Tonight in Texas the Red Sox will have a line-up without Jacoby Ellsbury, David Ortiz and Kevin Youkilis. Marco Scutaro and Jed Lowrie are both coming off stints on the DL. Adrian Gonzalez apparently is having neck problems. And again Darnell McDonald is starting in the outfield and batting second for the team we all hope and expect to be in the World Series.

 I understand it's August and every team is dealing with injuries to players that are both serious and nagging, but it seems like all of these are coming toward the end of the season which is not great - especially those of the nagging kind like we're seeing with the Red Sox players (back, neck, heel).

 I think this is a big week for Carl Crawford. He just hasn't lived up to expectations so far this season and it has gone under the radar after the first few weeks because the Red Sox have been so good.

 If you read earlier blogs you know how high I was on the move and even though he's had a tough run so far I really think Crawford has the talent to do well for Boston. It seems heavily mental as we sometimes see when players move to a big market, but the time is now for him to break that mold. He had a nice home run yesterday against KC, let's hope that continues this week in Texas and into the weekend at home against Oakland.

 Besides the first two weeks it's been a pretty amazing season so far for the Red Sox and all signs are pointing to them making the playoffs. Health is the most important thing heading into the postseason but playing well with your key players in place down the stretch is crucial and may a definite challenge for Boston.