Cataclysm
| Game 107: August 6, 2009 | |||
| Red Sox | 6 | L: John Smoltz (2-5) | 62-45, 3 game losing streak |
 Yankees | 13 | W: Joba Chamberlain (8-2) | 66-42, 4 game winning streak |
| Highlights: The Red Sox designated two players players for assignment today: Smoltz and Billy Traber. That was the first and last time you will ever see those two players together in the same sentence as DFA. Smoltz was the scapegoat, Traber the sacrificial lamb, and Mark Melancon the jackass in the Bronx Zoo last night. | |||
As bad as Boston’s pitching was, their offense was equally lax in failing to score more than six runs after having 12 walks handed to them. That’s one dozen extra outs, four extra innings of opportunities squandered.
Dustin Pedroia knocked in his eighth homer of the season in the third inning. His opposite field poke just barely cleared the right field fence. Casey Kotchman arced the ball into the same area in the fourth with Mike Lowell on base. Lowell had reached on an infield single to Derek Jeter, who got to the ball in about the same area as Jed Lowrie did in his incredibly play against the Rays.
Besides home runs, Pedroia and Kotchman also share another commonality: premature male pattern balding.
Pedroia was plunked by Mark Melancon in the top of the eighth. Terry Francona immediately came to Pedroia’s defense, barking at Derryl Cousins to yank Melancon. Instead, both dugouts were warned.
Takashi Saito didn’t settle things in the bottom of the eighth, so the task is left up to Josh Beckett. I can think of no better man to carry out the job.
Another memorable Yankee milquetoast moment: Jorge Posada running into an out at home in the second inning. He showed all the commitment of middle school boy asking his first crush to dance.
In contrast, Jacoby Ellsbury went hard into the center field wall after snaring Jeter’s fly ball for the first out of the third inning.
