Yesterday afternoon at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Boston Red Sox starter Clay Buchholz showed he was an like a really old pipe in an abandoned building. He was full of rust.
The last time Buchholz had pitched in the big leagues was back on June 26th in San Francisco when he had to leave the game after suffering a hamstring injury while running the bases. He only made one rehab start before being activated yesterday and maybe just maybe, he might have needed another one at the very least.
Instead, John Farrell and Terry Francona decided that it would be best for Buchholz to rejoin the rotation but young Clay's start didn't go exactly as hoped. He lasted just 4+ innings, throwing 87 pitches while facing 24 batters. He ended up being charged with five runs on six hits and three walks. But it's nothing really to worry about though for Buchholz as this was probably expected.
What hurts the most about yesterday's game is the fact that the first place New York Yankees and second place Tampa Bay Rays each won yesterday to increase their leads over the Red Sox. The Red Sox are now seven games behind the Yankees and 4.5 games behind the Rays. It hurts because of the fact that the Red Sox had an opportunity to pick up a game on each the previous night and failed to do so.
The season isn't over by no means (still 67 to go folks) but when you have a chance to cut into a lead, you really need to make the most of it.
The magical story of Daniel Nava has come to end for now as well as after the game, the Red Sox optioned Nava back to Triple-A Pawtucket to make room for Jeremy Hermida. Nava did a great job though filling in as he hit .286 with a home run and 16 RBIs in 29 games. I think he'll be back sooner rather than later.
We'll end on a positive note here as Michael Bowden recovered from allowing the winning run on Tuesday night to pitch 1 1/3 innings of no-run baseball. He did allow two hits and a walk but it was a good bounce back game for him, one that should keep his confidence high.
That's all I got for now. We'll be back tonight with the starting lineups against the Seattle Mariners as well as the batter/pitcher matchups, any news and links from the day but for now enjoy the overnight links by clicking on the read more button below.