Josh Beckett pitched a beauty of a game against the Indians, limiting them to three hits in eight innings of work. He struck out eight while walking none, although he did plunk two batters. He allowed one run on a homer by Lou Marson, but that was his only mistake as the Red Sox took the game 3-1. It was Beckett’s best game since he allowed one unearned run to the Rays on 4 /16. He walked one and struck out eight in that contest.

Over the last two days, I’ve heard talk on various Boston sports talk shows that the Yankees are the team to catch in the AL East, not the Rays. This comes from the idea that Boston has more games against New York than Tampa Bay, and that the Yankees are in a slump as the two meet in a series this weekend. We’ll see. Both of the AL East leaders should be tough to beat, but a good Beckett does make the job easier.

Update: It seems the HBPs led to a bit of a fracas in the game.