The Boston Pro Sports Blog

Major League Baseball’s trade dedline is approaching with all non-waiver deals having to be finalized by July 31st(this Monday). Obviously that results in more rumors than a high school hallway, with few of them having any legitimacy.

I would imagine the Red Sox will probably attempt to make some minor moves but will refrain from making any blockbuster deals. There really isn’t any need to mess with this team that much. Besides the fact that the Sox are in first place, and have been for a while, they are a solidly built team with a great balance of pitching, defense, and bats. However the pesky Yankees are in close pursuits, sitting at about a 2 game deficit but being behind only half a game a little over a week ago. This will probably influence Theo and Co. to at least entertain a deal or two.

The Sox particularly need some assistance at the end of their starting rotation. Wake is on the DL, Clement has been committed, and Wells’s return, although soon(he’s scheduled to start Monday), will be about as predictable as Delmon Young in Sports Authority. And its pretty clear by now that the Sox haven’t found an adequate solution for the 4 and 5 guys. We certainly can’t and won’t go to battle with the Snyder, Johnson, Pauley, Gabbard combo. Some relief help would be nice as well. The set-up crew of Timlin, Delcarmen, and Hansen is satisfactory but can’t be overused. With Javy Lopez good for one batter and one batter only, another lefty would be ideal. It would be even better with we could dump the tweedle dum and tweedle stink combination of Seanez and Tavarez. They have become about as useful as condoms in a convent except for inning killing mop up situations. Plus Tavarez seems about as mentally stable as a drunken pan-handler, making him an added liability in my mind.

The Sox could also maybe use a back-up first baseman to spell Youklis once and awhile. JT Snow would have been perfect had we not released him to open up roster space.

In any event, I would imagine a minor move if any by the Sox come Monday. I wouldn’t glue yourself to your computer, tv, blackberry, or phone for breaking updates but I would keep an eye out. We may have a new Sock or two by Monday’s game. Stay tuned(but not too tuned).

theaveragefan@bostonprosports.com

Well everything in Oakland went just about as well as expected. Vegas probably didn’t make much. Schilling and Beckett both pitched very well and combined with the Sox bats for back to back wins against the AL West leading A’s. The Kyle Snyder start didn’t go so well however. Again, I am sure Snyder vs. Haren wasn’t exactly a tough line in Vegas though. Hats off to Haren though. He held the Sox to a single run in the game while DH slugger Frank Thomas homered twice to lead the A’s to a win in the third game of the series.

One interesting thing to note is that in a radio interview after the series, A’s ace pitcher Barry Zito talked with Bay Area sports radio jockeys at length about how there were more Red Sox fans at the first two Sox-A’s games than there were Athletics fans. Although he felt it wasn’t quite a Fenway atmostphere, Zito said it “definately didn’t feel like a home game” which he felt it should. This is particularly impressive considering the A’s are in the middle of their own pennant run in the AL West. Its one thing to see Sox fans at the Tropicana but its entirely different at a division leader’s home turf. Red Sox Nation in full effect. There were less Sox fans at the day game on Wednesday in Oakland because, well, Boston people actually have jobs.

The Sox came back to Boston yesterday and take on the red-hot Angels of Southern California.

theaveragefan@bostonprosports.com

After blowing out the Mariners in the first game of a three game series 9-4 in a game that included 5 Sox home runs off Seattle starting pitcher Jamie Moyer, the Sox went on to lose the next two games by scores of 5-2 and 9-8. Although both losses were certainly team efforts complete with bad relief pitching and a couple of defensive blunders, I point my inconsequential finger to two people off the top of my head. Firstly, as much as I love Manny, even when he’s “Manny being Manny”(sometimes especially when he’s “Manny being Manny”), his shoddy defense reared its ugly head in the Seattle series practically handing Seattle a couple extra runs, including a defensive error that resulted in a Mariner inside the park home run. Now we can’t get too upset at Manny, because A)he has never been known for his defense and we can even come to expect this a few times a year and 2)he will more than likely make up for it in his bat at some point causing us to conveniently forget his shakey defense. However, I do need to point out that after witnessing his debauchery in left field this past series its safe to say Manny will not be hanging up a Gold Glove at the end of this season.

I think I was more upset at Terry Francona though. In the 9-4 shellacking of Seattle in the first game, Tito pitched Craig Hansen, Manny Delcarmen, and Mike Timlin in relief for a combined 4 innings. Then with a 3-2 game in the sixth inning of the second game he proceeds to bring in designated mop-up men Julian Tavarez and Rudy Seanez to finish the game, which quikcly became a 5-2 Seattle lead turned victory. Does this make sense to anyone? I understand pitchers need their work but it almost seemed as if Francona had mapped out his pitching schedule before the games started. Not only that but it completely ruined a great start from newly promoted Kason Gabbard, who pitched a ballsy five innings. You would think that with Kabbard and Lester going in the second and third games of the series, Francona would want to save our real relief pitchers for those games. If Beckett was going against Seattle’s number 5 guy in the second game, I might understand the logic, but Tito lost me on this one. Its not like Francona needed to rest guys like Hansen and Timlin for a day either. That clearly didn’t work as Timlin gave up the game winning run in the ninth anyways. And as the perrenial league leader in appearances a year with like a 185 appearance average, its not like Timlin can’t handle back to back games. He shouldn’t have pitched in the first game period. And as far as I am concerned the second game was very winnable up until the point Tavarez entered the game. Good one Terry.

Also I really hate to say anything bad about Jon Lester because he has been absolutely outstanding for us this year. His accomplishments are magnified even greater when you think of how badly the Sox needed a starting pitcher to step in and anchor the back end of the rotation. However, Lester pitched in his home state for the first time in his major league career in the third game of the series and showed his youth also for the first time by letting up 5 runs in as many innings. You would think that Lester would consider the start a big game since it was in front of many of his friends and family. This would suggest that Lester didn’t succeed as much as we would expect of him in a big game. Perhaps I am being too harsh or reading too much into it, but it did remind me of how young and inexperienced Lester actually is. With such a phenomenal beginning to his career, its easy to forget that his major league starts are in the single digits. I am not really worried about Lester but it will be interesting to see how he rebounds after his first unsuccessful outing. He may not have a choice but to do well because with Matt Clement still on the roster, there is only room for one head case starting pitcher. Oh and for the record, David Wells is not a head case, he’s just a nut.

theaveragefan@bostonprosports.com

Wow. Jon Lester just pitched an aboslute GEM for the Sox tonight. An eight inning, one hit shut-out that baffled the Royals and led the Sox to their second straight win. Lester needed only 100 pitches to record his fifth win of the season and lower his Earned Run Average to a measly 2.38. Absolutely filthy. Papelbon came on in the ninth to record his 28th save of the season on a 1-2-3 inning that set his ERA to .55. Ladies and Gentlemen, tonight we have witnessed the future of Red Sox pitching.

(Lester’s gem was so good in fact that it completely distracted everyone from the fact that we have beaten the Kansas City Royals by only one run the past two games. Yes, thats right. Those Kansas City Royals.)

Believe it or not I am almost speechless. Right after the game ended I quickly went over the facts: Two highly touted prospects combine for a one hit shut-out in their rookie seasons. Game winning RBI driven in by gold-glove caliber short-stop not known for his hitting whatsoever. Yes, I am actually watching a Red Sox game. Was this game not the epitomy of how we have changed this season? It was completely anti-Duquette and anti-Red Sox philosophy of the past two decades. And I enjoyed every minute of it.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I LOVE THIS SOX TEAM! They have to rank up there as one of my favorite Sox teams in the history of Red Sox baseball. As if I wasn’t obsessed enough, this 2006 team has me in love(in a purely non-sexual, masculine, baseball fan kind of way- well except for Gabe Kapler. Who said that?)

A win like this makes you not be able to wait for the next Sox game. Except that Kyle Snyder is probably pitching. Nevertheless, I shall revel in the masterpiece that was tonight. Adios.

theaveragefan@bostonprosports.com

The Celtics officially announced the contract extension of star player Paul Pierce today in a press conference. The 3 year $59 million extension, which keeps Pierce in green for the next five years, was reached last week but officially announced today. Pierce actually declined the advice of his agent to test the free agent waters after the 2007-08 season and agreed to the deal himself. Its a good thing Theo Epstein isn’t the Celtics GM or else Pierce might get traded to the Reds next week.

I am extremely happy Paul Pierce will stay a Celtic for the next five years. Especially since he proved that the 2004-05 season that featured the Paul Pierce Pouty Bitch Face could in fact be an anomaly. Lets just hope that Ainge can actually get a decent ensemble cast together to help Paul out. I am not sure Sebastian Telfair is a step in the right direction, but that still remains to be seen. I’ll give him a game or two before I begin my criticisms.

Congrats Paul. Thank you for ignoring your agent. I’ll be cheering for you with the hope that your legacy includes bringing another Championship to Boston.

theaveragefan@bostonprosports.com

It just seems like this season is perpetually filled with simultaneous good and bad news. Off the top of my head I can’t recall just one game where everything has gone well for the Sox this season. Last night was a perfect example.

Yes, we won 5-4 with a great late inning comeback led by Doug Mirabelli’s three run homer in the eighth to tie the game followed by Manny’s sacrifice fly to knock in the eventual game winner. But there was bad news as well. Yet another Red Sox starting pitcher has seemed to be hit with the injury bug. Last night Tim Wakefield left the game with back spasms after three innings and three earned runs. It appears as if the sands of time are finally creeping up to old rubber arm. After a bone scan today, Wake is still listed as day to day although battery mate Doug Mirabelli divulged last night that Wake has been hurting for some time now. We can only cross our fingers and hope that the vicious and unmercifull disabled list doesn’t capture yet another Red Sox pitcher.

The other good news last night though was that our bullpen looked half way decent, particularly the young fellas. Manny Delcarmen and Craig Hansen both pitched very well, as did Mike Timlin who ended up with the win. Wakefield’s back issues however, will only add flames to the trade rumor fire as Sox GM Theo Epstein is almost sure to entertain swap proposals that would offer him a new Sox starting pitcher. Stay tuned on that one folks. The Red Sox could very well have another starter or two within the next week or two. Although to be honest, if Wake survives the back trouble, a 4 man rotation of Schilling-Beckett-Wake-Lester would certainly suffice for a playoff run. However, we need to make the playoffs first. And that will require playing every game tough from now to October 1, and that ladies and gentlemen, may be the reason Theo deals for a hurler.

theaveragefan@bostonprosports.com

OK so my apologies to those of you out there who have been wondering where I have been. I took some time to travel a little bit(actually a lot a bit), see some old friends and family, and take care of some work related stuff(yeah I have another job. For whatever reason the blog gig doesn’t seem to pay for my extravagent addictions like fur coats, asian masseuses, and internet porn).

A lot of action has occured since I last checked in. The Bruins did some restructuring atop their Front Office including acquiring a new General Manager and Head Coach. The Patriots will be gathering together for mandated camps soon after their optional mini-camps last week.

The Celtics made some, shall we say “interesting” moves in this years 2006 draft as well. Led by GM Danny “At Least I’m Not Isiah Thomas” Ainge, the Green swapped their first round pick, Raef LaFrentz, and Dan Dickau to Portland for Sebastian Telfair, Theo Ratliff, and a 2008 2nd-round pick. They then acquired the number 21 pick from Phoenix for cash and a future 1st round pick and drafted Rajon Rondo from Kentucky. In a third trade, Ainge got Cal star Leon Powe for a future second round pick as well. The Celts’ 1st round pick became Randy Foye, essentially equating the deal to drafting Telfair over Foye in the first round. Many of you may recognize Telfair from an ESPN documentary “Through the Fire” which follows Telfair from his days as a high school superstar in New York City through his experience during the NBA draft. If you didn’t understand any of the last paragraph or simply spaced off here’s a quick summary:

2006 NBA Draft:
Celts get Rajon Rondo(1st round) - good
Celts get Leon Powe(second round) - should be good although he has bad knees
In Trades:
No more Raef LaFrentz - very good
No more Dan Dickau - who?(the white guy that backed up the back up point guard)
Celts get Theo Ratliffe - neutral
Celts get Sebastian Telfair - hopefully good although the jury will be out on this one for a while
Get it?

Obviously a lot going on in Red Sox Nation as well. The Sox hit the all star break 3 games up in the AL East to rival New York. Big Papi represented the BoSox in the Home Run Derby with Manny, Papelbon, and Mark Loretta joining him as the Sox All-Star representatives. Mike Lowell is having all All-Star caliber season as well although its no surprise that A-Rod got the nod over him to represent the AL at third base. In all honesty it really doesn’t matter as long as he continues to play well. Also the AL won with a great comeback in the ninth to secure home field advantage for the American League in the World Series. We all hope this becomes a good thing.

The Sox defense has been the most noteworthy, with only 33 errors committed so far this season which leads the American League. The pitching has been better but still needs improvement. Matt Clement, or as my buddy Hahs has deemed him Matt “Clement-al Case”, is still on the Disabled List as well as Keith Foulke, David Wells, and slugger Wily Mo Pena. Gabe Kapler and Mike Timlin have both returned to the line-up. Ironically, the highest paid and more highly touted off season acquisitions in Rudy Seanez and Julian Tavarez have taken a much needed back seat to prospects turned major leaguers Manny Delcarmen and Craig Hansen as the go to set up men. This has taken some pressure off Timlin and will keep his appearances and arm in more reasonable shape. Javier Lopez was also acquired as a left handed specialist from the White Sox for David Riske, an off season pick up that worked our horribly. The starting pitching has been inconsistent yet just quite good enough to not cause panic. Schilling has been the best although Beckett has posted the better record so far. One disturbing statistic has been Beckett’s amount of homeruns which have been the most in the American League. As a big game pitcher though, I am pretty sure we are going to like Beckett come crunch time. Wake has been much improved from the beginning of the season and will hopefully be a consistent number three starter or better for the rest of the season. The best surprise has been Jon Lester who is 4-0 since coming up to the Bigs. Lester has showed that he is as good as everyone has made him out to be although he does have some room for improvement, mostly cutting down his walks. Our fifth starter has been a little bit of an issue though with patchwork replacements holding down the fort until either David Wells or Matt Clement return. Kansas City Royal reject Kyle Snyder has been the latest invalid to bear the title of “Red Sox Fifth Starter”. Its not a good sign when one of you starting pitchers was cut from the Kansas City Royals. Its even worse when said person is picked up by a team with a $120 million payroll. Keep an eye on this one folks because if Clement or Boomer don’t show signs of improvement we could see a little trade action in the next few weeks.

Overall the Sox have been solid recently. Dropping three of four from Oakland is a little discouraging though. Even more discouraging is that as good as the Red Sox have been, and as bad as the Yankees have supposedly been, we are only a half game up in the AL. And considering all signs point to a AL Central Wildcard team, the Sox better turn it up for the second half stretch or else October could be a baseball free month in the Hub. Just more incentive to stay tuned I guess. Well its good to be back.

theaveragefan@bostonprosports.com