Red Sox Reset Rotation Against Angels

The Red Sox have once again found themselves plagued by injuries. The good news is that, unlike last year, these are of the minor variety. A few stomach problems for Buchholz, some elbow tightness for Daisuke Matsuzaka, and a bit of fatigue for Josh Beckett after throwing 125 pitches in Los Angeles. All the sort of thing that can mess up the team's plans, but nothing that's going to send anybody to the disabled list.

With Tim Wakefield having taken over for Buchholz in yesterday's win against the Mariners--a valiant performance by the 44-year-old starter if ever there was one--and Josh Beckett's bullpen session going well enough to allay any of Terry Francona and Theo Epstein's fears (both observed), the Red Sox now have a chance to retool their rotation.

Coming up tonight will be Clay Buchholz, over his stomach issues and ready to go on an extra day's rest. Up Tuesday will be Jon Lester, sticking to his normal schedule, and then Josh Beckett on Wednesday, starting on six days of rest. John Lackey will get the nod on Thursday, also sticking to his usual schedule, and then Dice-K will finally pitch again Friday, a full week after being pulled early from his start against the Mariners.

All-in-all, this seems to have worked out pretty well for the Red Sox. Tim Wakefield's start actually turned out to be beneficial for the team, helping them to dodge the sweep against  the Mariners, and now they've got everyone well-rested and, hopefully, with any injury concerns well out of their minds.