Maxbialystock

Pay back. This time our guy got screwed.

For a guy hitting .173, Schoop is a tough out.

Nice!!!! Just out.

Whitlock. Like the little girl with a curl: when she was good, she was very, very good, and when she was not, she was horrid.

Tough break. Bogie did his part. This is what make baseball so unpredictable.

Screwed twice.

Nice slider by Soto, screwed by the ump.

Nicely said.

Dalbec is an embarrassment. His forte is hitting lefties and he's struck out twice tonight against lefties. And he is tied for the MLB lead in errors by a firstbaseman.

That knuckle curve is so lethal it's outlawed in 35 states.

Did Plawecki really pinch hit for Arroyo? And is Vazquez at 2B?

I'll be honest and say I thought Porcello had a complete repertoire of pitches. The problem was that none of them was especially good, nor was his command. He never, ever mastered the art of pitching low in the zone.

He was fearless with the 85 mph fastball.

If Cora had an ounce of sense, he'd send Ottavino out to pitch the 8th and have him throw a lot of breaking stuff.

Good memory. Agree.

Zoweeee!!!! Just maybe JDM's best dinger this year. Badly, badly needed. Tie game, and a brand new day.

I do think Cora has been outmanaged tonight. He was late pulling Perez, and his former boss seems to be making all the right moves.

Dalbec continues to be one of the most consistent batters on the Sox. Consistently bad. American League fans love their DH because pitchers are so awful at the plate. And I'm here to tell you the Sox have at least two pitchers--Dalbec and Cordero--regularly in the lineup.

You and several others on talksox are under the illusion that starting pitching is irrelevant. But tonight we have seen--so far, anyway--how the difference between starting pitchers can be decisive. The Sox have simply been unable to hit Mize. Their one run was obtained without a hit, and they have 3 singles, period.

Whining is analogous to griping, a wonderfully versatile verb. I usually don't gripe about umps or the weather, but often do about almost anything or anyone during games. I've tried to restrain myself this season because to date the Sox have been way better than expected.

NOAA map shows a lot of rain around Boston, but clearing by 7 or 8 at the latest.

Cinco De Mayo sure makes sense for these Sox. It also occurs to me that the MLBPA should celebrate Curt Flood's birthday.

If what you are doing is whining, I sure hope you keep it up because I'm the worst whiner and the scardest cat on talksox. ChickenLittle-like.

Your overall point is fair. That said, terrible in MLB is way different from terrible in the NBA or NFL or, I suspect, the NHL, which I don't follow. Why? Because the worst MLB teams can still win games. Right now the Tigers win a little better than 2.5 out of 10 games, which is pretty awful. The Sox have the 2d best winning percentage in MLB and win 6 out of 10 games. Odds are good that the Tigers can take 1 of 3 games vs. the Sox if only because the Sox cannot consistently win even 2 out of 3 games. Thus the Tigers had a shot last night when our BP imploded. Indeed, the Sox needed two minor miracles to win. Cabrera needed to hit into two GIDP's, the 2d one with the bases loaded and 1 out, and Barnes needed to get a super save with 5 straight outs and no runs scored--including Cabrera's GIDP in the top of the 8th. The numbers say Pivetta is so far one of the Sox three best pitchers, but he could also fade faster than a Chris Sale in August. I don't like Dalbec, but his success at U. Arizona, Portland (AA), Pawtucket (AAA), and Boston (one month last year) say I'm wrong. The bullpen is beginning to look like the Disney version of Night On Bald Mountain. Scary.

I remember it. I also remember when he got to the Majors.