Hot Start For Papi But Red Sox Lose To the Braves 6-1...Beckett To Miss One Start.

Just to be on the safe side, the Boston Red Sox have asked Josh Beckett to miss his next start. He will start next week. It's spring training. Why take any chances at all? This was the right thing to do. Stolmy Pimentel (I'm not familiar with him. Are you?) will start in his place. Good job Sox.

Yesterday down in America's land down under, the Atlanta Braves bested the Boston Red Sox by a score of 6-1. John Lackey went the first two innings, giving up one run on four hits. 25 of his 41 pitches were in the strike zone. He said this after his outing...

“I just want to feel four-seam rotation and work on the arm strength first time out."

That's what spring is for for the pitchers and the hitters. Getting the feel of things is mighty important. One bright spot for the Sox is the continuing torrid start by none other than Big Papi David Ortiz. He had three base hits and drove in the only Boston run. In three games this spring, Ortiz is 5 for 8 with four RBIs. Here's the skipper, Tito Francona...

“He’s certainly short to the ball right now and he’s not trying to muscle up and he’s keeping everything fair. He’s getting the barrel to the ball real good right now. Nice short swing."

That type of swing causes the ball to be hit very sharply. With the infamous Papi shift on, he smashed a single right through that shift. Next up was another lefty, JD Drew. What did Papi do? He stole second base. STANDING UP. I guess he really did work hard in the off season. GO PAPI!

That's all I have for you, my Constant Readers, but I'll be back with any breaking news, sports or otherwise as soon as I can. Our prayers are still with Serena. With blood thinners coursing through her body right now, I sure hope she'll come back 100%. Have a great Thursday and as always, BE WELL. I'll see you down the road. Don't worry, it's a very short road. In fact, it's a dead end!