Bruins win! but sox lose

GOODBYE HABS. Enjoy your offseason poutine. Such is life… bitches! I had been holding my breath for 3 hours watching the Bruins game, but during commercial breaks I saw enough of the Sox game to wonder what is going on with them

Too many defensive breakdowns tonight led to unnecessary pitches by Beckett which turned into 3 runs. Unacceptable. In little league they teach outfielders how to call off the infielder. It’s not hard, you just scream “I GOT IT.” Bucholz was shaky last night giving up 3 runs on 12, yes 12, hits. Beckett wasn’t much better tonight.

The offense continues to be plagued stranding runners in scoring position. This must stop. On a brighter side, Francona essentially announced Jed Lowrie as the Sox starting shortstop, replacing the ineffective Marco Scutaro.

Read about it here: http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/red-sox/post/_/id/10312/tito-all-but-ordains-lowrie-as-starter

Good for Lowrie, the kid has been through a lot of injuries with wrist problems, mono last season and getting stuck behind subpar and overpaid fielders. Let’s see what the kid can do!

Drop us a line about either the Bruins or the Sox.

There we go

Last night’s game was a vast improvement over any of the games the Sox have played this season, including their win on Friday. Friday’s game was won on emotion, tonight’s on emotion and execution.

Beckett looked like the Beckett we became used to seeing in 2007 when he dominated. 8 strong innings and 10 strikeouts. His fastball had great life and his curveball was devastating. Even when it went as a ball, it routinely froze the righties batting for the Yankees last night. He looked far more comfortable with ‘Tek behind the plate, so perhaps ‘Tek can catch for him every start. Beckett essentially said this after the game: “‘Tek and I were really clicking. We do that a lot.”

What hasn’t been said about Pedroia? Going into the weekend he said he was going to rake the ball and the he went out and did so. He was the catalyst for the weekend’s offense, finishing up by getting on base 5 times last night. Laser show showed up and delivered.

The new Sunday Night Baseball crew is slightly better than Jon Miller and Joe Morgan, but barely. I wanted to reach through my tv and punch Bobby Valentine in the face. I know Boston is a beautiful city and Fenway is a baseball mecca. I’m from here, I know all about it. The play-by-play guy kept calling Pedroia “that little guy.” Everyone knows he’s small. We also all know that he’s been a Rookie of the Year and an MVP. Shut up with the small talk. Orel Hershiser was refreshing, and I’m glad he pointed out that Manny quit on every team he ever played for. Someone in the national media finally had to call him out. I’m glad it was a hall of famer.

With an eye to tonight’s game against the Rays, let’s hear what you thought about last night’s game.

0-4

On a damp chilly night in Ohio, the Red Sox stuttered their way to 0-4 on the young season. Did ANYONE see this coming? I certainly didn’t. Back on March 28, I wrote a piece wondering about Beckett going into the season. While his start tonight wasn’t as bad as he has been in the past, he certainly wasn’t the Beckett we all want him to be.

Jeremy Lundblad of ESPNBoston noted today that for both April 2009 and April 2010, Beckett finished with a 7.22 era. Not good. For me, tonight’s start was problematic mostly in terms of Beckett’s high pitch count that limited him to 5 innings. His final 2 innings were representative of his night as a whole: shaky command, surprisingly patient Indians hitters, and an inability to get the crucial out when it mattered most. On the plus side, Beckett had pretty good control of his curveball in weather that is not usually conducive to effective breaking pitches (see Indian closer Chris Perez’s slider in the 9th). The bullpen was solid tonight, and gave us a glimpse of what it could look like as the season progresses. In 3 innings of relief tonight, Albers, Jenks, and Bard racked up 8 K’s. I’ll take it. Tomorrow we look to Dice-K to help deliver the Sox first win. Nervous? I am. Let us know what you think about tonight’s game.