Unfortunately, the Sox didn’t gain any ground in the standings–they are still 7 games back in the AL East, and 5 games back in the Wild Card…

There are 60 games left to play. Can the Sox, as constructed, make up the deficit?

Unless Theo does SOMETHING good with the bullpen, I fear the answer is a definite NO…

If some, if not all of the bullpen issues are resolved, and the DL’ed players start coming back and can ramp up quickly–I am still left with a definite maybe…

But I am very glad that Josh Becket seems to be on the right path–for his 1st win since coming off the DL last week, he went 7 strong, throwing 12 pitches, 69 for strikes, giving up 3 runs on 5 hits while striking out 5 and walking 1. Yeah, his ERA is still over 6–but now he has twice as many wins as he did before the contest…

And the Demonic Bullpen Tandem–weren’t, going the last 2 innings giving up only 1 walk, 1 hit, zero runs, and 4 strikeouts in the span…

And all of the runs scored were as a result of homers: Kevin Youkilis, Adrian Beltre and Bill Hall all stroked solo shots–and then there is Marco Scutaro, with his Grand Slam in the top of the 8th, which put the Sox ahead for good, and allowed them to return home with a winning (albeit barely) record of 6-4 for the road trip…

And Jacoby Ellsbury is moving along, playing with the Gulf Coast League–look for him to upgrade to Pawtucket probably this weekend…Could it be that he may actually be playing in the bigs in the next 2 weeks or so???

So Mike Lowell hit 3 homers in 1 game on Wednesday night Pawtucket–and he had a couple other homers and a perfect night another night–which is super great–but what happens when he is done with his rehab? He gets to rot on the bench with the Sox?

Less than 2 days to the trade deadline (Saturday at 4:00pm EST) Will Mike Lowell be traded? Will the Sox pick up some badly needed bullpen help? Will Theo do anything? I have to believe he will–what that is exactly, I wonder…

And OK, fine, I admit it–I actually LIKED having games start later in the evening. Maybe 10pm is a bit late–but it actually allowed me to get stuff done and then by the time I was ready to start winding down, there was baseball…

Finally, our friends at eTrueSports are reporting this breaking news: American Pie Association Wants MLB To Ban Shaving Cream–Real Whipped Cream “A Time-Honored Baseball Tradition”. Heath concerns may help the traditionalists’ argument. “My cosmetologist says shaving cream is drying out my face big time,” said an MLB player who asked not to be identified by name, “I’m thinking about not hitting any more walk-off homers.” You can read all about it here…

Coming up: A much needed day off for the Sox, as they travel home to the Fens for 7 before going back out on the road. Kicking off 3 games against the Tigers tomorrow night, Jon Lester hopes to right his own ship, after losing the last 2 contests. He is opposed by Armando Galarraga for Detroit. 1st pitch 7:10pm…

In honor of its 9th year, a special tribute to one of the Jimmy Fund’s most ardent supporters, Ted Williams will be held. Since its inception in 2002, the Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon raised more than $21 million dollars. In 2009, over $4.5 million dollars was raised, with gifts coming in from every state in the country. The radio-telethon is the Jimmy Fund’s fastest growing event. Once again, listeners and viewers will be able to make gifts online or by phone at 877-738-1234 or at The Jimmy Fun Radio-Telethon website.

As part of the Radio-Telethon there will be special opening ceremonies at both Red Sox games. Comedian/actor Mike O’Malley will throw out the first pitch at Thursday’s game, while actress and cancer survivor Maura Tierney and Today Show co-host Meredith Vieira will throw it on Friday.

The two-day lineup is packed with interviews featuring Dana-Farber patients, doctors, researchers and nurses. Because this is the event’s ninth year a special tribute to Ted Williams will take place.

The 50 State Challenge encourages Red Sox fans and Jimmy Fund supporters across the nation to contribute to the WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon.

Disclaimer:  I reallyREALLY don’t want to be one of “those” fans who is freaking out about the Red Sox…

Tonight is the Sox 100th game of the season, and here is where they are:

11 games over .500 (.556 winning percentage)

8 games behind the Skanks, 5 behind Tampa Bay in the Wild Card…

So far, they have played 7 of the 10 games in the road trip–and lost 4 of them–including 2 to a team that has the lowest batting average IN THE MAJORS (.235) and the 2 they won? Pretty much by the skin of their teeth…

Yeah, Josh Beckett pitched OK on Friday night–but the Sox are WAY beyond needing “OK”–they need freaking brilliant, they need merciless beat downs where the pitchers throw no hitters, and the bats are hitting and hitting and knocking starting pitchers out in the 2nd inning…

Jon Lester was well on his way to a perfect game–until Eric Patterson, who ironically, saved the Sox bacon in the 13th inning two nights before COULDN’T CATCH THE BALL, and just like that Perfect Game? Gone. No-Hitter? Gone, THE LEAD??? Gone Gone Gone…

Oh Crap, I really AM one of those people who are freaking out over the Sox…

The starting pitching has been doing well enough, no one has blown up and only thrown 2 innings in the last week or so, it’s the freaking bullpen and the fact that there is little to no hitting right now.

Daisuke, who has only given up 3 earned runs in his last 2 starts, went 6 innings yesterday and only gave 1 run on 4 hits, striking out 4–what is amazing is that with the Wild Pitch and FIVE walks, it wasn’t more…

The Sox are bringing Victor Martinez back, probably too early, and if they didn’t desperately need Big Papi in the lineup, he would have been back earlier as a DH, and he will probably be in the lineup tonight. Let’s just hope he doesn’t really screw up his thumb and be lost for the season…

And, if this keeps up, Dustin Pedroia may just bully his way back onto the field, because you KNOW sitting around

Message to Okajima–we are all more than little tired of your crappy play–but the fact that you will not even face the music and talk with the press EVER–THAT is stupendously crappy. MDC and Jonathan Papelbon are alot of things–but they man up when they screw up…take a lesson–and don’t leave it up to your teammates to answer questions for which you need to answer…

Trade deadline is Saturday–Let’s hope Theo can work a miracle…Releasing Okajima might be a good start…

Finally, Congratulations to Andre Dawson, Whitey Herzog and Doug Harvey, who were inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame yesterday. On hand for the festivities were 47 of their brethren, when The Hawk, the White Rat and God joined the 289 players, umps and managers before them who comprises the greatest of the greats.

Also awarded was the Ford C. Frick Award, given in recognition of major contributions to baseball broadcasting, this year given to Jon Miller of the Giants/ESPN, and the J.G. Taylor Spink Award, given for excellence in baseball reporting, was awarded to Bill Madden of the New York Daily News

Coming up: That Clay Person takes the mound (hopefully a lot less rusty than last time) kicking off the series, and the final 3 games of this more than disappointing road trip. He is opposed by Joel Pineiro for Anaheim. 1st pitch: 10:05pm…

If I had known this, I would have forced myself to continue watching.

But I am SO glad I didn’t…

Let’s start with the positive: John Lackey, in a remarkably un-labored outing, going 8 strong, throwing 116 pitches, 80 for strikes, giving up 1 run (which was unearned) on 2 hits while walking 1, hitting a batter and striking out 6–All that work for NOTHING…

And then Terry Francona actually thought that he would go to Manny Delcarmen to close out this game. Manny Delcarmen who hasn’t really been right in well over a year, and pitched to 4 batters in the 9th inning and could not get an out to save his life….Do we have enough of a body or recent work here to all agree that he needs to go? Please?

So then it’s a save situation–and Mr “setting the standard” comes out, and not only does Papelbon allows the 2 runs he inherited from MDC to score, but tacks on another two tie the score and blow his 4th save of the year…

And I am pretty sure it’s a sign of the apocalypse: Okajima gets the win, with Ramon S getting the save for their combined scoreless 3 innings of work…

It was also a pretty ugly defensive game, with Bill Hall having 2 errors, and Macro Scutaro having one, and let’s not forget the passed ball by Kevin Cash–which lead to 3 of the 6 runs for Seattle to be unearned…

Ultimately, it took FOUR more innings that it should have to end this game–and now the Sox have pretty much no bullpen for Josh Beckett’s (hopefully) triumphant return–He better be back, brilliant, and ready to pitch a complete game…

Jeremy Hermida was activated last night, and promptly sat. Apparently, he will be platooning with Darnell McDonald, and will start against right handed pitching, so it looks like he will play on Saturday night against old friend Dave Pauley…

Mike Lowell, fresh off cortisone shot in his hip, made his 1st rehab start with Pawtucket last night–he went 1-5. Apparently, he will play there another week or so–Heck, if I were him, I’d want to stay there as long as possible–at least he is playing there–not rotting on the bench in the bigs….although I am sure rotting in the bigs is probably better than playing in the minors…

And we knew it was coming, but now its official: With Josh Beckett’s return, Tim Wakefield has been banished to the bullpen, and will be available Saturday. From Tito: “…We’re coming up on August, so we should be in pretty good shape as far as if we need him again, which I don’t doubt we will. Some of how we use Wake will be determined by how everyone else does. He’s probably not a situational guy, but some of it will be determined by how the rest of the staff is doing.”

Finally: Today, Nomar Garciaparra turns 37. Remember that game in 2002 where he hit the 3 homers in 2 innings in 1 game? That was the coolest…Happy Birthday Nomar!

Coming up: He’s baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack: Mr. Staff Ace, Josh Beckett takes the mound for the 1st time since May 18th, opposed by Jason Vargas. 1st pitch 10:10pm….Here we go…

Since returning from the All -Star Break a week ago, the Sox have played 7 games–and have won 2, one in each series. They have not scored more than 4 runs in any contest since then. They are currently 7 games behind the Skanks in the AL East, and 4.5 games behind Tampa Bay in the Wild Card with 67 games to play, including 10 more with the Skanks and 6 more with Tampa Bay…

I think VERY close to being in a heap of trouble…

I don’t think the wheels of the bus have come off yet, but the lug nuts really need to be tightened, so can we get on that, pronto, that would be super….And can someone save me a spot on the Tobin Bridge, just in case? Great. Thanks…

OK, moving on.

That Clay Person came back last night, and was rustier than a garden gate. And everything went wrong on this one: A wild pitch, a BALK (2nd one in as many nights–Ramon S had one the night before), only going 4 innings (yeah, FOUR), throwing 87 pitches, 56 for strikes, giving up 5 runs on 6 hits (including 2 homers–including 1 to Matt Watson–his 1st in his major league career) while walking 3 and striking out 2… YUK…

Welcome Back Jed Lowrie! Do you want the good news or the bad? OK, Good new 1st, Jed spelled a weary Marco Scutaro, and went 1-2 with 2 walks, and scored the 1st run of the game. And then the bad news: Promptly made his 1st error of the season in the 4th…Ryan Shealey was DFA’ed to make room for Jed…

We all knew it was going to happen–in anticipation of Jeremy Hermida’s activation for tonight’s contest, Daniel Nava has been sent back to Pawtucket. Daniel weighs in on his 29 games in the bigs: “It’s been a great experience. I’ve got some stuff I’ve got to work on. I’ll go back there and try to focus on stuff, try and work on that stuff and be ready for another opportunity…I mean, I knew that I was covering for guys that were injured. I knew it was going to happen at some point. That’s why I just went day by day. I was totally aware that could be happening at any point — and it did.” He hit .286 with THE Grand Slam and 16 RBI’s during his tenure…

Finally, Jerry Remy just signed a long term contract to continue his work with DO as the NESN color guy, a job he has held for the last 23 years. Specifics of the contract have not been released, but Jerry describes it as “…“I’ll be around a while…There will be a time where it all comes to an end, but I don’t know when that’s going to be. It’s not any time in the near future, that’s for sure.” And just in time as well. Rem-Dawg will call his 3,000th game this Sunday afternoon in Seattle…

Coming up: The midnight games continue, with 4 in Seattle–and lo and behold, there is a 3rd non-middle of the night game–on Sunday–but other than that–this whole series starts at 10. Tonight, John Lackey takes the mound and will hopefully kick off a 10-20 game winning streak (hey, I can dream, can’t I?), opposed by lefty Ryan Rowland-Smith–who has a 1-9 record–which means he’ll probably throw a no hitter…1st pitch, 10:05pm…

There IS once nice thing about later games–it gives me a chance to do things around the house, or relax, or run errands, and even play online blackjack if the mood strikes me. Of course, I don’t actually ever get to see the end of one of these games, as I generally fall asleep about 4-5 innings in–but the way they have been playing, that’s not necessarily a bad thing…

Go Sox!

And since I started this on the only sport-less day (maybe) of the year, and then went on vacation, in honor of what is, or what was, I submit my midseason report card for your review–better late than never…

Management

Theo Epstein: C-: To be fair, the team Theo constructed during the off-season has never been actually on the field yet. However, John Lackey is getting $82 million for and ERA a little under 5; and while Mike Cameron is great when he plays–it’s the when he plays part that is troubling. But the big reason he is not getting a B is the awful way he is treating Mike Lowell–Just release him already…

Terry Francona: A-: Being able to juggle old player, new players, injuries, rest, and egos, is difficult under any circumstances. Add in the fact that The Sox currently have over 10 players on the DL–and it’s the Boston Red Sox, where the ‘Nation magnifies each and everything to the Nth Degree…Tito has this job nailed down. Can communicate with players, management and media alike, his players love and respect what he brings to the party–Its easier to manage when everything is in place–not so much when nothing is…The only reason he gets a minus is his handling of Mike Lowell–he has given up all pretense of even getting him into a game…

Pitchers

Jon Lester: A: The winningest pitcher in MLB HISTORY since 1901, based on any pitcher with at least 50 starts, Jon Lester is the Ace of the Boston Red Sox, carrying the team right now with his 2.81 ERA, and 11-4 record, despite Sunday’s loss. And I have been saying it for years–he is electric to watch–Still hard to believe he is only 26…

John Lackey: C: 9-5 with a 4.65 ERA–this is what you get for $82.5 million dollars? And he labors whether he wins or he loses…can’t imagine he is much fun to play behind…

Tim Wakefield: C: Wake deserves better than his pretty ucky (3-8, 5.65) record reflects, but there were at least 3 games where the bullpen screwed the pooch–and then factor in the fact that the team’s bats more often than not seem to not want to cooperate when Tim Wakefield is on the mound. And you also cannot tell me the back and forth bullpen/rotation moving helps the cause…More often than not, he keeps them in the game-just like last night-and it’s alot less labored…

Clay Buchholz: A: If Jon Lester is the staff Ace, That Clay Person is Ace, Part A. He would have given David Price a run for his money to start the All-Star game, if he didn’t come up lame running the bases during Interleague play and straining a hamstring. Currently at 10-4, with a 2.45 ERA, could he possibility get to 20 wins for the 1st time in his career? He’ll be back in the rotation tonight, so we will see…

Daisuke Matsuzaka: C: 7-3 with a 4.29 ERA–for $103 million dollars–and yes, I know he only got $52 of that…But the nibbling, and the walks and the obtuseness when asked about what is going on with the nibbling and the walks–he offers some cryptic “Only I know the cause” answer–and while he pitched very well in last night’s win, he still makes me want to drink a whole bottle of Jack Daniels–and I don’t drink…

Josh Beckett: Incomplete: People whined and whined and WHINED that the Sox needed to lock Josh Beckett up (yeah, I know, I was one of them, sometimes…) to a long term contact, and then there was the variance between pitching with runners on vs not, and the 1-1 record, the 7.29 ERA–in 8 starts. And then there are the back issues which have kept him out of the rotation since the end of May…Indications are that he is now healthy and ready to go–and will make be making his 1st start in over 2 months…can he salvage this season?

Jonathan Papelbon: C+: If your gonna be a cocky SOB, then you need to have the cojones to back that up–and sometimes I wonder about Papelbon…If 3-4 with a 3.23 ERA (It was nearly a run lower in 2009) is “setting the standard”–someone needs to rethink the standards– I reallyREALLY liked his quote about him and Daniel Bard: “…I think we have the potential to be a good one-two punch for a lot of years, depending on what happens in the next year or so with me.” All about him much? And everyone knows that as soon as he can, he’ll be bailing to whoever will pay him the most…But if his slide continues, that may be the Baltimore Oreos…

Daniel Bard: A: 1.79 ERA and a 1-2 record–closer of the future? more than likely–but not quite there–and lets hope the Sox are careful with him (he has already made 44 appearances in 94 games) or that golden 100mph throwing arm will fall RIGHT OFF…

Ramon Ramirez/Manny Delcarmen: C: I call them the Demonic Bullpen Tandem, and while each had the POTENTIAL to be great–it always seems to elude them–and it always seems like when the Sox need either of them to step up and get it done, more often than not, they don’t…

Hideki Okajima: C: Maybe the Demonic Bullpen Tandem should be a Trio, which is a shame because Okajima used to be BRILLIANT, but every year his ERA has grown, with it almost doubling from 2009. The Sox cannot afford a 6.00 ERA in the bullpen…

Scott Atchison: B-: One of the few bullpen pitchers not named Daniel Bard that do not make me cringe these days, he has stepped up and done the spot start thing, as well as long relief. He has already done the Pawtucket shuffle 3 times this year–let’s hope he sticks this time–because, right now, he is one of the bright spots…

Scott Schoeneweis: F: UGH. My only F–and with good reason; the only thing worse than a 6.00 ERA in the bullpen is an ERA near 8–and that is what we had with the other Scott…The Sox were 4-11 over his 15 appearances that we were subjected to until the middle of May when he was releases–Shockingly, no other team has express interest…

Felix Doubront: C: With his 1-2 and 4.11 ERA, the kid hasn’t been too horrible. He’s kept the Sox in the game in the 3 starts he has made with the team, and, really, can you ask for anything more than that from a young ‘un?

Catchers:

Victor Martinez: B: The beginning of the 2010 campaign was quite frightening with regards to Victor Martinez–his bat was ice cold, and he could not throw out a runner to save his life–and Theo was looking like a genius for not signing him to a long term contract. But, since then, he has worked his butt off, improving both the offensive and defensive aspects of his game–just in time to break him thumb and mess up the whole works…He is slowly working his way back, and will certainly give a boost to the lineup–let’s just hope it comes soon enough…

Jason Varitek: B: When Victor Martinez broke his thumb, no one was super worried about the catching duties–because having a backup catcher of the caliber of Jason Varitek is better than some starting catchers. And serving as backup has seemed to rejuvenate ‘Tek where his numbers have improved significantly. It would have been interesting to see if the good numbers would have been sustained while he filled in for the ailing Martinez–until a foul ball broke HIS foot and will keep him out until sometime in August…

Kevin Cash: C: While he is not the greatest hitter (currently batting .139, and was hitting .202 with Houston) he can catch Tim Wakefield, and has done an OK job as starting catcher of the Boston Red Sox–and only got the job because of a complete decimation of the catching staff–on Big League and AAA Level. Once Victor and ‘Tek are back, look for Kevin to be DFA’ed, or sent to Pawtucket…But for now he is healthy and can hold them together–hopefully…

Infield:

Kevin Youkilis: A+: .297 with 18 homers, 60 RBI’s, and an OBP of .405–Worth his weight in Gold–Manny who?

Dustin Pedroia: A+: Jonathan Papelbon take note: Here is the Cocky SOB with the Stones to pull it off…although when he says things like “I’m the hardest working man in baseball”, it never seems like he is being a jerk…The heart and soul of the Boston Red Sox-his injury is the one that hurts the most, but even a Dustin Pedroia on the DL is worth his weight in gold–times 10…

Marco Scutaro: B: With no backup to speak off, since Bill Hall is backing everyone else up, he has managed to play through his own injuries (neck and elbow) and be in the lineup almost every day, which has more than likely impacted his numbers (.279 with 4 HR–but is hitting .246 for July) and his consistency. If the Sox bring up Jed Lowrie and he can contribute, I think things will even out for Marco…

Adrian Beltre: B: Yeah, I know his bat has been pretty astounding (.334 with 15 homers) But I cannot get past the 15 errors, the fact that he has take out TWO left fielders, breaking 5 ribs on each–and He replaced Mike Lowell…

Bill Hall: C: The Utility Player who is living the dream as a starter–in every position except for 1st base and catcher–Yes, he even pitched! Once all the injured ones are back, Bill can get back to being an excellent and versatile utility guy…

Jed Lowrie: Incomplete: Doesn’t it feel like Jed has been out for 3 years? With all his injuries in 2009, and then the mono that felled him during Spring Training, it was looking like the 2010 campaign was another lost season for him. And really the only reason I am listing him, since I am not critiquing players who have just stopped by for a latte is that JED LOWRIE IS BACK! After a rehab where he hit .370, Jed Lowrie is back with the Sox, and will be activated today–which means Marco Scutaro should get some much needed rest…

Eric Patterson: Incomplete: Only 13 games into his Red Sox tenure, I really don’t have a clear opinion of him. Currently hitting .216 with 2 HR and 3 RBI’s, his best game seemed to be his 1st one–and has trailed off big-time since then–he may be the casualty of the Jed Lowrie activation–but we’ll see…

DH:

David Ortiz: B+: As he did last year, Big Papi struggled mightily in April, even losing his everyday status and being replaced on certain days with Mike Lowell. Fortunately for him, unfortunately for Mike, he completely turned his season around and has been hitting the cover off the ball, even winning the Home Run Derby last week. What keeps Big Papi from getting an A or A- is the fact that he was somewhat of a poor sport when he was struggling–I understand he is a proud man, and April was difficult for him–but players struggle–sometimes alot, sometimes a little–its all about how you deal with it…

Outfield/Bench:

Jeremy Hermida: Incomplete: Another casualty, thanks to the steam roller that is Adrian Beltre, but will be returning to the lineup this week. The best of the bench players that have been doing the starter thing, his return will more than likely spell the end for either Darnell or Daniel. While his average was low before his injury (.217) he can hit Mariano Rivera, stroking a 2-run double off him in the 7-6 win against the Skanks on May 18th.

Darnell McDonald: B: A story to tell your grandchildren, and I know I was in the majority of folks who has NO CLUE who Darnell was before his 1st game in April 20 when he was instrumental in winning what was one UGLY game (the 9 steals game–remember) tying the score in the 8th with a homer in his 1st at-bat, then in the 9th inning, hitting a walk-off single for the win. Of course, his numbers have went down from there, but he is another one of those come from nowhere players who have helped the Sox stay above water. Whether of not he stays with the Sox, I hope he gets to stay in the bigs somewhere…

J.D. Drew: B-: Despite the fact that he has actually played in 84 games out of 94, doesn’t it feel like he is always out with SOME sort of injury? And the “JD Drew is poised to carry this team” front has been remarkably quiet, He hasn’t be BAD–just middle of the road, but he does get on base alot (his OBP us .352–just wished he was driving in more runs…

Mike Cameron: B: I give Mike Cameron alot of credit, playing with such a painful injury–but while he is more fragile and cannot play every day, he give 100% every time he does–I cringe when I watch him make a spectacular play, as I cannot even imagine the pain he is in. Ironically, his BA is still higher that it has been in the last 5 years (based on reduced playing time of course) and the fact that he won’t give up is impressive…

Mike Lowell: Incomplete: I can’t even tell you how disgusted and saddened I am by the whole Mike Lowell situation. Right now he is stil on the DL–for reasons that still completely escape me, as I would think you would actually have to MOVE to hurt yourself. But, apparently, Mike has resigned himself to the fact that the Sox will not do the right thing and release him, preferring to keep him on the bench “Just in case”…

Daniel Nava: B: The $1.00 kid is another story you tell your grandkids–and the grand slam on the 1st pitch he sees in the big–stuff of dreams. But it was once said that the shelf life of a back up player doing the starter things is about 3 weeks–and we are a little bit over that Daniel. Still hitting .289, I expect that will start to drop precipitously…Like Darnell, I hope he gets to stay in the bigs–somewhere…

Jacoby Ellsbury: Incomplete: 9 Games–then off to Arizona for 3 months–rehabbing a similar injury to Jeremy Hermida, who got inured a month later–and will be returning this week–we have NO idea where Jacoby will be back…