What next?

Sadly, I fear Jason Varitek's season should be over.

Uh... when you manage only 4 hits in 15 innings... it doesn't say much about the season continuing...

I pray I'm wrong about this... but this wasn't a good sign. Buchholz better bring his A game tomorrow... he's going to have to go at least 7 whether he gives up the farm or not...

It doesn't look good, even for the wild card, Texas and the Rays are looking better teams right now. Anyone wanna see brooms, look out in the Bronx Sunday night. Lester might throw a no-hitter, we'd still lose! (L4 and counting...)

For me, the most discouraging thing about this loss was that the hitters didn't compete, didn't seem to have any fight in them. They didn't make the Yankees bullpen work very hard, they didn't spoil off tough pitches, they didn't work the count. They made lots of quick and feeble outs.

The pitchers performed brilliantly, and the 14th/15th inning defense was phenomenal. But it never felt like we were going to push across that elusive run. We fought valiantly and struggled to hang on for as long as possible, but we couldn't keep them off the scoreboard forever. The Yankees extracted a tremendous effort from our pitchers, burned thru our bullpen (and possible new 5th starter), and pulled out the win anyway.

Adam, were you drunk when you wrote this? Proof read, young Jedi.

3 out of 5 starting pitchers and 5 out of 9 position players? Bad!

2 out of 5 starting pitchers, 4 out of 9 position players, and the bullpen? Good!

Team? Pretty good!

Season? Probably over!

You know what I love? When I told every sox or yankee fan that would listen that "The sox have BAD pitching", and no one would lsiten. And I said, "Beckett CAN be great (when healthy), and lester is "solid" no more (before you claim more...based on what?), but after that...they have NOTHING. Dice K is a ticking time bomb, Wake is a 4.50 era .500 pitcher that you don't trust against legit teams (and that the yanks own), and they don't have a real 5 starter, (unless you count penny and smoltz, which theor spent 15 million on, and another enormous boner for him). And for MONTHS, I had to lsiten to about their "depth" on boston loving, upstate CT espn, but FINALLY, since the Yanks started playing their game, and destroying the AL east, espn and everyone realizes, "Oh wait....their depth isn't that good?...in fact...bucholz, masterson, bowden(getting killed at AAA) are....not good pitchers?"

Here is what I said since april, and continue to say. The Yankees WILL win this division by ten games. Why....? THEY ARE THAT GOOD, and the sox aren't. They are up 4 1/2, and only 2-8 against the sox. Had they won the Mo 2 run, 2 out lead, which Mo ALWAYS converts, or the Burnett 6-0 lead, or the CC 3-1 lead in the 8th, give them those 3 games, they are 10 1/2 games up! (And yeah, say, the sox earned those but...not really, the Yanks blew those. Some mental issue for them, whatever it was, they are over it now, but still, this is a team that beats the sox head to head EVERY year, even though it is the sox 2nd greatest decade in team histoery (and still 2nd to yanks), so losing those games made little to no sense. But, while the yanks should be up 10 1/2 (or more), and are up only 4 1/2....that's before even considering...they have no WANG. And sox fans can rip on him all they want. But wang wong more games from mid 2005 to mid 2008 than beckett had at ANY 3 year stretch in his career, and it's not close, and lester...not close. Wang was the biggest winner in the al in 2006 and 2007, and the Yanks didn't have him this year, and are still going to run away with the division.

Love it.

MAY THEY REST IN PEACE !!!!!!

Respect to Junichi Tazawa regardless.

CYNY...

So morale isn't a problem. But morale doesn't win games, talent does. It will be a miracle if the Red Sox win today with Buchholz and no bullpen. The season's not over, but this has to be considered the start of rebuilding for the Sox, whether they make the playoffs or not. And it's looking increasingly less likely that they will do so with only two starters they can count on, with gaping holes in the lineup, and with a bullpen which can't seem to win in extra-inning games even when it is fresh.

So morale isn't a problem. But morale doesn't win games, talent does. It will be a miracle if the Red Sox win today with Buchholz and no bullpen. The season's not over, but this has to be considered the start of rebuilding for the Sox, whether they make the playoffs or not. And it's looking increasingly less likely that they will do so with only two starters they can count on, with gaping holes in the lineup, and with a bullpen which can't seem to win in extra-inning games even when it is fresh.

D, is correct here it is time to sit both the Captain and Ortiz for an extended period of time. Play Casey Kotchman at First base and Mike Lowe as your DH. Maybe bring in Chris Carter as your backup from Pawtucket. One glaring deficiency is obviously shortstop I understand that are farm system is deep in pitching where is the help and development of future infielders and outfielders? Little frustrated to see a team slowly deteriorate. A la shades of 2006. However have faith that the Red Sox Mgt crew will make necessary adjustments as the Yanks did in the off season. In addition maybe we should hire Yankees Strength and conditioning coach for our new players the Yankees young players are atheltic and bulked up must be s great strrength program.

Tek is joke. Along with this offense. No pitching problems today. The Sox have the look of team that is giving up and yes unraveling and I blame that squarely on Tito. He needs to quit being a Daddy and calling his boys by all those stupid nicknames and start calling people out. This team has the talent but they are playing like a bunch of over paid spoiled bums. Look at the Yankees on the top step of the dugout, highly motivated. The Sox just don't care.

I just don't understand what happened to this line-up...Sox fan my whole life and I have to double check the "on screen info" to see who's hitting after Ortiz. Take a minute and compare the two line-ups...Sox had no business taking this to the 15th in the first place - pathetic. display of ability of the star studded NY roster.

In the first 9 innings, 7 base runners, 3 reached scoring position (Ells twice) and no one can come up with a base hit, pathetic. Wasted Beckett's performance and wore out the bullpen. Li'l Pop-up is what 2 for August? Lowell looks a lot better in the DH slot.

Today look for CC to go 7+ and save the Yank's bullpen and you Clay?

Only time will tell if my eyes decieved me or not! I really don't think one game will make that much of a difference.They were headed into the tank after the 2 games against TB.I never want to see Smoltz pitch again those were the most agonizing games I ever had too watch,rooting for someone to be successful when you know that physically it wasn't a probability was hard to do.Tito needs to re-evaluate his team and report the weak links to his bosses.Please either find a real SS or bring one of the kids up!Green and Woodward are you sh*tting me! Really this is what the master plan is?Yikes God save the Queen!!!

Why wasn't Tito given heat about not pinch hitting Lowell for Tek in the 14th????

If Headlights Buckholz get shelled today then it truly is over for the Sox. There's always next yr and hopefully we can bid adios to Varitek, Big Pop Up, Baldelli, Green, Penny and Dice-K to start. Theo is arrogant and his low risk - high reward philosophy has turned into high risk - low reward. Drain-the-swamp and let the kids play when the Sep 1 call-ups start. Show Magidan and Farrell the door also.

Can people look at THEO for once and stop praising the second coming of Jesus for a day? This is partly his fault, ultimately, it does indeed rest on the players for not getting it done - but Theo should not get off scotch free. Being in first place for a portion of the year really guilted 'Red Sox Nation' into thinking this team was better than they actually were. We were betting on a career .500 guy in Penny who has a horrendous work ethic (see LA Dodgers era) and a prospect in Clay who may be the most overrated prospect since Delmon Young. Same goes for the Smoltz signing; yes, it was a low risk, high reward signing, but there were NO signs that he would be successful. He hadn't pitched in a year, and spent the past 15 years in the National League. Then there's the miserable, sad, pathetic offense. We have close to automatic outs in Tek, Ortiz, Drew, and whoever plays shortstop. So in the AL, a league with the DH, you've got 5/9 guys who need to play out of their minds and pick the other 4 bums up. It's a tough feeling, and unfortunately this season reminds me of 2006 way too much. Yeah, the Sox may win the Wildcard by default, but they'll have to battle for it down to the final weekend which will surely mess up their rotation for the first round (see 2005 White Sox series). And more bad news, we're stuck with these same bums (Ortiz, Drew, Tek, Green/Lowrie) next year too, and Lowell will be a year older too. So yeah, let's see what the 'genius' Theo does now.

I totally agree, and Evans Drapos, I too see shades of 2006. The only difference was, in 2006, I felt like there was nothing they were going to do to fix it. They were just terrible. This team has its issues, but like you, I think that it is squrely on the lineup and managing style.

Francona has always been toted as this "player's" manager who keeps egos in check. I think right now, he needs to step up and maybe act a bit more like Belicheck and say if you're not performing, grab some pine. He becomes this "player's" manager by, in my mind, sticking with people way longer than he should. I knew going into this season that Varitek was going to be a black hole in the 7th, 8th, or 9th bat. But still, we see him day in and day out. They get plenty of people on-base, but cannot drive them in. That points 100% to bad lineup and poor managing.

I should also mention, their pitching I feel is in a rut. The offense is exactly what I thought we had heading into Spring Training, and that worries me. Maybe Francona says Morale is not down, but that's because they didn't have any heart to begin with. I suppose when you're already at rock bottom, it's hard to decrease.

Why didn't Pedroia move the runners over with two on and nobody out. That was the game right there. And....can these guys all stop trying to hit the five run homer every at bat. Nice game Tek, your getting closer to making contact with the ball.

I thnk people are missing the bigger problem in Red Sox nation....Tito will stand by his players to the death....that is the difference between the Sox and Pats...when a player is done, BB will discard them and rebuild...Francona plays the tek's, Ortiz's and the Lowell's EVEN MORE!

Tito, sorry to say, but he has to go...when you are a players coach, you're EFFECTIVE time in an organization is limited....time to get younger, and rebuild around Beckett, Lester, Pedroia and Youk

1) Adam should get combat pay for last night's game.

2) Sox may lose again today, unless Clay steps up. I mean, that's all there is to it. Neither team has a bullpen tonight, and we know CC can go deep into a game.

The importance of tonight's game is not in whether the Sox pick up a game on the Yankees, or have bragging rights or momentum or any of that crap. Tonight's game is about whether Clay can step up. Beckett stepped up. In fact, EVERY Sox pitcher stepped up last night. The fans SHOULD be proud of them, and the REAL fans, are. But tonight the question is: Can Clay do what the hype says he can? Even Tazawa played over his head last night. Time for Buch to forget himself. Go out and learn how to find a way to win.

3) Even losing the entire series does not mean losing the entire season. It's a matter of how you lose, and the Sox showed a lot of character last night. I've seen teams that have panicked or given up. This team is poised and motivated. Things aren't going well, is all. Season's not over, no one has quit.

4) Lots of frontrunning fans out there, for both the Sox and the Yanks. Typical gloating hyperbole at comment 7. He's classless and clueless. This is the time when REAL Sox fans support their team, because this is the time they need support. When you're ten games out in front, you don't need a pat on the back. You need it when things are tough.

5) Sox can't afford Ortiz anymore, and I was saying this when he had a brief resurgence as well. That was a blip on the radar screen, despite the fans saying "he's back". Well, he's NOT back, and he's not COMING back, any more than Smoltz is. (Or... was.) The Sox HAVE a DH solution, and his name is VMart. Lowell can also pitch in there, when VMart needs to catch. The Sox do NOT need a DH who doesn't even run out ground balls because he's 'frustrated'. Hey, we are ALL frustrated right now. But if you can't hit, at least RUN OUT THE DAMNED BALL.
Really, LOSE Ortiz. NOW. The Sox are putting off the inevitable, because it's uncomfortable, and it has been costing them. Time to act (well, PAST time, but anyway). For the good of the TEAM.

6) Find a spot for Josh Reddick. He had some of the best at-bats of anyone last night. He's got an energy and enthusiasm the Sox need right now.

7) This is a bad patch. Happens to most teams. The Yankees had a VERY bad first half, and everyone gave up on them. They weren't as bad as they were portrayed then, and they aren't nearly as good as the yahoos claim now. Same is true of the Sox.

We cannot keep Papi and Varitek in the lineup. Why the hell was Lowell sitting yesterday? The New York relievers are hacks. Reddick was the only onwe who came thisclose to ending it.

DEFCON 2

Adam - it's "tack", as in changing direction while sailing, not "tact".

Ugh, we suck, Yankees are far superior. I don't think there's any catching up. Sigh.

I feel the same way most of the posters here feel; the Red Sox Nation so used to doom and gloom is resurfacing. However, the logical portion of my mind (if there is one) says that being 4.5 games behind is usually not the end of the world. And I did indeed check. On August 8, 2004, Boston was *10.5* games behind the Yankees, and when all was said and done, we won it all. Is everyone in this surly mood to reenact 2004? Settle down guys!

We need a good Brawl today to wake up the Sox.

Can't we have Lowell DH instead of Big Pop-out? There isn't enough beer in the world to make it any less painful to watch Ortiz choke with runners on.

Wow...everyone take a chill pill! There is a reason why the Red Sox have one of the best home records in baseball and below .500 on the road...they are at the tale end of a 10-game road trip with only 1 day off to show for it. They are tired. A great team goes 5-5 on the road, they are 3-5 right now, and they played or are playing a 2 teams with really good home records as well...but remember, the Yankees still have a 10 game west coast trip coming up, and the Rays schedule is brutal (as is the Yankees). After this 4 game series the Yankees have to come back to Boston. Look at how many home games the red sox have in september! Way more then the Rays and Yankees.

Also, the Yankees bullpen is spent as well people! They pitched 8 innings last night and 4 innings the night before. Remember on Thursday we let Trabar pitch until his arm fell off. The Yankees NEEDED these games, the Red Sox were just looking for a 2-2 split, which they still might get.

I do agree with Ortiz and Varitek...both need to sit...and both will sit today. Varitek wont catch a day game after a 15 inning game, and Ortiz is in a 3-23 slump and 0-12 with RISP and a lefty on mound. Things should be fine come Monday...I just worry about the Tigers coming to town...the Sox need to take 3 of 4.

Like that great Yankee seer said: "It ain't over 'till it's over".