Ellsbury And Pedroia Help The Red Sox Ground The Angels...Six Straight!

This Boston Red Sox team has so many weapons, they might be BETTER than last year. The pitching will eventually determine that. But Tuesday night at Fenway Park, the Sox defeated the LA/California Angels by a score of 7-6. It was their sixth straight victory and their ninth win in the last ten games. Josh Beckett was a late scratch. The flu bug that has been ravaging the team coupled with a stiff neck shelved the Sox ace until Sunday. But the hottest team in the majors found a way to win yet again. Jacoby Ellsbury hit two home runs, a lead-off tater and a sixth inning bomb. But it was his eighth inning bunt, his third hit, that made all the difference in the world. Pedey (Dustin Pedroia) followed with his fourth hit of the day, and Ells scampered all the way home with the winning run. Paps sewed it all together with precision, throwing a 1-2-3 eleven pitch ninth, earning his league-leading eighth save. This is what Tito Francona had to say about the scratched Josh Beckett...

"We were worried about Beckett the last couple days because he had been sick," said manager Terry Francona before the game. "He showed up today and we had talked to him last night and this morning, and that was not an issue, but his neck got real stiff. Whether it's related or not, how do you know? But we're not going to run him out there and have him potentially hurt his shoulder because he's got a stiff neck."

Peter here, and yes, it's better to be safe than sorry. But there's nothing sorry about how the Red Sox are playing. Pedroia looks like he might even be better than last year - he's leading the league with a batting average of .364. Ellsbury can create magic and mayhem at virtually the same time. I shudder to think that he'll be on the bench when Coco "Chanel" Crisp starts on Thursday. But Terry Francona has done almost everything right and his team, OUR team, has the best record in the American League. A manager's decision? Yes. But I'll go with Tito's judgement.

Today, the Angels and Boston tussle again at 7:05pm EDT. It will be Daisuke Matsuzaka, who has a perfect record of 4-0 but is coming off a less than stellar start, ready to face the Angel's Jon Garland, who is 2-2 and beatable. So let's beat 'em!

I thank you once again for stopping in to my little corner of the internet, and I appreciate it so much. Click on the title of this post to read anything and everything you need to know about that team we love to love - the Boston Red Sox - from the Boston Globe. Have a great Wednesday Hump Day, and as always, BE WELL.