Get Well Peter Gammons

The Red Sox passed on the word that Peter Gammons suffered an intracranial hemorrhage (brain bleeding), presumably from an aneursym. All of Red Sox Nation wishes Peter to recover.

I think it was in the Red Sox Reader that Gammons revealed that his father had given him a deathbed promise that the Sox would win in Peter's lifetime.

Gammons has contributed immensely to baseball reporting, and for the most part done so bereft of the effete negativity so rampant in these parts.

Great to see the 1986 Sox recognized for their achievements. It was an another 'close call' for the Sox. Oil Can looks as lean as ever, Bruce Hurst doesn't have a gray hair, and who can't wish that Dave Stapleton had been out there at first base at the end of Game 6.

Young pitchers bring genius and its polar opposite - madness - to the game. Alay Soler had a forty plus pitch first with the Sox doing their strike zone control, and Jon Lester has alternately been brilliant and tentative tonight. Soler is a younger version of Rick Reuschel, with all kinds of offspeed stuff around the corners, while Jim Rice compared Lester with the young Frank Tanana.

As for the current Sox, can anyone believe that they've committed 23 errors so far this season. It's easy to imagine Gold Gloves at both third and short, and both Lowell and A-Gone have outperformed expectations with the stick as well.

Stat Geek update:

Team offense: the Sox are now fourth in runs scored (with higher runs/game than Cleveland at three) and have moved up to second in OPS.

Pitching: the Sox are sixth in runs allowed, eighth in ERA, and third in K/BB, which correlates best with future ERA.

Individual offense: Four Sox are in the top 15 in OPS, Manny, Ortiz, Youkilis, and Nixon. Youkilis leads the Sox in runs scored at 52, and although the Sox are high in this category, Youk is 14th. Ramirez, Nixon, Youkilis, and Ortiz are all in the top 20 of Runs Created/27 outs.

Individual pitching:Schilling and Beckett are tied for 2nd in wins at 9, and Schilling and Wakefield check in at 14 and 17 in ERA. Papelbon leads the AL in saves. Papelbon has a microscopic OPS allowed at .417, but BJ Ryan has an astonishing .336.