Big Fat Bartolo Colon. Masterful. Two words you do not usually hear in the same sentence as of late. But alas, Big Fat Bartolo pitched 7 strong innings of 5 hit, 4 strikeout baseball on only 84 pitches to ultimately send Mariners fans home with a 7th straight loss. Colon had his best stuff against the Ms. His fastball was always around 93-95 MPH, and occasionally hit 97. His change-up was moving well and located with pristine accuracy. His slider was left up in the zone at times, but ultimately did not get punished like it should have. If you are a fantasy baseball player, take a chance on Colon. His velocity is higher than it has been since 2004.
Another key player in the Red Sox win was Dustin Pedroia. In the top of the 8th inning, with the game tied at 1-1, Pedroia hit a ground rule double to score Julio Lugo. Pedroia would later come around to score himself after getting the 4 run 8th inning started.
The Sox went on to win 5-3, after Ichiro drove in a run in the bottom of the ninth against Papelbon and Kenji Johjima scored on a wild pitch.
For the Red Sox, this is a great sign. With Colon healthy, the Red Sox now have 7 reliable starters, with another (Schilling) on the DL. When Bucholtz returns, I would expect either Colon or Wakefield to be sent to the bullpen to take over long relief and spot start duties. Wakefield may be a stretch to go there, as he has proven to be a clutch starter for this team.
On the Mariners side, just more disappointment. They fail to capitalize on a solid start by Felix Hernandez. Who is to blame for this loss? I place it on John McLaren. Felix had upwards of 85 pitches entering the 8th innings, so there is no need to bring him back out there and subject him to this powerful Boston lineup. Could you blame the hitting? Sure. But you can also blame them for most every loss this season. Face it Mariner fans, this season is over. Hopefully the team realizes it and starts to play its young players and trades away aging ones for young prospects to build for the future.
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