Boston beat the White Sox 1-0 last night to get back to .500 after a wretched 4-10 start. The guys are on a six game win streak with the possibility of a sweep today with Josh Beckett on the mound for the final game of the series.
Red Sox ace Jon Lester threw seven innings of shutout ball against Chicago ace Jake Peavy who got the complete game loss. Bobby Valentine's developing closer sequence of Padilla, Morales and Aceves got the job done again as Alfredo got a 1-2-3 ninth to seal the win.
A lot of trolls and whiners at the Red Sox website were calling for Valentine's head after the rough start, but Bobby V's been doing the job the right way. Letting guys settle in and seeing what they are capable of before pulling the trigger on a move. He got pummeled for leaving Daniel Bard in too long against the Rays after Bard walked in the Rays winning run. But when is it better to find out if you can trust a pitcher late in a game? Now, with a hundred some games to recover from a loss? Or in September when you're fighting for a playoff spot? It's Managing 101 and Bobby's spot on with this.
Other news has Aaron Cook coming out of rehab. With no openings in the starting rotation, Cook might be just the guy to plug into Aceves vacated long relief / set-up role. That would solidify the bullpen immensely.
Every team in the AL East is at or above .500 now, and though Boston is still in the cellar, they are only 2 1/2 games behind division leading Baltimore. Like I said earlier, this could be a fun season and perhaps the most exciting division in baseball this year.
Also want to shout out to the Orioles under one of my favorite managers -- Buck Showalter. Like Bobby V., I always thought Buck was out of baseball way too long. Glad to see him getting that team back on track. From the little kid who modeled himself after Brooks Robinson at third base -- way to go Buck! :-)
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