Changes
| Game 93: July 21, 2009 | |||
| Red Sox | 2 | L: Josh Beckett (11-4) | 55-38, 4 game losing streak |
 Rangers | 4 | W: Tommy Hunter (2-1) H: Jason Jennings (10) H: Darren O’Day (12) S: C.J. Wilson (9) | 51-41, 3 game winning streak |
| Highlights: Last night the Yankees won and the Red Sox lost, dropping Boston from the top spot in the AL East for the first time since June 8. | |||
Weak ground outs to the infield. Line drives that find outfielders’ gloves. Dribblers that turn into double plays. Boneheaded baserunning. Fly ball outs to the warning track. Runners stranded in scoring position. Pitching well enough to win but still losing.
Sadly, I could copy and paste these events and just insert different players’ names and I would accurately summarize the past four losses.
Today there are new names that will hopefully used in conjunction with phrases like timely hitting, three-run shot for the lead, and heads-up running on the basepaths.
The Red Sox traded Sea Dogs’ shortstop Argenis Diaz and Drive’s right-handed starter Hunter Strickland for Adam LaRoche. Strickland was selected in the 18th round of the 2007 amateur draft and Diaz signed as an international free agent in 2003. With the recent signings of shortstops Jose Iglesias from Cuba and Jose Vinicio from the Dominican Republic, Diaz was surplus to be spun for a piece for the stretch run.
The other acquisition from the Pirates, Jason Bay, worked out spectacularly. LaRoche may not meet the level of production of the left fielder, but he may provide an upgrade over Mark Kotsay with his higher slugging and reputation as a second-half player. Will LaRoche be a member of the Yawkey Way Rescue Squad, and if so, how will his bat play off the bench?
A few hours after acquiring LaRoche the Red Sox announced a deal that sent Julio Lugo and cash considerations to St. Louis for Chris Duncan and a player to be named later. Duncan was optioned to triple-A prior to the trade, so he likely won’t be called up until rosters expand on September 1.
Here’s to caps hastily Photoshopped onto traded players’ heads and the end of the Red Sox longest losing streak since last June.
