We'd seen far too much of the Mr. Hyde side of Dice-K this spring, so it was refreshing to see the good Dr. Jekyll on the mound today against the Tigers. He threw 5 scoreless frames, surrendering just 2 hits and a walk. Perhaps Curt Young is onto something with changing his routine so he doesn't throw long toss and bullpen sessions on the same day. Throwing that many pitches in one day has to have fatigued his arm to the point that it costs him velocity in games. If Dice continues to follow this new routine and puts together a string of solid starts in a row, that would go a long way toward making this rotation stronger. Consistency is the key for Matsuzaka. We know he's capable of being a very good pitcher. Now we'd just like to see that very good pitcher more often.
How about that slugger known as Jacoby? He yanked another one out of the park today and he, along with Mike Cameron, have dazzled this spring. For two outfielders who spent the bulk of the season on the DL, or in Cameron's case, playing through excruciating pain, it's very encouraging to see them have the kind of spring they're having. Speaking of Cameron, I really hope the Sox keep him around this season. Being a righty, he'll get plenty of playing time off the bench, especially against lefties. His clubhouse presence is another reason to hold onto him. He's a good-natured veteran and those kind of guys are nice to have around over the course of the long season.
Two more weeks left of Spring Training before the real deal gets underway on April 1. Opening Day is so close I can taste it!
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