Kuzul

NOTE: team and player statistics updated through Saturday, July 3.

1. Tampa Bay Rays (47-33)—Last Week: Second

Offense Rank: Fourth
Pitching Rank: Fourth
Last 10 Games: 5-5

2. New York Yankees (49-31)—Last Week: First

Offense Rank: Second
Pitching Rank: Ninth
Last 10 Games: 6-4

3. Texas Rangers (48-32)—Last Week: Sixth

Offense Rank: Third
Pitching Rank: 10th
Last 10 Games: 6-4

4. Boston Red Sox (49-32)—Last Week: Fourth

Offense Rank: First
Pitching Rank: 21st
Last 10 Games: 6-4

5. San Diego Padres (48-33)—Last Week: Seventh

Offense Rank: 22nd
Pitching Rank: First
Last 10 Games: 6-4

6. Atlanta Braves (38-33)—Last Week: Third

Offense Rank: Ninth
Pitching Rank: Fifth
Last 10 Games: 6-4

7. St. Louis Cardinals (44-37)—Last Week: Fifth

Offense Rank: 19th
Pitching Rank: Second
Last 10 Games: 4-6

8. Minnesota Twins (44-37)—Last Week: Eighth

Offense Rank: 12th
Pitching Rank: Seventh
Last 10 Games: 4-6

9. New York Mets (45-36)—Last Week: 11th
Offense Rank: 15th
Pitching Rank: Sixth
Last 10 Games: 4-6

10. Philadelphia Phillies (42-37)—Last Week: 13th

Offense Rank: 11th
Pitching Rank: Eighth
Last 10 Games: 5-5

11. Cincinnati Reds (46-36)—Last Week: 16th

Offense Rank: Fifth
Pitching Rank: 19th
Last 10 Games: 7-3

12. Colorado Rockies (43-38)—Last Week: 10th

Offense Rank: 10th
Pitching Rank: 13th
Last 10 Games: 5-5

13. San Francisco Giants (41-39)—Last Week: Ninth

Offense Rank: 23rd
Pitching Rank: Third
Last 10 Games: 2-8

14. Los Angeles Dodgers (44-36)—Last Week: 17th

Offense Rank: Eighth
Pitching Rank: 18th
Last 10 Games: 5-5

15. Florida Marlins (37-43)—Last Week: 14th

Offense Rank: 13th
Pitching Rank: 16th
Last 10 Games: 3-7

16. Detroit Tigers (43-36)—Last Week: 15th

Offense Rank: 18th
Pitching Rank: 15th
Last 10 Games: 5-5

17. Toronto Blue Jays (41-41)—Last Week: 12th

Offense Rank: 16th
Pitching Rank: 20th
Last 10 Games: 3-7

18. Oakland Athletics (40-42)—Last Week: 20th

Offense Rank: 21st
Pitching Rank: 11th
Last 10 Games: 6-4

19. Los Angeles Angels (45-38)—Last Week: 18th

Offense Rank: Seventh
Pitching Rank: 24th
Last 10 Games: 5-5

20. Chicago White Sox (41-38)—Last Week: 19th

Offense Rank: 20th
Pitching Rank: 14th
Last 10 Games: 6-4

21. Milwaukee Brewers (37-44)—Last Week: 24th

Offense Rank: Sixth
Pitching Rank: 27th
Last 10 Games: 6-4

22. Kansas City Royals (36-45)—Last Week: 23rd

Offense Rank: 17th
Pitching Rank: 23rd
Last 10 Games: 7-3

23. Chicago Cubs (35-46)—Last Week: 21st

Offense Rank: 26th
Pitching Rank: 17th
Last 10 Games: 4-6

24. Washington Nationals (36-46)—Last Week: 22nd

Offense Rank: 24th
Pitching Rank: 22nd
Last 10 Games: 3-7

25. Seattle Mariners (33-37)—Last Week: 26th

Offense Rank: 29th
Pitching Rank: 12th
Last 10 Games: 4-6

26. Cleveland Indians (32-48)—Last Week: 25th

Offense Rank: 25th
Pitching Rank: 25th
Last 10 Games: 6-4

27. Arizona Diamondbacks (32-49)—Last Week: 27th

Offense Rank: 14th
Pitching Rank: 30th
Last 10 Games: 5-5

28. Houston Astros (32-50)—Last Week: 28th

Offense Rank: 27th
Pitching Rank: 26th
Last 10 Games: 5-5

29. Baltimore Orioles (24-56)—Last Week: 29th

Offense Rank: 28th
Pitching Rank: 28th
Last 10 Games: 5-5

30. Pittsburgh Pirates (29-52)—Last Week: 30th

Offense Rank: 30th
Pitching Rank: 29th
Last 10 Games: 4-6

Carter’s MVP, Cy Young, and Rookie of the Year Award Races

American League MVP Award:

1. Josh Hamilton (Rangers): .340 avg., 105 hits, 19 HR, 59 RBI
2. Miguel Cabrera (Tigers): .338 avg., 97 hits, 20 HR, 68 RBI
3. Robinson Cano (Yankees): .346 avg., 109 hits, 16 HR, 55 RBI
4. Vladimir Guerrero (Rangers): .331 avg., 97 hits, 18 HR, 70 RBI
5. Justin Morneau (Twins): .342 avg., 97 hits, 17 HR, 54 RBI
6. Paul Konerko (White Sox): .297 avg., 79 hits, 20 HR, 57 RBI
7. Vernon Wells (Blue Jays): .274 avg., 84 hits, 19 HR, 48 RBI
8. Jose Bautista (Blue Jays): .229 avg., 64 hits, 21 HR, 52 RBI
9. Kevin Youkilis (Red Sox): .263 avg., 60 hits, 17 HR, 54 RBI
10. David Ortiz (Red Sox): .299 avg., 81 hits, 16 HR, 53 RBI

National League MVP Award:

1. Albert Pujols (Cardinals): .306 avg., 90 hits, 20 HR, 60 RBI
2. Joey Votto (Reds): .313 avg., 89 hits, 19 hits, 19 HR, 57 RBI
3. Ryan Howard (Phillies): .296 avg., 93 hits, 15 HR, 58 RBI
4. Scott Rolen (Reds): .302 avg., 80 hits, 17 HR, 56 RBI
5. Corey Hart (Brewers): .287 avg., 78 hits, 18 HR, 60 RBI
6. Adrian Gonzalez (Padres): .295 avg., 86 hits, 16 HR, 51 RBI
7. Adam Dunn (Nationals): .276 avg., 81 hits, 17 HR, 49 RBI
8. Mark Reynolds (Diamondbacks): .221 avg., 59 hits, 19 HR, 53 RBI
9. Prince Fielder (Brewers): .266 avg., 80 avg., 18 hits, 18 HR, 36 RBI
10. Colby Rasmus (Cardinals): .296 avg., 93 hits, 15 HR, 58 RBI

American League Cy Young Award:

1. Jon Lester (Red Sox): 10-3, 2.76 ERA, 118 strikeouts
2. David Price (Rays): 11-4, 2.42 ERA, 90 strikeouts
3. Jered Weaver (Angels): 8-3, 2.82 ERA, 124 strikeouts
4. Cliff Lee (Mariners): 7-3, 2.45 ERA, 78 strikeouts
5. Andy Pettitte (Yankees): 10-2, 2.82 ERA, 78 strikeouts
6. Trevor Cahill (Athletics): 8-2, 2.74 ERA, 56 strikeouts
7. Jeff Niemann (Rays): 6-2, 2.80 ERA, 75 strikeouts
8. Clay Buchholz (Red Sox): 10-4, 2.45 ERA, 64 strikeouts
9. Felix Hernandez (Mariners): 6-5, 3.03 ERA, 116 strikeouts
10. Jason Vargas (Mariners): 6-4, 3.22 ERA, 65 strikeouts

National League Cy Young Award:

1. Josh Johnson (Marlins): 8-3, 1.82 ERA, 115 strikeouts
2. Ubaldo Jimenez (Rockies): 14-1, 2.27 ERA, 107 strikeouts
3. Yovani Gallardo (Brewers): 8-3, 2.56 ERA, 120 strikeouts
4. Adam Wainwright (Cardinals): 11-5, 2.34 ERA, 114 strikeouts
5. Jaime Garcia (Cardinals): 8-4, 2.10 ERA, 77 strikeouts
6. Tim Hudson (Braves): 8-3, 2.37 ERA, 51 strikeouts
7. Roy Halladay (Phillies): 9-7, 2.42 ERA, 112 strikeouts
8. Mat Latos (Padres): 9-4, 2-62 ERA, 91 strikeouts
9. Clayton Richard (Padres): 6-4, 2.74 ERA, 81 strikeouts
10. Matt Cain (Giants): 6-7, 2.93 ERA, 76 strikeouts

American League Rookie of the Year:

1. Austin Jackson (Tigers): .305 avg., 89 hits, 1 HR, 19 RBI
2. Brennan Boesch (Tigers): .345 avg., 77 hits, 12 HR, 46 RBI
3. Reid Brignac (Rays): .277 avg., 49 hits, 2 HR, 24 RBI
4. Justin Smoak (Rangers): .205 avg., 45 hits, 8 HR, 34 RBI
5. John Jaso (Rays): .274 avg., 43 hits, 3 HR, 26 RBI

National League Rookie of the Year:

1. Gaby Sanchez (Marlins): .308 avg., 89 hits, 9 HR, 38 RBI
2. David Freese (Cardinals): .296 avg., 71 hits, 4 HR, 36 RBI
3. Ike Davis (Mets): .261 avg., 66 hits, 10 HR, 38 RBI
4. Ian Desmond (Nationals): .255 avg., 65 hits, 4 HR, 34 RBI
5. Alcides Escobar (Brewers): .244 avg., 65 hits, 2 HR, 24 RBI

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Eighty-one games…that is the midpoint of the season.

Admit it, Red Sox Nation, if you knew what you know right now back on Opening Day you would have been thrilled to be 17 games over .500 and just a half game behind the NY Yankees on Independence Day (by the way, happy 4th of July to everyone!).

On April 4, we knew about Daisuke Matsuzaka’s injury…but what we didn’t know about was the impending glut of injuries that have somewhat gutted an oft-maligned lineup, not to mention the starting rotation. Mike Cameron, J D Drew, Jacoby Ellsbury, Jeremy Hermida, Mike Lowell, Victor Martinez, Dustin Pedroia, Jason Varitek, Josh Beckett, Clay Buchholz, and most recently, Manny Delcarmen.

Did I miss anyone?

And yet, here they are on July 4, just 1/2 game behind the Yankees. I’ll take it!

Tonight, a lineup dotted with a bunch of guys you had never heard of before the season began put a big hurting on the Orioles, 9-3. The nine runs supported southpaw Jon Lester, who improved to 12-0 in his career against the Orioles.

Kevin Cash, Darnell McDonald, Daniel Nava, Eric Patterson, and Niumann Romero. Okay, so you had heard of Cash before, but you were probably still trying to forget him.

Sure, the offense was led by Drew (3-for-3, 2 RBI), David Ortiz (3-for-4, 1 RBI), and Kevin Youkilis (2-for-5, 3 RBI, including his 16th home run), but the other guys were 4-for-12, with two RBI and two runs scored.

Meanwhile, Lester continues to dominate opposing hitters, going seven innings and allowing just one run on five hits and a walk while fanning seven. He improved to 10-3 while lowering his ERA to 2.76. Ramon Ramirez and Robert Manuel performed mop-up duty tonight.

And so the question must be asked: Will Yankees manager Joe Girardi select two Red Sox pitchers for the American League All-Star team because there are no more deserving hurlers in the league than Buchholz and Lester—neither of whom have been selected previously for the Mid-Summer Classic?

Of such chatter, Lester said, “Obviously it would be nice. Never been. I would like to go. If I end up going I’ll be very excited and it’ll be an honor.”

It would be a DESERVED honor for BOTH Red Sox pitchers!

The Red Sox jumped ahead 4-0 in the first inning. Youkilis drove in the first run with an RBI-double. Drew followed with a two-run double into right-center field, and one out later Nava drove a run-scoring double over the head of right fielder Nick Markakis.

After the Orioles cut it to 4-1 on Corey Patterson’s RBI single in the top of the fifth inning, Youkilis answered with a two-run home run over the Green Monster in the bottom of the inning. They added three runs off reliever Frank Mata in the eighth inning.

Baltimore finished the scoring in the ninth inning when Jake Fox hit a two-run shot off Manuel that barely cleared the wall in left field.

————————————-

RHP Clay Buchholz, who strained his left hamstring last weekend in San Francisco, threw from 90 feet and is tentatively scheduled to pitch on either Monday or Tuesday, but Francona said, “He’s going to have to be as close to 100 percent as he can be.”

————————————-

CF Mike Cameron was back in the lineup after being scratched Friday with abdominal soreness. His manager said, “He’s not 100 percent. I don’t think people realize what he’s going through to be able to play.”

————————————-

Francona said an MRI on RHP Manny Delcarmen’s strained right forearm showed no structural damage.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

This is a weekly focus on the hurlers that dominated their adversaries. These pitchers put up nasty numbers and made big league hitters wish they were playing T-Ball again.

1)    Edwin Jackson Ari

9 IP, 8 BB, 6 K, 1 W, 0.00 ERA

Edwin Jackson is yet another pitcher to join the list of no-hitters this year. He tossed 149 pitches against the Rays to put his name in the history books.

Jackson ’s outings leading up to his no-hitter weren’t spectacular. He was dragging around a 5.05 ERA before that night. The previous game against Detroit, he gave up nine hits in seven innings.

It would appear that fantasy owners aren’t biting on his recent success, either. He is only owned by 51.1 percent of owners with a slight increase of 2.5 percent in ESPN leagues. His current record of 5-6 and a 4.63 ERA isn’t exactly something that makes you jump out of your chair.

Much like Dallas Braden, the fantasy owners’ look at your total work and not one game.

He has posted a 1.62 ERA with two consecutive wins with 16 innings pitched in the last two weeks.

Regardless of his lack of success in the weeks prior, Jackson pitched a no-hitter and deserves the top spot for his performance last week.

2)    Chris Carpenter StL

8 IP, 3 H, 4 BB, 7 K, 1 W, 0.00 ERA

Carpenter took a line drive off his forearm and is listed day-to-day. He is still likely to make his next scheduled start.

He is currently 9-1 with a 2.70 ERA. He already has 100 strike outs in 116 innings pitched.

3)    Mariano Rivera NYY

5 IP, 3 H, 1 BB, 8 K, 2 W, 0.00 ERA

Whenever there is talk about him getting old, he puts up phenomenal numbers. He was able to pick up two wins and sit down eight with strikeouts last week.           

Rivera has a 2-1 record with 17 saves and a 0.92 ERA for the season so far.

4)    Yovani Gallardo Mil

9 IP, 5 H, 0 BB, 12 K, 1 W, 0.00 ERA

Gallardo is a killer on the mound. He was sitting down batters like an usher at a wedding.

He is 8-3 with a 2.56 ERA and 120 strike outs for the season.

5)    Carl Pavano Min

9 IP, 3 H, 1 BB, 4 K, 1 W, 0.00 ERA

Pavano got the shut out victory after a grueling nine innings last week.

Pavano is one of the hottest players in fantasy free agency. His ownership sky rocketed by 26 percent in ESPN leagues.

He has a 9-6 record and has a nice 3.33 ERA with 59 strikeouts for the season.

6)    Jamie Moyer Phi

15 IP, 8 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 12 K, 2 W, 1.80 ERA

Moyer simply spot on last week with two wins and only a 1.80 ERA in 15 innings pitched.

The fantasy world still has no respect for Moyer. His ownership only jumped 5 percent to a total ownership of 12 percent in ESPN leagues. His high season ERA is keeping owners from taking a chance on him despite his recent success.

He is 3-0 for the last two weeks and touted a nice 1.96 ERA since mid-June.

He has a 9-6 record with a 4.30 ERA with 51 strike outs this season.

7)    Trevor Cahill Oak

7.2 IP, 2 H, 3 BB, 10 K, 1 W, 0.00 ERA

          He has a 0.99 WHIP and is undefeated in June.

Cahill is fantasy baseball’s sexy waiver pick up with 35 percent increase in ownership in ESPN leagues.

He has a 7-2 record with a 2.88 ERA and 1.08 WHIP this season.

8)    Jon Lester Bos

15 IP, 11 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 15 K, 1 W, 1 L, 1.20 ERA

Boston has been bitten by the injury bug. With Beckett, Pedroia, Martinez, and Ellsbury on the DL it is amazing that they are nipping at the heels of the first place Yankees.

Lester’s performances on the hill would have a lot to do with their recent success.

Lester only allowed one run against the Giants in a complete game earning him the win with nine strikeouts.

He ended up with a loss despite a fantastic outing against the Rockies, giving up only one run.

He is 9-3 with a 2.86 ERA and 111 strikeouts for the season.

9)    Jake Peavy CWS

7 IP, 3 H, 2 BB, 9 K, 1 W, 0.00 ERA

In June, Peavy was excellent with a 1.75 ERA and 0.92 WHIP.

He has a 1.23 ERA with 21 strikeouts in the last two weeks.

It would appear most of the fantasy owners who dropped Peavy during his early season struggles have picked him back up.

He is 7-6 with a 4.70 ERA and 91 strike outs.

10) J.J. Putz CWS

3 IP, 1 K, 2 W, 0.00 ERA

Putz pitched only three innings last week but was able to pick up two wins and a save. Bobby Jenks was on the shelf, but looks to be returning soon which would push Putz back into his set up role.

There is no reason to pick him up off waivers, as his fantasy value after this week will dwindle.

Putz is simply being recognized for the job he did while Jenks was away.

Honorable Mentions*

Roy Halladay Phi 7 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 1 W, 0.00 ERA

Gavin Floyd CWS 7 IP, 2 H, 1 BB, 9 K, No Decision, 0.00 ERA

Derek Lowe Atl 7 IP, 5 H, 2 BB, 4 K, 0.00 ERA

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Yesterday, Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Clay Buchholz pulled up lame in the top of the second inning against the San Francisco Giants, slightly hyper-extending his left knee running from first to second base after collecting his first Major League hit.

The Red Sox were still trying to digest the broken foot star second baseman Dustin Pedroia suffered the night before when they were forced to watch Buchholz walk with a significant limp down the dugout steps and into the clubhouse. Now, they had to find a way to piece together eight innings of relief. They did, and brilliantly, something I did not expect.

Boston won as seven relievers combined to toss eight innings of two-run ball.

In Sunday’s game, the final of their series with the Giants, the relief core was given a well-deserved rest by Jon Lester . The offense that knocked around National League aces Roy Halladay and Ubaldo Jimenez over the past few weeks tagged another usually dominant pitcher. Tim Lincecum was roughed up, allowing a solo shot to David Ortiz that splashed into McCovey Cove in the first, two runs in the second, and one more in the third. Having thrown 79 pitches, and uncharacteristically walked four batters, he was replaced.

Just as the Red Sox bullpen did before, the Giants’ performed admirably after his short exit. Boston was ahead 4-1, and San Francisco allowed just one more run over the remaining six innings. But the Red Sox advantage was more than enough, as Lester performed as San Francisco expected Lincecum would.

Lester allowed a first inning run and nothing else. The Giants couldn’t handle his repertoire: his biting cut fastball, his deceptive changeup, and his loopy curveball. He kept his pitch count low, worked out of jams when he needed to, kept the hitters off-balance, and ultimately cruised to toss a complete game , in which he allowed just five hits and a walk while striking out nine.

Boston needed this effort from Lester who, after a rough start to the season, continued his magnificent performance on the mound to record his ninth win and lower his ERA to 2.68.

But, dampening his outing, the team suffered their third blow of the series, as hot-hitting catcher Victor Martinez went down,  fracturing his thumb . He took a foul tip off the bat of Pablo Sandoval off the thumb in the second inning, then took another from Andres Torres in the third, ending his day behind the plate.

It is definitely unfortunate that injuries have hit Boston, but they keep on winning in spite of them. Buchholz may make his next start and Martinez is on the disabled list for hopefully a short stint. But Pedroia, who was fresh off a five-hit, three-homer game against the Colorado Rockies, is expected to miss up to six weeks.

The offense picked up in his stead in the series finale, as replacement Bill Hall had two hits, scoring and driving in a run. Just as Lester picked up the slack for a weary bullpen, Hall stepped up with one of their better hitters on the shelf.

Boston, now 41-26 and only a game-and-a-half behind the New York Yankees in the AL East, will need more production like they received against the Giants, and if they do, they will surely be in the divisional race for the long-haul.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Fans of all sports love a comeback, a return to greatness, a story of redemption.

This year, much has been made of Barry Zito’s new-found pitching poise, Vladimir Guerrero’s resurgent bat, and Vernon Wells’ revitalized swing, among other motivating stories.

Rightfully so, but these are relatively minor turnarounds compared to some of MLB’s true, claw-back-from-the-brink comeback stories.

Here are 10 of the top comebacks in MLB history.

Begin Slideshow

Ten days ago the Red Sox suffered a crushing loss to their arch (and division rival), the New York Yankees.  Losses happen, but this one stung more than most because Jonanthan Papelbon, the team’s surefire closer over the last five seasons hardly looked like a guy who had been to All-Star games and enjoyed playoff success.

He gave up an astounding four runs in just two thirds of an inning.  For the first time in his career as a reliever he gave up two home runs in one inning and left Red Sox fans wondering if 2010 just wasn’t their year.

Why were fans so concerned in mid-May with just about 3/4 of the season left?

Simple.

The Red Sox were looking up in the standings at everyone in the division, and the Rays and Yankees both already had significant leads in the win/loss columns.  The Sox had a team that was supposed to be built on pitching and defense, and early returns were beyond disappointing in both areas. 

With John Lackey, Josh Beckett, and Diasuke Matsuzaka each struggling mightily and the defense seeming to kick one ball after another since the team flew north from Ft. Myers, the team showed no signs of a turnaround in the near future.

The next day something changed in a big way. The Red Sox appeared headed for another loss at the hand of the Bronx Bombers following a seven-inning, one-run performance from CC Sabathia.  Flame-throwing set-up man Joba Chamberlain came on and absolutely collapsed.  He gave up four runs in his inning of work and left with the score tied.

When Mariano Rivera came on for the ninth, winning the game in extra-innings seemed like the most realistic option for getting out of New York with at least one victory.  They instead managed to get the future Hall-of-Famer, plating two runs and putting the pressure back on the World Champions.

Papelbon came back through the bullpen doors, and though he looked shaky still, managed to finish the win for the former Boston Americans. 

Fast-forward eight more days and the tune is entirely different in Boston.  Since that incredible come from behind win over the Yankees, the Red Sox are an impressive 7-1 over that stretch.  More impressively, those wins have come against the Twins, Phillies, and Rays; all teams currently leading their divisions.

So just how did a team that looked like they had essentially eliminated themselves turn around their season in a little more than a week?

The team started playing like analysts had predicted in the offseason. 

Clay Buccholz and Jon Lester both ratcheted up their performances, and are currently battling for the team lead in ERA in the low 3s. 

The other members of the staff (excluding Beckett who hit the DL) have all started performing more like the top two guys than AAA pitchers. 

Matsuzaka flirted with history as he carried a no-hitter into the eighth before a flair found its way past an outstretched Marco Scutaro’s glove.  Wakefield did an admirable job filling in for Beckett as he provided the Sox with eight shut-out innings and beat Roy Halladay.  Lackey found his touch and made a quality start in the team’s win over the Rays.

The pitching staff is not solely responsible for the light-speed like turnaround. 

David Ortiz struggled more than any hitter on the team for the first month of the season.  His numbers so far in May are among the best of his career as he is hitting .368 with 9 homers this month. 

The team is also starting to get healthy as both Jacoby Ellsbury and Mike Cameron hit the field for the first time in almost a month this week.  Other hitters are starting to hit, and the plays are being made in the field.

All of this adds up to a message that the Red Sox have sent loud and clear over the the last nine days by going 8-1 overall against four of the MLB’s top six teams: It’s only May, but it might be time to start to panic about how good the team in Boston could really be.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The brooms were out in St. Petersburg tonight as the Boston Red Sox rocked the Rays 11-3. This was an impressive series as the Red Sox completed the first sweep of the Rays at Tropicana Field since 2002.

Completing the sweep was important and all, but now the Red Sox have climbed back into the AL East, sitting only 5.5 games behind the Rays and now six games over .500. 

Throughout the series the themes were run prevention and solid, quality pitching, the two themes this ball club is built on.

The team witnessed strong outings from Clay Buchholz, Jon Lester, and John Lackey. It appears that Lester is now getting in the “zone” and Lackey’s and Buchholz’s performances are definitely confidence boosters. 

The Sox scored a total of 19 runs while holding the Rays to only four. Quite simply, that’s just dominance. 

Besides the strong pitching performances, including the one-hit shutout on Tuesday, Boston has shown some quality hitting performances, too. 

David Ortiz, Kevin Youkilis, and Adrian Beltre were the team’s offensive powers this series. Ortiz went 5-11 with two home runs while tallying up five RBI. Youkilis also had five hits. But the biggest contributor of them all was Beltre who went 7-13 with an astonishing seven RBI, six of them coming in the rubber game. 

It appears that Boston has avenged the four-game sweep that Tampa Bay completed on Boston back in April.

Boston looks good. They are pitching very well, from their starting pitching to the bullpen. And their bats have awakened. 

Now is the time for Boston to gain some momentum after going 9-4 through a tough stretch against American League powerhouses. Boston will open up what appears to be somewhat of an “easy” stretch against Kansas City, Oakland, Baltimore, and Cleveland. 

As Terry Francona said after completing the three game sweep, “Someone asked the other day if I think (good pitching) is contagious. If it is, I hope we get an epidemic.”

The Sox hope that their pitching staff will be the key to their success in their climb in the American League East. 

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

1) Dallas Braden Oak

9.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K, Win and 0.00 ERA

Dallas Braden tossed only the 19th perfect game in major league baseball history on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Rays.

Braden is only 63 percent owned in most fantasy leagues actually saw his ownership decrease 8.4 percent.

His 8.4 percent drop rate is likely due to losing his last two starts prior to this week’s perfect game.

Braden currently holds a 4-2 record with twenty-eight strike outs and a 3.33 ERA this season.

2) Jamie Moyer Phi

9.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, Win and 0.00 ERA.

Moyer is the oldest player in major league history to record a shutout.

His ownership stock however didn’t rise with his accomplishment as he is only owned by 3 percent and saw a 1.7 percent increase.

3) Jered Weaver LAA

7.1 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 7 K, Win and 0.00 ERA

Weaver flirted with a no-hitter until it was broken up by Ken Griffey Jr. in the seventh inning.

Weaver’s stock has gone up considerably since the start of the 2010 season.

He has a 4-1 record, forty-seven strike outs, and a 2.66 ERA for the season.

4) Jon Garland SD

7 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, Win and 0.00 ERA.

Garland had a stellar outing making this victory his third straight win.

The San Diego pitcher has a 4-2 record, twenty-five strike outs, and has a 1.71 ERA overall this season

Garland is 56 percent owned and saw a giant jump in ownership with 37 percent increase.

5) Brian Burres Pit

7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 4 K, Win and 0.00 ERA,

The Pittsburgh pitcher looks to have earned the fifth spot on the Pirates’ rotation with two impressive outings.

Zero percent ownership is an indication that no one has noticed his recent success. Burres is a risk to pick-up from the free agency due to a high ERA history.

6) David Price TB

7.2 IP, 3 H, 4 BB, 6 K, Win, and 0.00 ERA

Price’s overall season has been top notch with a 4-1 record, thirty-three strikeouts, and a 1.91 ERA.

7) Mat Latos SD

8.0 IP, 2 H, 0 BB, 9 K, Win, and 0.00 ERA

Latos has a 2-3 record, twenty-six, and a 4.19 overall this season, but it looks like he is turning it around.

Latos is 52 percent owned and saw a 1.5 percent increase with this week’s production.

8) Ubaldo Jimenez Col

7.0 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 4 BB, 5 K, Loss, and 1.29 ERA

This week Jimenez was given a loss despite only allowing two hits and one run. His performance on the mound was as good as any this season regardless of the Rockies inability to provide run support.

There isn’t anyone hotter than Ubaldo Jimenez. In April he has been a highlight reel.

This season he has a 6-1 record, 49 strike outs, and a .093 ERA.

He has been dominant and threw the first no-hitter in Colorado history on April 17th .

9) Jon Lester Bos

15 IP, 9 H, 3 ER, 4 BB, 12 K, 2 Wins, AND 1.80 ERA

The Boston hurler put in two starts this week and when the dust settled he appeared to be the only reliable Red Sox starter to date.

Lester put in 15 innings on the hill and looked impressive against the Yankees.

10) Adam Wainwright StL

14.0 IP, 9 H, 3 ER, 4 BB, 13 ER, Win, AND 1.93 ERA

Wainwright battled with Cole Hamels last week which resulted with a no-decision after an impressive outing.

He earned his fifth win this week giving him a 5-1 overall record with 43 strikeouts and a 2.08 ERA.

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