I'm With Coco!

I always liked Coco Crisp. He never quite was Johnny Damon's replacement but he was an exciting and fun player with an awesome name. And lest we forget his pennant winning catch in 2007, his epic ALCS extending RBI in 2008 and being a World Champion Red Sox player?

Well today he gave his old friends a little help.

2, count em, TWO home runs including one off of Sabathia and one to win the game in the 10th.



Mix that with the Red Sox drubbing of Texas and a wonderful scenario has transpired.

The Red Sox, who went on the road against the defending AL Champs and current AL West leaders, and the worst they can do is split 4.

And the A's went into Yankee Stadium and won the series.

Thanks for the help Coco!

And the Magic Number?

33!

John Lackey... WINNER

I was worried for half an inning.
Youk made an error and Lackey let up a homer. Sox down 3-0 before they even came to bat.
For that space between the top and bottom of the first I thought "Man, the Sox are REALLY going to lose this game."

Then Ellsbury and Pedroia hit back to back homers and I relaxed. The Sox didn't even have the lead after one, but I felt like the 3 run homer basically was a head start.

Now John Lackey won the game.
He's 4-0 in his last 4 games.
I don't care what other stats you look at. I want my pitchers winning.
Lackey is winning.
I don't understand how this is happening... the 12 run outburst is a decent explanation.

But keep winning Lackey and you'll win Boston's heart... or at least we'll stop hating you.

Meanwhile, the let's talk Magic Numbers.

THE MAGIC NUMBER IS 58!!!

A Little Help From My Friends

Oh Hideki Matsui used to make me wet my pants when he was a member of the Yankees. He was part of the brutal 8th inning rally against Pedro in the 2003 ALCS Game 7. And if Mariano Rivera got the side retired in Game 4 of the 2004 ALCS, Matsui would have won the series MVP.

Then he haunted Pedro again in the 2009 World Series with game winning homers in Games 2 and 6.

But I like him today.
I like that he remembered how to hit in Yankee Stadium.

Go A's!
Go Matsui!

And a Yankee loss along with the Red Sox win means
THE MAGIC NUMBER IS 62!!!!

Keeping the Beatles theme from my earlier post... the Sox got a little help from their friends.

64

The Yankees scored 17 runs?
So what?
They couldn't gain any ground.

As for the Red Sox? They keep chipping away at the Magic Number. And while Paul McCartney maybe have sung in Yankee Stadium, he might as well be singing about the Red Sox magic number... which is 64!

I don't say it often, but Thank You Tampa

Normally I'm not very happy when the Rays win. I'm not a Rays fan and frankly I don't want them getting TOO good. They can pass the Yankees, but I'm not looking for a repeat of 2008!

That being said, anytime CC Sabathia throws a solid complete game and LOSES is a good day for me.

The Sox are now 2 games ahead of the Yankees and heading back home to face the Mariners.

The Magic number?
65.

Taking care of busness

No teeth grinding.
No bullets dodged.

Just a good old fashioned shutting down of an inferior team and another series won.
The Sox have won their last 5 series.

Back home to play the Mariners and the Royals... two of the worst teams in the American League. Hopefully it will be 7 straight series.

The Magic Number is down to 66.

CUE THE CHUCK BERRY!

How odd is baseball?

Sunday the Red Sox took 16 innings to score 1 run and left 17 runners on base.
Last night the Red Sox scored 15 runs.

In one game they were held scoreless for 15 innings and won.
In another game they let up 10 runs and won.

5 run fifth inning to blow a lead?
No worries... the Red Sox will just score 8 in the 8th!

No Ortiz? Don't worry. Pedroia will remain on fire.
And who needs to acquire Carlos Beltran?
Carl Crawford is back and Josh Reddick is hitting .347 with an OPS of 1.056.

I might not be the most versed guy in new stats, but I know 1.056 is good!

And do you want to know what else?
If the Red Sox win and the Phillies lose today, the Red Sox will be the best team in baseball.

Isn't that cool?

Let's update the tally.

DODGED BULLET GAMES - 31

April 8 - 9-6 win against the Yankees. (The Sox end their 6 game losing streak with a slugfest. John Lackey stinks but Phil Hughes stinks even more.)
April 10 - 4-0 win against the Yankees. (Beckett and Sabathia duel in a game that was 1-0 until the late innings.)
April 20 - 5-3 win in Oakland. (Red Sox survive a lead off homer and two bases loaded situations and facing the tying run at the plate to win their first road game.)
April 21 - 4-2 win in Anaheim. (The Red Sox stranded 15 men on base and Josh Beckett's went 8 strong with no decision. But the Sox rallied in the 11th to win.)
April 22 - 4-3 win in Anaheim. (Peter Bourjos makes a 2 run errors and the Red Sox survive a bizarre passed ball by Jarrod Saltalamacchia that let a run scored from second.)
May 1 - 3-2 win against the Mariners. (Ichiro loses a ball in the sun that turns into a 9th inning triple for Lowrie. Crawford singles him home for the win.)
May 8 - 9-5 win against the Twins. (Dice-K lets up 3 runs in the first but settles down as the Red Sox clobber Carl Pavano.)

May 9 - 2-1 win against the Twins. (A bullpen breakdown cost Beckett the decision but Cark Crawford ended the game with an 11th inning walk off hit.)
May 13 - 5-4 win in the Bronx. (Youkilis homers off of Joba and Bard and Papelbon make it more interesting than it needed to be.)
May 15 - 7-5 win in the Bronx. (Sox fall behind 4-1 but come back as Youk, Papi and Salty all homer.)
May 16 - 8-7 win against the Orioles. (Down 6-0 after 6 innings, the Sox rally and win it with a 2 run walk off double by Adrian Gonzalez)
May 18 - 1-0 win against Detroit. (With 2 outs in the 8th, Salty doubles home Crawford from first for the only run. Papelbon gets himself in and out of 9th inning trouble.)
May 19 - 4-3 win against Detroit. (Bard blows Beckett's lead but Carl Crawford wins it with a walk off hit.)
May 24 - 4-2 win in Cleveland. (Varitek throws two runners out and homers as the Red Sox win their first game against the Indians.)
May 29 - 4-3 win in Detroit. (The Red Sox blow an early 3-0 lead but David Ortiz wins the game with a pinch 9th inning homer.)
June 3 - 8-6 win against Oakland. (Buchholz lets up 4 runs in the first but the Sox come back thanks to Carl Crawford's 2 run single.)
June 4 - 9-8 win against Oakland. (Red Sox blow a 4 run 9th inning lead and trail in the 11th before Ellsbury ties it and Drew wins it in 14.)
June 7 - 6-4 win in the Bronx. (Papelbon strikes out A-Rod to end the game with a runner on base.)
June 9 - 8-3 win in the Bronx. (Down 2-0 to Sabathia in the 7th, the Sox score 7 runs as Papi exacts revenge after getting plunked. A 3+ hour rain delay pushed the game past 1:30 AM)

June 15 - 3-0 win in Tampa Bay. (Youkilis homers in the 7th for the only runs in Beckett's 1 hit masterpiece.)
June 16 - 4-2 win in Tampa Bay. (Papelbon wiggles out of a 2 on, nobody out jam in the 9th thanks to Youk's diving catch.)
June 26 - 4-2 win in Pittsburgh. (The Pirates make 4 errors and the Red Sox score 2 in the 7th to avoid a sweep by the Bucs.
June 30 - 5-2 win in Philadelphia.(An injury to Cole Hamels leads to the Red Sox bats waking up.)
July 1 - 7-5 win in Houston. (The Sox score 6 in the 7th inning to come back and win.)
July 3 - 2-1 win in Houston. (The Red Sox score a run in the top of the 9th on a walk to break a tie.)
July 5 - 3-2 win against Toronto. (Lester gets hurt but Darnel McDonald throws out the tying run at the plate to end the game.)
July 6 - 6-4 win against Toronto. (The Sox score 4 in the 4th to take the lead and Wakefield and company hang on for dear life.)
July 10 - 8-6 win against Baltimore. (The Orioles score 6 runs off of rookie Kyle Weiland in the second, but the Red Sox hit three homers in the bottom of the second to tie the game and hold for dear life.)
July 16 - 9-5 win in Tampa. (Lackey puts the Sox in a 3-0 first inning hole, but 3 Sox homers bring them back for the win.)
July 17 - 1-0 win in Tampa. (Beckett throws a masterpiece and the bullpen throws 8 amazing innings. But the Sox bats go dead, leaving 17 men on base before Pedroia drove in a run with 2 outs in the 16th inning.)
July 18 - 15-10 win in Baltimore. (The Sox blow a 6-2 lead but score 8 runs in the 8th to take the game.)

TEETH GRINDER GAMES - 23

April 1 - 9-5 loss in Texas. (The Sox tie Opening Day in the 8th with an Ortiz homer only to have Bard implode and the Sox let up 4 in the bottom of the 8th.)

April 5 - 3-1 loss in Cleveland. (The Sox drop their 4th straight as the bats are dead in Cleveland.)
April 7 - 1-0 loss in Cleveland. (Sox blow a great Lester performance on a squeeze bunt and Darnell McDonald overrunning the bag to end the game.)
April 12 - 3-2 loss to Tampa Bay. (A solid Lester performance is wasted as Kyle Farnsworth of all people shuts down the Sox.)
April 15 - 7-6 loss to Toronto. (Bobby Jenks implodes with a 4 run seventh inning as the Red Sox waste Pedroia and Youkilis homers and a clutch RBI double by Scuatro.
April 19 - 5-0 loss in Oakland. (Pedroia gets picked off, the Sox bats go dead and waste a solid Lackey start.)
April 26 - 4-1 loss in Baltimore. (Buchholz pitches tentatively and the Sox let Kevin Gregg of all people to close out the 9th.)
April 27 - 5-4 loss in Baltimore. (The Sox tie the game with a 3 run 8th only to have Bard lose it in the bottom of the 8th.)
April 29 - 5-4 loss to Mariners. (Bobby Jenks blows a 7th inning lead, wasting 2 Mike Cameron homers.)
April 30 - 2-0 loss to Mariners. (The Sox strand 11 runners and let Milton Bradley double home the go ahead run.)
May 4 - 5-3 loss to Angels. (7 hours with rain delays and stranded runners. Marco Scutaro was thrown out at the plate in the 12th)
May 10 - 7-6 loss in Toronto. (8th and 9th inning heroics, including a homer by Adrian Gonzalez, are undone by a walk off sacrifice fly by David Cooper.)
May 21 - 9-3 loss to Cubs. (Up 3-1 in the 8th inning, the bullpen and defense implode. The Cubs score 8 runs while both teams wear their 1918 uniforms.)
May 23- 3-2 loss in Cleveland. (The Sox blow a 2-1 8th inning lead when the Indians rally with 2 outs. Crawford ends the game on a double play.)
May 29 - 3-0 loss in Detroit. (Verlander keeps the Sox off base and prevents the sweep.)
June 1 - 7-4 loss to White Sox. (Konerko drives in three, spoiling a game tying Ortiz homer.)

June 14 - 4-0 loss in Tampa Bay. (Wakefield's solid outing is spoiled. Longoria scores on a passed ball.)
June 18 - 4-2 loss to Milwaukee. (The Brewers hit three homers early off of Lester and hang on.)
June 21 - 5-4 loss to San Diego. (Ortiz hits a double play in the 9th to stifle a potential winning rally.)

June 24 - 3-1 loss to Pittsburgh. (The Red Sox strand 7 runners in scoring position.)
June 25 - 6-4 loss to Pittsburgh. (The Red Sox fall out of first as Pedroia's error leads to a Pirates run.)
June 29 - 2-1 loss in Philadelphia. (Vance Worley duels John Lackey and slumping Raul Ibanez drives in both runs.)
July 4 - 9-7 loss to Toronto. (John Lackey's miserable start puts the Sox in too big a hole to climb out of.)

+8?

It's really hard to top that.
It's hard to imagine dipping below break even with more than a week to play with.

And oh yeah.
The Magic Number is 68.

They have won 12 of 14 in July.
They have won 28 of the last 39 games.
And 56-28 since that horrific start.

Feel good Sox fans.
Let's hope this rubs off into a good August.

Did the Orioles out suck John Lackey?

I think every Red Sox fan in the world braced for impact when John Lackey took the hill today at Fenway.

Even with a 3 game winning streak in June and a recent hard luck loss to the Phillies, Lackey's numbers were just crap.

I can break them down, but I don't care what math you use, a 7.47 ERA is a 7.47 ERA.

And that's WITH those good games I mentioned.

I was expecting, especially in the wake of the Orioles brawl and lack of offense, to see Lackey go 4 1/3 innings and give up 6 runs.

He pitched into the 7th and let up zero runs!

So what does that mean? Does that mean that John Lackey is back and will pitch like the work horse for the Angels?

Or does that mean that the Orioles suck even more than John Lakcey?

I guess we'll find out in his NEXT start.

Either way...
THE MAGIC NUMBERS IS 74

76

76 can mean a lot of things.
The Spirit of '76 represents the beginning of American Liberty.
Professor Harold Hill wanted 76 trombones playing in River City in The Music Man.
76 was the first year of the Jiancho era of the Han Dynasty.
It's the atomic number for osmium.

And after the Red Sox home run barrage last night, it is the Magic Number for Boston to clinch the 2011 American League East title.

They are back in First Place. Now let's avoid anymore injuries to the pitching staff, shall we?

A nice ass whippin' is always nice

Seriously Red Sox fans... were you ever nervous?
Even when the Padres tied the game, did you ever think for a second that the Red Sox were losing this one?

Even with Andrew Miller pitching and the Sox blowing a 3-0 lead... seriously. Who thought "Oh man... the Sox are in trouble"?

And a nice little 10 run inning later, the game was a laugher.

I could use more games like this.
And oh yeah...

The Magic Number is 90!!!!

Players hurt? No problem

OK I was a little nervous when Lackey let up 2 in the first and let the Brewers score 2 more in the third. But the second I saw Adrian Gonzalez launch that opposite field shot to give the Sox the lead in the 5th, I totally relaxed.

Alright so Youk and Crawford left the game hurt. Boston will be OK. And with a little help from the Cubs over the Yankees...

THE MAGIC NUMBER IS 92

BOSTON IS GOING CRAZY

Mainly because Josh Beckett threw a one hitter against the Rays!

10 out of 11 wins for the Sox!

THE MAGIC NUMBER IS 95!!!!!

Oh wait... something else happened in Boston Sports? What could it be?

What 6 game losing streak?

Was the 6 game losing streak to start the season a bad dream?
Either way, the Red Sox have had a 7 and now an 8 game WINNING streak to balance it out.

Today was no teeth grinder nor dodged bullet. Any 9 inning game where an infielder is pitching the last inning isn't a down to the wire affair.

What I DO know is the Red Sox are on a 9 game road trip. It's a doozy. It goes to the Bronx, Toronto and Tampa.

On a trip like that, you try to come out with more wins than losses and take your chances at home.

As of now, the Red Sox are 4-0 on the trip.
Not bad for a team that had a losing record as recently as May 14.

Keep on winning.
Only good things can happen when you win... like lowering the Magic Number.

The Magic Number... is 98

99

Red Sox fans should be thinking about the number 99 today.

Not in honor of Wayne Gretzky












Not in honor of Barbara Feldon who played 99 on Get Smart.












Not in honor of Nena and her 99 Luft balons.












Not in recognition of the element Einsteinium which is 99 on the periodic table of elements.










Not even for the 99 Restaurant, where so many of us Native New Englanders went to eat growing up.






Nope... 99 is the Magic Number for the Red Sox to eliminate the Yankees and win the American League East.

It looks good being in double digits.
Now let's see some winning streaks and see it in SINGLE digits.

Lackey takes the hill later today.

Stay focused John and push the needle to 98!

THE RED SOX MAGIC NUMBER IS 100!

Tomorrow it starts getting down to double digits.

If the Yankees pitching staff keeps throwing like they did against the Sox, this number will shrink pretty damn fast.

Bring on the Blue Jays!

Man... the Yankees really showed Papi who is boss!

Lots of talk of retaliation against Big Papi tonight... Maybe even a bean ball to show the Yankees aren't soft.

Either way, a statement needed to be made about where the Yankees stood with Ortiz.

A statement was made, alright.
Nothing says "You can't do that in OUR yard" quite like David Ortiz hitting ANOTHER homer... this one in the first inning.

The statement?
The Yankees pitching staff that looked really good on their west coast swing just might be as thin as their fans feared.

Wow. The Yankees shut down the Angels, A's and Mariners line ups. Congrats. Now you are playing the varsity line up.

The result?
Well Freddy Garcia and A. J. Burnett looked damn good against the A's, Blue Jays, Mets and Royals recently... but Garcia couldn't get out of the third against the Sox.

And Burnett let up 7 earned in less than 6.

Meanwhile Wakefield wasn't exactly Cy Young or Roger Clemens... but crept one game closer to them.

Oh... one more number?

The Red Sox Magic Number?
102!!!!

How will Papi ever recover?

The Red Sox Magic Number Is 112

Yup.
The Red Sox who started the season 0-6 and 2-10 are in first place by themselves.

(Thank you A. J. Burnett's high pitch count and mediocre Yankee middle relief.)

So now any combination of Red Sox wins and Yankee losses that equal 112... and the Red Sox are the 2011 American League Eastern Division Champions.

And they got there BEFORE Memorial Day. They had a disappointing first third of the season and are STILL in first place by themselves.

Ain't no stopping us now!

A March game that could haunt Milwaukee in late September

Yeah I know it is early.
It isn't even April. So with 161 games left to play, why is this game between Cincinnati and Milwaukee so important?

It is true that there is a lot of time to make up this one game deficit. But these two teams could be two of biggest contenders for the National League Central crown. And guess what? If these two teams go down to the wire, every game in September will be precious.

And if Milwaukee loses the division by a game, I am sure a game where they hit homers with the first two at bats of the season and had a 3 run lead in the 9th to the Reds then coughed it up will be a sore spot.

The games count as much now as they do late in the season.

You had better get your act together, Brewers. The Reds magic number is down to 161!

IN HONOR OF KENNY LOFTON

The well traveled veteran who made a memorable cameo with the Giants in 2002...

A man who played in 11 post seasons in his 16+ big league seasons but somehow never won a ring...

The lead off man who homered in the Giants Game 1 victory in the 2002 NLCS over St. Louis...

But he saved his most heroic moment for last when he singled home David Bell in the bottom of the 9th to end Game 5 and clinch the pennant, sending San Francisco into delirium...

In his honor we announce

THE MAGIC NUMBER IS 1!!!!

IN HONOR OF BRETT BUTLER

The man who was one of the best lead off hitters during the 1980s and 1990s...

The man who had to fill Chili Davis' shoes after the 1987 season and did so admirably...

The man who led the National League in runs in his first year with the Giants and led the NL in hits in 1990...

The man who led off Game 1 of the 1989 NLCS with a single and scored in the first off of Greg Maddux to send the Giants on their way...

A solid all around player who amased 2,375 hits in his career...

And a solid man who beat a form of cancer while with the Dodgers to return the same season he received treatments...

And did NOT star in Grace Under Fire...

In his honor we announce

THE GIANTS MAGIC NUMBER IS 2!