Sox Notes

The keys to the 5-1 start by the Red Sox? Great pitching performances and solid at-bats. The pitching has come as advertised through six games. Curt Schilling is battling on every pitch like it is Game 7 in the Bronx except that it is still April on the calendar. Josh Beckett overwhelmed the Rangers in his first start. Tim Wakefield bounced back from a rough first outing to baffle the Orioles in start number two. Forget that Matt Clement struggled a bit towards the end of his first start; he sat an awful lot during that game because the Sox offense was torturing the Baltimore pitching staff -- he was very impressive early in the game. As for the bullpen -- Jonathan Papelbon is the new darling of Boston and both Mike Timlin and Keith Foulke have both come back from shaky first appearances to be effective in the set-up role. The offense is rolling along too. The Sox are getting on-base -- nine players have an on-base percentage of .385 or higher -- and those runners are scoring. Through six games the Red Sox have scored 33 runs, an average of 5.5 runs per game. With a 10-game homestand at hitter-friendly Fenway Park starting tomorrow, those run totals should continue to rise. In other Sox news... Bad news for those of you expecting to see new centerfielder Coco Crisp tomorrow. Crisp fractured a knuckle in a stolen base attempt on Saturday and has been placed in a splint. He will be in the splint for at least 10 days. Surgery is not expected. In Crisp's place, Adam Stern will most likely see the bulk of the time in center. Now for some good news. David Ortiz and the Red Sox officially announced his 4-year contract extension this afternoon. It runs through 2010 and their is an option for 2011. Big Papi stated that he wanted to retire with the Sox and this new deal -- rumored to be worth $50-million -- could take him to his 36th birthday. It is nice to know Ortiz will spend at least the next five years at Fenway.