Beckett, Lackey Grab 15 Wins

Rays at the head of the class—Rockies, Marlins at the back

(NEWSER) - Report card time! Here’s how the rambunctious kids of MLB are doing so far, in Yahoo Sports’ Steven Henson’s estimation. A students—Rays, Red Sox, Cubs, Angels, White Sox Particular kudos go to the Rays, the poor kid who went to the head of the class. B students—Cardinals, Brewers, Twins, Phillies, Yankees, Athletics, Marlins, Orioles The Cardinals have a slight edge in the wildcard race. The Yankees, meanwhile, barely scrape together a B. More»

(NEWSER) - Luke Scott homered and had three of Baltimore's 11 hits off Josh Beckett, and the Orioles received a fine pitching performance from Jeremy Guthrie in a 5-4 victory over the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday night. Scott was mired in a 7-for-55 skid before going 3-for-3 against Beckett, who came in 4-0 with a 2.05 ERA in four career starts at Camden Yards. More»

Oriole sinks reeling ex-team with 3-run 10th-inning shot

(NEWSER) - Orioles infielder Kevin Millar handed his former squad a crushing loss last night, blasting a three-run homer in the 10th inning that lifted Baltimore over the Red Sox, 6-3. Millar's dinger gave the Birds their first series sweep of Boston in two seasons and dropped the Sox to four games ahead of the Yankees in the AL East. More»

Team was full of slackers, Globe expose alleges

(NEWSER) - The Boston Red Sox’s three highest-paid pitchers—Jon Lester, Josh Beckett, and John Lackey—were in the habit of drinking beer, playing video games, and eating fast-food fried chicken in the clubhouse during games instead of supporting their teammates in the dugout, according to a scathing Boston Globe piece examining the Sox collapse. The three were also among several players to cut back on their exercise regimens. Indeed, the piece alleges that “for every player committed to the team’s conditioning program, there was a slacker.” More»

Last-day losses cap miserable month for Red Sox, Braves

(NEWSER) - The Boston Red Sox are in the record books and out of playoff contention after a terrible night capped a terrible September. The Red Sox allowed two ninth-inning runs in a 4-3 loss to the Baltimore Orioles last night, the AP reports. Minutes after the Red Sox trudged off the field—still tied with the Tampa Bay Rays for the final playoff spot—the Rays secured the spot by beating the New York Yankees 8-7, having fought back from being down 7-0 in the middle of the seventh inning. More»