Game time: 1:05 pm


Scheduled starters: Doug Waechter v. David Wells

Lester will pitch today as well.


The game will not be on either WEEI or Tampa Bay radio, so there's no mlb audio. The Sox schedule has this game on mlb.tv, but the mlb.tv schedule does not include this game. So it looks like there's no coverage of this game other than wire reports.

Ft. Myers Weather: 9 am observation at Page Field: wind out of the south at 9 mph, visibility 7 miles, few clouds at 1,100 feet, temperature 76F, DP 71F

Forecast: Afternoon temperatures in the mid-80's, with increasing humidity, along with scattered to broken clouds. The winds will pick up to around 15 mph with gusts to 25 mph out of the south and southeast.

Anni

Wily Mo is supposed to get a couple of atbats today.

The lack of spring training broadcasting this year has been really annoying. I guess now that we're in the dog days of spring training, I'm just anxious for the season to start, but nonetheless, I want to watch (or at least listen to) baseball more than anything right now.

1-0 Tampa, Ty Wigginton takes Fatty McFatFat deep.

Looks like the immortal Ty Wigginton took Boomer deep in the second.

1-0 Devil Rays after 1 1/2

Hanley is on ESPN.

3-0 Rays. I hate to even think this, but if their starting pitching comes around, they could be a problem. They are already very capable of throwing the spoiler magic down, and this is going to be a tough race in the East.

Edit: Haha - 4-0. They're not wasting any time.

If they traded Lugo and Huff for pitching, they'd probably win 70-75 games. I mean, they don't even need studs, they just need like a Odalis Perez or Bronson Arroyo or one of those types.

Watching the Marlins, they're in the same boat, only they have the SP potential already there.

It's 4-1 now. Papi is back. He homered off Waechter in the bottom of the fourth. The Sox are still batting.

Anni

Agree 100%. The Marlins are relying more heavily on perceived upside in some positions, but they could be dominant in a couple years.

In the TB game, Ortiz yanks one back. 4-1 Rays in the bottom of the 4th.

Sigh. 5-1 Rays, Lester gives up a dinger to someone you've never heard of.

It's now 8-1 Rays after 4 1/2. Ordaz (who he?) and Travis Lee both took Lester deep in the fifth.

Ouch!

Anni

Ouch is right. It looks like the Jon Lester Era is a bit further off than we expected. I really hate to admit this, but maybe BP was not entirely wrong.

Mark Loretta goes Boom to add two more runs.

Manny also goes boom. Thanks to you, Ruddy Lugo. 8-5 Rays going into the 6th.

Rays got another run in the sixth. 9-5 TB after 5 1/2

I'm pretty excited to see the type of numbers Loretta can put up this year. His swing looks GREAT this ST. I would expect him to easily hit over .300. He looks like the Loretta of '04 not '05 so far this spring.


Cora hits a 2-run HR.

HR derby today.

Alex Cora just took Wayne Franklin deep. 9-7 Rays with the Sox still batting in the seventh.

Anni

During one of the few televised games this spring, Lester looked incredibly nervous and hesitant on the mound and couldn't locate his fastball (though he did spin a few beauties). It may just be a case of jitters and trying to make a good impression. Just hope that he isn't pressed into a Cla Meredith-esque situation before he's ready.

(Cla Meredith, by the way, looked really good when I saw him pitch in Ft. Myers a couple of weeks ago.)

FINAL, Tampa Bay 9, SOX 7

WP - Doug Waechter
S - Chad Harville

LP - David Wells

TB - 9R, 11H, 2E
SOX - 7R, 12H, 1E

Sox Homeruns: Ortiz, Loretta, Ramirez, Cora

Did Wily Mo get any ABs?

All I can find so far is a line score. I'll post a link to a box score if I can find one.

This was posted on the Bradenton Herald's web page:

Roger Mooney - Rays get to Wells in fourth inning

FORT MYERS - Boston left-hander David Wells made his first appearance of the spring for the Red Sox on Tuesday against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.
The 42-year-old Wells, recovering from off-season knee surgery, allowed two hits through the first three innings, including Ty Wigginton's first homer of the spring. But he appeared to tire in the fourth when the Rays reached him for three runs.
Jorge Cantu followed consecutive singles by Damon Hollins and Travis Lee with a double down the left-field line. Cantu then scored on Wigginton's single.


and


Boston's David Ortiz hit his first home run of the spring off Rays starter Doug Waechter in the fourth inning. The ball sailed over the right-field wall, continued past the batting cage tucked beyond the ball and landed past the bushes that border the parking lot.

Wily went 1 for 1


Here's a link to a box score. I hope we can get the code problem fixed before the season starts so I can post them.

Box Score

Fwiw, it's 1-for-1.... with a walk.

A walk, eh? Well, that puts to bed all the concern over his lack of patience at the plate. This might be Bagwell for Andersen in reverse.

Wily looks like he took a walk too, which is a good thing - hopefully the talk about him working on his eye in the offseason is true. Let's hope he keeps it up.

Cora hit a homer? I can't get him to go deep on MVP '05 to save my life!