Wednesday Links: ‘Twas the night before the deadline

(Photo credit Kelly O’Connor of sittingstill.smugmug.com.)

For the second time in the past 5 days, Rubby De La Rosa and Marcus Stroman squared off, as the Red Sox and Blue Jays met for at Fenway Park for game 2 of a 3 game series. After both pitchers enjoyed a clean first inning, the Blue Jays opened the scoring on the strength of a Colby Rasmus solo home run. An inning later, Boston tied the gamee on a run scoring double by Dustin Pedroia. With the score knotted at 1 aside, Anthony Gose continued to be a thorn in the Red Sox side as he whacked a 2 RBI double to right field. Toronto went on to add another run to their tally in the ninth inning on an RBI ground out by Melky Cabrera. Down by three runs in the bottom of the ninth, Xander Bogaerts lead off the inning by swatting his 8th home run of the season over the monster. But that’s where the Red Sox rally began and ended, as Casey Janssen closed the door and secured a 4-2 Blue Jays win.

• Following Tuesday night’s game the Red Sox announced that Jon Lester would be scratched from his start on Wednesday, leading most to believe that a trade is imminent. While that parameters of a deal are still unknown, initial reports indicate that the southpaw is being pursued by a handful of teams. Brandon Workman will be recalled from Pawtucket to take Lester’s rotation spot. (Jon Lester scratched from Wednesday start)

• It’s not just the fans who are preparing for life without Lester, the 30-year old’s teammates are also pondering what the clubhouse will be like without their ace. Dustin Pedroia, who rose through Boston’s system with Lester, tugged a Red Sox Nation’s heartstrings on Tuesday, when he referred to the left-hander as “family” rather than a teammate. (Pedroia, mates braced for losing Lester)

• If the Red Sox were to extend Jon Lester, there’s really no question that he would be a worth the money during the first few years of his deal. The 30-year old is in the middle of a career year, and is making short work of the opposition every time through the rotation. However, given the Red Sox future needs, and the rate of arbitration inflation, electing to let Lester walk might be the most financially sound choice. (Can the Red Sox afford Jon Lester in the long term?)

• While the idea of trading Jon Lester is understandable, the prospect of parting ways with John Lackey isn’t logical. If Boston’s front office dealt both starters, the Red Sox rotation for 2015 and beyond would be filled with question marks, and unfair expectations for rookies. Therefore, with Lackey set to pitch for the league minimum next season, the best course of action for the Red Sox would be to let Lackey remain atop the rotation. (The Red Sox shouldn’t trade John Lackey)

• With all of this talk about where Jon Lester will wind up, there’s not much chatter about what might be coming back to Boston. A quick look at past deadline deals, shows us that the Red Sox are in line for a large prospect return in exchange for the left-hander. While a package of prospects isn’t something casual fans get excited for, adding young players to an already deep farm system will make it easier to make future trades. (What could the Red Sox get for Jon Lester?)

• Tweet of the day: Ouch, right in the feels.