Sports of Boston » Brian Roberts

Scutaro Error Proves Costly as Red Sox Fall to Orioles

Matt Goisman — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 09:36:34 +0000

Marco Scutaro’s throw sailed into right field. Boston’s playoff hopes may have sailed away with it. Scutaro’s two-base error on a throw to second base in the third inning allowed the winning run to come home in the Baltimore Orioles’ 5-2 victory over the Boston Red Sox. Tuesday night at Camden Yards, the Orioles struck first. In the first inning, Nick Markakis hit a one-out double off Red Sox starter Josh Beckett, who came into the game 4-3 with a 6.50 ERA. In his previous start, Beckett pitched 6.1 innings against the Seattle Mariners, allowing three earned runs while striking out seven in a 5-3 win. Two batters after Markakis’s double, Luke Scott singled to right, driving him home. Beckett escaped further damage in the first inning and then enjoyed a 1-2-3 second.

Beckett’s (and later Scutaro’s) troubles began again in the third. Brian Roberts began the inning with a ten-pitch at-bat that ended in a single. He then took second on a wild pitch and went to third on a ground out. After Beckett walked Scott with two outs, Adam Jones hit a grounder to Scutaro. Scutaro fielded it cleanly, but then double-clutched before throwing to second for the force out. The throw sailed into right field and, by the time it was collected and thrown home, Scott came around to score from second base. The Orioles’ lead now sat at 3-0.

The Red Sox, meanwhile, could do nothing with lefty starter Brian Matusz. Matusz, who came into the game 6-12 with a 4.79 ERA, had won his previous start, giving up just one earned run to the Chicago White Sox in seven innings. The Red Sox, having managed just two hits off Matusz through the first four innings of Tuesday’s game, began to climb back in the fifth inning. Mike Lowell led off with a single. Two batters later, Jed Lowrie took a 3-1 offering to left field. It sailed into the bleachers, and the Red Sox were back to within one run. Unfortunately, that’s as close as they would get. Despite putting lead runners on in the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings, the Red Sox did not score again. Their best opportunity came in the seventh, when they had men on first and second base with no one out. Those runners were stranded after advancing exactly one base each.

The Orioles built some breathing room for themselves in the eighth inning. Scott and Felix Pie each homered to right off Felix Doubront, pushing the lead back up to three. It did not prove necessary. Koji Uehara, despite having been used four times since August 21, set down the final five Red Sox batters in order for his fifth save of the season. It was his fifth in ten days, and he needed just 21 pitches (17 of which were strikes) to record the 5-out save. Matusz, who went six innings, allowed two earned runs, and struck out six, picked up his seventh win of the season. Beckett suffered his fourth loss and fell back to .500, despite lowering his ERA to 6.21.

Red Sox at the Plate

The strongest offensive performance of the night came from Jed Lowrie. He went 2-3 for the night with his two-run home run. Lowrie continues to show flashes of brilliance, but what’s holding him back is his inability to stay healthy. He might someday be the starting shortstop for the Boston Red Sox, but he has to stay healthy long enough to prove he deserves the role. Victor Martinez also went 2-4 for the night. Nights like this make us think back to two months ago, and how much offense his injury might have cost the Red Sox since then. No other player had a particularly strong night, a scattering of 0-4′s, 1-4′s, and 1-3′s. David Ortiz deserves special mention, but not for good reasons. On Tuesday night, Ortiz went 0-4 with three strikeouts. In his last two games, he is 0-8 with 5 strikeouts. He may be feeling like he has to carry the Red Sox offense, and this is causing him to press harder and not see the ball as clearly. Whatever the cause, the Red Sox can ill afford a slump from one of their best hitters.

Red Sox on the Mound

If the team wasn’t struggling so much offensively, Beckett’s performance Tuesday night would’ve been adequate. Seven innings of two earned-run ball is usually enough to cement a win for the Boston Red Sox. Unfortunately, the Red Sox aren’t scoring right now. So Beckett’s performance, while good, just wasn’t good enough. To be a staff ace, you have to be able to pitch beyond your team’s need. Beckett can’t do that this year. He may still be a good pitcher, and he might be better in future seasons (statistically, odd-numbered years are better for Beckett then even-numbered years since joining the Red Sox), but he’s definitely not an ace. Matched up against a third or fourth starter, Beckett can probably be effective enough to earn wins. But against an ace or second starter, given Boston’s current offensive problems, Beckett may not have the stuff this year to win with consistency. Some juggling of the rotation may be necessary.

Felix Doubront, meanwhile, has been off-and-on, just as he’s moved up from AAA Pawtucket and back down again. These were actually hist first earned runs allowed in over two weeks. He was on a solid pitching streak that included two saves and a one-point drop in his ERA. With this mis-step, his streak ends. Given a full year in the majors, Doubront will likely prove to be an adequate reliever. Maybe never an elite pitcher, but certainly a solid, contributing member of a winning team’s relief corps. Whether or not that team is the Boston Red Sox remains to be seen.

Mounting Frustrations

You can see the looks on the players’ faces and in their reactions. Beckett allowed a two-out single and stormed into the dugout. Lowell struck out with two men on and threw his bat in disgust. Ortiz struck out, again, and walked away shame-faced and angry. The Red Sox are starting to feel that no matter what they do they can’t seem to win. Being professionals, this causes them to try harder, to press themselves, only to walk away with the same lack of success. This is resulting in losses now, but it may add up to wins later. When teams play poorly for a long time, they tend to eventually take their frustrations out on another team. Usually this manifests as a lopsided victory, often times by as many as ten or more runs. With the hitters this team has, that is not beyond the realm of possibility. This frustration can also manifest in a brawl, starting with a lonesome beaning that causes a retaliation. This is soon followed by the team pouring out of the dugout and rushing the mound and/or opposing teammates. With nine games left against the Rays and Yankees, this is also a strong possibility. One way or another, Boston fans should get some fun games sometime soon. They may not add up to a playoff berth, but at least everyone will feel a little better. If only for a bit.

Fantasy Baseball Wrap-Up: Week 20 (8-17 – 8-23)

Pete Rampino — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 12:30:42 +0000

In last week’s wrap-up, I mentioned how I wanted Henry Rowengartner from the film “Rookie of the Year” as my fantasy closer. Now, if I had to choose the best fictitious hitter to have on my roster, it would probably have to be Pedro Cerrano from “Major League”. Oh, and I don’t mean the Buddhist Cerrano from the sequel, I want the crazy, head-shaving voodoo master from the original. Granted, he couldn’t hit a breaking ball to save his life, but every time he went up there, he either struck out or hit a home run. He was the voodoo version of Adam Dunn.

OFFENSE

Brian Roberts (2B), Baltimore Orioles

I mentioned him here last week purely for his doubles. Now he is here because he blasted four home runs, drove in eight, and stole three bases. I personally love the five walks and in case you are wondering, he hit two doubles.

Jayson Werth (LF, CF, RF), Philadelphia Phillies

Eight of Werth’s 11 hits went for extra bases including a league-leading five home runs. Werth has at least seven home runs in each of the last three months and has already set a career-high in that category (29) with over a month to go.

David Ortiz (1B), Boston Red Sox

Big Papi led the majors in RBI with 10 and even launched three more home runs. Despite the steroid controversy and the poor start to the season, Papi has 20 home runs and 75 RBI. Now that the steroid scandal has passed, hopefully Papi’s head is cleared up.

Joe Mauer (C), Minnesota Twins

Just 11 more hits and three home runs for the A.L. batting leader. Mauer is actually being considered for the MVP award. Why not? The guy already has two batting titles (as a freakin’ catcher!) and is going to set career-highs in every offensive category. Did I mention that he will do this despite sitting out all of April?

Adam LaRoche (1B), Atlanta Braves

As predictable as the weather, LaRoche is once again on a second half surge. LaRoche produced eight runs, 12 hits, four home runs, and 9 RBI. In 82 games before the break, LaRoche had 12 homers, 39 RBI, and hit .250. In 31 games since the break, he is hitting .350 with eight home runs and 20 RBI.

PITCHING

Chris Carpenter (SP), St. Louis Cardinals

How much more dominant can this guy be? Carpenter racked up two more wins and struck out 14 batters in 15.0 innings with a 1.20 ERA. Carpenter has not lost since June 30th and has won nine of his last 10 starts.

Cliff Lee (SP), Philadelphia Phillies

Another dominating performance by Lee, who made one start, but it was a complete game shutout of Arizona with 11 strikeouts. Lee has won seven straight starts and has a 0.82 ERA since moving to Philadelphia.

Jose Valverde (RP), Houston Astros

Valverde recorded three more saves and fanned six men in 3.0 innings without surrendering a run. Valverde hasn’t allowed a run in his last seven appearances and hasn’t blown a save since June 28th.

Heath Bell (RP), San Diego Padres

Bell only recorded one save, but he also picked up his fifth win while surrendering no runs and striking out five batters.

Ubaldo Jimenez (SP), Colorado Rockies

In his two starts, Jimenez earned two wins and had a 2.25 ERA in 16.0 innings with 14 strikeouts. Jimenez has a 2.78 ERA since July 5th with a 8.74 K/9 and 1.06 WHIP.

Why Should I Give a Crap About These Guys?

John Smoltz (SP), St. Louis Cardinals

Making his first start after leaving Boston, Smoltz finally made a good start with a five inning gem that saw him strike out nine batters without giving up a run. He clearly has something left in the tank, so take a risk.

Marlon Byrd (LF, CF, RF), Texas Rangers

Byrd is enjoying his best month as a full-time starter with a .306 avg and four home runs. Byrd is great for a late season run since he is a career .290 hitter after the break and last season, he hit .338 with .518 slugging in 63 games post-break.

Aaron Rowand (CF), San Francisco Giants

Rowand hit .464 last week (13/28) and has hit .296 in August. With the exception of July, where he hit .190, Rowand has hit .283 or higher in every month. With the Giants battling for a playoff spot, expect that offense to keep producing.

Matt LaPorta (1B, LF), Cleveland Indians

LaPorta, the key acquisition in the CC Sabathia trade last season, has been called up again. Since coming back on August 20th, LaPorta has five hits that include three doubles and four RBI. He should get ample playing time seeing as Cleveland’s season is worthless anyway.

Derek Holland (SP, RP), Texas Rangers

His current ERA (4.72) doesn’t show his dominance over the past month. In the last 30 days, Holland has gone 4-2 with a 2.56 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, and 7.45 K/9. His .311 BABIP suggests that he can keep this pace up for the rest of the season. So if you need quality starts with good strikeout numbers, then pick him up.

Sports of Boston Friends and Family League

I defeated SoB’s KC 14-7-3 to stay in first place. I already qualify for a playoff sport.
Only two weeks left in the regular season and all SoB members are comfortably in playoff contention.
Recent pickups include: Mike MacDougal, Carlos Guillen, Tommy Hunter, Kyle Blanks, and John Smoltz.

Fantasy Baseball Wrap-Up: Week 19 (8-10 – 8-16)

Pete Rampino — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 12:30:14 +0000

Do you know who would be an awesome pitcher to have on your fantasy roster? Henry Rowengartner! Yeah, the kid from “Rookie of the Year”. Watch the film one more time. You will see that after his first ever appearance, he never allows another baserunner for the rest of the regular season. The kid struck out Barry Bonds for cryin’ out loud! Rowengartner would be a more dominant closer than Mariano Rivera.

OFFENSE

Adrian Gonzalez (1B), San Diego Padres

Just when you think he is done, Gonzalez proves you wrong. The Padres slugger destroyed everything in sight with videogame-like numbers by cranking out 19 hits with three home runs to give him 32 this season. In the process, Gonzalez raised his average from .251 to .279.

Ryan Howard (1B), Philadelphia Phillies

Howard continues to be a power and RBI threat with four home runs and a league-best 11 RBI all while hitting .381. Howard is once again having a great second half with a .306 avg, eight home runs, and 24 RBI since the break.

Hanley Ramirez (SS), Florida Marlins

Still arguably the best fantasy player (other than Pujols), Hanley stayed in the lead for the N.L. batting title by collecting 15 hits including four doubles and two home runs. Hanley also scored eight runs and swiped two more bases. Complain about there being not as much power as previous seasons (18), but Hanley has already posted a career-high in RBI with 82 and is hitting .356.

Chone Figgins (2B, 3B), L.A. Angels

Remember when Figgins qualified at every position except for catcher? Man, those were the days. Figgins predictably had no home runs, but he did manage 13 hits and four stolen bases. When you draft Figgins, you know what you are getting, which is speed and a .300 avg. So don’t bitch about the lack of power.

Brian Roberts (2B), Baltimore Orioles

I have a soft spot for doubles, so Roberts gets recognition this week. Roberts gave owners 12 hits including seven doubles, one home run, five RBI, and three stolen bases. If your league counts doubles, then Roberts is a gold mine. The Baltimore second baseman has had 40+ doubles in five of the last six seasons with two seasons of 50+ doubles. With 45 doubles already this year, Roberts will break his career-best of 51 doubles he had last season.

PITCHING

Jorge De La Rosa (SP, RP), Colorado Rockies

I hope you listened to me three weeks ago. De La Rosa was one of the few starters to win both of his starts last week. He struck out 20 batters in 13.1 innings with an impressive 0.68 ERA in the process. He is 5-1 since the break with a 3.00 ERA and 41 strikeouts in 39.0 innings.

Brian Wilson (RP), San Francisco Giants

How does a closer make it here with no saves last week? Well, by going 2-0 silly. Wilson allowed no runs and struck out six batters in four innings to improve to 5-5 on the season.

Ryan Franklin (RP), St. Louis Cardinals

Even though he failed to strike out any batters, Franklin still shut the door in the ninth inning and collected three saves without allowing any runs. Franklin leads all closers with a 1.17 ERA.

Scott Baker (SP), Minnesota Twins

Baker made his one start count by pitching a complete game shutout over Cleveland. Baker is having a stellar second half with a 2.29 ERA in 39.1 innings and August is his best month yet with a 2.66 ERA.

Justin Verlander (SP), Detroit Tigers

After two shaky outings (combined 10 ER in 14.0 IP), Verlander bounced back with eight shutout innings with eight strikeouts to give himself win number 13. Verlander leads the A.L. with 194 strikeouts, which is a career-high for him.

Why Should I Give a Crap About These Guys?

Randy Wolf (SP), L.A. Dodgers

Wolf has flown under the radar all season, but he has been a quality outings machine. Lately, he has compiled a 4-2 record and 3.12 ERA in his last 10 starts. Nine of those 10 starts have been quality outings.

Tommy Hunter (SP), Texas Rangers

In his nine games since his call-up, Hunter has a 2.26 ERA in 55.2 innings to go with his 5-2 record. Six of his starts have been at home in Texas, so you know he can pitch well anywhere.

Bronson Arroyo (SP), Cincinnati Reds

I guess all those supplements he is taking are working for him lately. Arroyo has a 2.49 ERA and two complete games (both shutouts) in his last seven starts.

Mark Ellis (2B), Oakland A’s

If you nee help at one of fantasy’s most shallow positions, then Ellis is worth a gander. Ellis is hitting .346 since the break including a whopping .431 with 19 RBI in August.

Rajai Davis (CF), Oakland A’s

If you need average and stolen bases, then pick up Rajai Davis now. Davis has hit .357 over the last month with 12 stolen bases and 11 extra base hits (eight doubles, three triples). He won’t hit home runs for you, but the speed and hits alone are worth it.

Sports of Boston Friends and Family League

I edged out a close one with a 12-9-3 victory to remain in first place.
Three weeks left and eight playoff spots up for grabs. If the season ended today, all the SoB staff members would make the playoffs.
Recent pickups include: Will Venable, Pedro Martinez, John Baker, Chris Coghlan, Lyle Overbay, and Carlos Gonzalez.

TGIF: 2009 2B Rankings

Pete Rampino — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 23:19:49 +0000

Second base is arguably the shallowest of all the positions in fantasy baseball. The majority of these men will not be your source of power, but more likely your reservoir of average and decent speed. With so few elite names in this category, you may want to hold back on drafting one. According to my vast amount of wisdom, I can see only one 2B possibly going in the first round. Other than that, I advise you to wait until a “run” starts. Only question is: Who is going to start it?

The best 2B for the 2009 season…

Ian Kinsler, Texas Rangers
Chase Utley, Philadelphia Phillies
Dustin Pedroia, Boston Red Sox
Brian Roberts, Baltimore Orioles
Brandon Phillips, Cincinnati Reds
Dan Uggla, Florida Marlins
Chone Figgins, L.A. Angels
Alexei Ramirez, Chicago White Sox
Robinson Cano, New York Yankees
Howie Kendrick, L.A. Angels
Mike Aviles, Kansas City Royals
Jose Lopez, Seattle Mariners
Kelly Johnson, Atlanta Braves
Kazuo Matsui, Houston Astros
Mark DeRosa, Cleveland Indians
Placido Polanco, Detroit Tigers
Ian Stewart, Colorado Rockies
Orlando Hudson, L.A. Dodgers
Rickie Weeks, Milwaukee Brewers
Alexi Casilla, Minnesota Twins
Akinori Iwamura, Tampa Bay Rays
Felipe Lopez, Arizona Diamondbacks
Freddy Sanchez, Pittsburgh Pirates
Mark Ellis, Oakland A’s
Mike Fontenot, Chicago Cubs
Anderson Hernandez, Washington Nationals
Emmanuel Burriss/Kevin Frandsen, San Francisco Giants
Luis Castillo, New York Mets
Clint Barmes, Colorado Rockies
Jerry Hairston Jr., Cincinnati Reds

Who Do You Take First?

No “Hey, Don’t Forget About…” this week. Instead, we take a look at a risky draft day decision. Chase Utley has been the king of 2B for the past several seasons and this season he is slated to be #2 off the board behind Ian Kinsler. Honestly, it is a toss up to me.

Kinsler had a career season last year and that included the fact that it was cut short by injury. In 121 games he hit .319 with 18 HR, 71 RBI, 102 runs, and 26 SB. If only he had played every game. My problem with Kinsler is his durability. In his three full seasons, he has never played in more than 130 games. Is he really worth spending a first round pick on (where he is predicted to go) if you know he will get injured?

The reason Chase Utley suddenly dropped in the rankings was due to off-season hip surgery. However, all indications point to him being ready for opening day even though Philadelphia won’t set a date for his first spring training game. Utley is the ideal 2B. He has scored over 100 runs in three out of four seasons since 2005. Also in three of the last four seasons, he has 28+ HR and has 100+ RBI seasons in four straight years. The only blemish on his durability record was in 2007 when he missed 30 games while battling a broken hand, but that was due to getting hit by a pitch which was not Utley’s fault.

Frankly, if Utley is good to go for opening day, then he is above Ian Kinsler on the depth chart. As for now, Kinsler just barely gets the go-ahead…but not by much.

Fantasy Wrap-Up: Week 21 (8-18 – 8-24)

Pete Rampino — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 21:45:41 +0000

Nelson Cruz Called Up to Play for Rangers

Rangers’ OF Nelson Cruz was called up to the majors and will play almost everyday for the rest of the season. In Triple-A, he was absolutely destroying everything he saw with a .342 avg, 37 HR, and 99 RBI. In 96 games last year he hit very differently with a .235 avg, 9 HR, and 34 RBI.

Yankees SP Pavano Wins First Start Since April 2007

Carl Pavano finally returned after rehab from Tommy John Surgery over a year ago and picked up the win in a 5-3 Yankees victory. Pavano gave up three earned in five innings and struck out 5 batters on 91 pitches.

Eddie Guardado Traded, Heads Back to Minnesota

After finding little success in Texas, relief pitcher Eddie Guardado is back to the team where he started his career in 1993. In his last appearance, Guardado couldn’t close out the game and he took the loss for Texas. Frank Francisco has been named the new closer for the Rangers and now Guaradado is nothing more than a middle reliever.

Now for the stars of week 21.

OFFENSE

Nick Swisher (1B,LF,CF,RF), Chicago White Sox: Swisher’s season has been seen as a dissapointment but last week he has tried to right his wrongs by hitting a home run in four consecutive games to bring his total to 21 for the year. Swisher also drove in eight runs as part of his great week.

Mark Teixeira (1B), L.A. Angels: Tex Mex raised his average to .302 with a 9-23 (.391) week which included three home runs and five RBI. Tex is hitting .386 since joining the Angels.

Brian Roberts (2B), Baltimore Orioles: Roberts didn’t impress anybody last week with his power (1 HR), but he did manage to slap 11 hits, drive in 5, and swipe 3 bases. Roberts is 7-7 in SB attempts in August.

Mark DeRosa (1B,2B,3B,LF,RF), Chicago Cubs: DeRosa’s bat woke up last week with 10 hits including four for home runs. He drove in runs in five straight games (6 RBI total) and now has 77 RBI on the season.

Vernon Wells (CF), Toronto Blue Jays: Wells’ week was pretty much dead before Toronto faced the Red Sox. In that series alone he was 6-11 with three home runs and six RBI.

PITCHING

Rich Harden (SP), Chicago Cubs: There is no better pitcher in baseball right now than Rich Harden and yes, I am including CC Sabathia. Harden just added to his ridiculous stats last week by striking out 21 batters in 14 innings to pick up two more wins. Out of his eight starts with the Cubs, five of those games saw Harden strike out 10+ batters.

Ricky Nolasco (SP), Florida Marlins: Nolasco won both of his starts to bring his record to 13-7. His wins included his first complete game of the season and 21 K’s while surrendering just two runs.

Brian Wilson (RP), San Francisco Giants: Even though Wilson blew a save last week, he still picked up two wins and two saves. Even with the blown save, Wilson has a 2.93 ERA and 10 saves post break.

Barry Zito (SP), San Francisco Giants: Yes you read that correctly, I did type Barry Zito’s name. Zito put together a great week with two wins while working 15 innings. OK, so he only struck out eight batters but come on, give the man the little credit he gets.

Mariano Rivera (RP), New York Yankees: The best closer of our generation did what he does best. Rivera picked up three more saves and gave up zero runs in 3.2 innings while fanning three batters.

Why Should I Give A Crap About These Guys?

Jensen Lewis (RP), Cleveland Indians: Hey, it’s an Indians’ closer with an ERA under 4.00. Lewis has gotten comfortable as the 9th inning man in Cleveland and has converted five straight save opportunities and now has six total in August.

Rocco Baldelli (CF), Tampa Bay Rays: Hey, remember him? In eight games since his return from the DL, Baldelli is hitting .308 with 2 HR, and 4 RBI.

Ryan Church (LF,CF,RF), New York Mets: Church has battled issues with multiple concussions all year and has finally returned to the everyday lineup. In the 60 games he has played, Church is hitting .310 with 10 HR, and 37 RBI.

Sports of Boston Friends and Family League

Well crap, I am back in 7th place after a 12-11-1 victory. My star of the week was Ian Stewart who hit .480 with a home run, seven RBI, and four doubles.
My special thanks this week goes out to Shaun Marcum who blew up against the Res Sox for 5 ER in 3.2 innings of work. After that start, he was sent down to the minors.
This week is the final week of the fantasy regular season so I have to finish in the top 6 to advance to the playoffs. One problem, in order to make it, I have to go through the best team in the league. Crap!
The rest of the SoB crew: Dev (3rd), KC (4th), Dan (5th), Jeff (9th), Chris (10th), Geoff (11th).
Recent pickups include: Todd Wellemeyer, Chris Perez, Omar Infante, Mike Jacobs, Chris Volstad, and Chris Dickerson.

AL East Fantasy Preview: Baltimore Orioles

Pete Rampino — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 03:56:50 +0000

Baltimore has taken a bold step in the direction of the franchise and have decided to rebuild their team. Baltimore traded two of its biggest names in SS Miguel Tejada and ace pitcher Erik Bedard. Bedard stayed in the AL by being traded to Seattle and Tejada made the jump to the NL with the Houston Astros. Both players have left big holes at their positions and also they left a lot of questions and uncertainties. You may be asking yourself who on this team will have a significant impact on your fantasy season? Well let us have a look:

OFFENSE

Nick Markakis, OF: Markakis followed up his impressive rookie year with a fantastic sophomore season. He had 23 HR and 112 RBI for an Oriole club that was short on offense. Heck, he even threw in 18 steals. He is still young and developing so the skills he has now are only getting better. However, with Baltimore rebuilding, I can’t expect Markakis to put up similar RBI and run numbers. He may be the only source of power and he also has the stolen base potential.

Pete’s Prediction: 90 R, .290 AVG, 28 HR, 96 RBI, 16 SB

Brian Roberts, 2B: It is a fact, after Chase Utley, the 2B department is shallow. Second base is the 2nd most shallow position after catcher. This does not mean that you cant get quality at the position. Enter Brian Roberts. Last season, Roberts set career highs in hits (180), walks (89), and stolen bases (50). The increase in walks lead to the stolen base opportunities and I honestly can’t see why Roberts can’t repeat what he did last season. If he gets on base, you can expect 40+ steals easy. In the SportsofBoston Friends and Family League where we count doubles, Roberts moves up a few notches in the rankings. In three of his past four seasons, Roberts has 40+ doubles. Batting lead-off means he will have the most chances to score runs. However, on a rebuilt team, those runs are far and few between.

Pete’s Prediction: 86 R, .285 AVG, 10 HR, 50 RBI, 41 SB

PITCHING

Jeremy Guthrie, SP: Wow, what happened here? Guthrie posted an ERA of 2.74 before the All Star Break including ERAs of 1.78 in May and 1.69 in June. He then proceeded to fall off the face of the earth where his ERA blew up to 5.03 post break. 2007 marked Guthrie’s first full season as a starter and he once again joins an abysmal Baltimore rotation. Considering his May and June were outstanding and never again to be duplicated, I would advise not investing in Guthrie or any starter in the rotation. Frankly speaking, Guthrie is only being written about because I would have felt bad not including at least one starting pitcher in this report.

Pete’s Prediction: 9 W, 4.40 ERA, 135 K

NOTABLE POTENTIALS

Adam Jones, OF: The big prize coming out of the Erik Bedard trade, Jones looks to be the everyday CF for Baltimore. The uber prospect played 101 games for AAA Tacoma in 2007 where he 25 HR and 84 RBI to go along with a .314 AVG. The majors were another story. Jones never got an everyday gig, but did manage to log 65 at bats. The problem with that was he hit .246 with only two homeruns and four RBI. Can he flourish in an environment that gives him regular playing time? I really don’t think so.

Pete’s Prediction: 62 R, .263 AVG, 17 HR, 71 RBI, 4 SB

Baltimore Relievers: It’s draft day and you need a closer. You check all your sources and try to figure out who the closer for the Orioles is. Well it is anybody’s guess at this point. Newly acquired George Sherrill seems to be the front runner. He had a good season in the Seattle bullpen going 2-0 with a 2.36 ERA. For those of you hoping for a quick recovery for Chris Ray, keep looking elsewhere. Ray is scheduled to begin a throwing program soon, but not in time to make a significant impact. The closer role seems to be by committee and that just means you should look elsewhere for saves.

Next up, the Toronto Blue Jays.

Buchholz Throws a No-No!

Dan — Sun, 02 Sep 2007 17:58:23 +0000

How does a rookie get starting job on the Red Sox? You become the first rookie pitcher in Red Sox history to throw a no hitter.

“There’s no going back to Triple-A,” Red Sox manager Terry Francona said.

Buchholz wasn’t even suppose to start today. Wakefield twinged his back Friday so Tavarez had to move up, and someone needed to pitch Saturday. It might have been Lester, the starter for Sunday but he wasn’t eligible to come up yet. And so fate and fortune picked Clay for Saturdays start against the Orioles.

The Red Sox faithful stood all through the ninth inning as Clay neared history.

From the 7th inning on with the Red Sox ahead 8-0, everyones attention was on the no-no.

Whenever you see a no-hitter there has always been a great defensive play behind them. Clay’s no-hitter was no different. In the 7th with Miguel Tejada up, Clay let a hot shot go up the middle that he waved at with his glove. Pedroia chased down the ball and when it was by him, grabbed it on the dive, got up quickly and threw a bullet to first to get Tejada by a step.

Clay said of Pedroia’s play, “When he made that play I knew something was meant to happen tonight. It was an incredible moment in my life.”

I was probably one of many after Buchholz cruised threw the 8th and most fans stood on their feet, and the Sox came up, I didn’t care at all about the Sox hitting. We needed three Willy Mo’s to come up and get out. Just get Clay back up there. Instead seven Sox came up to the plate, saw 22 pitches, and two scored.

It was a long wait until the 9th inning.

Brian Roberts, first up against Clay, struck out swinging. Next up was Corey Patterson. Entering the game with a .270 average. Have to figure a 27% chance he’ll hit a single. On the 4th pitch of the at bat, Patterson hit a tailing shot to center. Right off the bat you weren’t sure if it’d bloop in our stay up. Coco Crisp with his coked up Olympian legs ran down from center to the left side and Patterson’s line drive held up long enough for Coco to run under it. There was a huge sigh of relief in Fenway and every bar in New England.

The final batter was Nick Markakis, one of Baltimore’s best hitters. And in four pitches Clay sent Markakis down looking on his change-up.

“It works out a whole lot better when you can locate [pitches]” Clay said humbly.

Clay had everything working. His change-up was simply electric. It feel completely off the table and everyone was swinging before the pitch even crossed the plate. It was like watching a major league veteran work the game.

In one year Clay has done more then he’ll probably ever do in one year again. Cross your fingers to that. But this year he has beaten a first ballot HOF in Clemens which he did in a triple AAA start and now he has thrown a no-hitter. He’s creating high expectations in Boston.

Notes:

-According to the Elias Sports Bureau Clay Buchholz was only the third player ever since the 1900′s to throw a no-hitter in one of his first two starts.

Trio of O’s Make Owners Happy

Pete Rampino — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 02:24:27 +0000

Although the Baltimore Orioles are 8 games under .500 and are not a fantasy force as a team, the offense does boast a trio of players that should be universally owned in all leagues.

These 3 men had a solid three game series against the Red Sox and if they were in your lineup over the weekend then you were handsomely rewarded:

-Brian Roberts, 2B: Roberts had 4 hits in the series including 2 doubles and 2 runs.

-Nick Markakis, OF: A draft day sleeper, Markakis also had 4 hits against the Sox. This included 2 RBI and a stolen base (his 15th on the season) in the 10th innings of Sunday’s finale.

-Miguel Tejada, SS: Some say his best days and his power are behind him. Tejada shook off those critics and apparently shook off his wrist injury from his most recent DL stint by hitting a game tying home run (#11 on the year) Sunday. It was Tejada’s third hit of the series and also his 4th RBI.