Sweet September

We’re now entering some really nice days on the sports calendar and with the weather. The kids have returned to school, the weather is (hopefully) getting cooler and the NFL kicks off a new season this week. What more could you ask for?

Sox and Tampa Bay:

OK, maybe this September is not so sweet for the Red Sox, as they’re playing out the string with a patchwork crew. The Sox opened up a three-game set on Monday with Tampa Bay. Prior to the game, they recalled OF Josh Reddick and 1B Lars Anderson from Pawtucket as well as activating Varitek from the DL. Reddick has been up and down with the big club over the last two years while Anderson is coming to Boston for the first time. At one time, Anderson was considered to be a highly-prized prospect, though it now appears that his ship has sailed. Whether these kids are being brought up to showcase their skills or just as September cannon fodder remains to be seen. Prior to the game, the Sox celebrated Luis Tiant’s 70th (70th? My God, where does the time go?) birthday by having him throw out the ceremonial first pitch. Also taking part in the ceremonies were Dwight Evans, Bill Lee and Johnny Pesky.

In the opener, Jon Lester (15-8, 3.27) got the call, opposed by Jeff Niemann (10-5, 3.97). BJ Upton led off the first with a hard single to left, stole second and scored on Crawford’s single to right. With two outs in the bottom of the first, Martinez walked and Ortiz rocked a two-run shot to right. What was poignant about the moment was a camera shot of a kid holding a sign imploring Big Papi to hit one out for his birthday. The replay showing the kid watching the ball go over the wall was priceless. For a few moments, all of the disappointment of the season vanished. Two pitches later, Beltre ripped a shot into the Monster Seats to put the Sox up 3-1. Kalish led off the bottom of the second with a single and stole second. Lars Anderson (who has a hole in his swing bigger than Alaska) then had his first big-league at bat and struck out. With two outs, Nava and Drew walked to load the bases and Niemann was over 60 pitches. Victor Martinez followed with a line drive single to right, driving in Kalish and Nava, making it a 5-1 game. Maddon had seen enough of Niemann at that point and called on Andy Sonnanstine to stop the bleeding. Not a good move there, as Big Papi rocked a double high atop the wall, scoring Drew. The first two innings were played in a not-so crisp 1:10. The Rays loaded the bases in the third with two outs before Sean Rodriguez hit a hard grounder to third that “ate up” Beltre and a run scored. Lester was able to end the threat by striking out Baldelli (a really decent kid who suffers from a mitochondrial disorder and recently returned to the club after spending part of the year in the Rays’ front office). In the bottom of the fourth, Nava and Drew started off with back-to-back singles. With two outs, Beltre was given a free pass and Lowrie followed with another walk to make it 7-2. Kalish stepped up to the plate and brought everyone home by popping a shot into the bullpen and it was 11-2. Robert Coello (another independent league find) entered in relief of Lester to open the seventh and quickly loaded the bases on three singles with one out. Brad Hawpe (recently signed by the Rays after having been let go by Colorado) walked to bring in a run as poor Coello’s composure was unraveling. Desmond Jennings (the Rays’ future star-in-waiting) stepped to the plate and walked on four pitches. There’s a time and a place for breaking a youngster into the majors, but even a nine-run lead was not safe enough for Coello. Best to send him to the far end of the bullpen and have him learn when the Sox are behind by nine runs. Dustin Richardson came on and walked Pena, so he was lifted right away as well. Oh No Atchison entered and retired the first batter on a foul pop and then Baldelli flew out to right. Kalish led off the bottom half of the seventh with a walk and stole second. Anderson (0-3, 2K) actually got some “wood on the ball” by sending the ball—and most of the bat down to second base. The broken bat may have travelled further than the ball but Kalish was able to move to third on the play. Navarro followed with a sacrifice fly to center and Kalish came in with the Sox’ 12th run. Perhaps a seven-run lead is a decent opportunity to let Okey-Doke have another go…the hour had grown late and most of the patrons had already made their way toward the exits. Could he retire the side in order? Yes, Sox win 12-5.

On Tuesday night (9/7), Daisuke (9-4, 4.29) faced David Price (16-6, 2.92), a tall task indeed. Folks in attendance could not have asked for a better night weather-wise. It was 79° with a slight wind blowing out to left. Marco Scutaro’s MRI revealed that he has some tears of the rotator cuff in his right shoulder but will not require surgery. Still, as a precaution, he’s being moved to second and Lowrie will play short. With a tough lefty out there for the Rays, every available right-handed bat found a place in the lineup. Carl Crawford hit a ground-rule double with two outs. Longoria followed with a walk, but Pena flied out to Hall in left and Sox fans were spared the sight of Crawford crossing the plate for now. Crawford is set to cash in big time in free agency over the winter and Sox fans are prayin’ he won’t be getting fitted in pinstripes. In the bottom of the first, Scutaro led off with an infield single that bounced off of the usually defensively reliable Pena’s glove. McDonald followed with a walk and VMart rocked a double off the wall, scoring both runners. Martinez simply kills lefthanded pitching. On the other hand, Big Papi is currently hitting .205 against southpaws. With one out in the third, John Jaso doubled to left and Ben Zobrist followed with a long two-run homer to center. Crawford doubled off the wall. In the bottom half, the Sox got some action brewing as McDonald walked and stole second and Martinez singled to right. Beltre followed with a weak grounder back to Price; McDonald broke for home too soon and was caught in a rundown. Daisuke started off the fourth with back-to-back walks of Joyce and Johnson. Upton put down a bunt that Daisuke retreived, but threw too late to third to force Joyce, bases loaded nobody out. Daisuke then walked Bartlett and Joyce came in with the go-ahead run. With one out, Zobrist singled to left to make it 4-2, then Crawford (who else?) lashed a double down the rightfield line to make it 6-2. The guy simply annihillates the Red Sox. In the fifth, Bartlett rocked a two-run shot off the light tower stanchion with two outs to make it 8-2. That was sayonara for Daisuke. Dustin Richardson was first up from the “Cast of Thousands” bullpen and promptly walked Jaso and Zobrist back-to-back. So, get this: Crawford hits a routine grounder that Richardson grabs, wheels around and throws the ball into the dugout. A run scores and Crawford winds up on second. You just have to laugh…Who’s the next victim? Robert Manuel, come on down. Two pitches later, Longoria crushed a ball that went over Lansdowne Street and into the parking garage, 12-2. Hey, at least nobody lost a windshield this time. Varitek came out to catch in the sixth, marking his first appearance since breaking a bone in his foot over two months ago. Dan Johnson made it 13-2 by popping a Manuel fastball into the bullpen with one out. Upton followed with a bomb over the light tower to make it 14-2. Way to go, kid, that’s 3 homers in 18 pitches. Darnell McDonald gave the remaining 50 patrons a real treat by leading off the eighth with a line drive shot into the Monster Seats to make it 14-3. Lars Anderson then walked and Saltalamacchia doubled him in. With two outs, Lowrie hit a long ground-rule double to right scoring Salty to make it 14-5. The great news about this game was that it was over before 10:30.

It must’ve been tough for the Red Sox to mount that proverbial horse after last night’s tumble, but the show must go on (at least until October 3rd). In Wednesday’s finale, Tim Wakefield (3-10, 5.19) got the call against expectorant king Matt Garza (14-7, 3.46). After Jaso led off with a single, Scutaro booted Zobrist’s gimme double play ball putting two on and nobody out. With one out, Jaso moved to third on a wild pitch. Longoria hit a sacrifice fly to center and the Rays took and early 1-0 lead. Matt Joyce doubled off the wall leading off the second and went to third on Hawpe’s single to right. When the throw home went wild, Hawpe moved to second and Upton ripped a three-run shot off the back row of the Monster Seats to make it 4-0. Some flunkie in the front office has just been ordered to start polishing that gold pocket watch, for the hour draws near… After Ortiz led off the bottom half with a walk, Beltre made it 4-2 in a hurry as he rocked a two-run shot over the Monster in a blink. Scutaro led off the top of the third by popping one into the Monster Seats and it was 4-3. Papi tied the score with two outs, as he took an inside-out swing and knocked one into the Monster Seats, his 29th of the year. Of course, no lead is safe with the knuckleball. With one out in the fourth, Hawpe walked and scored on Bartlett’s wall-ball double. Jaso then walked with two outs before Zobrist struck out. VMart led off the bottom of the fifth by whacking one deep to center into the area above where the bullpens jut out from the centerfield wall to make it 5-5. This was not a vintage Garza night, as he was nearing 100 pitches and laboring. He’s a good kid and we especially respect the way he recently stood up for his religious traditions, but let’s face it: he’s owned the Red Sox in the past few years and it would be nice to get the better of him now and again. With one out and Ortiz on second, Garza was relieved by Chad Qualls. Kalish doubled off the wall and Ortiz came in with the go-ahead run. Kalish later scored when Longoria made a bad throw on Hall’s grounder to third. With a two run lead, the manager saw fit to call upon Oh No Atchison to hold up the fort. Hawpe hit a screaming bullet down the first base line that Anderson dove after, snagged and threw to Atchison covering for the first out. The kid has had a nice night, picking up his first big league hit, and his first “web gem”. Scutaro doubled leading off the second and Drew reached when his grounder to third was misplayed by Longoria. VMart knocked in Scutaro with a single to right and both runners advanced on a wild pitch. Patterson ran for Drew, but was erased in a rundown disaster that also caused Martinez to be called out. Huh? Ortiz’ grounder went from Zobrist to Jaso, who ran down Patterson and tagged out Beltre at third. Can’t have two runners at one base. If the runners froze at second and third then Ortiz would’ve been thrown out. That baserunning blunder may come back to haunt the Sox. Reddick doubled leading off the seventh, and that marked the first three-hit game of his career. Anderson then drove in Kalish with a line-drive single to right to give the Sox a 9-5 win. It was Anderson’s first big-league RBI, and he came around to score on Scutaro’s pop into the Monster Seats, 11-5 Sox. Patterson reached when his hard grounder down the line to first was scooped cleanly behind the bag by Pena, but the throw to Balfour went awry. Martinez walked and Maddon came out for the fifth time tonight looking for the baseball. After Bard got knocked around for a couple of hits in the eighth, Okey-Doke came on in the top of the ninth to close the door. “Is it safe?” We’ll see. After getting two quick outs, Oki gave up a hit and a walk, but Crawford grounded out to second, so it was safe after all. Now, that was an impressive comeback win. There were a lot of firsts worth noting but maybe a “last” as well. Who was the winning pitcher tonight?

On to the Coast:

“As the days dwindle down, to a precious few…” The Sox made their way west for six games, three with the A’s and three with the Mariners. In the series opener, Clay Buchholz (15-6, 2.25) got the start against Trevor Cahill (15-6, 2.72). Cahill is yet another of the terrific young arms drafted by the A’s and he made the All-Star team in only his second big-league season. This venue (the Oakland-Alameda Mausoleum) is a concrete hellhole which may be suitable for the cretins who routinely appear for Raider games, but is just so depressing for the game of baseball. Kalish led off with a long drive to center that old friend Coco Crisp chased after, leaped at the wall and snared the ball as it went over the wall. Crisp singled past Scutaro’s dive leading off the bottom of the first and stole second. It’s nice to see him play well, as it seems like his entire tenure with the Red Sox was one long shuttle between the DL and the lineup. Barton then walked and Suzuki (who crushed the Sox the last time Oakland came to town) whacked a long double off the wall. Suzuki hits like .800 against the Sox and .200 against the rest of the league. This has not been a stellar way to start for Buchholz. Cust walked and Ellis laid down a perfect bunt that hugged the line. Jeremy Hermida (remember him?) hit into a 4-6-3 double play, with Suzuki coming in the back door to make it 3-0, A’s. In the second, Lowrie walked and Reddick doubled with two outs, but the ever-dependable Bill Hall grounded out to short. This is not going to be Buchholz’ night, kid. In the bottom of the second, Larish walked, Pennington singled and Crisp walked. Barton then drove in two with a single. Hey, manager, what are you waiting for? Buchholz has nothing going tonight. Thankfully, Mr. Manager had a quick hook tonight. Buchholz was lifted at that point in favor of Richardson, who was able to get out of the inning without any more runs having scored. Michael Bowden entered in relief of Richardson (who pitched well) in the fourth. The 5-0 A’s lead held up for the remainder of the game. Chances are, only the “fellowship of the miserable” hung around for the end. Buchholz had a bad night and the Red Sox batters never even failed to show up; a lousy night all the way around. Let’s move on to the next game.

On to Saturday night’s game, where John Lackey (12-9, 4.48) was opposed by lefty Brett Anderson (4-6, 2.97). Both teams wore white caps in honor of 9/11. With the lefty going, the manager juggled the lineup as Ortiz and Drew sat and Scutaro was moved to second with Lowrie starting at short. With one out in the top of the first, McDonald and Martinez each singled. Beltre followed up with a line drive base hit to load the bases, but nobody scored. Lowell struck out and Lowrie lined out to third. Scutaro put the Sox ahead 1-0, leading off the third by taking a fastball over the heart of the plate over the wall in left. The Sox put two more runners aboard in the fifth as Kalish led off with a long double and Martinez walked with two outs. But Beltre flew out to short right, and that ended that. The Sox started the sixth by putting two more runners on as Lowrie led off with a double to left and then was called safe on Saltalamacchia’s 6-4 force play. Lowrie slid back to the base just in time. The A’s second baseman was there in time, but Lowrie slid under the tag. With one out, Kalish lined a base hit to left, scoring Lowrie and taking third on the throw. Daric Barton led off the A’s seventh with a double to the gap in left-center and scored on Cust’s one-out single to left (taking second on the throw to the plate). Cust came in with the tying run on Ellis’ long single to center. Implosion Time: Rajai Davis followed with a long triple to center that Kalish tried to haul in (but couldn’t) and the A’s took a 3-2 lead. Bard entered in the eighth and had a plain ol’ bad outing. With one out, Crisp and Barton walked, then they pulled a double-steal. Suzuki received a free pass, and then Cust singled, scoring Crisp though Barton was cut down at on a close play at the plate 9-3-2. After Ellis walked, the manager yanked Bard and put Okajima in there, who was able to get out of the inning on a ground out. The Sox made it 4-3 with two outs in the ninth on back-to-back doubles by Martinez and Beltre, leaving it up to the Mighty Big Papi against the A’s closer, Andrew Bailey. But Ortiz was caught looking at a fastball over the plate, and the A’s stole one tonight.

In Sunday afternoon’s finale (as if anyone was paying attention), Josh Beckett (4-4, 5.91) got the call against Dallas Braden (9-11, 3.47), who pitched a perfect game earlier this year. Prior to the game, Mike Lowell reported that he will definitely be retiring at the end of the season. Lowell will always be regarded highly by the fans of Boston as a classy player who performed at his very best when the stakes were highest. He was injured off and on for the past two years, but was a key contributor to the World Series Champs of 2007. Were it not for Youkilis’ injury, Lowell would’ve ridden the pine all year or have been traded. In the first four innings, the Sox had 6 LOB’s and 0 runs. The game remained scoreless until the bottom of the fourth, when Beckett walked four batters in a row and the A’s went on top 1-0. He then regained his composure and struck out Ellis. Oakland made it 3-0 in the fifth as Barton singled, Suzuki was hit by a pitch and both scored on Ellis’ double to the right-center gap. In the sixth, the Sox mounted a big rally to take the lead 4-3. With two outs, Beltre hit a long double to left and Ortiz followed with a single. Lowell walked to load the bases and Drew (who had been thrown out earlier while napping on the basepaths) drove a double down the third base line, scoring Beltre and Ortiz. At that point, Braden was relieved by Henry Rodriguez. The manager sent out Ryan Kalish to pinch hit, and he responded with a two-run single to put the Sox ahead. In the bottom of the sixth, the Sox survived a scare as Pennington tripled to center with two outs and Crisp walked, but Beckett was able to get out of trouble by retiring Barton on a grounder to second. That was the day for Beckett, as he was over 100 pitches and was toast. Atchison entered in the seventh and retired the side in order. The Sox picked up an insurance run in the eighth, as Beltre single and Lowell walked with one out. Drew singled to right and Beltre came into score as reliever Blevins’ throw to the plate went wild. Atchison pitched a clean eighth and Papelbon struck out the side in the bottom of the ninth to end it. Now, it’s on to Seattle…

Revolution Match 23 at Chivas USA (9/10/10):

While the Sox were toiling up the road in Oakland, Revs (7-12-3-24, 6th MLS East) had also taken their act west, to the Home Depot Center in Carson, CA for a date with last-place Chivas USA (6-12-4-22, 8th MLS West). By the look of things, only close friends and family showed up for the match. If the announced attendance is in excess of 1,000 then the person doing the counting has double vision…Rodolfo Espinoza broke in on goal in the opening moments, but his shot went way over the bar. Chivas scored in the 5th as Justin Braun took a beautiful feed from Alan Gordon and broke into the right corner of the box and slid the ball behind Reis. During the play, the Revs’ defenders were flailing their arms about an off-sides call rather than attacking the ball carrier. Here’s a novel idea: instead of bitching while the play’s ongoing, why not go after the ball and let the referee decide? That was a deluxe example of the sort of defensive STUPIDITY that has plagued this team all year long. In the 17th, Joseph and Espinoza collided fighting over a 50/50 ball and Espinoza went down in a heap. Revs had their first set piece in the 19th, but Tierney free kick went into the wall and was deflected away. Revs doth protest too much. Play the game and quit yapping to the official over every perceived slight. Throughout the first half hour, the Revs’ midfielders and back four were asleep out there. Maybe it was jet lag or smog, but Chivas ran through the Revs end of the pitch with impunity. Chivas made it 2-0 in the 36th, as Nagamura picked up a rebound directly in front of Reis, fired and the ball deflected off of Reis’ gloves and into the net. It’s hard to blame the goalkeeper here, as he spent virtually the entire first have chasing after every wave of Chivas’ chances that came flying down the pitch. Stolica put the Revs’ first shot on frame in the 39th, as it was a tricky low line drive that Thornton scrambled to save. Revs have had some embarrassing outings this year, but that 45 minutes ranked as low as any of the worst performances they’ve stumbled through so far this year.

Khano Smith came on for Emmanuel Osei and Sainey Nyassi entered for Dube at the start of the second half, as Revs really needed some speed on the edge to press the attack. In the first 10 minutes of the second half, Revs rediscovered their legs, as they controlled the tempo and generally limited Chivas’ forwards from mounting any sort of attack. In the 58th, Phelan slid in behind the Chivas defenders and tried a sliding kick, but the ball was quickly retrieved by Thornton. Mansally entered for Schliawski (who was very much invisible tonight) in the 63rd. In the 77th, Khano Smith appeared to have suffered a shoulder injury as he and Braun were wrestling over a ball in the Revs’ end and Braun tipped over Smith quite hard. What a dreadful match.

Wrexham Match 8 v. York (9/11/10):

Dragons played to a dull 1-1 draw with York on Saturday at the Racecourse. Andrew Morrell put Wrexham ahead in the 8th with a goal from 12 yards out. York equalized in the 19th on a score from Peter Till, and the sides played scoreless thereafter. York’s Michael Gash had a splendid chance late in the match but his shot hit the post. Dragons are now 2-2-4-10 and are presently residing near the pit of the Blue Square Premier.

Piacenza Match 4 vs. Ascoli (9/11/10):

Piacenza lost 4-2 to Ascoli at the Garilli on Saturday and are now dead last in Serie B at 0-3-1-1. Luigi Giorgi put the guests ahead with a goal in the 4th. Daniele Cacia had a chance to equalize with a penalty in the 38th, but his kick missed the target. Ascoli went up 2-0 in the 52nd on a penalty kick from Antonino Bonvissuto but biancorossi fought back as Mattia Graffiedi scored the first of his two goals in the 52nd. Ascoli went up 3-1 on Vittorio Micolucci’s 65th minute strike. Again, biancorossi pressed the attack and Graffiedi made it a 3-2 match with a goal in the 74th. But their momentum was thwarted when Cesare Rickler Del Mare picked up his second yellow of the match in the 80th and they had to play a man down. Andrea Cristiano capped off the scoring with a goal in extra time and Piacenza lost again.

Saskatchewan Roughriders Game 10 at Winnipeg Blue Bombers (9/12/10):

There isn’t much worth discussing here. Riders traveled to Winnipeg for the second half of the home-and-home Banjo Bowl and were blown off the field by the Bombers in a 31-2 final. Durant had a bad day and the rest is history. The official CFL recap is here and the final stats are here. Bad game, move on to next week.