RED SOX is cautious...
Red Sox not underestimating Yankees
Team not taking anything for granted in matchup with rival NY
By Ian Browne / MLB.com
"Got to keep playing good. Can't take anything for granted right now," said David Ortiz. (AP)
NEW YORK -- Back on Aug. 19, when the sight of Pinstripes was just about to blur the collective rearview mirror of the Boston Red Sox, all eyes started looking ahead to this three-game showdown between the rivals, which kicks off Tuesday night at Yankee Stadium.
Here, it seemed, was going to be the chance for the Yankees to get right back into the heart of the American League East race quicker than you could say "1978." You see, on Aug. 19, the 14 1/2-game edge the Red Sox had held on the Yankees on May 30, was down to four games.
But in a span of a week, the Red Sox have once again turned the lead into a cushion. After overpowering the White Sox by a score of 46-7 in a four-game road sweep, the Red Sox have opened their lead back to eight games, following the Yankees' loss to the Tigers on Monday night.
So the team that has led the AL East since April 18 can now go for a virtual knockout.
The Red Sox might well be able to see those mythical ropes. But they're not going to succumb to bulletin-board quotes or knockout predictions.
"I think it's a chance for us to play a good series," said Red Sox third baseman Mike Lowell. "I think that's [the media's] job. That's a better story for [the media]."
Manager Terry Francona would have smiled broadly if he had heard Lowell utter that statement.
Cushion? In Francona's mind, that is something you sit on or sleep on. It isn't something that has anything to do with a baseball team.
"That's not the mentality we've ever taken," Francona said. "I don't think that's a very productive way to go into a series. If we were thinking like that, I don't think we'd have the, whatever you call it, cushion or whatever. I don't think that helps you play good baseball thinking like that."
Whether it is the third baseman, the manager or, yes, the captain, you can't get any uniformed member of the Red Sox to openly salivate about a chance to put the Yankees away.
"Like I said in the beginning, we have to worry about us playing our baseball and worry about the quality of baseball we play," said Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek. "We do that, we'll take care of things."
That business approach has gotten the Red Sox this far, so they aren't about to abandon it now.
"Got to keep playing," said Red Sox slugger David Ortiz. "Got to keep playing good. Can't take anything for granted right now."
If it seems like a long time since the Red Sox and Yankees have played, it's because it has been. You'd have to go back to June 3 when Alex Rodriguez beat Jonathan Papelbon with a ninth-inning home run at Fenway.
The rivalry renews with some outstanding pitching matchups. Daisuke Matsuzaka faces off against Andy Pettitte in the opener. Josh Beckett goes up against boyhood idol and fellow Texan Roger Clemens on Wednesday night. Curt Schilling will be opposed by the vastly underrated Chien-Ming Wang in the Thursday afternoon finale.
"Still, it's about quality starts. It doesn't matter who is taking the ball," said Varitek.
But the Red Sox might be about to get an added bonus. Judging by their weekend bashing in Chicago, the bats might be about to go on a certifiable roll for the first time this season.
"That's what you try to do, you try to culminate everything together as the year goes on and then you hopefully start really clicking," said Red Sox right fielder J.D. Drew. "It's kind of hard to do that every game for four days. That just shows how difficult that is to do. It's definitely a good way to do it."
The best-case scenario for the Red Sox in the Bronx is a sweep that pushes the lead to double digits.
But even rookies won't talk up that appetizing scenario.
"I don't think anybody cares," said Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia. "If we go in there and play well, we're going to be fine. We know they're going to be there in the end. We've just got to play a little bit better than them."
For, as Lowell notes, the Yankees might still have a second life even if the Red Sox do put them away -- for all intents and purposes -- in the division.
The challenge for the Red Sox, should they get in a true comfort zone, might be to ignore all mathematics and just keep playing.
"If we get hot and really explode, that doesn't dampen their spirits," Lowell said. "They're still in it, you know what I mean? That's the beauty of the Wild Card -- they're in it. [You can't] guarantee me that winning the division gets you to the World Series. ... I want to be the team that gets to the playoffs and is hot. You have to be hot. You have to be clicking at that time. You can win 150 games during the season and you have a one-week letdown, your season is over."
One thing nobody can dispute, however, is that the Red Sox will show up at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday as a most confident bunch.
"It feels better to go in there playing the way we're playing," Lowell said. "We're really playing well. We're getting great pitching performances. Swinging the bats extremely well. We're playing good defense. The combination, with our talent, is tough to beat. It's a great feeling."
Ian Browne is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
