Sox Youth Getting It Done

There's a reason why Baseball America voted the Red Sox farm system the second best out of 30 MLB organizations. Seems like just about every player they call up contributes to the team's success. Last night was no exception as the Red Sox opened their series against Tampa Bay at Fenway, a week after getting swept at the Trop by the upstart Devil Rays.

After a two and a half hour rain delay, rookie Clay Buchholz took the mound and delivered a sometimes shaky, yet winning performance as the Sox easily beat the Rays, 7-3. Brandon Moss, called up after Coco Crisp's brief hamstring injury and hanging around while waiting for J.D. Drew to recover, blasted a home run to straightaway center field which began the eventual undoing of promising Tampa Bay starter, Edwin Jackson.

Moss also threw out a runner at the plate. He's just the second Red Sox rookie to homer and have an outfield assist in the same game since a young Trot Nixon did it in 1999.

Tonight, Josh Beckett opposes James Shields, who shut out the Sox with a 2-hitter last Sunday. They'll need the ace to keep the Tampa Bay bats under control if Shields is even close to commanding the strike zone like he did last week.