4/2 @ Oakland

[soxfan17881]

Guys, I can't see the game here at work (in any way), what did Pedroia do?

[soxfan17881]

I see we tacked on a 4th run! This is killing me not knowing what's going on!

[Cocos Disciples]

Manny DP, but I'm comfy with a 4-0 lead with 6 outs left.

[ORS]

I wonder if Manny's swami has an incantation to make him think he's still in Japan?

[mAAAbs]

It feels like Manny has been stuck on 20 grand slams for 3 years.

[soxfan17881]

It feels like Manny has been stuck on 20 grand slams for 3 years.

 

Manny's last granny was 7/5/05 against the Rangers.

[ORS]

It almost has been 3 years. His last was on 7/5/05.

[toledosoxfan]

Two straight solid pitching efforts is very good to see, the bats will come alive as everybody starts to get comfortable again and get back into the swing of things, no pun intended.

[toledosoxfan]

Tek with a solo poke to right, 5-0.

[schillingouttheks]

Wow, V-Tek showing the power. Hopefully it doesn't turn into a lasting outage.

[soxfan17881]

Tek hit one out? That's cool.

[soxfan17881]

Who's closing? Delcarmen?

[ORS]

3-1 on an extreme West Coast road trip, can't ask for more.

 

EDIT: And they get out of town early with the day game so the trek back East shouldn't be too taxing.

[MANNYHOF24]

Nice win, Lester was impressive other than a few control lapses, good to see Ortiz and Tek start to hit. Hopefully Manny can get back in stride in Toronto where historically he has raked.

[Mr Crunchy]

3-1 against a team that may overtake kc as the worst in baseball.

christ they suck

see that lineup?

they couldnt score 4 on me and i havent thrown a ball in anger since carter was president

[BoSox21]

3-1 against a team that may overtake kc as the worst in baseball.

christ they suck

see that lineup?

they couldnt score 4 on me and i havent thrown a ball in anger since carter was president

 

ok...so then predictably the sox shut them down the last 2 games while they faced two above-average starting pitchers in Blanton and Harden (not to mention knocking around Street) for the entire 4-game set so what exactly is your beef with how they've played?

[Mr Crunchy]

no beef outside a tepid offense and the 12-15 lobs yesterday.

i dont get too excited beating AA teams which is what they did this week.

winning is what matters and they took care of business

 

as i said

oakland will battle baltimore and kc for the worst record in the a.l this summer

[ORS]

3-1 against a team that may overtake kc as the worst in baseball.

christ they suck

see that lineup?

they couldnt score 4 on me and i havent thrown a ball in anger since carter was president

In your years of watching baseball, how often have you said, "Cripes, how the hell did we lose a series to those twats?", when the team hit the west coast? I know the answer for me is more than I'd like. Therefore, when they are playing within an hours drive from the Pacific and come back East having won more than lost, I'm content.

[HeadOfSoxNation]

as i said

oakland will battle baltimore and kc for the worst record in the a.l this summer

 

I agree with you...but KC is also closing in on a sweep of Tigers, arguably the best team on paper in the league. And Dmitri Young was on pace to hit 162 HRs after 4 games a few years back. These type of anomalies will level off as the season continues.

 

I agree, the Sox offense has looked pretty dismal...but when Manny and Ortiz stop hitting .000 with RISP, and when Crisp is finally moved and Jacoby takes over every day...I totally believe that the offense will improve drastically and far less LOBs will be a result.

 

NOTE TO TITO: You don't "develop a young player" by dropping him down from a lineup spot where he has flourished in his only big-league experience and then give him sporadic playing time.

[jacksonianmarch]

Couple things...

 

1. Lester showed after the 3rd inning that throwing strikes is a good thing. Through 58 pitches, he was 29 balls, 29 strikes with 2 hits and 3 walks before he recorded an out in the 4th inning. After the walk to Sweeney to lead off the 4th, he threw 24 strikes and 10 balls. If he throws like he did in his last 3.2IP then he'll be an asset. The fact that he got through the early going unscathed points towards the other team (and their penchant to hit into DPs) more than it does to him.

 

2. The sox need to play Coco. They convinced Kielty to stay on in the minors by telling him that Coco would be dealt. Coco has already tried to force his way out of town. The only way to keep this guy's value up is to see if he can play. Benching him then trying to trade him is a nice way to decrease his value.

[TheKilo]

I just dont get this A's team. They are built on the moneyball precedent of high OBP. They have Lester on the ropes. 3 walks in 4 innings and Lester has thrown the exact same amount of balls as strikes (29 apiece). Yet they continually get into good counts and then put bad swings on the ball. Makes no sense.

 

Moneyball isn't about OBP homes.

[TheKilo]

I agree with you...but KC is also closing in on a sweep of Tigers, arguably the best team on paper in the league. And Dmitri Young was on pace to hit 162 HRs after 4 games a few years back. These type of anomalies will level off as the season continues.

 

I agree, the Sox offense has looked pretty dismal...but when Manny and Ortiz stop hitting .000 with RISP, and when Crisp is finally moved and Jacoby takes over every day...I totally believe that the offense will improve drastically and far less LOBs will be a result.

 

NOTE TO TITO: You don't "develop a young player" by dropping him down from a lineup spot where he has flourished in his only big-league experience and then give him sporadic playing time.

 

Jacoby-lovers certainly enjoy the small sample size. JFC.

[HeadOfSoxNation]

Jacoby-lovers certainly enjoy the small sample size. JFC.

 

I love the small sample size...the kid was on fire during the small sample size. Would I love to see him do it for a full season? Of course. Do I expect it? Of course not.

 

Ells, playing everyday in the leadoff spot, will give us .290 95 R 10 HR 55 RBI 25 SBs. I'll take that every day of the week.

[ksushi]

I think you're right on target except for the 25 SB's. This kid can swipe and toward the end of september he had the green light from tito to go whenever he wanted. In tight situations in AAA, he would steal bags with no throw, because he had it by a mile. If anything this kid will be a major swipe threat through out his career. I'm not a big Ellsbury guy. I'm becoming one as he makes his swing more and more consistent, and as his routes get better. I think .290 with 95 runs is a possibility. He seems to offer at too many pitches, and I have the sneaking suspicion that he has an underexposed wily mo-esque inability to hit breaking balls, but if he takes care of that he could be a Johnny Damon type lead off hitter with better speed.

[BoSox21]

3 1/2 hours until tonight's game...