Forget Game 2, we have old guy news

Game 2 is overshadowed tonight by news involving the elder statesmen of the SoxandPhils - although one of the tidbits could be the beginning of the end for a legitimate SoxandPhil.

A true champion, Tim Wakefield, won the Roberto Clemente award. Without a rooting interest in the series, that's the best baseball news I heard today.

On a sadder note, Jamie Moyer, a true SoxandPhil and champion, filed for free agency. Do you think he'll sign early to set the price for Cliff Lee? Let the bidding begin.

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.

Not a good week for SoxandPhils old goats

First, there were the reports that Pedro Martinez will not pitch this year. He hasn't retired, but I doubt he will be able to come back again.

Then, Jamie Moyer left Tuesday's start with an injury. There's a good chance he'll need Tommy John surgery. If any 47-year-old can return from Tommy John surgery, it's J-Moy. And, he's hopeful that he can pitch again this year. But you can't help but think that this is the end of a remarkable career.

Then, Moyer's former teammate, Tim Wakefield, who is a Sox, but never been a Phil, was sent to the bullpen as Josh Beckett came back.

Finally, as I was typing this, we watched former SoxandPhil and now Brave Billy Wagner blow a save against the Marlins. So it's not all bad tonight, especially because the Phillies beat the Rockies 6-0. The Red Sox and the Mariners are tied at 1-1 in the 4th.

Just another game

Tonight was just another game for the Phillies and Roy Halladay.

Yeah, just another game in which the Phanatic danced with Canadian Mounties.

Yeah, just another game in which the Phillies wore their road grays in Citizens Bank Park and pitched in the bottom of the 9th.

Yeah, just another game in which Roy Halladay faced the Blue Jays:

The Phillies righthander will square off against the Toronto Blue Jays, his former team, for the first time tonight at Citizens Bank Park. That's a big deal. He was that rare professional athlete who embedded himself into the community he worked in. His stellar performance on the field coupled with his good deeds away from the pitcher's mound made him a sporting icon in Canada's vibrant metropolis.
[...]
"It will be a regular start," he said.
No, it won't.
"Fortunately I got that out of the way in spring training," he said.
Nice try. Doesn't count.
"It's a little different being an American League team, obviously guys I've seen a lot but haven't really faced a lot. So do your homework and just go out and pitch like it was any other team," he said.
It's not the Mariners or the White Sox or the Rangers. It's the Blue Jays. And that makes all the difference.

Although, Paul Hagen couldn't get him to bite, Roy opened up a bit to his old friends in the Canadian press:

He briefly allowed himself to think about what it would have been like had these games been played in Canada as originally scheduled. "It would have been fun to go back, [but] in terms of from a media standpoint, it's probably just as well the games are here," he told the Toronto Sun on Wednesday.

No matter what he said, he did pitch like this game mattered a little more than a random interleague game. Halladay went seven innings and gave up six hits and one walk with four strikeouts in the 9-0 win.

Just another game.

The Red Sox and Tim Wakefield play really late in San Francisco. Former Phillie Pat Burrell is not starting, but Aaron Rowand is. Rowand kills Wakefield: 12-19 with four home runs and two doubles - that's a .632/.667/1.368 line.

Philly's on the board

Thanks to ace Roy, err, Cole Hamels, the Phillies averted the sweep in Boston today.

It was a good, spirited 5-3 game that ended with the potential tying run at the plate after a 9th inning rally. After two embarrassing blowouts, this was the type of game we expected to see all series. And it's the type of game we expect to see seven times when the Red Sox and Phillies hook up again in October and November.

Cole Hamels and Brad Lidge are really reverting to their 2008 forms. Hamels shut down one of the best offenses in the game - one run in seven innings on five hits and two walks with eight strikeouts. Lidge allowed an inherited runner to score, but he held on for the save.

Tim Wakefield, who joined SoxandPhil Jamie Moyer (and Andy Pettitte) in the 3,000-inning club, battled for 7 1/3, giving up four runs on seven hits and a walk.

Now that the SoxandPhils are once again allies until the World Series, I hope we can look back at this series as a turning point for both teams. At a minimum, there's a new folk hero in Boston, Daniel Nava, who has supplanted Darnell McDonald as the best story on the Red Sox. He followed up yesterday's grand slam debut by going 2-4, including a double and an RBI.

Rain forces our attention elsewhere

The Phillies and Marlins were rained out long before the game was supposed to start, postponing the perfect rematch of Josh Johnson and Roy Halladay.

That's OK, because it will allow us to focus on hockey to see whether the Flyers can avoid elimination and force a Game 7 in Chicago. (Full disclosure: I've been more interested in hockey than ever before, but I still feel like I'm listening to another language when I try to watch a game. Christine's interest is legit.)

Even if the Phillies were playing, our attention might have been a bit diverted, and Charlie Manuel might have blamed our lack of focus on the fact that it's our contract year, like he did with Jayson Werth. This incident is going to cause some hard feelings. It's hard for me to take a side, so I'll just blame it on Reggie Jackson.

Without the game, we can take a moment to salute Tim Wakefield for pushing Roger Clemens out of the Red Sox record books for most innings pitched. Congrats to Mr. 2777.

We also have the opportunity to look ahead to this weekend's rematch of the Red Sox and Phillies - this time in Fenway.

It has always seemed like the Red Sox have had the Phillies' number despite a fair number of close, spirited games. The stats backed up my hunch. All time, the Red Sox have a 24-16 record against the Phillies in interleague play. (That doesn't include the 1915 World Series in which the Sox beat the Phils 4-1.) But if you look at the run differential, the Red Sox edge is a bit closer, 223-206. That equates to a .539 winning percentage, not the .600 winning percentage they have had against the Phillies.

A Phillies sweep this weekend would go a long way toward evening up the series. I think the pitching matchups will be Jamie Moyer against John Lackey, Joe Blanton against Daisuke Matsuzaka and Cole Hamels against Tim Wakefield. That's not official yet, so don't be surprised if something changes.

It's too bad that the old guys will miss each other and that three of our team's aces (Roy Halladay, Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz) probably won't pitch.

Tonight's game: We were missing a good one in Cleveland that pitted Clay Buchholz against former Red Sox Justin Masterson, who has fallen on some hard times since being traded for Victor Martinez. But he seemed on tonight, two hits and two walks with six strikeouts in eight shutout innings. Clay pitched well too, just not as good - three runs on three hits and four walks in seven innings.

But then Boof Bonser made his Red Sox debut. It didn't go well. It's now 11-0 Indians in the 8th.

Hockey: Flyers and Blackhawks are tied 2-2 in the 2nd period.

What's on TV tonight?

The Phillies are off today, and the Red Sox stunk it up in the afternoon. The Rangers and White Sox are playing on MLB Network and it's Bark at the Park night, but we're in the mood for something a little different.

Maybe a little Gran Torino?

Nah, might make Charlie Manuel upset:

"I got upset when I came in and saw everybody looking at movies. We had a whole audience in there looking at movies and [bleep]. And I thought, 'What the hell? We should be getting ready for the damn game.' I don't like things like that," said Manuel of the clubhouse television, which earlier had been showing "Gran Torino."

I've tried to remain level-headed, but this is starting to get ridiculous. I know you have to be careful about making comparisons between real life and the professional athlete's world, but I think that on some levels it's still a job. And when you've been sucking it up at work, you don't let the boss see you goofing off, whether you're a multimillion dollar athlete or just a schlub at a desk.

This afternoon, the Phils bowled for Jimmy Rollins annual charity event. I predict they'll win a squeaker tomorrow (Roy Halladay is pitching), but I think that they're going to explode on Saturday. Just a hunch.

And, Christine spotted The Goonies on AMC. I hope that one of her favorite movies of our youth can take her mind off the Phillies problems for awhile.

Today's game: The Red Sox exploded for eight runs on 18 hits, but that wasn't enough for Tim Wakefield, who isn't exactly making a strong case to stay in the rotation whenever Josh Beckett returns. Wake gave up six runs and put his mates in a 9-3 hole. They battled - five runs over the last four innings - but couldn't tie it up. A's 9, Red Sox 8. At least there was no concern about a perfect game controversy.

First SoxandPhils series over

If you couldn't tell from today's pre-posting, we weren't able to watch the finale of the SoxandPhils series. I know, that's pretty lame for the premier blog devoted to all things Red Sox and Phillies to miss the final game of a showdown, but we had a pretty good excuse. We were watching my Dad get honored for being the great guy that he is.

On the way home, we listened to the end of the game. When they said Tim Wakefield was working on a shutout in the 8th inning, I was drooling at the parallels with Jamie Moyer's recent gem against the Braves. I was disappointed when he didn't come out for the 9th, despite a pitch count of only 102. Turns out, Wakefield doesn't care about stats.

Roy Halladay didn't do well. He was removed in the 6th, giving up seven runs (six earned) on eight hits and two walks. Our immediate thoughts were about his recent workload and not throwing before this start. Todd Zolecki was also wondering about that, but Doc denied any problem.

So with the 8-3 win, the Red Sox win the first of two 2010 regular season series. I hope it's a sign the Red Sox are turning the corner, but I'm sure I'd swap this series win with Christine in exchange for her team's prospects for the season.

Sunday showdown

The Red Sox and Phillies end their series today with the venerable Tim Wakefield against the robotic Roy Halladay. On paper, it's a clear mismatch. But I have faith in Wake.

I've often linked Wakefield with the Phillies' elder statesman, Jamie Moyer, and I'm not the only the one who has noticed the similarity, especially with how they both had been demoted from the rotation during the past two seasons.

SoxandPhils writer Scott Lauber had a nice piece the other day in which J-Moy commiserated with the knuckler:

Like Wakefield, Moyer is among the select few players in the majors' over-40 set. And for the final six weeks of last season, after the Philadelphia Phillies traded for Cliff Lee and signed Pedro Martinez, Moyer was relegated to being the team's long reliever and in-case-of-emergency starter.

And, like Wakefield, Moyer wasn't happy about it.

"I had been a starter my whole career, and it's where I feel like I can benefit the most," Moyer, the 47-year-old left-hander, recalled yesterday at Citizens Bank Park. "When I say it's where I can benefit the most, that's because it's where I feel like I can help the team the most."

I always forget that these two were teammates on the 1996 Red Sox. That was 14 years ago.

The other day I heard Buster Olney talking about covering Moyer in 1995 when he was demoted from the Orioles rotation. The upstanding lefty stood before reporters and told them he thought there were some mechanical adjustments he could make to improve his pitching.

Olney said the then-32-year-old sounded earnest but wasn't convincing anyone. "I was thinking, 'Jamie, you're a nice guy, but maybe you sound hang them up.'" Some 440 starts later, he's still not ready to hang them up.

I'm disappointed we didn't get to see these two crafty veterans match up this series. I hope it happens when they play in Fenway next month.

Sunday switcheroo

Last night, as we watched Roy Halladay dominate the Pirates in a 2-1 complete game loss, Christine noted that he was on track to start Sunday against Josh Beckett.

I almost cautioned her not to count on Beckett. Unfortunately, or hopefully fortunately in the long run, I was right. Despite the Yankees protest, he is injured and has been placed on the DL, so it will be Tim Wakefield vs. Doc on Sunday. Game on.

Red Sox vs. Phillies history: Lifetime, Josh Beckett is 8-4 with a 3.98 ERA in 19 games (17 starts) against the Phillies (including his Marlins starts). He has hit them well: .222/.276/.444 in 27 at-bats, including two of his three career home runs. We were there for one of them in 2006. As a Red Sox, Beckett is 2-1 in three starts, including a debacle last year.

Against the Phillies, including his time with the Pirates, Wakefield is 3-1 with a 3.15 ERA in nine games (seven starts).

As a Blue Jay, Halladay is 14-14 with a 4.28 in 41 games (38 starts) against Boston.

So, give the Red Sox the edge on Sunday. C'mon, despite last night's victory, delusion is all I have right now.

Tonight's games: Jamie Moyer pitched well, but the Phillies bats are still silent. In the 7th, Cubs 2, Phillies 0.

David Ortiz hit another home run (MVP! MVP! MVP!), and the Red Sox lead the Twins 2-1 in the 6th.

Milestones

Earlier this week, Tim Wakefield got his 2,000th strikeout, joining Jamie Moyer and a couple of cruddy Yankees, roider Andy Pettitte and Javier Vazquez, as active pitchers in the 2K club.

Last night, Jamie Moyer became the second pitcher in history, behind the late Robin Roberts, to give up 500 home runs. When you've pitched as long as those guys, you are going to have good numbers and bad numbers:

"There's a lot of chances out there," Moyer said. "You can't give up 500 in 600 at-bats, can you? I've thrown a few innings in my career. You're going to give up hits, home runs, walks, strikeouts, errors. I don't really keep track of it all."

I hit a milestone myself. Less than a year after I got my new bike, the odometer hit 1,000 miles this morning. I'm proud. I just wish I knew when I actually got it. I bought it on May 30, but I forgot to note when I picked it up - probably the following weekend.

Anybody wanna bulldog? Pat Burrell's career is over - well, the Tampa portion anyway. He was designated for assignment. Charlie Manuel thinks he'll rebound: "I think Burrell can still hit," Charlie Manuel said. "I think he'll get a job. I hope he does."

Either that, or he's subtly trying to convince the Mets to sign him, knowing full well that Burrell's done. I don't think Christie would handle it well if she saw Elvis in blue and orange.

Today's games: Joe Blanton is pitching well - one hit and no runs through four. But unlike last week, he's been efficient with only 43 pitches so far. In the 5th, Phillies 2, Brewers 0. {But just as soon as I was ready to post this, Blanton gave up a home run to Prince Fielder. Phillies 2, Brewers 1.}

The Red Sox play the Tigers tonight.

Catching crisis

Or ... A funny thing happened on the way

to the All-Star Game

This week it seemed everybody caught Carlos Ruiz fever. He is off to a great start, and some think this might be a breakthrough year at the plate for Chooch:

"You develop through experience," Manuel said before the game. "You develop relaxation, concentration, confidence ... all that comes together."

With Charlie Manuel getting to select the All-Star team this year, Chooch's chances of making the team seemed pretty good.

But then, today, I got an e-mail from Christine with "Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooo" as the subject. I knew it was going to be about a Phillies injury. I was kind of relieved when she said it was Ruiz, not Roy Halladay.

He has a capsular strain in his knee (whatever that means), and the Phillies expect him to avoid the DL, but it's not reassuring that the catching depth chart for the immediate future (starting with tonight's nightcap with the Rockies) is Paul Hoover, followed probably by Jayson Werth.

Although I love the resurging Jason Varitek and what he has meant to the team, and the fact that he is the best backup catcher in baseball, I have offered to trade him to the Phillies. I told Christine that I'd start the bidding with Halladay (she said he stunk after he couldn't hold a 3-1 lead in the 7th).

Today's games: After they lost Chooch and that 3-1 lead, the Phillies dropped the first game of their doubleheader with the Rockies 4-3 in the 10th. The Rockies catcher, Miguel Olivo, survived the game, going 5-5 with the game-winning home run off Chad Durbin.

Tim Wakefield pitched well for the Red Sox and notched his 2,000th career strikeout, but he did not get much support as the Red Sox lost to the Blue Jays 3-2. They nearly came back in the 9th, but wound up with just some gripes at the umpires:

"Thank God I wasn't hitting righthanded because that would have hit me in the ribs," (David Ortiz) said.

Suffice it to say, the strike zone was expanded all game. Replays and Pitchf/x showed the pitch to Ortiz was well was outside.

We'll leave the final word to Dustin Pedroia:

"[The umpires] must have had a flight. I'm actually going to check on that," he said. "If they had a flight, we're going to make sure it was delayed. Because I can do that. I have that kind of pull."

Tonight's game: Jamie Moyer takes on the Rockies. I hope he's over his preference for experienced catchers because he is kind of stuck with Hoover. If they even get the game in, because it's raining again in Denver and game 2 has been delayed.

O nO

The Red Sox were swept away by the Orioles this weekend, and I'm all O'd out because Christine and I spent the weekend in Baltimore to witness Saturday's debacle for ourselves.

Beside the Red Sox - our reason for the trip - it was a nice little getaway.

It was weird seeing so many Red Sox shirts throughout the city. Christine, wearing her Phillies shirt, got to experience what it's like to wear an unrelated team's garb to a ball game.

Besides the game, we walked around the Inner Harbor and took a water taxi over to tour Fort McHenry, and I ate a crab cake sandwich.

During one of our travels, a Red Sox fan (wearing a Cubs shirt?) excitedly stopped us to tell us the Red Sox were staying at his hotel, the Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel. The team did a number on the breakfast buffet - especially Hideki Okajima with the fruit - and Daisuke Matsuzaka was a bit surly, the fan reported. We doubt that the team would eat at the same buffet as the rest of the guests, but we wanted to pass along the man's story anyway.

Walking to the game, a church had a sign out front that said something along the lines of, "Lord bless the O's, maybe the Sox, but the Yankees? Forgive our thoughts." Amen.

At the park: When we went to Camden Yards in 2007, we couldn't believe how poorly it has aged compared with Citizens Bank. It didn't seem as bad this time, probably because we entered with lower expectations, but it was still bush league.

Prime example: CoverGirl was giving makeovers inside the park. "Philly chicks come for the game," I said to Christine, who pointed out that the booth was full of Red Sox fans.

The makeup company also sponsored Kiss Cam. It found a Red Sox fan whose mate was conked out. She seemed angry and embarrassed by the sleeping and started deeply kissing another nearby fan.

Christine and I recently discussed whether a poor year by the Red Sox would "thin out the herd" of some of the bandwagon jumpers. I was starting to warm to this idea until we saw a group of drunken girls merrily singing Sweet Caroline on the way out of the park. If fans are so oblivious to the games, I don't think they'll give up their Neil Diamond fixes because of some losing seasons.

Other culture shocks: Culture Club was playing before the game, the Orioles sold Red Sox memorabilia throughout the park, vendors were so bored they invited you to buy from their food stands, still no cup holders in the seats!, a random fan threw out the first pitch, and fans (mostly Red Sox) started a wave. And they did it backward - counterclockwise.

Other annoyances: Fans were obnoxious, and ushers did not enforce the rule that says you don't move to or from your seat during a pitch. ... A family near us asked an Orioles fan to take a picture of her "large family from out-of-state." The Orioles fan wasn't happy but obliged even as she was introduced to every one of the 20 members of the Red Sox woman's family. ... A guy had the gall to wear a Yankees hat with a Dustin Pedroia jersey - unforgivable. ... The fans. ... The game.

Game notes: The highlight was watching Super Saver win the Kentucky Derby on the scoreboard. This was the second time Christine and I watched a Triple Crown race at a ballpark (first time was 2007). ... Maxx Factor sang the anthem; it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. ... Dice-K, making his 2010 debut, was actually efficient and effective until giving up six runs in the 5th. ... It was sad watching Tim Wakefield take a beating in his first relief appearance. ... David Ortiz hit two home runs. The game was played in beautiful 84 degree weather and moved at a great clip considering it was a 12-9 game - two hours 48 minutes.

Antiquated SoxandO's jerseys: Jeff Conine, Rick Dempsey, Rafael Palmeiro, Nomar Garciaparra, Gregg Zaun, Manny Ramirez, Jason Bay, Curt Schilling, Melvin Mora, Trot Nixon and Brady Anderson.

Huh? We spotted a Schilling Red Sox shirt with white writing, a Chase Utley UCLA-themed shirt and a couple of Babe Ruth Red Sox shirts. Phillies fans were also representing throughout the city - we saw shirts for Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins, Utley, Cole Hamels, Roy Halladay and Citizens Bank Park.

I rocked a new Red Sox T-shirt Christine got me for my birthday.

Oh yeah: The Orioles new scoreboard is an improvement, but it still seems dated. One improvement is the out-of-town scoreboard that is much more detailed than the ones at Citizens Bank. A random example is pictured above: You can see that the Phillies beat the Mets 10-0. Roy Halladay beat Mike Pelfrey. Utley went 3-5 with a double and three runs. Shane Victorino hit a home run.

Curiously, the picture we took of the final score between the Red Sox and Orioles didn't turn out too well.

Oh well, time to finish unpacking so we can watch the rubber game between the Mets and Phillies on ESPN. Mets are leading 3-2 early in the game.

At least one Red Sox team did well today

Team Red Sox had a much better day than the real Red Sox, despite our rainiest day since we've been participating in the local MS Walk.

We were a little nervous all week with the doom and gloom forecast. We did get wet, but we slogged through our eight-mile walk, doing our part to raise money and awareness of multiple sclerosis.

(The pictures are our team's first-ever customized shirts worn by fans of the Yankees, Phillies and Nationals - we're a multi-partisan team.)

Despite the cold and wet, Christine and I really enjoyed our day with our largest team ever. We're looking forward to next year when we hope we get back to the traditionally beautiful weather we get on walk day.

Thanks to all whom who walked, cheered, supported, journeyed long distances or otherwise participated in our efforts.

Red Sox: On walk day, they did not do their part, losing 7-6 to the Orioles in 10 innings. Tim Wakefield pitched well, Scott Atchison did not. Keep those names in mind, because when Daisuke Matsuzaka comes back, there's a good chance that Wake gets bumped to the bullpen and Atchison gets bumped off the roster. Sad on both ends.

Phillies: Christine was very happy to see Carlos Ruiz drive in two runs to give the Phillies a 6-5 lead over the Diamondbacks in the 6th inning. "Choooch!" she said. That erases the hole Kyle Kendrick dug. We'll see what happens next.

[Photo credits: Kim on the design; Rishi and Wyndham on the financing]

Friday night link dump

The Phillies are playing late tonight, so I have time to catch up on some of the news of the week.

But first, kudos to former Red Sox manager Kevin Kennedy who was among eight men who subdued a nut who was threatening to blow up an airplane.

Here's the stuff I have missed.

***Jacoby Ellsbury decided he needed more tests after he was having trouble breathing - turns out he has four fractured ribs. Great.

***A day after everyone reported that Tim Wakefield was going to the bullpen because Daisuke Matsuzaka was coming back, the Red Sox announced Dice-K will throw a simulated game. We're still waiting to hear from Wakefield:

Tim Wakefield came into the clubhouse 45 seconds before the media had to leave. I asked him if he would answer a few questions. "Nope," he said.

I hope we're not seeing a repeat of Jaime Moyer from last year.

***To cure the inability to stop anyone from stealing bases - even Vladimir Guerrero had a couple swipes the other night - the Red Sox are shopping for a catcher, which probably would mean the end of the line for David Ortiz, who accepted blame for his failures.

Red Sox: Papi homered for the first time this season. Jon Lester wasn't dominant, but he didn't give up a run in 5 2/3 innings against the Orioles. But the bullpen is blowing it - three runs in the 7th and 8th innings after going 21 straight scoreless. It's 3-3 in the 8th.

Phillies: When the game started, I was downstairs and Christine was upstairs. I heard the annoying Chris Wheeler babbling on. "Wheels is on," I angrily yelled upstairs. Christine didn't hear me and came down to tell me that Wheels was back.

We thought he was going to be on the radio again because Scott Franzke is home with his wife and their newborn son August - congrats to the them. By the way, Jim Jackson is doing radio tonight, now that the Flyers have a few nights off before the second round of the playoffs.

The Phillies lead the Diamondbacks 1-0 in the 4th. Cole Hamels continues his Roy Halladay impersonation, even hitting a double and scoring the lone run so far.

Dropping like flies

The media has been burying the 2010 Red Sox for several days.

I agree, this hasn't been a pretty start to the season. As Theo Epstein said today:

"It's not the time for excuses or sugar-coating it. We've played bad baseball. It's a bad stretch of play and when you do that at the start of the season, it looks even worse. We haven't played well, there are no excuses for how we've played. We haven't played smart baseball; we haven't really played aggressive baseball."

But the GM is confident things will turn around:

"We'll get back to our level. As an organization we have a track record. We have a standard we need to live to up to. One way or another we're going to get there collectively."

I'm trying my best to keep a positive attitude. I was OK with the news that Mike Cameron could be gone for a while; I think Josh Reddick will play well. I'm a little concerned that our other center fielder, Jacoby Ellsbury, joined his elder teammate on the DL. OK, I'm very concerned because I've never heard of his replacement - journeyman Darnell McDonald.

Tonight, they're still playing bad baseball after six innings. Tim Wakefield has given up six runs and Victor Martinez has allowed nine - NINE! - stolen bases. Yikes. Rangers 6, Red Sox 4.

Phillies: Kyle Kendrick, possibly pitching for his career, outpitched Tommy Hanson. In the 7th, Phillies 3, Braves 0.

Closing the federal deficit

In our state, the transportation commissioner made a little stir when he mentioned the possibility of selling naming rights for rest stops on the Turnpike to help with the state's budget gap.

It even got a satirical segment on the Rachel Maddow Show.

So we were quite surprised on Opening Day to see that Congress has sold naming rights to the Capitol building to close the federal deficit. Our federal reps even slapped the name of a Philadelphia bar on the white dome, yet no one seemed to complain or object.

If a rest stop's name could be worth $1 million per year, how much did Chickie's & Pete's pay for this ad? I hope they didn't pay in cash, because after the 5th inning, Congress apparently reneged on the deal and the name was removed.

Other SoxandPhilsandJersey naming issues: Rapper and part-owner of the New Jersey Nets, Jay-Z, is suing David Ortiz, claiming infringement because Papi named his Dominican Republican night club Forty-Forty, similar to Jay-Z's 40/40 club. Poor Papi, he just can't catch a break this year.

Afternoon games: The Phillies bullpen decided to honor Brad Lidge, who was in town because the 2009 NL Champs got their rings today, by blowing a lead to the Nationals.

Danys Baez lost it in the 8th, coughing up the lead on a two-run pinch-hit home run by Ryan Zimmerman, making his first appearance of the series. Ryan Madson didn't help things by allowing two more runs in the 9th in the 7-5 loss.

The Red Sox just got whupped 8-0 by the Twins. Tim Wakefield got shelled, and Dustin Pedroia had three of the team's six hits. But it's only April 15.

Hall of Shame

One of my favorite underrated Red Sox moments is Tom Brunansky sliding into the wall to make the final out of the 1990 season, clinching a surprising division title.

I was happy that that moment was recently selected to the Red Sox Hall of Fame. I'm fine with most of the class - Tommy Harper, Jimmy Piersall, John Valentin and Eddie Kasko - even though I don't know much about them other than Valentin.

I am upset with the manager selection: Don Zimmer.

What a disgrace. The man proclaimed a gerbil by Spaceman Bill Lee is responsible for the Red Sox collapse in 1978. Then, as if simply joining the Yankees were not insult enough, Zim attempted to destroy the Red Sox by assaulting Pedro Martinez during the 2003 ALCS.

The man should not be in the hallowed halls of Red Sox history.

Red Sox: A guy who will truly deserve to be in the Red Sox Hall of Fame, Tim Wakefield, officially became the oldest Red Sox starting pitcher ever. Congrats. And he may get a win as the Sox lead the Royals 3-2 in the 7th. J.D. Drew hit a homer.

Phillies: Christine seems happy as she gets to watch her first complete Phillies game of the year. J.A. Happ, who has at least 20 years to go before becoming the oldest Phillies starting pitcher ever, seems to have things in control. Phillies 7, Astros 0 in the 5th. Raul Ibanez, who has been getting the David Ortiz treatment because of his slow start, has two doubles so far and three RBI.

Lots of news - some expected, some not

A year ago, Sports Illustrated pulled a pretty good prank, picking the Mets (Hahahahahahahahahhahahahaha!) to win the World Series. This time around, the magazine is picking the Phillies to win the National League for a third straight year. But the pundits still aren't over whatever they were on last year, because they're not picking the Phils to lose a spirited contest against the Red Sox, but to beat the Rays in a rematch of the 2008 World Series.

I'm not big on jinxes, but I don't have a good feeling with "This might hurt" next to Roy Halladay on the cover of Sports Illustrated.

In other news:

The Red Sox and Josh Beckett may be progressing toward a contract extension. ... Junichi Tazawa has some tearing in his elbow, according to the dreaded Dr. James Andrews, but they haven't officially announced surgery yet. ... How long has Tim Wakefield been around? He played for the last Pirates team that finished over .500. ... Speaking of old pitchers, the Phillies officially named Jamie Moyer the fifth starter. ... And while Jayson Werth and Reggie Jackson weren't discussing playing for the Yankees, Mr. October must have mentioned the Yankees no-facial hair policy because Werth ditched the beard in anticipation of his big payday from the Empire.

(Yesterday, Christine wanted me to mention the facial hair ban when we dumped on J-Dub, but we forgot about it when we posted.)

Oxymoron of the day: pitching surplus

The other day, Jan Leno asked Massachusetts' next senator, Scott Brown, who should be the odd man out. He said "probably" Tim Wakefield or Daisuke Matsuzaka.

It was a politician's waffle, but also underscores the fact that the Red Sox have six legitimate starters for the five-man rotation. Earlier in the week, Wakefield, the eldest of the group, said he shouldn't be dismissed:

I did make the All-Star team last year. It seems every year, and I don't know why, my name gets brought up like this when I don't feel I need to prove myself every day. I don't know where the rumors are coming from, but I try not to pay attention. I know my role and I know what my approach is going to be when I get to spring training: be a starter and help us win the World Series.
[...]
Hopefully they respect me enough to give me the ball when we get to spring training as a member of this rotation. I think I've earned the right to be a full-time starter and go from there.

I'll endorse him over Dice-K, but I'm certain that if the Red Sox choose another option, Wake will accept his assignment and "help us win the World Series." He might speak his mind, but he won't hold a no-questions press conference in the stands and then refuse to speak about anything but the game for the rest of the season.

I think Wakefield is just speaking his piece, but Christine disagrees and thinks we could see a repeat of the Jamie Moyer situation, especially because Wakefield is already throwing out the word "respect." We'll see what happens.

Unless we never need a sixth starter, as Theo Epstein pointed out:

I've been around teams that had deep starting pitching on paper and by the time you get to the season, you can't find a starting pitcher to take the ball. I don't see that as a problem. I see that as a potential asset. It's not worth wasting time thinking about it or talking about it unless or until you get to a point during the regular season when you have more than five guys who are healthy and can do a good job starting. We're not at that point right now.

He doesn't have to look far for an example. Last year, everyone was raving about the Red Sox rotation that was more than six deep: Jon Lester, Josh Beckett, Tim Wakefield, Clay Buchholz, Brad Penny and Dice-K, plus John Smoltz was preparing to join the team midseason.

Those seven made 145 starts. Wakefield was a first-time All-Star but then missed the second half with injury. Buchholz established himself in the second half but first had to reprove himself in the minors. Dice-K missed most of the season because he was poorly conditioned, injured and valued the World Baseball Classic more than his paying gig. Smoltz and Penny were awful and released.

The other 17 starts went to youngsters: Justin Masterson (six), Junichi Tazawa (four) and Michael Bowden (one). A not-so-young Paul Bryd had the other six starts last year, proving the cliche that there is no such thing as too much starting pitching.