Judging by the way the first three innings went for Clay Buchholz last night, it looked like it might be a long night for him and the Boston Red Sox. But as the game continued, he got stronger and with the help of the bat of David Ortiz, Buchholz picked up his 11th win of the season in the 6-3 win over the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

He still looked a little rusty early on, especially during the 2nd inning when he had to do his impression of Houdini-K to get out of a bases loaded no-out jam.

Buchholz started the inning by walking Hideki Matsui and allowing a single to Alberto Callapso. He followed that up by plunking Mike Napoli to load up the bases. But young Clay beared down and got Juan Rivera and Jeff Mathis to pop out to Kevin Youkilis at first and retired Erick Aybar on a fly out to left.

That inning seemed to give Buchholz the confidence he needed going forward. In the 3rd inning, he allowed two hits with his pitch count nearing 70.  From that point forward though, he was virtually unhittable. He struck out the side in the 4th on his way to retiring eleven straight batters before a Rivera single in the 7th. He got out of that inning and handed over the game to the bullpen with a 2-1 lead and we all know how’s that has gone lately.

Buchholz had good life on his fastball but it was his curveball and change up that really made the difference for him. You can see how he’s matured over the last year as he probably wouldn’t have been able to escape that bases loaded jam. But this is a new year and a new Clay who finally won’t have to hear his name brought up in trade rumors.

Scott Atchison has been gaining the confidence of skipper Terry Francona over the past few months and it was shown last night as Tito brought him in for the 8th. Normally Daniel Bard would have been in but he had pitched the day before in Seattle and has been used a lot lately.

The move almost paid off but Atchison left a fastball out over the plate that Matsui cranked out of the ballpark to make it 4-3. Jonathan Papelbon finished it off with a four-out save.

Nonetheless though, it was a good win for the Red Sox last night, one they needed to keep pace with the New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays. They got contributions from David Ortiz (two homers), J.D. Drew and Victor Martinez in his return to the lineup.

Now they’ll hope John Lackey can pitch them to another win in his return to Anaheim tonight. We’ll be back later with tonight’s lineups, batter/pitcher matchups, any news and links from the day but for now enjoy the overnight links by hitting the read more button below.

Sudden impact: Martinez makes presence felt in return [Alex Speier – WEEI.com]

Red Sox regain punch [Boston Globe]

Ellsbury takes his first step back [Boston Globe]

A trip to see Sox’ ship [Boston Globe]

Ex-Sox GM, mayor lose ticket deal case [Boston Globe]

Recap: Star power carries Sox past Angels, 6-3 [Boston Herald]

No trade needs in Red Sox rotation [Boston Herald]

Home Run Derby continues for David Ortiz [Boston Herald]

Daniel Bard: Red Sox ’pen may not need relief [Boston Herald]

Sox offense wakes up in 6-3 win [CSN New England]

Notes: Buchholz returns to form; V-Mart looks strong [CSN New England]

Ortiz 20-plus HRs for 8th straight season [ESPN Boston]

Sox thrive behind Ortiz, Buchholz [ESPN Boston]

John Lackey returns to the scene [ESPN LA]

New-look Red Sox mount some offense [Extra Bases]

Source: Ramirez to Mets ‘probably not going to happen’ [Full Count]

Source: Blue Jays, Red Sox not matching up [Full Count]

Do Not Sell Theo [Hit and Run with Dan Roche]

J.D. Drew Quietly Contributing As Iron Man of Red Sox’ Outfield [NESN.com]

Clay Buchholz’s Seven Strong Innings Not Wasted As Offense Provides Just Enough for Win [NESN.com]

What Kind of Second Half Will John Lackey Give Red Sox? [NESN.com]

Dusty Brown’s Hydrating Habit Keys His Rise to Big Leagues [NESN.com]

Rockies Lefty Joe Beimel Reportedly on Trading Block, Could Help Boston Bullpen [NESN.com]

Boxscore Breakdown – Welcome Back, Vic! [Nuggetpalooza]

Ortiz homers twice to lift Red Sox, Buchholz to victory in Anaheim [Providence Journal]

Victor Martinez returns and makes an impact on first pitch he sees [Providence Journal]

Bard has quickly become one of game’s top relievers [Providence Journal]

Sox not as big a TV hit [Providence Journal]

Red Sox Journal: Lackey unsure about reception [Providence Journal]

Red Sox Minor League Notebook: Change does hurler Wilson good [Providence Journal]

V-Mart returns to Red Sox’s lineup [RedSox.com]

Ellsbury starts rehab assignment [RedSox.com]

Injured Pedroia is off and running [RedSox.com]

Abdominal injury still nagging Cameron [RedSox.com]

Papi’s two homers lead Sox past Angels [RedSox.com]

For more slices of Boston 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 paper, head over to the LA Times, LA Daily News and Orange County Register websites.

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 some of the other sports. 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.

Thank you for stopping and by 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

Randy Edsall All Over ESPN on Thursday [SOX & Dawgs]

Graham Stewart Update: More Players In The Game [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

Fresh faces: Connecticut [ESPN.com – Big East Blog]

Big East Conference Heisman Candidates: Small Ballers Emerge [Fanhouse]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Let’s talk scheduling [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]

Montgomery still on a learning curve [Norwich Bulletin]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

Napier using Pro-Am league to get comfortable with Walker [The Day]

Calhoun decries college naysayers [ESPN.com – College Basketball Nation Blog]

Taking it S-L-O-W [Indianapolis Star]

Donyell Marshall, NBA veteran and former LeBron James teammate, launches coaching career at George Washington [Washington Post]

Other UConn related links

Baseball: USA Collegiate National Team Update [UConnHuskies.com]

If you’re an UConn Huskies fan and you’re not doing anything on Thursday, you might want to check out the ESPN family of networks.

If you do decide to tune in, there’s a pretty good chance that you’ll catch UConn head football coach Randy Edsall as he’ll be making numerous appearances on ESPN’s various shows throughout the day.

Here’s the schedule of Edsall’s appearances (appearances and times subject to change):

• 10:50 a.m. – Appear on First Take with Jay Crawford, Dana Jacobson and Reischea Canidate
• 11:05 a.m. – Interview with SportsCenter.com
• 11:20 a.m. – Interview With ESPN Rise
• 11:40 a.m. – Appear on The Herd with Colin Cowherd on ESPN Radio, ESPNU and ESPN.com
• 1:00 p.m. – ESPN.com chat
• 1:20 p.m. – Interview with ESPNW
• 1:40 p.m. – Appear on ESPNU
• 2:10 p.m. – Appear on ESPNews
• 2:40 p.m. – Radio interview on 1250 ESPN Radio in Pittsburgh
• 3:10 p.m. – Appear on the The Scott Van Pelt Show on ESPN Radio, ESPN2 and ESPN.com
• 3:30 p.m. – Appear on College Football Live with multiple airings on ESPN and ESPNU

Photo credit: AP Photo

Boston Red Sox @ Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 10:05 p.m Angel Stadium of Anaheim SP: Clay Buchholz vs Dan Haren TV: NESN, MLB.tv Radio: Red Sox Radio Network

Evening Red Sox Delight – 7/26 [SOX & Dawgs]

The Boston Red Sox are hoping that Anaheim is a little nicer to them than Seattle was as they finish up a 10-game road trip with a three-game set against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at Angel Stadium of Anaheim.

Tonight’s game will start at 10:05 p.m. and will be shown on NESN in the Red Sox television market. The game can be seen in the Angels television market on Fox Sports West. If you can’t catch the television broadcast, you can always listen to the game on the 2010 Red Sox radio network.

Clay Buchholz looks to shake off the rust in his second start since returning from the disabled list. He’s made 16 starts for the Red Sox and is 10-5 with a 2.81 ERA. He’s faced the Angels once this year back on May 3rd, picking up the win after allowing four runs in 5 2/3 innings. Buchholz has made four career starts against the Angels and is 2-2 with a 6.35 ERA.  He’s made one career start at Angel Stadium of Anaheim and took the loss after allowing four runs in 4 2/3 innings back in 2008. Ironically enough, that start and loss came against John Lackey.

Fresh off his trade from the Arizona Diamondbacks yesterday, Dan Haren gets thrown into the fire tonight for the Angels. Haren made 21 starts for the Diamondbacks and was 7-8 with a 5.60 ERA. He faced the Red Sox back on June 17th with the D’backs taking the loss after allowing six runs (four earned) in 5 2/3 innings. Haren has made seven starts in his career against the Red Sox and is 2-4 with a 3.14 ERA.

Lineups, batter/pitcher matchups, and links after the jump.

And here is how hitters have fared against this evening’s starting pitchers:

Victor Martinez was activated from the disabled list this afternoon. To make room on the 25-man roster, Dusty Brown was optioned back to Pawtucket.

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

Video: The Nation Lives for Terry Francona [SOX & Dawgs]

Ellsbury goes 1-for-3 in GCL game; Haren to start for Angels [Clubhouse Insider]

Notes: Martinez back in the lineup [CSN New England]

Video: Three Swings with Nomar [ESPN Boston]

Fading Okajima underscores Sox’s need for help [ESPN Boston]

Werth to Sox? ‘Chasing a ghost’ [ESPN Boston]

Delcarmen, Ramirez available? [ESPN Boston]

Rangers, Tigers cool on Lowell [ESPN Boston]

Martinez catching, hitting sixth [ESPN Boston]

Ellsbury to join bobblehead in Pawtucket? [ESPN Boston]

TV and radio ratings fall for Red Sox [Extra Bases]

Ellsbury starts rehab assignment [Extra Bases]

News from Anaheim: VMart is back [Extra Bases]

Hideki Okajima’s Statistical Trends Far From Encouraging [NESN.com]

Casey Kelly’s Success a Testament to His Father Pat’s Talents On and Off the Field [NESN.com]

Angels Gearing Up for Halo-Turned-Rival John Lackey, Red Sox in Three-Game Set [NESN.com]

Catching Position Won’t Be Black Hole With Victor Martinez Back in Lineup [NESN.com]

Victor Martinez Activated for Series Opener in Anaheim, Giving Offense Much-Needed Boost [NESN.com]

American League Wild Card Race Heats Up as Dan Haren Joins Angels Rotation [NESN.com]

How much of an upgrade would Downs be? [Projo Sox Blog]

Red Sox broadcasts no longer baseball’s highest-rated, first time since 2003 [Projo Sox Blog]

Victor Martinez activated, Brown sent down, Bates, Ellsbury moves. [Projo Sox Blog]

Photo credit: AP Photo, AP Photo

Before I went on vacation last week, I asked Matt from Fenway West and Rob from The Bottom Line to answer a question about whether or not the Boston Red Sox needed to do anything at the trade deadline.

Of course I asked the question before yesterday’s implosion by Hideki Okajima but reached out again to see if anyone needed to change their answers. That was not the case.

You can find their answers plus mine after the jump.

FW: The Red Sox need bullpen help. Oki and MDC are not the pitchers they once were and are unreliable. This road trip has shown how vulnerable the Sox pen is and how easily they can give away a game. Bard and Paps are solid but there is no reliable pitcher that Tito can go with when they need a breather or to pitch the seventh in a close game.

BL: I think this team need a bat, preferably in the OF.

Ellsbury, Pedroia and Martinez could all be back in early August, but until then, the offense is going to continue to sputter. And even when they comeback, it’s likely to take most of August for them to find their swings… and by then, the playoff race could be over.

If Theo could make a move for a guy like Jayson Werth, he could add some pop to the lineup and give them OF options for 2011. I know the Phillies will be asking for prospects the Sox aren’t likely to trade, but they’re down to Halladay, Hamels and Blanton in the rotation and Beyond Howard and Utley, the lineup is aging and struggling. We have lots of catching prospects that they may like, since they traded Lou Marson to Cleveland… and we have young guys like OF Josh Reddick, SP/RP Michael Bowden, SP Felix Doubront and even 1B Lars Anderson that I’d be willing to part with and that can help the Phillies right away.

They could also use a closer (see Brad Lidge) so dare I suggest that they trade Papelbon?

Guys like DeJesus and Hart would add depth in the OF, but I’d like to see them get a run producer.

If we’re focusing on 2010, I think they can get by at catcher with Cash, Tek and Martinez. I wouldn’t be against a trade for Chris Iannetta or John Buck, but I think they will cost us a better prospect than an RP would. If they go for bullpen help, I recently talked about guys like Octavio Dotel (PIT), Craig Breslow (OAK), Rafael Betancourt and Matt Belisle (COL) and Kerry Wood (CLE) at The Bottom Line. Kevin Gregg, Scott Downs and Jason Frasor in Toronto could all work as well.

Bottom Line: By not making a move already, Theo is telling us that he plans to ride the season out with the current group. We shouldn’t be surprised by this because, this holds true to the “bridge year” comment from the start of the season. If the Sox can’t close the gap in the AL East by July 31st, don’t expect Epstien to trade any prospects for a team he feels is out of contention.

But if the Sox make a run out west this week, it will look like he gave up on his team if Theo doesn’t make a move to strengthen the club for September.

SD: I honestly think the Red Sox need to make a few moves but nothing really too major.

I don’t really think there’s a need for a frontline starting pitcher. Although he was a bit rusty on Wednesday night, Clay Buchholz should regain his form that made him an All-Star and if Josh Beckett can find his as well, the Red Sox should be pretty set at starters.

Where they need the help the most with the pitching staff is in the bullpen. Daniel Bard and Jonathan Papelbon have been the most reliable all season long. But they do need some sort of set up man to help keep Bard from being overused. Scott Atchison has been a great bonus helping out when needed but with the inconsistency of Manny Delcarmen, Hideki Okajima and Ramon Ramirez. It’s too early to tell what Michael Bowden can bring to the table so if a reliever is available for the right price, Theo Epstein needs to pull a trigger.

Another big bat wouldn’t hurt but it would have to be an outfielder like the Phillies’ Jayson Werth or the Brewers’ Corey Hart.

We do have to remember that Dustin Pedroia and Victor Martinez should be returning soon as well and their offensive abilities will be a great bonus to the team as well.

Analysis: As you can see, we are all in agreement for the most part. That doesn’t surprise me because it’s obvious the glaring need is in the bullpen. While Rob thinks a bat is still a priority, I think that’s a second need. Of course with the problems of the bullpen will make the cost of acquiring a reliever a little higher than Theo Epstein might want to pay. But he may have to if he wants to see his 2010 Red Sox team in the playoffs this year.

Thanks to Matt and Rob for taking the time to answer the question.

We were away for the weekend on a mini-vacation and it seems like Boston Red Sox reliever Hideki Okajima may have been on one as well yesterday. While his countryman Daisuke Matsuzaka wasn’t spectacular but rather solid for six innings, it was Okajima who imploded during the 4-2 loss to the Seattle Mariners on Sunday afternoon.

Daniel Bard worked an easy 7th inning for the Red Sox and allowed a leadoff single in the 8th. Bard gave way to Okajima who promptly allowed a single to Justin Smoak. With the Red Sox leading 2-1, former Red Sox backup first baseman Casey Kotchman laid down a bunt which was fielded by Okajima, who double clutched his throw to Adrian Beltre at third twice and then failed to get Kotchman at first.

This proved costly as Michael Saunders followed with a 2-run single to put the Mariners out front 3-2. Milton Bradley pinch-hit for Rob Johnson and put a bunt that went between Okajima and Kevin Youkilis that allowed the final run to score.

Okajima didn’t talk to reporters after the game but the loss was clearly his fault. In my opinion, he should have stated what happened instead of letting his teammates speak for what they might have thought happened.

Against a team that they should have clearly beaten, the Red Sox were simply outdone by the bullpen of a last place team. If they want to compete in the AL East and for a playoff spot, the bullpen needs to be improved and quickly.

Dice-K might not have been great on Sunday but he gave the Red Sox a chance to win. Unfortunately the Mariners made him throw a lot of pitches and he only last six innings. Had he been able to go another inning, maybe the result is different if Bard is able to pitch the 8th.

But that didn’t happen and now we are watching the chances of our team making the plays slip away quickly. The Red Sox find themselves eight games out of first place behind the New York Yankees and five games behind the Tampa Bay Rays for second place and the AL Wild Card.

The trade deadline is looming large for the Red Sox and they’ll definitely need to make a move to bolster their chances of a postseason spot.

Speaking of the trade deadline and what the Red Sox need to do, we’ll have something coming up shortly with The Bottom Line and Fenway West as to what we think the Red Sox need to do. But for now, enjoy the overnight links after the jump.

Matsuzaka can’t control when he’s lifted [Boston Globe]

Hesitation pitcher [Boston Globe]

Help arrives, with a catch [Boston Globe]

Recap: Mariners 4 Red Sox 2 [Boston Herald]

Sox must find relief for weak spot in ’pen [Boston Herald]

Red Sox bats running on empty [Boston Herald]

Wild Dice K good enough to win [Boston Herald]

How much should the Sox pay for relief? [Clubhouse Insider]

Sox can’t hold late-inning lead, lose 4-2 [CSN New England]

Red Sox close to slipping out of contention [CSN New England]

Okajima not talking after meltdown [ESPN Boston]

Closing Time: Mariners 4, Red Sox 2 [Full Count]

Source: Jays seek elite prospect for Downs [Full Count]

Red Sox Season Statistical Anomaly Due to Poor Situational Play [NESN.com]

Starting Pitching, Play of Kevin Youkilis Can’t Make Up for Poor Relief Work in Seattle [NESN.com]

Are Red Sox or Angels More Likely to Make Second-Half Comeback? [NESN.com]

Victor Martinez’s Return Could be Key to Turning Around Red Sox Offense in Crucial Series [NESN.com]

Bullpen Disasters Cost Red Sox Series, Highlight Need for Relief Help [NESN.com]

Sunday In Seattle Gave Us A “Case of the Mondays” [Nuggetpalooza]

Small ball means big problems for Sox [Providence Journal]

Sox not using injuries as a crutch [Providence Journal]

Martinez expected to return on Monday [Providence Journal]

Red Sox Journal: Not bad outing for Dice-K, but pen gives it up again [Providence Journal]

Red Sox likely to activate Victor on Monday [RedSox.com]

Francona appreciates Red Sox’s character [RedSox.com]

Red Sox unable to fend off Mariners late [RedSox.com]

Why Hideki Okajima not talking means something [Rob Bradford – WEEI.com]

Red Sox heading for trade deadline nightmare [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 Seattle Times, Everett Herald and Tacoma News Tribune websites.

Photo credit: Reuters Pictures

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 some of the other sports. 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.

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

Since we were away for the weekend and the links were light over that time, I’ll pass those along as well.

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

UConn Football links

Case closed [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

DC was busy answering questions in his mailbag [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

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

Easley bracing himself for beginning of pro football career [CT Post]

Hartford Colonials making strong push to establish fan base [Middletown Press]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Mosqueda-Lewis, Williams lead U.S. to gold [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]

WNBA Rookie Award Has 1 Candidate: Charles [Hartford Courant]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

Nifty Fifty [David Borges – New Haven Register]

Jonathan Mandeldove [Mike Anthony – Hartford Courant]

Korea loves Gavin Edwards [The UConn Blog]

Mo Harkless update… [The UConn Blog]

Top Five Reasons Why UConn Could Be Better [UConn Huskies Basketball]

Ex-UConn Men’s Basketball Star Emeka Okafor Honored By Chamber [Hartford Courant]

UConn Coach Jim Calhoun On A Variety Of Topics [Hartford Courant]

UConn’s Jim Calhoun Defends College Sports At Emeka Okafor Ceremony [Hartford Courant]

Other UConn related links

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