Sports Redux: Day of Days

Associated Press photo.

We all knew this week's four-game series would have implications beyond August 6-9. The main implication is that the hapless 0-8 Yankees are gone. Now we have the Yankees who beat the Red Sox twice in two days in two totally different ways and have taken a 4.5 game lead in the division. New York outhit the Sox on Thursday and slightly outpitched them on Friday.

Bostonist isn't complaining about the pitching. How can we? The entire staff allowed two runs in 14.2 innings, and those were allowed by a virgin MLB pitcher named Junichi Tazawa to A-Rod, of course. Nine hits isn't much in 51 chances. It's .176, fyi. To say they did their jobs is somehow inadequate. We won't complain about the offense, either. There would need to be an offense first before we could bitch about it. Ha ha. Not laughing. Jacoby Ellsbury had two hits and two stolen bases, one on a pitchout. Great.

Josh Beckett set the pitching tone by being the right Beckett at the precise moment he was needed. Not only did Beckett throw 115 pitches over seven scoreless innings, he did it in Yankee Stadium, after three straight losses, a slew of injuries and the release of a classy veteran pitcher faced with ample evidence that his Hall of Fame career is over after 21 years. Beckett put every possible distraction aside and allowed nothing to a suddenly surging New York club.

Distractions were everywhere in the the biggest series of the year after Thursday's 13-6 loss to the Yankees. GM Theo Epstein addressed the state of the team. Theo is always calm and thus described the Sox now as facing a "challenging time," which is true but somehow understated. Theo was in the NYC for a few obvious reasons. He manned up and met with John Smoltz to release him. Smoltz has earned that level of respect. Jed Lowrie is hurt or injured or related to J.D. Drew so the team claimed Chris Woodward - who? - off waivers. Tazawa replaced Smoltz on the roster.

Oh, and the matter of David Ortiz speaking to the media about you know what on Saturday. The potenttial ramifications of Ortiz's anticipated comments could overwhelm the team. Ortiz has been larger than life since he arrived at Fenway. He's been humbled by a career-worst slump and confirmation of the Sox Nation's worst fear. It's time for Papi to come clean and reclaim his place. Big Papi needs to be Big Papi. His team needs a clutch performance from him today.

The MLBPA released a statement on the matter. Doesn't help.

There's a game today, too. CC Sabathia vs. Clay Buchholz. No other pitchers. Show us what you got, kid.