7/12, Red Sox vs. Athletics, Stomp the Elephant

[jung]

Game time 10:05 Eastern

 

Tonight we get John Lackey, 6-6, 2.80 ERA vs. Jarrod Parker, 6-6, 4.04 ERA. Lets start the the three game set the right way and stomp this circus act. Go Sox....Go John!

 

Recently, playing the A's means confronting Josh Reddick and his vengeful desire to punish the Sox for having cut him away. Reddick is in the lineup tonight. All players like to show up the team that let them go but Reddick seems to really relish opportunities against the Sox. Vengeance can be a powerful but decidedly negative force.

 

Therefore I will invoke totally positive New England forces to counter the evil Mr. Reddick, one non-sports related and one sports related.

 

For tonight's non-sports reference, since it is July and just past Independence Day, I invoke the spirit of Old Ironsides, The USS Constitution. Got those big guns aimed right at your gonads Josh.

 

For tonight's sports reference, I invoke the Spirit of.......Bobby Orr. That's right Josh....Bobby Orr circling the old Garden ice with you stuck on the end of his hockey stick....Better stay in line Josh...all it takes is one little twist of a hockey stick between the legs like that and you are singing soprano. Better not take any chances....an 0-fer at the plate and an error in the field would be your safest bet tonight Josh. Tell your buddy Jed that Bobby is watching his ass too and there is plenty of room for him on the end of that stick.

[Thunder]

Same records, but Lackey has a much lower ERA. WIN!

[Jasonbay44]

Nice inning for Lackey

[Jasonbay44]

I swear Nava gets hit more than any other player in the league.

[User Name]

You really don't know who Shin-Soo Choo is do ya?

[Jasonbay44]

I know who he is, but I haven't seen a Reds game all year. How the hell has he been hit 20 times already?!?

[italstallianion]

I would have guessed it to be Quentin. Youkilis got hit a lot back when he played.

[Disciples_of_Mueller]

Matt Thornton to the Sox for OF Brandon Jacobs and cash. Miller to the 60-day DL.

 

F*ck yes. Nice job, Ben!

[a700hitter]

We acquired Matt Thornton for Brad Jacobs.

[Jasonbay44]

Is Jacobs a good prospect? I've heard his name, but know basically nothing about him.

[Disciples_of_Mueller]

Is Jacobs a good prospect? I've heard his name, but know basically nothing about him.

 

Don't know too much about him. Very young (22), supposed to be very good, but has not panned out so far at all. I remember reading something like a 30% strikeout rate. Seems like a guy with tons of tools but probably won't put them all together.

Edited July 13, 2013 by Disciples_of_Mueller

[Jasonbay44]

Brock Holt!

[a700hitter]

The A's are throwing the ball all over the place. They look amateurish.

[italstallianion]

Got Parker to 44 pitches after 2. Not bad.

[Jasonbay44]

Got Parker to 44 pitches after 2. Not bad.

Very nice, especially considering Parker retired Ellsbury and Victorino with a combined 4 pitches.

[SoxFanForsyth]

Brandon Jackbs flashed some power during the 2011 season and make some top 100 lists but has fallen off the map over the past year and a half. Still young enough to recover but by no means was a blue chip or something that hurt to trade.

 

Fantastic pick up by the Sox IMO.

[Jasonbay44]

Don't know too much about him. Very young (22), supposed to be very good, but has not panned out so far at all. I remember reading something like a 30% strikeout rate. Seems like a guy with tons of tools but probably won't put them all together.

 

Sounds like a good trade to me then. Thornton is a solid reliever.

[italstallianion]

Very nice, especially considering Parker retired Ellsbury and Victorino with a combined 4 pitches.

 

Ellsbury was the last out of the inning.

[Disciples_of_Mueller]

Sounds like a good trade to me then. Thornton is a solid reliever.

 

Especially against lefties (.173). An even better pickup given that Miller is done for the year.

[jung]

Josh Rasputin walked.....pure evil.

[Jasonbay44]

Ellsbury was the last out of the inning.

 

I meant in the first inning, Parker had a really easy inning pitch count wise due to Ellsbury and Victorino being retired quickly.

[jung]

That was a very strange looking inning for Lackey there. Seemed very tentative and a bit unsure of himself. Maybe he has not pitched to many of these guys.

 

That shot from behind home plate makes this place look even larger than it really is.

[jung]

Kinda' surprised by Crisp staying in a ML starting lineup this long. 9 bombs this year. 9 bombs???? Where the heck is that coming from?

[SeanJohn93]

Reddick only has 3 hr's this year too

[jung]

Can't keep walking guys John.

 

Got him set up to go back outside and that is where I would prefer he go against Rasputin.

Edited July 13, 2013 by jung

[jung]

Is this like maybe the best park in the AL to just let hitters hit fly balls to the OF as long as you have guys that can go get it? Seems like there is so much room out there and the ball just seems to die to all fields.

[jung]

What the f*** ump. Really finally saw a strike there did ya'

[Station 13]

f***ing s*** play Victorino.

 

And nice play Pedroia.

[Jasonbay44]

What a play by Pedroia!

[jung]

That was one of the few really bad plays Vic has made in RF this year. Clearly he was trying that stupid toss to First Base cause there was no other reason to rush like that and he bobbled it. Pedey bails his ass out with the DP.

 

By his own admission, Vic has NEVER caught anybody with that toss to First Base. When you start making errors trying something with a 0 success rate, it is time to rethink it.