Sloppy Defense Leads to Yankees Win (4/29/15)

The whole month of April was a washout for the Boston Red Sox but today's game was the exclamation point. The New York Yankees took advantage of not one, not two, not three but FIVE errors to defeat the Sox 6-4 at Fenway Park to drop Boston to 5-6-1 on the season going into May. Not the best way to end the month of April, that's for sure.

                                                 Aaron Burr hates badly played games

Sox starter Ernie Shore (1-2, 4.30 ERA) wasted no time giving up the game's first run in the top of the first. Then a series of blunders led to a 5 run fourth inning that chased Shore from the game. Dutch Leonard stopped the bleeding but it was too late. The offense mustered a run in the sixth and a run in the seventh then rallied for 2 more in the ninth, but ultimately fell 6-4 to drop below .500 for the season.

Jackass of the Night is a tough one but it will have to be Ernie Shore. He lasted just 3 2/3 innings and gave up 6 runs and made one of the Sox' 5 errors during the game.

                                                     Shore the Jackass


The Good:

George Ruth pinch hit for Heinie Wagner and drove in a run with a double.

Mike McNally singled and scored in his only plate appearance.

Tris Speaker was 2 for 4 with a walk and drove in a run.

Duffy Lewis was 2 for 5 with a run scored.

Dick Hoblitzell was 2 for 5 with an rbi.

Dutch Leonard pitched 3 1/3 scoreless innings and walked at the plate.

Wally Rehg singled and scored as a pinch hitter.

Ray Collins pitched 2 scoreless innings.



The Bad:

Hal Janvrin was 0 for 4 with an error.

Hick Cady was 0 for 2.

Del Gainer was 0 for 1 as a pinch hitter.

Pinch Thomas was 0 for 1 with an error.

Olaf Henriksen was 0 for 1 as a pinch hitter.



The Ugly:

Harry Hooper was just 1 for 5 but stole a base and scored a run.

Heinie Wagner was 0 for 2 but walked.

Everett Scott was just 1 for 5 with an error but drove in a run.




Final Thoughts:

Thank god this month is over. The Sox are inconsistent on both sides of the ball and are making way too many errors in the field. The weather hasn't been great but that's no excuse for someone like Hal Janvrin to have 6 errors already. Luckily there is plenty of time to get their act together but today's effort just wasn't going to cut it. The Sox end the month at 5-6-1 and hopefully May will be better. Who knows who's pitching next and when due to all this rain.

Sox Beat A's in Ninth on Error (4/22/15)

The Boston Red Sox won their first game at home this season in dramatic style. Trailing 6-5 to the Philadelphia Athletics in the final frame, the Sox rallied due to an error from second basemen Eddie Murphy to walkoff on the defending AL Champs 7-6 to open Fenway Park in style.

                                                    John F Fitzgerald approves of the win

The once great Napoleon Lajoie also committed FIVE errors throughout the game. The Sox struck first with a run in the bottom of the second but the A's responded with 4 off starter Ernie Shore in the top of the third. The Sox responded with a run in the bottom of the fourth but the A's scored runs in the top of the fifth and sixth to take a 6-2 lead and chase Shore from the game. The Sox got a run in the bottom of the seventh to chase Athletics starter Weldon Wyckoff then got 2 more in the bottom of the eighth against Bob Shawkey. Down 6-5 and at their final out, Eddie Murphy allowed a crucial error which led to the 7-6 victory for the Sox.

Hero of the Night is Ralph Comstock (2-0, 2.00 ERA). He tossed 3 innings of shut-out relief to earn the win and he scored a run at the plate.

                                                            Ralph the Hero


The Good:

Harry Hooper was 2 for 5 with a walk, run scored and an rbi.

Tris Speaker was 2 for 3 with 2 walks, a run scored and an rbi.

Duffy Lewis was 2 for 5.

Hal Janvrin was 1 for 3.

Del Gainer walked with the bases loaded as a pinch hitter.

Hick Cady was 2 for 4 with a walk, rbi and run scored.

Wally Rehg stole a base and scored as a pinch runner.

Pinch Thomas stole a base and scored as a pinch runner.



The Bad:

Mike McNally was 0 for 1 at the plate.

Ernie Shore sucked. He lasted just 6 innings and allowed 6 runs off FOURTEEN hits. He also was 0 for 1 at the plate.

Olaf Henriksen was 0 for 1 as a pinch hitter.



The Ugly:

Heinie Wagner was 0 for 5 but walked.

Dick Hoblitzell was 0 for 3 with an error but walked twice and drove in a run.

Everett Scott was 0 for 4 but walked, stole a base and scored a run.




Final Thoughts:

How about those runnin' Red Sox? Twice they sent in a pinch runner, twice they stole a base and twice they scored runs. Every run counted in this improbable win over last year's pennant winners. The Athletics have lost 5 of their first 7 games so they're not off to a good start. Sure the Sox are just 4-3 but its better than that. The Sox return to action against the Athletics next time with Dutch Leonard, last year's ERA champion, making his season debut opposite Herb Pennock, who blinded the Sox on Opening Day. Hopefully this time around will be different.

Sox Stun Senators in Ninth (4/17/15)

The Boston Red Sox got back to their winning ways in today's game against the Washington Senators, stunning the home crowd with a thrilling 7-5 victory at Griffith Stadium. Senators starter Jim Boehling was game but tired by the end and Walter Johnson was asked to stop the Sox in the ninth inning. It didn't happen as the Sox scored 2 runs off Johnson, getting one final shut-down inning from Ernie Shore to win the game.

                        Harry Van Meter approves of the win

The Sox and Senators battled through most of the game although starter Rube Foster didn't have it. The Senators took the lead with 2 runs in the bottom of the 7th off Shore but the Sox won it in the ninth inning.


Hero of the Night is Duffy Lewis. He was 2 for 4 with 2 runs batted in, a walk and 2 runs scored.

                                                     Lewis is the Hero



The Good:

Harry Hooper was 1 for 3 with 2 walks and an rbi.

Hal Janvrin was 1 for 3 with 2 runs batted in and a run scored.

Ernie Shore earned the win by tossing 5 1/3 innings, allowing just 2 runs. He slammed the door in the ninth inning after the Sox had taken the lead.



The Bad:

None



The Ugly:

Heinie Wagner was just 1 for 4 but walked, scored and drove in 2 runs.

Tris Speaker was 0 for 4 but walked, stole a base and scored.

Dick Hoblitzell was 0 for 2 but was hit with a pitch.

Everett Scott was just 1 for 4.

Hick Cady was 0 for 2 but walked and scored.

Rube Foster was knocked out in the fourth inning after allowing 3 runs, but at the plate he walked and scored.




Final Thoughts:

That was a big early season win not only against the Senators, but against Walter Johnson as well. Granted, Johnson was ice cold but to get some runs off him is a rare treat. Rube Foster looked rusty as all hell but hopefully he'll find his groove. After all, the Sox can't rely on Ernie Shore to bail them out in every single game. Somebody besides Dutch Leonard and Smoky Joe Wood is going to have to step up on the mound, maybe Foster can do it as the season goes on. Tomorrow is Game 2 of this series and rookie Carl Mays gets the unenviable task of matching up against Walter Johnson. Good luck Carl.

Sox Tie A's Amidst Ejections (4/16/15)

After the Philadelphia Athletics won on Opening Day and the Boston Red Sox took the rematch yesterday, the rubber match didn't give a clear cut winner. The two teams fought to a 6-6 tie as guys were getting thrown out left and right before the game was called. The prevailing issue that's the A's are far less formidable now that Home Run Baker, Jack Barry, Eddie Collins and Chief Bender are gone. The Sox could have the inside track to the pennant this season if it all goes well.

                                                   The repeat champion A's are gone

As for the game, there was a lot of offense and not much pitching. 20 year old George Ruth couldn't get it done but the offense picked him up big time. The Sox bolted to a 6-1 lead on the backs of Larry Gardner, Duffy Lewis, Heinie Wagner, Everett Scott and Tris Speaker. Then Ruth got hammered in the fifth inning as the A's fought back to make it 6-5. Then Dutch Leonard, Smoky Joe Wood, Ernie Shore, Wally Rehg and Raymond Haley were all thrown out of the game for running out onto the field.

                                  "Hey Smoky Joe Wood yer outta here!" - Tommy Connolly

When action resumed, Ralph Comstock gave up the tying run in the bottom of the seventh inning. Carl Mays, fresh off his opening day win, pitched a scoreless ninth to preserve the tie. There was no winner or loser in this one.

There is no Jackass or Hero of the Night since the game ended in a tie.



The Good:

Harry Hooper walked 3 times in 5 plate appearances and scored 2 runs.

Heinie Wagner was 1 for 2 with a walk and a run scored.

Dick Hoblitzell was 1 for 1 with 2 walks, a stolen base and a run scored.

Everett Scott was 1 for 3 with an rbi.

Carl Mays pitched a scoreless 9th inning.



The Bad:

Bill Carrigan was 0 for 3.

Olaf Henriksen was 0 for 1 as a pinch hitter.

Hal Janvrin was 0 for 1 as a pinch hitter.



The Ugly:

Tris Speaker was 0 for 5 but drove in a run, stole a base and scored.

Duffy Lewis was 0 for 2 but walked, drove in a run and scored.

Larry Gardner was just 1 for 4 with an rbi.

Babe Ruth got lit up for 5 runs and got knocked out in the 5th inning however he was 1 for 2 at the plate and scored a run.

Ralph Comstock allowed the tying run to score in four innings pitched although he walked in his only at-bat.



Honorable Mention:

Pinch Thomas caught the bottom of the ninth.




Final Thoughts:

If the A's are going down this year, the Sox may be the ones to beat them. It took a near perfect effort from Herb Pennock for the Sox not to have taken 2 out of 3 in Philly to start the year. The Sox need Joe Wood to return to 1912 form and for Leonard and Shore to have good years. Anything else is a bonus really. Tomorrow the Sox travel to our nation's capital to play the Washington Senators. Rube Foster makes his season debut opposite Jim Boehling.

Sox Almost No-Hit on Opening Day (4/14/15)

Talk about a horrible opening day for the Boston Red Sox. 21 year old Herb Pennock of the Philadelphia Athletics was just one out away from no-hitting the Sox until Harry Hooper hit a chopper over the mound and beat out Nap Lajoie's throw. That salvaged the day in near sub-zero temperatures for the Sox who were defeated 2-0 in front of about 8,000 hearty souls at Shibe Park.

                                "That's all they got, one goddamned hit?" - Woodrow Wilson

The play of the game came when Pennock himself drove in Wally Schang to give the A's the lead. With Pennock pitching a no-no, that's all they needed.

Jackass of the Night is a tough one since they only had one hit but I'll go with Duffy Lewis. He's the cleanup hitter and had one of the only chances to do any sort of damage when Tris Speaker drew a walk just before he came to bat. A bloop or a blast could have tied the game.

                                                       Lewis the Jackass

The Good:

One of the rare times the losing pitcher ends up on the good list. Ernie Shore pitched the best he could, pitching a complete game and only allowing 2 runs. Any other day that would have been enough for a win.

The Bad:

Heinie Wagner was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.

Dick Hoblitzell was 0 for 2.

Del Gainer struck out as a pinch hitter.

Everett Scott was 0 for 3.

Larry Gardner was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.

Hick Cady was 0 for 3.

Wally Rehg was 0 for 1 as a pinch hitter.

The Ugly:

Harry Hooper was just 1 for 4.

Tris Speaker was 0 for 2 but walked.

Final Thoughts:

Nothing like opening the season almost getting no-hit on a freezing cold day. God bless the A's fans that put up with it until the end. I'm sure the offense will come eventually but that was as bad as it gets for opening day. Ernie Shore pitched his ass off but had nothing to show for it. Tomorrow the Sox look for revenge when they send Ray Collins to the mound opposite "Bullet" Joe Bush at Shibe Park.