Rays 13, Red Sox 0

When do we start to worry about Josh Beckett? If his next start is a dud, then that's when we'll worry. If you remove his Opening Day start, Beckett is 1-2, with a 7.94 ERA.

Beckett and the Red Sox decided to cheer up the struggling Rays with an easy win, a 13-0 crushing that didn't see a Boston baserunner until Ellsbury reached on an infield single in the 7th.

And that was IT for the Red Sox offense. They were essentially no-hit by Matt Garza and Grant Balfour. 1 for 27 as a team, with just that single. On the bright side, they only left 2 men on base.

J-Lo also decided to pump up his ERA with 5 earned runs exchanged for 1 out. I love how people are just now realizing how much he sucks. I've been hyper-critical and spiteful of him for 3 years now. He blows and doesn't deserve to be on this team. I'd rather Theo track down Hipolito Pichardo in the sugar fields of the Dominican Republic and give him J-Lo's roster spot. Or keep Van Every out there in the pen.



Justin Masterson faces 0-3 Andy Sonnanstine Friday night at 7:38. Yeah, 7:38. Fucking Tampa Bay Rays are horrible like that, aren't they? How about the inflated attendance figure of 20,341 tonight? No way were 20,000 people there. And even if they were, that's pathetic when you have the AL Champions rematching the team they beat in the ALCS. Tampa Bay doesn't deserve a Major League team.

-The Commodore

Red Sox Offseason Preview: Relief Pitchers

JUSTIN MASTERSON
Just another young guy that the Red Sox have control of for a long time. Masterson is signed through 2014 for cheap money. He was a stud for the Sox this year, but I don't think that he will be a starter next year. They projected him, as he was coming up through the minors, to be a reliever, and I think that will be the Sox greatest concern going into next season. Masterson really improved that bullpen a lot at the end of the season. Imagine what he can do with another year under his belt.

JAVIER LOPEZ
Lopez is eligible for arbitration this offseason, and I think the Sox will bring him back next year. It is tough to get lefty relief pitching, and he can be very affective when used correctly. Hopefully the Sox will have a deeper bullpen next year, so they won't be forced to use him for more then one batter.

MANNY DELCARMEN
The Sox have Delcarmen under control through 2012. I have to say of all the players this year, I was most disappointed with Delcarmen. I really thought this was going to be his breakout year. He could still do it, but I am beginning to lose faith that he is going to be anything more then a average to below average reliever.

HIDEKI OKAJIMA
Okajima is signed through next season, and the Sox have to be happy to have this guy still on the team. He struggled for a good part of the season, but really turned it on at the end, and I think he will still be a great setup man next season (especially if it is a combo of Okajima and Masterson).

MIKE TIMLIN
Had a great career, but it is time to retire. He just had nothing left, and by the end of the season he was a 1 pitch pitcher. I'll miss him, but he should have retired a year ago.

JONATHAN PAPELBON
Paps is under the Red Sox control till 2011. One of (if not the) best closer in baseball, had another great year for the Red Sox. There are rumors that he may have injured himself at the end of last season, but I expect him to be fine. Still, the Sox need to find a way to use him less, and try to keep him to one inning (or not pitch him on back-to-back days). We have seen him have to be shut down if he is over used.

Offseason Previews done:
Starting Pitchers
Relief Pitchers

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-BMack

Sox Win Night Game Vs. Jays 7-5

The Sox really needed a win tonight after dropping a game earlier to the Jays. This game was far from being an easy win as the Jays scored 5 runs in the 2nd inning off Colon to take a 5-2 lead. Colon was able to keep his composure, and kept the Jays quiet through the rest of the 6 innings he pitched. Boston was down 5-4 going into the bottom of the 8th, until Jacoby Ellsbury drove in the go-ahead run on single as Toronto pitcher Scott Downs fell down going after the ball and the Red Sox rallied for 3 runs in the inning to go up 7-5. The Sox bullpen was the key to winning this game as Masterson, Lopez, and Papelbon combined to pitch 3 scoreless innings. Papelbon came in for the save in the 9th, and he easily got it for his 37th save of the season. Boston is now 2 games back of the Rays for the AL East lead, and 5 1/2 ahead of the Twins for the Wild Card lead. This loss will finally end the Jays season.

-BMack