I guess we should be calling Tampa Bay Rays starter David Price a slacker. After all, he was the only Rays pitcher not to throw a complete game against the Boston Red Sox during the three-game two day set.
The one thing though Price had in common with fellow starters James Shields and Jeff Niemann is the fact that he also only gave up three hits in the Rays 4-0 win over the Red Sox. Fortunately though for the Red Sox, their upcoming opponent, the Kansas City Royals, beat the New York Yankees last night so the Red Sox remain a ½ game behind the Yanks in the AL East.
Over the three games, it appears the Red Sox offense has taken a late summer vacation. They got a total of nine hits and scored just five runs. If it weren’t for one mistake pitch to Jacoby Ellsbury in the first game of the doubleheader on Tuesday, it’s quite possible the Red Sox could have been swept.
Obviously right now, injuries are a concern for the Red Sox. They were without David Ortiz for the three games as he’s battling a case of bursitis in his right heel. Marco Scutaro missed the three games with back stiffness and Kevin Youkilis is still battling back pain as well. Plus you have Adrian Gonzalez dealing with some neck stiffness as well.
The Red Sox will be without Big Papi probably for at least the next four games in Kansas City. There’s no word on when Scutaro may return. But it’s quite possible if that someone goes on the disabled list, the Red Sox could call up Ryan Lavarnway from Triple-A Pawtucket according to Alex Speier of WEEI.com.
Obviously if this ends up being the case, Lavarnway would be the DH while Big Papi is out as I’m sure they probably wouldn’t put him behind the plate for a whole game, maybe as a late inning replacement at most. While you think they don’t want to hurt his development, the Red Sox are in the business of winning baseball games and right now Lavarnway could be the answer to help them.
The last time the Red Sox and Royals met up, they split the four-game set at Fenway Park. If the offense doesn’t find a way to pick things up, it could be worse this time around. I certainly hope that’s not the case though.
We’ll be back later today with the lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and more for tonight’s game. But for now enjoy the overnight links from the media by clicking on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.
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Not much sock [Boston Globe]
Lackey lacked only support [Boston Globe]
Ortiz is cooling his heel [Boston Globe]
Hitless wondering at Fenway [Boston Globe]
Red Sox hit another bump [Boston Herald]
Carl Crawford’s woes continue vs. ex-mates [Boston Herald]
Injuries, slumping bats a concern for Red Sox [Boston Herald]
Triple dip brings John Valentin into play [Boston Herald]
Don’t take Lester for granted [Chad Finn’s Touching All Bases]
Red Sox fall to Rays in series finale [CSN New England]
Sox hope to rebound after historically bad series [CSN New England]
Notes: Lackey decent, Ellsbury still hitting [CSN New England]
Stiff neck limiting Gonzo’s power? [ESPN Boston]
Rapid reaction: Rays 4, Red Sox 0 [ESPN Boston]
Price dominated by living on edges [ESPN Boston]
Boston Red Sox find hits hard to come by against Rays [ESPN Boston]
Carl Crawford tries to simplify approach at the plate [ESPN Boston]
A ‘big day’ for Ryan Westmoreland [Full Count]
Closing Time: Rays pitching dominates as Sox drop finale [Full Count]
Maddon on Ortiz’ absence: No one’s crying for the Red Sox [Full Count]
Joe Maddon: The longshot Rays are still in it in the AL East [Full Count]
Carl Crawford knows all about ‘starting from scratch’ [Full Count]
Is Ryan Lavarnway about to get called up to the Red Sox? [Full Count]
New Red Sox Jackie Bradley ‘ready for the adventure’ of pro ball [Full Count]
Video: John Lackey Pleased With Where He Is Physically, Confident in Himself Going Forward [NESN.com]
Dog Days Taking Bite Out of Red Sox As They Drop Series to Rays [NESN.com]
Red Sox Feeling Massive Void Created by David Ortiz’s Injury [NESN.com]
Red Sox Road Trip Presents Potential Pitfalls, As Well As Opportunity to Break Out of Slump [NESN.com]
Price puts Sox bats to sleep [Providence Journal]
Ryan Lavarnway is used to beating the doubters [Providence Journal]
Rays series a historically bad one for Boston bats [Providence Journal]
Westmoreland faces live pitching for first time since surgery [Providence Journal]
Red Sox Journal: Heel expected to shelve Ortiz for at least a week [Providence Journal]
After two relief outings, Miller to start Friday [RedSox.com]
Aviles seeing plenty of action with new ballclub [RedSox.com]
The ‘next Johnny Damon’ is making quite a name for himself [Rob Bradford – WEEI.com]
For more slices of Red Sox goodness, head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, CSN New England, ESPN Boston, NESN, Providence Journal, RedSox.com and WEEI websites.
And if you must check out the enemy news, head over the to St. Petersburg Times and Tampa Tribune websites.
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
Photo credit: Getty Images
