Sox-Tigers Recap

The Sox won the series. Say it a couple of times before hurling yourself off a ledge for the 6-2 loss in the finale.

The Sox took each of the first two games by a score of 4-3, using a mix of effective (though not dominant) pitching and timely offense, supplied in both instances by Alex Cintron.

As for tonight's game, Jon Garland was undone first by lazy outfield play from Rob Mackowiak, who allowed Ivan Rodriguez to advance to second on a routine fly-out. From there Garland inflicted plenty of wounds on himself, allowing a single (which Mackowiak again foolishly turned into a runner on second with an air-mailed throw), then the killer blow of a three-run homer to Marcus Thames. Right now, the most apt comparision for Garland is he is in a phase similiar to Jose Contreras before the All-Star break last season. Would the Sox trade him less than 6 months after signing him to a 3-year extension? I say no. He is the fourth pitcher in this rotation and he is pitching like it right now, but given enough time he will find his way back to respectability. I say by the end of the year he has 13-15 wins and an ERA in the low-4 range.

Additional thoughts on this, the upcoming series with Cleveland, and Brian Anderson (if and when he gets sent down to the minors), will be featured on tomorrow's episode of Soxcast.