Daisuke Matsuzaka

Now that the Boston Red Sox and pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka appear to have finished their contract brinkmanship, baseball fans want to know how the Japanese ace will affect next year's pennant race. The consensus among scouts, statistical analysts and batters who've faced Matsuzaka is that he immediately would give the Red Sox an additional elite starter to pair with Curt Schilling and Josh Beckett. Though scouts have learned to be skeptical of numbers produced in the Japanese league, Matsuzaka, 26, wiped away most concerns with the stuff he showed in the World Baseball Classic in March and in other exhibitions against major league players.

Down the stretch is a daily Orioles Insider blog that will set up the coming day for the O's and their American League competition as the push for the postseason continues. ] About last night Orioles beat Rays, 1-0, to stay alive in division race Schmuck: It all comes down to the final day of season Notes: Hammel gets green light to pitch in playoffs Tillman will take the ball in today's finale vs. Tampa Chris Davis homers in 6ths straight game to tie record Tuesday's full scoreboard AL East Standings *NYY       94-67     -- *BAL       93-68     1 AL Wild-Card Standings *BAL          93-68      -- *OAK/TEX   93-68        -- * Clinched postseason berth NOTE: For the Orioles' remaining postseason scenarios, click here.

DENVER -- In February, when teams were preparing in Arizona and Florida for another grueling season, the eyes of the baseball world were firmly fixed on new Boston Red Sox right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka. The Japanese phenom. The top candidate for American League Rookie of the Year. The man who cost $51.1 million just to talk to and another $52 million to sign. World Series Game 3 Red Sox@Rockies, tonight, 8:35, chs. 45, 5 Starters: Daisuke Matsuzaka (15-12) vs. Josh Fogg (10-9)

May was the worst month in Ichiro Suzuki's career, as he hit .210 with a .270 on-base percentage. Oddly the Mariners played great, seemingly proving the theory that for a future Hall of Famer he has very little impact on winning. … What does Jair Jurrjens have in common with Lefty Gomez, Randy Johnson and Ubaldo Jimenez? According to Elias Sports, those are the only big-leaguers ever to begin a season with nine straight starts of six-plus innings allowing two or fewer runs in each game.

"If that's struggling, we're in for some fun. I think he's a perfectionist." Terry Francona Boston Red Sox manager (above), on Daisuke Matsuzaka, who said he struggled during yesterday's outing, though he struck out seven and gave up one run in 5 2/3 innings "It's pretty neat when you have probably the most dominant athlete on the planet out there in your gallery." Tiger Woods On being watched by tennis star Roger Federer during a practice round for the CA Championship yesterday

BOSTON -- There was no offensive explosion, no pitching performance for the ages and not even one thread of a bloody sock to send to Cooperstown. Last night's Game 2 might have lacked the flash and drama of recent Boston postseason victories, but the 2-1 yeoman-like win over the Colorado Rockies put the Red Sox halfway to their goal of a second world championship in four seasons. World Series Game 3 Red Sox@Rockies, tomorrow, 8:35, chs. 45, 5 Starters: Daisuke Matsuzaka (15-12) vs. Josh Fogg (10-9)

TOMORROW Red Sox, 7:05 p.m., Ch. 13 Starters: Red Sox's Josh Beckett (5-4, 4.43) vs. Orioles' Daniel Cabrera (5-1, 3.70) SATURDAY Red Sox, 7:05 p.m., MASN Starters: Red Sox's Jon Lester (3-3, 3.55) vs. Orioles' Garrett Olson (4-1, 4.09) SUNDAY Red Sox, 1:35 p.m., MASN, Ch. 13 Starters: Red Sox's Bartolo Colon (2-0, 2.25) vs. Orioles' Brian Burres (4-4, 3.16) MONDAY Red Sox, 7:05 p.m., MASN Starters: Red Sox's Daisuke Matsuzaka (8-0, 2.53) vs. Orioles' Jeremy Guthrie (2-6, 3.64) TUESDAY @Twins, 8:10 p.m., MASN2 Starters: Orioles' TBA vs. Twins' Kevin Slowey (1-4, 4.21)

Daniel Cabrera, the Orioles' 6-foot-9 right-hander with a high-90s fastball and hit-the-mascot lack of control, knows his reputation around the league: He's not afraid to pitch inside, or, for that matter, plunk someone. So when one of his heat-seeking missiles buzzed behind the head and back of Boston's Dustin Pedroia in the fourth inning of the Orioles' 4-0 loss to the Red Sox last night - the club's 15th defeat in 17 games - the reaction was typical. Red Sox @Orioles Tonight, 7:05, MASN, 102.7 FM Starters: Daisuke Matsuzaka (14-11, 4.11 ERA)

The day started with news that Chris Gomez and John Parrish, two well-liked veterans, had been moved to teams fully immersed in pennant races. The Orioles who remained said their goodbyes, left to avoid another late-season swoon without two players who occupied key roles for them at different parts of the season. The sentimentality was pushed aside by the time Daniel Cabrera threw the first pitch against the Seattle Mariners last night, eventually giving way to a cruel reversal that hit the team's most accomplished player the hardest.

Today Red Sox, 7:05 p.m., MASN * Starters: Red Sox's Jon Lester (11-4, 3.25) vs. Jeremy Guthrie (10-8, 3.18) Tomorrow Red Sox, 7:05 p.m., MASN * Starters: Red Sox's Daisuke Matsuzaka (14-2, 2.74) vs. Daniel Cabrera (8-7, 4.78) Wednesday Red Sox, 7:05 p.m., MASN * Starters: Red Sox's Clay Buchholz (2-8, 6.32) vs. Chris Waters (1-0, 4.32) Friday Yankees, 7:05 p.m., MASN * Starters: Yankees' Mike Mussina (15-7, 3.30) vs. TBA Saturday Yankees, 7:05 p.m., MASN * Starters: Yankees' TBA vs. TBA Red Sox update Boston had won four straight and seven of nine before being cooled off by the Toronto Blue Jays, who took both games in a series at Fenway Park that was abbreviated by a postponement because of rain.

To some degree, the 1969 Mets' 27-game improvement was foreshadowed by their losing 37 one-run games in '68, when Tom Seaver and Jerry Koosman had made them better than most knew. The teams looking for a lift after not winning their share of one-run games in 2010 include the Tigers (16-26), Cubs (22-32), Red Sox (22-26), Cardinals (20-22) and Angels (24-25). … Lou Piniella 's agreement to work as a special assistant for the Giants is a one-year deal, which will be revisited after the season.

One potential trading partner for the Cubs if they decide to shop Carlos Zambrano are the Red Sox, possibly for Daisuke Matsuzaka, who is owed only $10 million for each of the next two seasons. … There's a lot of debate in Boston about whether catcher Jason Varitek (above) should return. Manager Terry Francona said you have to take emotion out of the equation, which sounds like the end of an era. … Shaun Marcum and other Blue Jays pitchers claimed the atmosphere was "more relaxed" in the Jays' clubhouse without Roy Halladay this year.

The Orioles kept preaching it, even with their team average and total runs hovering around the basement of the American League. Just a matter of time, the Orioles said, before their slumbering bats would wake up. The alarm sounded Saturday night in the fifth inning against the Boston Red Sox and Daisuke Matsuzaka, when the Orioles scored a season-high six runs on their way to a 12-9 victory before a crowd of 35,164 The Orioles scored...

When the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays won their respective playoff series this week, the American League East again proved why it's baseball's top division. For the third time in six years, two AL East teams will face off in the American League Championship Series, starting tonight at Tampa. It guarantees that an AL East club will play in the World Series for the ninth time in 13 years. Previously this decade, it was either the Red Sox or the New York Yankees representing the East in the World Series.

Wed @Red Sox, 1:35 p.m., MASN Starters: Lance Cormier (2-3, 4.61) vs. Red Sox's Daisuke Matsuzaka (16-2, 2.82) Cormier gets the start because Jeremy Guthrie was scratched from the series finale because of a tired right shoulder. Matsuzaka has won five straight decisions and eight of his past nine. He is 2-1 with a 4.79 ERA in four starts against the Orioles. Jeff Zrebiec Fri Athletics, 7:05 p.m., MASN2 Starters: A's Kirk Saarloos (1-0, 5.40) vs. Chris Waters (2-1, 5.45) Sat Athletics, 1:05 p.m., MASN Starters: A's Greg Smith (6-14, 4.23)

A recap of the Orioles' 6-3 loss to the Red Sox last night: High quality from Guthrie Jeremy Guthrie (above) pitched his fifth straight quality start and his American League-leading 19th in 27 attempts this season. He allowed five hits, five walks and just two runs - both on homers - in seven innings. He broke a tie with the Cleveland Indians' Cliff Lee for the AL lead. But Boston's Jon Lester pitched a gem, and the Red Sox scored four runs in the final two innings against the Orioles' bullpen.