Red Sox Reality Check

I say to the House as I said to ministers who have joined this government, I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat. We have before us an ordeal of the most grievous kind. We have before us many, many months of struggle and suffering. You ask, what is our policy? I say it is to wage war by land, sea, and air. War with all our might and with all the strength God has given us, and to wage war against a monstrous tyranny never surpassed in the dark and lamentable catalogue of human crime. That is our policy. You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in one word. It is victory. Victory at all costs - Victory in spite of all terrors - Victory, however long and hard the road may be, for without victory there is no survival.- Winston Churchill, 1940 The Red Sox traded current malcontent and future Hall of Famer Manny Ramirez to the Dodgers for Pittsburgh outfielder Jason Bay in a three way deal. Departing will be 7 million dollars, Brandon Moss, and Craig Hansen. The money g...

The Red Sox are playing their worst baseball of the season tonight, for whatever reason. Totally lacking in crispness and execution, they look totally discombobulated, as we head into the trading deadline. The Patriots would throw a marginal veteran over the side in response to such indifference, but the Red Sox have to weigh the 'panic' approach versus a realistic examination of their prospects. Sometimes you need players to overachieve, and currently there are few certainties with this team, other than Manny being fanny. For a guy who has made a fortune and largely produced at a high level, he shows incredible bitterness and contempt for ownership. Who is he likely to hurt in the end? Guys like Terry Francona who has taken many a bullet for him, and in the end, himself. Only a handful of teams can hand out 15-20 million dollar a year deals, and most of them dogs frankly won't hunt. Maybe Scott Boras can sweet talk the Yankees into throwing Mad Money at Manny, but maybe no...

"Run out" has been an issue, as in running out ground balls, baserunning in general, but now it's Manny running himself out of town. Why I'd like Manny to find a new home? Manny's playing a child's game for princely money. Why not be happy? Manny's entitled to make as much money as he can with his next contract. The issue at hand is Manny playing out his contract with the effort and concentration 'expected'. Okay, so maybe expected for Manny is less than for some. Why I'd like Manny to stay? First, he can hit, and second, he's not as bad defensively as you might think. He's probably as good as Jim Rice at playing the wall, and he usually catches what he can reach, unlike Gator Greenwell. But even more, I don't want to give Daniel (Dan lies as she hugs NY) Shaughnessy the satisfaction of saying HE forced Manny out of town. I don't like it when writers ("I'm a columnist not a writer") try to become the story instead...

Has Manny Ramirez finally 'sat' his way out of Boston? Ultimately, it boils down to the Oprah question, "are you better off with him or without him?" Certainly, it 'feels' as though his production has declined, although only the Sox can know what metric they use. From a Win Shares perspective, Manny's three year moving average seems to be declining. The big question is how Manny's act plays in the clubhouse. Does the clubhouse leadership see Manny as a productive eccentric or a debilitating distraction? And what do the Sox get for the enigmatic outfielder? With plenty of teams in contention for playoff spots, the Sox can hope to benefit from the "Winner's Curse" where teams overbid for perceived value. Everyone can envision Manny getting a fresh and productive start in their lineup. Let's hope that the Sox have karma working for them. They certainly could use a little more pop in the lineup and consistency in the bullpen. But do you w...

The Red Sox pitching staff has some 'erratic' performance today, especially defensively. Clay Buchholz falls down on a chopper, although he had enough athleticism to make the play, if the umpire makes the right call. Jonathan Papelbon plays greased pig with a chopper down the first base line in the eleventh. Craig Hansen shows how 'not to' field your position in the twelfth. Ironically, it was Seattle fielding that turned the game around, however, as Seattle butchered a Kevin Youkilis gapper, and the Sox score three in the 12th to win, while Craig Hansen ekes out a save leaving the bases juiced. Equally ironically, it was Jacoby Ellsbury igniting the rally, when he has struggled to get on base for what seems like weeks, leading off the twelfth. It shows the importance of the leadoff man's success. Final irony, the Sox go to rainy Seattle for sunshine performance after the disappointing sweep by the Halos, and come home with a 3-3 trip. Justin Masterson goes 2 2/3 st...

The Red Sox have one pitcher in the top 10 in ERA in the AL, Jon Lester, courtesy of his seven plus shutout innings last night. SSSSSSSSSSSS IP WHIP K/BB W L ERA Lester............... 132 1.31.. 2...... 8... 3... 3.20 Santana............ 130 1.22.. 3.1.... 8...7... 3.10 I won't claim that Jon Lester is the same pitcher as Santana, who has a much longer track record, and a salary in the stratosphere. But to think that the Sox contemplated trading Lester and other cornerstone young players for the high-priced spread, we have to say so far the economics (value in the broad sense )of the deal has worked out. The Sox have a couple of other pitchers in the top 25 of ERA leaders, Tim Wakefield at 15 (3.69) and Josh Beckett 24 (3.98). The Sox remain second in runs scored and sixth (3.82) in ERA. Deadline deals : If all goes well, the Sox get the best deadline deal available, the return of David Ortiz, which in effect substitutes him for either Ellsbury ...

Well, the All-Star break is over and the Red Sox will resume their second-half schedule at Seattle. The Sox hope to achieve a berth in the World Series for the third time in five seasons and have the home field advantage following the exciting 15 inning win over the NL. Tonight, Washington local Jon Lester returns home to face the Mariners and help the Red Sox to second half success. Jed Lowrie is expected to start at short and Dustin Pedroia expected to have a multihit game. Oh yeah, the Sox limped out of Anaheim, beaten to a pulp by the halos, with a lethal combination of weak hitting and untimely pitching breakdowns. Ugh. Thank goodness it was either too late or I had something better to do. Anybody need a Red Sox Nation card?

In a very competitive All-Star Classic, the AL tied the game at 2 late on a J.D. Drew homer, and has a bases loaded no-out situation in the tenth after consecutive errors by Florida second baseman Dan Uggla. Drew lined a two-out homer into the right field porch at Yankee Stadium in the 7th, and Jonathan Papelbon was touched up for an unearned run in the 8th. Mariano Rivera came into the game with a man on in the ninth and pitched an inning and two-thirds scoreless for the AL. Grady Sizemore grounded into a force out at home, followed by a repeat by Evan Longoria, who had tied the game at three in the bottom of the eighth with a two-out ground rule double. Justin Morneau faces Aaron Cook, who forced a weak tapper to shortstop which Miguel Tejada turns into a great play at first nailing Morneau by half a step. The AL plays into the 11th without any bench players, with Terry Francona having exhausted his oversized bench already. The AL is also running out of pitchers, left with Kazmir on ...

There are only two days a year without major professional sports games. Pretty easy, huh?

How can you describe Daisuke Matsuzaka as a pitcher? Some have called him a 'power nibbler', others simply maddening. What you have to recognize is the force of sheer competitive fire that allows him to do what he does. Live dangerously. Plus, is he not the Gold Glover at the pitching position? They noted that (now) in twelve at bats with the bases loaded he has yielded one walk and no hits. All of which is astounding when you consider his WHIP (walk/hit ratio) which is 1.39. In other words, his WHIP ratio with the bases loaded is 0.25, or less than 20 percent of that without the bases loaded. Lugo, going, gone. Julio Lugo is out with a muscle pull, which gives the Sox a comparison to the output with Lugo. Will the real Julio Lugo please stand up? He is a high energy, athletic player who just hasn't met management's or fans' expectations, who also has a World Series ring. Fuggedaboutit. Red Sox first half MVP? NESN will discuss the first half MVP of the Sox, which h...

The Sox swept the Twins today with an 18-5 thrashing that must have been close, until a disputed/overruled triple play opened the floodgates and the Sox put the game out of reach with a seventh inning explosion. But what you really want to know is what does working for the Red Sox entail. What are the ground rules? A former Sox employee laid out some ground rules for female employees. "Here are the places where the Red Sox players hang out. Don't go there." "You won't change them." (The implication that rich, often married players aren't throwing away their lives for you). "If there is a problem, you will lose your job, they will be protected." (Obviously, in the great tradition of the rich and famous...The Yankees, A-Rod, and Madonna evidently did not get the memo). The message, loud and clear, was that employment was contingent on professional not personal relationships with the talent. Baseball Annies need not apply. This doesn't come a...

Here's a passage from the column of the 5th, nearly prescient. Tomorrow's newspaper today.

Dang, is this painful enough? The Sox can't seem to generate scoring threats without the generosity of the opposition, as a few meager hits and rarely a walk aren't getting it done. So, in the name of 'the backup quarterback' controversy, here's a suggested lineup with some whys. CF Ellsbury - we're gonna live and die with the kid 2B Pedroia - a magical player who proves it over and over RF Drew - All-Star and deserving it 1B Youkilis - Manny needs something different 3B Lowell - still close to .300 and driving in runners DH Ramirez - does it say in his contract he hits third or fourth LF Moss - the kid will hit if given the chance C - Varitek - he's had some better swings tonight SS - Cora - Lugo's had a good night defensively, although Youk saved him an error Too many guys really struggling at the plate right now. David Ortiz can't get back soon enough. Is it just me, or does Daisuke look like he's challenging hitters tonight? And isn't he ...

Shows how much tennis I watch (almost none)...the replay at Wimbledon was stunning in its simplicity and accuracy. And as the Red Sox fritter away another late inning lead, Alex Cora couldn't even knock down a 99-hopper up the middle by the Yankee newboy. No matter, as Cano was about 30 feet from home plate anyway, and there's NO WAY Cora or Lugo throw him out from his knees sprawling to his left. Tim Wakefield gets snakebitten again, and if A-Rod hustles, he can be at Madonna's celebrating by midnight. Dang. I got my wish, sort of, that Manny got a day off. Only problem was he got into the game and never stopped vacation mode, taking three Rivera offerings for strikes. Sheesh. Joba Chamberlain pitched reasonably well with the game evolving into a typical high pitch count marathon. He also chucked one behind Youkilis' thighs just to remind Youk who's the bigger fastmole.

A father was beaten by a man on the Cape with a baseball bat on the Fourth of July because he had New York license plates and may have been a Yankee fan. What is the matter with some people? It's a GAME, meant to be entertainment. I'd rather see the Red Sox never win another game rather than have one person battered because of the Red Sox. It's not about sport, sportsmanship, or competitiveness and certainly not about honor or courage. Was the alleged assailant intoxicated or a sociopath? Who knows? But real sports fans everywhere should condemn violence of any kind associated with sports . How many Victoria Snelgroves must die for us to come to our senses? Yes, we can recite the litany of stupidity on the field ranging from beanball wars to soccer head butts and stick-swinging incidents in the 'heat of battle'. We reminisce over the lunacy of the Rudy T punchout, the ear-biting incidents, the 'Assassin' mentality of Jack Tatum, and so on. I was recently co...

Amazingly frustrating and partly self-inflicted defeat today, as the Sox wilted to The Transformer, Mike Mussina, who baffled them with a variety of offspeed pitches and an 87 mph fastball. Worse yet, in the ninth, Mariano Rivera escaped a bases loaded, no out jam with particular ineptness by the tail end of the lineup. Coco Crisp fanned on three pitches, struggling Jason Varitek popped up, and Julio Lugo whiffed on a cutter down the middle. Justin Masterson pitched six credible innings, allowing a pair of runs, reduced his walks to a pair, and kept the ball in the ballpark. Remarkably, there were SEVEN hit batsmen in the game, and you didn't get the feeling that any of them were the least bit intentional. There's nothing cheaper than free advice and as I once read, the easiest thing in the world is spending someone else's money. There probably isn't anything dramatically better for the Red Sox than the return of David Ortiz, and we have to wonder whether that is coming...

ESPN has its All-Star projections up , and not surprisingly, Jon Lester isn't among them. I can't muster a great argument for him, but conversely they project Daisuke Matsuzaka as making the squad. International politics aside, I don't see that as being likely either. ............... IP WHIP K/BB ERA Lester.... 117.2 1.31 1.85 3.21 Matsuzaka 75 1.39 1.33 3.12 Note that won-loss record isn't included as it isn't a highly reliable measure of effectiveness, with miscellaneous components such as run support and bullpen support critical elements. Since April, Lester has pitched 78 innings, allowed 75 hits, and his strikeout to walk ratio has been 54-18 (3). During that time his ERA has been 2.65 and his WHIP ratio (walks plus hits per inning pitched) fallen to 1.19. In other words, Lester has given the Sox more innings, better innings (by WHIP and K/BB), and is going deeper into games. Even with the smaller sample siz...

If you asked me who is the most important player on the Red Sox, at first glance, I'd say Jason Varitek. Varitek's injury in 2006 coincided with the team's total collapse, and every Red Sox fan knows of his legendary preparation and how we believe that translates into the team's success. At the end of the season, Varitek will become a free agent, and the Red Sox have a monumental decision on how to handle that. "Strength up the middle" is more than a cliche', as we realize its truth in baseball, basketball, football, checkers, chess, and practically any other competition. Sure Brazilian soccer fans and Scrabble players know the value of the edges, but baseball aficionados know what they know. Can any of us take a dispassionate look at "The Captain." Let's try. Pros: Varitek has backstopped two championship teams in the past four years. He produced a .795 OPS, 51 home runs, and this included an .841 OPS and 33 home runs on the road. He also ha...

Who deserves to be on the AL All-Star team? Well, they won't all be there because of fan voting and because of the distribution requirements. Baltimore - Sherrill (Roberts) Boston - Papelbon, Youkilis, Pedroia, Ramirez, Drew Chicago - Danks, Quentin, Pierzynski Cleveland - Cliff Lee, Sabathia, Peralta Detroit - Ordonez KC - DeJesus (Grudzielanek) Los Angeles - Saunders, F. Rodriguez (Guerrero) Minnesota - Nathan, Maurer, Morneau New York - Rivera, Damon, Rodriguez, Giambi Oakland - Duchscherer, Harden Seattle - Ichiro (Hernandez) Tampa - Longoria (Upton, Crawford) Texas - Kinsler, Bradley, Hamilton, Young Toronto - Halladay (Marcum) C - Maurer, Pierzynski 1B - Giambi, Youkilis, Morneau 2B - Kinsler, Pedroia (Roberts) SS - Young, Peralta (Jeter) 3B - A-Rod, Longoria (Lowell) OF - Hamilton, Quentin, Drew, Ichiro, Ramirez, Ordonez, DeJesus, Sizemore (Upton, Guerrero) DH - Bradley I've listed my choices, and yes, I know that Derek Jeter will be voted as the starting shortstop. He...

Red Sox fans have to ask, "are some of the younger players folding under pressure?" Sometimes you get beat, nothing to cry about. But last night the Sox simply beat themselves, from failing to cover first base, to suffering control lapses, to failing execution on the hit-and-run. The mercurial bullpen showed why some of the Sox younger players remain suspects. The first workout day of Spring Training, I guarantee you the pitchers grumble about how routine the fielding drills are, running to the cutout and then up the line to the bag to get the best angle. And tonight it's off to the House That Ruth Built, more or less, with the locals smelling blood in the water. The Sox will present an usual battle of lefties with Jon Lester against Red Sox nemesis Andy Pettitte. Pettitte emerged relatively unscathed amidst the doping crisis, far better than his running mate . Many Sox fans' eyes also will focus on Jason Varitek, mired in a slump of Mendozan proportions, with a three...

While Tampa's turnaround hasn't equaled the Celtics' this season, the Rays have at least regained the home field advantage as the Trop no longer merits the moniker 'Fenway South'. The Rays have a legitimate pitching staff with Scott Kazmir, James Shields, and Matt Garza in particular, and the Jays have more than adequate offense with Carl Crawford, Evan Longorio, Carlos Pena, and B.J. Upton in particular. So how do the Sox stack up against the Rays, mano-a-fish? Runs scored: Boston 2nd, Tampa 6th Team ERA: Tampa 4th, Boston 6th Fielding percentage: Tampa 6th, Boston 9th Catcher: Edge...Rays (Jason Varitek mired in a miserable slump, Navarro over .300) First base: Edge...Red Sox Second base: Edge...Red Sox Shortstop: Edge...even Third base: Edge...even...Longoria's gonna be big-time, coming on fast Left field: Edge...Rays (Crawford over Moss) Center field: Edge...even Right field: Edge Red Sox DH: Edge Red Sox...if Manny can be Manny The pressing issue for the Re...