Another Red Sox Hurt

Delcarmen (the pride of Hyde Park) actually had been one of the better Red Sox relievers so far this year, until roughly a week ago. Well, now we have a possible reason for it, as Manny Delcarmen just told reporters that he is having issues with his right elbow and will see the doctor tomorrow.

That could explain why in his last 3 outings, he has faced 14 batters and got only 3 of them out (1 IP, 9 H, 9 ER, 2 BB, 0 K). This is bad news for the Red Sox, as their bullpen has been far from great this season, but it is even worse news for Delcarmen, since he has already had Tommy John surgery once in his career.

The only good news is that he was still throwing 95, so hopefully it is something that just needs some rest.

In other Red Sox news DL Drew has a stiff neck and is day to day...shocking.

Red Sox 13 Rockies 11

Ugly game, but a win is a win. All the credit can go to Dustin Pedroia and his 3 HRs. Dice-K started the game, and he had a normal Dice-K line (5 innings, 2 runs, 5 hits, 4 BBs, 6 Ks), but he also added an RBI single in the 4th.

This game should've been a blowout for the Sox, but their bullpen was just horrible. Delcarmen and Okajima combined to go 2/3 of an inning surrendering 6 runs. That is completely unacceptable. Then going into the 9th, up by two, Boston once again turned to Papelbon who promptly blew his 2nd save in as many nights. The Sox were lucky that Pedroia is on fire going 5-5 with 3 HRs and 5 RBIs.

There is going to be a lot of concern about Papelbon after this game. I am still not overly worried, but this bullpen in general needs to get a lot better, and Boston might have to start considering making a move to bring in another arm.

Anyways, Papelbon was able to calm down in his 2nd inning of work for a 1-2-3 10th inning. With the win the Red Sox are still 2 games behind the Yankees for 1st place in the AL East.

Red Sox Fans And Journalists Need To Fucking Relax

Here it is plain and simple with the first week of the season under the belt it seems more now than ever the Red Sox are being put on a pussy pedestal and every fan is that 40 year old virgin. I love the culture of the beloved Sox and the passion that follows it, but this is getting fucking ridiculous. Guys, get off of Ortiz's nuts and let the dude rake, its the first week of the season. Let him play a month and get his reps in before we evaluate every single aspect of his game. I understand there are concerns, like how he's getting challenged with fastballs in his happy zone and doing minimal damage...but hes the same guy who tore up the second half and led in almost every offensive category in the second half. All I am saying is that I see all these things too, but it doesn't mean we shouldn't give the dude a chance, seriously this coming the first week in the season is a little much.

Alright, its plain to see that the pen is a problem. Oki is a year older, Pap has become human again after last years blunder in the post season, and Manny Delcarmen, well he just plain sucks...tell me how he was throwing 95+ and is not throwing 90 if hes lucky. Folks we make a lot of fuss over our offense and to be honest and optimistic for once, we have a very solid lineup when they perform to the levels that they are capable of. I know it sucks the era of Manny and Bay have come and gone, but lets stay with the excitement that this team can bring to us. They will be playing a whole different brand of baseball centered on exciting defensive plays and manufactured runs. This team has a lot of talent and a week through the season there is no need to panic over the fact shit hasn't been flawless.

The best has yet to come for our Sox I promise you all that!

Red Sox 5 Rays 8

Another tough outing for Beckett as he has now allowed 27 runs in his last 31 1/3 innings. Not good for a guy who is supposed to be this teams ace. It started in the very first inning when Carl Crawford went deep, and it was followed by a 2nd inning bomb by Pat Burrell. By the end of the 3rd inning he had already let up 5 runs, and I was going to turn off the game.

Then the Sox got pissed. Down 4 runs the Sox battled back to tie the game in the top of the 8th. You'll notice that after Beckett's terrible 3 innings he was able to right the ship and pitch 3 scoreless innings to at least give the Sox a chance. That chance was short lived as Delcarmen and Ramirez got lit up for 3 runs in the bottom of the 8th, which ended the game.

If you are like me and like to be optimistic then you would say Beckett has something to build on with those 3 scoreless innings, and the Boston offense showed some heart coming back for their ace. Yet if you are not like me then you will focus on that fact that the Sox bullpen sucks, their ace has been horrible, and the team in general looks lost. I can't fault either way of looking at it...

With the loss the Sox are now just 2 1/2 games ahead of Texas for the Wild Card spot.

Sounds Like Wagner Isn't Coming To Red Sox

"If Jonathan Papelbon still has any concerns about Billy Wagner replacing someone in the Red Sox' bullpen, they may prove moot, since it's looking increasingly unlikely that the 38-year-old lefthander will be coming to Boston. According to a report by FoxSports' Ken Rosenthal, the Red Sox chances of acquiring Wagner, whom they claimed on waivers from the Mets on Friday, are in "serious jeopardy" after the club rejected Wagner's two conditions for waiving his no-trade clause (Boston.com)."

There are basically 2 things that Wagner wanted from the Sox...

1. Assurance that the Red Sox will not pick up his $8 million club option for next season.
2. Red Sox not offer salary arbitration, thus making him a more appealing option as free agent since the team signing him would not be required to forfeit draft picks.

The Sox have reportedly shot down those request. The deal still could get done, but you have to wonder if Papelbon and Delcarmen's bitching had something to do with this. Listen, if Wagner is healthy, how could he not help the Sox. Boston only has 1 lefty in the bullpen, but I am sorry I would take Wagner rather then adding someone like Lopez. I think Papelbon needs to keep his fucking mouth shut, and that goes for Delcarmen too. If Delcarmen was pitching better then maybe they wouldn't have to go out looking for help. I would like to see this get done, if the Sox don't have to give up much...

Tigers 5 Red Sox 6

Well the losing streak is finally over. The Sox didn't make it easy, but a win is a win, and the Sox really needed this one. Boston jumped all over Edwin Jackson in this game. They made him throw 104 pitches in only 4 innings.

Pedroia started the Sox off right hitting a 2 run HR, but unlike so many other games recently the Sox kept putting runs on the board. In the very next innings Nick Green hit a solo shot and Ortiz had an RBI single. Like I said before Boston didn't make it easy as Brad Penny was solid, but not great going 6 innings allowing 3 runs on 6 hits. Detroit scored 2 runs between the 4th and 5th, so Boston's lead shrank to 4-2. Bay, who was dropped to 7 in the batting order, did his best Fisk impression barely keeping a HR fair as it went into the Monster.

Things got rocky in the 7th as Delcarmen, who has been terrible of late, let up another 2 runs and the game was tied at 5-5. Nick Green once again became the savior in this game hitting a sac fly in the bottom of the inning. Boston tried to close out the 8th with Ramiriez, but when he started to struggle Boston had to lean on their closer to get the last 4 outs of the game, which he did easily. That gave Papelbon his 28th save of the season.

With the win Boston is now 5 1/2 games behind the Yankees for 1st place in the AL East, and since the Rangers did not play last night the Sox have a 1/2 game lead in the race for the Wild Card.

A's 9 Red Sox 8 (11 innings)

Lately you could think about the Sox like a ship with many holes in it. The first big hole was their hitting. They weren't getting run support even though their pitchers were holding down the fort. After putting some runs on the board over the past couple games another hole has opened. The bullpen imploded on the Sox last night and cost them a game they had in the bag.

After letting up 2 runs to start the game the Sox offense started to heat up scoring 5 runs in the 3rd innings. With the score 6-2 going into the 7th inning it looked as if the Sox had this game. Buchholz had a solid (but not great) game going 5 2/3 letting up 2 runs on 9 hits with 5 Ks, but it was the bullpen that did them in.

The A's scored a run in the 7th, then another in the 8th. Still going into the 9th inning the Sox were up 3 runs with Papelbon coming in (cue the music!!). Boston led 7-4 when Papelbon came in for the 9th, but he walked the leadoff hitter and gave up three hits. He was also hurt by 2 throwing errors by shortstop Nick Green (can we please get Marco Scutaro now!!!!). It was still 7-7 with 2 out in the 11th when Ellis doubled off Manny Delcarmen and scored on Davis' single to right which ended the game.

I know this was a terrible loss, and I have my concerns about Papelbon, but how much of this can you blame on the bullpen? I mean they hadn't allowed a run in 25 innings since the All-Star break, and the inning that they did get to Papelbon there were 2 errors by Nick Green. Still, Boston looks like a sinking ship right now, and the holes don't seem to want to close. Does that mean Theo needs to make a move, and I mean a real move not signing AAA players? We will see.

The good news is the Yankees lost last night, so Boston is still only 2 1/2 games back for 1st place in the AL East.

Royals 8 Red Sox 6

What a disappointing game. It started off so well with the Sox up 4-0 going into the 4th inning. Then the Royals got hot, and crushed Penny, and then the Sox bullpen which used to be a strength, but has become more of the Achilles heal of this team over the last 10 games.

Boston was all over the Royals through 3 innings. Ortiz went deep again (his 11th of the year), and Youk even got it going with an RBI double. Penny was doing fine, but in the 4th inning he let up 3 runs, which raised his pitch count so he couldn't go more then 5 innings. The Sox bullpen then came in and were just awful. Delcarmen let up 2 runs in 2/3 of an inning. Masterson then followed with 2 runs of his own in just a 1/3 of an innings, and Ramirez was nothing special going 1 2/3 innings letting up a run.

This was a terrible game for the Sox. The good news is that Ortiz is officially back, but that won't mean anything if Bay, Youk, and the Sox bullpen can't get it going. With the loss the Sox are now tied for 1st place in the AL East with the Yankees.

Red Sox 11 Nationals 3

Sox are so much better then the Nationals that it is hard to watch. Boston's bats exploded last night. Ellsbury went 4-4 with 3 RBIs, and Jason Bay continued his MVP like season going 4-6 with 3 RBIs including his 19th HR of the year as Boston walked all over the Nationals.

Penny wasn't great going 5 2/3 innings letting up 3 runs, but once he left the game the Sox bullpen shut the Nationals down. That's also when the Boston bats started heating up. It was 4-3 going into the 8th inning, but Boston put the game out of reach with a 6 run inning. Even with all the scoring the story of the game was Boston's bullpen once again being amazing. Delcarmen (who got the win), Okajima, Saito, and Bard combined to pitch 3 1/3 scoreless innings. You can really see the difference between a good team and a bad one when you see what their bullpen can do. The Nationals got a good start from Lannan, but the second he left the game the Sox crushed their bullpen.

With the win Boston is now 5 games over the Yankees and Jays for 1st place in the AL East.

Yankees 3 Red Sox 4

8-0

Yea that is the Red Sox record against the Yankees this year. The Sox have beat them in every conceivable way. They have blown them out, hung on, out pitched, out hit, and just play smarter baseball then the Yankees.

Last night the Sox 5th starter beat the Yankees #1, who was supposed to turn around this franchise. Penny gave the Sox 6 scoreless innings. It was the first time we really got to see what Penny can do. He left it all on the field, and threw everything but the kitchen sink at the Yankees. In prior games Penny was all about pounding the strike zone with his fast ball. Last night he threw everything he had and worked the counts to keep the Yankees off balance. If this is one of the last starts for Penny in a Red Sox uniform he gave one hell of an audition for the rest of the league. He was even touching 97 MPH on the radar gun. I really can't say enough about how well he pitched.

CC Sabathia also had a solid game. He gave the Yankees 7 innings, which was big for them since none of their starters had lasted more then 2 2/3 innings in the other 2 games against the Sox. Boston jumped out to a 1-0 lead after Ortiz hit a solo shot over the Green Monster. Big Papi really looked like the Ortiz from the glory days when he used to be able to hit whatever he wanted to opposite field. The Yankees took the lead in the 7th. It really looked the wheels were coming off for the Sox after Penny left the game. Delcarmen let up 3 runs on 3 hits in the 7th. After a Cervelli RBI doubled to left field, A-Rod followed with an double to center that scored Cervelli and Damon to make the score 3-1. It looked as if A-Rod was finally going to be a hero, but at this point we should all know better.

Boston came up in the 8th and ripped apart the Yankees. Drew, Bay, and Lowell each got an RBI in the inning and the Sox went back on top 4-3. All that was left was Papelbon to close out the 9th inning and the Sox had swept the series and made it 9 in a row (if you go back to September of last season). He got it done in only 9 pitches, and the Sox are now 2 games up on the Yankees for 1st place in the AL East.

There are so many great things about this game. Obviously the fact of winning all 8 games against the Yankees is awesome, but it gets better. Having the Sox 5th starter beat the Yankees star offseason pickup was amazing, then on top of that have their other big acquisition (Teixeira) go 0-5 just makes me want to pinch myself to see if I am dreaming. Anyways, this was probably the most exciting game of the year. Hope you all watched it....

Daily Red Sox Spring Training Update

- There are some rumors going around that Boston is fielding calls about Manny Delcarmen. He is not happy about his reduced role, which should be even further reduced by the amount of depth the Sox have this year in the bullpen. Gammons lists the following teams as having interest Angels, Diamondbacks, Cubs, White Sox, Rockies, Royals, Brewers, A's, Padres, Giants, Mariners, and Rangers. Not sure how true this is, but if it is true Boston could be looking for a catcher, draft picks, or some kind of depth in the infield/outfield. This is just a rumor, but something to keep an eye on.

- Tazawa has quietly had an incredible spring training. In his last Triple A start, Junichi Tazawa threw only three balls in three innings. Maybe he is a lot closer to the big leagues then people thought...

- Francona has not officially announced his batting order for opening day, but it looks like Drew will be hitting 5, Bay with be 6th, and Lowell 7th. Personally I would rather have Bay at 5, but whatever.

- Jon Lester pitched five solid innings and Chris Carter hit his sixth home run of spring training, sending the Boston Red Sox over the Philadelphia Phillies 3-1 Sunday.

- Brad Penny gave up two runs in four innings Saturday and Boston beat the Minnesota Twins 9-4. Penny allowed four hits in his second exhibition start. He threw 68 pitches, 46 for strikes.

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

Click here to see the rest:
Click Here

-BMack

Red Sox Beat Indians 5-4

The Red Sox destroyed Carmona in the very first inning tonight. Boston scored 4 runs in the 1st on an RBI double by Ortiz, and then 3 RBI singles by Kotsay, Varitek, and Carter. That chased Carmona from the game, but the Sox offense was quieted by the Indians bullpen for much of the game. Paul Byrd blew a 4 run lead, and let up 11 hits, 4 runs in only 5 innings of work. This is not the final outing that Byrd wanted to having going into the postseason. This really leaves the door open for Wakefield to take the 4th spot in the playoff rotation.

The Sox bullpen stepped up must like the Indians did, and shut them down for the rest of the game. Boston was able to get a run in the 8th on a Mark Kotsay RBI double, and that was all the Sox needed as Delcarmen came in and got the save. Delcarmen looked dominant as he has strikeouts on two of the three guys he faced. Boston was hoping to gain a game on Tampa Bay, but the Rays are winning 11-6 over the Orioles in the bottom of the 8th, so that doesn't seem like its going to happen. Either way, other than Byrd's struggles, the Sox have to be very happy with the way they played, as the bullpen looked great, and J.D. Drew was able to get in a couple at-bats.

-BMack

Red Sox Lose To White Sox 4-2

The Red Sox lost a close one today. Wakefield looked good considering it is only his 2nd start since coming off the DL, going 6 innings allowing 3 runs on 6 hits with 3 Ks. Even with the decent like Wakefield look shaky in the 1st innings giving up a 2-run homer to Jim Thome. He was able to settle down till the 6th inning when he started to fall apart letting up another run. It seems like the Sox want to be very careful with the Wake, since they only let him pitch 82 pitches today. The Sox had a chance in the 9th inning when they were down 4-1, Lowrie was able to knock in a run on a ground out, and that set the stage for Pedrioa with 2 men on and 2 outs. Pedrioa was not able to come through for the Sox though as he popped out to left field. The Sox had a lot of opportunities to win this game, but they just couldn't get the key hits (2 runs on 8 hits). The good sign for the Sox was that Ellsbury was 3-4 and Delcarmen pitched 2 scoreless innings to give the Sox a chance. Boston is now 5 games back (about to be 5 1/2) in the AL East, but are up 3 games on Minnesota in the Wild Card Race (pending the result of the Minnesota vs. Oakland game).

-BMack

Red Sox Beat Orioles 6-3

Jon Lester continued his dominance tonight as he shut down the Orioles, and got the sliding Red Sox a much needed win. There was really two heroes in this game as Jason Bay hit 2 HRs, and John Lester pitched 7 great innings. Bay hit a HR in the top of the 2nd to put the Sox up a run. Varitek finally showed some life and followed up Bay's HR with one of his own. The Sox were cruising along until the 8th when Delcarmen came in and walked 2 guys with 2 outs in a 3 run game. Papelbon came in and let up a double, but was able to go the rest of the way and get the save.

Lester pitched 7 innings allowing 1 run on 4 hits with 5 Ks. It was really what the Sox needed, because it is very obvious now that the Sox bullpen is hopeless. J.D. was not able to play tonight because of a sore back. The injury doesn't sound too serious and I expect him back in the lineup tomorrow.

-BMack

Red Sox Lose to White Sox 5-3

Lester streak of no losses for the past 2 1/2 months is officially over, though he still pitched well. The problem was Mark Buehrle pitched a much better game. Buehrle went an impressive 7 innings allowing only 1 run on 4 hits with 8 Ks. The Sox were down 4-0 going into the 8th, but made a nice comeback on a 3-run homer by Little Dusty. The good-times wouldn't last as in the bottom of the inning Delcarman came in and let up an absolute bomb to Carlos Quentin (MVP?) to put the Sox down by two runs, and that s how it ended. The Sox are now 3.5 games back of the Rays for 1st place in the AL East and only a 1.5 up on the Twins for the Wild Card spot. I'll be honest I am getting nervous, because the Sox really need Ortiz to wake up and get it going. I know he is having a tough time without Manny, but if he wants to be remembered as one of the best Red Sox ever he is going to have to pick up with team, even when he doesn't have the protection of Manny Ramirez.

-BMack