Each week we check in with Matt from Fenway West and Rob from The Bottom Line to talk Sox and preview the week ahead. Here’s the latest installment…

1. Red Sox starters and relievers are not pitching consistently. Is John Farrell to blame?

TBL: Other than Buchholz and Bard, this pitching staff is full of veterans. Farrell is the pitching coach, but at the end of the day, these guys know what they need to do and what their capabilities are. I think most of these poor outings are due to the pitchers simply missing location or choosing bad pitches… and that’s on them and the catcher, not Farrell.

SD: No I don’t think Farrell is to blame at all. He’s had good success so far in Boston. I think like Beckett said, it seems to be more mental than anything or as he likes to say “execute the pitches”.

2. Who has been the best pickup for the Red Sox so far this season: Scutaro, Hermida, Beltre, or Lackey?

TBL: Good question. Lackey has been quietly effective, and having him in the rotation made the Matsuzaka injury much less of an issue for the Sox. Beltre seems like to obvious answer here, especially now that he’s hitting for some power, but if Lowell if you double Lowell’s numbers to equal Beltre’s 100+ at-bats, he’d have the same 18-20 RBI, a .300 average and a few homers. Beltre’s value will be in the second half when Lowell would have started to break down. My vote is for Lackey – right now.

SD: I think the biggest surprise has been Hermida. He came into a situation where he didn’t know how much he would play and he’s produced when he’s been in the lineup. This can only bode well for the Red Sox if another injury situation in the outfield happens. He’s even done well pinch-hitting. Scutaro has done a great job filling in at the top of the lineup as well with  Ellsbury out but I’m more pleased with Hermida.

3. Now that Ortiz is showing signs of life, should Tito let him DH full time?

TBL: No. I’m sure he’s worked hard to snap out of this funk, but I’m also sure that not facing LHP has also helped. The platoon has been established and it’s the best solution for Lowell, Ortiz and Tito going forward.

SD: This is a tough question to answer. He’s shown he can hit a few lefties but they were against bad pitching. Until he proves he can hit good pitching, I think the platoon situation will continue. I know he needs the chance to the be in the lineup every day to prove himself but with the Red Sox falling behind in the East,  Francona needs to do what’s best to win on a nightly basis. And if that’s a platoon situation with Lowell, I’m okay with that.

4. What type of player should the Red Sox be looking to trade for before the deadline?

TBL: A big bat that they can sign for a long term extension. The problem here is that a guy like Adrian Gonzalez or Cecil Fielder will cost us a ton of prospects and a ton of money… so waiting for them to hit the FA market, might be the wiser move.

Theo warned us that this was a “bridge year,” and though he didn’t mean that we should accept mediocrity this season, we may have to accept that this is the team we’ll be stuck with for better or worse in 2010.

SD: A middle reliever for one like say Heath Bell from the Padres.  It worked last year when they got Wagner to help shore up the holes so I don’t think another arm will hurt. They also need to look for some power. Sure the offensive numbers are up but unless Big Papi comes full circle, the Red Sox will need production from the DH spot. I’m sure they’ll  call their old pal Jed in San Diego as well to inquire about Adrian Gonzalez but if the Pads are still playing good ball then, it’ll be super hard to pry him from them without mortgaging the farm.

5. Would you keep Scutaro at the top of the order when Ellsbury comes back?

TBL: Starting Ellsbury in the 9-hole might be a good way to get him acclimated to the big leagues again, but once he feels ready, I think you need him back at the top of the order. We need him on base, causing chaos, as much as possible.

SD: Personally, I’m of the school that you don’t lose your position when you come back from injury but they are two different players. Scutaro’s done an admirable job filling in at the top but he’s not the stolen base threat that Ellsbury is. As Francona says, Ellsbury is a game-changer and that’s what they need at the top of the lineup.

6. MVP for this week?

SD: Adrian Beltre

TBL: J.D. Drew

Boston Celtics point guard Rajon Rando was the big story in Boston yesterday while Oakland A’s pitcher Dallas Braden was the story in New York after throwing a perfect game against the Tampa Bay Rays. Of course all of this came before the Boston Red Sox were looking to avoid a sweep at the hands of the hated rival in the New York Yankees.

The Red Sox had the right guy on the mound in Jon Lester to prevent the sweep and the Yankees were hoping A.J. Burnett’s 4-0 start this season was good enough to put his Fenway troubles behind him. In his four previous starts at Fenway, Burnett had an ERA of 11.72.

And last night the Red Sox added to that as they scored nine runs in 4 1/3 innings against him. It was a much-needed win for the Red Sox as right now, they are just looking for a way to get back on track after the slow start to this season.

Other than two little bumps in the road in the 4th, Lester was outstanding again. He’s now picked up wins in his last three starts and is definitely on his way to erasing his bad month of April with the exception of his April 30th start. He mixed his pitches well and moved the ball around the plate. On the monstrous blast he gave up to Nick Swisher, he left a fastball out over the plate. The one Alex Rodriguez hit came on a inside fastball.

Now the Red Sox must turn their focus to moving up out of fourth place. They’ll have a chance to do that as the Toronto Blue Jays come to town for a 3-game set before Thursday’s off day. The Red Sox currently trail the Jays by 2½ games in the AL East for third place and the last time they faced each other a few weeks ago, the Red Sox swept them in Toronto.

While a sweep will go a long way against them, the Red Sox need to continue to get good starting pitching. John Lackey should deliver that tonight but you can only hope and pray you get that from Daisuke Matsuzaka and Josh Beckett in the next two games.

Don’t forget tonight’s Red Sox game is on NESN Plus.

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

Red Sox salvage the finale [Boston Globe]

Bow out [Boston Globe]

Disdain still surfacing over infield [Boston Globe]

Cameron gets the green light [Boston Globe]

No need to throw in towel on staff [Boston Globe]

Sox bullpen has had its work cut out so far [Boston Globe]

At an opportune time [Boston Globe]

This time, it was a welcome change of pace [Boston Globe]

Sweep salvation [Boston Herald]

Time to follow Jon Lester [Boston Herald]

Mike Cameron heads to Pawtucket [Boston Herald]

Yo, Adrian. What’s with the glasses? [Clubhouse Insider]

Youkilis on offense: No respect [Clubhouse Insider]

Red Sox win series finale vs. Yanks, 9-3 [CSN New England]

About Beltre’s glasses [ESPN Boston]

Video: Red Sox-Yankees postgame analysis [ESPN Boston]

Up and down Sox win one they needed [Extra Bases]

Closing Time: Red Sox 9, Yankees 3 [Full Count]

Why Beltre wore the glasses [Full Count]

Francona, Lester after Sox win [Full Count]

Red Sox, Lester Defeat Yankees [Hartford Courant]

Mother’s Day Much-Needed Win [Hit and Run with Dan Roche]

Jon Lester Spins Ace-Like Performance as Southpaw Plays Stopper Against Yankees [NESN.com]

Can Red Sox Still Make Playoffs? [NESN.com]

Monday Morning Quickie – Just Two Nuggets [Nuggetpalooza]

Red Sox continue to own Burnett at Fenway, take series finale with Yankees [Providence Journal]

Lester establishing himself as the true ace of Red Sox’ staff [Providence Journal]

Ditching pink bats a good move for some Red Sox, Yankees [Providence Journal]

Despite successful start, Darnell McDonald’s Red Sox future is in limbo [Providence Journal]

Big Papi on verge of turning corner [RedSox.com]

Pitching will determine Boston’s fate [RedSox.com]

Red Sox pay tribute to moms at Fenway [RedSox.com]

Hermida continues to deliver big hits [RedSox.com]

Taking stock of these Red Sox [Rob Bradford – WEEI.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 to take a look at what the enemy papers are saying, head over to the ESPN New York, NY Post,  NY Daily News, NY Times and Journal News websites. You can also check out what our Bloguin brother NYY Stadium Insider has to say.

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

UConn Football links

Geno Auriemma’s First Commencement Speech: ‘A Plus’ [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

Marcus Easley: An NFL Rookie And Now UConn Graduate [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

Donald Brown: He’s Earned The Trophy That Means The Most [Desmond Conner – Hartford Courant]

Commencement Weekend At UConn [UConnHuskies.com]

Donald Brown Returns For UConn Degree [BigEast.org]

Brown Returns For UConn Degree [Hartford Courant]

Buffalo Bills eager to discover potential of Marcus Easley [Rochester Democrat and Chronicle]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Engeln shines in all-star game [Jim Fuller – New Haven Register]

Jacquie To Join Tonya At Temple [Rich Elliott – CT Post]

Duke Renews Contract with Connecticut Through 2014-15 [GoDuke.com]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

Calhoun hopeful after UConn’s frustrating year [Norwich Bulletin]

Other UConn related links

Softball: Huskies Drop Senior Day Matinee 7-3 To Louisville [UConnHuskies.com]

Baseball: Cincinnati Edges Huskies 3-2 in Series’ Finale [UConnHuskies.com]

Women’s Ice Hockey Acknowledges 2009-10 Team at Banquet [UConnHuskies.com]

Jon Lester may have had a bad month of April for the Boston Red Sox but boy has he turned around things quickly. And it couldn’t have come at a better time with his buddy Josh Beckett struggling still.

Lester was strong over seven innings as helped the Red Sox to a 9-3 Mother’s Day win over the New York Yankees in front of 37,618 at Fenway Park.

The win gets the Red Sox back to .500 at 16-16 but still remain 2½ games behind their next opponent in the Toronto Blue Jays for third place in the AL East. The Yankees (21-9)  had a chance to overtake the Tampa Bay Rays, who were no-hit by Dallas Braden and the Oakland A’s, for first place.

Other than two little hiccups of the bat of Nick Swisher and Alex Rodriguez in the 4th inning, Lester was pretty dominant. He had all of his pitches working and kept pounding the strike zone. He allowed two runs on four hits and two walks with seven strikeouts.

Manny Delcarmen allowed just his second run since April 16th. The run came on three hits and he also struck out two. Tim Wakefield cleaned up in the 9th and had one strikeout.

Ever since A.J. Burnett came over to the Yankees, he’s had a rough time against the Red Sox at Fenway Park and on Sunday night it was no different. The Red Sox battered him for nine runs (eight earned) on nine hits and three walks. Burnett did record four strikeouts.

Jeremy Hermida had two hits, including a 2-run homer, and knocked in three runs. Adrian Beltre continues to swing a hot stick at the dish as he had two hits and two RBIs while J.D. Drew had two hits and an RBI. Both David Ortiz and Kevin Youkilis added RBI doubles.

The Red Sox got a break in the second when Yanks left fielder Marcus Thames had a ball that came off the bat of Hermida go off his glove. The error allowed Drew to score and make it 1-0 Red Sox.

They would bat around in the 3rd inning when they scored five runs to push the lead to 6-0.

Marco Scutaro led off with a walk and went to third on a Dustin Pedroia double. After Victor Martinez grounded back to Burnett, Youk worked a walk and then Drew brought in Scutaro with a sac fly. Ortiz followed with a ground rule double to score Pedroia and then Beltre cleared the bases. Hermida brought him home with a single.

Nick Swisher and Alex Rodriguez added solo home runs in the 4th but those were the only blips in Lester’s fine night. Hermida added a two-run homer in the 5th to end Burnett’s nightmare at the Fens.

The Red Sox will now try to chase down the Blue Jays and move north in the AL East standings in a three-game set at the Fens.  John Lackey will look to build off his last performance as he’ll be opposed by Brandon Morrow. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m and the game will be shown on NESN Plus in the Red Sox television market.

New York Yankees @ Boston Red Sox 5.9.10 box score

New York Yankees @ Red Sox 8:05 p.m. Fenway Park – Boston, MA SP: A.J. Burnett vs Jon Lester TV: ESPN, ESPN3.com Radio: Red Sox Radio Network

Evening Red Sox Delight – 5/9 [SOX & Dawgs]

After being blown out by the New York Yankees in the first two games, the Boston Red Sox will look to salvage the final game of the series.

Today’s game will start at 8:05 p.m. and will be shown on ESPN. You can also catch the game online at ESPN3.com. If you can’t catch the television broadcast, you can always listen to the game on the 2010 Red Sox radio network.

Jon Lester makes his seventh start of 2010 and has pitched much better as of late. He’s faced the Yanks once this season and picked up a no decision after allowing four runs in five innings. He’s made nine starts against the Yankees in his career and is 3-1 with a 4.19 ERA.

A.J. Burnett also makes his seventh start of 2010 and has a 4-0 record with a 1.99 ERA. He’s also faced the Red Sox once this season and he received a no decision after allowing four runs (three earned) in five innings. He’s had relatively good success in his career against the Red Sox as he is 5-2 with a 4.30 ERA in 13 starts. He’s made seven career starts at the Fens and is 3-2 with a 5.36 ERA.

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

Theo Epstein screwed up [Batter-up with Bruno]

Happy Mother’s Day [Clubhouse Insider]

Cameron will DH for Pawtucket tomorrow; Ramirez update [Clubhouse Insider]

Sunday conversation: Terry Francona [ESPN Boston]

Perilous pitching problems [Extra Bases]

Cameron rehab starts Monday [Extra Bases]

Yankees enjoy Braden’s perfect game [Extra Bases]

Pregame Notes, 5/9 [Full Count]

Red Sox Are Good for What Ails You — Even Cancer [NESN.com]

Idolizing Dwight Evans, Former Marine Dave Lund Ready to Cross Dewey’s Home Plate [NESN.com]

Four Pounds Heavier, Jed Lowrie Beginning Baseball-Related Activities [NESN.com]

Mike Cameron to Begin Rehab Stint With Triple-A Pawtucket on Monday [NESN.com]

Ramon Ramirez checks in healthy, triceps problem insignificant [Projo Sox Blog]

Mike Cameron to play for PawSox Monday at McCoy [Projo Sox Blog]

Bonser to throw 60-65 pitches in next rehab outing [Projo Sox Blog]

Given the up-and-down season the Boston Red Sox are having, you never know which team is going to show up. Is it going to be the team that swept the Los Angeles Angels and Toronto Blue Jays? Or is it going to be the team that got swept by the Baltimore Orioles?

It appears the team that showed up last weekend in Baltimore is the one that showed up at Fenway Park in the series against the New York Yankees so far. Things were so bad for the Red Sox in yesterday’s 14-3 loss that Jonathan Van Every made his second relief appearance in a Red Sox uniform in two seasons.

I’m pretty sure when the Red Sox reacquired JVE from the Pirates, they really weren’t getting him to provide depth in the bullpen. But his appearance just sums up how this season has gone for the Red Sox.

Now a season isn’t made in five weeks but given the way the Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays are playing so far, the Red Sox are digging themselves a deep hole which they could find hard to get out of. They currently find themselves 7½ games behind the Rays for first place and seven games behind the Yankees for second. It’s so bad right now that the team they swept last week in Toronto is 2½ games ahead of them for third place.

We were all promised a season of run prevention and great defense but we haven’t seen that yet. In their first 31 games, the Red Sox have given up 174 runs and have scored 156. It’s not the offense, it’s the pitching and defense. Sure the starting pitching had been good for about a week before the Yankees showed up but now we’ve had two straight bad starts.

The Red Sox thought they were getting a Gold Glove third baseman in Adrian Beltre but he’s been far from that. He made his seventh error of 2010 and also did the ol’ Roger Dorn ole. Maybe Tito needs to go ‘Lou Brown’ on him.

This video is not NSFW unless BS is tolerated.

And by the way, can we just release Scott Schoeneweis now? While we don’t know what Alan Embree would have brought to the table since we didn’t get a chance to see him pitch, it sure seems like boy wonder Theo Epstein made a mistake.

Something needs to change and change quickly, otherwise the Red Sox will be making vacation plans and tee times for October.

We’ll be back later with the lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and links from the day.

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 to take a look at what the enemy papers are saying, head over to the ESPN New York, NY Post,  NY Daily News, NY Times and Journal News websites. You can also check out what our Bloguin brother NYY Stadium Insider has to say.