Rich Hill News

Atchison accentuated his status as the American League's busiest middle relief pitcher in Friday night's 7-4 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park [ map ] . He was called in to start the fifth inning after starter Jon Lester [ stats ] gave up three long balls, including a grand slam, that put the hosts in a 7-1 hole.

A pinch-hitting Jarrod Saltalamacchia clubbed a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift the Boston Red Sox to a 3-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rays in the second installment of a three-game series at Fenway Park.

In the month of April, the Rays and Red Sox shared a common weakness. In May, each team has seen it become a strength.

It's still early in the season, but there already has been no shortage of players taking rehab assignments in order to work back from injuries.

Alfredo Aceves jogged out of the bullpen at Comerica Park in Detroit on April 8, charged with protecting a three-run lead for the Red Sox in the ninth inning.

"We have three guys at the end of the game who were starters in spring training," manager Bobby Valentine said.

The Red Sox were a few days away from starting the season when they learned their closer, Andrew Bailey, had torn a ligament in his thumb.

From the first at bat, the Red Sox had their power stroke working against Joe Blanton and the Phillies tonight.

The Boston Red Sox have won tough game against a strong opponent. This one was just about as tough, never-racking and vicious as they come.

The Red Sox desperately needed to get things going, especially at home and after the opener of a four-game set that saw Josh Beckett booed mercifully, the outlook didn't appear to be very promising.

A strange noise was heard at Fenway Park in the seventh inning Friday night. It was the sound of a Red Sox starting pitcher leaving to cheers, not a chorus of boos.

Dustin Pedroia extended his hitting streak to 12 games with three hits and three RBIs and righthander Clay Buchholz delivered his best performance of the season as Boston snapped a six-game slide at home.

A source of scorn from Red Sox fans at the onset of the Bobby Valentine era, last night's 8-3 loss to the Cleveland Indians in the opener of a four-game series at Fenway Park [ map ] was this month's latest example of their stabilization.

Alex Wilson began making the transition from starting to relieving when it looked like the Red Sox bullpen needed the help the most.

The Orioles left Boston on a 5 game winning streak, ending with a sweep of the Red Sox.

Any number of reasons exist to kick back and appreciate the 2012 campaign. Here are just a few : 9. David Ortiz is as fearsome as ever.

Even after the Red Sox bullpen threw 216 in 13 1/3 innings on Sunday, the team decided not to bolster the pen with an additional arm from Pawtucket.

Like the swallows returning to Chris Capuano and the Germans bombing Pearl Harbor, every year before summer breaks, Mark William Prior resurfaces to make his annual bid for the bullpen of big league ballclub.

Daisuke Matsuzaka is a little under a month away from returning from Tommy John surgery, but where will he fit on the roster once he is set to pitch in the majors in a couple weeks? The Japanese pitcher has set himself apart this offseason by starting his rehab stint earlier than originally predicted and is on pace to arrive back on the Boston Red ... (more)

The first time he came to the plate at Fenway Park as a member of the Oakland A's Monday night, former Red Sox right fielder Josh Reddick said he was surprised by the tepid response he got from the crowd.