Yanks are shoring up their rotation...

The Yanks finally pulled the trigger on the poor man’s Matsuzaka. Lefty Kei Igawa reportedly signs a 5 year deal worth $20M before incentives. That’s on top of a posting bid of $26M which now seems inexpensive compared to what the Sox paid. Noting the market for pitching is scarce, the Yanks still get a great deal. The luxury tax hit is only $4M, and his actual pricetag is just over $9M. However, you get what you pay for. Scouting reports project him to be a #4 or #5 starter at best. So the Yanks are essentially gambling $9M per season for a #4 guy. Based on Gil Meche or Ted Lilly dollars, they essentially get similar talent for a couple million less per season. With their resources, there isn’t much of a downside. We’ll find out how he reacts to the pressures of NY. He hasn’t had the same exposure and media frenzy as Matsuzaka.

The Yanks also inked Pettite (based on passing a physical) for a one year $16M deal. At 35, he’s not the same pitcher who left the AL back in 2003. He struggled through injuries in 2004 (15 games / 3.90 ERA), but had a nice bounce back year in 2005 (ERA of 2.39 was his best since 2002).

But 2006 was also a struggle with a 14-13 record, 4.20 ERA, 27 HR’s, with 238 hits in 214 innings. Not the greatest pedigree when switching back to the AL. The Yanks will hope he’s a solid #3, but don’t count on his numbers improving over last season.

The probable rotation and projections:

Wang: 18-5, 3.40 ERA
Mussina: 13-10, 4.50 ERA
Pettite: 12-12, 4.90 ERA
Johnson: 14-11, 4.85 ERA
Igawa: 7-9, 5.50 ERA
Hughes: 3-3, 3.90 ERA

Wang had a terrific 2006 and will be the staff’s anchor. He still has a way to go to become a true #1 guy. His 233 hits in 218 innings are far from being dominant, and his 52 BB compared with his 76 K’s are equally average. At 27, he has the potential to get better. He should improve on his 3.63 ERA in 2007.

Mussina had a career year in 2006 and carried the team on his back last season. His 3.51 ERA was outstanding, but at 38 don’t expect him to duplicate it. The oft injured pitcher pitched in 32 games, his most since 2002. Expect another visit from the injury bug in 2007.

Johnson will be 44 in 2007 and really showed his age in 2006. His ERA of 5.00 was not reflected on his record of 17-11. He was inconsistent all of last season. He didn’t finish well either, giving up 5 runs a game in his last 4 including the playoffs. With off season back surgery, he’ll struggle to stay healthy once again.

Carl Pavano is the ultimate bust. The only thing you can count on is another injury. Poor bastard. However, Yanks management has planned to not have him available, so anything you may get is gravy. But remember that the gravy has lumps.

Philip Hughes is apparently a rising star on the horizon. He went 10-3 with a 2.25 ERA in AA Trenton. He’ll need more seasoning, having pitched only 116 innings, but he may contribute late in 2007.

Will Roger Clemens pitch in 2007? If so, his buddy Pettite will make a strong push to get it done. Although Houston has some dough to spend with Pettite and Bagwell (including insurance claim) off the books. We’ll see if he will choose “loyalty” (perks at home) over more dollars. The wildcard is Boston if they have an injury in June/July.

Overall the Yanks have a fairly solid rotation. Wang should be terrific once again. The big question revolves around the health of the geriatrics. Johnson, Mussina, and Pettite are all on the back 9 of their careers with history of injuries. Igawa is an unknown and hasn’t faced the pressure and media scrutiny of NY. Pavano is like a “box of chocolates” at this point. Still, if this rotation stays somewhat healthy, they should produce over 70 wins especially with a potent offense. Expect another close race in 2007.

Sox land the beast from the East!!!

Welcome to Boston Daisuke!!!

The Sox landed what could be their franchise player. In the process, they also defeated the mighty Scott Boras. That’s almost as satisfying as landing Matsuzaka.

DOWN GOES BORAS! DOWN GOES BORAS!

The Sox front office was masterful in their negotiations. They held their ground and stuck with their original offer. Boras, the baseball anti-christ, played his only hand which was to not negotiate and to threaten to bring his client back to Japan. However, Seibu was in financial trouble and supposedly told Matsuzaka they would not be posting him in 2007, effectively making him wait two more seasons to be a free agent. Add in the pressure of family, friends, and fans back home, it was probably an easy choice for Matsuzaka. Whether he told Boras to make the deal is something we’ll never know, but it’s most likely what transpired.

Will he be the top of rotation guy here like he was in Japan? To take a page from Parcells, let’s not anoint him just yet. However, all the scouting reports are more than glowing, and Craig Shipley (Sox scout) watched him pitch every game last season. The fact that they were willing to pony up $51M speaks volumes.

It is a gamble, especially since he’s never thrown a pitch in the majors. But you have to figure that a significant part of that posting price will be recovered from new revenue sources. All of Japan will be watching (and buying #18 merchandise) when the season starts. His first pitch in the majors will be against Ichiro, and he will face Matsui a number of times each season. When you factor in the posting price with salary, he’s still less than Jason Schmidt / Mike Mussina money at a little over $17M per year. His annual salary (and luxury tax impact) is only $8.7M, which is less than Gil Meche, Ted Lilly, and even Matt Clement. He’s going to be good in the majors, and he’s still worth the money even if he only becomes your #2 guy. If he meets his incentives, its money well spent and averages only $1.3M per season. So, how much of a gamble are they really taking?

The Sox really pulled this one off. Has the front office redeemed itself? That will be determined on the field, but things look promising.

Will Boston be the land of the Rising Gun?

With only hours to go before the deadline, we're hearing all sorts of chatter. From the talks being dead to the Sox upping the ante and making a substantive offer, what do you pay attention to?

It's all been about posturing to this point in the "negotiations". Negotiations? With the Sox submitting a reported $7-$8M per year offer, Boras has simply not countered. He's only stated in a press conference that his player is worth in the neighborhood of $100M over 5 or 6 years. He feels that Matsuzaka should be paid like a top 5 MLB experienced starter. But at $16M+ a season, he's been smoking some strong stuff. Include the posting price of $51M, his annual salary would equal $25M per season. Right. Que up Aerosmith's Dream On...

The Scott Boras angle:

Top 5 pitching talent
Worth $16M+ per season
Posting pricetag of $51M should not be a factor
Ichiro was MVP caliber his first season and is still underpaid
No counteroffer - at least until things get very tense
Keep Matsuzaka away from potential pressures - home, fans, Seibu & the press
Provide favorable "contract info" only to Matsuzaka
He cares about the almighty dollar only, he has no conscience
No thought regarding the impact on the player
He can blame the posting system as being flawed

The Sox angle:

He's an unproven MLB talent
There are cases of failure (see Irabu, aka the Fat Toad)
Posting pricetag is absolutely part of the deal
They put the "full court press" on this guy - over bidding, Lucchino trip to Japan
Guarantee a certain amount, the rest in incentives (unproven commodity)
Boras has less leverage - no other teams are bidding
Matsuzaka said "sayonara" to Seibu and Japanese fans
Returning to Japan because of greed will not endear him to the fans
Seibu needs cash to stay solvent and competitive
"Honor" is a driving force for both Matsuzaka and Seibu
Last minute trip to meet Boras saves face for future Japanese player deals


Who's going to blink first?

Every party wants to get this deal done, but on their own terms. Whoever has the most to lose will blink first. That will probably be Matsuzaka. Why?

It's been his dream to play in the majors. He's said his farewell to the fans of Japan and Seibu. He will lose face if he returns to Seibu. The Japanese fans will take exception to him being greedy, Seibu will struggle financially, and may even be "forced" to cut his salary. It would be very ugly for him to return. In the end, he may need to tell Boras to accept a reasonable offer.

The Sox are sitting in an interesting position. They positioned themselves to be the good guys by posting a huge amount, sending Lucchino to Japan, and now upping the ante in person at Boras's doorstep. So if the deal falls thru, Boras is the bad guy and Matsuzaka is either naive or greedy. Oh yeah, they also lose a potential top of the rotation starter. But with Lester apparently healthy, they may be able to push the need for a starter to 2008 after Schill is retired. There's always the Clemens angle, but he may decide to join Pettite in NY.

Scott Boras has nothing to lose. He doesn't care about anything other than his commission. While he has less leverage than normal, he still has enough. He knows that he can squeeze more money out of this in another year and even more after two when Matsuzaka is a true free agent. He also has "the posting system needs to be changed" out, to which he can become the "champion" of changing it. What the Sox also fear is that Boras is shielding his client from what is really going on. Does he know that Boras has not made a counter offer? Has Boras been saying the Sox offer is an insult? That's why the Sox brass have flown to LA in the hopes of speaking to Matsuzaka in person during negotiations. They hope his friends have been on the internet and are calling him as well.

Will he pitch in Boston in 2007?

At age 26, growing up within Japanese culture, conventional wisdom would indicate Matsuzaka's willingness to make a reasonable deal. It's likely the Sox have offered a $10-$11M annual deal which dwarfs his current $3M deal. Has Boras warped his thinking? Is he getting good or bad advice from somewhere else? We should know by tomorrow if Matsuzaka & Boras return to Boston for a physical.

We're guessing he'll be on the mound in Fenway the second week of Apr. You can bet that Sushi will make it's way as well, so bring your chopsticks...

Sox ink Drew and Lugo...

The winter meetings finally bear some fruit, and the Nation still retains our in-house "fruit" Manny. These two signings give the Sox a significant upgrade over last year.

If you say the Sox overpaid for both players, you're 100% correct. Neither will "live up to" their contract amount. Welcome to free agency in 2006. If you look at all the big free agent deals being signed, not many players will be worth their pricetag. You're going to see a number of high priced and mediocre pitching available at trading deadlines in the years to come. And you thought Matt Clement was expensive...


JD Drew

Sox get a significant upgrade in RF. He'll bring a .285 BA, 20+ HR, 100+ RBI, and .390+ OBP. He's a solid defender and now provides protection for Manny batting in the 5 spot. He makes a patient lineup even more patient, driving the pitch count even higher.

His rumored downside is that he's injury prone and has no drive. Let's take a look at his injuries:
2002 - 15 day DL (knee)
2003 - offseason surgery - started playing Apr 20th (knee), 15 day DL (oblique)
2004 - 8 games (neck/hamstring)
2005 - 5 games (knee), hit by pitch (broken wrist) in July - missed rest of season
2006 - 5 games (shoulder/quad)

Other than a broken wrist in 2005 his injuries are really minor. Yes, his career high is 146 games but that was also last season. In 2006 0nly 3 Sox players had more than 150 games played, and in 2005 only 4 (Damon had 148). Not so eye popping now, eh?

In terms of his drive and heart, who knows. There are sportswriters that don't like him and others like Gammons who praise him. But remember that he carried the offensive burden by himself in LA and the pressure that went with it. Now he's a #5 hitter with two of the best offensive forces in the majors hitting in front of him. Pressure is gone baby. He should thrive in Boston.

The other nagging question out there is why didn't they sign Damon last year. Should the Sox have known the market would be this pricey? Probably. So, is Drew worth the extra $2M per season? Probably not especially since Damon is a good leadoff man and he's now with your rival. But, the bottom line is that they landed the best player available. Just don't make the mistake of judging him on salary or if Damon is the better option. He's a solid productive player. Blame Theo for the faux pas, not him.


Julio Lugo

Theo's infatuation finally made it here. He's a good shortstop but have you ever understood the attraction? He's speedy and is a decent leadoff guy that will bring you a .275 BA, 10 HR, and 40 RBI. Apparently he's a high energy and good clubhouse guy as well. His numbers may also increase slightly with this lineup. However, expect to get about 20 errors out of him. Maybe you can attribute that to getting to more balls, but he's a still drop defensively over Gonzalez. Offensively he's an upgrade but mostly in consistency and batting average. At times, Gonzalez was a sure out last season. Overall they're better offensively and baserunning, but took a hit defensively. It looks pretty even on the surface, but management seems to be very high on him. They're definitely a better club with him despite the $9M pricetag.


The Sox still have some work to do, but their lineup is in good shape right now. Here's what you'll see on opening day if nothing changes:

Lugo
Crisp
Ortiz
Ramirez
Drew
Tech
Lowell
Youkilis
Pedroia

Don't forget about Wily Mo, Hinske, and Cora...

Next up: Pitching, pitching, pitching...

To trade Manny, or not to trade Manny...

Well the Manny gate rumors have reared their ugly head once again. With the recent outlandish free agent signing $'s, Manny's contract is now seen as a bargain. That's scary. His contract has seemingly been the albatross in striking any trade deals, even as recent as last season. What a difference a year makes. MLB insiders also seem to think this trend of spending will continue in the near future making his contract #'s even more tradeable.

The debate of whether to keep him or trade him will rage on. It's been rumored that he made be traded as early as Saturday (when they will supposedly sign JD Drew).

Why Should they trade Manny?

1) His flighty attitude.
2) He seemingly quit on his teammates at the end of last season.
3) He's become such a distraction that he affects team chemistry.
4) The Manny being Manny episodes are not a matter of if, but when.
5) His production may start to slip in the next couple of seasons.
6) His trade value may not ever be higher, and a younger viable option is available.

Why should they keep him?

1) You can't replace his production or talent for hitting (Andruw Jones is not the same threat or producer).
2) David Ortiz's walks will increase and his production will decrease. You're losing the equivalent of 1.25 players.
3) You won't get equal value in return, and teams (like the Dodgers) are claiming the pricetag is too high.
4) He's a 10-5 guy and can veto any trade - should they expend time & energy in the first place? He may require additional terms (exercise option & possible extension years) before waiving his no-trade. He also may just change his mind about it daily.
5) Just to piss off local sports writers like Shaughnessy.

The question is, does management think his antics outweigh his production. It's clear his teammates were frustrated with him at the end of last season, but to the point they don't want him back? We'll never really know. The only measuring stick will be what kind of deal they pull off. If he isn't traded, that most likely means they weren't willing to part with him for less than full value, and he's not the "cancer" some portray him to be.

Sportwriters like Shaughnessy don't like Manny, so when reading their articles bear that in mind. Manny doesn't speak to the media so there is no dispute or point of view to what's written either. Shaughnessy would have you believe Manny doesn't want to be here (another season of trade rumors), he gave up on his teammates and he gave up on YOU, the fan. What a load of crap. It makes for a good article in November, but do you really buy it? What he's actually doing is making it easier for the Sox brass to unload him for less than fair value - in the eyes of the fan.

There is only 1 consideration here if you're Theo. Will Manny's antics disrupt the clubhouse to the point of derailing the team? Will his "phantom" injuries return at a critical point of the season?

A) If no, then keep him unless you're blown away by an offer. His option year is also now a bargain.
B) If yes, how much under fair value are you willing to take?

From a fan's perspective, do you really care about the Manny being Manny episodes? It's not like you work with the guy directly. You're not paying his salary. What it really comes down to is his production and ability to help the team win. You may only get 140 games out of him, but at the end of the day is there a better option?

Unless they get some stud pitching in return, they're nuts if they trade him. That's two more seasons of Manny coming your way...

Hot Stove - The Rotation...

Scary, but it’s that time already. The Sox have more holes to fill this offseason than they’ve had in a while. Payroll sits around $100M right now, and the new luxury tax number has risen to $148M. Where will they fit in? It’s probably safe to assume $20M will go towards starting pitching. Let’s delve right in to what the Sox are looking at:

Starters:

1) Beckett
2) Schilling
3) Papelbon
4) Wake
5) ???

Not such a bad rotation as it stands. It’s probably good enough to get to the playoffs by adding a solid #5. Let’s also assume that Lester doesn’t help in 2007. Also remember that Schill posted the best Sox starters ERA last season which was just under 4…

Potentials:

Daisuke Matsuzaka – the prize of the free agents. Only 26, his 17-5 record, 2.13 ERA, and 200K in 186 IP is impressive. Even though the Sox won the bidding, they still need to negotiate length & dollars per season.

Impact: Hasn’t done it with MLB players yet, but all the scouts think he’s the real deal.
Cost: $51M (doesn’t affect payroll #’s). Boras reportedly asking $16M per year.
Analysis: Best option. Don’t give up any prospects, open new revenue stream overseas, and keep away from competition - especially Yanks. $51M doesn’t count against the cap…


Adam Eaton – 28, injured during spring training (surgery on finger), didn’t pitch until July. Went 7-4 with a 5.12 ERA, after spending 6 seasons with the Padres.

Impact: End of rotation guy, NL ERA of low 4’s.
Cost: $4.7 last year, could be a “cheap” option at $6M - $7M
Analysis: Only 28, but the transition to the AL coupled with a finger injury inflated his ERA. He’s also never pitched 200 innings, or won more than 11 games. Apparently Theo has met with him already. Not sure what he sees here. Don’t we have a similar guy on the farm already?


Gil Meche – 28, was 11-8, 4.48 Era with Seattle. With a thin market, his $3.7M salary should at least double.

Impact: Middle of rotation guy, can lock up for a few years. Schill will be gone in 08, might fit in nicely behind Beckett, Papelbon, and Lester.
Cost: $8M+
Analysis: He’s been pitching in the AL so no “adjustment” will happen. Downside – never pitched 200 innings, only won 15 games once. Only a 4 or 5 guy at best. He’s still young and may be the only “bargain” out there.


Vincente Padilla – 29, was 15-10, 4.50 ERA with Texas, career 4.06 ERA. Reportedly looking for $10M per season. Made the transition back to AL improving on his 4.71 from Philly. Appears to have overcome injuries in 2004 & 2005.

Impact: Could be a solid # 3. There aren’t many 15 game winners that fall out of the sky, especially within the AL.
Cost: $10M+
Analysis: May become too expensive after bidding starts. How much do you want to pay for a #3? See: Matt Clement…





National League


Tom Glavine – is a homecoming in the cards? He’s reportedly torn between the Mets and Braves. His 15-7 record went along with 3.82 ERA. At 40, it makes little sense for him to switch to the AL. He’ll probably cost around $11- $12M.

Woody Williams – went 12-5 with a 3.65 era in 145 innings. At 40, he’s had a steady decline in innings every season since 2003. Might be a good option in the pen however.

Mark Mulder – had season ending surgery (rotator cuff), this guy may have lost it, but has still been mentioned in rumors… Went 6-7 with a 7+ ERA with the Cards. Yikes.


Longshot Department

Roger Clemens – were you tired of the back and forth stories last season? Well, hang on because here they come again. He’s the master at extracting the most dollars he can. Houston has probably had its fill, but he’ll pit the Sox vs. Yanks, with the Rangers a distant third once again. Odds are he’d join the Sox, but at a price the Sox would pay? His NL numbers will certainly jump. Is he a legit #2 in the AL now? Remember too that he broke down only playing a few months.

Jason Schmidt – at 33, he’s not any getting better especially if he switches to the AL. Someone will overpay to the tune of $13- $14M. Probably Houston because they just unloaded a ton of payroll.

Barry Zito – at 28, he’s proven to be durable. His ERA of 3.83 is probably close to what you can expect going forward. A true #1 in the NL, he’s not in the AL. Do you start him in a decisive playoff game? Although he was top 10 in ERA, he’s not a top 10 pitcher. But, he’ll get paid like he is, similar to the $13 - $14M of Schmidt. A left handed flyball pitcher at Fenway spells disaster. Mets are probably the best fit.

Jake Peavy – only 25, he dominated the prior 2 seasons. His ERA ballooned to over 4 from a sub 3 last season. He did have a good Sept with a 2.43 ERA, but did not perform well in the playoffs. This rumor popped up last season, but why would SD part with a 25 year old starter? Who do the Sox give up? Don’t hold your breath…

Ted Lilly – 30, this Sox killer will be commanding big dollars ($11-$12M?). His 4.31 era was in the top 20 in the AL. Someone will overpay, but not the Sox. He’s probably a fringe 3 guy at best. Still, rumors persist that Theo is interested…


In the Clubhouse / On the farm…

Jon Lester – let’s just hope this kid is OK. Treatment and recovery is 6-8 months (Feb – Apr timeframe). That’s when we find out just if he’s healthy or not. He’ll be unable to even eat properly or train until then. Even if he does pitch in 07, he probably won’t be back at his 2006 form.

Julian Tavares – pitched very well in the rotation going 3-0 in his last 5 starts, giving up more than 2 runs (3 & 4) only in two of his starts. He’ll probably start in the pen and be a backup plan for the rotation.

Hansack/Gabbard/Alvarez/Pauley/Snyder/J. Johnson/DiNardo – hopefully someone from this heap will have a great spring. Some of these guys showed some poise after being thrown in the fire. Their best bet is that someone will stand out by June.


Coming next, The Pen…

Matsuzaka Mania Baby! The hot stove is heated!

The Sox pull off step 1 in the Matsuzaka sweepstakes. The sweeps ticket cost somewhere between $42M - $50M+ depending on who you believe. The Seibu Lions will probably won't be tight lipped about their windfall, so we'll know soon.

The Sox now need to clear the Scott Boras hurdle, which apparently is set somewhere around $14M per season. At 26, you'd think the Sox would want to lock him up for at least 4 seasons. On the other hand if he's not a top of the rotation talent, how many years do you risk to overpay?

This is a bold move by the Sox and it accomplishes a number of important tasks:

1) They get a potential #1 guy at 26 - unheard of especially these days
2) Don't give up any young talent to get him
3) Keep him away from rivals - especially the Yanks
4) The $42M+ does not impact payroll, and the Sox must feel they can "recover" the investment from the overseas market (TV rights, media, merchandise)

Will he be a success? Based on his numbers, the scouting reports, and the number of teams throwing money around, the safe bet is yes.

Couple of quick hits...

The gyro ball is fictional. When asked during the WBC, Matsuzaka laughed and said he'd work on one.

Apparently the best players in Japan are obsessed over, and the fan base is 10 times as rabid as we are here. So those of you worried about the pressure at Fenway, can rest easy.

And be friendly to the influx of Japanse tourists about to roll in. Sushi coming to Fenway?

Stay tuned for more hot stove updates...

Gold Glove? More like aluminium foil...

By definition, the Gold Glove Award honors the top fielders at each position in each league. Since 1965, managers and coaches have decided the winners.

Well, they suck at it. This process is exactly like all-star voting. Players get awarded more for their star power, not performance.

How are coaches evaluating these guys? By the look of things, probably not by defensive stats...

For a closer look, here are 5 main stats used to evaluate defensive prowess:

1) Fielding percentage - the higher the #, the less mistakes you make
2) Errors - self explanatory
3) Total Chances - # of opportunities to field the ball
4) Range factor - how many balls you can get to
5) Zone rating - % of balls fielded in their "zone" (no idea...)

A reasonable person would evaluate the first 3, because who the hell knows what 4 & 5 really are. The other one not listed is the "eyeball test". You know by watching a player how good they really are. But it's also no secret who can get to a ball and who can't. Players who have less errors because they lost a step and can't reach a ball up the gap shouldn't be rewarded. There are some subjective areas, but lets be honest, it's a popularity contest.

In a perfect world you would start with your eyeballs, and then look at the stats. Unless a player is on your team, you don't see him play every day. The eyeball test only goes so far.

Lets take a look at some of the more glaring examples out there in the AL...


Pitcher:

Kenny Rogers takes it home this year. He had 5 errors in the regular season. There were 30+ pitchers who had less errors, with 11 of those recording "zero" errors. So, 11 guys who were essentially perfect got passed by with someone who made 5 errors. Maybe the makers of pine tar have a lobbyist...

Shortstop:

Derek Jeter is a great player, maybe even one of the best ever. But his best fielding days went bye bye a while ago. Take a peek at his stats and those he beat out:

D. Jeter: .975 FPC, 14 E, 610 TC
A. Gonzalez: .985 FPC, 7E, 475 TC
M. Young: .981 FPC, 14E, 747 TC
J. Uribe: .977 FPC, 14E, 604 TC

Outfield:

The same trio has now won the award the past 3 seasons. Here are some of the top performers (before we get to the winners):

C. Granderson: .997 FPC, 1 E, 389 TC
M. Cabrera: .996 FPC, 1 E, 230 TC
B. Anderson: .994 FPC, 2 E, 310 TC
R. Ibanez: .994 FPC, 2 E, 314 TC
M. Kotsay: .993 FPC, 2 E, 289 TC
C. Crawford: .990 FPC, 3 E, 314 TC

And your winners...

I. Suzuki: .992 FPC, 2 E, 260 TC
T. Hunter: .989 FPC, 4 E, 355 TC
V. Wells: .988 FPC, 4 E, 340 TC

Other Infielders:

The results are fairly close, but NONE of these winners were better in more than ONE of the statistical categories. You could make a clear case that someone else was better.

The one award that does make sense goes to I-Rod. He is not only better but superior in almost every major category. Throwing out a runner more than 50% of the time is amazing. So, you can feel warm and cozy about one of them.

What to do, what to do...

Do we continue to bitch about these awards every year? Do we let it continue? Does it really matter?

If there are those of you really tired and fet up with this, get out your pens and fire up your emails. Contact Rawlings (the sponsor) and MLB (coaches who vote).

Executive Office
Rawlings Sporting Goods Co., Inc.
P.O. Box 22000
St. Louis, MO 63126

Major League Baseball Advanced Media, LP.
75 Ninth Avenue
New York, NY 10011
212-485-3444

Wrapup of 2006 Yanks, playoff records...

We're officially putting Jayson Stark, ESPN.com writer, on our staff. His latest article (see link below) puts the Yanks futile playoff efforts into perspective. And, oh my, it's some great stuff...

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/playoffs2006/insider/columns/story?columnist=stark_jayson&id=2620662&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab2pos1

A few highlights...

1) The Yankees are the first team ever to win 95-plus for six straight seasons without winning a World Series in any of them.

2) These 2004-05-06 Yankees are the fourth team in the division-play era to win 95 or more three straight years without even playing in a World Series, let alone winning one.

3) So what have we established? We've established that these Yankees now belong in the same conversation as the most tragic October figures of all time.

4) Even the Red Sox have never had anything like this happen to them. And, of course, they never had A-Rod around, either.

5) Yankees just set a record for most consecutive postseason series in which they led the series at some point. If the Yankees have led in all those series, it means that, in each of the seven postseason series Joe Torre's Yankees have lost, they had to come from AHEAD to lose all seven.

6) You probably could have figured this, but the Yankees are now the first team ever to lose a postseason series in which they were ahead in six straight seasons.

7) The Yankees' streak isn't just a baseball record. It's a record for all four major North American pro sports.

Let's reflect on some of that fabulous info for a moment. The Yanks are actually building a case to be one of the worst postseason performers EVER, in any sport. Now that's quite a statement.

And you Yankee fans thought "The Greatest Choke of All Time" would be the worst it gets. Nope. It's almost to the point where we want the Yanks in the playoffs to see how bad it can get. Not to mention the building angst among Yankee fans...

Should I stay or should I go now? Torre is gone & then he's back...

Should we call in the clash on this one? First, Newsday reports he's gone then Georgie says "OK I guess he can stay". What an overwhelming endorsement. After so many seasons with a $200M payroll and playoff futility, the ax will eventually fall, maybe even by midseason 2007.

Cashman also claimed that A-Rod will not be traded. But his statement "We're going to figure this thing out together" is baffling. Figure what out? That he can't handle the pressure when it means the most? His 4 for 41 and no RBI in his last 12 playoff games speaks volumes, not to mention Torre moving him to 8th in the lineup. His regular season numbers are outstanding (aside from league leading 24 errors) and the downside is that he kills the clubhouse chemistry. He'll help get you to the playoffs but will fold like a house of cards once you get there. Not good from a "superstar"... (By the way, what's up with A-Rod asking for privacy while shopping in NYC?)

$urgeries?

Both the Big Unit (back) and Giambi (wrist) are both headed for the knife. Big Unit is probably entering his last season, and will be the #4 starter. It's almost like watching MJ in his last season for the Wizards, but worse. Giambi battles yet another injury. Guess that HGH can't fix everything.

Option$?

Looks like the Yanks will turn down the option on Mussina, but will renegotiate a deal for lesser dollars. Will they give him more than 1 year? Risky for a 38 year old with a history of breaking down.

Do they bring back Sheffield? He certainly can't play first, and even the Yanks won't spend $13M for a disgruntled 4th OF. Don't be surprised to see him in RF at Fenway next season...

Jaret Wright? They either pay him $7M to pitch for them or $4M to go away. He'll be back for the extra $3M, especially with the scarce pitching free agent market.

Rambling$...

Carl Pavano? Will the Yanks ever see him pitch? They still have to sort thru his "accident". Have any faith in the offseason conditioning program to prevent injury to his shoulder, elbow, back, and buttocks?

Will the Yanks pursue Zito (will vastly overpay) or Schmidt (damaged goods from NL)? Right now, the 2007 rotation looks like: Wang, Mussina, Wright, Johnson, Karstens (with Hughes waiting in the wings). Yanks fans should pray for Zito and bullpen help...

Yanks are still a very old team and Cashman has a lot of work to do. It looks to be a very interesting and long offseason...

Letterman gets in on the act...

The always funny top 10, from Mon Oct 11th...

Top Ten New York Yankees Excuses (for choking in round 1)

10. Wanted Columbus Day off to get to all the sales
9. Thought series was best 6 out of 11
8. We've already missed the first three episodes of "Grey's Anatomy" -- enough is enough
7. Thought Joe Torre told us to give 10 percent
6. Players distracted by erotic text messages from Mark Foley
5. Shouldn't have switched to the cheaper generic steroids
4. Clubhouse caterer replaced E. coli-tainted spinach with E. coli-tainted lettuce
3. Uh, global warming?
2. More focused on how they're going to get by on a lousy $16 million a year
1. What's the point? North Korea's gonna nuke us at any moment

Thanks Dave...

Murderers who? Tigers take 3 in a row!

Wow. Was that the Tigers on steroids or the worst postseason performance by an offensive juggernaut ever?

These are the Tigers that were freefalling and limped into the playoffs. The Yanks were well rested and had arguably the best offense in decades.

Must have been the tension in the clubhouse A-Rod referred to. Or was it everyone besides Jeter? Games 3 & 4 were just embarassing. They didn't even show up...

A-Rod now hitting in the 8 spot was 1-14, Giambi 1-8, Sheffield couldn't catch anything at first, and Torre inserted Melky for an offensive spark. Melky?

Torre always gets the credit when they win, but he should get the lions share of blame for this one. A-Rod will be the villian and take most of the heat. He should take some, but Torre is the one that lost control of the clubhouse, and ultimately team chemistry. The Tigers had more energy, more emotion, and just plain wanted it more.

Thats 3 straight playoff series losses now, and 3-10 in their last 13 postseason games. Keep counting those AL East crowns (and ALDS losses).

A few randoms...

Best sign in the playoffs? "Hey Johnny you left your playoff beard in Beantown"... Priceless...

Best random moment? Jim Leyland goes to the fence to kiss his wife & kids thru the fence after clinching. Nice moment. Then some random dude sticks his lips thru the fence & Leyland kisses him on the hat. Hilarious...

Best fan celebration? Detroit. The players hive fiving the fans, then spraying them down with champagne standing on the dugouts. Congrats Detroit, its been a while. It's also a little bit sweeter beating the Yanks...

Uh oh, it's a deep 2-1 hole...

Kenny Rogers was masterful. That was easily his best clutch performance and had to be one of the best ever in the playoffs. That high powered offense of the ages looked baffled. Murderers row hasn't advanced a runner in over 9 innings...

A-Rod made what looked like a nice tag play at 3rd but the runner was safe and ultimately scored. Bernie hit a deep shot to left (which he thought was gone when he hit it) that just missed the foul pole. That Yankee mystique of old is apparently in hiding. They're not getting the breaks they're used to getting.

The Big Unit is showing his age and obviously couldn't overcome his back issues. The once great warrior couldn't get thru 6, giving up 8H & 5R. Will he return next season?

Now the season rests on the arm of Wright. Good luck with that one. Looks like the stumbling Tigers can pull this one out...

Your rival's team not in the playoffs?

This is absolutely priceless. It was sent to us by one of you faithful Yankee folks out there (would have caught it sooner but was sitting in the spam folder).










Get it here: http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/mlb/fan_forum/lasorda/

But don't worry Yankee fans, you'll be getting one soon enough...

Yanks evade red-hot Twins, get stumbling Tigers...

Yup, even Siegfried and Roy aren't too worried about these Tigers...

Coming off a terrible collapse and backing into the playoffs (very uncharacteristic for a Leyland team), things look lined up nicely for the Yanks. With Sheff and Matsui back, they have the most formidable lineup in the playoffs. There was no Sox series to wear them down. They've been able to rest their players. The stars are all aligned...

But there are only 3 things that win in October. Pitching, pitching, and pitching. With an ailing Unit and worn out pen, the Yanks pin their season on Mussina, Wang, and scoring a ton of runs. Don't see it carrying them too far...

They should be able to beat the reeling Tigers unless their young rotation steps it up. Verlander is more than capable of tossing some zero's. But they've been pitching worse than the Yanks have of late. Their lineup features 6 guys that hit 19 or more homers, so they can easily do some damage.

Anything can happen in a short series. Bad breaks, injuries, surprise contributors... A Detroit victory certainly wouldn't be shocking.

But just like St. Louis, these Tigers should be breaking out the golf clubs soon...

Is it A-Rod? Or Stuart Smalley?

The whole A-Rod thing is priceless, and it still won't go away.
Even when the Yanks clinched, he was still getting tooled on. Why? Poor bastard can't get out of his own way.

Excerpt from a recent ESPN article:

"When people write bad things about me, I don't know if it's because I'm good-looking, I'm biracial, I make the most money, I play on the most popular team ..."

Wow. Will someone read that back to him so he can understand it? What color is the sky on your planet?

Even Stuart Smalley is like, DUDE? Tone it down...

His teammates will not relent, especially Giambi. Where the heck is Torre in all of this? Don't you grab your team by the collar & tell them to zip it? How are you managing this team if you allow this to continue?

Is there a way out? Only if he has monster playoffs, but the Yanks still must win. Remember too that he has more pressure on him now than ever. He certainly hasn't been able to handle it so far. Will more pressure help or hurt? If he struggles, his days in pinstripes may be over. Will he get the big hit when it counts? No way. He'll be pressing too hard and then he'll be packing...

Yanks finally clinch, but playoff hopes doomed...

Took them long enough. Sox imploded a while ago. Don't pat yourselves on the back too hard.

Yanks Playoffs Doomed? You decide...

"Unhappy family? Yankees give A-Rod tough love" http://x.go.com/cgi/x.pl?goto=http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2595523&name=FPT-2595523-092013&srvc=sz

That's a recent title of an ESPN.com article. Pitching matchups aside (which are not in Yanks favor either), chemistry is a huge part of winning. Just ask the 2004 version of the Sox. With a team supposedly cruising to the playoffs, having guys take shots at each other in the clubhouse is a bad sign. Even Torre has had to speak with A-Rod.

So lets see, A-Rod has the fans, teammates, and the manager against him. You might as well hit him 9th now. Thats going to be ugly.

So enjoy going to the playoffs while it lasts, it doesn't look good. Must be hard rooting for a team fighting within itself. Don't really wish that on anyone.

The only question now is who will take A-Rod off your hands in the offseason & how much is Georgie going to pony up to get it done?

Yanks drop 3 of 4 at home to Sox…

We know, we know. It doesn’t matter and the Sox aren’t going to the playoffs. But your playoff bound Yankees just dropped 3 of 4 to a pitching staff that consisted of:

Beckett: 2ER
Tavares: 4ER
Snyder: 2ER
Jarvis: 4ER

Who? Yikes. And your Bombers countered with Wang, Johnson, Wright, and Mussina (your playoff rotation). All this against a lineup without Manny. The game they did manage to win took a late inning rally. Well, they must be on cruise control. Yup, that’s what it is. They really weren’t trying to win. They didn't want to clinch against the Sox at home either. By the way, the Brooklyn Bridge is for sale...

Yes the Sox will be watching the playoffs, but witnessing another $200M go down in flames will be entertaining. Playoffs are about pitching. Wang, Mussina, and Johnson don’t match up against the A’s, Minn, or the struggling Tigers. So good luck with that.

That’s right folks. Another disappointing season without a ring. Keep counting your division titles. Maybe you’ll catch the Braves. Who cares about division titles? Teams that don't win championships. And how many rings do the Braves have again?

A ray of hope? Not really...

Sox finally win two in a row, and against a playoff contender no less. Even more silly, their starters were Julian Tavarez & Kason Gabbard. Your starter tonight? Kyle Snyder... Here's your rotation for the next 5 starts:

Snyder, Beckett, DiNardo, Tavarez, Gabbard - with no closer... Wowch…

Although some of you feel somewhat optimistic, realize that the Sox need to reel off something like 18-5 to get in. Or let’s live in the land of make-believe for a minute. The Sox stay 6 behind in the wildcard race, and manage to sweep the Twins (19th - 21st) to bring it to 3 games. Then they have 9 games to close the gap. Not that far fetched you say?

Without a healthy Schilling, no Wells, no Papelbon, a weakened pen, and still no Wakefield, what are you smokin? The only hope is that the lineup needs to get red hot and they bash their way in.

Both Minn & Chisox would need to implode. Chisox still face Angels, A's, Det, Sea, & Minn. Minn has an easier path vs. Det, A's, & Chisox. So if you're scoreboard watching still, keep an eye on Minn as Chisox should fall back.

In 2004, the Sox went 20-11 to finish the regular season. Their remaining schedule only has roadblocks with 4 vs. Yanks and 3 vs. Minn. Is it plausable? Yup. Probable? Nope. Mathematically they’re still in it. They need to play well and get a ton of help.

Realistically? Let’s just hope the injury bug has left the building. It’s just uncanny, never seen anything like this.

Lastly, please keep your thoughts and prayers around Jon Lester who was recently diagnosed with a rare form of Lymphoma Cancer. The 22 year old will undergo chemo for 4 months. Good luck Jon...

Quick, someone get a muzzle for the fat lady...

She might not be singing just yet, but she's a hummin...

With Papi going back to Boston for testing (insert our heart attack here) it doesn't look good. That may be the final straw. Who can carry the offense with Manny out too? Yikes.

It doesn't look like they'll be able to survive until they get healthy. You can't call an MLB worst 8-19 record in Aug surviving...

Here is the AAA version of the Sox last night in Oak:

P - Kason Gabbard

Crisp
Cora
Loretta
Youkilis
Hinske
Lowell
J Lopez
C Pena
Pedroia


Let's just have Jeff Spicoli fill out the lineup card for Sept...

No Ortiz, No Manny, No Pitching, "NO DICE!"

____________________________________________

The Sox have 31 games left, with a 6 game defecit for the wild card and 7 game defecit for the AL East. In order to make the playoffs, the teams they are chasing would need to go 16-17. The Sox? Need to go 21-10 the rest of the way. With their current roster, that would be quite a feat. Don't hold your breath very long...

____________________________________________

The WBC affect?

Lets not pretend that this created the downfall of the Sox. While it did affect them, there are plenty of reasons they are in the state they're currently in.

The WBC has roughly 50 well known major leaguers on their rosters. Of those 50, we count 17 players that have spent significant time on the DL, had significant negative effects to their stats, or both. That's about 35% of players affected. Is the WBC to blame? Maybe. Would these players performed differently or been injured if they didn't participate? You decide. It just seems like 35% is a little more than a coincidence. Here's the list of players affected:

Bobby Abreu
Rafael Betancourt
Adrian Beltre
Jorge Cantu
Bartolo Colon
Lenny DiNardo
Derrick Lee
Brad Lidge
Esteban Loaiza
Jake Peavy
Wily Mo Pena
Albert Pujols
Alex Rodriguez
Huston Street
Mike Timlin
Jason Varitek
Dontrelle Willis
Victor Zambrano

The Yankee Euphoria...

For those of you that don't know what "euphoria" means: A feeling of great happiness or well-being, commonly exaggerated and not necessarily well founded. (Dictionary.com apparently doesn't like the Yanks either) Heck, even Shatner the ultimate "over-actor" isn't buying it...

Let's recap...

1) It's only August
2) The Yanks have plenty of time to blow it
3) As long as the Yanks are 3 games up with 4 to go, the Sox will be fine (2004 revisited)
4) Yanks pitching is not that good. It just didn't suck as bad as the Sox pitching over 5 games
5) The next 4 game set at Yankee Stadium will allow you to suffer at home in Sept.

While it has been so nice to hear from all of you regarding the Sox demise, there are still 40 games left. It really can't get worse for the Sox, and can't get any better for the Yanks. Don't expect all the breaks continuing to come your way...

But your Yankees just lost Mussina, at least for his next start. His track record late in the season isn't good. Ponson is horrible, and the Unit is an average #3 starter at this point. More pressure just got dumped on Wang.

Still confident? Riding high? Must be living in fantasy land...

You've just been set up for another fall Yankee Fans.


Only this time its from higher ground...

Has anyone seen our pitching staff?

Looks like it may not take those 24 games after all. If the staff continues to pitch like this, it will be over before the west coast trip ends. It's been awful. It's almost like they don't want it bad enough. Aside from Schilling, no one has shown any guts from the staff. And if the starter managed to pitch well enough for a win, the pen blows it. They should have taken 2 games from the Tigers and at least 2 from the Yanks. Bottom line is they didn't. They don't deserve to go to the playoffs right now. Who could they "out pitch" in a playoff series right now? It's not looking good folks. They may not be able to weather the storm until Wake & Tek return. Even then, it may not be enough. The real key is Beckett. If he manages to go on a run, they may be OK. The only problem is that he hasn't done it consistently all season, so why should it start now? Look for Wells to get the win today and stop the skid, at least temporarily. This team is still going to win 90+ games, but will it be enough? Unless they get hot soon, no. Lets hope this series is a wake up call.

For you Yankee fans out there, don't go printing those World Series tickets just yet. Everything went right for the Bombers in this series and nothing went right for the Sox "arms". How much confidence do you have in your staff with these #'s? The pen is what made the difference this weekend...

4 Games - 25 runs: Starters - 18 runs, Pen - 7 runs

Starters: Avg 5IP, 4.5 runs

Wang 6IP, 3ER
Ponson 3IP, 7ER
Unit 7IP, 5ER
Mussina 4IP, 3ER

Good luck in any playoff series with that pitching...

At least the Sox pitching can't get any worse, the only way to go is up. How far up is the question...

The next 24 games will decide the season...

After a nail biting 3 game sweep of the O's, the Sox find themselves only 1 game back of the Yanks and 2 games out of the wildcard behind the surging Chisox. What a difference a few days make.

The good news is we should know if the Sox are a playoff team in the next 3 weeks or so. Why? take a look at their upcoming schedule. It's a doozey...

Detroit - 3 games
Yanks - 5 games

West Coast Trip:
Angels - 3
Seattle - 3
Oakland - 3

Back Home:
Toronto - 3
ChiSox - 3

That translates into a 24 game stretch from hell, with only 1 day off. Wow, the average of those teams is at a 66-51 record. At least most games are at home. The upcoming double header on Fri and a day game on Sat will be brutal.

While the Sox seemed to have found themselves offensively, pitching is still a concern. Schill, Beckett, and Wells need to be outstanding. Lester is probably where he'll be at the rest of the way, giving up 3-5 runs per game over 5 innings. The Jason Johnson experiment may be over (hopefully), and we'd like to see Phil Seibel get a shot until Wake returns (which is at the end of this stretch). Put Johnson in the pen.

The bullpen continues to struggle and need the starters to go longer. The return of Varitek wouldn't hurt either. Now the rehabbing Foulke has been put back on the shelf and we may never see him again. These guys need some rest, and only the starters can provide it.

So, what's going to happen? They should be fine if they win 14 games. It's do-able but tough. If Schill, Beckett, and Wells all pitch well (all 3 excel in big games), they'll only need to steal a couple games from Lester & the #5 spot.

The Yanks have a similar road, with the only differences against Minnesota & Baltimore. Chisox & Minnesota face each other 6 times during this stretch.

Bottom line is that no one has an easy road. But the ones standing after this stretch will be there at the end. It won't be easy catching the leaders in early September...

Royal Sweep! Did you twist your ankle jumping off the bandwagon yet?

Can things get much worse? Well, yes, but it really doesn't feel that way. The Sox are now 12-15 since the break. Ouch.

Whats going on?

It's certainly not the competition. Cleveland 49-64, Tampa Bay 47-68, and KC 41-73 represent the league's worst. The Sox went a combined 3-7 against them.

Is it the absence of Tek? They are a combined 2-7 since he went down. Does 1 player have such as significant impact on a pitching staff? Probably not to that extreme, but some.

Is it the offense? They've averaged just under 5 runs a game with a .277 BA. It's not Ortiz and Manny, they've been tearing it up since the break. Lowell has struggled (.200 BA), and also out of the catching spot.

Is it the rotation? There's the "Tek factor" and the rocky return of Wells. Johnson pitched well his last outing, but Lester continues to struggle. Opposing teams have averaged 5 1/2 runs a game with a .296 BA.

Is it the pen? Are the youngsters hitting the wall? Papelbon, Delcarmen, and Hansen are not what they were a few weeks ago. Timlin has not returned to his old form since the injury. Tavarez & Seanez have been non-factors. Do the recent pen meltdowns make all the other problems look worse? Take away 3 or 4 recent losses and they're still in first...

Is it the lack of talent from the trade deadline? Let's say the Sox pulled off the Abreu and Lidle deal. How much does it really help them right now? Put Lidle in Johnson's spot and Abreu in Wily Mo's spot. It's a wash right now. Apparently there are some in the clubhouse that were disappointed by the lack of a move (see - veterans that don't have many opportunities left). Don't you find it hard to believe that the front office is so enamoured with its young talent they wouldn't make a move? Please. Theo traded Nomar - the face of the franchise at the time. Would he hesitate to trade a couple young arms for an Oswalt? No. Bottom line is that we don't know what deals were proposed. These deals always look good on July 31st, but how often do they make a difference? Other than 2004, good luck finding one.

So what is really happening here? It's a combination of all those things. Remember that this team has persevered without a 4 & 5 starter basically all season. Your #3 starter was struggling and still sits on the DL. Lester has been OK but only gives you 5 innings. Johnson, Snyder, Pauley, Gabbard, etc didn't exactly give you quality starts. Now the pen is starting to show signs of wear because the starters can't go 6 or 7 innings. Throw in the Tek injury and the dominoes are starting to fall. All the breaks and late game comebacks have disappeared. Anything that could go wrong, is going wrong.

Where do we go from here? They'll need a run similar to 2004 to get back in the playoffs. The skid is not over folks. Wells needs to regain his old form, Wake needs to come back strong, and someone other than Ortiz & Manny needs to step up offensively (Wily Mo?). The question is if this team can weather the storm. It certainly doesn't look good right now. Hang in folks, there's still a long way to go. Let's just hope things turn around before its too late...

The Cardiac Kids...

Another 9th inning comeback. This time it wasn't Papi. Of the 7 walk off hits this season, he has 5 and now Loretta has 2. Your 2006 Sox are now 2nd (believe it or not) with 31 come from behind wins. Hard to imagine anyone else has more, but certainly not more dramatic than what we've seen lately. How can you leave the park early or turn the TV off before the game ends?

The latest rumbling is that the Sox are going after the Orioles catcher Javy Lopez. Apparently he's been put on waivers (was actually asking to be released) and supposedly made it thru waivers all the way to the Sox. They should be able to claim him ($9M salary probably is what got him thru) and not have to give up much to get him. How does this affect Varitek? Probably not as much as you may think. Lopez is a free agent at year end, so he'll be gone. Tek won't come back until at least the first week of Sept, and he wouldn't be as compelled to rush his recovery. Mirabelli is not an everyday player, and will need to split duty anyway (Huckaby hitting just above .200 in AAA is not overly appealing). Once Tek does return, he probably doesn't go back to 4 days on and 1 off either. With the expanded roster in Sept, it makes sense to carry 3 catchers especially when one of them is a thumping right handed bat off the bench. He's been very unhappy in Baltimore and a change of scenery should benefit him. The only questions surround his diminished role once Tek returns and the Sox willing to pony up the rest of his $9M. it only makes sense to do this deal right away.

Wet Balls?
Yup, thats what some opposing players are saying about the baseballs at Colorado's Coors Field. The Rockies are being accused of soaking their balls or storing them in a humidor prior to games. This reduces the flight of the ball especially at that high altitude. Are they really altering the ball, or is it better pitching in 2006? You decide - take a look at stats both home & away the past few years:

2006:
Home: 4.03 Era / 87HR (projected)
Away: 4.32 Era / 53HR (projected)

2005:
Home: 5.13 Era / 84HR
Away: 5.07 Era / 91HR

2004:
Home: 6.27 Era / 110 HR
Away: 4.72 Era / 88HR

2003:
Home: 5.07 Era / 117HR
Away: 5.35 Era / 83HR

Looks like their pitching is just plain better by looking at their HR's allowed on the road this season. If the numbers hold, they will give up more home runs at home than last season. Even if they are "un-juicing" the ball, aren't their hitters at the same disadvantage?

Trade Deadline:
Are you that upset about the Sox not making a move at the deadline? Without knowing specifics of deals, we can't understand why there are so many questioning the front office. The Sox are noted as deadline losers. Are the Sox that enamored with their farm to not make a deal? No. Theo is a smart guy and has shown in the past he's not afraid to move the face of the franchise (see Nomar). But for the most part, deadline deals rarely make a difference. Other than 2004, when did a July trade make a difference in the same year? The percentages are against it and asking prices are sky high with all the teams still "in" the playoff chase. Would you rather a front office that made a knee jerk reaction? How much would Cory Lidle excite you if the Sox landed him? Kip Wells? Jeff Suppan? Please. The deadline is about difference makers. Does Bobby Abreu really make a "difference" or put them over the top? Would he for the Sox? No on both counts.

Another thing we've been hearing all season is that the Sox should have pulled futher away from the Yanks. The Yanks have had significant injuries and had to rely on their young players. Unless we missed something, the Sox have one of their best records at this point of the season since the 70's. They've also had significant injuries including starting pitching. They are relying on their young talent (Lester, Papelbon, Hansen, Delcarmen, Wily Mo) in major roles to carry them. These teams have been very similar all season with the Sox holding a slight edge. The national media is caught up patting the Yanks on the back for staying with the Sox. Well folks, how about recognizing that the Sox stayed on top with a patchwork rotation and injuries of their own? Guess that "perception" is everything...

The deal that wasn't...

The days and weeks leading up to the deadline pointed to the Sox not doing much of anything. In the last couple of days, there have been names like Clemens, Schmidt, Soriano, and Andruw Jones being thrown out as real possibilities. What a big tease.

If not for the recent injury to Trot (won’t know how severe until at least 4:01 PM today), things would probably be status quo. Depending on the severity of the injury, it may have altered the thinking in the front office. But apparently it wasn’t enough to persuade them into making a deal. Say hello Wily Mo & Kapler. Let’s hope this isn’t the beginning of the end for Trot.

While some of the deals proposed made some sense, but they didn’t really address the major need of starting pitching:

1) Lowell & prospects for Linebrink & Lugo
2) Lowell & prospects for Shealy & “more than reputable starter” (who?)

From fairy land…
1) Andruw Jones for; Lester, Coco, and Hansen (yeah, OK. Why not Papelbon too?)
2) Clemens – if he didn’t want to ruffle feathers in Houston before, why now?
3) Schmidt – see ridiculous Braves offer above.
4) Kip Wells – did the Sox really “lose out” on this one?
5) What team would trade a starter (Buehrle) for a CF (Coco) hitting .260?
6) Both Lowell & Coco were assured they were not on the block?

The good thing is that the Sox didn’t have a Duquette knee jerk reaction to the Yanks acquisition of Abreu & Lidle. They kept their young talent intact and didn’t leverage the future. While that trade helps the Yanks, it doesn’t put them over the top. It shores up the rotation with an upgrade over Ponson, and adds a little more pop (not power) to the lineup. They also poured gasoline on Sheff. Have fun with that in the clubhouse.

Pitching is what makes the difference down the stretch and in the playoffs. While the Yanks did improve, they basically added a #5 guy. Their staff ace in Mussina has been the anchor, but has been prone to breaking down the last few years especially late in the season. Wang has been good, but he’s not dominant (36BB, 45K’s) and is unproven in the playoffs. The Big Unit just came off a shelling by the D-Rays (now 11-9, 5+ Era), and Wright rarely gets past the 5th inning.

The Sox have Schill leading the way despite his last outing. He gets better the bigger the game is. Beckett has been inconsistent, but has only given up more than 3 runs twice in his last 10 games, and lowered his ERA by ½ a run during that span. He’s young and still getting better, maybe he’s figuring out the AL. Lester has pitched very well and should continue to get better. Wells returns tonight and will probably get shelled. Let’s hope he rights the ship quickly. He could be a huge asset down the stretch. Wakefield is still on the shelf and his return is still weeks away. The experiment in the #5 spot has only produced 1 win since the break. Ouch.
Why did the Sox stand pat? Here are some issues that may have affected their reasoning:

1) David Wells. He probably would have packed it in if he didn’t think he’d pitch down the stretch. Must have looked good in side sessions.
2) Wakefield. Should be back in a couple of weeks, solid innings eater.
3) Phil Seibel. Return from 2005 Tommy John surgery, started 9 games in AA with a 1.20 era, now in AAA with 1.86 era. Stay tuned.
4) They already have similar to what’s available.
5) The infield. Why would you change the best fielding % in the majors?
6) The farm (the pricetag). Front office refused to part with talent for a rental player. Aside from 2004, can you name a good deadline deal for the Sox? Suppan? Sauerbeck?

The Sox should be there at the end. They’ve been able to withstand multiple injuries (Wells, Clement, Coco, Pena, etc) and still have one of the best records at this point of the season since the 70’s. Will Schill, Beckett, and Wake be enough in a short playoff series? The Angels, Twins, and Tigers (in that order) will be very tough in a short series.
It doesn’t seem too far out of reach for the Sox. As long as health isn’t a major issue, they should be able to grind their way into the playoffs. They have a favorable schedule and a recent history of playing well down the stretch. Regardless, it’s going to come down to the last week if not the last couple games. Strap in folks. It’ll be the Sox, Yanks, Twins, and Chisox battling for 2 spots. Should be one of the most exciting finishes in recent memory…

Sox start left coast trip on a roll...

Sox 5th starter du jour Snyder pitched fairly well in his 3rd start for the Sox. After cruising thru the first 4 innings he was affected by an apparent cramp, yielded 2 runs, and was not able to return to the 6th. Lets just hope its only a cramp. This rotation cannot afford another setback.

Sox rook Kason Gabbard gets his first major league start today. He had a great start at AA Portland, but struggled in AAA Pawtucket before making adjustments. His last 2 starts have been solid. Apparently he didn't make the trip with the team because Theo had a deal in the works for another starter. Who? Take a look at todays starters around the league. The potential deal may also have been nixed due to Wells apparent recovery. He had another good side session and could return as early as Aug 3rd or 8th.

Few notes...

Great job by the front office inking Beckett for another 3 years, at an average of under $9M per year. Even at 26, Beckett is still better than any of the latest free agent signings, and at less $. Pavano, Clement, AJ Burnett, etc have all been disappointing. Can you imagine how much Beckett would cost on the open market? Probably $12m+ at a minimum.

Jon Lester returns to his hometown and starts tomorrow. With 50 of his friends and family present, it will be interesting to see how he responds. He seems to have embraced the deluge of local media with open arms. Good sign for a rook...

The Yanks have dropped their last 3 with A-Ro (no "D", get it) committing 5 errors in his last 5 games. He's getting booed at home all the time. Rumors have him headed out of NY where he supposedly can't handle the pressure any more (16 errors already). Don't see anyone taking on that salary however. Also, it looks like the Octavio Dotel experiment has ended in NY.

Trade Deadline:

The Mike Lowell for Jake Peavy trade shouldn't have been published. What a goof.

Why would the Sox have any interest in SS Julio Lugo, when Gonzo is better???

Don't look for the Sox to take on $30M remaining for a Bobby Abreu type player either...

The rumors with any substance:

Kyle Lohse: 2-5, 7.14 Era (Sox said no thanks)
Odalis Perez: 4-4, 6.94 (again, no thanks)
Livan Hernandez: 6-8, 5.85 (already have similar, NL pitcher, asking price too high)

Look for a swap of relievers to happen: Julian Tavarez / Rudy Seanez, for a Ray King (Colorado) or similar exchange

With Wells return looking good and only a handful of teams out of it, this team on the field should be the same in Oct...

Sox limp out of the gate in 2nd half...

Boy are those Sox hitters making these mediocre guys look good. The Sox pitchers (other than Schill) made that Oakland lineup look like bashers (2nd to last in AL in runs). Yes, Oakland is typically a good 2nd half team, but that wasn't Atlanta's Hudson on the mound last night either.

While its way too early to be alarmed, the Yanks are winning right now (settle down Yankee fans - its only a 4 game streak). And those ChiSox don't look like they did last season going a combined 1-5 vs the Sox and Yanks (going 19 innings to get the 1 win). That team era of 4.5+ is not even close to last season. Look for Detroit (a full run lower era) to take the central going away ("hip" pick is Chicago right now). Don't count out a good pitching Minnesota team taking a run at the Chisox & wildcard either.

Sox now have more pitching issues. It sounds like Wake will be put on the DL soon. How far is the tandem of Jason Johnson & Snyder going to take you as your 4 & 5 starters? Here comes David Pauley or Marc Deschenes folks. The bats better get hot when these guys are on the mound.

What it comes down to is Schill & Beckett being lights out. Someone other than Papi & Manny need to step up every night.

Clement is probably done (and maybe not just for this season - offseason trade to NL is likely).
Whatever happened to Lenny DiNardo?
Are we pinning our hopes on Wells getting healthy? Yikes.
Will this push Theo to do something at the deadline?
Are Pedroia, Murphy, Ellsbury, Moss, or Edgar Martinez now expendable?

Yanks aren't in a much better situation. Sidney "don't hit the judge" Ponson is now taking the mound for the bombers. Good luck with that one. Other than Mussina & recently Wang, there's no consistency. Your young players are getting hurt, and nagging injuries are mounting (Damon, A-Rod). The dog days are coming and they are OLD.

Looks like the trade deadline just got more interesting. The real question is there a deal out there for either team to put them over the top? Not likely for either. Both need more pitching (and do you even consider an NL pitcher at this point?).

Would like to see Theo go after Cleveland's Cliff Lee. His name hasn't been put out there yet. Cleveland is out of it, and he's only signed thru this year. Numbers aren't eye popping by any stretch (9-6, 4.68 ERA) but would be a solid #5 guy. He's a better option than what we have now, and you probably wouldn't have to give up the farm to get him.

Other possibilities:
Kansas City - Mark Redman 6-5, 5.02 (free agent at end of season)
Colorado - Josh Fogg 7-5, 4.23 (last year of 1 year deal)
Atlanta - John Smoltz - too much to give up
Philly - Jon Lieber 3-7, 5.56
Florida - no one is left
Nats - Tony Armas 6-4, 4.44 (just off DL)
Cubs - Glendon Rusch 3-7, 7.48 (just off DL)
Pittsburgh - Kip Wells 0-4, 9.13 (just off 60 day DL)

First Half a success...

How can it not be while sitting with a 3 game lead over the Yanks?

Their 53 - 33 is best record at the break in recent memory (52 - 33 back in 02).

Overall it's been a great first half.

The Downside:

- Trade of Arroyo (how does this one look with the injuries to the staff & Wily Mo? Ouch.)
- Injuries: Wells, Foulke, Clement, DiNardo, Wily Mo, Coco
- Nagging injuries: Varitek, Wake, Timlin, possibly Schill
- Tavarez & Seanez performances out of the pen
- Inconsistent Beckett - still hasn't found the AL groove yet, too many homers

The Upside:

- Addition & success of young arms (Lester, Delcarmen, Hansen, Lopez)
- Papelbon success - possible consideration for rookie honors, Cy, & MVP
- Youkilis solid at 1st, best OBP for leadoff
- Defense - best in MLB - gold glovers at 3rd, short, and make case for 2B
- Offense - 2nd in MLB - Lowell, Youkie, Loretta making the difference, Gonzo & Coco coming on
- Chemistry? Jury still out on this one. Havent' heard much, but nothing bad either. Manny might actually be happy.
- Intangibles: Sox have very few road trips in 2nd half, only one is more than 2 cities long

The deadline:

Needs? Other than a 5th starter or an arm in the pen, Theo seems to have an easy job. This would figure to be one of the less active deadlines in recent memory. The price of acquiring pitching is also sky high apparently.

Options?

Clement is probably done for the year - based on his latest tweak during his rehab. The MRI isn't showing damage, so it must be psychological...

Wells might not pitch again. It's quite strange that we've heard nothing about his rehab or medical status. Based on his comments from last season, you'd think he would retire if he couldn't come back.

Jason Johnson? Can't expect much more than 5 runs per game. He was released for a reason.

Snyder? Pauley? These guys seem like the next reasonable option if Johnson doesn't improve.
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Rumors:

Latest is that the Sox were inquiring about Bobby Abreu from the Phils. Apparently they were asking for Jon Lester in return. Right. They would also be taking on $20M for this & next year. How long did it take to say no? However, this may signal the end of Trot. If they don't think he'll re-sign at their value, they probably won't hesitate to get value for him.
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That's it. If Theo thinks Clement and/or Wells can contribute, he might not do anything. Foulke may return to add to the pen. As long as the club stays healthy, he might be seen on the beach.
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ENJOY THE BREAK!

Jermaine the juicer?

After watching Jermain Dye closely in this last series, he is NOT the same guy who played for Oakland a few years back. His last good season was with KC back in 2000. He's been injury plagued ever since. How many guys improve at the age 0f 32 after a history of injuries?
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Dye's #'s back in 2000: .321 BA, 33HR, 118RBI - his 5th year (and best) in the majors...
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He hasn't approached any of those #'s since. He only played 60 games in 2003. He supposedly is still bothered by nagging injuries.
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His #'s this season (if you double his 1st half): .318BA, 48HR, 130RBI - shattering his career bests
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The point is he hasn't been this good - ever. It's his 10th season. He's always been hurt (he missed 20 games last year). If someone has a breakout year early in their career, thats one thing. If a guy performs consistently and his #'s spike for a season, thats another. If there was a relevant reason for the spike, such as hitting in front of a Jim Thome (and not behind) well, OK.
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While no proof or even rumor has been floated out there, this is not the guy we remember. His numbers are off the charts. He doesn't pass the "eyeball" test either. Maybe he's completely healthy now or found the fountain of youth. Are we crazy here or is something just not right? We certainly don't have any proof, only suspicion. Are we missing something? We hope someone can put this to rest out there...

Streaking Sox hammer Pedro...

Did you ever imagine that headline?

Out with the old....



And in with the new...

Pedro's return to Fenway was not what he imagined. Although he noted last week he preferred not to face his old teammates. It wasn't pretty. Petey looked rattled in the first when he had trouble deciding what to do with a grounder hit right back to him. An easy double play ball translated into only 1 out and the runners on base scored. It was clear that the return clearly affected him.

Beckett stole the show last night. So was it that big of a mistake not signing Pedro? You wouldn't have Beckett if you did. Here's a few questions to think about:

How effective would Pedro be if he stayed in the AL? Is the NL he's pitching in truly as weak as the last 11 games have shown?

How much does Pedro have left in the tank? Only 1 pitch hit 91 last night. He's got 2 years left on his contract. How effective is that $14m going to be in the next 2 years?

Looks like the Sox might have been prudent sticking to 3 years...

Beckett looks like he's found himself. The transition to the AL may finally have taken hold. Oh yeah, he's only 26...

Few random thoughts...

Correction - last Sox 10 game win streak was late Aug into Sep, back in 2004...

How hot is Gonzo? His average rose from .220 to .267 in 13 games. Wow.

Sox are hitting .340 as a team during this 11 game streak, and bypassed the Yanks and Toronto in runs scored for the year.

Sox are now on pace for over 100 wins...

Despite multiple injuries and this recent run, the Yanks are only 3 1/2 back. Toronto is hanging in at 5 back. Just feels like more distance should have been made. They were tied with Toronto & 1 behind the Yanks.

What's going to happen at the deadline?

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Probably bullpen help only. Why? The emergence of Lester, the pickups of Snyder & Johnson, and Clement's rehab reportedly going well. Don't forget David Wells, who they may just hold back until Aug 1 anyway. If he was going to retire, he would have already.

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Defense? Nope. Already best in the majors...

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Offense? Who do you take out of this lineup? Outfield: Kapler is back & Wily Mo will be in mid July. Infield: Apparently Pedroia is on fire in AAA, and Cora is batting over .300

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Intangibles:

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Manny has not asked for a trade, and won't, according to his agent.

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Maybe look for a backup for 1B, although Hee Sop Choi is in AAA.

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Dontrelle Wills? No way the Marlins part with him.

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Miguel Tejada? O's looking for an established starter (and not Clement).

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Trot Nixon? Is Wily Mo the future?

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BEST WISHES to Peter Gammons who reportedly is recovering well. Supposedly he will make a full recovery. Let's hope so. We miss you already. Get well soon!

The Papi factor...

Amazing. Outstanding. Clutch. Ice water in his veins. Get used to this scene Boston fans, and burn it into your memories. This is a special time and a special player...

How many times can he possibly throw the team on his back when the game is on the line? Not since Larry Legend have we seen this many clutch performances. Maybe you can throw Brady & Viniteri into the mix, but at a distant third.



He does it in almost every situation including big playoff games. His ability to dial back the emotion and be selective at the plate is amazing. He also doesn't swing for the fences when he doesn't need to. He'll take a single to end it.

Ortiz made the comment that he must be getting into people's heads, after Saturday's walk-off homer. Joe Torre admitted that Papi has caused him bad dreams & sleepless nights wondering how to get him out. He's not alone. Would you want to be the closer facing him?

Is there anything better than putting fear in the heart of pitchers in all of baseball? The alternative? One of the best right handed hitters in the game is on deck...

Is there a better clutch player in all of baseball? Not right now. You'd be hard pressed to find similar prowess from any era. Attention MVP voters, do NOT screw Ortiz out of the award this season. The "I can't justify a DH getting the award" excuse doesn't fit any longer. Ortiz is the exception. An aberration. He's a special player that does not come along very often. Don't miss the boat. Enjoy the ride with all of us...

Who the heck are these guys?

Talk about a drastic turnaround... Think the Sox mind playing vs. the NL after a 9-0 run and now 11-1 overall? Wow.

Almost afraid to write anything seeing as we hammered them after their last loss. Since then they've averaged 7+ runs a game of offense and 3 runs allowed. Pitching has been outstanding, other than Seanez vs Atlanta & today.

Even if the competition hasn't been robust, they've still rattled off 9 in a row. That's impressive. You have to go back to 2002 for the last time they pulled that off.

How does this team stack up against the last 2? Take a look at the standings from the last 2 seasons at the all-star break...

2004: 48 - 38
2005: 49 - 38

2006: 45 - 28

If they stumble to a 4-9 finish, they will still have a better record at the break. Never would have thought that 2 weeks ago. A modest 7-6 record before the break puts them at 52 wins...

Coming to the Fens on Wed: Petey & his Soul Glow return to Fenway...


Will fans step up & applaud?

Or do they think his sugary sweet comments are insincere?

We'll be standing. Welcome back Petey...

Massacre in Minnesota...

Well Sox fans, if you weren't aware of this teams shortcomings, you certainly are after this last series. Other than game 1 with Schill, Papelbon & Timlin, it's been ugly. This is a sub .500 Twins team that had been struggling. They couldn't hit Silva who came in with a 2-8 record and 7+ era. Ouch.

Is this a June swoon? Or is it something more this time? Don't look now, but here comes Atlanta who they struggle mightily against. And here comes Toronto charging into second (tied now) & maybe even first.

Unless things change in a hurry...

Starters

Schill - the staff anchor, having a good season

Wake - poor record but has pitched fairly well, no run support

Beckett - somewhat of a disappointment with lack of consistency

Clement - tired arm & latest whining episode is NOT GOOD, trip to DL coming?

Wells - will he ever pitch again? Effectively if he does?

Lester - youngster needs to come up big
Pauley/DiNardo/Alvarez - just filling the void...

Here's your slated starters upcoming:
Lester - Beckett - Schill - Clement/Pauley - Wake

What does Theo do? Boy, that Arroyo trade just looks worse and worse as time goes by...

Bullpen

Other than Papelbon, yikes. If Timlin stays healthy, he should be fine. Theo just traded Riske - their 3rd best reliever with a 3.72 era - for a 28 yr old lefty from AAA with minimal success in the bigs. Do you buy the "we had a number of righty's in front of Riske and really needed a lefty" line? Unless Riske is a serious injury risk, would you pull the trigger on this one?

This year's staff era combined: 4.84 Last year? 4.74

Offense

1B - Youkilis has been outstanding, #'s better than Millar/Olerud even at leadoff spot
2B - Loretta has been good, #'s way up over Belhorn
SS - Gonzalez is not paid to hit, big drop-off even from struggling Renteria
3B - Lowell has been outstanding, #'s way up over Mueller
C - Tek has been off in average only, #'s similar to last season
DH - Papi has been himself, just awesome
LF - Manny has not been Manny - RBI's 30+ short if multiply to 162 games
RF - Trot has been healthy & significantly more productive than last year
CF - Injuries, #'s slightly off Damon (10HR 75RBI)

Overall runs scored - on pace to score about 900. Last year? 910.

Current projected wins at 92 on current pace, vs 95 from last season...

What to do Theo? Pitching, pitching, pitching. Best out there is probably Zito & Schmidt. Only problem is that both of their teams will still be in the hunt come July 31st. Not much else out there.

All you can count on right now is Schill & Papelbon.

Beckett needs to turn things up. He has the stuff and the mentors to do it.

Clement needs to grow a set. Hopefully he's not done.

Lester must perform. He is the key right now.


All we know is that if things don't change quickly, this could be a long summer...

Did you hear that sound? The HGH bomb just went off...

Thank you Jason Grimsley. Whatever you did to bring attention to yourself and get caught, thank you. And for all those players you named in the affadavit (who will be leaked sooner rather than later) thank you again.

Let's just hope that this forces the hand of MLB and the dispicable MLBPA to start testing NOW. It's probably too late to raid the players named in the affadavit because they probably flushed the evidence as soon as they heard about the Grimsley arrest.

We've heard the argument about the lack of accurate or reliable testing for HGH. So here are a couple of ideas for the geniuses over at MLB:

1) Implement IOC testing immediately, and use the labs they already have in place. Meet with them and LEARN from their experiences.
2) Draw blood from EVERY player & store it until a proven method of testing can be implemented.
3) Impose stronger penalties for substances not able to be detected yet, such as 81 game suspensions. For those who have retired or are retiring, hit them in the wallet (1/2 of salary or all of it) and block them from being voted into the Hall of Fame.
4) How about some jail time for players? Isn't proof of usage a crime?

While #2 may raise some concerns over issues such as mishandling, it will be a DETERRENT.

How long will it take to make a change? Hopefully Congress steps in on this one. They were able to sway MLB to make sweeping changes in steroid testing. If Selig wants to stay in power, he better stay in front of this one.

Let's just hope this will weed out the remaining cheaters out there starting NOW. MLB can't hide from this much longer.

Let's put some pressure on them ourselves. Write to your Congressman. Seriously. If you want to keep your kids (and others) safe from dangerous and harmful drugs, you are crazy if you don't. As a society, do we want our youth growing up thinking they need to cheat in order to succeed or be the best? Send a message that it's not OK.

Make a difference today! Contact information provided below...

(as a side note, is it really that surprising now that T.O. healed in time for the Super Bowl?)


Massachusetts:

Senator Edward M. Kennedy
Washington Office
317 Russell Senate Building
Washington D.C. 20510
p (202) 224-4543
f (202) 224-2417

Massachusetts Office
2400 JFK Building
Boston, MA 02203
p (617) 565-3170
p (877) 472-9014
f (617) 565-3183

http://kennedy.senate.gov/senator/contact.cfm

Senator John Kerry
Washington D.C.
304 Russell Bldg. Third Floor
Washington D.C. 20510
(202) 224-2742

Boston
One Bowdoin Square, Tenth Floor
Boston, MA 02114
(617) 565-8519

http://kerry.senate.gov/v3/contact/email.html


New York:

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton
New York City
780 Third Ave, Suite 2601
New York, NY 10017
Phone: (212) 688-6262
Fax: (212) 688-7444

http://clinton.senate.gov/contact/webform.cfm


Senator Charles E. Schumer
Washington, DC
313 Hart Senate Building
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: 202-224-6542
Fax: 202-228-3027
TDD: 202-224-0420

New York City
757 Third Avenue, Suite 17-02
New York, NY 10017
Phone: 212-486-4430
Fax: 212-486-7693
TDD: 212-486-7803

http://schumer.senate.gov/SchumerWebsite/contact/webform.cfm

Wang, Yanks survive outstanding rookie performance...

Yankee Stadium. Your second major league start. Against your teams' all time hated nemesis. Sold out hostile crowd. You watched a pitcher in Beckett with electric stuff get absolutely shelled the night before. Your first outing jitters last time out made you erratic. Enter Pauley onto the big stage...

And wow. What a performance. He wasn't overpowering or unhittable. We thought Francona was blowing a little smoke when he noted Pauley's poise. If not for a mistake pitch to Bernie, and the infield hit in the 7th it would have been masterful. If not for Peter Pan (aka Francona, or the opposite of Capt Hook (get it), Seanez could have come in with men on 1st & 2nd instead of a uncorking a bases loaded walk to Giambi. This game should have been tied.

But, we'll take this performance any day. He's still learning, but has proven he can get it done on the big stage against a good lineup. This may keep Lester in AAA for the moment. If anything, we'll be sure to see Pauley later in the season.

Second major league start? Fugedaboutit...

Sox bats just couldn't get the job done with runner in scoring position (not that the Yanks did vs Pauley either). So pass the blame pie to the offense & Capt Hook for this one. Sox should be able to muster at least one win this series...


Other random thoughts...

Is it just us, or have the folks in the MLB scheduling dept screwed the pootch on this one? The Sox & Yanks only have 2 series left & its only the first week of June. Just dumb...


Is Beckett tipping his pitches? Why did he get lit up seemingly every time he shook off signs? Did he just not have any other pitches than his fastball? That would explain Yankee hitters jumping on the fastball...

Will the rain ever stop? What is the record for most rainouts in a season? The Sox already have 4...