After winning last night 8-6, the Boston Red Sox look to get back to .500 and take the weekend series tonight in the finale of a three-game set with the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx.

First pitch is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. and will be broadcast nationally on ESPN. You can also watch the game online at ESPN3.com or on your mobile device with the WatchESPN app. If you can’t catch the television broadcast, you can always listen to it on the Red Sox radio network.

Felix Doubront toes the rubber for the 20th time this season tonight. In his previous 19 starts, Doubront is 10-5 with a 4.54 ERA. He’s made two starts against the Yankees this season and is 1-0 with a 2.92 ERA (4 ER/12.1 IP). He’s made six career appearances (two starts) against the Evil Empire and is 1-0 with a 3.18 ERA (6 ER/17 IP). Two of those appearances have come in the Bronx where he has no record with a 0.00 ERA (0 ER/2 IP).

Hiroki Kuroda will make his 21st start of 2012 for Joe Girardi. In his previous 20 starts, Kuroda is 10-7 with a 3.34 ERA. He picked up a no decision in his only start of 2012 against the Red Sox after allowing seven runs (six earned) in 5.2 innings back on July 6th. Overall in his career, Kuroda has made two starts against the Red Sox and is 0-1 with a 5.68 ERA (8 ER/12.2 IP).

Click on the read more button below to see today’s lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and links from the day if you’re on the home page.

Here are today’s lineups:

50-51		60-40
1. Jacoby Ellsbury	CF	1. Derek Jeter	SS
2. Carl Crawford	LF	2. Curtis Granderson	CF
3. Dustin Pedroia	2B	3. Mark Teixeira	1B
4. Adrian Gonzalez	1B	4. Robinson Cano	2B
5. Cody Ross	DH	5. Nick Swisher	DH
6. Jarrod Saltalamacchia	C	6. Andruw Jones	LF
7. Will Middlebrooks	3B	7. Russell Martin	C
8. Ryan Sweeney	RF	8. Ichiro Suzuki	RF
9. Pedro Ciriaco	SS	9. Jayson Nix	3B
Felix Doubront	SP	Hiroki Kuroda	SP

And here is how the hitters have fared against today’s starting pitchers:

NOTES:

REFRESH OR CHECK BACK OFTEN AS MORE LINKS WILL BE ADDED BEFORE GAMETIME IF/WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE AND WILL BE BOLDED

To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click

Vicente Padilla-Mark Teixeira feud spices up rivalry [boston herald]

Bobby V on Francona chatting with players: ‘I didn’t think it was any big deal’ [clubhouse insider]

Francona apologizes to Valentine via text [csn new england]

Doubront hopes to stay ahead of curve [espn boston]

Doubront faces Yanks in finale [espn boston]

Ortiz, Middlebrooks in PLAY clinic on Monday [extra bases]

Gonzalez heating up, but walks remain a mystery [extra bases]

What Impact Could Daniel Bard Have on the Red Sox if Called Back Up? [nesn.com]

Xander Bogaerts Enjoying Success Down on the Farm, Has a ‘Very High Ceiling’ (Video) [nesn.com]

Dustin Pedroia, Pedro Ciriaco Both Scorching as Red Sox Attempt to Take Series Against Archrival Yankees [nesn.com]

Bobby Valentine Not Bothered by Terry Francona’s Behavior in the Red Sox Clubhouse [nesn.com]

Mike Aviles Sitting Against Yankees Due to Turf Toe That’s ‘Affecting His Batting’ [nesn.com]

What if Cherington sells? A trade-deadline projection [projo sox blog]

Valentine doesn’t see Crawford surgery as inevitable [projo sox blog]

Bothersome toe keeps Aviles out of lineup [projo sox blog]

Valentine expects Red Sox to be ‘in it to win it’ at trade deadline [projo sox blog]

Valentine not put off by Francona session in clubhouse [projo sox blog]

Doubront looking to build momentum for Sox [redsox.com]

Francona apologizes to Valentine via text [redsox.com]

Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.

photo credits: ap photo, ap photo

There have been moments where we are ready to give up on the 2012 version of the Boston Red Sox. Then there have been moments where they show us just a glimmer of hope.

Last night’s game was a mixture of both of them.

After watching the New York Yankees overcome a 6-1 deficit in the 8th when Mark Teixeira homered off of his nemesis Vicente Padilla to tie the game up, we were ready to give up on them and the season. But thanks to Curtis Granderson misplaying a Pedro Ciriaco flyball into a triple, the 2012 season was saved again, albeit temporarily.

The misplay allowed Jacoby Ellsbury to score from first and put the Red Sox out front. Dustin Pedroia brought in Ciriaco with a sac fly to give Alfredo Aceves an insurance run. Aceves wouldn’t need it though as he set the Yanks down in order to pick up his 22nd save of 2012 and give the Red Sox life for another day.

Ciriaco had a nice day at the plate with three hits but it was Adrian Gonzalez who powered the Red Sox offense to the lead. He had three hits including a RBI double in the first off of CC Sabathia. He also hit a three-run homer in the 5th to push the Sox lead to 6-1. Will Middlebrooks also had two hits including a big two-run double in the 1st inning.

It’s really tough to get a good read on the outing for Jon Lester just one start after being embarrassed on the bump.

While he looked dominant at times, he also allowed the Yankees to get within striking distance. He did only allow four hits but the Yanks made the most of them as two of them were longballs.

He left a fastball out over the plate that Chris Stewart crushed for his first home run of the season. In the 5th after Gonzo’s home run had given Lester a five-run lead, he gave three of them back. Two of them came on a Jayson Nix two-run blast and a Derek Jeter groundout.

Overall though, you have to be proud of the way he bounced back. He really had no where to go but up after that last stop. And while he didn’t completely get there last night, he made some steps in the right direction. Hopefully he uses the time between starts to figure out what worked and what went wrong.

If the Red Sox are going to make that push, they’ll need Lester and of course Josh Beckett to figure things out. If that happens, there’s no telling what can happen.

With the trade deadline coming up in two days, the result of tonight’s game will probably go a long way in determining where the Red Sox stand. Hopefully it’s a Red Sox win and we don’t have to watch the band break up.

We’ll be back later with today’s lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and links from the day. So for now, let’s take a look at the overnight links from the media.

To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click

No ‘W’, but a winning effort for Lester [boston globe]

Designated hero [boston globe]

Latest controversy came out of left field [boston globe]

Crawford’s schedule requires managing [boston globe]

Keeping the rivalry heated [boston globe]

Red Sox resilient in NY [boston herald]

Jon Lester shows flashes [boston herald]

Carl Crawford told to rest [boston herald]

Felix Doubront still feels strong [boston herald]

Typical crazy day for Bobby V’s bipolar boys [boston herald]

Amidst the chaos, Jon Lester delivers the Red Sox’ most important story [rob bradford – weei.com]

Sox regain fighting spirit, 8-6 [csn new england]

Lester, Gonzalez walk the walk [csn new england]

Red Sox notes: Ciriaco continues mastery of Yankees [csn new england]

Bailey, Dice-K on rehab; Atchison setback [espn boston]

Rapid Reaction: Red Sox 8, Yankees 6 [espn boston]

Bobby Valentine’s leadership of the Boston Red Sox isn’t working [espn boston]

Closing Time: Adrian Gonzalez, Pedro Ciriaco lead Red Sox to late win over Yankees [full count]

Andrew Bailey Willing to Let Alfredo Aceves Finish the Season as the Red Sox Closer If Needed [nesn.com]

Scott Atchison Hits Setback in Pawtucket, And Will Have More Tests On His Forearm [nesn.com]

Daisuke Matsuzaka Slated to Start Minor League Rehab Assignment in Pawtucket on Monday [nesn.com]

Terry Francona Gathers Red Sox Players in Visiting Clubhouse for Jokes, Chatter [nesn.com]

Adrian Gonzalez Catches Fire, Regains Power Punch at Right Time for Red Sox [nesn.com]

Jon Lester Records 1,000th Career Strikeout in Bottom of Sixth Inning Against Robinson Cano [nesn.com]

Red Sox Could Yet Make a Deal, Says Ken Rosenthal, In Midst of Hectic Trade Deadline Season [nesn.com]

Red Sox Get a Little Luck on Their Side in Series-Tying Defeat of Yankees [nesn.com]

Lester caps rough July with strong performance [redsox.com]

Crawford usage latest ‘drama’ for Bobby V [redsox.com]

Sox get positive news on Bailey, Dice-K [redsox.com]

Crawford gets medically mandated day off [redsox.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 to the ESPN New York, New York Daily News, New York Post, New York Times and The Journal News websites. You can also check out our Bloguin brother, NYY Stadium Insider.

Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.

Paw Prints is our daily look at the happenings for the UConn Huskies football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball teams as well as the other sports the student-athletes engage in. We will do our best to bring you the links from all of the media that covers the Huskies on a daily basis. As always, links can be found by clicking on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.

Thank you for stopping by and making SOX & Dawgs your home for UConn Huskies news.

To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click

UConn Football links

UConn’s Trevardo Williams sets his goal: 16 sacks this season [ct post]

Bears add CB Ware, waive PK Teggart [espn chicago]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Team USA Downs Croatia, 81-56, in Olympic Opener [uconnhuskies.com]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

UConn 2013 recruiting targets by position [kevin duffy – ct post]

Other UConn related links

Ten huskies compete in Olympic games [the daily campus]

An Olympic Debt Repaid: Dee Rowe [uconnhuskies.com]

Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.

Paw Prints is our daily look at the happenings for the UConn Huskies football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball teams as well as the other sports the student-athletes engage in. We will do our best to bring you the links from all of the media that covers the Huskies on a daily basis. As always, links can be found by clicking on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.

Thank you for stopping by and making SOX & Dawgs your home for UConn Huskies news.

To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click

UConn Football links

It’s Football Time: Media Guide, Public Practices, Ticket Info [uconnhuskies.com]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Team USA Will Open Olympic Play Saturday vs. Croatia [uconnhuskies.com]

Auriemma: US Women need to win gold, look good doing it [ct post]

Ex-Tennessee Lady Vols team up with former rival Geno Auriemma to chase gold [the tennessean]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

What’s Hilton Armstrong up to these days? [the uconn blog]

Gay To Be Honored By Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce [uconnhuskies.com]

Other UConn related links

Over 200 UConn Student-Athletes Honored By BIG EAST [uconnhuskies.com]

W. Soccer. Len Tsantiris Inducted Into AHEPA Athletic Hall Of Fame [uconnhuskies.com]

Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.

After being Granderslammed last night 10-3, the Boston Red Sox really need to get back on track in the middle game of a three-game set with the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx.

First pitch is scheduled for 4:05 p.m. and will be broadcast to 77% of the country on FOX. If you can’t catch the television broadcast, you can always listen to it on the Red Sox radio network.

After being embarrassed his last time out, Jon Lester looks to turn his fortunes back around in his 21st of 2012. In his previous 20 starts, Lester is 5-8 with a 5.46 ERA. He took the loss in his only start of the season against the Yankees after allowing four runs in 4.1 innings back on July 8th. Lester has made 18 career starts against the Bronx Bombers and is 8-4 with a 4.33 ERA. 10 of those starts have come in the Bronx where he is 6-2 with a 3.75 ERA.

CC Sabathia will make his third start since returning from the DL and it will be his 18th start of the season. In his previous 17 starts, Sabathia is 10-3 with a 3.30 ERA. He has not faced the Red Sox this season and was 1-4 with a 6.39 ERA in five starts last year. Sabathia has made 20 career starts against the Red Sox and is 7-9 with a 4.14 ERA.

Click on the read more button below to see today’s lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and links from the day if you’re on the home page.

Here are today’s lineups:

49-51		60-39
1. Jacoby Ellsbury	CF	1. Derek Jeter	SS
2. Pedro Ciriaco	DH	2. Curtis Granderson	CF
3. Dustin Pedroia	2B	3. Mark Teixeira	1B
4. Adrian Gonzalez	1B	4. Robinson Cano	2B
5. Cody Ross	RF	5. Andruw Jones	LF
6. Will Middlebrooks	3B	6. Jayson Nix	3B
7. Kelly Shoppach	C	7. Russell Martin	DH
8. Mike Aviles	SS	8. Ichiro Suzuki	RF
9. Daniel Nava	LF	9. Chris Stewart	C
Jon Lester	SP	CC Sabathia	SP

And here is how the hitters have fared against today’s starting pitchers:

NOTES:

REFRESH OR CHECK BACK OFTEN AS MORE LINKS WILL BE ADDED BEFORE GAMETIME IF/WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE AND WILL BE BOLDED

To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click

Nothing new for Red Sox [boston globe]

Lester’s uphill climb [boston globe]

Cherington keeping options open at deadline [boston globe]

Turning point was early [boston globe]

One wild thought: They’re done [boston globe]

Yanks Cook up a storm [boston herald]

Pedroia’s tired of excuses for losing [boston herald]

Ben: It’s all up to Sox [boston herald]

Pay attention Red Sox [boston herald]

Lester in the here and now [boston herald]

Reality hits hard [boston herald]

Carl Crawford medical drama takes another twist [boston herald]

Source: Sox keeping Ross despite interest [rob bradford – weei.com]

Cherington: Beckett not Sox’ problem [rob bradford – weei.com]

Crawford: Andrews said surgery inevitable [rob bradford – weei.com]

Elbowed out? Carl Crawford medical drama takes another twist [clubhouse insider]

Atchison suffers setback; Bailey, Matsuzaka set for rehab assignments [clubhouse insider]

Yankees blast Sox, 10-3 [csn new england]

Pedroia sounds the alarm [csn new england]

Merloni: I wouldnt’ do anything at deadline [csn new england]

Defensive miscues open door for Yankees [csn new england]

Tomase: Cherington should ‘exploit’ seller’s market [csn new england]

Cherington, Epstein take similar approach [csn new england]

Red Sox notes: Ortiz takes BP [csn new england]

Crawford ’embarrassed’ by four-day program [csn new england]

Ross: ‘I’d rather be of value to this team’ [espn boston]

Pedroia doesn’t spare the stars [espn boston]

Sox won’t stop believing after Yanks’ rout [espn boston]

Sox turn to Lester vs. Yanks’ Sabathia [espn boston]

Ross doesn’t want to be traded [espn boston]

Bobby’s roles: skipper, cyclist … movie mogul? [espn boston]

‘Embarrassed’ Crawford sits; Tito visits [espn boston]

Carl Crawford sits on ‘four-day timetable,’ future surgery still likely [extra bases]

Francona holds court in Red Sox clubhouse [extra bases]

Closing Time: Yankees help dig an even deeper hole for Red Sox [full count]

As he nears return, Andrew Bailey ‘[doesn’t] really care’ about role [full count]

Red Sox Pregame Notes: Bobby Valentine on his ‘manager no-no’ and Carl Crawford’s schedule [full count]

Jackie Bradley, Michael Almanzar leave impression during Billy McMillon’s 1st season in Salem [goupstate.com]

Jon Lester Alters Routine Between Starts, Has Batters Stand in During Bullpen Session [nesn.com]

Dustin Pedroia Blasts Team for Subpar Play, Challenges Them to Stop Using Injuries as Excuses [nesn.com]

Jon Lester’s Importance Now Greater Than Ever as Red Sox on Verge of Implosion [nesn.com]

Aaron Cook Takes Responsibility for New York’s Home Run Barrage, Says He Could’ve Minimized Damage [nesn.com]

Mark Melancon Has No Regrets About Career With Yankees and Failure to Become Mariano Rivera’s Successor [nesn.com]

Which Former Red Sox Player Who Joined the Yankees Do You Hate the Most? [nesn.com]

Josh Beckett Needs to Take Advantage of Support, Show Red Sox He Can Help Team Beyond Trade Deadline [nesn.com]

Carl Crawford Says Not Playing Is ‘Embarrassing’ as Bobby Valentine Reveals ‘Four-Day Plan’ for Outfielder [nesn.com]

Yankees on reeling Red Sox: ‘You can’t take them lightly’ [projo sox blog]

Atchison suffers setback in rehab appearance [projo sox blog]

Crawford out of lineup because of rest program [projo sox blog]

Bailey to start rehab, but still “weeks” away [projo sox blog]

Matsuzaka to rehab with PawSox [projo sox blog]

Francona holds court in Red Sox clubhouse [projo sox blog]

Doubront hasn’t backed down against Yankees [projo sox blog]

Lester looks to rebound, help Sox gain on Yanks [redsox.com]

Aviles’ miscue opens door to three-run inning [redsox.com]

Cherington will be prudent on evaluating trades [redsox.com]

Papi sheds walking boot, itching to return to lineup [redsox.com]

Bard making strides, could be back soon [redsox.com]

Valentine confident Red Sox will turn it around [redsox.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 to the ESPN New York, New York Daily News, New York Post, New York Times and The Journal News websites. You can also check out our Bloguin brother, NYY Stadium Insider.

Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.

photo credits: ap photo, ap photo

After losing two-of-three in Texas and a day off yesterday, the Boston Red Sox continue their six-game road trip with their first trip to the Bronx this season. Tonight, they’ll take on the New York Yankees in the first game of a three-game set at Yankee Stadium.

First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. and will be broadcast on NESN in the Red Sox television market. If you live in the Yankees television market, you can watch the game on YES. If you don’t live in either market you’re in luck as the MLB Network will have coverage of the game (not in Red Sox or Yankees television markets). If you can’t catch the television broadcast, you can always listen to it on the Red Sox radio network.

Aaron Cook looks to exercise his New York demons in his seventh start of 2012. In his previous six starts, Cook is 2-3 with a 3.50 ERA. His lone career start against the Yankees came last year at Yankee Stadium when he took the loss as a member of the Colorado Rockies after allowing five runs in 5.2 innings of work. 

Phil Hughes will make his 20th start for the AL East-leading Yankees. In his previous 19 starts, Hughes is 9-8 with a 4.09 ERA. He took the loss in his only start of the season against the Red Sox after allowing five runs (three earned) in 5.1 innings back on July 7th. Hughes has made 17 career appearances (nine starts) against the visiting nine and is 2-6 with a 6.49 ERA.

Click on the read more button below to see today’s lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and links from the day if you’re on the home page.

Here are today’s lineups:

49-50		59-39
1. Jacoby Ellsbury	CF	1. Derek Jeter	SS
2. Carl Crawford	LF	2. Curtis Granderson	CF
3. Dustin Pedroia	2B	3. Robinson Cano	2B
4. Adrian Gonzalez	1B	4. Mark Teixeira	1B
5. Cody Ross	RF	5. Raul Ibanez	LF
6. Jarrod Saltalamacchia	C	6. Andruw Jones	DH
7. Will Middlebrooks	3B	7. Eric Chavez	3B
8. Daniel Nava	DH	8. Ichiro Suzuki	RF
9. Mike Aviles	SS	9. Russell Martin	C
Aaron Cook	SP	Phil Hughes	SP

And here is how the hitters have fared against today’s starting pitchers:

NOTES:

REFRESH OR CHECK BACK OFTEN AS MORE LINKS WILL BE ADDED BEFORE GAMETIME IF/WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE AND WILL BE BOLDED

To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click

Pregame notes: Ortiz starts hitting [rob bradford – weei.com]

Red Sox Must Do Something, Anything Before Trade Deadline to Provide Much-Needed Shakeup [tom caron – nesn.com]

Ben Cherington to WEEI: Red Sox not ready to sell [clubhouse insider]

David Ortiz takes batting practice, hopeful of returning next week [clubhouse insider]

Ben Cherington: ‘Best way to improve is with the guys that are here’ [clubhouse insider]

Valentine: ‘We’re headed in the right direction’ [csn new england]

Ichiro a Red Sox killer? [espn boston]

Ortiz on pace to return Aug. 1 [espn boston]

Bobby: ‘Time to put the pedal to the metal’ [espn boston]

Bobby: Sox ‘heading in the right direction’ [espn boston]

Video: Cafardo previews Red Sox-Yankees [extra bases]

Schedule does not bode well for the Red Sox [extra bases]

Cherington: Red Sox are still buyers at deadline [extra bases]

David Ortiz out of walking boot, hitting today [extra bases]

The Ichiro Show comes to New York [extra bases]

Cherington says Red Sox will be cautious buyers [extra bases]

Jerry Remy on D&C: Carl Crawford situation ‘a total mess right now’ [full count]

Kevin Millar on M&M: Red Sox should ‘make a splash,’ chase Matt Garza [full count]

Aaron Cook’s unique path to history (and the rumor mill) [full count]

Josh Beckett ‘absolutely’ wants to stay with Red Sox unless he’s ‘not wanted’ [full count]

So many questions, but time running out for Red Sox [tony massarotti – boston globe]

Police find missing Wally [necn.com]

Ben Cherington Admits Red Sox Are in ‘Unusual Position,’ But Will Look to Improve Team at Trade Deadline [nesn.com]

Are the Red Sox or Phillies More Likely to Get Hot and Make the Playoffs? [nesn.com]

Mark Teixeira, Derek Jeter, Ichiro Suzuki Coming Into Yankees-Red Sox Series on Fire [nesn.com]

Wally the Green Monster Stolen From Fenway Park [nesn.com]

Bobby Valentine Believes Ichiro Will Thrive With the Yankees, Improve His National Exposure [nesn.com]

David Ortiz Sheds Walking Boot, Says He’s ‘Going to the Moon’ In Batting Practice [nesn.com]

Daniel Bard Gaining Steam in the Minors, ‘Getting Closer’ to Promotion Back to the Majors [nesn.com]

A Series Matter: Red Sox-Yankees and Hope [projo sox blog]

Cherington: ‘Right now, we’re looking to improve’ [projo sox blog]

Yankees hope Suzuki provides spark [projo sox blog]

Market forces as much of a factor for Cherington as standings [projo sox blog]

Red Sox sticking in rotation rather than bumping up Buchholz [projo sox blog]

Ortiz takes BP for first time [projo sox blog]

Valentine sees reasons for optimism [projo sox blog]

Roster flux gives Red Sox-Yanks a new feel [redsox.com]

Red Sox stopper Morales spends day in Fan Cave [redsox.com]

Wally’s costume returned after misunderstanding [redsox.com]

Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.

photo credits: reuters pictures, getty images