Alas, Poor Lowrie

It's funny: Jed Lowrie's time out with injuries were such a big part of his 2009 season that I forgot that his time away from the majors in 2008 had more to do with the Julio Lugo experiment and Lowrie's suckiness resulting from his hidden injury, not time on the DL. As a result, when I saw the headline that doctors have diagnosed him with mononucleosis, my first, entirely irrational thought was that he's cursed. Now that I've refreshed myself on his transaction history, I realize he's just unlucky: he hurt in himself in 2008, did enough damage to miss the first half of 2009, compounded problems with additional arm-related issues at the end of the season, and now, as he's still seeking to establish himself as a reliable player, he comes down with a disease that people normally get when they're in middle school.

Of course, he still looks like he's in middle school, so maybe we shouldn't be surprised. I wish him luck, but I'm not holding my breath about his taking over Scutaro's job any time soon.

Playing Marco Polo in the Dwindling Shortstop Pool

Well, I'm glad the Sox settled the shortstop question quickly and easily, providing some sort of continuity at a position that's had steady of stream of different warm bodies for far too long. Wait, just kidding.

Now that Gonzalez is definitely out of the picture for 2010, removing another possibility from a market both weak in options and rapidly tightening as the month has progressed, we've got a run at Marco Scutaro to look forward to. As Fire Brand of the American League points out in a slightly convoluted metaphor, Scutaro might have finally hit whatever summit he's going to have in his baseball career - his splits for 2009 were .282/.379/.409, far above his career totals of .265/.337/.384 - but that'll make him far too popular for those teams in need. In other words, expect Boston to overpay, quite possibly with a contract that'll keep Scutaro around for a year or two too long, because they don't have the leverage.

I'd be really happy if this deal works out to Boston's advantage, but I suspect we're in for something closer to the Renteria deal, with a bit higher of an upside: Scutaro hits well enough for a year, but tails off in 2011 (when he turns 35) and turns into dead-weight trade bait that the Sox dump for minor leaguers who never make a big contribution. Jed Lowrie, meanwhile, remains haunted by the after-effects of his broken wrist and never blossoms into the player we've stopped expecting him to become.

A Little Hot Stove Housekeeping

The Sox did some housekeeping today: they declined Gonzalez's ($6 million) and Varitek ($5 million)'s options, picked up Martinez's $7.7 million option, and changed Wakefield's perpetual club option into a two-year, $4 million deal. The business with catchers isn't surprising, but I'm a little baffled by the Gonzo choice. Presumably Boston is hedging its bets, slipping in the possibility of picking up a draft pick if Gonzalez declines to prolong his tenure and ends up somewhere else, but are things really that sure at shortstop next year that they can afford to make this bet? It's not like the shortstop free agent market is aces this off season and Jed Lowrie...well, we all know he's nothing like a sure thing, either. I guess we'll see what the Sox have planned.

As for Wakefield: does the new deal mean that Wake has a retirement date in mind? The perpetual option was fun because, quite frankly, it allowed us (or me, anyway) to live out a fantasy where Wakefield entered some sort of relativistic universe where age meant nothing and he could keep pitching forever, but clearly the injuries of this past season dealt that particular hope a crushing blow. If Wake's feeling his age enough to sign a time-limited deal - or the Sox are worried enough about his health to send him down that road - the true end can't be that far behind.

What Happened to Buchholz's Curve Ball?

Where the hell is that nasty 12 to 6 curve ball Clay Buchholz threw in 2007?

It was a knee-buckling, deer in the headlights pitch that seems to have disappeared from his repetoire.

I don't get it at all.

I've watched him try to throw it only two times in this game to the Yankees. Once, he came extremely close to hitting A-Rod in the back of the shoulder. The second time, it was very high and out of the zone.

Is he being told to throw a slider--a form of a breaking pitch with a tighter rotation--by Red Sox pitching coaches? Are they concerned about his elbow and shoulder for the long haul of his career?

There is no doubt that his change up is a great out pitch, and he can throw it on demand in any count. He is showing that as much in this game against Carston Charles in the Bronx (C.C. has a one hitter through 6 innings right now).

I seem to recall Buchholz's no hitter back in 2007 had the curve ball prominently featured (and in other games since then), but not in 2009. I also seem to recall a fastball that was closer to 97. I guess a lot can happen in two seasons.

I know he has good stuff, and he needs more major league experience, but it seems to me that some his confidence in the curve ball (and many pitches) is lost--and confidence is something this pitching staff needs desperately.

With that said, Buchholz has been able to use the changeup and the splitter well today against the Yankees. Having only given up 1 run over 5 innings, Buchholz has mixed up his pitches smartly.

I guess I am saying that when you see something like a 12-6 curveball that can jar hitters with such force, you have to keep it and throw it.

Luckily, Buch will be staying with the major league club for the remainder of the season and his experience will grow and benefit from being around the always-confident Josh Beckett and Jonathan Papelbon.

Speaking of Beckett, what a great outing he had in Friday night's 15-inning, 2-0 loss to the Yankees. I want to see this guy in another playoff game as soon as possible, but given how lifeless the Sox bats are right now (and the injuries to Bay, Dice-K, Wakefield and Lowrie, again), it's difficult to know right now if this team has what it takes to get there.

Later He Cries Bitter Tears

Remember Julio Lugo? I know, I know: it's been a while (eight games, to be precise), and it's hard to remember he's standing on the sidelines when his replacement is a ninja who clearly spent that missing year of his career in training with Ra's al Ghul. But with Green's star well stuck in the firmament and Lowrie's return immanent, Lugo sees his future all too clearly and he's not shy about making his disappointment known. Sugar coating his feelings is just the way of disguising the knife, of course:

"I'm happy for [Green]," Lugo said. "I'm very happy he's playing well, but that doesn't take away from who I am. I haven't been a shortstop in the big leagues for 10 years because one day I woke up and got two hits. I've been here because I have a history of playing and playing well. That's why I've got 10 years in the big leagues. But I'm very happy for him."

Oh yeah, he's thrilled about riding the pine while someone else starts. Can't you tell?

Jed Lowrie and the Case of the Missing Arm Bone

The news about Beckett is excellent, even if the pitcher himself isn't pleased about it; the news about Lowrie has the potential to suck a high hard one, particularly if it means taking a bone out of his wrist.

Hold on a second: they want to take a bone out of his wrist? How much damage did Lowrie do to himself last year, anyway? Seriously? I'm glad the guy's got brass balls that would make Bronson Arroyo jealous by playing through kind of pain for this long, but let's all take a lesson here: if you're hurt, take care of it. Dragging ass for almost a season and then risking the removal of a bone from your arm because your wrist is ahurtin' isn't worth the loyalty you've proven.

If the worst is true and Lowrie and his dumb choices have taken him out for the better part of two seasons, I have a choice to make: since Green is still hitting above his (admittedly mediocre) career totals and Julio Lugo is the starter in waiting, do I give Lugo another chance, or become a Green man and help the mastermind fulfill his criminal dream? It's been almost a year since we started calling for Lugo's head and he's got a long way to go before he proves himself worthy...

Nick Green, Supervillain

Ladies and gentlemen, I have uncovered a conspiracy of such vast and frightening dimensions as to render the curse of steroids upon our favorite sport a mere footnote in the annals of history. My life may be in danger for daring to shed the light of truth upon this foul den of malfeasance, but I feel it is my duty as a fan to reveal to you know what I know: Nick Green is not the mild-mannered utility player he seems. In fact, the 30-year-old journeyman has been gunning for the starting shortstop position all along!

You see, while you and I were speculating on the outcome of the Julio Lugo/Jed Lowrie competition for shortstop, Green was quietly insinuating himself behind the scenes, preparing to strike. First, he took out Lugo with a kneecaping cleverly disguised as a torn miniscus, placing himself in the backup position to young Lowrie, who emerged from the fray as Boston's seeming best hope for the right side up the middle. After a decent interval to alay suspicions, he struck again, disabling Lowrie's weak left wrist, sending him to the DL, and securing the top spot for himself. Cleverly done to be sure, but not cleverly enough! for I've figured out the pattern, Mr. Green, and uncovered your dastardly deeds for all to see!

Seriously though: I'm glad to see Lowrie's complete and utter post-Spring Training collapse has a root cause. Next time Lowrie goes into a slump, how about we check on his wrists a bit sooner, mkay?

No Shortstop Competition? No Problem!

Hey, so looks like Lowrie wins the competition because he's got better tendons...somewhere Robin is sighing in relief. Actually, I don't think this tough break for Lugo is the end of the fight for the starting job; Lugo's injury not withstanding, he certainly didn't sound like he'd back down from the fight, even if it means he has to prove himself after the season starts. Whether or not he gets the chance probably depends entirely on Lowrie: if he establishes himself from the get go in Kevin Youkilis in 2006 style, Lugo will find himself out in the cold faster than you can say "J.T. Snow." If he struggles...well, I guess the precendent there would be Dustin Pedroia, but I think if Theo was as high on Lowrie as he was on Pedroia, Lugo wouldn't be on the team.

In any case, I'm not worried. Lugo has a reason to come back strong and Lowrie is tearing the cover off the ball in Spring Training and setting himself up for a nice start next month. Let the competition continue, I say; we win no matter what.

Do the Sox Have Better Chemistry Than the Yanks?

Shotgun Spratling of The Blue Workhorse recently shot me an email to alert me to the site's preview of the 2009 Red Sox. As far as conclusions go, it's not too surprising: our team is good, our team has some question marks, if our team overcomes their question marks, they'll probably beccome the best of the best for this year. What did jump out at me was the lede from the second paragraph of the preview: "The Red Sox have better chemistry than the Yankees do and that allows them to play well together."

Whether or not you believe chemistry has an impact on team performance is a contentious issue, but not one that I'm going to address here apart from saying that a congenial workplace is usually a more enjoyable place to get work done and that can lead to better performance. That said, even outside of the world of statheads and traditionalists, people who study management haven't come to a complete agreement about the relationship between chemistry and productivity. However, even if you do happen to believe that players who work together well win more ball games, you have to question whether or not Blue Workhorses's statement is still true in 2009.

In 2003 and 2004, the Sox rode their reputation as a group of fast and loose ballplayers into the annals of Winning Teams With Great Chemistry. The reputation is still there - or so it seems, if a sports blog is including it as part of a team preview - but the steady attrition of players from those teams to other ball clubs makes that judgment feel superficial. Think about it: if you were to name the loosest guys on the Sox, who would you pick beyond Ortiz and Papelbon. Youkilis and Pedroia are more crazy than loose, Lugo/Lowrie is a non-entity, Lowell is laid back, and everyone else - if they've established a presence at all - seems to prefer to let their bat or their glove do the talking. It's not a bad thing, but in terms of measurement I don't think this team has better chemistry than the workmanlike Yankees...I think it's about the same.

Smoke and Mirrors

Joy of Sox notes that the Lugo/Lowrie competition for shortstop is just a facade, presumably to keep all us peons jumping while Lugo consolidates his position of power behind the scenes. If this news is true, it certainly explains Lugo's recent comments to the press, but I really hope the brass keep the screws on Lugo through the duration of Spring Training. Robin's "Julio Lugo can eat my nuts" tag got two uses last year and that's two uses more than any of us wanted to see.

Julio Lugo is a Cocky, Cocky Man

Hey Lugo: your cockiness is certainly a good sign for someone who's about to start fighting their way out of a bench job. However, before you go claiming victory, I'd like to point out one thing: before pulling your quadriceps in July, your line was .268/.355/.330 with an OPS+ of 78, which - besides being the sort of putrescence that made me cheer for your removal on a regular basis - is laughable when you consider that your replacement, Jed Lowrie, hit .245/.337/.384 with an OPS+ of 90...and he had a tear in his wrist.

Let me put this in a separate paragraph, because it's so delicious it has to be tasted by itself: a guy with a bad wrist who was in so much pain by the end of the season that he'd entered a significant slump that dropped his OPS by over 200 points still had better overall numbers than you did when you were healthy. Yeah, I'd say that shortstop job is a lock for you.

Not.

Congratulations Philadelphia...

...given the recent revelations about Beckett's oblique and Lowrie's wrist, plus the more obvious injuries (oh, and the fact that you have a pretty well-made team), you probably would have beaten us, too.

Try not to burn the entire city down in the celebration riots.

A Few Late-in-the-Day Thoughts

• Holy crap. Explains Beckett's rapid decline and Lowrie's subpar numbers in one fell swoop. It's starting to look like every game the Sox won in the playoffs this year was a minor miracle. Also: I get cranky enough when I have to sit in an office chair with a sore oblique. I can't imagine trying to pitch with a torn one.
  
• Scott Boras agrees with me. I suspect that statement is like saying that after Barbarossa, Stalin agreed with Churchill that Hitler needed to be stopped (and yes, that makes Scott Boras Stalin to my Churchill): we've got vastly different agendas but the same general goal. Actually, having anywhere close to the same goal as Scott Boras makes me feel filthy.
• Tito is going to have back surgery. I'll let you make the connection between back pain and poor judgment.

Beating the Rays, Or The Evolution of Moneyball

I won't go into series analysis today; the previews across the web have done a fine job giving effective coverage to all angles. Personally, I recommend Paul SF's excellent dissection over at YFSF and Evan Brunell's exploration of key series factors at Fire Brand of the American League, but suffice it to say that all commentary points to another tight ALCS with a good potential for Red Sox victory. Boston in seven games sounds like a good call to me.

No, what inspired me to put fingers to keyboard this morning is an article on The Process, Theo Epstein's term for the Red Sox player development system. As we all know, Boston's heavy investment in its farm system has paid enormous dividends: Ellsbury, Pedroia, Youkilis, Lowrie, Masterson, Delcarmen, and Papelbon are all homegrown and all key components in Boston's championship-level success in the past two years. What intrigues me about the Globe's description of The Process - as necessarily undetailed, beyond the description of a consistent manual of development used by every level of the organization, as it may be - is that we are witnessing the next level of evolution in the scientific process of player development made famous (and infamous) in Moneyball.

Moneyball was all about the use of statistics to determine player value. Its development by Billy Beane was the result of the need to produce results in the straightened circumstances of Oakland A's baseball, but a perfect storm of circumstance lead to its adoption by other number-minded GMs across the sport. In the process, it won approval among the population of statistically-minded fans, popularized a revolution in how people watch and comment on the game, etc. But as Moneyball and more vocal stats organs like Fire Joe Morgan make clear, using statistics to predict future performance explicitly denies the use of any other predictive system. You know, like intangibles. Make up. Whatever black magic it is that scouts use when they look at players in high school and college.

We all know that Epstein is a Beane disciple from back in the day. But here's where the evolution comes in: when Theo talks about the club's pre-draft evaluation of player make up:

"We sit down and brainstorm about what we're looking for, which attributes we think make a major league player successful, and then we question our own assumptions," Epstein says. "OK, we think we want players who are tough and gritty. Well, what does that really mean? Can you actually see that in a 17-year-old, in a 21-year-old? Does it look different when he's 17 than when he's 25? We think we want players who are intense and baseball-centric, who are focused on the game. Well, what about players who are too intense and too focused? Do they put too much pressure on themselves?"

In essence, applying science (through sports psychology) to the profiles of players whose statistics attract organization attention, adding a layer of filtering to the selection of players that Boston hopes will do well in the big leagues. Taking the idea even further - since I'm sure the Rays, with their own intensive focus on player development, have a process similar to that of Boston - this ALCS might well be a demonstration of the powers of science in player selection. Given the parity between the two clubs and the expectation of a long, fun series, seeing this type of science in play has to be a good thing for fans of the sport.

Send Me An Angel

ALDS Game 1: Boston Red Sox 4, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 1

Ahhh feel that? That’s October baseball. Playoff baseball. The leaves are turning and the dirtdogs are barking. It’s my favorite time of the year.

Before I get into the meat of the game log and not to rub it in, but that’s 10 postseason wins in a row against the Angels of wherever they claim to be from. The Red Sox just have their number. I know they have the best record in the AL, but I LOVE to seeing them in the first round.

Tonight was almost all about Jon Lester. I know everyone has gushed like pink hat wearing tweens about the guy… but he deserves it. He is a freak of nature. He can’t be beaten by base runners, pitch counts or cancer. I am pretty sure he is the government’s answer for Chuck Norris if Chuck ever goes “bad”. I mean it! Norris goes rogue and the president presses a big red button and deploys Jon Lester.

He pitched 7 innings of guts and glory with no earned runs and a belly full of bees. It would have been a SCORELESS 7 if not for Jed Lowrie and his awful Tony Graffanino imitation. That dumb error led to the only Angel run and almost got me calling Jed “Rat Boy” for the rest of the playoffs. He looks like his last job was teaching 4 turtles ninja skills. The only blunder that topped that was the bad running by Vlad in the 8th. Only a dummy tries to take 3rd on Youks arm.

On the offensive side of things, the injuries really took their toll on the Sox lineup. J.D. Drew and Mike Lowell were both too injured to play in this game. That didn’t stop them from STARTING… but they were sure as hell hurt. Lowell can barely run. Papi is also a shell of himself and if it wasn’t for the insurance RBI in the 9th he would have been another 0-fer.

The GOOD news was coming from Bay and Jacoby. The Sox got on the board thanks to a MAMMOTH 2 run blast from our Canadian friend. He almost looked excited about it too. As for Jacoby, this kid is another type of player in the postseason. He was on base all night. Stealing bases, hitting doubles and taking 3 bases on missed catches… there was nothing he didn’t do tonight… and that includes making amazing catches in center (he FLEW out there). He is like Apache Chief and when the playoffs roll around, you know he is screaming INYUK-CHUK!

With the 3 run lead, the ball went to Papelbon and the Paps delivered. He struck out the side to end any drama. He used his fastball (overpowering) and even found his splitter to get a big K. Soooooooo tasty! This was just a fantastic win that would be even sweeter if it wasn’t after 2 in the morning. So let’s wrap this up and let me get some shut eye so I can dream of the Angels and the rally monkey they can’t get off their back.

Jed Lowrie is a Lugo Upgrade, Please Keep Him

Bit of a slow news day, I guess, because the Herald decided to remind us of the existence of Jed Lowrie, "plugging" - as they put it - the hole at shortstop left by Julio Lugo and his DL stint. I think the Herald's being a little generous: saying that Lugo's departure left a hole in the lineup and on the field implies that we're actually missing the only player in Keep Your Sox On history who's managed to get his own hate tag. So much for Lugo, but besides being a breath of fresh air, how good has Lowrie been in comparison?

Surprise, surprise: that breeze you're feeling isn't imaginary. Lugo's hitting 19 percent worse than the average player in 2008; Lowrie, 2 percent better than average. Limiting the data to the 13 games he's started since Lugo's blessed departure (the length of time, I feel, that he's really been able to start proving himself), Lowrie's BA/SLG/OBP looks even more attractive: .317/.400/.415, far above what Lugo's put up for the year. Terry Francona calls Lowrie "Bill Mueller-esque," a comparison that - beyond its connotations for a possible Green Lantern-like passing of the Pro moniker to Lowrie at some point in the future - speaks well for Lowrie's success as a hitter, particularly taking Mueller's better years into account. There's also Lowrie's error-free defense, with its (much) higher fielding percentage topped on the same range factor. Overall, it's a compelling package for an upgrade, further floated by Lowrie's age: he's 24. Lugo's 32. Lugo's best days are behind him; Lowrie's got reams of potential. Maybe Lugo will be part of a late-season deal when he comes off the DL? Is that too much to hope?

Game 101: Sox Win In Seattle (yes you read that right)!!

Final Score: Boston Red Sox 4, Seattle Mariners 0

Oh I’m so happy I can’t feel my arms! Woo Freaking Hoo! For some reason that I cannot explain (except I can and will later) the Red Sox were able to overcome the BLIGHT that is playing in Seattle and edged the mighty (last place) Mariners for a win to stop the skid. I fully expected a down-home West Coast slide to continue late into the week… boy am I pleasantly surprised.

Jon “Cancer Killer” Lester is quickly becoming a linchpin in this staff. He gave 7 and a third strong scoreless innings and put the Sox in a perfect spot to get the win. He did scatter 8 hits (yeesh) but his stuff was solid enough to save our laboring bullpen.

Offensively, there was so much “winning Sox” stuff that happened that harkened back to the win streaks earlier in the season. Manny with a multiple hit game, Jacoby stealing a base, a big RBI hit for a rookie nobody (Lowrie) and a homerun for the captain himself. So much for Tek changing his name to Jason “Twilight” Varitek. The el capitano stepped up and used his unassuming .218 BA to launch a 2 run bomb and give the Sox a lead they would never relinquish. Not all the nostalgia was good… the Sox managed to do the old “leave a bakers dozen on base” routine, but they got the job done.

Another blast from the past was the multiple stress free innings save from Papelbon. The Paps picked up his 29 S with 15 pitches over 1 and a third. No walks, no hits, no runs. Just like the old days.

This is how I like it. This is what I want for the other 61 games this season. Is that too much to ask?

Game 99: Complete (game) Disaster

Final Score: Boston Red Sox 2, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 4

99 times out of 100 when you see complete game by Beckett in the box score, you jump for joy at the big win he laid down on some poor bastard. Well Saturday, Beckett went the distance but the poor bastards were from Boston.

All it took was one bad inning (the 7th) and the Sox fell hard to the Angels again. The offense had it’s chances but couldn’t put up more than 2 runs on the LA pitching. Meanwhile, Beckett looked solid, but ran into some trouble when Vlad homered and then some back to back singles in the aforementioned 7th (one should have been an error on Lowrie) ended with a 3 run double. It might have even been worse if not for an AMAZING catch by Coco.

But enter the soon to be free agent K-Rod and the game was over. Ugly. I hate losing these close games. Tonight the Sox try to prevent the sweep. Honestly, I’m not that hopeful.

Game 96: Gods For a Day

Final Score: Boston Red Sox 12, Baltimore Orioles 1

That's a little more like it! .300 team hiding in the corpse of a .400 team indeed.

Look over the headlines today and Kevin Youkilis' first grand slam is at the top of every story, which put me in a contemplative mode about the nature of grand slams. Statistically, knocking in four runs with one swing gets different results depending on your metric: batting average goes up two points, on-base percentage not at all, slugging percentage - the measurement of hits expanded to include total bases per hit - up a more appreciable eight points. If in the unlikely chance that the next ten years or so sees Youkilis hit a large number of grand slams - enough to catch up Manny, for example - history will mark this first fully-loaded moonshot as the start of a rare accomplishment whose category leaders stand in the middle twenties.

But some percentage increases and membership in a club of fortunate home run hitters just about sets the limit on the scope of the statistical value of a grand slam, and there's only so much value we can assign to a hit that we couldn't even tease out of a stat line in fifty years. To take the argument one step further, the grand slam didn't even score Boston's winning run: Manny's two-run homer in the first took the honors by striking what eventually became the fatal blow.

Psychologically, however, a grand slam is huge; a multi-faceted event that can momentum in an instant. Remember the grand slam Vlad Guerrero hit in the last game of the 2004 ALDS? That one hit recharted the course of the game, knocked the Sox off of their cruise control to series victory and gave the Legend of David Ortiz a huge boost. Another example: last fall's $14 millon grand slam, the most memorable moment of the American League playoffs. 50 years from now, mention the 2007 post-season and J.D. Drew's untimely hit will come to mind - and that hit was only a contributor to a non-clinching win. We love our grand slams: they encapsulate moments of sometimes surpreme tension, validating the risk of loading the bases without scoring runs, granting the sublime pleasure of big gifts in big packages. We hate it when the opposing team hits a grand slam: those same moments of tension reversed, hoping and praying that our pitcher can escape the jam with little or no damage. When the big hit comes and the runs score, it's a gut punch, creating what feels like an insurmountable lead out of nothing in course of a couple of seconds.

But most of all we love our grand slams for the instant hero status they grant the men who hit them. Legendary batsman or journeyman stick handler, these men not only accomplished the difficult feat of hitting a baseball several hundred feet out of the confines of a field, but did so with the added pressure of potential runs waiting for the chance to come home. Achieving the mental focus to ignore that pressure, focus on their task, and find the right mistake to drive up and away gifts these men with the halo of clutch hitting, makes them gods for a day. Not too bad for a guy who happened to be at the right place at the right time.

Julio Lugo: out four to six weeks with a torn quadriceps. Note to Jed Lowrie: many a ballplayer has jumpstarted a career out of opportunities like this one.

Game 61: Julio Lugo is Not Here For His Glovework

Final Score: Boston Red Sox 7, Tampa Bay Rays 4

Masterson: not so masterful when you're facing a good team, it seems. Or maybe it's just that Akinori Iwamura hits better in Fenway than almost anywhere else and maybe should learn to play shortstop so he can come to Boston and replace the joker we've got playing there now. I'm just saying. Anyway, two sinkers that didn't sink found their way over the way tonight - including one courtesy of Mr. Iwamura - and Masterson had almost as many fly outs as he did ground outs. Maybe he was nervous about Manny's hometown reception post 500 homer milestone. Or maybe he was just so relieved that the doctors chose three weeks of immobilization over three months (or more) of surgery recovery for Papi's ailing wrist in the hopes of a scar tissue heal.

Speaking of shortstops, Robin remarked that ever since the aforementioned Lugo personally blew two saves for Papelbon, he seems to make an exit stage right for defensive replacement Alex Cora. We were curious, so I mined Baseball Reference and found that yes, since May 9, Alex Cora has replaced Julio Lugo at shortstop for every Papelbon appearance except for two: May 10, when Lugo was in the dog house, Cora wasn't available (I believe he was injured at the time?), and the Sox had Jed Lowrie (the once and future successor to the position) make the start; and May 30, when Cora and Lugo did a role reversal. Papelbon's record in that time: eight appearances, one earned run, six saves in six chances. I think the numbers speak for themselves (but I'll say it anyway): Julio Lugo is persona non grata when Papelbon is on the mound.

I wonder who made the call (or the request): was it Francona, adopting his no nonsense pose by putting his shortstop in some sort of extended purgatory for his extremely poor defense, or was it Papelbon, star closer and future ca-drillionaire (good to see that investment is paying dividends, by the way), throwing around some political muscle by getting Lugo off the field when there's a save situation on the line. As odd as he's proven to be, I like the idea of Paps being a bit of a prima donna, storming into Terry's office, slamming the door, exclaiming something like "I can't work under these conditions," and demanding Lugo get the defensive replacement treatment, all while wearing a smoking jacket. I'm a big believer in ball players having personality, you know?