4 By Land, 1 By Air Brown Delivers

Ronnie Brown busts through the Patriots defense for a TD in the second quarter. AP Photo.

The Result

There was not a lot to be happy about today if you were a New England Patriots fan as the Miami Dolphins manhandled them 38-13 at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro MA on Sunday afternoon. It was the first win of Tony Sparano’s NFL coaching career and it was a dominant one.

The Dolphins picked apart New England both offensively and defensively but the star of the game was Miami running back Ronnie Brown as he ran for 4 TDs including a 62-yarder and threw for a fifth in the rout.  In addition to the 62 yard jaunt Brown delivered on runs of 2, 15 and 6 yards and threw a 19 yard TD pass to tight end Anthony Fassano as Miami scored on drives of 74, 79, 77, 79, 85 and 41 yards.  Brown teamed up in the backfield with Ricky Williams and that combined with the accurate passing of Chad Pennington made the Dolphins who had lost 20 of their last 21 games look like world beaters.

Miami beats New England for the Patriots first regular season loss since the Dolphins shut them out 21-0 in December of 2006.  It’s a win Miami can build on and a loss New England would like to forget. Unfortunately for them they’ll have a while to think about it as they have a bye next Sunday.

Scoring Plays

DOLPHINS 7 14 7 10 38
PATRIOTS 0 6 7 0 13

1st Quarter

  • MIA – Brown 2 yard run – PAT good

2nd Quarter

  • NE – Gostkowski 37 yard FG
  • MIA – Brown 15 yard run – PAT good
  • NE – Gostkowski 44 yard FG
  • MIA – Brown 6 yard run – PAT good

3rd Quarter

  • MIA – Brown 19 yard pass to Fassano – PAT good
  • NE – Cassel 4 yard pass to Gaffney – PAT good

4th Quarter

  • MIA – Brown 62 yard run – PAT good
  • MIA – Carpenter 39 yard FG

Offensive Player of the Game

Ronnie Brown throws a TD pass to Anthony Fassano. AP Photo. Miami running back Ronnie Brown tore the New England defense up scoring 4 TDs on the ground and throwing for a fifth.  He had 113 yards on 17 carries and was 1/1 throwing the ball.

Defensive Player of the Game

Miami linebacker Joey Porter.  Porter talked and he backed it up.  But on the field he played like he used to when he was in Pittsburgh registering 6 tackles and 3 sacks of Matt Cassel.

Turning Point(s) of the Game

Ronnie Brown’s 15 yard TD run in the second quarter seemed to deflate the team and the fans. He went up the gut and wasn’t touched until he knocked over Ellis Hobbs halfway in the end zone.

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Matsuzaka Shuts Down Blue Jays 3-0, Magic Number At 1

Jonathan Papelbon and Jason Varitek congratulate each other on a job well done.

Daisuke Matsuzaka dominated the Toronto Blue Jays for 7 innings as the Boston Red Sox went on to win 3-0 in front of 38,814 at Rogers Centre on Sunday afternoon.

The win for the Red Sox cuts their magic number for a playoff spot down to 1. A Yankees loss tonight against the Orioles and the Red Sox are in. The Red Sox are also now 1.5 games behind the Rays as they fell this afternoon to the Twins.

Dice-K is now 9-0 on the road this season.

Dice-K finishes 9-0 in 13 starts on the road this season.

This was the Matsuzaka that we’ve been waiting for. He didn’t nibble, attacked the hitters and had good command and location of all his pitches. He allowed just 2 hits and 2 walks while striking out 6 on 109 pitches. Hideki Okajima worked a perfect 8th inning and Jonathan Papelbon picked his 40th save despite allowing a hit in the 9th.

Jacoby Ellsbury paced the Red Sox offense with 3 hits, including 2 doubles and a triple. David Ortiz had the big blow with a 2-run home run for his only hit of the day while Dustin Pedroia knocked in the other run and added a hit. Jason Varitek and Mark Kotsay had the other hits for the Red Sox.

The Red Sox got things started quickly in the 1st inning off of Scott Richmond. Ellsbury led the inning off with a triple and came into score on a sacrifice fly by Pedroia.

Matsuzaka’s only rough inning of the day came in the 2nd inning.

Vernon Wells led off with a double and went to third on an Adam Lind ground out. Dice-K then walked Lyle Overbay but rebounded to strikeout Scott Rolen and Travis Snider.

After Varitek struck out to second, Ellsbury doubled to deep center on a ball that was almost caught by Wells. Pedroia grounded out to third with Ellsbury moving to third on the play. Big Papi gave Dice-K and the Red Sox all the runs they would need with an opposite field 2-run home run to put the visiting 9 up 3-0.

The Red Sox now head home for 4 games with the Cleveland Indians and 3 games with the Yankees to close out the 2008 campaign. Big game Josh Beckett gets the ball tomorrow night for the Red Sox.

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Late Morning/Early Afternoon Red Sox Delight – 9/21

Daisuke Matsuzaka looks to keep his perfect road record intact this afternoon against the Blue Jays.

The final road game for the Boston Red Sox is finally upon us. And even with a win, the Red Sox can’t finish above .500 (38-42) on the road. Thank God for a 52-22 record at home with 7 games to play at Fenway Park.

A Yankees loss and Red Sox win gets the Sox into the playoffs today. Of course if they win they’ll have to wait about 11:00 PM tonight to find out their fate. Like I said in the morning post, I’d rather see the Red Sox clinch a playoff spot at home tomorrow night so we can see the celebration.

Daisuke Matsuzaka looks to cut the magic number of 2 in half this afternoon and puts his perfect road record on the line. He is 8-0 in 12 starts with a 2.61 ERA away from Fenway and sports a 17-2 record with a 3.18 ERA overall on the season. Dice-K has no record in 2 starts this season against the Jays with a 3.46 ERA and is 3-1 with a 4.58 ERA in 6 career starts with a 1-1 record with a 3.79 ERA in 3 starts at Rogers Centre.

Rookie Scott Richmond starts for the Blue Jays this afternoon and has never faced the Red Sox. He is 0-2 with 5.06 ERA and is making his 4th career start.

Adam Kilgore has some news and notes from this morning with nothing new to report on J.D. Drew and Mike Lowell.

Lineups and batter/pitcher matchups after the jump.

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Patriots Tailgating Tidbits – Week 3

The brand new Hall at Patriot Place

Lots of speculation this week on Troy Brown.  Brown has said he will only play for the Patriots.  With that being said there is no spot for Troy Brown, has been no spot for Troy Brown and there will not be a spot for Troy Brown.

So why is all the local media playing the will he or won’t he game when it comes to his retirement?  He has in effect retired, he is inactive and refused at least one offseason contract offer.  You heard it here first Brown is done playing.  And if he doesn’t go into the media he will assuredly end up with some position with in the organization like Andre Tippett did.

Ben Coates speaks at his induction to the Hall at Patriot Place. He is the 13th former Patriot to be honored.Former TE Ben Coates was inducted in the team Hall of Fame Saturday.  He is the thirteenth former Patriot to end up in the Hall at Patriot Place.  In fact all 12 previous inductee’s were re-inducted to celebrate the opening of the new Hall.

In case you missed it the team re-signed TE Tyson DeVree to the practice squad.  He fills the opening created when QB Matt Gutierrez was placed on the 53-man roster.  It seems like almost every year there is one player who constantly is on the signed to the practice squad/get cut cycle for most of the season.  This year DeVree, along with TE Stephen Spach,  may be the guy.  This is DeVree’s 4th time with the club since May and third time since August 19th.

The Dolphins are one of the few teams that have a fight song.  This one is a direct rip off of the old Houston Oilers fight song.  I know the Chargers have one that sounds like the theme to a bad disco movie but I can’t think of or don’t know of any others.  If you know of team with a fight song leave a link to it in the comments or tell me who has one and if you know the name.

Before he became anonymous Matt Cassel was actually famous as one of the “earthquake boys”.

Since 2000, New England is 5-3 in games before the bye week.  In the years they won they went at least as far as the AFC Championship game.  The years they lost they missed the playoffs or lost in the first round.

For the first time in two weeks the Patriots have no one listed as out the day before the game.  That doesn’t mean that can’t change as RB LaMont Jordan (foot) and WR Kelly Washington (ankle) were listed as doubtful. Listed as questionable are RB Laurence Maroney (shoulder) and LB Eric Alexander (calf).  DL Vince Wilfork (back) is listed as probable.  Miami had no one listed on its injury report.

As of 10:30 a.m. Sunday the Patriots are saying Maroney is a game time decision.

as of 11a.m. Mike Reiss says Jordan is unlikely to play.

And to close I give you my tailgating food item of the week, Patriots Steak Tips.

Paw Prints – The Daily Roundup – 9/21

Paw Prints Daily Roundup

Let’s start out this morning with some video highlights of the UConn Huskies game against the Baylor Bears on Friday night.

[flash http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuUm_MusmUs]

The UConn Huskies might be 4-0 but they are far from perfect yet.

The UConn defense rose to the occasion on Friday night.

Desmond Connor has some notes from Randy Edsall’s teleconference yesterday.

Randy Edsall wants to give Donald Brown a little bit more of a rest during games.

One of the UConn Huskies strengths is their resilience.

The UConn Huskies are ready to begin Big East play this week.

David Gillett has video of Ray Allen and Caron Butler.

Boston Red Sox News & Notes – 9/21

Alex Rios slides in safely under the tag of Dustin Pedroia.

The Boston Red Sox took the field at Rogers Centre yesterday with a chance to clinch a playoff spot. They were unable to do so as Jon Lester had some troubles early on and the Blue Jays took advantage for 5 runs enroute to a 6-3 win.

So, the Red Sox take the field again today with a magic number of 2 and a chance to clinch a playoff spot again. If they win today, they will need the New York Yankees to lose in their final game at Yankee Stadium, something I don’t see happening. I’d much rather see the Red Sox win today and come back home tomorrow night and clinch the playoff spot.

It’s going to take some work though to win the AL East as the Red Sox fell 2.5 games behind the Rays with a week to play.

J.D. Drew is dejected about his back not cooperating with him.

A.J. Burnett needs to be told the truth about opting out of his contract.

Jon Lester hit a mark yesterday that he has never hit before. He reached 200 innings in a season for the first time in his career.

(I feel) like it’s September, like I’ve thrown 200 innings,” Lester said with a smile. “I’m glad it looks that way but there’s a lot of bumps and bruises along the way. I’ll try to keep pressing and keep working out and stay as strong as I can and go out in five days and pitch against Cleveland.”

Roy Halladay has no remedy for the Blue Jays in 2009.

Jason Bay’s 30th birthday was almost perfect yesterday.

The numbers say it will be the Red Sox and the Cubs in the World Series.

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

And if you must see what the enemy papers are saying, head over to the Toronto Sun, Toronto Star and Globe and Mail websites.

For Those Who Blog We Salute You – 9/20

For Those Who Blog We Salute You

Five Women Who Can Make Me Stop Flipping The Remote – 2008 [Fang’s Bites]

Spread Killers [Center Field]

Video: Red Sox fan (almost) gets Tased in Tampa [Red Sox Monster]

Beware the Blue Jays’ Subliminal Tactics [Surviving Grady]

Holy HELL I Hate it When… [Yankees Chick]

2008 could have been Manny’s MVP season [UmpBump]

Mets walk-up songs [The ‘Ropolitans]

GLENN GEFFNER RETURNS!!!! [38Cliches.com]

Friday Flick 1.20 [CCWW]

Hey Wes Welker, Lighten Up Douche [SporTech Matter]

Tales From The News Desk: Stu Scott, The Raleigh Weatherman [Awful Announcing]

WOMEN STILL HATE FUN [With Leather]

Do Not Attempt to Intimidate Fausto Carmona [The Big Lead]

And last but not least, our video goodness this week comes from Fitzy at the Townie News. As always, Fitzy’s videos are NSFW.

[flash http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0NAtpd8Na8]

Red Sox Strand 16 In 6-3 Loss To Blue Jays

B.J. Ryan celebrates with Curtis Thigpen after closing the door on the Red Sox in the 9th inning.

The Boston Red Sox left 16 runners on base and the Toronto Blue Jays took advantage of Jon Lester early to win 6-3 in front of 40,554 at Rogers Centre. The win for the Jays keeps their very slim playoff hopes alive and the loss for the Red Sox drops their lead to 6.5 games in the wild card over the New York Yankees as the magic number stays at 2.

Jon Lester struggled early on for the Red Sox as the Jays scored 5 early runs.

Jon Lester struggled early on for the Red Sox as the Blue Jays scored 5 runs in the first 2 innings.

Jon Lester was not his usual self for the first two innings but settled down after that. He threw 45 pitches in the first 2 innings and 57 over his final 5 innings of work as he was charged with 5 runs on 8 hits and 3 walks. He did strikeout 4. Justin Masterson worked an inning allowing a run on a hit.

Jason Bay celebrated his 30th birthday today by going 2-for-3 with a home run and 2 RBI. David Ortiz had the other RBI as he was 1-for-3 with a walk. Jacoby Ellsbury, Dustin Pedroia, Kevin Youkilis and Coco Crisp had the other hits for the visiting in the losing effort.

Roy Halladay wasn’t the same Halladay we are used to either as he struggled with his location all though home plate umpire Jim Reynolds was squeezing both pitchers.

Ellsbury led off the 1st with a single and stole his 49th base of the season with Pedroia at the plate. A long fly out by Big Papi moved Ellsbury to third. As Halladay was striking out Youk, Pedroia stole second but Bay flew out to left to end the threat.

Marco Scutaro got things going for the Jays with a leadoff single. He went to second on a Jose Bautista ground out and came into score on an Alex Rios single.

More trouble for Lester in the 2nd inning.

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Late Morning/Early Afternoon Red Sox Delight – 9/20

Jon Lester goes in search of win #16 this afternoon for the Boston Red Sox.

Jon Lester goes in search of win #16 this afternoon for the Red Sox.

As I said in the wee hours of the morning, the Boston Red Sox take the field with a magic number of 2 games to make the playoffs as at least the wild card. A win today coupled with losses by the Yankees and Twins and the Red Sox are in. A division title is not out of the question yet as the Red Sox sit 1.5 games behind the Rays for 1st in the AL East.

Terry Francona sends his best pitcher this season in Jon Lester to the bump this afternoon. Lester has faced the Jays three times this year and is 1-1 with a 3.93 ERA. He is 1-1 with a 3.24 ERA in 4 career starts against them and is 0-1 with an 8.00 ERA in 2 starts at the Rogers Centre.

Everybody’s favorite Doc in Toronto Roy Halladay starts for the Blue Jays and Cito Gaston. Halladay makes his 5th start of the season against the Red Sox and is 2-2. For his career, Halladay is 11-12 with a 4.46 ERA in 28 appearances (24 starts).

Mark this down on your calendars. Terry Francona will be chatting over at the NESN Playground on September 24th at 12:30 PM.

Here is your latest installment of Boston Globe scribe Amalie Benjamin’s mailbag.

There isn’t much news coming out of Toronto so far with the exception that it’s highly unlikely that J.D. Drew will play at all this weekend.

For those of us who hang out at Center Field, the great blog by Texy, we are temporarily without a home during the games. So if y’all would like to use the comments here today until things are squared away, by all means please do so. We don’t bite here and don’t mind the company.

Lineups and batter/pitcher matchups after the jump.

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