THE PRICE WAS RIGHT

At least this loss didn't hurt as much. With David Price facing Wakefield, even the most irrationally exuberant Sox fan could conceptualize losing this game. It was an easy night for catchers giving signals as Price threw almost exclusively fastballs, and Wakefield, of course, was 99% knucklers. But Price's fastball is better than Wakefield's knuckleball, and the Rays offense is better than the JV Sox lineup.

Walks killed Wakefield, and so did some second-rate fielding. It was a sloppy game for the Sox, who seemed resigned to defeat until Price left the game. But by then it was too little too late.

Then there's Youkilis, who did play, but did not look comfortable. If he does wind up getting the nod for the All-Star Game, he probably won't play. After the game, Francona said that the turf was bothering. Hopefully the turf in Toronto doesn't bother him either.

Part of me feels like with all these injuries, the Sox need to play Youkilis until he's clearly injured, especially as the gap with the Yankees widens. But the rest of me thinks that the Sox should be extra-careful with Youkilis. I'd rather bench Youk for 3 days than lose him for 6 weeks.

Sox at Blue Jays starting Friday. Lester vs. Ricky Romero.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo

WORLD CUP ROUNDUP: DAY 25

Uruguay's gritty run is over, and the Netherlands are in the Finals for the first time since 1978.

Netherlands 3, Uruguay 2

While this game was closely fought, the Netherlands were clearly the better finishing team. Once they were able to navigate around the Uruguay defenders congesting the middle, they were able to open the game up and pull away. Wesley Sneijder scored his 5th of the tournament. Diego Forlan ended his World Cup in style with a long-range goal. But it was Gio van Bronckhorst's missile that might wind up being the goal of the tournament.



With the Netherlands facing either Spain or Germany, it means an all-Europe final for the second consecutive World Cup. The last time there's been back-to-back all-Europe finals was in the 30s. This also means that a European team will win the World Cup on another continent for the first time ever.

Germany vs. Spain this afternoon. Uruguay gets the loser on Saturday, the Netherlands gets the winner on Sunday.

WALKING WOUNDED

The Red Sox lost another close game to the Rays, thanks in part to some shoddy bullpen work. But more worrisome is that they might lose yet another key player. Kevin Youkilis left the game before leading off the 4th inning. He was in the on-deck circle, preparing to hit, when he gingerly tested his right foot, then went to the ground in pain. The Sox are describing the injury as "right ankle pain," so you can probably guess that he's still being diagnosed.

The Sox were forced to replace Youkilis with Niuman Romero. So not only did the Sox lose Youkilis, they lost Ortiz, as Romero's presence behind him in the lineup allowed the Rays to intentionally walk him 3 times.

Felix Doubrant was serviceable, allowing 2 runs in 5.2 innings. Okajima returned and really disappointed, giving the Rays an insurance run they'd wind up needing.

Without Youkilis, the Sox lineup really is toothless. And this team is getting unrecognizable. Imagine if you took a vacation 2 weeks ago to some remote place with no internet or TV. You come back and you'd think that you traveled through time. There are so many "video game players," on the Sox. These are the guys whose names sound like the token names that video games give new players when you do franchise mode stuff.

It doesn't look good for tonight's game, either. Wakefield opposes David Price, who's 11-4 with a 2.42 ERA.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo

WORLD CUP: SEMIFINALS PREVIEW*

In the South America vs. Europe storyline, Europe definitely won the battle over the weekend. Only one South American team survived, and they didn't even beat a European side in the quarterfinals. And that South American team is a bit of a surprise. Two of the three European representatives are also somewhat surprising. So let's look at these matches.

Today 2:30 PM - ESPN
Uruguay vs. Netherlands
Uruguay hasn't advanced this far since the 50s. The Dutch haven't since the 70s. So this is a pretty big deal for both countries. The Uruguayans have been tough, gritty, rugged, determined, and more than a little lucky. They needed several penalty misses in order to beat Ghana. The Dutch, on the other hand, haven't mesmerized, but they have won. They're the only team that's won every single game it's played. They just beat Brazil, and they should trouble Uruguay's worn out defenders with their multifaceted offensive approach. The Uruguayans will also be missing Suarez, the guy who slapped away Ghana's would-be-game-winning-goal. Without him, it's really only the 31 year old Forlan up front, and he's looked increasingly tired. Netherlands 3, Uruguay 1.



Wednesday 2:30 PM - ESPN
Germany vs. Spain
A rematch of the Euro 2008 title game. The Germans are in their 3rd straight World Cup semifinal, and 10th overall. The Spanish are in their first ever semifinal. Which is stunning to the casual fan. You'd think Spain would get into the final four more often, but until they won Euro 2008, they had a reputation as underachievers and chokers. And they have underachieved at this tournament a bit, they've just been able to eek out the results. And Germany has overachieved, or rather has gotten the absolute maximum from their talent. But they've shown gaps. And they'll miss the suspended Thomas Müller, who's scored 4 of their 13 goals.

The Germans will still test Spain, and put them under pressure. Spain's had to deal with some stifling defensive tactics (Switzerland, Portugal, Paraguay), which is probably why they haven't looked that stellar. Germany has a solid defense, but they play forward and aggressive. Germany will need to finish their chances and hope for another early lead. I'm picking Spain, but hoping I'm wrong. 3-2 Spain.

WORLD CUP ROUNDUP: DAY 24*

The World Cup had been dominated by South America up to this point. All 5 South American teams advanced to the Round of 16. And the only one to get knocked out was Chile, who were eliminated by a fellow South American team. Europe, meanwhile, had seen powers like Italy and France fail to escape the group phase. But Europe vs. South America has been flipped on its head, as the Europeans were 3-0 against South American opponents in the quarterfinals.

Netherlands 2, Brazil 1

This wasn't as big of an upset as you might think. I picked the Netherlands to win, and they're also the 4th ranked team in the world. And they're one of the only team that's won every single game they've played in this World Cup. That being said, Brazil is Brazil is Brazil. They went up 1-0, and before Friday Brazil had NEVER lost a World Cup game when they led at half-time. 37 straight games without losing when leading at halftime. But they did so on Friday and lost 2-1. Watch out for the Dutch (the wave of Orange should make them easy to see), who are aiming for their first World Cup title.

Uruguay 1 (4), Ghana 1 (2)

I was not rooting for Ghana. Fuck Ghana. How can you root for the team that knocked out the US two Cups in a row? And I've been rooting for Uruguay since they won over my heart by stifling France on Day 1 of this tournament.

Both teams scored non-traditional, long distance goals. Sulley Muntari had a forgettable game, except for his why-not-shoot goal just before halftime. Diego Forlan had a monumental game and scored with a free kick in the 55th.

But the ending of this game is the story. After 120 minutes of back-and-forth soccer, Luis Suarez makes a fist save on a ball ticketed for the back of the net. But Suarez is a forward, not a goalie. So he gets a straight red for an intentional handball, but it was an intelligent play. If he keeps his hands down, Ghana scores and wins. Instead, he gave his team a fraction of a chance to win. They just needed Ghana to miss the penalty.

And that's what happened. The Uruguayan goalie became my new favorite non-German player when he started talking to the crossbar after Asamoah Gyan bounced his shot off it. Then when his teammates are taking penalties, the goalie has his back turned to the action, watching the crowd. Fernando Muslero, you are the man. Oh yeah, he also made a great diving save that turned out to be the difference in the penalty shootout.

Germany 4, Argentina 0

Again, Germany blows a team out, but it wasn't as close as the score suggests. That being said, Germany never looked the inferior team in this one. Their defense was able to stop Argentina's ferocious attacking just in the nick of time. And Germany's vaunted counterattack produced the final 3 goals.

Fuck Argentina, and fuck Maradonna, who called Thomas Müller a ball-boy a while back. Well Müller scored the opening goal, and participated in another. He was also harshly yellow carded and will miss the semifinals.

Miroslav Klose played his 100th game for Germany Saturday, and scored twice, which gives him 14 career World Cup goals. That's tied for 2nd all-time.

This game was the first of the elimination stage that I didn't pick correctly. I love being wrong sometimes.

Spain 1, Paraguay 0

The Paraguayans kept the Spanish at bay for over 80 minutes. At one crazy point of the game, two penalties were missed in the span of 2 or 3 minutes (one was hit, but disallowed for encroachment). Spain hasn't dazzled, but they've been able to win without playing at their absolute best. That's the mark of a potential World Cup Champion.

Believe it or not, this will be Spain's first trip to the World Cup semifinals.

We'll have a preview of the Semifinals very soon.

WORLD CUP: QUARTERFINALS PREVIEW*

The quarterfinals start today. I was 8 for 8 with my picks in the Round of 16. But that's an easier round to pick. 7 of the 8 group winners won their game (the US being the only one who didn't). The story in the quarterfinals is South America. 4 of the 8 teams are South American, the most they've ever sent this far into the competition. There are 3 European teams, but that's out of 13 total entrants. Africa fills out the field with 1 representative. No Asian or North American teams remain.

Friday 10:00 AM - ESPN
Netherlands vs. Brazil
We all know how powerful Brazil is. But don't overlook the Netherlands. Guys like Kuyt, van Persie, Robben and Sneijder all have the skill sets to score. The Dutch play a fluid, adaptive style up front that should give the Brazilian defense fits. The Brazilians have Fabiano, Kaka, and the best goalie in the world Julio Cesar. But I'm leaning Dutch in this one. Netherlands 3, Brazil 2.



Friday 2:30 PM - ESPN
Uruguay vs. Ghana
Two nice stories here. The Uruguayans haven't made the semifinals since 1970. The Ghanaians have NEVER made the semifinals. Uruguay's been the most solid team in the tournament. They have a tight defense, careful midfield, and potent strikers. Luis Suarez and Diego Forlan will undoubtedly be the best strikers Ghana has faced (Klose was suspended for Germany when they played Ghana). Ghana's biggest weakness is their back 4, and these two guys will exploit them. Uruguay 2, Ghana 0.



Saturday 10:00 AM - ABC
Germany vs. Argentina
A rematch from the '06 World Cup which saw the Germans advance on penalty kicks. But Argentina looks slightly better than they did 4 years ago, and Germany looks a bit inconsistent. Sure they abused England, but the English midfield was trash. Argentina will exploit Germany's youth, and win 2-1.



Saturday 2:30 PM - ABC
Paraguay vs. Spain
The Paraguayans are just happy to get this far, and they should be. This is their first trip to the World Cup quarterfinals. They should enjoy it while it lasts because Spain will toss them aside with ease. Spain 3, Paraguay 1.

WORLD CUP ROUNDUP: DAY 20*

The Final Eight are set, thanks to a pair of tense, but unexciting games.

Paraguay 0 (5), Japan 0 (3) - (penalty kicks)

Paraguay became the 4th South American side to qualify for the quarterfinals. And they did so in dramatic fashion. I watched about 30 minutes of this game, and was glad to have done so. I watched 20 minutes in the 1st half, figured it'd be a goal-less draw, checked in during extra time, saw that it was 0-0 after 120 minutes, and enjoyed the penalty kicks.

Spain 1, Portugal 0

This was the 1st goal Portugal's allowed all tournament. And it was all it took to eliminate the defensively minded side. Thank God. David Villa scored the goal for Spain, who dominated the game. The Spanish get the benefit of playing Paraguay in the quarterfinals, but they had to negotiate one of the toughest Round of 16 opponents out there, and they won.

No games until Friday. And we'll have a quarterfinal preview in the meantime. Just to remind you, these are the quarterfinal matchups:

Netherlands vs. Brazil
Uruguay vs. Ghana
Argentina vs. Germany
Paraguay vs. Spain

WORLD CUP ROUNDUP: DAY 19*

A pair of not too interesting games, with predictable results.

Netherlands 2, Slovakia 1

The Slovaks didn't score until the game was beyond over (the 94th minute). It was Robert Vittek who got that goal, his 4th, which ties him for the most in the tournament. But the Dutch got a 1st half goal from Arjen Robben, and a late 2nd half score from Wesley Sneijder. The Dutch play with a flexible and adaptable style, especially up front. They're also the only undefeated European side left.

Brazil 3, Chile 0

Chile came into the Patagonian derby riding a 7 game losing streak against Brail. They've conceded 26 goals in those 7 games (3.7 per game), so allowing only 3 is below average. The Brazilians haven't played as pretty as Brazilian teams in the past, but they've gotten the same kind of result. 5th straight quarterfinals for the blue and yellow.

Brazil will meet the Netherlands in a tantalizing meeting Friday morning.