After getting swept by the Tigers, the Red Sox start this West Coast trip against the Angels with a record of 55-44 which puts them in third place in the A.L. East, 2.5-games behind the Orioles, and has them currently holding a 1-game lead over the Astros for the second Wild Card playoff spot.
When they return home on August 9 against the Yankees, we should have a much better idea if the Red Sox will be a playoff team in 2016.
Dave Dombrowski, as usual, will be traveling with the team and listening to trade offers as they roll in before the August 1 non-waiver trade deadline. Twitter, sports radio, and the local television sports shows will be eagerly anticipating news that Dombrowski has made a move or three that will significantly upgrade the Red Sox for the stretch run.
At least, the Red Sox need to emerge from the Left Coast with a 6-5 record to keep themselves afloat in the playoff race. They can not afford to lose significant ground in either the A.L. East or Wild Card race. The schedule gods were kind to the Red Sox up until now but starting tonight, they play 41 of their remaining 63 games on the road. This trip offers them an opportunity to not only stay firmly in the playoff race but also to keep them from digging themselves a hole that they'd have to dig out of, mostly on the road, over the last eight weeks of the season.
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Despite the sweep to the Tigers, the Red Sox did get some good news yesterday.
Craig Kimbrel looks ready to resume his duties as closer on the West Coast trip as he threw a second bullpen session yesterday in his return from knee surgery. Kimbrel is scheduled to make a rehab appearance for Pawtucket on Saturday if he's pain free and then could rejoin the Red Sox in Seattle early next week.
Another possible reinforcement for a desperate bullpen is Brandon Workman. Workman, who is coming back from 2015 Tommy John surgery, will pitch in a simulated game for Lowell today. The 27-year-old righty was a solid member of the bullpen in 2013 but then struggled, mostly as a starter, in 2014 before getting hurt last year.
If Workman can get healthy enough to return to Boston by September, he could offer quality depth to the bullpen.
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I'm happy for an NBA journeyman like Tyronn Lue, who spent four years as an assistant coach to Doc Rivers with the Celtics, when he finally makes it to the big time.
Lue became the head coach of the Cavaliers in the middle of this season after David Blatt was fired by
The pressure will be on Lue to keep adding championship rings to
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Julian Edelman has come a long way in his NFL career.
Starting out as a 7th round draft pick who had to convert from quarterback at Kent State to slot receiver with the Patriots, Edelman has gone from role player who briefly saw time as an emergency defensive back to becoming one of Tom Brady's most trusted receivers who played a critical role in the Patriots winning Super Bowl XLIX.
Now it seems like Edelman is becoming a pop culture superstar as well.
TMZ has reported that Edelman has been named the father of Swedish model Ella Rose's unborn baby. Edelman and Rose casually dated for two years.
Following the path of his friend and teammate Brady, it looks like Edelman has moved on from knocking up one beautiful woman to entering a relationship with an even more gorgeous woman as the man who caught the winning touchdown in Super Bowl XLIX is now reportedly dating Victoria's Secret model Adrianna Lima.
Hopefully, like Brady, Edelman's off-field life will not impact his on-field success in any way.
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TheBostonInsider starts his vacation tomorrow. I'll check in, infrequently, in August but will be back up and running as full-time as the birth of my third child and the start of a new school year will allow me in September.
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Enjoy David Price tonight.
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