4/7 Online Seats Game Thread: Sox Set to Rebound Against Yanks

A night after the Yankees battled back to even up the opening series of the 2010 season, John Lackey looks to make his debut with the Boston Red Sox a memorable one.

4/6 Online Seats Game Thread: Boston Red Sox Look to Keep the Yankees Down

After an opening night for the ages, the Boston Red Sox under the wing of Jon Lester, will aim to clip the Yankees' wings even further, sending the World Champions to an 0-2 start.

Herb Brooks and Neil Diamond Stop By, Sox Take Season Opener

On a night when the Boston marketing department pulled out all the stops, the players on the field managed to match them every step of the way. There was no shortage of excitement in this one. From Neil Diamond's 8th inning appearance to Pedroia's two-run bomb, this game had everything and more. Even Herb Brooks and Pedro showed up which, early on, seemed to be the only exciting parts of the game. I, myself, was forced down the street to Buffalo Wild Wings before the game due to a blackout on MLBTV - missing the NESN broadcast - and jotting down game notes on a napkin. Though I try to avoid chain restaurants when watching the Red Sox, it was nice to see the Red Sox Faithful well-represented in Colorado - and just as intolerant as in New England of the crap Yankee fans will try to pull. Nonetheless, it was a classic, back-and-forth matchup that had plenty of surprises, late heroics, and everything you could want in an Opening Day salvo. Though cruising through the bottom half of the first inning, Beckett got roughed up early. Noticeably absent was his usual dominating stuff - which should have been an easy holdover from his strong spring. Having difficulty finding the plate and falling behind in the count often, he found himself "Yanked" after just 4.1 IP, walking three while striking out only one. Yielding five earned over his inefficient 94 pitches, the silver lining is that he wasn't hit as hard as the overall line suggests. Other than two second inning home runs, many of the Yankees' hits found holes or were just out of the reach of defenders - especially up the middle in the fourth...

And the Season Begins…

And the season begins… There’s no doubt the bureaucrats “got it right” on this one – pairing the league’s biggest rivals in the 2010 MLB opener. All signs point to a classic, fit with a marquee pitching matchup, palpable hatred on both sides, and the two best teams from the past decade kicking off the new one. Josh Beckett takes the hill against C.C. Sabathia as the two AL East juggernaughts begin their annual battle for divisional supremacy. Get to your TV at 8:00 pm sharp – or 6 pm if you’re like me in the Mountain Time Zone – and prepare to watch baseball at its finest. Keys of the Game Starting Pitcher Coming off a strong spring, striking out 22 in 19.1 innings while walking just 5, Beckett certainly has the edge over Sabathia, who has looked sluggish in 18.2 IP thus far (15 K, 8 BB). Though spring stats are rarely an indication of long-term success, they are a good indicator of a hurler’s readiness at the season’s onset. If C.C. continues to struggle with his command, he could be in for a long night. Expect Beckett to be sharp as the team gets off to an early lead in the first few innings.

AL East Sleepers: New York Yankees

For a team that won the 2009 league championship while standing atop the AL East leaderboards for much of the past decade, the team would seem, at first glance, bereft of sleepers. Not so, however, even for these ’09 defending champions. A favorite even at this early juncture in Spring Training, the club could get even better by the time the season rolls around. SP/RP Phil Hughes Hughes is – and for quite some time has been – one of the best young pitchers in affiliated baseball. It was not so long ago – three years to be exact – that Phil Hughes was the best pitching prospect in the game, edging out Cincinnati’s Homer Bailey for that honor. Though hamstring injuries and bouts of wildness slowed down his progress during the ’07 and ’08 campaigns, Hughes came back with a vengeance last season, reminding all bystanders why he was once such a highly touted prospect. Still just 23 years old, the Yankees owe it to Hughes and to themselves to give the hurler another shot at a full-time rotation gig. Worth 2.2 wins last season, that number could easily swell to four or five if he pitches up to his potential...

The AL East SlugFest, More on Gonzalez

Haymakers and The Vazquez Deal Punch. Then counter punch. The Sox signed John Lackey. Then the Yankees added Javier Vazquez. While not a knockout punch by any means, the move is a big blow by any measure - maybe a rib-buster or a deep cut above the left eye. Still, the move looks like another excellent trade by Yankees’ GM Brian Cashman, who always seems to acquire stud players at excellent prices. Vazquez looks to be no different, as the team ceded expendable pieces in Melky Cabrera, and minor leaguers Arodys Vizcaino and Mike Dunn. Marc Hulet made a great breakdown of the prospects in his profile of the Yanks’ top 10 prospects, with Vizcaino 4^th and Dunn 6^th. Vizcaino, 19, has quite the ceiling, as evidenced by his 11.06 K/9 in 2009 at low-A. His fastball ranges from the high 80s to mid 90s...

NYY 4, BOS 2 – Sox Lose Early Lead as Yanks Complete Sweep

The Yankees completed their three-game sweep of the Red Sox on Sunday by virtue of a 4-2 victory in the Bronx.

The Sox got off to a quick start, striking first in the opening frame, and extending their lead to 2-0 in the third. The Yanks posted the next four runs, however, including home runs by Mark Teixeira (38) and Melky Cabrera (13).

Paul Byrd was the hard luck loser in today's match, throwing 5.2 innings before being chased in the sixth after two two-out singles. Takashi Saito came in for relief, but provided little, as he allowed both inherited runners to score on a Hideki Matsui single...

NYY 3, BOS 0 – Sabathia Unhittable, Sox Fall

On Saturday night, the Sox-Yanks rivalry added another thrilling match to their dossier.

The game was hotly contested for the first seven innings. The game was scoreless through 5 ½, before the Yankees broke through in the sixth on a Robinson Cano homer to left : NYY 1, BOS 0.

The Yankees added two more on a bloop single with two-outs in the eighth. Wagner placed a fastball on the inside corner, but Damon got just enough on it to bloop it over Pedroia's head.

NYY 9, BOS 3 – Sox Lose More Than Lester

Friday was a night where the Red Sox had a great chance to send their division rivals a message. Instead, they stumbled from the get-go, falling behind 5-0 before they broke the shutout (and no-hitter) in the fourth.

The game was shaky from the beginning, as the Sox were retired in order in the first. Lester looked sharp for the first two innings; particularly in the first when Mark Teixeira chased an outside pitch for a strikeout. Still, the Yanks were able to plate a run on a stolen base and two singles.

The game was quiet through the second inning but, it was all down hill from there.

The Yankees were able to tack on four runs in the third, an inning that also saw Lester leave the game after a Melky Cabrera liner caught him in the leg.

Sizing Up the Competition

With just under three weeks left in the regular season, the field is almost done filling out, with just five teams holding real hopes of reaching the post season: Boston, New York, Detroit, Minnesota, and Los Angeles.

Anaheim is up 6 in the West, Detroit is up 4 on Minnesota in the Central, the Red Sox are up 6 ½ in the Wild Card and the Yanks are about to clinch the East, up 6.5 games.

So, how do these teams stack up?