The Talented Mr. Wakefield

When I last wrote some thoughts on Tim Wakefield, he was sitting at 2-1, with a 1.86 ERA. Now, a month and a half later, his numbers stand at 9-3 with a 4.39 ERA. While the ERA has gone up a bit, its hard not to be impressed with the number of wins that he's accumulated so far.

With John Smoltz (and Clay Buchholz) looming in the shadows, its going to be really interesting to see what the Red Sox decide to do. Will they move Wakefield to the bullpen, as he's selflessly agreed to in the past? Can they afford to? Would that really be more justifiable than removing Dice-K from the rotation?

Here's how their numbers to this point in the season match-up:

Matsuzaka 1-4 7.55 32 Ks 2.10 WHIP

Wakefield 9-3 4.39 47 Ks 1.41 WHIP

I know that there is quite a bit of money, and PR, invested in Dice-K --- but could they really take Wake's numbers out of the mix at this point?

There's been rumblings recently about the Sox going to a 6-man rotation (at least temporarily), but that will only be a bandaid. Sooner or later, Buchholz is going to be brought up. What happens then? Here's hoping that Wake keeps it up, and forces them to keep him in the rotation.

For those keeping score at home, here's how the top three pitchers in Red Sox history currently stack up:

1. Roger Clemens, Cy Young: 192 wins each
2. Tim Wakefield: 173 wins (and counting)

Wouldn't it be great if he were in position to take the top spot by next June?

Overheard on tonight's Red Sox broadcast

Bob Costas and Jim Kaat called the Red Sox-Yankees game tonight. Some things to comment on:

Bullpen usage. I love that Bob Costas called out the Yankees - and really the baseball establishment - when he criticized Girardi for bringing in Aceves to pitch with two on and nobody out in the bottom of the eighth. "These are the most important outs," he reasoned, and it only makes sense to use your best remaining pitcher - Mariano Rivera - to get them. The Yankees should have given themselves a better opportunity to keep the lead in the eighth and worry about the bottom of the ninth later. As it turned out, they didn't need to worry about the bottom of the ninth - there wasn't one.

Jason Bay and RBIs. Jim Kaat praised Jason Bay for his ability to cash in the runners on base (Bay is leading the league in RBI). This implies that Bay is the RBI leader because he has taken advantage of runner-on situations better than other hitters. In fact, while he's done well with runners on, the Red Sox - as is typical of their recent history - have put a tons of guys on base for him. You can see a report of RBI opportunities at Baseball Prospectus, and it will tell you this (all figures minimum 150 PAs):

% of runners driven in from first:

• Bay: 11.7%
• Leader (Joey Votto): 16.7%

% of runners driven in from second:

• Bay: 22.6%
• Leader (Brad Hawpe): 35.6%

% of runners driven in from third:

• Bay: 37.8%
• Leader (Pedro Feliz): 65.4%

If you absolutely, positively have to have that runner home from third, you call in Pedro Feliz. Wasn't it on the tip of your tongue?

Bay has done well with runners on, but RBIs are all about opportunity, and Bay has had more opportunities than just about anyone.

(Oh, and I loathe the WEEI nickname J-Bay. The first-initial, first-syllable-of-last-name nicknaming convention was never witty, and had run its course when J-Lo was so christened. J-Bay is pure laziness. You know he's from Trail, British Columbia, right? "Trail" suggests blazer, mix, marker, even trailer or hitch...OK, none of those are worth anything, but at least try, MSM! If you've got nothing - and I'm here to tell you: you've got nothing - go with his actual name.)

Jack Morris. Costas and Kaat threw their support behind Jack Morris as a HOF pitcher, using the typical arguments that he was a great big game pitcher (Exhibit A being this absolute gem). But why no discussion of this game, or this game, or this game?

In those three games - admittedly his three worst postseason starts - his ERA was 10.13. But they still count! I dare you to find three postseason starts that bad for Curt Schilling, or Jimmy Key, or Dave Stewart, or John Tudor, or any number of guys. The mind is programmed for selective memory, and a lot of people have it with Jack Morris.

3 Up, 3 Down

Mowing 'em down, while watching Sox v. Yanks (part 1) ...

3 Favorite Moments

1. Obviously, Big Papi's homer deserves a place here. It's great to see that he still has some magic against the Evil Empire.
2. Josh Beckett throwing 6 pitches to get out of the 6th inning --- including a 3-pitch strikeout of Mark Teixeira.
3. Jason Bay's 2-out triple in the bottom of the 8th. That's what they get for plunking him.

3 Favorite Stats

1. Combined numbers for Alex Rodriguez and Teixeira: 0 for 6, 2 BB, 2 Ks
2. Final Sox pitching line: 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 4 BB, 9 Ks, 135 pitches
3. Final Yankees pitching line: 9 H, 7 R, 5 ER, 7 BB, 4 Ks, 179 pitches

3 Biggest Distractions

1. Stanley Cup Finals - Game 6. Here's hoping the Penguins get a win and stretch this out to 7 games. As a hockey fan, its nice to see the guys on the ice getting a little national exposure.
2. NBA Finals - Game 3. I still smile whenever I think about the sign (directed at Kobe) seen in Boston during last year's finals --- "No Means No". What can I say? I think the guy's a scumbag.
3. "Family Guy" --- great way to pass the time during commercials. The only problem is, sometimes it sucks you in and you end up missing some of the game.