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After a dreadful 3-7 road trip, the Red Sox returned to the friendly confines of Fenway Park and edged the Twins with a 1-0 win last night. Manny Ramirez knocked in the game winning run with a single in the 8th. Dustin Pedroia reached with a double in the inning and scored the winning run. His hit streak is now at 15 games.

Daisuke didn't get win #10 (how is he NOT in the All-Star Game?), but had one of the best starts of the season. It was your typical Dice-K start: tons of baserunners, very few of them coming home. But unlike his last two starts, he was able to keep his pitch count down and go 7.1 innings. It was his first Quality Start since May 17th.

Jason Varitek's struggles continue unabated. He was 0 for 3 with a strikeout, and left 2 men in scoring position. He's 12 for his last 92 (.130).

Jon Lester faces Nick Blackburn tonight.

Source:
ESPN.com

Photo Credit:
AP Photo/Charles Krupa

MASTERSON MOVED TO BULLPEN...EVENTUALLY

The Red Sox sent Justin Masterson down to AAA Pawtucket, and will eventually replace him in the rotation with Clay Buchholz. Masterson will spend his time in Rhode Island learning the ropes of relief pitching. First baseman Jeff Bailey will be filling in the roster spot until Buchholz is recalled.

I'm not a fan of this move. As desperate as the Sox are for middle-relief, I don't like the idea of sending a prospect like Masterson to AAA in order to convert him into a reliever. He isn't even a fully fledged Major League starter yet. I don't mind giving Buchholz (2-3, 5.53 ERA) another shot at starting, but what if he picks up where he left off? At that point, you don't have much choice but to go back to Masterson. Which means retraining him back into being a starter.

Short term, this is a good move. The Sox NEED help in the bullpen. But they also need starters to go 7 innings consistently. The team can get a good inning out of Delcarmen, or even Okajima. It's when they need to get 2 or 3 innings from the middle-relief that the trouble starts.

To me, the potential damage to Masterson's development is too much of a risk in order to get a new reliever who might not even be a good bullpen pitcher. Long term, this is a bad move.

Source:
Associated Press

SOX ALL-STARTS TO INVADE YANKEE STADIUM

Seven Red Sox were named to the AL All-Star team, four as starters.

AL Starters:
C: Joe Mauer, Twins
1B: Kevin Youkilis, Red Sox
2B: Dustin Pedroia, Red Sox
SS: Derek Jeter, Yankees
3B: Alex Rodriguez, Yankees
OF: Josh Hamilton, Rangers
OF: Manny Ramirez, Red Sox
OF: Ichiro Suzuki, Mariners
DH: David Ortiz, Red Sox

Obviously David Ortiz will be replaced. Manny doesn't deserve to be there, in my opinion, and neither does Jeter. Then again, it is the All-STAR game, and is seemingly meant for star players having down years.

AL Pitchers:
Scott Kazmir, Rays
George Sherrill, Orioles
Roy Halladay, Blue Jays
Mariano Rivera, Yankees
Jonathan Papelbon, Red Sox
Justin Duchscherer, Athletics
Joe Nathan, Twins
Joakim Soria, Royals
Cliff Lee, Indians
Francisco Rodriguez, Angels
Ervin Santana, Angels
Joe Saunders, Angels

Jon Lester got a bit of a snub, but nowhere near the snub that 11 game winner Mike Mussina got. With the game in Yankee Stadium, Mussina had an inside track to starting the ASG. Now he'll have front row seats to watch it.

AL Reserves:
J.D. Drew, Red Sox
Jason Varitek, Red Sox
Joe Crede, White Sox
Carlos Quentin, White Sox
Grady Sizemore, Indians
Carlos Guillen, Tigers
Justin Morneau, Twins
Milton Bradley, Rangers
Ian Kinsler, Rangers
Michael Young, Rangers
Dioner Navarro, Rays

Jason Varitek was voted in by the players. He might be having the weakest All-Star season in the history of the game. Either that, or calling pitches is more important in an All-Star game than it appears.

The National League hasn't won an All-Star Game since 1996. But this year they have a pretty good shot, and I think they'll win. Here's their team:

NL Starters:
C: Geovany Soto, Cubs
1B: Lance Berkman, Astros
2B: Chase Utley, Phillies
SS: Hanley Ramirez, Marlins
3B: Chipper Jones, Braves
OF: Kosuke Fukudome, Cubs
OF: Alfonso Soriano, Cubs
OF: Ryan Braun, Brewers

NL Pitchers:
Tim Lincecum, Giants
Aaron Cook, Rockies
Dan Haren, Diamondbacks
Ben Sheets, Brewers
Carlos Zambrano, Cubs
Brandon Webb, Diamondbacks
Ryan Dempster, Cubs
Brian Wilson, Giants
Edinson Volquez, Reds
Kerry Wood, Cubs
Brad Lidge, Phillies
Billy Wagner, Mets

NL Reserves:
Brian McCann, Braves
Aramis Ramirez, Cubs
Matt Holliday, Rockies
Dan Uggla, Marlins
Miguel Tejada, Astros
Russell Martin, Dodgers
Nate McLouth, Pirates
Albert Pujols, Cardinals
Ryan Ludwick, Cardinals
Adrian Gonzalez, Padres
Cristian Guzman, Nationals

Prediction: NL 8, AL 6

Sources:
Boston.com's Extra Bases
Baseball Almanac

DON'T WORRY, THE YANKEES STILL SUCK

I wouldn't worry too much about Sunday night's 5-4 extra inning loss to the Yankees. They scored the tying run in the 7th by skipping 3rd base. And Gardner's game winning single was as soft as a teddy bear.

Then again, the Red Sox not only could have won this game, they SHOULD have. They've become a .500 team when leading after 6 innings, and that's not the sign of a good ballclub.

Lopez was brought into the 7th inning to get out of a jam. Last year, we'd see Okajima in this situation, but Francona has justifiably shied away from using Hideki when there are runners on.

The pinch hitting in the top of the 9th confused me. I don't know why you'd take out Lugo and replace him with Varitek. Lugo was 1 for 3 on the day. Varitek had much better numbers against Rivera, but that was the old Jason Varitek, not this new super-slumping incarnation. Right now, the only people who want to see Jason Varitek with a bat in his hands are American League pitchers.

Alex Cora also deserves some blame for the game winning single. There's no way he could have thrown Gardner out at first, but Cora MUST keep that ball in the infield. He got to it, got a glove on it, but failed.

Kevin Youkilis was caught stealing. The Red Sox were 1 for 8 in stolen base attempts this series. I don't know why they refused to give Molina credit and continually tested him.

After going 3-7 on the road trip, the Red Sox finally return home to face the Twins. Minnesota has been playing well lately, but at least the games are in Fenway. Matsuzaka faces Scott baker Monday night.

Source:
ESPN.com

Photo Credit:
AP Photo/Kathy Willens

PAINFUL 2-1 LOSS

I don't know which was more painful, having to watch the Red Sox struggled against Mussina then blow a juicy opportunity against Rivera in the 9th; or having to listen to Tim McCarver the entire time.

Tim McCarver no longer possesses the mental capacity to construct sentences. Listening to him speak is like listening to random tracks from Books on Tape: The Dictionary. His giggling about Rear Window was ridiculous. And what's sad is that even I knew Kim Novak was in Vertigo and Grace Kelly was in Rear Window. But that's probably sadder for me than it is Tim McCarver.



Anyway, this game was a bit of a mismatch to start with. Masterson has pitched ably this season, but Mike Mussina has been one of the best pitchers in the AL. The Sox never got anything serious going on offense. They also shot themselves in the foot twice. Dustin Pedroia tried extending a single into a double in the 1st, but was thrown out. Ellsbury was later caught stealing to end the 5th.

The Sox should seriously consider never running on Jose Molina again. They're 1 for 7 in stolen base attempts this series.

The game saw 7 batters hit by pitches, tying a Major League record. None of them were blatantly intentional, but Manny Ramirez got hit 3 times. I wouldn't be shocked if this spilled into Sunday's game.

The Sox rallied in the 9th, but were ultimately shut down by Rivera, with an assist to home plate ump Kerwin Danley, whose liberal strike zone helped Mo on his way to retiring the side with the bases loaded. Then again, how much help does Rivera need to get Varitek to pop out?

The last game of the series is Sunday night on ESPN. Tim Wakefield against Joba Chamberlain.

Source:
ESPN.com

Photo Credit:
AP Photo/Julie Jacobson

SOX BEAT YANKS 6-4

The Sox put up 12 hits in their 6-4 victory over the Yankees this afternoon. Josh Beckett was shaky in the 1st, but settled down and pitched 6 solid innings, earning his 8th win of the season. Pedroia and Ellsbury combined to go 5 for 9. Mike Lowell was 2 for 4 with a double, a homer, and 4 RBI. Jason Varitek went 2 for 4, his first multiple hit game since May 31st. The Sox could have easily scored more, but they left 4 men in scoring position, and were caught stealing 3 times.

Youkilis also could have had a homerun if there were a slight breeze going out to left. He hit a ball deep to the warning track. Johnny Damon leaped, and tipped the ball with the edge of his glove. The ball literally sat on top of the wall before falling back into play, and Youk was held to a triple.



The one disconcerting aspect of the game was Hideki Okajima's performance in the 7th. He allowed a single and two walks to load the bases. He and Manny Delcarmen worked out of the jam, but Okajima has proven himself to be less than reliable this season. That's probably why he's been used as more of a middle reliever than an 8th inning set-up man.

His ERA is a seemingly solid 3.00, but his other stats tell a completely different story. His 1.47 WHIP is considerably higher than his 0.97 WHIP of 2007. He's blown 6 save opportunities. And inherited runners have been a major problem (12 of 15 have scored).

I think it's safe to say the Red Sox will be in the market for a set-up man at the trade deadline. Hopefully not a French Canadian ex-closer.

Justin Masterson makes his first career start against the Yankees Saturday afternoon. He faces 10-6 Mike Mussina, who will be making his 55th career start against the Red Sox.

Source:
ESPN.com

Photo Credits:
AP Photo/Julie Jacobson

THANK GOD WE'RE PLAYING THE YANKEES

Isn't it weird to be relieved that the Sox are out of Tropicana Field and playing in Yankee Stadium. How the mighty have fallen, and how the weak have risen.

Jon Lester smothered the Yankee lineup last night, earning a complete game shutout win, and snapping the team's 5 game losing streak. It's the 2nd shutout of the season for Lester. The last Red Sox pitcher to record multiple shutouts in a season was...

If you guessed Pedro Martinez, you're wrong. In 2001, Hideo Nomo pitched 2 shutouts. Pedro had 4 in 2000.

Lester's been somewhat of a savior for this team. Beckett has had ups and downs, Wakefield goes through his bipolar stretches, Matsuzaka can't get into the 6th inning, Colon is out of shape, and Schilling isn't coming. Lester leads Red Sox starters in ERA (3.21), innings (117.2), and starts (19).

He's been able to keep two things down: his pitch count, and the baseball.

Here are Jon Lester's pitch count stats from the last three seasons:

Year:	Pitches Per Inning:
2006	18.6
2007	17.2
2008	15.8

What's really helped Lester keep his pitch count down has been fewer walks, more groundball outs, and yes... fewer strikeouts. He's striking out batters less often compared to 2006 and 2007, but his strikeout to walk ratio has actually gone up because his walks have been so dramatically reduced.

Getting groundball outs has been huge for Lester. He's already induced 15 double plays, the 6th most in the Majors. Here's a look at the groundball to flyball ratio in his career:

Year:	Ratio:
2006	1.03
2007	0.77
2008	1.41

Lester hasn't even allowed a sacrifice fly.

Back to last night's 7-0 victory over New York. It was nice to finally see the entire lineup producing at once. Every starter had a hit except Lugo. But he had a sac-fly. Even Varitek got a single in the 8th, ending that painful hitless streak.

The return of Coco Crisp shouldn't be overlooked. He hit .310 in June and returned to the lineup with a 2 for 3 night.

Josh Beckett pitches against Darrell Rasner this afternoon at 1:00 (Eastern). Beckett's only allowed 4 runs in his last 26 innings, but only has one Win to show for it.

Source:
ESPN.com

Photo Credits:
AP Photo/Kathy Willens

MELTDOWN

The last time the Red Sox were 3.5 games out of first in the AL East was the end of the 2006 season. But after last night's 7-6 disappointment in St. Petersburg, that's exactly where the Sox are.

Daisuke pitched around trouble for 5 innings. Although he only allowed 1 run, his pitch count was obscenely high. In the first two innings, he had already thrown 49. This forced the bullpen to be used early. Okajima pitched a scoreless 6th, then all hell broke loose.

Manny Delcarmen looked awful. Not only was he giving up hits (3 hits to 3 batters faced), his stutter step off the mound allowed Akinori Iwamura to reach on an infield single instead of being thrown out at first.

Then Hansen came in and couldn't throw a strike. He threw 13 pitches, 4 of which were strikes. And one of those strikes was struck by Evan Longoria for a double. Finally, Javier Lopez worked out of the jam, but the damage had been done. A 4-1 Sox lead had been turned into a 7-4 Rays lead.

The Sox didn't go down quietly. Pedroia had an RBI double in the 8th (stopping at first with a single would have given him a cycle). Thanks to an error, the Sox put two men on with no outs in the 9th. A sac-fly from Youkilis made it a 7-6 game. Then Terry Francona made me mad for the first time in his managerial stint with the Red Sox.

Why in the name of all that is holy was there a hit and run with Varitek at the plate? He was 0 for 3 with 2 strikeouts, and hadn't gotten a hit in 16 at-bats. In those 16 at-bats, he's struck out 8 times. HITTING is the most important part of the hit-and-run. But Varitek isn't hitting. With 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th in a 1 run game, it makes more sense to bunt than hit-and-run. Why risk making the 2nd or 3rd out on the basepaths? Why ask a slumping hitter to make contact, something he's struggled to do. And why the hell is Varitek batting 7th and not 9th?

Not surprisingly, Varitek swung and missed at a bad pitch, and Mike Lowell was toast at second base. When Varitek struck out looking, the game was over.

This Varitek slump is unreal. He's 3 for his last 48 (.063). There is no reason for him to be batting anywhere but 9th, if at all. Brandon Moss and Julio Lugo aren't tearing the cover off the ball, but at least they can get a hit every once and awhile.

The Sox ride their 5 game losing streak to Yankee Stadium for a 4 game seris. Lester faces Andy "I Didn't Inject" Pettitte.

Source:
ESPN.com

Photo Credit:
AP Photo/Chris O'Meara