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13 in a row for Josh.

That's YO. Look around the AL. Tell me which teams one can legitimately call "playoff caliber". Hmmm, the Angels, Tigers, Red Sox, Yankees and... Guardians. It's still an exclusive group, but as long as the Yankees are looking up at them I wouldn't be ripping on the Guardians. That's just IMO.

I do. He is 'on' tonight, and has been pitching really well the past two months or so. He has his release point and his cruising tonight. Felix was on in that game earlier this year, and he has been off numerous times since. Watching the Mariners and Sox in Matsuzaka's home debut, one would be hard pressed to see any flaws in Felix. It comes and goes. Goes a lot more with mediocre pitchers.

Tough game... Fausto is pitching really well. So is Beckett.

This I could agree with, but I don't think Beckett needs to throw at anybody the way he's throwing. He's got great stuff this year (even though he's losing 0-1).

He needs to shut it if he's arguing balls and strikes, not if he's complaining that he's being thrown at.

For a season until Lowell moves on. The Sox would save the 8 million that Lowell would ask for and have this year's version of Andy Marte in the wings. The point is that, as mentioned above, there is likely something in place involving either Youkilis or Lowell. Probably Lowell, as LaRoche is a 3B.

Yeah, who wants one of the top 25 prospects in baseball (as rated in the BA Prospect Handbook, 2007), and the Dodgers top prospect (same source)? This team certainly couldn't use him since we have an aging, expensive and traditionally bad 2nd half player at 3B now. He would be the Sox top offensive prospect immediately. Trade bullpen help for him. YES. Do it. Would you trade Julian Tavarez for Jacoby Ellsbury? I sure as hell would. I would probably move Delcarman, though he is an important piece to this season--it seems--it would be a move for the future.

I think the Sox should propose something that is either Youk or Lowell. Youk is a valuable player. If we give him up then we should give up less in some other area. Given Lester's clean health right now, his age, and his MLB readiness, I think he is pretty valuable. Youk is pretty valuable. I would offer a sweeter package of youngsters to get the Rangers to take Lowell, but the more I think about it I see Youk as the logical piece. I have a weird feeling about karma and dealing Youk, but baseball-wise Teixeira is just too good to pass up. He's not 'just a bit' better than youkilis. He switch hits and had 43 HR and 144 RBI two seasons ago. Youk is on pace for 15 HR and 81 RBI this season. Nearly half. In any case, Teixeira puts up numbers that are closer to those of David Ortiz than Kevin Youkilis. In the Sox system I can only imagine that he would develop even more. Youkilis should be considered as better than a top prospect like Ellsbury, given his experience and ability to produce on both sides of the ball immediately. If there is ANY way to move Lowell instead I think they should do it. A deal involving Lowell, WMP, Lester, Bowden? That would be a high price, but I would consider it to keep Youkilis. His OBP skills, cheap price tag, positional versitility, and relationship with the fans make it hard to deal him.

You don't find elite closers like Papelbon, it's true. The thing is, you only need one closer, but you need 5 starters. So while it is harder to find very good closers, there are fewer spots for them and therefore fewer who are established. The thinking is that there are pitchers out there who can do the job of closer. Look at some of the closers out there now. Wickman? Todd Jones? Ryan Dempster? most of these guys are successful most of the time, but I wouldn't say they are elite by any stretch. I think that the Sox think they can get a really good second option that would allow them to mold Papelbon into a dominant starter. I don't know if it is going to work, or whether they will be able to get someone. I would really be happy either way. Papelbon's numbers would obviously go up over the course of the season. I think it is reasonable to expect that Papelbon could be a 3.60 ERA, 200 ip pitcher. Stretch his stuff out over 7-8 innings and I think you're looking at a pitcher who could be as effective as Buerhle has been the past 3 years. Those guys don't grow on trees. Papelbon is a hell of a pitcher, in any case. I thought it was suspicious that he suddenly was losing sleep about wanting to close when the sox had such a huge hole in that position. The Sox hoped someone else would step up, nobody did, so he was the best option.

in '08 (assuming the Twinkies pick up his option)...

Where does Nathan come from?

Then the question becomes who do the Sox turn to for starters in the next few years? I kow Beckett and Matsuzaka, but beyond that they would certainly still need answers. I would guess that at this point the Red Sox have agreed with themselves that Buchholz is untouchable. If they give up Buchholz, then also selling Lester and Ellsbury would be too much. At this point I would rather have Buchholz than Willis. It is interesting, and I wouldn't hate the Sox for pulling this deal off.

It doesn't 'make a whole lot of sense... although Willis is better than he's been recently. My guess is that the payroll disparity between teams like Boston and FLA extend to pitching coaches and mechanics analysis as well, no? So Willis would probably do better. Cabrera, uhhh, yes please. 100 LBs...? Sounds like he's due for a workout plan and a larger contract. Someone get on him for being heavy and watch his weight plummet back to its normal weight. I think Lester, Hansen, BOWDEN and Ellsbury would be a more reasonable deal. If there is a way to pull this deal off without dealing Buchholz that would be great. I don't really believe the rumor either, unless there was something the Sox could do with Youk or Lowell. This to me sounds like the most logical solution for what it would take to get Cabrera and Willis. I seriously doubt the Sox sell their untouchable prospects in one swoop.

Red Sox win. Yankees runs wasted.

I was thinking the same thing at the time. If you want leverage I would be willling to bet that situation had the most in the game after the sox went ahead.

If Beckham can start a trend where MLS teams go out and get the elite level players in the world, then MLS could take off. In soccer they ultimately determine who the best country and the best club teams are in the world. It would be cool if a team like LA could land a Schevchenko or Henry or someone of that caliber (or younger stars), and create what the true club teams in Europe look like. Soccer is fun to watch when good players are playing, but it is really fun to watch when you watch the best in the world.

So... it appears to me that the Sox offense is back, and their pitching just keeps rolling along. Great starts (so far) from Wakefield and Gabbard. Lester is up tomorrow night... Matsuzaka Beckett Schilling Wakefield Gabbard/Lester I believe that is the official 'rotation' (not ranked from first to worst) as it stands now. I really think the Sox will use Buchholz this season, and I'm not convinced that it will be solely from the bullpen. He may be too good to keep in the pen, especially with the other support we may have out there.