Wake wins battle of the aged; Cholly mixes things up

In the battle of the 40-somethings, Tim Wakefield outdueled Randy Johnson. It was much closer than the 5-0 final. I actually got to see the ESPN Red Sox broadcast and Wake's knuckleball flutter past the Diamondbacks, giving up only two hits and a walk in seven innings. The Big Unit gave up two runs in six innings before Kevin Cash hit a three-run homer off Juan Cruz.

And, honestly, we weren't thinking about our fantasy team when Craig Hansen loaded the bases in the 9th, setting up a save for Jonathan Papelbon.

Off the field, however, the focus was on the two biggest names on the DL for the Sox: Curt Schilling may not be done, and David Ortiz relived his T-ball days.

In Phillyland, Charlie Manual might want his slumping bats to go back to T-ball to get reacquainted with that strange little white orb that's baffled them lately:

We've got guys not hitting. I mean swinging bad. Swinging at balls in the dirt. Chasing balls over their heads. It looks like they've never seen a baseball. Really. They can go back to square one and think about what they've always done. And that's be aggressive, but at the same time be patient enough to get good balls to hit. That right there is how we're going to come out of it.

His theory tonight: Pick a lineup out of a hat.
1. Jayson Werth, RF
2. Chase Utley, 2B
3. Jimmy Rollins, SS
4. Pat Burrell, LF
5. Ryan Howard, DH
6. Pedro Feliz, 3B
7. Shane Victorino, CF
8. Chris Coste, C
9. Erick Bruntlett, 1B.

So far, it's working. The Phils are leading the A's 2-0 in the 4th. My alarm clock is set to WIP; I'm sure Angelo Cataldi will greet me in the morning with how they blew it.

And, breaking news: Shawn Chacon beat up Ed Wade.