One big fat meatball pitch from Matt Albers was the final difference from keeping Daniel Bard from picking up his second win as a starter for the Boston Red Sox and third overall this season last night in Kansas City.

Look, I’m not going to bash Albers at all even with him serving up a three-run homer to Billy Butler that gave the Kansas City Royals the 6-4 win.

The Red Sox bullpen has been outstanding as of late despite the fact the local nine has lost six of their last seven games. If we were to get on anything at all, it should be the starting pitching.

Bard ventured to a place where he’s normally comfortable, if he was still a reliever. For the first time this season, Bard pitched into the 8th inning. Take away his meltdown in the 2nd inning and the two walks to the last two batters he faced in the 8th, Bard threw the ball well and continued to be one of the, if not the only, consistent starter the Red Sox have had this season.

The 2nd inning runs were mostly his doing. Bard became too worried with the runners on base and lost his focus. He balked in a run and then committed another balk to move the runner to third only to see him come around to score on a Chris Getz single. Then he uncorked a wild pitch to move Getz into scoring position. Getz would score the third run of the inning on a Humberto Quintero single.

After that, Bard settled down as he retired 13 of the next 14 batters. He ran into some trouble in the 7th inning but was bailed out when the Royals tried a safety squeeze with runners on 2nd and 3rd. Alcides Escobar‘s bunt went right to Adrian Gonzalez who threw home to nail Jeff Francouer with Kelly Shoppach doing an excellent job of blocking the plate.

Will Middlebrooks got the Red Sox going offensively in the 2nd inning when he doubled and eventually scored on a Kelly Shoppach single. Unfortunately for the Red Sox and Middlebrooks, he had to leave with hamstring tightness, the same ailment that caused him to miss a game last week. The Red Sox added another run that inning when Dustin Pedroia reached on a bases loaded walk.

Pedroia provided the tying run in the 4th when he brought in former Royals SS Mike Aviles who had doubled the batter before. They took the lead in the 5th when Gonzalez scored on a throwing error.

Sure Gonzo has been struggling off and on for the past week or so. But if you watched his swing on his two hits last night, you could tell that he’s found it again. Hopefully it sticks around for a while longer. For those of you worried about his numbers, I wouldn’t be. He’s one of the best hitters in the game and his numbers will come. Marlon Byrd also added two hits in the game.

This was definitely a game the Red Sox should have won. You could question as to why Bobby Valentine didn’t bring in a reliever to start the 8th clean. But with Bard’s pitch count under 100 at the time, it might be hard to second guess him.

A win tonight though against one of the worst teams in baseball would go a long way right now before heading back home to Fenway Park where they have struggled this season.

We’ll be back later with today’s lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and links from the day. So for now, let’s take at look at the overnight links from the media by clicking on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.

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

No finishing touch as Royals top Sox [Boston Globe]

Gonzalez’s birthday a Royal pain [Boston Globe]

Leg woes slow Middlebrooks [Boston Globe]

Times Co. reported near deal on Sox [Boston Globe]

No relief for Red Sox [Boston Herald]

Rare Daniel Bard balks come at bad time [Boston Herald]

Will-ing to be creative [Boston Herald]

Will Middlebrooks up, down [Boston Herald]

The search is still on for Daniel Bard’s eighth-inning replacement [Rob Bradford – WEEI.com]

Butler’s home run leads Royals to 6-4 win [CSN New England]

Middlebrooks leaves game with hamstring tightness [CSN New England]

Bard’s late-inning control problems doom Red Sox [CSN New England]

Rapid Reaction: Royals 6, Red Sox 4 [ESPN Boston]

Middlebrooks: Hamstring ‘not a big deal’ [ESPN Boston]

Bard, Sox were smelling victory too soon [ESPN Boston]

Video: Kruk on what Sox need to improve [ESPN Boston]

Closing Time: Billy Butler, Royals spoil night for Daniel Bard, Red Sox [Full Count]

Will Middlebrooks Downplays Severity of Cramping Issue, Explains Team Just Playing It Safe [NESN.com]

Daniel Bard Still Learning How To Finish Games While Mixing Longevity With Efficiency [NESN.com]

Daisuke Matsuzaka Could Be Miracle Elixir for Red Sox Rotation Struggles [NESN.com]

Adrian Gonzalez Looks Like He May Be ‘Rolling,’ and That’s Good for Red Sox [NESN.com]

Chat Live With Will Middlebrooks on NESN.com on Friday at Noon ET [NESN.com]

Brunansky’s ‘still in awe’ over honor from Red Sox [Pawtucket Times]

Pena, Greenville ‘pen combine on historic no-hitter [RedSox.com]

Valentine visits Negro Leagues Museum [RedSox.com]

Facing another lefty, Salty, Sweeney sit again [RedSox.com]

Red Sox enthused by Ellsbury’s progress [RedSox.com]

Middlebrooks: Hamstring tightness not serious [RedSox.com]

Eighth-inning fatigue caps Bard’s erratic night [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, be sure to head over to the Kansas City Star and Topeka Capital-Journal websites.

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

photo credit: AP Photo

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

Preseason rankings and the Big East [Andrea Adelson – ESPN.com]

Florida Transfer Graham Stewart Visiting UConn Wednesday [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

UConn’s Memorial Stadium Coming Down [Hartford Courant]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Stokes To Be In A Boot For Six Weeks [Rich Elliott – CT Post]

CPTV Disappointed, Saddened As UConn Teams With SNY [Rich Elliott – CT Post]

Atlanta Dream cut … [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

Kevin Ollie no longer UConn’s coach-in-waiting? [NBCSports.com]

Other UConn related links

M. Ice Hockey. Connecticut Huskies main focus for Hockey East expansion [ESPN Boston]

M. Soccer. Chris Gbandi Named Assistant Coach at Holy Cross [UConnHuskies.com]

Baseball. Baseball Holds on to 8-7 Win at Northeastern [UConnHuskies.com]

Baseball. LJ Mazzilli Has Grown Into A Top Hitter At UConn [Hartford Courant]

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

After winning 11-5 last night, the Boston Red Sox look to take the series in the second game of a three-game set against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, MO.

First pitch is scheduled for 8:10 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on NESN in the Red Sox television market. If you live in the Royals television market, you can catch the game on Fox Sports Kansas City. If you can’t catch the television broadcast, you can always listen to it on the Red Sox radio network.

Daniel Bard looks to even up his record in his sixth appearance (fifth start) of 2012. In his previous five appearances (four starts), Bard is 2-3 with a 4.38 ERA. He made three appearances against the Royals in 2011 and had no record with 0.00 ERA (0 ER/4 IP). He’s made nine career appearances against the Royals and is 0-2 with a 2.61 ERA (3 ER/10.1 IP). Five of those appearances have come at the home of the 2012 MLB All-Star Game where he is 0-2 with a 5.40 ERA (3 ER/5 IP).

Danny Duffy makes his fifth start of 2012 for the struggling Royals. In his previous four starts, Duffy is 2-2 with a 3.57 ERA. His only two career starts against the Red Sox came last year when he went 0-1 with a 7.45 ERA (8 ER/9.2 IP). The loss came in his only start against the Red Sox at home when he allowed two runs in six innings of work on August 21, 2011.

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:

12-16		9-19
1. Mike Aviles	SS	1. Jarrod Dyson	CF
2. Dustin Pedroia	2B	2. Alex Gordon	LF
3. David Ortiz	DH	3. Billy Butler	DH
4. Cody Ross	RF	4. Eric Hosmer	1B
5. Adrian Gonzalez	1B	5. Jeff Francoeur	RF
6. Will Middlebrooks	3B	6. Mike Moustakas	3B
7. Darnell McDonald	LF	7. Chris Getz	2B
8. Marlon Byrd	CF	8. Alcides Escobar	SS
9. Kelly Shoppach	C	9. Humberto Quintero	C
Daniel Bard	SP	Danny Duffy	SP

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

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

Sox hope time heals Clay Buchholz [Boston Herald]

Sox ‘tossed around’ Middlebrooks in OF [Rob Bradford – WEEI.com]

Cherington: Middlebrooks’ success didn’t happen overnight [Clubhouse Insider]

Will Middlebrooks not worried about receiving Bryce Harper treatment [Clubhouse Insider]

Red Sox on pace for historic struggles at home [CSN New England]

Red Sox’ Ortiz, Hawks’ Horford a couple of pals [CSN New England]

Ellsbury: I’m making ‘great progress’ [CSN New England]

Left is right for Papi [CSN New England]

Cherington: Youkilis will play third upon return [CSN New England]

Ellsbury goes through agility drills [CSN New England]

Pregame notes: Youk rehab on schedule [ESPN Boston]

On Pedroia, Gonzalez and perceptions [Extra Bases]

Podcast: Competition at third base? [Extra Bases]

Ask Nick: Does Youkilis get his job back? [Extra Bases]

Red Sox contemplate using Will Middlebrooks in outfield [Extra Bases]

Reactions to Middlebrooks on Twitter [45 Miles From Fenway]

Buchholz, BoSox need to right ship [FoxSports.com]

The secret behind David Ortiz hitting lefties [Full Count]

Mike Gonzalez will not be returning to the Red Sox organization [Full Count]

Mike Aviles Rewards Faith of Ben Cherington, Returns to Kansas City as Big Piece of Red Sox Offense [NESN.com]

Will Mike Moustakas or Will Middlebrooks Have a Better Major League Career? [NESN.com]

Dustin Pedroia Swinging Red-Hot Bat, As He Quietly Continues to Have Stellar Start to Season [NESN.com]

Kevin Youkilis, Nick Punto Among Red Sox Who Rely on All Types of Walking to Help Game, Fitness [NESN.com]

Vicente Padilla Steps Up for Red Sox in Bullpen, Pays Debt to Felix Doubront [NESN.com]

Will Middlebrooks May Play Outfield Once Kevin Youkilis Returns to Red Sox Lineup [NESN.com]

David Ortiz Looking Like He Could Be Poised to Make Push for 40 Home Runs This Season [Don Orsillo – NESN.com]

Don’t pigeonhole Wilson as a reliever, PawSox pitching coach warns [Projo Sox Blog]

Buchholz to start Friday [Projo Sox Blog]

Sox discuss Middlebrooks in the OF [Projo Sox Blog]

Valentine doesn’t want pitchers whining about umps [Projo Sox Blog]

Sweeney may get first start against southpaw [Projo Sox Blog]

Facing Royals, Bard seeking consistency [RedSox.com]

Baseball world teams up to strike out epilepsy [RedSox.com]

Greenville pitchers combine for first no-hitter in franchise history [SoxProspects.com]

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

Photo credits: AP Photo, Getty Images

After 18 years, the days of CPTV covering the UConn Huskies women’s basketball team are over as the University of Connecticut and SNY are putting the final touches on a four-year deal.

Here’s the release from UConn:

STORRS, Conn. – The University of Connecticut has selected SNY to be its women’s basketball regional television broadcast partner for the next four seasons, pending finalization of an executed contract between the parties.

This historic agreement will further reinforce UConn women’s basketball television package as the best in the nation, which will now include enhancements in terms of household reach, programming opportunities and rights fees.

SNY will expand UConn women’s basketball television coverage to nearly 14 million homes. SNY’s regional territory includes all of Connecticut, NewYork , New Jersey and Northeast Pennsylvania for a reach of 8.7 million households. With national coverage on DirectTV, Verizon FiOS, Comcast Cable and AT&T U-Verse, SNY’s total distribution is 13.7 million homes.

The rights fee provided to the University by SNY is anticipated to be $4.55 million over the four-year term of the contract which will cover the 2012-13 season through 2015-16 – approximately $1.14 million annually. The rights fee in the previous four-year agreement for UConn women’s basketball television rights averaged $900,000 annually.

The new agreement with SNY will provide UConn with unique cross promotional opportunities as UConn’s television packages for men’s basketball, women’s basketball and football will all be shown by the same carrier. SNY is the local television home for Husky football and men’s basketball through rights granted by the BIG EAST Conference to ESPN Regional Television.

“I am very excited that SNY will be our television home for the next four years,” says UConn women’s basketball head coach Geno Auriemma. “This agreement will continue to provide all of our loyal fans in the state of Connecticut an opportunity to watch our team play and will also help us develop a whole new group of UConn women’s basketball fans throughout the Northeast and the entire nation. SNY will also allow us to showcase UConn women’s basketball to a larger audience, which will support our recruiting efforts and help us maintain the level of success in our program.”

“We’re thrilled to become the official TV home of UConn women’s basketball, the preeminent women’s basketball program in the nation,” said Steve Raab, President of SNY. “This is a landmark partnership and a special opportunity for SNY. Our unmatched distribution, unprecedented programming commitment, and live game production experience provides us the unique opportunity to help maintain and grow UConn’s leadership position.”

SNY is one of 14 managed regional sports networks by Comcast Sports Management Group. Comcast is the owner of NBC Universal and its NBC Sports Group. The entire NBC Sports Group will make Stamford, Conn., its new corporate headquarters next year.

“This new agreement with SNY will bring UConn women’s basketball to more Husky fans than ever before throughout the region and the nation,” said President Susan Herbst. “This is a great opportunity for the University to further showcase our outstanding women’s basketball program and reach our enthusiastic alumni base, both inside and outside the state of Connecticut.

“I would like to thank Connecticut Public Television, who has been our women’s basketball television home for the past 18 years. CPTV has been a loyal and dedicated partner, and both CPTV and UConn have benefitted from the relationship. We look forward to maintaining a relationship with CPTV, both institutionally and in terms of athletics with their new CPTV Sports channel.”

Similar to past years, a minimum of 17 live UConn games will be televised as part of the SNY package. The exact number of games is dependent on several factors related to BIG EAST broadcast agreements, including the number of games selected for national television.

“I am very impressed with the coverage that SNY will provide to our women’s basketball program,” said UConn Director of Athletics Warde Manuel. “SNY has been a great partner as our television home of Husky football and men’s basketball and we look forward to that relationship flourishing even more. SNY will provide our loyal Husky fans a terrific game presentation and production and will also feature a number of exciting multi-platform presentations.”

SNY will devote approximately 325 hours of coverage annually to UConn women’s basketball. In addition to the live games, there will be game replays, an in-season weekly coach’s show and a new program called “Geno’s Legacy.” This program, which would have two to three episodes annually, would feature interviews with former UConn players who have played a major role in the history of the program and highlight what these players are now doing in their lives.

The annual number of hours also features in-depth pre game and post game shows for each broadcast that would originate live from SNY’s street-level studio — in the heart of Manhattan — directly across the street from Radio City Music Hall. SNY is the official television home of the New York Mets, New York Jets and the BIG EAST Conference.

SNY features unparalleled, exclusive access to the New York Mets with more than 130 live telecasts each, as well as other Emmy Award winning Mets entertainment programming. As the official TV home of the New York Jets, SNY delivers more than 300 hours of exclusive year-round content devoted to the Jets.

SNY also is the official TV home of the BIG EAST Conference – airing more than 125 BIG EAST football and basketball games – as well as other critically acclaimed BIG EAST programming. As the leader in local sports TV coverage, SNY delivers the most comprehensive access to all of the Tri-State area’s professional and collegiate sports teams through five nightly sports and entertainment programs. SNY’s programming roster also includes classic sports programming, critically acclaimed original entertainment shows and exclusive interview and magazine programs.

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

The Boston Red Sox might want to think about moving all of the rest of their home games to the road.

With their 11-5 win last night against the Kansas City Royals, they are now 8-6 on the road. On the contrary, they are just 4-10 at home.

A big reason for their win on Monday night was the bat of Will Middlebrooks.

After connecting for his first home run, a grand slam on Sunday afternoon, he hit two more on Monday. The first one, an opposite field shot just inside the right field foul pole, gave the Red Sox a 4-0 lead in the 1st inning. His second home run came in the 8th inning when he provided the final margin of 11-5 with a two run homer.

In his first four games in the big leagues, Middlebrooks has three home runs and nine RBIs. He’s hitting .382 with a slugging percentage of .952. There’s been some clamoring amongst Red Sox fans on Twitter that Middlebrooks is quickly making Kevin Youkilis expendable.

Folks, that might not happen right away. It will eventually happen but four games is not a big enough sample size. As NESportsfan1317 put it on Twitter, “Keep in mind this is the first time pitchers are seeing #Middlebrooks. He will eventually need to make adjustments.”

She’s 100% right about that.

If Adrian Gonzalez can go through a rough patch, odds are Middlebrooks will too. But I will say this, the future for Middlebrooks is bright.

I really don’t envy Bobby Valentine and Ben Cherington when they have to tell Middlebrooks he’s going back to the PawSox when Youk returns. 

The Red Sox needed Felix Doubront to pitch as long as he could last night with the bullpen being spent in Sunday’s 17 inning affair. Well he made it into the 7th inning for the first time all season long but left with the bases loaded after walking in a run. Fortunately for him, Vicente Padilla bailed him out by getting a double play ball from Billy Butler.

And after throwing 31 pitches on Sunday, Padilla stayed in and pitched the final two innings to pick up the save. It was only shocking to me because Clayton Mortensen was the only reliever not to pitch on Sunday and yet he never even got up in the game.

Either way, Doubront was just good enough to get the win because the offensive helped him out.

After going 0-for-8 on Sunday, Gonzo went 2-for-5 with an RBI. Dustin Pedroia had a nice night at the plate going 2-for-3, including a two run homer with three RBIs and also walked three times. David Ortiz also reached base five times with three hits and two walks. One of his hits was a solo home run that tied him for 56th all-time in MLB with former Red Sox RF Dwight Evans.

Sure the Royals aren’t a great team but this is what we expected from the Red Sox over the last home stanza. Winning three-games in Kansas City would be a nice way to return home with some confidence heading into their weekend set with the Cleveland Indians.

But for now, they do need to take things one day a time and hope for a nice outing from Daniel Bard tonight.

We’ll be back later with today’s lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and links from the day. So for now, let’s take at look at the overnight links from the media by clicking on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.

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

Royal treatment [Boston Globe]

Coming out swinging [Boston Globe]

Doubront’s outing is a big relief [Boston Globe]

Matsuzaka not wild about it [Boston Globe]

Beckett set to start Thursday [Boston Globe]

Sox take to road [Boston Herald]

Middlebrooks: Sox’ Roy Hobbs [Boston Herald]

Aviles back on familiar ground [Boston Herald]

Sox hope time heals Buchholz [Boston Herald]

Red Sox slug way to win in Kansas City, 11-5 [CSN New England]

Doubront answers bell in win over Royals [CSN New England]

Middlebrooks credits hot start to approach at plate [CSN New England]

Matsuzaka pitches 4.2 scoreless innings for PawSox [CSN New England]

Matsuzaka has scoreless outing for PawSox [ESPN Boston]

Rapid Reaction: Red Sox 11, Royals 5 [ESPN Boston]

Doubront gives Sox what they need [ESPN Boston]

Middlebrooks siblings hit simultaneous homers [ESPN Boston]

Closing Time: Will Middlebrooks does it again, helps lead Red Sox to rout of Royals [Full Count]

Nuggetpalooza: A few Red Sox statistical nuggets from their win over the Royals [Full Count]

Red Sox Decline To Recall Reliever After Taxing Bullpen in Sunday’s 17 Innings [NESN.com]

Felix Doubront Protects Exhausted Bullpen With Improved Efficiency on Mound [NESN.com]

Will Middlebrooks Continues Rapid Progression, Showing Power to All Fields During Historic Run [NESN.com]

Will Middlebrooks Reminding Red Sox What It Looks Like When Baseball Is Easy [NESN.com]

Dice-K still very much a big deal in Japan [Pawtucket Times]

Shoppach crosses triple off his to-do list [RedSox.com]

Twice as nice: Middlebrooks powers Red Sox [RedSox.com]

Beckett cleared for Thursday start against Tribe [RedSox.com]

Adrian not overly frustrated by 0-for-8 game [RedSox.com]

Melancon red-hot in Minors, but Sox stand pat [RedSox.com]

Aviles deal worked out for both Red Sox, Royals [RedSox.com]

Aviles enjoys return trip to Kansas City [RedSox.com]

Lavarnway making progress behind the plate [RedSox.com]

Improving on greatness: Dustin Pedroia looks poised for career year in 2012 [Alex Speier – 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, be sure to head over to the Kansas City Star and Topeka Capital-Journal websites.

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

photo credit: Getty Images

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

Former Husky Tyvon Branch signs franchise tender with Raiders [New Haven Register]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Here Is UConn’s Non-Conference Schedule [John Altavilla – Hartford Courant]

Taurasi Is No. 35 On ESPNs Top 40 List Of Female Athletes [Rich Elliott – CT Post]

Could Abrosimova return to Seattle? [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

UConn AD: No plans for coaching-in-waiting [Gavin Keefe – The Day]

Calhoun OK With Manuel’s Decision On Coach-In-Waiting [Hartford Courant]

AD Warde Manuel says no coach-in-waiting [New Haven Register]

Other UConn related links

UConn Student-Athletes Celebrate Graduation [UConnHuskies.com]

Baseball. Marzi Named to BIG EAST Honor Roll [UConnHuskies.com]

Baseball. Baseball Midweek Schedule vs. Northeastern Changed [UConnHuskies.com]

Marinatto Had Troubles, But Big East Presidents Must Be Accountable [Hartford Courant]

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

Last year the Boston Red Sox started the season 0-6, then 2-10, before going 18-10 over their next 28 games to get to .500 at 20-20, 40 games in.

Over the next 3 plus months they were the best team in baseball until they went 7-20 in September.  Between the 20-20 start and the fall fade the Red Sox were a major league best 64-32 which included a 20-6 record in July.  They finished 91-72 and out of the playoffs.

Now here we are in 2012 with a new general manager because the old one ran away as soon as they’d let him. A new field manager because the old one was run out of town as someone who lost control both at work and home due to his problems with prescription drugs.

They have the same owners; half of the same coaching staff, virtually the same front office and most of the same players and team has started 10-16.  And guess what?  They seemingly have the same problem and this should be a surprise to no one.

This is starting to appear to be much larger then some take out chicken and a few brews in the clubhouse while a game is going on.

Recently this team completed a 6-1 road trip through Minnesota and Chicago and came home to face Oakland and Baltimore and continue the streak.  They went 1-5 before heading to Kansas City for the next three evenings.

Granted they are dealing with many injuries 3B Kevin Youkilis, LF Carl Crawford, CF Jacoby Ellsbury, closer Andrew Bailey and starting pitchers John Lackey and Daisuke Matsuzaka are all on the disabled list.  But at times last season, as in every season they were hurt too.

This team is inherently bad at home, in Fenway Park, which in my lifetime, even when the team was blah, they were at least a decent home team but not since September 2011.  In this time span the team is a woeful 8-20 in the friendly confines and an ugly 18-36 overall.

So what’s the issue?  The pitching has been awful, there is only one starter with an ERA under 5.00 and Clay Buchholz tops out at 9.09 with a 1.90 WHIP.  This leads to the bullpen pitching more innings then necessary and inflated numbers in ERA, WHIP and inherited runners scoring.  One problem is the genesis of another.

And the hitting has stopped as well.  A once red-hot Adrian Gonzalez just went 0 for 8 on Sunday after an 0 for 13 series against Oakland.  They’ve gotten nothing out of Youkilis; Ross is watching his numbers fall by the wayside and Ortiz, Pedroia and Sweeney can only carry the team so far.  They were so bad they traded for a guy who one month into the season was hitting .043 when they acquired him.  Marlon Byrd was a whopping 3 for 43 when he reported to the team. In his defense he has been a bright spot the last week raising his average about 200 points and playing above average defense in the field.

So while all the not scoring runs and giving up way too many is leading to these ugly losses there is still something wrong here.  I have heard this several times in the last week and more in the last few days and not just from Red Sox fans.  “This team is very unlikable”.

That’s bad in a lot of ways.  But the worst way can be in the clubhouse, if we as fans of the team and baseball fans in general, do not like these guys and this team, do you think that they like each other?

Earlier this season Pedroia stood up for Youkilis but beyond him how many others were there on Youk’s side?  Do the guys in clubhouse like and respect Josh Beckett?  If the answer is no do you think they’d have his back in the media or on the field?

With all the changes this team made in the off season the funny thing is the result has stayed the same.  So if the result is constant the elements of the problem leading to the result must be as well.  In my convoluted English this means the problem wasn’t taken care of by bouncing Terry Francona and letting Theo Epstein walk away, it’s still here some where.

To continue reading, please click on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.

So what has remained constant in this fiasco besides guys like Beckett and Youkilis?  Well that’d be your owners, John Henry, Tom Werner and Larry Lucchino.  While in the past I have cut these guys slack because of how well the team has performed on the field I no longer feel this way.  In the past I’d have told you these are some of the best owners in baseball but I no longer feel this way.

This team is run by three carpetbaggers with no long-term love of the team, the fans or the region other than our money.  These guys aren’t from here and they have so many other “projects” grouped under the Fenway Sports Group banner as well as other holdings that it seems, despite what the claim, as if the team is no longer their first concern.

As Red Sox fans we are bombarded with advertisements seeking our money in addition to tickets to the games for Red Sox Nation memberships, bricks, musical CD’s, team DVD’s, concerts and now soccer games.  We have had NASCAR pushed down our throats and now EPL soccer.  I don’t give a shit about Liverpool or Carl Edwards I am a Red Sox fan.  If I want to follow soccer and NASCAR along with the other sports and activities I am interested in I will do so on my time for the teams, organizations and people of my choosing.  I don’t need all these affiliations and bad NESN programming shoved down my gullet.

An example lies down the road in Foxboro.  The Kraft family owns the Patriots, the Revolution and the stadium yet I am not bombarded with Revs ticket ads and requests during the radio and television broadcasts of the games like we are with the Red Sox ownership.

These men no longer care about baseball like Red Sox fans care about baseball.  These men don’t care about our team like we care about our team.  They’d rather watch soccer and NASCAR and that’s cool just don’t ruin my team in the process.

They are so out of touch with the Red Sox right now, both the on field product and the fans, that it is affecting the way team performs.  It all appears to be smoke and mirrors designed to give you another big Broadway show and take as much of your hard earned money from your wallet as they possibly can.  While we are good little doobies sitting in our cramped Fenway Park seats paying the highest ticket prices in baseball to see a team under perform because ownership is not doing all it can to correct the issues the team faces.

Magic Johnson rode in on his horse and saved the day for the Los Angeles Dodgers.  And don’t get me wrong, while every day I am thankful that Frank McCourt didn’t get to run this franchise into the ground, I am less and less pleased each of those days with the trio entrusted to run it now.  Where is our Magic Johnson?  Who is our Magic Johnson?

Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel in their classic hit “Mrs. Robinson” declare “where have you gone Joe DiMaggio, our nation turns its lonely eyes to you’”.  I now ask the same of the one man who can straighten this mess out.

Where have you gone Robert Kraft, Red Sox Nation turns its lonely eyes to you.

Follow Steve on Twitter @SteveMichaelsII

photo credit: Boston Globe

After being swept at home by the AL East leading Baltimore Orioles, the Boston Red Sox head back out on the road for a brief three-game road trip to Kansas City, MO. There, they’ll take on the Kansas City Royals in the first of the three-game set tonight at Kauffman Stadium.

First pitch is scheduled for 8:10 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on NESN in the Red Sox television market. If you live in the Royals television market, you can catch the game on Fox Sports Kansas City. If you can’t catch the television broadcast, you can always listen to it on the Red Sox radio network.

With the bullpen being taxed over the weekend, the Red Sox will need Felix Doubront to be efficient and go at least 7-8 innings in his sixth start of 2012. In his previous five starts, Doubront is 1-1 with a 5.19 ERA. He has never faced the Royals in his career.

Jonathan Sanchez will look to continue the slide for the Red Sox in his sixth start of 2012. In his previous five starts, Sanchez is 1-1 with a 5.24 ERA. He last faced the Red Sox in 2010 as a member of the San Francisco Giants when he picked up the win after allowing three runs in 5.1 innings of work. He’s made two appearances (one start) against the Red Sox in his career and is 1-0 with a 5.68 ERA (4 ER/6.1 IP). Sanchez will be the first of three straight lefties the Red Sox will face in this series.

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:

11-16		9-18
1. Mike Aviles	SS	1. Jarrod Dyson	CF
2. Dustin Pedroia	2B	2. Alex Gordon	LF
3. David Ortiz	DH	3. Billy Butler	DH
4. Cody Ross	RF	4. Eric Hosmer	1B
5. Adrian Gonzalez	1B	5. Jeff Francoeur	RF
6. Will Middlebrooks	3B	6. Mike Moustakas	3B
7. Darnell McDonald	LF	7. Brayan Pena	C
8. Marlon Byrd	CF	8. Chris Getz	2B
9. Kelly Shoppach	C	9. Alcides Escobar	SS
Felix Doubront	SP	Jonathan Sanchez	SP

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

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

Ticked off about the Red Sox? Let them know about it [Boston Herald]

Red Sox’ lack of offseason moves proving costly [Boston Sports Media Watch]

Red Sox decide not to call up a reliever to help tired bullpen [Clubhouse Insider]

McClure: Clay Buchholz may be thinking about last season’s back injury [Clubhouse Insider]

Sox should bid McDonald a farewell to arms [CSN New England]

Aviles happy to return to baseball home in Kansas City [CSN New England]

Beckett set to make return to mound Thursday [CSN New England]

Breaking down the numbers on Adrian Gonzalez [Extra Bases]

Josh Beckett set to start on Thursday [Extra Bases]

Gonzalez: My numbers will get there [Extra Bases]

Trying to uncover the differences in Adrian Gonzalez’ at-bats this season [Full Count]

Mike Moustakas Brings Hot Bat Into Series Against Red Sox, While Eric Hosmer’s Struggles Continue [NESN.com]

Red Sox Need Someone (Anyone) to Step Up and Other Thoughts From the Week in Baseball [NESN.com]

Rich Hill’s Surgically Repaired Elbow Feels Fine Despite Heavy Workload Upon His Return [NESN.com]

Red Sox Decline To Recall Reliever After Taxing Bullpen in Sunday’s 17 Innings [NESN.com]

A Series Matter: Red Sox-Royals and Rubber Series [Projo Sox Blog]

Swihart learning the grind of pro ball [Projo Sox Blog]

High praise for Bryce Harper from PawSox’s Beyeler [Projo Sox Blog]

Mark Melancon: ‘I felt like it was something I probably should have caught a lot earlier’ [Projo Sox Blog]

PawSox not overly impressed by Andy Pettitte [Projo Sox Blog]

Sox decide against bullpen reinforcements [Projo Sox Blog]

Aviles always happy to come back to KC [Projo Sox Blog]

Aviles eager to reunite with former ‘mates in KC [RedSox.com]

Lavarnway making progress behind the plate [RedSox.com]

What’s going on with Adrian Gonzalez? [Touching All The Bases]

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

Photo credits: Getty Images, Getty Images

Let’s forget just for a moment that the Boston Red Sox were swept by the Baltimore Orioles at HOME over the weekend just for a few moments. Why’s that?

It’s because how many times can you go to a MLB game and see two position players battling it out on the mound for their respective teams.

Well that’s exactly what happened yesterday afternoon/evening at Fenway Park because both managers ran out of pitchers in the 17 inning affair, the second extra innings game of the series. They were put in this predicament because of the lackluster starting pitching by both Clay Buchholz and Tommy Hunter.

For Buchholz, it was just another day of struggling out there on the mound. The fact that he is 3-1 is quite deceiving and shows just how unimportant wins and losses are. After allowing five runs in just 3 2/3 innings yesterday, his ERA now stands at 9.09. And after that performance, he may find himself out of the rotation until he can figure things out.

Both bullpens were outstanding yesterday. The Red Sox offense finally got to the Orioles bullpen for a run while theirs allowed just an unearned run thanks to two Jarrod Saltalamacchia errors in the 8th inning.

Andrew Miller returned from the disabled list and struck out three of the four batters he faced.

This game came down to Chris Davis and Darnell McDonald battling it out on the mound. At the plate, Davis was 0-for-8 with five strikeouts, picking up the platinum sombrero in his first five at-bats. Meanwhile, DMac had entered the game for David Ortiz as a pinch-runner in the 8th and scored the tying run at the time on a Salty sac fly.

Davis took over in the 16th inning and struck out the first batter he faced in Salty. After he got Will Middlebrooks to fly out, Marlon Byrd reached on an error. Mike Aviles followed that with a double in the left center gap but a great throw nailed Byrd at the plate to extend the game.

DMac wasn’t as fortunate as Davis was on the mound though.

He did walk Wilson Betemit only to have Salty throw him out trying to steal second. But then he allowed a double to J.J. Hardy, a walk to Nick Markakis and then damaging blow, a three-run no doubt home run by Adam Jones.

The game would end as Davis finished off the game by getting DMac to ground into a double play. For Davis, he was the first American League position player to win a game since Rocky Colavito in 1968.

If it weren’t for a Middlebrooks grand slam in the 5th inning, the Red Sox might not have been in this game. He finished the game 2-for-7. Ryan Sweeney had four hits for the Red Sox while Aviles had three. Big Papi added two hits to the cause as well. The only member of the Red Sox that played in the game to not have a hit was Adrian Gonzalez, who lIke Davis, went 0-for-8.

The Red Sox are really going to need Felix Doubront to go as long as he can tonight. The bullpen is obviously depleted right now. It wouldn’t surprise me or anyone else for that matter if they make a roster move. With Clayton Mortensen the only pitcher having bullpen options, he seems the most likely candidate to be sent down.

Hopefully facing a 9-18 Kansas City Royals team is just what the doctor ordered for the Red Sox. They are a better road team (7-6) than home team right now (4-10). And with the Royals just 2-12 at home hopefully they can turn around this losing streak they are on.

We’ll be back later with today’s lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and links from the day. So for now, let’s take at look at the overnight links from the media by clicking on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.

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

Orioles beat Sox at long ball [Boston Globe]

Mound of woes for McDonald [Boston Globe]

Buchholz struggles along [Boston Globe]

Red Sox lose DH duel in 17th inning [Boston Herald]

Adrian Gonzalez at loss for words [Boston Herald]

Home runs again ruin day for Clay Buchholz [Boston Herald]

A total loss for Darnell McDonald [Boston Herald]

Sox run out of gas, lose to O’s in 17 innings, 9-6 [CSN New England]

Red Sox bullpen pitches another gem despite loss [CSN New England]

Buchholz still can’t put together quality start for Sox [CSN New England]

Middlebrooks’ grand slam caps off hot three-game start [CSN New England]

McDonald picks up the loss [CSN New England]

Gonzalez first Red Sox cleanup hitter to go 0-for-8 [CSN New England]

Rapid reaction: O’s 9, Sox 6 in 17 innings [ESPN Boston]

10 observations after Sox lose marathon [ESPN Boston]

No smiles after McDonald’s mop-up work [ESPN Boston]

No easy answers for Buchholz’s struggles [ESPN Boston]

Boston Red Sox sink to new subterranean lows [ESPN Boston]

With Aaron Cook down and Clay Buchholz struggling, a look at Red Sox rotation depth [Full Count]

Closing Time: Red Sox empty the tank in 17-inning loss to Orioles [Full Count]

Adrian Gonzalez endures a devastating one-day slump [Full Count]

Grand slam caps off successful first series for Will Middlebrooks [Full Count]

If the Red Sox need bullpen reinforcements, Mark Melancon could be the guy [Full Count]

Chris Davis Turns Terrible Day at Plate Into Cy Young-Like Performance on Mound [NESN.com]

Red Sox Have Options After 17-Inning Loss, Just Not Where They Want Them [NESN.com]

Darnell McDonald Disappointed With His Pitching, ‘Impressed’ With Chris Davis’ Stuff [NESN.com]

Clay Buchholz Drawing Concern After Latest Rough Start [NESN.com]

Middlebrooks’ first MLB home run is grand [RedSox.com]

Buchholz’s string of rough starts continues [RedSox.com]

Is this 2008 all over again for Clay Buchholz? [Alex Speier – 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, be sure to head over to the Baltimore Sun and MASN websites. Also be sure to check out our Bloguin brother the Oriole Post for all of your Orioles needs.

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

photo credit: Getty Images

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

Other UConn related links

Baseball. Fuller Home Run Blasts Huskies Past Cincinnati in 13th [UConnHuskies.com]

M. Track. Huskies Finish Fourth In 2012 BIG EAST Outdoor Championships [UConnHuskies.com]

W. Track. Emerson & Wilson Capture Titles At BIG EAST Championships [UConnHuskies.com]

Softball. Huskies Reach BIG EAST Tournament, Will Face Louisville [UConnHuskies.com]

M. Ice Hockey. Ambrosie, Gerke, Harris and Latta Named 2012-13 Captains [UConnHuskies.com]

John Marinatto Resigns as Commissioner of BIG EAST Conference [BigEast.org]

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