Another new SoxandPhil All-Star pitcher

All day I expected to write a post on how Mensa members were probably disappointed that they weren't going to open a chapter in the Red Sox bullpen because Billy Wagner didn't want to join Jonathan Papelbon and the Red Sox.

But the six-time All-Star, most famous for insulting Phillies fans and raising alpacas, suddenly changed his mind and will join Curt Schilling, Pedro Martinez, Ken Ryan and Heathcliff Slocumb on the SoxandPhils pitching staff.

Wagner, who said he'd prefer to stay in New York to keep his options open to be a closer next year, had the second-biggest about-face of the day. The first, of course, came from Papelbon,who had said he wanted no part of B-Wags in the Red Sox bullpen when reports first surfaced that the Red Sox claimed him:

It's just a simple thing that when things are taken out of context, you get to where you're going to affect the ballclub. It affects them to where, now you're going to have an effect on whether we're going to get a player or not. Now you're affecting whether we may win a championship. And when you do things like that I just don't think that's the right way to go about it. People make mistakes and people learn from them. I think everybody in this clubhouse is a man and admits to what they do. I've said things in the past and I've never strayed from them. If I need to apologize for something, I'll apologize. This is a situation where there's nothing for me to apologize about. I said nothing demeaning about him. We'll get along great. I know we will. I'm looking really forward to seeing how he works and maybe picking up a couple of things from him.

Theo Epstein said it more succinctly:

I think Pap feels he was misunderstood. He's not a Rhodes Scholar to begin with. When I talked to him directly about it he couldn't have been more excited. When we had our window (to speak to Wagner), Pap went out of his way to make sure he knew he was more than welcome here.

I guess I'm OK with this move - I'm just concerned with how often the recovering Wagner will be able to pitch. If nothing else, it should be an interesting meeting of the minds with him and Papelbon. I don't believe, as Christine predicts, that he will destroy the 2009 Red Sox. {Sure he will. He's going to ruin any chemistry this team may have had; after all, he is a rat, likes to hit young college batters and doesn't mind throwing his teammates under the bus.}

He will be a valuable addition, and come October, he will help do what he could not do as a Met: prevent the Phillies from winning the World Series. {Bwah, ha ha ha ha. Greg, you're too funny. Let me catch my breath. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.}

Tonight's games: Jimmy Rollins led off with a home run on the first pitch. Usually that would prompt Christine to declare the game over. I asked her if it was cinched. She wouldn't admit it, but she was pretty confident in tonight's outcome. He hit another one in the 3rd, and the Phillies were leading until Joe Blanton, who had a laborious outing, gave up a two-run homer in the 6th. Pirates 3, J-Roll 2 in the 8th.

The Red Sox are tied with the White Sox 3-3 in the 8th.