Tim Wakefield In Limbo...Baltimore, The Red Sox Are Coming

The Boston Red Sox bring their 2010 act to Baltimore to face the woeful Baltimore Orioles for a three game series. The trio of games features the debut of Daisuke Matsuzaka on Saturday, who reportedly has looked smooth and effortless on the mound. He'll be preceded by a motivated John Lackey and followed by Josh Beckett, who has been working on "smoothing" his pitching motion. He hasn't had an easy time of it so far but either has Tim Wakefield, who hasn't pitched badly but was nudged (kicked?) out of the rotation by Daisuke's return. Here what the Boston Red Sox manager, Terry "Tito" Francona, had to say about that awkward situation...

“I don’t think we can have a schedule for him (Wakefield). I just don’t think you can do that. It’ll be a challenge. Or maybe it won’t be a challenge. Depending on how our starters are, maybe it’s very easy. That’s not so good either. We basically came to spring training with six guys in our rotation, knowing that we’re not going to use all six,” Francona said. “But, if everything’s perfect, we have to find a way to keep the six ready, but not use them at the same time. We’ll keep an eye on things. There’s different ways to go about it.”

Different? Maybe, but I feel badly for Timmy. He's always given his all for the sake of his team. Long relief? I know the powers-that-be are stuck between a rock and a hard place but it's still a shame. Who knows? Injuries always crop up. Believe me, I do not want them to.

Yesterday, the Red Sox promoted first baseman Lars Anderson up to Triple A Pawtucket. Good for him. With Youk at first and Beltre manning third, there's no spot for him right now on the big club but his bat will be invaluable in the near future. He is the future, though. The future is coming up fast.

Thanks for stopping in on this Friday, the last day of April. It was the warmest April EVER here in Connecticut and the weekend promises to bring temperatures into the mid-80s. That's amazing! Click on this post's title for a fascinating article that identifies the ten most hated MLB teams. Try to guess where the Sox are! I guarantee you'll be surprised, maybe even shocked. Just click on the title of this post to find out and watch John Lackey, tonight's starter in Baltimore, spin a gem. He's very motivated by the back-to-back gems by Buchholz and Lester. Good luck to him, and to you. As always, BE WELL.