Usually when you hear that an injury to a major member of the Red Sox is perhaps not as bad as it sounds, and may not even necessitate a trip to the disabled list, that's good news.

Unfortunately, even if Dustin Pedroia's torn muscle does not keep him out for two weeks, in the meantime we have to live with the consequences of being a roster spot short. And for now, that means playing Nick Punto, complete with his .446 OPS, inability to catch pop-ups, and the fun experience of watching broadcasters praise him for falling face-first and making a mess of a ground ball which could have otherwise been a simple, routine play.

So that'll be fun.

Otherwise, we've got a bunch of right-handed hitters playing against the left-handed Drew Smyly. So that will work out for as long as he's in the game. Better not do that thing where we chase a guy after five innings and one run, because frankly that might not be the best scenario for this game.

ESPN once again finds itself rocked by scandal, and at its center is Terry Francona. In a shocking revelation, the former Red Sox manager was shown Wednesday, to the horror of tech-savy teenagers and twenty-somethings everywhere, to have an AOL (or "America Online") email address.

The shocking truth was revealed by Deadspin when some guy went searching through his girlfriend's email and discovered a correspondence he believed to be from Francona coming from an AOL email address. Deadspin would confirm through a "baseball source" that the address did, in fact, belong to Terry Francona.

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Sometimes good things come when you least expect them.

The Red Sox had already had six opportunities to get above .500 on the season. 0-0, 10-10, 11-11, 21-21, 22-22, and 23-23. All of them losses, many of them incredibly disappointing losses.

For many of us Sox fans, losing yesterday wouldn't have even been so bad. After all, we didn't expect anything. This was the team which couldn't break .500 with Josh Beckett taking on Gavin Floyd, their best starter in Felix Doubront taking on the beleaguered Brian Matusz, and Jon Lester taking on Alex Cobb. Whether through implosions of the bullpen, deficiencies of the lineup, or failures of the rotation, the Sox managed to disappoint time and again.

So perhaps with Daniel Bard, who has not been terribly promising over the past month taking on arguably the best pitcher currently in the game, some of us didn't even bother hoping. Getting back to .500 behind Felix Doubront was more about avoiding a three-game slide than finally reaching that ever-elusive winning record.

Somehow, though, the Red Sox start today 25-24, and it's thanks largely to two men: one obvious, and the other a huge surprise.

The obvious one is David Ortiz, who had been mired in a slump that left him just 2-for-28 after his homer in Philadelphia. He had shown signs of life against Doug Fister, going 2-for-4 with a double, but really made it clear that he was back last night when he took part in three runs, setting the table in the second with a double, driving in Adrian Gonzalez in the sixth with another, and then launching a solo shot in the seventh to finish the night an impressive 3-for-4 with eight total bases.

The less-obvious contributor--and the reason I'm half-convinced this game never happened--is Daniel Nava. Nava, to be clear, should never have touched this team. After his hot start in 2010 fizzled out, Nava was essentially playing for September and the hopes of a trade to a second or third division team. There just wasn't a place for him on the Red Sox.

Of course, that's the kind of thinking Nava has faced all his life, and it's the sort of thinking he's overcome all his life. With two full outfields riding the disabled list at one point, Nava was given another chance to prove himself, and hasn't given the Sox any reason to regret giving him this opportunity. Still, doing what he did last night takes the improbable and makes it seem completely impossible. The only thing standing between Justin Verlander and escaping a bases-loaded jam, Nava did not seem to stand much chance of emerging victorious. A Cy Young winner like Justin Verlander simply does not lose games to a 29-year-old minor league callup like Daniel Nava.

Except yesterday he did. Falling behind 3-1, Verlander managed to blow a fastball past Nava for strike two, making it seem like everything would go according to script after all. The next pitch, a 100 MPH fastball, should by all means have been the last of the inning. It should have been enough. But it wasn't. Nava put a good swing on it, and while he was a bit late, that only served to help him go to the opposite field, shooting a double down the line and to the wall in left. The bases cleared, and once again Nava was the author of a shocking bases loaded miracle, one which was eventually the difference between the Red Sox and the Tigers last night.

Finally!

On their seventh try, the Red Sox finally broke through, reaching a winning record for the first time all year at 25-24.

As a mental milestone, this is a significant win for the fanbase, and possibly the roster as well. After so many tries, this was beginning to seem like an insurmountable hump--a wall the team could come up to but never breach, instead simply running headfirst into it over and over again. Now they have gotten through to the other side. They know it's possible. Even if, heaven forbid, they should quickly fall back beneath that mark, it will perhaps no longer seem quite so far away.

But even taking away all those intangible aspects, this is a big win just due to the men on the mound. Daniel Bard vs. Justin Verlander is not the sort of game the Sox take home. Aside from some flashes of brilliance at the very begining, Bard has struggled throughout the year, failing to spot his fastball and having to rely overly much on his slider. Tonight wasn't too terribly different, as Bard struggled at times with control and had to get some help from his defense to save baserunners and runs, but he did survive, with the Tigers only scoring on a pair of solo shots.

Justin Verlander had no such luck. It's surprising enough for the Sox to put up a run on him over the course of an entire game. With five coming across in just six innings, it's safe to say the lineup was exemplary against one of the toughest opponents in the game. David Ortiz doubled off the wall and then scored the first run in the second as Mike Aviles beat out a double play. He would feature again in the fifth run, doubling home Adrian Gonzalez, as well as the sixth, homering into the Monster seats after Verlander had left the game, but it was what happened in between that really built Boston's lead. With the bases loaded and two outs after a trio of singles, the Sox had Daniel Nava come to the plate, work the count full, and then take a 100 MPH fastball and knock it solidly into left field for a bases-clearing double, putting Boston up 4-0 at the time.

For most of us, today was not a game to get hyped up about. After experiencing bitter disappointment so often this season, getting our hopes up on Daniel Bard vs. Justin Verlander was just asking for more pain. Somehow, though our reliever-turned -starter managed to hold on while our makeshift lineup--featuring a back-end of Podsednik (who reached base three times) and Punto (who is still bad) got to arguably the best pitcher in the game, giving him his worst outing of the year,

After so much frustration, however, it hardly even matters how they got here. What's really important it that they're here at all, with a winning record to their name. That alone is worth some celebration.

For the first time all year, the Red Sox have secured a winning record, taking down Justin Verlander and the Tigers 6-3 as they improved to 25-24.

The Sox wasted little time in getting a run on the board against the Tigers' overpowering ace. A leadoff wall ball double in the second inning and a Jarrod Saltalmacchia single put David Ortiz at third base with just one out, allowing him to come in the back door when Mike Aviles beat a double play out at first.

Daniel Bard, while not at all at his sharpest, had been able to record a couple of scoreless innings in the meantime, and would take the shutout through the end of the fourth inning. A dangerous third inning had seen two men reach base with one out by way of a walk and a wild pitch as Bard lost control, but some strong outfield defense from Ryan Sweeney prevailed to keep the runs off the board.

The Sox would really break through against Justin Verlander in the bottom half of the inning. A trio of singles--line drives from Kevin Youkilis and Scott Podsednik and a bloop from Mike Aviles--loaded the bases with just one out. Nick Punto proved incapable of driving anyone in, hitting the weakest of pop-ups to shortstop, but Daniel Nava shined as he seems to do in big situations, working the count full and taking a 100 MPH fastball into left field for a bases-clearing double.

The teams would trade runs in the fifth inning, with Adrian Gonzalez and David Ortiz responding to a Jhonny Peralta solo shot before Bard was chased in the sixth inning with a resounding solo shot off the bat of Prince Fielder. Fielder would again drive in a run in the top of the seventh, getting to Andrew Miller for a rare run on a single to center after Miguel Cabrera hit a line-hugging ground rule double to right, but once again David Ortiz would be there to answer, launching a solo shot into the Monster seats to make it a three-run lead once again.

A rain delay would prolong the wait for the Red Sox and their fans, but the ninth inning finally came, and Alfredo Aceves, working with a bit of a sketchy strike zone, managed to pick up a scoreless frame to complete the landmark win.

The Red Sox are out to deal the Tigers a second defeat Tuesday night as they try yet again to break into winning territory.

Unfortunately, for that to happen tonight, they'll need to get to Justin Verlander, which is just about the hardest thing to do as a lineup in the major leagues these days.

We'll keep you up to date with all the action as it goes down in Fenway Park.

Red Sox 6, Tigers 3, Final -- The Red Sox are finally a winning ball club...

Red Sox 6, Tigers 3, End 8th -- Brayan Villarreal ends up striking out the side in order around a rain delay.

We're headed to the ninth now, with Alfredo Aceves looking for the save after two bad outings in a row.

Red Sox 6, Tigers 3, Bot 8th -- And here comes the rain. With one out in the bottom-half of the eighth, the tarp is on the field.

Red Sox 6, Tigers 3, Mid 8th -- Alex Avila dents the wall and gives the Sox a heart attack as the umpires review a double that just missed being a home run. Vicente Padilla gets the rest of the batters he faces in the inning out, however, and the Sox maintain their 3-run lead.

Red Sox 6, Tigers 3, End 7th -- David Ortiz goes long into the Monster seats to lead off the seventh, giving the Sox their run back.

Red Sox 5, Tigers 3, Mid 7th -- The Tigers inch closer, as they manage to take a run off Andrew Miller, who has been very solid this year. Vicente Padilla comes in to clean up the last out, continuing his streak of stranded baserunners.

Still, as much as it feels like scoring five off Verlander is worth thirty, this is a very close game all-of-a-sudden.

Red Sox 5, Tigers 2, End 6th -- The bottom of the order gives the Sox two on and one out, but Daniel Nava and Ryan Sweeney both go down on strikes to end the inning.

Red Sox 5, Tigers 2, Mid 6th -- Daniel Bard is given the chance to get back on the horse in the sixth, but immediately surrenders a very loud homer to Prince Fielder. Though he records a strikeout of Delmon Young, the Sox go to Rich Hill for out number two, and Scott Atchison for number three.

Red Sox 5, Tigers 1, End 5th -- The Red Sox aren't letting Justin Verlander rest, giving him his first start of five earned runs on the year as Gonzalez almost decapitates him with a line drive single before David Ortiz slaps a double into the gap in left field. Ortiz is thrown out trying to pick up his annual triple when it really wasn't there, but Gonzalez made it home safely, and the Sox get their run right back.

Red Sox 4, Tigers 1, Mid 5th -- Daniel Bard gives up a home run into the bullpens to Jhonny Peralta, but manages to dodge the larger bullet as he puts two men on with a single and a walk and then runs the count full against Miguel Cabrera. Luckily, Cabrera goes chasing after a low slider, and strikes out to end the threat.

Red Sox 4, Tigers 0, End 4th -- A big inning gives the Red Sox a very surprising four-run lead over Justin Verlander. Kevin Youkilis led off the frame with a single off a hanging curveball, and then moved to second when Mike Aviles managed to bloop one over the head of Jhonny Peralta at short. The Sox would load the bases with one out when Scott Podsednik managed to shoot a soft liner over Peralta's double play partner in Ramon Santiago.

Nick Punto was unable to surprise, getting ahead 2-0 and then inexplicably swinging at a pitch around the corner of the strike zone, popping it up weakly for an easy out, but Daniel Nava came through with one of the biggest hits of his career. Working the count full, Nava managed to smack a 100 MPH fastball over the middle of the plate down the left field line for a bases-clearing double.

Red Sox 1, Tigers 0, Mid 4th -- Bard has hardly been untouchable, but he's surviving right now. A wall ball single that would have likely been gone in most parks does nothing for the Tigers, as Bard quickly turns around and induces a double play from Brennan Boesch to end the threat.

Red Sox 1, Tigers 0, End 3rd -- Justin Verlander starts the frame by walking Daniel Nava, but retires Sweeney, Gonzalez, and Ortiz with ease to end the inning in short order.

Red Sox 1, Tigers 0, Mid 3rd -- The Tigers threaten a very wild Bard, who gives up a four-pitch walk with one out and then hits the next batter on the foot with a slider. He even threatens to walk the next batter, falling behind 2-0 before the count runs full, but a ground ball gets him the second out, bringing Miguel Cabrera to the plate. The dangerous hitter almost makes good on the situation, but ends up flying out to deep right field, with Ryan Sweeney making the running grab to end the frame.

Red Sox 1, Tigers 0, End 2nd -- Somehow the Red Sox have a run--and the lead--against Justin Verlander! David Ortiz gets most of the credit for this one, giving an 0-1 changeup a long ride for a wall ball double to start the inning. Kevin Youkilis could not move him along, striking out on a typical Verlander curveball, but Jarrod Saltalamacchia managed to get him to third with one out by singling through the left side of the infield. Mike Aviles' ensuing ground ball threatened a double play, but the shortstop just barely managed to beat the throw, allowing David Ortiz to come in the back door for the run.

Red Sox 0, Tigers 0, Mid 2nd -- Daniel Bard gets some help from his defense, as Ryan Sweeney makes a tremendous sliding catch in right field, picking a blooper off the dirt before Scott Podsednik runs a ball down in front of the wall to record the third out. Not a bad start to the game for Bard on the whole, either.

Red Sox 0, Tigers 0, End 1st -- Not only do the Red Sox not get a baserunner, but they don't even make Verlander work particularly hard. Nothing even leaves the infield as the Sox go down in order on all of 10 pitches. Not a particularly good showing.

Red Sox 0, Tigers 0, Mid 1st -- Daniel Bard strikes out the first batter he faces to get himself off to an unusually good start. A soft fliner drops in front of Scott Podsednik for the first hit of the night, but Bard gets a couple of weak ground balls to end the inning without any damage.

I'm still coming to grips with this Pedroia thing. Excuse me if this game thread is brief and tear-covered.

Daniel Bard

#51 / Pitcher / Boston Red Sox

Height: 6-4

Weight: 215

Bats: R

Throws: R

Born: Jun 25, 1985

Justin Verlander

#35 / Pitcher / Detroit Tigers

Height: 6-5

Weight: 225

Bats: R

Throws: R

Born: Feb 20, 1983

God, is Nick Punto our starter? Is that a thing now? Just call up Iglesias and move Aviles to second. Anything is better than that.

Go Sox. *Sob*

For those looking to panic, I have good news! Dustin Pedroia will be absent from the Red Sox' lineup tonight as they take on Justin Verlander and the Tiger.

So there's that.

As we all know, Pedroia jammed his thumb making an impressive play in last night's 7-4 win. Since then, we've been stuck waiting anxiously for any news. And while there are rumblings that it's nothing serious, and that Pedroia is only resting it for today, it's certainly not as good a sign as having him batting second.

Of course, with Dustin Pedroia out, we are treated to an always special Nick Punto appearance. Joy, joy, joy. With Adrian Gonzalez hanging around first rather than right, and Will Middlebrooks riding the bench, it's not exactly the sort of lineup you need against the likes of Justin Verlander.

Then again, maybe it's exactly the time to take the lineup hit, since scoring off of him is as least as much luck as it is skill.

The Red Sox will have the unenviable task of scoring against Justin Verlander Tuesday night as they take on the Tigers in Detroit. First pitch is at 7:10 p.m. EST, with broadcasts on NESN, ESPN, and WEEI.

One night after being removed in the fifth inning with a jammed thumb, Dustin Pedroia will be absent from the lineup--an inauspicious sign for a Red Sox team already beset by more than its fair share of injuries. Nick Punto will take over at second base, which is an inauspicious sign for a baseball team in general.

Will Middlebrooks will also be absent, the odd-man-out as Adrian Gonzalez returns to first base.

Boston Red Sox (24-24)

1. Daniel Nava, LF
2. Ryan Sweeney, CF
3. Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
4. David Ortiz, DH
5. Kevin Youkilis, 3B
6. Jarrod Saltalamacchia, C
7. Mike Aviles, SS
8. Scott Podsednik, CF
9. Nick Punto, 2B

Detroit Tigers (23-25)

1. Quintin Berry, CF
2. Andy Dirks, LF
3. Miguel Cabrera, 3B
4. Prince Fielder, 1B
5. Brennan Boesch, DH
6. Jhonny Peralta, SS
7. Alex Avila, C
8. Ramon Santiago, 2B
9. Don Kelly, RF

Ten starts into the season, Red Sox fans have to be feeling pretty good about Felix Doubront.

By far Boston's most consistent starter, Doubront has shown some real flashes of brilliance on the mound. Aside from a couple mediocre games around the turn of the month, Doubront has had impressive swing-and-miss stuff which, combined with an ability to drop his curveball in for strikes and paint corners has him ranked fourth amongst American League starters in strikeout rate.

We saw him at his best yesterday against the Detroit Tigers, utilizing a late-tailing fastball to pick up the majority of 15 swing-and-misses, which brings me to the job opportunity I mentioned above. If this starter thing doesn't work out--though it certainly seems to be so far--Doubront might just have a job opportunity in Detroit. Not for the Tigers, mind you, but against the Tigers.

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Pawtucket L 4-6

Box Score

Darnell McDonald: 0-3, 2 K
-Wow, not the start you'd want as a rehabbing player.
Lars Anderson: 0-4, K
Ryan Lavarnway: 0-3, BB, K
Alex Hassan: 2-4

Alex Wilson: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K

Mixed results for Xander after the jump.

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Yesterday, the Red Sox arguably won the game because of a bad call: a foul tip gloved cleanly by Gerald Laird was ruled to have hit the ground, giving Aviles and the Red Sox new life when the inning should have been over. They would score three runs before the frame came to an end.

A bad call, yes, but one that would have been avoided had the game ended in the eighth with the score at 7-2. Unfortunately, Alfredo Aceves gave up two runs in the ninth, leaving the difference at the end of the game that three-run second inning, and leading to some suggestions that perhaps the Red Sox were gifted the game.

If you ask me, that's an awful stretch.

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Had Alfredo Aceves simply recorded a clean ninth inning and ensured that Boston won by a margin of 7-2, a fair deal of controversy could have been avoided.

In the second inning of last night's game, the Red Sox should have scored zero runs. Mike Aviles struck out on a foul tip into the glove of Gerald Laird for the third out, but was given new life when the ball was incorrectly ruled to have hit the ground.

Aviles would single, and the Sox would go on to score three runs in the inning. Thanks to Aceves surrendering the home run in the ninth, that ended up being the exact difference in the two teams' scores, giving some disgruntled fans the ability to claim that the umpires effectively stole the game for the Sox.

But did they really?

It's true that the second inning would have ended up scoreless, and that the teams would have ended up tied had every other inning maintained the same scoring, but it seems a pretty big stretch to assume that the scoring in the rest of the innings would have gone the same.

After all, it was Doug Fister, not the umpires, who was having trouble recording outs. A ground ball pitcher by trade, Fister was already giving up tons of well-hit fly balls. He simply wasn't pitching well, which is why after Aviles singled, he surrendered a double to Daniel Nava and a single to Dustin Pedroia to bring two more runs in.

It's always a bit of a leap to assume that everything would have gone the same but for the one event, but that's the assumption that the disgruntled fans are basing their arguments on, so you kind of have to give it to both sides. In that case, after ending the second inning, Fister would have started off the inning with Daniel Nava scoring and Dustin Pedroia on first with no outs. Not an enviable position.

While Tigers fans are right to be at least a little annoyed, since they lost the chance to see what the game would have been like without the bad call, they were still solidly outplayed by the Red Sox. Fister was bad, Doubront was good, and the difference was not as simple as one badly called foul tip.

For more Boston Red Sox coverage, visit our team page and blog, Over The Monster.

Today brought us a game of good news and bad news. Depending on further developments, the bad could heavily outweigh the good, but at least for now the opposite is true.

Let's start with the good news.

Felix Doubront was tremendous today against a fairly difficult lineup. Showing excellent command, Doubront was able to paint corners with his fastball and deceive with his offspeed stuff, earning bad hack after bad hack. He was more than capable against the likes of Prince Fielder and Miguel Cabrera, making Cabrera look especially foolish at times. He threw two mistake pitches, and was punished each time with a homer, but was otherwise exceptional.

The Sox, meanwhile, had no such trouble with Doug Fister, keeping the ball off the ground (where Fister likes it) and scoring six times off of him in five innings of work.

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The Red Sox backed up a very strong performance from Felix Doubront with seven runs Monday afternoon, as they gained some measure of revenge against the Detroit Tigers with a 7-4 win.

The victory was not without controversy. After the Sox took an early 1-0 lead on an Adrian Gonzalez single and David Ortiz double in the first, Felix Doubront made a mistake to Delmon Young, who took him out of the park to tie the game. The second inning seemed like it would end with the game still tied when, with Ryan Sweeney on base via a double (an appropriate return at bat for the man who did nothing but double for the first month), Mike Aviles seemed to strike out on a foul tip into the glove of Gerald Laird.

Not so fast! Aviles protested to the umpire that the ball had hit the dirt, and the first-base official agreed, giving Mike Aviles new life. The shortstop made good on his chance, singling Sweeney home, and then scoring on a Daniel Nava double. With Dustin Pedroia following him with an RBI single, three runs were in when there could well have been zero.

The Sox would add a fifth run in the third inning when Jarrod Saltalamacchia went deep into the Monster seats for a solo shot. Meanwhile, Felix Doubront had resumed shutting the Tigers down, painting corners and striking out six batters in the process. The fifth inning would prove the only real problem, as Doubront would be punished for another mistake pitch--the only other one he would make in the game, arguably--with another solo shot in the fifth. What's worse, Dustin Pedroia would leave the game with a jammed thumb after making a diving play to end the frame.

Doubront would give way after the sixth inning to Scott Atchison, who would toss two scoreless innings, striking out four batters while the Sox tacked on a pair of insurance runs. Despite the 5-run lead, Bobby Valentine would turn to his closer in Alfredo Aceves, perhaps hoping to instill some confidence in him after his blown save on Sunday. Unfortunately, Aceves wasn't up to the task of giving himself reason to believe, surrendering a two-run shot to Jhonny Peralta before managing to close out both the inning and the game.

The Red Sox are out to wipe away some bad memories from Sunday as they take on the Tigers Monday afternoon.

We'll keep you up-to-date with all the action as it goes down in Fenway Park.

Red Sox 7, Tigers 4, Final -- Alfredo Aceves has another unfortunate ninth, allowing a loud fly ball out, a double, and then giving up a homer to Jhonny Peralta. But the big lead means it matters little, and the game ends 7-4, Boston.

Red Sox 7, Tigers 2, End 8th -- The Sox add another run in the eighth as Ryan Sweeney picks up his third hit of the game and then scores on a double golfed by Mike Aviles to left-center field.

Alfredo Aceves seems ready to come into the game, likely to try and build some confidence after yesterday's unfortunate outing.

Red Sox 6, Tigers 2, Mid 8th -- After a leadoff single, Scott Atchison strikes out the side to keep Boston's lead at four runs. It's hard to believe this is the same pitcher the Sox sold to the Hanshin Tigers a few years back.

Red Sox 6, Tigers 2, End 7th -- Marte retires three more batters in a row, as the bullpens seem to be doing a good job of calming the game down.

Red Sox 6, Tigers 2, Mid 7th -- Scott Atchison continues his remarkable season by throwing a 1-2-3 seventh inning, striking out Jhonny Peralta in the process.

Red Sox 6, Tigers 2, End 6th -- Doug Fister gives up three singles and a run to lead off the inning with some help from his corner infielders, but Luis Marte does a good job of stopping the bleeding, keeping the Sox from scoring again.

Red Sox 5, Tigers 2, Mid 6th -- A leadoff single from Quintin Berry over Daniel Nava's head (and out of his glove) in left may have given the impression that Felix Doubront was showing his usual late-game fatigue. Strikeouts of Ryan Raburn and Miguel Cabrera, combined with an inning-ending ground ball off the bat of Prince Fielder were enough to persuade otherwise, however.

There is one worrisome turn of events, however, as Dustin Pedroia is out of the game with a jammed right thumb.

Red Sox 5, Tigers 2, End 5th -- Doug Fister enjoys his first clean inning of the game, sitting down the heart of the order in speedy fashion.

Red Sox 5, Tigers 2, Mid 5th -- Felix Doubront hasn't missed many spots today, but when he has, he's paid for it. A fastball stays over the plate to Gerald Laird, who smacks a rocket just high enough to clear the monster. A tremendous diving play from Dustin Pedroia ends the inning without any further damage, however.

Red Sox 5, Tigers 1, End 4th -- A leadoff walk from Will Middlebrooks is all the Sox get in the fourth, as they strand their third baseman at second.

Red Sox 5, Tigers 1, Mid 4th -- Up against Miguel Cabrera, Prince Fielder, and Delmon Young--who took him deep in the second inning--Felix Doubront faced a tough challenge in the fourth inning. Or, at least, a tough task on paper. In reality, Doubront needed all of seven pitches to retire the side, getting Cabrera to fly out to left before inducing two easy ground balls to end the inning.

Red Sox 5, Tigers 1, End 3rd -- A leadoff base hit from David Ortiz is wasted as Kevin Youkilis quickly grounds into a double play, but Jarrod Saltalamacchia makes sure the Red Sox get their run all the same by slamming a solo shot into the Monster seats to make it 5-1.

Red Sox 4, Tigers 1, Mid 3rd -- Felix Doubront strikes out Quintin Berry and Ryan Raburn to end a 1-2-3 third inning. He's had wipeout stuff so far today--the sort that makes you wonder how good he can be with just a little more major league experience as a starter.

Red Sox 4, Tigers 1, End 2nd -- A gift call helps the Sox to score three runs. With Ryan Sweeney on second and two outs, Mike Aviles foul tips a ball into Gerald Laird's glove right above the ground. It should be strike three, but Aviles protests and the umpires decide it hit the ground before the glove. Within six pitches, the Sox have picked up two singles and a double off of Doug Fister, with the last shot a rocket off of Prince Fielder at first which scores the third run of the frame for the Sox.

Fister should have been out of the inning without any runs in, but he can't claim to be faultless. He's not getting any of the ground balls he needs, and if events had stayed the same without the gift call, he'd have on on and one in in the third with nobody out.

Red Sox 1, Tigers 1, Mid 1st -- One bad pitch costs Felix Doubront and the Red Sox the lead, as he leaves a 2-2 pitch over the plate which Delmon Young takes out of the park for a solo shot. A walk puts another baserunner on, but Will Middlebrooks makes a good play on a swinging bunt, and Adrian Gonzalez converts his chance in the outfield to end the inning.

Red Sox 1, Tigers 0, End 1st -- Some two-out offense gives Boston the early lead. After Doug Fister picked up a pair of quick outs to start the game, Adrian Gonzalez hit a low line drive past a diving Danny Worth at second. Fister would get ahead of David Ortiz 0-2, but let him drive the third pitch--a slider--high off the monster. With the ball caroming away from both outfielders who had made their way over by that point, Adrian Gonzalez was able to round third and head home for the run.

Red Sox 0, Tigers 0, Mid 1st -- Quintin Berry helps Felix Doubront get off to a quick start by bunting the second pitch of the game into the air and right back to the mound for the first out. After a fly ball from Ryan Raburn gives Doubront the second, the young southpaw attacks Miguel Cabrera with exclusively fastballs and gets him swinging to end the inning.

It's hard to get back to it so soon after the tragedy that was yesterday's game. But here we are, and here we go, once more trying to get back to .500 so that we can take a seventh shot at a winning record.

Yay?

Felix Doubront

#61 / Pitcher / Boston Red Sox

Height: 6-2

Weight: 165

Bats: L

Throws: L

Born: Oct 23, 1987

Doug Fister

#58 / Pitcher / Detroit Tigers

Height: 6-8

Weight: 210

Bats: R

Throws: R

Born: Feb 04, 1984

Go Sox!

Ryan Sweeney is back in the Boston lineup Monday afternoon as the Sox welcome the Tigers into Fenway Park for a four-game series. First pitch is at 1:35 p.m. EST with broadcasts on NESN and WEEI.

The Sox have been without Sweeney ever since he was sent to the 7-day disabled list for a concussion back in Philadelphia. Now, with his concussion test coming up clear, Sweeney will make his return, playing center field and batting seventh.

His return actually brings some wholesale changes in the batting order. Daniel Nava will lead off, while Adrian Gonzalez will stay in right field and hit third as the Sox try to keep their lineup strong. Will Middlebrooks drops down to eighth, making any eventual defensive replacement a lot easier on the batting order, while Mike Aviles hits last.

Boston Red Sox (23-24)

1. Daniel Nava, LF
2. Dustin Pedroia, 2B
3. Adrian Gonzalez, RF
4. David Ortiz, DH
5. Kevin Youkilis, 1B
6. Jarrod Saltalamacchia, C
7. Ryan Sweeney, CF
8. Will Middlebrooks, 3B
9. Mike Aviles, SS

Detroit Tigers (23-24)

1. Quintin Berry, CF
2. Ryan Raburn, RF
3. Miguel Cabrera, 3B
4. Prince Fielder, 1B
5. Delmon Young, DH
6. Jhonny Peralta, SS
7. Andy Dirks, LF
8. Gerald Laird, C
9. Danny Worth, 2B

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Pawtucket W 7-4

Box Score

Darnell McDonald: 0-4
Lars Anderson: 3-3, 2 HR, BB
-It's unfortunate that this hardly even makes you even think "What if" any more.
Alex Hassan: 2-3, HR, K

Clayton Mortensen: 2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 1 K

Xander picks up some hits after the jump.

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Ryan Sweeney is back from the 7-day disabled list Monday after passing a concussion test over the weekend. He will start in center field against the Tigers today, with Adrian Gonzalez remaining in right. Che-Hsuan Lin has been optioned to Pawtucket to make room for Sweeney.

The Sox haven't seen Sweeney in the lineup since the series against the Philadelphia Phillies, which given the way he was hitting in May (.236/.276/.291), wasn't actually that much of a loss. Still, compared to the alternatives in Byrd and Podsednik, Sweeney brings the best glove and the greatest ability to do something with the bat, given what we saw from him in April.

It's interesting that Sweeney's return hasn't put an end to Adrian Gonzalez playing right field. Apparently the Sox are more comfortable with having Gonzalez' glove in the outfield than they are with having Byrd or Podsednik in the lineup, even batting ninth. Given that Crawford, Ellsbury, and Ross are still a ways away, it's entirely possible we'll be seeing a lot more of this over the next few weeks.

After Sunday's depressing loss, Red Sox Nation returned to an activity which it had avoided for the past month-or-so: complaining about the closer.

There's no doubt that Alfredo Aceves backed into this role, likely receiving the nod after Andrew Bailey's injury as a way to make amends for keeping him out of the rotation. Aceves had never exactly been closer stuff before, after all. His ability was not to pitch one shutout inning, but to throw three without letting the game get away, utilizing ground balls to avoid the big inning.

Jonathan Papelbon he was not.

That being said, however, since he took over the role, Aceves has shown us a different side of himself. Asked to only pitch one or, at the most two innings, Aceves' fastball has been on average two miles per hour faster than last year, at times reaching up to 97. Ever since giving up three runs before recording his first out this year, Aceves has been fantastic, striking out more than a batter an inning and converting 11-of-12 save chances before Sunday.

So what happened against the Rays? Perhaps it's just a matter of Aceves not having pitched in a few days? Or maybe it's just a bad day. The sort that happens to any reliever. While Aceves' season as a whole does look a bit ugly with his 4.76 ERA, he's shown his ability to provide lockdown innings most nights. His two meltdowns are more dramatic than the ones experienced by most closers, with the eight earned runs he allowed against the Tigers and Yankees in two games without recording an out, but as far as his ability to convert saves is concerned, he's given us plenty of reason for optimism ever since that first series of the year.

So let's not go calling for Alfredo Aceves' head just yet. Every loss is more painful than usual these days with the Red Sox, particularly given how they've been dancing around .500, but Alfredo Aceves is responsible for all of two runs in one game--part of a month where his ERA remains a paltry 2.37. He's earned more leeway than this.

0-0, 10-10, 11-11, 21-21, 22-22, 23-23.

If we follow the pattern, that means the Sox will play badly for a while and then only make their way back to .500 at 32-32.

So we've got that to look forward to.

The Sox have made an art form out of disappointing their fans in the most painful way possible since that terrible September. It's almost disappointing, frankly, that they've been harping on this .500 thing for so long. Have they run out of ideas? Or is that what the walkoff was about, raising hopes for the storybook turnaround (as evidenced by my reaction last night) before dropping another painful game?

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The Red Sox have, for the sixth time, entered a game at .500 and left it with a losing record, today as the result of a 4-3 Rays win courtesy of a blown save from Alfredo Aceves.

The game began as an impressive pitchers duel, which is about the last thing you would expect from Clay Buchholz these days. Commanding his curveball and changeup as well as we've seen so far this year, Buchholz allowed only a pair of weak singles in his first three innings of work. Jeremy Hellickson responded by surviving rather harder contact, and also headed into the fourth without a run to his name.

Clay Buchholz finally allowed a big hit in the fourth, as Matt Joyce took him into the right field corner for a double. Unfortunately, with Adrian Gonzalez playing out there, it quickly turned into three bases, as the first baseman out of water missed his cutoff man. The mistake would prove costly, as a ground ball out allowed Joyce to come in the back door, though given the ensuing Luke Scott single it's entirely possible the run would have scored anyways if everything had otherwise gone the same.

The Red Sox would not respond until they were down two in the seventh, but then they did so in a big way. David Ortiz and Kevin Youkilis led off the inning with a walk and a single, bringing Adrian Gonzalez to the plate. After taking the first pitch for a ball, Gonzalez reached out for a changeup and dropped it into the Monster seats just to the right of the foul pole for a three-run shot that put the Sox up 3-2.

The lead would last for just the one full inning. After Franklin Morales and Vicente Padilla held down the fort with aplomb, striking out two and getting a ground ball in a clean eighth, the Sox turned to Alfredo Aceves, who after three full days off just didn't have it. A leadoff walk brought the winning run to the plate, and after a Luke Scott pop-up, Sean Rodriguez converted it, hitting a home run over everything in left to give the Rays the lead. With the weakest part of the lineup due up, the Sox made no noise in the bottom half, leaving them once again below .500.

Boston and Tampa Bay will wrap up their series with a Sunday afternoon rubber game, with Clay Buchholz and Jeremy Hellickson taking the mound.

The Sox have stacked their lineup as much as possible, with Adrian Gonzalez in right field, Will Middlebrooks at third, and Kevin Youkilis at first. The real spotlight, however, will be on Clay Buchholz, who has had serious difficulty recording outs through the first two months of the season.

We'll keep you up-to-date on all the action as it goes down in Fenway.

Rays 4, Red Sox 3, Final -- 0-0, 10-10, 11-11, 21-21, 22-22, 23-23. They just can't get it done.

Rays 4, Red Sox 3, Mid 9th -- And just like that, the lead is gone. Alfredo Aceves comes out wild, walks Ben Zobrist, falls behind Sean Rodriguez 3-1, and gives up the homer that has the Red Sox looking at a very frustrating loss.

Red Sox 3, Rays 2, End 8th -- The Sox waste a valuable chance to add on to their lead in the eight. After Scott Podsednik singled to get the inning started, Mike Aviles bunted him into scoring position to give the heart of the lineup a chance to bring him in. Dustin Pedroia could only move him to third, however, and David Ortiz was intentionally walked to bring Kevin Youkilis to the plate to draw one of the less-intentional variety. In stepped Adrian Gonzalez, who had played the hero just one inning ago, but this time he couldn't come through. A reasonably well-hit ground ball headed past the mound, but the Rays defense was well-positioned to make the out an easy one.

It's all in Alfredo Aceves' hands now.

Red Sox 3, Rays 2, Mid 8th -- Bobby Valentine plays the splits, sending Franklin Morales in for Carlos Pena and Vicente Padilla in for B.J. Upton and Matt Joyce, resulting in two strikeouts and a ground ball. All that's left now is for Alfredo Aceves to do his job.

Red Sox 3, Rays 2, End 7th -- Adrian Gonzalez could not have chosen a better moment to find his power stroke again. David Ortiz led the inning off by drawing a walk, and Kevin Youkilis jumped on an outside 1-2 fastball to shoot a ground ball up the middle and give Gonzalez a chance with two on and nobody out. Rather than simply continuing the rally, Gonzalez chose to put an exclamation mark on it, taking a Fenway swing on an outside pitch and slicing a high fly ball just to the right of the foul pole and into the Monster seats.

Rays 2, Red Sox 0, Mid 7th -- The Rays pick up what could be a big insurance run as Clay Buchholz gives up a wall ball double, and has Will Rhymes flare a single to left for a two-out RBI before striking out Chris Gimenez to end the inning.

The Sox are down 2-0, and Clay is responsible for both runs, but it's by far the best game he's had this year. Seven innings, six strikeouts, just one walk, and a lot of ground balls. Even if the Sox can't get the result they need, it's some rare sign of light for the rotation's scariest arm.

Rays 1, Red Sox 0, End 6th -- The Red Sox lineup seems determined to waste Clay Buchholz' good start today, not making Hellickson work at all as they swing early and often. He's through 6 innings on just 68 pitches now after a 1-2-3 sixth.

Rays 1, Red Sox 0, Mid 6th -- Clay Buchholz falls victim to the worst of his bad habits in the sixth, paying too much attention to a runner at first and then allowing him to reach second all-the-same on a walk. The double play that followed, however, was more reminiscent of the Clay Buchholz from 2010 and 2011 who could be trusted with a start.

Rays 1, Red Sox 0, End 5th -- Turnabout, as they say, is fair play. Will Middlebrooks singles up the middle with one out, but just as Clay Buchholz did in the top half, Jeremy Hellickson gets the ground ball he needs to kill two birds with one stone and keep the Red Sox off the board.

Rays 1, Red Sox 0, Mid 5th -- A bit of a hanging breaking ball costs Clay Buchholz another baserunner, but he quickly rectifies the situation by getting a double play ball from Chris Gimenez to end the inning.

Rays 1, Red Sox 0, End 4th -- Jeremy Hellickson has his first 1-2-3 inning in the bottom of the fourth, running through the heart of the Red Sox order in speedy fashion.

Rays 1, Red Sox 0, Mid 4th -- Adrian Gonzalez in the outfield finally ends up costing the Sox, as his failure to hit the cutoff man on a line-hugging double allows Matt Joyce to move to third and then score on a ground ball out. Buchholz' off-speed stuff hasn't been quite as accurate of late, and with Luke Scott singling, it will be an earned run, but what's important right now is that the Sox trail.

Red Sox 0, Rays 0, End 3rd -- Another inning, another baserunner, another stranded baserunner for the Red Sox, who waste a one-out single from Scott Podsednik.

Red Sox 0, Rays 0, Mid 3rd -- Angel Hernandez' strike zone costs the Red Sox a baserunner, as Will Rhymes is gifted a favorable count and then manages to fist a single into right. Jarrod Saltalamacchia guns him down on a failed hit-and-run, however, and Hernandez makes up for it with a questionable called strike three to Chris Gimenez in another scoreless inning.

Red Sox 0, Rays 0, End 2nd -- The Red Sox get another hit--a leadoff single from Kevin Youkilis to left--but even with Jarrod Saltalamacchia managing to beat out a double play ball, Will Middlebrooks goes down swinging to end the inning without any harm done.

Red Sox 0, Rays 0, Mid 2nd -- Buchholz looks extra-sharp in the second inning, utilizing well placed curveballs and changeups to get ahead of and then strike out both Luke Scott and Drew Sutton. It's big that Buchholz is feeling his secondary stuff well enough that he's willing to rely on it so heavily--when he has to turn to his fastball to carry the load things often don't turn out all that well.

Red Sox 0, Rays 0, End 1st -- Some very hard contact for the Red Sox, who see Mike Aviles fly out almost to the track in dead center to start the inning. Dustin Pedroia picks up the first hit of the game, but is called out on what may have been a phantom tag at second as he tried to stretch it into a double. It was a bad decision to run, but an inventive slide from Pedroia may have kept the glove from ever touching him. Unfortunately, despite the contact, with David Ortiz going down on just two pitches, Hellickson heads back to the dugout with an easy first behind him.

Red Sox 0, Rays 0, Mid 1st -- Clay Buchholz has a relatively uneventful first inning, with a bloop single being the only damage caused by the Rays. Buchholz got Pena out with the first pitch of the game, and then got ahead of two of the next three batters, so at least early on he's throwing strikes.

Let's give this another go.

Clay Buchholz

#11 / Pitcher / Boston Red Sox

Height: 6-3

Weight: 190

Bats: L

Throws: R

Born: Aug 14, 1984

Jeremy Hellickson

#58 / Pitcher / Tampa Bay Rays

Height: 6-1

Weight: 185

Bats: R

Throws: R

Born: Apr 08, 1987

Go Sox!

The Red Sox are out for another series win against the Tampa Bay Rays Sunday afternoon. First pitch is at 1:35 p.m. with broadcasts by NESN, TBS, and WEEI.

Adrian Gonzalez will stay in right field with Will Middlebrooks at third and Kevin Youkilis at first as the Sox try to score some runs off of Jeremy Hellickson. That's proved a tall order for teams so far, though the Sox have done it once before, taking five off of him in five innings back in April.

Unless they can replicate that feat, they'll need Clay Buchholz to be the man he was against the Rays last time out--arguably his only decent start of the year--rather than the man he's been in every other game.

Boston Red Sox (23-23)

1. Mike Aviles, SS
2. Dustin Pedroia, 2B
3. David Ortiz, DH
4. Kevin Youkilis, 1B
5. Adrian Gonzalez, RF
6. Jarrod Salalamacchia, C
7. Will Middlebrooks, 3B
8. Daniel Nava, LF
9. Scott Podsednik, CF

Tampa Bay Rays (28-19)

1. Carlos Pena, 1B
2. B.J. Upton, CF
3. Matt Joyce, LF
4. Ben Zobrist, RF
5. Luke Scott, DH
6. Sean Rodriguez, SS
7. Drew Sutton, 3B
8. Will Rhymes, 2B
9. Chris Gimenez, C

Pawtucket W 8-5

Box Score

Alex Hassan: 1-4, K
Ryan Lavarnway: 1-3, HR, BB
-Amazingly just Lavarnway's third on the year. His slugging remains under .400.
Lars Anderson: 0-3, BB, 2 K

Daisuke Matsuzaka: 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
-Lots of flyballs, but still, hope.

An inauspicious day for Xander Bogaerts after the jump.

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Yesterday the Sox made two substitutions that had a chance to win or lose the game for them.

The first change came in the sixth after Adrian Gonzalez reached base on a single. He was quickly pulled for a pinch runner in Che-Hsuan Lin.

The second came in the ninth, with Jarrod Saltalamacchia pinch-hitting for Marlon Byrd. He would, of course, hit a walkoff homer to turn a 2-1 loss into a 3-2 win. That one doesn't need much explanation. The only good hitter left on Boston's bench, Saltalamacchia was given a runner in scoring position between a Daniel Nava walk and one of the rare acceptable bunts in baseball (Kelly Shoppach wasn't going to do anything against Fernando Rodney, and the Sox could only avoid one of the two "sure outs" in Shoppach and Byrd, so they may as well give themselves two shots to tie it with a single), and did not waste his opportunity.

More questionable, however, was the pinch runner.

It's not hard to see where Bobby Valentine was coming from when he pulled Adrian Gonzalez. Anticipating a lead, Valentine wanted to get Gonzalez out of the dangerous right field, and added some speed on the basepaths as a kicker. The problem is that this sort of substitiution can put the Sox in something of a bind later on in the game.

After all, while the Sox would manage to take the lead in that inning, in the very next frame Josh Beckett would surrender two, and suddenly the lineup needed to score again to have any chance at winning the game. The problem is, one of the biggest spots in the lineup, coming after the Dustin Pedroia - David Ortiz - Kevin Youkilis group that's most likely to give the team a baserunner, was suddenly filled not by Adrian Gonzalez, but by the worst bat on the team.

It's nice to have Adrian Gonzalez in the lineup even with Youkilis, Middlebrooks, and Ortiz playing. But if the Sox are going to play it that way, then they have to commit. The loss of Gonzalez from the five-hole in exchange for the likes of Che-Hsuan Lin and Scott Podsednik is too massive a hit to take without a big, late lead. They either have to leave him in until the game is in hand, or save the odd-man out (be it Gonzalez, Youkilis, Ortiz, or Middlebrooks) on the bench so they can make their one at-bat count with a key pinch hitting appearance.