The Dark Knight Returns

Game 27 - Red Sox

Rays 3, Red Sox 0

Record: 15-12

In the words of the immortal Jack Nicholson, this (team) needs an enema. Or a day off. If I didn't know better, I'd say that the Sox appear for all the world like a team that just played 20 games in 20 days.

As noted elsewhere in my limited interwebby travels, the Justice League of Clay Buchholz and Josh Beckett put together a spectacular 15 IP, 7H, 3ER, 22K, 3BB combined line Saturday and Sunday, and were rewarded with 1 run of offense on 7 hits and a pair of hard losses. The offense, she has come a cropper, with J.D. Drew's early-season Superman replaced by his mild-mannered doppleganger, David Ortiz down with a bruised knee, and the Wonder Twins at the top of the lineup suddenly taking the form of Kevin Cash, who had way too many at-bats in Jason Varitek's absence over the past week. Meanwhile, Professor Xavier couldn't find a way to get Wolverine out of the pen in consecutive one-run losses to the Rays, meaning that Jonathan Papelbon will enter Tuesday's game with the Blue Jays having not unfurled his adamantium claws for 7 full days.

And yet, here I sit calmly rationalizing the current 5-game losing skid - too tired, too sick, too unlucky, long season, lotta ball left. That's a superpower I didn't know I possessed. I'm just hoping a game against Roy Halladay isn't my personal kryptonite, 'cause this happy-go-lucky Alfred E. Neumann routine is wearing thin.