Red Sox/Yankees News & Notes – 8/28

Terry Francona, Joe Torre - AP

If you’re wondering about why I am adding Yankees news into the normal Red Sox news & notes, it’s because the two teams are playing each other for the next 3 days. Right now the Red Sox hold an 8 game lead as they look to distance themselves from the Yanks. The Yanks come into the series fresh off a 16-0 mauling by the Tigers while the Red Sox come well-rested after a day off. Moving forward, let’s take a look at the headlines from the Boston area and New York media on this cool morning along the shores of Long Island Sound.

Yankees are losing at this game of catch [Boston Globe]

GOOSE: YANKS CAN COME BACK [NY Post]

Back in good standing: Sox relish opportunity for control of AL East [Boston Herald]

No sizzle for Sox series [NY Daily News]

A Different Feel With 8-Game Lead [Hartford Courant]

Little drama to this Red Sox-Yankees series [Newsday]

Series loses luster [Pro Jo]

Strong for the week [Boston Globe]

MAKE OR FAKE IN AL EAST [NY Post]

His own outlook: Henry examines dynamics of Sox-Yanks rivalry [Boston Herald]

Grand old gamer [Boston Globe]

As always stop by here first for your latest Red Sox news then head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Hartford Courant, Providence Journal, NY Post, NY Daily News and Newsday websites to see what else they are writing.

Red Sox vs Yankees Pitching Matchups

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Tuesday August 29th, 7:05 PM

Daisuke Matsuzaka, RHP (13-10, 3.76) vs Andy Pettitte (LHP) (11-7, 3.69)

Wednesday August 30th, 7:05 PM

Josh Beckett, RHP (16-5, 3.21) vs Roger Clemens (RHP) (5-5, 4.34)

Thursday August 31st,1:05 PM

Curt Schilling, RHP (8-5,4.11) vs Chien-Ming Wang (RHP)(15-6, 3.95)

Tuesday’s Half Marathon Around The AL

The Red Sox cut down the number of candidates for Red Sox Nation president to 25 people and a dog.

It was business as usual for the Angels on Monday.

Jack Hannahan is leaving a nice impression on the A’s.

Blue Jays starter Gustavo Chacin is undergoing exploratory surgery on his left shoulder Wednesday.

Devil Rays starter Jason Hammel is working on his mechanics.

Asdrubal Cabrera has taken over the 2nd base duties for the Indians.

Jose Guillen is seen as a leader for the Mariners.

Orioles skipper Dave Trembley sat down for a Q&A with MLB.com.

The Rangers have a quarterback controversy behind the plate.

Rowdy Hardy has surprised the Royals brass this season.

Jair Jurrens will go to the Tigers bullpen when he gets off the DL.

Jason Bartlett is playing through some pain for the Twins.

A.J. Pierzynski is downplaying the shouting match between him and White Sox hitting coach that happened on Sunday.

Derek Jeter returned to the Yankees lineup on Monday night.

Paw Prints – Delle Donne Speaks

Paw Prints

Elena Della Donne - HoopGurlz.comAs you all know by now, the UCONN Huskies women’s basketball team pulled off the coup of the year again by stealing away the nation’s top recruit in Elena Delle Donne from Tennessee. This marks the third year in a row the Huskies have scored the #1 recruit (2006-Tina Charles, 2007-Maya Moore, 2008-Delle Donne).

On Sunday, she told her parents she didn’t want to play ball in college. Then later that afternoon in the car with her mom, she had an “epiphany” and decided on UCONN. She explained her reasons to Glenn Nelson from HoopGurlz.com:

“All of a sudden, I just said, ‘I’m going to UConn.”

“In the back of my mind, I’d always thought UConn. But in the car with my mother, I was thinking of every reason that made UConn great. Why not go there? The reason the decision dragged out so long is that I loved the other schools so much. It was hard to break the ties with them.”

“I talked to [fellow recruit] Caroline Doty the whole time,” Delle Donne said. “She never forced me into anything. All she did was tell me all she knew about UConn and it really helped. It’s definitely comforting, knowing I’ll be going away to college with a close friend. I’ll get to see her family when they come to visit. It will still feel like home to me.”

“I loved Tennessee, but it was not the program for me,” Delle Donne said. “I have to be with players who complement me, and they just have so many recruits. It’s not so much anything negative about them, as it is that UConn is just the best fit. The players really complement me. The games will be so much closer to home. And I love Geno. He really recruits pieces to a puzzle instead of trying to get every recruit he can.”

This summer she self-imposed a hiatus from the game of basketball and the recruiting. The only time she touched a basketball was when she rebounded for her kids at the camp she was working at. She also found her love for the game she played during this time.

“I thought about it every day,” she said. “I wasn’t supposed to, but I couldn’t help it. Every time I thought about it, I got a sickening feeling. I knew that, no matter how much time I was away from the game, I still had this big decision to make about college.

“Now that I’ve made the decision, I know I want to play. There’s no question about it.”

I am sure this is absolutely eating Tennessee women’s coach Pat Summitt up. She loses Moore to UCONN women’s coach Geno Auriemma, then she cancels the series between the two teams. Well I hate to tell you his Pat, but Geno got the last word again.

Celtics Sign Posey

James Posey the newest CelticThe Boston Celtics have signed veteran NBA player James Posey to a two-year contract. The deal calls for $3.8 million this year with a player option for next season.

The Celtics introduced the former Miami Heat player at a press conference today. Posey, a 6’8″ swingman, couldn’t stop smiling as he talked about the opportunity to play with a team that has a chance at a championship. Posey already has one that he got as a member of the Heat’s 2006 championship squad.

Posey has mostly made his name in the league on perimeter defense and rebounding. His quick hands, long wingspan and large frame make him an above-average defender who can guard up to four positions.

Celtics General Manager Danny Ainge is certainly going all out in an effort to not only bring a title to Boston but to save his job. This off season he has added Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, Eddie House, Scott Pollard and now Posey in a total roster reconstruction.

“He plays hard, he has that experience and he knows what it takes. He’s played with good players and he knows how to find his spots,” Ainge said of Posey. “He knows how to create, he’s good at slashing off the ball, and he’s had to work for shots when you play with great players like Shaq and Dwyane Wade in Miami.”

The Celtics have won a NBA best 16 championships but their last one came in 1986.

Lowell, Ortiz Share A.L. Player of the Week Honors

Lowell, Big Papi - Getty

Mike Lowell and David Ortiz were named Bank of America American League co-players of the week for the week ending August 26th. The award is Lowell’s third overall and first as a member of the Boston Red Sox. For Ortiz, this is his 4th award.

Lowell was 14-28 (.500) with 3 doubles, a home run and 11 RBIs. Ortiz was 11 for 23 (.478) with two doubles, a triple, 3 home runs and 8 RBIs.

The award comes on the heels of a 6-1 start to the 10-game road trip the Red Sox are on. Congratulations to Ortiz and Lowell on the honor.

‘Stros Fire Manager and GM

I know you’re saying “Steve are you turning this into a Houston Astros blog? This is the second Astros post in like 24 hours”. No, I’m not, generally I could care less about the ‘Stros but you’ll see in a moment why all of a sudden you think I’m from Texas.

Today the Astros dumped manager Phil Garner and General Manager Tim Purpura less than two years after the duo took the team to it’s first World Series where they were swept by the Chicago White Sox.

Owner Drayton McLain said the team “needed a fresh start” so he canned those guys and made Team President Tal Smith interim General Manager and bench coach Cecil Cooper interim manager.

Houston is currently 58-73 and 9 games behind Chicago in the weak NL Central having lost five of the last seven games to lowly Washington and Pittsburgh.

Cooper with the Red SoxThe 57-year-old Cooper becomes a major league manager for the first time. The five-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove winner was the bench coach in Milwaukee in 2002 and managed Triple-A Indianapolis in 2003-04. He started his playing career with the Boston Red Sox and was traded in 1976 to Milwaukee for George Scott and Bernie Carbo. The deal brought the two former Red Sox back to Boston and gave Cooper a gateway to becoming one of the best first baseman of his era.

The Astros have 31 games left and McLain said it’s basically an audition for Cooper.

Cooper is already making changes, he promoted first-base coach Jose Cruz to bench coach and moved bullpen coach Mark Bailey to the first-base position and will have some lineup changes on Tuesday.

Garner took over midway through 2004 for the fired Jimy Williams and compiled a 277-252 record with Houston. He has also managed Milwaukee and Detroit.

Purpura joined the Astros in 1994 serving a variety of positions with the club before taking over from Gerry Hunsicker as GM before the 2005 season. He has been blamed for the poor acquistions of starters Woody Williams and Jason Jennings as well as holding onto Morgan Ensberg for too long.

Houston became the fourth team to switch managers this season. Baltimore fired Sam Perlozzo on June 18 and Cincinnati fired Jerry Narron on July 1, the same day Mike Hargrove resigned as Seattle’s manager

Was Michael Vick Really Sorry?

I know you’re sitting there asking yourself, “Ian, why are you still writing about Michael Vick?” The reason is it is big news. The Attorney General of the United States steps down but is reduced to a small link on most news websites right now. The other reason is that I am a pet owner (well sort of, parents have a dog they got when I lived at home) and a dog lover. I’d do anything for my pup.

So in watching the statement Vick gave, I didn’t feel that Vick was sincere. While it did come from the heart, I felt it came more out of the shame and embarrassment of being caught and the fact that he’s losing millions of dollars. I think that as he spends time in prison, he will truly realize his actions. He’s admitted he was wrong but I just don’t think it was sincere.

You be the judge.

 

 

 

Paw Prints – Pissing off Pat Summitt Edition

Paw Prints

With there being no Red Sox game today, let’s turn our attention to the UCONN Huskies.

Put this one in the Geno Auriemma pissing off Tennessee women’s coach Pat Summitt file.

According to the Journal-Inquirer, the nation’s #1 high school women’s basketball recruit, Elena Delle Donne, has given the Huskies an oral commitment to play basketball at UCONN in 2008. She is the 4th recruit to give an oral commitment to the Huskies. And yes that is smoke coming from Knoxville this morning. This would also be the third year in a row that Geno Auriemma has landed the nation’s top recruit (Tina Charles-2006, Maya Moore-2007, Elena Delle Donne-2008).

“Looking back, as her father, as recently as Saturday night I didn’t know where she was going to school,” Ernie Delle Donne said today. “The entire process was gratifying and as much of an honor as can be bestowed on you. Elena feels grateful for the attention she’s received from living legends such as Geno Auriemma and Pat Summitt as well as the other coaches.

“The ultimate decision came to the connection she felt with the UConn players, the proximity to home, the chance to play in the area in the Big East, and the UConn coaching staff with a Hall of Famer in Geno as well as Chris Dailey. Every school on her list had something outstanding unique to itself. That made it difficult. It was like choosing between a banana split and a hot fudge sundae. Any way you go you’ve made a great selection.”

Happy belated birthday wishes go out to UCONN women’s basketball player Mel Thomas who celebrated her 22nd birthday yesterday. Also early birthday wishes to Brittany Hunter who will celebrate her 22nd birthday on Thursday August 30th.

UCONN’s game this Saturday against the Duke Blue Devils is not on television. But don’t fret Husky football diehards. For the low price of $4.99, you can watch the game online via ACC Select.

UCONN’s football game with Pittsburgh at Heintz Field will kickoff at 7 PM. The time was announced by the University of Pittsburgh today.

Former UCONN Huskies men’s basketball players Ray Allen and Donny Marshall won the Ahmad Rashad Celebrity Golf Classic on Sunday afternoon. The tournament was held at the Mohegan Sun Country Club at Pautipaug in Sprague, CT. The duo won the tournament by 4 strokes over former UCONN Husky Scott Burrell and actor Alfonso Ribeiro, otherwise known as Carlton Banks from The Fresh Prince from Bel Air. Michael Jordan was in attendance at the event. He had promised to sign autographs after his round of golf but got into his limo after playing and didn’t sign anything.