Red Sox Ship Lars Anderson To Cleveland

It's been very sad watching the path of Lars Anderson's career-- from a top prospect expected to crack the starting lineup by 2009 to a washed up 24 year old batting .259 in Pawtucket. However, it's entirely possible that a change of scenery could benefit the first baseman once loaded with potential. Today, the Red Sox traded Anderson to the Cleveland Indians for double-A starting pitcher Steven Wright. So far with triple-A Pawtucket, Anderson has been having his third consecutive disappointing season-- batting .259/.359/.415 with 9 home runs and 39 RBIs. However, it's not like the Red Sox are exactly cheating the Indians here as they aren't getting too much value in return. Steven Wright has passed his prospect status with the Indians, as the 27 year old is still in double-A and has pitched in Akron all year. He's had plenty of success though, as he is 9-6 with a 2.49 ERA-- plus, he's a knuckleballer. We bid goodbye to Anderson and hope that Wright's knuckleball will be dancing in Fenway before too long.

Repko To DL, Anderson Up From Pawtucket

On the hundredth anniversary of Fenway Park on Friday afternoon, you may recall Jason Repko's amazing catch. He ran from his home in center all the way to the Green Monster to catch a line drive. Unfortunately, while making this spectacular catch, he suffered a separation of his left shoulder and will be headed down to the DL for a little while. Coming up to the majors to replace Repko will be Lars Anderson. Anderson has gotten off to an average start-- batting .255/1/8. However, the kicker is that Anderson, normally a first baseman, has been learning how to play corner outfield. Recently acquired Marlon Byrd should spend some time in center field until Jacoby Ellsbury is healthy and Anderson can fill in off righties when Cody Ross or Ryan Sweeney needs a break (Darnell McDonald would hit off lefties). It's time for Anderson, who was the Red Sox' top prospect, to finally show his worth at the big league level. He's coming off a good spring in which he batted .343/1/8, but this is the big show.

Red Sox Battle Back In Tie To Yanks (9-7)

Cook allowed 2 runs in 4 innings

I went to bed unhappy last night-- after watching the game through the top of the eighth I was tired of watching the Red Sox bats flail (even in a spring training game)-- however, they battled back and I wish I'd seen it. After a scoreless game for the first three innings, the Yankees finally got to starter Aaron Cook for two runs in the fourth inning on an RBI triple by Curtis Granderson and an RBI single for Andruw Jones. Cook was taken out after that inning, and he wound up with 4 innings, 2 runs, 4 hits, 2 strikeouts in a decent outing. On a two-run single by Doug Bernier in the fifth, the Yankees took two more runs and a 4-0 lead. However, Ross Ohlendorf settled down and only allowed those two runs in his three innings. Mark Melancon pitched a perfect eighth inning-- leading to the Red Sox' half of the inning. After a popup by Mike Aviles to lead off the inning, Jason Repko doubled with one out. Pedro Ciriaco proceeded to knock him in with a double to make it a 4-1 game. Nate Spears singled to right to make it 4-2, knocking in Ciriaco. Lars Anderson then flashed some power with a double to center to make it 4-3 and really cut the lead down-- however, Anderson would be stranded. Scott Atchison allowed a hit and struck out a batter in a scoreless ninth to lead into the Red Sox' half of the inning with a 4-3 deficit. Ryan Sweeney singled to lead off the inning, and after a popup for Ryan Lavarnway, Mike Aviles doubled to put two in scoring position with one out. Bobby Valentine then put on one of the most exciting plays in baseball-- the suicide squeeze. With Jason Repko at the plate, he decided not to risk the out so he put on the squeeze and it worked-- Sweeney scored and Aviles advanced to tie it at 4-4. However, with the winning run at third and a tie game, Pedro Ciriaco struck out swinging to end the game.

Bright Spots:
Mark Melancon- 1 inning, no runs, no hits
Scott Atchison- 1 inning, no runs, 1 hit, 1 strikeout
Jason Repko- 1-1, 1 run, 1 double, 1 RBI, the suicide squeeze
Nate Spears- 1-2, 1 run, 1 RBI
Pedro Ciriaco 1-2, 1 run, 1 RBI, 1 walk
Lars Anderson- 1-1, 1 double, 1 RBI
Ryan Sweeney- 2-4, 1 run

Dull Spots:
Jacoby Ellsbury- 0-3
Dustin Pedroia- 0-2, 1 strikeout, hurt his left forearm
Kevin Youkilis- 0-2
Cody Ross- 0-3, 2 strikeouts, 1 left on base
Ryan Lavanrway- 0-2, 1 strikeout, 1 left on base

Red Sox Tie, Win In Split-Squad Double Header (8-4)

Cook threw 3.1 shutout innings

Today the Red Sox did one of the interesting quirks of spring training, two simultaneous games going on at the same time; starting at 1:05 and 1:35 eastern time. In the first game, the Red Sox played the Orioles in Sarasota. Not too much scoring happened early, with Aaron Cook tossing 3.1 shutout innings, allowing just a hit. Wei-Yin Chen of the Orioles was just as good until the fifth inning, when the Sox put Pedro Ciriaco and Ryan Lavarnway on base to lead off the inning. Nate Spears promptly homered to give the Red Sox a 3-0 lead. However, Clayton Mortensen allowed two runs in the sixth inning to allow the Orioles to make it a one-run game-- he finished with 2.2 innings, 7 hits, 2 runs, 1 walk, 3 strikeouts as he was not sharp. Will Inman allowed a hit and a walk in a scoreless seventh inning. Doug Mathis was solid for the eighth, but the O's tied it in the ninth at 3-3. The Sox kept Mathis in though-- and he turned in a decent performance with 3 innings, 3 hits, 1 run, 3 strikeouts. The umpires decided to call the game after the tenth and the game ended in a tie-- another quirk of spring training.

Bright Spots:
Aaron Cook- 3.1 innings, 1 hit, no runs, 1 walk, 1 strikeout
Doug Mathis- 3 innings, 3 hits, 1 run, 3 strikeouts
Adrian Gonzalez- 1-2, 1 walk
Ryan Lavarnway- 3-3, 1 run
Pedro Ciriaco- 1-3, 1 run
Nate Spears- 1-2, 1 run, 3 RBIs, 1 home run

Dull Spots:
Clayton Mortensen- 2.2 innings, 7 hits, 2 runs, 1 walk, 3 strikeouts
Josh Kroeger- 0-5, 3 strikeouts, 2 left on base
Kevin Youkilis- 0-3
Ryan Dent- 0-2, 1 left on base
Kolbrin Vitek- 0-2, 1 left on base
Jonathan Hee- 0-4, 3 left on base
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Beckett threw five strong innings

Shortly after that game began, a second one in Ft. Myers also started, also against the Orioles. After two scoreless innings to begin the game, the Sox took advantage of Armando Gallaraga in the third. Lars Anderson led off the inning with what should have been a leadoff double but some rough fielding by Xavier Avery made it essentially a leadoff triple. Alex Hassan didn't hesitate in driving him in with a groundout. After the Orioles tied it in the fourth, the Sox quickly reclaimed the lead. After a groundout by David Ortiz, Cody Ross doubled and Kelly Shoppach singled to put runners at the corners with one away. Nick Punto proceeded to hit a gapper to left-center, scoring Ross and giving the Sox a 2-1 lead. After a Mike Aviles popout, Lars Anderson drove a ball into left. It scored Shoppach and Punto, but Anderson was caught heading to second by left fielder Ryan Flaherty. Beckett finished his day after the top of the fifth-- in all, he earned the win with 5 innings, 2 hits, 1 run, 1 walk, 2 strikeouts. The Sox proceeded to pad onto their lead in the bottom of the fifth. An Alex Hassan single and Jacoby Ellsbury double led off the inning with two in scoring position. RBI groundouts by Dustin Pedroia and David Ortiz gave the Red Sox a 6-1 lead. The next batter, Cody Ross, then crushed a ball over the psuedo-monster in left to give the Sox a 7-1 lead. Ross Ohlendorf came in for the Sox and pitched well over 1.2 innings, allowing no hits or runs plus 2 walks and a strikeout. However, Junichi Tazawa was shaky in the eighth inning-- allowing 3 hits and 3 runs in just an inning. Michael Bowden closed out the 7-4 win with 2 hits in a scoreless inning.

Bright Spots:
Josh Beckett- 5 innings, 2 hits, 1 run, 1 walk, 2 strikeouts
Jacoby Ellsbury- 1-3, 1 run, 1 double
Dustin Pedroia- 1-3, 1 RBI
Cody Ross- 2-3, 2 runs, 1 RBI, 1 home run
Kelly Shoppach- 1-3, 1 run
Nick Punto- 1-2, 1 run, 1 RBI, 1 double
Lars Anderson- 2-3, 1 run, 2 RBIs, 1 double
Alex Hassan- 1-2, 1 run, 1 RBI

Dull Spots:
Junichi Tazawa- 1 inning, 3 hits, 3 runs, 1 walk, 1 strikeout
Mike Aviles- 0-3, 3 left on base

Red Sox Hold O's To Three Hits In Win (5-2)

Lester allowed 1 run in 4 innings

Dustin Pedroia had a 2-run double

The Red Sox pitching staff utterly dominated the Orioles in today's game, holding them to only three hits while the Red Sox offense manhandled the Orioles' pitchers. The Red Sox led off the game with singles by Nate Spears and Dustin Pedroia. Jacoby Ellsbury and David Ortiz both got out, however, putting the scoring chance in jeopardy. However, Ryan Sweeney made good of the opportunity lining a bouncer up the middle which deflected off Dana Eveland's glove but made it into the outfield. After Lester allowed a run in the bottom of the first,  a leadoff single and one-out walk put the Sox in business in the second inning. Dustin Pedroia came through in the clutch, however, with a 2-out, 2-run double to give the Sox a 3-1 lead. Lester was decent in his first Grapefruit League start, he allowed only one hit and one run in four innings, but he walked four and struck out only two, earning the win. The Red Sox didn't score again until the 7th, and in the meantime, their pitchers were quite good. Justin Thomas had a perfect inning plus a strikeout and Aaron Cook threw 2 innings, no runs or hits, 2 walks, and a strikeout. In the 7th, the Red Sox led off the inning with two walks. Lars Anderson proceeded to line a ball into right field to score a run. Then with one out, Oscar Tejeda grounded into what looked like an easy double play that would get the Orioles out of the inning. Instead, the O's got one out before the second baseball threw the ball away, allowing a run to score and the Sox to advance the lead to 5-1. Doug Mathis pitched the 8th for the Sox, and did pretty well, allowing no runs and a hit to go with a strikeout in an inning. With one out and two on in the 9th for the Red Sox, Jonathan Hee doubled to left to score one and give the Sox a 6-1 lead. After Justin Germano allowed a hit in an otherwise perfect inning, the Red Sox had won the game.

Bright Spots:
Justin Thomas- 1 inning, no runs or hits, 1 strikeout
Doug Mathis- 1 inning, no runs, 1 hit, 1 strikeout
Justin Germano- 1 inning, no runs, 1 hit
Dustin Pedroia- 2-3, 2 RBIs, 1 double
Jonathan Hee- 1-1, 1 RBI, 1 double
Ryan Sweeney- 1-3, 1 RBI
Cody Ross- 2-2, 2 runs, 1 walk
Ryan Lavarnway- 1-1, 1 walk, 2 runs
Lars Anderson- 1-2, 1 run, 1 RBI, 1 walk

Dull Spots:
Che-Hsuan Lin- 0-2, 3 left on base
David Ortiz- 0-4, 1 strikeout, 2 left on base

Anderson's Slam Leads Sox Over Twins (1-0)

Anderson hit a grand slam today

After such a long winter, the Red Sox are finally back to playing real major league opponents; and as today's game indicated, they were ready. The first few innings of the game were quiet for both teams. Josh Beckett put together a decent start in his first game-- he pitched 2 innings, allowing no runs and a hit while walking one. His control was a bit shaky, but he came through and didn't allow any runs. In fact, the next couple of innings were still quiet-- with Andrew Miller putting on a very impressive performance-- after walking the leadoff batter in the 3rd inning, he struck out the side; he went 2 innings, allowing no runs or hits, while striking out three and walking just one. In the bottom of the 4th was when the Red Sox came through. After a baserunning gaffe in which Dustin Pedroia was out at home, Mike Aviles bounced one up the middle for a 2-run single to put the Sox on the board. However, in the 5th inning, Mark Melancon came on for his Red Sox debut and didn't do so well-- he allowed a run on two hits in the inning. After a spotless sixth by Justin Thomas, the Twins tied it on a single through the right side by Ben Revere off Tony Pena Jr. However, in the bottom of the 7th-- the Sox put the game away for good. Jason Bulger was awful, walking the bases loaded-- in fact, he even walked in the run that put the Sox ahead with a 3-2 lead. However, it wasn't a walk that hurt him most. With the bases loaded and one out, he dropped a curve into Lars Anderson's wheelhouse and Anderson turned on it, sending a high drive into the right field seats for a grand slam that made it 7-2 Sox. In the next inning, the Sox scored another on a beautiful RBI triple by Oscar Tejeda. The Twins scored in the 9th, but it was far too little and the Sox took the game 8-3. 


Bright Spots:
Andrew Miller- 2 innings, no runs, no hits, 1 walk, 3 strikeouts
Justin Thomas- 1 inning, no runs, no hits, 2 strikeouts
Dustin Pedroia- 1-2, 1 double, 1 run, 1 walk
Oscar Tejeda- 1-1, 1 run, 1 RBI, 1 triple
Lars Anderson- 2-2, 1 run, 4 RBI, 1 home run
Mike Aviles- 2-2, 2 RBI
Alex Hassan- 0-0, 2 walks, 2 runs


Dull Spots:
Mark Melancon- 1 inning, 1 run, 2 hits
Tony Pena Jr.- 1 inning, 1 run, 2 hits, 1 walk, 1 strikeout
Jacoby Ellsbury- 0-3, 4 left on base
Jarrod Saltalamacchia- 0-2, 1 strikeout, 2 left on base
Kelly Shoppach- 0-1, 1 strikeout, 1 left on base