Sports Redux: In Tito We Trust

When you think about it, the idea of JD Drew as a leadoff batter seems to make as much sense as putting Papi in that same spot. Sure, the guy can hit, but the quick-footed, nimble leadoff stereotype doesn't seem to fit someone whose back can go out when he sneezes wrong. Why would any manager put Drew up in the leadoff spot and let Jacoby "I'm faster than you'll ever be" Ellsbury take a place lower in the lineup?

Because it worked. Drew stepped into the batters box and unleashed a triple on Monday night, the first hit in the eventual winning effort for the Sox, who beat the Os in Fenway South Camden Yards by a 4-0 margin. While the outcome was pretty typical for a Sox game in Baltimore and actual Orioles fans were customarily outnumbered in their home park, there were some wacky things going on with the Sox lineup, all of which was overseen by Boston fans' favorite bespectacled skipper.

As Dustin Pedroia remarked post-win, "Seemed like every time [Francona] mixes it up, we do something good for him." It takes a man who knows his players inside and out to get that kind of a track record going. Red Sox Nation ought to send that man a complimentary tub of Dubble Bubble.

Or perhaps that thank you should be made by David Jonathan Drew. The guy responded to being put in the leadoff spot by coming one double short of the cycle.

While Jon Lester again gave a sharp and nuanced performance on the mound, it was the Sox closer who got his name into the history books last night - again. Jonathan Papelbon earned his 132nd career save, thus tying Bob Stanley's team record. If you're like us, your mind automatically goes to all the times this season Pap's made us nervous during his save situations - but you can take a moment to smile imagining the guy totally having a fanboy dorkout moment whenever someone mentions Mariano Rivera. Rivalry purists, settle down: it's OK. Rivera's an unofficial member of the 2004 Red Sox team.

Speaking of instances in which we are or were better than every other team in baseball, the folks over at NESN received a much-deserved high-five from Slate Magazine recently. The magazine used the perfect example of a Youk at-bat in Atlanta to discuss how NESN is smart for actually letting viewers back home enjoy a camera angle directly behind the pitcher. It amazes us sometimes that baseball broadcasting can be praised for being cutting-edge when they're really just using common sense - but we'll take it.

On the non-baseball front, there was a trade set that would have sent Phil Kessel to the Maple Leafs in exchange for Tomas Kaberle, but it fell through. We like Kaberle enough, but we'd be lying if our first response to this news was not an excited "WOOOOO!"