Tag Archives: Dustin Pedroia

May 9 2012

Daily Noontime – May 9, 2012

Rajon Rondo recored a critical steal with approximately nine seconds left in regulation, but didn’t help the Celtics win, as the Hawks won Game No. 5! (Photo Credit: USA Today)

By NoontimeSports.com 

Happy “Hump Day” to everyone, and welcome into yet another outstanding edition of the Daily Noontime! Here are some headlines to jumpstart this gloomy day thus far!

* The word “gloomy” is a good way to describe both the Boston Celtics and Red Sox games from Tuesday, as both teams watched their current winning streaks get snapped.

* Atlanta halted a 7-0 run by Boston, and swarmed Rajon Rondo following a steal with approximately nine seconds remaining in regulation to earn an 87-86 win. Boston still leads, 3-2, and will attempt to punch their ticket to round two on Thursday when both squads return to the hardwood.

* Al Horford led all scorers with 19 points, while Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce each tallied 16 points in the loss.

* After Tuesday’s game concluded, Pierce downplayed his knee injury by saying, “I don’t think it bothered me too much.” Boston’s captain finished the contest 7 of 17, and recorded six rebounds, four assists and three steals.

* Kansas City ended Boston’s one-game winning streak on Tuesday, as they defeated the Red Sox, 6-4. David Ortiz recorded his 13th double, while Kelly Shoppach and Dustin Pedroia each registered an RBI in the loss.

* After their second contest against the Royals, Will Middlebrooks told reporters that he hopes to be in the lineup on Wednesday despite tightness in his left hamstring.

* Finally, the New England Patriots inked former Denver Broncos tight end Daniel Fells to a contract for the upcoming 2012 season. Fells, who was really close to signing with the Patriots in 2010, ended up joining the Broncos for the past two seasons. Although, once the free agency period began this year, he realized that joining New England would be the right thing.

May 3 2012

Daily Noontime – May 3, 2012

Daniel Bard sustained his third loss of the season on Wednesday against the Oakland Athletics! (Photo Credit: Eagle Tribune)

By NoontimeSports.com 

It’s Thursday, which means we’re one day away from the weekend! Let’s jumpstart the day with some headlines and news from the city of championships!

* The Boston Red Sox concluded their three-game series with a 4-2 loss to the Oakland Athletics on Wednesday at Fenway Park. Daniel Bard earned his third loss of the season, and yielded eight hits and four earned runs.

* Against the A’s pitching staff, Ryan Sweeney recorded his 12th double of the season, David Ortiz cranked his 11th double, and Dustin Pedroia drove in his eighth RBI.

* Adrian Gonzalez extended his slump to 0-for-17 on Wednesday, and missed two chances to drive in runs against the Athletics.

* The New England Patriots bolstered their roster on Wednesday by acquiring former wide receiver Jabar Gaffney. The 31-year-old, who played for New England from 2006 through 2008, recorded 85 passes for 1,059 yards and eight touchdowns.

* According to reports, Kevin Garnett finished fifth in the voting for Defensive Player of the Year, while head coach Doc Rivers concluded the regular season in fifth place in the voting for Coach of the Year.

Apr 26 2012

Daily Noontime – April 26, 2012

Joel Ward's overtime strike on Wednesday lifted Washington past Boston in Game No. 7, 2-1! (Photo Credit: CBC.ca)

By NoontimeSports.com 

Ah… it’s Thursday, which means we’re one day closer to the end of the work week. However, this is a rather solemn day, as Bostonians mourn the loss of the Boston Bruins, so let’s try to brighten the mood with headlines and news!

* As stated above, the Boston Bruins quest toward a seventh Stanley Cup championship ended on Wednesday evening at the TD Garden when the Washington Capitals defeated them, 2-1 in overtime. Joel Ward scored the clincher at 2:57 in the extra session, which punched the Capitals ticket to the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

* After the seventh game concluded – James Murphy of ESPNBoston provided a ‘to-do‘ list of things the Bruins need to focus on during the offseason. Also, ESPN’s Barry Melrose provided his ‘two-cents‘ on the Caps 22-year-old goaltender Braden Holtby.

* The Boston Red Sox earned their first regular season series sweep of the season on Wednesday, as they defeated the Minnesota Twins, 7-6. Clay Buchholz earned second win of the season, while Alfredo Aceves registered his fourth save. As for the Sox offense, Mike Aviles his his fourth home run of the season, while Dustin Pedroia recorded a double and triple.

* The Sox will look to extend their three-game winning streak on Thursday when they travel to Chicago to face the White Sox at 8:10pm –Felix Doubront opposes Philip Humber.

* Finally, the Boston Celtics will conclude their 66-game regular season slate on Thursday when they welcome the Milwaukee Bucks to the TD Garden for an 8PM tip-off.

Apr 18 2012

Daily Noontime – April 18, 2012

Jon Lester lasted only two innings on Tuesday, and surrendered eight hits, seven earned runs and one home run! (Photo Credit: RedSox.com)

By NoontimeSports.com 

Happy Wednesday to everyone! Let’s kick-start the day with some news and headlines from the six New England states!

* The defending American League Champions, (Texas Rangers) rolled into Fenway Park on Tuesday, and walloped the Boston Red Sox, 18-3. Jon Lester last two innings, and surrendered eight hits, seven earned runs and one home run. Dustin Pedroia and Adrian Gonzalez each recorded a home run in the loss.

* Boston and Texas will conclude their two-game series on Wednesday at 7pm — Josh Beckett opposes Derek Holland.

* Paul Pierce netted 43 points on Tuesday, which wasn’t enough to beat New York, as the Knicks defeated the Boston Celtics, 118-110. Kevin Garnett finished the contest with 20 points, five rebounds and three assists, while Carmelo Anthony paced the Knicks with 35 points.

* The Celtics will attempt to snap their one-game losing streak on Wednesday when they host the Orlando Magic at 8pm. Also, if Boston beats Orlando, they’ll claim the Atlantic Division.

* Washington received some bad news on Tuesday, as the NHL suspended Nicklas Backstrom for a cross-check penalty, which occurred at the end of Monday’s contest against Boston. The Bruins currently lead their Eastern Conference quarterfinals series, 2-1, and will return to the ice on Thursday for Game No. 4.

Apr 5 2012

Are You Ready For Red Sox Baseball? Cast Your Vote!

By NoontimeSports.com

We’re a few hours away from the start of another Boston Red Sox season, and it’s expected to be wacky and wild campaign.

Bobby Valentine is amped about molding the local nine into champions, while various reports confirmed that Josh Beckett has begun contemplating surgery for his right thumb. However, the right-hander seems to be OK these days.

Dustin Pedroia told the Boston Globe on Wednesday, “We’re ready to go, ready to play hard. It’s a long year. We’ll find out what kind of a team we have through the grind of the season.”

And finally, fans are still pondering why “the greatest team” ever assembled finished the final month of the 2011 season with seven wins and 20 losses.

What are your thoughts on the upcoming season?

Do you see the Red Sox making the playoffs? Winning the division? Reaching the American League Championship?

Cast your vote below, and also, feel free to post comments about the team, too.

Feb 21 2012

Daily Noontime – February 21, 2012

Daniel Bard is expected to experience a LONG day on Tuesday! (Photo Credit: Boston Herald)

By NoontimeSports.com 

It’s good to be back from a LONG weekend, everyone, and hopefully you enjoyed it, too! Here are some headlines and news from the city of Boston and New England to kick-start your day.

* The Boston Red Sox will take part in their first official workout on Tuesday, which is expected to be a long day for the pitchers and catchers, as well as manager Bobby Valentine. According to sources, Daniel Bard is expected to practice with the starting pitches, since he’ll be one this season. Also, reporters have confirmed that Dustin Pedroia has been spotted at JetBlue Park, too.

* Dallas handed the Boston Celtics their 16th loss of the season on Sunday evening, as the Mavericks defeated the Green and White, 89-73. Boston has now lost four consecutive contests, and will try to turn things around on Wednesday when they travel to Oklahoma to face the Thunder, who’re curently sporting a 25-7 record. Also, Rajon Rondo will serve his final two-game suspension on Wednesday after being ejected on Sunday evening against the Detroit Pistons.

* The Boston Bruins will look to snap their two-game skid on Wednesday evening when they face-off against the St. Louis Blues in Missouri. Against Winnipeg and Minnesota, Boston has been outscored by their opponents, 6-2.

Oct 1 2011

Saying Goodbye To Terry Francona

Francona said his final good byes to the media and Red Sox Nation yesterday, but overall, he'll certainly be missed!

By Matt Noonan 

It’s never easy to say, so long, farewell or simply… goodbye.

Friday is a day that’ll live in infamy, as Boston Red Sox fans watched Terry Francona walk away from his managerial position and into the sunset. Although, while no one may know the exact reason why Tito decided to pack up and leave his office, it’s certainly fair to say, he was hands down the right guy for the job.

Francona inherited a group of “idiots” that became legends after their most improbable comeback against the New York Yankees in ’04. He also ended Boston’s miserable ongoing curse against the St. Louis Cardinals in the October Classic, and won an additional title three years later against the Colorado Rockies.

Yet, besides leading the Red Sox to two World Series championships, he was also considered a “players manager.” Guys like Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Millar gelled quite well under him, while players like Manny Ramirez or Pedro Martinez butted heads, but still respected his decisions.

In fact, Pedroia told ESPNBoston.com, “He’s had my back, he gave me a chance when I was struggling as a rookie. I was hitting .150 and he stood by me and helped me become the player that I am today. I’ll forever remember that.”

He’ll certainly be missed and yes, it will be quite different seeing someone else sporting a Boston uniform, and calling the shots next season, but overall, he’ll always be remembered as the manager that sent Babe Ruth’s curse to the grave, and brought the spirit of baseball back to the Hub.

Aug 8 2011

Red Sox Weekly 8/8/11

By Andy Lindberg

The Red Sox kept control of first place in the American League East after a brutal week facing off against Cleveland for four games and the Yankees for three more.  Boston split the first series with Cleveland, with Jacoby Ellsbury collecting walk-off hits in two consecutive games, the second of which was a home run.  The Sox then took two of three from New York.

There are few hitters in all of baseball hotter than Ellsbury right now.  After his two-walk off performance in the Cleveland series and dropping the first game of the series to the Yankees, Ellsbury exploded on Saturday for six RBI, including a 3-run home run off of CC Sabathia to put the nail in the coffin for New York.  Sabathia is now 0-4 against Boston this year, an impressive statistic considering he is 16-6 with a 2.81 ERA even after the Beantown shelling.  For those of you who are mathematically impaired, like myself, only two of Sabathia’s losses have come from teams not named the Red Sox.  Not bad considering at this point Sabathia is the American League Cy Young front-runner, who is now 6-9 all-time against Boston with a 4.19 ERA in 19 games.

As hot as Ellsbury was, Carl Crawford was out for blood this week, raising his batting average from the mid .240’s all the way up to .260 after hits in seven consecutive at-bats (including a 4-4 performance on Saturday) and collected three more hits in the series finale against New York.  Crawford is hitting the pitches he was missing earlier in the season, either due to not seeing the ball well or pressing too hard at the plate.  Right now, Red Sox fans are seeing the Crawford Boston paid for, and now that he seems more comfortable at the plate, the rest of this season and seasons to follow should result in better numbers from Crawford.

Josh Reddick further impressed critics with a walk-off hit against Phil Hughes of the Yankees on Sunday as well, plating Darnell McDonald for the win after Marco Scutaro jump-started the Boston rally off of Mariano Rivera in the ninth inning, just as ESPN was rolling it’s montage of greatness to Rivera and giving Boston no chance of winning.  Scutaro lead off the ninth with a Green Monster double, and Ellsbury laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt, which moved Scutaro to third.  Dustin Pedroia, who was -10 with five strikeouts against Rivera leading into the at-bat, clocked a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Scutaro.  The win put the Red Sox back on top in the East by one game.  This week Boston hits the road for three games in Minnesota, beginning tonight and finishing on the West Coast against Seattle over the weekend.

 

Wake Goes For 200

 

Tonight’s game against Minnesota will see Tim Wakefield log his third attempt at career win number 200.  The game will begin at 7:10 EST.

 

Boston MVP Candidates

One cannot ignore the top three hitters in the Boston lineup.  Jacoby Ellsbury, Dustin Pedroia, and Adrian Gonzalez are all having fantastic years.  Gonzalez still leads the Major Leagues in RBI (91), hits (159), and batting average (.348), but the power numbers are down from what most fans expected.  The point of hitting home runs is to drive in runs, and home run hitters are to do that copiously, so having Gonzalez leading baseball in RBI with only 18 homers is an extremely impressive statistic.  This may be due to the fact that Gonzalez is second in doubles with 34, and has peppered the Green Monster repeatedly in his time at Fenway.

As good as Gonzalez and Pedroia have been, the Red Sox MVP at this juncture has to be Jacoby Ellsbury.  Red Sox fans clearly has no idea what the organization was missing last season when Ellsbury was limited to only 18 games due to injury.  Ellsbury is batting .318 with 19 home runs (his previous season-high was 9 in 2008), 72 RBI and 31 stolen bases.  That’s all from the leadoff guy.  There is no better table-setter in baseball right now.  The most noticeable trend to me is that from day one of this season, Ellsbury has been much better about working the count and making opposing pitchers work hard to get him out as opposed to last year and years past in which 2-pitch groundouts to second base were frequent.  Ellsbury has been the epitome of a difference-maker this season and having him, Pedroia (who is making a great case to reclaim his number 1 AL second baseman status from Robinson Cano), and Gonzalez all bat in the first inning is one of the large reasons Boston is the offensive powerhouse is has become this season.

Jul 28 2011

Daily Noontime – July 28, 2011

The New England Patriots have officially acquired, Albert Haynesworth!

Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome to yet another Daily Noontime. Here’s the day’s headlines and news, so enjoy! 

Headlines: 

* The New England Patriots made a bold move, as they traded for Washington Redskins defensive end, Albert Haynesworth in exchange for a fifth-round draft pick in 2013.

* It’s been an exciting past few weeks for Dustin Pedroia and Jacoby Ellsbury, who have been major contributors for the Boston Red Sox offense.

* Well, apparently Carlos Beltran is going to leave the New York Mets and heading west to join the defending World Series champions, San Francisco Giants.

* For the first time in his career, Ervin Santana pitched a no-hitter against the Cleveland Indians on Thursday. Yep, the Los Angles of Anaheim Angels were rather happy once the final out was recorded.

* According to reports, the Miami Dolphins will acquire former New Orleans Saints running back, Reggie Bush.

* Donovan McNabb must be  a happy man these days, as he was acquired by the Minnesota Vikings.

Games to Watch: 

* Florida at Washington (MLB) – 12:35pm eastern 

* Los Angels of Anaheim Angels at Detroit (MLB) – 1:05pm eastern 

* Kansas City at Boston (MLB) – 1:35pm eastern 

* San Francisco at Philadelphia (MLB) – 7:07pm eastern 

Video of the Day: 

I’m sure Tom Brady will be happy to have Albert on his side this time! 

Jul 27 2011

Daily Noontime – July 27, 2011

Is 2011 the year of Dustin Pedroia?

Good Wednesday to everyone, it’s officially…HUMP DAY! Let’s have a great day, but also, enjoy the headlines and news too! 

Headlines: 

* Hands down Dustin Pedroia  is having one his best seasons in a Boston Red Sox uniform.

* The Dallas Cowboys made a handful of cuts yesterday and one of those players who was shown the door was Marion Barber.

* Believe it or not, Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers believes James Jones should be the team’s number one priority.

* Tuesday was an exciting day for Chase Utley, who hit an inside-the-park home run.

* With the NBA Lockout in the background, Ron Artest is considering joining “Dancing with the Stars.”

* According to reports, New England Patriots wide receiver Wes Welker was excited to return to Gillette Stadium on Wednesday.

Games to Watch: 

* Seattle at New York Yankees (MLB) – 1:05pm eastern

* San Francisco at Philadelphia (MLB) – 7:00pm eastern 

Video of the Day: 

Now that the NFL is back, get excited for some Madden Football too!