Sixpence None the Richer

Games 68 & 69 - Red Sox

Red Sox 9, Giants 5
Braves 9, Red Sox 4
Record: 44-25

Nothing. No thing. The absence of things and all thingy essence.

That's what Curt Schilling had last night. Even as he made it through the game's first few innings without damage, it was clear that he wasn't making the Braves miss, and that his command was erratic. When the inevitable explosion occurred, the Braves led 6-1 and the game was over, the Sox' anemic offense rocked to sleep by another mediocre lefty.

Mike Timlin channeled Schilling during his short stint, turning a 6-2 disadvantage (thanks, Coco, for the sudden outburst, even if ultimately not enough) into a 9-2 Braves edge.

Two starts ago, Schill fired a complete game 1-hitter against the A's. Since then, he's been abysmal, yielding 11 earned runs and 19 hits in 9 1/3 innings. Last night he looked, dare I say it, old. Two is a cause for concern, three becomes a trend, so I'll hold back the judgment until Schill's next outing. But if he continues to make me long for Julian Tavarez, the Sox just got a lot more interested in a starting pitcher at the trade deadline.

I'll not hold back the judgment on Timlin, sadly. He's toast. Done. I offered him a Gilley's gift certificate prematurely a year or so ago - now I'm hoping he'll take me up on it.

Here's advance notice that I'll be nearly silent over the next 10 days or so - I'm swamped to an unprecedented level here at the quarry, and I'm heading to New England on Friday for a week with the bluebloods on the Cape. Be good to one another while I'm gone.