Red Sox take 2 of 3 in Philadelphia, sit 7 back of Balitmore

Times are good for Ortiz, Saltalamacchia and the Boston Red Sox

These are the kind of series wins that good teams get done.

Going on the road against a Philadelphia team that is always a tough out at home, the Boston Red Sox came into Citizens Bank Park and won 2 of 3 games to move 5 back of the Tampa Bay Rays for second place and 7 games back of the Baltimore Orioles for the division lead.

This win came just in time for the Boston Red Sox as well, because they have two three-game series this week, one against the Baltimore Orioles in Baltimore and one against the Tampa Bay Rays in Boston. They are playing their best baseball of the season at an important stretch of time and that is a good thing. For all the early season struggles that they had, the Sox are one more good week away from making a serious play for the top of the division.

Good

1. David Ortiz really had only one good game this series – Game 2 when he had 2 hits and 2 RBI – but the bigger news with David Ortiz came out Sunday afternoon. Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal reportedthat the Red Sox had a player’s only meeting on May 11th and that it was led by David Ortiz. It was called “heated” and that everyone had to take “responsibility”. For a team that has appeared as a team that doesn’t care or plays with a sense of entitlement, this could have been a turning point in the Red Sox season where they finally got their act together. They’ve played well since May 11th, winning 8 of their last 10.
2. If Josh Beckett continues to pitch this way, it’s going to get really awkward soon for Red Sox nation. After becoming one of most despised Boston athletes in the city over the past two weeks, Josh Beckett has put together two awesome starts in a row now. Sunday he went 7 and 2/3 innings with 5 strike outs and only 1 run allowed. Look, Beckett deserves criticism for appearing like a player that doesn’t care. When he’s making the money he makes, he owes the fans a little bit more energy when the going gets tough, but if Beckett goes back to his form from early last season or eve 2007 Beckett, the Sox fans aren’t going to have a choice but to win. Something winning is the best medicine.
3. Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Mike Aviles were the hitting heroes of the Red Sox against the Phillies. Combined, they had 9 hits, 5 home-runs, 8 RBI. Aviles even had a home-run in each of the games in the series. Every series, you need random guys to step up. Against Tampa, it was Cody Ross. This weekend it was Aviles and Salty.

Bad

1. Again, screw you Major League Baseball for scheduling this series in Philadelphia. I’ll bet you anything that Papelbon would have blown Friday night’s save if it was in Boston leading to a Sox sweep. Then again, maybe Beckett doesn’t pitch as well as he did on Sunday if it’s in Boston.
2. Daniel Nava struggled this series after lighting it up over the past week. He had 1 hit and 2 RBI. I don’t like to complain because he has been so nice, but I hate seeing guys end a hot streak by stepping into a freezer.

Next Up: The Sox head down I-95 to the Beltway to take on the first place Baltimore Orioles.