Red Sox Beat Orioles On Adrian Gonzalez' Walk-Off Double

Get used to this swing, Boston. It's gonna win a lot of games for the Sox over the next few years. Tonight, Gonzalez knocked in his league-leading 36th and 37th runs in the bottom of the ninth inning with a wall-ball double to beat the Orioles, 8-7. This was one sweet comeback after trailing 6-0 earlier in the game.

Boston is over .500 for the first time this year and has now won 4 games in a row including the weekend sweep of the Yankees. But the story tonight was A-Gon. Drinks are on the house here at the Speakeasy!

PS - If Carl Crawford can get hot, this team is gonna go on a rampage....

Red Sox Fan Runs On Field - Gets Absolutely Decked By Security

I hope Bill Belichick was watchin'. If the Patriots had a few more dudes who could hit opposing QB's like this we'd have another undefeated season on our hands. And by the way, pretty poor peripheral vision on our dickered fan here, huh? Poor bastard never saw it comin'. Bottom line - draft the security guard, put the fan on waivers.

The Red Sox Are Now 2-9 - Time To Jump Off The Tobin Bridge?

 

The Red Sox now have the worst record in the Major Leagues.  If this shit doesn't get straightened out fast we might be looking at the biggest disappointment in the history of MLB.  95 wins?  100 wins?  How 'bout we get to .500 first.  Time's a-wastin' boys!

Two Dudes Kissing During Red Sox - Indians Game

What the hell is going on here? The Red Sox have now lost five in a row and dudes are kissin' in the stands to celebrate. Now I have nothing against gay people or public displays of affection, but this is a new one for me. Wait - maybe they were just sharing a hot dog. Take me out to the ballgame....

Is Curt Young The Most Important Member Of The Red Sox This Year?

Bahtendah Wisdom - Pay Attention!

For those of you not yet fully immersed and living and dying with the Sox these days, Curt Young is the new pitching coach for the local nine.  I'm here to tell you that he just might be the most important man in Camp Tranquility this Spring.  With the offseason acquisitions of Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford and with better health expected from the likes of Dustin Pedroia, Kevin Youkilis, Jason Veritek, Jed Lowrie and Mike Cameron, the offense looks to be one of the better lineups in all of MLB.  The Nation has visions of the 1927 Yankees, with baseballs flying all over Fenway Park while the speedsters turn every walk or single into a triple.  Defense shouldn't be much of an issue either, especially in the outfield.  I'm not picturing a lot of balls dropping in the gaps given the speed of Ellsbury and Crawford.  Plus. for all the complaints about J.D. Drew, there's no doubt that when he plays, the dude can throw some leather around right field.  And how about a healthy Mike Cameron as your fourth outfielder?  Not too shabby.

In the infield, Gonzalez is outstanding at first, Pedroia is above-average at second, the tandem of Scutaro and Lowrie should suffice at short, and Youk is a beast at the hot corner.  For you stat-geeks, the Red Sox UZR should be looking pretty good this year.

So it all comes down to pitching.  We all know about the failings of the bullpen last year - Papelbon wasn't himself, Okajima was a serious bummer and the rest of the 'pen was put together with baling wire and masking tape.  The one consistent bright spot was Daniel Bard and there's no reason to think he shouldn't have a repeat performance this year.  As far as starting pitching goes, Lester and Bucholtz were terrific, but the rest of the staff left a lot to be desired.  Beckett battled injuries and ineffectiveness all year, Lackey was lacking in the first half (his second half was a little better), the Dice-man missed a good part of the year and Wakefield was all over the place.  The additions of Jenks and Wheeler look like they'll shore up the bullpen on paper, but I'll withhold judgement until I see a few outings.

Pundits across the sports landscape are predicting anywhere from 95 to 100 wins for the BoSox this year, but there's no way that happens without a significant up-tick in the performance of the pitching staff.  Enter Curt Young.

Who is this guy?  Well, he's a fifty-year-old baseball lifer who's spent the last 23 years in the Oakland organization as either a player or coach.  He's been the pitching coach for the A's since 2004.  During his tenure, his staffs have performed well, and last year, the Oakland staff had the lowest ERA in the league and also led the league in shutouts with 17.  Pretty impressive stuff given the youth of the pitchers he was working with, and let's face it, the budget constraints of the A's.

He could be just what the doctor ordered.  If not, the doctor is going to be prescribing some mid-season acquisitions, and that will mean that all is not well with the Nation.  There's a lot riding on you Mr. Young.  Pay attention!

Red Sox Shortstop Controversy - Marco Scutaro Or Jed Lowrie?

Not much to talk about at Red Sox spring training this year.  Kind of "camp tranquility" so far.  But one issue I think might have some legs as we move into the season is who should be the everyday shortstop.  Marco Scutaro had a sub-par year last year and battled injuries throughout a good stretch of the season.  Ditto for Jed Lowrie who was sidelined with mono early on, but finished the year like gangbusters.

Terry Francona has tried to nip any of this talk in the bud by saying that Scutaro is his guy.  He seems to have a great deal of loyalty to Scutaro based on how he sucked it up and played through a variety of ailments all season.  And if there's on thing we know about Tito, it's that he's as loyal as the day is long.  He sticks with players.

After missing the first three months of the season, Lowrie, a switch-hitter ended up hitting .287 with an OPS over .900.  Scutaro hit .275 with an OPS of .721.  He had 11 home runs in 632 AB's.  Lowrie had 9 home runs in only 171 AB's, so he obviously appears to be a more productive offensive player when healthy.  I'd say their work in the field is pretty much a wash.  For now, Scutaro is your starting shortstop, but if he gets off to a slow start be ready for the hue and cry from Red Sox Nation calling for Lowrie.  You read it here first.  Pay attention!

Speed Kills - Red Sox Sign Papelbon, Ellsbury

NECN
BOSTON -- Since taking over as general manager of the Red Sox before the 2003 season, Theo Epstein has never had a salary arbitrtion case go before before an arbiter. That record is still intact. Shortly before the club and players were set to exchange filing figures, the Red Sox settled with their two salary arbitration cases: reliever Jonathan Papelbon and outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury. Papelbon, who made $9.35 million last year, signed for $12 million. Ellsbury, who missed all but 18 games last season, signed for $2.4 million in his first year of arbitration eligibility. Ellsbury also received some performance bonuses in his contract. He'll get $50,000 each for 600 and 700 plate appearances, meaning he'll max out at $2.5 million. The Papelbon figure, coming in the reliever's last year of arbitration eligibility, is one of the highest settled figures for a pitcher. Earlier Tuesday, the Milwaukee Brewers and first baseman Prince Fielder avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $15.5 million deal. Papelbon's deal comes after his worst season since becoming Red Sox closer in 2006. He posted a career-high ERA of 3.90 and blew eight saves, his most ever, and as many as he compiled in the previous two seasons combined. Papelbon is eligible for free agency after the 2011 season and has said he intends to see what the market has to offer.


Pitchers and catchers report in 26 days.  26 days, people!  Pay attention!

Now Warming Up For The Red Sox, Bobby Jenks....

We signed Fred Flintstone!!!

A-Gon Comes To The Hub

...And for a little more in-depth profile of the Sox' newest slugger, here's a background piece from Lee Jenkins in Sports Illustrated:

Adrian Gonzalez Story