Early Evening Red Sox Delight – 4/28

Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Brad Penny delivers to the Minnesota Twins during the first inning of the second baseball game of a day-night doubleheader at Fenway Park in Boston on Wednesday, April 22, 2009. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

The Boston Red Sox got some more great pitching from Tim Wakefield and some timely hitting last night from Jason Bay to run their win streak to 11 games. In game 2 tonight against the Cleveland Indians, they’ll look to make it 12 straight.

The game is scheduled to start at 7:05 PM (weather permitting) and will be shown on NESN and on STO in the Cleveland area. You can also catch the game on the radio on one of the many affiliates of the Red Sox Radio Network.

The man in charge of trying to secure that 12th straight win for the Red Sox is Brad Penny. Penny is coming off his best outing of the season in last start where he went 6 strong innings. In 3 starts this season, Penny is 2-0 with a 7.80 ERA. He has never faced the Cleveland Indians in his career.

Anthony Reyes will look to follow a great outing from Cliff Lee and attempt to stop that 11 game winning streak. In three starts for the Indians this season, Reyes is 1-0 with a 4.76 ERA. He has never faced the Red Sox in his career.

Red Sox two wins away from longest win streak in 61 years [Projo Sox Blog]

More on Daniel Bard’s ‘immaculate inning’ [Projo Sox Blog]

Lugo, Papelbon, and other pregame notes [Extra Bases]

Whither, Papel-power? [Full Count]

Boston Red Sox13-6

Cleveland Indians7-13
1. Jacoby Ellsbury CF 1. Grady Sizemore CF
2. Dustin Pedroia 2B 2. Asdrubal Cabrera 2B
3. David Ortiz DH 3. Victor Martinez C
4. Kevin Youkilis 1B 4. Travis Hafner DH
5. J.D. Drew RF 5. Ryan Garko 1B
6. Jason Bay LF 6. Shin-Soo Choo RF
7. Mike Lowell 3B 7. Jhonny Peralta SS
8. Jason Varitek C 8. Mark DeRosa 3B
9. Julio Lugo SS 9. Ben Francisco LF
Brad Penny SP Anthony Reyes SP

And here is how the hitters have fared against tonight’s starting pitchers. With the exception of two hitters on each team, nobody else has faced Reyes or Penny.

Boston Red Sox vs Cleveland Indians batter/pitcher matchups

Thank You Donald Brown

A tribute video from the great Santini to former UConn Huskies running Donald Brown who was drafted in the 1st round (27th overall) by the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday evening.

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Boston Red Sox News & Notes – 4/28

Boston Red Sox's Tim Wakefield pitches to the Cleveland Indians in the first inning of a baseball game, Monday, April 27, 2009, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

After beating the Cleveland Indians for their 11th straight win last night, the Boston Red Sox awake to find themselves in a first place tie in the AL East with the Toronto Blue Jays. The Red Sox are 13-6 and are percentage points ahead of the Jays who are 14-7.

Jason Bay and Tim Wakefield were the heroes of last night game for the Red Sox. Bay crushed a Kerry Wood fastball out of Progressive Field in the 9th inning that provided all of the Red Sox runs last night. All Wakefield did was throw 7 innings of one-hit ball without giving up a run.

Bay has been nothing short of spectacular since coming over to the Red Sox in a trade deadline deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He is hitting .306 (75-of-245), with 14 home runs and 56 RBIs. He has an OBP of .408, a slugging percentage of .571 and an OPS of .979. Those are pretty solid numbers folks. With those numbers, he’s a relative bargain with a salary of $7.5 million this season. He is definitely playing himself into a nice payday as he is a free agent at the end of the season.

Wakefield has been the ace of the Red Sox staff this season. His record for the 2009 campaign is 2-1 in 4 starts with an 1.86 ERA. Last night, the knuckleball was nasty once again and kept the Indians hitters at bay as they managed one hit off of him. Wake did issue 4 walks but had 5 strikeouts and got some glove love from his defense. In his last 3 starts, teams are hitting just .123 against him and he’s given up just 3 runs on 10 hits in 23 innings.

Sox streak to 11th [Boston Globe]

Wakefield and Bay pave the way to 11th straight win [Providence Journal]

Oh Bay Bay! Red Sox sizzlin’ [Boston Herald]

Bay continues to carve out his own niche [Boston Globe]

Off to a great start, Lowell’s recovery from hip surgery is a hit [Providence Journal]

Tim Wakefield on a big roll [Boston Herald]

Team still goes Green [Boston Globe]

Drew held out of lineup as a precaution [Providence Journal]

Red Sox fly high on ‘The Jet’ [Boston Herald]

Double dose of talent and flair [Boston Globe]

Ellsbury’s great asset — speed — doesn’t show up in box score [Providence Journal]

Mike Lowell quick to respond [Boston Herald]

Five Things We Learned: New Colors, Same Results [WEEI]

Don Orsillo’s Decapitated Bobblehead: Big Papi hits like RemDawg [Wicked Good Sports]

The Jason Bay Era [Center Field]

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

And if you must check out the enemy sites, you can head over to the Cleveland Plain Dealer and Akron Beacon Journal websites.

Paw Prints – The Daily Roundup – 4/28

Paw Prints The Daily Roundup

UConn Football links

UConn’s Cody Brown Ready For Next Chapter [Hartford Courant]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Exclusive Coverage of Women’s Basketball’s Visit to the White House [UConnHuskies.com]

UConn Makes White House Visit [Hartford Courant]

Photos: UConn Women At The White House [Hartford Courant]

Auriemma Confirms Jess McCormack Will Not Return To UConn [Hartford Courant]

UConn women honored by President Obama at White House [Waterbury Republican-American]

Obama shoots hoops with UConn women’s team [Norwich Bulletin]

McCormack leaving UConn [New Haven Register]

McCormack won’t return to UConn [Connecticut Post]

UConn meets its match [Philadelphia Daily News]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

UConn’s Calhoun Named To Board Of Aquarium’s Parent Organization [New London Day]

Other UConn related links

Huskies Rally To Defeat Northeastern 6-4 [UConnHuskies.com]

JBay Makes Wakefield’s Gem Stand Up To Push Win Streak To 11

Boston Red Sox's Tim Wakefield pitches to the Cleveland Indians in the first inning of a baseball game, Monday, April 27, 2009, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

Jason Bay’s 3-run home run in the bottom of the 9th made Tim Wakefield’s seven one-hit innings stand up and gave the Boston Red Sox a 3-1 win over the Cleveland Indians in front of 18,652 at Progressive Field in Cleveland.

The win for the Red Sox is their 11th straight and brings their record to 13-6 while the Indians fall to 7-13. The Red Sox are now a 1/2 game behind the Toronto Blue Jays for first place in the AL East who are currently playing the Kansas City Royals.

The Red Sox as a whole may be hot but there is no hotter pitcher on the team right now than Wakefield. After a so-so start in Anaheim, Wakefield has thrown two complete games and then an one-hitter tonight. He did walk four but struck out five.

Manny Delcarmen continues to shine out of the bullpen as he pitched an inning with a strikeout. Jonathan Papelbon made things interesting as he gave up a run on 3 hits but had two strikeouts to record his fifth save of the season.

Boston Red Sox' s Jason Bay hits a three-run home run off Cleveland Indians pitcher Kerry Wood in the ninth inning of a baseball game, Monday, April 27, 2009, in Cleveland. David Ortiz and Dustin Pedroia scored. The Red Sox won 3-1. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)Bay just continues to get it done for the Red Sox as he was the only one who had success against Indians starter Cliff Lee with two hits. His third hit of the night was the big blow though. David Ortiz had 2 hits and Mike Lowell, Jeff Bailey and Nick Green had the others.

Lee ended up going 8 innings, allowing 5 hits with strikeouts. Kerry Wood gave up 3 runs on 3 hits and 2 walks with a strikeout. Rafael Betancourt finished the 9th recording a strikeout.

With the pitcher’s locked in a duel, defense and double plays were the norm. There was some great catches by Grady Sizemore and Jacoby Ellsbury. It seemed like every time the Red Sox got a baserunner off of Lee, they’d hit into a double play.

One thing the Red Sox have been doing well this season is beating up the other team’s bullpen. They did it again tonight.

Boston Red Sox's Jason Bay, right, is congratulated by David Ortiz after Bay hit a three-run home run off Cleveland Indians pitcher Kerry Wood in the ninth inning of a baseball game, Monday, April 27, 2009, in Cleveland. Ortiz and Dustin Pedroia scored. The Red Sox won 3-1. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)Wood took over for Lee in the 9th and walked Dustin Pedroia. Big Papi followed with a single but Lee retired Kevin Youkilis on a fly ball. Wood then left a 98 mph fastball out over the plate that Bay got all of for a no-doubt 3-run homer. Lowell followed that with a triple that went under a diving Sizemore. Had Lowell been healthy, he probably would have had an inside-the-park home run. J.D. Drew pinch-hit for Bailey and struck out. Wood walked George Kottaras and gave way to Betancourt who struck out Nick Green.

Papelbon made it interesting in the bottom of the 9th as his location wasn’t there at times.

Shin-Soo Choo led off with a single and went to second on a Ryan Garko single. After a questionable called strike three on Jhonny Peralta, Mark DeRosa’s single scored Choo to make it 3-1 Red Sox.  Papelbon recovered though as he struck out former Red Sox farm hand Kelly Shoppach and got Ben Francisco to pop out to end the game.

After the rough start, the Red Sox are coming into their own right now. They are getting the job done on a nightly basis with some timely hitting. It also helps that the bullpen has been top notch all season and is showing why it’s one of the best in baseball this year.

At 42-years old, Wakefield continues to get the job done for the Red Sox. When he gets on one of these rolls, it’s hard to hit him especially when his knuckleball is so nasty as it has been his past three starts. His next start will come in a place where he’s had a lot of success (Tropicana Field).

Brad Penny will look to push the win streak to an even dozen tomorrow night and run his record to 3-0 in the process. He’ll be opposed by Anthony Reyes. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 and as always the game will be on NESN.

Boston Red Sox @ Cleveland Indians 4.27.09 box score

Afternoon Red Sox Delight – 4/27

OAKLAND, CA - APRIL 15: Tim Wakefield #49 (R) of the Boston Red Sox celebrates with catcher George Kottaras #16 after defeating the Oakland Athletics during a Major League Baseball game at the Oakland Coliseum April 15, 2009 in Oakland, California. All Major League Baseball players are wearing #42 in honor of Jackie Robinson day. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

After pulling off a perfect homestand at 9-0 with sweeps of the Baltimore Orioles (4 games), Minnesota Twins (2 games) and the New York Yankees (3 games), the Boston Red Sox put their 10-game winning streak on the line against the Cleveland Indians.

The game is scheduled to start at 7:05 PM on NESN and on STO in the Cleveland area. You can also catch the game on the radio on one of the many affiliates of the Red Sox Radio Network.

Tim Wakefield will look to keep the good knuckleball going tonight as he has in his past two starts. Wakefield on the season is 2-1 with a 2.45 ERA. In 25 games (20 starts) against the Indians, Wake is 10-8 with a 4.50 ERA. In 12 appearances (11 starts) on the road against the Indians, he is 5-4 with a 4.50 ERA.

After winning the Cy Young award in 2008, Cliff Lee is off to a miserable start for the Indians. He is 1-3 with a 5.25 ERA on the season. Lee has made 8 career starts against the Red Sox and is 2-4 with a 5.13 ERA.

As was expected, the Red Sox sent down Michael Bowden to make room for Julio Lugo on the 25-man roster. Fortunately for us, Lugo isn’t in the starting lineup tonight.

In some other Pawtucket-related news, the Red Sox announced they have re-signed Devern Hansack to a minor league contract. He’ll head to extended spring training to rehab a shoulder injury he suffered in a start with the PawSox back on April 13th.

Before we get to the links and lineups, I don’t about you but I just can’t get enough of watching Jacoby Ellsbury steal home plate last night against the Yankees.

Mike Lowell named AL Player of the Week [SOX & Dawgs]

Guess What? Tim Wakefield Is Reaching Legendary Status [WEEI.com]

Checking in from Cleveland [Extra Bases]

Ellsbury tries to move on [Extra Bases]

Easy does it with Lugo [Extra Bases]

Red Sox hope road is as kind as home [RedSox.com]

Bingo! [Center Field]

Here are the lineups for tonight’s game:

Boston Red Sox12-6

Cleveland Indians7-12
1. Jacoby Ellsbury CF 1. Grady Sizemore CF
2. Dustin Pedroia 2B 2. Asdrubal Cabrera 2B
3. David Ortiz DH 3. Victor Martinez 1B
4. Kevin Youkilis 1B 4. Shin-Soo Choo RF
5. Jason Bay LF 5. Ryan Garko DH
6. Mike Lowell 3B 6. Jhonny Peralta SS
7. Jeff Bailey RF 7. Mark DeRosa 3B
8. George Kottaras C 8. Kelly Shoppach C
9. Nick Green SS 9. Trevor Crowe LF
Tim Wakefield SP Cliff Lee SP

And here is how the hitters have fared against tonight’s starting pitchers:

Boston Red Sox vs Cleveland Indians batter/pitcher matchups

Mike Lowell Named AL Player of the Week

BOSTON - APRIL 25: Mike Lowell #25 of the Boston Red Sox celebrates as he rounds the bases after hitting a home run against the New York Yankees at Fenway Park, April 25, 2009, in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)

Here is a press release from Major League Baseball about Boston Red Sox third baseman Mike Lowell being named the American League Player of the Week for the week-ending April 26th:

Boston Red Sox third baseman Mike Lowell has been named the American League Player of the Week presented by Bank of America for the period ending April 26th. Bank of America is the Official Bank of Major League Baseball and the only place where you can get your favorite Club logo on checks, check cards or credit cards. For more information on MLB® banking, visit bankofamerica.com/MLB.

In five games last week, Lowell hit .435 (10-23) with an American League-best 11 RBI while compiling 20 total bases, four doubles, two home runs and four runs scored. The four-time All-Star extended his hitting streak to 10 games while posting a .870 slugging percentage. On April 25th, Mike hit a three-run double and a three-run home run to put his team ahead late in the game against the A.L. East rival New York Yankees. The six-RBI performance matched a career-high for the 2007 World Series Most Valuable Player presented by Chevrolet. Entering play today, Mike leads the American League with 22 RBI to go along with a .324 batting average and a .603 slugging percentage. This marks Mike’s fourth career weekly honors and his second A.L. award as a member of the Red Sox (previous: 8/27/07).

Other noteworthy performances for the week included Lowell’s teammates Jacoby Ellsbury, whose six stolen bases extended his Major League lead to 12, and David Ortiz, who led the American League with five doubles. Also considered was Detroit Tigers third baseman Brandon Inge, who put up a .478 on-base percentage and notched three home runs last week. Other nominees were New York Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano, who collected seven RBI, and Detroit Tigers outfielder Curtis Granderson, who hit four home runs.

Tourneau, the world’s largest watch store, will supply Mike Lowell with a luxury Swiss Tourneau timepiece, suitably engraved, in recognition of his achievement as the A.L. Player of the Week presented by Bank of America.

The Julio Lugo Era Begins Again (Sigh!)

Boston Red Sox infielder Julio Lugo waits to take batting practice during a workout before a MLB spring training exhibition game with the New York Yankees in Fort Myers, Florida March 13, 2009. REUTERS/Steve NesiusThe moment we’ve been dreading is here as the Boston Red Sox have activated Julio Lugo from the 15-day disabled list. To make room on the roster for Lugo, the Red Sox sent Michael Bowden back to Pawtucket.

During his 4-game rehab stint with the Pawtucket Red Sox, Lugo was 4-for-17 with two walks, one run scored and five strikeouts. He also committed one error.

Lugo started the season on disabled list due to surgery on his right knee after injuring it against the Yankees on March 13th. He had been in a battle with now-injured shortstop Jed Lowrie for the starting shortstop position. Lugo will assume the duty now from Nick Green who has filled in admirably while the pair has been out.