July 1, 2008
Bullpen Blows Lead to Rays, Holds on for Win
Boston 6, Tampa Bay 5
Scott Kazmir didn't fare as well as his teammate Matt Garza as the Sox bats woke up with the flip of the calendar, dropping the lefthander and the Tampa Bay Rays 6-5 to even the three game series at a game a piece.
"I think we needed to put our struggles behind us," manager Terry Francona said afterwards. "Something as simple as a new month can do wonders for your confidence. We came out and beat a good pitcher who has been successful against us in the past."
The Red Sox bullpen overcame a pair of errors by J.D. Drew and Julio Lugo in the 7th to secure the victory. With a 5-3, Javier Lopez replaced starter Clay Buchholz after Dioner Navarro was retired to lead off the 7th. Lopez walked Reid Brignac before retiring Carl Crawford for the second out. Akinori Iwamura hit a single to right that Drew miss played, allowing the runners to advance to scoring position. With Manny Delcarmen on in replace of Lopez, Johny Gomes reached first on an error by Lugo, allowing Brignac to score easily from third. B.J. Upton followed Gomes with a single to center to tie the game. Clif Floyd, with the go-ahead run on third, flied out to deep center to end the rally.
The Red Sox came back in the top of the eight against Al Reyes with a bases loaded walk to score the eventual winning run. The walk marked the second in two innings that Reyes forced in a run. In the sixth, the Tampa Bay reliever replaced Scott Kazmir with two outs and a runner on second and walked three straight batters to force home the inherited runner before striking out Manny Ramirez to end the inning.
The Red Sox scored first in the top of the 1st inning with a Kevin Youkilis solo home run off Kazmir. After falling behind 3-1, Jason Varitek resuced Boston in the 3rd with a two-run shot to tie the game.
Clay Buchholz didnt figure into the decision after Javier Lopez and Manny Delcarmen combined to blow the save in the seventh.
W: Delcarmen (4-1) L: Reyes (3-3) SV: Papelbon (25)
Player of the Game: Jason Varitek (2-3, 2B, HR, 2 Rs, RBI)
Around the League:
...Washington signed MR Ken Yamasaki (1-1, 5.91 ERA) to a 2-year contract extension worth a total of $860k...Kansas City placed SP Zack Greinke (5-7, 4.73 ERA, 91 Ks, 24 BBs) on the 60-day disabled list with a ruptured bicep tendon...Atlanta signed 1B Mark Teixeira (.276, 27 HRs, 60 RBIs) to a 5-year contract extension worth $83.65m...
Parkhurst backs down over transfer demand
Reports are surfacing that New England defender Michael Parkhurst has responded surprisingly well to his manager's recent statement that he will be forced to stay at Gillette Stadium in order to help the club progress.
According to a team source, the 24 year-old defender has backed down over his demand to leave Gillette Stadium and seek his fortunes at a bigger club.
Bruins Leave for Free Agency
Fourteen Bruins filed for free agency today, most notably RW Michael Ryder. Joining Ryder are:
Darryl Bootland, Andy Chiodo, David Collins, Nathan Robinson, Serge Schneider, Martin Samuelsson, Mike Smith, Nate Thompson, TJ Trevelyan, Ben Walter, Milan Michalek, Milan Jurcina, & Eric Burns.
The Bruins are expected to attempt to resign Jurcina, Michalek and Chiodo as all three are restricted free agents who will require compensation if they sign with another club.
NHL Free Agents:
Some notable free agents are now available after failing to come to an agreement with their former clubs:
Rob Blake (Phoenix), Patrice Brisebois (Detroit), Anson Carter (Carolina), Craig Conroy (Los Angeles), Adam Foote (Los Angeles), Matieu Garon* (Dallas), Scott Gomez (New Jersey), Dany Heatley (Ottawa), Jaromir Jagr (New York), Paul Kariya (Washington), Brooks Laich* (Washington), Daymond Langkow (Calgary), Niklas Lidstrom (Detroit), Ryan Malone (Pittsburgh), Chris Osgood (Philadelphia), Jason Smith (Philadelphia), Joe Thornton (San Jose), Bill Guerin (Washington), Paul Mara (Los Angeles), Mikhail Grabovsky* (Montreal), Dominik Hasek (Detroit), Rostislav Olesz* (Florida), Teemu Selanne (Anaheim), Oleg Saprykin (Phoenix), Marian Hossa (Atlanta), and Markus Naslund (Vancouver).
* indicates restricted free agent.
With our needs, some of the big names are going to be out of the questions. the Bruins are currently looking to add atleast one scorer and defenseman to our current roster. With about $10m in cap room, two big names isn't out of the question, but smaller depth signings might be more realistic.