A V-Mart Story in Honor of His Return to the Lineup

Now that it is official that V-Mart has returned to the lineup I feel inclined to share my V-Mart story with you. Most of my readers have probably heard this story in person but it bears repeating.

About a month ago I was at a Red Sox game watching Tim Wakefield warm up in the bullpen when V-Mart came over and started stretching. I stood up, waved, and yelled loudly "Hi Victor!!" and he looked over, nodded and smiled at me. That's right, nodded and smiled. If you don't believe me just ask @__fc. She was there.

Saturday I'm going to another Red Sox game. I'm planning on wearing my I Heart V-Mart shirt and yelling hi to him again. I'm hoping for more than a smile and a nod. Perhaps an "Hola!" or "Camisa agradable!" and of course I will respond with "Gracias! Buena suerte Victor!"

Cuts Like a Knife

Perhaps I am dating myself here but Bryan Adams' "Cuts Like a Knife" video was the first video I ever saw on MTV (at my grandmother's house, we didn't have cable at the time). Yesterday's Red Sox game reminded me of that video, minus the "but it feels so right" line and Bryan Adams hanging out in an empty swimming pool.

Watching Oki blow that game was like a knife to the gut. I was standing there pounding my forehead with my fist and screaming at Tito to get him out of there. The offense could have made a comeback. It was not beyond possibility but with the way they've been hitting lately it would have been surprising. 

Tonight (hopefully) we get the return of V-Mart which can only be good. I must admit to having some trepidation that his long absence will has cooled his bat off, especially since he got off to such a slow start this season. Also, I don't want to heap too much hope on one guy. V-Mart's a good hitter but he's not going to single-handedly turn things around. We do have John Lackey on the mound tonight and he has been pitching pretty well lately but if even Jon Lester couldn't get a win I'm not counting on starting pitching to win this for us. Three more nights of these west coast games and then the boys come home (and we can all go to bed at a reasonable hour again).

The Week There Was No Baseball

This past week I was on vacation without a TV and went an entire week without seeing a baseball game and let me tell you, it was no fun. I tried to convince my husband to bring our old satellite dish and a receiver but he just looked at me like I was crazy. Of course, Josh Beckett chose the week I was on vacation to make his return and I did listen to 3 innings of that game on Friday because it was Josh Beckett and I had to be present in some way for his return. Despite my having missed everything this week I still have some random thoughts about the Red Sox to share.

- How odd to come back to find Nava gone, Hermida back, and Lowrie raised from the dead.

- Patterson went from hero to the goat pretty quickly after his error broke up Lester's perfect game last night.

- I called my sister yesterday and told her that for now she can wear the Wacky for Lackey shirt I bought her with pride but not to get too comfortable in it.

- Victor Martinez could be back as soon as Monday! Woot! I have been pretty down on Kevin Cash but as @shelley1005 pointed out to me last night on Twitter imagine what the past few weeks would have been like without him. So a big hat tip to Cash.

- Could a couple of weeks on the DL really cause Clay to have that much rust to shake off?

- I know Big Papi hit a home run last night and it was great to see him prove the naysayers wrong by winning the Home Run Derby but I still think there is a correlation between his decreased home runs since All-Star break and his participation.

- Who would have thought Scott Atchison would be so durable and useful?

- Jon Lester angry is a scary sight. I wouldn't want to meet angry Jon Lester anywhere. I would bet Hanley Ramirez agrees with me.

- I think Youk's new beard is a good look for him.

- Found out this morning that Daniel Bard is the Red Sox union player's representative. Daniel Bard? If I were a player on the Red Sox I would want someone aggressive to be my rep. Maybe Youk or Beltre.

- Josh Beckett is back. Need I say more?

Do you have any random Red Sox thoughts? Share below.

Photo from http://letsgosox.blogspot.com/

Josh Beckett Pitches in a Game! and the Red Sox Finally Make it to All-Star Break

Yesterday I went to see Josh Beckett pitch in a rehab start in Pawtucket and it was everything I had hoped it would be. First off, let me say that if you haven't been to McCoy Stadium you should go. The tickets were cheap, parking was free, and the park was really, really nice. I got there early and watched Josh warm up in the pen. Then he pitched 4 innings and let me tell you, there is nothing better in baseball than watching Josh Beckett pitch.

That being said, I did promise an unbiased report of his pitching so I can say that although he looked good, he did look like a guy rehabbing after almost 2 months of being on the DL. He let guys get ahead in the count more than I would have liked. He let this one guy (Boomer was his name) foul off it seemed like a dozen pitches before getting him out, the outfield saved him from a couple of hits that I was worried about, and he did give up a homerun. However, for his first rehab start I was impressed.

In other news the Red Sox won against Toronto yesterday but Adrian Beltre was felled in the effort. He went down with a hamstring issue that may affect his ability to play in the All-Star game. I don't think I've ever been more relieved to see the All-Star break. I want to send them all home to go to bed for the next three days so they can rest up.

Romero Who?

There was a feeling of inevitability last night when Youk hobbled off the field with a hurt ankle. It seemed only fitting that will all the people on the DL, he'd be the next to be hurt. All I could do was sit there laughing and saying "you have got to be kidding me" as the trainer and Tito bent over him on the field. His replacement, Romero, was someone I had never heard of. Where did he come from? When did he get here? I had heard of Patterson, Nava, and Dubrount before they arrived but I was flummoxed by Romero. Unfortunately, Romero did not flummox the Rays, who took advantage of his spot in the lineup to repeatedly walk Ortiz to get to him. I think we've been spoiled by the crazy magic our replacement players have had. McDonald, Nava, and even Patterson have done things that have made us cheer and shout and there was part of me that expected the same of Romero. Unfortunately, he showed he was human and we've now dropped 2 games to the Devil Rays. There are low points and high points to every baseball season. We had a low one at the beginning of the season, went steadily up, and now I think we're on our way down again. But don't fret, because after every valley there is a peak (unless the season ends first).

In better news, Josh Beckett threw a simulated game yesterday in Florida and by all accounts did well. The sweet part of the story was that his teammates Bard, Clay, Lackey, and Lester all showed up to watch him pitch and that made him happy. Pete Abraham obviously knows me well because he went to the trouble of live blogging Josh's game here. I will be seeing Josh in person this Sunday in Pawtucket while he rehabs there and I'll be sure to give you an unbiased account of how it goes.

Image from http://mercifulcrap.wordpress.com/

Bruins Keep Making Moves In Off-season

The first move in the month of July is the resigning of Daniel Paille. He was signed to a 2-year contract extension. Paille spent most of the 2009-2010 season with the Bruins, playing only 2 games with the Buffalo Sabres. Of the time he spent here, he has been a significant presence. Hopefully he can continue that.

The B's have also signed three-year veteran, 2 of which were with the Bruins, Jeremy Reich to a 1 year contract. In the two years Reich spent in Boston (2006-2008) he played in 90 games and totaled 2-3=5 with 141 PIM. Hopefully this time around he can make an impact.

Lastly this week, the B's have announced their roster of players expected to play during Development Camp. The Camp is expected to take place July 6-10. Among this list are newly aquired Tyler Seguin, Yuri Alexandrov, and David Warsofsy, among others. Every day of this camp inludes a practice at Ristuccia Center. More new invloving the camp will come during the next week. Until then we'll have to see what other moves Peter Chiarelli decides to make.

Deals With the Devil Never Really Work Out

The other day I was talking to my brother-in-law and in jest told him that I thought the Yankees must have made a deal with the devil, similar to Led Zepplin's deal, in order to be so dominant. Well, I have amended my theory. I think perhaps Beltre has made a deal with the devil in order to have a dominant season, the kind of season none of us expected him to have. The price for this, however, is steep because the devil is exacting payment in terms of his teammates health. At this point, Beltre may be regretting his deal (because everyone does eventually). After all, now he knows these guys and likes them and if it keeps up they could lose their chance to make the post-season. But you know how it goes with deals with the devil. There's no return policy.