SMALL BALL COMES UP BIG FOR SOX

So Coco Crisp didn't start tonight because he jammed a finger last night sliding into a base. Adam Stern, a.k.a. Mr. Canada, started in his spot. It worked out rather nicely.

Wakefield rebounded from an atrocious start and had a really solid outing. He went 6 innings allowing only 1 run that was somewhat of a strange run. In the bottom of the 1st, Newhan reached on an error by Mark Loretta. Newhan advanced to 2nd via the stolen base. He moved to third when he tagged up then scored on a Tejada single. That would be it for the Baltimore run scoring.

Wake struggled at the outset of the 6th inning but he settled down big time, striking out the side with runners on the corners and no outs. A key for Wakefield was that he threw strikes. Of the 93 pitches he threw, 63 were strikes.

Josh Bard also had a good game behind the plate and at the plate. No passed balls and a 1 for 4, scoring a pair of runs.

Stern was the big offensive hero, going 2 for 5 with a pair of RBI singles, one in the 5th and one in the 6th. He also had a good day in the field.

The Red Sox scraped their runs together in the 5th very nicely. Last season, we were all about the big inning and the long ball. It was nice to see that we can eke out runs as well.

J.T. Snow led off the inning with a long single off the wall in right. Snow had a good day going 2 for 3 and walking. He also recorded the final out with a snow cone catch of a foul pop. Josh Bard hit a single behind Snow. With runners on 1st and 2nd, and the Sox down by 1, Alex Gonzalez sacrifice bunted moving both runners into scoring position. Stern then knocked in Snow. Loretta scorched a liner right at the second baseman Chris Gomez. Stern was caught off the bag but Gomez threw the ball away allowing Bard to score and the inning to continue.

The Red Sox never hit anything other than a single, but it was enough.

Timlin didn't look all that sharp in the 8th, allowing a single, throwing a wild pitch, and then walking Millar, but he was able to get out of it by inducing Ramon Hernandez to ground out.

Foulke came into the game to pitch the 8th. This was the first time he has been used in a really meaningful situation. He did very well, retiring the side in order with 12 pitches, 9 for strikes. He got the first two betters with strikeouts, then Newhan lined out to Snow to end the inning. He looked real sharp.

Papelbon did not look as sharp as he has looked. Perhaps it was adjusting to a different catcher, and perhaps it was pitching two days in a row. He was only a closer very sparingly in the minors with Pawtucket. He fell behind hitters, allowed a leadoff double, a long fly out to center, then hit Tejada with a pitch. He was able to get out of the inning with a pair of pop outs and the game was over with the Red Sox on top 4-1.

The Sox improve to 5-1 going into the home opener on Tuesday. Josh Towers will go against Josh Beckett.

The Man of the Game is Keith Foulke. He looked better than anyone else out there on the mound or at the plate. I know it was only a Hold, and it was against the 8, 9, and 1 hitters, but he looked spectacular, getting guys out with the fastball and the changeup.

BC JUST A FEW INCHES SHY OF TITLE

This game was a great game. This game was a fair game. This game was a physical game. This game was a close game.

I've often derided Boston College for their unique ability to blow the big game that should be won. Their loss to Syracuse 2 years ago in football. Their loss to Villanova in the tournament a few weeks ago after leading by 16. Their inability to achieve levels of greatness that should be achieved. However, last night, Boston College capped off a season in which they rose above what they should be with a very close 2-1 loss to Wisconsin in Milwaukee.

Boston College wasn't supposed to contend in the Hockey East or the NCAAs when the season began. But this team gelled, soared through the Hockey East tournament after a near loss to Vermont, and rolled through the NCAAs until coming up against a powerhouse in Wisconsin.

Wisconsin was simply the better team. You gotta give them credit. BC has a hell of a season and next year looks to be even better. I think they'll win it all next year.

SCHILLING!!!!!!

This is the second time the Sox have come out on top of a 2-1 game. Both times, we probably would have lost the game with last year's team.

Schilling was thrilling once again. Seven innings, 3 hits, 4 Ks, 1 earned run. Exactly what we need from Curt to go far this season.

Schilling was followed by Timlin in the 8th and Papelbon in the 9th. Mike got his 2nd Hold and Papelbon got his 2nd Save. He looks really, really, REALLY good coming into the game late.

The two big hits were Youkilis's RBI single and Varitek's RBI double. Tek had a really good game at the plate with a pair of doubles.

Isn't it nice to be able to win 14-8 on one night then win 2-1 on the next night? Versatility! That's what the 2004 team was built on. Win the slugfests AND the pitching duels. That's what we failed to do last season and so far it is what we have succeeded in doing this season.

The Man of the Game is Curt Schilling who pitched 7 innings allowing only one run. He won us the game, basically. An honorable mention goes to Papelbon for his 2nd perfect inning as a closer.

THE PATS NEED DEFENSIVE BACKS RIGHT?

How about Brigid Mullen? She's a student at Wisconsin and a Free Safety for the Women's Professional Football League. Bellichick likes players with versatility. Not only is Brigid a Safety, she also is a bartender, which means she can serve drinks at half-time up in the club seating section. She also spent 3 years in the Air Force ROTC flying T-37s which means she can do the fly over before games. She also works at Wisconsin's library so she can help Bellichick and the coaching staff organize their scouting reports.

Here's her story.

And here's what she looks like:



She's also a model.

SOX WALK AWAY WITH WIN

Fourteen times last night, the Red Sox were given first base by Orioles pitchers. Fourteen! Every starter in the Red Sox lineup got a free pass. Compare that to the one walk Red Sox pitchers allowed.

The funny thing is, the Red Sox probably didn't score as many runs as they should have. They walked 14 times and accumulated 16 hits but only scored 14 times. They grounded into 4 double plays and left 14 men on, including 6 left in scoring position. They easily could have put up 20 runs last night. The 14 was enough, though.

This game was over in the top of the 1st when Daniel Cabrera couldn't throw a strike. Six walks in the first inning alone. The Sox put up 4 in the first then 3 in the 2nd. This allowed Clement to cruise. The Red Sox would eventually double their run total off of Baltimore's weakest pitchers put in the game to mop up. The Red Sox would give up 8, but they were junk runs.

Clement looked really sharp for the first few innings. The Orioles were able to string a couple of hits together and eventually wind up scoring 4. Then the Sox added 3 runs for insurance. Then Seanez came in and looked like he did in Spring Training, giving up another 4. Foulke came in for the 9th and looked solid, allowing a single hit and inducing a game ending double play.

Coco Crisp had another good game, going 2 for 6 and reaching base 3 out of 7 plate appearances. He scored twice. Loretta had a great game, going 2 for 3 with a double, walking twice, and scoring twice. The Red Sox 1, 2 hitters reached base 7 out of 12 appearances.

Ortiz and Varitek were the only starting Sox to go hitless, but Ortiz managed to work 2 walks and score a run. Tek also walked twice, including one with the bases juiced for an RBI.

Manny exploded with a 3 for 4, 2 RBI, 3 run outing. His walk in the first inning with the bases loaded constituted his first RBI of the season. Lowell had a good day with a double, a single, and 2 RBI. J.T. snow came in and went 1 for 1. He also made a great Web Gem out in the field on a hot ground shot down the first base line. Alex Cora was another replacement that did well, he went 1 for 1 with a with a 2 run double.

Youkilis had a great night in the 8th spot in the lineup going 3 for 3 and knocking in a pair. Even Gonzalez contributed with a double and a walk.

The Man of the Game is Christopher Trotman Nixon who went 2 for 4 with a 2 run homer, a double, 4 RBI, 2 walks, and 2 runs scored.

This was a perfect game for Keith Foulke to pitch in. He didn't have to pitch much, facing the minimum 3 batters i n1 inning. He threw 10 pitches, 9 of which were strikes. I think the Sox should gradually increase the importance of situations in which Foulke enters games. Hopefully, he'll progress smoothely and he will once again be an option at closer.

Rudy Seanez did not look good all Spring and he looked terrible tonigh. I know it is hard for a pitcher to focus 100% inheriting such a huge lead in a game that is all but decided, but he may be pitching for his job here. There are a great deal of players down in Pawtucket and up in Portland who would love to have his roster spot.

Speaking of the minors, David Wells made a rehab start for the PawSox last night. The good news is that Boomer threw 92 pitches and felt physically fine. The bad news is that he allowed 7 runs in 5 innings, including runs off of two homers and two doubles. Overall, I guess the news from the start is good. Wells appears to be healthy. If he's healthy, that's half the equation for him. The other half is does he still have enough gas in the tank to be succesful.

Here's a tough question. Had Maryland women's basketball coach Brenda Frese remained on the mound after throwing the first pitch, would she have thrown more strikes than Cabrera?

THE FIELDING BIBLE?

There is a new stat geek book out that focuses on fielding. The crux of the book is a new way of looking at fielders by giving them a +/- rating similar to hockey players. The book evaluates players and calculates how many plays they should have made compared to how many they actually did make. The book loses value, in my view, when Kevin Millar gets a higher rating than J.T. Snow.

Baseball organizations are hungry for ways to evaluate defensive talent. There are so few statistics for defense especially compared to those for hitting or offense. This book gives clubs a new way to look at players, but I think the way itself is in error. Pun intended.

First of all, defense is the most team oriented aspect of baseball. Many plays involve multiple players, and almost all infield plays involve multiple players. Secondly, defense is the most specialized aspect of the game. Each position has nuances that other's don't. This means trying to evauluate all defensive play with a solitary statistical method will always fall short of doing so.

The only way to really gauge defensive players is to watch them. Range cannot be statistically calculated. Jump on the ball and tracking cannot be calculated. Arm strength cannot be calculated. When runners don't run on Ichiro or Guerrero for fear of their arm, that cannot be statistically factored.

In the baseball community, there is a faction obsessed with simplifying the game into a mathematical equation. This goal is unattainable. Stats can be used for general comparisons and to make gameplans, but they can never tell the whole story because some things simply cannot be expressed by numbers.

CLOSER CONTROVERSY?

Don't you just love Red Sox Nation? After three games, comprising only 1.86% of the season, RSN is clamoring for Papelbon to be the full-time closer and for Foulke to be out of that job. Yes, Foulke had a bad inning on Monday, and it could have been worse had it not been for Coco Crisp. And yes, Papelbon had a stellar inning on Wednesday, baffling Rangers hitters. However, I don't think we should be rushing to conclusions about the closer role just yet.

Foulke got an extremely late start in Spring Training. He never pitched to competition until the final weeks down in Fort Myers, and even then it was only in minor league games. Papelbon seems like he has the stuff and the grit to be a closer, but I think down the line we will need him to be a starter.

Wells is either going to be traded if he pitches good, or knocked out of the rotation if he doesn't. If Wakefield has a few bad starts reminiscent of his first one, he's not going to be long in the rotation. Papelbon is probably our first starting option out of the pen. DiNardo can start, but I don't want him in the rotation unless absolutely necessary. Alvarez and Lester are down in the minors, but I don't think they're yet ready to be full-time starters.

In 6 or 7 weeks, Foulke will be at the form he should be. At least he should be at the form he should be. I think he'll eventually be good in the set-up role and will give us two options at closer. There's always a situation when you need a closer but you're regular closer is unavailable. This will become an audition for Foulke to reclaim his old job. Hopefully, he'll be good enough to take it back. That's a damn good problem to have, two really good closers.

Until then, it appears Papelbon will be the closer. So there really is no controversy. But Red Sox Nation needs to relax a little bit before we crown Papelbon King of the Bullpen.

BC EDGES NORTH DAKOTA 6-5
Boston College avenged last year's tournament loss to The Fighting Sioux and earned a spot in the finals for the first time since their 2001 National Championship against North Dakota in Albany, NY.

The Eagles will face the Wisconsin Badgers. Madison is only about 70 miles from Milwaukee, home to the Frozen Four tournament this year. The game will essentially be a home game for the Badgers, who are believed by many to be the best team in the tournament. Then again, BC already beat the team that was ranked #1 in the nation in the 2nd round when they shut-out BU 5-0. The game should be a good one.

Unfortunately, an all New England Final was ruined by the Badgers last night as they beat Maine 5-2. The tournament was still dominated by New England teams. Two teams in the Frozen Four, 4 teams in the final 8, and 6 teams overall in the tournament. Not a bad year for New England college hockey.

PATRIOTS GET A SAFETY AND A KICKER

I remember a few years ago I bought a Tebucky Jones jersey at the Patriots Pro Shop because it was discounted. This was after he had left the team and the Shop was trying to liquidate its inventory of the product. That could have been a wise investment on my part.

Today, the Pats signed Safety Tebucky Jones. The length and amount are still unknown at this time, but I'll find out as soon as I can. The Patriots also signed Martin Gramatica to be the place kicker. Gramatica is best known for his ludicrous post-kick antics, but he once was a good kicker and could be again.

The Patriots also learned what their schedule will look like come the fall. Here it is:

Sunday, Sept. 10 – vs. Bills, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 17 – at Jets, 4:15 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 24 – vs. Broncos, 8:15 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 1 – at Bengals, 4:15 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 8 – vs. Dolphins, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 15 – BYE
Sunday, Oct. 22 – at Bills, 1 p.m.
Monday, Oct. 30 – at Vikings, 8:30 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 5 – vs. Colts, 8:15 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 12 – vs. Jets, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 19 – at Packers, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 26 – vs. Bears, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 3 – vs. Lions, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 10 – at Dolphins, 1 p.m.
Sunday. Dec. 17 – vs. Texans, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 24 – at Jaguars, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 31 – at Titans, 1 p.m.

It's a difficult first place schedule, and finishing with 3 of 4 games on the road won't be a picnic, especially with Gillette being such a formidable place to play in December.