Daniel Bard up; Javy Lopez out

This is great! Lopez gone and the new kid we've all been eager to see coming up. Francona has thrown away countless games keeping Lopez in the game while he walks batter after batter. Now he can concentrate on throwing away games with Lugo at short stop.

I feel personally bad for Lopez, but this is great for the Red Sox! Now, maybe there's a certain 9 million dollar player that will be next....

They should be able to get something for Lopez.... Sad story how he was so underused this year.

I bet Lopez is going to the Yanks.

Lopez was awful last year. As excited about Bard coming up, I'm glad to see Lopez go. His ERA was the most misleading stat last year.

Have some guts Francona...let Lugo go. Attempting to protect $9 mil investment will cost the entire season....what a $150M investment?

Great call up!! I hope this is the beginning of a trend. Next up Buchholz for Penny (hopefully).

Yes James,I thought Hunter Jones would go not Javy.Bard is a true 99 mph guy he is Paps replacement in 5 years.Hopefully that certain 9 mil a year guy is gone,along with a certain 13 mil per year also. To waste 21 mil. on those 2 in this economy is a crime, the true ponzi scheme,someone should be prosecuted because we are paying for this with our 7.00 beers and are complicit if we don't open our Back Bay penthouse windows and yell out all at once I'M MAD AS HECK AND I'M NOT GOING TO TAKE IT ANY MORE-come on everyone together now !!!

I feel bad for Joplez too; he seems like a great guy. But the only way he was underused was in mop-up situations. Tito brought gave him too many chances in close games, given his history of losing them. Sorry Joplez, but I'm glad to see you go.

The Lopez DFA may finally mean Theo is waking up. There are problems that will only get worse unless dealt with now.

Lopez is a very nice guy, but everyone else seems to have figured him out. He was a little too "gimmicky."

Lopez stunk out loud last year. That's why he was "underused". You don't put your worst pitcher into many games.

Poopi to Pawtucket, 9 + 13 = 22. But Drew makes 14 million. So it's actually 23 million total.

I agree with this move completely. Lopez was nothing more than a lefty specialist. A Mike Myers type. But he was not terrible last year he was actually one of their more reliable relievers, but he's nothing more than a servicable average to above average pitcher. And about sending Papi to AAA, YOUR NUTS! I think he'll come around and if not, they can't send him down, he's already out of minor league options. They would have to designate him for assignment, and he's done to much for this team. They would let him finish the year as a backup.

lopez was actually pretty decent last year. He went 2-0 in 70 apperences (60 innings) with a 2/4 era. As long as he goes to the NL. He will be a valubul pick up for who ever grabs him.

i have javier lopez's autograph good guy

wonder if he can hang around long enough to take Beckett with him outa town...

Great Call Up. This kid is amazing...pure gas.

This is an outstanding move by Theo. Lopez is absolutely useless and has been for a long time. As a lefty specialist, he only had to do two things: throw strikes and get lefties out. He did neither with any sort of consistency or regularity. His ERA last year was extremely deceiving. His numbers this year are a much better indicator of the type of pitcher he is. This move effectively eliminates the only weak link in an otherwise outstanding bullpen.

The great call is getting Lopez out of town. Lugo definitely needs to go next and I'm convinced the big p's problem is that hes off the juice. His dealer went to LA last year and he's sucked ever since. He's behind every fast ball and losing hand speed is a sure sign of coming off the juice.

Thanks for everything, Javi.
your stuff might not have been there this year, but you were there when needed in previous years. You were key in the '07 WS run. Good luck. You'll land on your feet.

As to the assertion that Ortiz is doing poorly because "he's off the juice. ... losing hand speed is a sure sign of coming off the juice." Losing hand speed could be a result of aging, of arthritis, of lingering effects of last year's wrist injury, etc. Joe Rogan could give many interpretations, but he chose to give the one that is least generous and most mean spirited.

I feel bad for Javy Lopez... he had a great season last year, and I think he was a good overall guy in the Red Sox bullpen and the clubhouse. Unfortunately, I think pitching in the WBC for Team Puerto Rico hurt him this season.

good move, Javi had a good run here but Bard's numbers are hard to ignore. Please have Lugo out of here, trade him anywhere and eat the contract. Even tonight, each ball hit to him has me closing my eyes.

I think you'll see a deal for him(Lopez) in next few days. If they wanted to bring up Bard badly enough they could have sent Jones down, he still has options. Now the Sox have 10 days to either trade or release him. Every once inb a while I guy goes through this process and ends up back at AAA with the team that pust him on assignment but that's doubtful in this case. Lopez has value, especially to NL clubs that have a need for a lefty RP, almost all of them in fact, and if a deal does not happen there would be interest from a lot of teams simply because he performed at an acceptable level in the AL East. My guess would be a team like AZ, SD, or the Brewers will offer up something of minimal interest/value to the Spx min

Francona gave Lopez every chance to prove his value. As a player's manager he was painfully slow to pull the trigger, proving that all the rants on multiple commentary are ignored in favor of cool calm judgment at the top where it counts.

Like many career relievers, Lopez is inconsistent-- meaning he could be streaky good or streaky VERY bad. This year, is was all the latter. What made it worse was the fact that he is one of the worst fielding pitchers in the major leagues. He has cost us several games with his inability to field his position-- the latest one last week just another example. He did seem like a good guy however and was useful to us at times, as he will likely be for his next team, too. Other time, he'll kill them. So it goes. But bringing Bard up is exactly the right move now. Our bullpen is nowabout bullet-proof with these transactions.

One down (Lopez), one to go (Lugo)...

Lopez should have been used in lefties only situations but that couldn't be arranged. It made his era balloon big time as they had to leave him in there in certain situations as the pen was overtaxed and he did a lot of the heavy lifting. Too bad for him but he should absolutely catch on somewhere. Can't believe they couldn't trade him somewhere. They do have that option still don't they.

Javy sucked! Smart move Theo!

Lopez is gone?

Who will be my Timlin for 2009? That's a pretty solid bullpen. I don't see one anymore!

lopez was embarrased by francona when francona replaced him with van every and had lopez play the outfield.francona is a phony who will bend over backwards for superstars and pets and make excuses for them. guys like manny ramirez,kevin millar,mark kotsay,big papi,varitek,schilling are some of terry's guys.but good guys like manny del carmen,sean casey, john olerud can't do enough.francona isn't great just lucky.