Saturday, July 01, 2006

One Streak Ends, Another Goes On

The Red Sox' 12-game winning streak came to an end last night before a decidely pro-Red Sox crowd in Miami last night, as the Marlins won 5-2. Jason Johnson was terrible in his Red Sox debut, allowing five runs in his first two innings. It was interesting that when he came up to bat in the third, Johnson was booed by the Red Sox throng (no, they weren't chanting "Youk"). He clearly isn't the answer to the Red Sox number 5 starter situation.

The Mets lost in the Bronx to the Yankees, 2-0, so the Red Sox lead is now at three games.

Despite the loss, the Red Sox played their 17th consecutive errorless game, a new major league record. This team could very well be one of the greatest, if not the best, fielding club in baseball history. They are on a pace to commit just 49 errors, which would obliterate the Seattle Mariners record of 2003. Curt Schilling called this team "the best defense that's ever played behind me."

Pitching and defense wins championships. The defense is without doubt world championship-caliber. Mike Lowell, Alex Gonzalez and Mark Loretta all deserve Gold Gloves, but that award is generally a popularity contest among players, managers and coaches, so we'll find out after the season.

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