Martinez Helps The Red Sox Sweep The Birds...Boston 18 Baltimore 10

The easy interlude embeded in the Boston Red Sox schedule is over...no more Oakland and Baltimore. Coming up after an off day today will be two games with the Tampa Bay Rays in Florida and four games against the archrival New York Yankees in the Bronx. But it appears that their hitting slump is over at just the right time. Led by Victor Martinez' five hits and four RBIs, a still white hot Kevin Youkilis and a crucial two run double to left hit by Mikey Lowell in the fourth after the Birdies scored six runs off the very mediocre Clay Buchholz in the third frame, the sweep was completed. It was close until that key Lowell safety but with seven runs in the fourth, the game was essentially over even though the O's ended up plating ten runners. I was disturbed watching Buchholz pitch. He always seems to be missing one of his pitches and has to rely on the two others. One game it was the curveball, one game pinpoint control on the fastball. HE NEEDS BOTH TO SURVIVE. Rocco Baldelli, who came into the game for the still hobbling JD Drew in the first, had this to say about the upcoming schedule...

“This is a tough road trip,” outfielder Rocco Baldelli said. “We knew we had to come in here and play well. The next two teams we are going to play are playing really well right now, so it’s good for us to get in here and start swinging the bats before we head down there.”

Every Red Sox player except for Big Papi had at least one base hit. That was nice to see, to say the least. Boston remains just a scant half game behind the pinstripers and are tied with them in the all important loss column. The AL East is tied up in a two team knot, just the way we like it. Remember, Boston is 8-0 against NY and will try to make it 9-0 on Thursday night. I believe Josh Beckett will be on the hill. He's been lights out almost all season long and could get the Sox off on the right foot at Yankee Stadium. And yes, we'll see Joba Chamberlain in one of those games, too. An American League official of some sort or another should take notice if he again throws at an opposing team's batter. He gotten away with murder this season, and not just against Boston. HE'S A PUNK...there's no need for that cowardly stuff in major league baseball and I hope we pound the sh*t out of him. I really do. But we can't look that far ahead, not right now. Three games against the Rays loom large. I'm happy today is an off day. Everybody can use a rest...myself included.

We start a new week and the first Monday of August, 2009 is upon us. Make it a good one. You can click on this post's title for more Sox news SI style and as always, BE WELL. Leave a comment if you'd like...I'll read and respond to each and every one. Thanks for stopping in. I mean that. GO SOX. FOREVER.