The Boston Red Sox kicked off a 7-day, 6-game homestand last night with a 5-1 loss to the AL West-leading Texas Rangers.
Brad Penny started last night for the Red Sox and gave them four solid innings at the start. Then he came unglued in the 5th inning when the Rangers struck for four runs.
We can blame Penny for last night’s loss but some of the blame has to go to Julio Lugo who just can’t get the job done at shortstop. Ever since he’s returned from the knee surgery, his range has deteriorated to almost nothing. And because of that, he couldn’t get to two ground balls last night.
The biggest one he missed last night came in the 5th inning when the Rangers had runners on first and second base and Penny having a 3-2 count on Elvis Andrus. Penny got a ground ball off the bat of Andrus that went under the glove of a diving Lugo, a ball he used to get, that scored the runner from second.
This seemed to unnerve Penny who then left a 2-0 fastball out over the plate to a hitter that you can’t do that to in Ian Kinsler. The Rangers second baseman jacked the ball into the Green Monster seats for a 3-run homer and the Rangers never looked back.
The time has come for Terry Francona to leave Lugo on the bench and go with Nick Green until Jed Lowrie gets back. Lowrie did take BP yesterday for the first time and appears to be on track for a rehab assignment shortly. Lowrie’s return can’t come soon enough though.
Out of range [Boston Globe]
Shortstop’s struggles keep Sox out of range [Boston Herald]
Penny fades in the fifth [Providence Journal]
Rangers Defeat Red Sox For Rare Fenway Win [Hartford Courant]
Ortiz plans to look into possible eye problem [Boston Globe]
Brad Penny laments costly errors [Boston Herald]
Team Doesn’t See Problem, But Ortiz To Be Checked [Hartford Courant]
Red Sox journal: Despite ‘dry’ eyes, Ortiz’s vision is 20-20 [Providence Journal]
He had an exit plan [Boston Globe]
Julio Lugo again proves a pitcher’s worst friend [Boston Herald]
Rain in Pawtucket postpones Smoltz’s start until Saturday [Providence Journal]
Draft prep an important step [Boston Globe]
Dry eye in David Ortiz’s house [Boston Herald]
Red Sox hope to continue to prosper in the draft [Providence Journal]
Ask Amalie, 6.5.09 [Boston Globe]
A first step to Fenway [Boston Herald]
Rescue Squad in the house [Projo Sox Blog]
Ortiz defends Lugo [Clubhouse Insider]
Five Things We Learned: The Shortstop Angst Continues [Alex Speier – WEEI.com]
For more slices of Boston Red Sox goodness, head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, and Providence Journal websites.
And if the enemy papers are more your flavor, you can check out the Dallas Morning News and Ft. Worth Star-Telegram websites.
