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“DIARY OF A WINNER”
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THE "IDIOTS" REVERSE THE CURSE June 4, 2004 ... With Tim Wakefield struggling to reverse a trend in which Sox starters have posted a 7.98 ERA over the last nine games and with the offense sputtering, Francona's crew came up short against the Royals, 5-2, before 28,182 at Kauffman Stadium. The Sox lost for the fourth straight time, fell to 0-3 in June, and slipped below .500 (16-17) since they opened the season on a 15-6 burst. Yes, they still miss Nomar Garciaparra and Trot Nixon. And, sure, the loss of Byung Hyun Kim and Scott Williamson has complicated matters. But the pennant-hungry Sox believe they should be good enough even without a corps of key players to stymie the lowly Royals. As for Wakefield, he fared better than a few of his rotation mates over the last week. But he was done in largely by walks as he slipped to 4-4 with a 3.76 ERA. Though the Royals tagged him for five runs (four earned) on nine hits, they capitalized on each of their four walks off Wakefield, with three of the batters who walked scoring and the fourth forcing in a run. Less than a month after the Sox roughed up the lefty for six runs over five innings in a 9-1 thumping at Fenway Park, Gobble rationed them only two runs over six innings. He retired 15 straight batters between Damon's double leading off the game and Doug Mirabelli's homer leading off the sixth, and ultimately allowed only five hits and walked none. Nor could the Sox solve four members of Kansas City's bullpen, which on most nights is no match for Boston's. The pitching has hardly helped, though. While Mirabelli described Wakefield's performance as inconsistent, he said much of the staff is struggling along with the knuckleballer. Sorely missed setup man Scott Williamson played catch Thursday and long- tossed yesterday in Fort Myers as he prepares for his first bullpen session since he went on the disabled list May 21 with elbow inflammation. If all goes well, the righthander will pitch a couple of times in the bullpen over the next few days before the Sox decide whether he needs a minor league rehab assignment. He could rejoin the Sox within 10 days, barring a setback. Lefthander Mark Malaska, who was sent to Pawtucket May 15 to make room for Kevin Youkilis, appears close to returning. He worked on the side before the game with Wallace. Malaska struggled in his first five appearances for Pawtucket, logging a 7.94 ERA. But he has since pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings, striking out 10. He last worked Tuesday, going three innings. He could replace righthander Jamie Brown |
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