Josh Beckett, Red Sox Shoot for Sweep of Angels in Afternoon Baseball

From Tony Lee, NESN.com:

When the Red Sox left Seattle on the heels of two straight damaging losses, things looked a tad grim. Consecutive wins over the reeling Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have brightened the skies.

With Josh Beckett on the mound Wednesday afternoon the Sox can finish their second sweep of the Angels this year and return home on a winning note.

Beckett, who returned from a two-month layoff Friday in Seattle, will have some tough acts to follow. Clay Buchholz threw seven superb innings in Boston’s 6-3 win in the series opener, and John Lackey worked into the eighth to get the victory in his return to Anaheim on Tuesday night.

The Sox are now 5-4 on their 10-game West Coast road trip.

Los Angeles, meanwhile, has lost six of seven and is fading fast, now 8 1/2 games behind Texas in the American League West and 13 behind wild card-leading Tampa Bay in the loss column.

Sox Trump O’s; Keep Pace In Races

Jon Lester took his dominance of the Baltimore Orioles to a new level last night on a beautiful evening at Fenway Park when the Boston Red Sox defeated the Orioles 9-3. Over seven innings, Lester spread five hits and only one run in a performance that allowed him to run his record against the Orioles to 12-0 lifetime against the Orioles. But, more importantly, the win let the Sox keep pace with the New York Yankees who beat the Toronto Blue Jays 11-3 early in the day. They were also able to keep their lead in the AL Wild Card as the Tampa Bay Rays also won yesterday with an 8-6 win over the Minnesota Twins.

Kevin Youkilis helped out with a 3-run 5th inning homerun that pretty much sealed the deal for the Orioles. JD Drew (2), Daniel Nava (1), Mike Cameron (1), and David Ortiz (1) also got in the RBI game for the Sox.

The Sox go for the sweep today as John Lackey (9-3, 4.46 ERA) takes the mound against Brian Matusz (2-9, 4.90 ERA) at 1:35pm.

Another feather in Lester’s cap – Boston Globe
Red Sox 9, Orioles 3: At least they crushed our hopes fast – CamdenChat.com
Lester remains perfect vs. Orioles – ESPN.com
O’s miss chance against Red Sox – Baltimore Sun
Youkilis ulitmate gamer – Boston Globe

Sox Can’t Capitalize on Yanks Loss

Even though the New York Yankees lost to the Seattle Mariners, the Boston Red Sox stayed one game out of first place in the AL East as they lost to the Tampa Bay Rays 9-4 on Thursday night. In the six innings he pitched, Daisuke Matsuzaka gave up three runs on six hits while striking out five and walking just two batters. His record dropped to 5-3 on the season. Despite the output of DH David Ortiz (2-3, 3 RBI, 1 Run), the Red Sox could only muster four runs. In fact, the Red Sox entire lineup had issues with three of their starters (Kevin Youkilis, Bill Hall, and Darnell McDonald) going a combined 0-for-11.

The Sox are off tonight as they prepare for a homestand at Fenway Park this weekend against the Baltimore Orioles. Your truly will be attending the game on Saturday night. Hopefully the update for that game will come with a few pictures!

Top spot eludes Red Sox – Boston Herald
Rays’ bats come alive in 9-4 win over Red Sox – Tampa Bay Online
Garza stymies Red Sox in Rays’ victory – MLB.com
Red Sox Baffled by Matt Garza As Rays Regain Some Swagger in AL East – NESN.com
Red Sox / Rays Boxscore – NESN.com

Manny Returns; Sox Sweep Dodgers

Manny Ramirez’s much anticipated return to Fenway Park this past weekend was relatively uneventful as the Boston Red Sox swept the Los Angeles Dodgers 10-6, 5-4, and 2-0 this past weekend. Manny was his typical self, going 4-for-12 with one home run and three runs scored. Despite his performance, the Red Sox starting pitching staff of Felix Doubront (1-0, 5.40), Tim Wakefield (2-5, 5.33), and Clay Bucholz (10-4, 2.47) spread 14 hits, 9 runs, 7 walks, and 12 strikeouts over 18 innings total innings. Bucholz became the first Sox pitcher this season to enter double digits in the win column.

The Sox now sit a mere 1 game out of first place in the AL East race and are tied for the Wild Card lead with the Tampa Bay Rays. After sweeping back to back series, they have a well-deserved day off today and get back at it tomorrow in Colorado when Jon Lester (8-2) takes the mound against Jhoulys Chacin (3-6).

Buchholz, Sox flying at finish – Boston Globe
Dodgers swept out of Boston in 2-0 loss – Los Angeles Times
Red-hot Pedroia puts on a show – Boston Globe
With 10 wins, Buchholz has arrived – ESPN.com
Red Sox / Dodgers Box Score – ESPN.com

Red Sox Rock O’s

Sorry for the absence of new posts here. Between the holiday weekend and travelling for work earlier this week, I haven’t had a whole lot of time to post.

Fear not, however, as I have been keeping up with my beloved Red Sox and not-quite-as-beloved-but-still-loved Celtics. And yesterday was nothing short of enjoyable as the Red Sox whooped up on the Baltimore Orioles 11-0. Clay Bucholz made Red Sox history as he became the first pitcher in the franchise’s storied history to win nine-straight road starts (this win was also his fifth straight win). He made his place in Red Sox lore by spreading five hits over nine innings of shutout baseball, leading the team to a win. The win was also Bucholz’s eight of the season, putting him in a tie with Tampa Bay Ray David Price for the lead in the AL East.

The O’s, who now have a MLB-worst record of 15-40 lost this game after their manager, Dave Trembley, was fired. They will try for their 16^th win of the season on Saturday at Camden Yards against Jon Lester (10-0 lifetime against the O’s) and the Boston Red Sox.

Clay Bucholz
Photo: Boston Herald

Orioles awful in Samuel’s debut as manager – Baltimore Sun
About last night: Another gem for Buchholz – Boston Herald
Buchholz isn’t lacking – Boston Globe
Worth a million Buchs – Boston Herald