Manny traded

I was sad and surprised to read that Manny Delcarmen was traded to the Rockies. I always rooted for the guy, a Boston boy who demonstrated tantalizing ability at times but never seemed to truly fulfill his potential despite stellar seasons in 2007 and 2008.

I also wondered why and how the Red Sox became sellers. Yes, they're about done, but they're still alive. Theo Epstein still says no surrender:

Asked if there's an appropriate time to waive the white flag, Epstein said, "That's a tough question. It's kind of like the Supreme Court said about pornography: 'You'll know it when you see it.' Right now, we're not eliminated. We're trying to get really hot."

"It'll be difficult, but not impossible," said Epstein. "I'm not going to sit here and assess how difficult it will be. I'll leave that up to you guys. I think, that, as I just said, we need to play better and get hotter than we've been at any point this season. This is not the position we want to be ion. I'm not going to sit here and blow smoke and say where we want to be. We're not."

I'm going to miss Manny (Trent was crying hysterically over the news, or maybe he was just having a bad day), but we felt better after reading this headline on FanGraphs: Rockies Overpay at Second Deadline.

I think Theo made a good deal. From FanGraphs:

The real story here, however, is the guy coming back to Boston. (Chris) Balcom-Miller has had a fantastic season with Asheville in the Sally League, posting a 3.31 ERA in 108 innings backed up by a fantastic 117:19 K:BB ratio. That's a 6.2 K/BB for a 21 year old in his second professional season. Baseball America said prior to the season that Balcom-Miller's ceiling was as a "solid middle-of-the-rotation starter," and one has to think that this season would only improve his stock.

The Rockies might need warm bodies, but that's about all they will get out of Delcarmen. He no longer projects as a productive reliever. Meanwhile, the Rockies will send a very promising starting pitching prospect out of the system for what might be at best a minuscule increase in their playoff odds. It's hard for me to classify this deal as anything less than an overreaction to the Rafael Betancourt injury by Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd, and the end result will be a similarly talented (if not worse) team in Colorado and a weakened farm system.

Tonight's games: The Red Sox aren't getting hotter than they have at any point this season, losing to the Orioles 5-2. ... The Phillies play late again in Los Angeles. I stayed up for a good chunk of the game last night. Christine stayed up until Shane Victorino got the Phillies first hit in the 8th. Then, for some reason in the middle of the night, she turned on the TV. A replay of the game was on. We were confused beyond our normal sleep-deprived state.

The Phillies need a better scheduler

An ad caught my eye in the Phillies program I bought last week. It was for a sports card and memorabilia show. It's odd because the featured athletes are Curt Schilling and Joe Blanton. (Another current Phillie, Ben Francisco, is also listed.) Fine, you can theme Schilling and Blanton as two rotund pitchers with Phillies connections, but the date is the odd part. The show runs Sept. 24 through Sept. 26.

That's the dates of the Phillies last home series of the year. It's against the Mets, who I'm sure would love to play spoiler against the team that has ruined their recent seasons.

I thought maybe someone made sure the show didn't conflict with games, but nope. Friday's show runs from 5 to 9 p.m. when there's a 7 p.m. game. While Saturday's game time hasn't been announced, it's hard to imagine one not conflicting with a 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. show. And there's no way a player can participate in a 1:35 p.m. game Sunday and a show that runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

I think somebody screwed up. I went to the show's site to investigate further and found out that the appearance times for everyone, even former Phils like Curt, Darren Daulton and Geoff Jenkins, are listed as TBD. And there are additional current Phillies booked for the show: Placido Polanco and Ryan Madson.

Christine won't be happy if the Mets beat the Phillies that weekend with a quarter of the team signing cards with Curt Schilling.

Speaking of members of the 2004 Red Sox: Manny Ramirez is leaving the Dodgers, who start a series with the Phillies today, and joins the White Sox, who play the Red Sox on Friday and seven times until the end of the season. As if the end of this season won't be annoying enough.

Tonight's games: The Red Sox are off. The Phillies play late in Los Angeles. I had a nice day with Trent, but I'm pooped and won't attempt to get the beginning of the game into this post.

Crunch time

Today, I concentrated on the Red Sox.

Not my favorite ball team, but my National Multiple Sclerosis Society City to Shore bike-riding team. I've lapsed in my training since Trent arrived, and I set out on a 50-miler today. Trent and Christine are ready for the 75-mile ride, but they're riding in a car and hanging with grandparents as I do the legwork. I don't know how ready I am for my part of the bargain, with just four weeks left.

We'll figure it out.

Meanwhile, the Phillies are responding to crunch time by sweeping the front-running Padres after getting swept by the lowly Astros. The (baseball) Red Sox are still clinging to hope, but they need tonight's game. John Lackey started off well, but the Rays now lead 4-3 in the 7th.

Trent's big day

Trent made it through the night - the little guy slept from 9:30 p.m. to 5 a.m.

Then, this afternoon, he had his first large-group gathering and reconnected with the people who formed our family.

Finally, following doctor's instructions, we introduced him tonight to cereal. He didn't like it. I told him that he needs solids to bulk up and that tonight's pitcher, Clay Buchholz, had trouble gaining weight.

Despite this milestone of a day, we also got into the pennant races as both our teams played playoff-quality games against playoff-quality opponents. The Phillies met their challenge, beating the Padres 3-1. The Red Sox did not. In a game that resembled a heavyweight fight, the Rays outlasted the Sox 3-2 in 10 innings. The weight-challenged Buchholz pitched a good game - one earned run and another unearned run in 7 1/3 innings.

The first run was a cluster - Carlos Pena reached third because Buchholz stupidly threw away a pickoff throw that shouldn't have been attempted. Pena scored on a sacrifice when J.D. Drew caught a foul ball instead of letting it drop.

The Tampa announcer said no one in Boston could blame Drew. Perhaps, but Trent and I did.

Hopefully, we'll all get another good night's sleep and get them tomorrow.

Do or die

Trent was on the changing table tonight with a particularly ripe diaper. He looked at me and froze. We both knew what had to be done. There was no sense stalling, thinking or worrying. I ripped off the tape and took care of business.

I mention this because the Red Sox, who entered today trailing the Yankees and Rays by 5.5 games, started a three-game set in Tampa that many consider to be their last chance to stay relevant in 2010.

After a season of surviving a spate of injuries, it's amazing they're still alive. But this isn't a time to think about that. It's do or die.

Tonight, they did. Jon Lester held his own in a marquee matchup against David Price, just an unearned run on two hits and five walks with 10 strikeouts over seven innings. Daniel Bard and Jonathan Papelbon shut the door in the 3-1 win. With the White Sox winning big over the Yankees, perhaps there's still a chance for the Red Sox to win this whole thing.

Of course, there is a big difference between changing a diaper and performing a big comeback: Trent's diaper didn't just learn that it would be without Dustin Pedroia for the rest of the year.

Phillies: They're playing late in San Diego. In the 5th, it's 1-1.

Business-persons special

Despite some teasing threats to Christine, Trent and I didn't sneak off to the park for today's business-persons special against the Astros. It was also "kids run the bases," and Trent and I promised to bring home a scoopful of dirt from the infield.

We also, despite Trent's pleading, did not blow off our liquid lunch for some filet mignon to watch the game at the neighborhood steakhouse.

We just watched the game from Trent's blanket on the living room floor. It was very odd watching a Phillies game in the middle of the afternoon without Christine, especially when it marked the first time they've ever been swept in a four-game series at Citizens Bank Park.

It was fun watching the Roy Halladay perfect game tribute. It was a bit overblown and campy, but good mental mush for me and the boy. Christine would have liked seeing Carlos Ruiz get home plate. I couldn't decide whether I was touched or freaked out by the bronze casts of Doc's hand that was given to his sons. Maybe I'm just jealous because I don't think anyone will bronze my hands and stick them to a keyboard for Trent.

With no reason for Christine to watch the replay of today's game, we have the Twins-Rangers game on. Christine noticed that Trent was focusing on the game. We fear that he's now a Twins fan. As long as he doesn't root for a team with N and Y on its hat, we'll deal with it.

Sleepy games

This week, I learned that I could sleep outside in the middle of a storm so violent that it carried a tornado warning. And I later learned that I could sleep through what was probably the most interesting Phillies game of the year. Some may argue that designation should be Roy Halladay's perfect game, but I didn't get an expensive watch out of it, so I'm going with last night's tilt that I did not see.

I could blame the baby for my fatigue, but truthfully, I wouldn't have stayed up much later even before Trent arrived.

I fell asleep as the game headed into the 14th inning. At one point, Christine told me that Ryan Howard was ejected and that Raul Ibanez was shifted to first base with Roy Oswalt taking over left field because there were no more "extra men," as Chris Wheeler stupidly calls bench players. I was fascinated with the scenario, but couldn't open my eyes.

Later, I heard her slip into bed. "Who won?" I asked in a fog.

"They did. Roy Oswalt grounded out in the 16th with the potential tying run on base," she said.

"Snore, snore, snore," was all I could muster.

This morning, I was flipping through the program I got at Sunday's game and noticed the Citizens Bank ad on the back. I liked its slogan, but just now connected it to last night's intriguing game: "This could be the game you get to tell everyone, 'I was at that game.'"

We've had a few of those, most notably Game 5 of the 2008 World Series and the 2007 regular season clincher, but given my propensity for falling asleep, I'm kind of glad we weren't at last night's game.

With Halladay pitching for the Phillies and the Red Sox playing a double header, I was fairly confident I would be awake when two of three of today's SoxandPhils games finished. Partial victory - Trent and I napped through a portion of the Red Sox afternoon game.

Tomorrow is a Phillies business-person's special. I have a feeling Christine might come home from work with her two guys conked out on the living room floor.

Tonight: J.A. Happ and the 'Stros beat Halladay and the Phils 3-2. The Sox split their twin bill against the Mariners, but picked up a half game on the Rays and Yankees, who each lost.

{Side note: The Phillies have entered yet another frustrating skid. They could be in first place right now, if only they could have scored some runs over the past three days to beat the lousy Astros.}

Scoreboard watching

We always enjoy it when the scoreboard does a little something different with the players' headshot screens. For instance, the last time we saw the Nationals, we spotted advertisements on the Capitol building.

On Sunday, they used Nationals players to promote an exhibit (Late Renoir) at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Either that, or Adam Dunn has become so despondent about Stephen Strasburg's latest injury that he's going to study art history.

And it's not just the artsy folk they're targeting with scoreboard ads. They're also targeting folks whose tastes are more in line with little guys like Trent who appreciate the finer things in life such as critters and building blocks.

Yup, there's no better way to get people to come to Philadelphia Zoo's Creatures of Habitat, a "combination of birds and beasts, each intricately fashioned from thousands of LEGO bricks," than using Shane Victorino's mug.

And in some innings, the Phillies still rock it old school.

Sometimes it's real old school, like Jason Werth circa 1999. Or maybe that's Jayson Werth circa 2011 after his hairy look has been Yankee-ized.

Speaking of which, I finally got around to Sports Illustrated's piece on Jayson Werth. It's a decent read.

Thankfully, the formerly bearded Red Sox, Johnny Damon, is staying in Detroit.

Real scoreboard watching: The Red Sox and Mariners were rained out. They trail the Yankees and Rays by 5.5 games. The Yankees beat the Blue Jays, and the Rays lead the Angels.

For the Phillies, it was a typical Cole Hamels night. He pitched well but got no run support. Well, at least he won't be getting the loss as they scored two runs to force the Astros into extra innings. It's 2-2 in the 12th.

The Phillies lead the Giants by a game but trail the Braves by 2.5. The Braves are losing to the Rockies, and the Giants lead the Reds.

Our first game back

Yesterday was our first game back to Citizens Bank Park since we became parents. Lots of things were different - bootleg vendors sold ponchos instead of pretzels, the sax guy wasn't playing, and they now have a trivia game outside of Bull's BBQ.

But one major thing didn't change - it rained. We sat through it. We got wet. I got grumpy but hung in there.

Despite the hour and 45 minute rain delay - including a scary moment when I dozed off and thought I was blind because I could see only the white of the tarp on the field - it was a pretty good game. Roy Oswalt shut down the Nationals, giving up five hits and a walk with eight strikeouts over seven innings in the 6-0 win. The lack of runs was impressive because he let the leadoff guy on in the first four innings. And in each of those innings, someone got in scoring position, including the first inning when Oswalt struck out Adam Dunn and Ryan Zimmerman after letting the leadoff guy get to third with one out. Roy also went 2-3 with a run and came close to an extra-base hit in his final at-bat.

But he might not have been the player of the game. That award could be claimed by Christine's favorite, Carlos Ruiz, whose only hit was a meaningless single in the 4th and whose fielding was marred with a throwing error and three stolen bases.

Despite those feats, Chooch set up the big two-run 6th inning, which iced the game. With two outs and runners on second and third, the Nationals elected to walk the fearsome Chooch, who's actually been intentionally walked 33 times in his career (nearly all in front of the pitcher), to get to Wilson Valdez.

Valdez, filling in for a resting Chase Utley, was never so insulted in his life and stroked a two-run single to put the Phils up 4-0. Raul Ibanez hit a two-run home after the rain delay in the 7th.

Observations from the stands: It was a fairly uneventful game on and off the field. A funny moment came after the rain delay when the new Nationals second baseman, Alberto Gonzalez, complained that the field was too wet. He was booed when the grounds crew came out to sop up more water. After they left, a bunch of sea gulls (you can sort of see them on the right) swarmed the field, mocking the Nats.

We weren't sitting in our usual area of seats, and it seemed much more quiet than usual. We could hear the radio broadcast floating through the stands. In fact, the crowd never really seemed to wake up until the end of the rain delay when they played Chubby Checker's Let's Twist Again, followed by the original The Twist. The crowd was really going as the Nats took the field and an usher was shown on Phanavision while Twisting.

The team honored Philadelphia native Jerry Crawford, who was umpiring his last game in the city before retiring after a 33-year career. He also umped the last game at the Vet and the first at the Bank. You can read about him in the Inky and Daily News. Instead of giving him a gold watch, the Phillies gave him a plush Phanatic. More on that later this week, but I wonder if that's why the Phillies won so easily.

Debbi Kee's Keenote Chorale did the anthem. ... WPXN's Ben Arnold did God Bless America. No one told him it was raining. He could have trimmed a few minutes off it.

Antiquated T-shirts: We didn't see that many: Cliff Lee, Jim Thome and Jacoby Ellsbury's No. 46.

Babies on the brain: Of course, when we saw the Cole Hamels lunch bag, I was upset we didn't bring Trent. (OK, I was upset we didn't bring Trent as soon as we left the house.) The several young tots we saw in the stands didn't help. There was one nearby (kind of looked like Peyton Manning) who kept staring at Christine. Of course, being the proud, responsible parents that we are, we compared every youngin to Trent. There was no contest: The cutest baby wasn't at the park. ... There were some youngsters on the field with the Phanatic in the middle of the game doing some Latin dances. I dunno why we were amused by this; probably because it's the most people we've seen involved in a Phanatic skit.

Tonight's games: The Phillies faced former mate Brett Myers. On the radio broadcast, Scott Franzke said young Brett was starting for the Phillies. I think somebody is stuck in 2009. Myers pitched well in his return to Philadelphia, but was outpitched for seven innings by Blanton. Myers left trailing 2-1, but Ryan Madson blew it in the 8th. Astros 3, Phillies 2.

Unfortunately, the big story involving a former SoxandPhil is that the Red Sox put in a waiver claim on Johnny Damon, who's considering whether to waive his no-trade clause to Boston. I hope he stays in Detroit. John Lackey was also locked in a pitcher's duel but outpitched the Mariners Doug Fister and got a well-deserved 6-3 win.

Sitting in the rain

When we found out about Trent, we knew we had to give away the Phillies tickets we had for the first weekend he was home.

We planned on making our next game, however, and even toyed with the idea of taking him with us when we found out it was Cole Hamels' lunch bag giveaway day for all kids 14 and under.

Responsible heads prevailed, and we decided it would be our first extended time away from Trent. We spent weeks joking about how our luck of hitting rainy days at the park would probably continue.

Above is a picture of weather conditions when the game started; below is what it looked like during the 1 hour and 45 minute rain delay we sat through. I was even able to get in a nap.

Meanwhile, Roy Oswalt pitched a gem, and the Phillies beat the Nationals 6-0. We'll have our SoxandPhils recap of the rainy day at the park tomorrow - providing I get a chance to write, as Christine has to go back to work and Daddy Daycare opens for business.

The Red Sox also managed a shutout, 5-0 over the Blue Jays, despite rain in Boston. Clay Bucchholz lowered his league-leading ERA.

D-Brown kills the phenom

We were busy today visiting with grandparents and then trying to find the perfect Halloween costume for Trent.

(We know it's early, but Christine's Mom may handcraft it. We have an idea for something. Non-baseball.)

Anyway, we were still able to follow the first ever major league matchup of the phenoms Domonic Brown and Stephen Strasburg. D-Brown grounded out in the 2nd inning, but Jesus did not survive their faceoff in the 5th inning. He left the game, shaking his arm and grimacing in pain. Nationals Nation, including Joe Wolf's Vertical Jump, who was at the game, may be wondering whether all the hype was worth it.

The Nationals did win the game, 8-1, although I'm sure they would have preferred a loss if it meant their prized prospect's arm were still in tact.

The Red Sox and Blue Jays are tied at 4 in the 11th, but Jonathan Papelbon just came in, so this one should be over shortly. Yup, Paps held 'em, and Jed Lowrie homered in the bottom of the inning to win 5-4. Dustin who?

More drug news

Roy Oswalt could win every single start for the rest of the season, including Game 7 of the World Series, yet some Phillies fans would lament that the Phillies made a bad deal in dumping Cliff Lee.

This won't help.

Phillies prospect Tyson Gillies, one of the three players acquired in the Lee trade this past off-season, was arrested for cocaine possession in Clearwater, Fla., early Friday morning.

I guess I incorrectly predicted in February that Gillies would best be known for his shagging prowess.

Tonight's games: Jon Lester and the Red Sox played like they were on something, losing 16-2 to the Blue Jays. The clock's ticking, boys. ... Roy Halladay and the Phillies played a slightly different game, beating the Nationals 1-0.

YES (again)

Cue the Suzy Waldman dramatics.

Put the YES camera crews on call for an instant Yankeeography.

Have Howard Rubenstein draft a missive from George Steinbrenner. Um, too late for that one.

But I hope The Trentonian headline writers are feisty because Roger Clemens was indicted for lying to Congress. I know I shouldn't be so gleeful about my once-hero falling so far down, but I can't help myself. Besides, it couldn't happen to a bigger jerk.

See you in 30 years, Rocket.

Another item of note: Jarrod Saltalamacchia might have a staph infection. He's on the DL. That's the fourth Red Sox catcher to be disabled this season. Incredible.

Tonight's games: The Phillies and Red Sox tried to finish off sweeps of California teams, but the Giants beat the Phillies 5-2 and the Angels beat the Red Sox 7-2. That win saved the Angels the indignity of going 0-10 against the Sox this year.

Root, root, root for the home team

Last night the Phillies fans cheered for Pat Burrell before he homered in the first inning. Some booed before his next at bat. The Phillies recovered, so it wasn't as bad as the time the fans cheered Jim Thome before and after he hit a big home run that set up one of the Phillies' worst losses of the season.

After they wrap up this Giants series, the Phillies welcome the Nationals with no former Phillies on the roster. Then, the Astros come into town. Nobody better cheer Jason Michaels, Pedro Feliz or Michael Bourn.

Today's games: The Red Sox beat the Angels 7-5, the Phillies beat the Giants 8-2. Things are looking up, but sometimes the higher you go, the lower you feel when things go awry, especially when you're to blame.

The more valuable SoxandPhils second baseman

Dustin Pedroia and Chase Utley returned to second base for the SoxandPhils tonight. I'll admit Chase is the better player, but Dustin has won an MVP award, and if you judge how their teams fared without them, it's clear the Red Sox dynamo is more valuable.

Since Pedoria last played on June 25, the Red Sox have been a middling 23-21 and have fallen 4.5 games further behind the Wild Card. The Phillies, however, went a torrid 26-17 since Utley last played on June 28, gaining possession of the Wild Card lead.

Granted, this is hardly a fair way to compare two players, but what I'm about to do is even worse: Since Trent came home, the Phillies have gone a baseball-best 23-11 while the Red Sox have gone 18-16.

Either he's been concentrating on the Phillies, is already obsessed with the Phanatic, or just loves his Mommy more than his Daddy.

Tonight, the second basemen took oh-fers, but that didn't affect their teams. The Red Sox beat the Angels 6-0, and the Phillies beat the Giants 9-3.

Giant dilemma

Even though he's been gone for two seasons, Christine still roots for Pat Burrell - mostly because of his bulldog Elvis. A couple days ago, she cheered when she saw Pat the Bat had a big hit to win a game for his new team, the Giants. But then she suddenly realized that the Phillies are battling the Giants for the Wild Card and felt bad for rooting for the enemy.

The Phillies are set for a big showdown against the Giants and Pat and Elvis Burrell this week. Christine hopes that Elvis is a double agent who still works for the Phillies.

Regardless, the Phillies suddenly find themselves leading the Wild Card.

Perhaps Christine didn't consider the Giants competition because she thinks like Charlie Manuel:

"I don't even look at the wild card, believe me," manager Charlie Manuel said. "I don't even think about the wild card. I never look at the wild card because I think if we concentrate on our division and our record is good enough, that's where we'll land. If we win enough games, we should land somewhere in there. Win the division. That's what I key on. That's what I look at. That's what we key on."

So maybe it'll be OK if Elvis takes one of three in Philly this week. Nah, I don't think Christine will go for that.

Tuesday two-fer

Dustin Pedroia and Chase Utley are two MVP-caliber dirt-dog type players who can't stand being off the field. So, of course, it makes sense that they will both return from lengthy spells on the DL on Tuesday after using some unorthodox rehab methods.

Hopefully, Pedey can be the kick in the pants the Red Sox need to mount the run we've been waiting for:

"I haven't really been 100 percent all year," said Pedroia. "We're in a pennant race. There are a lot of games left. We're going to make a run at it.

And, maybe, Utley can return to be a stabilizer for the Phillies offense.

Today, the Red Sox dropped another one to the Rangers to fall 4.5 games behind the Wild Card race, while the Phillies battle the Mets on Sunday Night Baseball. No score yet in the top of the 3rd.

Not much to say

The day started off on a Red Sox note: I took Trent to Wawa (our first trip anywhere without Christine), and we were greeted by the cashier who always compliments my choice in baseball team.

Not much baseball since that 7 a.m. encounter. I just looked at the Globe for the first time today about five minutes ago, and I just heard Tom McCarthy say the Phillies won for the first time at Citi Field this year.

Jon Lester is pitching well, I see, but he's getting very little support. In the 7th, Red Sox 1, Rangers 0.

Oops

When I handed last night's post to Christine for her superb editing, I had written that the Dodgers were cruising to a victory. She toned it down a bit to say the Phillies were attempting a comeback, but I don't think she seriously expected them to come all the way back from an seven-run deficit in the 8th inning, even though they had scored a couple of runs by the time she posted.

I certainly didn't.

Oops ... Chooch did it again, knocking in the winning run in the best comeback of the year, in what could be the only game to rival Roy Halladay's perfect game as the Phillies game of the year.

Tonight, however, they couldn't come back from a one-run deficit. For the second time in a week, Cole Hamels pitched a gem against the Mets, but had to eat a 1-0 loss. The Phillies have been shut out in all four games they've played at Citi Field this year. Incredible.

The Red Sox and Rangers aren't participating in such a pitching duel. David Ortiz, Adrian Beltre and J.D. Drew went back-to-back-to-back in a seven-run 4th inning, but Josh Beckett couldn't keep his foot on the Rangers' neck. The Red Sox still lead, 9-8 in the 8th, but I'm not comfortable at all.

Do they have to report everything?

Just as the media was starting to report that the Red Sox bullpen is turning things around, Jonathan Papelbon gave up four runs in the 9th inning today, blowing an important game against the Blue Jays. Things were so bad that the closer was yanked before the game ended. Closer-in-waiting Daniel Bard gave up a sacrifice fly to end the game.

The Yankees have a cakewalk against the Royals, and the Rays are off, so this would have been a good one to have in pocket.

Joe Blanton made sure Brad Lidge wouldn't have the opportunity to duplicate Papelbon's poor performance. J.B. gave up three runs in the 1st inning. In the 8th inning, the Phillies are attempting a comeback, but the Dodgers still lead 9-4.

Another injured SoxandPhils catcher

Victor Martinez, Carlos Ruiz, Jason Varitek, Brian Schneider and now Kevin Cash. Five catchers DL'd by the Red Sox and Phillies this year.

It's incredible that both our teams have lost their entire catching corps for portions of the season. Although, the latest addition, Cash, who I believe is the 17th Red Sox to hit the DL this season, might need an asterisk.

That's because there have been several wink-like references from beat writers that suggest this move was a sham just to call up newly acquired Jarrod Saltalamacchia:

Meanwhile Varitek is working on his throwing with Gary Tuck, playing catch with Cash.

Boy, for a guy who needs to go on the DL Cash looks pretty good.

Whatever. All I know is that the Red Sox beat the Blue Jays 10-1, which pulls them within 3.5 games of the Rays. And if the Rangers can clean up Cliff Lee's mess and hold on to beat the Yankees, we'll be just four games from the top spot.

The Phillies partied like the 2005 Astros, beating the Dodgers 2-0 behind Roy Oswalt's first Phillies win and a clean save by Brad Lidge.

Everybody loves Chooch

The other day, Todd Zolecki noted what a great year that our beloved Carlos Ruiz is having:

Ruiz is hitting .298 with a .395 OBP and a .443 SLG this season, all of which are career bests. Ruiz has been a regular since 2006. He hit a career-high .259 in 2007. He set career-highs with a .355 OBP and .425 SLG last season.

If Ruiz had enough plate appearances to qualify, he would rank fifth in the National League in OBP and 13th in batting.

As if that weren't heady enough, today the Daily News and Inquirer upped the ante by taking a multifaceted look at whether Carlos Ruiz is the MVP of the 2010 Phillies:

Playing on a team filled with accomplished all-stars, an argument could be made that Ruiz has been the Phillies' most valuable player through the first four months of the season. His five home runs and 27 RBIs cannot compare with the statistics of most of his fellow position players, but Ruiz's manager, teammates and coaches understand the hidden value of what their catcher does.

"He gets the tempo of the game moving the right way," leftfielder Raul Ibanez said. "He stands up back there and you see him punch his fist into his mitt and he's barking and showing his intensity. He's the guy who is facing us. We're all looking at him. A lot of times if a guy is dead back there, it's human nature to imitate what you see. But when you see all that intensity back there, I think it rubs off on the rest of us in a positive way."

There's lots of love for Chooch from Rich Dubee, Cole Hamels, Kyle Kendrick and, especially, Jamie Moyer, the Chooch Whisperer, who was credited for Ruiz's development:

"I don't want to take credit and I don't think I can," the 47-year-old said. "But when he first came here, I would talk to him about some basic things I saw in catchers when I was a younger player. I know the game has changed a little bit from that time to now. But, for me, the catching part hasn't."

Too bad the MVP couldn't help Kendrick tonight. Kendrick was so bad that Chooch was double-switched out of the game in the 4th inning. In the 9th, Dodgers 15, Phillies 7. ... Red Sox catcher Victor Martinez couldn't keep Daisuke Matzusaka's recent magic going. Dice-K was knocked around a bit, but the Sox hung in there and beat the Blue Jays 7-5.

7th inning stretch

We're approaching the final stretch, and I hope today's 7th inning turns out to be a metaphor for the season.

Clinging to a 2-0 lead against the Empire, Jon Lester loaded the bases with no outs. You had the sense that this would be the moment the 2010 Red Sox would finally succumb after battling through so many injuries and facing very tough Rays and Yankees opponents.

But Lester struck out Curtis Granderson. Daniel Bard came in from the pen, and six pitches later, Derek Jeter and Nick Swisher also struck out. Bard gave up a run in the 8th, but Jonathan Papelbon nailed down the save.

The Sox are still kicking. Don't count out a SoxandPhils series, Trent says.

The Phillies are off today.

Mobile madness

Christine thought Trent could use a mobile for his room.

I disagreed.

A SoxandPhils baby should have two mobiles: a Phillies mobile with the Phillie Phanatic and a Red Sox one, even if it has Wally the Green Monster.

Christine didn't go for my idea of dueling mobiles, so we set out (on Trent's first day as a vaccinated baby) to the local baby supply store to find a more traditional mobile - something in a jungle animal theme to complement his room. We also stopped by a bookstore to beef up the Dr. Seuss selections in his library.

We found the prefect mobile - it had the required jungle animals, and they were playing different sports. (The baseball player is an elephant.) But it was out of stock, so we headed to another store a couple towns away while we listened on the radio to Roy Halladay lead the Phillies past the Mets 6-5.

Trent was doing well on his first day out and mobile and we were getting hungry, so we decided to push our luck and stop at a chain restaurant to attempt our first dinner out as a family of three.

Dinner was flawless, and when we got home, we set up the athletic critters to spin around his crib. I read Trent some Dr. Seuss as the Red Sox started their game against the Yankees. The only bad part of the day is that Josh Beckett got knocked out in the 5th and the Red Sox trail the Yankees 7-2 in the 7th.

I've been telling Trent that you can't quit on your team, but reality is starting to sink in.

Long day

It started with Trent's first batch of shots. It was a big batch - lots of pricking for such a little pin cushion. But he took them like a champ.

Then, I left Christine and Grandmom to deal with some of the vaccines' side effects while I learned that a 50-mile bike ride isn't as easy as it was a month ago. Go figure.

When I returned, the Red Sox seemed ready to cruise to a victory against the Yankees, but John Lackey lost it in the 5th and CC Sabathia shut down the Sox after they got an early two-run lead in the 2nd inning. Yankees 5, Red Sox 2. Funny - when this series started, everyone thought the Red Sox had the edge in pitching matchups in every game except this one. I thought that meant we would wind up losing three of four with today's mismatch the exception.

This evening, Johan Santana and Cole Hamels. Cole was a tad better - six hits and 11 strikeouts in seven innings compared with Johan's five hits, three walks and six strikeouts. The difference? One of the hits Hamels gave up was a home run, and Johan didn't give up any runs. It seemed like a game destined for Trent's comeback magic, especially when the Phillies knocked out Santana in the 8th and loaded the bases against Francisco Rodriguez. But the little guy's still not completely over the shots. Mets 1, Phillies 0.

The Red Sox signed Carlos Delgado. Thrilling.

Babies on the brain

I've been preoccupied with my little guy for the past month or so, and even now when the Red Sox are playing the Yankees in a series that many consider their last chance to hang in the playoff hunt, I can't get babies off the brain.

That's because Trent isn't the only SoxandPhil babe experiencing his first Red Sox-Yankees series:

Meanwhile, it's baby time in the rivalry. Jon Lester welcomed a son last weekend. Clay Buchholz and his wife had a baby girl a few days ago and yesterday CC Sabathia and his wife had their fourth child.

Hopefully, Papa CC gets tired like Lester and Buchholz have been:

Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz have had trouble resting this week, as both became fathers for the first time. "We got a run going on — on babies," Francona said. Lester told Francona after Wednesday night's loss that his left hamstring was fine. Francona said Lester was just dehydrated.

Tonight's games: Papa Clay pitched well - three runs in 7 1/3 innings as the Red Sox won 6-3. This is also Trent's first Phillies-Mets series, and the good guys won that series opener 7-5. So, Trent's first SoxandPhils vs. New York series has started off well.

Jon Lester is a wuss

It's hard for me to say that about our beloved cancer conqueror and World Series hero, but I think I can be critical of a fellow newly minted first-time father:

In the real world, a first-time father returns to work after a day or two off and eases back into the routine while showing everybody photos of his pride and joy.

Jon Lester's task last night was to climb the mound at Fenway Park in drenching humidity and to try and pump pitches past the Cleveland Indians.

Sleep had come sparingly since the arrival of his son Hudson on Saturday and after a few innings his left hamstring started to ache. Errors, a passed ball, and the other residue of a season going steadily awry only made things worse.

“He'd had a long three or four days," Red Sox manager Terry Francona said.

OK, I took off four days (not including the weekend) and I returned to work in a climate-controlled building. But...

I'm just glad that Lester didn't become the 16th Red Sox to be DL'd after hearing last night that the trainer made a couple of visits to the mound.

Tonight's games: Kevin Youkilis' injured thumb will cost him the rest of the season, but the gimpy Sox forged ahead. Daisuke Matsuzaka went 8 strong innings (?!?!?), and the Sox lead the Indians 6-2 in the 9th. ... Roy Oswalt pitched much better than in his debut and left with a 2-0 lead in the 7th, but J.C. Romero allowed the runners he inherited to score and the Phillies trail the Marlins 4-2 in the 9th. They might be attempting a comeback now with two on base and no one out.

15 X 2 = Lots of injured SoxandPhils

Yesterday, Todd Zolecki noted that Ryan Howard is the 15th Phillie to land on the DL. Today, Amalie Benjamin noted that Kevin Youkilis is the 15th Red Sox to make this dubious list.

Thirty injured SoxandPhils. You could literally make a team of gimpy 2010 injured SoxandPhils.

Peter Abraham noted that 10 Red Sox have made it unscathed from Opening Day. That's out of the 48 who have been on the big league roster so far.

Meanwhile, the Phillies traded for Ken Griffey Jr.'s friend, Mike Sweeney, because of Howard's injury.

Today's games: Jon Lester stunk up the joint. In the 9th, Indians 9, Red Sox 1. Phillies lead the Marlins 5-2 in the 7th. There was a rain delay.

Mike Lowell almost was the next Mike Stanley

Good news: Mike Lowell is in the starting lineup, which means he wasn't traded to the Yankees.

Bad news: Mike Lowell is in the starting lineup, which means Kevin Youkilis is on the DL.

The last time the Yankees and Red Sox swapped players, Mike Stanley was traded back to the empire and we got Tony Armas Jr., who was included with Carl Pavano in the Pedro Martinez deal. So I guess dealing with the devil isn't necessary all that bad.

Joining Youkilis on the DL is his fellow SoxandPhils first baseman, Ryan Howard. Unbelievable.

Tonight's games, aces up: Roy Halladay and the Phillies lead the Marlins 6-1 in the 8th, and Josh Beckett has the Red Sox ahead of the Indians 3-1 in the 7th.

A pair of injured All-Star first basemen

No teams have been depleted by injury this year like the SoxandPhils. They've even seemed to be matching each other position by position.

So, should we be surprised that the day after Ryan Howard left a game with injury, that Kevin Youkilis followed suit tonight? They're optimistic that Howard won't be DL'd; it's too soon for Youk's prognosis.

Mike Cameron is also headed back to the DL.

Today, the Phillies are off. The Red Sox trail the Indians 6-2 in the 7th. And Tim Wakefield turned 44.

Social day, surprise endings

We spent the day introducing Trent to some of our friends, including his first buddy, the other Gregory James in his life. It was a nice day sharing our little guy with some good friends, and we think he's becoming a people person, even though he just sleeps through his social visits.

There were some exciting SoxandPhils finishes today. After Jonathan Papelbon couldn't erase Clay Buchholz's two-on, no-out jam in the 9th, the Red Sox beat the Tigers in the bottom on the 9th on a Marco Scutaro bunt.

All our guests left before the Phillies and Nationals' 11-inning game ended. Christine tried to get a high-five from Trent when the Phillies took the lead in the 11th. He just shot her a look that said, "Yeah, they're just setting up another Brad Lidge special."

Lidge did pitch the 11th. He ended it, like our day, perfectly. So we took Trent to the park for the first time to celebrate. A little girl said he was cute and told her siblings to be quiet near the sleeping baby.