Braves 5, Red Sox 1

 

. . . Aaaaaand we're back to losing again. The Braves' Spencer Schwellenbach and the Atlanta bullpen shut out the Red Sox and gave up only five hits the entire game, while Buehler gave up five runs on 10 hits in 5.2 innings. Do I have to do the math for you?

The Sox are three games back . . . from third place Toronto. They're 5½ games ahead of last place Baltimore and falling.

This road series is tied, 1-1, and the rubber game is tomorrow (1:35). Garrett Crochet (4-4, 2.04) will start against Bryce Elder (2-2, 4.50), who the Sox didn't face during the Braves' visit to Fenway.  

Red Sox 5, Braves 1

 

I had to check that score twice to make sure I didn't have the teams mixed up. We've been on the ass end of scores like that the last week or so. But yes, the Boston Red Sox came to Trap City and beat the Braves on their home field, 5-1, outhitting them by 11-6.

Trevor Story homered and Devers hit a two-RBI single. Giolito gave up one run in the first but otherwise kept the Braves scoreless, and a total of five pitchers out of the bullpen gave up only one hit over 5.1 innings. Reliever Garrett Whitlock (4-0, 3.68) got the win.

THAT'S how you play baseball!

Let's keep this going. Tomorrow, Walker Buehler (4-2, 3.95) faces Spencer Schwellenbach (3-4, 3.42), who went seven innings and beat us in Fenway back on May 18. Game starts at 4:10.

Brewers 6, Red Sox 5

 

Most of the recent losses, and lord knows there's been a bunch of them lately, have been the fault of the flacid batting. The rest of the losses, including today's, can be blamed on the bullpen.

The batters did what they had to do today - they scored five runs, equal to their last four games combined. Raffy hit a three-run homer in the fourth, Abreu hit a solo homer in the 7th to tie up the game, and in the 10th, Hamilton brought Sogard home with an infield grounder.

But Justin Slaten wasn't able to get a single out in the 10th He gave up a single and then a Milwaukee runner scored on a fielder's choice to tie the game back up. The next batter got the go-ahead RBI on a sacrifice fly and that was that for the day - the Brewers win, 6-5 and sweep the Sox in three. 

This sucks. The fifth straight loss puts Boston (27-31) four games below .500, fourth place in the AL East and nine back from New York and falling, with the Yankees still left to play today.  

We're off tomorrow and I want you guys (I'm talking to the Sox here) to think long and hard about what you've done and how you're going to fix it. Next up, starting Friday, is a weekend series in Atlanta against the Braves, who ain't what they used to be but will still probably sweep the Sox unless some major adjustments are made.

Brewers 5, Red Sox 1

 

It's even worse - far worse - than the score suggests. It's Boston's fourth straight loss but worse, they led 1-0 going into the bottom of the 9th before the Brewers tied it and then hit a walk-off grand-slam home run in the 10th.

The Sox have scored only five runs in the last four games. The only run tonight was on a wild pitch. The team just seems incapable of scoring. The real tragedy isn't the grand salami in the 10th, it's that the Brewers were able to send it into extra innings with their only run of the game in the 9th. Just one more run - a 2-0 lead - would have won the game.

Jarren Duran went 0-5 with 4 strikeouts. Trevor Story went 0-4. Starting pitcher Richard Fitts made his first start since April 12, but lasted only three innings. 

We gotta play better than this. 

Brayan Bello (2-1, 4.08) will try to avoid the sweep tomorrow, but it doesn't matter how well he pitches if the batters don't generate more offense.

Everest Update

With warming conditions significantly deteriorating the Khumbu Icefall, it is no longer safe to pass above Base Camp, and the 2025 Everest season is most likely over. More than 300 climbers and Sherpas have summitted the mountain so far this season. Since it was first scaled by Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay in 1953, more than 8,000 people have climbed the mountain. 

Two climbers have died on the mountain this year and there have also been unconfirmed reports of other deaths. Impermanence is swift.

Sherpa guide Kami Rita completed the climb today for the 31st time, breaking the record he set last year. He reached the peak this morning by the traditional southeast ridge route while guiding a 22-member Indian army team and is currently descending to the lower camps.

Kami Rita first climbed Everest in 1994 and has done so every year except for three years when the mountain was closed to climbers for various reasons. Among non-Sherpa climbers, the record is held by British guide Kenton Cool who has accomplished the feat 19 times, followed by American climbers Dave Hahn and Garrett Madison with 15 times each. 

The record for the fastest climb overall is held by Sherpa Lakpa Gelu, who reached the top of the mountain in just under 11 hours. Climbing Everest typically takes weeks, with most of the time spent at the foot of the mountain adjusting to the thin air. But last week, four British climbers shrank that timeline dramatically, traveling from London to the summit and back in less than a week. They skipped the adjustment period, in part, by inhaling xenon gas.

The use of xenon gas is fiercely debated. Some research has shown that it can quickly acclimatize people to high altitudes, even as some experts say the benefits, if any, are negligible and the side effects of its use remain unclear. Doctors have used the gas in the past to precondition patients to low oxygen levels before major heart surgery. 

The xenon-assisted climb has been hotly debated. A spokesperson for Nepal’s tourism department said that use of the gas was against climbing ethics. He said that it could hurt the country’s tourism industry and the Sherpas who help climbers by reducing their time on the mountain.

The International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation has said there was no evidence that xenon gas improves performance and that inappropriate use can be dangerous. Xenon has also been on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s list of banned substances since 2014, although mountaineering is not a regulated competitive sport.

Since the first ascent in 1953, climbers have used a wide variety of techniques to improve performance and to open Everest to less athletic climbers. Even Hilary used Sherpa guides, Norgay among them, and use of bottled oxygen is commonplace. Hypoxic tents have been used by some climbers for years to help acclimatize, although not with xenon gas.

I find the use of the gas as a preconditioning, acclimatization aid less disturbing than the mentality that wants to reduce the climb to a seven-day door-to-door trip. From Base Camp, the British team took three days to climb to the summit, arguably one of the fastest times for a group that hadn’t acclimatized on the mountain, but otherwise unremarkable. And even though they hadn't yet arrived in Nepal, two weeks earlier the team spent time in Germany where they wore masks hooked up to ventilators as an anesthesiologist slowly introduced higher levels of xenon into their systems. Although remote, why doesn't that time away from home count as a part of their "door-to-door" climb time?

This season, American Tyler Andrews has been attempting to set a Fastest Known Time (FKT) ascent of Everest without supplemental oxygen. On the first attempt, on May 10-11, he turned around slightly above Camp 3, due to problems with his equipment. Last Friday, he tried again, this time with supplementary oxygen, but the high winds at the summit proved too strong to let him finish. That day, Karl Egloff of Ecuador, also attempting a FKT without oxygen, aborted shortly after Camp 3.

With weather forecasts promising good conditions for today, Andrews decided at the last minute yesterday to try a third attempt and set off for the summit last evening. But after a 17-hour, non-stop run without supplementary oxygen from Base Camp to above the Balcony, practically within touching distance of the summit, he turned around this morning, aborting his final attempt of this season.

Brewers 3, Red Sox 2

 

Obviously, a disappointing start to this road trip. But Garrett Crochet had a good outing - he gave up two runs, but he went 6.2 innings with 11 strikeouts and only two walks. However, the Boston bats didn't score a run until the 8th inning - every game lately has felt lie a pitcher's duel what with our paltry offensive effort. 

The Red Sox fall to 27-29 (.482), .001 ahead of fourth-place Toronto and seven full games back from first-place New York. And with all the injuries, it's still uncertain who will start the game on the mound tomorrow. 

 

Orioles 5, Red Sox 11

 

Oh, for fuck's sake, a SPLIT is the best Boston can do with the last-place Orioles? I mean, a .500 team is gonna go .500 in the long run, but it won't get any easier than this.

Starting pitcher Walker Buehler gave up two runs over five innings, including a solo home run, and relief pitcher Greg Weissert gave up another homer in the sixth. Meanwhile, the Sox went scoreless for eight innings until Toro finally singled a runner home in the bottom of the 9th. 

Congratulations, Boston: you've fallen down to third place, six games back from the Yankees. You're 27-28 on the season, one below .500. Sure, Casas and Yoshida are on the 60-day DL, and Bregman and González are on the 10-day list, and we have a total of six injured pitchers, but excuses aside we still need to do better than this.

Okay, tomorrow's another day. Let's put this rain-sodden weekend behind us and look forward. Tomorrow we have Garrett Crochet (4-3, 1.98) starting against the Milwaukee Brewer's Chad Patrick (2-4, 3.23) - surely we can get a win out of that matchup, right?

Right?

Orioles 2, Red Sox 1

There goes the sweep. I probably jinxed it by bringing it up in the earlier post today. Sorry.

The good news is that Giolito had a good outing. He pitched seven innings with no runs, six hits, and six Ks. The bad news is relievers Bernardino and Guerrero gave up two runs in the eighth and ninth.  Toro got  his second homer of the day in the ninth inning, but too little, too late and the Sox return to .500.

The Red Sox lead the series, 2-1, and Game 4 is tomorrow at 1:35. Walker Buehler (4-1, 4.00) will start for Boston; the Orioles will have Dear Kremer (3-5, 5.50) on the mound. 

Red Sox 6, Orioles 5

 

Hey, it took 10 innings and another rain postponement last night, but Boston beat Baltimore again to take a 2-0 lead in the series.

Devers singled to center in the 10th, scoring Rafaela, to win the game. But earlier, Duran and Abreu homered in the first, Toro homered in the fifth, and Narváez and Sogard got RBIs in the sixth. Hunter Dobbins gave up four runs on five hits over four innings, but also made seven strikeouts and only gave up one walk. Six relievers later, Greg Weissert got the win in the 10th. 

The Sox are back in second place, although still five back from New York, and at 27-26, are now one game over .500.  

Boston managed to get Game 3 (Giolito vs. Rogers) of the series underway tonight, and are scoreless after five innings. Let's take this game and complete a sweep Baltimore tomorrow - four consecutive wins would be a nice way to close out this homestand.  

Red Sox 19, Orioles 5

 

Are you kidding me? Thirteen runs in the eighth inning alone? I love playing these birds!

The Red Sox made up last night's rain-delayed game with a 19-5 shellacking of the last-place Baltimore Orioles this afternoon. Rafael Devers had a career-high eight RBIs, including a grand-slam homer in the eighth and a three-run homer in the sixth. Refsnyder got a three-run homer, too. And to think, Boston trailed in this game, 2-1, entering the sixth.

Brayan Bello pitched four innings, giving up two runs on six hits with seven strikeouts, but Garrett Whitlock got the win, his third of the season.

This was supposed to be a double-header today, but the second game is currently postponed due to more rain. Maybe another try for a double tomorrow?

Rainout

 

Can't buy a break. Just when we most need a few easy wins, tonight's game between the Red Sox and last-place Baltimore gets rained out. 

They'll try to make up for it with a double-header tomorrow, with the first game starting at 1:35.   

Mets 5, Red Sox 1

 

Well, we didn't sweep, but you still gotta like winning 2 of 3 against this year's Mets. 

These interleague games keep reminding me about 1986, Red Sox vs. Mets in the World Series, and especially Game 6, when we were one strike away from winning our first MLB championship since 1918. As everyone knows by now (Seinfeld even once did a bit about it), the grounder that would have ended the game and given us the trophy went between Bill Buckner's legs, the Mets won, and we had to wait until 2004 to finally win the Series.

So that's why beating the Mets 2 out of 3 games feels so good now.

This game was tied, 1-1, going into the seventh when reliever Liam Hendricks loaded the bases with no outs on three consecutive singles. Brennan Bernardino relieved Hendricks and promptly brought all three baserunners home (the runs were all scored to Hendricks). Francisco Lindor, the jackassy shortstop who was urging the ejections of Buehler and Cora last night and then laughing after they were booted, added an insurance run in the 9th with a homer. 

Positive side: we struck out Juan Soto three times in the game.. The m.f.'er did hit an RBI sac fly off Bernardino in that seventh inning, though.

Toronto crushed San Diego tonight, 14-0, so with this loss the Red Sox fall into third place, a half game back from the Jays and five back from New York. 

Next up is a nice, comforting four-game, Memorial Day weekend series against the last-place Orioles (16-32). Lucas Giolito (1-1, 7.08) will take the mound against Baltimore's Cade Povitch (1-3, 5.23) to continue his redemption arc. Let's sweep them birds and make up some lost ground in the AL East standings!   

Red Sox Shut Out Mets, 2-0

 

What a game! Raffey and Narváez both homered off of Mets pitcher Clay Holmes in the 5th. Red Sox starter Walker Buehler, back from almost a month on the DL, gets thrown out in the 3rd for saying "fuck you" to the ump after an obvious strike against Juan Soto was called a "ball." Alex Cora was thrown out too for defending Buehler.

Boston used seven pitchers to get this shut out. Garrett Whitlock came on in relief, didn't blow the lead, and wound up getting the win despite facing only four batters. 

The Red Sox are back to .500 (25-25) and are up 2-0 in this three-game home series against the Mets. Crochet (4-3, 2.00) faces Tyler Megill (3-4, 3.74) in the rubber match tomorrow night.    

Red Sox 3, Mets 1

 

The Red Sox win! Juan Soto goes 1-for-4 at bat! The bullpen doesn't blow a lead! It's time to celebrate!

Seriously. All the scoring got done early - in the first two innings, and all on a Bregman sacrifice grounder, a Story single, and a Duran triple. The Mets' lone run was on a single in the 3rd. Then Cora pulled starter Hunter Dobbins (5 hits, 1 run, 2 Ks) and went deep in the bullpen, pitching Justin Wilson (who got the win), Weissert, Slaten, and Aroldis Chapman (who got a save, his 7th).

The Sox are still under .500 and still 4½ back, but it feels good to get a quality win against a .604 ball team. Feels so good, we should do it again, say, tomorrow at 6:45, Walker Buehler (4-1, 4.28) vs. Clay Holmes (5-2, 3.14). 

Everest Update

 

So far this season, over 200 climbers have summitted Everest. On Sunday alone, 135 climbers reached the top and more are expected today before high winds resume this afternoon. In total, 47 teams consisting of 468 foreigners (86 women and 382 men) have received their climbing permits from the Nepal Department of Tourism this season. 

As always, the season has not been without its human cost. Last week, Subrata Ghosh of India died just below the Hillary Step during his descent from the summit. Another climber, Philipp Santiago II, from the same expedition died at Camp 4 on May 14 while preparing for his summit push. Two Sherpas have also died this season, both in the hospital after coming down with Acute Mountain Sickness at Base Camp. Impermanence is swift.

A Russian climber who had summited Everest late last week and descended to Camp 4 developed symptoms of AMS. She was unable to make it down to Camp 2 and had to be airlifted by longline helicopter from Camp 3.

Tyler Andrews, who had to abort his attempt to set a speed record for climbing Everest without supplementary oxygen earlier this month, has said he will try again this season. Crowds on the mountain may hinder his second run and he and his team are waiting until the big groups finish within the next few days to start their second attempt. 

The weather is expected to change this afternoon according to Everest's chief weather forecaster. Climbers have been encouraged to evacuate the upper mountain and descend to the lower camps as a large windstorm is forecast to slam Everest today. 

This morning, Chhonzin Angmo, assisted by Dadu Sherpa and Om Gurung, became the first blind woman to summit Everest. Her team reported the high winds have already resumed on the upper sections.

One commercial expedition was planning to rest at Camp 4 today, but the winds forced them to instead push for the summit. They took extra oxygen for the final climb, and six of them (three clients and three Sherpa guides) reached the top this morning. According to the latest updates, they have made it back to Camp 4 and are planning to continue down to Camp 3 or even Camp 2 today, escaping the wind.

Neighboring Lhotse has also been busy, with some climbers aiming for a double-header by adding Everest from Camp 2. Two of the climbers didn’t make it back alive. On Saturday, Indian climber Rakesh Bishnoi abandoned his attempt on Everest, moving to try a summit of Lhotse instead. He made it to the top but died during his descent before he could reach Camp 4. Also, Romanian cameraman Zsolt Vago passed away at the couloir leading to the summit of Lhotse. Impermanence is swift. 

Tim Howell, who plans to attempt a wingsuit BASE jump from a ridge near the summit of Lhotse, left Base Camp with his team on Saturday. He's reportedly made it up to Camp 4, but is unlikely to jump in the current wind conditions.

Braves 10, Red Sox 4

 

Raffy hit a grand-slam homer to deep (460 feet) center in the third inning, scoring Duran, Rafaela, and David Hamilton. The rest of the game sucked.

Starter Brayan Bello (2-1), who was perhaps left in the game too long, saw his ERA jump from 2.33 to 4.02. The Sox are now two games below .500 (23-25) and 4½ games out of first with the Yankees still yet to play today. 

C'mon, Red Sox. If you're going to be our ray of sunshine this season, our guiding light through this long hot summer, we're going to need more from you than this.

Next up is a three-game homestand series against Juan Soto and the Mets (29-17), who are 1-1 so far this weekend in their three-game series against the Yankees. Hunter Dobbins (2-1, 3.90) will start off against Kodai Senga (4-2, 1.02).   

Red Sox 7, Braves 6

 

This is what the world needed: the Red Sox dig their way back from a 5-0 hole for a 9th inning walk-off home run by Rafael Devers. With the win, the Sox break a four-game losing streak and get their first win since May 11.

After falling behind, 5-0, in the third, Jarren Duran hit a two-run homer to deep center. After the Braves scored again to make it 6-2, the Sox added two more runs with RBI base hits by Devers and Bregman in the seventh, and then Duran hit a 2-RBI single in the eighth to tie the game. Devers made it a "W" for Boston with his game-ending homer in the ninth. 

Sox reliever Aroldis Chapman (3-2, 2.12) got the win with his clutch pitching in the ninth. All six Atlanta runs were off starter Lucas Giolito, whose ERA is now 7.08. 

The Red Sox are back to within one win of .500 although still in second place, tied with the Blue Jays, and four games back from the Yankees, despite New York's loss today. The rubber match of this series is tomorrow at 1:35, with the reliable Brayan Bello (2-0, 2.33) starting against Spencer Schwellenbach (2-3, 3.31).

With the Celtics now out of the playoffs, it's going to be up to the Red Sox to carry the flag for our sporting interest over the next several months. The Celtics’ Conference Semifinal series was a disaster, starting with consecutive 20-point blown leads at home and then a blown 14-point lead in Game 4 on the road. Tatum's torn tendon might cost the Celtics two seasons and he will miss a consequential period of his career. The best player on possibly the NBA’s best team may miss not only a playoff run but much or all of his age-27 season. Without Tatum, the Celtics have a big void to fill and there aren’t that many options out there for them. The Celtics are facing some potentially significant roster decisions that could affect the team for years to come.

Meanwhile, we're a little over three months away from college football starting. The Georgia Bulldogs lost 13 players to the draft after last season and starting QB Gunnar Stockton, who has shown some encouraging signs, has started only one game. The Dawgs have added some receivers to make up for the draft losses but they still lack a proven offensive threat. Their running game finished 84th nationally last year in yards per carry (4.06), a significant drop from top-15 finishes in the previous three seasons. And let's not forget that the loathsome Florida Gators hold the lineal championship (aka, the Holy Moley Guacamole One True Belt, blessed be its name), a prize the Bulldogs want back (okay, a prize I want the Bulldogs to get back). 

The new reality is that our hopes and dreams are currently tied to a sub-.500 baseball team what has a lot of potential but also a recent history of coming up short. This summer, we'll follow the Sox and watch as the Celtics make their roster moves and player adjustments and wait for the August 30 Bulldogs season opener against the Marshall Thundering Herd.   

Knicks Eliminate Celtics, 119-81

Season's over. No more Celtics until the autumn. The New York Knicks blew out a hapless Celtics team, 119-81, and won the Eastern Conference Semifinals in six games. You can read analysis of the game, the players' stats and so on, elsewhere. I don't have it in me to go over that now.

Jayson Tatum had surgery for his Achilles' tendon tear and will presumably be back at some point, presumably in a Celtics uniform, but his absence isn't the sole reason we lost. We were down, 2 games to 1, and trailing by 10 points with three minutes left when he went down.

I'll state the obligatory, "thank you for a great season and an NBA championship," and I mean it, I really do, but it sounds hollow and perfunctory at this moment. Some time soon, I may post more about the season and the implications of this loss, but all that's more than I have in me right now.

The Red Sox are a .500 team (on good days), the Patriots suck, and the Bruins are looking at a long rebuilding of the team. The BU Terriers, men and women, came so close but came up short, and even the Georgia Bulldogs face uncertain times ahead after their playoff loss, the NFL draft, and these days of NIL and transfer portals. We had the Celtics, though, that last great hope in these dark times, and now that too has been yanked away from us.  

But I'll say this: no way I'm jumping on a Knicks bandwagon. Screw those guys.

Braves 4, Red Sox 2

 

Crochet gives up back-to-back homers in the second. The bullpen gives up five walks in the ninth, allowing two more runs. Everything in between was noise. 

Tigers 6, Red Sox 5

Another tough, back-and-forth, see-saw of a game. Another Red Sox loss.

Unlike last night's dirty dozen, this game had "only" seven lead changes. Boston scored first, but then Detroit tied it up. Boston scored again off a solo Bregman homer, but then Detroit tied it back up again. A couple innings later, Detroit went up by three, but the next inning, Boston scored three and we had the third tie of the game. But in the bottom of the ninth, the Tigers squeezed out a game-winning run on a single, and the Sox suffer their first sweep of the season.

We also fall into third place in the AL East, four games back from New York.

Let's go home: the Red Sox will take tomorrow off and then host the Atlanta Braves for a weekend series in Fenway. Garrett Crochet (4-2, 1.93) will face off in the opener against our old friend and former ace, Chris Sale, who's fallen to 1-3 and 3.97.

Should be interesting. 

Celtics Win Game 5, 127-102, Without Tatum

 

It was almost more than I dared hope for. All season long, I've noticed that the other players on the Celtics all play better when Tatum is out of the lineup. It's as if without a superstar to chuck the ball to on every drive, all the other players step up their game.  

They proved it tonight. Derrick White scored 34 points, including seven threes, and Jaylen Brown got a double double with 26 points and 12 assists. Luke Kornet scored 10 points off the bench, but also snagged nine rebounds and made seven blocks, more than the entire rest of the team combined. 

The Celtics outscored New York 32-17 in the third quarter, but those of us still PTSD'd from the three games where we blew double-digit leads didn't feel safe until the closing minutes of the fourth. 

Down 3 games to 1, with their superstar player out for the rest of the postseason, the Celtics rose to the occasion and decisively won a  must-win game. With the series now 3-2, it's on to Game 6 in New York on Friday.

This win was nearly too much to hope for. Is a Game 6 win, or even a series win, too much to ask? Nothing's for certain anymore and that just makes these remaining games all the more exciting. 

Tigers 10, Red Sox 9

Back on May 9, the Red Sox lost, 2-1, to the Kansas City Royals in 10 innings and I refused to be snarky about the loss because they really made a great effort to win, even if they came up one run short. All the more so now, when the Red Sox battled back time and time again to beat the Tigers, only to come up one run short in 11 innings. 

Quick recap: the Tigers took a 1-0 lead in the first, but the Red Sox tied it up in the second. The Tigers took a 2-1 lead in the third, but an Alex Bregman home run tied it up again in the top of the fourth. The Tigers took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the inning, but the Sox made it a 4-3 game in the fifth. The Tigers jumped ahead to a 6-4 lead in the sixth with three runs, but a two-run David Hamilton homer in the eighth tied it all back up and the game went into extra innings.

In the top of the 10th, Boston took a one-gun lead, 7-6, but the Tigers came back and tied the game up for the fourth time in the bottom of the inning. Seeing that a one-run lead wasn't enough, the Sox took a two-run lead in the top of the 11th with a Kristian Campbell homer. 9-7, Boston. But then reliever Greg Weissert  gave up a heartbreak, three-run, walk-off homer to the Tigers' Javier Báez and that was it for the game.

They say the number of lead changes is a good indicator of how exciting a game is. If you count moving into a tie as a lead change, this game had a dozen lead changes over 11 innings.

So yeah, it sucks that we took a loss, but you have to love Boston's (both teams, to be honest) never-say-die, gritty determination. 

Boston drops to .500 (22-22), three back from New York. On Wednesday (6:40 pm), the Red Sox will try to avoid getting swept for the first time this season in game three of this road series in Detroit. 

 

It's a dark day in Beantown . . . 

It's the sort if dark day that comes to define a season, a team, and even a city. The worst of it isn't that the Celtics lost Game 4 of the Conference Semifinals to the New York Knicks, 121-113. The worst of it isn't that the Celtics have fallen behind, 1-3, in the series. The worst of it is that Jatson Tatum, the Celtics superstar player, the current and future leader of the franchise, suffered a "lower body injury," possibly an Achilles-tendon tear, late in the game. He'll be out for the rest of the series, which is most likely the rest of the Celtics' season, and in worst-case scenarios, out for a very long time, possibly including part or even most of next season.

The Celtics have a lot of talent on their team, but it would be an understatement to say that Tatum carried this team. His loss will have unfathomable repercussions on the team for seasons to come, and could affect the trajectory of the franchise for years.   

But first, the game. Last night's game in New York was not unlike Games 1 and 2 in Boston - the Celtics looked invincible early and ran up a big lead (14 points) in the third quarter, only to see that lead evaporate as the Knicks went on scoring runs and suddenly the Celtics' ball couldn't find the basket.  Tatum, who went 3-of-5 on three-point shots in the first quarter, went 1-for-6 in the third. The Knicks took the lead and after some thrilling back-and-forth as the teams switched leads in the fourth, New York broke away and left the Celtics behind. When Tatum suffered his non-contact injury, lunging for a loose ball with about three minutes left, the game was already effectively lost for the Celtics.

Tatum is undergoing an MRI today, possible even as I write this, but it's hard to feel optimistic about the prognosis. After he went down, he was in obvious, intense pain, and after he was helped off the floor, unable to put any weight on the injured foot, he was carried away to the locker room in a wheelchair.

The 2024-2025 Boston Celtics were a great team, the defending NBA champions, and finished the regular season with a terrific 61-21 record. It's apparent now that they won't be repeat champions and if Tatum is going to be out for a long time, there will be a lot of offseason trades and personnel changes that will fundamentally alter the team. There will be a "before-injury" Celtics and an "after-injury" Celtics. Change is inevitable (impermanence is swift) but it didn't have to be so painful and dramatic.

Our best and most sincere wishes go out to Jayson for a swift and healthy recovery. In any event, we also offer a sincere "thank you" for eight seasons of thrilling basketball and for an NBA championship. We hope that you can carry us to many more, but whatever the outcome of the MRI, your healing, and whatever your future, we wish you success and the unconditional best.

Tigers 14, Red Sox 2

It's a dark day in Beantown . . .

Tanner Houck had a Fukushima-grade nuclear meltdown in the third inning. It wasn't pretty and it went like this: The first batter of the inning doubles, and the next two batters walk to load the bases with no outs. Then a wild pitch scores a run and advances the other two runners. They both score when the fourth batter singles to deep right, and then a fielding error lets the batter go all the way around the bases for another run. Four runs off four batters and no outs, but Cora keeps Houck in the game.   

The fifth batter hits a pop-up for the first out of the inning, but the sixth batter singles and Houck manages to hit the seventh with a pitch. The eighth batter homers, scoring three more runs. Seven runs so far in the inning and still only one out, but Cora keeps Houck in the game.

Another single, then another walk, and then yet another single by former Yankee Gleyber Torres in his second at-bat of the inning scores an eighth run, and Cora finally relieves Houck.  

Of course, reliever Sean Newcomb gives up another single and another run - scored against Houck -  before getting the two outs needed to finally end the inning.

As long and ugly an inning of baseball as I care to recall. Sure, Boston got a pair of solo homers later in the game, but that hardly matters when you give up nine runs in one inning alone.

Game 2 of the series is tomorrow - same place (Detroit) and same time (6:40). Different pitchers: Brayan Bello (2-0, 2.01) will face Tyler Holton (2-2, 3.12).  

Hopefully, different result.

R.I.P. Dan Seavey

Musher Dan Seavey passed away on May 9 at age 87. Impermanence is swift. 

Dan was instrumental in getting the original race started; his book, The First Great Race, is a behind-the-scenes description of the race's origins. He ran in the very first Iditarod in 1973, coming in third, and in 1974, returning to compete in the race again in 1997 and 2012. 

The Seavey family is Iditarod royalty. Dan's son, Mitch, won the Iditarod in 2004, '13 and '17. Dan's grandson, Dallas, won in 2012, '14, '15, '16, '21, and '24, becoming the only champion to win six races. Dallas set the record for the fastest race time in 2016, breaking the previous record that he had set, and in 2017, Dallas's record time was broken by Mitch (Dallas came in second). In 2017, Mitch Seavey became the oldest person to ever win an Iditarod; in 2012, Dallas Seavey had become the youngest winner ever. 

Dan put his heart and soul into the race and was a great promoter of the dogs and the race. By all accounts, he and his late wife Shirley were very genuine, honest, salt-of-the-earth, good people. Dan's good common-sense approach on how the race should be run was part of what made the race the grand tradition that it is. 

Red Sox 3, Royals 1

 

Yeah, baby! The Red Sox win back-to-back road games in Kansas City. Devers and Abreu both hit homers and gave Lucas Giolito (1-1, 4.96) his first win since 2023 and first ever in a Red Sox uniform. 

For his part, Giolito went 6.2 innings, getting six strikeouts and giving up one run on two hits. The bullpen gave up only two hits and no runs the rest of the game. 

The Sox win the series against the Royals, 2-1, and are now 22-20 and still in second place, two back from New York. All other AL East teams are at .500 or lower. 

The Red Sox travel to Detroit for a three-game series against the Tigers (26-15). Tanner Houck (0-2, 6.10) will opposes Jackson Jobe (2-0, 4.88) on Monday in the opener.

First Everest Summit of 2025

 

The first summit of Mount Everest occurred today by the rope-fixing team assigned by the China-Tibet Mountaineering Association. The weather was reportedly beautiful but windy, and additional wind is forecast to begin tomorrow and continue until May 16 and may impede commercial climbers trying to summit this week.

American climber Tyler Andrews was attempting to set a record for the fastest no-oxygen ascent on Everest and could have been the first climber to reach the top of the mountain this year. He had left Base Camp around 9:15 pm and was quick in the Icefall and even faster as he crossed the Western Cwm, the Valley of Silence, and the first part of the Lhotse Wall. But his pace decreased as he climbed the Lhotse Face to Camp 3 where, for reasons unknown, he turned around and aborted his climb. 

Red Sox 10, Royals 1

 

The bats woke up. 

Story and Narváez got the homers, Trevor a three-run blast in the 7th and Carlos a two-run shot in the 8th. Devers was 4 for 4 with three RBIs and Durran and Bregman had RBI base hits as well. On the mound, Garrett Crochet allowed only one run on seven hits over seven innings, striking out nine and walking one.

The win ended Kansas City's seven-game win streak.

The Yankees lost today, so Boston (21-20) is back to two game out from first place.

Tomorrow's game is at 2:10. Lucas Giolito (0-1, 8.38) will try to turn things in a game against Seth Lugo (3-3, 2.84).   

Game 3: Celtics Win in New York, 115-93

 

Boston took an early lead, going up by as many as 25 points in the first half.  But after blowing two 20-point leads in the Garden last week, today, nothing felt safe, although today the Celtics were able to hold on and win by 22 points.

The Celtics have apparently learned from their mistakes and improved their three-point shooting and rebounding. They went 12-for-19 on threes in the first half, and finished at 50% (20-40) from downtown. 

Payton Pritchard led the Celtics with 23 points, with Tatum right behind him at 22. 

The Celtics still trail the Knicks in the series, 1-2, and have to win again in Manhattan on Sunday. But Big Picture: they now have 5 of the 16 wins they need to reclaim the NBA title, and have given up only three of the 12 losses they can absorb on the road to a repeat championship. 

Today was an early start (3:30 pm), but Monday's will be an evening game (7:30). 

Royals 2, Red Sox 1

 

I'm not going to be snarky about this loss because this time, they really did try. Ten scoreless innings, and then the Red Sox finally score the first run of the entire game in the 11th on a Raffie ground out. But the Royals tied it up in the bottom of the inning and then won it in the 12th.

Hunter Dobbins went six scoreless innings, and Boston went through seven relievers - Cora really was trying to win this game. 

"A" for effort even if the final score isn't what we wanted to see. Game 2 is tomorrow (Saturday) at 7:10. Keep bringing the intensity, boys, and we'll beat the Royals yet.

Red Sox 5. Rangers 0

 

Back-to-back wins for the Red Sox as they shut out the Rangers! Boston wins the homestand series! The Sox remain in second place in the AL East!

Brayan Bello got pulled in the fifth with two on and two outs, and Justin Slaten got the win for closing out the inning and then pitching an immaculate sixth (no runs, no hits, no walks). Liam Hendricks pitched two immaculate innings in the 8th and 9th to close out the game and Devers put an exclamation point on the win with a solo home run in the 7th.

Winning feels a lot better than losing. Someone on the Red Sox ought to tell that to the Celtics.

Now comes the challenge: the Red Sox fly out to Kansas City for three games against the Royals (23-16). In the opener, Hunter Dobson (2-1, 3.78) faces off against Michael Lorenzen (3-3, 4.23). The game starts at 7:40.

 

Miracle at Fenway: Abreu and Bregman Beat the Rangers

Abreu and Bregman both homered in the fourth inning - Abreu to deep right center and Bregman to deep left. Later, Abreu and Bregman both had RBI base hits - Abreu a one-run double in the 6th and Bregamn a two-run single in the 7th. Finally, Abreu hit another homer in the 8th and the Red Sox won, 6-4.

Both Abreu and Bregman now have nine home runs each on the season.

Tanner Houck gave up three runs on six hits over 4.2 innings, while Bernardino and Weissert each pitched a perfect inning in relief - no runs, no hits, and no walks. Aroldis Chapman gave up a run on the only Texas hit of the 9th, but still got the save. Bernardino (2-1, 1.93) was awarded the win.

The Red Sox return to .500 (19-19) and remain two games back from New York.

The rubber match of this series, the last game of this home stand, is tomorrow at 1:35. Brayan Bello (2-0, 2.55) faces Jack Leiter (2-1, 4.58).  

Knicks 91, Celtics 90

 

Are you fucking kidding me? The Celtics blow a second-half 20-point lead for the second game in a row? How is that even possible?

But that's exactly what happened. Until Tatum hit a pair of free throws with 45 seconds left to play, the Celtics hadn't scored a point in the last 4½ minutes of the game while New York was going on a 12-0 run. Tatum scored a dunk with 18 seconds left to give the Celtics a one-point lead, but Jalen Brunson of the Knicks sunk a pair of free throws and then Mikal Bridges stole the ball from Tatum to end the game.

The Celtics are down 0-2 and head to NYC and MSG to face a confident Knicks team for Game Three on Friday night.

It's been a weird playoff season. Cleveland, which lead the East all season, has fallen 0-2 to the fourth-seeded Indiana Pacers. In the West, No. 1 seed Oklahoma City is 0-1 against the Denver Nuggets, and the second-seeded Houston Rockets and third-seeded LA Lakers didn't even make it to the Conference Semifinals. It's not impossible that the Finals might be the unlikely pairing of the Indiana Pacers versus the Minnesota Timberwolves.

But that's not an excuse for Boston's poor performance these past two games. Al Horford started at center with Porzingis coming off the bench, but Horford scored only four points all game while Porzingis got only eight. Tatum only scored 13, and while he did get 14 rebounds, I'm not going to praise his double double when Karl-Anthony Towns had a double d going by halftime.

The Celtics looked tired and unmotivated, chucking up and missing futile threes instead of hustling and driving into the paint. They attempted 40 threes and only sunk 10 of them. They looked like a team that didn't believe they'll see, much less win, the Finals, and at this point, I'm not convinced either.

Rangers 6, Red Sox 1

 

Lucas Giolito gets his second start for the Red Sox and earns his second loss. The script I had in mind for 2025 didn't go like this.

With their third straight loss (fifth of their last six games) the Red Sox (18-19) fall back below .500 again. Amazingly, they are still clinging to second place in the AL East, where right now the Yankees are the only team with a winning record. The last time the division had only one team above .500 was July 13, 2012, when Baltimore was the only team with a winning record.  

Former Red Sox pitcher Nathan Eovaldi threw six innings for the Rangers and struck out seven. In all, Boston batters struck out a dozen times. Meanwhile, Giolito melted down in the fourth, giving up six runs. In his first start, I complained that Cora left him in the game too long. Now, it seems the problem is putting him on the mound at all. 

Game 2 is Wednesday - Tanner Houck (0-2, 6.38) versus  Tyler Mahle (3-1, 1.19). May god have mercy.  

 

Knicks 108, Celtics 105 (OT)

 

The Celtics had a twenty-point lead, 75-55, in the third quarter and it looked like the game, if not the series, was going to go Boston's way. It looked easy. Then the shit started. The three-point shots turned into bricks, but instead of adjusting by driving inside and getting layups and making twos, the Celtics started heaving ever-more desperate three-point shots. The Knicks came back from their 20-point deficit and tied the game, found their confidence, and then won in OT with some tenacious D.

This hurts, not gonna lie. Down 0-1 to start the conference semifinals, and loss of home-court advantage. But the Celtics have battled back from adversity before, from situations worse than this, and won in the past. The question is whether they learn from tonight and adjust their game, or keep chucking desperation shots and hope for the best. If the former, we win. If the latter, well, we're not gonna talk about that, okay?

Game 2 is Wednesday night (7:00 pm). I don't think many people outside of the New York metropolitan area (and color commentator Reggie Miller) think the Celtics are going to go 0-2 at home. If they focus on winning Game 2 and not think ahead about how to win in MSG later in this series, we should be back to 1-1 with five games left to go. 

The 28-game playoff system allows a team up to 12 losses. The Celtics have used two. Let's keep it there for a while.

Twins 5, Red Sox 4

 

Our shaky, unreliable bullpen cost the Red Sox another game.

After giving up a homer to the first batter he faced, Boston starter Garret Crochet (the good Garrett), settled down and didn't give up any more runs over five innings. But reliever Garrett Whitlock (the bad Garrett) gave up two runs in the seventh and then Justin Slaten gave up two more in the eighth. 5-3, Twins.

Scary moment: the good Garrett took a line drive to the nose in the fourth, but is apparently okay. He kept pitching and even came back on in the fifth.

Also, he has a dog named "Moose." 

Wilyer Abreu did what he could to win the game back, knocking a solo homer to deep right field in the bottom of the eighth, but it wasn't enough and the Sox suffer back-to-back losses at home. They've lost four of their last five games and they're back to .500 (18-18). However, since the Yankees also lost today, Boston's still only two games back from first in the AL East.

Abraham Toro made his season debut with the Sox today, pinch-hitting for catcher Carlos Narváez in the ninth, but he grounded into the inning's second out.

The Texas Rangers (17-18) come to Fenway Tuesday to kick off a three-game series before the Red Sox go back on the road. Sean Newcomb (0-3, 4.24) will start the series for Boston against our old friend, former Red Sox Nathan Eovaldi (2-2, 2.11). First pitch will be sometime around 6:45. 

If we win the game, can we get Eovaldi back?        

Twins 4, Red Sox 3

 

No Triston Casas, no home runs for the Red Sox today. Coincidence? I think not. 

We may not have gotten any homers, but Jarren Duran did hit a triple in the seventh, scoring Connor Wong.  But starter Hunter Dobbins gave up four runs over six innings and even though the bullpen held up and kept it at four, the Boston offense came up short, left ten runners on base, and couldn't catch up. 

Romy Gonzalez filled in at first for the injured Casas, who will be out for the rest of the season it was confirmed today. Gonzalez went 3-for-4 at the plate and struck out once, and got caught stealing in the fourth.    

The rubber match of this weekend series is tomorrow, 1:35 pm. The Sox' Garrett Crochet (3-2, 2.05) will face the Twins' Chris Paddack (0-3, 5.60). Statistically, you gotta like the home team's chances here, even without Casas in the lineup.

Red Sox 6, Twins 1

Oh, back in sweet, sweet Fenway! The Red Sox come off their 3-3 road trip and beat the Minnesota Twins, 6-1. Bregman homered in the first, again, and Devers, González, Hamilton, and Duran all hit RBI singles and doubles. And where would we be without Bryan Bello? He pitched 6.2 innings with five strikeouts and only one run. And for once, our bullpen didn't blow the lead in the late innings.

Good stuff. Can't wait until Game 2 tomorrow (4:10) - Hunter Dobbins (2-0, 2.45) vs. Bailey Ober (3-1, 4.13). Let's keep this one-game home win streak going!  

Update: Okay, so I didn't actually watch the game. What the box score didn't tell me, though, was that first baseman Triston Casas sustained a "significant knee injury" in the second inning while running out a chopper down the first base line. He was called safe, but upon crossing the base, he fell to the ground and immediately grabbed his left knee and had to be taken from the field on a stretcher. Manager Alex Cora said when he got on the field, Casas seemed to be in a state of shock. 

Last year, Casas suffered torn cartilage in his rib cage in mid-April and missed much of last season. Now he's sustained what appears to be a potential season-ending injury. 

Damn, that sucks.

Celtics to Play Knicks in Conference Semifinals

 

Last night, the New York Knicks beat the Indiana Pacers, 116-113, and won their First Round series in six games. The Knicks will advance to face the Celtics in the Conference Semifinals. Game 1 is Monday night.

This will be the 16th head-to-head playoff series between Boston and New York and the first since 2013. Two of the original NBA franchises, they have played 498 regular-season games in their storied histories, the most between any two teams in the league. 

The Celtics are 8½-point favorites in Game 1. Boston has won eight of the last nine games against New York over the last two seasons, including blowout wins of 23 and 27 points this year. But anything can happen in a seven-game series and last night, Knicks fans were chanting "We want Boston!" outside Madison Square Garden. Careful what you wish for.

The two teams are evenly matched offensively, with both scoring an average 119 points per game. The Celtics have a big advantage in 3-points shots made, 1457 (best in the NBA) to the Knicks' 1031 (24th). The Celtics also have a big lead in total rebounding and blocked shots. However, the Knicks have the higher field goal percentage, 48.6% (fourth in the NBA) and a slight advantage in assists.  

It took the Celtics five games to beat the Orlando Magic in the First Round, so I'm predicting it will take them six games for them to beat Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, and the rest of the Knicks.

The Celtics are four wins down and 12 more to go to repeat as NBA champions. Let's make in eight-and-eight with this Semifinal series.

Red Sox Blow 2-Run Lead in Toronto

 

It's almost a repeat of the script from last night's game: the Red Sox get a 2-0 lead off of an Alex Bregman double in the fifth inning. The starting pitcher, this time Tanner Houck, gives up a homer in the seventh, but the Sox still lead, 2-1. Then our unreliable bullpen, this time reliever Justin Slaten, gives up a three-run homer in the 8th, and the Sox lose on the road,4-2, after squandering their two-run lead.

Once again, we left the starting pitcher in for too long, and once again, we're defeated by our shaky bullpen.

The Sox fall to 17-16, two games back from the idle Yankees. The Red Sox return home for a weekend series against the Minnesota Twins (13-19), surely a team we can sweep in Fenway.