--DH David Ortiz has gone 144 consecutive at-bats without hitting a home run and is only one at-bat shy of the longest home run drought of his major league career. Ortiz finished Thursday's game hitting .208 on the season, and the noted clutch hitter is getting close to rock bottom with his confidence levels and his on-field performance. Big Papi's last regular-season home run came Sept. 22, 2008, against Zach Jackson of the Indians at Fenway Park. "Every day," said Ortiz when asked by WEEI.com how often he thinks about going without a home run this season. "Every day. Sleeping. Eating. Having breakfast. ... It's bad. Just keep on working. It's early. I'd like to do it from the very beginning, but I know things are going to get better."
--1B Jeff Bailey has been afforded a pretty good opportunity to showcase himself with 1B Kevin Youkilis on the 15-day disabled with a sore oblique, but Bailey hasn't been able to show off the offensive skill he's flashed in seasons past. Bailey hit .365 with some impressive pop this spring after winning International League MVP honors at Class AAA Pawtucket last season, but he's hit .171 with a home run and six RBIs in 15 games with the Sox this season. "It's a big opportunity," Bailey told the Boston Globe. "I wish I was making more of it." --RHP Daniel Bard made his major league debut out of the Boston bullpen in Wednesday night's loss and he made it a fairly memorable one, throwing two scoreless innings. The big 23-year-old continually hit 95-98 mph on his fastball in an outing that included a hit batsman, a walk and a strikeout during his 38-pitch debut. It's uncertain just how long Bard will be up with the major league team following some impressive minor league credentials, but more outings like his first will guarantee that Pawtucket may be a thing of the past.
--DH David Ortiz spoke with reporters extensively for the first time about the 50-game suspension slapped on former teammate Manny Ramirez at the end of last week and said he was "confused" by what he had heard. Ortiz and Ramirez were widely considered good friends during their highly successful six years together in Boston, and Big Papi said he never suspected Ramirez of using performance-enhancing drugs. "This situation shocked me. The guy worked hard every day, and it's going to be something crazy and hard to deal with," Ortiz said. "Hopefully he knows what's up, learns from his mistake and does the right thing."
BY THE NUMBERS: 34 -- Runs that the Red Sox scored in the sixth inning this season in 32 games, through May 10. It was their top inning.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "He's strong. You know what? He really is strong. When he stays through the ball, he's the guy that on a cold day here (at Fenway) can hit the ball out of the ballpark." -- Sox manager Terry Francona, on Sox OF Jason Bay's booming power.
