Dieci!

So much going on for the Sox.  They win the series against the Braves (for the second time this season), Julian Tavarez is now 6-5, Coco is  heating up, as is Drew (who, incidentally, left the game with a tight quad)…Manny and Papi are playing back to form, each with a home run last night, and Schilling is on the 15-day dl.

Oh well, it can’t all be good news, right?

Not only did the Sox offense pummel the Braves pitching last night (five home runs and 15 hits with 11 runs), but the pitching kicked butt too.  Tavarez is playing with a tweaked hammy and still pitched seven shut-out innings, including only 3 hits, 1 walk and 4 strike outs.   Joel Pineiro came in and gave up two hits, but also got two strike outs while Mike Timlin pitched a perfect ninth inning (yay!).  Right now it’s happy fun time in Red Sox Nation.

It’s nice to be in a position (10 games up in the East) where putting Schill on the 15-day dl won’t set off sound waves of "oh my God it’s OVER!".  Give Schill some rest.  Let one of the kids pitch a couple or three games…it’s great to have enough of a cushion that we can have a level of comfort that allows giving Schill a rest.  

According to the Globe, Tavarez didn’t want to be in Atlanta, he wanted to see his children (I didn’t even know he had children).  I think it’s sweet that he would even admit this.  It’s sad too.  Most players don’t admit to being lonely or sad about family issues.  And it’s amazing that in the mood he was in, and in the pain he was in, he came out and pitched his best game of the season.  I wasn’t overjoyed at Theo picking him up last year, but, as many of us have had to admit, I was wrong.  This guy has a good heart and I’m glad he’s with us.   Y’all could do much worse for a number five pitcher.

Sox get a day off today while the Yanks try to salvage one game in Colorado (at 3pm with Clemens pitching against Rodrigo Lopez, for those interested) and then it’s Daisuke/Maddux, Wakefield/Young and Beckett/Peavy in San Diego.

And then, finally, we’re done with inter-league for the season.  Hallelujah!