Once More Into the Breach

Your tanned, rested (and ready?) 43-43 Red Sox take on the following teams starting tomorrow:

Tampa Bay (45-41) for three games in Tampa.
Chicago (47-38) for four games in Fenway.
Toronto (43-43) for three in Fenway.
Texas (52-34) for three in Texas.
The Yankees (52-33) for three in New York.

That's a pretty brutal stretch to open the second half.

On the up side, Pedro Ciriaco will see some playing time, Will Middlebrooks is expected to return, and maybe even Ellsbury?

On the down side, apparently some things are just unfathomable. Carl Crawford is a mystery, even to Jerry Remy. Jon Lester might be unhappy, or he might not.

We might be happier in the second half. Or we might not.