Projo Sox Blog

LOOKING AHEAD: Another formula for success in recent years -- the acqisition of Eric Gagne aside -- has involved making the right moves at the trade deadline. Sean McAdam says it's too early to speculate as to what the Sox may be looking for, but he goes over who they might make available in deadline deals. Theo Epstein says that while anything's possible, "I really think the most help for this club might come from inside the organization." (Boston Globe)

TEMPER THE GIDDINESS: One of those moves, they hope, will be the shift of Justin Masterson to the bullpen. But Baseball Analysts isn't certain Masterson will be the Sox' second-half relief savior.

BONDS MARKET: The talk started when Peter Gammons made an off-hand comment on Sunday night's ESPN telecast that the Red Sox had had "internal" discussions about signing Barry Bonds. The Sox denied it, but it nonetheless became a white-hot talk-show topic. Today the Boston Herald's Tony Massarotti, while acknowledging the likelihood is slim, examines the pros and cons of bringing in Barry.

WHO NEEDS HIM? The news on David Ortiz just keeps getting better, so there could be even less incentive to pursue Bonds. (projo.com)

PILING ON: Baseball Analysts lists the best-hitting catchers in baseball and drops Jason Varitek's statistical line right into the middle.

PROBLEMS AHEAD? In his latest appearance on Boston's ESPN radio station, as reported by Joe Haggerty on his Hacks With Haggs blog, Gammons thinks there could be trouble brewing between Varitek and the Red Sox as the season winds down. To wit: The Yankees' absurd four-year contract to Jorge Posada appears to have set the market for 36-year-old catchers, and Scott Boras -- Varitek's agent -- is clearly going to be seeking that kind of deal when Varitek hits free agency this offseason. But the Sox, according to Peter, aren't any more inclined to hand Varitek a contract like that than anybody else in Red Sox Nation would be:

"He really hasn't had a good offensive year since 2005, so where is he at this point in his career. What worries me about this for the Red Sox is that this becomes ugly as it comes to the end of the year and he approaches free agency . . . As much as I really like Varitek, he's at the point where you really worry about where he's going to be. Two years at $7 million is fine, but I think that Scott Boras is going to convince someone out there that he'll make the difference with the pitching staff . . . Jason is a very loyal guy to Scott and it could create a chasm between Varitek and the club that could be a problem coming down the stretch."

IT'S FOR YOUR OWN GOOD: Terry Francona gave Varitek the night off -- at least until the late innings, when he took Kevin Cash out of the game -- because he says the slumping 'Tek needed a break. (projo.com)

IN CASE YOU WEREN'T CHECKING OUT THIS BLOG YESTERDAY AFTERNOON . . . you missed the news that Ramirez is now $10,049.56 richer and there's a Red Sox-themed Statue of Liberty in New York City. Oh, and if you see Charles T. (Ted) Schmidt, Jr. of Saunderstown around town, don't forget to say, "Hi, Governor!"

ENJOY IT WHILE IT LASTS: Ryan says the fact that the Twins continue to thrive, and contend, while losing high-priced players -- last winter's exodus included Johan Santana, Carlos Silva and Torii Hunter -- is something we've come to expect. But ESPN.com's Rob Neyer, in an Insiders-only blog entry, believes their current run of success won't continue much longer.

BACK TO BASICS: Andy Pettitte pitching a shutout. Derek Jeter coming up with a key hit and a big defensive play. All the elements that have worked so well for the Yankees over the last 13 years were in play last night as they defeated the Rays, 5-0, in the opener of their two-game series at Yankee Stadium. (New York Daily News) There was no "Jeteration" on this night, as the Yankee captain was every bit as good as the New York Post's Larry Brooks says he was. The Daily News' John Harper says to score one for age over youth.

YOU'VE GOT YOUR MULES AND YOU'VE GOT YOUR RACEHORSES . . . and the YESNetwork's Steven Goldman says the Yankees are "a solid mule." (Proof: Baseball Musings' David Pinto points out that in last night's lineup the Yanks had only two players with OBPs over .350, whereas in their salad days "might have one player under .350") Therefore, if they hope to insert themselves into the A.L. East race, they've got to do it right now because there's no racehorse-like sprint to the finish line in their future.

NO CATCH: And it looks like they'll be attempting to get back into the race with Posada as their DH and not their catcher. (That four-year contract just keeps looking better and better, eh?) He says he's healthy and ready to go behind the plate, but Joe Girardi has used Jose Molina in each of the last three games -- all Yankee victories -- and Posada's substandard defense may be the reason. (New York Post)

IMAGINE HOW WE FEEL, CARL: Carl Crawford says the Rays coming into New York in July in first place, with a huge lead over the Yankees, "is just weird to me. I don't really even know how to explain that feeling." (St. Petersburg Times) A lot of people can't process it, either, and thus are ready to proclaim an imminent return to normalcy -- or at least what they perceive as normalcy -- every time the Rays lose. But Joe Maddon dismissed that kind of talk, saying "You can't denigrate your team just because you didn't win a game." (Tampa Tribune) It all means "we just have to try to be a little bit better," according to B.J. Upton. (Tampa Tribune)

YOU GOTTA BELIEVE: Rays owner Stuart Sternberg is with the team in New York and says he'll do "everything possible within my small powers to give us the greatest opportunity to continue this" run for the title. (St. Petersburg Times) Sternberg also says he knows there are, in the words of the Times' Marc Topkin, "skeptics -- and Red Sox -- who don't think the Rays will be able to hang on," and, according to Topkin, "sounds determined to prove them wrong."

RIGHT BACK ATCHA: The Cubs called the Brewers' acquisition of CC Sabathia and raised them one by acquiring the talented but fragile Rich Harden (right) from Oakland in a six-player deal that sent, among others, old friend Matt Murton to the A's. (Chicago Tribune) The Tribune's Rick Morrissey says Harden tips the scale in the N.L. Central back in favor of the Cubs if he stays healthy. ("It's an "if" that shops in a big and tall store.") The Chicago Sun-Times' Jay Mariotti agrees, and thinks the risk/reward aspect of the deal is just "so Cub." ESPN.com's Keith Law (Insiders only) wonders if Harden's health is already deteriorating and Oakland "wanted to act quickly before his value plummeted." As for the A's, Neyer (Insiders only) thinks they "might be better right now than they were yesterday." Baseball Analysts' Patrick Sullivan also thinks the A's may have 'won' the deal.

ENTERING WITH STYLE: As for Sabathia, he made his Milwaukee debut (left) a success by pitching six effective, if "laborious," innings in a 7-3 win over the Rockies. (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel) The Brewers say he fits right in with them (Wisconsin State Journal), and the fans are certainly excited. (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel) The Journal-Sentinel's Michael Hunt thinks CC stands for "Clarity Confirmed" because his arrival is a clear signal the Brewers are in this race for real. Yahoo! Sports' Jeff Passan was also there and gives his impression of Sabathia's first Milwaukee start.

THE IMPACT: Joe Sheehan of Baseball Prospectus thinks adding Sabathia will mean "between two and three wins [for the Brewers . . . and] there's an excellent chance the Brewers will reach the postseason by that margin or less, and a postseason appearance pays off in direct and indirect revenues for years." FoxSports.com's Dayn Perry says the two moves mean "a deeply compelling division just got a lot more compelling."

INTEREST AT LAST? In the wake of discovering that Eric Byrnes is probably out for the season, Arizona GM (and ex-Red Sox assistant) Josh Byrnes became the first baseball executive this year to not completely dismiss the notion of signing Barry Bonds. (Arizona Republic)

HEY, YOU ALWAYS KNOW WHERE HE STANDS: Jose Contreras and some others in the White Sox clubhouse are upset that the team designated popular infielder Pablo Ozuna for assignment, mainly because they can't find a taker for the high-priced but worthless Jose Uribe. And Ozzie Guillen, as only he can be, is upset with Contreras. (Chicago Sun-Times)

An aside: Can you ever imagine Terry Francona uttering "[Bleep] Jose Contreras," and suggesting that some of the angry players offer to go to the minor leagues themselves if they're so hot to keep Ozuna? I think Francona's method is (much) more effective long-term, but there's no denying Guillen's fun to watch.

BUT IT'S MADE BOOTS A BIG WILY MO PENA FAN: The blog Fanhouse reports the Nationals are averaging an 0.39 ratings share in the Washington television market, "numbers which could easily be mistaken as people who leave their TVs on to keep their cats company. "

TRADE TALK: The Braves are disappointed in what they're being offered for Mark Teixeira, though that may change as the deadline approaches. (MLB Pro Blog Trade Talk) As for Teixeira himself, he says he's just focusing on baseball (mlb.com) . . . The Phillies were very interested in Sabathia, mildly interested in Harden, but say they still think they can acquire a pitcher before the trade deadline passes. (Philadelphia Inquirer) One of the names on their 'B' list, Erik Bedard, went on a Philadelphia radio station yesterday and said all the right things about a potential move to the Phillies. (Seattle Times)

HERE AND THERE: The Orioles' Adam Loewen has been placed on the disabled list (Washington Post) . . . The Blue Jays' Dustin McGowan will have an MRI today after leaving last night's start against Baltimore because of a sore shoulder (Toronto Globe and Mail) . . . Moises Alou thinks he can return to the Mets on Friday (Newsday) . . . Ryan Church, meanwhile, is headed to the disabled list for the fourth time this season because of symptoms commonly associated with postconcussion syndrome (New York Times) . . . Dontrelle Willis has been diagnosed with patella tendinitis in his right knee and will be fitted with a brace (mlive.com) . . . Brett Myers had a good Triple-A debut for the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs on Monday night (Philadelphia Daily News) . . . The Phils, meanwhile, are denying reports that Myers requested a trade (mlb.com) . . . The Cardinals were encouraged by Chris Carpenter's performance in a simulated game and hope he can begin a rehab assignment later this month (St. Louis Post-Dispatch) . . . Hank Blalock, recovering from surgery from carpal-tunnel syndrome, took batting practice yesterday and said he felt good (Dallas Morning News) . . . Hideki Matsui took batting practice and was pain-free afterwards, though Joe Girardi says he may still need knee surgery. (New York Post)

OLD FRIENDS: Julian Tavarez is employed again, this time by the Atlanta Braves (Atlanta Journal-Constitution) . . . Justin Duchscherer celebrated his All-Star selection by pitching a two-hit shutout against the Mariners (San Jose Mercury News) . . . Joel Pineiro picked up his first win since April as he pitched the Cardinals over the Phillies (mlb.com) . . . Johnny Damon is headed to the Yankees' spring facility in Tampa to begin rehabbing his injured shoulder (Newsday) . . . J.C. Romero has been pitching for the last month with a groin injury, and it may be one of the reasons he's allowed five runs in his last eight appearances after allowing only four in his first 34 (Philadelphia Daily News) . . . Mike Easler may soon be out of a job, as rumors swirl that the Dodgers will replace him as hitting coach with one of his ex-Yankee teammates, Don Mattingly. (Los Angeles Times)

-- ART MARTONE