In case anyone was wondering "How can a team be below .300?" The Nationals provided all the answers last night. It's a team game, and even though John Lannan had a solid start, enough of the Nationals are bad enough to drag down the whole ship.
Tavarez, Villone, Wells, Colome, and Hanrahan combined for 2.2 innings and 8 runs. The game turned from a nice 4-3 struggle to a 10-3 laugher in a matter of minutes.
Jason Bay might just be the American League's MVP. He was 4 for 6 with 3 RBI, 4 runs scored. We're not even halfway through the season and he has 69 RBI and 19 HR. He's on pace for 160 RBI and 44 HRs. Those are Manny Ramirez type numbers, but as Terry Francona said on WEEI this afternoon "[Bay's] a great teammate."
Bay is the Man of the Game with his 4 for 6, 3 RBI night.
Tim Thomas added another trophy to an already impressive case, winning the Vezina last week. He becomes the first Bruin to claim that hardware since Pete Peeters in 1983, and the first American since Jim Carey in ‘96.
But Tim Thomas’ trophy case isn’t impressive just because of the number of awards he’s won. It’s more the variety, and the difficulty in pronunciation. ECAC All-Star is easy enough on the tongue, but what the heck is the Urpo Ylönen trophy?
Tim Thomas’ road to the NHL veered far off the beaten path. Strangely enough, for the first time in his career the Vezina winner goes into next season as the clear cut #1 goalie. He’s played in minor leagues, defunct leagues, foreign leagues. He knows Scandinavia better than Erik the Red. And he’s always seemed to have an obstacle in his way. But all that apparently did was make him better and better.
Some of the cities Thomas has played in: Canton, NY; Hanover, NH; Birmingham, AL; Helsinki, Finland; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Cincinnati, OH; Stockholm, Sweden; Providence, RI; Hartford, CT; Worcester, MA; Gothenburg, Sweden; Kalamazoo, MI; Houston, TX; Hamilton, Ontario; Hamilton, NY; Turku, Finland; Orlando, FL; Salt Lake City, UT; Long Beach, CA; Kansas City, MO; Karlstad, Sweden; Portland, ME; Hämeenlinna, Finland; and that’s just the tip of the ice berg.
After playing high school hockey in his native Michigan and being relatively unrecruited, Thomas started all 4 years for the Vermont Catamounts. He earned several conference and national honors, was drafted as a sophomore by the Nordiques, and led Vermont to its first Frozen Four in program history. Thomas still holds school records for most career saves (3,950), most career wins (81), most career minutes (8,286), and most saves in a season (1,079).
After college, Thomas was still on the beaten path, but not for long. He played in 6 games for the Birmingham Bulls of the ECHL, then just 1 game for the Houston Aeros of the now defunct IHL. He then quite literally went off the map, all the way to Helsinki, playing for HIFK in the Finnish SM-liiga. In 18 games for HIFK, he registered an astounding 1.62 GAA and .947 SV%. His team won the Kanada-malja, the Finnish championship. Thomas was also awarded the Urpo Ylönen , Finland’s version of the Vezina. He’s the only American to win that award.
It must have seemed like just a one year thing to Thomas. He put up impressive numbers in a decent league. They were certainly impressive enough for the Edmonton Oilers, who signed him after his Finnish campaign. Thomas was sent to the AHL’s Hamilton Bulldogs, where he struggled for 15 games before once again going to HIFK in Finland. His numbers were still solid (2.23 GAA), and his team made it to the Kanada-Meljer finals once more, losing to TPS.
He gave North American hockey another try. And once again, he failed to impress. In 36 games for the Detroit Vipers (another IHL team), he had a 3.56 GAA and .892 SV%. Not bad enough to totally give up on him, but not good enough to merit promotion.
Once again, he went back to Europe, this time to Sweden and their Elitserien, playing for another alphabet soup team: AIK. He played well, eventually becoming a fan favorite, thanks in part to helping AIK make the playoffs.
It must have seemed as though the NHL would never knock on his proverbial door. He was drafted in 1994, graduated from Vermont in ‘97. It was now 2001, and the only leagues he’d succeeded in were in the East European Time Zone. He must have known that in General Manager’s offices across the NHL, when the name “Tim Thomas” came up, it was quickly dismissed as a guy who couldn’t cut it against potential NHL players. A guy who could thrive in the wide open spaces of European hockey, but perhaps struggled to see the puck in the tightly packed checking game of North America.
For the first time in his career, he didn’t go back to North America to play. He stayed in Scandanavia, shifting back to Finland, which must have started to seem more and more like home. He joined a team called Kärpät. He’d been signed by the Bruins, most likely because he’d be a cheap replacement in net. The Bruins’ business and hockey philosophy at the time was to buy low, sell high, with an emphasis on selling. Thomas was certainly low, and other Bruin goalies were about to be sold high.
He returned to America in 2002, playing for the Providence Bruins. In his circuitous and crazy career, he’d often return to cities he’d once played in, but now for different teams. In college, he played in Providence against Brown. He’d return to Connecticut, New Hampshire, Central New York, all as a Providence Bruin. For Vermont, he went to the Frozen Four in Cincinnati. He’d play there again as a Detroit Viper.
In 2002-03, Thomas was down deep on the Boston Bruins’ depth chart. Steve Shields, John Grahame, and Jeff Hackett took most of the net-time for the B’s. And in Providence, Thomas had to compete with Andrew Raycroft. But the buy-low, sell-high Bruins mentality went into action. John Grahame was too talented to stay, so was traded to the Lightning. And despite the number of names the Bruins had on their depth-chart, none of them fully satisfied the needs of the position. So Thomas got his first breath of NHL hockey, 4 games, 3 wins, 3.00 GAA, and a .907 SV%.
Thomas didn’t get any such opportunity in 2003-04. Andrew Raycroft was brilliant, winning the vacant #1 goalie’s spot. He was backed up by veteran Felix Potvin, and with the Bruins’ rolling to a 41-19-15-7 record, there was no need to give Thomas a shot at the NHL.
But Thomas finally had the chance to be THE man in Providence. He had a .941 SV% and 1.84 GAA for a mediocre team. He’d finally figured out North American hockey. And that’s when the Lockout happened so he went back to Europe to play.
By now, he was elite. It’s just that nobody outside of Helsinki or Rhode Island really knew it. A 1.58 GAA and .946 SV% for Jokerit in Finland won him the Kultainen kypärä (best player, voted by players), and Lasse Oksanen (best player) trophies. He set a league record for shutouts with 15. He led Jokerit to the finals.
In hindsight, we can see that by 2004-05, he was ready for the NHL. But back then, watching him excel in Finland was expected. His problems had been in North America. He also had a reputation for losing his cool. If he allowed two quick goals, for instance, he’d meltdown and let in three or four more with ease. He had a notorious temper. Perhaps he still does.
He seemed destined to be an NHL backup. The Bruins put 21 year old Hannu Toivonen ahead of Thomas on their depth chart, and once again, Timmy was relegated to the AHL.
He’d almost joined Jokerit for another season, and it was fortuitous that he did not. Contract problems with Raycroft, and an injury to Toivonen gave Thomas the #1 spot. He registered a respectable 2.77 GAA in 38 games. But next season, he was still behind Toivonen on the depth chart. The Bruins trusted a kid with only 24 games experience in Finland’s top league more than Thomas, who had 118 games in that league.
The Bruins may not have trusted Thomas, but he trusted himself. Thomas let his on-ice performance speak for him. As Toivonen struggled, Thomas was solid. He won the starting job, and played in 66 games. It was 2007, 10 years after graduating college.
But he’d have to compete for the starting job again in 2007-08. The Bruins had such little faith in him, they traded for veteran Manny Fernandez. Fernandez managed only 4 starts before succumbing to a season ending knee injury. Thomas took over the #1 spot, but was occasionally spelled for long stretches by Alex Auld, who played in 23 games.
Coming into 2008-09, the Bruins still didn’t have complete faith in Thomas. He was to be an unrestricted free agent after the season. Another young Finn, Tuukka Rask, was impressing in Providence, and was perhaps a cheap alternative to re-signing Thomas. There was also Manny Fernandez, earning $4+ million to be a backup must not have sat well with Bruins management. One again, Thomas had to win the starter’s job. And he did.
In his first 15 games of the season, Thomas recorded a pair of shutouts, 9 wins, only allowed 29 goals, and saved .940 of the shots he faced. The contest for the starter’s job didn’t last long. And the rest, as they say, is history. Best GAA, best SV%, Vezina Trophy, his second All-Star Game win (he hadn’t even been on the ballot), and finally, he knows for a fact that he’ll be the starting goalie in the 2009-10 season.
Hopefully this comfort doesn‘t breed complacency. After all, his career is littered with unknown futures leading to future successes. But this doesn’t strike me as a guy who is capable of complacency.
In a not so shocking move, the Sox have placed Daisuke Matsuzaka on the disabled list. With John Smoltz starting Thursday night in Washington, and Matsuzaka's horrendous starts mounting, the move makes sense. But now we find out that an MRI revealed shoulder weakness. The same kind of shoulder weakness that put Matsuzaka on the DL in April.
As Francona put it: "This is not going to be a two-week DL." And it seems as though the Sox will wait until they can gauge improvement in that shoulder, before even considering activating him.
Francona and the Sox have also been blaming the World Baseball Classic, which is likely to blame for at least part of Matsuzaka's shoulder woes. At the very least, the Sox weren't able to implement their own spring routines.
And frankly, do you think Tatsunori Hara (managed Japan in WBC) gave a rat's ass about how Daisuke's arm would be doing in June and July?
It's also possible that the sudden change in Daisuke's pitching routines from Japan to the US has caused some problems. A return to Japanese habits in the WBC could only exacerbate such an issue.
I, for one, think that the WBC added fuel to a small fire, turning it into an inferno. There's always been a lot of talk about Daisuke's routines in Japan, and how he'd adjust to pitching in The States. Most seemed to think that throwing as much as he did in Japan would cost him years off his career.
I'm in the opposite camp. i think reducing his throwing is part of what's causing these recent shoulder troubles. It's not the common-sense viewpoint, and it certainly isn't what baseball people think about throwing. Muscles become accustomed to workloads. If those workloads are QUICKLY reduced or increased, the muscle will suffer. A professional weight-lifter will lose muscle mass if he cuts down on his workouts. He will also injure himself if he tries doubling his bench press.
Daisuke's in an adjustment period. The WBC was a relapse into some strange pitching routines. And I doubt any Red Sox pitcher will participate in the next one.
Nick Green deserves an honorable mention in the category of Red Sox Contributions for the 2009 Season. The reason the Sox are in first is pitching, along with Jason Bay's hitting, and things like that. But Nick Green has quietly hit .293 with a .345 OBP. And Sunday afternoon, he was on center stage, hitting a walk-off shot to right, and giving the Sox their 4th consecutive series win.
An extremely encouraging sight was David Ortiz's bomb to left center in the 1st. He's hitting .292 in June. But more importantly, he's slugging .604 with an OBP of .393. Those are the kinds of numbers we're used to seeing from David Ortiz.
Is this just a fluke sort of thing with Ortiz? Is his slump merely slumping, waiting to eventually return back to normal? Is this a bear market rally? I don't think it is. But I do doubt that he'll continue with the .600 SLG and .390 OBP numbers.
The Sox have Monday off, then play the lowly Nationals in DC. How bad are the Nats? They're 7 games behind Cleveland for 29th place in Major League Baseball. They're 21 games behind the Red Sox. They're the only team in baseball with a winning percentage below .300. They could win 1 game in this 3 game series, and their winning percentage would go up.
After struggling in his last outing, Josh Beckett returned to the form we've seen from him since the start of May. He struck out 7 Braves on the way to his first complete game shutout with the Red Sox.
Beckett earned his 8th win, and his ERA is down to 3.74. It was at 6.75 on May 1st. And since May 1st, he's 6-1 with a 2.47 ERA.
The performance was a welcome relief after Daisuke's disaster Friday night.
The Sox send Tim Wakefield out this afternoon. He faces Jair Jurrjens, who's 5-5 with a 2.89 ERA, and has too many J's in his name.
Daisuke threw the idea of a 6 man rotation out the window (he was aiming for the door) last night, as he had another brutal outing. In 4 innings, he allowed 8 hits, walked 4, and let in 6 runs.
He falls to 1-5 on the season, with a bloated 8.23 ERA, and an atrocious WHIP of 2.20. He hasn't reached 6 innings in any of his starts.
Opponents are hitting .378 against him, and slugging .647. And what's even more disheartening is that even when he has his A-Game, he's a 5 inning pitcher.
Judging by his disappointed post-game demeanor, I think he might accept an assignment to AAA. He has a clause in his contract requiring consent to being demoted, but I can't see what else he or the Sox can do. It takes him 45 minutes to warm-up, so a bullpen stint is out of the question. Besides, how is being a long-reliever, pitching inconsistently for 3 innings in mop-up situations, going to help him out?
We should remember that this guy went from Japan straight to Major League Baseball. There was no AAA stint, no halfway house for him. And although he went 18-3 with a 2.90 ERA last year, it was the strangest 18-3 in baseball history. He's the record holder for fewest innings pitched for an 18 game winner.
The Sox offense also needs to get back on the ball. 3 hits in 2 games is awful.
Two things gave you an edge in last night's NHL Awards ceremony: being Russian or being a Bruin. Every Bruin nominated for an award won it. Tim Thomas won the Vezina (best goalie), Zdeno Chara won the Norris (best defenseman), and Claude Julien won the Jack Adams (best coach).
Tim Thomas was simply unbelievable for the Bruins. He led the NHL with a 2.10 GAA, and .933 SV%. In the postseason, he had a playoff best 1.85 GAA in his 11 games, which came with a .935 SV%.
Timmy's the first Bruin to win the Vezina since 1983 (Pete Peeters), and the first American to win it since 1996 (Jim Carey). It's only the 8th time the trophy has been given to a Bruin.
Zdeno Chara is simply the big brother on the Bruins. Mess with anyone in black and gold, and you'll eventually have to answer to Chara. He was +23, tied for 7th best among defenseman. His 19 goals were 4th amongst defensemen, he was 6th in ice time. He used his impressive wingspan to literally decrease the amount of free ice opponents could use. He was both intimidating and irritating. Whenever he was on the ice, he changed the dimensions of the game.
Chara's the first Bruin to win the Norris since 1994 (Raymond Bourque). Since the award was first given in 1954, a Bruin has won it 14 times (Orr had 8, Bourque had 5). Chara is the first Slovakian to win the Norris.
Claude Julien took a team of kids and turned them into contenders. Who knows what would've happened had key players like Kessel, Krejci, Kobasew, and Ference remained healthy. But this team wasn't much different from the 8th seeded, below .500 Bruins that exited in the 1st round of the 2008 playoffs. So this award is really given for two years of coaching.
Claude's the first Bruins coach to win the award since Pat Burns in 1998. This is only the 3rd time a Bruins coach has won the Jack Adams.
It also should be noted that Tim Thomas and Manny Fernandez share the William M. Jennings Trophy for playing goalie 25+ times for the team that allowed the fewest goals.
With players on this team who have names like Penny, Bay, and Green; the plays on word truly are endless.
The Red Sox celebrated their 500th consecutive home sellout with a nice 6-1 defeat over the Florida Marlins. Brad Penny went 5 innings for the win, and Dustin Pedroia had 3 hits and 3 RBI.
Penny's start was one of the most fortunate outings I've seen a Red Sox starter have. Allowing 3 hits and 4 walks in 5 innings is almost Matsuzakan. And a pair of hard hit shots belted Hanley Ramirez and Jorge Cantu in the 5th luckily found Red Sox gloves.
I'm honestly not too impressed with Penny, and think he'll be the odd man out when it comes time to decide on 5 starters.
How cool was it that the Sox got their 500th sellout in a row on the 49th anniversary of Ted Williams' 500th homerun?
The Man of the Game: Dustin Pedroia - 3 for 5, double, 3 RBI
The Sox go for the sweep Thursday night. Jon Lester faces Ricky Nolasco, who is 2-6 with a 7.62 ERA.
