10:29 Abreu puts away out #1.  This might not be the Sox night.

10:30 Two quick outs.

10:31 Only the third hit of the night for the Sox–off the bat of Pedroia.  DON ORSILLO IS ON TBS!!!! Ahem. Scuse us.  THAT was homerism.

10:34 VMart takes a walk “patiently” on 4 pitches? That’s the quickest walk you can get, last we checked….

10:36 Suddenly, Lackey is looking vulnerable.  3-1 to Youk.  This is the batter you want right now, for sure, but now it’s a full count.

10:37 Sox strand two, though the play by Figgins was pretty interesting at third.

Probably.

9:47 Oh, is there a baseball game occuring?  V-Mart grounds out.

9:49 Youkilis Ks. He is unhappy.  The strikezone in this game is inonsistent at best….He’s the Greek God of Walks.  He knows from strike zone, Joe West!

9:51 Ortiz struck out. On a real strike.

Has anyone else noticed these Verizon commercials feature a snappily orchestrated version of the “Inspector Gadget” themesong?

8:49 Oh, Chone, Chone.  You do know your name is spelled wrong, right?  Really.  In what universe does a silent “e” at the end give something other than a long vowel?  Perhaps a universe where you do not ground out uneventfully on the second pitch you see.

8:52 Full-count walk gives the first baserunner of the game to the Angels.  Abreu walks.  V,-Mart, who has caught every Sox starter at least twice this year, is going to prove invaluable offensively and probably defensively as well, but if I were a batter, I’d be relieved it isn’t Tek behind me.  (Meanwhile, if you add together the two catchers’ caught stealing percentages in terms of batters they throw out, you get…almost 20%. Oy.)

8:54 Hunter’s fly ball to short left gives two down.

8:56 Vlad Guerrero just took a pitch.  In other news, Satan’s feeling a chill…

8:58 Mike Lowell’s knees are shot…and HE DOESN’T CARE.  Nice play ends the half.

OK, Angels, we’re ready.  As Kristen Dunst once said, “bring it.”  (By the way, we’d think we were going to lose this series, except that, as the montage that just played showed, it’s the Angels.  The Sox dominate the Angels, like, bad. If it were any other team, Sox would lose their shirts–they’ve been playing TERRIBLY.)

We’d say we wanna do the Sox lineup, but we wouldn’t really mean it, at least that’s the story we’re sticking to.  But seriously, top to bottom baseball goodness, right back to Gonzalez in the 9 spot. (Nothin’ like a little former World Series karma for you…)

8:39 Jacoby Ellsbury is already working the count.  This Angel team is “more Dodger like than this edition of the Dodgers.”  Oh, TBS.  Full count to Ellsbury–he has a serious eye.  He grounds out, but he makes it fun…boy is QUICK.

8:40 Pedroia is 6-16 against Lackey.  (Apparently, Lackey doesn’t throw the high and inside.)  And…ok, then Lackey threw one. Pedroia swung through.  A grounder to first, two down.  Lackey has clearly seen that commercial.  (And if you haven’t, do yourself a favor and click that link.)

8:42 First comparison to 2004 team. (Drink!)  Both teams made key acquisitions.  This one, clearly, is V-Mart.

8:45 What exactly is the ump wearing? Is it a blazer? REALLY?  PS Baseball is the only sport with intensive crotch shots….are catchers ever embarassed?  (V-Mart flew (flied?) out uneventfully. )

Lackey needed 21 pitches to go one two three, and hasn’t even faced Youk yet.  This could be good…

Alex Gonzalez to the Red Sox

The struggling Sox’ current best defensive lineup would feature Casey Kotchman (recently acquired from Atlanta after spending years with the Angels) at first, Kevin Youkilis at third.  But the Sox can’t hit lately, and as a result they need the resurgent Mike Lowell in their lineup daily as long as his body holds up.  THAT, in turn, means they need some compensatory defense at short, since Lowell–a gold glove third baseman–doesn’t have the range he once did, especially this year given his injury.  Gonzalez isn’t a heavy bat, but his range to his right is phenomenal, so acquiring him means you can slot Lowell back in at third and let Youk and Victor Martinez have the days off they want or need at first without sacrificing power entirely.  This is big.

Alex Rios to the White Sox

This one was the shocker: a longtime Blue Jay put on waivers–salary dump, clearly.  Four teams professed interest or put in claims, the White Sox won the war.  Rios can play all three outfield positions, giving the White Sox a way to rest the aging Jermaine Dye and Scott Podsednik.  He hits lefties and righties about equally well, too, so you can put him in the lineup every day.  And so far, his RBI numbers have made a difference.  To us, this could push the White Sox over the top.

Greg Zaun and Russ Springer to Tampa Bay Rays

Zaun has spent time with many clubs, mostly Baltimore.  He gives the Rays the kind of veteran bench presence they need if they’re going to pull it together and contend again in their “young guys reaching the playoffs for the first time” mode, as last year.  Springer, a bullpen pitcher claimed off waivers from the As, has bounced around like crazy, but is arguably a serviceable bullpen arm against a righty-heavy lineup (lefties bat .352 off him this year, which means he’ll be useless against the Yankees, but useful against the Sox, both of whom the Rays have to deal with if they want to make the playoffs.)  His ERA on the year is actually slightly lower than his career ERA, and in the last 30 days, his ERA’s under 3. 00.  Good acquisitions both, though under the radar.

Carl Pavano to the Minnesota Twins

…Actually, we’re kidding.  We think Pavano’s done.

Daniel Cabrera to the Diamondbacks

Cabrera is an enigma…he was supposed to be so good, but has struggled with command despite at times having overpowering stuff.  He’s still a couple years shy of thirty and can hit the high nineties on the gun, but Baltimore kept using him as a starter and finding they couldn’t depend on him.  In last year’s down market, he went unsigned in the off season.  The Diamondbacks can use his speed, assuming he can be consistent.  He’s not currently on the roster, so we don’t know how much of a difference he’ll make, but he’s worth noting.

These won’t be the last of them, as we’re still waiting for a lot of people–Ryan Freel et al–to clear waivers or be claimes, but in the meantime who else do you think made a difference? Sound off in the comments….

Forthwith, a little analysis.

At the trade deadline, the Indians sent Victor Martinez to the Red Sox, in return receiving pitcher Justin Masterson and prospects Bryan Price and Nick Hagadone.  Unquestionably the deal of the deadline, but that’s not really news.  A lot of analysis, Jayson Stark in particular, says the Indians won’t be any good ’til 2012 at the earliest.

Lies, we say.

Masterson projects as solid long relief, with the ability to spot start or even re-convert to a starter if need be.  He’s been pitching relief since his time at San Diego State, but his college career began as a starter at Bethel College.  He’s started occasionally for the Red Sox, particularly last season, starting 9 games in 2008. In those starts, he pitched 54 innings and had an ERA under 4.  The most telling stat? In his 2008 starts, Masterson help opponents to just a .206 batting average.  The Indians have decimated their major league level starting pitching in recent months, losing Sabathia and, last week, trading Cliff Lee.  Masterson isn’t the answer to that problem, but he’s more than a stopgap when your starter doesn’t come through, and his big game mentality shouldn’t be underestimated.  If someone takes a chance on converting him to a starter, the Indians might have a solid #4 or #5 option.

As for Price, Hagadone, and, while we’re at it, Martinez with the Sox?

Now, we don’t know if Jayson Stark has had the opportunity to see Bryan Price pitch, but UPH has.  He had Tommyjohn surgery in college, came back stronger, and threw so hard for scouts in his senior year at Rice that his control was a little spotty at times.   Nevertheless, the following facts are true:

1. Kid throws heat.  His average fastball is close to 95 and he can top out at 97.

2. When he’s rattled, he’s pretty rattled. But…

3. He’s not so easy to rattle.

In a shortened season in his last year at Rice, Price earned 4 wins out of the pen.  The Sox were looking to make him a starter, and if the Indians keep that up, we think, barring setbacks, you could see him at AAA and having a cup of coffee in 2011, not 2012.

Hagadone?  He has also had Tommyjohn surgery, but currently tops out at 98 mph.  Not clear if he’s going to be a starter or a reliever, but it looks to us like the Indians are giving themselves a heck of a lot of options in terms of flexible arms that can throw a lot of pitches.

As for V-Mart?  Well, consider the facts: he has a year and a half left on his contract.  He cried when he left Cleveland, and has never played anywhere else.  The Indians organization spoke publically about how much it loves him.  It wouldn’t surprise UPH at all if there’s somewhat of an informal understanding: Martinez leaves, but comes back ASAP, with a hometown discount of course, to mentor Cleveland’s hot-stuff young pitching staff in 2011.  If Carmona can get some consistency, what you have in Cleveland is, we think, what you call a contendah, and sooner that everyone thinks.

Hey, it could happen…you heard it here first.