Tough Decision To Make On Wakefield

Francona admits there is a "tough decision to make" about when to bring Tim Wakefield back, but the knuckleballer will likely pitch for Pawtucket on Friday.

We all think he can help us on the mound. Some other issues are involved, (such as) fielding the position. Is he going to get weaker and hurt himself in another area? It's a bad back. We all know what's wrong with him. At some point he's probably going to need surgery.

Wakefield:

I'm going to talk to a back specialist and see what his opinion is, looking at an MRI. The strength is coming back, but it's very slow. I feel like I ran on the treadmill today a lot better than I ran a week ago. Earlier today I threw the ball well, without any hesitations. The next step is just deciding whether I should go out there and try to pitch, or maybe more rehab, or wait another week and see if it gets better and then try from there.

Jonathan Papelbon, on last night's game:

I felt 10 pounds overweight ... [M]y body wasn't clicking. It wasn't in that usual state that it's in after the offday. I just felt real heavy and it was hard for me to locate tonight because of that. That's about it, really. I just had to grind it out. ... Doesn't matter how you get the outs, doesn't matter what happens.

Terry Francona:

There's something to be said for persistence. That was a very losable game. It would have been heartbreaking.

Francona added that if Papelbon had allowed one more baserunner -- which might have tied the game at 10-10 and would have certainly put the potential winning run at second base -- he was going to bring in Takashi Saito.

Kevin Youkilis has not liked the media's coverage of his mound-charging incident:

If you guys want to keep writing the crap you write, keep writing whatever you want. ... When you wake up in the morning and play with shortness of breath after being hit in the ribs by a 96-mph fastball and you're still feeling it the next day? I don't think you can put on paper what that feels like. Time and again I've been getting hit in the ribs. ... What it came down to is I have a family and this is my job. At some point, it's got to end. There's no other way for a hitter to go about it. You sit in the box and get thrown at until something happens. There's nothing a hitter can do. It's not like we can hit that fastball and slider off the pitcher's rib cage.

Kelli Pedroia gave birth to her first child yesterday afternoon, a boy named Dylan. FY took a 1 PM flight back to Boston for the delivery. ... John Farrell was also not with the team; he was "dealing with a very serious family matter", according to Tito.

Red Sox Single-Season Stolen Base Leaders

Player               SB   Year
 1. Tommy Harper     54   1973
 2. Jacoby Ellsbury  53   2009
 3. Tris Speaker     52   1912
 4. Jacoby Ellsbury  50   2008
 5. Tris Speaker     46   1913
 6. Tris Speaker     42   1914
 6. Otis Nixon       42   1994
 8. Harry Hooper     40   1910
 8. Billy Werber     40   1934
10. Harry Hooper     38   1911

John Smoltz is expected to sign with either the Cardinals, Marlins or Dodgers today:

I've been working hard since I've been gone. I've found some mechanical flaws. ... I want to pitch in 2010. And there were a lot of things (with the Red Sox) that could have gone in other directions that I could not (abide by). It ended up it wasn't so simple. ... But I have nothing but admiration for everyone associated with the Red Sox and the fans who follow them.