Red Sox-Braves (June 16, 17, & 18)

It's time to put Minnesota in the rierview mirror and head into interleague play. The Battle of Boston (at least Boston circa the Eisenhower Era) will take place this weekend in Atlanta as the Red Sox and Braves meet in a matchup of two teams that aren't exactly living up to expectations at the moment. The Red Sox trail the beat up Yankees in the AL East by one game. The Braves are in third place in the NL East, already 12.5 games behind the Mets. In the series opener, rookie lefty Jon Lester (0-0, 6.23) faces Tim Hudson (6-4, 3.79) at 7:35 on NESN and WEEI. Hudson may be a target of the Red Sox if Atlanta can't make up any ground in their division. That is, as long as the talented Lester isn't in the discussion. On Saturday afternoon at 1:25, Josh Beckett (7-3, 5.26) will once again try to regain his April/May form as he takes on lefty Horacio Ramirez (2-2, 5.06) on FOX and WEEI. It is imperative that Beckett pitches well as this staff needs a boost from the man expected to be a co-ace with Curt Schilling. Finally, on the ESPN Sunday night game at 8:05, Ace Schilling (9-2, 3.59) matches up with John Smoltz (4-5, 3.78) in a game that features two pitchers who have sustained excellence and dominance for over a combined 30 years. As redundant as this may sound, this series is critical to the Red Sox. Yes, it does seem like every series carries the weight of the world for the BoSox but coming off a sweep in Minnesota to the scuffling Twins, the Red Sox desperately need to win this series. With Lester, Beckett, and Schilling on the hill, the Sox should have a good chance to win all three games. I will settle for 2-of-3.