DON’T LET THE DOOR HIT YOU ON THE WAY OUT !

Photo: Twitter

9-PLAYER TRADE: Yesterday Boston completed a 9-player trade, sending Josh Beckett, Carl Crawford, Adrian Gonzalez, Nick Punto and cash considerations to the Dodgers for James Loney, Ivan DeJesus, Jr., Allen Webster and 2 players to be named later…Available research indicates it to be the 4th time the Sox have completed a trade involving as many as 9 players, 1^st since a 10-player deal in 1971…It matches the 2nd-largest trade in club history.

BRINGING THE HITS: The Sox lost to the Royals last night at Fenway Park, 10-9, despite banging out a season-high 20 hits, matching their most in a game since totalling 23 hits on 8/2/09 at BAL…It was the Sox 7th ever loss in a game in which they had at least 20 hits, 1st since they fell 8-7 vs. SEA on 9/3/81…It was Boston’s 1st ever home loss while tallying at least 9 runs and 20 hits, just their 3rd such loss overall and 1st since 4/24/60 at WAS (11-10 loss, 20 H).

CLOSE CALLS: Each of Boston’s last 3 games have been decided by 1 run, with the Sox going 1-2…The club is 13-16 overall in 1-run games this season…9 of Boston’s last 10 games have been decided by 3 runs or less, with the club going 3-7 in those tilts.

KING OF THE ROYALS: Dustin Pedroia has hit .379 (61-for-161) in 42 career games against the Royals, the best AVG by any Major Leaguer against Kansas City (min. 150 PA) in the franchise’s history (since 1969).

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RED SOX DEAL IS COMPLETE !

RED SOX TRADE JOSH BECKETT, CARL CRAWFORD,

ADRIAN GONZALEZ, AND NICK PUNTO TO THE LOS ANGELES DODGERS

FOR JAMES LONEY, IVAN DEJESUS JR., ALLEN WEBSTER,

AND TWO PLAYERS TO BE NAMED LATER

BOSTON, MA—The Boston Red Sox today traded right-hander Josh Beckett, left fielder Carl Crawford, first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, infielder Nick Punto, and cash considerations to the Los Angeles Dodgers for first baseman James Loney, infielder Ivan DeJesus, Jr., right hander Allen Webster, and two players to be named later.   Ben Cherington, Red Sox Executive Vice-President/General Manager, made the announcement.

A lifetime .284 hitter, Loney, 28, is batting .254 (85-for-334) with four home runs and 33 RBI, 32 runs, and 23 walks this year.  The left-handed hitter has hit .301 (22-for-73) in 20 starts since the All-Star break.  He is tied for the club lead with 114 games played this season and ranks second on the club with 18 doubles.  In his last six starts, he has hit .333 (7-for-21) with two home runs.

Loney ranks third among active players and 14th on baseball’s all-time list with a .349 postseason average (22-for-63) in 17 games (min. 65 plate appearances).

Defensively, he ranks third among qualifying National League first basemen with a .883 zone rating in 2012, while his .995 fielding percentage (22 E/4,701 TC) since 2009 places third best in the National League.

A first-round selection (19th overall) by the Dodgers in the 2002 First-Year Player Draft, he has hit .284 (872-for-3,070) with 173 doubles, 20 triples, 71 home runs, 451 RBI, 355 runs scored, 268 walks and 29 stolen bases in 896 career Major League games over seven seasons, all with Los Angeles.

Since the start of his first full Major League season in 2008, he leads the NL and ranks sixth in the majors with 752 games played, and is one of just four players to appear in at least 158 contests in each of the last four years.

De Jesus, who has been optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket, has appeared in 23 games for the Dodgers over two Major League stints this year, batting .273 (9-for-33) with three doubles, four RBI and five runs scored while appearing in the field at second base (7 games, 3 starts) and third base (5 games, 1 start).

With Triple-A Albuquerque, the right-handed batter has hit .295 (66-for-224) with 12 doubles, three triples and three homers in 60 games.  In 22 contests since the start of August the 25-year-old has hit .354 (29-for-82) with nine extra-base hits and 19 RBI.

For the Isotopes this season, he appeared at second base (43 games), shortstop (9), third base (6), left field (2) and right (1).

De Jesus, the Dodgers’ second-round pick in the 2005 First-Year Player Draft, made his Major League debut with Los Angeles last year and owns a .231 average (15-for-65) in 40 major league games.  He has a career .297 average (809-for-2,721) with 131 doubles, 14 triples, 30 home runs, 333 RBI, 430 runs, 304 walks and 65 stolen bases in 722 minor league games since 2005, spending the majority of his last three campaigns in Triple-A.  He is the son of 15-year Major League veteran shortstop Ivan De Jesus, Sr.

Webster has pitched at Double-A Chattanooga this year, posting a 6-8 record with a  3.55 ERA (48 ER/121.2 IP) and 117 strikeouts compared to 57 walks allowed in 27 appearances, including 22 starts.

The 22-year-old right-hander is tied for fourth in the Southern League in strikeouts and ranks seventh in the circuit in ERA, the second-best mark among full-season Dodgers farmhands.

He has surrendered just one home run all season and since May 15 ranks fourth among Double-A qualifiers with a 2.05 ERA (20 ER/88.0 IP) and fifth with a .215 opponent average (68-for-317).  Overall this season he has given up three earned runs or less in all but three starts and has held opponents to one earned run or less in a start 10 times.  He entered the 2012 season ranked by Baseball America as the Dodgers second-best prospect and as having that system’s best changeup, and was also tabbed by the publication as the No. 95 prospect overall in baseball.  Selected in the 18th round of the 2008 First-Year Player Draft, Webster is 34-24 with one save and a 3.34 ERA (180 ER/485.0 IP), 456 strikeouts, 456 hits allowed and 202 walks over five minor league seasons in the Los Angeles system.

Beckett, 32, has gone 5-11 with a 5.23 ERA (74 ER/127.1 IP) in 21 starts with the Red Sox in 2012, compiling 94 strikeouts compared to 38 walks.  Acquired by the Red Sox from the Marlins in November of 2005, the right-hander is 89-58 with a 4.17 ERA (574 ER/1,240.0 IP) in 194 starts with Boston.  He owns a 130-92 career record with a 3.93 ERA (808 ER/1,849.0 IP) and 1,715 strikeouts in 300 Major League games (297 starts) over parts of 12 Major League seasons with the Marlins (2001-05) and Red Sox (2006-12).  Beckett was selected as an American League All-Star in 2007, 2009 and 2011, was named as the Most Valuable Player of the 2003 World Series with Florida, and earned ALCS MVP honors with the Red Sox during their 2007 Championship run.

The 31-year-old Crawford hit .282 (33-for-117) with 10 doubles, two triples, three home runs, 19 RBI, 23 runs and five stolen bases in 31 games for the Red Sox this year before undergoing a successful ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction (Tommy John surgery) on his left elbow on Thursday.  He began the season on the disabled list while recovering from left wrist surgery and missed the club’s first 89 games.  A four-time American League All-Star and 2010 Silver Slugger and Gold Glove Award winner, Crawford leads all active players with 114 triples and is third with 432 stolen bases.  Signed by the Red Sox as a free agent in December of 2010, he owns a career .292 average (1,642-for-5,615) with 254 doubles, 118 homers, 667 RBI and 853 runs in 1,396 Major League games with Tampa Bay (2002-10) and Boston (2011-12).

Gonzalez, 30, has hit .300 (145-for-484) in 123 games for Boston this season, ranking among American League leaders in hits (T-5th), doubles (2nd, 37), extra-base hits (T-10th, 52; 15 home runs) and RBI (T-6th, 86).  Acquired by the Red Sox from San Diego in December of 2010, he was named an All-Star in each season from 2008-11 and has won three Gold Gloves at first base (2008-09, 2011).  Originally selected by the Marlins with the first overall pick in the 2000 First-Year Player Draft, the left-handed batter has hit at a .294 clip (1,258-for-4,281) with 268 doubles, 11 triples, 210 home runs, 728 RBI, 659 runs and 520 walks in 1,140 career Major League games over parts of nine seasons with the Rangers (2004-05), Padres (2006-10) and Red Sox (2011-12).

Punto has played in 65 games with the Red Sox in 2012 after signing as a free agent in December.  The 34-year-old has appeared at all four infield positions while hitting .200 (25-for-125) with six doubles, one home run, 10 RBI, 14 runs and 19 walks.  A veteran of 12 Major League seasons, Punto has hit .247 (672-for-2,726) with 118 doubles, 25 triples, 15 home runs, 228 RBI, 360 runs and 322 walks in 952 career Major League games with the Phillies (2001-03), Twins (2004-10), Cardinals (2011) and Red Sox (2012).  He has played in 318 career games at third, 312 at second, 271 at short, five at first base, nine in center field, one in left field and one in right field.  He won a World Series title with the Cardinals last season.

SOX LOOK TO TAKE SERIES TONIGHT

SOX IN GOTHAM TONIGHT

SUCCESS IN NEW YORK: The Red Sox tonight conclude a season-long 11-day, 10-game road trip with the last of 3 contests in New York…At 17-15, the Red Sox are the only visiting AL team with a winning record at the new Yankee Stadium (since 2009).

• Boston is 13-5 in its last 18 contests at Yankee Stadium dating back to 8/9/10…It marks the 1st time Boston has won at least 13 times in any stretch of 18 games in the Bronx since 6/20/67-7/15/69 (also 13-5)…A win tonight would give Boston 14 wins during a span of 19 decisions at the Yankees for the 1st time since 6/20/1912-6/24/1914 (14-5).

FOUR SQUARED: Yesterday Pedro Ciriaco matched a career-high with 4 hits, also in the 2nd game of a doubleheader on 7/7 vs. NYY…Ciriaco became the 1st Red Sox with multiple 4-hit games against the Yankees since Wade Boggs did it 3 times against the Bombers in 1989…He is the 1st Major Leaguer with a pair of 4-hit games vs. the Yankees in a season since Chone Figgins in 2008 and is the 1st player on any team to do that while batting 8th or 9th in the lineup since Boston’s Doug Griffin did it twice from the 8th spot in 1973.

• Ciriaco is 15-for-29 (.517) with 7 RBI, 9 runs and 4 stolen bases in 7 career games vs. the Yankees, all this year with Boston…According to Elias, only 2 other players have recorded at least 15 hits in their first 30 AB against the Yankees during the expansion era (since 1961): Glenn Hubbard (15 H, 1988) and Howard Kendrick (15 H, 2006-2007).

DUSTIN’S TRAIL: Dustin Pedroia has hit safely in each of his last 13 games, the longest active hitting streak in the Majors…He is batting .404 (21-for-52) with 7 doubles, a triple, a homer, 8 RBI, 11 runs and 5 walks during the 13-game stretch…With a hit tonight he would match his season-long 14-game run from 4/29-5/13…A hit tonight would also make him the 1st Red Sox to hit safely in each game of a road trip of at least 10 games since he did it in 2008.

300 G/300 K: Tonight’s start will be his 300th regular season appearance for Josh Beckett, his 297th start…Beckett has fanned at least 1 batter in all 299 previous games (since 9/4/2001), the longest active streak in the Majors and the 2nd longest to begin a career since 1900 after Dwight Gooden (1st 349 games, 4/7/84-9/3/97)…He also has at least 1 strikeout in all 14 playoff games.

• The 6th Annual Beckett Bowl takes place tomorrow night at Lucky Strike Lanes in Boston…Josh Beckett and an all-star lineup of athletes and celebrities will join forces to raise funds for children in need…Since 2007, Beckett Bowl has raised more than $1 million for the Josh Beckett Foundation and the event’s primary beneficiary, Boston Children’s Hospital…More info at beckettbowl.com.

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SOX LOOK TO TAKE SERIES FINALE THIS AFTERNOON

POWER OUTAGE: Today’s starter Josh Beckett has not allowed a home run in a career-high 12 straight starts dating back to 5/15…It is the longest streak in the Majors this season and matches the longest single-season homerless streak by a Red Sox since Mel Parnell went 14 straight homerless starts from 6/29-9/11/48.

LEFT IS RIGHT: The Sox oppose LHP Matt Harrison today and are an AL-best 22-13 (.629) when facing a left-handed starter this season…Boston is 2nd in the Majors with 50 homers and 539 total bases vs. lefties and tops the AL with 118 extra-base hits against southpaws while ranking 2nd in the circuit with a .457 SLG.

WILL AND THE KID: Will Middlebrooks launched a 3-run, pinch-hit homer last night in the 7th inning, his 1st career home run in the pinch and his 14th overall, bringing his RBI total to 51 in 72 career Major League games…Since 1918, Middlebrooks is the 2nd Red Sox hitter to record at least 14 homers and 51 RBI in his 1st 72 career games during a single season, joining Ted Williams in 1939 (14 HR, 74 RBI)…In that time, Walt Dropo (1949-50), Norm Zauchin (1951, 1955) and Fred Lynn (1974-75) achieved the feat in multiple years.

BIRTHDAY BOY: Craig Breslow celebrates his 32nd birthday today.

SOX LOOK TO MAKE IT 5-STRAIGHT TONIGHT

RAIN-SHORTENED WIN: The Red Sox defeated the Tigers last night, 4-1, in a rain-shortened game that was called in the 6th inning after a 1:45 delay…Boston has won its last 4 games, the club’s longest winning streak since a 5-game stretch from 6/16-21…With last night’s win the Sox improved to 53-51, moving 2 games above .500 for the 1st time since they were 48-46 after play on 7/20…The Sox have made up 4.0 games in the division, from 11.5 to 7.5 games back, over the last 4 days.

SIGHTS ON SWEEP: A win tonight would give the Red Sox their 4th sweep of the season and their 1st since talking all 3 games against the Marlins at Fenway from 6/19-21…It would be the Sox 1st sweep of the Tigers at Fenway Park since 8/26-29/04 (4-0)…Their last overall sweep of series of at least 3 games against the Tigers came in a 3-game set in Detroit from 6/2-4/09.

ANYTHING BUT AVG: Adrian Gonzalez ranked 4th in the AL with a .372 AVG in July (35-for-94), reaching safely in 19 of 24 games in the month…Including his .373 mark (38-for-102) in 2011, Gonzalez owns a .372 AVG (73-for-196) with Boston in July, the top July clip by any Red Sox with at least 200 PA in the month, according to Elias…Gonzalez has multiple hits in 16 of 32 contests since 6/23 and tops the AL with a .383 AVG (49-for-128) in that time.

• Adrian Gonzalez leads the Majors with a .414 AVG (41-for-99) with runners in scoring position this season, including a .548 clip (17-for-31) with RISP since 6/20.

SOX SEASON RIDING ON BECKETT ?

It’s only July 25th, but the Boston Red Sox season may be riding on the arm of Josh Beckett tonight in Arlington Texas.

The Red Sox ace has struggled mightily of late and with a 5-8 record this year, Boston needs Beckett to come up big. Another loss tonight would be 5 of 6 and put the Sox below :500 again.  Entering tonight’s rubber game, Boston needs to leap-frog 5 teams for a Wild Card spot. There is not a lot more room for error if Boston is to remain in the playoff hunt.

The MLB trade deadline is next Tuesday. The outcome of tonight’s game should go a long way towards determining if the Sox are buyers or sellers come Tuesday at 4 pm.

WILD CARD STANDINGS AS OF 4 PM

Oakland	52	44	.542	-	-	9-1	W6	7/24 @ TOR, W 7-2	7/25 @ TOR, 7:07 PM	N
LA Angels	53	45	.541	-	-	5-5	L1	7/24 vs KC, L 1-4	7/25 vs KC, 3:35 PM	N
Chi White Sox	52	45	.536	0.5	65	4-6	W2	7/24 vs MIN, W 11-4	7/25 vs MIN, 2:10 PM	N
Detroit	52	45	.536	0.5	65	7-3	L1	7/24 @ CLE, L 2-3	7/25 @ CLE, 7:05 PM	N
Baltimore	51	46	.526	1.5	64	5-5	L2	7/24 vs TB, L 1-3	7/25 vs TB, 7:05 PM	N
Tampa Bay	50	47	.515	2.5	63	5-5	W1	7/24 @ BAL, W 3-1	7/25 @ BAL, 7:05 PM	N
Cleveland	49	48	.505	3.5	62	4-6	W2	7/24 vs DET, W 3-2	7/25 vs DET, 7:05 PM	N
Boston	49	49	.500	4.0	61	5-5	W1	7/24 @ TEX, W 2-1	7/25 @ TEX, 8:05 PM	N
Toronto	48	48	.500	4.0	62	5-5	L1	7/24 vs OAK, L 2-7	7/25 vs OAK, 7:07 PM

2012 Season: JOSH BECKETT

ERA	W-L	SO	WHIP
4.53	5-8	79	1.25
Career
3.88	130-89	1700	1.22

KEVIN HARRIMAN

TEXAS 2-STEP: Last night the Red Sox won 2-1 at Rangers Ballpark, ending a 4-game losing streak…It was just the 2nd time since 1992 that the Sox won a road game against the Rangers while scoring 2 runs or less (also a 2-1 win on 4/5/06)…Boston was the 1st visiting team to win a game at Rangers Ballpark while tallying 2 runs or less since the Angels 2-0 win at Texas on 9/18/09…The Sox have now won 4 times this season when scoring 2 runs or less, all road games.

LEFT TURN: The Sox oppose LHP Derek Holland tonight and are 21-11 (.656) when facing a left-handed starter this season, 2nd-best in the Majors behind the Giants (21-9, .700)…Boston is 2nd in the Majors with 43 homers vs. lefties and is 2nd in the AL with a .449 SLG against southpaws.

ROAD ON TRACK: The Sox are 24-21 (.533) away from home, the 4th-best road record in the AL in 2012…The club is 23-16 (.590) on the road since 4/23, the 2nd-best road record in the Majors in that span after the Braves (24-15, .615)…A win tonight would give the Red Sox a 9th series victory in their last 13 road sets since 4/23.

• Red Sox pitchers have a 3.63 ERA (158 ER/391.2 IP) on the road, 2nd best in the AL to Texas (3.59), compared to 4.70 (256 ER/490.0 IP) at home this season…Sox hurlers lead the AL in opponent SLG (.366) and opponent OPS (.678) on the road and have held foes to a ML-low 532 total bases in away games…The staff has an AL-best 0.80 HR/9.0 IP rate, allowing 35 road homers, fewest in the circuit.

TEXAS HEART: Tonight’s starter Josh Beckett, a native of Spring, TX, makes his 6th career start at Rangers Ballpark, all since joining Boston in 2006…His career 3.48 ERA (12 ER/31.0 IP) in Arlington is 3rd best among visiting starters at the ballpark since 2006 (min. 5 GS) after Trevor Cahill (2.23) and Scott Kazmir (2.65).

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DOUBRONT LOOKS FOR 10TH WIN TONIGHT

61-FELIX DOUBRONT, LHP 9-4, 4.41 ERA, 17 starts

2012: 9-4, 4.41 ERA (47 ER/96.0 IP) in 17 GS

 2012 vs. CWS: 1-0, 4.50 ERA (3 ER/6.0 IP) in 1 GS

CAREER: 11-6, 4.52 ERA (66 ER/131.0 IP) in 40 G,

20 GS CAREER vs. CWS: 1-0, 4.50 ERA (3 ER/6.0 IP) in 1 GS

CAREER at FENWAY: 5-4, 5.30 ERA (41 ER/69.2 IP) in 21 G,

 11 GS CAREER vs. CWS at FENWAY: First appearance

LAST START: Earned his team-leading 9th win of 2012 in Game 2 of a doubleheader vs. NYY on 7/7,

a 9-5 Red Sox victory…Gave up 4 runs (3 ER) on 4 hits and 1 walk while fanning 6 over 6.1 innings…

Surrendered 3 runs in the 1st frame without recording an out but then retired 18 of the next 20 batters

faced until the start of the 7th inning…Gave up a solo shot to Andruw Jones to lead off the 7th, recorded

an out and then exited with a 5-4 lead…Boston scored 4 runs on 6 hits in the bottom of the frame.

10 WINS: Doubront, at 24 years, 269 days old, is aiming for his 10th win tonight…He would join Jon

Lester (16-6 in 2008 at age 24) as just the 2nd Sox pitcher aged 24 years old or younger to reach double digit wins in a season since Roger Clemens went 20-9 as a 24-year-old in 1987 (turned 25 on 8/4).

AT THE BREAK: In his 1st full Major League season at age 24, recorded 9.09 strikeouts per 9.0 innings

pitched (97 K’s/96.0 IP) in 17 starts prior to the All-Star break…It is the best strikeout rate before the All-

Star break (since 1933) by any qualifying Red Sox pitcher under 25 years old…It is also the 4th-highest

rate among Sox left-handers overall in the season’s 1st half (min. 75.0 IP).

FINDING A GROOVE: Is 7-3 with a 4.10 ERA (29 ER/63.2 IP) and 65 strikeouts in 11 starts since 5/12…

Has held opponents to 2 earned runs or less in 7 starts in that time…Has pitched at least 6.0 innings in

11 of his last 15 starts since 4/21…Leads the Sox with 9 wins this season, all coming in his last 14 games.

QUALITY CONTROL: Has posted 9 quality starts this season, 3rd most on the Red Sox behind Josh

Beckett (10) and Jon Lester (10)…Has tallied a QS in 6 of his last 12 outings, and 8 of his last 15 overall.

Has allowed 3 earned runs or less in 15 of 20 career starts, including 2 ER or less in 11 contests.

THE K-ZONE: Has recorded 9.09 strikeouts per 9.0 innings (97 K’s/96.0 IP) this season, 3rd amon

SOX HOPE TO TAKE SERIES AGAINST RAYS

K’S IN BUNCHES: Sox hurlers have fanned at least 10 batters in each of their last 3 games, matching the club’s longest streak of the year (also 6/8-10)…The staff has tallied 9+ K’s in 6 straight games, leading the Majors with 59 punch outs since 7/6…It is the club’s longest such streak since a 6-game run from 4/29-5/4/09…Boston hurlers last tallied more than 6 straight games of 9 or more strikeouts with an 8-game run from 5/28-6/5/01.

HITS AND WALKS: David Ortiz is batting .429 (12-for-28) with  a double, 2 homers, 4 RBI and 11 walks over a season-high 9-game hitting streak…He has hit safely in 15 of 16 games dating back to 6/25, batting .377 (20-for-53) with 4 homers and a Major League-leading 16 walks in that time…During the stretch his has a .514 on-base percentage.

• Ortiz has now walked in 8 straight games (11 total BB), matching the longest such streak by a Major Leaguer this season (4 others)…It is the longest streak of consecutive games drawing a walk by a Red Sox since Kevin Youkilis walked in 10 consecutive contests from 5/6-15/10…He leads the AL with 13 intentional walks, tied for the Major League lead with CIN’s Joey Votto.

CATCHING RAYS: Today’s starter Josh Beckett leads Major League qualifiers with a 2.46 ERA (33 ER/120.2 IP) against Tampa Bay since 2007 (min. 57.0 IP), a span of 18 starts against the Rays…He is undefeated in his last 9 starts against the club dating back to 5/10/09…Beckett is 4-0 with a 1.08 ERA (6 ER/50.0 IP), 37 K’s and just 4 walks over his last 7 starts against TB dating back to 9/12/09, holding the Rays to 2 earned runs or less while going at least 5.0 innings in all 7 starts…It is the 2nd-longest ever such streak by a starter against Tampa Bay behind Kevin Appier (8, 5/24/00-8/8/03).

THE FIRST 50: Last night, in his 50th Major League game, Will Middlebrooks homered for the 11th time this year, a 2-run shot to boost his RBI total to 39…Since 1918 the only other Red Sox to reach those HR and RBI marks in his 1st 50 Big League games was Walt Dropo in 1950 (14 HR, 57 RBI).

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BECKETT GETTING BOMBED

 

Beckett can’t find the strike zone

 

The New York Yankees are kicking Josh Beckett around like a rag-doll. The Yankees have a 5-0 lead with 2-out in the first inning.

The Red Sox are staring an 8 1/2 game deficit in the face if they can not rally.

Tonight’s game is the first of a 4-game series for the Sox and Yankees.

KEVIN HARRIMAN

SOX CLUBHOUSE GETTING UGLY AGAIN ?

TOXIC ????

BY A.J. NICHOLSBOSTON SPORTS DESK INTERNTension in the Sox clubhouse?

The Boston Red Sox have had a season of ups and downs so far this year. The team is currently 33-33 and 5th in the American League Eastern Division. It has not been all ugly to this point and there have been a few bright spots on the squad. The play of Will Middlebrooks, Daniel Nava, Mike Aviles, Jarrod Saltalamacchia and the Sox bullpen has been a pleasant surprise.

However, these few glimpses of hope have been overshadowed by the disappointing play of veteran players and a .500 record. All the pressure and expectations that come with playing for a franchise like the Boston Red Sox can create a tension in the locker room and clubhouse. Individual and team performances are magnified in Boston to an extreme not seen with many other teams.

It seems that these pressures and expectations have combined with the personalities of players such as Kevin Youkilis, and Josh Beckett to create the perfect storm for Manager Bobby Valentine to deal with. ESPN Senior Writer Buster Olney reports from inside the Sox locker room that there are many critics of the way things are being handled throughout the organization. Olney explained that “”I don’t think team chemistry is going to be one of the strengths as they go down the stretch”. Clearly the Sox locker room is not a happy place right now and I believe a few Sox veterans are to blame for it.

First, Youkilis is 33 years old and dealing with injuries while only batting .215 this year. Youk was very comfortable with Terry Francona last season and has not had a working relationship with Bobby Valentine.

He is not happy with splitting playing time at Third-base with Middlebrooks and his frustration is not helping his play when he is in the lineup. It is time for the Sox to part ways with Youkilis. There is no longer a need for him with the young talent behind him. There lies the problem. Youk’s age, mixed with injuries and his play as of late has left the Sox with a veteran who not many teams are willing to take on his pricey contract.

Up until today talks had been quiet, but ESPN reports that the Sox have lowered expectations and this has the ball rolling with dealing Youk. If the Red Sox are going to trade Youkilis they will have to pay some of the remaining money on his contract to make him a more favorable option to teams with smaller salary caps. Teams that offer for Youk have the potential to gain a veteran Third-Basemen who when he is playing well, is at the top of the league in On Base Percentage (OBP). They also have the potential to gain an aging Third-Baseman with a bad attitude and declining potential. It will be interesting to see when and where Youk is dealt.

Now don’t get me wrong, the clubhouse drama and collapse is not all to be placed on Youkilis. The Sox have a number of other personalities who collide with team members and Valentine. Josh Beckett came into the year as the Sox number two starter in the rotation and was expected to be effective. That has not been the case rather he has had a fallout with Valentine and is now on the DL.  Beckett’s “I don’t care what you think” approach is a bad influence on the clubhouse because it gives the younger players the wrong image on how to conduct yourself at work.  His attitude has surely rubbed off on the pitching staff and just last week Clay Bucholtz told Valentine that he would not move his scheduled start day up in order to make up for the missing Beckett. Right now there is a defiant culture in the Sox clubhouse and Valentine does not have many options.

The only things working for Valentine are the success of his younger players and veterans such as Adrian Gonzalez and Big Papi who have been team players with positive attitude. Gonzalez is a Gold Glove Fist-Basemen who has played in Right Field for some time this year to accommodate for Youkilis.

Team management needs to make some decisions and do away with the negative attitudes and personalities in the clubhouse if Valentine is going to have a chance in taking the locker room back over. Rebuilding is not an option in Boston, so I am anxious to see what moves the Sox will make leading up to the trade deadline.