Red Sox (2-8) vs. Tampa Bay Rays (2-8)
The Red Sox have not announced their lineup yet and I will be on my way to The Baseball Tavern in a few minutes but I wanted to provide the pitching matchup and my Three Strikes.
SP - Jon Lester (0-0, 3.65) vs. David Price (0-2, 4.85)
Three Strikes:
1. Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe makes a case for the Red Sox cutting ties with Daisuke Matsuzaka in today's online edition. I agree with Abraham that Matsuzaka needs to find a new home, it has reached a point in Boston where I do not believe he will be able to find consistent success. Every time that Matsuzaka throws a pitch just a few inches off the plate the crowds at Fenway groan in unison and that is not an atmosphere in which a pitcher can find success. I wonder if the San Diego Padres would be able to find a home for Daisuke if Boston absorbed at least half of the remaining $20-million on his contract that runs through next year.
2. I don't understand what the big deal is about Josh Beckett wanting to pitch to Jason Varitek. Yes, Beckett will one day have to find a new catcher and he should get used to Jarrod Saltalamacchia but the numbers (hat tip to Peter Abraham) show that Beckett is a better pitcher with the Red Sox when Varitek is behind the plate as opposed to when he is not. If the Beckett who shut down the Yankees will show up every time Varitek is catching, it's a no-brainer to continue their partnership.
3. In one of the oddest statistical nuggets in baseball, David Ortiz' triple last night made him the only player in the American League with at least one three-bagger for twelve straight years.
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