After taking the first two games, the Boston Red Sox will look to keep the momentum going and try to get a sweep of the Oakland A’s this afternoon at Fenway Park.

This afternoon’s game will start at 1:35 p.m. and will be shown on NESN in the Red Sox television market. If you live in the A’s television market, you can catch the game on CSN California. And if you don’t live in either market, you’re in luck as the game will also be shown on the MLB Network. If you can’t catch the television broadcast, you can always listen to the game on the 2010 Red Sox radio network.

Tim Wakefield is making his 12th appearance and 8th start of the season for skipper Terry Francona. In his previous 11 appearances (seven starts), he is 1-3 with a 5.68 ERA. He made two starts in 2009 against the A’s and was 2-0 with a 3.00 ERA (15 IP/ 3 ER). In 39 games (28 starts) against the A’s, Wake is 11-6 with a 4.08 ERA. Since the 2004 season, Wake has seven quality starts against the A’s.

Brett Anderson has made five starts for Bob Geren and the A’s this season and just one since returning from the disabled list. In those five starts, he is 1-1 with a 2.35. He’s made three starts against the Red Sox, with all of them coming in 2009 and he is 2-1 with a 2.05 ERA. Both of his wins came at Fenway Park where he had 1.80 ERA (15 IP/3 ER).

Keep reading for lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and pregame links.

Here’s the hitters have fared against this afternoon’s starting pitchers in their careers:

Note: More links will be added as they become available.

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Francona: Thumbs down on instant replay [CSN New England]

Quiet morning at Fenway Park [Extra Bases]

David Ortiz Regaining ‘Big Papi’ Status [NESN.com]

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UConn Football links

DC got more Big East predictions from the beat writers [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

Video: Offensive player of the year [ESPN.com – Big East Blog]

Analyzing the position group rankings [ESPN.com – Big East Blog]

Dixon off to UFL [John Silver – Journal Inquirer]

Dixon to UFL’s Colonials [Neill Ostrout – CT Post]

UFL Draft: Colonials Select Ex-UConn Running Back Dixon [Hartford Courant]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Charles is WNBA’s Rookie of the Month [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]

Tina Charles Named WNBA Rookie Of The Month [John Altavilla – Hartford Courant]

Charles Named Rookie Of The Month [Rich Elliott – CT Post]

Other UConn related links

Husky Hockey To Play Doubleheader At Rentschler Field [UConnHuskies.com]

Baseball. Penders Named NEIBA Coach of the Year [UConnHuskies.com]

UConn, SHU to meet at Rentschler in hockey extravaganza [CT Post]

NCAA Baseball: Norwich Regional Breakdown [FoxSports Florida]

If anyone can figure out Daisuke Matsuzaka, can you please let the rest of us know?

Last night at Fenway Park,the Boston Red Sox found themselves trailing 3-0 to the Oakland A’s after the top of the 1st when Dice-K looked like, well Dice-K. I’m sure your first thought like mine was, okay here we go again what else is on television. But then after the bottom of the 1st thanks to a Kevin Youkilis double, the Red Sox found themselves trailing 3-2 and you wondered if Dice-K was going to suck again the next inning.

He was far from that as he scattered six hits the rest of the way and didn’t walk anyone. He just went out there and battled and pitched like he did in his near no-hitter. He attacked the strike zone like it was nobody’s business as he threw 84 of his 109 pitches for strikes.

Things were so bad for Dice-K in that first inning that he actually hearing boos from the Fenway Faithful. But by the time he walked off the mound after seven innings, he left to a standing ovation and gave those same fans who were booing him, a tip of the cap.

To say David Ortiz is in a zone right now is an understatement. Simply put, the man is on fire and he’s fully back from the struggles that plagued him earlier this season.

How do we know this? It’s quite simple actually.

After hitting a 2-run homer in the 5th inning to put the Red Sox up 4-3, he earned an intentional walk his next time up in the 7th inning. He finished the night 2-for-2 with the 2-run homer, two runs scored and two walks.

Marco Scutaro continues to shine at the top filling in for Jacoby Ellsbury as he had a three-hit effort while Darnell McDonald added two hits as well.

Things are certainly clicking right now for the Red Sox on all cylinders and they’ll look for that to continue this afternoon when they try to complete a three-game sweep of the A’s before heading south to Baltimore.

We’ll be back in just a short while with this afternoon’s lineups, batter/pitcher matchups, any news and links but for now enjoy the overnight links.

Making sense of Matsuzaka, ‘The Magic Man’ [Alex Speier – WEEI.com]

Sox are paced by pair [Boston Globe]

Dice-K takes the fifth [Boston Globe]

Big week on and off the field for Sox [Boston Globe]

Beckett’s return at least a month away [Boston Globe]

Recap: Red Sox 6, Athletics 4 [Boston Herald]

Papi’s big once again [Boston Herald]

Red Sox no-no kids feel for costly call [Boston Herald]

AL honors David Ortiz, Jon Lester [Boston Herald]

Mike Cameron bids Ken Griffey Jr. adieu [Boston Herald]

Sox climb out of early hole, win fourth straight [CSN New England]

Cameron calls for instant replay in baseball [CSN New England]

Johnson gets the boot [ESPN Boston]

Cameron averts DL, but questions remain [ESPN Boston]

SoxProspects.com: May minor league notes [ESPN Boston]

Sox talk Griffey, replay and another win [Extra Bases]

Ortiz: Wrist no longer an issue [Full Count]

Closing Time: Red Sox 6, Athletics 4 [Full Count]

Bard brought the heat, and then some [Full Count]

Cameron and Junior: Forever linked [Full Count]

Red Sox and People Magazine Announce Finalists for ‘People All-Stars’ Campaign [NESN.com]

David Ortiz Stays Patient, Waits for Pitch and Hammers Home Run [NESN.com]

Matsuzaka rolls with the punches [Providence Journal]

Beltre’s bat warming up with the weather [Providence Journal]

Red Sox Journal: Beckett on the shelf for at least 10 more days [Providence Journal]

It’s time for baseball to change its rules on instant replay [Providence Journal]

Striking turnaround for Dice-K vs. A’s [RedSox.com]

Red Sox get good news on Cameron [RedSox.com]

Beckett won’t throw for another 10 days [RedSox.com]

Deciphering how much Boras influences Ellsbury [Rob Bradford – WEEI.com]

For more slices of Red Sox goodness, head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, ESPN Boston, NESN, Providence Journal and WEEI websites.

And if you must read the enemy papers, you can check out the San Francisco Chronicle and San Jose Mercury News websites.

While former UConn Huskies running back Andre Dixon is still awaiting a call from the NFL after attending the New York Giants mini-camp, he was able to hear his named called during the UFL Draft on Wednesday night.

Should Dixon not make it to an NFL camp, he’ll have a home where he played his college football at Rentschler Field as the Hartford Colonials took him with the No. 2 overall pick.

As a sophomore with the Huskies, Dixon teamed up with former Husky and current Colts running back Donald Brown in the backfield. Dixon finished the 2007 season with 167 carries for 828 yards and  three touchdowns. He also caught 24 passes for 280 yards and a touchdown.

The 2008 season was a lost cause for Dixon as he sprained his ankle during the preseason and that paved the way for Brown to be the starter in the backfield. And we all know how that turned out. Dixon was also suspended after being arrested for DUI but was reinstated in time for UConn’s bowl game against Buffalo.

Splitting time with Jordan Todman during the 2009 season, Dixon had 239 carries for 1,093 yards and 14 touchdowns. He also had 11 catches for 112 yards and a touchdown.

Boston Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz and starting pitcher Jon Lester have been voted the American League Player and Pitcher of the Month, respectively, for May. It marks the first time that the two A.L. monthly awards were captured by teammates in the same month since June 2006, when Minnesota’s Joe Mauer and Johan Santana won the honors.

In 23 games in May, Ortiz hit .363 (29-80) with four doubles, 10 home runs, 16 runs scored and 27 RBI. The 34-year-old also posted a Major League-best .788 slugging percentage and a .424 on-base percentage. Last month marked the second time in his career that he has tallied at least 10 homers, 25 RBI, and a .350 batting average in a calendar month, previously accomplished in June of 2004. The Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic native reached base safely in 21 of his 23 games in May, including nine multi-hit performances and eight multi-RBI outings. On May 14th versus the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park, David earned his 36th career multi-homer game and his 34th with the Red Sox, ranking him third in club history behind Hall of Famers Ted Williams (37) and Jim Rice (35). In Boston’s final game of May, the five-time A.L. All-Star hit his 10th home run, reaching double-figures in a month for the first time since August 2006. That home run, which led the Red Sox to an 8-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals, was the final base hit of his eight-game hitting streak to finish the month of May, marking his longest streak since April 2009. This marks David’s fourth career Player of the Month Award (last accomplished: September 2007).

Lester, who posted a perfect 5-0 record in six outings during May, allowed just 24 hits through 44.0 innings of work while leading the Majors with 45 strikeouts. The 26-year-old also posted a 1.84 ERA, the lowest of any A.L. pitcher with more than 27 innings pitched. Lester earned a 6-2 win for the Red Sox in his 100th career start on May 20th against Minnesota at Fenway Park, allowing only one earned run on six hits in the complete-game effort. It marked Jon’s fifth career complete game and the first time a Sox pitcher has earned a complete-game win with no walks and at least nine strikeouts since Pedro Martinez accomplished the feat on August 12, 2004. On May 25th, the second-round selection in the 2002 First-Year Player Draft fanned nine and combined with his bullpen on a one-hitter against the Rays. The southpaw’s five wins in May boosted his career record to 48-18, and his .727 winning percentage is the best in M.L.-history (since 1901) among pitchers with at least 50 decisions and the ninth-best winning percentage ever through a pitcher’s first 100 starts. This marks Jon’s third Pitcher of the Month honor (last accomplished: September 2008).

The runner up for the A.L. Player of the Month was Texas Rangers designated hitter Vladimir Guerrero, who batted .330 with 10 home runs and a Major League-leading 31 RBI. Finishing second to Lester in the A.L. Pitcher of the Month balloting was Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Shaun Marcum, who posted a 5-0 record with a 1.85 ERA and 32 strikeouts in 39.0 innings pitched.

Ortiz and Lester will each receive a specially designed trophy, suitably engraved, to commemorate their Player and Pitcher of the Month performances.

Oakland A’s @ Boston Red Sox 7:10 p.m. Fenway Park – Boston, MA SP: Ben Sheets vs Daisuke Matsuzaka TV: NESN, MLB.tv Radio: Red Sox Radio Network

Afternoon Red Sox Delight – 6/2 [SOX & Dawgs]

After coming back for a 9-4 win last night, the Boston Red Sox host the Oakland Athletics in game two of a three-game set at Fenway Park.

Tonight’s game will start at 7:10 p.m. and will be shown on NESN in the Red Sox television market. If you live in the A’s television market, you can catch the game on CSN California. If you can’t catch the television broadcast, you can always listen to the game on the 2010 Red Sox radio network.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Daisuke Matsuzaka takes the mound for Terry Francona and the Red Sox tonight and only God knows which Dice-K will show up. Dice-K has made six starts this season and is 3-2 with a 5.77 ERA. After almost throwing a no-hitter against the Phillies, he came back with an eight walk start. He made one start against the A’s in 2009 and took a no decision after allowing five first inning runs. He’s made five career starts against them and is 201 with a 4.21 ERA. He’s made one career start in 2008 against the A’s at the Fens and picked up the win after allowing two runs in eight innings.

Ben Sheets started off slow for the A’s but has been a much better pitcher as of late. In his 11 starts this season with his new club, he is 2-3 with a 4.91 ERA. Sheets will be making his first career start against the Red  Sox and at Fenway Park.

Keep reading for lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and pregame links.

Here’s the hitters have fared against tonight’s starting pitchers in their careers:

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

No new injury for Cameron; Beckett taking it slow [Clubhouse Insider]

Cameron may return to action Friday [CSN New England]

Early Sox Notes: Beckett shut down for 10 days [CSN New England]

Beckett shut down for 10 days [ESPN Boston]

Martinez out tonight, back tomorrow [ESPN Boston]

Good news on Cameron [ESPN Boston]

Martinez takes a hot bat to the bench [Extra Bases]

Cameron OK, Beckett slowed down for 10 more days [Extra Bases]

Remy on D&C: ‘I can’t figure it out’ with Matsuzaka [Full Count]

The man who almost stopped Pedroia from being a Red Sox [Full Count]

Pregame Notes: Beckett held back, Cameron moving forward [Full Count]

Victor Martinez Gets Night Off, Will Catch Tim Wakefield on Thursday [NESN.com]

The Jimmy Fund and the Red Sox Team Up to Help a Fan Fight Cancer [NESN.com]

Where Will the Red Sox’s Next Star Come From in the MLB Draft? [NESN.com]

Red Sox Seeking to Draft Player With Biggest Impact [NESN.com]

Mike Cameron’s Progress Encouraging News for Red Sox Fans [NESN.com]

Exam shows no new problems for Mike Cameron, OF could return in a few days [Projo Sox Blog]

John Lackey should be pretty happy that the Boston Red Sox offense has been able to pick him up because right now he’s just not cutting the mustard. The Oakland A’s came into the game as one of the hottest teams in baseball and it showed early on at Fenway Park on Tuesday night.

While he was able to pick up his sixth win of the season, Lackey wasn’t fooling anyone on the A’s last night. He allowed four runs on 12 hits and four walks with just two strikeouts. He really hasn’t pitched to his ability just yet so when he does, it could be lights out for opposing hitters.

I’m sure that he was thanking Adrian Beltre and Victor Martinez last night for their spectacular nights at the plate that helped spurn the Red Sox rally from 4-0 to the final margin of 9-4.

Beltre got things going for the Red Sox with a 3-run homer that was part of his three-hit night. But leave it to VMart to upstage Beltre as he had four doubles as part of a five-hit, two RBI night.

With no immediate date in sight for return of the Josh Beckett to the Red Sox rotation, they need Lackey to be at the top of his game. They are getting quality start after quality start from Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz. And unfortunately they just don’t know what they’re going to get from Daisuke Matsuzaka and at times, Tim Wakefield.

Lackey’s been hit hard at Fenway Park as opposing hitters are hitting .308 off of him and has an ERA there of 5.60. His road numbers aren’t much better as teams are hitting .290 with an ERA of 4.22. His walks to strikeout ratio at home is 12/23 while on the road it’s 20/16. Not what you expected from a guy you’re paying $82.5 million of the course of the next five years.

It will come folks or at least we hope it better.

I do love the resilency of this team though as it doesn’t seem to matter if they are down anymore. They’ve been able to battle back and make it a game again lately. This bodes well going forward.

While the Red Sox weren’t able to pick up any ground on the first place Rays or second place Yankees, they are now just a ½ game out of third since the Blue Jays fell to the Rays. While you’d rather see the Rays and Yankees lose, at least they gained against the Jays.

We’ll be back later with tonight’s lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and links and news from the day but for now enjoy the overnight links after the jump.

The unexpected force: Beltre emerges as key lineup member [Alex Speier – WEEI.com]

Lackey is lacking again, but Sox pick up the slack [Boston Globe]

A high-five for red-hot Martinez [Boston Globe]

Bruised Cameron needs further testing [Boston Globe]

Recap: Red Sox 9, Athletics 4 [Boston Herald]

Mike Cameron’s sore again [Boston Herald]

Celtics fan Terry Francona likes how Doc Rivers operates [Boston Herald]

In long run, John Lackey expects more [Boston Herald]

West Roxbury kids learn how to play like Clay Buchholz [Boston Herald]

Papi on Beltre: ‘He’s got power like no one here’ [Clubhouse Insider]

Red Sox come back to beat A’s, 9-4 [CSN New England]

Cameron to meet with specialists on Wednesday [CSN New England]

Jacoby Ellsbury’s Absence Hurting Red Sox, Even During Winning Streaks [Don Orsillo – NESN.com]

Lackey: The good run still to come [ESPN Boston]

Lowell drawing some interest [ESPN Boston]

Martinez makes a little history [Extra Bases]

Closing Time: Red Sox 9, A’s 4 [Full Count]

Pedroia shows signs of a turnaround [Full Count]

Cameron to see specialist amidst ongoing abdominal woes [Full Count]

Boxscore Breakdown – Tuesday’s Comeback Win [Full Count]

John Lackey Less Than Pleased With Personal Numbers But Happy With Win [NESN.com]

Victor Martinez Doubles Down at the Dish, Paces Red Sox Past A’s With Historic Performance [NESN.com]

Beckett to have conversation Wednesday with staff [Projo Sox Blog]

Red Sox 9, Athletics 4: Five hits for Martinez [Providence Journal]

Another underwhelming performance for Lackey [Providence Journal]

Cameron to see a specialist on Wednesday [Providence Journal]

Defense finally gets its act together [Providence Journal]

Red Sox journal: Francona rooting for Rivers, Celts [Providence Journal]

Francona rooting for Doc, Celtics [RedSox.com]

Cameron to see specialist about pain [RedSox.com]

Sox now approaching the tinkering time [Tony Massarotti – Boston Globe]

For more slices of Red Sox goodness, head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, ESPN Boston, NESN, Providence Journal and WEEI websites.

And if you must read the enemy papers, you can check out the San Francisco Chronicle and San Jose Mercury News websites.

EAST HARTFORD, Conn. – The University of Connecticut men’s and women’s ice hockey teams will be playing an outdoor doubleheader at Rentschler Field in East Hartford on Sunday, Feb. 13 as part of the “Whalers Hockey Fest”. The announcement was made on Wednesday as part of the unveiling of the event by Whalers Sports and Entertainment.

The UConn men’s team will take on Sacred Heart in an Atlantic Hockey contest followed by the women’s team facing Providence in a Hockey East game. Game times will be announced at a later date.

“The University of Connecticut is excited to participate in this celebration of hockey in Hartford,” says UConn Director of Athletics Jeff Hathaway. “We thank Howard Baldwin and Whalers Sports and Entertainment for incorporating a `UConn Day’ as part of the `Whalers Hockey Fest’. This is a special opportunity to spotlight our men’s and women’s hockey programs. In addition, it will be a memorable experience for our student-athletes, coaches and fans. Given the close proximity of the participating teams, we hope that UConn supporters as well as hockey fans throughout the region will make plans to join us for this unique event at Rentschler Field.”

Rentschler Field is the 40,000-seat home of the UConn football team. It is owned by the State of Connecticut and managed by Bushnell Management Services.

“It’s very fitting that the UConn men’s ice hockey program is involved in the Whalers Hockey Fest,” said Husky head coach Bruce Marshall. “We just celebrated the 50th anniversary of our program and many of the early games of our team were played outdoors. In addition, Todd Krygier, one of our program’s most prominent alumni, played for the Whalers for two seasons. We are hoping that the success and exposure that Rentschler Field has provided for our football team will do the same that night for our men’s hockey team.”

The 10-day Whalers Hockey Fest could include as many as 20 outdoor games between professional, college, prep school and high school teams at Rentschler Field.

“I think this is an exciting opportunity to showcase UConn women’s ice hockey, and the sport in general in a fun and festive atmosphere,” says Husky head coach Heather Linstad. “It will be exciting for our student-athletes to say they played a game outdoors at Rentschler Field.”

Festival Tickets for the entire event can be purchased online at WhalersSports.com. Information on individual game tickets will be forthcoming.

Note: Artist rendering of Rentschler Field courtesy of Whaler Nation

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UConn Football links

DC was busy getting predictions from all of the Big East Football beat writers from each city [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

Big East mailbag [ESPN.com – Big East Blog]

Post-spring position rankings: Secondary [ESPN.com – Big East Blog]

Post-spring position rankings: Tight ends [ESPN.com – Big East Blog]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Information About Hall of Fame Induction Weekend [John Altavilla – Hartford Courant]

Former Polk Prep stars reunite at charity event [Lakeland Ledger]

Recruiting battle of 2013 begins [ESPN HoopGurlz]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

Heard it Through the Grapevine … [David Borges – New Haven Register]

“We Were Only Freshmen …” [David Borges – New Haven Register]

Calhoun: ‘Truth Will Win Out’ [David Borges – New Haven Register]

Darius Smith To Transfer; Niels Giffey On Campus [Mike Anthony – Hartford Courant]

Kevin Ollie On His Future [Mike Anthony – Hartford Courant]

Jim Calhoun At Franciscan Life Sports Banquet [Mike Anthony – Hartford Courant]

Ollie already in? [Neill Ostrout – CT Post]

Handling the Handlers [UConn Huskies Basketball]

Rod Sellers Isn’t Buying It, Says Brother Got Raw Deal [Hartford Courant]

UConn Never Audited Records Of Calhoun’s Basketball Camp [Hartford Courant]

Kevin Ollie Could Be In Line For UConn Assistant Coach [Hartford Courant]

Calhoun’s down, but not out, says program will remain strong [New Haven Register]

Ollie expected to be named assistant at UConn [New Haven Register]

Ollie a good starting point [New Haven Register]

Other UConn related links

Women’s Lacrosse: UConn’s Ashley Mitchelides Selected to IWLCA North Roster [UConnHuskies.com]

UConn Baseball team has its eyes on the big prize [The Day]