Afternoon Red Sox Delight – 7/11

The Boston Red Sox pulled even in the four game series with the Kansas City Royals behind the strong pitching of Jon Lester and the clutch hitting of Dustin Pedroia. Tonight, they look to at least guarantee themselves a split and maintain their one-game lead over the New York Yankees in the AL East.

The game tonight will start at 7:10 PM EDT and will be televised in the Red Sox television market on NESN. If you live in the Royals’ television market, you can catch the game on FOX Sports Kansas City. And if the television isn’t your cup of tea, you can catch the game on one of the many affiliates of the Red Sox Radio Network.

John Smoltz looks to rebound from a rough outing at Fenway on Monday night. He’s made three starts in a Red Sox uniform and is 0-2 with a 6.60 ERA. He’s faced the Royals just once in his career and is 0-0 with 0.00 ERA and 1 save.

Gil Meche has had good success in his career against the Red Sox and hopes that continues tonight. On the season, he is 4-8 with a 4.14 ERA in 18 starts. Meche has faced the Red Sox 9 times in his career and is 5-2 with a 3.62 ERA. While he’s had his success at home, his record at Fenway isn’t that great. He’s 1-2 with a
5.55 ERA in 4 career starts.

Pregame notes: Francona high on Smoltz [Extra Bases]

For Francona, good news arrives at all hours [Projo Sox Blog]

Lowell ready to go [Projo Sox Blog]

Bard making the most of his opportunity [RedSox.com]

Will Wakefield be the last to wear No. 49 for the Red Sox? [NESN.com]

Here are the lineups for tonight’s game:

Here is how the hitters have fared against tonight’s starting pitchers: