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Good Stuff From No Ordinary (Meriden) Joe [Desmond Conner | UCONN Football]

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Where in the world are Sveta and Keesh? [John Altavilla | UConn Women’s Basketball]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

He feels NBA is within reach –Adrien is hoping to grab attention [Boston Globe]

Alex Oriakhi: Why I picked UConn [UConn Huskies Basketball]

UConn still waiting for letter of inquiry [Connecticut Post]

Jon Lester almost made history last night as he flirted with perfection in the Boston Red Sox 8-1 win over the Texas Rangers.

Lester sent down the first 19 batters he faced before he left a fastball out over the plate for Michael Young, who crushed it for a double. In fact, Young had both of the hits off of Lester last night. He also walked two and recorded eleven strikeouts. He has know struck out 23 batters in his last two starts.

This was the Lester we’ve been expecting all season long. His stuff was just downright filthy. He was moving the ball all over the place and didn’t matter where Jason Varitek called for it or what pitch he called. Lester told NESN’s Heidi Watney after the game that his stuff was more dominant last night than when he threw his no-hitter back in 2008.

This is what Young had to say about Lester’s effort last night:

“That was just lights-out,” Young said of Lester’s performance. “That was one of the best games I’ve seen in my career by a pitcher, topping at 98 [mph], pounding the strike zone. [He] used all his pitches, back-doored his cutter, threw his cutter in, curveball, changeup. You have to give him credit. He flat out threw a good game.”

With two good starts in a row, it really seems that Lester has turned the corner. Hopefully he can continue it in his next start.

John Smoltz made his fourth rehab start last night in Pawtucket and was outstanding once again. Smoltz went six innings, allowing one run on three hits with two walks and three strikeouts. He’s expected to make one more rehab start with the PawSox before joining the Red Sox for a possible start on June 16th against the Florida Marlins.

Smoltz cruises though his first rehab start with PawSox [Providence Journal]

Fourth rehab start in the books for Smoltz [RedSox.com]

Smoltz on His Pawtucket Outing [Full Count]

Smoltz cruises in Pawtucket start [NESN.com]

Lester stifles Texas with another dominating performance [Providence Journal]

Young and the restless [Boston Globe]

Jon Lester likes Texas toast [Boston Herald]

Lester Flirts With Perfection In 2-Hitter [Hartford Courant]

Near no-hitters are no coincidence with these Sox [Providence Journal]

Power mower [Boston Globe]

Puzzled Omar Vizquel: No sign of Boston [Boston Herald]

Lugo Comes To His Own Defense [Hartford Courant]

Lugo smarting over what he feels is unfair criticism [Providence Journal]

Some think slump is all in Ortiz’s head [Boston Globe]

Jon Lester gets up to speed [Boston Herald]

Postgame notes [Providence Journal]

Pokes prodding talk of slight improvement [Boston Globe]

Rocco Baldelli adjusts to new on-call role [Boston Herald]

Red Sox journal: Baldelli-Sox ‘partnership’ working well [Providence Journal]

Lugo taking criticism about play at short [Boston Globe]

Julio Lugo talks good game [Boston Herald]

Ellsbury stealing Sox records, spotlight [RedSox.com]

Dustin Pedroia pick looms large [Boston Herald]

Baldelli making the most of his chances [RedSox.com]

Lowrie about three weeks from returning [Projo Sox Blog]

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

And if the enemy papers are more your flavor, you can check out the Dallas Morning News and Ft. Worth Star-Telegram websites.

Jon Lester was perfect for 6 1/3 innings and ended up allowing 2 hits in a complete game effort as the Boston Red Sox went on to beat the Texas Rangers 8-1 in front of 37,828 on a beautiful night for baseball at Fenway Park.

With the win, the Red Sox (33-23) take over first place in the AL East by ½ game as the New York Yankees lost this afternoon. Despite the loss, the Rangers (32-23) will stay in first place in the AL West.

What can we say about the way Lester pitched tonight? His stuff was just downright nasty. He had great velocity (hit 98 mph) and had excellent command of every pitch. He said after the game that his stuff tonight was better than when he threw the no-hitter last year.

Lester threw 107 pitches, 72 of them for strikes. He ended up allowing one run on two hits and two walks while recording 11 strikeouts. In the last two games, he has struck out 23 batters.

Rookie Derek Holland started this one for the Rangers and got roughed up a bit in Fenway debut. He gave up four runs on six hits and two walks while striking out five in 4 2/3 innings.

Kris Benson took over for Holland and allowed four runs (three earned) on three hits andthree walks while striking out one. Doug Mathis struck out one in his inning of work.

David Ortiz extended his hitting streak to five games with a 2-hit effort tonight. One of those hits was just his second home run of the season. Dustin Pedroia also had two hits on the night and added two RBIs and a stolen base. Jason Bay added a hit and two RBIs while Kevin Youkilis had a hit and a RBI.

Mike Lowell also chipped in with a solo home run with Rocco Baldelli and Jason Varitek had the other hits for the local nine.

Lowell got the scoring started when he hit a solo home run off the ledge on the Green Monster. It was initially ruled a double by the third base umpire Jeff Kellogg. But after they went into review it, they got the call right and gave Lowell the home run.

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After beating the Texas Rangers eight consecutive times at Fenway Park, the Boston Red Sox fell to them last night 5-1. The Red Sox will look to rebound on what should be a beautiful night for baseball in Boston and move into first place by themselves as the New York Yankees lost this afternoon.

The game tonight will start at 7:10 PM EDT and will be televised in the Red Sox television market on NESN. If you live in the Rangers television market, you can catch the game on FOX Sports Southwest. And if the television isn’t your cup of tea, you can catch the game on one of the many affiliates of the Red Sox Radio Network.

Jon Lester is still having somewhat of an up-and-down season but was outstanding in his last start against the Blue Jays where he struck out 12 in 6 innings of work to pick up the win. He’s made 11 starts on the season and is 4-5 with a 5.65 ERA. He’s faced the Rangers three times in his career, all of them at Fenway, and is 1-0 with a 4.50 ERA.

Rookie Derek Holland starts for the Rangers tonight. He’s made 11 appearances (2 starts) and is 1-2 with a 6.33 ERA.

I had to pass this along. There’s a rumor that Sean McAdam said on the Baseball Show this morning on WEEI that Julio Lugo will be released when Jed Lowrie returns. Take it for what you want.

Lugo: I can take it [Full Count]

Drew out with sore shoulder [Projo Sox Blog]

Daniels changing the landscape in Texas [NESN.com]

Here are the starting lineups for tonight’s game.

And here is how the hitters have fared against tonight’s starting pitchers. No one on the Red Sox has faced Holland.

The Boston Red Sox kicked off a 7-day, 6-game homestand last night with a 5-1 loss to the AL West-leading Texas Rangers.

Brad Penny started last night for the Red Sox and gave them four solid innings at the start. Then he came unglued in the 5th inning when the Rangers struck for four runs.

We can blame Penny for last night’s loss but some of the blame has to go to Julio Lugo who just can’t get the job done at shortstop. Ever since he’s returned from the knee surgery, his range has deteriorated to almost nothing. And because of that, he couldn’t get to two ground balls last night.

The biggest one he missed last night came in the 5th inning when the Rangers had runners on first and second base and Penny having a 3-2 count on Elvis Andrus. Penny got a ground ball off the bat of Andrus that went under the glove of a diving Lugo, a ball he used to get, that scored the runner from second.

This seemed to unnerve Penny who then left a 2-0 fastball out over the plate to a hitter that you can’t do that to in Ian Kinsler. The Rangers second baseman jacked the ball into the Green Monster seats for a 3-run homer and the Rangers never looked back.

The time has come for Terry Francona to leave Lugo on the bench and go with Nick Green until Jed Lowrie gets back. Lowrie did take BP yesterday for the first time and appears to be on track for a rehab assignment shortly. Lowrie’s return can’t come soon enough though.

Out of range [Boston Globe]

Shortstop’s struggles keep Sox out of range [Boston Herald]

Penny fades in the fifth [Providence Journal]

Rangers Defeat Red Sox For Rare Fenway Win [Hartford Courant]

Ortiz plans to look into possible eye problem [Boston Globe]

Brad Penny laments costly errors [Boston Herald]

Team Doesn’t See Problem, But Ortiz To Be Checked [Hartford Courant]

Red Sox journal: Despite ‘dry’ eyes, Ortiz’s vision is 20-20 [Providence Journal]

He had an exit plan [Boston Globe]

Julio Lugo again proves a pitcher’s worst friend [Boston Herald]

Rain in Pawtucket postpones Smoltz’s start until Saturday [Providence Journal]

Draft prep an important step [Boston Globe]

Dry eye in David Ortiz’s house [Boston Herald]

Red Sox hope to continue to prosper in the draft [Providence Journal]

Ask Amalie, 6.5.09 [Boston Globe]

A first step to Fenway [Boston Herald]

Rescue Squad in the house [Projo Sox Blog]

Ortiz defends Lugo [Clubhouse Insider]

Five Things We Learned: The Shortstop Angst Continues [Alex Speier – WEEI.com]

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

And if the enemy papers are more your flavor, you can check out the Dallas Morning News and Ft. Worth Star-Telegram websites.