BOSTON -- Anybody else wondering why Clay Buchholz keeps utilizes those no-look spin moves for pickoff throws to first when the runners are standing directly on the first base bag. The 25-year-old rookie did it three times by my count in Monday night’s game, and actually ended up with a throwing error when his toss sailed high on an attempt to nail Scott Podsednik in the fateful fifth inning.

The problem: Podesdnik was standing directly on the first base bag.

The second problem: the first Buchholz pick-off throws were with Paul Konerko anchored to first base without any real danger of the slugging ChiSox first baseman going anywhere.

Buchholz admitted after the game that the throws to first base are something he’s been working to cut out of his pitching mindset on the mound, and it’s something of a purposeful mechanism that helps the youngster slow the game down. Buchholz uses the tosses to first as something of a crutch to help him collect his thoughts on the mound when he’s not ready to throw the next pitch in a game.

The inability to command all of his pitches in Monday night’s fitful 4 2/3 inning performance with seven runs allowed coupled with the fact that hitters were all over his changeup are both problems consistent with a young hurler continuing to develop.

And so apparently are the subliminal throws to first base for Buchholz, who continues to fight growing pains at a time when the Red Sox can ill afford them while fighting for an AL Wild Card spot.

Here’s a spot from last night’s media discussion when Buchholz addressed the throws over to first base:
 
The error with Podsednik on first base
CB: “I got a little disoriented right before that play. I wanted to pick over about five seconds earlier and I never did. I sort of got caught up in the mix right there. I’ve been able to limit the throws over there from the past years. I can’t really let that affect me, but the guy didn’t score and that’s the good part about it.

I know that (Podsednik) can run. You want to always keep him close. The first time he got on he stole, and you don’t want them going a lot and taking a free bag.

Has Buchholz been trying to get away from the throws to first base when the runner is already standing on the bag without a lead? CB: I think it’s been more of a nervous habit (in the past) to throw over there, and I think I’ve got a little bit more of an idea on how to hold runners on and do all that stuff. It might have been a little bit of a relapse where the game might have got going a little too fast and I knew what I wanted to do, but I just didn’t execute it the way I wanted to.

What can you do to cut down on the extra throws to first going forward? CB: I guess the worst thing that could ever happen to me would have been to pick a few runners off (during spring training). If you have a good move you need to use it at the right times for it to be good.

I think you still need to pick the right time to throw over there, and that’s something I’ve got to learn. Sometimes it is (the right time). Whenever I come to the set and throw over, (the call) is coming from the dugout. The quick spin move (to first) is pretty much always coming from me. 

As with most people involved in pro sports, Josh Beckett is always a lot more interesting to listen to in defeat rather than in victory. After serving up a career high five home run balls in an 8-4 loss to the New York Yankees Sunday night, Beckett wasn’t making any excuses.

Here’s the full, unedited transcript from a clearly humbled Beckett following last night’s game. He didn’t have a whole lot to say, but what he did say was frank, forthright and -- typical of Beckett in defeat -- no bullcrap.

How weird was that outing? JB: That was a pretty good ass-whupping. To sum it up, it was an ass-whupping for me.

It looked like they were jumping on fastballs early in counts. How did the fastball feel? JB: It felt alright sometimes. Obviously when they jump on them the results aren’t great. The bottom line is that eight runs in eight innings aren’t getting it done.

How frustrating have the results of the last few games been given where we are in the season? JB: Very frustrating. What can I say? You can't give up seven or eight runs every god-damned time you go out there. You’re not going to be around here very long if you do that.

Josh, did you anything feel different in the last two games? JB: Yeah, there were a lot of things different. Glaring-wise, it was the runs.

Do you feel like you were having trouble executing pitches? JB: Yeah, the ones that mattered for sure.

Where do you go from here? JB: Go back at ‘em in five days.

Are you going to be able to leave this one behind after tonight, or is this going to stay with you for a bit? JB: Obviously you tend to remember these. These are humbling deals. That was a pretty good ass-whupping I got out there today. That’s the only words I got to sum it up.

Everything feels good physically? JB: Yeah.

This is a tough stretch and you’ve up and down I the first part of it. Do you still feel good about where this team is headed? JB: Yeah, I’m still confident in the guys. This one today is on me. Guys went out there and did their jobs and got 9 or 10 hits. You can’t expect them to score 11 runs out there every time, and that’s basically what they would have to score with the way I pitched.

Do you feel like it’s time to maybe drop the division race from focus and instead just concentrate on the wild card? JB: I think we’re just trying to go one game at a time. We’re not looking at that. We’re just looking to get into the playoffs, but we’re taking it one game at a time.

The words didn’t come from Sox GM Theo Epstein directly after the Mark Teixeira last December, but it was the Fenway mantra for the remainder of last winter headed into the spring.

The Red Sox front office has proven in the past that free agency isn’t the perfect solution for all that ails a big league baseball club, and a 2006 offseason is beginning to look more and more disastrous as time slowly marches on.

The Red Sox shelled out over $100 million for J.D. Drew and Julio Lugo, and – while one is still with the team in name if not quite in spirit – neither player has done anything significant to help the team out of its current post-All-Star break funk.

Add another $52 million over six seasons for Daisuke Matsuzaka, not counting the $51.1 posting fee, during that fateful month of December that saw Dice-K, Drew and Lugo come into the fold, and you’ve got a month that just about everybody associated with the Red Sox would love to have wiped away from the books.

For that $150 million total sum and the $31 million doled out this season, the Sox have received a .262 batting average along with 14 home runs and 53 RBIs in 451 at bats along with the unforgettable 1-5 record and Smoltz-esque 8.23 ERA from Dice-K.

If it weren’t for the amazingly consistent work of Hideki Okajima, who was ostensibly brought over to the US as a sidekick to Matsuzaka in the very beginning of it all, the winter months between 2006 and 2007 would have been something north of a complete disaster.

Sure Drew hit a grand slam in the 2007 ALCS and carried the Sox for a month in 2008 when David Ortiz went down with injury, but he’s confounded teammates and management with his sometimes uninspired act.

Lugo was a disaster from Day One, and things never got better. That’s being kind when there wasn’t another team that was offering him the shortstop anything close to the $9 million a year deal he took down with Boston.

The aftermath of that free-spending winter – coupled with the failures after signing Edgar Renteria and Matt Clement – soured the Sox on free agency as a reliable tool to significantly improve their baseball team. Drafting and developing was always the mantra, but it was girded by their misadventures with flawed free agents.

Promise-filled, affordable youngsters like Dustin Pedroia, Kevin Youkilis and Jon Lester became the poster boys for the new Red Sox Way, and everything appeared to be going right with the Olde Towne Team.

That, combined with the relatively small crop of legitimate “A” free agents available in their young prime years between 27-29 years of age in this day and age of revenue sharing, has steered Sox execs away from free agency, and things intensified even more when Epstein, John Henry and Co. were burned by Teixeira and the Yankees this winter.

They met with Teixeira and Boras in Texas, they pulled out every stop they could formulate and they entirely put their best foot forward to nab a dynamic bat that could adequately replace the Manny Ramirez void in the Sox hitting lineup.

“Every team has revenues now because of the system, which is great, but there aren’t as many great players hitting free agency especially in their primes,” said Epstein in a spring training interview with Comcast SportsNet New England. “It used to be that if you needed to turn your team around you could wait for free agency and you could go find a Vlad Guerrero at age 28 or Miguel Tejada at age 27 – and they were good investments because they were so young.

“But now the great young players are getting wrapped up to long term deals even by the small market teams, and it’s very rare when you find a Mark Teixeira hitting free agency at age 28. Usually players are hitting free agency now when they’re 32 or 33 and the best of the crop – the most talented players and the ones that you really want – are wrapped up and aren’t going to leave because they’re in long term deals. So there’s no way to really build a franchise up except for the ‘right way’ and the ‘legitimate way’ which is to draft and develop your own talent.”

So the Sox put a high value on Teixeira this winter and New York’s eight-year, $180 million offer was enough to finally push Boston’s ownership and baseball operations decision-makers away from the high-stakes table.

That’s a mistake that has come back to haunt a Boston lineup struggling for offense this season. Imagine in your mind a Sox lineup that featured Teixeira at first base, Kevin Youkilis at third base and Mike Lowell at designated hitter – with David Ortiz starting against right-handers and coming off the bench if he survived the roster purge following a Teixeira signing.

That would have given Boston a formidable middle of the order that looked something like this:
1. Ellsbury
2. Pedroia
3. Teixeira
4. Youkilis
5. Bay
6. Drew
7. Lowell
8. Varitek
9. SS flavor of the month

Epstein, during the same spring training interview with Mike Felger, said that walking away from Tex was part of being “disciplined” and avoiding simple baseball temptation akin to a siren song that could crash a baseball team’s ship against the rocks.

“That’s part of the downside, I guess you could say, of being disciplined, but it’s also the upside,” said Epstein. “If you’re going to set a value on a player and maintain discipline, and not be tempted by the shiny lights in the store, then you’re going to lose out more free agents than you sign. But in the long run that’s fine and its part of our system. For us we just focus on our approach, building our roster not just 2009, but for the next 5 or 10 years. We’ll just stay consistent with that approach.”

In hindsight, the Good Ship Red Sox was heading toward the rocks after a healthy amount of injuries and adversity anyway, and outspending the Yanks this once would have accomplished one of two goals: it would have ultimately landed the Sox Teixeira for a few more dollars or it would have caused Yanks GM Brian Cashman to shell out even more dollars for the rare big ticket slugging free-agent.

So “the system” called for the Sox decision-makers to avoid every instinct screaming at them about the warning signs of decline David Ortiz, Mike Lowell, and Jason Varitek exhibited last season.

It was a clear fact that the Sox weren’t getting any younger at some key spots in the lineup, and that has proven true this season with a lineup that no longer scares pitchers the way it once did. In essence, the offense isn’t functional anymore without that big game-changing hitter in the middle of the lineup.

A potential bidding war with the Yankees was avoided when the Sox dropped out of the free agency sweepstakes, and Leigh Teixeira became the unlikely villain just days later when the first baseman’s goopy love affair with the Yankees began in earnest.

The “system” has given the Yankees seven regular members of their lineup with an OPS greater than .850 this season while the Sox have only two hitters with an OPS of .850 or better: Kevin Youkilis and Jason Bay. The “system” has left Boston without any reliable, playoff-worthy starting pitchers behind Josh Beckett and Jon Lester since the All-Star break, and it’s kept Boston from nailing down a game-changing bat for the middle of the lineup.

The Sox tried to address the situation at the trading deadline with “aggressive” offers for San Diego first baseman Adrian Gonzalez as well as Roy Halladay and Felix Hernandez, but those are pie-in-the-sky beautiful baseball dreams. The Sox offered nearly everything in their vaunted minor league cupboard, and were still turned away by teams that would have been crazy to deal in-their-prime superstars.

When a minor league system like Boston proves itself incapable of producing offensive power bats at the corner outfield spots – as it has over the last seven seasons while seemingly churning out pitching prospects at every corner – then a team has to temporarily eschew the “system” when those rare power bats become available via free agency or trade.

It could be that Epstein took a pass on Teixeira when the bidding numbers got too high, or it could be that Sox ownership made the ultimate call while paring payroll from $140 million to $120 million over the last two seasons. That ultimate truth might never be known.

Either way, the “system” let the Sox down last winter and now they have some overhaul work to do after this season’s conclusion while giving the Sox offense an extreme makeover it badly requires. It’s going to cost the team an armada of prospects, or it’s going to cost Teixeira money to bring in that kind of skill, so the “system” may have to take a knee for a few months this winter.

BOSTON -- Red Sox first baseman/third baseman Kevin Youkilis is normally pretty good about taking his base when he’s drilled somewhere on his brick house body with a thrown baseball. Youkilis has been plunked with 52 pitches in his big league career, and puts himself close to harms way when he snuggles up with the inside portion of the plate.

It’s something of an occupational hazard for the bearded slugger, but several things about Tuesday night’s incident – one that ended with Youkilis sprinting out toward the pitcher’s mound in a fit of pique before firing his batting helmet at Detroit hurler Rick Porcello – were quite different from the norm.

Down 3-0 in the second inning, Youkilis sparked his team by charging Detroit starter Rick Porcello on the mound after he was hit between the numbers with the first fastball of the inning. Mike Lowell replaced Youkilis at third base following his ejection, and hit a pair of home runs that helped lead Boston to a victory – becoming the first Sox player to come off the bench and blast a pair of home runs since Joe Foy did it for the Impossible Dream Red Sox back in 1967.

Lowell has been relegated to a bit more bench duty as of late following the trade for Victor Martinez, but the veteran third baseman made a big statement with three runs and three RBIs in the 5-2 victory over the Tigers.

“It at least feels good that I’m swinging a good bat. I don’t know why you wouldn’t want good bats in your lineup,” said Lowell. “When you’re swinging the bat well, I think you want to play every day. I stand by that.”

Getting back to Youkilis, the big first baseman was drilled the night before by Detroit right-hander Edwin Jackson, and Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera was banged in the wrist with a pitch Tuesday night during the top of the second inning. So, of course, Youkilis was drilled right between the numbers with the first pitch from Porcello in the bottom of the second frame.

Youkilis said following the game that there was clear “intent” behind the actions of both pitchers during the first two nights of the series, but there was also a clear sense of regret by the corner infielder at the message that rushing the mound sends.

“I definitely regret it being that it’s on TV and there are kids out there, and that’s definitely not the way you should handle it,” said Youkilis. “But there comes a point in your life where you have to protect yourself, and you can’t continue to keep getting hit up there.”

Both Youkilis and Sox skipper Terry Francona seemed to grudgingly admit that a suspension is likely forthcoming after the first baseman charged the mound and fired his helmet at Porcello in the process. The good news for the Sox: any absence by Youkilis can be at least partly absorbed by the depth that Victor Martinez, Mike Lowell, David Ortiz and Casey Kotchman will provide.

“I’m sure something will happen,” said Sox manager Terry Francona. “We’ll just wait and see. Youk’s a really good player and his versatility makes him even better for us. But we have guys (to fill in), we should be able to do this. You don’t want to lose any players, but I’m sure something will happen.”

Here’s Youk’s full reaction following Fight Night at Fenway:

Any regrets about it at this point?
Youk: I definitely it being that it was on TV and the kids could see it. That’s definitely not the way to handle it. But there comes a point in your life where you have to protect yourself, and you can’t keep getting hit up there.

What about any consequences for this?
Youk: That’s something that we’ll have to come across tomorrow.

What about the job that Mike (Lowell) did?
Youk: If I knew that I’d come down with an injury if I knew a guy was going to hit two home runs. It was great that the guys picked me up and JBay hit that three-run homer. It was awesome just to sit back. I don’t like to sit back in the clubhouse and watch, but it was awesome to see us win.

Were you conscious of throwing the helmet when you went out there?
Youk: No. Basically everything just happened so fast that you don’t know what you’re doing.

What about the notion that something like this could fire the team up?
Youk: If that’s what the guys say and it got the team going, but hopefully I don’t ever have to do that again to get things going. Hopefully I can do it playing the game of baseball. It happens in baseball sometimes, but hopefully this is the last time it ever happens. 

Do you any theories as to why you’re in the middle of these things sometimes?
Youk: Ah…getting hit by pitches? This is the first time I’ve ever done that in my life. Guys pitch inside and there are times (I get hit). But these last two days were different. There was intent there to hit.

Did you have any words with this guy when you were rolling around out there?
Youk: Ahhh…no. Not really any English 101 kind of conversations. Everything happened so quick that I wasn’t really understanding what was going on with the words or anything?

Did you have any idea of what you were going to do when you went out there?
Youk: I don’t think there’s any plan. If I was an ultimate fighter then maybe I’d have a plan, but I wasn’t planning on going out there. I was planning on having a good at bat and try to get on base. I got on base, but it wasn’t the way that I would have liked it.

Did you talk to Terry about it afterward?
Youk: It was one of those things where he understood. Hopefully it doesn’t hurt the team when I get suspended. I know it’s going to happen, but we’ve got plenty of guys around here that can fill in and do a good job.

With 23-year-old Junichi Tazawa on the cusp of making his first Major League start against the AL Central leading Detroit Tigers amid an August race that has the Red Sox fighting for their playoff lives, now seems like the perfect time to go through the laundry list of pitchers potentially available in waiver deals this month.

Sox GM Theo Epstein and Co. have another three weeks to potentially make a deal for a starting pitcher and/or a shortstop capable of stepping in and playing significant September/playoff innings should Jed Lowrie fail to come back from a case of ulnar neuritis in his left forearm.

Christian Guzman was never claimed on waivers by the Red Sox, contrary to various reports, and Brewers shortstop J.J. Hardy is still a possibility in the infield. Nick Green smashed his career-best sixth home run of the season in Monday night’s much-needed win over the Tigers at Fenway Park and has been at-times spectacular on defense, so the need isn’t quite as pressing in the middle of the infield as it would appear to be at starting pitcher.

Clay Buchholz was impressed at Yankee Stadium in his six innings of work last weekend and may have unraveled the key to big league success with a two-seam fastball he was able to use to turn potentially troublesome situations into a pair of double play balls. Brad Penny reverted back to his first-half form with a trademark six inning, three runs allowed start on Monday night, and Tim Wakefield appeared to take one hobbling step closer to making a return from the 15-day disabled list after throwing 51 pitches in a simulated game.

Wake has technically been able to pitch for weeks now, but he’s still limping badly on a left calf muscle that’s been compromised by a sciatic nerve problem in his back – and he appears to still be a liability fielding the position despite the remote possibility of an upcoming road start against either the Rangers this weekend or the Blue Jays next week.

So, essentially the Sox can stand pat and bank on A) Buchholz continuing to show consistent poise that’s eluded thus far in 25 big league starts B> Penny improving on first half numbers that had him hovering near a 5.00 ERA C) Tazawa blossoming into a reliable option amid the heat of an August pennant race or D) Wakefield avoiding any further aches and pains in his 43-year-old body long enough to contribute down the stretch and then into the playoffs. Paul Byrd isn't in the mix yet because he hasn't retired a single Major League batter yet this season, and we're now into August.

All could very well happen and several are entirely plausible scenarios, but the Sox also need to be prepared should none of the above happens with the merry band of No. 3-5 starters the Sox are currently filling in around Josh Beckett and Jon Lester. There shouldn't be a lot of fuzzy, happy feelings in a playoff-caliber starting rotation that has two rookies taking turns every five days going forward. You heard it here first.

Notice no mention of last year's 18-game winner Daisuke Matsuzaka. He's working like mad to drop LBs and prove to the Sox that he's worthy of some pitching time in September, and a return to form by last year's 18-game winner could make all of the rest below moot. But pardon a nation of Sox followers if they don't put a great deal of faith in a pitcher that pumped a plus 8.00 ERA onto to the scoreboard in April and then badmouthed the team's throwing program in early August.

So, a waiver deal for a starter to hedge their bets and ease the pressure on a pair of unproven 20-somethings could be exactly what Boston needs to make sure there isn’t a repeat of their 2006 crash-and-burn. There are certainly enough willing and able players on the 25-man roster to avoid such a collapse, but another bad break or two could land a knockout punch on this year’s Olde Towne Team. There is a 2006 similarity to this Sox team in that when the Olde Towne Team plugs up one hole, another one seems to rupture and need attention.

The Chicago White Sox are spending money and dealing prospects to make big moves down the stretch, and have me believing they’ll overtake the Tigers in the AL Central or hop over the Sox in the Wild Card Race over the next six weeks. Meanwhile, the Sox have done little to buttress their pitching staff since the season began.

Here are a few potential options that shouldn’t cost a ton in terms of real prospect currency:

--Doug Davis – 33-year-old free agent to be with the Arizona Diamondbacks that has reportedly cleared through waivers and could be available in a deal. Davis is 7-10 in the National League and has a 1.44 WHIP, which could be considered minor red flags. But a 3.62 ERA and a .255 batting average against along with an average of slightly over six innings a start is exactly what the Red Sox could use behind their Big Two.

--Vicente Padilla – Umm, no.

--Aaron Harang – An intriguing possibility as he’s reportedly cleared through waivers, but would come with a price tag as he’s signed through 2010 ($12.5 million next season) with a club option for 2011 that comes along with a $2 million option. The 31-year-old went from late May until this week without a win, and is logging both a 4.43 ERA and .293 batting average against competition in the National League. Those are clearly warning signs that should scare and amaze, but he’s only two seasons removed from a 16-6 season with a 3.73 ERA. The question becomes how much better Harang is as an option over, say, Penny through the course of this season.

--Bronson Arroyo – the 32-year-old’s ERA has jumped in four straight seasons with the Cincinnati Reds since becoming an All-Star with the Reds in his first season, but he’s on pace to clear 200 innings pitched for the fifth straight season while putting up 10 wins and a 5.04 ERA. He averages 6 1/3 innings per start and has hitters sitting at a .282 batting average against this season while his strikeouts per nine innings have dropped dramatically. Arroyo clearly is still a No. 4 or 5 starter in the AL East, but he’d chew up more innings than Penny and has never had an issue with his pitching arm while logging heavy usage over the last six seasons. Arroyo is also signed for 2010 ($11 million) with a club option for 2012 that comes along with a $2 million buyout. Another very big plus for Arroyo: he's been here, he knows the landscape and he's thrived under the Boston baseball microscope.

NEW YORK -- John Smoltz hasn’t been humbled all that much in a baseball career that’s seen him pile up 212 wins and 154 saves during a decorated 20-year Hall of Fame-worthy career.

But immediately after once again crashing and burning – this time in Yankee Stadium – to the tune of eight earned runs and nine hits allowed in 3 1/3 innings pitched, the 42-year-old was searching for answers to circumstances that have led him to a 2-5 record and an 8.32 ERA this season.

When the dust had settled at the new Yankee Stadium, the Olde Towne had dropped a lopsided 13-6 decision to the Bronx Bombers and New York opened a 3 ½ game lead on the Sox in the AL East. The rout also punctured Boston’s run at perfection against the Yanks this season, and gave New York their first in nine tries against a banged up Boston baseball squad.

Dustin Pedroia and Casey Kotchman both went deep into the short porch in right field at the House that Hank and Hal built, but it wasn’t nearly enough after Smoltz was done digging a ditch in the fourth inning.

It was only the 10th time in his 716 big league game career that Smoltz had allowed eight runs in a career, and it was the first time the formerly dominant right-hander has coughed up eight earned runs since April 2002 against the New York Mets in a disastrous relief appearance. The frustration is building for a proud athlete used to excelling at everything he does in the world of athletics, and it’s just not happening for Smoltz right now.   

“It was a frustrating night all around,” said Smoltz. “I felt good coming in, but I just didn’t make pitches when I wanted to. It’s correctible, but I’m pretty humbled with the way that things have gone. I don’t like to use the word embarrassed, but I have a lot of pride and I certainly don’t like letting somebody down.

“I’m a fighter. I’m going to get up tomorrow and figure out some ways to fix this and do what I have to do. But I’m not doing it right now. I’m a big enough man to stand up here and say I’m not doing it and nobody fells worse than I do. Time may not be on my side if this continues. I’ve been here before and I’ve always fought my way out of it.”

Naturally when a pitcher of Smoltz’s age struggles as he has coming off major shoulder surgery, there are career-ending questions about retirement and “hanging them up”. Smoltz wasn’t entertaining those notions in the heated moments after dropping a big game against the arch-rival Yankees amid a tight pennant race, and Sox manager Terry Francona wasn’t quite ready to go there either.

“When it went, it seemed to go in a hurry. I thought that he threw the ball well over the first couple of innings, but then they started taking some pretty healthy swing on him. That’s an unforgiving lineup in an unforgiving ballpark. We have a lot of things to talk about tonight.

“Going into the game he made some adjustments and he lowered his arm slot a little bit and pitched to the inside a little bit. But once it went, it went in a hurry.”

Solutions will be discussed organizationally most certainly, and it wouldn’t be shocking if a name like Michael Bowden pops up as a potential alternative to the struggling Smoltz – along with any available arms for sale on the waiver wire. The ball is in Boston’s court to make a decision on the Big Game pitcher they envisioned this winter – the hurler that hasn’t shown much ability to pitch effectively in August, never mind September.