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Hopefully you read one of my last posts regarding Johan Santana as the NL MVP for 2009 (http://www.majorleagueblogging.com/baseball-news/mets-rotation-johan-santanamvp-trade-needed/). Basically it gave Johan Santana’s stats up to that point and iterated the need for a starting pitcher via trade.

In Santana’s 1 loss, he had a line of 7 innings; 3 hits; 2 runs (BOTH UNEARNED); 1 walk; and 13 strikeouts. Unfortunately, he went up against Josh Johnson/FLA. Last night he went up against Chan Ho Park/PHL (horrendous). Nauseatingly, Park went 6 innings; 1 hit; 2 walks; 1 HBP; and 5 strikeouts. Santana 1-Up’ed him (not in hits) going 7 innings; 2 hits; 3 walks; and 10 strikeouts.

Johan Santana is now 4-1 with a .91 ERA and a .91 WHIP. He’s got 54 K’s in 39.2 IP. He’s 2nd in the NL in wins; 1st in strikeouts; 2nd in WHIP; and 1st in ERA.

Prior to last night’s game he was giving up 1.1 runs a game and was only getting 2.2 runs a game from his offense. Now he’s given up only .91 runs a game (not even a run a game!) and in last night’s win, he got less than half his 2.2 runs a game support. The Mets really need to start provding him with some runs. No matter how much I stress that statement, it will still be the understatement of the world.

Johan Santana is still undefeated against the Phillies, the Mets new and beyond obvious, nemesis. He is now 3-0 lifetime against the Phillies in 7 career starts with a 2.44 ERA – phenomenal.

Johan Santana now has 31% of the Mets wins on the season. With complete concerns and inconsistency from Mike Pelfrey, Livan Hernandez, Oliver Perez, and John Maine (pitched solid other than bb’s in his past 2 starts), Johan Santana is infinitely important. I understand that the CY Young is the award to receive for a pitcher, and it epitomizes how great of a season a starter had, however, the MVP is how fantastic a player is and helps his team. There’s no doubt in my mind that Johan Santana at this point is the NL MVP and should be by season’s end. Of course the obvious competition is Albert Pujols/1b-STL. He is absolutely amazing: .364avg-28r-11hr-31rbi-4sb-.467obp-.747slg-1.215ops. According to ESPN, he’s on pace for 167r-66hr-185rbi-24sb. These stats are sensational. He’s the best hitter in the MLB. And if those stolen bases keep up he’ll be by far the best fantasy player (even with out them he will be). If you’re willing to trade him for needed roster slots, you better get a top notch player at each position you need: I’m talking Youkilis/1b; Hamels/sp; McCann/c. And then you can provide an extraneous SP & C back (just a wee-bit of fantasy talk).

Honestly, it’s up in the air, and Albert Pujols (#1 overall on ESPN Player Rater) is so utterly valuabe to the Cardinals. They have other hitters performing right now though – Ryan Ludwick/of; Chris Duncan/of; and Yadier Molina/c. They also have 3 starting pitchers performing well: Joel Pineiro; Kyle Lohse; and of course Mets’ horror Adam Wainwright. I’ve explained before in my last post. The Mets have solid offense: Reyes-Murphy-Beltran-Delgado-Wright, but they only have one great starter: Johan Santana (#5 overall on ESPN Player Rater) – http://games.espn.go.com/flb/playerrater?

That Michael Bowdin, Chris Carter, Nick Green, Gil Velazquez, Jonathan Van Every, Jeff Bailey, and Hunter Jones would all have time in the Major Leagues so far, Justin Masterson was starting for Daisuke Matsuzaka, Jed Lowrie was injured, and David Ortiz is still looking for his first home run, but the Sox were 5-0 against the Yankees and second place behind the Blue Jays, how many of you would believe me?

All of those scenarios have turned out to be true, the mighty Yankees and Rays are struggling to keep pace, and the Toronto Blue Jays hold a one game lead over the Red Sox. It is still early and the Bule Jays are not as deep as last year’s Rays were, so the current standings are likely to shift come September, but for the moment Toronto is the top dog in the powerhouse that is the American League East.

The Red Sox, for the most part, are flying under the radar here in New England thanks to the defending champion Boston Celtics playing an epic seven-game series with the Chicago Bulls, and let’s not forget the Boston Bruins, who went from 8thplace last year to the best team team in the history of the Eastern Conference. With the Bruins and Carolina Hurricanes playing hockey, the Celtics and Orlando Magic playing basketball, and the Red Sox taking on the Cleveland Indians, you can be sure the Boston talk shows will have a lot of topics in the morning.

The Red Sox’ strong first month, despite fielding the kind of ballclubyou would expect in September, shows the kind of depth and management the Red Sox have. One recurring theme on the Yankees posts by the Gormans about Joe Girardi’s inability to manage a successful ballclub has me realizing how lucky us fans in Boston are to have the genius of a manager we do in Terry Francona. Tito is the cog that makes this ballclub go, and you have to believe that without him running the show we may still be waiting for our first championship since 1918. Red Sox management should do what ever they can to keep this guy around for the next, oh say 15 years.

The 15-inning rubber game of the Mariners-Athletics series this weekend marked an important turning point for The Team No One Believed In. Coming back during the first nine innings to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth, falling behind by three runs in the 13th but recovering to win on a Jose Lopez single, the Mariners demonstrated that they have the drive to win, regardless of the circumstances. After 33 innings of baseball this weekend, the team still poured onto the field to congratulate Lopez, who also won Friday’s game with a single in the bottom of the ninth. 

A real team has appeared in Seattle this season.

The Wak Ball of the early games has given way to a more traditional hit-and-run game in the last week, but the M’s are still finding ways to grind out wins. Jason Vargas, who won today’s game after two-and-a-third innings of relief, made his 2009 debut, following the long-absent Denny Stark, whose last pitch in the majors was five years ago. Mike Sweeney also contributed his first home run of the season, as did catcher Kenji Johjima, fresh off the disabled list as of Friday. Franklin Gutierrez and Yunieksy Betancourt have both built their averages up to be consistent bottom-of-the-order contributors. The offense of the team is firing on all cylinders in clutch situations. 

The five-run rule, laid out here, has held up and is essential to the Mariners continuing their winning ways. The team has won all but one of the games in which they scored more than five runs and held the opponent to less than five, 10 games in all (almost exactly the 85% of wins in this situation I predicted, though it was little more than a lucky estimate). The M’s have lost 10 games in which they scored less than five runs. The difference, which accounts for the team’s surprising and pleasing 15-10 record, is the five games in which the the M’s pulled a win out in low-scoring games, when both teams scored fewer than five runs. 

Good pitching has made the real difference. Hernandez, Bedard and Washburn have pitched well. Jakubauskus pitched well today, and he was great in his two-hit loss to the White Sox last Tuesday. 

But there are still some weaknesses. Carlos Silva was horrible again on Friday night. I believe Chris Jakubauskas, today’s starter, would be pitching for wins instead of finding his footing if he’d taken Silva’s place on the roster at the beginning of the season. The good news is that GM Jack Zduriencik has given Silva an ultimatum about his performance, the bad news is that there isn’t a clearly prepared replacement candidate at Tacoma. After Vargas’ promotion, Garrett Olson is the closest to a major-league starter. 

It’s time for Zduriencik to package one of the many catchers he has–Jeff Clement has played better since being sent back to Tacoma–with a pitching prospect in the lower minors to get another quality starter, a number four or five guy to lock down at least 11 more wins this season, which Silva won’t deliver.

Jonathan Van Every has had one of the most unique weeks in baseball. He came off the DL and placed on a team right in the middle of an 11-game winning streak. The game following their first loss, Van Every was the hero with a diving catch and a 10th inning home run that won the game for Boston. Last night in a 13-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays Sox manager Terry Francona decided against using anymore pitchers. Van Every swapped positions with Javier Lopez, who went to right field, and pitched 2/3 of an inning, giving up no runs.

Van Every is the 2nd position player to pitch this season, the first being Nick Swisher who did it a few weeks ago when Tampa was blowing out the New York Yankees. Van Every is the first position player since David McCarty to pitch for the Red Sox. McCarty pitched in 2004.

Fresh off a three game sweep of the Bronx Bombers, the Red Sox took to Progressive Field to extend their winning streak. Jason Bay hit a 9th inning 3-run home run to finally crack the scoreboard. The Indians got a run back off closer Jonathan Papelbon, but Cinco Ocho held on for the save.

Tim Wakefield pitched a jem for the Sox, lasting seven innings giving up just one hit. Cliff Lee almost matched him by going eight innings giving up five hits. The bullpens ultimately picked up the decisions, with Manny Delcarmen picking up the win and Kerry Wood taking the loss.

Julio Lugo returned to the team after his stint on the disabled list but did not play. The two teams are back in action tomorrow night at 7:05. Brad Penny will pitch for the Red Sox and Anthony Reyes will take the ball for the Tribe.

The phrase has been used all around Boston for a few days, mostly as a tribute to the Bruins sweeping the Montreal Canadiens in the playoffs. Now, it can also be linked to the three game series that was recently played between the Red Sox and Yankees.

After two straight games lasting at least four hours each, it’s nice to see them actually play a game closer to three hours in length. The game was all Red Sox for most of the game. New York struck for a run in the 3rd, after which the Sox immediately answered. In the 5th, the Red Soxgot RBIs from David Ortiz and JD Drew, with one more run coming off a steal of home by Jacoby Ellsbury.

Justin Masterson pitched well, in 5.1 innings, surrendering just the one New York run. Michael Bowdin, who was called up for the game, pitched two scoreless innings, paving the way for Takashi Saito, who picked up the save in the absence of Jonathan Papelbon.

Tim Wakefield gets the ball in tonight’s game as he opposes the defending Cy Young Award winner Cliff Lee and the Indians. Micahel Bowdin, who pitched well against the Yankees, will head back to Triple-A Pawtucket to free up roster space for shortstop Julio Lugo, who is returning from an injury.

All I can say is WOW – is it possible that my poisonous analysis about the Giants’ bullpen was way off?

Yesterday after the Big Unit went only three and a third, Miller, Sanchez, Howry, Affeldt and Wilson gave up only 1 run on 5 hits and no walks through five and two thirds innings.

The biggest hit of the game was Renteria’s two out, two run CLUTCH hit in the top of the fifth.  Scherzer throws really hard for the D’Backs, and it was looking like the Giants were going to strand some baserunners.  But instead Renteria absolutely pounded the ball to dead center.  It was a Barroid 2 iron type of line drive off the wall.  Then Randy Winn came up and hit a 2-run HR to put the Giants up 4-2.

I love these multi-run innings we’re seeing from the Giants offense.  This team is still one big bat away – but there sure are signs of life that weren’t there last year.

The only criticism that I had of yesterday’s game is that Rowand needs to figure out a way to make contact when the situation calls for it.  He went down on three straight pitches yesterday when there were runners on.  I don’t know what his plan of attack was, but he was way late on fastballs from a pitcher that had been throwing heat all game.  Rowand’s had a couple of big homeruns in the young season – but he can’t be that easy of an out when he’s batting fifth.

The Red Sox have really impressed me over the past two games. My biggest question about the ‘09 Sox was what kind of effort they would give when they are down big or down late. On Friday, they showed me they wouldn’t quit when they were down, and today they showed me they wouldn’t quit when they were down big.

A pair of runs in the 1st, 3rd, and 4th innings put Boston down 6-0 heading into the bottom of the 4th. Jason Bay, one of last night’s heroes, singled in a run and Jason Varitek it a Grand Slam to draw the Red Sox within one run. A back-and-forth battle ensued, until a four run 8th inning for the Red Sox put them ahead 16-11. New York battled in the 9th but couldn’t score off Jonathan Papelbon, who closed the game out despite not being in a save situation. The top of the 9th was the first scoreless half-inning since the top of the 5th.

Josh Beckett had early struggles but he calmed down later in the game while AJ Burnett was cruising. As Beckett settled down, Burnett began to unravel. Both Jonathan Albaladejo and Hideki Okajima picked up blown saves, while Okajimapicked up the win in relief with Albaladejo took the loss.

The game was nerve-racking all the way through, and definitely tough on the managers. This was one of the best examples of the large difference between the two managers of the teams. Terry Francona managed the game well, using just four of his relief pitchers compared to the six burned out by Joe Girardi. He also kept the bench deep for a potential extra-inning game, while New York utilized every one of their players except Jose Molina. The Red Sox appear poised for the sweep due to a surplus of fresh players while the Yankees most likely feel slightly more sluggish.

Red Sox Notes

Mike Lowell had a big game offensively, driving in six runs on a home run and a double. Jason Varitek will most likely sit tomorrow after having to catch two straight games lasting about 4 1/2 hours each. Jonathan Papelbon is expected to be unavailable after pitching in back-to-back games. Takashi Saito will most likely close the game if there is a save situation. Justin Masterson will make his second start of the season against Andy Pettitte. The game will be telivised on ESPN, a big step up from the senseless rambling of Joe Buck and Tim McCarver.

It was all but a New York win. The Yankees were up 4-2 withMariano Rivera in for the save. With Kevin Youkilis at second base, Jason Bay took a 1-0 pitch to center field, with it just clearing the red line on the Green Monster for a 2-run home run.

In extra innings, Jonathan Papelbon and Ramon Ramirez worked out of jams to keep the score tied. Damaso Marte threw a 1-2-3 10th inning, and was off to a good start in the 11th, striking out David Ortiz. Youkilis was up next, and pulled a 2-2 fastball over the outside corner into the back row of the Monster seats.

Jon Lester had to pitch around some early jams, but he was ultimitely effecive, going six innings while giving up two runs. Joba Chamberlain had a similar outing, giving up two runs in 5.1 innings. Mariano Rivera blew his first save of the year and his 12th overall against Boston. Ramon Ramirez picked up the win in relief.

Game 2 of the series is at 4:00 on FOX. AJ Burnett faces Josh Beckett, who looks to deliver Boston it’s 9th straight win.

Two years ago, a young lefty named Kason Gabbard was called up to replace an injured Curt Schilling. Gabbard had a great stint, culminating with a complete game shutout against the Kansas City Royals. He was traded to the Rangers along with prospect David Murphy for Eric Gagne. Despite a good few months in Texas and a similar 2008 season, he has been used in the minor leagues so far in 2009.

Gabbard was reacquiredby the Sox for cash considerations today, and will report to  the Red Sox’ Spring Training facility in Ft. Myers, FL. He will most likely start in the minors, but should the Sox need a replacement for Justin Masterson, who will take the rotation spot vacated by Daisuke Matsuzaka. If another starter is needed, Clay Bucholz would most likely be the first to fill the void. We can expect to see Gabbard no later than September.

After having a day-night doubleheader on Wednesday and a day off on Thursday, the Yankees will visit Fenway on Friday for a three game series. Jon Lester will face Joba Chamberlain.