The Boston Red Sox have arrived in our Nation’s Capital for a three game series with the Washington Nationals which begins tonight. It’s the first of three stops for the Sox on this road trip. As they also have stops in Atlanta and also in Baltimore to face the Braves and the Orioles. The Sox 42-27 on the year enter this series four games ahead of the Yankees in the AL East, while the Nationals are dead last (again) in the NL East with a 20-47 record.
It’s the tale of two very different baseball teams as the Sox have been in contention all season long and currently sit atop the AL East. Sox manager Terry Francona has pretty much been able to sit back and relax the majority of the season. Since the Sox have been playing some pretty impressive baseball this season. Yes, they’ve dealt with a few health issues (Jed Lowrie, Julio Lugo and now Daisuke Matsuzaka) but fortunately for Francona and the Sox organization they made the right moves during the off-season.
As the team signed Penny (1 year), John Smoltz and Nick Green to contracts, just in case something like (the injury bug) hits the Sox during the course of the season. All three of these signings have paid off for the Sox this season as Penny has been simply put, “awesome” on the mound. Eat your freak-in hearts out New York fans! Penny’s a hell of a lot better than those “two bums” (C.C. Sabathia and A.J. Burnett) you call pitchers that the Yankees signed in the off-season.
He’s eating up innings, kept the team in just about every game he starts, and he’s given the Sox 7 quality starts over the season. Even better he only cost the team about $5 million, as opposed to the bums you signed that robbed your club for close to $250 million. Penny has 6 wins (should be more) and your band of idiots have 11 total between the two of them. I’m thinking someone got screwed here, and it wasn’t the Sox baby!
Plus it’s not even the All-Star break yet, so who knows what’s still to come from the big man over the seasons second half. Now for Smoltz, who makes his 2009 and Red Sox in the series finale. It’s been a long road for him getting to this point. He went through his surgery late last season, has endured stops throughout the entire Red Sox farm system and also from the critics that have said he’s done. The time is NOW for Smoltz to squash the rumors and the nay-sayers and just play ball. Good luck Smoltz, I’m only wishing I could see that ball game in person!
The Nationals will be showcasing three young and still very unproven pitchers in this series, as they send John Lannan (4-5), Craig Stammen (1-2) and Jordan Zimmermann (2-3) to the hill. To face the heavy hitting and very potent Sox offense. The Sox meanwhile will send Brad Penny (6-2), Jon Lester (5-6) and Smoltz (0-0) to the mound verse the Nationals in this three game series.
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