A Duchscherer Gem For Oakland...Oakland A's 3 Boston Red Sox 0

Justin Duchscherer joked before the game that he was going to "pull a Lester" and pitch a no hitter. And he came darn close to doing it. A Big Papi David Ortiz one out single in the seventh inning and a sixth inning hit batter ('Tek) were the only blemishes in his eight innings of stellar work. This is what Red Sox manager Terry Francona and opposing pitcher and tough-luck loser Josh Beckett had to say after the game...

“He commanded every pitch he threw tonight,” Red Sox manager Terry Francona said. “His command was phenomenal. He did not throw one pitch without a purpose. He kept us off balance. Other than David’s hit and his line drive and Youk’s line drive, we couldn’t do anything.”
“It was unfortunate someone had to lose it,” Beckett said. “We don’t have many games like this, period. For what this offense does on a consistent basis, no one has a right to complain about run support.”

Peter here, and I ain't complaining about ANYTHING! Josh pitched more than well enough to win most games, going eight innings himself. 76 of his 107 pitches were strikes, and he allowed 7 hits while walking nobody. It was a rough game to lose, but it's nice to know we can count on him every five days to go out there and throw the ball well. He would have won a start like this in most cases, but this year, it seems the Red Sox lose too many times while away from their beloved Fenway Park, where they have the best record in all of major league baseball. Looking on the bright side, they can only get better while away from New England.

Well, that's it for today, Sunday, May 25, 2008. This was a short post for a short game. In fact, it was the shortest game Boston has played this year, clocking in at 2 hours and 17 minutes. I wish the score was reversed, but there's not much a team can do with one base hit and two total baserunners. So the page has been turned and we have to hope for a win today, shortly after 4 pm EDT. No sweep (OR soup) for us! Have a great Sunday and a wonderful holiday tomorrow. And remember, you can click on this post's title to be linked to the Boston Globe's Red Sox homepage. There you'll find just about everything Soxy. If you're driving, be careful out there. There will be many who will reluctantly fill their tanks with four plus dollar per gallon gasoline and be out on the roads, and the state troopers will be out there to accompany them. So drive defensively and wear those belts! And as always, BE WELL. I love each and every one of you. Thanks for stopping in yet again, and please leave a comment if you wish. I will respond to any and all of your thoughts.