Jacoby Ellsbury

Jacoby Ellsbury is emerging as a potential speed-power player like Red Sox teammate Carl Crawford. He has 20-homer potential and entered Saturday leading the majors with 18 stolen bases. The best news for the Red Sox is he had played every game, quieting concerns about his durability. … Despite a vow of support from owner Lew Wolff, A's Manager Bob Geren is in real trouble. His biggest concern is that his punchless team continues to tread water with a pitching staff built to win, but it doesn't help that he had to put down a player revolt last week.

Jacoby Ellsbury is emerging as a potential speed-power player like Red Sox teammate Carl Crawford. He has 20-homer potential and entered Saturday leading the majors with 18 stolen bases. The best news for the Red Sox is he had played every game, quieting concerns about his durability. … Despite a vow of support from owner Lew Wolff, A's Manager Bob Geren is in real trouble. His biggest concern is that his punchless team continues to tread water with a pitching staff built to win, but it doesn't help that he had to put down a player revolt last week.

Runs have been hard to come by for the Red Sox in the American League division series. Although Boston was third in the majors in scoring during the regular season, it took the Red Sox 13 innings to get on the scoreboard against the Angels. And that one, lonely fourth-inning run Friday is all they've gotten in the series. In fact, through two games the Red Sox have just two extra-base hits and as many strikeouts (13) as baserunners. Kevin Youkilis , second in the American League with a .413 on-base percentage during the summer, has been on base once in this series.

Forget the five seasons he took Boston to the playoffs. Or the two times he won the World Series there. Terry Francona is clearly doing his best managing job this summer, keeping the hobbled Red Sox within striking distance of another postseason berth. Entering the weekend, only Minnesota, among American League teams, had won more games in August than the streaking Red Sox, who are without Kevin Youkilis , Jacoby Ellsbury and former most valuable player Dustin Pedroia and probably will be for the rest of the season.

It was a game of redemption for Howie Kendrick, Brian Fuentes and the Angels, who for one cool, crisp New England evening did not have to address their supposed Boston Red Sox curse or their Fenway Park demons. Kendrick, who batted .117 and stranded 18 runners in last season's playoff loss to Boston, hit a solo home run in the third inning, scored the tying run in the seventh and knocked in the winning run with a ninth-inning single to lead the Angels to a 4-3 victory over the Red Sox on Thursday night.

Forget the five seasons he took Boston to the playoffs. Or the two times he won the World Series there. Terry Francona is clearly doing his best managing job this summer, keeping the hobbled Red Sox within striking distance of another postseason berth. Entering the weekend, only Minnesota, among American League teams, had won more games in August than the streaking Red Sox, who are without Kevin Youkilis , Jacoby Ellsbury and former most valuable player Dustin Pedroia and probably will be for the rest of the season.

Manny speaks! (not about that) This was two days before the suspension. With the Boston Red Sox headed to town, we were curious about what Manny Ramirez thought might be ailing his old pal David Ortiz. "It's a long season," Ramirez said. "David is the type of player that could make his season in a month." The months have not been kind to Ortiz since last July 31, when the Red Sox ripped apart their dynamic duo by trading Ramirez to the Dodgers. Ortiz batted .278 last August and .244 last September, albeit after sitting out 39 games because of a wrist injury.

It's the ninth inning of a playoff game in Fenway Park, the score is tied, Red Sox speedster Jacoby Ellsbury is on first with no outs, and the Angels' catcher is . . . Bobby Wilson ? There is a very good chance this could happen in October. Though the Angels carried two catchers -- Jeff Mathis and Mike Napoli -- for most of the season, they are strongly considering carrying Wilson as a third catcher for the playoffs. The reason? Mathis, the team's best defensive catcher, is a .208 hitter who will most likely be pinch-hit for in the late innings of a close game.

BALTIMORE -- With one swing Saturday night, Manny Ramirez hit the 500th home run of his career and cranked up the volume in a ballpark that became his temporary home. If the noise level had climbed any higher, it might have violated a city ordinance. It certainly wasn't in keeping with standard baseball practices; visiting players aren't supposed to be loved so loudly. David Ortiz's sacrifice fly in the seventh inning scored rookie Jacoby Ellsbury with the go-ahead run, and Ramirez launched the first pitch from Orioles reliever Chad Bradford into the right-center-field seats, setting off a wild celebration that punctuated the Boston Red Sox's 6-3 victory before an announced 48,281.

BOSTON -- Last season, a little bit of Japan came to Boston when Daisuke Matsuzaka and Hideki Okajima bolstered the Red Sox' pitching staff. This year the route will be reversed, but manager Terry Francona hopes the destination is the same -- a World Series championship. The Red Sox open the 2008 regular season with two games in Tokyo against the Oakland Athletics, a journey that brings jet lag to the players and returns major league baseball -- and Dice-K and Okajima -- to their baseball-loving nation.

Boston Red Sox center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury was put on the 15-day disabled list Saturday for the third time this season with more pain in his left side. Ellsbury collided with Texas pitcher Tommy Hunter at first base after he led off Friday night's game with a roller down the line. Ellsbury underwent MRI and CT scans on Saturday in Boston, and was diagnosed with bruising on the left side of his rib cage. He was in only his ninth game back from the DL after sitting out 58 games because of broken ribs on his left side.

Runs have been hard to come by for the Red Sox in the American League division series. Although Boston was third in the majors in scoring during the regular season, it took the Red Sox 13 innings to get on the scoreboard against the Angels. And that one, lonely fourth-inning run Friday is all they've gotten in the series. In fact, through two games the Red Sox have just two extra-base hits and as many strikeouts (13) as baserunners. Kevin Youkilis , second in the American League with a .413 on-base percentage during the summer, has been on base once in this series.

He is the only Red Sox starter who has not gone to an All-Star game. And he has hit fewer home runs in his three major league seasons than hulking teammate David Ortiz has hit since late June. Yet despite the fact he is surrounded by big-name sluggers, no one is more important in making the Red Sox's high-powered offense go than tiny speedster Jacoby Ellsbury. When Ellsbury scores a run -- and he is second on the team with 94 of them -- the Red Sox win three-quarters of the time.

OFFENSE The Angels had baseball's most prolific offense for most of the summer, shooting to the top of the major leagues in runs, hits and average with runners in scoring position, but they cooled considerably in September, batting .263 and averaging 4.3 runs a game. To their usually aggressive base-running, the Angels have added more patience and power; they rank seventh in the league in walks and third in on-base percentage, categories they have lagged in for years. The Red Sox have a nice balance of power throughout their lineup with the left-handed David Ortiz and J.D. Drew, the switch-hitting Victor Martinez, and the right-handed Kevin Youkilis and Jason Bay, but they can also wreak havoc on the bases with Jacoby Ellsbury, who led the league with 70 stolen bases in 83 attempts, an 84% success rate.

It's the ninth inning of a playoff game in Fenway Park, the score is tied, Red Sox speedster Jacoby Ellsbury is on first with no outs, and the Angels' catcher is . . . Bobby Wilson ? There is a very good chance this could happen in October. Though the Angels carried two catchers -- Jeff Mathis and Mike Napoli -- for most of the season, they are strongly considering carrying Wilson as a third catcher for the playoffs. The reason? Mathis, the team's best defensive catcher, is a .208 hitter who will most likely be pinch-hit for in the late innings of a close game.

It was a game of redemption for Howie Kendrick, Brian Fuentes and the Angels, who for one cool, crisp New England evening did not have to address their supposed Boston Red Sox curse or their Fenway Park demons. Kendrick, who batted .117 and stranded 18 runners in last season's playoff loss to Boston, hit a solo home run in the third inning, scored the tying run in the seventh and knocked in the winning run with a ninth-inning single to lead the Angels to a 4-3 victory over the Red Sox on Thursday night.

OFFENSE The Angels had baseball's most prolific offense for most of the summer, shooting to the top of the major leagues in runs, hits and average with runners in scoring position, but they cooled considerably in September, batting .263 and averaging 4.3 runs a game. To their usually aggressive base-running, the Angels have added more patience and power; they rank seventh in the league in walks and third in on-base percentage, categories they have lagged in for years. The Red Sox have a nice balance of power throughout their lineup with the left-handed David Ortiz and J.D. Drew, the switch-hitting Victor Martinez, and the right-handed Kevin Youkilis and Jason Bay, but they can also wreak havoc on the bases with Jacoby Ellsbury, who led the league with 70 stolen bases in 83 attempts, an 84% success rate.

Boston Red Sox center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury was put on the 15-day disabled list Saturday for the third time this season with more pain in his left side. Ellsbury collided with Texas pitcher Tommy Hunter at first base after he led off Friday night's game with a roller down the line. Ellsbury underwent MRI and CT scans on Saturday in Boston, and was diagnosed with bruising on the left side of his rib cage. He was in only his ninth game back from the DL after sitting out 58 games because of broken ribs on his left side.

Manny speaks! (not about that) This was two days before the suspension. With the Boston Red Sox headed to town, we were curious about what Manny Ramirez thought might be ailing his old pal David Ortiz. "It's a long season," Ramirez said. "David is the type of player that could make his season in a month." The months have not been kind to Ortiz since last July 31, when the Red Sox ripped apart their dynamic duo by trading Ramirez to the Dodgers. Ortiz batted .278 last August and .244 last September, albeit after sitting out 39 games because of a wrist injury.

at Boston 4, New York 1: Jacoby Ellsbury stole home and the Boston Red Sox ran off with a three-game sweep of the Yankees. The Red Sox increased their winning streak to 10 games. at Oakland 7, Tampa Bay 1: Kurt Suzuki drove in three runs, Dana Eveland pitched into the sixth inning and every A's starter got at least one hit in the victory. Detroit 3, at Kansas City 2: Brandon Inge hit a two-run homer and Armando Galarraga pitched six solid innings for the Tigers.