Francona to Schilling “Zip it”

And none to soon.  This has turned into a debacle not only for Schilling but for the Sox.  Francona told him to “zip it a little”, not only privately in a meeting he had with Schilling but also publicly on WEEI radio, the same station that Schilling spouted off on.  Francona went on to say when asked about reading Schillings blog “You know what? I don’t have that much energy.  I get tired of answering things that are not baseball, but I guess that’s my responsibility, too. I don’t care if he does it, but just stay away from certain things. If he wants to run for office someday and tackle the world’s problems, fine, but not while I’m the manager. I just think there are issues you stay away from. Listen, I’ve known Schill a long time and I think the world of this guy. I just told him to ease off on the gas pedal, and he will.”  Maybe Schilling should avoid he pedal all the time.

Schilling issued an apology, not on the air though, but rather his blog, 38 pitches.  “I am far from perfect and make more than my share of mistakes, which is something I have no problem with because that’s part of being a human being.  However, when mistakes adversely affect other people’s lives, that’s a big deal. It was a callous, reckless, and irresponsible thing to say and for that I apologize to Barry, Barry’s family, Barry’s friends, and the Giants organization, my teammates and the Red Sox organization, as well as anyone else that may have been offended by the comments I made.”

Roger Clemens signs with Yankees

Roger Clemens signed with the Yankees for a cool 28 million over the weekend. Not a complete surprise. 28 million is a lot of money to pass up. My main question is if he wanted to win so badly why the Yankees? What do they offer (other than the 28 million) the Sox or Astros do not? The pitching staff is in shambles, with Pettitte being the only really decent starter to this point. Mussina is still a question mark, Carl Pavano is bascially a paid DL player, Kei Igawa was sent to the minors and Philip Hughes has been decent not great. So other than Roger what do they have? Not much.

Lets also not over look the ragged bullpen which has been terrible of late. Even if Roger leaves the game with a lead he has the following pitchers to keep the lead for him. Kyle Farnsworth, Scott Proctor and Sean Henn. Not the most confidence isnpiring bunch and they dont necessarily scare many hitters at this point. Not to mention Mariano Rivera has been shakey this year.

If Roger really wanted to win so badly wouldn’t he take this all into consideration? Sure he will have the run support but beyond that not much else. He will more than likely be the best pitcher on the staff and in the long run he will be the star of the team. I just don’t see him having a fantastic second half or getting this team to the playoffs.

The other two teams that were in the running were the Astros and the Red Sox. They both had something to offer, maybe just not the money the Yankees had. The Astros have a decent lineup that has started to take off as of late.  They were Rogers hometown team and he pitched there the last two years.  The NL Central is still pretty wide open and he would have had a legitimate shot at the playoffs and maybe an NLCS if he signed with them.

The Red Sox offered three things Roger was wanting.  A winning team, a chance to win and great offense.  They just didn’t pony up the money.  The other side of joining the Sox was the chance to come for one final time and close out his career (at least for this year) with the team he started with and took to the 86 World Series.   I beleive he had a better chance of reaching he playoffs with the Sox than the Yanks.  The AL Wild Card may not come from the East this year.  I really kind of doubt Roger bought into the whole “returning home” part of it after his bitter split with the team, new ownership not withstanding.

Beckett first seven game winner in MLB

 

With a 9-2 win over the Blue Jays last night Josh Beckett improved to 7-0 becoming the first seven game winner in the majors. Beckett went seven innings giving up only five hits and one run, a first pitch lead off HR to Alex Rios. The middle of the order struggled again accounting for none of the Sox nine runs. Youkilis, Pedroia, Lowell and V-Tek all had home runs off of Toronto starter Victor Zambrano.

Josh Beckett is locked in right now. This is the pitcher the Sox thought they were getting last year when they traded with the Marlins to get him. He is the ace of the staff, no matter what Curt Schilling says at this point. With Dice still have some control problems Beckett’s improvement is that much more welcome.  Jon Lester will be back in the not to distant future as well.  I still believe we have the best starting five in the AL East and maybe all the majors.  Not only are the starters solid but our bullpen is solid and maybe the best in the league to this point.

Curt Schilling just shut up!

So Curt opened his mouth again and this time it was a doozy, Barry Bonds has admitted to using steroids. On radio station WEEI-AM Schilling said “He admitted that he used steroids, there’s no gray area” and continued on with “He admitted to cheating on his wife, he admitted to cheating on his taxes and he cheated on the game. I think the reaction around the league, around the game, seeing what it is, is an indication of what people think – Hank Aaron not being there, the commissioner trying to figure out where to be. It’s sad.” All the important quotes are here.

I defended Curt last week with the legitimacy of the sock he wore in the 2004 ALCS. And if you read this blog at all you know I really don’t like Barry Bonds and I in no way want him to have the record. However, Curt is way off base here. Where in any public record is it verified that any of these three situations occurred? Please show us Curt. Please. I am begging you. If you can prove he admitted to taking steroid show us, tell us, make it public knowledge and this debate goes away instantly. Not to mention the personal issues Curt eludes to. You don’t have the evidence to back up any of your words. Your opinions are your opinions but when you have no proof to back up your public words they come back to bite you in the ass. He deserves all the ridicule and public outcry he gets over this. Curt’s desire to be in the limelight has tarnished him just a bit here. How would he feel if any other MLB player came out and said these things about him or his family? I am sure he would be livid over this.

The Giants come to Fenway in June and I hope that Curt gives up the tying and record breaking home runs. Sad that a Sox fan feels that way but so be it.

A Sox fan heads to NY

Thats right, I am heading to NY for the weekend. This will be my second time in the Big Apple and I am wearing my Sox apparel proudly. I am ready for the looks, sneers, grumbles and whatever else comes my way. I plan on being out and about most of the day on Sunday and taking plenty of pics displaying my newly purchased New Era Game Day Hat all around the city.  Check back on Monday to see if I survived this adventure and to see just where I went.

Sox win with Manny homer News and Notes for 5/4

The Sox won the rematch with the Mariners last night with an eigth inning Manny Ramirez homerun that broke a 7-7 tie and proved to be the winning run. That was Manny’s second home run of the night. Along with Manny’s two dingers Wily Mo Pena went 4-4. CoCo was the only Sox batter without a hit last night ending a semi hot streak for him.
Dice-K struggled with his control all night lasting only five innings, giving up seven runs, all earned, walking five and fanning only one. Clearly his worst outing of the season. Seattle’s starter Horacio Ramirez didn’t fare much better lasting only four innings giving up seven earned runs and eleven hits.

News and Notes:

Manny Ramirez’s two homers last night tied him for 27th on the career list at 475 with the two Hall of Famers, Willie Stargell and Stan “The Man” Musial.

Mike Timlin 24 hours removed from his first save of the season was placed on the 15-day disabled list prior to Thursday night’s game against the Mariners with right shoulder tendinitis. In a corresponding roster move, the Sox recalled right-hander Devern Hansack from Triple-A Pawtucket.

Jon Lester confirmed it was just a cramp that took him out of his Triple-A start after just three innings on Wednesday night. This will more than likely slow his return just a bit.

Tim Wakefield will open up a six-game road trip for the Sox when he takes the ball Friday night at Minnesota. He’ll be opposed by Carlos Silva, who is 2-1 with a 3.10 ERA. First pitch is slated for 8:10 ET.

Sox news and notes 5/3

Hideki Okijima was named the AL Rookie of the Month for April.  Okajima allowed only five hits in 12 appearances during the month and finished with a 0.61 era, one save and 19 k’s.  Okijima throws a sneaky fastball, a curveball and a changeup that has surprised some of Boston’s coaches.  Along with the other Sox signing from across the Pacific, Dice – K,  the Sox staff is one of the best in the majors this year.

Some what of a coincedence that while in town the Sox had talks with the A’s over starter Rich Harden who is currently on the DL. The A’s reportedly asked about Wily Mo Pena and pitching prospect Clay Bucholz. The Sox have been hesitant to trade away pitching prospects and with the injury to Mike Piazza in last nights game the A’s certainly need a hitter to replace him. Letting Pena go for another starter may not be a bad move, the only concern being Hardens health.

Julian Tavarez says the Sox don’t need Roger Clemens. “I don’t think we need him.” “I don’t think we need him. We don’t need him,” insisted Tavarez. “We’ve got some young guys down there who can do it, too. We’ve got Kason Gabbard, Jon Lester, a guy who is 22 years old who can bring it. This guy is going to be a Sandy Koufax some day.” I didn’t realize Tavarez was now GM. Clemens, if in top form, would be a welcome addition to any staff at this point.

Speaking of Julian Tavarez several teams may make a run at him soon. Tavarez would have value to several teams, particularly National League clubs looking for a middle reliever or a starter. The Mets, Cardinals, Phillies, Rockies, Marlins, and Reds would all be candidates.

Jon Lester’s start last night in Pawtucket was cut short by a cramp in his forearm. Lester allowed three hits and two earned runs, while walking three and striking out four. H threw just 63 pitches, 39 for strikes, before being removed from the game. “Obviously, I’m frustrated,” said the 23-year-old, who successfully battled lymphoma over the offseason. “It’s one of those things that happened. It happened for a reason.” Lester said he felt his arm tighten after throwing a pitch in his final inning.“It was in the third inning,” said Lester, who indicated he had never experienced a similar problem. “I threw a pitch and it tightened up. It was a freak thing. I hope it’s not a setback. Like (manager Ron Johnson) said, it’s just a cramp. In five days hopefully, I’ll make another start and we’ll go from there.”

Sox split series with the A’s – Mariners return for make up game

 

Boston won last night 6-4 to earn a split against the Oakland A’s in the two game series after losing 5-4 in ten innings the night before. Josh Beckett improved to 6-0 on the year and is the first pitcher to get 6 wins this year. Also worth noting is each starter got at least one hit last night, the first time that has occured this season. Papi, Manny, V-Tek, and CoCo all went 2-4 last night. Beckett went seven innings giving up six hits, three runs and fanning seven, another strong outing for him. Hideki Okijima pitched the eigth inning and Mike Timlin came on in the ninth to get the save. Papelbon did not pitch last night after blowing the save in the ninth inning the night before wasting a solid outing by Curt Schilling.

Dice – K pitches tonight against another AL West team, the Mariners.  This is a make up game from the first series that was rained out.  Dice gets a chance at some redemption after being matched up with Felix Hernandez in his home bebut for the Sox a few weeks back.  Dice pitched well, but Hernandez was lights out.   The Mariners are starting Horacio Ramirez.

Sox news and notes 4/30

With a two-run shot in the eight inning of a 7-4 win over New York, Boston’s Manny Ramirez became only the fifth player to hit 50 career homers against the Yankees, joining Jimmie Foxx (70), Ted Williams (62), Hank Greenberg (53) and Carl Yastrzemski (52).

Center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury, who is Boston’s best position prospect, is off to a sizzling start at Double-A Portland. In the first 15 games of the season, Ellsbury is hitting .455 with 13 runs, 10 doubles, two triples and six stolen bases. This is good motivation for CoCo…

Jon Lester will make at least one more start for Pawtucket on Wednesday after turning in another strong rehab outing — this one at Pawtucket. Though the rehab clock expires after that outing, Terry Francona cautioned the media not to simply assume Lester will rejoin the Red Sox after that.

Terry Francona was impresed with Mike Timlins outing on Friday night. He pitched a scoreless 7th innin and threw nine if his eleven pitches for strikes. Francona said “Timlin’s a huge part of our bullpen.” “We want him to be a huge part of our bullpen. He didn’t have much of a Spring Training, and he’s coming off kind of the first time since I’ve known him, a tough second half of the year. We’re trying to get him into a little bit of a rhythm. We’ve all seen what he can do when he’s good. He threw the ball very well last night.”

Sad to hear of Josh Hancocks death. He started with the Sox and made his first MLB appearance in 2002 with them. He died in a car accident early Sunday morning.

Sox take two of three from the Yankees

In a rematch of the series from last weekend the Sox came into the Bronx and took two of three games from the Yankees to extend their lead in the AL East to 4 1/2 games and their lead over the Yankees to 6 1/2 games. For a review of each game here are the box scores: Game 1 Game 2 Game 3

It was a very good series – for Sox fans at least. Dice – K and Julio Lugo carried us in the first game, Wakefield was a hard luck loser in the second game receiving only one run of support and in the third game Papi, Manny and Alex Cora all hit home runs. Its been the same story for the Sox strong consistent starting pitching with a solid pen to finish games with good run support. The Yankees pitching woes continue, and who is complaining. The starters are ineffective and the pen even more so. Rivera did get the save n Saturday. Jeff Karstens injury didnt look that bad but breaking a leg off a line drive is brutal. On top of that Wang has a broken fingernail and may miss his next start for the Yanks.

One thing that still needs to be worked out is consistency in the heart of our order. Kevin Youkilis and Mike Lowell each had two hits, but the heart of the order David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez and J.D. Drew — went a combined 0-for-9 in the the second game. We need them to be get it together. Manny especially. Just when you think he has turned the corner he disappears for two or three games. Alex Cora has certainly made the most of his playing time hitting .360 with two home runs. He is the best bench/platoon player we have until Wily Mo Pena can be more selective at the plate. One player that needs more recognition is Hideki Okajima, he has been stellar in relief for the Sox and has been lights out for us. He has been just as valuable as Dice – K to this point.

Lets also remember it is early in the season and a lot can and will change. The AL East is a strong division with three teams really contending, the Sox, Yankees and Toronto. We have a long way to go. Taking 5 of 6 from the Yankees is gratifying and proves this team is capable and can win the big games and series. It needs to prove it can do it series after series and the middle of the lineup needs to get it together day after day. Manny, are you listening?