Sox: Tuneup Your WP Radar, Joba's Comin' to Town

The New York Yankees have adjusted their rotation so that Joba 'the Headhunter' Chamberlain will be pitching in the opening game of that upcoming series, set to open at NY on Thursday. Sergio Mitre will now not pitch against the Sox. (damn!)

John Smoltz is set to face Joba in the opener, meaning the Sox bats better be alive and kicking. Despite his historic credentials, Smoltz has not found his rhythm and has not yet turned in a quality start this season.

As much as I would love to see the Sox sweep the Yankees the whole season, it is highly unlikely that would happen. This might just be the game that snaps the 8 game streak. Then again, now that the trade deadline has passed, players might be a bit more relieved that their status hasn't changed and should be able to focus more on the game, rather than distractions such as their status and other unsavory issues not needed to be rehashed in this post. The initial horror and furor over other issues has (hopefully) reached and passed it's peak. The dust will settle, and the answers to the questions will be answered.

To the Sox: you concentrate on today's game and let us armchair GM's worry about games later in the week. Play ball!

I was a second away from hitting the 'post now' button, when I took a quick look at Gameday on RedSox.com. The Sox are already up 4-0 in the top of the 4th. That should be a big enough cushion to get Buchholz started off with the right pitch.