But the Phils may have gotten themselves a manager. They've been forced to skip the game's best pitcher in his next scheduled starter. So, of course, they sit with their biggest lead of the season, and their biggest since the end of the 1995 season. Few teams have been bitten as hard by the injury bug as the Boston Red Sox. They seek no sympathy.
Injuries are part of the game.
It's just that the Red Sox's injuries have really hit them where it hurts. That meant that three games went by without a legitimate backup shortstop. The loss of Jason Varitek could be crippling. Varitek had done a masterful job in handling a difficult pitching staff. There's Tim Wakefield 's knuckler and Hideo Nomo 's splitter to begin with.