be exact) and they all said the same. I guess our sixth sense is the ability to detect when Manny is going to smack a ball over the fence. Nevertheless, Ramirez tanked his 499th career home run to the opposite field last night and is now just one home run away from glory.

If Kielty can work his way back to the bigs, that will just be an added bonus that the Red Sox have even more options to go to in the outfield. Let's not forget that Brandon Moss is making quite the speedy recovery in the minors as well. Depth may be the theme of the 2008 Red Sox, and that is a good, good thing.

This is Jared Carrabis signing off saying,
"TWO MORE DAYS 'TIL BALTIMORE!"

5.27.08, 4:11 AM
Road Warriors?

Not So Much, But Sox Get The Win
Big Eighth Inning Snaps Road Losing Streak
Ortiz Homers For Second Straight Game
By: Jared Carrabis

5.24.08, 4:48 PM
Farewell Tavarez

Pro Jo: Tavarez Elects Free Agency
By: Jared Carrabis

Dear Julian Tavarez,

You weren't the most dominant Red Sox pitcher to ever put on the uniform but I'd be lying if I said you weren't one of the most entertaining to watch. You're up there with the crazies like Bill Lee, Jimmy Piersall and your bullpen buddy Jonathan Papelbon. From being a double play traffic cop to driving Kevin Youkilis crazy when you felt the need to bowl the ball to first base to record an out and who could forget that time you stepped off the rubber and sprinted over to second base to try and pick off a runner unassisted, I can say with complete confidence that we will never see another pitcher as unpredictable as you in our lifetime. Thank you for the entertainment, the memories and the Bellhorn home run off the pole in game one of the ’04 World Series. Best of luck wherever your career may take you and you will surely be missed, at least personality-wise.

-Jared Carrabis
5.22.08, 5:31 PM
Royal Flush

Sox Sweep The Royals Out Of Boston
Take All Seven At Home
By: Jared Carrabis

Sweep! Not just the four game series but the entire home stand. This being the first time the Red Sox have swept an entire home stand of seven games or more in two years. The Red Sox first welcomed the Brewers to Fenway Park only to sweep them back to the National League where they came from and then went on to take all four games from the Kansas City Royals in impressive fashion. Boston's pitching is on fire right now and if you need any proof of that just ask the Royals themselves.

The final game of the four game set saw major fireworks off the bats of the Red Sox. Down by one run in the bottom of the second, JD Drew connected with the bases loaded and sent a ball deep and over the Green Monster for his first home run since April 13th and his first grand slam since his memorable slam off of Fausto Carmona in game six of the American League Championship series this past October.

The slamming of the Royals would continue when Red Sox Nation saw shades of Troy O'Leary in the bottom of the sixth when Manny Ramirez received an intentional walk with first base open to bring Mike Lowell to the plate. Lowell knew what to do, he drove an 87 MPH cut fastball into the Monster seats for the second Red Sox grand slam of the evening. The first time the Red Sox would accomplish this feat since 2003 when Billy Mueller did all the dirty work himself when he hit a grand slam from both sides of the plate becoming the first player to do so.

I know this game sounds like it was a blowout but the Royals would not go quietly. Daisuke Matsuzaka was unable to be consistent in throwing strikes once again and tallied six walks on the evening. The walks would eventually lead to runs and those runs would allow the Royals to creep back into a game that was once 11-3 in Boston's favor. The Royals' final eight runs (home runs by Jose Guillen and Miguel Olivo) would have been enough to drop the Sox in any other game in the series but not today. The Red Sox plated eleven runs to bury the Royals and sweep their seven game home stand. The Sox will now pack their bags and head out west to face the Oakland Athletics and their league leading pitching staff.

5.21.08, 4:20 AM
He's Coming...

Bartolo Colon To Make Debut Wednesday Night
By: Jared Carrabis
5.19.08, 11:40 PM
No-Hitter!

Jon Lester No-Hits The Kansas City Royals
Records 18th No-Hitter In Red Sox History
First Red Sox Lefty To No-Hit a Team In 52 Years
By: Jared Carrabis
5.14.08, 9:17 PM
Bullpen Bust

Sox Let A Win Get Away
By: Jared Carrabis

It goes without saying that 2007 was a special season for the Red Sox. Not only because they won the World Series once again but the reason I was thinking of was because we as Red Sox fans didn’t have to endure the agony of grinding through losing streaks. If any there weren’t many and not only were there few of them but they did not last long if ever. The Red Sox find themselves streaking in the wrong direction yet again after dropping three of four to the Minnesota Twins and today capped a two game sweep courtesy of the Baltimore Orioles.

The past three losses in a row, Boston has got out to a 3-0 advantage early (mostly in the first inning) and then failed to score any runs from there as they relinquish the lead and then some. Wednesday’s loss was one of the most frustrating of the current losing streak for many reasons. Red Sox starter pitched well enough to win this game by pitching six solid innings giving up just two runs on five hits while striking out four.

Among the bizarre occurrences at Camden Yards would be that of the Red Sox not walking once all afternoon. Baltimore Orioles starter Daniel Cabrera led the league in walks last season with well over 100 free passes. To quote Dustin Pedroia from last season after a confrontation with right-hander, “The guy is an idiot. I was upset they took him out of the game. He is good to hit. He's 9-15. The guy sucks." To put it blatantly, yes. He is not that great of a pitcher. Most baseball enthusiasts would not even compliment this guy enough to even call him a pitcher, rather he could be called a “thrower”. I second that because this guy threw nothing but fastballs for seven straight innings.

Eventually the Red Sox were going to lock in on him and start driving the ball out of the yard. Jason Varitek nearly missed a home run to center in the top of the second inning and then made up for his near miss to the deepest part of the ballpark with a solo blast in the top of the fifth. Mike Lowell cranked his fourth of the season off Cabrera as well for a solo job to give the Red Sox a 3-0 advantage but for the third straight game, three runs would not be enough and three runs would be all Boston’s offense could provide.

The seventh inning would be where this game would be lost. Three pitchers would be used in the inning for Boston but the first to come on (Javier Lopez) is realistically the only one that doesn’t deserve some blame for the ending result. Lopez recorded the first two outs with ease on the first two batters to come to the plate. The third batter of the inning would start the trouble for the Red Sox. Freddie Bynum hit a groundball to Dustin Pedroia that he would have to play to his left. Pedroia couldn’t decide whether to play it on his feet or dive so the confusion resulted in Pedroia sliding to his left and not being able to make the play.

With a man on first, Brad Mills (filling in for Terry Francona) would motion to the bullpen for Craig Hansen. Guillermo Quiroz would greet Hansen with a single to right field bringing Brian Roberts to the plate. Roberts would work the count and then some. On the ninth pitch of the at bat, Hansen threw a 95 MPH fastball that missed off the outside corner by inches to load the bases and end Hansen’s night. Hideki Okajima would come on to relieve Craig Hansen to face former Red Sox outfielder, Jay Payton.

On the second pitch of the at bat, Payton launched an 85 MPH “fastball” high, deep and gone for a grand slam. Payton’s third home run of the season would ultimately be the devastating blow that the Red Sox would not be able to overcome. An inability to manufacture runs, two crucial blown calls by first base umpire Mike Winters and a grand slam off the bat by Jay Payton would create the perfect storm to sink the Red Sox ship.

Boston will take a very much needed day off on Thursday and head back to Boston for a three game set against Gabe Kapler and the Milwaukee Brewers. By then the Red Sox hope to have a healthy JD Drew, Coco Crisp and Julio Lugo.

On a side note, if you didn’t see Manny’s catch then you need to get to a TV immediately. Ramirez ran full sprint on a ball hit by Kevin Millar with his back to home plate, stuck his glove out in the air, caught the ball, climbed up the wall, high-fived a Red Sox fan in the front row, turned around and fired a strike to shortstop Alex Cora who then relayed the throw to first base to double off Aubrey Huff. I’ve never seen anything like it and it was by far the most amazing play I have ever seen in my life.
5.12.08, 4:09 PM
Farewell Julian

Herald: Sox Designate Tavarez For Assignment
Could Set Up Potential Trade With Colorado
By: Jared Carrabis
5.9.08, 12:09 PM
Mr. 1,000

Beckett Racks Up Career K Number 1,000
Sox Win 5-1, Take 3 Of 4
By: Jared Carrabis
5.8.08, 3:17 AM
Lugoh-No!

Lugo, Sox Drop A Wild One
By: Jared Carrabis

Tonight’s box score will hand the most dominant Red Sox closer in recent history a loss. But the question is, was it deserved? You be the judge. In a wild contest on Wednesday night that saw the Boston Red Sox come from four runs down on more than one occasion, the Detroit offense was just too feisty to handle. In a game that the Red Sox were just about ready to steal, an unfortunate (and bizarre) series of events in the bottom of the ninth inning took their potential sixth straight win right out from under them.

A power surge from both sides set the stage for a ninth inning comeback that had Red Sox Nation yelling at their television sets for sure. Statistically, Clay Buchholz is a far better pitcher at home than he is on the road and he would continue to follow that trend in the third game of this series. The Tigers attacked early and grabbed a 4-0 lead by putting a four-spot on the board against Buchholz in the bottom of the third. Kevin Youkilis was playing the role of Manny Ramirez on Wednesday night and hit his first of two home runs in the top of the fourth inning with Mike Lowell aboard to cut the Tiger’s lead in half.

However, the relentless Detroit offense would turn around in the bottom half of the inning and take a run right back on an RBI single by Magglio Ordonez. The Red Sox would get right back to work in an attempt to keep this game from getting out of hand by knocking in two runs of their own to keep pace with the big cats from Detroit. A sacrifice fly off the bat of Jed Lowrie and an RBI single by David Ortiz would contribute to Boston’s second consecutive two-run inning to make it a 5-4 ballgame.

But before the Sox could take a breath, the Tigers would compile three runs in the bottom of fifth to create yet another four run deficit. The never say die Boston Red Sox went back to work in the top of the sixth and got a run back thanks to the second home run of the night courtesy of Kevin Youkilis.

Detroit rookie Armando Galarraga (pronounced Gah-Lah-Rah-Gah, say that ten times fast. After about three times it’ll just sound like you’re gargling) would give up five runs and make his exit after five and a third. Clay Buchholz would last a mere four innings and Julian Tavarez surrendered those three runs in just one inning but the Boston bullpen would actually trot out some real relief in the form of David Aardsma. Aardsma blanked the Tigers in the bottom of the sixth to give Boston the chance to play catch up and catch up they did.

In the top of the seventh inning, Jacoby got things going with a single to lead off the inning and he swiped his lucky number thirteenth bag of the season to put a man in scoring position for Jed Lowrie. Lowrie got the start to at second base to give Dustin Pedroia the night off but we’ll get to him later. Lowrie would ground out and David Ortiz would follow with a groundout of his own but the inning would stay alive for Mike Lowell thanks to a walk to Manny Ramirez to put two men on. With the chance to tie the game, Mike Lowell cranked a 2-1 fastball high, deep and gone to knot up the game at eight runs a piece.

The Red Sox were thinking comeback and they were hungry for the win. JD Drew began the eighth inning with a walk and the bases would continue to fill when Julio Lugo drew a walk with one down. Ellsbury would strikeout to bring 0 for 3 Jed Lowrie to the plate with a runner in scoring position. Francona would wisely call for Dustin Pedroia to pinch hit in his place. Pedroia would hammer a 3-2 fastball through the left side to bring Drew around from second to give Boston their first lead of the night. Hideki Okajima would continue the lights out relief out of the Red Sox bullpen by blanking the Tigers in the bottom half of the eighth. Boston would fail to score in the top of the ninth and put a goose egg on the board for the first time since the third inning.

Manager Terry Francona would motion to the bullpen for the closer, Jonathan Papelbon. Papelbon felt good and he felt that his stuff was working but sometimes baseball can be very unpredictable. Matthew Joyce began the inning with a check swing that acted as a bunt single to put the lead runner on for Detroit. Edgar Renteria dug in against Papelbon and rolled a grounder out to Julio Lugo. Lugo would rush in an attempt to turn the double play and in turn would boot the ball and get no outs. "I thought I had a chance to go to second, and I was trying to be aggressive with one out and get the lead runner" Lugo said.

Pudge Rodriguez would square his bat and lay down a textbook bunt to move both runners into scoring position with just one out. Curtis Granderson would get his job done and ground out to Dustin Pedroia but in from third came the tying run and Papelbon’s first blown save of the season came with it. Here’s where you the reader play manager. Placido Polanco comes to the plate, he entered the game hitting at a weak .238. Here’s the catch, he’s 4 for 5 and the winning run is just 90 feet away. Do you pitch to him? I mean his run doesn’t really matter at this point so why risk it? Carlos Guillen was on deck and 2 for 5 on the night hitting .315 so it was a “pick your poison” situation for sure.

Francona elected to pitch to Polanco and on a 3-2 pitch, he shattered his bat and blooped his fifth hit of the night just over the outstretched glove of Julio Lugo and Renteria came into score, game over. A crushing loss indeed. The two teams combined for 19 runs on 30 hits during the nine innings of back and forth baseball. Not as crushing knowing that Josh Beckett will be on the hill for the series finale with the chance to take three games out of four against the Tigers.

-Jared Carrabis

4.29.08, 11:01 PM
YOUUUUK!!

Lester Pitches A Gem, Youkilis Walks Off
By: Jared Carrabis

Pitching, pitching, pitching. The Red Sox have finally ended their five-game losing streak and it had everything to do with pitching and some late-inning clutch defense and hitting. Jon Lester got the start against the iron man of pitching (no disrespect to Mr. Ripken Jr.), Roy Halladay. When Halladay gets the ball, it is almost expected that he is to pitch a complete game or at least into the ninth inning. The Toronto ace attacks the strike zone with strikes and makes the opposition swing early and often. Jon Lester was up for the challenge and answered the call.

The first game of three to be played at Fenway Park between the Red Sox and the Blue Jays was one to remember. Fans, if you were there, save your stubs. Tuesday night saw one of the best pitching duels at Fenway Park in recent memory. Jon Lester and Roy Halladay both shut down the respective offenses through eight innings. Both starters held shut outs through eight complete innings of work.

Jon Lester flirted with a no-hit bid and actually could have had one if Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia was a little bit taller. Leading off the second inning, Blue Jay’s first baseman Lyle Overbay lined a single over the head of Pedroia and that would be the only blemish (if you can even consider that a blemish) on Lester’s outing. When the books were closed on Lester he would leave the game having thrown eight innings, giving up zero runs on just that one hit while striking out six. Lester would throw 97 pitches on the night, 58 for strikes. The walk total (4) would be a little high for Lester’s liking but would prove to be no harm at all.

Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon entered the game in the top of the ninth to preserve the 0-0 tie to give his team a chance to win it in the bottom half of the inning. Coincidentally, it wouldn’t be Papelbon that was doing the saving around here. With two out (two K’s) and Scott Rolen on second after his third double of the season, Vernon Wells ripped a 97 MPH fastball back up the middle. Dustin Pedroia, knowing without a doubt that Rolen would score on this hit, laid out and made the stab at the blazing groundball and gloved it while it was already passed him. Pedroia was quick to his feet and threw a bullet to first to conclude the inning and save the 0-0 tie.

Roy Halladay entered the bottom of the ninth inning having thrown three complete games in a row (two for losses) and wasn’t leaving until he collected another. The Toroto bullpen was motionless as the top of the Red Sox lineup was set to bat against Roy Halladay. It looked like this one was heading for extras as Coco Crisp led off the inning with a fly out to center and Pedroia followed the fly out with a pop out to third baseman Scott Rolen.

David Ortiz watched the first two pitches of his at bat miss for balls and on the 2-0 count he cranked a ball well deep enough to be a booming home run but he was way out in front of it and drove it foul. Ortiz would work the walk and bring Manny Ramirez to the plate. Ramirez hacked away at the first strike he saw and singled to center to put two men on for Kevin Youkilis. Youkilis, who was 1 for 3 heading into the at bat, lined a 94 MPH 1-0 fastball into center field. Ortiz would be waved around as Red Sox fan were anticipating a close play at the plate due to the lack of speed that Ortiz possesses. The line drive would skip it’s way out to Vernon Wells only to be bobbled by the center fielder and Ortiz would score standing up, Red Sox win it.

The Red Sox gain a win but in the process lose JD Drew (quad). JD Drew left the game in the fourth inning due to a quad injury. The replay didn’t show the injury to be too severe, but it was enough to remove Drew from the game. 6 moves, 12 player transactions in the past week and with the Red Sox trying to avoid yet another, cautiously sat Drew for the remainder of the contest. Ellsbury did not get the start tonight due to a strained groin. His injury is reported to not be serious, the Red Sox are just being cautious with him as well to prevent his injury from ultimately becoming serious.

On a side note, Mike Lowell (0 for 3) made his return to the Red Sox lineup on Tuesday night. Although he didn’t collect a hit, he did look sharp on defense and it’s always difficult to readjust to big league pitching (especially when your first night is against Roy Halladay).

The middle game of this series will feature Dustin McGowan squaring off with the unbeaten, Daisuke Matsuzaka. McGowan is coming off in ugly start in which he walked a whopping seven batters and lasted just four innings giving up five runs (four earned) on four hits. Matsuzaka will be making his attempt at going 5-0 once again, his last start was scratched due to the flu. On the downside, Matsuzaka has yet to pitch seven innings this season but on a positive side he has a 3-1 record against the Blue Jays.
4.26.08, 11:10 PM
Sox Frustrations Continue

Eighth Inning Home Run Sinks Sox
By: Jared Carrabis

Late in the eighth inning with two outs, Clay Buchholz was defining what dominance on the mound was all about. Buchholz held the Rays hitless until a fourth inning double broke up that string and he then went on to hold the Rays hitless until the eighth inning. Having let up just one hit through eight and a third innings, with Dioner Navarro standing at first, Clay Buchholz made one of very few mistakes that he would make on Saturday night.

With his pitch count up over 100 pitches, Buchholz threw a breaking ball to Akinori Iwamura that the Japanese born infielder launched deep into the right field corner. For some reason Iwamura proceeded to pose and drop his bat like he was David Ortiz or something (calm down buddy, it was your first home run of the season and you only hit seven last year).

That one home run spoiled a masterful outing by Buchholz in which he threw eight astounding innings of work that saw him strike out a career high nine batters (his last time he struck out nine was his no-hitter last season). Buchholz gave up just the two runs that crossed home plate after the Iwamura home run on three hits and walked two. Buchholz baffled the Tampa Bay Ray’s offense for the entire game leading up to the home run that buried the Sox in the late innings.

This loss is not to be pinned on that of manager Terry Francona for leaving Buchholz in long after the 100-pitch barrier because the pitches being thrown by Buchholz were still very much alive. His fastball was still 91-93, his breaking pitch was still biting as hard as it always does and his change was still throwing the Rays off guard. Buchholz would be tagged with the loss in this one but it was certainly not deserved.

The Boston offense could only muster one run the entire game. Given they are facing an all new Tampa Bay team that has now proved their point that they command respect and are not to be underestimated in the AL East, the Red Sox still have one of the top offenses in the game. Nine times out of ten, one run isn’t going to get the job done. The one run crossed home plate when Coco Crisp lined a single into right field. Crisp would turn on the jets and advance from first all the way to third on a wild pitch by Edwin Jackson and then score on an infield single off the bat of Jacoby Ellsbury.

That one run would prove to not be enough when the Red Sox would go one-two-three in the top half of the ninth and fall to the Rays for the second time in as many nights and continue their losing streak which has now reached four straight losses. It seems as though each loss is more frustrating than the next as the Red Sox lost in the eleventh inning of Friday night’s contest and on the next night they get a masterful outing by their rookie starter only to see it mean nothing after one swing late in the game.

The Red Sox will hand the ball to their ace, Josh Beckett, for the season finale in hopes to salvage the series. Josh Beckett has a career record of 3-2 with a 4.26 ERA in five starts against Tampa Bay. He holds a 1-1 record with a 2.77 ERA at the Trop.
4.20.08, 5:45 AM
Super Manny
Ortiz Ties It, Manny Wins It, That's All She Wrote
By: Jared Carrabis

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! Nah, it’s just Super Manny saving the Red Sox from losing a one-run game…again. Is there anything this guy can’t do? What’s even scarier is that he is one of the most feared postseason hitters in the history of the game. He’s no April hero/October zero like some divisional opponents we may be familiar with. This guy does it all year round and that is why he will go down as one of the most consistent hitters of all time. But before we talk about his retirement, I believe he has a few more home runs he wants to hit before he stamps his ticket to Cooperstown.

Jon Lester took the mound looking to improve on his last start at Cleveland, which saw the southpaw go just four and a third innings giving up four runs on five hits. The lefty out of Tacoma, Washington took the mound in the first and it looked as if though we would be seeing more of the same. Lester, who usually keeps the ball in the yard against left-handed hitters, delivered a 1-1- pitch to Josh Hamilton (26 tattoos and all) that would eventually land in the monster seats giving Texas the early 1-0 lead.

With the help of a little textbook small ball in the bottom of the first, the Rangers lead would be short lived. Ellsbury, who seems to be finding his comfort zone in the leadoff spot, had a perfect at bat for a leadoff hitter. He made starter Jason Jennings throw some pitches by working the count full and then capitalizing on the sixth pitch by driving a double out to left-center. The small ball would kick in with second baseman Dustin Pedroia dropping down the sac bunt moving Ellsbury to third and a rushed throw by Jennings would result in Texas first baseman Jason Botts not being able to scoop the throw. An error would be charged to Botts and the Red Sox would have runners at the corners for the recently awaken sleeping giant, David Ortiz.

Big Papi would work the count to his liking and on a 3-1 pitch Ortiz grounded into a 4-6-3 double play. But in to score from third would be Ellsbury, no RBI for Ortiz. Manny Ramirez would follow up with a walk to bring up the man with the highest batting average on the club, Kevin Youkilis. Youk, who recently has been driving the ball to the opposite field, added another right-center gap shot to his resume. Ramirez would come all the way around from first to score as Youkilis would stand at second with his seventh double of the season.

The Rangers would get a run back to tie up the score when former Red Sox farm-hand David Murphy doubled to center with one out only to be knocked in by a single back up the middle by Adam Melhuse. Lester would run into some trouble in the top half of the third that he would eventually pitch his way out of to stop the bleeding. With one out, Josh Hamilton ripped a single to right and one batter later, Hank Blalock would crank a fastball offering out to center to put two men on. Jason Botts continued his hitting with his second double of the season out to left to score Hamilton from second to give the lead back to Texas, 3-2.

The score would stand at 3-2 up until the rally inning of the night came about for the Boston offense. In the bottom of the eighth inning with one away, Dustin Pedroia smacked his sixth double of the season out to center field to put him in scoring position for the recently revived David Ortiz. Ortiz would deliver with a ball that he smoked back up the middle only to be knocked down by the dive of Ian Kinsler. The stop would do the Rangers no good as Ortiz would reach at first with no throw and Pedroia would cross home plate standing up to tie the game at three.

Looking to send the Boston fans home happy knowing that Mr. Automatic (Jonathan Papelbon) was warming in the bullpen for the top of the ninth, the hottest hitter on the face of the planet got a chance to alter the score in his team’s favor. The boys at the Boston Herald did some research and found that in 2007 Manny Ramirez hit .160 (9 for 59) with a disappointing 5 RBI in the sixth inning or later in a clutch situation (when his team was either tied or trailing by one or two runs). 2008 has seen the emergence of a new Manny Ramirez. Quite frankly a Manny Ramirez that doesn’t care what the score is, what the situation is, or who the Red Sox are playing. This is a Manny Ramirez that if you throw a pitch anywhere near the strike zone he is going to hit it and he is going to hit it hard.

Ramirez took a fastball called strike to start off the at bat and the second pitch being a changeup did not throw off his timing one bit has he bombed his sixth home run of the season and career home run number 496 high over the monster to put the Red Sox ahead 5-3. Following Friday night’s rocket, Ramirez is now 7 for 12 with 10 RBI when his team was either tied or trailing by one or two runs after the sixth inning.

Stunned by losing the lead yet again, the Rangers would put up no noticeable fight in the top of the ninth and would go quietly handing Jonathan Papelbon his sixth save of the season (same amount of saves as Eric Gagne, pick up the pace Pap!) The Red Sox steal a big one at the Fens to take their second straight victory over the Texas Rangers and their third straight victory overall.

-Jared Carrabis
4.18.08, 10:35 PM
Pac 10 Pounding

Ortiz, Young Guns, Dominate Rangers
By: Jared Carrabis

An offensive explosion at the hands of the Boston Red Sox had the Texas Rangers waiving the white flag from the tops of the Alamo before this game even became an official Major League game. The power surge that began in the third inning and ended after a barrage of walks, singles, doubles, triples, home runs and grand slams later in the fourth inning. The Texas Rangers broke the scoring barrier first in this one by Ian Kinsler doubling to center and then swiping his sixth bag of the season to put him 90 feet from home plate. Josh Hamilton would collect his sixteenth RBI of the season by hitting a sacrifice fly to left.

Boston would respond in the bottom half and they would respond in a big way. With two outs in the inning, the Pac 10 part of the Red Sox line up would get things going against the Rangers. In the bottom of the third, Jed Lowrie (Standford) would break up a string of eight straight batters being retired by Texas starter Luis Mendoza by doubling to the opposite field. Jacoby Ellsbury (Oregon State) would follow up with a four-pitch walk to put two men on for Dustin Pedroia (Arizona State). Pedroia would follow suit and work a walk of his own to load the bases for the recently slumping, David Ortiz. Ortiz would respond to his critics by saying “slump this” when he would drive the first pitch he saw into the Monster seats for a grand slam.

Ortiz would be greeted at home plate by the three former Pac 10 superstars now all fighting for the same cause for the Boston Red Sox. The Sox would continue to showcase their hot bats the very next inning. JD Drew would show his plate patience and leadoff the inning with a walk. A visit to the mound to calm down Mendoza would prove to be ineffective as Jason Varitek would double off the wall in left and David Murphy’s inexperience with playing with the ball behind him would show as instead of playing the ball off the wall he let it scrape off and misplay the ball as it bounced off and away from the left fielder. JD Drew would come all the way around from first as the captain cruised into second with a stand-up double.

The very next batter, Sean Casey, ripped a hard line drive to right field to put runners at the corners for Jed Lowrie. Rangers manager, Ron Washington, had seen enough at that point and came out to give Luis Mendoza the hook. In to replace Mendoza was the right-hander Josh Rupe. Lowrie would contribute once again when he hit a sac fly to left as Jason Varitek would score standing up. The pride of Oregon State, Jacoby Ellsbury, would keep the flexing of the Pac 10 Red Sox muscle going by cranking an RBI triple to center to extend Boston’s lead even further. The Pac 10 crew would continue to make their presence felt when Dustin Pedroia teed off on Rupe to send a ball way back into the monster seats for his first home run of the season to give the Sox the 9-1 advantage.

Daisuke Matsuzaka would contribute with a decent outing but decent enough to account for a win. Matsuzaka would hold the Rangers to just one run up until the top of the sixth. With one out Milton Bradley scorched a double to right to set up Hank Blalock for a two-run home run sent out into the Texas bullpen and that would be the night for Daisuke. Matzuaka went five and a third giving up three runs on three hits with four strikeouts and issued two walks. The Red Sox bullpen would come on to do a nice job and keep the Rangers bats quiet for the remainder of the night. Javier Lopez threw an inning and two thirds scoreless and David Aardsma put in his inning of shutout baseball. Aardsma is quietly but consistently pitching very well for Boston with a 1.64 ERA.

The Sox pounded on some more runs in the bottom of the eighth just for good measure. It’s hard to believe that Sean Casey is a “back-up” for the Red Sox but you wouldn’t be able to tell by looking at his stats. Casey led off the inning with a double to left. With one out, Jacoby Ellsbury would walk for the third time on the night to put two men on. With two outs Ortiz would come to the plate looking to bury his slump even further. David Ortiz (2 for 4, 5 RBI) came back and he came back in a big way on Friday night. He lined a single in to right-center to bring Casey around from second. The throw to the cutoff was bobbled and Ellsbury’s speed was unable to be contained as he took advantage of the mistake and came around to score.

With an eight run cushion, Francona would motion to the pen for Mike Timlin in hopes that with less pressure he could return to form. Timlin would conclude the blow-out with a one-two-three inning. With the help of a huge night from Big Papi and the youth of the Boston Red Sox, the boys from Boston cruised to an 11-3 victory to open up a four game set against the Rangers at the Fens.

-Jared Carrabis
4.17.08, 11:31 PM
Boston Gets Last Laugh

Manny Powers Sox To Victory, Again
By: Jared Carrabis

Sometimes the deals you don’t make are the best deals you make. I’m going to take you back to a time long before Theo Espstein wore the General Manager crown in Boston. We’re going back to the era in which Dan Duquette made the moves for the old towne team. Back in 2001, Major League Baseball had an off season that saw premier pitching and offense hit the free agent market. With both the Red Sox and the Yankees looking to contend (big surprise) they both had eyes on the ace of the Baltimore Orioles staff, Mike Mussina.

Dan Duquette’s offseason target he had first on his acquisition list was none other than the right-hander, Mike Mussina. Although he had a losing record of 11-15, he did however lead the majors in innings pitched (237.2) and posted an ERA of 3.79 with over 200 strikeouts (210). The Yankees would be the higher aggressor of the two clubs and go on to sign Mussina to a 6-year, $88.5 million contract on November 30, 2000.

Oh well, I guess that means that the Red Sox would just have to “settle” for Manny Ramirez. On December 12, 2000, the Boston Red Sox would announce that Manny Ramirez agreed to an 8-year $160 million contract after being the Cleveland Indians outfielder for the past eight seasons. Seven years later, the stage was set in the Bronx for the two to square off wearing the uniforms that they both now nationally known for playing for the teams those jerseys represented.

In the top of the second inning, Mike Mussina would stare into the catchers mit with Manny Ramirez looming over home plate. Ramirez waited patiently as the first three pitches would miss the strike zone. Taking all the way on 3-0 he took a called strike, now he was set. The next pitch would leave Mussina’s hand and not touch the ground again until it was on the outside walls of Yankee Stadium. With a point to the sky rounding first base, it was 1-0 Red Sox.

Mussina wouldn’t get the chance to catch his breath before he looked up again only to see Manny Ramirez digging in at home plate the very next inning. Having scored one run already in the inning thanks to an RBI single by Dustin Pedroia to score Jacoby Ellsbury who had a wild trip around the bases (hit by pitch, stole second, advanced on throwing error). Ramirez (one of the best two strike hitters the game has ever seen) hammered a 2-2 pitch from Mussina way, way back into deep left field. Jason Varitek would go on to knock in a run of his own in the inning to bring the run total in the top of the third to four, giving Boston a 5-0 lead.

Mussina would last just three innings, so Manny Ramirez had to feast on the pitching of another pinstriped enemy, Jonathan Albaladejo. With one out, Ramirez ripped a single to left to start the inning off. Kevin Youkilis would follow with a single of his own to put two on with one out. JD Drew (2 for 4, 2 RBI) cranked a double to right to bring both Ramirez and Youkilis home to increase the Red Sox lead to 7-0.

Tonight, Josh Beckett was…well, he was Josh Beckett. The hard throwing Texan has established himself as a certified Yankee killer over the past six seasons or so and he would continue the trend on Thursday night. Ask and you shall receive, Boston finally got a starter to give the team seven-plus solid innings by holding the Bronx Bombers at bay over eight innings pitched. Beckett would run into some trouble in the bottom of the fifth when the Yankees managed to grab three runs off of him, but that would be all. He regained form and baffled the New York offense the rest of the way racking up six strikeouts over his eight innings pitched giving up just six hits and walking one.

I take you now to the top of the seventh. I’ve heard this question time and time again and the question is: “Why don’t the teams shake hands at the end of the game like in Little League?” The answer? Because of tough guys like Kyle Farnsworth. Kyle Farnsworth took his atrocious 4.91 ERA (as a reliever) to the mound with him to face the red hot Manny Ramirez. In his world, if you can’t beat ‘em, try to ruin the rest of their potential Hall of Fame career by throwing a fast ball dangerously close to their face. Right? Wrong. (wait ‘til July buddy.) The first pitch Manny Ramirez saw was a fastball in the high 90’s (of course he missed him) behind his head. Warnings were issued to both sides as the camera panned to Josh Beckett in the dugout who proceeded to nod his head in a sense of saying “Alright, if that’s how you want to play, then that’s how we’ll play.”

If Beckett were to retaliate we would have been ejected and subject to a sure suspension, so he kept a level head and went on to shut down the Yankees for the remainder of his outing instead. However, don’t think that that the Boston ace will be forgetting that purpose pitch anytime soon, like I said…wait until the next series in July.

With a four run lead in the bottom of the ninth, Jonathan Papelbon who was in need of some work was called upon to close the door on the Yankees with a comfortable four-run lead. The comfortable lead would soon become not so comfortable as Papelbon would surrender his first (and second) run in Yankee Stadium for his career. A double (Posada) and a wild pitch would put a man at third and a ground out off the bat of Robinson Cano would bring in run number one. The second run would cross home via the home run courtesy of Melky Cabrera. Papelbon wouldn’t let things get too out of hand as he buckled down to record the final out by way of the K.

Boston would take this wild one by a score of 7-5. The Red Sox will welcome familiar faces David Murphy and Kason Gabbard of the Texas Rangers to Fenway Park for a four-game set. Game one will see the likes of Luis Mendoza (0-1, 1.80 ERA) opposing the red hot Daisuke Matsuzaka (3-0, 2.70 ERA).

-Jared Carrabis
4.17.08, 1:04 PM
Sloppy Slugfest

Sox Drop An Ugly One, 15-9
By: Jared Carrabis

The lights shined brightly upon two teams, two teams that just so happen to be the biggest rivals in the game for decades. The two teams squared off at the legendary Yankee Stadium for one of their final series to be played in the stadium that first opened its gates back on April 18, 1923. Their first of nine games to be played against each other in Yankee Stadium’s final season was nothing short of an old fashion Red Sox/Yankees slugfest. With Clay Buchholz not yet finding his form in 2008 and the Red Sox catching Chien-Ming Wang on an off day, this was a firework show of offensive ability from start to finish.

The Boston bats would get things rolling right away in the top of the first when Dustin Pedroia was standing at second base (thanks to a walk and a groundout by David Ortiz) and up came one of the greatest RBI machines that the game has yet to see, Manny Ramirez. Manny drove a 1-0 fastball out to deep left that looked like it had a chance off the bat. The ball carried and one-hopped the wall easily scoring Pedroia as Ramirez cruised into second with a double to put Boston out in front early, one-zip.

The heart of the Yankee order would respond in a big way when the Yankee captain, Derek Jeter, would get things going with a one out single. Bobby Abreu would then wait patiently after three pickoff attempts to see a decent pitch and when he did it was a no doubter. Surely Buchholz should have been paying more attention to the great hitter at the plate rather than the threat of a steal this early in the game. New York would take back the lead 2-1 and then came the reigning American League MVP to the plate. It’s amazing how easy this guy makes hitting big league pitching look, but he does it day in and day out (unless the calendar reads “October”). A-Rod crushed a 1-1 pitch to deep left field and it would land in the glove of a member of the Red Sox. Unfortunately, that member of the Red Sox was Julian Tavarez and he was standing in the Red Sox bullpen.

The Yankees tattooed Buchholz for back-to-back home runs (but still not revenge enough for the four in a row from last season. Poor Chase Wright is still recovering from the whiplash from those big flies) to take the lead. The Sox would gain a run back with a bases loaded groundout off the bat of Julio Lugo in the top of the second. The captain helped out in a big way in the top of the fourth when he ripped a line drive off the extended glove of Jason Giambi deflecting the ball into right field. Abreu fielded the ball very lazily being sure that Tek would not advance on the play and Tek took notice as he hustled out of the box and never looked up until he slid into second safely with a double. The captain’s efforts would be rewarded on the next play when Sean Casey would single to center to allow the captain to touch home.

Buchholz would go on to silence the Yankee bats by retiring the next eight out of nine batters he would face following the back-to-back jacks. Buchholz would later run into trouble in the fourth inning when the Yankees would grab four runs on four hits to take a 7-3 lead now with Julian Tavarez on the mound. A game that had seemed to have reached it’s offensive peak would be far from over for both sides. The Red Sox and the Yankees would combine to score a total of ten runs in the fifth inning as Boston put a crooked number on the board in the top half by scoring six runs when they started the inning with five straight hits. A total of seven hits and a walk would result in six Red Sox touching home in the inning.

Once again, the Yankees would not go quietly. This once entertaining slugfest would go on to get ugly as the Bronx Bombers lit up the Boston bullpen for four runs in the bottom of the fifth and the bottom of the eighth. Tavarez would pitch an inning and a third giving up four runs (three earned) on three hits with two walks. The middle man out of the pen, David Aardsma would look to be the savior of this game giving the Sox a chance to come back when he threw two shutout innings giving up just two hits. Boston’s offense suffered at the top of the order with Jacoby Ellsbury (0 for 5) not being able to set the table for the big bats. Coco Crisp got the night off due to soreness in his hamstrings and lately he has been tearing the cover off the ball.

The Red Sox offense would also suffer the loss of Kevin Youkilis when in the sixth inning he fouled a ball off of his foot. He would stay in the game only to have been replaced by Jed Lowrie in the later innings, the X-rays would later come out negative. Mike Timlin would throw the last inning (and I said throw, not pitch) of this one and once again he did not look like the Mike Timlin of old. He just hasn’t been the same since he has returned from the 15-day DL and it showed once again as he surrendered four earned runs on three hits and two walks raising his ERA now to 27.00.

This will certainly be a game that the Sox will look to forget as they drop this one by a score of 15-9. On a good note, the usual suspects are still whacking everything that comes near them. Manny

Music:

John Fogerty
Centerfield

Neil Diamond
Sweet Caroline

The Standells
Dirty Water

The Drop Kick Murphys
Tessie

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Television:

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