Red Sox Memoirs - Spiderman and The Rocket (1996 - )

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Go brad! CG shutout in debut is good, hopefully a sign of things to come. Nixon seemed to go off right when you traded cordero, funny how that works.

That's definitely what I'm hoping for. He walked a few more than I'd expect from a guy with a control rating of 98, but really can't complain at all overall. I noticed that with Nixon too, kinda funny how that happened. I'd still like to find someone to start in Nixon's place against lefties, since Nixon is only hitting like .230 against them, so I'm thinking about calling up Phil Clark from AAA because he's got some pretty nice ratings against lefties.

[ewing6]

How's Nixon's defense hes ratings don't look 2 special, you can sweep those dumb Yanks, just lineup rocket and racke for the series and reading this is making me want to start a dynasty lol.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

How's Nixon's defense hes ratings don't look 2 special, you can sweep those dumb Yanks, just lineup rocket and racke for the series and reading this is making me want to start a dynasty lol.

Nixon isn't a great defender, but he's solid, and I think he'll get better to the point where he'll be above-average. I was definitely already planning on lining it up so that Clemens and Radke were starting the Yankee series . I'll definitely be reading if you decide to.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

July 23
Red Sox (57-39) @ Mariners (57-40)
Red Sox 9 - Mariners 5

Pretty solid start by Clemens to earn his sixteenth win, and put him one closer to getting #200. He went 5 2/3 innings and allowed three runs on seven hits and three walks, while striking out eight batters. Offensively Sanchez went 2-4 with two runs, two doubles, and two RBI's, and Nomar continued his hitting streak by going 1-4 with a three run homer.

WP - Roger Clemens (16-2;198 career wins)
LP - Freddy Garcia (8-5)
SV - N/A
HR - Nomar Garciaparra (15)

July 24
Red Sox (58-39) @ Mariners (57-41)
Red Sox 8 - Mariners 5

Radke's second start with us didn't go nearly as well as his first, as this time out he allowed four runs on nine hits in 3 2/3 innings. But fortunately the offense was able to pick up the pitching staff, with Bret Boone hitting a two run home run and Greenwell also driving in two runs of his own. Nomar also extended his hitting streak by going 2-5 with a run.

WP - Tom Gordon (1-2)
LP - Norm Charlton (5-3)
SV - N/A
HR - Bret Boone (7)

July 25
Red Sox (59-39) @ Mariners (57-42)
Red Sox 6 - Mariners 4

Nomar's hitting streak comes to an end as he goes 0-5, but with some help from other members of the offense and a good start by Jeff Suppan we take the third of four games in this series. Suppan went six innings and allowed just two earned runs (four runs total) on ten hits and one walk, while striking out four. Offensively Nixon went 3-4 with two runs and a solo homer to extend his hitting streak to 12 games and raise his batting average to .276. Rondell White went 2-4 with a walk and two runs batted in, while Mike Greenwell went 3-5 with an RBI.

WP - Jeff Suppan (8-3)
LP - Bob Milacki (6-5)
SV - Rich Garces (13)
HR - Mike Stanley (15), Trot Nixon (5)

July 26
Red Sox (60-39) @ Mariners (57-43)
Red Sox 8 - Mariners 4

I was skeptical of our chances of completing the sweep when we were facing Randy Johnson in the series finale, but we smacked Randy Johnson around like a Cinco de Mayo piñata. Randy made it through just 4 1/3 innings before giving up seven runs on six hits and one walk, and conversely Moyer went seven innings and allowed just three runs on seven hits and two walks, striking out three. Offensively Phil Clark hit his first homer since being called up, and Nomar went 2-5 with two RBI's.

WP - Jamie Moyer (9-3)
LP - Randy Johnson (10-5)
SV - Rich Garces (14)
HR - Phil Clark (1)

Thoughts: A four game sweep over the Mariners puts the Mariners in second place behind the Angels by a half game, and pulls us within seven games of the suddenly reeling Yankees, and within one game of the White Sox for the Wild Card! Nomar's back to his old self, hitting .311/.367/.489/.856 with two homers and nine RBI's. Hopefully he keeps it up through the Yankee's series at least. Next up we've got the Rangers, with Henry, Clemens, and Radke scheduled to pitch. However, I'm gonna make some adjustments and try to line it up so that I can have Clemens and Radke pitch the Yankee series following our games against the Rangers.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

July 27
Red Sox (61-39) @ Rangers (47-53)
Red Sox 4 - Rangers 13

Not the start to the series I was looking for. Butch Henry lasted only three innings before giving up five runs, and Tom Gordon and Reggie Harris combined to go 2 2/3 innings and allow eight runs on ten hits and striking out only one batter. The offense wasn't much better, as Rondell White was the only player for us to get multiple hits, going 2-5 with two runs and a solo homer. Nixon did extend his hitting streak, however.

WP - Roger Pavlik (3-8)
LP - Butch Henry (5-7)
SV - N/A
HR - Rondell White (16)

July 28
Red Sox (61-40) @ Rangers (48-53)
Red Sox 3 - Rangers 8

Well we started Tom Gordon in this game in order to set up Clemens and Radke for the Yankee series, and it didn't go nearly as well as we had expected. Instead of rattling off all the ugly numbers I'll just show you this:

          BOSTON   ip  h bb hr  r er  k pit    ERA
       T. Gordon  2.0  2  1  0  2  2  3  43   5.66
       B. Shouse  1.0  3  1  0  2  2  0  26   4.15
       R. Harris  1.0  3  2  0  4  4  0  28  27.00
      H. Slocumb  0.2  0  2  0  0  0  0  22   3.92
      M. Stanton  2.0  0  2  0  0  0  3  38   3.59
       M. Maddux  1.1  2  0  0  0  0  0  24   2.13

Not good. I'm planning on calling someone up for Reggie Harris to make the start tomorrow so I can start Clemens, Radke, and Suppan against the Yankees. Another poor game offensively, too. Although Nomar reclaimed his hold on the top team batting average, going 2-3 with a walk, and Nixon extended his hitting streak by going 2-4 with a double.

WP - Rick Helling (6-5)
LP - Brian Shouse (1-1)
SV - N/A
HR - N/A

July 29
Red Sox (61-41) @ Rangers (49-53)
Red Sox 6 - Rangers 3

We called up John Doherty in place of Reggie Harris to make the start for Radke, and he may have just earned himself a spot in the 'pen. Doherty went five innings and allowed just three runs on eight hits and no walks, without striking anyone out. Trot Nixon extended his hitting streak to 15 games and Jeff Frye went 3-5 with three RBI's.

WP - John Doherty (1-0)
LP - Gil Heredia (4-4)
SV - Rich Garces (15)
HR - N/A

Thoughts: We didn't play particularly well going against the Rangers, but I think it's safe to attribute to me getting my pitching staff set-up for the Yankee series. Hopefully stretching my bullpen out like I did against the Rangers doesn't hurt me against the Yankees. Nixon is really killing the ball right now, hitting .441/.513/.735/1.248 in his last ten games, and has raised his season line to a very solid .281/.348/.456/.804. Between Nixon, Nomar, Sanchez, Suppan, and Radke I think we have an excellent core of players for the next several years.

The standings heading into our series against the Yankees:

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

July 30
Yankees (70-35) @ Red Sox (62-41)
Yankees 0 - Red Sox 5

I am so glad I decided to line Clemens up for this start. Clemens threw his third shut out of the season, going all nine innings and allowing eight hits and one walk, while striking out 11. Trot Nixon's hitting streak came to an end, but he still scored twice on two walks. Additionally Freddy Sanchez went 3-4 with a run scored and a triple, and Rondell White and Jeff Frye drove in two runs a piece.

WP - Roger Clemens (17-2;199 career wins)
LP - Dwight Gooden (9-6)
SV - N/A
HR - Rondell White (17)

BREAKING NEWS

This victory did come at a price, as Mike Greenwell goes down with a sprained finger for approximately two weeks. Phil Clark and Troy O'Leary will make starts in his place. This injury does come at a bad time for us, in the middle of a big Yankee series, but Clark has played well since being called up.

Jeff Frye will also miss the second game of the Yankees series with a minor injury, but will be good to go for game three.

July 31
Yankees (70-36) @ Red Sox (63-41)
Yankees 3 - Red Sox 9

Radke and Clemens are making me look like a genius for lining them up to start like this. Radke also pitched a complete game, and allowed just three runs on six hits, walked no one, and struck out four. Bret Boone came through big for us by hitting a three run homer in the fifth and driving in four runs altogether. Phil Clark also had a two run homer, and Nomar, Vaughn, and Sanchez drove in a run a piece. Hopefully Suppan puts in a great start and can help us complete the sweep.

WP - Brad Radke (2-0)
LP - Kenny Rogers (9-6)
SV - N/A
HR - Bret Boone (8), Phil Clark (2)

August 1
Yankees (70-37) @ Red Sox (64-41)
Yankees 3 - Red Sox 6

I can't believe we actually completed the sweep. Jeff Suppan didn't earn the win but gave us seven innings of three run ball, while striking out six. Joe Oliver had the biggest hit of the game, hitting a pinch hit three run homer off lefty Steve Howe for the game-winning hit in the eighth inning. Phil Clark and Bret Boone also drove in a run a piece.

WP - Mike Maddux (8-1)
LP - Scott Kamieniecki (7-4)
SV - Rich Garces (16)
HR - Joe Oliver (2)

Thoughts: What. A. Series. Clemens and Radke made me look like geniuses for lining them up to start against the Yankees, and Suppan gave us a great outing as well. The sweep leaves us four games back of the Yankees in the AL East, and it helped us take a one game lead over the White Sox, against whom we play our next four games against at home. Hopefully we can keep the ball rolling against the White Sox and pad our Wild Card lead and take more steps towards taking the division lead. We also have Barry Larkin returning from his broken finger in less than a week, which can only help. Freddy Sanchez has played extremely well in his place, but unfortunately I'm probably gonna have to send him back down to AAA once Larkin is healthy again.

[ewing6]

Congrats on the sweep and your welcome on the rotation advice

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

August 2
White Sox (65-43) @ Red Sox (65-41)
White Sox 3 - Red Sox 1

Jamie Moyer pitched a very, very good game for us, going seven innings and allowing one run on ten hits and a walk, while striking out six, but Alex Fernandez was just better. Fernandez went all nine innings and allowed one unearned run to us on four hits and a walk, while striking out four. Mike Stanton let up a two run homer to Darren Lewis in the top of the ninth for the game-winning hit. Phil Clark went 2-3 and scored the game's only run.

WP - Alex Fernandez (12-5)
LP - Mike Stanton (3-5)
SV - N/A
HR - N/A

August 3
White Sox (66-43) @ Red Sox (65-42)
White Sox 8 - Red Sox 0

Phil Clark collected two hits again, but Wilson Alvarez did a fantastic job of shutting down our line-up. Alvarez went all nine innings without allowing a run on six hits and one walk, and striking out nine. Butch Henry wasn't nearly as effective as he allowed seven runs (six earned) in 5 2/3 innings on nine hits and a walk. Hopefully we can win the next two games of this series and walk away with a split.

WP - Wilson Alvarez (13-2)
LP - Butch Henry (5-8)
SV - N/A
HR - N/A

August 4
White Sox (67-43) @ Red Sox (65-43)
White Sox 8 - Red Sox 6

Some late inning errors and a poor performance out of Garces did us in this time. We were leading by one going into the ninth inning, but Garces gave up three runs in the inning (four total) to give up the lead. The biggest hit we got was a three-run homer by Trot Nixon. Roger Clemens gets the no-decision and remains at 199 career wins.

WP - Chad Bradford (2-3)
LP - Rich Garces (0-1)
SV - Roberto Hernandez (19)
HR - Trot Nixon (6)

August 5
White Sox (68-43) @ Red Sox (65-44)
White Sox 2 - Red Sox 3 (12 innings)

This was a retardedly well pitched game on both ends. The starters, Brad Radke and Kevin Tapani, combined to go 22 innings and allow four runs (3 earned) on ten hits and two walks, and strike out 14. For his part, Radke went all 12 innings and allowed six hits and a walk for two runs and struck out seven, all on 135 pitches. The game-winning hit came off the bat of Rondell White with men on first and second in the twelfth inning.

WP - Brad Radke (3-0)
LP - Roberto Hernandez (6-5)
SV - N/A
HR - N/A

Thoughts: Well we went back down a game in the Wild Card after losing three of four to the Chisox, but we're still only 4.5 back of the Yankees in the East. The offense is really reeling right now. Vaughn is hitting .211 in his last 10 games with an OPS under .600, Nomar is hitting under .200 in his last 10 with an OPS under .500, Boone is hitting under .150 with an OPS barely above .450, and Mike Stanley is hitting .222 with an OPS of .599 in his last ten. The only guys hitting right now are Phil Clark (.967 OPS since his call-up), Rondell White (.318/.375/.500/.875 in his last ten), and Freddy Sanchez (.333 batting average in his last ten). Hopefully the offense picks it back up soon, because our pitching staff has been too hit or miss for me to feel confident in it for long stretches of time.

Brad Radke has just been filthy since coming over from Minny. His stats with us:

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

August 6
Red Sox (66-44) @ Rangers (51-59)
Red Sox 5 - Rangers 4

Very solid game by Jeff Suppan. Suppan went six innings and allowed three runs on six hits and no walks, while striking out six batters. Offensively Rondell White went 3-5 and fell just a single short of hitting for the cycle, and Nomar and Vaughn each went 2-4 with a walk and a run.

WP - Jeff Suppan (9-3)
LP - Doug Davis (0-4)
SV - Rich Garces (17)
HR - Rondell White (18)

August 7
Red Sox (67-44) @ Rangers (51-60)
Red Sox 11 - Rangers 9

Jamie Moyer failed to make it out of the fourth inning before allowing seven runs, but a lot of offense helps us win the game anyways. Nomar went 3-4 with a walk, three runs, and four RBI's, and Mo Vaughn hit his first home run in what seems like forever. Jeff Frye also went 4-5 with three runs, but Rondell White, on the other hand, went 0-5 with four strikeouts. John Doherty let up two runs in the ninth and put the tying run at the plate to make it interesting at the end, but Garces came in and shut the door to earn his 18th save of the season.

BOSTON               ab  h bb  r hr bi  k sb     avg
J. Frye (2B)          5  4  0  3  0  0  0  2    .307
R. White (CF)         5  0  0  0  0  0  4  0    .301
N. Garciaparra (DH)   4  3  1  3  0  4  0  0    .318
M. Vaughn (1B)        4  1  1  2  1  2  1  0    .319
P. Clark (LF)         4  0  1  0  0  0  2  0    .325
M. Stanley (C)        5  3  0  1  0  2  0  0    .278
B. Boone (3B)         3  1  0  1  0  0  0  0    .282
 T. Naehring (P)      2  2  0  0  0  1  0  0    .272
T. Nixon (RF)         5  0  0  0  0  0  1  0    .263
F. Sanchez (SS)       4  1  0  1  0  2  0  0    .327
TOTALS               41 15  3 11  1 11  8  2

   2B:  B. Boone (23), J. Frye (22)
   3B:  N. Garciaparra (7)
   HR:  M. Vaughn (23)
   CS:  N. Garciaparra

          BOSTON   ip  h bb hr  r er  k pit    ERA
        J. Moyer  3.1  6  1  1  7  7  5  66   4.97
       T. Gordon  1.2  2  0  0  0  0  2  36   5.40
      J. Doherty  3.2  2  3  1  2  2  1  62   5.06
       R. Garces  0.1  0  0  0  0  0  0   6   2.38
          TOTALS  9.0 10  4  2  9  9  8 170

WP - John Doherty (2-0)
LP - Ed Vosberg (2-4)
SV - Rich Garces (18)
HR - Mo Vaughn (23)

August 8
Red Sox (68-44) @ Rangers (51-61)
Red Sox 2 - Rangers 3

Butch Henry really can't catch a break. He went all eight innings in this game for the complete game, and allowed only three runs on nine hits and two walks, while striking out five, but due to our inability to get offense he still gets the loss. Rondell White was our only source of offense, driving in a run on a home run, and scoring a run on a Mike Stanley sac fly.

WP - Roger Pavlik (5-8)
LP - Butch Henry (5-9)
SV - Mike Henneman (21)
HR - Rondell White (19)

Thoughts: We take two of three from Texas and make up another game and a half on the Yankees to sit back exactly three games, and we make up a game on the White Sox to sit half a game back. Looking ahead at the calendar we play the Yankees six more times before the end of the season, and we finish the season with three games on the road against the White Sox. Just think about the implications that series could have! Next we play four games on the road against the Twins, with Clemens going for win #200 of his career in the first game of the series. It should be an excellent opportunity for us to take the lead in either the Wild Card or the Division, since the Twins are only 46-68 and we've got Clemens, Radke, Suppan, and Moyer all going against them. Larkin will also make his return to the lineup in the first game against the Twins. Instead of sending Sanchez back to AAA I've decided to sit Boone and start Sanchez at third since he does have some proficiency there and Boone hasn't been hitting. Boone will, however, be starting at second base for the duration of the Twins series as Jeff Frye will be sitting out with a bruised ankle.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

August 9
Red Sox (68-45) @ Twins (46-68)
Red Sox 7 - Twins 6 (12 innings)

Clemens was in line for win #200 after he left the game, but a blow save by Garces means he has to wait at least one more start. Clemens went six innings and allowed three runs on five hits and three walks, while striking out seven. The game-winning hit came in the top of the 12th in the form of a Bret Boone solo homer, who went 3-5 with two runs, and two RBI's in addition to his game winning homer. Barry Larkin was 0-5 with a run and an RBI in his return to the lineup.

WP - Heathcliff Slocumb (2-5)
LP - Rick White (1-1)
SV - Mike Stanton (1)
HR - Mo Vaughn (24), Bret Boone (9)

August 10
Red Sox (69-45) @ Twins (46-69)
Red Sox 8 - Twins 0

Another start and another complete game shutout for Brad Radke. This time he allowed nine hits and one walk, and struck out nine Twin batters. This guy just continues to dazzle me. Offensively we put on a pretty nice show too, as everyone in the lineup but Barry Larkin got at least one hit, and everyone but Larkin and Sanchez scored a run. Nomar went 2-5 with a double, a run, and an RBI, while Nixon went 2-4 with a walk, a double, a home run, and two RBI's.

BOSTON               ab  h bb  r hr bi  k sb     avg
B. Larkin (SS)        5  0  0  0  0  0  0  0    .311
R. White (CF)         4  2  0  1  0  0  1  0    .301
N. Garciaparra (DH)   5  2  0  1  0  1  0  0    .317
M. Vaughn (1B)        4  1  1  1  0  1  2  0    .319
P. Clark (LF)         4  2  1  2  0  1  2  0    .327
M. Stanley (C)        5  1  0  1  0  0  0  0    .271
T. Nixon (RF)         4  2  1  1  1  2  0  0    .270
F. Sanchez (3B)       5  1  0  0  0  1  1  0    .315
B. Boone (2B)         4  1  0  1  0  0  1  0    .287
TOTALS               40 12  3  8  1  6  7  0

   2B:  B. Boone (25), R. White (27), T. Nixon (19), N. Garciaparra (30), P. Clark (1)
   HR:  T. Nixon (7)
   HBP:  R. White

          BOSTON   ip  h bb hr  r er  k pit    ERA
        B. Radke  9.0  9  1  0  0  0  9 109   3.60
          TOTALS  9.0  9  1  0  0  0  9 109

WP - Brad Radke (4-0)
LP - Trever Miller (2-3)
SV - N/A
HR - Trot Nixon (7)

August 11
Red Sox (70-45) @ Twins (46-70)
Red Sox 6 - Twins 5

Former Red Sox pitcher Tim Wakefield made the start against us today, and he went seven innings and allowed four runs (three earned) on eight hits, two walks, and struck out three. Funny how he remember to pitch once we trade him and once he pitches against us. Anyways, Jeff Suppan put in a good start for us, going six innings and allowing three runs on eight hits and two walks while striking out seven. Offensively Barry Larkin collected his first hit since returning to the line-up, as he went 1-3 with a run and two RBI's. Bret Boone was 3-4 with three runs. Garces nearly blew another save, allowing a home run to the leadoff batter in the ninth inning, but he settled down and retired the side in order after that to get his 19th save.

WP - Mike Stanton (4-5)
LP - Eddie Guardado (2-5)
SV - Rich Garces (19)
HR - N/A

August 12
Red Sox (71-45) @ Twins (46-71)
Red Sox 9 - Twins 3

Jamie Moyer becomes the second pitcher on our staff to hit double-digit wins for the season after this most brilliant outing. Moyer went eight and one third innings and allowed just one earned run (three runs total) on six hits and a walk, and struck out just two batters. The offense was great in this one as well. Mo Vaughn doubled, homered, and drove in four runs, Freddy Sanchez hit three doubles and scored three times in four at-bats, and Larkin doubled and triple for his two hits in the ballgame.

BOSTON               ab  h bb  r hr bi  k sb     avg
B. Larkin (SS)        5  2  0  1  0  1  1  0    .312
R. White (CF)         5  2  0  1  0  1  0  0    .304
N. Garciaparra (DH)   5  1  0  1  0  1  1  0    .313
M. Vaughn (1B)        5  2  0  2  1  4  1  0    .318
P. Clark (LF)         5  1  0  0  0  0  2  0    .328
M. Stanley (C)        5  1  0  0  0  1  2  0    .272
T. Nixon (RF)         4  0  0  0  0  0  2  0    .263
F. Sanchez (3B)       4  3  0  3  0  0  0  0    .326
B. Boone (2B)         2  1  2  1  0  1  0  0    .293
TOTALS               40 13  2  9  1  9  9  0

   2B:  M. Vaughn (21), B. Boone (27), B. Larkin (22), F. Sanchez 3 (15), R. White (29)
   3B:  B. Larkin (6)
   HR:  M. Vaughn (25)

          BOSTON   ip  h bb hr  r er  k pit    ERA
        J. Moyer  8.1  6  1  0  3  1  2 104   4.75
      M. Stanton  0.2  0  0  0  0  0  1   8   3.64
          TOTALS  9.0  6  1  0  3  1  3 112

WP - Jamie Moyer (10-3)
LP - Ryan Robertson (1-5)
SV - N/A
HR - Mo Vaughn (25)

BREAKING NEWS

Following this game against the Twins Mo Vaughn and Rondell White were diagnosed with injuries. White will miss the next five games with a slight forearm strain, and Vaughn will approximately two weeks with a strained knee. Reggie Jefferson is likely to play in place of Vaughn, and Troy O'Leary will play in place of White.

Thoughts: The four game sweep of the Twins still leaves us three back of the Yankees for the division. However we have claimed a 2 1/2 game lead over the White Sox in the Wild Card standings. Hopefully we can keep up playing well, in spite of some injuries we've suffered, though Greenwell is returning in a couple days, and that will help with the extended absense of Vaughn. The pitching staff is the thing that is really carrying us right now, which is not something I thought I'd find myself saying based on the performance of it earlier in the season.

Here are the new standings and our schedule for the remainder of August:

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Congrats on the sweep and your welcome on the rotation advice

Just noticed this, lol. Thanks on both counts .

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

August 13
Indians (80-37) @ Red Sox (72-45)
Indians 1 - Red Sox 2

It's not very often that anyone is going to hold this vaunted Cleveland offense to only one run, and I'd say it's even less often that your #5 starter is going to do that. But that's what happened here, as Butch Henry pitched a gem, going eight innings and allowing just one run on six hits and two walks, while striking out eight batters. Troy O'Leary supplied all the offense, as he hit a solo homer in the first inning to put us up 1-0, and then got what proved to be the game-winning run on a single in the sixth inning.

WP - Butch Henry (6-9)
LP - Dennis Martinez (10-8)
SV - Rich Garces (20)
HR - Troy O'Leary (1)

BREAKING NEWS

We just keep getting decimated with injuries (but somehow keep winning in spite of them). This time it's Freddy Sanchez going down for ten days with a twisted knee. Not very good timing considering we're in the middle of a big series with the best team in baseball and we're playing the Yankees in New York after this, but hey, what are you gonna do? Naehring will start in place of Sanchez, who was hitting .319/.333/.452 at the time of the injury.

August 14
Indians (80-38) @ Red Sox (73-45)
Indians 8 - Red Sox 9 (11 innings)

Clemens fails to get win #200 for the third or fourth start in a row, going 4 1/3 innings and giving up five runs on seven hits and three walks, but we still manage to pull out a win in extras. O'Leary continues to hit well in replacing Rondell White, going 3-6 with two runs and an RBI in this game. The hero of the game, however, is Nomar and his game-winning, walkoff double in the bottom of the 11th to plate Barry Larkin. Overall Nomar went 4-5 with a walk, two runs, and an RBI.

WP - Rich Garces (1-1)
LP - Mike Trombley (4-3)
SV - N/A
HR - N/A

August 15
Indians (80-39) @ Red Sox (74-45)
Indians 1 - Red Sox 2

Brad Radke just keeps making me feel like a god damn genius for trading for him. He went all nine innings AGAIN, and allowed only one run on three hits and two walks, while striking out seven. Troy O'Leary again has a good game at the plate, going 3-4 with the game-winning RBI, and Mike Stanley drove in the only other run on a solo homer in the seventh.

WP - Brad Radke (5-0)
LP - Brian Anderson (12-4)
SV - N/A
HR - Mike Stanley (16)

August 16
Indians (80-40) @ Red Sox (75-45)
Indians 7 - Red Sox 11

Suppan becomes the third pitcher on the Red Sox staff to reach double-digit wins, in spite of allowing six runs in five innings on nine hits and striking out only two batters. The unlikely duo of Tim Naehring and Jeff Frye shouldered the load offensive, as Naehring went 4-4 with two doubles and four runs scored, and Frye was 4-5 with two runs and three RBI's.

BOSTON               ab  h bb  r hr bi  k sb     avg
J. Frye (2B)          5  4  0  2  0  3  0  0    .310
T. O'Leary (CF)       4  0  1  0  0  0  2  0    .217
B. Larkin (SS)        5  3  0  1  0  1  0  0    .324
N. Garciaparra (DH)   4  1  1  1  0  1  0  0    .315
R. Jefferson (1B)     5  2  0  0  0  2  1  0    .105
M. Stanley (C)        4  1  1  1  1  1  1  0    .269
P. Clark (LF)         4  0  1  1  0  0  1  0    .280
T. Nixon (RF)         3  0  1  1  0  0  0  0    .253
T. Naehring (3B)      4  4  0  4  0  0  0  0    .278
TOTALS               38 15  5 11  1  8  5  0

   2B:  T. Naehring 2 (15)
   3B:  R. Jefferson (1)
   HR:  M. Stanley (17)
   GIDP:  N. Garciaparra, P. Clark 2

          BOSTON   ip  h bb hr  r er  k pit    ERA
       J. Suppan  5.0  9  1  1  6  6  2  93   4.08
      M. Stanton  2.0  0  0  0  0  0  1  26   3.48
       T. Gordon  2.0  1  1  0  1  0  4  47   5.24
          TOTALS  9.0 10  2  1  7  6  7 166

WP - Jeff Suppan (10-3)
LP - Jack McDowell (12-4)
SV - N/A
HR - Mike Stanley (17)

Thoughts: I can't believe we just completed a four game sweep over the team with the best record in baseball. We are absolutely on fire right now. We're riding an eight game winning streak and we're 15-5 in our last twenty games going into the Yankee series, and best of all, we're only a half game back of the division lead, and we're now five up in the Wild Card. And we've got both Greenwell and Rondell White returning in the Yankee series. We are poised to take the division lead right now.

I kind of feel bad pushing Brad to throw a complete game almost every time he's out there, but hes been incredibly economic in terms of pitches with them. The only game he's been with us in which he's thrown more than 111 pitches was his 12 inning complete game, and in that one he threw 135. He's only averaging about 104 pitches per start since coming over to Boston from Minnesota. Hopefully he keeps it up because he has been extremely integral in this run we've gone on.

RADKE'S STARTS AND TOTALS
SINCE COMING OVER TO BOSTON

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

August 17
Red Sox (76-45) @ Yankees (76-44)
Red Sox 2 - Yankees 3

Tough loss. Moyer pitched a helluva game, but a late inning error by Barry Larkin proved to be the difference. Jamie Moyer went 6 1/3 innings and allowed only two earned runs (three total) on ten hits and three walks while striking out five. Offensively we really couldn't get anything going against Cone. Barry Larkin had a solo homer in the top of the eighth and Boone drove in a run on a single in the second, but the fact that we only managed five hits really tells you how on Cone was today.

WP - David Cone (10-6)
LP - Jamie Moyer (10-4)
SV - John Wetteland (21)
HR - Barry Larkin (5)

August 18
Red Sox (76-46) @ Yankees (77-44)
Red Sox 3 - Yankees 2

Butch Henry put forth another beautiful start when we really needed him to, going 8 2/3 innings and allowing just two earned runs on eight hits and three walks, striking out three in the process. Jeff Frye really had himself a game, going 4-4 (all singles) with two RBI's. We're feeling pretty confident about taking the series and taking over the AL East lead with Clemens on the hill in the rubber game of the series tomorrow.

WP - Butch Henry (7-9)
LP - Jimmy Key (9-4)
SV - Rich Garces (21)
HR - Phil Clark (3)

August 19
Red Sox (77-46) @ Yankees (77-45)
Red Sox 1 - Yankees 7

I cannot believe we lost this game. We scored in the first on Nomar's inside the park home run and didn't score again the entire game. Clemens again failed to get win #200, going six innings and allowing five earned runs (six runs total) on seven hits and three walks. And Scott Kamieniecki shuts us down for the nth time this season, this time going all nine innings and allowing just the one run on seven hits while striking out two. Nixon and Frye were the only hitters in the line up to collect more than one hit, with Nixon going 3-4 and Frye going 2-3.

WP - Scott Kamieniecki (8-4)
LP - Roger Clemens (17-3)
SV - N/A
HR - Nomar Garciaparra (16)

Thoughts: I am so frustrated and in disbelief that we lost that series with Clemens pitching the rubber game against a journeyman five starter I can barely write this. We're still only 1.5 back of the Yankees in the division and five up on the White Sox in the Wild Card, but it's still frustrating because I really thought we were gonna take the division lead heading into that series. Next up we've got a much needed off day before heading home for three games against the Twins. Vaughn and Sanchez will both be returning to the lineup during the following series against the Orioles.

Even in spite of Clemens' recent struggles I think he's still in good position to win the AL Cy Young, based on his place in some the league leaders. But hopefully he does turn it around sooner rather than later because we really need him to be pitching well going down the stretch. Currently he's got an ERA of 4.05 in his last ten starts and hasn't won a start since July 30th against the Yankees.

CLEMENS RANKINGS IN THE LEAGUE LEADERS

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

August 21
Twins (50-74) @ Red Sox (77-47)
Twins 6 - Red Sox 7

Radke was uncharacteristically ineffective in this start, lasting just 3 2/3 innings before giving up five runs and getting pulled from the game, but three homers and an excellent performance by John Doherty helped us pull out the win anyways. John Doherty was the only reliever we used (besides El Guapo to get the save), and that's because he was the only one we needed, as he went 4 1/3 innings without giving up a single run on just two hits. He was helped out by the offense, who put up six runs in the sixth inning on a Barry Larkin solo homer, a Nomar Garciaparra two-run homer, and a Bret Boone three-run homer.

WP - John Doherty (3-0)
LP - Frank Rodriguez (3-9)
SV - Rich Garces (22)
HR - Nomar Garciaparra (17), Bret Boone (10), Barry Larkin (6)

August 22
Twins (50-75) @ Red Sox (78-47)
Twins 7 - Red Sox 9

We win in somewhat of a slugfest. Barry Larkin goes 5-5 with four runs and Nomar goes just 1-5, but his one hit was a bases-loaded double to drive in three runs, Mike Stanley homers, and Mike Greenwell drives in a pair of runs despite going hitless. Jeff Suppan didn't pitch a great game (5 IP, 8 H, BB, 4 ER, K), but it was enough for him to get his 11th win of the season.

BOSTON               ab  h bb  r hr bi  k sb     avg
B. Larkin (SS)        5  5  0  4  0  0  0  0    .330
R. White (CF)         4  2  1  1  0  1  0  0    .302
N. Garciaparra (1B)   5  1  0  0  0  3  1  1    .308
M. Greenwell (LF)     2  0  1  0  0  2  0  0    .308
T. Nixon (RF)         4  1  1  0  0  1  1  0    .258
M. Stanley (C)        5  2  0  2  1  1  3  0    .263
B. Boone (2B)         4  2  0  1  0  0  1  0    .291
T. Naehring (3B)      4  0  0  0  0  0  1  0    .263
J. Frye (DH)          2  0  1  1  0  1  0  0    .312
TOTALS               35 13  4  9  1  9  7  1

   2B:  M. Stanley (25), N. Garciaparra (32), R. White (30)
   3B:  B. Boone (2)
   HR:  M. Stanley (18)

WP - Jeff Suppan (11-3)
LP - Jake Westbrook (2-6)
SV - Rich Garces (23)
HR - Mike Stanley (18)

BREAKING NEWS

Another one bites the dust. This time it's our catcher Mike Stanley going down for about 2 1/2 weeks with a sprained finger. He was only hitting .162 at the time of his injury (though his OPS was near .700) so it may not be a horrible thing for him to get some rest and for us to actually get some production out of catcher. We'll be calling up the 26 year old Scott Hatteberg to bat ninth and start at catcher in his place.

August 23
Twins (50-76) @ Red Sox (79-47)
Twins 2 - Red Sox 5 (10 innings)

This game featured an excellent pitching duel between Moyer and Rich Robertson. Moyer went eight innings and allowed just two runs on three hits and a walk, while striking out seven, while Robertson went eight innings for the opposition and allowed just two runs on eight hits, three walks, and a strike out. Rondell White was our catalyst offensively as he went 5-5 with two runs, and the walk-off three run homer in the bottom of the tenth.

WP - Rich Garces (2-1)
LP - Rick Aguilera (2-6)
SV - N/A
HR - Barry Larkin (7), Rondell White (20)

Thoughts: We've extended our AL Wild Card lead to seven games over the ChiSox and pulled with a half game of the Yankees for the AL East. We're playing the Orioles and Tigers before we play our last three games of the season against the Yankees, in which is sure to be a huge series. As of now Radke, Suppan, and Moyer are scheduled to pitch that series, but I think I'll probably be able to start Clemens, Radke, and Suppan instead. Injuries are really decimating our line-up, but fortunately not our W-L record. Regardless, Sanchez returns to the lineup for the first game against the Orioles, and Vaughn will be back in the lineup for the last game against them.

In other news, we have the first and only team eliminated from playoff contention in the Detroit Tigers:

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

August 24
Red Sox (80-47) @ Orioles (65-61)
Red Sox 6 - Orioles 1

Clemens gets the 200th victory of his career, and does it with great fashion. Clemens went all nine innings and didn't allow them to score until the ninth inning on a Bobby Bonilla solo homer, he allowed only four hits and two walks, and struck out an impressive 12 batters. He got a great deal of help from Rondell White, who went 2-5 with a homer and three RBI's, and Freddy Sanchez who homered and scored twice.

          BOSTON   ip  h bb hr  r er  k pit    ERA
      R. Clemens  9.0  4  2  1  1  1 12 150   3.28

WP - Roger Clemens (18-3;career victory #200!)
LP - Sidney Ponson (7-7)
SV - N/A
HR - Rondell White (21), Freddy Sanchez (2)

August 25
Red Sox (81-47) @ Orioles (65-62)
Red Sox 11 - Orioles 6

Another solid start by Radke is in the books. This time out he goes seven innings and allows four runs on five hits and a walk, while striking out four. The story in this one, however, was definitely the offense. Nomar doubled and tripled, while Greenwell drove in four runs, homered, and scored twice, and Frye and Hatteberg both drove in two runs a piece.

BOSTON               ab  h bb  r hr bi  k sb     avg
B. Larkin (SS)        4  0  1  0  0  0  2  0    .327
R. White (CF)         5  1  0  1  0  1  1  0    .309
N. Garciaparra (1B)   5  2  0  2  0  0  1  0    .307
M. Greenwell (LF)     4  2  0  2  1  4  0  0    .308
T. Nixon (RF)         5  2  0  1  1  1  1  0    .258
B. Boone (2B)         5  0  0  1  0  0  3  0    .285
F. Sanchez (3B)       5  3  0  1  0  0  1  0    .329
J. Frye (DH)          4  2  0  1  0  2  0  0    .311
S. Hatteberg (C)      4  3  0  2  0  2  0  0    .429
TOTALS               41 15  1 11  2 10  9  0

   2B:  N. Garciaparra (33), T. Nixon (22)
   3B:  N. Garciaparra (8), J. Frye (9)
   HR:  M. Greenwell (18), T. Nixon (8)
   GIDP:  R. White, J. Frye

          BOSTON   ip  h bb hr  r er  k pit    ERA
        B. Radke  7.0  5  1  0  4  4  4  83   3.70
       T. Gordon  1.2  2  1  1  2  2  1  36   5.35
      M. Stanton  0.1  0  0  0  0  0  1   7   3.66
          TOTALS  9.0  7  2  1  6  6  6 126

WP - Brad Radke (6-0)
LP - Garrett Stephenson (2-3)
SV - N/A
HR - Mike Greenwell (18), Trot Nixon (8)

August 26
Red Sox (82-47) @ Orioles (65-63)
Red Sox 2 - Orioles 6

Between Jeff Suppan throwing like crap and David Wells shutting us down we really didn't have a chance. David Wells went 7 2/3 innings and allowed only two runs to us while striking out five, and in comparison Suppan lasted only four innings before allowing four runs on five hits. Offensively we got a solo homer from Larkin and an RBI single from Garciaparra, but were stifled otherwise.

WP - David Wells (11-7)
LP - Jeff Suppan (11-4)
SV - Jesse Orosco (9)
HR - Barry Larkin (8)

Thoughts: One half game up in the AL East! Next up we've got three games at home against the dismal Tigers, which gives us an excellent opportunity to build upon that lead, before we head to New York and play the Yankees for the last time all season. I'm going to do my best to line up Clemens, Radke, and Suppan for the Yankee series (and I should be able to with the off day we're gonna have) because this series is going to have huge implications for if we're getting into the playoffs as the Wild Card or division champ, and I want my horses going with something like that on the line.