Jason Bay

Go Early, Go Often: Fire Brand’s Best of April

Tonight's game against the Tampa Bay Rays marks the final game of the first calendar month of the season; and what an April it was. From the panic that set in BWNNH (Before Wake's Near No Hitter) after a 2-6 start, to the exhilaration of winning 12 out of 13 including a le-gen *wait for it* DARY sweep of the New York Yankees AB (Anno Bay - In the Year of Our Bay), April has been all Red Sox fans could ask for.

Who would have thought after the first week of the season that April would end with the Red Sox atop the American League with the league's best winning percentage?

Today we look at the best performances of April, culminating in the Fire Brand Player of the Month award.

April 30, 2009 josh lacey

Damaso Marte

BOS 5, NYY 4: Make it 8

Jason Bay and Kevin Youkilis have got that BOOM BOOM POW.

April 24, 2009 shawn medeiros

David Ortiz

Big Papi issues warning to Joba; Carter demoted

Big Papi, David Ortiz, issued a stark warning to Joba Chamberlain to watch his step, reported the New York Post.

Chamberlain seems to have an issue with Kevin Youkilis, having thrown the ball at or near his head four times in the last two years -- which is a rather striking number. The 2007 incidents earned him a suspension while one of the 2008 pitches almost sparked a brawl.

"None of that, man -- just play the game the way it's supposed to be, and that's about it. This is a guy, as good as he is, the next step for him will be to earn respect from everybody in the league. He's not a bad guy, but when things like that happen, people get the wrong idea."

April 23, 2009 evan brunell

David Ortiz

It’s early, but the stats still exist.

Dustin Pedroia: OPS+ 86: Speaking of picking it up...I guess that is what the Orioles pitching staff allows a hitter to do. Although, I do not want to dismiss the offensive explosion of the last few days completely.

After all, they did "rock" Orioles "Ace" Jeremy Guthrie, and last time I checked, he is a pretty good pitcher. But anyway, Pedroia has reached base 10 times in the past four games. His OBP is now roughly league-average, and his slugging has broken the .400 mark. And both of those categories should only improve from here on out.

April 22, 2009 tito crafts

David Ortiz

BOS 6, BAL 4: Three and counting

Kevin Youkilis launched a three-run homer over the Green Monster giving Boston a 4-0 lead in the third inning. Then, Mike Lowell singled to center making it a five run gap. And for the first time this season the Red Sox finally held onto an early lead.

April 19, 2009 shawn medeiros

Chris Carter

The Red Sox know how to manage “injuries.”

If Lowell goes down, Youk can shift to third and David Ortiz and Chris Carter can share the 1B/DH spots. Or even Rocco could DH at times. If Daisuke suffers from "arm fatigue." Which could also be labeled as "we are being careful with him because of the the WBC." Then Justin Masterson can shift from the pen to the rotation.

But Theo has built a team that can handle suspensions, injuries, performance issues, more than just about any team in the game of baseball. And the organization as a whole has built a farm system that has the players to either be quality Major Leaguers, fill temporary holes, or be traded to address any of these "holes."

April 18, 2009 tito crafts

Daisuke Matsuzaka

OAK 6, BOS 5: Red Sox slide continues

Not only is Daisuke Matsuzaka's arm fatigued, but Red Sox Nation is also after suffering through a 12 inning, four hour and 24 minute, 6-5 extra innings loss to Oakland.

April 15, 2009 shawn medeiros

Daisuke Matsuzaka

OAK 8, BOS 2: Lester roughed up

Jon Lester would certainly trade his start to the 2009 season with Kevin Youkilis. Reason being, they have been polar opposites of what was expected of them coming into this season.

April 14, 2009 shawn medeiros

Daisuke Matsuzaka

The good, the bad, and the Tek

Early season series against top flight division rivals are always difficult to measure. It's been said time and time again that the Red Sox, Rays and Yankees are likely to play themselves all around .500 against each other by the time this season shakes out and the team that outperforms against the rest of their schedule has the upper hand in the race for the division. That said, it's never easy to swallow being beaten in your own house by a team you'll be battling with all season long.

Given that it was the first three games of the season, a whopping 1.9% of the full slate of regular season games, it's difficult to draw any firm conclusions without being beaten over the head with comments about sample size. But as it is the regular season and no longer the fruitless analysis of in game Spring Training analysis, it is fair to point out a few things that were both good and bad omens, directionally speaking.

April 10, 2009 josh lacey

Daisuke Matsuzaka

TB 4, BOS 3: Longoria, Garza power Rays past Sox

Only three games into the season, Evan Longoria has already punched his name into the American League MVP race. And Matt Garza made a loud statement that the Rays aren't a flash in the pan.

April 9, 2009 shawn medeiros