This is from my blog last month:

"Will the Rays reach the playoffs?
"Uh, no. They will give the contenders better competition, and maybe win a series or three ... but no playoffs."

I'll stand by that statement for now, but I never figured the Rays pitching to be strong.

Boston is off today. Rest will do the Red Sox good. Getting Ortiz, Lowell and Matsuzaka back this week should help cure a losing streak that is now at 5 ... For those with the glass-half-full perspective, the Sox have lost five straight and the worst thing you can say about them is that they are now tied for first.

Yes, it could be worse.

Still wondering what the move will be to get Mike Lowell back on the roster. Do they send Moss back down with no real back-up first baseman (Lowrie in a pinch, I suppose) or does a reliever go (I still look for Timlin to go on the DL)?

Speaking of relievers, it seems time to get Daniel Bard out of low Class A ball. He struck out 4 in 2 innings Sunday (0 R, 0 BB, 1 H). He has now thrown 18 innings (0 R, 6 H, 3 BB, 27 K). Anything left to prove?

Bard, the first round pick of 2006, turns 23 in June.

In advanced Class A Lancaster, outfielder Josh Reddick is batting .353 since his promotion (after hitting .340 in Greenville) ... shortstop Argenis Diaz, who many figured would be in Portland sometime this season, got off to a terrible start. But he is batting .333 in his last six games (upping his average to .214)

In Pawtucket, the smiling Sandy Madera played his first game in Triple-A since his promotion from Portland - 3-for-4, 2 doubles.

The pitching keeps getting better for Portland. The bullpen has been strong all year. Now starting prospects Michael Bowden and Eric Johnson are coming on. See the game story.

And one David Murphy note. He tripled in a run for Texas last night and is batting .302.

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