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Recap: Red Sox top White Sox for 2nd straight win

Most of the focus was off the field today, with the Red Sox landing Erik Bedard for a slew of prospects, but a game was actually played. Boston knocked off Chicago 5-3 at US Cellular Field.

Adrian Gonzalez led the way, going 2-for-5 with two doubles. Scott Lauber of the Herald tweeted that during his 10-game hitting streak, Adrian is hitting .525. Decent.

Dustin Pedroia, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Marco Scutaro joined Adrian with multi-hit games. The Sox had 10 hits in all, and drew six walks. 

Meanwhile, Andrew Miller was somewhere between serviceable and replaceable, giving up 10 hits and a walk over 5 2/3. Miller also struck out 8 White Sox batters, and it's worth noting that a number of the hits he allowed were pretty weak, including a chopper that skidded off his glove and a flair in no-man's land behind 2nd. Aceves pitched one inning, giving up a walk, to register the win. Daniel Bard went an inning and a third, and Jonathan Papelbon slammed the door in the 9th, striking out the side for his 24th save of the year.

The Sox return to Boston tonight, ready to host Ubaldo Jimenez's new team, Cleveland, starting tomorrow.

Box score

Edes: Red Sox trade for Bedard

It's just a few minutes past 4:00, but just like seven years ago, a late Red Sox deal appears to be trickling in. Per Gordon Edes, the Red Sox have acquired Seattle pitcher Erik Bedard. The Twitter user @seadogsradio tweeted that C Tim Federowicz was removed from the Sea Dogs game minutes ago and Edes has followed up confirming that Federowicz is in the deal. No word yet on the rest of the package.

Bedard is certainly a high-risk proposition, as mere days ago his former boss dissed his ability in clutch moments. Meanwhile, he's not any healthier than Rich Harden, who the Red Sox decided against acquiring after looking at his medical records. Oh, and he's moving from Fenway to Safeco.

If you're unfamiliar with Federowicz, check out his SoxProspects profile.

Update 1, 4:12 pm: Jayson Stark reports that Federowicz is heading to the Dodgers, so this is a three-team deal. It'll be fun to see the fallout from this.

Update 2, 4:14 pm: Buster Olney tweets that the deal is: "Bedard to BOS: Federowicz, 2 other minor leaguers to LAD, Trayvon Robinson, Chih Hsien Chiang to SEA for Bedard, Fields." If I'm reading correctly, Trayvon Robinson is the big part of the acquisition. As for Chiang: Oh no! No word yet on the two other minor leaguers. Peter Abraham adds that Erik Bedard's attitude makes John Lackey look like Kelly Ripa. Sweet.

Update 3, 4:37 pm: The particulars are being argued by various reporters, but Alex Speier confirmed the following: "Confirmed: Bedard and Josh Fields (P) to Boston; Federowicz, Fife, Juan Rodriguez to Dodgers; Trayvon Robinson and CH Chiang to #mariners." More on Josh Fields here. In sum, it looks like we gave up a platter of low-to-medium prospects for a flyer in Bedard.

Your Morning Dump...where the Sox think Harden is too fragile

Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here... highlighting the big storyline. Because there's nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.

Hours after agreeing late last night on a deal to acquire Harden from the Oakland Athletics, theRed Sox backed out after reviewing the right-hander’s recent medical information, a baseball source confirmed early this morning. Harden, meanwhile, told reporters in Oakland that he expects to start Tuesday night for the Athletics.

Harden, 29, has been on the disabled list 10 times in his career, most recently during the first three months of this season because of a strained muscle under his right arm. Regardless, it’s common for teams to exchange players’ medicals before completing a trade, and the Red Sox weren’t confident Harden will be able to make enough starts to contribute down the stretch, the source said.

Herald:Sox back out of Harden deal

What a surprise... Harden is too banged up! This isn't the most shocking news in the world as many were worried that he'd even make a couple of starts for the Sox. However, the deal wasn't an awful one. Lars Anderson is a solid prospect but he shares the dubious honor of playing the same position as Adrian Gonzalez. He's going to be stuck in Pawtucket for the time being, which makes him the most likely prospect that'll be packaged in another trade.

As for the other trade options... they're pretty limited. Ubaldo Jimenez appears to be heading to Cleveland. Hiroki Kuroda plans on staying with the Dodgers. That leaves Erik Bedard, which Seattle still thinks highly of and has a high price tag, and the Orioles Jeremy Guthrie, but there's no way the O's want to help out the Sox. Unless Theo pulls off some miracles in the next six hours... the Sox are standing pat for now and will see what they can pick off from the waiver wire.

Rest of the Links:Globe:Red Sox pile on|Hard push for Sox at trade deadline|Aviles happy with new role|Gonzalez proves he was worth the wait|Herald:Lester shows aces|Harden deal collapses--now what?|Aviles enters the mix|Lester hurls Red Sox past White Sox|CSNNE:Lester exorcises demons, win 10-2|Lester regains dominance|Sox call off trade for A's Harden|WEEI:An ace re-emerges|Harden deal may not happen

Recap: Lester dominates, Sox win

The Sox beat up on the White Sox tonight 10-2, behind a phenomenal performance by Jon Lester.

How good was Lester tonight?  8 IP, 4 hits, 1 BB, 8 K's and tagged for only 2 runs good.  With the offense exploding for 4 runs in the 5th (with 5 insurance runs in the 9th), this one was decided early.

The Sox got their offensive production from the usual suspects.  Gonzalez went 3-4 with a two-run blast in the 9th.  Pedroia had a 2-4 night with an RBI.  Youk had a homer and 2 RBIs.  Scutaro chipped in with 3 RBI's, and Salty added 2 of his own. 

But the real story of the night is the trade for THE Rich Harden.  Sleep easy tonight, my friends.  He's ours now.

BOX SCORE

Red Sox appear close to acquiring Rich Harden

As we're seeing with the on-again-off-again Ubaldo Jimenez to the Indians deal, nothing's final until it's final this time of year, but Twitter is abuzz with news that a Rich Harden for Lars Anderson swap is in the works.

Even I, who have been shouting from the rooftops (literally, you may have seen me climbing random buildings and yelling at you) that the Sox stand pat, think this is a good move. The key is what the PTBNL will be. Assuming it's somebody of little consequence, I give Rich a hearty "Welcome aboard."

And sayonara to Lars Anderson, who once tittilated Red Sox fans with his ascent through our farm system, only to be held back by...something. All I know is he got worse and worse and is now a castoff in a deal for a guy who can't pitch 60 innings without getting hurt.

We'll have more for you in tomorrow's morning dump as to whether this deal is actually going through -- and hopefully more info on the PTBNL.

Red Sox acquire IF Mike Aviles

The Red Sox completed a minor move this afternoon, sending utility player Yamaico Navarro and minor league pitcher Kendal Volz to Kansas City for IF Mike Aviles.

Aviles broke into the majors at age 27 in 2008 and hit .325 in 102 games. Since then, he's regressed down to average-player levels (at best). At age 30, he's having a terrible year, posting a .656 OPS, including a not-very-Boston .261 OBP. Of course, in 40 PAs this year Yamaico's OPS is .626, so it's not like we're losing Ted Williams here.

All in all, it's a flip of utility bench guys, simply exchanging a young one for an old one.

Aviles will be in uniform tonight, wearing no. 3.

Your Morning Dump...where Erik Bedard isn't a good idea

Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here... highlighting the big storyline. Because there's nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.

“He’s not a spotlight guy,” Duquette said of Bedard. “And he’s not reliable from a health standpoint — as we’ve seen. Caveat emptor.”

Translation: Buyer beware.

With the non-waiver trade deadline looming at 4 p.m. tomorrow, and given the concern over right-hander Clay Buchholz’ slow-to-heal lower back strain, the Red Sox have expressed interest in Bedard, who allowed five runs in only 11⁄3 innings last night against the Tampa Bay Rays in his return to the mound after a one-month stay on the disabled list with a knee injury.

Bedard had his two best — and healthiest — seasons with the Orioles during Duquette’s tenure with the club, winning 15 games in 2006 and 13 in 2007. He was 40-34 with a 3.83 ERA in five seasons with Baltimore.

But Duquette said Bedard’s checkered injury history should be a red flag to any interested team. Indeed, Bedard hasn’t made a start after July 31 in any season since 2007, and Duquette noted that he typically has been injured in July, shortly before the trade deadline.

“To me, it’s a sign he doesn’t want to be traded,” said Duquette, now an analyst for MLB Network. “I don’t know how he fills that void (for the Red Sox) right now.”

Herald | Red flag on Bedard talk

While it's a little much to suggest that Bedard somehow gets hurt every July just so he won't be traded, these are all still good points.

Bringing Erik Bedard to Boston, unless the cost is basically zero, just isn't a good idea. He can't stay healthy. He's been pitching in Seattle's cavernous ballpark, which is a tad different than pitching in Fenway. And apparently he hates the spotlight.

We have a little spotlight in Boston.

I know it's not exciting, but I keep coming back to thinking that no move is the right move. Jimenez's price is way too high, and he's really only shown dominance for half of one season. I already have major reservations about Bedard. Supposedly his teammate Doug Fister is available, but he's pretty average too.

When you factor in what it's going to take to land somebody, it doesn't seem worth it. Maybe we could take a flyer on a guy who's being given up for dead, but I'd rather rely on the guys we already have. Clay Buchholz coming back and helping us out is, in my mind, more probably than Erik Bedard making a difference here. So I continue to say we should stand pat.

On page 2, Dustin Pedroia's hitting streak comes to an end.

Recap: White Sox continue dominance of Red Sox

(Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

The Chicago White Sox picked up where they left off against the Red Sox, and beat Boston 3-1. There was not much offense in this game as the Red Sox scored their only run in the third and held that 1-0 lead until the 6th. Chicago scored the equalizer in the bottom of the 6th and then got the 2-run lead just 1 inning later off of a 2-run homer from A.J. Pierzynsky. That was all she wrote.

Dustin Pedroia had his 25-game hitting streak ended with an 0-for-4 night.

Salty provided the only Sox scoring with a solo homer in the 3rd inning. The 3 Red Sox hits came from batters 7-9 (Salty, Sutton, Scutaro), and what a coincidence, the three S's.

Gavin Floyd continued his dominance and perfection over the Red Sox, getting the win and staying perfect against Boston in his career with a 6-0 record.

Tim Wakefield was denied his 200th win and you could not have asked him to do much more than he did tonight. Wake went 7 strong, giving up only 3 hits, 3 runs, 2 walks, and struck out 5. Floyd just had to do him one better tonight and delay his 200th win celebration.

Maybe we can get some help from Baltimore tonight and keep the 2.5 game lead in the East.

Box Score

How we see it goin' down: Sox - Sox series

First Pitch: Friday 8:10, Saturday 7:10, Sunday 2:10

Arms: Friday:  Tim Wakefield, RHP (6-3, 5.15 ERA) vs. Galvin Floyd, RHP (8-9, 4.11 ERA)

Saturday: Jon Lester, LHP (10-4, 3.23 ERA) vs. Philip Humber, RHP (8-6, 3.27 ERA)

Sunday: Andrew Miller, LHP (4-1, 5.45 ERA)  vs. Mark Buehrle, LHP (8-5, 3.22 ERA)

Yard: U.S. Cellular Field   Watch it:  NESN   Hear it:  WEEI

Get your tickets here

The Matchup

Record: 64-39 (1st AL East)	Record: 51-54 (3rd AL Central)
On road: 31-20	At home: 23-26
Streak: Lost 1	Streak: Won 1
Leaders at the plate	Leaders at the plate
Average: Gonzalez (.352)	Average: Konerko (.308)
Homers: Ortiz (20)	Homers: Konerko (24)
RBI: Gonzalez (87)	RBI: Konerko (74)
Leaders on the mound	Leaders on the mound
Wins: Lester (10)	Wins: Buehrle, Floyd, Humber (8)
ERA: Beckett (2.17) | Bard (1.81)	ERA: Buehrle (3.22) | Bruney (2.16)
K's: Lester (116)	K's: Jackson (97)

Last time

The Sox of white came into Boston at the height of the Red Sox comback in the east at the end of May. The Red Sox had won 13 out of 16 games and jumped from third to first in the division with a one game lead before these bastards screwed it up. The White Sox swept the Red Sox, with wins of 3 or more runs. Chicago's 2-4 batters (Alexei Ramirez, Paul Konerko, and Carlos Quentin) killed the Red Sox in that series. The trio combined for a .500 average (19/38), and two of those hits were Konerko home runs. Ortiz also added 2 home runs in that series, but nothing was enough for Boston. 

This time

Laser Show: Adrian Gonzalez, David Ortiz, Dustin Pedroia, & Jacoby Ellsbury

To sum it up, they are all hot right now. The Ellsbury/Pedroia 1-2 punch has Boston hot in their pants right now. We are seeing power, extra-base hits, singles, stolen bases, and that little streak Pedey has going for him.

Gonzo has his average back above .350 and is driving in runs. I may be picking Ortiz because the image of the grand-slam is still in my head. There is a good chance that was the kick-start to get him going.

Pitch Around: Paul Konerko & Carlos Quentin

Konerko one of the best hitters in the game and his team leading average (.308), homers (24), and RBI (74) are nothing to mess with. He was a huge part of the sweep of the Red Sox and will be trouble again. Carlos Quentin is hitting for some power as well with 20 homers, but his average is well below Konerko, at .262. Average aside, Quentin will likely join Konerko in the pain in the ass category. Alexei Ramirez has slowed down considerably since the last time these two teams met, so my focus has shifted off of him.

Don't Fall Behind: All 3 starters

These are 3 very good pitchers that have not benefited from much run support as of late. Buehrle is the one pitcher that does stand out above the rest and it should. He is the ace of the staff and always pitches like it. Buehrle is 6-6 in his career against the Sox so there is some good news for Boston.

Glavin Floyd on the other hand, has never lost to Boston. Floyd has a 5-0 record against the Red Sox with a 3.83 ERA. I hope the Red Sox bats keep rakin'.

How we see it goin' down

The White Sox have struggled in spurts and have not played very good ball this season. The Red Sox have a great thing going in batters 1-6, so this is their chance at some revenge. I'm not confident in a sweep but the Red Sox will take 2 from Chicago.

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Taking Stock: Royals - Sox series

After each series, we'll be taking stock in each player's...and maybe manager's...performance. If we like what we see, we're buyin'. If we don't, we're sellin'. Or maybe we'll just hold onto our stock until we see more next series.

Jacoby Ellsbury & Dustin Pedroia: The best 1-2 combination in baseball. Ellsbury kept his batting average on the incline with a .438 (7/16) average in the series, a home run, 4 RBI, and a stolen base. Ells is now batting .325 on the season, and is tied with Gonzo for 2nd most homers on the team with 17.

Pedey one-upped Ellsbury, with his second straight .500 series and extended his hitting streak to 25 games. Pedey also leads the league in homers in July with 8. His average continues to climb, posting a .420 average in July and .308 on the season. There is no one better than him right now.

Adrian Gonzalez: Gonzo also had himself a .500 series (9/18), with 5 RBI. Gonzalez is back to a familiar place, over .350, with a .352 average. I'd like to see some homers, but he's producing without them.

David Ortiz: Ortiz posted a .412 average (7/17) in the series, with 5 RBI in game 2, and a grand-slam in game 3. He hit the ball very well in the series, and he would have had many more hits if it wasn't for the shift (same old story).

Matt Albers: He is doing a great job in every situation he is placed in. Albers gave up 2 hits, 0 runs, and struck out 3, over 3.2 innings in the series. Albers has not surrendered a run in July.

Andrew Miller: A struggle in game 2, giving up 9 hits, 5 runs, walking 2, and only 1 K over 3.2 innings. Miller was better against the Orioles, but did struggle with control, and walked 6. His last 3 starts have not been quality MLB starts at all. There may be a bus ride to Pawtucket in Miller's future.

J.D. Drew: Oh, wait...is he on the DL? Eh...I stick by my decision.

Kevin Youkilis: It is clear that he is playing hurt, but he is a true ball player, and he will have something to show. If there is no DL trip in the near future, we might see some production.