2009 Red Sox: RIP

What an utter disappointment. The Red Sox actually showed some signs of life today, but could only watch as the Los Angeles Angels chipped away with two outs in the 9th off closer Jonathan Papelbon. First, it was Willy Aybar with an 0-2 single, then it was a Chone Figgins walk followed by a Bobby Abreu double. Terry Francona elected to put Torii Hunter on, and finally, it was Vladimir Guerrero that sank Boston’s postseason.

2009 ALDS Game 1: Offense, defense flounder 0-5

Anytime you get shut out in the playoffs, it isn’t good. The Angels got their first playoff shutout ever last night on the strength of a 7.1 inning, 4-hit start by John Lackey. The 6-6 horse came out looking good, and it wasn’t until the 6th inning until we got a chance to do something against him. When he allowed a two-out single to Dustin Pedroia and walked Victor Martinez on four pitches, I was sure that he was falling apart; give him credit, he came back and got Kevin Youkilis to end the threat.

UPDATE: Credit home plate umpire Joe West, rather. That was clearly a walk. I was actually getting from my car to my TV during that at-bat, and I just reviewed the GameDay data.

Arguing balls and strikes: they’re no angels

For those of you who watched the Red Sox come back last night in the bottom of the 9th with 2 outs, I have to say, it’s pretty clear that we caught a break with Nick Green’s walk. So the Angels do have a legitimate beef, according to PITCHf/x. It hurts to lose a game like that, but I don’t know that it should have caused dissension or even fighting in the clubhouse. Now Brian Fuentes has come out and accused Boston fans of intimidating the umpires. That’s a little too much – even Angels catcher Mike Napoli hestitated to support his closer on that one. At least Torii Hunter had a better attitude about the whole thing; it’s not just that at-bat, but both teams had plenty of opportunities to put the game away earlier.

Not to jinx or anything, but given the way the Halos are playing against Boston and NY this year, I’m really not too worried about them, come playoff time.

Dice-K’s bad inning at Portland, minor goings on

Look up Daisuke Matsuzaka’s latest rehab start for the Portland Sea Dogs, and you’ll see a very ugly line there: 2IP, 5 runs on 4 hits and 3 walks with 1 HR. The silver lining is that all the damage came in the first inning, and he zipped through the second inning on nine pitches with good control while throwing close to 100%. Let’s hope he can show some more of that up here with the Sox.

Links: Buchholz, prospects and the schedule advantage

Clay Buchholz turned in a pretty good outing in his first start of 2009. Despite striking out just three batters, he showcased the stuff that has all of baseball asking for him at this year’s trade deadline. He used his fastball to good effect, and that changeup was quite effective; the curve, not so much. I think it’s pretty clear he belongs up here, so I fully expect Brad Penny to be dealt at the deadline.

Sox sweep Yankees for 10th straight win

Ellsbury steals home

Man, and I thought game 1 was unbelievable. The Red Sox came back from a huge deficit in Game 2, and then broke a 1-1 deadlock in Game 3 to take their 10th straight victory last night, highlighted by Jacoby Ellsbury’s steal of home plate in the 6th (video at MLB.com).

Sox 5, Yanks 4 in 11 innings

Wow. That game was just – wow. Jason Bay comes up with two outs in the bottom of the ninth against Mariano Rivera, against whom he was 0-4 lifetime with 2 strikeouts. The score? Yankees 4, Red Sox 3. But then he drives a cutter high and deep, but towards the deepest part of Fenway – oh no, it’s going to be caught. It sails back, back, and, somehow, clears the fence by a matter of inches. Everyday Jason Bay sends it to extra innings, and in the 11th, Kevin Youkilis hits a walk-off homer. If there was ever a symbol (since *ahem* 2004) for the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry, this game was it. The Yankees came into town with all their shiny new free agent acquisitions and self-confidence, and, somehow, some way, Boston wins it against the Sandman. I know it’s early, but that kind of game is why I watch baseball.

Sox round into form quickly, sweep Orioles and Twins

What a difference a week makes. After a disappointing 2-6 start, the Red Sox have become the hottest team in baseball, winning seven straight games. During this stretch, the offense has really exploded, and Sox have outscored their opponents by a whopping margin of 55-20. They’ve summarily dominated their competition.

Sox drop two more to Halos

Disappointing weekend for Sox fans, with the Boston lineup going down quietly in two of three in this series. We’re familiar with this from last year; enough baserunners, but not many runs. The shadow of the Nick Adenhart tragedy kind of defined this series, and I have to give my condolences to the Adenhart family and the whole organization. I thought Jered Weaver pitched his heart out in the first game for his lost friend, and I give him a lot of credit for that.

Rays take two of three at Fenway

With B.J. Upton sitting, I expected the Sox to win at least two of these games. After a very promising start to the opening series of 2009, the Red Sox quickly fell into some trouble against Tampa’s starting pitching. Take out James Shield’s start, and Scott Kazmir and Matt Garza had a combined ERA of 1.38 over 13 IP against Boston.