Masterson Says Goodbye

Justin Masterson wrote his last blog post for CSNNE last night and in it he says goodbye to Red Sox fans:

But to all the fans I hope that I was not just a ball player, but a man of character who knew there was more to this life than just the game of baseball. I would hope that you would continue to support me even though I go to the likes of another team. If not that’s ok too, I understand, haha. I hope that Victor Martinez will come and make a good impact just as I hope to do in Cleveland. Thanks again for all your support no matter what was happening and I hope that you will have the respect for every other player that graces the field at Fenway.

May the Lord Bless you and keep you and Thanks, My time here has been wonderful, may we meet again.

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Masterson Talks About Last Night's Outing -Video

Justin Masterson struggled with control last night but was able to keep the Sox in the game. He answers questions about the warning for throwing behind a batter. Watch below:

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Sox Skweek By Angels

Although his numbers looked good, Masterson was having trouble with his location, but he did manage (lucky according to 'Tek in the post game interview) to make it through 6 innings allowing only 2 runs. He also threw one behind Hunter in the 3rd, drawing warnings from umpires to both sides. MDC gave up a rare run, but that was due in part to a fielding error.

The Sox were down 3-1 in the 7th and tied it on 2 singles, a BB, a HBP, and a FC. In the 9th, Drew singled and 'Tek doubled to send him home and gain the lead. Ramon Ramirez continues to be lights out, his record stands at 4-0, 0.52 ERA. (All Star Game for RR?) Papelbon walked Abreu, who then stole second. (Oh, here we go again.) Torii Hunter whiffed to end the game.

Mike Lowell is swinging the bat well so far this season (.310 BA), but his FA has dropped a bit this season. He has an unusually high number of errors so far (5), but hopefully his fielding groove will return from surgery to match his batting. Ol' Shoebox Lugo added another error tonight. Nick Green is hitting well too, (.289), but he's added another 6 errors so far this season. Let's hope for a speedy recovery for Jed Lowrie. Papi had an RBI, but was still 0/3. I'm wondering at what point does Tito move him down in the line up.

It wasn't a pretty win, but it was a win nonetheless. Toronto beat the Yankees tonight, leaving them 6.5 games out, while the Sox remain 1 GB. BAL beat TBY tonight.

Sox win 4-3 BOX SCORE

I participated in a live game chat on SawxHeads.com, tonight's host being none other than our esteemed Fenway West host, Matt O'Donnell. It was an interesting experience. I was not able to watch the game on the tube tonight, but I was chatting with other Sox fans on one tab, while checking the stats on 'Game Day' from RedSox.com as the game proceeded.

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Red Sox Need a Long Outing From Masterson

After the bullpen carnage from last night the Sox need Masterson to eat up some innings. Paps, Delcarmen, and RR are not available and Oki has not been reliable. Michael Bowden has been called up in case Masterson gets roughed up early.

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The Alarm Clock Has Rung, The Sox Have Awoken!

Justin Masterson got the call to start today, as the Sox rotation was in a bit of flux with Dice-K on the DL, along with a pending 6 game suspension that was hovering over Beckett for a day or two before it was reduced. Masterson is looking like he could be another Julian Tavarez: short relief, long relief, starter; he's done it all so far this year. Masterson went 5.1 innings tossing 84 pitches. He allowed only 4 H's, 2 BB's, 1 ER, while notching 3 K's and his first W of the season.

The bullpen studs came through again, this time it was Delcarmen, Okajima, Lopez, and Hunter Jones (who?), allowing only 1 H and 1 BB in 3.2 innings.

Have you been wondering about the top of the line-up? Well, today Ellsbury, Pedroia, and Papi combined to go 9 for 16, scoring 7 times, and knocking in 6 runs.

Two of the big question marks over the winter were Lowell and Varitek. Both went 2 for 5 today, and combined for 3 R's and 3 RBI's.

Kevin Youkilis had only 1 H today. He also drew 3 BB's, 1 of which was an IBB. (No explanation necessary.) His BA stands at a FAT .469.

The Sox have now won 5 in a row, sweeping the O's and climbing into a tie for 2nd place after a 2-6 start that had them in the cellar (gasp!) for a couple of days.

When all was said and done, the SOX plated 12 men, beating the Orioles 12 - 1. BOX SCORE

Tim Wakefield gets the start tomorrow against the Twins.

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On the Road Again

Fenway West is on his spring tour of 4 games and 1 Dead show in 5 days, while I was out all day playing at a show, so please accept our apologies for the lack of coverage today! Normal coverage will resume tomorrow.

Lester dominates Orioles as SOX win 2-1

Masterson gets the start tomorrow.

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Masterson: Baptism by Fire

Justin Masterson came in to pitch in the bottom of the 8th inning in the 1st game of the ALDS tonight, the 1st playoff game for the young rookie. In a game in which the Sox were only up by 1 run, he allowed 2 hits, I was starting to think Tito should've called Oki, who had been warming up, instead. Thanks to a tremendous, web-gem worthy sliding catch by Ellsbury, and heads-up thinking by Youk and a stop sign that Vlad blew off, Masterson made it out of the inning unscathed, and gets a Hold in his 1st playoff game. I'm sure he won't ever forget this game!

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Beckett didn't bring is best stuff today, but...

Sox were down 4-2 going into the 7th inning. Beckett threw 105 pitches in 6 innings, struck out 6, but allowed 4 ER's and 7 hits. He only walked 1 batter, but hit 2 others. Not looking good getting deep into the 9th inning, down 4-3, 2 outs. But wait! There's more! Youk singles! Bay doubles! SOAB! Lowrie strikes out swinging to kill the rally.

This post ain't over yet. Tampa Bay beat the O's 4-2. (Kevin Millar popped out to end their rally, as well as not hitting that last HR at Yankee Stadium like he said he was going to do.)

SOAB is right. Sox are now 2.5 games behind the Ray's (I thought they were supposed to go belly up in September?) On the brighter side, Masterson and Okajima pitched 2.2 innings: no hits, no runs, no walks, 3 strikeouts.

Lookin' like it might be Sox and Halo's in the ALDS. Let's hope Tito has a few cards up his sleeve for that series.

Sox lose 4-3 BOX SCORE

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More Of The Same

Buchholz struggles yet again and the Sox lose their 16th 1-run game in a row. Clay had early run support but quickly blew the 3 run lead and did not even get an out in the fourth before he was pulled. Once again he had good stuff at times but made too many mistakes and Chicago's offense took him deep when he did. Aardsma gave up another run but pitched his way out of a bases loaded jam. Masterson came in and pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings with 5 K's making Red Sox Nation wonder why he was not the starter in this game. Okajima also looked good pitching a perfect inning. The Sox offense rallied but their best chance to get ahead ended when Lowell grounded into a bases loaded inning ending double play in the 7th. This is a game the Sox should have won but Buchholz dug too big of a hole. He has had his chances and now needs to be removed from the rotation which could be difficult with Wake going on the DL. Boston can not continue to allow Buchholz to learn on the job in the middle of a pennant race. Masterson, Pauley, or Zink need to be given the shot at the rotation, Buchholz simply is not good enough to be a major league starter right now.

Sox Lose 6-5 BOX SCORE

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Aardsma Might Be Headed to DL, Masterson Could Get the Call

The ProJo is reporting that David Aardsma has a leg injury and may be going on the DL. This could happen as early as today opening the door for Justin Masterson to rejoin the team as a reliever. This means the Sox really need Buchholz to do well as a starter because there is no real replacement if he cannot be effective. Boston would have to scrap their plans to have Masterson in the pen or wait the few weeks for Colon to return.

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West Coast Red Sox

Since this is the Western Home of Red Sox Nation, I thought I would take a moment to salute some of the Red Sox who are from the West Coast:

Jon Lester~ Tacoma, WA

Jed Lowrie~ Salem, OR

Jacoby Ellsbury~ Madras, OR

Dustin Pedroia~ Woodland, CA

Coco Crisp~ Los Angeles, CA

Curt Schilling~ born in Anchorage, AK, college at YJC, AZ

Justin Masterson~ born in Kingston, Jamaica, college at San Diego State U.

Chris Carter~ Fremont, CA, college at Stanford U.

Chris Smith~ Apple Valley, CA

Jeff Bailey~ Longview, WA

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Masterson Shows He Can Be A Reliever Too

Justin Masterson pitched well as a relief pitcher for the PawSox yesterday retiring the Norfolk batters in order on 16 pitches including one strikeout. Pawtucket is planning on using Masterson again tonight. If Masterson can continue to do well in relief I would expect him to join the Red Sox pen by the end of the month.

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Is Masterson Going to Save the Pen?

Justin Masterson is returning to Pawtucket to become a reliever for the Red Sox. This could be a sign that the price for the mediocre relievers that will be available before the deadline are not worth the asking price and Theo is going to try to get it done in house. Masterson has shown he can get big league hitters out so it will be a great move if he can effectively make the transition.

In other Sox news, Jeff Bailey was called back up, this is the second time the power hitting first baseman has been with Boston this season.

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Buchholz May Replace Masterson in The Rotation For Yankees Series

The Boston Globe is reporting that the Sox may bring Clay Buchholz back up to the big club this weekend to start against the Yankees. He would replace Masterson in the rotation.

"The idea was to work on fastball command," Francona said of Buchholz's stint in Pawtucket. "Consistency, and we slightly adjusted his arm angle to create two-seam movement.

"We didn't want to run him down there for just one or two starts. We made him throw his fastball. I don't know if it was a hard count, but we told him, 'Make yourself do this.' "

Buchholz's changeup and curve are so good, he could fall back on those pitches to get hitters out, which is why the Sox told him not to worry about results, Francona said.

But the results have been there as well, which would seem to guarantee Buchholz a seat on the shuttle to Boston, sooner rather than later.

For either Materson or Buchholz it is going to be a pressure filled situation to pitch in the Bronx when the Sox are desperately in need of some wins. This could be great for Clay's confidence if he can pitch well in New York but it could also have the fans and media really questioning Theo and Tito if he comes up and gets shelled.

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Masterson and J.D. Keep Impressing

Justin Masterson picked up his 4th win of the season in Philadelphia as the Sox won their second straight series on the road. J.D. Drew seemed to be cooling off after going 0-4 yesterday but he was back to powering the Sox offense today going 4-5 with a home run and 4 RBI's. Pedroia stayed hot going 3-5. Hansen had big trouble in the 7th giving up 2 hits a walk and 2 earned runs without getting an out before he was pulled. Delcarmen and Papelbon stopped the bleeding and shut down the Phillies. Time to go back to the Fens to take on the '04 World Series opponent.

Sox Win 7-4 BOX SCORE

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Road Woes Continue

New league, same result. The Red Sox struggles on the road continued tonight with a loss to the Reds. Once again the offense disappeared when the road uniforms were donned; the Sox managed just 5 hits and one run in the game. Masterson gave up 3 runs on 4 hits (2 homers) in the game. He pitched well enough with 9 K's but a 2 run lead would prove to be insurmountable to the feeble Sox offense. Manny had the only RBI for Boston but had to leave the game early with the hamstring injury. Remy and Orsillo pointed out how troublesome this can be in inter-league play when Manny cannot DH.

Sox Lose 3-1 BOX SCORE

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Sox Win Finale at the Fens

The Red Sox continued to do well at home with another win against the Orioles tonight. Jon Lester pitched very well going 7 innings giving up 2 runs and 7 hits. The bullpen (Lopez and Timlin) pitched a perfect 8th and 9th to preserve the victory. Mike Lowell was the offensive hero of the game with a grand slam in the 5th.(video below) Youk and red hot J.D. Drew also went yard. Lugo had his 13th error of the game but did go 2-4 with a RBI. The Red Sox head to Cincy to resume inter-league play tomorrow. Justin Masterson will be on the mound and will have his first Major League at bat, which I am guessing is not going to be pretty.

Sox Win 9-2 BOX SCORE

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Masterson to Start

The Red Sox have announced that Justin Masterson will be the starting pitcher when the team begins their homestand at Fenway. The Red Sox are using Masterson as a spot starter until Dice-k comes off of the DL. This is further indication that Buchholz will be with the PawSox for a while.

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Masterson Beats the Yankees

Justin Masterson made his AAA debut tonight against the Scranton Yankees. He went 6 innings earning the win while giving up 2 runs (1 earned) striking out 4 and walking one. Masterson is widely believed to be the pitcher who will start in Dice-K's spot if he cannot go. The PawSox beat the AAA affiliate of the Yankees 5-2.

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Masterson May Take Dice-K's Next Start

The ProJo is reporting that Justin Masterson's debut with the PawSox has been moved up from Sunday to tomorrow. Buchholz is scheduled to pitch on Friday which will make him unavailable for Dice-K's start if he can't go. There are two possible explanations for this; either Masterson is going to make his third start for the Red Sox next week or the injury to Dice-K is not that serious and he will be ready to go. My money is on Masterson making the start.

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