The march toward 600 begins ...

Finally, that's over with.

Manny Ramirez has become the first Red Sox since Ted Williams to hit 500 home runs.

Congrats, Manny.

I don't always approve of your antics, but I know you're the greatest Red Sox left fielder. (Of my generation, anyway).

The Splendid Splinter and Carl Yastrzemski are waiting for you in Cooperstown.

Overshadowed by the Manny show, the Red Sox beat the Orioles 6-3.

Before Manny hit No. 500 tonight, Ken Griffey Jr. hit No. 599 this afternoon. Christine is hoping 600 comes tomorrow because on Monday the Reds come to Philly, and she doesn't want to spend the rest of the season watching Griffey's milestone homer fly out of Citizens Bank Park.

The Phillies return to first place was short-lived as Cole Hamels is trying to become the most worrisome member of the Phillies rotation now that it appears Brett Myers and Adam Eaton are pitching decently. Marlins 7, Phillies 3. Christine is kicking herself for not talking a walk to reverse jinx a big inning.

[Photo credit: Associated Press]

Brett buries the Marlins

Things weren't looking so hot in the 1st inning tonight. Brett Myers was pitching poorly, a fly ball was misplayed by Pat Burrell, all balls in the air were carrying strangely because of the wind.

So what did the Phillies do? Have a seven-run 2nd inning en route to a 12-3 win over the Marlins. Chris Coste, Chase Utely and Ryan Howard all had home runs. Myers settled down nicely after a sloppy start to the game and ended up pitching eight innings with 11 strikeouts.

I know everyone is saying it and writing about it, but this team is just on right now. It's not often that good pitching and good hitting align for the Phils. This week has been fun baseball, and now the team stands in first place, with the opportunity to do some real damage in the division this weekend.

Manny Ramirez doesn't care about sending me to bed on time; Red Sox and Orioles tied at two in the 13th. Daisuke Matsuzaka was DL'd today; sucks losing an 8-0 pitcher, but we've got Justin Masterson (1-0, 1.46 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP) ready to fill in.

As soon as I finished that graf, the Red Sox scored after a certain player with 499 career homers started a rally with a double. They're now up 5-2. Here's hoping they can hold the lead.

You ask, we try to answer

Since the Red Sox and Phillies are off to rest up before pushing the Florida teams out of first place, we're going to answer some of the questions we've received since starting this blog.

1) Is Jayson Werth married? Pat Burrell? Werth is married with two children, but he doesn't list their names in the Phillies media guide. Burrell is married to Michelle Fonseca with a bulldog named Elvis, who gave his owner a stiff neck this week. It's unconfirmed whether there's a second bulldog named Priscilla.

2) Who was the guy who painted a birthday portrait of the Phanatic this month? He's Dan Dunn, a Paint Jam Artist.

3) What does Daisuke Matsuzaka's Japanese stamp look like? Here's the Dice-K that sends mail (found at the Japanese site Garbage News):


4) When was the Phillies last no-hitter? Kevin Millwood, 1-0 against the Giants, April 27, 2003. The last current Phillie to be involved in a no-hitter is Brad Lidge, who combined with five Astros to blank the Yankees 8-0 on June 11, 2003. (We were vacationing in Hawaii at the time.)

5) What is the intro song for (fill in the name of just about any ballplayer)? This is the most recent list we could find, but some are dubious. Burrell used to rock to Dio's Holy Diver, but now comes out to Don Henley's Dirty Laundry.

Manny being Manny: While the Red Sox dropped a 1-0 game to the anemic Mariners last night to fall 1.5 games behind the Rays, Manny was glad he didn't hold up the team and media with a post-game press conference for his 500th homer.

The press conference would be too late and it would delay us getting into Baltimore.

Great, that's much more important than tying or taking a lead in a game against the worst team in baseball.

Catching up on yesterday's news ...

Daisuke Matsuzaka remains undefeated, as the Red Sox waited until the bottom of the 9th to lose against the Mariners. Dice was long gone by then; apparently his shoulder has finally fallen apart from all the pitches he throws. Funny, he logged only 65 in four innings last night - pretty efficient for him.

The game was not without drama, however. Manny, as promised, hit No. 499 to build excitement for No. 500. I'm certainly thrilled and hope it comes when the team continues to struggle on the road.

Question: It looks like the Red Sox may be well represented at the All-Star game. Will they play like the awful road team they are or the dominant home team? I've considered Yankee Stadium their home away from home since 2004, so look for them to trump the NL and have the World Series open at Fenway.

I will admit it would be embarrassing to see so many Sox on the squad. Kevin Youkilis deserves it; Dustin Pedroia isn't undeserving, but you could easily pick someone else, and David Ortiz, Jason Varitek and Manny Ramirez also aren't undeserving, but their history factors in a lot. Oh well, these things even out over time - remember when Scoot Cooper was our only selection?

{Greg is so obnoxious. Sounds just like a Yankees fan.}

The NL released their vote tallies today. The Phillies' moms need to learn from Chase Utley's how to stuff the ballot box.

Today's milestones: Congratulations. A whole-hearted congratulations on this significant accomplishment - Adam Eaton's first win of 2008. He actually pitched six solid innings in the Phillies 6-1 win over the Rockies tonight. ... ESPN is showing all of Manny's at-bats as he tries for 500. So far, he's 0 for 1. No score in the 3rd. ... Finally, congrats to Wally the Green Monster, who was named by Maxim as the baseball mascot most deserving of a punch to the groin.

Also tonight, we stepped out for a walk and to get some dinner. What did I miss? The Phils' five-run 5th inning. Oh well, as long as they keep winning - I can always watch the highlights later.

Phillies hit (with Christine watching)

The Phillies scored seven runs in the first two innings, dispelling my theory from yesterday that their offensive explosions coincide with Christine being unable to watch. Funny, tonight was the first time in a long time where we could watch the whole game, but then the skies opened up and delayed the game in the 8th. After a rain delay of almost an hour and a half, the Phils finally beat the Rockies 7-4. Every starter except for Carlos Ruiz and Kyle Kendrick had a hit.

In Seattle, the Red Sox trail the Mariners 3-0 in the 5th with the undefeated (entering the game anyway) Daisuke Matsuzaka pitching.

Speaking of aces, I'm starting to drink the Kool-Aid on Bartolo Colon after last night's win.

We need excuses for Christine to leave the house

I'm on a Red Sox e-mail list. In the great '04, I forgot how it all started, but it was decided that one woman was the Red Sox good luck charm by watching syndicated episodes of Becker. It was an unspoken bond between between her and the Sox; they would win as long as she wouldn't watch them.

This week, there have been three instances where the Phillies scored big when Christine wasn't watching: On Wednesday, they scored seven runs when we went out for ice cream; yesterday, they beat the Astros 15-6 when the cable was out; and tonight, we took a half-hour walk and missed the bulk of the six-run 4th inning that ignited a 20-5 rout of the Colorado Rockies. (Jamie Moyer now has a win against all 30 teams.)

I guess we're going on many walks and trips for ice cream this summer.

Oh, and yesterday's cable outage? Turns out we did cut a wire. Don't know how or where.

RIP: Geremi, or Jeremi, Gonzalez died after being struck by lightning. He was one of the many pitchers the Red Sox used in 2005 to try to replace Bronson Arroyo who was traded because we had too much pitching. I wish I had a better memory of Gonzalez.

Win a friggin' road game: In the 5th, Red Sox are up 1-0 in Seattle, where Bartolo Colon is trying to end the Sox three-game losing streak and keep pace with the first-place Tampa Bay Rays.

Another long day-night

Remember yesterday's marathon day of yard work? Well, we repeated it today, but at Christine's mom's house. And the cable went out when the Phillies and Astros were tied at 6 in the sixth. We thought we cut the cable while planting bushes. Christine's mom just called to say she contacted the cable company and found out they were doing work in the neighborhood, but we're still nervous.

Point is, after the TV crapped out, Christine never bothered to bring a radio outside, thinking we wouldn't be out there as long as we were and that the cable would come back on. So when we headed home, we were quite surprised to hear: Phillies 15, Astros 6. The Fightins certainly seem to do better when Christine can't watch 'em. Maybe they get nervous.

Jon Lester didn't have a strong follow-up to his no-hitter. Cue the "It's because he threw 130 pitches in the no-hitter" hysteria. Bottom line, the Red Sox were swept by the A's, are out of first place again and have some serious home-road splits happening: They're a major league best 21-5 at home, but 10-17 on the road.

Long day, worse night

We spent the day catching up on some much-needed yard work. After about 11 hours outside, we came in to watch the end of the Phillies game - they lost again to the Astros. Brett Myers is still struggling, and the ninth-inning rally (against Doug Brocail, not Jose Valverde, who got a night off because of his sore face) ended because Shane Victorino flew out to left swinging at a 2-0 pitch and Pedro Feliz was doubled off trying to tag and score the tying run.

Out on the West Coast, the Red Sox (who didn't come back to win last night, or is that this morning?) are losing again, 1-0 to the A's. Josh Beckett is pitching well, but Justin Duchscherer is trying to match Jon Lester's no-no.

Man down

I thought Jose Valverde was going to die.

He took a liner to the head (well, it ricocheted off his chest) hit by Pedro Feliz. He was down for quite some time, but somehow shook it off to stay in the game.

The Phillies scored a couple off the rattled closer, but couldn't tie the game. Astros 4, Phillies 3. Adam Eaton pitched decently (7 innings, 8 hits, 3 runs, 1 walk, 2 strikeouts) - his best start since the first of the season.

The Red Sox, playing way past my bedtime in Oakland, trail 8-2 in the sixth.

Hopefully Valverde wakes up tomorrow with nothing more than a killer headache, which will go away with two days off the Phillies give him by winning the next two.

[Photo credit: Houston Chronicle]

Perfect homestand, sorta perfect Dice-K

The Red Sox won their getaway game, 11-8 over the Royals, capping a 7-0 homestand, thanks to grand slams from J.D. Drew and Mike Lowell. Daisuke Matsuzaka is now 8-0 with a 2.40 ERA, but he had another typical Dice-K start: 118 pitches in 5 2/3 innings. He walked six and had two wild pitches.

The team is cruising, but I am not without concern: Dice should be dominating, and the bullpen should be better. When you score 11 runs against the Royals, Jonathan Papelbon shouldn't be needed for a save, but he was because of shoddy middle relief (five runs in two innings from Craig Hansen and David Aardsma). Hansen's been a train wreck despite having one of the best sliders in the game. Aardsma gets a pass today because they were his first runs in a month (8 1/3 innings).

Oh well, onto the West Coast, where Manny has predicted he'll hit No. 500.

Phillies: Playing in the central time zone, the Phils beat the Astros, 7-5. Ryan Howard was 3-5 (single, double and homer) with three runs and two RBIs. Pat Burrell gave them the lead with a pinch-hit homer in the 8th. Brad Lidge was booed for every strike and cheered for every ball in the bottom of the 9th. The count went 2-0 on Kaz Matsui, and from the crowd reaction, you would have thought the Astros won the game. The anticipated match-up of Lidge vs. Lance Berkman ended after one pitch, a pop-up to So Taguchi to end the game. Lights out.

Phils' bats, and fat Bart, pitch in

We were surprised to see the Phillies score a couple of runs early. We were confident that they wouldn't blow it, so we went out for ice cream mid-game. It was 4-0 when we entered the shop, 11-0 when we returned to our car.

The Phillies offense returned tonight against the Nationals. Hopefully, it's not a one-night engagement. Ryan Howard had a big night (three hits, four RBI, 10 TB and one BB), pushing up his averages to .195/.300/.443. Clay Condrey pitched three innings to save the 12-2 game.

Meanwhile, back in the Fens, where young hungry pitchers rule supreme, it was an old and (literally) hungry Bartolo Colon having a respectable debut, giving up two runs on six hits and two walks in five innings, striking out four. I've been thinking this week that we have an excess of quality starting pitching. But then I remember the last time we had an excess of quality starting pitching, we traded Bronson Arroyo for Wily Mo Pena.

Meanwhile, Manny Ramirez didn't hit two home runs tonight, meaning he's one game without two home runs away from fulfilling his promise of not hitting his 500th on this homestand:

There's something I've been meaning to tell you about the 500 home runs. I don't want to hit 500 right now. I want to wait a little while. No one is talking about it. No one's excited about it. I want to wait until everyone's excited about it.

Great, Manny, go ask Jon Lester if the fans get excited about a significant achievement.

Lester's contagious

Young Cole Hamels and Justin Masterson weren't quite unhittable, but each tried to match Jon Lester tonight. Hamels threw 7 shutout innings with 4 hits, 2 walks and 11 K's, getting a no decision in the 1-0 win because his teammates couldn't remember how to score until the 9th inning against the Nationals. (They were shut out last night.)

Masterson's line wasn't as pretty, but he got his first major league win against the Kansas City Royals, with 6 1/3 innings, 1 run, 5 hits, 3 walks and 5 K's. Jonathan Papelbon pitched out of Hideki Okajima's based-loaded jam in the 8th to save the 2-1 game.

Disturbing Lester nugget: There have been lots of stories, stats and trivia since last night's no-no. One, taken from baseball-reference's dugout central, scares me:

At 24 years and 133 days, Lester is the youngest lefty to throw a no-hitter since the Cardinals’ Bud Smith no-hit the Padres on Sept. 3, 2001. Smith was 21 years and 315 days.

Disturbing Chris Wheeler comment: At the beginning of the broadcast: "Is Cole Hamels the slumpbuster for the Phillies tonight?" At least there were no thong references.

All-star catcher and movie star from Philly retires: A few days ago, Christine and I wondered if the Phillies would have some kind of ceremony for Mike Lieberthal. We learned on Sunday that they are. He's "retiring" as a Phil and will throw out the first pitch on June 1. Oh yeah, Mike Piazza's retiring, too.

Pedro Martinez says he might retire after this year, but I'm not convinced. If he does, I bet Roger Clemens will love watching those two be inducted into the Hall of Fame in consecutive years while he's sitting alone with his Mindy McCready albums.

Lester-rific

Jon Lester - 9 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 9 K

I work only a few night shifts per year. Tonight happened to be one of them. I was aware neither the Royals nor the Red Sox had a hit by the middle of the third inning when a work task needed my full attention.

When I finished that task, my boss told me Lester still had the no-hitter through 8 innings; we watched him finish the job.

On the post-game radio show, one of the announcers cited a bunch of trivia - Jason Varitek has caught more no-hitters (four) than anyone else, the Red Sox are second with 18 no-hitters, etc. - and then said "You can throw out all the numbers because Jon Lester is probably the first cancer survivor to throw a no-hitter."

I have a soft spot for those who battle disease. Although I know a part of these fighters wants to be thought of like anyone else, they also feel prouder of their accomplishments because of their past. Be proud, Jon. I'm glad we didn't trade you for Johan. (How many no-no's does he have?)

Speaking of the Mets, when the inning ended, my boss who roots for that team, laughed. I asked him why. "With all their pitching, the Mets still don't have one," he said.

Prediction: Lester will struggle in his next couple of starts, and people will blame this 130-pitch outing.

Phillies: Judging solely from the box score, Brett Myers didn't do as well tonight against the Nationals, losing 4-0. But the offense was also to blame. As one local radio host noted, "It would have taken a Jon Lester performance to win tonight."

Rain, wind but no win

"It's one thing sitting through a rain delay when they win," Christine said after Lyle Overbay hit a pinch hit homer to tie today's game at three in the 5th.

"It's more fun watching the clouds," an angry fellow season ticket holder yelled at the team after the Blue Jays scored three more in the 6th to take a commanding lead.

"We don't leave baseball games early," I implied on this blog in March.

Unfortunately, today we left a game early for the third time in our baseball-watching career. The first one was because of extreme heat, the second extreme cold. Today was extreme rain, even though they resumed play by the time we got home.


We sat through the first two-hour delay, but the skies were so dark and the rain was so hard that we didn't attempt the second. We still can't believe how much rain came down. We got soaked as we ran through the downpour and inches of water on the ground.


While the rain sent us packing, it didn't stop the Phanatic's birthday celebration, although portions were moved indoors because of pre-game rain. All the local mascots showed up - except for the Eagles' Swoop. I wonder what that was all about - maybe he was busy scouting another cornerback (or just jealous of the attention the Phanatic receives). All the mascots, and then Dan Dunn, a "jam artist," painted tributes to the green furball. All kiddies received a paint-your-own Phanatic statue. Christine was jealous.


Despite the rain, the game started nearly on time. The young-gun match-up of Shawn Marcum and Kyle Kendrick never really materialized. Kendrick threw a perfect inning and Marcum struck out three in an inning, but he also gave up two runs, two hits and a walk. Both pitchers were yanked after the first rain delay.

We spent the rain delay watching an inning of Royals-Marlins, then the Richie Ashburn DVD, before the Flyers' last game of the year started. I filled out nine All-Star ballots, and of course, we monitored the Red Sox score - an ugly 11-7 win over the Brewers by Josh "2006" Beckett, who gave up four home runs. The Sox are now in first again after a loss by the Rays.


When play resumed, Chad Durbin continued where Kendrick left off. He yielded his first walk in the 3rd and no-hit murmurs started before Rod Barajas doubled with two outs in the 5th, which started a three-run rally. The former Phil drove in a run the next inning.

In the 6th, trailing 6-3, the Phillies attempted a rally. They had one run in, runners on first and second with Pat Burrell coming up. That's when the rains came. We fled. We could see the sun in the distance as we left the stadium. Listening on the radio, we heard Roy Halladay coming in to pitch to Burrell as we pulled into our neighborhood. We couldn't believe the bad weather cleared that quickly.

Observations from the stands: After Pedro Feliz got a hit in the fourth, the PA system played Feliz Navidad, ending abruptly with "Feliz." That was the highlight of the sound system on a day when it was awful - lots of crapping out. ... A few people were nodding off in the stands - not just the head bob, but full-blown conked out. ... Christine gave me a poke in the ribs when she correctly read my mind that I was thinking of my fantasy team when the Blue Jays eliminated the possibility of Marcum getting a loss. But she was wrong: I was thinking about a save for B.J. Ryan. He nearly blew it but managed to save the game, giving the Blue Jays a 6-5 victory.

Hat update: Christine finally found a new one she likes. It's tan with a brown P and says Phillies on the back.

Baseball Mogul update: I'm still in the NLCS against the Diamondbacks. I was up 4-2 in game six and called Christine in the room to see the Phillies go to a World Series. You'd think a Red Sox fan would know better. Hopefully game seven goes better.

Revenge

So far, the big rivalry between the Blue Jays and Phillies (cue up Joe Carter on ESPN Classic) has been about players getting revenge on their former teams. On Friday, it was Jayson Werth hitting three home runs against his former team. Tonight, Rod Barajas' had vengeance with two homers and five RBIs to beat the Phils and Adam (how much longer till Kris Benson's ready?) Eaton.

Look for Scott Rolen to have a big day tomorrow.

Fielding woes: Ryan Howard's little hitting streak ended tonight. He also made his fourth error of the year (seems like there have been more) in the 9th inning, which helped the Jays blow it open as the Phils seemed primed for a last-minute comeback win. I've seen some bad fielding first basemen, but I've never seen one have so much trouble just catching routine throws from infielders, like tonight's error. Christine has noted for years that he seems to prefers low throws. I think they should just put some "stick 'em" in his glove.

In the second game of the Brewers-Red Sox double header, usually slick-fielding Alex Cora and Mike Lowell made errors to cough up the lead in the 7th, which was quickly regained in the bottom half of the inning. Hopefully, they can hold on and return to first place.

The first game was a pleasant surprise. Staff ace (until Josh Beckett turns around his season) Daisuke Matsuzaka had one of his better performances, pitching into the 7th with two walks - and only 103 pitches. He's now 7-0 with a 2.15 ERA. Is it too soon to think the manager and starting pitcher in the last All-Star game at Yankee Stadium will be Red Sox?

Speaking of which, Willie Randolph, who could be fired any day, and Joe Girardi, who owns a .480 career winning percentage, have been named coaches to the All-Star game. Yes, I know it's a New York thing. Yes, I know Terry Francona had some say in it. But it's still a crock.

Werth carries the load

When I got into my car after stopping at the grocery store, I was surprised to hear the Phillies were up 4-0. I zoned out, but snapped out of it when I heard Jayson Werth hit a grand slam, his second homer of the game, and the announcers say that he had seven RBIs so far. He hit one more later, topping off his eight-RBI night, but couldn't become the 16th player with a four homer game. Instead, he and the Phillies had to settle for a 10-3 win over the Blue Jays.

And Ryan Howard got another hit. As I predicted, he's starting to heat up. He has hit in nine straight, boosting his average from .163 to .188. He's hitting a whopping .218 in May.

Even more incredible, however, is that the Red Sox, after dropping four straight, have gone two days without a loss - thanks to a rainout at home.

Pitching match-up: Our game Sunday pits Shaun Marcum against Kyle Kendrick. I just picked up Marcum for my fantasy team. He's a nice third starter behind Dan Haren and the undefeated Brandon Webb, who might now have more than a 0.2 percent chance of winning 30 games.

{Hopefully the fantasy team will have a commanding lead by Sunday, the last day of the fantasy week, so it won't matter when the Phils smack around Marcum.}

What a game

Outstanding. Magnificent. Awesome.

Finally, a day without a Red Sox loss. They had a much needed day off; hopefully they cleared their heads to put this awful stretch to bed.

Oh yeah, young Cole Hamels tossed a four-hit shutout – the first of his career. And by my math, it’s tied for the second best outing of his career.

We were in and out with errands all night and were finishing dinner at 9:20 when he finished the Braves with help from Jimmy Rollins, who started a nice 9th inning double play from his ass.

No shot at a no-hitter

Tonight is an annual work function that keeps Greg out late. Last year, he missed Cole Hamels take a no-hitter into the 7th.

No need to worry about that this year.

Brett Myers gave up a home run to the first Brave he faced tonight. And the third. And the seventh.

All told, the staff "ace" gave up eight runs, six earned, before leaving the game in an 8-0 hole in the top of the 5th inning. He's now sporting a 5.91 ERA. For comparison, Adam Eaton's ERA is 5.40.

[I got home earlier than expected. Late night guy on WIP had two theories on Myers' struggles, either injury or disgruntled about not relieving.]

The Phils chipped away and had the winning run at the plate in the 9th, but lost 8-6.

Meanwhile, the Red Sox lost their fourth straight today, 6-3 to the Orioles, after Hideki Okajima gave up a grand slam to Jay Payton in the 7th inning. We have Okajima on our fantasy team - lucky for him that he was benched this week.

Too late to change my mind? I struggled when we were making our preseason picks. Should I play it serious, or should I pick the Pirates and the Rangers to win their divisions? I mostly played it straight. But I'm kicking myself over one choice - the Tampa Bay Rays. I did not want to pick either the Yankees or the Red Sox, but in the end I let the spirit of the blog get to me and I chose the Red Sox.

But I'll put this on the record now: I wanted to pick the (Devil) Rays. I always feel bad for their team, their fans, everything about them. They have always been down on their luck. Plus, they're pretty much the only team in baseball that I don't hold a grudge against in some way. (And I guess this little trade endeared me as well.) So I think it's awesome that they have been playing so well lately - actually, the best they have played in their 10-year history. Go Rays - I'll be cheering you on until you face the Phillies in the World Series.

Ottley: Via The 700 Level. Not sure where the typo came from (Politico, the transcriptionist, whoever), but I'm tempted to call Chase Utley "Otter" from now on:

Q: Mr. President, I know you're going to hate this, but I'm hoping that we may twist your arm and talk about baseball for just a moment. (Laughter.) Mr. President, you're a Major League Baseball team owner again. Everyone is a free agent. You have a Yankees-like wallet. Who is your first position player? Who's your pitcher?

THE PRESIDENT: That's a great question. I like Ottley [sic] from the Philadelphia Phillies. He's a middle infielder, which is always -- you know, they say you have strength up the middle -- there's nothing better than having a good person up the middle that can hit. And Roy Halladay from the Toronto Blue Jays is a great pitcher. He's a steady guy, he burns up innings.

Ottley will soon be playing for the Deciders, an expansion team forged by W, who needs something to do after January.

They come in three

Young Kyle Kendrick spotted the Braves three runs in the first inning, but then decided not to emulate Adam Eaton and shut down Atlanta for the next five innings. The Phillies, led by Jayson Werth's four RBIs, came back to win 5-4. Ryan Howard had an RBI and two hits and is now approaching the Mendoza line. Talk is starting that he's warming up. I called it first.

And good thing Werth had those four RBIs because he probably cost the team a run in the ninth by misjudging a fly ball that wound up over his head. Luckily it only cost Brad Lidge his perfect ERA and not the Phillies a win.

For the second straight day, the Red Sox scored three first inning runs and wound up with a loss. They are now out of first, and I'm starting to wonder at what point in the season do I root for the Yankees when they play the Rays (typing that makes my skin crawl).

Josh Beckett couldn't get the job done against the Orioles, and I'm starting to think we're seeing a Beckett more like the 2006 vintage than the 2007 mint.

Christine and I said the same thing out loud when we saw J.D. Drew injure his wrist: "That's only a sprain?"

Close, but no carnation for Mother's Day

The Red Sox tried but couldn't rally past the Twins for their moms yesterday. The Phillies also dropped a one-run game, with J.C. Romero taking the loss against the Giants instead of Adam Eaton.

The failed Red Sox rally reminded me of the 1997 Mother's Day game, when they rallied for four runs late in the game against the Rangers but still lost 8-6. A young whippersnapper by the name of Tom Gordon dropped to 1-5.

I remember this game because I was in Fenway that day with my brother and cousin. It was a long day trip from North Jersey. We snuck down to the box seats to watch the Sox come up short.

Mom wasn't happy that I - just home for summer break after my sophomore year of college - took the trip.

Hopefully, the Sox, playing on ESPN tonight, will not have another failed comeback.

Happy Mother's Day

We'll be on the road today, heading to Yankees/Mets territory to see my Mom (Mother's Day) and Dad (birthday), so no post-game updates tonight.

Christine said I should do my parents a favor and not mention the Empire. I don't think I can do that.

Fortunes reversed, and reversed again

When I logged off last night, the Red Sox were beating the Twins, and the Phillies were losing to the Giants. Then, Papelbon coughed one up (that's two in one week - just about your yearly allotment, Mr. Papelbon) and the Phils - riding the returning Jimmy Rollins - came back to win.

Today, the Sox won (backed by a Papelbon save and a rare three-walk, seven-inning, 96-pitch start by Daisuke Matsuzaka), and the Phils' 45-year-old Jamie Moyer was bested by 23-year-old Tim Lincecum.

Of course, we saw neither game because Fox picked the Yankees-Tigers match-up, which blocked out the local team.

Prediction: Ryan Howard is going to bust out soon, and J-Roll will be credited for it.

Defending the enemy

With both teams playing in later time zones (the Red Sox lead the Twins 6-5 in the 8th; the Phillies are tied with the Giants 1-1 in the 3rd), I'm not going to attempt to wait out either game.

So I'll chime in on the topic of the week out of New York: Joba Chamberlain's fist pump. I hate Joba, but primarily because he's a Yankee who's hard to hate. And I hate having to defend a member of the Empire (especially since I haven't seen the video footage), but living with Manny Ramirez, I can't pile on the pitcher.

Yes, it's bush league. Yes, I don't like it. And I wonder why it was necessary to do it in this spot. Yes, he got "revenge" for David Dellucci's pinch-hit homer earlier in the week, but when you're a stud reliever, you're supposed to get Dellucci out 8 of 10 times.

But a lot of players show similar emotions, so you just have to live with it. Unfortunately, grandstanding players like Joba and Manny just make you have to eat more crow when they don't pull through. But they're superstars for a reason, so they don't have to eat humble pie too often.

But some of the Yankees fans are comical. One caller to WFAN had the nerve to say Manny is showboating and disrespectful while Joba is just showing emotion. I wonder if Joba fist-pumped tonight. Oh yeah, he didn't pitch - the bad guys lost again. I wonder how the kid is going to react after getting an out in a big game, say a postseason victory.

[Photo credit: Getty Images]

Remember him?

Thus far through the Phillies season, much focus has been on the good (Chase Utley, Pat Burrell and the bullpen), the bad (Ryan Howard and Adam Eaton) and the injured (Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino).

But one day soon (I bet tomorrow) people will realize that the last man on the mound when the Phillies clinched last year sucks this year. Brett Myers got shelled for seven runs (six earned) in five innings against the Arizona Diamondbacks today, raising his ERA to 5.33 and his opponents' batting average to .288.

If he wants to pitch himself back into the bullpen, I don't think that's the way to go.

And thanks, Ryan Howard, for deciding to wake up and get a meaningless hit and RBI in the ninth inning. (We have Brandon Webb on our fantasy team.) {I was rooting for an eight-inning, 15-strikeout game before a Phillie won it on a home run in the ninth off a reliever.}

Josh Beckett, meanwhile, acted like an ace and shut down the Detroit Tigers, nipping the losing streak at one.

I want Renteria back

I left work later than usual because of some extracurricular activity. When I got in the car, I was disappointed to hear that the Red Sox long stretch of good quality pitching (Daisuke Matsuzaka's wildness excluded) was ended by young Clay Buchholz, and the Sox were trailing the Tigers 5-2.

As I drove home, I heard them pull within one, and I got that unbeatable feeling again. But then, Julian Taverez, making his first appearance since April 24, got tagged for three runs. After getting home, I didn't check the score again until I went online and was surprised to see the Sox were up 9-8 in the ninth. I figured I'd wait out the inning before posting another toast to their resiliency.

But Jonathan Papelbon - fueled largely by Julio Lugo's 10th error of the year - blew the save. Funny, in the car I heard former Sox Edgar Renteria - known affectionately to Boston fans as Rent-A-Wreck for his awful 2005 season - make a great diving play to rob a near-certain hit.

Oh well, time to start a new five-game winning streak.

Late Phillies: They trail the Arizona Diamondbacks 3-1 in the sixth. Good night. Not really.

Aging aces

A night after 45-year-old Jamie Moyer took care of the Arizona Diamondbacks on the mound and at the plate, 41-year-old Tim Wakefield made quick work of the Detroit Tigers. So quick, in fact, I forgot to check on his progress.

We had to run an errand, and I put the game on the car radio at 9:36. Christine asked if they were playing because there was so much talking. I said they were because they have four games against the Tigers - not thinking that the Red Sox could actually end a game in 2 hours, 21 minutes.

They can when Wake and Mike Timlin combine on a three-hit shutout.

Phillies: They're losing 6-3 after an awful fourth inning in which Adam Eaton walked in a run. (Randy Johnson was batting.) Then a three-run home run. Wonder if Eaton can again escape implosion and keep his record at 0-0.

On this date: Ten years ago, Kerry Wood struck out 20. It doesn't seem that long ago. And, even better, it's the one-year anniversary of that dramatic "goodness gracious" call by Suzy Waldman when Roger Clemens returned to the Bronx. After one scandalous year, it sounds even better. I wonder what she thinks when she hears it.

Almost on this date: Former Phil Gavin Floyd again lost a no-hit bid late in the game. This time it was with one out in the ninth before Joe Mauer doubled. I was rooting for it; Christine was conflicted, ever mindful that if the Phillies had kept young Gavin, Eaton would be dragging down some other team.

Welcome: Congrats to my friends on their new baby this week. Kushal, when it comes time to pick a baseball team, gravitate toward your Mom's family in Massachusetts, not your Yankee-loving father.

Everything (except Dice-K) is under control

Usually, a West Coast trip for the Phillies saddens Christine because she stays up late and still can't see the end of the game. Tonight, however, as the Phils make the trip to Arizona, everything was OK because she got to watch the Red Sox play the Tigers on ESPN. (Alright, she couldn't care less and watched VH1 reality TV until the Phillies started.)

I got to see Daisuke Matsuzaka flirt with a no-hitter and set a personal best ... with eight walks. Jeesh, can't John Farrell or Jason Varitek learn to say "suro-suto?" OK, I just kind of winged that from "throw" and "strike" on this site, but you get the point. In 40 2/3 innings this year, he's allowed only 22 hits, but 27 frickin' walks, which has limited him to 5.8 innings per start after tonight's five innings. He improved to 5-0.

In Phillies news, they're up 5-1 in the fourth. Jaime Moyer is 2-2 with a single and double. "Halfway to the cycle," one of the announcers pointed out. Hope we don't miss a historic night. (People toss around historic loosely, but I feel safe saying a cycle from a 45-year-old pitcher would qualify.)

A win is a win

The pitching duel between Cole Hamels and Tim Lincecum fizzled today, but we'll take the walk-off 6-5 win for the Phillies over the Giants. And for the first time this season, we weren't shivering in the stands.

At times it looked like the young aces were pitching to expectations, but each got tagged for four runs in six innings. Each had stretches where they struck out five in three innings, but that represented all of their K's in the game. Neither pitcher issued a walk until the fifth. And, truth be told, Lincecum had a better game. All of his runs were unearned, although he didn't help himself with two wild pitches in a two-run fifth.

We have seen lots of extra-inning or walk-off wins from the Phillies through the years, but this might have been the most anti-climatic. Eric Bruntlett and Chase Utley led off the ninth with flyouts. Ryan Howard then drew his third walk of the game (he somehow managed to avoid strikeouts despite ugly swings). Pat Burrell followed with another walk. "Star of the game" Geoff Jenkins grounded to second, which should have sent the game to extra innings, but second baseman Eugenio Velez (never heard of him or 3/4 of the Giants roster) misplayed it, ending the game.


Observations from the stands: Why do people cheer Aaron Rowand? Why aren't they bitter he took a little more money to play for a team that has no chance of winning? And even if you cheer him once, you have to stop by the third game of a series. ... It's odd to be hoping that Howard somehow prolongs an inning so Burrell can bat. ... Before the game, I had a no-hit premonition and was nervous when Hamels set down the first five. ... It was Mother's Day a week early at the park. The Phanatic's mom got flowers; Brett Myers' mom got roses; all other ladies 15 and older got pink visors. Christine doesn't like pink hats. {Worse yet, the name of the sponsor of the day, Mortrin IB, is prominently displayed on the side of the visor.}


When filling out our first all-star ballots of the year, Christine and I negotiated which Phillies I would vote for and which Red Sox she would vote for. When discussing AL third basemen, I said she could choose her own because Mike Lowell hasn't played much and there's no chance Alex Rodriguez won't win it. An usher overheard the conversation but thought we were talking about NL third basemen. "Even though he's a Met, you have to vote for David Wright. He's our Chase Utley," she said. Christine disagrees. {Maybe he is their Chase Utley, but you do not vote for a rival. And whoever is in charge of the music at Citizens Bank: Stop playing that stupid "Everybody clap their hands." Everyone associates that with the Mets and Shea, and I don't want that in my ballpark.}

Finally, based on the amount of harassing I have gotten from stupid Phillies fans this year who don't like seeing a Red Sox fan in their park, Christine isn't looking forward to the June interleague series. I don't get it - except for that friendly mid-season competition, we're friends until the World Series. ... Speaking of which, both teams are in first place.

All-Star voting: National League: C-Carlos Ruiz; 1B-Adrian Gonzalez; 2B-Utley; 3B-Bill Hall; SS-Hanley Ramirez; OF-Burrell, Justin Upton and Shane Victorino. American League: C-Jason Varitek; 1B-Kevin Youkilis; 2B-Dustin Pedroia; 3B-Mike Lowell; SS-Edgar Renteria; OF-Manny Ramirez, J.D. Drew and Jacoby Ellsbury (write-in); DH-David Ortiz.

No place like home

Greg and I just returned from a cruise to Mexico - great to be on vacation but tough for baseball fans like ourselves because the only sports updates we've seen over the past week have come from ESPN Deportes. [They seem to like Albert Pujols and Alfonso Soriano.] We're lucky if we can catch any baseball scores on the ticker in between all the soccer news.

So, we have no idea what's been happening in SoxandPhils world. I see from tonight's game that Shane Victorino was activated from the disabled list [Mike Lowell was too]. Other than that, I got nuthin'.

I do, however, have a quick book review. I saved The 33-Year-Old Rookie so I would have a breezy, fun read for vacation. I pretty much agree with all the other reviews. Nothing groundbreaking, a little bit cliched, but an interesting story and a good look at life in the minors and independent leagues. In some interviews, Greg and I think that Chris Coste can sound a bit too cocky, but this book makes it clear that he needed that extra confidence to make it through all of those years in low-level ball. The book is a quick read, and I recommend it.

Oh, one former Red Sox note: Before we left Philadelphia on Monday morning, I ducked into a newsstand and saw the headline blazing across the New York Daily News regarding Roger Clemens and Mindy McCready. I bought the paper and ran it back to Greg - can't wait to catch up on the details of that story.

Finally Friday

Freeing Ted Williams' frozen head before returning to Philly.

Training Thursday

We're off to Boston University to help train its ping-pong team, so the next time the Red Sox win a championship, there will be another trophy to bring to Fenway.