Red Hot, Red Sox SS Gets the GREEN Light

This Father's Day (and also Maine Day!) 2009 at Fenway Park was ablaze with excitement. All Sox fans remember the 2007 'Mother's Day Miracle' when the Red Sox came back to win a close game with a base hit in the 9th inning. Well...today we had our Father's Day Miracle.

After a tight game against the Braves - the Braves scored 2 runs in the top of the 1st, and the Red Sox answered with 3 runs in the bottom of the inning...and so on - there was a tied score in the 9th inning. Jonathan Papelbon was called upon to shut down the Braves in the top half to prevent a go ahead run from scoring. After an out, then letting men on base, Papelbon had a huge strikeout to end the top half of the 9th.

With the score tied at 5-5, Nick Green was the first batter up in the Sox order to appear in that inning. First pitch, he belts a drive to right field that...wraps around the pole for a homerun! Now, the wind had been a very big factor in keeping many balls down through the whole game, blowing back in towards home plate, but it did not affect this ball. Green said after the game that he "didn't realize it was a walk-off - until [he] saw everyone walking off the field". Now how is that for modesty, huh? It was Green's second walk-off homer of his career - his first with the Red Sox.

In filling in at shortstop for the Red Sox this season - after both Julio Lugo and Jed Lowrie were out with injuries - Nick Green has shown that he sure can play at the major leage level. Getting base hits in dire situations, driving in runs, playing solid defense (with a few spectacular plays), and just getting on base...Green has stepped up and given the Sox a reliable SS position player (as well as playing 2nd when needed). It will be a sad thing to watch Green slowly become the utility man when Lowrie comes back, because he has so clearly shown that he can come out and play major league caliber baseball every day - and play it well, in respect.

Anyway, the homerun hitting shortstop was, of course, greeted by his smiling and rowdy teammates at home plate after his game winning homer. Catcher George Kottaras - who had been on deck - threw off his helmet with a huge grin and proceeded to wait at home to ambush his colleague. A good day in Red Sox Nation. A good day for Red Sox loving Father's. And a good day for Nick Green.

Other Game/Sox Notes:

-Big Papi hit his 6th homerun of the season over the green monster to put the Red Sox - at the time - ahead 3-2

-Daisuke Matsuzaka was put on the disabled list. Trainers and doctors are saying that his shoulder is very worn down. We are not sure how long he will be on the DL.

Dice-K Fails...Once Again

Final Red Sox vs. Braves Score (6/19):

Red Sox - 2

Braves - 8

Daisuke Matsuzaka got the loss for the Sox in Fenway against the Braves on Friday night. He isnow 1-5 with an ERA of 8.23 on the season. The first pitch Dice-K threw was a jack out to right field to put the Braves quickly ahead. The next four batters would reach base against Matsuzaka - who was pulled from the game in the fifth inning after allowing six runs.

Afterwards he would say "If I keep going like this, I have no right to be a part of this rotation..." And, yes, many people would agree. Most prominently, the adamant fans of Red Sox Nation would agree. Especially since the Sox will be welcoming a sixth man to their starting rotation with the addition of John Smoltz making his much anticipated debut with Boston next tuesday vs. the Nationals.

Now, of course we aren't saying get Dice out of the rotation and hand his spot over to Smoltz immediately. Nope. Start out with this six man rotation when you first get Smoltz in there. But, something is gonna have to be done about Dice-K if he doesn't improve in the very near future. I mean, you can't keep him in the rotation when he is not producing and you have five other guys who (hopefully, at least) are. That would only mean less starts for your top of the rotation guys - Beckett, Lester, and Wakefield.

Now to come back to Fridays loss. The Sox offense was not in full swing (no pun intended) in the slightest. In fact, every Red Sox hitter was hitless - with the exception of Jason Bay - who had the only two Sox hits of the night with a double and a 2-run homer.

Basically, it was just not on tonight for the Red Sox...but a completely different story for the Braves. Their starting pitcher - Kenshin Kawakami - allowed two hits and two runs in six innings, making it the ninth straight start in which he gave up three (earned) runs or less.

A Not-So-Sweet Homecoming for A-Rod

So, I do not know why I am going to make my first post on this blog about A-Rod, but I'll say it has to do with this news just hitting in the last few hours.

Alex Rodriguez, after waiting "five or seven years" to come back and play in his hometown of Miami, will have to wait a little longer. The Yankees have benched A-Rod for two days, due to what the team calls "fatigue". Rodriguez is batting a mere .145 (8 for 55) in this month of June and is currently in the midst of an 0-for-15 slump while having a .212 BA with nine homeruns and 26 RBI on the season.

"We just feel that he needs a couple days physically," (Manager Joe) Girardi said. "Is he sore? No, he's not sore. But we think he's a little bit run down and that he could recharge his batteries." After missing Spring Training and the start of the season, because of surgery on his hip, A-Rod has played in every game since his return to the Yanks on May 8th vs. Baltimore in which he hit a homer on the first pitch of his first at bat.

Joe Girardi did say that Rodriguez will be available to pinch hit if need be - which is a very real possibility while playing in an NL ballpark - unless the Yankees want to rest and save him completely. Angel Berroa will replace Rodriguez on Friday night in Miami.