Kurt Suzuki hit an 0-1 knuckleball for a line-drive base hit in between third base and shortstop, breaking up Tim Wakefield’s no-hitter. The 7 1/3 innings was the second furthest Wakefield has taken a no-hitter, falling only behind his 8 1/3 inning stint on June 19, 2001 in Tampa Bay. It ties a June 9, 1995 game which he also went 7 1/3 innings against the A’s.

Here is fun fact for you: Stan Javier broke up that ’95 no-hitter. Six years earlier Javier faced Terry Francona in the Red Sox’ manager’s only pitching performance, striking out. Ironically, Francona was throwing a knuckleball.

J.D. Drew launched a three-run homer into the right field stands, scoring David Ortiz and Kevin Youkilis to give the Red Sox a 5-0 lead, at Oakland Coliseum. The runs offer insurance for Tim Wakefield, who will enter the eighth with a no-hitter. It marks the furthest the starter has carried a no-hitter since 1995 against these same A’s. The furthest Wakefield has gone without giving up a hit came on June 19, 2001 in Tampa Bay, when Randy Winn broke it up with a single.

This would be the 19th no-hitter in Red Sox history.

Nick Green singled in Jason Bay for the Red Sox’ sixth run. It marked the first time this season the Red Sox have scored more than five runs. Jacoby Ellsbury plated two more with a two-run single.

Red Sox shortstop Nick Green made an unbelievable diving play on Jack Cust’s liner into shallow left-center field with one out in the seventh inning to preserve Tim Wakefield’s no-hitter. Wakefield now hasn’t allowed a hit through seven innings, throwing 67 pitches, 50 for strikes. The only baserunner he has allowed came when Mike Lowell committed an error on Kurt Suzuki’s sixth-inning grounder.

Wakefield has never thrown a no-hitter.

After talking to our men Dale and Holley, Terry Francona met with the media prior to the series finale withe A’s at Oakland Coliseum (courtesy MLB.com’s Ian Browne):

“We DL’d Dice-K. Obviously we needed to speak to him before we did something like that. Theo and I had talked last night and this morning and contrary to what Dice-K said last night, he understands it. I think sometimes guys say things when they’re in the [heat of battle], trying to compete. We just want him to be able to be Dice-K. Not part of Dice-K. We’ll put him on the DL, we’ll have him looked at Friday and then we’ll put our heads together and see what’s the best way we can get him to make all his starts and be good.”

“Hunter Jones is en route. {wind problems on the flight]. His availability, we’re hoping. We’re doing the best we can.”

On Lowrie, “Nothing yet.”?

Bullpen: “Pap will be OK. Saito. I think Javy, we’re not necessarily dying to do that. Ramon. We need to get some innings out of Wake for sure.”

Dice-K’s spot: “We’re going to wait on that. Obviously we’ve got some things that are a little fluid here. The Beckett situation. With the day off, we can figure some things out as we go.”

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Mike Lowell took a 1-0 Brett Anderson change-up in the second inning over the left field wall, driving in Jason Bay and giving the Red Sox a 2-0 lead. In case you forgot, Lowell didn’t have a home run last season until May 5. In other news, Gary from Chapel Hill came up with this nugget regarding the Tim Wakefield’s success:

One day after he lasted just one inning and 43 pitches against the Oakland Athletics, Daisuke Matsuzaka was placed on the disabled list due to “mild right shoulder strain”. To take his place on the roster, the Red Sox summoned left-handed pitcher Hunter Jones from Triple-A Pawtucket to reinforce a depleted bullpen.

Matsuzaka allowed five runs on five hits and two walks in his one inning of work on Wednesday. He did not strike out a batter, and showed a fastball that rarely exceeded 90 mph, topped out at 91 mph and lacked explosiveness. It is the second straight season Matsuzaka has gone on the disabled list, having spent a stint on the DL last June with right shoulder tendonitis.

The Red Sox wouldn’t need a starter until Tuesday thanks to Thursday’s off day. Justin Masterson may be the logical choice to fill the spot, especially after throwing four innings of shutout ball in relief of Matsuzaka Tuesday night. Masterson struck out six while throwing 42 of his 60 pitches for strikes. It is a move that becomes even more likely considering the recent hamstring pull suffered by Pawtucket starter Clay Buchholz.

Jones, a lefty reliever who hadn’t allowed a hit in three appearances, was attempting to make it to Oakland in time for the Red Sox and A’s series finale, but had been held up due to wind-induced flight delays.

In other news, outfielder Rocco Baldelli was not on the lineup after originally being scheduled to play due to soreness in his legs.

Also, all the players are wearing the No. 42 in honor of Jackie Robinson.

The Red Sox came into Tuesday night’s game second to last in the American League in runs scored, totaling 24, while not having scored more than five in any one game. The problem? Sox hitting coach Dave Magadan gives his take:

“I don’t know if we’re pressing. I think we’re getting outside of what our strength is as a team. We were talking about it today. We’re swinging at a lot of pitcher’s pitches early in the count. They might be strikes, but they’re not really pitches we can drive. I think we went a period of time where we hit some balls hard with runners in scoring position and had nothing to show for it. But that transformed into kind of getting outside our strength which is being patient. I don’t mind getting a swing early in the count as long as it’s a pitch we can drive. But we’re getting a lot of weak outs on the first and second pitch. That’s been what we have been getting away from. 

“You’re down 1-0 or 2-0 and guys are trying to make it up in one swing of the bat. There’s a fine line between being aggressive and helping the pitcher out. That’s kind of what we’re doing now. We’re facing guys who really aren’t strikeout pitchers and it’s almost like we’re swinging at pitches where we don’t want to get behind in the count.

“We’ve fallen out of this before over the last two years. We did it last year. Actually both years we came out of the gate pretty similarly. We were in Oakland last year getting outside our strength. I think a lot of times you can give guys too much credit, opposing pitchers. Granted (Dallas) Braden threw a lot balls for strike one. But for me, you have to make him throw three of those. We’re not doing that. We’re letting him throw one quality pitch and getting outs.”

Perhaps the biggest culprit in the Red Sox’ lineup when it came to the early-season impatience had been J.D. Drew. Drew finished last season with a career-high 4.16 pitches per plate appearance. This year he was seeing only 2.95. David Ortiz is seeing a gaudy 4.73 pitches per plate appearance, but much of that can be chalked up to a bevy of off-speed pitch foul balls.