Nashua Pride adds former Sox player as manager

The Boston Globe is reporting that former Sox outfield Rick Miller has taken over for Butch Hobson as manager of the independent Nashua Pride team. I met Rick in approximately 1992 at a baseball card show (along w/ Sam Horn!) and my dad sold him a car when he was a hot, can't-miss prospect in the early '70s. Alas, his power never developed and he became a perennial backup. Over 15 years, he compiled 3,887 at bats, a .269 batting average and a respectable .346 on base percentage (not that they noticed those things then!).

Lester No Hitter

Jon Lester threw a no hitter at Fenway last night!
0 hits, 2 walks, 130 pitches over 9 innings, and 1 spectacular Ellsbury catch

Colon To Pitch For BoSox

Looks like we'll get our first taste of Bartolo Colon on Wednesday! He gave up only 1 hit in 6 innings with Pawtucket last Thursday.

Vizquel the answer?

ESPN's Peter Gammons is reporting that the Sox may look at the Giant's 11-time Gold Glover Omar Vizquel as a solution at shortstop, if Lugo doesn't get his act together defensively.

Manny Being Manny

This is too hysterical:

All Your Bats Are Belong To Us

Despite all of the fuss about the lack of offense from the Sox (at least before their sweep of the Dev- er, the Rays), they are currently first in the AL in average, OBP, and runs scored, and second to the Tigers in slugging. Not surprisingly, that also makes them first in OPS.

Also, despite being a middling seventh in the league in ERA, they lead the league in strikeouts.

Ellsbury

On 5/3 against Tampa, Ellsbury in the lead-off spot singled in the first to launch an exciting evening for the Sox offense. Here he prepares to smack a double in the 7th.

Moss has surgery; Sox over Tampa 12-4

Brandon Moss had his appendix removed at MGH during the late innings of the game Saturday night according to Terry Francona. His illness was first thought to be intestinal flu, but he was taken to the hospital before the game, where he was promptly treated.  Moss's homer Friday night sparked a 5 run 4th inning in the Sox 7-3 victory over Tampa Bay.

Saturday's 12-4 Sox win was played in chilly but dry weather which felt more like November than May. The cold did not stop the Sox offense. Though Beckett struggled in the early innings, he tightened up to pitch 8 innings, allowing 4 runs and 7 hits, striking out 5 and walking 1.

His own pinch hitter

The batting line for Diamondbacks' sophomore starting pitcher Micah Owings for his career? .354 avg, .388 obp, .671 slugging. Wow.