Red Sox and Yankees seem to be dropping like flies these days. We've seen Mark Teixeira drop like a sack of rocks after taking a pitch to the knee. Francisco Cervelli found himself suffering in a rather more sensitive area in Wednesday's game, while Jarrod Saltalamacchia missed said game entirely with what has been described as "violent vomiting," and now on the same day that Dustin Pedroia has his knee examined to determine whether surgery is necessary, Joba Chamberlain is headed for Tommy John Surgery.
At this point, both sides will just be happy to get out of New Yankee Stadium intact.
Of course, the Red Sox wouldn't mind leaving with their second road sweep of the Bronx Bombers this year to go with a six-game winning streak and a two-game lead over the American League East.
Here's who they will rely on to get the job done--weather permitting:
1. Jacoby Ellsbury, CF
2. Marco Scutaro, 2B
3. Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
4. Kevin Youkilis, 3B
5. David Ortiz, DH
6. Jed Lowrie, SS
7. Carl Crawford, LF
8. Mike Cameron, RF
9. Jason Varitek, C
--Josh Beckett, SP
The Yankees respond with:
1. Derek Jeter, SS
2. Curtis Granderson, CF
3. Mark Teixeira, 1B
4. Alex Rodriguez, 3B
5. Robinson Cano, 2B
6. Nick Swisher, RF
7. Jorge Posada, DH
8. Brett Gardner, LF
9. Francisco Cervelli, C
--C.C. Sabathia, SP
This will be the third matchup between C.C. Sabathia and Josh Beckett this year. So far, things have gone entirely the Red Sox' way. Beckett seems to really take it to the next level against New York, having recorded 14 innings of scoreless ball with 19 strikeouts and 3 walks in the first two games. The same cannot be said for C.C. Sabathia. While he held the Sox to just one run the first time around, he failed to finish the sixth inning, taking the loss. The second time around he almost finished the seventh, though he can hardly be proud of the six earned runs he picked up in the process.
The Sox have gone with as righty-heavy lineup as they can manage. They can only hope it will have the same results as before.