White Sox sweep the Red Sox at Fenway Park

For the life of me I can't figure out why, since they're not particularly good, but you can't dispute the ironclad fact that the Chicago White Sox own Fenway Park right now.

After polishing the Boston Red Sox off yesterday afternoon 7-4 for a three-game series sweep, Chicago (27-31) won its seventh straight at Fenway. They're 13-2 against Boston (30-26) in their last 15 games and 9-1 since the start of last season. What do you want me to do, call the White Sox my daddy? (Pedro Martinez reference).

A 3-0 lead for the home team didn't mean much as Tim Wakefield (6 innings, 4 earned runs, 7 hits, 1 walk, 4 strikeouts) and the Boston bullpen melted down in a rare midweek afternoon game.

Gavin Floyd (6-5) was shaky at first but he settled down and got the win. He went 6.2 innings, allowing four earned runs on nine hits with a walk and a strikeout.

The Red Sox put up three in the second inning as Jed Lowrie drove in David Ortiz with a ground-rule double and Jarrod Saltalamacchia knocked in two with a single.

Brent Lillibridge got an RBI double in the fourth to pull Chicago within 3-1 before the White Sox tied it in the fifth. Alexei Ramirez (3 hits, 3 run) drove in a run with a ground out before Carlos Quentin hit an RBI double. Wakefield could have got out of the inning on a clear out on the basepaths by Juan Pierre but that's not how the goober umpire saw it. Instead, Quentin got the hit and Boston spiraled out of control.

Lillibridge hit a solo homer in the sixth but Ortiz answered with his 13th of the season in the bottom of the frame to tie it at four.

It was the Paul Konerko show from there as he had an RBI double in the seventh which scored Ramirez and then a two-run bomb (scoring Ramirez) in the ninth off Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon.

White Sox closer Sergio Santos got a 1-2-3 ninth with a strikeout for his ninth save of the season.

Matt Albers (1-3) was charged with the loss after giving up three hits (including Konerko's double). He has come back to Earth after a great start in his Red Sox career.

Some scary stuff too as Rich Hill threw a pitch and then came out with an elbow injury. Dice-K is going to be out for the entire season with Tommy John surgery but nobody cares about that. Hill was a local guy that had found himself this season with Boston. Hope he's OK. Plus, he was the Red Sox' only lefty in the bullpen. Hideki Okajima is in Pawtucket but he has nothing left at this point. Theo Epstein is going to have to get some more reliable bullpen options.

The Red Sox are grateful to have a day off today after going for almost three straight weeks without one (and no, the last three days don't count). The Oakland A's come to town this weekend for a three-game set.

Call me a jerk but I honestly hope Dice-K and Lackey never return

When did the 2011 Boston Red Sox become such a wagon?

Holy shit, they've won 12 out of their last 14 games after a tidy 6-3 win over the Detroit Tigers last night at Comerica Park.

As I said yesterday about Alfredo Aceves, spot starter Tim Wakefield (2-1) is doing an excellent job and at this point, I hope John Lackey and Daisuke Matsuzaka never return. It's much more satisfying to watch two guys with low expectations succeed as opposed to overpaid bums that were never good fits here anyways.

The Red Sox (29-22) are also alone in the American League East after the Yankees lost last night in Seattle. The Tigers (25-25) haven't shown much of a pulse yet against Boston this season, falling to 0-4.

Wakefield went seven innings, allowing two earned runs on five hits with two walks and two strikeouts.

Detroit's Rick Porcello (4-3) only lasted three innings as he allowed six earned runs on six hits with two walks and two strikeouts.

Jacoby Ellsbury (2 hits, stolen base) gave the Red Sox a 1-0 lead in the first as he scored on wild pitch by Porcello.

Miguel Cabrera tied it up in the first with an RBI single which scored Austin Jackson. The Tigers took their only lead of the game in the second when Jhonny Peralta hit a bomb (solo) off Wakefield.

Any thoughts of a win for the miserable people in Detroit was quickly extinguished as the Red Sox hung five runs on Porcello in the third. Ellsbury hit a solo homer (his sixth), Kevin Youkilis hit a two-run double and Carl Crawford hit a two-run homer (his fourth of the season).

Daniel Bard threw a scoreless 1-2-3 eighth on six pitches but Peralta hit an RBI double off Jonathan Papelbon (non-save situation) in the ninth but who cares?

Clay Buchholz takes the mound tonight for Boston against Detroit rookie lefthander Andy Oliver (who was called up when Phil Coke rolled his ankle the other night). Good luck to you guy, Red Sox are mashing right now.

Tim Wakefield: your grandparents' favorite Red Sox player

I'd say the weekend series against the Chicago Cubs was a success for the Boston Red Sox.

Sure, a nightmare of an eighth inning on Saturday night prevented them from getting the sweep but Friday's blowout win (15-5) and last night's tidy 5-1 win at Fenway Park proved that the Red Sox (25-21) are built to win any type of game. On the other side, the Cubs (20-25) are not very good at all as this weekend proved and it's going to be another long season, not that they're drunken fans will really notice.

Tim Wakefield (1-1) helped Boston win its eighth game in its last nine tries, his first victory of 2011. The oldest player in MLB went 6.2 innings, allowing four hits and one earned run with three strikeouts.

With Matt Garza scratched from the start with elbow trouble, the Cubs had to rely on a shaky bullpen, led by some bum named James Russell (1-5). He went four innings, allowing seven hits, three earned runs, one walk with two strikeouts before turning it over to three other scrubs and Kerry Wood.

Adrian Gonzalez continued to be the best hitter in baseball not named Jose Bautista as he went 4 for 4 with a double and two runs scored. Dustin Pedroia added two hits and a run, David Ortiz had two hits and Kevin Youkilis added a two-run triple.

The Red Sox scored twice in the fourth on RBI sacrifice flies by Jed Lowrie and Mike Cameron (who shouldn't have a job in baseball anymore) which scored Gonzalez and Youkilis respectively.

Saltalamacchia crushed his third homer in four games (yes even he has started to hit, a sure sign of the Apocalypse) in the fifth, his third of the season for a 3-0 Boston lead.

Jeff Baker's RBI double in the seventh spoiled Wakefield's unlikely shutout bid, scoring Starlin Castro.

Youkilis hit his two-run triple off Wood in the seventh to the triangle in center. Pedroia and Gonzalez scored on the play.

After getting two games off, Daniel Bard looked refreshed and worked out of the seventh and got a clean eighth, finishing with two strikeouts.

Jonathan Papelbon allowed a hit but struck out two in the ninth during the non-save situation.

What better place for the Red Sox to go than Cleveland? The Indians are the best team in baseball right now and they swept Boston in the first week of April. This three-game set could serve to show how far the Red Sox have come from that disastrous start and April in general. Clay Buchholz opposes former Red Sox Justin Masterson tonight. I'd be shocked if Cleveland sweeps Boston again.

Cowboy Joe West: ruining baseball one game at a time

The Boston Red Sox have enough problems on their own without worrying about the biggest clown umpire in MLB.

This does not excuse the fact that they would have lost anyway last night to the Twins but West had to be front and center as usual in Minnesota's (12-18) series-opening 9-2 beatdown of the Red Sox (14-18) at Fenway Park.

Boston manager Terry Francona got ejected in the second inning after arguing a balk call on starter Tim Wakefield (4.1 innings, 9 hits, 8 runs, 6 earned, 4 walks, 1 strikeout) by home plate umpire Angel Hernandez. Francona went to argue with Hernandez but West planted himself in between the two and even bumped him a few times. It was a strange scene especially considering Francona rarely gets thrown out. Tito was more heated than I think I've ever seen before.

After Wakefield (0-1) had pitched so well on Sunday against the Mariners (the game I was at), he predictably came down to earth in a big way against a Minnesota lineup that was more like a Triple A team.

Somebody named Trevor Plouffe led the Twins with three runs, two hits, an RBI and a walk. Another nobody called Danny Valenica had two runs, two hits and two RBIs while Denard Span (2 hits, 2 RBIs) and Michael Cuddyer (2 runs, 2 hits) also had good games.

Jacoby Ellsbury extended his hitting streak to 15 games but he was the only Red Sox with multiple hits (2).

Twins starter Scott Baker (2-2) went eight innings, allowing seven hits, two earned runs, one walk and eight strikeouts.

Plouffe got the party started for Minnesota with a solo homer off Wakefield in the top of the first. Span made it 3-0 with a two-run single in the second and then Ben Revere (haha really?) scored on Wakefield's disputed balk for a 4-0 Twins lead.

J.D. Drew got Boston on the board with a solo home run in the second and Adrian Gonzalez followed suit with a solo homer in the fourth which cut it to 4-2 Minnesota.

Valencia cranked a two-run double in the fifth and Drew Butera scored on Jed Lowrie's error. To end it, Plouffe scored on a balk by Red Sox reliever Alfredo Aceves (4.2 innings, 3 hits, 1 earned run, 1 walk, 2 strikeouts).

Brian Duensing faces Clay Buchholz this afternoon. Buchholz is due for a solid start since he's been so shaky so far this season.

Carl Crawford plays for the Red Sox?

Don't ask me what happened in the month of April, his first with the Boston Red Sox, but Carl Crawford hopefully turned the page yesterday on May 1 as he delivered a 3-2 walkoff win over the Seattle Mariners at Fenway Park.

Crawford's (2 hits) RBI single in the bottom of the ninth ensured that the Red Sox (12-15) wouldn't be swept by the Mariners (13-16). Bigger picture, maybe it'll spark some life in the former All-Star and stud with the Rays who is currently hitting .168 and batting eighth for Boston.

On a personal level, it was my first Red Sox game of the 2011 season and I'd like to note that makes two games in a row that I've seen a walkoff win (last July 31 as well) for the home team after not seeing one previously in my life. Baseball!

It was truly bizarro day as for almost six innings, Tim Wakefield was slightly better than 2010 Cy Young winner Felix Hernandez. Thankfully, Bobby Jenks came on for Wakefield in the sixth and cost him a win by coughing up a 2-0 lead by giving up a hit and three walks.

Hernandez went seven innings, allowing six hits, two earned runs, one walk and 10 strikeouts. He didn't factor into the decision despite throwing 111 pitches and getting into a groove late in his outing. More so than almost anyone in baseball, you have to feel bad for Hernandez (to a certain extent) since he's temporarily stuck on a team with a pathetic offense and just an awful 25-man roster.

Called into duty when Clay Buchholz contracted a virus, Wakefield made his first spot start of the season and it was a real good one. He went 5.2 innings, allowing three hits, one earned run, one walk and three strikeouts.

David Ortiz gave Boston a 2-0 lead with an RBI double off the Monster in the bottom of the third. Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia (2 hits) scored on the play.

Seattle tied it up in the top of the sixth as Jenks walked Jack Cust and then Luis Rodriguez with the bases loaded.

With one out in the bottom of the ninth, Jed Lowrie hit a routine fly ball to right that Ichiro Suzuki lost in the sun. The baseball hit him and Lowrie was able to advance to third on that gift. Marco Scutaro grounded out on the next pitch for the second out but Crawford finally came through with the big hit (which I called, pats self on back).

The unsung heroes for the Red Sox yesterday were Matt Albers and Jonathan Papelbon. Albers pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth with one strikeout. Papelbon (1-0) pitched a scoreless ninth with a strikeout in only seven pitches.

The Los Angeles Angels come to Fenway with four games this week, starting tonight as Buchholz pitches against Jered Weaver (who has an ERA of 0.99 but also had his start moved back due to illness). Who's medicine worked better? The world will found out tonight.

How have Ichiro and Felix Hernandez not demanded a trade out of Seattle?

Felix Hernandez and Ichiro Suzuki are two of the best players in Major League Baseball and yet they will continue to toil in obscurity until they get out of rainy Seattle.

True to form, the Red Sox (73-55) had a nice opportunity to build some momentum yesterday and they did that, well kind of but not really.

They beat the Mariners (50-77) 5-3 in game 1 of a day-night doubleheader before losing to King Felix (10-10) 4-2 in the nightcap.

The Rays got blown out by the Angels and the Yankees lost once again to the Blue Jays, but after one long day at Fenway, Boston was still 5.5 games back in the AL East and wild card.

Game 1 was a sort of Josh Beckett (4-3) mirage: he pitched great (albeit against a pathetic lineup) for six innings then nearly coughed up a 4-0 lead.

The Red Sox were up 4-0 thanks to an infield single by Adrian Beltre in the sixth, Mike Lowell's sacrifice fly and Daniel Nava's two-run single off former Sox scrub David Pauley.

Russell Branyan hit a solo homer off Beckett in the seventh and then former Sox first baseman Casey Kotchman cranked a two-run homer.

Bye Josh. He went 6.1 innings, allowing three earned runs on four hits with a walk and seven strikeouts.

Daniel Bard pitched 1.2 scoreless innings and Jonathan Papelbon had a 1-2-3 ninth for his 32nd save.

In the nightcap, Boston waved the white flag before the game even began: subbing Tim Wakefield for Jon Lester, who will pitch the opener at the Rays tomorrow night.

Wakefield (3-10) pitched about as well as could be expected in a no-win situation: 5.2 innings, four runs (three earned) on eight hits with two strikeouts.

Hernandez lowered his ERA to an absurd 2.47 (second in the AL to Clay Buchholz) with 7.1 innings of ace stuff: two runs (one earned) on four hits with a walk and nine strikeouts.

Beltre and Terry Francona were both tossed in the third thanks to a misunderstanding by a rookie umpire, perfect. He thought Beltre was talking trash to him when in fact, he was gabbing with Felix, his former teammate. It's been that kind of season.

Ichiro scored in the first on Branyan's ground out. Jose Lopez drove in two in the third inning with a single.

Ryan Kalish scored on a wild pitch in the third but Matt Tuiasosopo (3 hits) had an RBI double in the sixth.

J.D. Drew closed out the scoring with a solo homer to center in the sixth.

Brandon League recorded the last five outs for the save.

With three in Tampa Bay this weekend: Lester vs. Price, Buchholz vs. Garza and Shields vs. Lackey, the Red Sox need to win at least two games to prolong this agony. If they can somehow sweep the Rays, this will get very interesting but don't count on it.

Sox miss out on chance to gain a game on Yankees and Rays

With the team in a tailspin lately, the Red Sox finally seemed to be receiving some good luck after their win in Oakland on Monday night not to mention Clay Buchholz (Wednesday) and Josh Beckett (Friday) are scheduled to return to the mound for the big club this week.

All those good things were overshadowed by a bitter loss last night, 5-4 to the A's in 10 innings at the Oakland Coliseum.

Boston had 12 hits to Oakland's (47-47) but that didn't matter when Kevin Kouzmanoff singled home Daric Barton off Michael Bowden for the winning run.

The Yankees got blown out by the Angels earlier in the night and the Rays ended up losing in extra innings to the Orioles, two gifts that the Red Sox (53-41) were not able to take advantage of.

In likely his last start for a while, Tim Wakefield (6 innings, 3 hits, 4 runs, 3 earned runs, 2 walks, 5 strikeouts) pitched decently but couldn't hold onto a 4-0 lead.

Kevin Youkilis gave Boston a 1-0 lead in the first with an RBI double off Dallas Braden (4.2 innings, 10 hits, 4 runs, 1 earned, 1 walk, 6 strikeouts), Marco Scutaro (2 hits, 2 runs) scored on the play but David Ortiz was thrown out at home. The Sox looked about to run away with it in the second as they added three more runs.

Bill Hall had an RBI single, Scutaro drove him in with a double and he scored on Darnell McDonald's (2 hits) RBI double.

The A's got it all back in the third as two scored on Jack Cust's double, Kurt Suzuki scored on a passed ball and Kouzmanoff drove in Cust with a sacrifice fly.

Bowden inherited Ramon Ramirez's (0-3) mess, it wasn't his fault Boston lost. Ramirez walked two, gave up a hit and was charged with the winning run.

Andrew Bailey (1-3) threw two scoreless innings for the win as Oakland's bullpen was just a hair better than Boston's.

Buchholz faces Gio Gonzalez this afternoon in the series finale. The Red Sox need a good start from Buchholz and a win to give them some juice heading into Seattle.

Jays escape Fenway with shady win

As my best friend Joe recently pointed out, is there a more underrated Boston athlete of the last decade than Tim Wakefield?

With apologies to the late great Rodney Dangerfield, the knuckleballer gets no respect since his role changes everyday but he always gives you innings and usually pretty decent starts. You know in twenty years, he'll still be hanging around with the Sox and still complaining about his switch to the bullpen.

With Josh Beckett out nursing a bad back and a bruised ego-thanks to his piss-poor performance thus far-Wake took the ball yesterday and like usual he pitched well but Boston's offense didn't help him out in the slightest.

Toronto (20-16) avoided the sweep at Fenway Park with a 3-2 win over the Sox (18-17), who had been 5-0 against their Canadian punching bags this season.

Wakefield (0-2) went seven innings, giving up three earned runs on five hits with a walk and three strikeouts.

Travis Snider played the role of Albert Pujols for one day as the provided all the runs for the Jays. He had an RBI double in the fifth and the big blow, a two-run bomb in the seventh.

Shawn Marcum (2-1) was great, going seven scoreless innings with only two hits, one walk and six strikeouts.

It looked like the Sox would go down quietly but they rallied for two in the ninth against Blue Jays closer Kevin Gregg. J.D. Drew had an RBI double and Adrian Beltre drove in Drew with an RBI single.

Home plate umpire Dale Scott severely hampered the rally as he called David Ortiz (2 hits) out on a pitch that was clearly outside the strike zone. Terry Francona argued and then when he came back out on a bogus check swing strike on Beltre he was tossed. I'm not one to harp on referees or umpires but Scott was a complete joke yesterday.

Boston goes to Detroit this weekend then New York for two with the Yankees. This begins a particularly difficult stretch that will tell us if the Red Sox will be anywhere close to good this season.

Can't wait for the Disney movie about Tim Wakefield

Since he's been around forever and because he's a knuckleballer, Tim Wakefield gets no respect (with all apologies to the late Rodney Dangerfield).

With the latest news that he's going to the bullpen, Wakefield had one last start (for now) yesterday and predictably the Sox blew it as they lost 7-6 to the Orioles , the worst team in baseball, in 10 innings at Fenway.

Wakefield gave Boston (8-11) 6.2 innings, two earned runs on seven hits, one walk and five strikeouts. Pretty good stuff but the Sox were up 4-1 in the sixth before their dogshit middle relef allowed three runs in the seventh and three in the tenth.

Baltimore (3-16) had lost ten in a row at Fenway and the first two games of the series but they didn't have much trouble in the seventh as Nick Markakis hit an RBI double and Miguel Tejada cranked a two-run homer off the foul pole in left.

Boston had one of their best innings of the season when they scored four in the sixth inning. Kevin Youkilis and David Ortiz had RBI singles, J.D. Drew scored a run with a sacrifice fly and Mike Lowell knocked in the last run with a double.

The Orioles scored all three runs in the 10th inning off a pair of singles. It looked like they might choke one more time as Drew hit an RBI double in the bottom of the 10th and Bill Hall followed with an RBI single.

It wasn't to be as former Sox prospect Cla Meredith earned the first save of his MLB career.

The Sox go to Toronto for three games starting tonight with Josh Beckett facing Dana Eveland.

Poppa, love it when you call me Big Poppa

David Ortiz's horrible April and May seem like a distant memory, no? Big Papi continued to find his stroke as we continue to get deeper into the summer.

Last night, he blasted a three-run bomb and also drove in a run with a groundout as Boston (51-33) beat Oakland (35-48), 5-4 to take the three-game series at Fenway.

Tim Wakefield continued his remarkable season as he picked up his AL-leading 11th win with a classic Wakefield outing. In six innings of work, he gave up 10 hits but only three runs as he walked one and struck out a season-high eight.

Jonathan Papelbon labored through 30 pitches (in only the ninth) to get his 22nd save. He allowed a run on two hits with a walk but he struck out two including Jack Cust (3 hits) to end the game.

Cust had given the A's a 1-0 lead in the second with an RBI single.

In the sixth, J.D. Drew hit a solo homer and three batters later, Ortiz provided a vintage Papi swing.

Kurt Suzuki (3 hits), who should have been Oakland's All-Star representative instead of Andrew Bailey, cut it to 4-3 with a two-run single in the seventh.

Ortiz's groundout in the seventh gave Boston the two-run cushion that Papelbon would desperately need.

Scott Hairston crushed a ball to center in the ninth with two guys on but Jacoby Ellsbury caught it near the wall in center and it was only a long sacrifice fly.

The still hapless Kansas City Royals come to Fenway tonight for a four-game set that wraps up the first half of the season. The Red Sox lucked out that Royals ace (and probable AL All-star starter) Zach Greinke pitched last night so they'll miss him this time around.

Yeah, Hell Yeah

It might be a pain in the ass to buy tickets and get in and out of the city but on a sunny summer day, there's few places in the world I'd rather be than at Fenway Park.

I was reminded of this fact yesterday as my parents, buddy and myself took in the series finale of the Sox-Mariners series. It was my first Red Sox game in two years.

Boston (49-32) won 8-4 but what I'll remember most when I look back on yesterday is a specific moment that had nothing to do with the outcome of the game.

In the middle of the third inning, as the Mariners (42-39) took the field, the Red Sox PA announcer read off the six players that made the 2009 All-Star game. We had missed the announcement show since we were en route to Fenway at the time.

Jason Bay, Dustin Pedroia, Josh Beckett, Jonathan Papelbon and Kevin Youkilis were all expected to be All-Stars but they saved the most deserving choice for last: Tim Wakefield. In his 17th season in MLB, the knuckleballer made his first All-Star team. He got a standing ovation and on the jumbotron in center, they showed him in the dugout. It was a wonderful moment.

After losing the first two games of the series, Boston really needed yesterday's contest, especially considering that the Yankees were only a game behind.

A diverse offense and stellar relief gave the Sox a much-deserved win.

Dustin Pedroia (3 hits, 2 runs) and David Ortiz (2 hits, 2 runs, 2 RBIs) gave Boston an early 2-0 lead as they both hit solo homers in the first off Seattle starter Brandon Morrow.

The Mariners took a 3-2 lead in the fourth on Ronnie Cedeno's bases-clearing triple. Ryan Langerhans made it 4-2 in the fifth with a sacrifice fly.

Red Sox starter Jon Lester threw a season-high 122 pitches to get through 6.2 innings. He gave up four runs (one earned) on eight hits with three walks and nine strikeouts.

Jacoby Ellsbury (2 runs, 2 RBIs) cut the deficit to one (4-3 Seattle) as he smacked another solo homer in the sixth inning.

Boston finally delivered some hits with men on base in the seventh, to the tune of five runs.

On a 3-0 pitch, Ortiz tied it with an RBI single. Ellsbury walked with the bases loaded and then Mark Kotsay had a clutch, two-run single. Ellsbury scored the final run on a passed ball.

Justin Masterson (1.1 innings, 3 strikeouts) and Hideki Okajima (clean ninth inning) didn't allow any baserunners and also saved Papelbon from making an appearance.

The Oakland A's come to Boston for three games and then the Kansas City Royals wrap up the first half with a four-game set at Fenway. These are very winnable series for the Red Sox, they need to take advantage of this break in the schedule before the All-Star game.

Nick Green, more than just a temporary solution?

Somehow between our month-long rain showers, the Red Sox and Atlanta Braves managed to wrap up their series at Fenway yesterday afternoon.

Nick Green made sure it was a memorable Father's Day for all the rich dads in attendance as he hit a walk-off home run on the first pitch he saw from Braves pitcher Jeff Bennett in the ninth. It wrapped around Pesky's Pole in right, traveling probably about 305 feet but the degree of difficulty with the swirling winds and mist made it much harder than usual.

Boston (42-27) won 6-5 to take two of three from Atlanta (32-36). Coupled with the Yankees' loss in Florida, the Sox have a four game lead in the AL East.

Brian McCann gave the Braves a 2-0 lead in the first with a two-run double off Boston starter Tim Wakefield.

Boston responded with three in the bottom of the first from a Jason Bay sacrifice fly and a two-run shot by David Ortiz over the Monster. Again, with the crazy weather, Papi truly crushed the ball to get it out.

George Kottaras added to the lead with a sacrifice fly in the fourth to give Boston a 4-2 lead.

Wakefield didn't factor into the decision but he gave the Red Sox 6.2 innings. He allowed four runs on nine hits with four strikeouts.

Gregor Blanco and Nate McLouth (2 hits, walk) with RBI singles in the seventh.

After some controversy, J.D. Drew gave his team a 5-4 lead in the bottom of the seventh. He looked at a 1-2 pitch that was clearly a strike from Braves pitcher Eric O'Flaherty but umpire Bill Hohn called it a ball. O'Flaherty, Chipper Jones and Bobby Cox all lost it and consequently were tossed. On the next pitch, Drew lined the single off the Monster that scored Kottaras.

Garret Anderson (2 hits) tied it up with an RBI single in the eighth off Hideki Okajima.

Jonathan Papelbon loaded the bases in the ninth with two walks and a hit but managed to strike Matt Diaz out. Papelbon earned the win (1-1) after Green's heroics.

The Sox are off today and they fly to our nation's capital to play the Nationals, starting tomorrow. Washington is the worst team in baseball so there should be plenty of Red Sox fans in attendance and John Smoltz makes his Red Sox debut on Thursday (Dice-K was placed on the DL).

Oritz's mango salsa tastes great with Marlin

The Boston Red Sox are the best team in baseball. Yes, the Dodgers have a slightly better record but that doesn't mean much since they play in the National League (which is terrible) and the worst division in baseball, the horrid NL West.

Boston on the other hand, plays in the superior AL and the best division in baseball, the AL East with four competitive (over .500) teams out of five.

The Sox (39-25) demolished the Florida Marlins (32-34) last night, 8-2 at Fenway. Perhaps the most impressive thing about the strong first couple months for Boston has been that they've done it with slugger David Ortiz basically on life support.

Slowly but surely, Big Papi is starting to come around. He had a solo homer last night and added a two-run single later in the same inning. With John Smoltz coming to the rotation next week, this team is ready to make a serious bid for another World Series title.

Tim Wakefield improved to 9-3 with six workman like innings. He gave up two runs on six hits with a walk and four strikeouts.

In the second, Nick Green's (2 hits, 2 RBIs, run) infield single scored Jacoby Ellsbury (2 hits, 2 runs, 2 stolen bases) from second.

The Marlins tied it in the third as Chris Coghlan hit an RBI single.

In the bottom of the inning, Jason Bay gave the Sox the lead for good with an RBI single which scored J.D. Drew.

Florida starter Chris Volstad imploded in the fourth as the Red Sox poured on six runs. After Ortiz's homer, Green had an RBI double, George Kottaras (2 hits) added an RBI single, Bay walked with the bases loaded and Ortiz fittingly ended the frame's scoring with the two-run single.

Coghlan was the only guy playing for the Marlins as he notched an RBI double in the fifth, the last run of the game.

Brad Penny takes the ball tonight vs. the inconsistent but very talented Andrew Miller of the Marlins.

The Yankees can't buy a win against the Red Sox

It's a special time to be a Red Sox fan. With last night's exciting 6-5 win over the Yankees in the books, Boston improved to 7-0 against New York this season. After each win, all you can wonder is how much longer will this dominance last?

Red Sox (35-24) starter Tim Wakefield is 8-3 after six innings of work. He gave up three runs on eight hits, with three walks and two strikeouts.

For the second straight night, the Yankees (34-25) starter couldn't get out of the third inning. Chien-Ming Wang (0-4) is completely useless these days. He allowed four runs on six hits, with three walks and three strikeouts.

Jason Bay got the Sox on the board first with an RBI single in the first inning.

Jorge Posada (2 hits) tied it in the second with a solo homer.

Boston jumped ahead 3-1 in the home half of the second after George Kottaras' (2 hits) RBI double and Dustin Pedroia's RBI ground-rule double that was misplayed by Yankees right fielder Nick Swisher.

Mike Lowell hit a solo shot just over the Monster in the third.

Melly Cabrera cut it to 4-2 with an RBI single in the fourth before Kevin Youkilis hit a two-run shot.

New York chipped away at the lead as Robinson Cano brought home a run in the fifth with a ground out while Johnny Damon and Mark Teixeira (4 hits) hit back-to-back solo homers in the seventh off Sox reliever Ramon Ramirez.

No worries though as Hideki Okajima got a hold, with four important outs (including three strikeouts) and Jonathan Papelbon recorded his 15th save.

Boston looks for the sweep tonight as Brad Penny (who will likely be dealt soon with John Smoltz and Clay Buchholz knocking at the door) takes on C.C. Sabathia.

Just Manny being Manny

Somehow it all seems fitting that Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Manny Ramirez still overshadows the Boston Red Sox, even during a memorable game like last night.

The reports surfaced yesterday afternoon that Manny was suspended 50 games by Major League Baseball for taking a performance enhancer, a drug that was used to up testosterone levels after a steroid cycle. It was the biggest name and incident since baseball started this steroid witch hunt.

I love baseball but I'm not surprised by anything that comes out these days. Can't we just assume if A-Rod and Manny were juicing that everyone except maybe David Eckstein was in the same boat?

It is MLB's fault for not policing it at the time and letting it get way out of control. And here we are.

The Sox (18-11) did everything they could to let fans forget about Manny's public relations disaster. Boston tied a major league record by scoring 12 runs in the sixth as they smoked the Cleveland Indians, 13-3 at Fenway.

Tim Wakefield continued his hot streak as he improved to 4-1. He went six innings, allowing two runs on four hits with four walks and three strikeouts.

Boston led 1-0 in the first after Dustin Pedroia (2 hits, 2 runs, 3 RBIs, walk) knocked in Julio Lugo (3 hits, 3 runs) with an RBI single.

Cleveland (11-18) jumped ahead 2-1 in the fifth as Matt LaPorta scored on a Wakefield wild pitch. Then Asdrubal Cabrera hit a sacrifice fly which scored Luis Valbuena.

It's still obviously early in the season but the Indians bullpen came into this two-game series with the worst ERA in the league and they didn't disappoint.

In the sixth, Jason Bay (2 runs, 2 hits, 4 RBIs) hit a RBI double, Rocco Baldelli hit a two-run single, Jeff Bailey (2 hits) added a two-run double, George Kottaras produced a two-run single, Pedroia hit a two-run single and finally Bay capped it off with a three-run bomb over the bullpen in right center.

Ryan Garko completed the scoring for the Indians with an RBI double in the eighth.

The Tampa Bay Rays (Boston's biggest obstacle in the AL) come to Fenway starting tonight for three games.

Hey A's: "How do my knuckleballs taste?"

There is no point getting all worked up about a bad start in baseball because the season is so damn long. Still, the Red Sox's 2-6 start (topped off by Tuesday night's pathetic 12 inning loss to the A's) was troublesome (pours out 40 for 2PAC).

Boston needed a kick in the pants and it got it, for at least one day, as 97-year old Tim Wakefield flirted with a no-hitter yesterday afternoon in the series finale at McAfee Coliseum which the Sox (3-6) won 8-2.

Your favorite Hawaiian catcher Kurt Suzuki broke up the bid with one out in the eighth but the bottom line was that Wake went the distance on a day that the bullpen needed it most.

He gave up two earned runs on four hits with two walks and four strikeouts. His record evened out at 1-1.

Mike Lowell gave Boston a 2-0 lead with a two-run homer in the second off Oakland (4-5) starter Brett Anderson (0-2).

The Sox really broke it open with six runs in the eighth inning. J.D. Drew had the biggest hit, a three-run bomb while Nick Green (two-run) and Jacoby Ellsbury added RBI singles.

The Sox get today off and come home to face the surprising Baltimore Orioles (6-3) this weekend in a four-game set at Fenway. Dice-K went on the DL with arm fatigue (yikes) and Jed Lowrie is also on the DL (wrist).

Counting on (another) Miracle

The Tampa Bay Rays aren't just beating the Boston Red Sox in the ALCS, they're setting records in the process and embarrassing the defending World Series champs. The Rays became the first team to score 9+ runs in three consecutive playoff games yesterday as they cruised to a 13-4 win in game 4 at Fenway. Tampa Bay takes a commanding 3-1 lead in the series.

It didn't take long to see that Tim Wakefield didn't have anything for the Sox. Carlos Pena (3 runs, 2 walks) hit a two-run homer in the first and Evan Longoria (2 runs, 2 RBIs, walk) followed that with a solo shot.

Willy Aybar had a career night (4 for 5, 5 RBIs) and he blasted a two-run homer in the third, giving Tampa Bay a 5-0 lead.

Boston got a solo homer from Kevin Cash in the bottom of the inning but that was it.

In 2.1 innings, Wakefield was charged with five runs on six hits with two walks and two strikeouts.

Once again, the Rays got an solid start from its pitcher. Andy Sonnanstine went 7.1 innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on six hits with a walk and two strikeouts.

Tampa put it away with a run in the fifth and five in the sixth. Carl Crawford was 5 for 5 with 3 runs, 2 RBIs and two steals.

Kevin Youkilis had an RBI groundout in the seventh but the Rays scored twice more in the eighth. The Sox finally found a Rays pitcher they can handle as Dustin Pedroia and Youkilis had an RBI single and double respectively off of Edwin Jackson in mop-up duty in the eighth.

Need some positive thinking? The last two times the Red Sox have faced a 3-1 deficit in the playoffs (2004 ALCS and 2007 ALCS), they've comeback and swept the World Series. When you think about it, it's not like we could have expected those results when they were facing elimination. Still, the Rays couldn't have any more momentum at this point. Everything is going their way for good reason. Boston can't hit, isn't getting starting pitching and the bullpen is a mess.

Dice-K will face Scott Kazmir tomorrow night at Fenway in game 5. The Sox need a spark, something to get them going and send this series back to the Trop. Otherwise, it's going to be a long offseason as the team is forced to reflect on its collapse against the Rays.

For the fifth time in six years, the Red Sox will play in October

Not to get all Bill Simmons on you (my friends and dad are the coolest!) but I thought the text I received from my buddy last night perfectly summed up the Sox' playoff clincher: "Ortiz out for two months, Manny shipped off, Beckett hurt and not himself, Drew lost on August 7, Lowell fucked for much of the year, no depth in the bullpen....How are we going to the playoffs again??" The fact that my friend Will (from Belmont, MA) currently lives in Chicago, just proves how much of a fan that he is since he summed up the season better than I could have and I've been writing about them for months!

Boston (92-65) beat Cy Young favorite Cliff Lee (22-3; it was his first loss since July 6) and the Cleveland Indians (79-78) last night at Fenway, 5-4, to clinch a playoff spot.

The celebration may have been a bit over the top but as the past Wild Card winners have shown, if you can make the playoffs in baseball, you have as good a shot as any other team to advance deep into it and maybe even win the World Series. This Sox team has been held together by band aids and supporting players for the past few months but if Lowell and Drew can comeback, not to mention if Beckett can continue to rebound in his favorite time of year no less, Boston just might be celebrating another World Series title in a little over a month.

Kevin Youkilis (three walks) hit a two-run homer in the fourth to give his team a 2-0 lead. Cleveland scored four runs off Tim Wakefield in the fifth, to temporarily go up 4-3. Grady Sizemore had an RBI single, Jamey Carroll had an RBI groundout while Shin-Soo Cho and Jhonny Peralta added RBI doubles.

In the fifth, Dustin Pedroia (2 hits, 2 RBIs, run) knocked in Jacoby Ellsbury (who extended his career high 14 game hit streak) and Coco Crisp. Jason Bay knocked in Pedroia with an RBI single that turned out to be the winning run.

Wakefield (10-11) wasn't great but he got the win after six innings of work. He allowed four earned runs on six hits with a walk and six strikeouts.

The Red Sox bullpen stepped up as Manny Delcarmen got two outs, Hideki Okajima made Victor Martinez pop up with the bases loaded and two outs to end the seventh. Justin Masterson recorded the first two outs in the eighth before running into trouble. No problem though as Jonathan Papelbon retired Carroll on his first pitch, stranding the bases loaded again. Papelbon struck out two in the ninth with some gas as the 1-2-3 inning gave him his 41st save of the season.

Um yeah, we're probably not going to win the AL East after all

Time is running out on the Red Sox and their hopes of winning the AL East; the math is becoming more and more stacked against them. With the Rays' 10-3 win over Boston last night, Tampa Bay (90-60) takes a two-game lead in the AL East.

Boston (89-63) has played two more games and is three games back in the loss column. So you might as well start printing those Tampa Bay Rays 2008 AL East Champion t-shirts while also booking flights to Disneyland, the Sox are likely going to face the Angels in the first round of the playoffs.

The positive from last night's loss for Boston was that David Ortiz seemed to find his power stroke. Papi blasted a two-run homer in the first off Rays starter Matt Garza and added a solo shot in the fourth off Garza.

Other than that, it was all Rays as Tim Wakefield (9-11) and a bunch of scrub Red Sox relievers had nothing. Willy Aybar (two-run; 3 RBIs, 3 hits, 2 runs), Gabe Gross (solo) and Fernando Perez all had homers off Wakefield.

Wakefield was knocked around for six earned runs on six hits in 2.1 innings.

The Red Sox have today off and will look to regroup north of the border as they begin a three-game series in Toronto tomorrow night.

I guess a sweep over the White Sox was wishful thinking

After beating the White Sox Friday and Saturday, the Red Sox went for the sweep yesterday afternoon at Fenway.

Chicago (77-59) grabbed the win, 4-2, as their offense finally woke up a little bit after being held to two runs over the first two games.

The Red Sox (79-57) had eight hits and five walks but they left 18 guys on base which is never a recipe for success.

Tim Wakefield (8-9) went six innings, giving up three runs on six hits with three strikeouts. Despite the loss, Wakefield looked much better in this start than in his first one back from the DL-earlier in the week against the Yankees.

Make no mistake about it, the White Sox are a quality team. They have a bunch of sluggers, a deep pitching rotation and a decent bullpen, highlighted by a top closer. However, their reliance on the long ball might be their undoing in the playoffs (should they hold off the Twins or take the Wild Card).

Gavin Floyd improved to 15-6 by scattering one run and seven hits over 6.2 innings. He walked two and struck out five.

Jim Thome (2 runs, 2 hits, 2 RBIs) hit a two-run homer in the first that wrapped around Pesky's Pole in right and scored Carlos Quentin.

Boston cut the lead in half in the fourth as Jacoby Ellsbury (3 hits, RBI, walk, 2 steals) singled in Jeff Bailey.

Paul Konerko's RBI double in the sixth made it 3-1 Chicago before Joe Crede extended the lead to 4-1 in the ninth with an RBI double.

The Red Sox made some noise in the ninth, scoring a run off White Sox closer Bobby Jenks. With Ellsbury on third, David Ortiz walked, Coco Crisp pinch ran and stole second so Boston had red-hot Dustin Pedroia coming up with two outs, representing the winning run. Pedroia popped up to shallow left on a low slider and Jenks recorded his 27th save.

Taking two out of three was a fine result for the Red Sox who continue to shuffle pitchers and the lineup due to various injuries/illnesses. Pedroia went 4 for 4 in each of the first two games and he currently leads the AL in batting average (.326). It's time to start taking the guy seriously as a MVP candidate; the AL race seems pretty wide open between him, Quentin, Josh Hamilton, Kevin Youkilis, etc.

Baltimore comes to Fenway tonight for three games.