Live Blog: Sox-Rays, 6-2-08

-11:07pm: After five minutes of searching. I located Wheeler BABIP, or a graph of an estimation of it. Right here. It's about .180, it was over .300 last year. The Sox have got their hits this inning, indicating that BABIP is too to come back to Earth as the season draws on for Wheeler.

Francona employs an awful hit and run with Varitek hitting and Lowell running. 2 outs, no one on, and the Sox need a run to tie, 6-7. Terribe idea by Tito. As Dirty Dave put it, "a hit and run with your slowest bat and slowest baserunner."

Varitek, in due form, strikes out to end the game. I didn't even see it. I was still lamenting the awful hit and run attempt. Tampa Bay sweeps the Red Sox to grab a 3.5 game lead in the AL East. Road teams still winless in the series.

I'm out now... Exhausted. Dissapointed by the Sox. Even if my fandom is wavering these days. What with all the Red Sox Nation stuff. Etc. A rant for another day. I am still upset to see the Sox lose a game in the manner they did tonight.

-10:55pm: Ramirez hits a groundout to Bartlett at short. Bartlett botches the throw to first. Tampa's awful defense in the last two games continues. The 5th error, I believe in the last two games. Lowell is batting, representing the tying run.

-10:54pm: Lopez pitches a solid 8th inning. A great job out of him 1.2 IP, really stopped the bleeding for the Sox. Ramirez, Lowell and Youkilis are due in the top of 9th. Against Dan Wheeler, who has been absolutely sensational with a 1.88 ERA and 20 holds.

WOW! These Division Collision promos are so fucking intense!! I want to drive my head through a wall...

-10:42pm: It'd be nice to see Pedroia collect a single here, and hit for the cycle. The first for the Sox since John Valentin in 1995.

In related news, it'd be nice to see Pedroia hit a homerun here, and make it a one-run game.

In related related news, well, actually-related story: A customer at the Red Sox Team Store approached my friend Joe on the sales floor. Asking if we had any "Petey jerseys." Joe responds appropriately enough, "Oh no, we don't have any Pedro Martinez jerseys on the sales floor. Maybe you could try our website." The customer wrinkles his forehead, and gives Joe an obvious look, "No, we called Pedroia, 'Petey...'" This isn't common, is it? Yeah, I know it's not common.

In related related related news, Pedroia is still a single short of the cycle after hitting a double to bring the Sox to within two, 5-7 with two outs in the 7th.

-10:36pm: That was a solid 25-minute half-inning as we enter the top of the 8th. The race begins for the Sox, they need at least 3 runs before they get six outs here. All of this against the Rays' bullpen which sports a 3.18 ERA good for 5th in the league. They are without Percival, who was placed on the DL today, but I am still not going to bet against them, the way the Sox are swinging the bat these days.

-10:29pm: The inning is finally over with Akinori Iwamura not holding back a checked swing. The Rays finish the seventh frame with 6 runs, not quite able to catch the Yankees' 9-run 7th.

-10:26pm: It is not time to laugh yet. Jason Bartlett registered his second hit of the inning. Two more in for the Rays, 7-4.

-10:25pm: Gabe Gross and Javier Lopez locked in a tight lefty-lefty battle here. Advantage: Lopez. One out left, and Red Sox and Rangers fans alike can laugh about their crazy seventh innings as if they're distant memories.

-10:20pm: Oh! I promised the final line for Warner Madrigal: .1 IP/5H/6ER/1BB/26 pitches... Scary... The Bombers now lead 15-7 after putting up 9 in the 7th inning.

David Aardsma records an out with runners on second and third. Intentionally walks Navarro to load up the bases. Javier Lopez is coming, the fourth pitcher of this interminable 7th inning for the Sox.

-10:13pm: Okay. I finally found the stat I was looking for. And yes, Texas's bullpen ERA is 29th in the league with a 4.75 ERA.

Also, Craig Hansen just walked in a run to make it a 4-3 game. No outs in the 7th, bases drunk of Rays. The mood in the room has deteriorated rapidly. With Longoria up at the plate, Dave chimes in "The stars are aligned for a grand slam here." A 2-run double is close enough to prophetic there. Point for Dave.

I cannot overstate the deteriorating mood in the room. I was going nuts trying to find sortable team stats on ESPN or MLB. When I calmed down, I finally found myself at the page. I have been there a million times before. All of this while Manny Delcarmen and Craig Hansen give away the game.

I will give others the link. So you won't suffer with me. Another NESN Comedy All-Stars promo. I am twitching like a mad man.

-10:06pm: Pratt wanted to watch the Yankee game just now. With Varitek up with two outs and runners on the corners, he tells me, "Just write 'Varitek struck out on three pitches and be done with it.'" Well, that's what happened. The man is a prophet, or Varitek just isn't very good... Or both.

Just an update on the Yankee game: Madrigal surprisingly did not pitch well making his major league debut trying to protect a one-run lead in Yankee Stadium. He has now given up 3 earned runs without recording an out. He is still pitching. This is a running line for now. I feel compelled to report back with his complete line. I don't know what Ron Washington is thinking. I know the Rangers' bullpen is not stellar by any means, but they must have been able to find someone to spell this kid sooner, he can't buy an out. A bad decision by Washington to test out a virgin arm at Yankee Stadium in a tight game. There are so many ways I can write how bad a decision this was. I tried looking up Texas' bullpen ERA. When I find it. I'll put it up here.

While I was tearing my hair out trying to figure this out Manny Delcarmen came in and gave up 3 hits, without recording an out, inching the Rays closer at 4-2. Craig Hansen in with two on and no outs. Sox fans are overrun with confidence now.

-9:49pm: Ramirez flies out to right field. He is now 0-4 in the game with an RBI. It is one of the worst Manny games I have seen in a while. His at bats look bad, he looks disinterested, or at least just out of the game. No one is going to have 162 great games. I cannot remember the last time I watched a Red Sox game this intently and was this unimpressed with Manny Ramirez.

-9:43pm: Over to the Yankees quickly: The Rangers, up a run, 7-6 in the bottom of the 7th, and Warner Madrigal is making his major league debut. At Yankee Stadium. Scheduled to bat in this inning: Abreu, Rodriguez and Giambi. Wow. Tough spot.

-9:39pm: Okajima works a solid 6th, allowing a baserunner, striking out two. Its outings like these that are going to get him back in the mix later in the game. Slowly, but surely, regaining his confidence and ability. I doubt he forgot how to pitch.

-9:34pm: Pedroia's first bid to complete the single results in a flyout to end the top of the 6th.

Checking out the Yankees' game in the bottom of the 6th. Jeter is up, first and second, one out. A career .316 hitter, Jeter is hitting under .300 for the first time since 2004, current at .278. If the season ended now, it would be his lowest average ever as a full-time player. His OBP has dropped an alarming 50 points off last year from .388 to .338. Jeter grounds into a double-play. Also, it seems fair to mention at this point, that in his worst season as a pro, Jeter is still only 10, 500 votes behind A-Rod for the most overall votes. Voting ends tonight. Although, in the AL, there isn't a ton of competition at shortstop, outside of Michael Young, and the game is at Yankee Stadium. Hard to complain too much. It's 7-6, Rangers going in the top of the 7th.

In other news, Okajima has been relegated to the sixth inning now. Quite a fall from grace for the automatic eighth inning guy a year earlier. The most telling stat about Okajima? Last year he allowed 4 of his inherited runners to score, out of a possible 28, this year the ratio is 12 of 15.

-9:22pm: After Ellsbury most recent abortion of a bunt. I am convinced that practicing bunting must be Ellsbury's number-one off-season priority. I hate using two hyphenated words in a row. Just felt like sharing that.

-9:15pm: Heidi Watney is so hot. The new NESN sideline reporter. My friend Shirley (a dude) promises she is not as good-looking in HD. I still like her just fine, though. Here's a pic.

Pratt and I wanted to pick out and debate the best starting pitcher in the league this year. I'd probably pick Cliff Lee (11-1, 2.26 ERA). Linecum, Marcum, Haren, and Halladay probably make up the rest of my top 5. Toronto, 11 GB of the Red Sox at 41-44, wasting another brilliant season from Roy Halladay (9-6, 2.90 ERA, 1.04 WHIP).

Matsuzaka gets out of the fifth, stranding B.J. Upton at 2nd. 100 pitches even through five. I swear, I've been paying attention, and not just looking up stats. It's hard to see D-Mat (I thought it was a catchy nickname) going past the sixth inning.

-9:03pm: With a runner on third (Drew) and no outs, Manny Ramirez strikes out. I cannot remember a time when I wouldn't at least expect Ramirez to sky a sacrifice fly in that situation. Lowell follows it up with a grounder to third. Now there are two outs with Drew still standing on third. Bad situation, a 3-1 game and the Sox are on the verge of wasting an opportunity to blow it wide open.

Kazmir throws a wild pitch, and Drew scores from third. "Hey, a free run," Pratt proclaims. Varitek predictably grounds out. 4-1. Quickly checking out the Mets game. It's sad for Pedro, 4 ER, 2 IP. Nearing the end of the road.

-8:51pm: Pedroia is a single shy of the cycle in the fifth inning after hitting his 24th double of the season. Worthy of tidy, quick update.

-8:50pm: Matsuzaka has quietly set down seven in a row since throwing about 60 of his 80 pitches (just a guess) to get through his first five outs.

-8:46pm: Lugo up with two men on and one out. Lugo bloops a single to left field. Varitek is so painfully slow that he didn't even entertain the idea of scoring from second.

Now, the bases are loaded for Jacoby, a tailor-made spot for him to break his slump. Ellsbury sends a double-play ball to the second baseman. Ellsbury beats out the throw to first, Varitek scores, 3-1 Red Sox and 2 outs, runners on first and third. Oh wait, Lugo, unaware that Ellsbury did not need his help, slides a mile to the right of the second base bag. The umpire calls a double play, 2-1 and the inning is over.

A decent quote from Dirty David, "Lugo finds new ways to suck." I try to support Lugo as much as possible, but he has been abysmal in a Red Sox uniform.

Remy does not believe the call would not have been made had warnings not been issued to both teams before the game (as they have in every game this series, because of the brawl at Fenway). I vehemently disagree. That was an in-game call, a call the umpire made on instinct. It, I do not think, was a result of any premonition (I know! A big word, I had to consult with the peanut gallery for that one) to call baserunning differently in this series. Then again, I live to disagree with Remy.

-8:27pm: I continue to be amazed with how often Pratt brags to me about this rotisserie league that he is in that is dominating. Its odd that he brags to me about it so much. Mostly because I am not even in this league.

-8:18pm: Pedroia has the two hardest elements of the cycle out of the way. A triple and a home run. Would not put it past this Red Sox offense to strand Pedroia at third with one out.

47 (RF), 128 (CF), 94 (LF), the number of at-bats for Ellsbury at the three different outfield positions, going into tonight's game. Ellsbury's efficiency at all three outfield positions continues to amaze me. Gotta talk up his defense, because he is mired in such an awful slump.

Manny Ramirez gets Pedroia in from third with a hard hit grounder to Longoria, that Longoria could not field cleanly. I do expect more from Manny. But, when the Sox have scored 3 runs in their previous two games, Pratt gets it right: "We'll take them anyway we can."

I do hate when fans include themselves in the team, referring to the team as "we." But we do like Pratt... Well, I do.

-8:07pm: I tried to look up Ellsbury's range factor stats online. He is not qualified for rankings at any outfield position, because he has played all three so much. Crawford, maybe the Rays best hitter, is hitting .272 this season, despite being a career .294 hitter, and hitting .315 last year. His home/road split this year is disturbing: .316 (home)/.235 (road). Last year it was not as jarring, but somewhat reversed .342 (road)/.287 (home).

Meanwhile the home plate umpire (Gerry Davis) has not given Matsuzaka the corners at all. With his lack of confidence, he needs the corners more than even most finesse pitchers. It really is alarming to see how little Matsuzaka confidence he has. It cannot be overstated. With his stuff and ability, I cannot understand how he can look so rattled up on the mound.

Red pill/Blue pill... In-game ads for Sox Appeal, or in-game ads for NESN Comedy All-Stars.

-7:56pm: A good grab in centerfield by Ellsbury for the first out in the second inning on a Jason Bartlett pop-up. I seem to read all the time quotes and testimonials from scouts that say that Ellsbury is an exceptional fielder at all three outfield positions.

-7:51pm: 4 errors for Tampa Bay in the last 11 innings of baseball. But errors are a product more of opportunity than of true defensive efficiency. Still, the Rays vaunted defense has not looked its best in this series. Although, Carlos Pena, probably their weakest defensive player (in the bottom tier of first basemen in terms of range factor at 8.87), made a great diving stop earlier in this inning (2nd).

Lugo strands two runners in scoring position, helping Kazmir and the Rays defense out of a major jam. The Red Sox, with 3 runs in the last two games, could see the 2nd inning as a golden opportunity missed.

-7:45pm: A 3-44 slump for Varitek as he bats in the second. At .220/.302/.370, Old Man Varitek, a nickname assigned to him by Pratt three years ago might finally be hard to reject. A strikeout, man, does that bat come through the zone slow these days. 131 games in 2007 at age 35 was a huge mistake by the Sox. I even think 69 games already this year just past the halfway mark is a bit excessive. Not that they haven't been trying to groom a replacement for him. George Kottaras being the most notable bust in AAA. The Sox certainly can't give Kevin Cash too many more at-bats, he of the .180 career average.

-7:35pm: I get very focused when I live-blog. Pratt and company have come in. Shirley (a member of the group) asked me, "I am going to start naming pitchers... and you just tell me what you think?" I respond with, "I'd really rather not."

He also asked me, "which current Yankee I like the most-personality wise?" All while thumbing through a Sports Illustrated. I don't read SI, but are these the types of questions/conversations inspired by the mag?

Meanwhile Dice-K has gotten off to a rough start. 2 walks, a hit and a run. 2 outs. Ah, a four-pitch walk, exciting. Proving again why he is the luckiest 9-1 in the league. He's got four very strong starts. April 1st, April 30th, May 10th, and May 17th. Basically, the only games where he gave the Sox at least six innings, and walked less than 3 batters, and had less than three earned runs. Pratt said he doesn't trust his stuff, and a ton of walks, .63 walks per 9 innings coming into tonight.

Alright, Dice-K gets out of a nightmarish first inning.

-7:20pm: Pedroia is now 11-19 against Kazmir in his career. He looked overmatched early in the count, swinging badly at two pitches, and just barely fighting off a third foul. I cannot possibly keep up this torrid posting pace. A small paragraph for each at-bat? Probably excessive. In 2007, Ellsbury had 11 extra-base hits in 33 games, effectively one month of baseball. This season, in three months of baseball, or 77 games, he has 17. That stat gives me a ton of pause concerning his ability.

This crowd at Tropicana is amazing. All the Rays bandwagoners are jumping on. I have never heard the crowd go in favor of the Rays in a BOS-TAM series ever. This is indicative of a lot of bandwagoners, but it is also demonstrative of how much the rest of the baseball fan world hates the Red Sox. Even more than the Yankees.

-7:10pm: Ellsbury gets things off to an encouraging start. Grounding out to first. He is batting under .270 now for the year. .210 in the last seven games. No good. I wonder if he has been figured out. Or if it is just a slump. I am banking on slump.

-7:07pm: I will try not to harp on this. None of the previews for NESN Comedy All-Stars look funny at all. Why does NESN need a comedy show? Does YES have comedy show? While we're at it, why do the Sox need to put their name on a dating show? Does SNY have a dating show?

-7:03pm: Watching a little Wedding Singer instead of NESN pre-game. I would probably watch color bars over the NESN pre-game. I am fairly certain that Jerry Remy, Don Orsillo, Dennis Eckersley, whoever else they trot out there for the studio show, pre-game stuff, has never told me anything I didn't already know about baseball. And that is not to say Jerry Remy doesn't know baseball better than me, he probably does, he's a former pro, he's been broadcasting for twenty years. He just chooses not to share any of that insight on air. It's incredible.

Pratt should be joining me to watch the game at some point. He's making his dinner on a hibachi him and his roommates bought for 10 bucks at Shaws. So, he'll be over around the seventh inning.

Also, I was advised by a reader to do the time-stamp in reverse, with the most recent posts up top. Definitely a better idea. So, we'll be checking that out.

I'm wrapping up the pre-game with the Rapping Ganny in Wedding Singer. It was never funny...