Disaster
| Game 75: June 25, 2007 | |||
| Red Sox | 4 | L: Julian Tavarez (5-5) | 48-27, 1 game losing streak 18-6-2 series record |
 Mariners |
9 | W: Jeff Weaver (2-6) H: Eric O’Flaherty (2) |
40-33, 3 game winning streak 15-10-2 series record |
| Highlights: All of Boston’s runs came from the right side of the defensive alignment; J.D. Drew and Kevin Youkilis had two RBIs apiece. | |||
In my consciousness, the game was a pitcher’s duel with a smattering of sloppy defense on the Mariners’ side. As I drifted off to sleep in the fourth inning with the score 2-1 in favor of the visitors, I felt victory was assured. After all, the beginning of Jeff Weaver’s 2007 season was listed as one of the historically-awful starting pitching performances by Jay Jaffe in Baseball Prospectus’s Unfiltered blog just last month because of his six consecutive disaster starts.
What is a disaster start? According to Jim Baker of Baseball Prospectus it is when a pitcher allows as many or more runs as innings pitched.
By that definition, Kyle Snyder and Mike Timlin were the Masters of Disaster and Julian Tavarez was their Gatekeeper.
Tavarez served up a leadoff double off the bottom of the center field wall to Adrian Beltre in the fifth. Tavarez’s throw to first on Yuniesky Betancourt’s sacrifice bunt showed why he rolls the ball; the relay went askew and the Mariners short stop stood safe at first.
Three runs for the local nine later, Snyder took the hill to stem the onslaught. He walked two runs in to secure his helm as a captain of calamity.
Snyder’s descendency was subtle compared to Timlin’s meltdown in the seventh. Texas Toast relinquished back-to-back jacks off the bats of Kenji Johjima (with Jason Ellison on) and Beltre.
Even with the minuscule screen size, watching the “highlights” on my iPod were just as distressing. There were flashes of amusement, especially when Richie Sexson, gangling as a giraffe, trundled into the keystone sack for a double in the second inning with Dustin Pedroia covering the station. I thought I was watching a special on the making of the Fellowship of the Ring trilogy.
The Red Sox will attempt to equalize the series against the resurgent Felix Hernandez this evening. The young virtuoso hasn’t returned to his no-hitter form that Boston saw in the opening series, but in his last outing he lasted eight innings and struck out nine. Bear in mind that this was against the piteous Pirates.
Opposing Hernandez is the unexpectedly effective lefty Kason Gabbard. Gabbard is 1-0 in major league starts this season and sports a 7-2 record with a 3.24 ERA for Pawtucket.
