As Refreshing As a Glass of...

...Tropicana Orange Juice! After almost two years (and one team's name change) the Red Sox have won a series at Tropicana Field! Young Buch helped guide his team to last night's victory, further strengthening his campaign for the #3 spot in the rotation. He was a little shaky in the early going, but kept the damage to a minimum. He got better as the game went on, retiring the last nine batters he faced. His line: 6 IP, 6 H, 3 ER 1 BB 3K Wagner, Bard, and Pap kept the door shut tight while the Sox added to the 4-3 lead they had when Buchholz left the game. Bay, Youk, V-Mart, Lowell, and Baldelli lead the offensive attack. The former Ray Rocco crushed one into the left field seats to break what was at the time a 2-2 tie in the 2nd inning. Bay got the Sox on the board with a 2-RBI double the inning before. Lowell's sac fly in the 6th put the Sox ahead of the Rays for good; Youk and V-Mart added insurance in the 7th.

I'm so proud of my Red Sox for playing their best ball and taking their stand against the Rays in a place where they've found it hard to succeed in the past two years. Buchholz deserves special props for stepping up and throwing a quality start in a crucial, playoff-atmosphere game against a division rival. The Sox are now 6 games up on the Rays in the wild card chase. The Yanks have it super-easy lately, playing the Jays and the O's, so catching up to them for the division, while not mathematically impossible, will require some massive implosion on the part of the pinstripe posse. But, it's all about getting INTO the playoffs, right? Get in, whether it be the front door or the back, and anything's possible. Just ask the 2004 team.

It's a battle of the laundry this weekend: Red Sox vs. White Sox at The Cell. Wake's due to pitch tomorrow afternoon and I hope V-Mart is behind the plate. He did just fine catching Wake's last start and at this point in the season, the Red Sox really need his bat to stay in the lineup. Tonight, Byrd's on the hill, trying to go 2 for 2 in as many starts. The battle of Sox supremacy continues...

LET'S GO RED SOX!!!!