Here we go: a chance to win the opening series of the season against one of the league’s best teams. Can’t ask for much more than that.
What to watch for: If the Dice-K who walks everyone and is at 100 pitches in the 4th inning is on the the hill, the Rays’ offense could do some good things.
Scouting Report on today’s starters from MLB.com:
Matt Garza - Garza has the best stuff on the Rays staff, which he put on display while claiming MVP honors during last season’s American League Championship Series — particularly in Game 7 when he shut down the Red Sox to claim the win. At age 25, the right-hander seems to be maturing on the mound, where he has experienced problems controlling his emotions in the past. The one thing he has lacked is consistency, as he has been either lights-out or didn’t have it. He needs to better learn how to win when he doesn’t have his best stuff. Garza is 3-1 with a 3.86 ERA in six career starts against the Red Sox; he is 2-1 with a 4.50 ERA in three career starts at Fenway Park.
Daisuke Matsuzaka - Dice-K didn’t win any contests for pitching artistry last year, but he got the job done, finishing fourth in the American League Cy Young Award voting. The Red Sox hope for more control and efficiency out of Matsuzaka this year, as he walked 94 batters in 167 2/3 innings. However, he led the Majors in opponents batting average, limiting them to .211. He was fifth in the American League with 8.27 strikeouts per nine innings. Matsuzaka is 17-7 with a 4.10 ERA in 30 career starts at Fenway. He is 2-3 with a 3.75 ERA in eight starts against the Rays.
| TAMPA BAY RAYS |
BOSTON RED SOX |
| 2B – Akinori Iwamura | CF – Jacoby Ellsbury |
| LF – Carl Crawford | 2B – Dustin Pedroia |
| 3B - Evan Longoria | DH – David Ortiz |
| 1B – Carlos Pena | 1B – Kevin Youkiilis |
| DH – Willy Aybar | RF – J.D. Drew |
| CF – Matt Joyce | LF – Jason Bay |
| RF – Gabe Gross | 3B – Mike Lowell |
| C – Shawn Riggans | SS – Jed Lowrie |
| SS – Jason Bartlett | C – Jason Varitek |
Be sure to join us in the chat room for some good Rays talk during the game!!!
Tags: Red Sox
April 9th, 2009 at 5:13 pm
VICTORY!!! MATT Fuc*ing JOYCE sets the tone!
April 9th, 2009 at 6:04 pm
2 out of 3 Ain’t BAD — Haz wasn’t Bad just a little naughty