Sox fall to Twins despite Tavarez besting Santana

Minnesota 2, Sox 1
WP: Santana (4-3)
LP: Tavarez (1-3)
SV: Nathan (8)
HR: none

RECAP:
I'm not even going to pretend that I saw any of this game. I could do like some bloggers do and just glean the highlights from SportsCenter & a bunch of web sites, but I'm not going to do that.

I'm too tired.

In the last 12 hours I coached my son's baseball team in the 90 degree heat, attended a wedding on the beach- in said 90 degree heat-, danced the night away at the reception, and then came home and crashed on the couch just in time to catch the DeLa Hoya/Mayweather fight.

If you saw that fight you can understand why that Ambien-inspired travesty, plus a combination of a few too many Bacardi & Cokes (ahem, open bar) has made me a little groggy and left me with no desire to replay back the game on the DVR. Normally I would do that in the morning and give a review then, but we're headed to luxurious Tropicana Field in the A.M. for Little League Day at the Trop, and by the time I get home from that I'm not going to feel like watching Sunday's game, never mind tonight's.

But I digress. Or I'm babbling. Anyway, from what I gather the Sox had a pretty rough time of it tonight at the Metrodome this evening. Julie Tavarez actually out pitched Johan Santana- let me write that again, just so I know I'm not hallucinating from the rum- Julie Tavarez out pitched Johan Santana, yet the Sox stranded 12 baserunners and couldn't crack the solid Twins bullpen.

It's too bad I missed this one because it sounds like it was a real thriller; Minny scored its two runs on a fielder's choice groundout and an infield single, while Boston plated its only run on a ground-rule double. Yawn.

Long story short, Santana only lasted five innings but the Twins bully shut down the Sox lineup for the rest of the game, and Boston dropped a game in which a scrub starter out-pitched a two-time Cy Young winner

Glad I missed it.

RECORD: 19-10

AL EAST: Up 5.5 games on 3 teams

UP NEXT: @ MIN 2P EST
Schilling vs. Ponson ( I shouldn't have to watch that mismatch!)

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Game Preview: Sox @ Twins, GM2

Tavarez (1-2, 7.58 ) vs. Santana (3-2, 3.60) 7P EST

I don't have a whole lot of time to go over this one; I just got back from my son's LL game (we won, 16-0, and finished the season outscoring the opponents 34-0) and I am headed out to a wedding down on the beach.

Anyway, what else needs to be said about this game other than it will be a minor miracle if they pull this one off. Boston's worst starter squaring off against Minny's best, who also happens to be one of the best in the league, does not bode well for the boys from Beantown. It doesn't even matter that Santana is coming off a couple of poor starts and has lost two in a row at home, or that he hasn't fared well in his career against Boston (3-4, 3.55 ERA), or that Gascan Tavarez is coming off of his best start of the season, a win in Yankee Stadium on Sunday.

We all know that Cy-Tana is capable of tossing a no-hitter just as we know it's possible Tavarez might not be able to register one out.

All that matters is the way the Sox are playing right now, they feel like they can win every game they play in. And when you have that kind of feeling on a ballclub, anything is possible. In true Little League spirit, each player is picking up the other's slack and taking turns contributing to this hot streak (12-4) they are on. If it's not Manny or Papi knocking in the key run, it's Lowell or Cora. Drew has been slumping, now Coco is heating up. Willy Mo spells Cora and hits a monster grand slam and goes 4-4 the other night. And the pitching staff is doing the same thing.

So like I said, they way this team is (hate to say it cause of that obnoxious, overplayed ad) gellin', a win today isn't out of the question.

They just have to go out there, give it their best shot, and let the ball fall where it may.

At least that's what we tell 'em in Little League.

Go Sox!

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