Red Sox Roll at Home

Keeping to form the Red Sox beat the Rays 7-4 last night in Fenway. This win came behind a solid performance from rookie Justin Masterson who threw 6 innings allowing 4 runs. This is the second time this year the Sox have brought Masterson up and he has given them a solid start. With the injuries the Sox have had it's good to know you have a kid in AAA who can come up and eat some innings.

Another bright point last night was Craig Hansen. Hansen has been a talked about prospect since the Red Sox drafted him in 2005 and has struggled throughout his big league career. I know his ERA is high and he did get into a little trouble last night, but he did manage to get out of it without allowing any runs. I am sick of seeing Manny Delcarmen suck it up, so I hope Hansen has turned a corner and can become a reliable bullpen guy Francona can count to get 3 outs in the 6th or 7th.

Now let me throw a bone to the Yankee fans. It's bad, I get it, but if you look at the whole picture it's not that bad. Before the season who were analysts talking about in the AL: Boston, Seattle, Cleveland, Detroit, New York, and maybe LA. Now, basically 60 games in what do we have? Boston? Where everyone thought they would be. Seattle? Done. LA? give them the AL West and a first round playoff loss now and save their fans about 4 months. Detroit? Done in a week. Cleveland? Done by the All-star break. New York? In a battle in the roughest division in the AL.

If the Yanks can stick around and play well in August, like they always do, the Rays and Jays will fade (as much as I like the idea of them making the playoffs). The AL Central will continue to beat the crap out of each other and the AL West is a one team division. Now, the Yankees can't mess around anymore. They need to start winning series against the Jays, Rays, and Twins. They need to go get an 8th inning guy. They need some people to get healthy. So, at 28-30 in early June, my money is on the Yankees and the greatest baseball player of our generation (A-Rod). If the Yanks don't take the wildcard, I ask you, who has the fortitude to last until October?

Want to Feel Poor?

Check out SI's list of the 50 Wealthiest Athletes. Some of these guys are real head-scratchers. How does Floyd Mayweather Jr. get $20 million in endorsements? And who is Jermaine O'Neal's agent? Some of the NBA salaries really confuse me. It seems like everyone in that league makes at least $10 million. I'm not a hater and I don't begrudge these guys their money... unless they suck. My view is that their product, the sports, make billions, so the players deserve the lion's share of all that cash.

Rough Day for Joba

Joba had it rough in his first big league start. His long first inning cost him half of his pitches for the game. His stuff was still good though and his wildness can be attributed to the fact that he isn't used to pitching every five days yet. Baseball is a game of routine and Joba has been used to pitching just about every other day.

Nothing to fear, though. The more he starts the better his control will get as he gets his arm on schedule. It is worth noting that only one of Joba's four walks came on four pitches. Every other walk came on a two strike count. A couple of calls and he might well have made it to the fourth or fifth.

I'm more worried about Edwar Ramirez's three walks without recording an out. Ramirez imploded like this once last reason and it cost him his job. He has to challenge hitters to be successful so the walks are especially troubling.

Tomorrow might not be any better as the Yanks throw Moose against Jesse Litsch. Litsch hasn't been great against the Yanks but he has been pretty good. And you must be throwing pretty well to be 7-1.

It's Joba Time

It is a sad state of affairs in Yankeeland when they can't even take a series from the Twins. The Yanks have always owned the Twins and last night they should have won that game. The offense has been much better since Arod came back but the pitching has suddenly gotten worse since they started getting run support.

Old reliable Andy Pettitte had been solid for three starts but for some reason he couldn't hold a lead last night. A lot will be said about Farnsworth losing the game last night and that it should have been Joba in there, but it is a mistake to think that. Sure Joba might have kept the game tied for one more inning, but there is no guarantee that the Yankees win the game even if Joba pitches.

The starter, not the reliever, was the reason the Yankees lost. Joba is not replacing Pettitte, but who would you rather see out there tomorrow Joba or Igawa? I'm sure that's all I have to say. Maybe if Joba is pitching from the start then the Yankees have a 5-1 lead in the eighth and Farnsworth doesn't even get up in the bullpen.

It is wrong to expect Joba to do too much too soon since the Yanks are rushing him into the rotation. They should have sent him down to Scranton in order to get his pitch count up and to get him used to starting again rather than trying to work him into games late for multiple innings. It is a small sign of desperation and a sign that though Cashman wants to keep up the appearance of competitiveness during this season, he also feels that developing talent is more important than winning. And he is right.

David's Wrist in a Sling

The Sox finished 4-6 on this road trip. They closed strong by taking three out of four from the Orioles. However, they received some bad news about Papi yesterday when they learn of a torn tendon in his wrist. Ortiz hasn't been himself all season, and if he has to miss the rest of 2008 to have surgery, I don't think the offense will suffer that much. They will miss his power though, and will have to continue to 'manufacture runs' as they have been doing. A team's season largely depends on how it is able to adjust to injuries.

Up next for Boston is the division rival Rays at Fenway. The Rays cannot be considered a surprise or fluke anymore. The Sox had better show some intensity and resolve in defending their home turf. It's these series that can determine who wins the division. I know some think that the division doesn't matter, but I'd rather not have Boston messing around with the wild card later in the season.

I am very intrigued to see Joba Chamberlain's first start later this week. My guess is the Yanks won't let him go more than 5 innings or 100 pitches, which ever comes first. Why do they handle Joba like a Ming vase and just throw IPK and Phil Hughes to the wolves? Is it because they actually think that Joba has a future, and the other two are throw aways? Any thoughts, Yankee fans?

Manny's 500th

Video Clip of the Homer

Manny Joins an Elite Club

Manny Ramirez became the 24th player to enter the 500 homer club. He has the 4th highest batting average among sluggers in this club. People should remember that the Red Sox have put this guy on waivers more than once. This means any team could have had Manny if they were willing to pay his $20 million/year salary. Now, the Red Sox are stupid for doing this considering Manny is one of the best pure hitters of this era and clearly never juiced. Even more stupid, all of major league baseball for letting that deal go by. What if Vlad Guerrero or Ryan Howard were put on waivers this winter? Would no one pick them up?

The Red Sox have been playing better against the lowly O's and I hope they continue to take advantage of weaker teams. The Red Sox need to tally some wins on the road and remain confident even when they leave the comfort of Fenway.