Francona vs. Ortiz

Growing tensions seem to be growing these days in Red Sox nation between manager Terry Francona and his aging slugger David Ortiz. In the midst of a sizzling hot streak in May this 34 year-old who many thought was finished has hit for a lofty .358 average with seven homeruns and 17 RBI’s. On Thursday morning the man affectionately known as ‘Big Pappi’ vented his pent up frustrations about his long time manager on the WEEI’s Big radio Show. Ortiz who is currently hitting .248 and has raised his overall average by more than a hundred points told the station that he was upset about Francona pinch hitting for him a handful of times this season and showing him a lack of respect. “I was mad. I was absolutely mad,” Ortiz was saying about specifically being benched on April 27 against the Toronto Blue Jays. “You got to believe in your players’ period. You choose to have me on your roster since Day 1. You gotta ride with me.” Papi who has hit .455 with 2 homeruns in his past 11 at bats said that he is ready to turn the page on being what he called disrespected. Still it was evident that he isn’t quite willing to forgive the media for printing harsh things last month about how he couldn’t hit anymore and how the Red Sox should get rid of him. “I’m going to be done when I decide to be done, not when the media says that I’m done,” said Ortiz who is in his 13^th season. “You struggle for a month and everybody starts killing you…. If you pay attention to that you’ll never come out of it.” He went on to add that he would definitely like to play for a few more years. Ever since Francona gave more playing time to Ortiz he has responded by batting .429 (12 for 28) with 4 homeruns and 10 RBI’s. After only eight games into the schedule Francona along with GM Theo Epstein decided to platoon Ortiz. It was a decision that the manager makes no apology for. “You take your roster sometimes and you do what you think is right,” Francona said. “Now I think he is getting hot, which is great news for us. We need that production. It’s going to help us win games.”

HAWKS ARE HOVERING…by Momma Gouche

Friday night’s game was no shoo-in for the Chicago Blackhawks, as David Boland almost shot the team in the foot three times with penalties — one being a combined visit to the box with Marian Hossa. The San Jose Sharks were given a 5 on 3 for approximately one and a half minutes, giving Patrick Marleau lots of room to score his first — of two — goals. However Boland came out of the box and redeemed himself 30 seconds later with a quick wrist shot. It was anyones game right up to midway in the overtime, when Dustin Byfuglein put the game away for the Hawks. Boland’s trips to the box were not too costly, as he more than made up for his indiscretions by good — solid play and a goal and an assist. Although Marian Hossa did not garner any points, his contribution to the game was more than adequate.Patrick Marleau got his second goal of the game at 15:37 of the third and the game ended up in overtime. Byfuglein seems to have a way of turning up at the right time to save the day. He gets the winner at 12:24 and the Hawks now have a 3-0 lead in the series. The Blackhawks had taken six of the eight penalties and were out-shot in the game, but managed to prevail and get the win. It was a nail biting game for me as I have been a fan of the Blackhawks for over 50 years. Now I wait for my nay sayers to pay up their debts.