Gameday Open Thread: Rangers 6/7

Daisuke Matsuzaka struggled once again yesterday, but in a somewhat different manner as the Sox fell to the Rangers, 6-3 at Fenway Park. Matsuzaka walked none, 70% of his pitches were strikes, and he struck out 8 in 5 2/3 innings. Eric Avidon observes that Matsuzaka is often to efficient pitching what Britney Spears is to good parenting. Efficient [...]Post from: Boston Sports Media Watch

As expected, Vicente Padilla has cleared waivers, according to a club official. No other team bit on the right-hander and the salary he would have brought to a new team. It's possible, though, that the Rangers shocked Padilla's system. He realizes that the Rangers have a chance to win this year, and he can help them do that while also building his resume for free agency...

Trog weighs in with a fan blog and his opinion on why the Rangers put Vicente Padilla on waivers. I disagree with some of Trog's thoughts and will discuss on the next page. Trog's blog: Rangers starting pitcher Vicente Padilla was placed on outright waivers earlier this week. It came as a surprise to the Rangers No. 2 hurler, and to much of the fan base. Padilla has had...

Asher and I were the only ones who predicted Vicente Padilla would go 7 innings on Sunday. Padilla's line: 7 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 4 BB, 4 K, 99 pitches. My line for Padilla: 8 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 4 K, 101 pitches. Not great, but not bad. Asher had Padilla giving up no runs on five hits. I want to point out that for the rest of the items, Stephen R got all but the strikeouts for...

Daisuke Matsuzaka turned in another mediocre-to-lousy performance on Sunday, and the Texas Rangers took advantage, winning 6-3 and taking the series at Fenway from the Red Sox.Matsuzaka gave Texas four runs in the first three innings, including a home run to the red-hot Michael Young. He walked none but allowed ten hits, and the league is hitting an astounding .349 against him in...

The Red Sox can take away one positive from Sunday’s game; Daisuke Matsuzaka struck out eight and walked none in 5 2/3 innings of work. He also allowed ten hits, however, and five runs to raise his ERA to 7.33. In his first two season in the majors, Matsuzaka allowed 53 fewer hits [...]

On the subject of the 2009 Daisuke Matsuzaka, no one accurately can say, "It is what it is."

Vicente Padilla cleared waivers. Now, can the Rangers find some team willing to trade talent for the pitcher? He hasn’t posted an ERA under 4.50 since 2003.

The Red Sox have made three outs on the base paths to one for the Rangers, who lead 5-3. Vicente Padilla has settled down after a shaky third, allowing only a solo homer to Mark Kotsay in the fourth and a single by David Ortiz in the sixth. The Rangers scored in the fifth with two outs as Nelson Cruz tripled and scored on a wild pitch. -- Jeff Wilson

Dominate pitching at Fenway Park could only last so long. Daisuke Matsuzaka took the hill one game after Jon Lester's near perfect game. Dice-K got rocked for five runs on 10 hits over 5 2/3 innings pitched with no walks and eight strikeouts. Nelson Cruz and David Murphy each collected three hits apiece. Cruz also hit his 17th homer of the season in the seventh off of Hideki...

3-3 road trip through NY and Boston, not too shabby. Angels lose today to end their trip 3-3, so Texas manages to lose no ground on their divisional lead. Guys to discuss: • Vicente Padilla: We all know that it's in him to throw in the mid-90s and work through jams against good hitters, but there it was again today. What do you make of this guy? • David Murphy...

Michael Young snapped a 27-game streak without a home run, hitting a solo shot in the first for a 1-0 lead. Vicente Padilla pitched around a two-out double by Kevin Youkilis by picking off Boston's first baseman to end the inning. -- Jeff Wilson

Nelson Cruz homered in the seventh to push the Rangers' lead to 6-3. Now, it's about to get interesting in the eighth. Vicente Padilla stopped the game in the seventh after a grounder by Mark Kotsay that apparently got a piece of his pitching hand. He stayed in the game and needed only one pitch to end the inning. It was his 99th and final pitch. Darren O'Day is on to...