Let’s get the engines revving folks, the playoffs are officially on.
Tonight, well, this evening? Or should we just call it this supper-time? Whatever. Red Sox fans get to watch a potential Cy Young winner head to the mound for Boston, facing off against a legitimate ace from the left coast. Here, as always, is your Baseball-Reference preview.
Josh Beckett goes back to the mound in the playoffs for the first time since 2003. Think he’s excited to be back on the big stage? It won’t take long to find out.
That, of course, is where the home field Fenway factor kicks in. Because unlike Josh Beckett, who’s been outstanding at home all year (we’re forgetting about that last throw-in start against the Twins), Jon Lackey’s starts in Boston have been an unabetted disaster.
The question becomes one of big game performance, and whether Lackey can put aside those frustrations in the heat of the moment. Beckett certainly has in the past - see 2003, Yankees - but Lackey is a bit less battle-proven.
That doesn’t mean he won’t right his personal pitching ship in the Fens tonight. It just means that Boston’s fans could become a factor, which is exactly what Terry Francona, Theo Epstein and the rest of the Red Sox organization had to be hoping for in gaining home field advantage with the league’s best record in the season’s closing days.
For his part, Beckett certainly seems to be focused. He claims to be patterning his postseason routine after Curt Schilling’s circa 2001 and 2004. He knows how much each batter makes a difference from his own experience in 2003, and he’s had to wait three years to get back near the stage he was on then in Florida.
Now that he has the stage, with the three-ring circus that is a postseason Fenway atmosphere circling around him, will Beckett turn up the heat as he has in the past?
We’re about to find out. Buckle up folks, what Sox fans hope will be a long ride starts. Now.
Now that the Red Sox have officially sewn up the AL East, finally, we know that they’ll be hosting the Angels in the first round. Finally, there’s no drama left to worry about you say? Not exactly.
Tito had a nice night of moves yesterday, so the question now shifts to who he’ll make moves with today.
That’s because home field advantage throughout the playoffs is still very much in play. Boston and Cleveland entered today in a tie for best overall record in the bigs, with the Tribe facing off with the Royals for the finale pairing while Minnesota plays out its string in Boston.
Finishing with the league’s best record might be a measure of pride, but it doesn’t necessarily translate into big things. Remember that 2000 Seattle team with A-Rod? Yeah, not so hot.
Still, home field advantage would be a significant factor, particularly if it swung to Boston as opposed to Cleveland. Just look at the season series. The Red Sox went 5-2 against the Indians, but both of those losses came at Jacobs Field, as part of a four-game split between the teams at the Jake in July.
So, while home field advantage might not be such a huge stick for Cleveland to wield over Boston, it would be a significant one for the Sox at Fenway Park.
Now, because of that 5-2 season series, all the Sox have to do is finish tied with the Tribe to ensure that baseball’s world title will have to go through the Fens. Tonight, Terry Francona is expected to send beleaguered knuckleballer Tim Wakefield to the mound for a faceoff with Carlos Silva a man who has been the very essence of mediocrity all year long. That would seem like a great draw, if not for Wakefield’s struggles since a back injury sidelined him early this month. He hasn’t been the same pitcher since, which means that an average outing from a hurler like Silva might be enough to get the best of Wakefield’s stuff. Or lack thereof.
Meanwhile, the Indians send middling Jake Westbrook to the mound against the one big pitching chip Kansas City has, Gil Meche. That’s about as good a KC bullet as Boston fans could hope for.
The bigger question, of course, is how Tito will draw up his lineup, whether he’ll play regulars or throw an entire B-squad out there. We’re kind of betting on the b-squad.
No matter who he throws out there, if Wakefield has a decent night it’ll be a strong sign for postseason possibilities, both in terms of playing games at Fenway and having a knuckleballer who can make an impact.
That sounds like a nice recipe to cook up a day after winning the franchise’s first divisional title in 12 years, doesn’t it?
Dice-K has been looking for something throughout the second half of the season. Now Sox fans are starting to get impatient that he hasn’t found it.
With Josh Beckett on the mound for the last time in the regular season, and with Big Papi officially reaching postseason form with a 4-4 night that included another homer, the Red Sox found a way to lose. In the process, Beckett may have lost a potential exclamation point in his Cy Young argument with Cleveland’s C.C. Sabathia.
Regardless, the bigger - and more important - point is that the Red Sox lost a game while playing their starters, while that team down in the Bronx won a game at the Tropicana Terror Dome, pulling within two of the Sox with three to go. The AL East is not won yet.
Tonight, the Sox can cut that number to one with a win, just as they could last night. And just as yesterday provided Beckett with a valuable final tune-up (you judge whether or not it was wasted), tonight offers the same opportunity for Daisuke Matsuzaka, the pitcher that has looked like he could use it more than any other in recent weeks.
Matsuzaka has been impressive through the bulk of his last two outings, both of which ended in no-decisions on his behalf. But he might have to be even better tonight, facing off against Minnesota rookie rising star Kevin Slowey, a pitcher who’s stuff does anything but follow the lead of his name. Slowey has yet to lose a start this year, much like Jon Lester, though he has been almost exactly as hittable as Matsuzaka-san.
The question, of course, is whether the rookie will be more phased in his first Fenway appearance than the psuedo-rookie will be in his latest crunch time start heading toward the playoffs. In all fairness, Dice-K has not given too much to complain about as his starts have mattered more. Despite a mini-meltdown last week when he couldn’t finish off an inning, he had a terrific start against the Yankees in the game prior. A third stable start in a row, combined with what will likely be a full week of rest, and Dice-K may be in fully fine form for his playoff premiere.
But a shaky start and another loss will add more instability to a potential division title and the Sox postseason pitching plans. After the past three weeks, that’s the last thing New England’s fragile psyche needs heading into the playoffs.
Just in case you thought Josh might not be from Texas, there you go.
Regardless of bad names, Boston game against Minnesota this evening still has surprisingly far-reaching implications. The Sox are two games away - either via Boston victories or New York losses - from clinching the team’s first AL East title since 1994. Such a title would all but lock up the first round playoff matchups for the league, putting Los Angeles on a plane to Massachusetts for a first game either next Wednesday or Thursday, all while the Yankees prep for a flight to Cleveland.
Naturally, now that the Sox are already assured a playoff berth, the high-wire balancing act comes into play. This will be Josh Beckett’s last start before the playoffs, an outing for him to grab a major league-leading 21st win while also heading into the playoffs with a bit of gusto.
Meanwhile, Boof Bonser will be hoping to regain some of the strut he had in the season’s first half, when many - including we here at Sox Nest - were bracing for a major second-half push to put Minnesota back in contention in the AL Central and for the league’s Wild Card berth.
Neither one of those things happened, and now the Twins are playing out their string while simultanously bracing for the defection of longtime twin city legend Torii Hunter. The center fielder will be making his final Fenway appearance in a Twins uni in three days, and there’s plenty of speculation over where he’s headed next (Texas is a particularly popular potential destination, according to some sources). Regardless, there’s little doubt he wants to go out of Minnesota as a winner.
His chances of doing so will likely improve markedly if Boston can win the first two games of the series. Regardless of the AL’s best mark floating out there, it’s likely that the Sox will sit a full complement of their regular contributors as soon as they lock up a division crown. If they do.
Tonight would seem to be a better chance to start locking up that title than any other. If the Sox hit like they have the last couple days, things could easily fall into place. But Sox fans know not to get ahead of themselves, don’t they?
Torii will be pulling down catches like this in another uni next year. Or so we think.
Wait, no they don’t. Oh well. Here’s hoping they don’t have to look back in retrospective regret one more time tonight.
Jon Lester has looked good in his past two outings. If he can keep it up for a third, he may warrant serious postseason consideration.
After last night’s Boston victory and simultaneous extra-inning Yankees loss in Tampa Bay, the Red Sox are within three game - be they wins or New York losses - of clinching their first AL East title in, well, almost forever. The Sox looked dynamic, pounding A’s starting pitcher Chad Gaudin and reliever - not to mention former Boston prospect - Lenny DiNardo. Curt Schilling was also effective in the best way possible. He got batters out, limited his patented SSS’s (Schilling Solo Shots) to one (in the first inning) and generally controlled the flow of the game. Needless to say, it was a huge confidence builder, the type of game that will only loom bigger if Boston takes care of business.
And the team will go a lot further toward determining if they will tonight. That’s when Sox twice rookie Jon Lester takes the hill to face off against a legitimate Oakland pitching stud, Joe Blanton. Blanton has been strong throughout the season, but particularly in the first half. He has a good fastball and terrific location, which has been just the kind of recipe to screw up the Sox bats this year.
Then again, Lester has surged at just the right time, and if his legs are now firmly under him, he could be the exact strong addition the Red Sox need to propel them in the postseason. He’s a long way from proving that his recent performances are for real, but each win takes a big step toward that conclusion.
Will he continue that tonight? And will Big Papi continue to crank out extra base hits at a rate closer to his past three years, which has been the most comforting side of the team’s recent mini-surge? Good questions all. Tonight would be an extremely good time for the Sox to answer in the affirmative on all thee above, putting them in a controlling position for an AL East title, even if it will still be a reach away.
Here comes a twilight start at the Fens. Time to crank up the wayback machine to 2004 and get this string cranking at breakaway speed.
Things went swimmingly the last time Schill faced the A’s. The first time in the Fens? Not so much. Here’s hoping he goes 2 for 3 with O-town this year.
Let’s face it, there’s no place the Sox would rather be right now than at Fenway Park. Even Tampa Bay, where they took 2 of 3 again to stop the bleeding and regain at least a modicum of positive trajectory. Tonight, Curt Schilling steps back to the mound to face the team he nearly one-hit in one of the most masterful games of controlled execution in recent memory.
Of course, tonight could be a different story. Or maybe not. Like the last time Schilling faced Oakland, the Sox have been reeling, struggling to find any offense, often letting down decent pitching efforts in the process. Lately, the lineup has looked like a pair of reliable on-base guys at the top - rookies Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia - Big Papi, who is starting to round back into form at just the right time, Mike Lowell, who continues to out-produce his career statistics, and then a whole bunch of crap. Coco Crisp hasn’t done anything particularly notable since returning from back spasms. Julio Lugo continues to provide intermittent sparks, but little else. In fact, only captain Jason Varitek and - get ready to be shocked - J.D. Drew have provided any substantive offense in the second half of the lineup during Boston’s struggles.
That makes for an interesting comparison with Oakland’s stretch lineup, a group that includes Sox-killer Eric Chavez, the surprising and surging Jack Cust and, well, a whole lot of crap. They don’t even have the unreliably potent bat and temper of Milton Bradley. For proof of the potent temper, check this.
So, will Schilling return off extra rest tonight and put up the kind of triumphant performance he mustered out at “Enter Bland Corporate Sponsor Here” Park in Oakland early this spring? Or will he put up the kind of solid starts he’s had the last three times out, when he’s thrown five-plus solid innings, slipped a bit in the sixth and then been rocked in the seventh?
Good questions all, and only one man - if that - knows. Here’s hoping Schilling lets us in on a good secret rather than a bad one. If he does, the entire point of winning these games at home down the stretch will be a sort of place-holding mental masturbation anyway.
After all, if Boston can’t beat the A’s at home, far removed from the playoffs as they are, then how are the Red Sox supposed to beat the Angels or Indians?
And tonight, the great Boston resurrection continues?
Dice-K’s been in better moods at earlier points in the season.
Good question right? Last night the Sox got through Tampa Bay’s best starter and still escaped with a win, thanks to your future AL Cy Young winner Josh Beckett. Not only that, they also got some keen help from the team that spent the better part of the last week trash bagging them: Toronto. The Blue Jays beat the Yankees at Yankee Stadium, and they spent a full 14 innings doing so, wearing out some of the pinstripe bullpen in the process. Including Joba the Piglet.
Not a bad way to start a weekend.
Still, that extra game buffer will mean nothing if Boston blows game two tonight. The mercurial Japanese national treasure is back on the mound, and his very appearance will underscore just how unpredictable he may be for the rest of the year. Before his last start against the Yankees - a significant and strong outing eight days ago - Dice-K had five consecutive woeful starts, each looking more tired than the previous. Then last week he looked like vintage Dice, tossed either his best or second-best outing against the Yankees this season, and seemed destined for a win.
Of course, we know what happened after that.
Tonight he gets a significantly easier lineup, though it’s one he’s struggled with before. In fact, that up-and-down line graph is a true theme for the game, as Tampa starter Andy Sonnastine has gone through similar issues against the Sox this season.
So which starter shows up with his good stuff? And which lineup comes through with big hits tonight? The Sox looked like they were on a mission last night. Dustin Pedroia and Jacoby Ellsbury looked like MVP candidates, not rookies. Big Papi blasted a shot that was remiscent of the past three years. Mike Lowell looked like, well, Dr. Double with more power, which he’s done in leading the team throughout the second half.
Did the Sox use up their entire quota of clutch hits last night? Will Dice-K be able to overcome the stigma of traveling through international customs in a Teletubby costume? While Manny Ramirez remember that he still plays for the Sox and make a guest cameo, as if he was on a mid-90s sitcom or a new late-night MTV show hosted by Will Smith that’s a direct rip-off of Wild N’ Out?
Did that last question even make any sense? The answer to the last two questions is no. But the answers to the first two are much more significant. Now comes the time where we figure out what they are.
Or, if you’re on the other side of the pond, it’s time to watch Dice in his other role, as LaLa. Either way, enjoy.
Some interesting conceptual thoughts as we await the inevitable lack of offense now that we know Senor Manuel Ramirez is taking another long holiday …
Josh Beckett may need to dial up his high school heat to mow through another win tonight.
Can you imagine what you would have done if someone told you a month ago that the Yankees would be within two games of the Sox, and that the Sox would need key contributions from Eric Hinske to find a way to beat the Devil Rays? I’ll bet you would have laughed. We would have, too. Now, we want to cry. All part of being a Boston fan, right?
Still, things should be good tonight. Should be. And there have been a lot of disappointing shoulds in the past couple of weeks. With Josh Beckett on the mound looking for win No. 20, the Sox should be dialed in on getting just enough offense at the Trop to get a win. It’ll be interesting to see if the anemic, injury-riddled offense can do that minus Manny, Kevin Youkilis, Coco Crisp and hell, any power outside of Big Papi and the indefatiguable Mike Lowell.
Incidentally, there’s an equally shocking response to another offensive Sox question: What would you have said if told that the two most consistent Sox hitters over the course of the season would be Dustin Pedroia and Lowell? It’s truly amazing, isn’t it? Can Lowell’s role be overemphasized? And can Pedroia’s amazing season be played up enough? I’m not sure it can. The Mighty Mite has gone from being a short-term survivor to an almost sure-fire rookie of the year. And Lowell - worth noting that it’s a monster contract year for him, isn’t it - has been nothing short of spectacular. If he’s not the second best third baseman in the AL, well, whoever’s compiling the list is kidding him or herself.
Still, that just reframes tonight’s question, doesn’t it? Now it reads, “Can Lowell, Pedroia, Papi and maybe Jacoby Ellsbury do enough to get past a suddenly viable Tampa Bay lineup? And Scott Kazmir?”
OK Clay Buchholz, here’s the deal: The Sox need a win. They need one bad. You’re already well on your way to becoming a true Boston hero. If you can come through with another big performance on the hill, you’ll be up at Roger Clemens like levels three starts into your career, and that’s saying something.
Clay Buchholz gets his first start tonight since that little no-no deal in Baltimore. Maybe he can even log some help from fellow frosh phenom Jacoby Ellsbury.
Of course, we’re talking about the Rocket circa hats with B’s on them, not afterwards, like when he played for the God foresaken team in the other dugout tonight.
Two nights in a row the damn Canucks have gotten to the Sox. Twice. IF they pull it off three times in a row that lead over the Yankees that you’ve already contributed to three times will be all but evaporated. You don’t want that, do you? Didn’t think so.
Still, as Red Sox fans we understand that you’re just a rookie. We understand that you might be nervous out there. This is your first start on the road, after all. But you looked good in relief in Baltimore, that first inning aside, and everyone knows that your stuff is absolutely filthy. If you can get that curveball working, 12-6 and all, this should be a picture perfect set-up for a win.
Here’s the other good news: because Boston has sucked the past three nights, we’ve got the back-end of the bullpen all juiced for you. Hideki Okajima has had almost an entire week to think about how he screwed last Friday up. Jonathan Papelbon is almost certainly chomping at anyone’s arm he can get a hold of just trying to get into the game. Everyone knows he’s a lunatic, and he’s been waiting to pull that “slutter” pitch of his out on Toronto for God knows how long. Actually, we know how long. About a month, since he invented it.
So Clay, can you handle it Bubba? This may not be Texas anymore - hell, it’s not even the US - but a win would go a long ways toward saving your team’s season. That may be a hell of a lot of pressure to put on someone entering his third start who’s so young that he has shades of Frankie Muniz wearing a hat.
How do you know when you get the short straw after a rough weekend? When your work trip doesn’t just start on Monday, it also starts in another country.
Tim Wakefield was on pace for a near-record year before his last two starts. A return to form would be a huge boon for the Sox.
Uggghhh.
The bigger issue, and one that bears watching for more extended ramifications, revolves around the 42 year-old knuckleballer who’ll take the hill in the bottom of the first coming off two of the rougher outings not only of this year, but also his career.
Let’s face it, Tim Wakefield has been channeling something from a different universe this year. He’s pitched better than he has in any year since his first in a Sox uniform. In fact, he may be pitching better than he has in any year except 1995, when he was the biggest factor behind the Pittsburgh Pirates’ surge to the NLCS. Barry Bonds, a Wakefield teammate on the Buccos, still claims that Pittsburgh would have made the World Series if Wake had thrown Game 7 on no rest. He may be right.
Tonight, Wake will be focusing on bouncing back and proving he can still be a valuable asset in the postseason. Of course, Boston could really use a Wakefield win right about now to make sure they get there. While winning two of three - let alone a sweep, which was eminently possible - from the Yankees over the weekend would have all but wrapped things up, the Sox now have to scramble to take games from a Toronto team that hasn’t cooled off over the last month, and is suddenly slightly healthier and a little closer to being the squad that some analysts thought had the inside track on the AL Wild Card or even the East Division title.
Instead, that crown should rest squarely on the Sox’s heads by the end of the month. What happens from there out depends on a number of disparate factors. Will Manny Ramirez return and be any modicum of his usual oblivious, productive self? Will Big Papi’s knees hold up just enough to make him the masher he’s been over the past half decade? Will Kevin Youkilis and Dustin Pedroia, true unknown factors in September and October, continue the torrid pace both have set over much of the summer.
Manny returns would help the Sox down the stretch, too. Not to mention in the playoffs.
But all of those concerns are far down the list from those revolving around the pitching staff, which needs a shot in the arm, hopefully figuratively rather than literally. Tonight, Wakefield could be that shot. Or he could end up taking one. Either way, it’d be hard to be surprised.
