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From: "NebraskaRSfan" <NESC2006@...>Date: July 9, 2009 9:38:03 AM PDTTo: "NebraskaRSfan" <NESC2006@...>Subject: Kansas City Royals at Boston Fed Sox, Thursday, July 9, 2009, 7:10 pm (ED), game 1 of 4Reply-To: <NESC2006@...>QUOTE: Many of the key offensive pieces aren’t expending at their maximum output right yet, and the Sox have dropped out of the top spot among American League teams in runs scored and on base percentage after leading the AL in the early going. The Red Stockings still ranks four in runs and a very respectable third in on base percentage, but the Sox clearly need a healthy Mike Lowell and Jed Lowrie if they’re going to return to their overpowering offensive ways.
In the meantime, the Sox are still leading the AL East and boasting the best record in the junior circuit heading into the All-Star break. Certainly there are much worse places to be with the halfway mark nearly here. UNQUOTEhackswithhaggs.com/2009/07/09/sox-winning-despite-an-offense-thats-not-firing-on-every-cylinder.aspx
David Ortiz had 4 RBI and J.D. Drew had one to provide the Sox scoring yesterday.Fenway Park in, Wednesday, July 8, 2009. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) Boston
Red Sox Boston Yankees New York Rays Tampa Bay Blue Jays Toronto Orioles Baltimore 
Kansas City Royals atRed Sox Boston Luke Hochevar Brad PennyThursday, July 09, 2009, 7:10 pm (EDT)Broadcast: NESN, FSRMAfter a slow start to their 10-game homestand, the Boston Red Sox seem to be gaining some momentum going into the All-Star break.
A lengthy visit from the Kansas City Royals could certainly help.
The Red Sox will host the reeling Royals for four games going into next week’s break, and they’ll be looking for a third straight victory overall when they open the season series on Thursday night.
Boston (51-33) had the best home record in the majors entering its weekend series againstSeattle , but it dropped two of three to the Mariners and managed two hits while losing 6-0 in Monday’s series opener against. Oakland Two straight wins to close their set with the Athletics, however, helped the Red Sox maintain a one-game lead on the New York Yankees in the AL East. David Ortiz homered and drove in four runs in Wednesday’s 5-4 victory, giving him nine home runs and 21 RBIs in his last 28 games.
Dustin Pedroia went 3 for 4 with two doubles in the game as he continues to heat up. The reigning AL MVP is batting .339 (21 for 62) with nine RBIs in his last 14 games, raising his average to .296.
’s offense will try to offer better support to Brad Penny (6-3, 4.67 ERA) than it has lately. The right-hander has just one win in his last five starts despite a 2.20 ERA over that span. He has allowed two runs and six hits in six innings in each of his last two outings, but is 0-1 in those games. Boston “That’s baseball,” Penny told his team’s official Web site after
Boston ’s 3-2 loss toon Saturday. “You look at the last two games and the two guys pitched pretty well against me. Sometimes you lose. It happens.” Seattle It was a similar story the only time Penny faced the Royals. He allowed three runs in seven innings of the Dodgers’ 3-1 loss on June 15, 2005.
This time,
will counter with Luke Hochevar . The former No. 1 overall draft pick has been showing signs of progress lately, going 4-1 with a 3.40 ERA in his last six starts. Kansas City Hochevar (4-3, 5.08) battled to a victory Saturday against the Chicago White Sox, allowing four runs in six innings of a 6-4 win.
The right-hander faced
twice last year, going 0-2 with a 6.94 ERA and nine walks in 11 2-3 innings. His only appearance at Boston came in a 7-0 loss opposite Jon Lester’s no-hitter on May 19, 2008. Fenway Park That started a four-game sweep for the Red Sox, who outscored
45-20 while going 6-1 in last season’s series. Kansas City The Royals (36-48) haven’t been any better this year, especially lately. They will be trying to avoid another three-game losing streak, and they’re 7-14 since June 17.
Their meek offense has averaged 3.2 runs over that span, managing six hits in Wednesday’s 3-1 loss to
- their sixth loss in ace Zack Greinke’s last eight starts. Detroit “We just didn’t do anything offensively to get Zack back in the game,” Royals manager Trey Hillman said.
For the season,
Kansas City ranks last in thewith a .311 on-base percentage. AL This will be the first game between the clubs since
traded outfielder Coco Crisp to the Royals in exchange for reliever Ramon Ramirez in November. Crisp is out for the season following shoulder surgery, while Ramirez has a 2.19 ERA in 37 appearances for the Red Sox. Boston Inside Pitch
The Red Sox offense certainly hasn’t been firing on all cylinders during the 10-game homestand that will close out the first half of the season, but the hitters are doing just enough to help the team keep winning.
The Boston bats scrapped their way to taking two out of three games against an Oakland A’s pitching staff that entered the night ranked sixth in the American League with a staff ERA of 4.25.
Second baseman Dustin Pedroia has put together a pair of three-hit games in his last handful of starts and is looking at his batting average beginning to creep back up toward .300 now that he’s in his customary No. 2 hole. DH David Ortiz has hit nine home runs in his last 28 games and finally appears to be on track. Left fielder
is coming out of a month-long funk that’s been riddled with strikeouts and 0-fers. Jason Bay One downer: First baseman Kevin Youkilis’ batting average continues to drop at an alarming rate since he came off the 15-day disabled list on May 20.
The Sox have dropped out of the top spot among American League teams in runs scored and on-base percentage after leading the
in the early season. AL still ranks fourth in runs and third in on-base percentage, but the Sox clearly need a healthy Mike Lowell and Jed Lowrie if they’re going to return to their overpowering offensive ways. Boston In the meantime, the Sox are still leading the AL East and boasting the best record in the league heading into the All-Star break. Certainly there are much worse places to be with the halfway mark nearly here.
Red Sox 5, Athletics 4: The Sox offense was held under wraps for five innings, but DH David Ortiz hit a three-run homer into the teeth of the wind in right field in the sixth. RHP Tim
picked up his AL-best 11th win of the season with six Houdini-esque innings, working out of jams created by 10 hits and one walk. Wakefield Notes, Quotes
• SS Jed Lowrie was activated from the 60-day disabled list on and then sent to short-season Lowell (
) to continue his recovery from surgery on his left wrist in April. The move was made with Lowrie’s rehab assignment window ending on Friday and with the switch-hitting shortstop still holding minor league options. Lowrie went 2-for-3 with two doubles and played nine innings at shortstop for the Spinners. In a corresponding move, the Sox designated OF Jonathan Van Every for assignment to make a spot on the 40-man roster. Van Every is out for the season with a knee injury and might return to the Red Sox’s minor league system if he goes unclaimed. Mass. • RHP Josh Beckett earned his 10th win of the season Tuesday by allowing two runs in 6 2/3 innings, and he also got his 100th strikeout of the season when he fanned Jason Giambi in the second inning. Reaching the 10-win plateau means that Beckett has put together his fifth straight double-digit victory season, and the Red Sox are the first team in the majors this season with two 10-game winners on their pitching staff, as Beckett joined RHP Tim Wakefield. “We’re trying to win every night,” Beckett said. “I got into each game with the idea of winning each game. I don’t really play any different.”
By The Numbers: 35—Stolen bases that OF Jacoby Ellsbury had piled up through July 5. This marks only the third time in franchise history that a Sox player has had 35 stolen bases prior to the All-Star break in at least two consecutive seasons. It’s also the first time since Tris Speaker did it for the Sox in 1912-14.
Roster Report
• RHP Tim Wakefield earned his 11th win of the season by throwing six innings of three-run ball and pulled into a tie with Colorado RHP Jason Marquis for the major league lead in victories. According to Elias Sports Bureau,
would be the oldest pitcher ever to hold at least a share of his league’s lead in wins at the All-Star break at 42 years old. Tom Glavine is the only other pitcher to do so over the age of 40—he had 10 wins at the All-Star break in 2006. Wakefield • RHP Jonathan Papelbon joined some select company when he was chosen for his fourth consecutive All-Star team last weekend. The closer joins 3B Frank Malzone and OF Fred Lynn as the only Red Sox players to open their careers up with four straight All-Star berths. Papelbon struggled in the ninth inning with a 30-pitch effort on Wednesday night but managed to nail down his 22nd save in 24 opportunities this year.
• 2B Dustin Pedroia finished with three hits, including two doubles. It was the second time he has had three hits in his last three games. Pedroia is hitting .364 (8-for-22) with four runs scored and three doubles during Boston’s current homestand and is tied with Houston SS Miguel Tejada for the major league lead in three-plus hit games with 13 on the season. Amazing, Pedroia has been doing all of this while his wife, Kelli, remains hospitalized with complications to her first pregnancy.
Fenway Park in, Wednesday, July 8, 2009. (AP Photo/Eric Boston ) Shelton Tim Wakefield, All-Star starter?
At least that was the conversation earlier today on ESPN Radio’s Mike and Mike in the Morning. Fresh off the Red Sox’ 5-4 win over the A’s last night, Wakefield now has 11 wins on the season, though his latest wasn’t exactly all that impressive, allowing 10 hits and a walk over six innings. It’s the second-straight game in which the 42-year-old first-time All-Star has allowed double-digit hits.
leads the league in wins and run support (which, you know, isn’t exactly his fault), and absolutely nothing else. Thus, when Joe Maddon tabbed Wakefield for the team last weekend, it got a lot of people up in arms, pointing out his high ERA and WHIP. “Isn't Maddon supposed to represent a new generation of stats-savvy managers who can see past the antediluvian notion of won-loss record?” asked ESPN.com’s Christopher Harris. “On Maddon's part this is a bald-faced play to lull Wakefield into a happy slumber shoehorned into a Lifetime Achievement Award.” Boston Those sort of arguments go on and on and on, and from the standpoint of hardcore baseball geek, a lot of the complaint is warranted. But it’s not like
should expect the Cy Young at his doorstep just because he’s a heck of a guy. Wakefield The All-Star Game? Why not? It’s not like we’re talking Scott Cooper here. The man still has 11 wins, which, all things being equal, certainly doesn’t equate to baseball greatness. But it’s still 11 wins. Hard to ignore. Besides, Maddon has enough baseball intelligence beyond the VORP to understand what this means for a veteran like
Wakefield , and the narrative he brings with him to. Shouldn’t that sometimes be what the Midsummer Classic is about rather than steroid freaks pounding an undersized baseball into submission in the Home Run Derby, all narrated by Chris Berman? St. Louis But – and we love Tim Wakefield – the argument as to whether or not he should start next week’s game is downright ludicrous.
Oh, but he’ll be well-rested, you say? Perhaps you missed the fact that Zack Greinke pitched last night too. Roy Halladay pitches tonight for the Blue Jays. If one of those two doesn’t start for the American League, then Maddon should be tried and convicted for pandering to Red Sox Nation. The selection of
is one thing, and it’s warranted. To have him in the conversation to start the game solely on his 11 wins and time served is just, well…I can’t believe we’re actually discussing this. Wakefield So instead, let’s put it aside and debate which one of the two legitimate options should get the nod.
Greinke: 10-5, 2.12 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 129 strikeouts
The Royals ace (whom the Red Sox will miss in this weekend’s series at Fenway) has cooled down since his Pedro-esque start to the season, but he has still only allowed more than three runs in a game twice this season. In exactly half his starts, Greinke has allowed one run or fewer and has three complete game shutouts. Since May 26, when he was 8-1 with a 0.84 ERA, Greinke has gone just 2-4, and has watched his ERA “soar” to 2.12. He lost last night to
, allowing three runs over six innings. Nobody in the Detroit has pitched as many innings (127 1/3) and only Edwin Jackson’s WHIP (1.07) is better. AL Halladay: 10-2, 2.79 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 98 strikeouts
The subject of much trade discussion (had you heard?), the Blue Jays (for now) ace is having a typical Doc Halladay season. He too is coming off a rough start, hammered for five runs, including three home runs, in the
Bronx last weekend. But the man is a dominant force and he’s one in the AL East, which counts for something. In nine of his 16 starts, the man has allowed two runs or fewer. He’s third in league ERA and WHIP, but hasn’t won since coming off the disabled list on June 29.Tough call. But as good as Halladay’s 2009 resume is, is there really any way that Maddon doesn’t start Greinke? As Royals teammate Gil Meche told Foxsports.com: "It'd be ridiculous if he doesn't. I know it's his first All-Star Game, but his numbers are better than anybody's in the league — in both leagues. If anybody deserves a start, it's him. I'd have to imagine that he's anticipating starting, just from the talks, and hopefully he does. You have the best numbers, you start. ... I think it's a no-brainer. If he doesn't, I'll be shocked. If they're going off stats this season, he starts, period."
Now add in the fact that most of the country has probably not even seen the kid pitch for never-on-ESPN Kansas City, and his own tale of personal triumph over social anxiety disorder that Ed Goren and company can milk for all its worth. Greinke would be the Royals’ first All-Star starting pitcher since Bret Saberhagen in 1987, when Greinke was four years old. Oh, and yes, he’ll be well-rested.
So too will be
, which will be nice for when he gets into the game. It might even be early enough so that Joe Mauer (who catches Twins knuckleballer RA Dickey) is still behind the dish. But just because the man has 11 wins does not mean he’s an All-Star starter. Wakefield Frankly, the best thing to happen would be to see Halladay win No. 11 tonight so that everyone who looks at wins as the end-all stat for determining greatness will have something to argue about until a guy with “only” 10 wins gets the nod. And before anyone kicks it off, Josh Beckett is pitching Sunday so he's not an option.
It's gotta be Greinke.
Awesome Baby!
(David Ortiz and Dick Vitale | Jim Davis /Globe Staff) Boston Papi Drills a Reggie for a Trifecta!
Wake Brings Another W, Baby! |Boston 5,4 in a Knee-Knocker Oakland
Big Papi Was a Human Space Ship Last Night
Pedroia's a P.T.P. and Was Mr. Pac Man, Baby... Eating the A's Alive on Defense
J.D. Drew, the MVP of the All-Mystique Team Is a Real Dow Joneser
Cahill Was Diaper Dandy for the Athletics Early
Another Dipsy-Doo Stink-a-Roo Save for Papelbon
I Heard About Nick Green, But He Was an MIAer for, Baby Boston
It's ZZZZ Time Baby Because the Sox Have the KC Cream Puffs In Town for Four.Cabrera on All-Star knuckleballer Tim Wakefield Orlando Fenway, Unscripted
(Jim Davis /Globe Staff) Boston
Still Enjoys a Good Old-Fashioned Garciapopup Boston After he popped out while pinch hitting in the eighth inning,'s Nomar Garciaparra heard a lot of noise from the fans behind the visitor's dugout as he returned Oakland Cliff Eastham's Red Sox All-Franchise Team
by Cliff EasthamBoston 's, Wednesday, July 8, 2009. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) Fenway Park A's should trade Holliday?
Matt Holliday needs to go. The A's have three weeks to trade him, and they had better do so. Trading isn't the right verb. Freeing him is more appropriate, for he is their hostage. A well-paid one, yes, at the tune of $13.5 million this season. But we all know the A's aren't getting what they're paying for with Holliday, and he's not benefiting from any help in the lineup. Plus, nobody expects him to cash in as a free agent next spring in(or whatever locale A's ownership is sticking on its return-address label). From the A's point of view -- as is the reasonable position of any corporation -- Holliday is an asset. His worth on the trade market might not equal what he might fetch next year in the draft, that being two high selections for the A's. -- Oakland Tribune .....Ben's Take: Holliday's old team could use his bat to try to catch the Giants for the wild card. Oakland Oakland won't be sending him back to theRockies . Expect the Mets, Angels and Red Sox to show some level of interest.
Toronto looking to includeWells in Halladay trade? Vernon The buzz around MLB scouts is that if a team is interested in acquiring Roy Halladay from the Blue Jays it better be ready to accept center fielder Vernon Wells, too. Since Wells has $107 million remaining starting next year, that's going to be hard to swallow. Especially because Halladay will likely seek a long-term deal in Sabathia's $161 million range to waive his no-trade clause. Halladay is signed through next year at $15.75 million. -- NY Post .....Ben's Take: Only the Red Sox, Yankees, Mets, Dodgers or Angels would be in play to take Halladay AND Wells.Red Sox worried about
leaving? Jason Bay
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