Friday Musings, July 6

Cleaning out the cobwebs from a week out of the office...

• * What about that Jacoby Ellsbury kid. Speed, power, defense. I can't wait until he gets his September call up and the Sox are 15 games up in the AL East. We are definitely going to enjoy watching this guy play.
  
• * To that end, you almost wonder if someone slipped some video highlights of Ellsbury into Coco Crisp's locker with a note that said "watch out" because Coco sure has hit A LOT better over the last few weeks. Nice grand slam last night in the first against Tampon Bay.
• * The Red Sox midseason grades provided by Chad Finn this week were entertaining and I have to say, I agree with most of them. However, I take exception with the "D" Chad gave Joel Pineiro. Taking out a three game stretch in May where Pineiro basically came in for mop-up duty, Joel would have a 3.99 ERA. For the most part, he has been a serviceable right-handed option out of the bullpen and I can honestly say, I don't mind seeing him come into a game, even when it's a tight one.
  
• * The fact that the idiots on WEEI are still giving Ainge shit about trading for Ray Allen blows me away. I will bet anyone a rack of ribs that a) the Celt's aren't done dealing yet and b) that even as currently constituted, they are good enough to contend for the 3-4 spot in the East next year. Any takers?
• * Tell me something. How is it possible that the Yankees are listed as "players" in half of the trade rumors on ESPN Insider? I'm quite sure they are interested in anyone and everyone but they have little of value to trade -- both in the farm system, and in the "bigs" -- and have said that they will not trade Philip Hughes. On top of that, they are 12 games behind the Sox with next to no chance of catching them and are 8 back in the wild card with four teams in front of them. I'm not ruling out a playoff appearance for them but seriously, this would be a great opportunity for the Yanks to acquiesce, become sellers and take the opportunity to rebuild their team around key players like Wang, Cano, and Cabrera. Fortunately for the Sox and the rest of the AL East, that's not the way George thinks so expect more payroll, fewer prospects and lots more overpaid veterans by the trade deadline.
  
• * Is it heresy to start salivating about football season with the Sox in first place and cruising toward the AL East tile? Training camp starts next week and the season opener is just seven weeks away!

Let's keep our fingers crossed that Papi's HR touch returns this weekend in Comerica Park!

Who Wins at Coney Island Tomorrow?

Tomorrow is the most anticipated Nathan's hot dog eating contest in the last decade as Kobayashi looks to win 6 in a row amid swirling reports of an injured jaw. He has a chance to match Bjorn Borg's 6-straight titles at the Big W and put himself among the all-time greatest individual athletes (if he is not already there). However, huge competition this year most notably in 23 year old Joey Chestnuts who recently dropped 59.5 dogs a few weeks back in a tune up event to break Kobayashi's world record. I also think you could see a dark horse shock the world as both Pat Bertoletti and Arturo Rios will probably jump to early leads as they eat very fast. I don't know if they can sustain the pace throughout as both Kobayashi and Chestnuts are great closers but it all adds up to just a must see American event on the 4th of July!

Friday Musings

A few thoughts to kick off your July 4th weekend (although I gotta say, the holiday falling on a Wednesday this year really screws things up)

• * People are going to be split 50/50 on last night's trade by the Celtics. In case you fell into a temporary sports coma, the Celtics gave up Jeff Green (no. 5 pick) plus Mssrs. Szczerbiak and West for Ray Allen and Glen "Big Baby" Davis (no. 35 pick). I know the C's still need defense in a big way but I think this move gives the Celts a great shot at the no. 4 seed in the East behind Cleveland, Detroit and Miami. The Celtics also got Gabe Pruitt -- a guard out of USC -- who was considered by many to be a first round pick.
• * Following up my first thought, I sent an e-mail last night to my friend, Rich Gotham, the new President of the Celtics:

Rich,

Assuming the trade goes through, this is a great move for the C's for three reasons:

1. You get a guy that was one of the top five scorers in the league
2. Al Jefferson is still a Celtic (and 2007 All Star to be)
3. You didn't pick Yi Jianlian (I know Danny liked him but he was too long term a project)

I smell a great 2007-08 season brewing!!!

Aaron

• * The Yankees totally got "Lugo-ed" last night. They are up 8-6 in the 8th inning after scoring 4 runs and then what happens? It starts to pour. The game gets postponed with play to resume at a later date. Just when they thought they were going to break their four game losing streak. Like many other members of Red Sox Nation, I was crushed...
  
• * Fellow classmate of Melrose High School '86, Jeff Gorton, got let go as the assistant GM of the Bruins yesterday. It's hard to believe but this guy had been with the Bruins for 15 years. Yes, the same Bruins team that have seemingly had a new coach and GM every one of those fifteen years. Good luck Jeff -- I'm sure you'll land a nice job with a better franchise elsewhere.
• * The Sox need to make three moves before the trade deadline:
  1) get rid of Mirabelli for a real backup catcher
  2) find a replacement for Timlin in the bullpen (they may have one already in Delcarmen)
  3) pick up another "Cora" i.e. a serviceable veteran utility infielder that can backup Cora at short and Pedroia at second. Since there is no moving Lugo, he becomes a VERY expensive pinch runner/late inning defensive substitution for the Sox
• * Hope that one win was worth the $5M the Yanks have paid Rocket so far. Maybe the Bronx Bombers will be willing to trade Rocket for Matt Clement mid-season straight up.
  

Let's pray for another hot streak starting tonight so that we can officially put the AL East to bed by the All Star break!

Red Sox should jump on Buehrle

It certainly seems like there are some serious negotiations going on between the two Sox as Allard Baird was in Chicago scouting Buehrle over the weekend. The Red Sox should get this deal done provided it #1-doesn't cost them either Buchholtz and Ellsbury and #2-they can sign him to an extension. Buehrle is only 28 years old, has averaged over 15 wins in his first 6 full seasons in the bigs and in those 6 has never pitched less than 200 innings. From what I'm hearing it sounds like the Sox could probably complete the deal by offering SS prospect Jed Lowrie, P Michael Bowden and P Kason Gabbard.

This would give the Red Sox their top of the line rotation for years to come in Beckett (27), Dice-K (26) and Buehrle (28). They would still have Lester and Buchholtz to compete for the back-end of the rotation. Not only would I see this being great for Boston in the long-term but I think the Sox need Buehrle's arm for the rest of the regular season and the playoffs this year. If I'm Theo I look to get this deal done ASAP.

Desperate?

You know your team is in trouble when in late May, your captain starts telling the media that "every game from here on in is a playoff." That may work when your the Cleveland Cavaliers and you're down 2-0 to perennial powerhouse, Detroit, in the NBA Eastern Finals but not when you're the New York Yankees. The difference is, the Cavs knew they needed to win four games to make it to the NBA finals. The Yanks have to win closer to 64.

The Bronx Bombers did make a valiant effort at treating every game like a playoff after a horrific losing stretch put them 14 1/2 games behind the white hot Red Sox. The Yanks were able to win 14 of 17 and pull within 7 of the Sox. However, there's a reason why an MLB season is compared to a "marathon" vs. a "sprint" because there are 162 games to play over the course of five and a half months. That's A LOT of baseball.

This weekend, we saw the "playoff mentality" of the Yankees translate into desperation as the Giants took two of three from the men in pinstripes. When a team feels compelled to trot out their 45 year old "rent-an-ace" pitcher in relief in late June, it has problems. This is particularly concerning when the team's payroll is $190 million -- the largest in baseball -- and the team has has pitchers like Villone, Vizcaino, Proctor, Myers, Farnsworth and Rivera who are supposed to get the job done.

I understand that the Yanks played 13 innings on Saturday and had to burn through their their bullpen more than they would have liked, but therein lies the problem. If the Yankees hadn't fallen 14 1/2 games behind the Sox (6 1/2 back in the Wild Card) early on, they wouldn't be forced to make desperation moves this early.

The beauty of baseball is that anything can happen. The Oakland A's seem to demonstrate that in the second half of every season. The Minnesota Twins proved it to the Tigers as they came roaring back last year (although Detroit got the last laugh by making it to the "Fall Classic.") Certainly Sox Nation knows it can happen as Bucky "Bleeping" Dent and the season of 1978 will be forever emblazoned in their minds. I don't see it this year though. The Sox pitching is too good and their bats have yet to all get hot at the same time.

On a related note, how good does if feel knowing that you've already got a stacked rotation (third best ERA in MLB) with Jon Lester in the wings only to find out that your team is the front runner (at least according to ESPN) on the Mark Buehrle chase. It may be a ploy to bid up the market so that the Yanks can't get him but hey, I'm okay with that too!

Friday Musings

Several random thoughts/questions as we head into what promises to be an exciting summer:

1) I can honestly say that I would not want to be in Danny Ainge's shoes right now. In listening to WEEI, watching Sports Center and reading various articles/blog posts, it would appear that people are split down the middle 50/50 on whether or not to trade Jefferson, the no. 5 pick and Theo Ratliff for KG or Amare Stoudemire. Apparently, the KG deal has been called off because KG doesn't want to come to Boston (big surprise) and rumors are that the same thing is happening on the Stoudemire front.

In a perfect world, I say they draft Jeff Green (go Hoyas!) or Corey Brewer and then field offers for a package of Green/Brewer, Jefferson and Ratliffe's expiring contract. If someone of the caliber of a Kobe or Stoudemire comes along, seriously consider it. If not, roll the dice this year and consider a trade for Pierce at the deadline if the C's struggle. I would not do the KG deal because a) he's too old and b) he's never had post season success (accept on trip to the Western Conference Finals).

For more on this front, check out Simmons latest if you haven't seen it yet. He wrote an amusing article about the draft and who should draft/trade for whom.

2) It appears that Miguel Tejada's consecutive games streak of 1,152, the longest currently in the majors, is about to come to an end due to a fractured wrist. Amazingly, the player with the second longest streak at present is Juan Pierre with 343. Teixeira had owned the second longest with 507 but that ended last weekend when he was placed on the DL.

3) Can't wait for the Jake Peavey/Josh Beckett match up this weekend. I'm predicting a Sox 3-1 victory with two of the runs coming in the 8th or 9th inning. The series in general should be fantastic with a showcase of great hitting against great pitching.

4) Did anyone notice that the Bruin's hired a new coach...? Didn't think so.

5) I have a bet with my friend Lil' Jim that the Rocket goes on the DL in the next five days after yesterday's poor outing. Haven't heard any news to substantiate this but I just have a feeling. If it doesn't happen in the next five days, I guarantee it happens very soon. Ditto for Mssrs. Mussina and Pettite. Just as the Yanks are finding their sea legs.

6) Speaking of the Yankees, do you think it's frustrating to win 14 of 17 and creep back to within 7 1/2 of the Sox only to be swept by the Rockies while the Sox blank the Giants and take two out of three from Atlanta? I've gotta say, unless the Yanks can trick San Diego into trading Jake Peavey for Mike Meyers and then making similar deals for the likes of Vlad Guerrero, Big Papi and Albert Pujols, you can stick a fork in them. With Detroit, Cleveland, Anaheim, and even Seattle hanging tough along with the inevitable run that the A's and Twinkies will put together in the second half, I don't see the Yanks even sniffing the Wild Card (never mind the AL East). Kind of breaks my heart if you want to know the truth.

Play ball!

Theo Epstein...A Very Mixed Bag

I sincerely hope that Theo took Dave Roberts out to dinner every night this past weekend because his steal and subsequent 8 game run by the Red Sox dramatically changed the way Red Sox fans view our current GM. A review of his record show a very mixed bag at best yet his popularity remains very high because of their 2004 Championship where he is giving much credit for saving the season by trading Nosemar. Credit he should absolutely get but if Dave Roberts doesn't beat that throw by the slimmest of margins then the Sox would have been nothing but an also ran and Theo very well would not have a job right now.

Good moves by Theo?
Sure, he signed Ortiz for almost nothing and projected him as a backup for Jeremy Giambi. He traded for Schilling for a bunch of guys who haven't amounted to anything. He let Pedro walk instead of signing him for 4 years. He let Damon walk instead of signing him for 4 years. He hired Terry Francona as manager and while I still don't really like the guy I will give him his due as I think Terry has been very good and this season is by far his best managing job in my opinion.

Bad moves by Theo?
Free agent busts in Mendoza, Clement, Renteria, Bradford and Byung-Hyun Kim. Traded Cal Meredith and Josh Baird for Doug Mirabelli. He traded Josh Hancock for Jeremy Giambi. He traded Marte, Shoppach and Mota for Crisp, Riske and Josh Bard. He traded Freddie Sanchez, Mike Gonzalez and cash for Suppan, Lyon and Martinez.

Moves the jury is still out on by Theo?
Two recent ones that look awful so far are Lugo and Drew. Dice-K looks pretty good but it is still too early on all three.

Theo receives a ton of credit for reviving what most people perceived as an awful farm system when he took over. Really? He were the Sox top 10 prospects at that time:
1
Kevin Youkilis
2
Freddy Sanchez
3
Jorge de la Rosa
4
Kelly Shoppach
5
Hanley Ramirez
6
Chad Spann
7
David Murphy
8
Manny Delcarmen
9
Jeremy West
10
Juan Cedeno

There was some pretty good talent down on the farm when he took over although early returns do indicate that Theo has done a very good job of drafting good young arms and position players. Certainly Dustin Pedroia has exceeded expectations and I think Jacoby Ellsbury will be making a major impact on this team for years.

All in all a very mixed bag and one that doesn't mesh with his current popularity.

Note to Tito

1) Might not want to bring Mike Timlin in when there are guys on base. Last I checked, Timlin is one of the worst in the league at allowing inherited runners to score.
2) Come to think of it, Tito might not EVER want to bring in Timlin on account of the fact that he sucks 'cause he's old.
3) Has anyone seen Curt Schilling? There is an overweight guy that keeps leaving 88 mph fastballs over the plate for HRs that looks like Curt but definitely isn't the Curt of old. In spite of the 1-hitter against the A's, Theo is looking brighter by the day for not signing Schill to a contract extension.

UPDATE [6/19] : I just saw on Boston.com that Schilling is headed back to Boston for an MRI so he may be hurt. If so, that explains why his last two outings have been less than stellar. I'm wondering if he overdid it in his bid for a "no no"? Either way, I rescind my criticism of Schill-dog in the above post if that is the case.

Keeping Me Honest

Too often prognosticators make big predictions and then are never held accountable. Before the season started, I took a swag predicting records for the Sox starting five. Here's an update with a projected run rate for those five.

Note: I've subbed Julian Tavarez in for Papelbon given the change in their respective roles:

- C. Schilling: (prediction) 16-9 -------> (current) 6-3 ------> (projected*): 14-7
- J. Beckett: (prediction) 17-7 ---------> (current) 9-1 ------> (projected*): 21-2
- D. Matsuzaka: (prediction) 14-12 ----> (current) 8-5 ------> (projected*): 18-11-
- J. Tavarez: (prediction) 14-10 -------> (current): 4-4 ------> (projected*): 9-9
- T. Wakefield: (prediction) 12-14 -----> (current): 6-7 ------> (projected*): 14-16
- J. Lester: (prediction) 8-4 -----------> (current): 0-0 ------> (projected**): 8-4
- The rest: (prediction) 15-10 ---------> (current): 10-4 ------> (projected*: 20-9

Note: the Sox currently are currently 5th in the MLB for team ERA.

So far so good on my other prediction about the Sox being top five in the AL in runs scored, slugging %, OBP and OPS:

- Runs scored = 339 (5th)
- Slugging % = .432 (4th)
- OBP = .355 (2nd)
- OPS = .787 (4th)

One other thing. You know you live in Boston when you have an 8 1/2 game lead over the number two team and possess the best record in baseball and fans still find themselves looking over their shoulders...

*According to ESPN.com (straight line projections)
**My best guess

Julian Rising

Am I the only member of Red Sox nation that now feels that Julian Tavarez gives the Sox their best shot at winning on a day in/day out basis? Now obviously Beckett is the Sox current ace at 9-1 (the 6.8 runs/game has not hurt his cause.) However, he's had a couple of shaky starts over the last month. Schilling, Dice-K and Wakefield have all had their recent gems but all have also had their shit pies too.

Julian Tavarez has not only pitched an average of six innings per game over his last seven games but he's also matched up against the opposing team's ace in several of his starts -- the A's Haren, the Yank's Mussina, the Twin's Santana, the Jay's Halladay - twice, the Ranger's Millwood and the Giant's Zito. That's a tough stretch of pitchers. Tavarez has also only given up more than four runs twice (five against the O's and 6 against the Jays).

What's been so clutch about Tavarez this year is the fact that he actually gives the Sox a shot at winning. Remember last year when the likes of Jason Johnson, Kyle Snyder, et. al were crapping the bed every fifth day? Now I actually look forward to the days when Tavarez is pitching.

As much as I'd like to see Lester called up sooner rather than later, I'm not convinced he's going to give us any more than Tavarez has this season. In fact, I'd be fine with the Sox holding off on bringing Lester up until someone gets hurt or they need him for a spot start. The guy is what, 22? Give him a little time.

Random note I: God love the Mets for blanking Roger and the Yanks tonight. Not that I was getting nervous but seeing the Sox lead over the Yanks shrink by seven games in ten days was giving me a negative boner. Dare I say that it looks like JD Drew might be breaking out of his slump? Other than last night where he actually crushed the ball a few times, he's started to put together some decent at bats. That could go a long way toward igniting this line up.

Random note II: how is it possible that Maglio Ordonez can look in the mirror and not say, "oh my God, I look like an absolute dufus?" If he hasn't, he should.

Oh yeah, and what about that Pedroia kid. 5 for 5. Are you kidding me? Dustin, shame on us for ever doubting you...

Missing: Red Sox Offense

Last seen firing on all cylinders 2003/2004.
Formerly answered to, Cowboy Up, and, We're just Idiots.

So, where o' where has the once mighty Red Sox offense gone? Obviously this wasn't the main issue last night, but it was a big one. Some timely hitting might have motivated our pitching staff just enough to keep the game within reach. However, they never came through with the clutch hit, which seems to be way too big of a theme this year. Eeking out 1-0 or 2-1 wins is scary. Even worse, losing games 2-0, or 3-2 (all of which happened in the last two weeks).

I remember in '03/'04 you'd look up and down the lineup and 1-9 and just about anyone could come up big, and we were a damn scary team to face.

This year our offense has some enormous holes, and we could even get blanked on any given night. The main culprits go by the names of Drew, Crisp, and Lugo. Out of those three, I don't know what it is, but I think Lugo has the best chance of rebounding. JD Drew, I fear is going to be the $70m mistake people thought he might be…and Coco. I just can't seem to get a read on him. I keep thinking he's going to turn it around, but game after game he doesn't come up with the key hit…and that stance looks so freakin' awkward it's hard to imagine hitting consistently like that.

On top of that, you've got Mirabelli every 5th day. Our best bat off the bench is Cora, and he isn't exactly the Mr Clutch he was in April/May (though I'm still a huge fan). Hinske and Pena are downright miserable, and you can only hope for the occasional 500 foot home run from Pena. Other than that you just wait for him to strike out on the next breaking ball.

Papi is hitting, but not hitting the ball out of the park at his usual rate. Manny is bringing the average back, but same thing. Varitek is actually coming through occasionally, but then he'll look like the Varitek from the end of last year with horrible swings where he looks like he's actually falling away from the plate.

So basically you've got Kevin Youkilis and Mike Lowell carrying the offense at this point. My bet is that they can't carry it all year. Oh, and Pedroia has turned into a pleasant surprise after his scary start.

This is all leading up to the point, that I think something has to be done. You need to make a move soon to bolster this offense. One big bat might even be enough to spark the rest of the lineup.

As I said before. Drew is immovable due to his contract. Likely Lugo too (and you just have to hope that those two are eventually going to live up to their contracts). I think you really need to consider a Crisp/Pena combo to a team that's willing to take on relatively small salaries for some potential upside. The Rooster mentioned trying to nab Lofton or Hatteberg. Both sound intriguing.

Whatever it is, I think it's safe to say that you're not going to win another championship if the offense doesn't pick it up. While good options are down on the farm for the outfield, I think we're going to need at least one big trade to make this team complete.

One last thought to consider: Julian Tavarez, batting 1.000.

Cheers,
-JS

What Fuels the Rocket?

I am absolutely convinced that Bonds, Sosa, McGuire as well as a huge number of major league ballplayers used and continue to use steroids and HGH. In my opinion pitchers are using every bit as much as hitters. I thought ever since Clemens left Boston he was on something and Kevin Hench wrote a stellar piece for Fox Sports on the possibility:
Kevin Hench

I went to the University of Rhode Island from '89 to '94 and 30% of my fraternity brothers were on steroids just in order to lift more and look bigger walking around campus. My buddies on the football team told me greater than 50% of the team was on something and Rhody football was only 1AA. These guys had almost nothing to gain except maybe a blow job from a co-ed who likes muscles and considering the frequency that Rhody girls went down on my non-steroid self I'm not sure it was at all needed.

Fast forward more than a decade and scientist have developed synthetic steroids and places like BALCO have learned how to maximize the results and minimize the negative effects of performance enhancing drugs. Hell, there is no known test for HGH so a player can take it without any worries. There are millions of dollars at stake for these guys and even more important than money for some is the opportunity to break records and cement their place in baseball history.

If the non-using ballplayers were to stand up and complain about those doing drugs I would be in their corner. However, nobody has ever spoken up so until I hear they have an issue with it I'm not really going to complain. Heck, as a fan I appreciate these athletes maximizing their skills via drugs because it makes for a higher level of competition. However, lets not try to pretend that use isn't rampant today even with baseball's new steroid policy. The media shouldn't just call out Barry Bonds and not ask the same type of critical questions about Roger Clemens. Drug use doesn't begin and end with Barry and Roger by a long shot but they are the two biggest names in the sport and as such will receive the most media coverage. It seems very odd that one only gets darts thrown at him while the other only gets roses.

No "No No"

What a game. What a performance. Man did the Sox need yesterday's win. Driving through Boston after Wednesday night's fourth straight heart-breaker, I could swear I saw a few Red Sox fans teetering on the top of the Pru.

Speaking of heart breaking, I can't believe that Curt got within one out of the "no no" yesterday. I watched the last three innings of the game from the hospital (my third child, Audrey Catherine" was born last night). I joked with my wife as she lay her hospital bed dealing with the pain of contractions every fifteen minutes, "Honey, if Curt gets a no hitter today, we're going to have to go with 'Schilling' or 'Curtwina' for our daughter's middle name." Surprisingly, my wife was not amused by this notion.

Fortunately for my wife -- and daughter -- Shannon Stewart ended Schilling's bid for history with two outs in the ninth. In some ways, this was a blessing in disguise. Can you imagine the guilt Lugo would have felt knowing that he was the reason that Curt missed pitching the 18th perfect game in the history of Major League Baseball? Why has nobody mentioned this by the way? I know it's a moot point but when Lugo made his error in the seventh, all I could think was, "Lugo just blew Schilling's perfect game."

Being a glass half full kind of guy, I'll look at the fact that Schilling came up huge yesterday in spite of missing out on the "no no." He did what a stopper is supposed to do -- he won. That in the face of another anemic offensive performance. Can you imagine the pressure of pitching with a one run lead in a game knowing that a) you had to win and b) you really needed to go at least seven if not eight innings in order to spare your overworked bullpen?

Let's hope things turn around for the Sox bats this weekend. I guess at this point, they can't get much worse. One strategy they might employ is when they have a runner on first is to ALWAYS lay down a sacrifice bunt. Yes, I'm recommending this even if Ortiz or Manny is at the plate. How many double plays have they hit into in the last three games. Seven?

On that note, let's play ball!

Tough series ahead

Well, fortunately for the Sox, they will miss Randy Johnson in this series and get the #4 and #5 part of Arizona's pitching line-up, before having to face stud-boy Brandon Webb on Sunday. Unfortunately for the Sox, the #4 and #5 are pretty darn good this season. 4-6, but with a 3.05 era, and 4-1, 3.86 era, respectively. They also have some pretty strong middle guys like Pena and Lyon, and a closer with 21 of 24 saves converted in Velarde. Hope the Sox left their wiffle-ball bats in Oakland and brought the real wood home with them. While the D-Backs' hitting is less than stellar, they are ranked 4th in the majors in pitching. Maybe some more 3-2, 1-0 games, hopefully with the good guys on top.

Go Sox.

Rooster Ramblings

-- Here’s a sentence I never thought I’d write: I’ll be relieved if the Sox have a double digit lead over the Yankees at the All-Star break.

-- Manny’s agent should send J.D. Drew a thank you card. He has single-handedly made Manny seems like Lou Gehrig after years of complaints about Ramirez' mysterious line-up no-shows. Fact is, Manny has played more games than Derek Jeter since 2003. And the Japanese Iron Horse, Hideki Matsui? 68 fewer games played than Manny since 2003. The only shame here is that we have to suffer through J.D. Drew to fully appreciate what we’ve had in left field. Hopefully, Manny’s here for many more 100 RBI seasons.

-- I’ll be stunned if the Celtics don’t draft the Chinese 7-footer, Yi Jianlian, if he’s there at No. 5. Our comrade-in-blog Junior Gong makes a great counterpoint that Ainge needs to get the most NBA-ready player to save his job. Still, I can’t see Wyc Grousbeck turning his back on the potential marketing income from China. Call it the Dice K ripple effect. Jianlian’s sure to move a lot of green jerseys overseas – he’s already got his own Nike commercial in rotation in China. We can only hope he’s good enough to crack the C’s rotation here.

-- Time to kill a myth left over from the NFL draft. One of the more oft-quoted lines – from Mel Kiper to Trey Wingo – was “you don’t pass up a potential franchise quarterback with the first pick if your team needs one.” The Raiders were hailed for following this rule and the Dolphins were KILLED for ignoring it and leaving Brady Quinn on the board. After hearing that concept spouted a million times in a week, you actually start to think it makes perfect sense. One small problem -- it doesn’t make sense at all. If any one man has shown the folly in this concept, it’s A.J. Smith of the San Diego Chargers. Twice in the last six drafts, Smith has been in the No. 1 spot where his team could’ve had Mike Vick and Eli Manning, both hailed as franchise saviors at the time. In both cases, the Chargers went away from the franchise QB (Manning actually forced them, too) and spun those two picks into LaDanian Tomlinson, Shawn Merriman, Philip Rivers, Nate Kaeding, Roman Oben, Tim Dwight, Reche Caldwell and Tay Cody. Not a bad haul, eh? By going away from the lure of the savior college QB, the Chargers actually saved their franchise. On the flip side, the Falcons are left with an all-star dogfighter and the Giants have a poor-man’s David Carr. Ouch. So what does this mean to the Raiders and Dolphins? If the Chargers are any guide, both franchises will regret not trading out of their spots to address more needs.

-- I’m a huge hoops fan, and like many of you, I miss the Celtic glory days. However, as much as it sucks to see Tim Duncan still raising trophies with the Spurs rather than here in Boston, not once have I ever watched Duncan play and actually felt cheated I haven’t had the chance to watch him play every night. I know, I know – he’s one the all-time greats, but has anyone ever considered a Tim Duncan game required TV viewing?

-- Just curious: are we SURE that Flip Saunders knows defensive double-teams are allowed in the NBA?

June Sw_ _ n and Franc the Tank.

Hope these past few games are not a sign of things to come. Looking at the standings, it seems as if the Sox need to really worry about not dropping the ball against the other divisions in a strong American League, rather than a comparitively weak East. 6 of those 9 teams are at least .500, with some of them well over the mark. The ChiSox are only a few games under, and the Angels actually have more wins than Boston does. While the Rangers just flat-out suck, even KC has given the BoSox trouble at times in recent years. Games against Arizona, Atlanta, and San Fran are gonna be tough games as well.

Fortunately, this is their first stumble this season, and even the great teams are due a losing streak here and there. They are definitely talented enough to be able to right the ship after these past few days, but if they dont watch out, a 10 game lead can quickly turn into a 7, 6, or 5 game lead with plenty of baseball left to play. Hope Schilling can stop the bleeding tonight, followed by another Beckett gem. Maybe Theo does need to pull a trade for another bat sooner than expected, but damn, that catch by CoCo last night was sweet, and good defense like that doesnt always come around so easily. Saving runs can be just as important as scoring runs.

Much respect for Tito last night in getting thrown out over one of the worst strike calls I have ever seen. Cool to see him whip the chaw from his mouth, and especially cool when another umpire tried to butt in, only to have Francona tell him to butt-out. He must have said, "All Fuckin' Night" a half-dozen times. Great stuff. Real stuff. Not like the crap that Lou-ser Piniella pulled this past week. (But certainly not as creative as the minor league manager who threw the rosin bag grenade.) Hope this can provide a spark to the team. Go Sox.

For a good laugh..

Check out Matt Damon on Letterman last night.. Speaking about the Sox, Yankees, Clemens, and laughing in the face of all those New yorkers. Good stuff...

Cheers.

Moves?

Trading deadline starting to inch closer. If things don't change I think you need a bat in the outfield, as Coco/Drew/Pena/Hinske, cannot seem to get it together. Since Drew is untradable (wow is this turning out to be a crap deal) I think it'll have to be some type of combo of Coco/Pena/Hinske, for I don't know who. Even though I really don't want to move Coco, I think it's getting to that point where you have to consider it.

Also, we need a backup catcher. Mirabelli is older than Varitek…oh and he sucks. He can catch Wake and has an occasional big hit. But he can't run the staff and his bat is too weak. And Kottaras waiting in the wings is not a good security blanket.

I never propose trade targets since I never know what makes a guy available. BTW, I heard that NY and Chicago are talking about an Abreu for Jermaine Dye trade. Ummm…I don't get it. Why the f*ck would you do that if you were Chicago? It's like the Yankees can cast some spell on other teams that make them trade away their best players to them. I guess that spell is called, CASH. Oh well. Maybe the newly spendy Red Sox should try and move in on Dye. Something needs to happen to bolster the end of the lineup. Minor holes to fill. Good problems to have.

Cheers,
-JS

Lowell to the Bruins?

As a Florida Marlins fan and a big Mike Lowell fan, may I be the first to say how feckin' cool it was to see Mikey put -a-hurtin' on Robinson Cano yesterday, (even though he was able turn the double-play). Not much to opine upon, but Ive seen alot of baseball, as have we all, and cannot remember ever seeing a play like that one- at least so far away from the ice. I mean, he waited for Cano to get anywhere near him, got set up, and then checked Cano. Hockey style. Lowell is as genuinely nice a guy as you will ever know, and it was a clean play, but WOW- what a baller. It was great. As was his 3-4, 4 RBI day against the Yanks.

And as for Doug Mientkiewicz, do ya'll think that he wants to keep the ball that he almost caught before getting clobbered by Bonecrusher Lowell?

Quid pro quo

It is pretty much the only Latin phrase I know and strikes me as the most plausible reason that Theo shelled out $70M over 5 for this stiff in right field. There had to have been a deal brokered by Boras that signing JD equals signing Dice-K. I don't find myself in agreement much with Bob Ryan but boy did he tag this one on that conference call with Theo before the deal was finalized. How bad have things gotten? Well, the vast majority of fans were most concerned about Drew's ability to stay on the field when this deal was announced and yet last night most were probably pumped to have him out of the game with a sore hammy. I would love to see him go on the DL right now because Hinske looks like an upgrade. At the very least can we get him out of the 5-hole already? Manny is heating up like crazy right now but he isn't going to get any pitches with Nancy batting behind him. I thought at the beginning of the season that Jacoby Ellsbury very well might be brought up in the 2nd half to take over for Coco in center field but now I'm wondering if we might need him to replace Drew. Theo has made a lot of questionable moves but none look worse right now than JD. For my sanity please tell me there was a Quid pro quo.