Final Score
Red Sox 1
A’s 5

Hitting the Century Mark: 100-games in the books…62 more to go…and all in all, the Red Sox are in pretty good shape.

Rather than focus on yesterday’s loss (did you really expect a “W� with Kyle Snyder facing Danny Haren?. Maybe you Coco flavored Kool-Aid drinkers did, but the rest of us realists weren’t wagering the ranch yesterday), I’ll look ahead to a golden opportunity for Boston to make hay.

18 of the next 24 contests take place at Fenway, where the Sox are a league best 32-13. The Sox play three against the Angels and four against the Indians before heading back out on the road for three each against Tampa and Kansas City. Then comes an eleven game homestand featuring Baltimore three times, the Tigers three, and five with the Evil Empire.

It would be nice to put the Yankees a bit farther back in the rear-view mirror when this stretch is done. If they don’t, the Sox risk another life and death struggle for the division crown, with the wild-card turning into a free for all featuring the White Sox and suddenly smoking Twins in the picture. It would be nice to put the Blue Jays out of their misery as well, before they get any notions about contending deep into September.

What do you think gang…make or break time for the 2006 season? Can the Sox win the division if they don’t put New York away before Matsui, Sheffield and Cano return? How about the wild card? Which teams do you think have a legit shot at that?