Has Dice-K Figured It Out?

I wish I could speak Japanese. If I could speak Japanese I could be a translator for a Fortune 500 company and travel to that Asian archipelago six times a year to close important deals. Perhaps I'd swing over to L.A. to talk business over cocktails with corporate bigwigs hosting their Japanese counterparts for lunch at Spago. Yeah, I'd be an insufferable toadie, but I'd probably make six figures. I could also tell Daisuke Matsuzaka in that delicate, surreptitious way that only the Japanese can to "Throw your freaking fastball and don't stop until I tell you!" I would have told him this a long, long time ago. Ask my friends.

Last night Dice-K, relying mainly on his fast ball, made short work of the Toronto line up and may have had his best outing as a major leaguer. The best part: he didn't walk a soul. He only gave up three hits and one run over seven innings while striking out nine. I can't remember the last time he went seven innings. The Sox beat the Jays 6-1.

If Dice-K has truly altered his approach, that makes the the Sox pitching rotation even more formidable. If only Josh Beckett could figure out what the hell to do with himself.