Belichick Praises UConn Football Program

ORCHARD PARK, NY - DECEMBER 28: Head coach Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots watches from the sideline against the Buffalo Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium December 28, 2008 in Orchard Park, New York. The Patriots won 13-0. (Photo by Rick Stewart/Getty Images)

During his annual pre-draft press conference this afternoon, New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick offered some high praise for Randy Edsall and the UConn Huskies football program.

“They are really impressive. Randy Edsall has done a great job. They have won a lot of games, have a lot of good players. They have them on both sides of the ball… at the skill positions, offensive linemen, both sides of the ball. Safety, quarterback, tight end, wide receiver…A lot of real interesting guys…not all are 1st round picks but they have players. What is the highest player they ever had drafted? Fincher, the linebacker in the 3rd round? I would say that should get shattered this weekend. You don’t usually go to Connecticut looking for first and second round talent.”

It’s been an amazing job that Randy Edsall has done with the program. Belichick’s comments show that UConn is starting to get a little recognition as a football program since we all know most of that goes to the men’s basketball and women’s basketball teams.

Bill Belichick Pre-Draft Presser – 4/21/2009 [Patriots.com]

Editor’s note: His comments about UConn aren’t in the transcript but are towards the end of the video on the link.

Fenway Park Weather Update – 4/21 (Game Postponed)

Boston Red SoxUpdate 8:10 PM: The game tonight between the Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins has been rained out. It will be made up as part of a day/night doubleheader tomorrow. The first game begins at 12:35 PM with the second game beginning at 7:10 PM. Tickets for tonight’s game are good for the first game tomorrow at 12:35 PM.

Update 7:10 PM: The Red Sox and Twins are in a rain delay. The Red Sox do hope to play the game tonight. Once the gametime or postponement are announced, I’ll update the post here.

Here is a press release from the Boston Red Sox concerning tonight’s game and the inclement weather:

The current weather forecast (provided by the Red Sox private weather service, Meteorlogix) in the vicinity of Fenway Park calls for the possibility of scattered rain showers to move through the area during the late afternoon and evening hours.

The Fenway Park gates will open at the regularly scheduled time of 5:10 p.m., and the Red Sox are hopeful that tonight’s game with the Minnesota Twins, which is scheduled to start at 7:10 p.m., will be played. However, the Red Sox want to alert our fans to the current forecast and to the possibility of delay.

This forecast is of course subject to change as the day progresses. Additional updates will be provided as necessary.

Afternoon Red Sox Delight – 4/21

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 sweeping the Baltimore Orioles, the Boston Red Sox will host the Minnesota Twins for a brief two-game set. The Twins are coming off a weekend sweep of the Angels after having yesterday off.

The game tonight will start at 7:10 PM and it will be televised on NESN and you can also catch the game on the radio on one of the many affiliates of the Red Sox Radio Network.

Tim Wakefield (1-1, 3.00) will look to continue the momentum from his near no-hitter against the Oakland A’s last week. Wakefield has faced the Twins 25 times in his career (22 starts) and is 13-5 with a 4.31 ERA and 2 saves.

Scott Baker (0-1, 13.50) gets the start for the Twins and was he roughed up in his first outing of the season after a stint on the DL with right shoulder stiffness to start the year. Baker has made 2 appearances (1 start) against the Red Sox in his career and has no record with a 0.90 ERA.

There was one casualty for the Red Sox this weekend as Rocco Baldelli has been placed on the disabled list after reaggravating his hamstring that kept out of a few games. Jeff Bailey was called up from Pawtucket to take his place on the 25-man roster.

Jed Lowrie underwent surgery on his injured wrist today and is expected to return around the All-Star break.

Bailey in house, Baldelli to DL [Extra Bases]

Francona’s long medical report. . . [Projo Sox Blog]

The Machine Migrated North [Full Count]

Lowrie undergoes surgery [Extra Bases]

Jeff Bailey Back at Fenway [Projo Sox Blog]

Rainy day at Fenway [Full Count]

Great Moments Campaign [Projo Sox Blog]

With Lowrie and Lugo out, Green ready to pitch in [Extra Bases]

Some slow starts on the Red Sox [Don Orsillo – NESN.com]

100 Year Old Bat Boy [Fenway West]

2010 Options: Boston Red Sox [MLB Trade Rumors]

Here are the starting lineups for tonight’s game:

Minnesota Twins7-7

Red Sox logo7-6
1. Denard Span LF 1. Jacoby Ellsbury CF
2. Alexi Casilla 2B 2. Dustin Pedroia 2B
3. Justin Morneau 1B 3. David Ortiz DH
4. Jason Kubel DH 4. Kevin Youkilis 1B
5. Michael Cuddyer RF 5. J.D. Drew RF
6. Joe Crede 3B 6. Jason Bay LF
7. Mike Redmond C 7. Mike Lowell 3B
8. Nick Punto SS 8. George Kottaras C
9. Carlos Gomez CF 9. Nick Green SS
Scott Baker SP Tim Wakefield SP

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

Minnesota Twins vs Boston Red Sox batter/pitcher matchups

Boston Red Sox News & Notes – 4/21

Jason Varitek of the Red Sox returns to the dugout after hitting a solo home run in the second inning of the Patriots Day blowout victory over the Orioles at Fenway Park. Varitek went 2-for-5 in the 12-1 win. (Michael Dwyer/AP)

Great weekend for the Boston Red Sox as they swept the Baltimore Orioles in a 4-game set as the great pitching continued for the most part with the exception of Brad Penny. The Red Sox had started out this homestand at 3-6 but those 4 wins over the Orioles that saw them score 30 runs has pushed them over the .500 mark at 7-6.

Kevin Youkilis continues to be a hitting machine and Jacoby Ellsbury, Dustin Pedroia and David Ortiz all continue to see their averages climb north. The bullpen has been nothing short of spectacular as of late and let’s hope it continues this week as there is still 5 games left on this homestand (2 with Twins, 3 with Yankees).

As I first pointed out yesterday in the game notes of yesterday’s win, it appears that Jed Lowrie will have surgery on his wrist today and will be out until at least the All-Star break. I guess that’s a little better than thinking they may have lost him for the season. They’ll also get Julio Lugo back shortly as he is in Pawtucket on a rehab assignment.

It also looks like the Red Sox will lose Rocco Baldelli to the disabled list with a strained hamstring. He reaggravated his hamstring when he was legging out a 3-base error by Nick Markakis yesterday. The signs are there for a DL stint as Jeff Bailey was pulled from the PawSox game yesterday and asked to come to Boston to be ready if in fact Baldelli is placed on the DL.

I also would like to add that I hope Ryan Freel is okay and feels better soon after getting hit in the head by a Justin Masterson pickoff attempt yesterday.

Minnesota Twins @ Boston Red Sox pitching matchups: 4/21-4/22 [SOX & Dawgs]

Red Sox are glad to see plodding Ortiz hit the Wall [Boston Globe]

Ortiz, Masterson Lead Red Sox To Sweep [Hartford Courant]

Top heavy: Ellsbury, Pedroia set up Papi [Full Count]

Masterson does the job and bats clobber O’s bullpen [Providence Journal]

Bats, Justin Masterson sweep away Orioles [Boston Herald]

Surgery likely for Lowrie [Boston Globe]

Patient Jason Bay has become an on-base machine [Providence Journal]

Jed Lowrie under knife [Boston Herald]

A relief to have him start [Boston Globe]

Masterson, superb in return to starting job, says he’s happy filling any role for Red Sox [Providence Journal]

Lineup peaked at the top [Boston Globe]

Red Sox have a holiday against the overmatched Orioles [Providence Journal]

With seats available, Sox roll out ads [Boston Globe]

Tweak in mechanics helps Ortiz get back on track [Providence Journal]

Werner invites Captain Phillips to Fenway [Extra Bases]

Yankees will skip Wang this weekend at Fenway [Projo Sox Blog]

April Is The Cruelest Month [Hit and Run With Dan Roche]

Tuesday Quickie – Another Win On Patriots Day! [Nuggetpalooza]

Maybe Ortiz Isn’t Done After All [WEEI.com]

Assimilation [Center Field]

Newspaper Fool Calls Fenway a Dump [Fenway West]

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

And if you want to check out the enemy papers, head over to the Baltimore Sun and Annapolis Capital websites.

Paw Prints – The Daily Roundup – 4/21

Paw Prints The Daily Roundup

As the summer approaches, I expect the news about the UConn Huskies men’s basketball,women’s basketball and football teams to be on the real light side with the exception of the upcoming NFL Draft. The plan is to still do this post everyday unless there is nothing to put there. It’s quite possible with the baseball and softball teams still playing that they could be the only thing in there.

UConn Football links

NFL’s Talent Gurus Look Past Model Draft Pick [Bloomberg]

Cody Brown: Draft Weekend Approaches [Hartford Courant]

UConn Women’s Basketball links

Why Not Two State Coaches On Olympic Staff? [Hartford Courant]

UConn Men’s Basketball links

Tony Hanson To Receive Red O’Neill Award [UConnHuskies.com]

UConn alums Allen and Gordon are adversaries in NBA playoffs [Providence Journal]

Other UConn related links

Baseball: Springer Lifts Huskies Over Quinnipiac 14-4 [UConnHuskies.com]

Newtown native Lyddy teams up with UConn [Connecticut Post]

Winning is overrated [Rob Lunn – NESN.com]

Luke Scott Needs To STFU

Baltimore Orioles' Luke Scott talks to a scorekeeper in the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Monday, April 20, 2009, in Boston. The Red Sox won 12-1. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

After today’s loss to the Boston Red Sox that completed a 4-game sweep, Baltimore Orioles outfielder/DH Luke Scott decided to say some things about the Boston fans.

“Glad to get out of here with negative people,” Scott said. “Just a lot of trash talking, a lot of vulgarity. It just takes away from the game.”

First off, all he did was make it worse for himself when the Orioles visit again in July. Plus, he may hear it from the Red Sox fans who will PROBABLY FILL Camden Yards when the Red Sox go there at the end of June.

Second off, if he thinks this is bad, what does he think of the fans in New York. Well on second thought he might not hear any of the heckling because all of the good seats haven’t been sold.

Sure he’s frustrated. His team was 6-2 when they came into Fenway Park and looked to be on their way to a win on Friday night when the bullpen collapsed and the Red Sox went on to win and then continued that over the next three days.

“We didn’t pitch well, except for yesterday, but at the same time, the last two days we ran into really good pitching,” Scott said. “When we score runs, we’ve got to have guys hold it on the mound. When guys are struggling on the mound, we’ve got to pick up the slack and swing the bats. It’s a tough league, tough game, so we’ve got to make the adjustment.”

Remember this Luke, we don’t forget things up here. If you thought it was bad this weekend, you just wait until you return. You’ll probably end up crying because it seems to me that you’re a little soft.

Fenway Unfaithful-O’s Scott rips fans [Full Count]