Friday
14Aug2009
Rangers Gameday: 8/14 Vs. BOS
Friday, August 14th Game Preview
Boston Red Sox (65-49) vs. Texas Rangers (64-49)
Jon Lester (9-7, 3.67 ERA) vs. Kevin Millwood (9-7, 3.38 ERA)
7:05 p.m. CST in Arlington, Texas (Rangers Ballpark in Arlington)
TV: FSNSW-HD | Radio: KRLD 105.3 FM, XM 179
| Red Sox |
Rangers |
||
| Position | Player | Position | Player |
| CF |
Josh Reddick |
2B |
Omar Vizquel |
| 2B |
Dustin Pedroia |
3B |
Michael Young |
| 1B |
Victor Martinez |
CF |
Marlon Byrd |
| LF |
Jason Bay |
DH |
Andruw Jones |
| RF |
J.D. Drew |
RF |
Josh Hamilton |
| 3B |
Mike Lowell |
1B |
Hank Blalock |
| DH |
David Ortiz |
LF |
David Murphy |
| C |
Jason Varitek |
C |
Jarrod Saltalamacchia |
| SS |
Nick Green |
SS |
Elvis Andrus |
Pre-Game Notes: More to follow.
Minor League Games: Salt Lake vs. Oklahoma City (Luis Mendoza), Frisco vs. Tulsa (Michael Kirkman), Bakersfield vs. Lancaster (Tanner Roark), Hickory vs. Bowling Green (Neil Ramirez), Salem-Keizer vs. Spokane (Ben Henry)
33 Comments | in Gameday, The Season
Reader Comments (33)
What a most opportune time for Young to secure the third 20-homer season of his career, with a left-center field blast that puts Texas up 2-0 early and boosts the Rangers' win probability by 14.7 percent...Lester has been superb in his last six starts (41 IP, 2.41 ERA, .211/.274/.296) and allowed just two earned runs combined to the Rays and Yankees in his last two starts, so any further damage the Rangers can incur early is just icing on the cake...
Hamilton is now 10 for his last 11 and has pushed his seasonal OPS above .740...Lester, meanwhile, is closing in on a 30-pitch first inning...
A troubling sequence for Millwood, who faced an ice-cold Ortiz (.114/.204/.136 in August) and threw four consecutive high fastballs in what basically amounted to a gift-wrapped walk...
And as suddenly as Millwood lost the strike zone (seven consecutive balls), he managed to rediscover it, with Varitek whiffing on three high-zone fastballs that he never even swung at, and Green lining into the 3-6 inning-ending double play...
Everyone available from the pen except for Feliz?
I found this interesting.
7) Mariano Rivera(notes) doesn’t have the best cut fastball in the major leagues.
Texas starter Scott Feldman(notes) does. His 3.55 runs above per 100 cutters thrown is more than a run better than Rivera’s, whose 2.36 per 100 isn’t too shabby: It ranks fourth in baseball.
from
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_ylt=Arho05BMy0GAWYuiMqb8LWE5nYcB?slug=jp-fangraphs080509&prov=yhoo&type=lgns
Feliz should be the only unavailable arm, yes...some managers would be a little gunshy in going to their closer again after he had thrown 21 pitches the previous afternoon, but Washington has shown no indication of being that sort of manager...
Regarding Feldman's cutter, I actually wrote at some length about the pitch's effectiveness roughly a month ago, but I hadn't realized that Feldman's cutter had actually vaulted into the top spot in baseball...
Can't they put Jimmy Knox is a little window at the bottom of the screen? I did not miss him the last 10+ games.
For that matter, Josh and Tom constantly referring to the pitch tracker or zone tracker or whatever the hell they call it is beginning to get a little tiresome -- especially when Tom criticizes the umpire for calling a ball that the tracker deems to be a strike (unfavorable to Texas), but then says nothing when the umpires calls a strike that the tracker deems a ball (favorable to Texas). I realize that part of being the hometown announcer is exhibiting traces of homerism, but it's getting exasperating.
Also, by-the-book strike zone dimensions vary from hitter to hitter based upon their height (Pitch f/x adjusts for this), and I find myself wondering whether the tracker used on television implements a similar adjustment...
On a brighter note, what a fantastic plate appearance for Hamilton, who lays off four consecutive low-and-away pitches and turns an 0-2 hole into a walk...
I know Josh is 99 for his last 100 but I still miss the long ball. I am sure that will come as well. At the same time I do appreciate the ability to generate runs without it, I just miss it.
Thank you, Hank, for that splendid four-pitch strikeout. With two runners on. And nobody out. Sigh.
Salty is out
If Hamilton remains this locked in I can't imagine the homers won't start coming...on a darker note, Saltalamacchia was clearly struggling with his throwbacks to Millwood, and now Teagarden has entered the on-deck circle, and one has to begin wondering whether Jarrod is destined for the disabled list with his dead arm issues...
Say Taylor get's hurt, who is the third catcher?
Ha never mind they just answered it.
Numbness in his right hand...great, maybe we can get some more Thoracic Outlet Syndrome up in here...
Salty leaves because of numbness in left hand. Dead arm followed by numbness in left hand. I would think they would not be related being that they are on opposite sides. I could be wrong though. If they are connected then I would think that would be a serious issue.
nm right hand. I need to listen better.
It appears that Mendoza has a no-no through 6.
Let the "why the hell was Eddie pitching with the tying run at the plate?" firestorm commence.
Lois has a no no through 8.1
And after Texas jumps ahead by a 3-2 margin on the strength of a profitable double-single sequence, Hamilton gloves a ball near the top of the right field wall...O'Day-Wilson-Francisco has all the appearances of a winning late-inning attack...
Mendoza, L (W, 6-4) 9.0 0 0 0 6 6 0 4.04 Gets a no no.
Unbelievably close play at first base on what would have undoubtedly been one of the plays of the season ends up going Boston's way, and the Red Sox are going for the jugular in the ninth inning...
Frankie's velocity is a tick off and his command isn't what it usually is, which is a recipe for disaster...FX^2 vs. Pedroia has the feel of a post-season matchup...
Wow. I don't know if there's much that can be said to soften the blow of what has happened in this ninth inning. A disaster of epic proportions.
The Rangers are suddenly down to their final out...
...and there it is. Deflating finish.
Can we now make Feliz the closer? I soooo wanted Ron to say "enough" and bring him in to blow Martinez away. Frankie isn't right, mark my words.
Guardado needs to be DFA'd
CJ Wilson moved to a less high leverage spot
Feliz needs to be interchangeable with Francisco
FWIW, Frankie's velocity/command were just fine as recently as Thursday afternoon, so I don't think we can definitively say that he's hurt...but it wouldn't really shock me. That was a blindsidingly awful ninth inning.
Tod: If anything, C.J.'s likely destined for an even higher-leverage role with Frankie's status now in doubt.