Hardball Heaven

For a moment last night, it looked like the Sox had frittered away a 6-1 lead and were going to suffer another tough-to-take loss. Schilling was cruising until the bottom of the 5th, when Oakland closed the gap to 6-4. They scored another run to make it a razor-thin 6-5 lead, and then the Sox exploded in their half of the 8th. Key hit was a bases-loaded double by the Captain that cleared the bases and gave the Gas Can twins (Tavarez/Seanez) some breathing room to "operate." Final score: 13-5.

Nice to see Schilling get his 13th, but more encouraging to see the bats wake up in Oakland. Through the first two games of this series, the Sox have scored 20 runs on 28 hits. Manny's in a home run groove (4 in the past week), Varitek is starting to rip the ball, Coco looks more comfortable at the plate, and Youkilis seems to be coming out of his late first-half slump.

Everything's looking up for the boys, who may see the return of David Wells within the next week. If Theo believes Wells can contribute down the stretch, the Sox might switch gears and look for offense at the trading deadline. They need a prototype #5 hitter behind Ortiz and Manny, and the rumor mill (speculative as it may be) has them considering Bobby Abreu. I think that's a stretch, though, as Abreu's huge contract will be an obstacle. They also could use a left-handed stick off the bench (Todd Walker?) for late-game pinch-hitting duties. The Herald is reporting today that Theo is interested in Phillies SP Jon Lieber and OF Pat Burrell, who would fit nicely in the 5-hole. Question is, what do you do with Trot? As always, stay tuned...

Matinee game today (3:35) as the Sox go for the sweep in Oakland. Kyle Snyder opposes Dan Haren, and this may be the game that the frustrated A's decide to plunk a Sox batter. Not that I'm encouraging that type of behavior, mind you, but MLB is due for a classic bench-clearing brawl. If it happens, Papi better get a bear hug around Carl Everett, Jr. (Milton Bradley) ASAP. That guy could do Mickey Rivers-type damage.