Phillies' Cliff Lee Throws His Third Shutout In A Row..Buchholz Coming Along Very Slowly..Will Not Play This Weekend..Adrian Will Be In Right Tonight

Last night, Philadelphia Phillies starter Cliff Lee was in complete command of the game from start to finish. Boston's Josh Beckett looked a little rusty after so many days on the bench or in the trainer's room. Boston Red Sox skipper Tito Francona had this to say about Lee...

"He’s one of the best pitchers in the game and he’s riding a hot streak. That’s a bad combination. He had his way with us.

Many of the Boston batters grimaced as strike after strike again and again crossed the plate without being touched by any wood. It was as dominating a performance as I've seen all year. I mean, how can anyone pitch any better? Answer...they can't. Impossible. Here's more Tito...

"He was in command of the game from start to finish. He had his way with us. He was in command of the game from start to finish. He’s one of the best pitchers in the game and he’s riding a hot streak. That’s a bad combination. He had his way with us.”

All the Red Sox and their fans could do is to tip their hats and say they were beaten by the better guy in every way imaginable. I loved watching his various selection of pitches and his unending precision. My hat (if I was wearing one) would have come off as soon as Lee ended his complete game masterpiece.

There's one more piece of interesting Red Sox pitching news. It seems Clay Buchholz is not coming along with his back injury as quickly as some predicted. HE WILL NOT pitch anytime soon. That means, of course, is that Wakefield AND Lackey will both be out on the mound every five days. We must hope Clay returns as soon as possible. The Yankees won again last night so the Red Sox must win at least one of the two remaining games left in this series, if not both.

Lastly, finally, Big Papi David Ortiz will start at first base while Adrian Gonzalez. Boston's best hitter, will move out to rightfield tonight. If he's hurt, they'll be hell to pay but the chances of that happening are super slim. The Sox need both of their big bats in their lineup when playing a team as great as the Phillies. Stay safe, guys. Adrian will be pulled and moved back to first if the Red Sox go ahead by a substantial margin.

Hey, at least we're going to miss Doc Halladay. Boy, they have great starting pitching. Please click on this post's title for more on the Wednesday night game and as always, BE WELL. GO SOX!!