Another Rough Start for Ace Ventura

Another Rough Start for
Ace Ventura

When Tigers Attack, Beckett Folds Like a Not-So-Cheap Suit, 7-4
Time for the Real Sox Ace to Rethink That Whole Retirement Plan

They're Not Playing Baltimore Anymore, and These Aren't Paper Tigers
Beckett Dusts Off the 'Poor Execution' Broken Record Again
Can The One Pitch Pony Ever Put It All Together in Boston?
That Fighting Spirit: Youk and Loretta Kept Grinding Away
Why Can't We Keep Guys Like Todd Jones for the Bullpen?
Another Rudy Awakening, But Theo's Still Asleep at the Wheel
Let's Put All Our Eggs in the Craig Breslow Basket

"You could tell right off the bat that he [Beckett] was struggling with his command. He ended up gathering himself and competing enough to give us six. But with a five-run deficit and their bullpen, it's tough duty." -- 8.14.06, Terry Francona spinning another bad start from Beckett

Wilbur: Ace in the Hole
Ask Edes: No Need for Despair Just Yet
Boston 911 Call: Phils' Myers Was 'Hitting Her Hard'
Bradford: Did Beckett Give Tigers a Tip?

" '(Today) I'll look at some video,' said [Sox catcher Javy] Lopez after Boston's 7-4 loss to the major league's best team, the Tigers (now 77-41). 'I'm going to take a look at it because they were hitting him easy. It's not right.'

"The clues Lopez will be searching for revolve around the possibility of Beckett tipping his pitches. And, judging by some subtle coincidences, the catcher's hunch might not be far off.

"The one game in Beckett's career which he was known to be tipping pitches (thanks to a bar room giveaway by Jim Leyritz to then-Florida pitching coach Brad Arnsberg) was on May 29, 2002. In that game the righty hurler allowed seven runs on eight hits in just one inning.

"Doing much of the damage against Beckett that day was Sean Casey, who just happens to play for these Tigers. Against the hurler in '02, the Cincy first baseman ripped a double and a single, the latter proving to be Beckett's final batter.

" 'I remember that. That's right,' Casey said. 'I do remember him tipping his pitches.' " -- 8.15.06, Rob Bradford, Eagle-Tribune (article by subscription only)

You Had To Run Like Hale Manny

'Dale and Hale Both Graduated with Honors,' Sincerely, Wendell Kim
Sure It Would Help If Manny Had a Clue, Knew the Basics, Always Hustled, Watched His Coach, and Had Some Instincts on the Basepaths
Surely He'll Start Working On That Right After He Wins His Gold Glove

Hench: Red Sox Won't Make It to Postseason
Wilbur: High-Stakes Definition | Mnookin: The Case for Wily Mo