Sox and Pinstripes | Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees – The Greatest Rivalry in Baseball

Are you willing to cross a boundary? I am

I can't help but think about the last 24 hours as I sit here delayed in Newark Airport on my way back to Florida to get my wisdom teeth removed.

I was sitting online during a Yankees off day, semi-packing and semi-procrastinating for my two weeks away when I received an IM that immediately infuriated me. I was told Jon Lester had a no-hitter through 8.1 innings against the Royals, the same pesky team that took two out of three from my dwindling Yankees earlier this year. The score was 7-0 and it meant 6.5 games out of first for any Yankees fan. But I'm a journalism major and I have an unhealthy obsession for baseball, even satanic teams that wear nothing but red, so I had to tune in to NESN. Besides, Remy and Orsillo actually crack me up because they are so absurdly unprofessional at times.

Without further distraction, I ran into my bedroom and turned on the game after Jon Lester had retired 26 Royals without allowing so much as a single. After strike one I was in a silence praying anything in the world could break up what would be the second Red Sox no-no in a three-month regular season span. Two young Red Sox pitchers achieving one of the most impressive feats in Major League Baseball? Not happening, I won't let it. I was immediately reminded of the late 90s when it was the Yankees who everybody in baseball feared and wanted to beat, they were the level of excellence and had the greatest dynasty of my lifetime...in any sport. It was then that in 1996 I attended Dwight Gooden's no-hitter, and then watched live on TV as David Wells and David Cone both pitched perfect games in consecutive seasons. Beat that. You can't. It's awesome. And they did it without Nolan Ryan or Sandy Koufax, the human no-hitters in their rotation. This got me thinking during a hard-hit foul for strike two whether no-hitters were a product of team luck and success, or whether team luck and success were a product of solid pitching. What led to no-hitters? David Wells and David Cone were not the best pitchers in the game, just as Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz aren't even the two best YOUNG pitchers in the game, so why did they achieve these feats? Why so close together? Why is it always at home?

At this point I was shouting at the TV. It wasn't fair. How could my team, a team who has shown its fans more titles than anybody else in North American sports, the same team who showed me four titles in five years, how could they be so pathetic to watch and this historically pathetic franchise have everything right going for them? It used to be that the Sox were always great in April and May; that was like a running joke. Meet your Boston Red Sox, watch their potential, wait for September and laugh at the comedy of collapsing that will inevitably follow. I'm not too young to remember that pattern. I am; however, too old not to be frustrated by the fact that ever since the little flukey 2004, the Yankees have not gotten off to a solid start. I'm too old to be wasting 162 days on a team who doesn't seem to try for about 85 of them. But that's all just frustration. Baseball works in waves, just like any sport. Your team, if you have good ownership, will have its years of fortune, and it will struggle, even the ones with a lot of money and a lot of talent on paper. They struggle too. And even sometimes when you don't struggle, you still lose, that's what keeps you coming back for more. Lucky for me, I was born into Yankee fandom, so I know eventually the ship will right itself and all these young talents will reach the right age to take back what I remember as being mine. All of this ran through my mind as Jon Lester battled for history.

And after he threw an impressive fastball for his 130th pitch, the same pitch that blew right by the final batter and the final pitch to complete a masterpiece, I thought about something else. Granted, my first reaction was literally, "Nooooooooo!" in a Darth Vader-Revenge-of-the-Sith sort of way, but after that my emotions started changing without my consent.

I was pissed. What Yankees fan wouldn't be? There is nothing more miserable than Fenway Park exploding with happiness. I like it much more when they have their whole funeral routine after a loss, especially to the Yankees. It soothes me. I could fall asleep to Fenway silence and I don't even sleep well. So to nobody's surprise, seeing a 7-0 Red Sox win with a no-hitter intact and that stupid grin on Jason Varitek's face was annoying. They all seem like a bunch of jerks when they're happy, that's just what's hardwired in a few million of our brains. And then that sports passion kicked in.

Jon Lester, a starting pitcher in Major League Baseball just a few years older than me, was two years removed from a life threatening illness. Is there anybody who reads this site that has not in one way or to some degree been impacted by cancer? I'd venture to guess there isn't. Cancer is one of those things everybody can relate to though they would rather not. Can you imagine being 22 in a hospital room being told there is a chance you might die? Even if that chance is slim-to-none? I don't even like the thought of thinking I might die at all, especially in two years and especially with the upside of being a professional athlete. I thought about that. And it changed my opinion almost immediately. What a freakin' story.

The guy no-hit cancer and then no-hit a Major League Baseball team. He also won the World Series but we are definitely not going there. That's a story. That's a human interest story. I mean, at the end of the day, that's an inspirational story. And while I'm not the type to sneak a peek at Lifetime, and I'm not one to sympathize with bad breaks everybody will have to go through, I am a complete sucker for inspirational sports stories. I'd love nothing more than to travel the U.S. and the world and uncover them. That's a large reason I'm going down the path I chose to go down. I LOVE these types of things and it doesn't matter what uniform the people who create these stories wear.

Do I wish Lester pitched a no-hitter and lost a la Andy Hawkins? Yes, of course. I wish nothing but bad luck to the Boston Red Sox whether in 2008 or 1998. But we can't always get what we want. The saddest and maybe the happiest part of all of last night, was I actually DID get what I wanted. And it was at the expense of a team I couldn't exist without. That's a sports story.

Ask and you shall receive on Sox and Pinstripes

If enough of you ask, all of you will receive on Sox and Pinstripes.

In recent weeks, several readers have sent e-mails requesting that the Gabbly Chat feature be removed from our site. It seems that, for some of you, Sox and Pinstripes takes longer to upload because of Gabbly Chat's presence. Others did not like the chiming noise Gabbly Chat made every time a new reader visited the site. As of today, Gabbly Chat is no longer - at least on Sox and Pinstripes.

Speaking of receiving, soon we will give away three copies of "THE BOSTON RED SOX: ESSENTIAL GAMES OF FENWAY PARK" DVD set from A&E Home Video. I will post a review next week, and create a contest where readers can win a copy of this DVD, which is a just-have for any Red Sox fan.

It has now been 15 months since Sox and Pinstripes debuted. In that time, our readership has steadily grown, and we are one of the most frequently read sites related to the Red Sox or Yankees and not affiliated with a major media outlet. We have surpassed 125,000 visitors, and we are approaching 200,000 page views. Over the weekend, I wrote that traffic was down in recent weeks. Ironically, the last two days readership has returned to a normal level. Funny how that works.

In my post last weekend, I attributed the slow traffic to a smaller number of Yankees fans visiting and commenting due to the team's struggles. This is not an observation. It is a fact. Across the blogosphere, traffic on most sites related to the Yankees wanes when the team does not win. There are exceptions, such as Peter Abraham's blog, which is a must-read to keep up with Yankees news. Mark Feinsand has a quality blog, and his comments are down. Ditto for Bryan Hoch of Yankees.com. As for Sox and Pinstripes, the information from my TypePad stats shows where visitors come from, and when the Yankees are losing, Yankees traffic is down. I have noticed this since debuting the site. I have also seen how traffic from Red Sox fans remains steady whether the team is winning or losing. Again, this is not an opinion. It is a fact based on the numbers.

We have received comments from Yankees fans that Sox and Pinstripes is Red Sox heavy, and Yankees light. We are striving to change this and add more Yankees content.  One major step is having a daily post related to the Yankees.  Since Vince's schedule does not always permit this, we are exploring  adding a second Yankees voice. To offer more Red Sox perspective, I am also searching for a second voice on Sox and Pinstripes to write periodic posts. Feel free to e-mail us if you, or someone you know, would be ideal for either spot.

Even when stats are down for a short period, the Sox and Pinstripes readership is solid. I attribute this to a core of loyal visitors. As a niche site, we are not going to match the volume of readers that MLB Trade Rumors, Baseball Musings and Baseball Digest Daily gets. Those sites cover every baseball team and we focus on the Red Sox and Yankees. However, as each month passes, we gain a growing number of readers who discover the site through search engines, links on other sites and word of mouth.

We welcome your feedback. If you would like to see new features added, and/or existing elements deleted, feel free to e-mail us. What do you think of the Schmap widgets located on both sides of the site? One features information related to the Red Sox and the other provides details about the Yankees.

Also, if you don't already, take some time to explore the variety of links on both sides of the site. We have spent a lot of time populating Sox and Pinstripes with links to the best sites related to the Red Sox, Yankees and baseball. If you want to follow either team, and/or the game itself, you will find some of the best sites available by perusing our network of links. If there is a site that we have not included in this network of links, please let us know. We want Sox and Pinstripes to be a one-stop site for all things Red Sox, Yankees and baseball.

Lester inches closer to becoming a top of the rotation-caliber starter

Have you recovered from the high generated by Jon Lester's no-hitter last night? Likely not, if you're a Red Sox fan. The buzz of a no-hitter does not last nearly as long as the exhilaration that a World Series championship produces, but in this case, the no-hit excitement will have a longer shelf life.

Lester was already an inspiration to anyone who has cancer, or has recovered from the disease. After last night, that inspiration was elevated to an even greater level.

What is especially impressive about Lester is that he pitches with the poise of a seasoned veteran, even though he is 14-4 in parts of three seasons. The bottom line is this - he is a winner. Even with his lack of control resulting in pitching behind in the count and accumulating high pitch counts by the fourth and fifth innings, he has found a way to keep the Red Sox in position to win.

Before last night's no-hitter, which was also his first career complete game, Lester had pitched well in three of his previous four starts. He limited the Blue Jays to no runs and one hit over eight innings on April 29. In his next outing, Lester earned the win against Tampa Bay, allowing a run and four hits (and three walks) in six innings. Though he was ineffective at Minnesota on May 9 - when he surrendered five runs (three earned) and eight hits in 5.1 innings - he walked just one. Last week against Baltimore, he produced a quality start with a pitching line of two runs, five hits and two walks in six innings. Last night, he struck out nine and walked two in the no-no.

Much has been written about the importance of Lester establishing his fast ball early in the count, and commanding his fast ball. When he encounters trouble, it is usually because he gets behind in the count, and/or he throws a fast ball in a meaty location for a hitter. Lester has a fast ball that ranges between 92-95, a nasty cutter, a solid curve ball and a competent change-up. If he can locate his fast ball on a consistent basis, the left-hander will be a top of the rotation starter for the long term.

Of course, because of Boston's pitching depth, Lester will likely be in the No. 3 spot for awhile. As long as dual aces Josh Beckett and Daisuke Matsuzaka remain in Boston, they will occupy the top two spots. Clay Buchholz and Justin Masterson could have a stranglehold on the other two positions in the rotation. Michael Bowden is on the way, too. Of course, Tim Wakefield will remain in the picture as long as he continues to win 12-15 games and eat innings.

Regarding Masterson, the 23-year-old right-hander who held the Los Angeles Angels to one run and two hits over eight innings in his Major League debut last month will get the call this evening against Kansas City. Masterson has struggled in his last four starts since returning to Double-A Portland, allowing 16 runs in 19.1 innings, but it is common for top prospects to have a short-term funk when they get a taste of the big leagues and return to the minors.

What is remarkable about Lester, Masterson and Clay Buchholz is that they do not get rattled. You can teach a prospect new pitches. With experience, they will learn how to command their fast ball - as Lester and Buchholz are striving to accomplish. Poise is something that is natural, and all three of Boston's top young arms have this important trait.

It will be interesting to see how Terry Francona handles Lester's next start. Much to Francona's chagrin, I imagine, Lester threw 130 pitches to record the no-hitter. I would not be surprised to see the Red Sox give Lester an additional day of rest and call up a spot starter, such as David Pauley or Charlie Zink, from Pawtucket. Since Masterson starts tonight, and Colon makes his Red Sox debut on Wednesday, they are not options to give Lester a breather. Lester's spot in the rotation returns Saturday at Oakland, where Curt Schilling pitched 8.2 innings of no-hit ball last year.

One more Red Sox no-no; Lester no-hits Royals

Cancer survivor. World Series winner. And now the holder of a no-hitter.

Until tonight, the greatest achievements in Jon Lester's young Major League career were returning to the mound after recovering from non-Hodgkins lymphoma and pitching a gem to earn the win in Game Four of the 2007 World Series. This evening, the 24-year-old Lester delivered another remarkable feat by tossing a no-hitter in Boston's 7-0 victory over the Kansas City Royals.

In the ninth inning, Lester struck out Alberto Callaspo on a 96 miles per hour fast ball to earn his spot in Red Sox history and send Fenway Park into a frenzy. The left-hander walked Esteban German to open the frame. He then retired Tony Pena Jr. and David DeJesus on ground outs, setting the stage for the dramatic, five-pitch at-bat by Callaspo.

Lester threw 130 pitches, of which 86 were strikes. He also recorded first pitch strikes on 19 of the 28 batters he faced. Last year, the no-hitter by Clay Buchholz was special because it was accomplished in his second career start at a time when the Red Sox were struggling. Lester's no-no was emotional for obvious reasons.

That the second round pick in the 2002 draft recovered from cancer, regained his strength and successfully embarked on the long journey back to the big leagues is inspiring. The fact he is now 14-4 in his career, won his first Major League start after returning from cancer, earned the win in Game Four last fall to help Boston win its second World Series in four years and now has thrown a no-hitter is astounding.

Also incredible is Jason Varitek's claim of catching four no-hitters (Hideo Nomo, Derek Lowe and Buchholz were the others). Ray Schalk, who spent most of his career with the Chicago White Sox and played from 1912-1929, is the only other catcher to do this in Major League history.

This season, Lester has gradually shown better control, throwing more first pitch strikes and pitching deeper into games in recent starts, including the one-hit shutout over eight innings against Toronto on April 29. Tonight, he had excellent command, striking out nine, walking just two and retiring most of the Kansas City hitters on routine outs.

Like the no-hitter thrown by Buchholz (which featured defensive gems by Dustin Pedroia and Coco Crisp), Lester was helped by a highlight reel catch. Jacoby Ellsbury made a diving stab of Jose Guillen's sinking liner to end the fourth inning. It was at that point that I started thinking no-hitter, remembering the diving stop by Pedroia to preserve the Buchholz no-hitter.

Thanks to a five-run third inning by his teammates, Lester did not have to worry about losing the lead on one pitch if he lost the no-hitter. Boston scored its first run when Julio Lugo bounced into another double play, plating J.D. Drew, who led off with a single. Ellsbury tripled, and then three straight walks by Kansas City starter Luke Hochevar forced in a run. The Red Sox aded two unexpected runs when Gold Glove second baseman Mark Grudzielanek dropped a pop up in the swirling wind off the bat of Mike Lowell. Kevin Youkilis added a ground-rule double that scored Manny Ramirez to give Boston a 5-0 advantage.

Boston added two runs in the sixth inning on Jason Varitek's two-run dinger. It was the fifth home run of the season for Varitek, who is now hitting .290. Yet it is Varitek's leadership behind the plate that was most important this evening. Also, Lester pitched with his normal poise that is more reflective of a 10-year veteran.

Lester improved to 3-2 and lowered his ERA to 3.41. The Red Sox won their fourth in a row, are 28-19 and remain atop the American League East. Numbers are secondary tonight, however. I feel so invested in this team that emotions pour in memorable wins and crushing defeats. When Callaspo fanned on Lester's 96 miles per hour heater, the emotions were almost as strong as when the Red Sox won the 2004 World Series.

By the embraces that Lester shared with his teammates, coaches and Terry Francona, it is evident that the Red Sox feel the same way. It is always exciting whena Major League pitcher tosses a no-hitter. It is even more spectacular when a good person who has climbed a monumental hurdle like Lester makes history.   

Who would you prefer as the Red Sox starting shortstop - Lugo or Vizquel?

It is evident that Julio Lugo will not be the starting shortstop for the Boston Red Sox in 2009. That job will either belong to Jed Lowrie or an acquisition, and Alex Cora will likely be resigned to serve as the utility infielder. There are rumblings that Lugo could be traded at some point this season

Recently, ESPN's Peter Gammons said that San Francisco's Omar Vizquel would be an ideal replacement if Lugo continues to struggle on defense. Lugo has a Major League leading 11 errors, many of which has hurt the Red Sox in close games. The 41-year-old Vizquel, who was activated from the disabled list on May 10, is hitting .360 in 25 at-bats. He is still an exceptional defensive shortstop.

According to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe, Vizquel would like to play in Boston, but only as a starter. I would think that Theo Epstein would not acquire Vizquel unless he was able to trade Lugo, who is signed through 2010 at $9 million a season. Even if Lugo would accept a reserve role - which he undoubtedly would not - Cora is a better utility player. Cora accepts and thrives in the role.

When Epstein signed Lugo, he knew that the former Tampa Bay Rays shortstop was shaky on defense, especially on throws to first base. Yet Epstein thought that Lugo's bat would offset his defensive shortcomings. That hasn't happened. After an up-and-down 2007 season, Lugo is hitting .287, but he has no home runs, no triples and seven doubles. For a player blessed with so much speed, Lugo is prone to grounding into double plays. He has bounced into five. And he has more errors (11) than RBI (10).

As I wrote last week, despite Lugo's shortcomings in the field and his lack of production at the plate, it would be unwise to trade him this year unless the Red Sox could get a viable shortstop in return. With Lowrie having showed that he is Major League ready and capable of fielding the shortstop position adequately, there is no reason to acquire anyone who would be in Boston beyond this season. Perhaps this is why Vizquel's name is arising. He is 41, the Giants are old and trying to unload veterans, and he is still sharp in the field.

I look forward to the day when Lowrie takes over at shortstop. He is not spectacular in the field, but he is steady. He could be traded to a team that starts him at second base, but I believe that the Red Sox will give him a chance at shortstop. As for the remainder of this season, I prefer Lugo as the starting shortstop, Cora as the utility player and Lowrie a phone call away at Pawtucket. Vizquel is injury prone, and he is a singles hitter who does little else at the plate. At least Lugo has the track record of occasional power and knocking in runs.

Lowrie might be the future at shortstop for Boston. Lugo is the present. Would you rather have Lugo or Vizquel for the remainder of this season? If the Red Sox had a Major League ready shortstop in the minor leagues in addition to Lowrie, I would want Lowrie right here and right now. However, since Lowrie is the only shortstop insurance in the Red Sox organization who is Major League ready, I would rather keep Lugo, who is less fragile than Vizquel.

Of course, I might change my mind the next time Lugo botches a double play grounder that leads to unearned runs in one inning, and then grounds into a double play that kills a rally in another inning.

Why are the Yankees 20-24?

It gets harder every single game to carry on. This isn't a Sox and Pirates blog, neither side should be subjected to lethargic, meaningless and depressing baseball no matter how badly the opposition asks for it. This is baseball's greatest rivalry, and right now the Yankees are baseball's greatest enigma. You have heard it all before, All Stars are everywhere. Alex Rodriguez, Mariano Rivera, Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, Robbie Cano, Bobby Abreu, Hideki Matsui, Chien-Ming Wang, the corpse of Jason Giambi, these are marquee players, even if most of them were from the Yankees' own system. Up and comers like Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, Joba Chamberlain, Melky Cabrera and Ross Ohlendorf are supposed to be the new wave of talent. Two hundred and nine million dollars is supposed to purchase nothing worse than a World Championship. But here's where it gets fuzzy; the Yankees seem incapable of operating on the same time clock as the rest of the league.

They seem to vacation from October to June lately and then play out of their minds for three months. It's like New York makes up a collection of the world's greatest procrastinators. Does anybody honestly think two months from now the Mets would outscore the Yankees 18-6 at the Stadium? Does anybody honestly believe New York will be 40-48 after the next 44 games are played? At this point, after four consecutive years of awful starts and a "I don't give a crap" mentality from the players until the weather tops 80 degrees everyday, there has to be a theory. There has to be a reason why even Chien-Ming Wang can't post a quality start after rattling off six straight wins to begin the year. Why is Mike Mussina our best pitcher? Why is the offense hitting under .245 as a team with runners in scoring position? You really can't place a price tag on something like driving runs in.

All of these players as recently as last year had streaks where they had hits to drive runners home and yet an entire group of nine players, regardless of who it is or what order they hit in, all of a sudden can't get it done at an alarming rate. A-Rod and Posada are vital parts of the lineup and the offense surely misses them, but they are not the entire team. A-Rod will be back Tuesday though, and that should help a little bit. The bloopers? With the exception of 2-3 occasions always seem to come from the opposition. The strikeouts with less than two outs and a runner on third or the double plays with the bases loaded and one out? Sign up for a Yankees game, you'll see that type of hitting here. So here it goes: This is my entire theory for 2008:

Most of it is an act.

Yes, I'm going there.

I said in the pre-season I didn't think the Yankees would escape the first round of the playoffs. I'm not changing that prediction because I don't see a reason to. You can try and argue there are four better teams in the American League but the fact of the matter is New York is playing deaf, dumb and blind and still remain six games out of the division lead and five games out of the wild card. The Yankees are only two games worse than Cleveland, with Tampa, Minnesota, Oakland, Baltimore, Toronto, Texas and Kansas City also having better records. New York has the 11th best record in the league. Sound familiar? Last year the Yankees were nine games out of the wild card and had this many teams ahead of them a month later into the season and it overwhelmed some naysayers.

How can a team pass all these other teams? Well it's simple: Minnesota, Oakland, Baltimore, Texas and Kansas City aren't very good. Minnesota and Kansas City also play in a division that has no fairy tale for a Cinderella team. Toronto is a traditionally bad second half team with no offense and unlike the Yankees, it isn't underachieving. The Tampa Bay Rays? I love their energy, I love their youth and if they (or the Cubs and Marlins) won the World Series this year, I wouldn't be upset, but they aren't there yet. Their pitching is young and young pitchers who pitch the whole season tend to break down when they start off hot. That bullpen is still not good and Troy Percival is not the type of closer you count on when you need a win in late August. Tampa Bay will have to deal with the Red Sox and a Yankees team representing the Yankees when they decide to remember where they play. The stars are not aligned for 2008, but they certainly are for the future after that.

That leaves Cleveland, which as I mentioned is just two games ahead of New York, even with the awful start. Oh, and by the way, the White Sox lead that division by 1.5 games so don't be surprised if they disappear into oblivion and Cleveland ends up with the Central title anyway. This can all seem like I'm assuming everything, but you can't deny how the Yankees perform in the second half and the predictability that sometimes happens in the regular season in Major League Baseball. Think about it, how many true Cinderella American League teams win their division? I'm not talking playoff upsets, I'm talking division title and wild card upsets.

However, that's the rest of the league and this is the Yankees. If ever there was a transitional year with so many "learning on the job" youngsters and veterans starting to show inconsistency, it's 2008. Austin Jackson will probably finish his seasoning by the end of this season. Brett Gardner will be analyzed, and so will the power relief pitchers previously mentioned on this site. CC Sabathia still lurks in free agency, as does Mark Teixiera, and while I agree with the youth movement, that doesn't mean signing free agents should not be allowed. The Red Sox signed Matsuzaka, Drew and Lugo last season, the Cardinals had Eckstein the year before that. A winning roster is a balance of free agent signings that make sense and developing young players to offset the price of free agents. Mark Teixiera will make sense if he is out there for the Yankees in 2009 and beyond. A gold glove fielding, switch-hitting, power hitter fits into New York's plans and also would clear the roster spots of Morgan Ensberg, Shelley Duncan and Jason Giambi, who has an expiring contract.

The lefty arm of CC Sabathia would also fit to accompany Chien-Ming Wang, a year advanced Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy and Joba Chamberlain in the rotation. Though the two signings could realistically reach over 250 million dollars and 45 per season, the contracts of Giambi, Matsui, Pavano, Farnsworth, Damon, Pettitte, Mussina, Jeter and Abreu all expire by the end of 2009. That's nearly $130 million of the payroll. Even with 45 million plus arbitrary eligibles and resignings of players like Jeter and potentially Abreu or Matsui (all at a lower price), the numbers will not even approach what's already there.

So needless to say if this is a transitional year, if this is the year the impressive streak of post-seasons end, if the media is going to question the lack of Joe Torre and the drive of Joe Girardi, the flaws in New York are more than likely temporary. That's one phase of the theory.

Age could be another. Some players are on the wrong side of their prime, and some are not into it yet. That's a bad combination and again wreaks of transition. The main problem with the Yankees is that they aren't allowed to have these seasons. They have to publicly compete when the reality is that even if they made the playoffs there are teams out there who spent their time rebuilding and are better suited for a long title run because of it. In 2005 and 2006 the Red Sox did not win a playoff game. The Tigers spent the entire new millenium building up a competitive team. The Angels haven't found the right formula since 2002. Teams like Tampa Bay and Cleveland have been years in the making. The Yankees should be allowed a season to miss the playoffs (by their fans) so they can age some players, drop some excess roster spots and come back firing from the start next season. That should be allowed regardless of what franchise you are in any sport. The problem is two things: 1. Critics have unrealistic expectations of what $200 million actually means because they assume since their team has less, they would be that much better with more, and 2. Yankees' ownership tends to jump the gun at the first sign of trouble, though that hasn't happened since the end of 2004. Which brings me to my next point: I think it's an act from ownership too.

I really, truly, believe Hank Steinbrenner uses the media for his own benefits and he does it by coming off as the bumbling idiot that his father used to come off as. Though I do believe he is winning obsessed, I buy more into the fact I think he, Cashman and Hal have it planned out that they will renegotiate at the end of the season, there is a plan already in place and that by Hank coming off as a mouth piece, Cashman could better work behind the scenes without the spotlight solely on him. Make no mistake, before 2005 he had little power here and now, I believe, He still has a say over Hank. And even if Hank does want some hands-on action with the roster, Hal does too and they offset each other. The speculation that Cashman is definitely out and that the new owners will trade away all the young guys is absurd to me. If anybody knows how little that works, it would be the children of the owner who tried it. Either way, as a result of my last two points sort of contradicting each other in philosophy, the Yankees will have to be respectable this season and they need to start winning. The next 12 games are against Baltimore, Seattle and Minnesota. It would be wise if the Yankees started to score runs and won eight of these games. Less than seven against these three teams is a loss to me. Play time is over, it's time to "earn the paycheck" as a brilliantly idiotic owner once said (last week).

A weekend of baseball, the Red Sox and the Brewers

Three games in 36 hours resulted in three victories for the Boston Red Sox this weekend. Because of Friday's rainout, the Red Sox and Brewers played the Fox Game of the Week at 3:55 on Saturday followed by the makeup game at 8:35 p.m. Then the teams wrapped up the series this afternoon at 1:35 since  the game was televised on TBS.

Neither Boston nor Milwaukee appeared weary today. Eight home runs were slugged out of Fenway Park in Boston's 11-7 win. It was the most electric power display at the Fens since the Red Sox and the then Devil Rays combined for eight dingers in 2002.

David Ortiz hit two home runs for Boston while Ryan Braun launched a pair of dingers off Josh Beckett. J.J. Hardy and Prince Fielder went yard for the Brewers and Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis added a home run each for the Red Sox.

After dropping three of four at Minnesota and two games at Baltimore, the three-game weekend sweep was a sweet tonic for the Red Sox, which improved to 27-19 and remained atop the American League East.

Here are assorted notes and observations about the weekend series:

• Daisuke Matsuzaka has emerged as Boston's second ace. The team has won his last 11 starts, and this season he is 7-0 with a 2.15 ERA. Good thing. So far this year, Josh Beckett has looked more like he did in 2006 than 2007. Make no mistake, Beckett is still one of the best starters in baseball. He is not lights out right now, though. Today, he allowed four home runs, and six runs and six hits in seven innings. He is now 5-3, but he carries a 4.67 ERA.
• It is exciting to see longtime minor leaguers get their first taste of the big leagues. Jonathan Van Every did last week when he was summoned from Pawtucket, got a start in center field and rapped his first Major League hit. With the Boston bullpen heavily used in yesterday's doubleheader, Van Every was optioned to Pawtucket and Chris Smith was called up for the first time in his seven seasons of professional baseball. Smith was once a highly regarded prospect and a sixth round selection out of Cal-Riverside in 2002, but an ATV accident that year derailed his progress. Smith possesses a style similar to Greg Maddux and was converted to a reliever this season. At Pawtucket, he had a 1.45 ERA in 10 games and opposing hitters were batting .188 against him.
• Chris Smith's first stint as a big leaguer will be short-lived. On Tuesday, Boston will recall Justin Masterson to start against the Kansas City Royals. After the game, Masterson will be returned to the minor leagues and Bartolo Colon will be called up to make his Red Sox debut on Wednesday, also versus the Royals. After an impressive Major League debut that saw him limit the Angels to a run and two hits over eight innings, Masterson has struggled at Double-A Portland. Over his last four starts, he has allowed 16 earned runs in 19.1 innings. Perhaps it is a case of disappointment after shining at the big league level and returning to the minors. Colon allowed no runs and one hit in six innings during his last start for Pawtucket. The Red Sox hope that Colon stays healthy and posts productive starts so they can give Clay Buchholz some starts and monitor his innings at Pawtucket once the rookie returns from the disabled list.
• In spring training, Terry Francona said that Coco Crisp is playing with a chip on his shoulder. Hopefully, Crisp keeps that chip intact because he is hitting like he did with the Cleveland Indians. If he continues to hit like this, it is feasible that the Red Sox will explore keeping Crisp and trading J.D. Drew. After all, Crisp plays spectacular defense and gives the team another stolen base threat. Since Julio Lugo will undoubtedly be traded in the off-season to make room for Jed Lowrie, retaining Crisp would allow the Red Sox to at least have two stolen base threats in Jacoby Ellsbury and Crisp. Of course, it will be more difficult to unload Drew than it will to deal Lugo. After this season, Drew will have three years left on his five-year, $70 million contract. Lugo will have just two years on his four-year, $36 million deal. Brandon Moss will likely be the fourth outfielder next season.
• Traffic is down a bit on Sox and Pinstripes. The reason? The New York Yankees are below .500 and in the American League East basement. TypePad, the publishing platform we use, provides statistics on where visitors find Sox and Pinstripes. Though there are more Red Sox fans who comment than Yankees fans, there are an equal amount of visitors - when the Yankees are playing well. Unlike Red Sox fans, who populate blogs whether the team is on a roll or in the tank, Yankees fans follow their team religiously when they are winning, and burrow a hole like a groundhog when the team is scuffling. Don't expect the Yankees to rebound this summer as they have in previous seasons. This team is competitive, but they lack the depth and talent that Yankees teams possessed a few seasons ago. Sure, they will score more runs when Jorge Posada and Alex Rodriguez return, but they will have to slug their way to wins, and we all know that doesn't work for the long term.  I'm not so sure that the Yankees are better than Tampa Bay, who could win the wild card because of its starting pitching. Time will tell. One thing is certain. Even with question marks in the bullpen, the Red Sox are a level above the Yankees because of talented depth and a lineup that is more consistent.
• Dustin Pedroia's base running was key in what would become the game-winning run in the second game of Saturday's doubleheader. After the Brewers erased a 5-0 lead and claimed a 6-5 advantage by scoring three runs each in the sixth and seventh, the Red Sox climbed ahead with two runs in the bottom of the seventh. Jacoby Ellsbury reached on a fielding error by Rickie Weeks to open the inning. Pedroia hit a bouncer to third baseman Bill Hall, who made on errant throw to second. When the Brewers tried to get Ellsbury at third, Pedroia alertly advanced to second. He then moved to third on David Ortiz's RBI ground out that tied the game at 6-6. Moments later, Kevin Youkilis hit a bloop single that scored Pedroia only because the Red Sox second baseman's smart base running put him on third. Pedroia does not have blazing speed, but he does have intelligence. Of course, the off-season training in Arizona has seemingly made his more agile. He already has five stolen bases.
• The two runs Boston scored in the seventh of last night's game were made possible by two Milwaukee errors. If you like clean defense, that game was certainly not appealing. The Brewers had four errors and the Red Sox committed three. In case you are wondering, Julio Lugo did not add to his 11 errors. Boston's miscues were made by Mike Lowell, Alex Cora and Javier Lopez.
• On an evening when the usually reliable David Aardsma was ineffective, as was Craig Hansen, Mike Timlin posted a 1-2-3 ninth to earn his first save in the nightcap of Saturday's twinbill. Timlin has taken a lot of heat across the blogosphere - including this site - so he deserves kudos for stepping up in a closer's role when Jonathan Papelbon and Hideki Okajima were unavailable. Papelbon earned the save in the first game of the doubleheader, and Okajima is resting a sore wrist. The 42-year-old Timlin had a rough April, allowing nine runs and 14 hits in six innings for a 13.50 ERA. So far in May, he has surrendered one run and three hits in five innings for a 1.80 ERA. Timlin's performance has been helpful for a shaky Red Sox bullpen. With Manny Delcarmen continuing to struggle (he allowed a run and two hits in 1.1 innings this afternoon and has a 5.71 ERA) and Craig Hansen adapting to life in the big leagues, it is important that Timlin provide clean innings.

About Rizzo, Bard and a doubleheader

You might recall the popular t-shirt about a decade ago that read "Baseball is Life." That phrase is accurate for ardent baseball enthusiasts who consider the game a passion. Yet, sometimes an unfortunate event happens that reminds us that baseball is indeed just a sport, and life is life.

Last night, the Red Sox announced that 18-year-old first base prospect Anthony Rizzo has been diagnosed with Limited Stage Classical Hodgkin's Lymphoma and is being treated as an outpatient at Massachusetts General Hospital. He will return to his home in Miami to continue treatment, which is expected to take six to eight months. The statement released by the Red Sox reports that, "he has an excellent chance of cure and complete recovery."

Drafted by Boston in the sixth round last year out of high school in south Florida, the 6-foot-3, 220-pound Rizzo is a solid left-handed first baseman. That he is only 18 and playing at Single-A Greenville - and not the Gulf Coast League or short-season Lowell like most kids selected out of high school - is a testament to his potential to reach the big leagues. Rizzo was hitting .373 in 83 at-bats.

Of course, right now baseball is not important for Rizzo. Regaining his health is what matters most. Hopefully, like Jon Lester recovered from non-Hodgkins lymphoma, Rizzo does the same with his bout with cancer. Obviously, if he is back on the field, that means he is healthy again and chasing his dream. Here's to a full recovery for Rizzo.

Daniel Bard promoted to Double-A Portland

Last year - in his first full professional season since being picked by Boston in the first round of the 2006 draft - was frustrating for Daniel Bard. His control was erratic, and he was knocked around at Single-A Greenville and Single-A Lancaster as a starter.

Bard's fortunes improved when he changed his arm angle and was converted to a reliever before the 2008 season. The result was a 0.64 ERA with 43 strikeouts and four walks in 28 innings for Greenville. THe Red Sox are so pleased with Bard's progress that they promoted him directly to Double-A Portland, skipping advanced Single-A Lancaster.

Likely, the Red Sox allowed Bard to bypass Lancaster because the California League is where a pitcher's confidence is tested with the windy weather and the hitting-friendly ballparks. Bard is 23, and he should be pitching at the Double-A level.

It is my ideal vision to see a Red Sox bullpen that features Jonathan Papelbon, Hideki Okajima, David Aardsma, Manny Delcarmen, Justin Masterson, Dustin Richardson (another left-hander) and Daniel Bard. That could happen as soon as 2009, though the Red Sox are unsure whether Masterson is better suited as a starter or a reliever. Bard is a power pitcher with an array of effective secondary pitches. He seems to thrive as a reliever, so he will give Boston another power arm to accompany Aardsma, Delcarmen and Papelbon.

Are you ready for a Saturday of baseball?

A doubleheader is not the best scenario for Boston right now. The Red Sox are still banged up with Julio Lugo recovering from a slight concussion, J.D. Drew mending from a hyperextended left wrist and Coco Crisp regaining strength after feeling nauseated and experiencing headaches. All three are expected to play today. Obviously, Alex Cora will play one of the two games at shortstop, and Jonathan Van Every will play center field in one of the games. That means Lugo, Drew and Crisp will be required for just one game each.

A doubleheader sweep would help the struggling Red Sox in the standings. At 24-19, they are 1.5 games behind the surprising Tampa Bay Rays, which defeated St. Louis last night.

No DL for Lugo or Drew

Apparently, Julio Lugo's slight concussion is not serious enough to warrant a trip to the disabled list and a return call to Jed Lowrie at Pawtucket. Lugo, along with J.D. Drew (who hyperextended his left wrist on Tuesday, are in tonight's starting lineup against Milwaukee.

The banged up Red Sox will be without Coco Crisp, who missed Wednesday's game because of nausea and headaches. Jonathan Van Every, the veteran minor leaguer who was summoned from Pawtucket to make his Major League debut on Wednesday, will serve as the fourth outfielder. Clay Buchholz, of course, is on the 15-day disabled list and will miss Sunday's start. Josh Beckett will take the ball that afternoon on his normal four days of rest.

An array of former Red Sox players are at Fenway Park this weekend, this time in Brewers uniforms. Jeff Suppan is tonight's starting pitcher. Gabe Kapler is the fourth outfielder. Eric Gagne is the sometimes closer, sometimes set-up man (when he needs a mental break). With the injury to Brandon Moss, and the aches and pains that J.D. Drew and Coco Crisp are experiencing, Kapler would be an asset to the Red Sox right now. As for Suppan and Gagne, better that Milwaukee has them than Boston.

Here are tonight's lineups:

Boston Red Sox

1. CF Jacoby Ellsbury
2. 2B Dustin Pedroia
3. DH David Ortiz
4. LF Manny Ramirez
5. 3B Mike Lowell
6. 1B Kevin Youkilis
7. RF J.D. Drew
8. C Jason Varitek
9. SS Julio Lugo

Starting Pitcher - Daisuke Matsuzaka

Milwaukee Brewers

1. 2B Rickie Weeks
2. CF Mike Cameron
3. LF Ryan Braun
4. 1B Prince Fielder
5. RF Corey Hart
6. SS JJ Hardy
7. DH Joe Dillon
8. 3B Bill Hall
9. C Jason Kendall

Starting Pitcher - Jeff Suppan

Too good to pass up

Just came across this gem while perusing baseball reference. That has to be a feather in the hat in favor of the Yankees for this rivalry. They never drafted somebody named Dick Pole. What gets me is that his real name is clearly stated as Richard, and yet he preferred to go by "Dick" anyway.

Really? Your last name is "Pole" and you prefer the only possible nickname that could make your last name revelant and unintentionally hilarious? Did anybody see this guy play? He must have been imposing at 6'3" and 210 pounds. I mean, can you imagine John Sterling on call where Dick Pole gives up a big home run? Did he get smoked? Did his arm feel limp? This is just ridiculous, I'm tempted to sponsor him. How do parents let this happen? And why haven't I seen this? Do all you Red Sox fans know about this and choose to ignore it? It's rainy here in Connecticut and this has to be the laziest afternoon of my life. So, alas, ladies and gentleman: Your Dick Pole.

The third wave of the Yankees' youth movement is getting closer

By now we're used to Robinson Cano, Melky Cabrera and Chien-Ming Wang. In 2005, New York was in desperate need to fill some holes, so they gave a rare shot to some rookies and now today, all three play an important role on the roster. Wang is a back-to-back 19 game winner, and seems headed for a shot at 20 again this season. He is the Yankees ace. Cano has had slow starts including a 1 for 14 to start his major league career, but as he ages and as the season continues, the downside is a .300 average and the ceiling is a batting title. He has the middle infield locked up with another homegrown, Derek Jeter (a youth movement with Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada from over a decade ago) for the conceivable future. Cabrera is perhaps the most interesting of the three, as he was the youngest to make his debut at just 20-years old. In a brief stint in 2005, Cabrera did not impress, hitting lightly and playing a butcher's defense. It wasn't until his call-up again in 2006 for a suddenly aging Johnny Damon where Melky first started showing signs of being major-league ready, impressing the league with a strong arm and an ability to hit for a respectable average. Last season, at the age of 22, Cabrera established himself as a major league starting outfielder, taking the job from the free agent Damon, with a .273 average, 40 extra base hits, 73 RBI and a league leading 16 assists from the field. Now, Cabrera will be 24 in August but has already introduced power into his offensive approach, clubbing six home runs in his first 138 at bats of the 2008 season.

We know about Chamberlain, Hughes, Kennedy and a slew of others to join the major league club last season. Edwar Ramirez, Shelley Duncan, Alberto Gonzalez, Ross Ohlendorf and Jose Veras are all youthful and have all shared time on the roster this season along with the "big three," but most of them figure not to stick around for the long term (though I have a lot of faith in Ohlendorf, a minor league trade acquisition; Veras, a hard-throwing, homegrown pitcher; and Gonzalez, a slick fielding utility man with a fundamentally sound bat). Expect Chamberlain and Hughes to make up a large part of the future's starting rotation, with Kennedy probable to join them. I don't need to list the potential with the three, but I might need to mention the ages: None of the three pitchers are even half way to their 24th birthday and none of them have a complete year of Major League experience. Chamberlain has excelled out of the bullpen, becoming a top setup man in major league baseball while only demonstrating two of his four solid pitches. At some point this season, it is expected Joba will become a starter. Kennedy and Hughes have struggled and the latter is injured, so things have not looked bright for them this season. But this is when the age really takes a toll.

Kennedy is 23 and a control pitcher. He will improve with experience and it is a situation where Kennedy's growing pains are all evident to the baseball world because it is happening on a Major League level. Hughes has had trouble staying healthy and he is just 21 years old. How many Major League pitchers do you see pitch like an ace at the age of 21? The joke of the whole situation is when naysayers poke fun at Yankees co-owner Hank Steinbrenner for making statements that allude to him jumping the gun, saying things to make one think Joba should be a starter or Johan Santana should be in pinstripes right now, It is the same naysayers who later claim Santana would be helping a shaky Yankees rotation this season (ignoring the next five, the big contract and the no-trade clause) and that Phil Hughes has not panned out. Anybody with baseball intelligence and a sense of the game, particularly young players and the way playing in a big market like New York works, would know immediately that something like a Santana trade cannot be analyzed for a few years and Hughes and Kennedy have not come close to reaching their potential.

Either way, questions will have to be answered this season and for the future. Will Hughes stay healthy? Will he improve? Will Kennedy get it together? These are questions that almost certainly have a more positive answer than the outcome presently, but nevertheless need to be proven. The main question for this season is what is the future for Joba Chamberlain, a lights out reliever who has ace-like stuff? One option is to keep him in an ever-improving bullpen, with arms like Jose Veras and Ross Ohlendorf starting to develop on the job to assist Mariano Rivera and a seemingly improved Kyle Farnsworth. Even Edwar Ramirez has yet to falter. If the current guys cannot get it done, than maybe Joba's migration to the rotation could be sorted by some new players, a new wave of the youth movement:

• Daniel McCutchen was promoted recently to AA Trenton, a promotion that makes him eligible to make a Major League leap at virtually any time. The 25-year-old was a 13th round pick in the 2006 draft, but has impressed in the lower levels. Last season, the right-hander combined to go 14-4 with a 2.47 ERA in 23 starts, ranking second in the organization in wins and third in ERA. In 142 innings, McCutchen struck out 103 batters and walked just 33, demonstrating decent control at a young age. If he keeps impressing, then by the All-Star Break it might not be Joba coming to help the rotation, it could be McCutchen.
• Mark Melancon is even newer to the AA scene, having pitched just two innings for the Thunder. Though he gave up a run in those two innings, Melancon struck out four of the six batters he retired. He might be a work in progess having come off of Tommy John surgery which caused him to miss the 2007 season. It has been reported that Melancon is back at full strength with his velocity, however, and his promotion to AA certainly seems to offer insight in that department. Last season, Baseball America had the 23-year-old ranked as the ninth best prospect in the Yankees' system. Perhaps of all the high prospects, Melancon is the most interesting. He has the surgery and minor league experience working against him (8.2 career minor league innings), but his stuff, makeup and projections all work to his benefit. Take this NY Post article written in February for example.

"Mark Melancon did not pitch an inning last season. He has pitched 6 2/3 innings in his entire minor league career. Yet, Yankees New York Yankees officials speculate Melancon could pull a Joba, emulating Mr. Chamberlain by rocketing from the Florida State League to late-inning Yankee relevance in one season. This season."

"I thank Joba for opening that door," Melancon said after a simulated two-inning batting practice session.

The scouting report on Melancon is above-average fastball with command (though his control was sketchy yesterday), a power curve that some in the organization equate as an out pitch to Chamberlain's slider and, as Nick Green, who hit against him in the BP session, said an ability to hide the ball in his delivery. However, what every Yankees official cites as Melancon's greatest asset is a serious, professional, determined makeup.

"This guy wants to compete and will not get rattled," minor league pitching coordinator Nardi Contreras said."

Hiding the ball, to me, has become a major variable for relievers in recent years. It seems like something I just haven't seen often, but guys like Hideki Okajima have found success with it. This will be a situation to keep an eye on all season because if we have learned anything in recent years, it's that the Yankees usually have a pitcher who is going to annoy the hell out of people who think they will miss the playoffs who comes out of nowhere. Aaron Small, Shawn Chacon, Chamberlain, Wang, and the list goes on. Is this Melancon's year?

• JB Cox just turned 24 on May 13th, but of all the prospects listed, he is the most known. Cox was at one point projected to be the replacement for Mariano Rivera, but more realistically he could be the replacement for Joba Chamberlain if the Yankees' phenom is asked to become a starter mid-season. Cox also had his progression halted by Tommy John Surgery, but he too is fully recovered and back in action. The right hander was number eight in Baseball America's top Yankees prospect list last season and was said to have the best slider. Coming out of the University of Texas as a second rounder certainly suggests the potential Cox has shown when healthy, and he too, has a deceptive, but repeatable delivery. With a low 90s two seam fastball comparable to Derek Lowe, Cox uses a plus slider (around 85 miles per hour) and his delivery to miss bats. The important thing with both of his top pitches is that he has excellent control, and now has developed a major-league ready changeup to accompany the two out pitches. The next three paragraphs sum up the situation for Cox right now as taken from All Yankees Info. It's important to note that this was a report when Cox was 22, though his stuff hasn't changed (except an improved changeup), his health might have very well been a result of his impending TJ surgery.

"Command: Cox has absolutely stellar command, which is easily his biggest asset. He does not get himself into trouble by walking people. He does not leave balls over the middle of the plate, resulting in an astronomically low 6 career home runs allowed in 290.1 innings between college and the minor leagues. Cox has pitched in 13 CWS games, handling the pressure as well if not better than fellow-Texan Huston Street.

Performance: Cox put together three excellent years in the NCAA's storied University of Texas, pitching 185.2 innings, striking out 190, walking 53, and posting a 2.03 ERA. He got the final out of their 2005 Championship before signing with the Yankees. He has one of best pedigrees for a college closer in the short history of drafted college closers. He doesn't throw as hard as most power relievers, but he has certainly showed up on the mound. Between High A Tampa and AA Trenton, Cox has pitched 104.2 innings, striking out 87 while walking just 29. He has allowed only 23 earned runs during that time for an ERA of 1.98.

2007 Outlook: On a lot of teams, Cox would already be in the major league bullpen and perhaps a major league closer. However, the Yankees refused to rush Cox, seeing Joey Devine on the Braves and Craig Hansen on the Red Sox crash and burn after being rushed from high-end college programs to pressure situations in the show. With a suddenly loaded Yankees bullpen, Cox will start 2007 in Scranton, which will give him time to work on his change-up. He will likely be second or third on the Yankee relief depth charts, behind Chris Britton (if he gets optioned down) and T.J. Beam (who is starting to get old). There is no doubt in my mind that Cox could perform better than Kyle Farnsworth or Scott Proctor next year if sent immediately to the Yankees."

Pretty interesting that there has always been controversy and criticism about how the Yankees always trade their best prospects and rush them into the majors when a guy like Cox has been taken cautiously through the system. It's also hard to criticize the Yankees for trading their best prospects when Hughes, Chamberlain and Kennedy survived the offseason, Wang, Cano and Cabrera are still around three years later and Jeter, Rivera and Posada will retire in the same uniform. There aren't many teams that have that luxury or that loyalty.

Also an interesting outlook, as I said this was from the end of 2006 before the surgery and with names like TJ Beam and Chris Britton still relevant. I find it perhaps most telling that there was a belief Cox could have been better than both Proctor and Farnsworth then. Now Cox is in AAA Scranton and could easily add depth to the bullpen, if not take over for Chamberlain. If you're looking for a safe bet besides Farnsworth or Ohlendorf, who are already in the bullpen (Veras is too wild, Hawkins isn't dominant enough and nobody else fits the bill in the bullpen right now) this is it. If you want the dark horse, go with Melancon. Either way, Yankees' pitching depth is alive and very well, don't for a second assume Joba Chamberlain is married to the bullpen and if Rasner starts to fade, Mussina gets injured, Hughes never recovers or Kennedy can't put it together, it will be the rotation that needs help, not the bullpen. Chamberlain or McCutchen could be that guy.

Bartolo Colon appears ready for Red Sox debut

With Clay Buchholz on the disabled list with a torn fingernail, the Boston Red Sox will need another starter for the No. 5 spot on Thursday, April 22 against Kansas City. Perhaps Bartolo Colon will make his Red Sox debut. The former Cy Young Award winner looked ready this afternoon, when he allowed no runs and one hit over six innings for Pawtucket.

Colon threw just 64 pitches, 45 of which were strikes. He struck out four and did not walk a batter. It appears that Colon has regained his health. The velocity is there, as is the command.

The Red Sox do have other options. They could recall Justin Masterson from Double-A Portland. Knuckleballer Charlie Zink, 24-year-old right-hander David Pauley and veteran left-hander Michael Tejera (who has tasted success at the Major League level) are throwing the ball effectively at Pawtucket.

Starting Colon makes the most sense. He has an out clause in his contract if he is not with the Red Sox by June 1. Boston needs to give Colon at least a couple starts to see if he can help the team for the remainder of the season. If Colon does prove that he is Major League worthy again, chances are Buchholz will spend some time at Pawtucket, where he can work on his fast ball command while pitching five inning stints to keep his workload under control. There is not doubt that Buchholz will still be a key part of Boston's World Series title defense this season.

As the Red Sox prepare for a three-game weekend series against Milwaukee at Fenway Park, it is interesting to note that the Brewers have expressed interest in acquiring Julian Tavarez. Yovani Gallardo had season-ending knee surgery, and Milwaukee needs an arm for the rotation. ESPN.com's Jayson Stark writes that the Brewers have Jeff Weaver at Triple-A, too. Tavarez seems like a better option. A deal could be worked out this weekend for Tavarez, who was designed for assignment by Boston earlier in the week. The Denver Post reported that talks between Colorado and Boston regarding Tavarez are now dormant.

Stark's column also mentioned that the Red Sox were reportedly shopping Javier Lopez and David Aardsma earlier in the week. This is surprising, considering that the left-handed Lopez has limited left-handed hitters to a .185 average and Aardsma has emerged as one of the team's top right-handed set-up men. The 26-year-old power pitcher has walked 15 in 20.1 innings, but he also has 17 strikeouts, a 2.21 ERA and has held hitters to a .194 average.

The bullpen is still Boston's main question mark. Jonathan Papelbon is fine. The runs scored during his two blown saves were a result of Julio Lugo's error and a couple bloop hits. Manny Delcarmen is throwing the ball better, having posted back-to-back scoreless outings. Hideki Okajima is a concern. Though his ERA is 0.93 and opposing hitters are batting .191 against him, he has allowed 11 of 14 inherited runners to score. Mike Timlin has shown signs of settling down, having allowed one run and three hits over four innings in his last four appearances, yet - like Lopez - the Red Sox don't know what to expect right now when he steps to the mound. Ideally, Timlin will retire, or the Red Sox will release him, and summon Masterson. Boston desperately needs Craig Hansen to emerge as a reliable set-up man.

Another interesting nugget in Stark's column concerns Julio Lugo. Stark writes that the Red Sox are more likely to deal Lugo in the off-season rather than during the season. After 2008, Lugo has two years left on his four-year, $36 million deal. Boston will definitely have to pay a portion of this contract, but it will be worth the hassle because John Henry can afford it, and since the Red Sox can move Jed Lowrie into the starting shortstop role and resign Alex Cora as the utility infielder.

It makes no sense to deal Lugo during the regular season because of depth. Lowrie offers insurance in case of injury to Lugo or Cora, as we have already seen. If the Red Sox traded Lugo this season, there would be no attractive Major League ready option to back up Lowrie and Cora. Boston's organization is stocked with promising shortstop prospects (Oscar Tejeda, Will Middlebrooks and Ryan Dent are three; and Argenis Diaz is another), but they are all at the low levels of the farm system.

Though Lugo's defensive ineptitude has hurt the Red Sox this year, his presence maintains the depth at shortstop.    

They Won! And they still have no offense!

Jonny Gomes scored the winning run on Tuesday night and I vowed I'd never watch the Yankees before June 1st ever again. Last year, New York's pitching could not stay consistent, the bullpen was a disaster and the hitting was lethargic. This season, every three of five starts seems to be decent, the bullpen has become a strength (despite injuries to Bruney and Albaladejo) and the offense has been completely dead. Thirty five lineups in 40 games has not been enough and heading into a game with James Shields against Mike Mussina, there wasn't much hope. But then you have to keep a few things in mind: These Yankees are better than last year's team even if they have the same injury problems. Last year at this time, the Yankees had no setup man, no potential 7th inning man (once Scott Proctor's overuse and troubles began), Johnny Damon was still a thought for center field, Chien-Ming Wang only now started pitching well enough to win, and Darrell Rasner and Ian Kennedy were instead the choices of Kei Igawa, Rasner, Karstens, Chase Wright, Matt DeSalvo, and a line of 10 rookies who would set a Major League record for debuts in one season.

It is true that Ian Kennedy is no lock just because he had a successful minor league start or that Darrell Rasner will continue to pitch well, or even that Phil Hughes will return from his injury and be the same Phil Hughes we saw in September and October of last season. However, seeing Mike Mussina continuously pitch well now to the point where naysayers have to look in the mirror and scrounge for any sort of stat to help their fading case, Wang become an undeniable ace with a dominant start every night and Andy Pettitte still stay healthy (despite a couple of rough outings in a row) there