So That's What Pitching & Defense Look Like

I had an image in my mind of Theo Esptein calling up Larry Lucchino last night to tell him that finally his pitching and defense idea is catching on. Low score games with phenomenal pitching, that's what we've all been counting on and for the last two nights the Red Sox have delivered.

After Clay's stellar outing yesterday, Jon Lester slightly one upped him by having an even better outing (hard to believe, but true). Lester had 11 strikeouts. That's right, 11! He was the ace we all know he is and effectively erased all memory of his previous bad starts.

Let's not forget to give props to both Bard and Papelbon who effectively held on to the 2 run lead and even made it look easy. It's always nice when Pap just does his job without trying to up the ante on excitement.

Darnell McDonald continues to amaze. Count me in the camp that viewed his debut as a fluke but he has more than proved me wrong and, for once, I am happy to say I was wrong. I'm also very happy to see Pedroia back in the 2nd spot in the lineup because for some reason it seems to be making a difference with his hitting. Watching Lowell pinch hit for Ortiz brought up usual mixed feeling for me. I would like to think Big Papi is not finished but it isn't looking so good for him, is it?

As an aside, I don't know if it is his ease at being back in Toronto (although how anyone could feel at ease in the cavernous Rogers Stadium is beyond me) but Marco Scutaro is beginning to show his personality. He exhibited a variety of different faces, tossed his bat and gloves, and even threw his batting helmet down in the dugout. Keep it up Marco!

Now that the Red Sox have swept the Blue Jays (A sweep! Finally!) they head down to Baltimore to show the Orioles that the one win they got on Sunday was an aberration and will not be happening again.

Hooray for Clay!

Clay Buchholz has always struck me as one of the most interesting players on the Red Sox. After having thrown a no hitter in his second major league start he seemed destined for greatness. Unfortunately, he couldn't seem to handle the mental pressure and ended up back down in the minors for a while. I found the story of his quick success and his inability to handle it fascinating, made more so by the fact that he has worked so hard to get over it.

I vividly recall when he was called up last year, on a day in Toronto when Josh Beckett got rocked at Rogers Stadium (sound familiar?) The next day, Clay went on to pitch great and stayed with the Red Sox for the rest of the season. He was somewhat uneven last year. Sometimes watching him was like waiting for a bomb to go off. You could tell by his body language and the look on his face that he was teetering close to losing it, and sometimes he did. But Tito had faith in him and sent him out for the 3rd game of the playoff series against the Angels, a game in which he pitched very well and Tito pulled him out of just in time.

During Spring Training this year the big story was the extra man in the rotation. Would Tim Wakefield or Clay Buchholz be the odd man out? Wakey had a great Spring Training for the msot part, Clay got shelled on more than one occasion. Nonetheless, Wakey got sent to the pen this week and Clay got the spot in the rotation. Last night in Toronto he proved that not only does he deserve it but he can handle the pressure. Clay was dominant. He was brilliant and he was a pleasure to watch. It has been too long so it has been a pleasure to watch one of our starters pitch.

Team Chemistry, You Either Have It or You Don't

Last night's game against the Blue Jays made something abundantly clear. The Red Sox are just about as good as the Blue Jays right now. It was an even match all around. And you know what? That's kind of scary because the Blue Jays don't beat the Devil Rays never mind the Yankees. My opinion is that there is just too much bad blood in the clubhouse these days. Theo Epstein likes to tell us that clubhouse chemistry doesn't matter as much as talent and I can agree that that is the case when a team is so talented that they are winning regularly, but when they aren't they need a lot of good will amongst themselves to get through the hard times. It's time the Red Sox hired one of those team building consultants to work with them. They need to work together to build rafts to and get across the Charles and come up with creative ways to get all of them up onto the Green Monster from the field. Things like that. Any other ideas for team building exercises that would help the Sox?

Bad Games Sound Even Worse From Florida

No readers, I have not been silent because I have been mourning the state of the Red Sox lately but because I have been in Florida on vacation. While I was gone I apparently missed two good games and a slew of bad ones.

You will all be happy to know that Red Sox nation is alive and well in Northern Florida. While we were there we saw a number of Red Sox fans, one random Cubs fan, and one Yankees fan. My son and I added to the Red Sox presence by wearing our gear regularly. One day my son wore his Ellsbury shirt, Red Sox shorts, and his Kid Nation hat. To save my husband from acute embarrassment I chose to not wear a Red Sox shirt that day.

Chances to watch the games were nil. The best I could do was bike down to Island Joes and use their wifi to watch the condensed version on my iPod and read the news. The last game I actually saw (rather than heard about or watched a condensed version of) was last Friday's rained out game at which Josh pitched wonderfully and Tek was his usual early season studly self. From what I can make out from my spotty coverage after that the Red Sox were abysmal against the Rays and fought hard against the Rangers, resulting in 5 games lost and 2 games won, including a sweep at the hands of the Devil Rays (at this point I think we should start put that Devil back in their names because those guys are going to be nothing short of evil for us this season).

The worst part about this is not just the embarrassment of having the Blue Jays ahead of us in the AL East but how bad the team has looked overall. There isn't just one thing you can point to that needs fixing. I would like to think everything would be better if Cameron and Ellsbury weren't on the DL but that's just wishful thinking. Maybe Dice-K returning to the rotation will be the shot in the arm needed? Unlikely.

I tend to think that Theo Epstein usually does a good job and athough I had my doubts about his off-season moves I was fairly confident that it would all work out in the end. Was I wrong? It is starting to look that way. But then again, we can just close our eyes, click our heels together and repeat, "It's only April" and things might still work out OK.

The Red Sox take on the favorite whipping dogs of the AL East this weekend, The Orioles. You just know we've got to get a win out of this (maybe even two or three). I'll be at the games on Saturday and Sunday. Look for me if you are there. I'll be the one in the Red Sox hat so say hi if you see me.

Bruins Hoping to be Lucky

Unless you've been living under a rock for the past week, you know that Bruins made it to the playoffs. After a season of hell for everyone involved, they were able to get a playoff berth with a win against the Carolina Hurricanes.

Now, for what we hope to be better, the first round of the playoffs start on Thursday April 15 against the Buffalo Sabres, a team the B's played well against in the regular season. Boston was able to win the season series 4-2. Even with this good little stat, the playoff are almost like a whole new season, so we'll have to see what happens with that.

Another thing the Bruins hope to have luck with is the NHL Draft Lottery. It will be on Versus at 8:00 p.m. on April 13, and then the NHL Network at 9. Rarely have we seen the B's get any luck during the draft lottery. But all we can do is dream right? Because with the right draft pick so many good things can happen for this team.

So with so many important things happening in one week, right now, all we can do is hope and pray that everything goes for the best. As Boston sports fans we've all been doing this for years, so this might not seem any different than any other year. But if the Bruins do get that little bit of luck, they will do well at the Draft Lottery, and be able to make at least to round 2 of the playoffs without any trouble.

Bruins Secure Place in Playoffs

In a game of pure excitement, the Boston Bruins were able to get the win against the Carolina Hurricanes, 4-2, and secure their place in the playoffs. The Bruins scored 3 short handed goals in a row on a powerkill in the 2nd period. All of this happened in a record 64 seconds. The goals were scored by Daniel Paille, Blake Wheeler, and Steve Begin respectively. Milan Lucic scored the 4th and final goal with 1 minute remaining in the final period. Tuukka Rask made 33 saves in the game.

But none of that was the most strangest part of the game. About three minutes into the third period, the Bruins had the puck in the Hurricanes' zone when a delayed penalty was called and they pulled Rask. But an errant pass came out of the zone, bounced off the boards at center ice and headed toward the empty net.

Going into the game needing only one more point to make it into the playoffs, going into overtime would have done it, but that was completely unnecessary. The Bruins come out 2 points ahead of Montreal, and 3 points ahead of the Rangers and Flyers. One of those 3 teams will not be making it to the playoffs.

So with one more game left in the season, and on the road, the Bruins can relax a little more, knowing they are in the playoffs. Bruins fans everywhere can now also relax. All in all, this was a great game to have happen. NO doubt about it.

Playing the Blame Game

3 straight loses in a row for the Red Sox after falling to the lowly Royals last night. I will admit to feeling a little smug about a win when I sat down to watch the game last night. I mean, it was the Royals, right? I can understand problems with the Yankees but the Royals without Zack Greinke pitching? That shouldn't be a problem.

Alas, it was a problem. So now is the time when the media and, dare I say some fans, start pointing fingers as to who is to blame. Big Papi is high on the list, as is Papelbon. The bullpen certainly gets a mention. The offense and defense can be called into question. And as for the highly touted starting pitching, well, that's not working out so well either. That's just about the whole team. Oh, and don't forget Tito and Theo in there too. Theo for not getting a big bat on the off season and Tito for mismanaging the team he was given. I think that covers everyone. It makes one wonder if we will ever win another game.

Oh those silly worriers. If this were September I might be worried. Maybe. But probably not. It's 3 games everyone. 3 games. And you know who we have pitching tonight? Josh Beckett. Sure, the Royals have their Cy Young pitcher out there tonight but we know who is going to come out on top. My theory is start every game feeling a little smug about a win. It's more fun to watch that way.