Red Sox > Rangers

A fantastic return for Josh Beckett, four (mostly, thank you very much, Hideki Okajima) flawless innings from the Red Sox bullpen, three RBIs from Coco Crisp and four more from Mike Lowell combined to create a sterling, 8-1 victory Friday night for the Red Sox over the Texas Rangers, a team the Sox treat like rock treats scissors.

The Red Sox are now 8-0 against the Rangers this year, and that's not exactly a quiet 8-0 -- the Red Sox have outscored Texas 75-36 this year, including 18-1 in the last two games. Boston also one the final meeting last year, so it's nine straight total. Good thing high school football has started down here.

Saturday, we'll see Tim Wakefield (8-9, 3.76) vs. Matt Harrison (6-3, 5.73). Who do you like in that one? One of those pitchers -- I'll let you guess which -- will become the 23d pitcher to ever make 500 appearances and start 350 games for the same team.

As if things could get any better for the Red Sox between the stellar returns from Beckett and Lowell, the Rays lost to Toronto, 6-4. Tampa Bay now holds only a 2 1/2-game over the Red Sox. There now stands an excellent chance the Red Sox will have a chance to move into first-place during the showdown series against the Rays that starts Monday at Fenway.

Here's one final fun fact: Crisp and Jacoby Ellsbury smacked back-to-back triples in the sixth inning tonight, and Sox PR maven John Blake was all over the last time the Sox pulled that trick: June 5, 2004, fourth inning, Kansas City. Gabe Kapler and Pokey Reese did the deed.