Baltimore Bullpen Collapse: Baltimore 11, Boston 10 When Push Comes to Save, Papelbon Is No Mariano But It Was Nice That He Got That Ceremonial Save on Monday Markakis Cracks Two-Run Double Off Pap to Give Orioles the Improbable Win It's True: The Red Sox Had a Nine Run Lead With Nine Outs to Go It's Been 20 Years Since the Sox Have Blown a Nine Run Lead Masterson Comes Completely Undone in the 7th Inning Kottaras Gets Thrown Out at Plate, And Can't Pull the Trigger on Dribbler More Bullpen Implosions: Okajima Was Killing Us Softly in the Eighth Upside: With Lowell on the DL, Bailey Goes 3-for-4 and Scores Three Runs And It All Fell Apart After Five Guys Forgot There Were Only Two Outs ...
"We pretty much imploded. I can�t think of any better word to use. It�s just what happened.�" -- Papelbon has a way with words
... But Just Two Outs When They Came Off the Field Do You Want Fries With That Gaffe?
Five Confused Sox Come Off The Field With Only Two Outs in the Sixth And Trot Nixon Wasn't One of Them Pedroia, Youkilis, Lugo, Bailey, and Masterson Space Out in the Field Box: Baltimore Comes All the Way Back | Updates from Fenway South Smoltz Sharp Before the Rains Came
Pedroia Led the Charge: "I think it was my fault. I got ahead of myself and everyone followed me." -- 7.1.09, Boston Herald
... And Everybody Else Lately ... Lester Overpowers O's Sox Feeling Right at Home Away From Home
Orioles the Latest Road Kill for Sox | Boston 4, Baltimore 0 Jon Lester Has Was Brilliant: 8K's No Walks, 7 Nasty Innings He's Not Just Winging It: Jon Is Now 8-0 Lifetime Over the Orioles This Just In ... The Red Sox Have Too Much Pitching J.D. Drew, 3-for-5, Cycle Shy, and a Long Fly That Even Adam Jones Couldn't Catch Nice to See Dustin Pedroia Drive In a Run And Drew Made Some Great Catches, Too Bay Makes the Save, But It's Pap Who Ties Stanley Some Thanks to Road Sox Nation: Boston 11-3 in Last 14 Road Games TC Says Sox Are 60-27 at Camden Yards Since '99
"Maybe their lineup just fits me for some reason, I don't know. I don't pitch any different against them than I do any other team in the league... I've been feeling good for a while." -- 6.29.09, Jon Lights-Out Lester
The Fallen Star
(BDD Photo Illustration / Anthony D.)
Ramirez Drops Like a Rock, Now Isodope Is NL's No. 7, And Even Mike Cameron Has Moved Ahead of Him
ESPN's Bob Holzman: "Jonathan Papelbon said recently that he would be open to someday pitching and closing for the Yankees. What would you think of that?
Mariano Rivera: (Laughing)... Think he's an interesting guy... he has his own mind, his own decisions, so what I will say is that if he wants to do it, he has to wait for me to retire and then, I think he has a shot at that. Besides that, he don't have a shot at that." -- 6.28.09, ESPN's Sunday conversation
For the First Time in History... Soccer Was More Exciting Than Baseball Yesterday
Hanson Handles Sox | Atlanta 2, Boston 1 Thumbs Up for Penny, But Braves Put Their Two Cents In Bright Side: The Red Sox Don't Have the Ugliest Red Jerseys in Baseball And the Mighty Jacoby Weakly Grounded Out, Then Struck Out Ortiz Plays Some Football Around First Base
"We lost the game, so there's no satisfaction in whether I'm pitching good. But it's nice to be healthy." -- Brad Penny's thoughts
Wake's On a Tear
(AP)
Sox Stay Red Hot on the Road
Wakefield on Top of It All | Boston 1, Atlanta 0 It's a Good Old Fashioned Pitcher's Duel Down South The Single Most Important Play: Tip of the Cap to Mark Kotsay Holding Pattern: Delcarmen in the Seventh, Masterson in the Eighth J.D. Drew Is Pulling a June Disappearing Act Papelbon Shaky Save No. 18 Red Flag: Mike Lowell
"Just being mentioned with the names I'm being mentioned with is pretty cool. I'm thankful I've been here as long as I have. -- Tim Wakefield, who made his 382nd start for the Sox, tying him with Roger Clemens*
Beckett Was Sick As a Dawg, But Hotter Than Georgia Asphalt
A Bravo Performance | Boston 4, Atlanta 1 Beckett 6-0, 0.38 ERA vs Braves in Last 7 Starts Against Atlanta Big Papi Continues to Rebuild His Numbers. That's HR No. 8 Paplebon Thought He'd Get Save If He Made It a 3-Run Game While You Were Sleeping: Youk and Bay Have Cooled Off Another Big Road Sox Crowd in Hotlanta This Weekend
"I was certainly ready to let him hit and go out in the eighth. But his stomach - let�s call it intestinal turmoil. He just wasn�t feeling real good. When he says it�s time to get out of there, there�s no reason to push.�� -- Tito on Beckett's June bug
So John Smoltz Is Just German for Daisuke Matsuzaka Capitol Punishment: Nats Crush Sox | Washington 9, Boston 3 Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' But Smoltz Got Off to a Rough Start Rocco Goes Deep When It's Over
"Most of the time when the linescore is the way it is, I'm going to be very disappointed, but I really can't at this point," Smoltz said. "I lost a little rhythm there in the first inning ... but very encouraged with how good I can be and the way I felt and the stamina and everything going forward." -- John Smoltz on start No. 1
"Investigators believe the prescription for human chorionic gonadotropin, known as hCG, was written by Pedro Publio Bosch, 71, a physician who has practiced family medicine in Florida since 1976. His son, Anthony Bosch, 45, is believed to have worked as a contact between his father and Ramirez. ... Anthony Bosch is well known in Latin American baseball circles, sources say. His relationships with players date at least from the earlier part of the decade, when he was seen attending parties with players and known to procure tickets to big league ballparks, especially in Boston and New York." -- 6.25.09, ESPN.com report
"If you were to list 10 images that are evocative of American pop culture, Farrah Fawcett would be one of them. That poster became one of the defining images of the 1970s." -- Robert Thompson, a professor of television and popular culture at Syracuse University, told The Los Angeles Times
For Two Guys Who Were Written Off, It Was On Old Timers Ortiz, 'Tek Go Deep in D.C.
Boston 6, Washington 4 | Welcome to BatsTown Green Gets Nicked in Forearm By Bat Out of Hell While Ball Gets By Workmanlike Night for Lester Good Enough for W in Washington Papi Gets No. 1 on the Road, 'Tek Pops One Out for 2 June Boon Continues: Sox Have Won 16 of Last 21 Rough Night for Mr. USA, Jason Bay Papelbon 1-2-3? You're Kidding Me Did Nats Fans Send Sox Fans to Gay Bars? ... Not That There's Anything Wrong with That
"It's scary to see a bat go flying that far. I thought they did some research this offseason to try to figure that stuff out, but obviously we've still got a long ways to go. You've got to take cover. It's a tough play to make when you've got a bat head flying at you looking to take your head off." -- Jon Lester on Batgate
With 100 Percent of the Innings Reporting ... Bay-Ellsbury Win in a Landslide, Sox Party's in Power in D.C.
Bay, Ellsbury Sparkle in Rout | Boston 11, Washington 3 No June Swoon: Sox Have Been Victorious in 14 of 19 Games Night and Bay: Jason Hits Bomb No. 19, Leads League with 69 RBIs All-Star Ells Goes 4-for-4 and Is Triple Threat With Wheels, Bat, and Glove This Just In: Red Sox Nation Begins Three Day Convention in NatsTown Was That Camera Mounted on the Top of the Washington Monument? A Well-Deserved 12-Pitch Win for Manny Delcarmen John Lannon Didn't Just Imagine All the People on the Bases Colome, Jesus, What the Hell Was He Doing Out There? Pedroia Gets It Cranking at Leadoff, Nice DP By SS Green Welcome to the Big Leagues Dusty Brown Bard Has a Papelbonesque Ninth Sox Lead Yanks by 5 Games, Magic No. 88
"These guys are supposed to just go out there and keep us in the game. And they can't do it." -- 6.24.09, Nats Manager Manny Acta on his bullpen, very un-Tito like
"I'm not talking about it anymore. I already said what I'm going to say. I'm here to do my rehab, you know, and [go] to the game and get a couple at-bats and get back to the big-league team." -- The gutless Manny Ramirez*, making fellow cheat A-Rod look better every day
The Man Who Priced the American Family Out of Ballparks And Helped Make a Mockery Out Of MLB Home Run Records And Got a World Series Canceled... Is Finally Moving On But the Damage to America's Pastime Is Done
Fehr Is Ready to Step Down Fehr's Legacy: More Money, Less Ethics While Steroids Were in Since 1988, Fehr Did Not Agree to Drug Testing Until 2002 When Fehr Took Over Full Time, a Box Seat at Fenway Cost a Fan Just $9.00, Today Fans Can Buy a Box Seat in Boston for $325.00 a Game
"Thanks to Fehr's domination over three commissioners and the owners they represented, [Alex] Rodriguez was able to command two contracts worth $525 million from the Texas Rangers and the New York Yankees. This is Fehr's triumph, the highest paid player in baseball history. ...
On Fehr's watch, the majority of which coincided with the reign of commissioner Bud Selig, baseball grew its revenues while bankrupting itself ethically and morally. Ultimately, that was the calculation that will define Fehr's career: Salaries rose with the home run totals and radar-gun readings, so let the players do whatever it took to jack up those numbers." -- 6.23.09, Phil Sheridan, Philadelphia Inquirer
The Father of All Walkoffs, Just in the Nick of Time
Green Homer Pushes Sox to the Finish | Boston 6, Atlanta 5 Bob Ryan: Green Storyline Was Sealed with a Mist This Just In: Julio Lugo is Green with Envy Wake May Have Knocked Himself Out of the All-Star Arms Race Daddy Dearest: A Big Popup and a Two-Run Papi for Ortiz The Ramon Ramirez Magic Is Fading, And Okaji Isn't Fooling Anyone Papelbon Always Makes It Interesting Sox Get the Hohn Court Advantage
"I didn't even comprehend the fact that I swung at the first pitch and it was a walkoff. I hit second base and everybody is standing at home plate and then I realized what was going on." -- 6.21.09, Nick Green on the win
Beckett Steals the D-Lowe Show
(Barry Chin / Boston Globe Staff)
He's the Complete Package
Plenty of Zip by Ace | Boston 3, Atlanta 0 A Perfect Game for Beckett: 2 Hours, 11 Minutes 'Teknically Speaking, Derek Lowe is the Embedded Red Sock You Can't Stop Nick Green, You Can Only Hope to Contain Him
"A nice gesture by the fans. They clearly didn't have to do it. They didn't come to watch me. They're great fans. They're very loyal. But you tip your hat to Beckett. It was a great game, but it was a loss." -- Derek Lowe, goodnight and good luck
Back on March 2, Team Japan manager Tatsunori Hara was in charge of our $103 million import: The Red Sox keep tabs on Matsuzaka in Japan through team massage therapist Takanori Maeda, whose access to Matsuzaka "has been limited," Francona said. Maeda gives updates to interpreter Masa Hoshino, who relays them to pitching coach John Farrell, who relays them to Francona.
"So there's a few channels," Francona said. "There's no other way to do it. We can't go over there and watch. And it's their team. I'll be glad when he's back and throwing the ball well. There's no other way to get around it."
Francona has spoken with managers of other WBC teams about the workload of Red Sox players, and he offered a line of communication with Japan's manager, Tatsunori Hara.
"There didn't seem to be a lot of interest," Francona said. "So we didn't push it. You hope you're talking to somebody, it's almost like a partner. And if it doesn't come across as that, it doesn't do any good just to offend somebody. -- 3.2.09, Boston Globe Red Sox notebook
"Coming in here, you kind of get these old vibes that are fresh in your mind. We had a lot of good memories here, and I have a lot of fond memories of the players. It's a great place to play, too." -- 6.19.09, Derek Lowe makes a Brave return
... But Matsuzaka Just Made the Decision Easy After Tonight The Usual 6 Runs in the Usual 4-Plus Innings, and Dice Gets Rolled Again Lost from the Start | Atlanta 8, Red Shirts and Hanging Sox Hats 2 This Just In... "Matsuzaka is a Fat Toad. Sincerely George Steinbrenner" So the Braves Didn't Spend $103 Million on Kenshin Kawakami? Hmmm It's Jason Bay and Pray for Rain for the Offense Mazz: The Dice-K Dilemma
"If I keep going like this, I have no right to be a part of this rotation." -- Matsuzaka, a little late to reality show, said through an interpreter
More Full House Fun at Fenway, But These Fish Really Stink
Penny, 'Pen, and Another Sox Win | Boston 6, Florida 1 Jacoby Goes Yard Again, Steals Another Base... and Commits His First Error Ever Awfully Nice of Dustin Pedroia to Show Up for the Game Tonight Little by Little Big Papi Is Getting Back to Normal Another Milestone: Brad Penny Pounds His Way to Win No. 100 500 Sellout Madness: Free Hot Dogs, Stamped Baseballs, Tape Measures, and No. 4 Meets No. 44 J-Bay Honors Hockey Hero Bobby Orr By Putting Up an Ice Cold 0-for-4 Himself And John_W_Henry Knows 49 Years Ago Today Teddy Ballgame Hit No. 500 That Actually Is a Clean Inning for Papelbon Hey Rocco, Nice Work
(Jim Davis / Boston Globe File Photo)
Fan at Fenway Gets Into Sellout Mania... Or He Just Hates JohnNY Damon... SHAME ON THE BOSTON RED $OX FOR CASHING IN ON SELLOUT No. 501 Marlins 2, Sox 1: Mike Lowell Is Upset? At Least He Got Paid Big for Sitting Around It's the Fans Who Got #%&@! Soaked by the Sox as Usual, Mike Eric Wilbur Shines More Light on the Phony Fenway Sellout Streak Red Sox Getting Crushed By Season Ticket Holders Over Scalping by Partner Ace Lester Really Couldn't Afford a Bad Start Soooo Ortiz Is Just Never Gonna Run Out Fly Balls and Pop Ups? Dustin Wants to Know: Will Raingate Cost the Sox the Division in the End? Short Story: Uggla, Paulino 2, Youk 1
It's a Sellout Only If You Don't Count the Nightly Luxury Box No-Shows, Empty Seats and Standing Room Areas, and the Dozens of Scalpers Holding Fistfuls of Tickets Long After the Fifth Inning
"This record is the fans� record, and we want to salute the members of Red Sox Nation for reaching this extraordinary milestone. It�s a testament to the passion and dedication they have for the game, for the team, and for the ballpark. Every day, we work hard to ensure that we are worthy of their loyal support." -- John W. Henry, Red Sox owner
Say It Ain't Sosa ... Sammy Corked His Bat and His Body
NY Times: Sosa Is Said to Have Tested Positive in 2003 Sports Illustrated Didn't Exactly Cover Themselves in Glory And Since the HR Race Was a Hoax, He Can Forget the Hall of Fame
Ahhh, 2003, those were the days: "Never before, though, had Sammy made a run like last Saturday's. Never before had Sosa done so with the Cubs in first place this deep into a season�121 games. The last time a Cubs team was in first place this late, back in 1989, Sosa was a skinny 20-year-old kid playing on the South Side with the White Sox. As if that alone wasn't enough to put a little extra spring in his step, Sosa also knows the satisfaction of recovering from the worst three months of his career. Other than getting hit with a helmet-cracking beanball, suffering through a toe injury that kept him up at night in pain, missing as many games as he did in the previous six years combined and being shamed and suspended for using a corked bat, April, May and June were a real hoot. Since returning from that suspension on June 18, Sosa, as of Monday, had knocked in 51 runs in 54 games, batted .301, whacked 22 home runs (the most of any player over that period) and, as far as the fallout of his public disgrace goes, generally put a cork in it." -- Aug. 25, 2003, Tom Verducci, Sports Illustrated... the year Sosa reportedly tested positive
Everybody Chips in for Fenway Win (OK, Lowell Took the Night Off)
Wakefield Looks Right at Home | Boston 8, Florida 2 4th Scores: Green, George. Jacoby, Youk, and Even Pedroia Get in the Game Walking the Walk: Jason Bay RBI Monster Has No. 63 All-Star? If Wake Wins No. 10, You Gotta Send Him to St. Louis Ortiz Gets Home Run No. 5 and a 2-RBI Seeing-Eye Single But the Window of Opportunity Has Closed on Papi's Curtain Calls Hanley Renteria Ramirez Makes Error No. 6 Bard Gets Back to Business
"I've been (considered) a number of times in my career, and hopefully I'm mentioned again this year. That will mean a lot more when I'm retired. Right now, I'm just one of 25 guys in that clubhouse trying to get to the World Series." -- Wake... who really wants that All-Star nod
Vet Expects to Get Back to the Major Leagues with a Start Against Nationals Next Week
Dan Patrick: "Your first start is going to be when next week?" John Smoltz: "Well, looks like sometime next week, either Tuesday or Wednesday, if everything goes the way it continues to go... there's no pinpoint hard date, but that's what it looks like. ... I think it's going to be Tuesday or Wednesday of next week, yeah. It hinges on a lot of variables that we are constantly looking at. I gotta pitch either tomorrow or Thursday in one more rehab start." --6.16.09, The Dan Patrick radio show
Beckett Went Deep When It Mattered, But Came Up Short Where It Counts
Can't Sweep 'Em All | Philadelphia 11, Boston 6 Up, Up, and Away Goes the Lead for Beckett, Then He Stepped Up to the Plate So Should Beckett and His 394-Foot-Bombs Be DH'ing Against Lefties? 'Pen Adds to the Problem: Bad Outing for Bard, Saito Stunk, Too Forgotten in the Loss: Baldelli and Green Go Back-to-Back
"We feel pretty good about it. Obviously, today wasn't very good. But 9-3, I think we'll take it." -- 6.14.09, Jacoby Ellsbury
"What a dump of a performance yesterday. Beckett looked like absolute crap, Francona decided to give players 2 days off. Were we out partying last night? For the kind of money we pay these players, the only thing on their minds should have been PUMMELING the Phillies at all costs Sunday and finish them off with a demoralizing sweep. Champions FIND a PATH and DEMORALIZE their opponents with sweeps." -- E-mailer Josh D.
Sox Bail Out Dicey-K | Boston 11, Philadelphia 6 Jury Still Out on How Bad Dice-K Is, But Mr. Smoltz Is Coming Another Big Bomb for J-Bay, No. 17, Have to Question Ibanez Hitting 22, Right? 'Tek's Down to .229, But Belted a Big Double in the Fifth High 5 Times on Base for Jacoby Ellsbury 3 Hits for Lowell Puts Mike Over .300 Stop the Presses, Pedroia Gets a Hit
"It would be a lie to say I'm completely stress-free. But I also know that I have to be patient. At the same time, patience alone isn't going to get me out of this situation. I'm going to make a concerted effort to make some changes and get out of it." -- The Disappointing Daisuke Matsuzaka through translator Masa Hoshino
It's Been a Bard Day's Night Ells Buries Phillies, Sox Stay Red Hot
Extra, Extra: Ellsbury Delivers Sox in OT | Boston 5, Philadelphia 2 First Things First: Papi's Got a Brand New Bag Lester Should Have Another Win, But Buy Him a Cheesesteak for the Effort It Was an Average Crushing 0-for-7 for Dustin Pedroia Raul Ibanez Goes 2-for-4... and a 42-Year-Old Mother's Basement Dweller Somewhere in the Midwest Has a Theory to Post Way Back When... J.D. Drew and Youk Went Way Back Ryan's Poke Means Ramon Ramirez Is No Longer a Lights Out Lock Another Solid Night for Saito and Masterson Means Business Tip of the Cap to the Beleaguered Julio Lugo for Getting it Going Papelbon Is Going to Get Caught Napping by Future Closer Daniel Bard
"Comfortable, confident." -- The new and improved Jonny Lester, sitting them down like the 2004 Pedro Martinez
Theeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Yankees Lose! Sweep Caroline, It's a Rally Good Time
Comeback in 8th Means 8 Straight vs. Yanks | Boston 4, Bumblers 3 That's Just J-Bay Being J-Bay and Yes It's True, J.D. Drew Came Through Brad Is Worth Every Penny, and Gets a Virtual Win for a Virtuoso Performance Yes, Papi Will Be Taking a Curtain Call for Every Home Home Run This Season Leaving CC in to Pitch to J.D. Was Definitely the Right Call. Sincerely, Grady Little Good Thing Yanks Had An Aceves Up Their Sleeves... Things Went Better With Coke Jed Lowrie Can Take All the Time in the World. The Green Machine Is Here to Stay Playing the Award Winning Role of Hideki Okajima Tonight Was Takashi Saito Pack Up the 1912 Signs for Yankee Stadium on August 6... The Streak Is On Pitchers Perfect: Penny Fired Like a BB Gun, And CC's No Bum Ker-Punk: Penny Strikes Back for J-Bay By Plunking A-Fraud Manny Delcarmen Blew That Game in a New York Minute Eckersley Hit It Out of the Park on NESN Tonight, But Ramiro Was Hitting Under the Mendoza Line Jonathan Napelbon Nails Down Another Save Did You See That Catch Rocco Made? Did You See Those Seagulls Coco Saw?
"the MT curse?"
-- 6.11.09, Tweet all about it, Sox owner John_W_Henry didn't forget that ill-fated flight to visit Teixeira in Texas
Fenway Park: America's Most Beloved Ballpark ... to Call Out Steroid Cheats Since 1988
Paying Homage to the "Ster-oids! Ster-oids" Chants That Bud Selig Heard Sung to Jose Canseco During the 1988 ALCS at Fenway Park, Boston Fans Get on A-Roid Again. And They'll Be More Of the Same Tonight.
"These fans are special." -- 6.10.09, ESPN's Rick Sutcliffe after A-Rod chants
You Stay Classy, Manny Ramirez*
(Christian Petersen / Getty Images)
Speaking of Steroid Cheats, Manny Is Killing Us with His Commentary
Manny Doesn't Want to Talk About the Past, Won't Answer Questions About His High Testosterone Levels, Thinks He Gets to Come Back to Baseball with a Clean Slate, And Offers Up the Mother of All Inappropriate Comments ...
Sorry Johnny, But the Yankees Are Rotten Seven Straight and Counting for Sox
The Sox are Alone at the Top | Boston 6, New York 5 Wakefield Is 8-3, But a 4.50 ERA Just Isn't All-Star Material You're Not in Kansas City Anymore Ram-Ram, Welcome to the Big Stage This Just In: Hideki Okajima is Japanese for Rodney Dangerfield... There's Not Even a Picture of the Relief Pitcher On the Wire As Usual, Papelbon Gets All the Glory Because He Pitched in the 9th Why Are Save Stats Fake? Because Okajima Really Saved the Game Last Night And Chien Ming Wang Must Be Taiwanese for Daisuke Matsuzaka Hey Alex 0-for-Fenway Rodriguez, I Heard 'You Do Ster-oids' and We'll Hear It Again A Long Shot for Youk, But He's Not Gonna Win That Vote Over Teixeira Mike Lowell Quietly Has 10 Home Runs Nice Glove, Nick Green
"It's a tough bullpen, one of the toughest I've ever seen." -- You got that right Mr. Leigh Teixeira
To Really Enhance Your Performance on the Field, Try New and Improved Papi Eyes
Not Exactly a Rare Sighting: Marketing Guru David Ortiz Keeps His Finances in Focus with Another New Product to Push on the Nation There Wasn't a Dry Eye in the House When Ortiz Took a Curtain Call for HR No. 3 No Longer Known for Hot Hitting, Papi Thinks It's Cool to Throw His Name Around Another Gravy Train for David: Ortiz's Hot Sauces Cover All the Bases And Just a Week Ago, He Could Have Put His Name on Ice Packs See Papi Push Vitaminwater, XM Radio, Reebok, Nakona, D'Angelo, and More
Beckett Outstanding for Six, Sox Improve to 6-0 Over Yankees
Sweet Nothings for Beckett | Boston 7, New York 0 Big Game Josh Beckett Stones A.J. Burnout and the Bombers Best Bullpen in Baseball Picks Up Where Beckett Leaves Off 6 Straight to Start Over NY.. Time for Sox Fans to Break Out the 1912 Signs Tonight? When It Rains, It Pours: Pedroia Throws Groundskeepers Under the Bus on Infield Hit The Real Crushing Blow? The Break It Open Double by J.D. Drew Red Sox Starting Shortstop Du Jour Nick Green Had a Monster Night Did You Cano? The Yankees Only Had 2 Hits Last Night Vote-for-Youk Had 2 Hits, Too Throwing at J-Bay, Eh?
"They've taken it to us so far this year, but we have 13 more, and hopefully we'll beat them sometime soon." -- There's Johnny Damon
(A-Rod, AP Angel Presinal, Los Angeles Times/Carlos Chavez Yuri Sucart Daily News/Schwartz)
He's Been Lying and Cheating for God Knows How Long And He'll See and Hear All About It at Fenway Tonight
The Man in the Mirror
(Details magazine photo by Steven Klein)
I'm Talkin' About the Man in the Mirror, He's Coming Back to Fenway
And No Message Can Be Any Clearer If You Want to Make the Game a Better Game, Take a Look at A-Fraud and Make Some Noise
Let's Have Some Bronx Cheers and Stinging Signs for Alex Tonight
(BDD Photo Illustration)
"My cousin would administer it to me. But neither of us knew what we were doing." -- 2.17.09, Alex Rodriguez
Jayson Stark ESPN: A-Rod's Hard to Believe Boli, Boli... Boli, Boli, Boli... Was Injected Twice a Month The Really Curious Case of Alex Rodriguez: Mature 18-Year-Old MLB Veteran Grew Younger and Stupider by 28
A Man Is Known by the Company He Keeps
(AP)
A Cheater Is a Cheater Is a Cheater Is a Cheater And Cheaters Should Not Be Going to the All-Star Game.
With Smoltz on the Way, Matsuzaka Should Be Assigned Mop-Up Duty
Texas 6, Boston 3 | Losing Two Out of Three Ain't Good Nelson Cruz Was in Control And It's 4 Hits for the Former Vaunted Red Sox Offense Good News: Look Theo, No Walks for The $100 Million Man Papelbon Checks with Official Scorer to See If That Was Save Opportunity Rock, Paper Shoulder: Jacoby Joins J.D. Drew on Banged-Up List At Least the Runners Looked Sharp on the Bases...
"I thought he missed over the middle and up on a team that can really make you pay when you throw the ball in the middle."-- Red Sox manager Terry Francona like a needle on a broken record
Don't Mess with Lester!
(Barry Chin / Globe Staff Photo)
Jon Strikes Deep in the Heart of Texas' Lineup
Lester Flirts with No-Hitter | Boston 8, Texas 1 Lesterrific! The Most Impressive Outing Of Jon's Career Ortiz's Seeing-Eye Home Run Wraps Around Johnny's Pole Curtain Call for Cheap Shot Was Funny... And Embarrassing Michael Young Got an Old-Fashioned Hit to Break it Up
"It's hard not to think about it when you've got the Green Monster out there. It's in your face the whole time. I was real happy it was a well-struck ball. It wasn't an infield hit or anything like that." -- Jon Lester on his Texas-sized night
Sox Out of Range | Texas 5, Boston 1 Maybe the Sox Should Head Back Out on the Road Again? A Penny Flip, and Two Lugo Slips, Millwood Had Zip, Plus Kinsler's Roundtrip Lugo's Lost a Step or Two, and You'll Find Green in the Lineup Tonight No Double Vision: Ortiz Looked Focused, Dropped in a Seeing-Eye Single Ian Kinsler, 14 HR, 41 RBIs, and Why Pedroia Is Grabbing Pine at the All-Star Game Millwood Is Just the Latest Has-Been-Turned-Cy-Candidate By Sox Lineup Good to Know: David Murphy Is What We Thought He Was More Days in First Place for Nolan Ryan's Rangers Out West
"His first four innings were as good as we've seen. He was throwing the ball really, really well. Then the next two I think he threw 50 pitches." -- Tito's thoughts on Penny
Boston 6, Detroit 3 | Heading Home on a Winning Note So Tim Wakefield Is Worth Every Penny When Smoltz Comes Back He's Right on the Money with No. 14, Bay Banks Another One Okajima Completely Flying Under the Radar This Season Walk and a HIt is a Clean Inning for Papelbon
"I threw a couple good pitches and I didn't get the calls, and I let myself get flustered. That's the first time that's happened in my career, but you can't do that against the Red Sox. It was just mental." -- Dontrelle went to hell in a handbasket in a hurry
Josh Beckett Was On His Way to a No-Hitter, Until He Handed One to Granderson
Beckett Flirts with No-Hit Bid in Win | Boston 10, Detroit 5 Josh Beckett Is Back: Last 3 Starts -- 1 ER in 22 2/3 Innings We Interrupt This Sentence to Report That David Ortiz Hit a Double Last Night Looks Like Takashi Saito Has Been Hanging Around with Papelbon And the Defense Rests... and the Sox Make Three Errors in Eighth Congratulations J.D. Drew on Hitting Honest Home Run No. 200 Laird Tries for a Cheap Hit, Then Beckett Hits Him What the Eck Was That? Talking 'No Hitter' While One Was in Progress?
"He was throwing strike one when he was throwing offspeed. Just hitting corners. It seemed like he really never missed over the middle. With his stuff, he's got enough velocity where he can miss over the middle a couple times and still get away with it. I don't think he gave too many guys any easy looks." -- Mike Lowell, really impressed with Josh's outing
Matsuzaka Makes It Look Difficult | Boston 5, Detroit 1 Let's Have a Slow Clap for Terry Francona and His 500th Win with the Red Sox When Dice-K Takes the Mound, the 'Pen Gets Plenty of Work In Jon Papelbon Thought He Could Create a Save for Himself... Not Quite Ryan Perry Can't Get Anybody Out... But He Blows It By Ortiz J-Bay Bangs Out No. 16, with Men on Base, Naturally Jacoby Acted Like a Leading Man Last Night... Even Drew a Walk Flash in the Pan Rick Porcello Is the Susan Boyle of the Tigers If Papi Can Keep Looking Pathetic at the Plate, Then Lugo Should Get His SS Job Back
"J-Bay gets one pitch. He's so dangerous. They made some pitches, and all of a sudden there's a ball that's up in the zone hanging, and he just crushes it. He's been that type of hitter, but it's nice to see him do it for us." -- Tito500 on the Sox MVP candidate
Even the Squirrel Couldn't Bear To Watch Dice-K Work
Breaking News: Sox Score More Than Three Runs in Nine Innings
Sox Righted by Lefty | Boston 8, Toronto 2 Dirty Dozen K's: Welcome Back Jon Lester, Your Spot is Safe Pedroia Moves Ahead of Papi in the Last Place Home Run Race Youkilis Bring Some Production to the No. 3 Slot with 2 Homers Everybody Hits... Except Jason Varitek on Sunday, Even Ortiz Once in a Blue Moon: Ellsbury Lays Down a Sac Bunt
"We scored early and then we added on. That's always a good way to play. We haven't done that very much lately but it was a very good day today." -- Terry Francona on the offensive explosion
Et Tu, Ram-Ram?
(Reuters)
Even Ramon Ramirez Is a Lost Cause
Sox Know the Score in Loss | Toronto 5, Boston 3 Blame It on Rios: Jays Outfielder Had as Manny Hits as All Nine Sox Penny's Luck Runs Out: Just Two Earned Runs, But Penny Can't Get a Win Baldelli Hits One Out... Then Gets Knocked Out Happy 37th Birthday to Manny The Cheater Ramirez Enjoy Watching the All-Star Game from Your Couch, Too
"The players we have, not everybody but a lot of them, are suited for Fenway. There's guys on our club who know they can reach out and hook something and hit it off that wall. Some of these road games, you can go out and hook it and fly out. There's a difference. It's been something we've been trying to figure out for a while. Our home and road, there's a lot of disparity. I would like, hopefully, to figure it out by tomorrow." -- Tito knows the Sox aren't built for life on the road
The "Curt�s Pitch
for ALS" program is a joint effort by Curt and Shonda Schilling and The
ALS Association Mass Chapter to strike out Amyotrophic Lateral
Sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig�s Disease.
