Nick Adenhart: 1986-2009...Sox Fall To Rays, Head West

Tragic news. Simply tragic. Young California Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart, just scant hours after his first major league start, was killed in a three car crash by a drunk driver. The following article, edited for space, is from the Orange County Register, written by Jeff Miller. My thanks to him and his newpaper...

"At least he had a day.
Just one day, but one when he shared a baseball park with millionaire athletes and All-Stars and 43,283 total, standing atop pitcher’s mound, taller than everyone else.
Nicholas James Adenhart took that much with him Thursday when he was taken from us, robbed most of all from his two families the Adenharts and the Angels.
Six innings.
No runs.
Seven hits.
Not much and also everything.
Afterward, after Adenhart shut out the Oakland A’s and helped his team to a 4-0 lead, he met with Mike Scioscia.
The Angels’ manager congratulated him for his effort, for his performance and for his arrival.
Following the game, he shared the occasion with his father, Jim, with friends and with his agent, Scott Boras.
"He was elated," Boras said. "He felt like a major leaguer. To see the glow of a young man after he takes a huge step forward is special. It was a great day ... and then midnight."
The police spokesman said it was 12:24 a.m. when the call came. A three-car crash in Fullerton."

My God. That's all I can say. Rest in peace, Nick. We hardly knew you but there will always be a place in our hearts for you. You accomplished your dream, in front of your father, no less. God bless you. You will be remembered...forever.

In less important news, the Boston Red Sox lost the rubber game of their three game set with the Tampa Bay Rays by a score of 4-3. They had their chances, in the ninth inning especially, but the Rays defense was more than up to the challenge of catching scorching line drives that initially appeared to be headed for base hit territory. Daisuke Matsuzaka took the loss, Garza earned the victory. Tampa Bay is here to stay. Jason Varitek had this to say about the line drive up the third base line hit by Dustin "Pedey" Pedroia in the ninth, a scorcher that ALMOST tied the game...

“They made some really good plays,” said catcher Jason Varitek, whose solo homer in the ninth gave the Sox a chance. “They’re very good defensively. They ran some balls down in the outfield. They made some plays in the infield. People don’t understand - that ball Pedroia hit in the ninth, that’s a ‘Web Gem.’

If you can, catch a reply of that snare by Longoria. It was a "look what I found" type of catch, a slam-bam in the glove catch, almost an unbelievable ticket of doom for Boston. But that's baseball. Ya can't win 'em all, the page has been turned. Boston heads to the left coast to play a three game set with the mourning Angels. Here are the pitching matchups...

Friday...Tim Wakefield vs. Jared Weaver
Saturday...Brad Penny vs. Shane Loux
Sunday...Josh Beckett vs. Joe Saunders

Enjoy your Friday and your weekend. I'll see you soon. You can click on the title of this post for more on the tragic loss of Nick Adenhart. Thanks for being here. Rest in peace, Nick.