Meanwhile, the Yankees play two against the Angels, four against the Royals, and four against the Indians, for a combined record of 129-151. The Rays will play the next three against the Orioles, the Indians (tough stretch for them), and the scuffling Tigers, with a combined record of 116-160.
The Red Sox will be playing a stretch of nine away games, all on the West Coast, against teams with a combined record of 132-149, the A's, Mariners, and Angels. The Red Sox MUST WIN a good portion of these games if they hope to be within crying distance of the playoffs when the reinforcements start to pour in.
The Sox made a good start of the trip last night as they defeated Oakland, 2-1, on the back of a strong outing by Daisuke Matsuzaka. Marco Scutaro was even featured on SportsCenter's Top Plays for an impressive grab after the ball was deflected off of Matsuzaka. This was the kind of game I envisioned when Theo dropped the much-analyzed "run-prevention" phrase last offseason (except for the piecemeal, 4A lineup card).
Somehow, I still believe in this team. I think they can do it, and I look forward to watching them. The talent is there. The hitting is there. And the determination sure as hell is there. I'm not looking forward to this string of late-night games, but I'll do my best to stay awake and send good vibes westward.
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