Hardball Heaven

Sorry for the obvious headline, but the Sox have hit a little stumbling block in Seattle the last couple nights. Not that I was awake to see it for myself. I think I nodded off in the 6th inning Monday night, and then in the 4th last night. Brutal.

Anyway, for some strange reason the Mariners have the Sox' number in Seattle. I think I heard the boys are winless in their last eight or nine games there. Last night was almost an expected loss with Kason Gabbard called up to pitch opposite Felix Hernandez. King Felix wasn't quite as good as his April gem against us at Fenway, but neither was Gabbard. In the end, the Sox scratched and clawed their way back into this one, but ultimately ended up losing 8-7. One would think that today they right the ship, with Dice-K going against a no-name. Afternoon game today, starting at 4:30.

The Yankees, meanwhile, have fallen from 2nd to 3rd place behind the Blue Jays. The Spanks lost on a walk-off walk last night in Baltimore, and they actually used Fat Roger in a middle relief spot last week. The wheels, if they're not already off, are extremely loose.

Assorted tidbits:

- Dreams can come true. WEEI's Gerry Callahan has lost his voice.

- My sleepers in the NL at this point: Milwaukee and Colorado. You heard it here first.

- Sad to hear about Rod Beck's premature passing. Stories have come out in the last couple of days of how he parked his RV next to the stadium when he was playing in the minors and would invite people in for a beer. Pretty cool.

- Ways not to win your roto league #42: Trade Alex Rodriguez for Carl Crawford. Hey, I was way behind in steals and I hate A-Rod. What a stupid-ass trade. Guess who's in last place?

- Dave Roberts' recent homecoming got me to thinking - which key members from '04 haven't been given their proper due for their heroics? Billy Mueller comes to mind immediately. He was just named hitting coach for the Dodgers. And speaking of the Dodgers, I could be wrong, but I don't think Nomar has come back since leaving. Even though he wasn't part of the playoff run, he'd have to get a huge ovation. And Derek Lowe, who did nothing but win clutch games and get drunk at night. Can you think of any others?

That's all I've got for you today. Stay cool - it's a hot one out there.