On Thursday, John Smoltz will return to the mound for the Boston Red Sox. It will not only be his first start of the 2009 baseball season, it will also be his start not for the Atlanta Braves. From 1988 to 2008, Smoltz put together a marvelous 20-year run with Atlanta that saw him win 210 games and save 154 games.

After a bitter breakup with the Braves, the 42-year-old Smoltz ended up signing with the Red Sox as a free agent. Coming back from a shoulder injury, Smoltz has been working all offseason and all regular season to get to this point.

Said Smoltz: “This is not the old or the new or the done. It’s just a new chapter in which when I have a baseball in my hand, I feel like I can make a pitch and do the things I have to do to take the sting out of the bat. And if that’s the case, we’ll progress and keep getting better every time out. But tomorrow is just one rung in the ladder to try and climb as far as I can to see how good I can be, and really at the end of the day to be in position to pitch in the playoffs.”

The playoffs look like a very good possibility for the Red Sox right now. With a record of 44-27, Boston has a five games lead in the AL East over both the New York Yankees and the Toronto Blue Jays.

Smoltz believes that his return to the mound will leave Red Sox fans happy.

“It will be a success,” proclaimed Smoltz.

Jason Varitek, the longtime catcher for the Boston Red Sox, had a busy day against the Minnesota Twins. When it was all said and done, he had to be happy — despite the drama.

He started the game with a solo homer in the fifth inning that tied the game at 1-1. In the seventh, he hit another solo shot to put the Red Sox up 2-1. Those home runs were number nine and number ten on the season for Varitek. Those power numbers are impressive considering he hit just 13 homers last year and hasn’t hit more than 20 since 2005.

Varitek’s night really heated up in the bottom half of the seventh inning. After Josh Beckett was obviously disappointed by the home plate umpire, Varitek came to Beckett’s defense and ended up getting ejected from the game. Red Sox manager Terry Francona joined the argument and he was subsequently ejected.

Oddly enough, the Twins lost their catcher and manager in the top half of the seventh. Catcher Mike Redmond got a quick ejection and then manager Rod Gardenhire was also ejected after a short argument.

Following the two Varitek homers and the four total ejections, the Red Sox were able to hold on to a 3-1 victory over the Twins.

Here is the Jason Varitek video showing his two homers and his ejection:

Disputing a play at the plate, Carlos Zambrano had a meltdown of epic proportions. The Chicago Cubs pitcher nicknamed Big Z got a Big Heave Ho. You can watch the Carlos Zambrano epic meltdown video at the end of this entry.

With the Cubs beating the Pittsburgh Pirates 2-1, Nyjer Morgan was trying to score when Zambrano placed a tag on him. The replays show that Morgan might have been out but the ump called him safe. Then Zambrano exploded. He bumped the ump, which got him ejected. Then he tried to toss the umpire and threw the baseball into the outfield. Zambrano finished off his rampage by beating up the Gatorade machine with a baseball bat.

Morgan’s run tied the game at two. But the Cubs then scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth and held on for a 5-2 victory.

Before getting tossed, Zambrano had given up one earned run in 6.1 innings.

Dontrelle Willis of the Detroit Tigers has had a tough time as of late. He’s struggled on the pitching mound in recent years and was sidelined prior to the 2009 baseball season after being diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. On Tuesday, Willis was able to turn back the clock — for at least one outing.

The former pitching phenom went 6.1 innings against the Texas Rangers and gave up only one hit and two walks while giving up no runs and striking out five batters. He threw exactly 100 pitches in his second start of the season. When he was replaced, Willis was greeted with a loud ovation for the fans in Detroit.

Said Willis: “I appreciate it. Now that I feel healthy and strong, I think I can start building some trust out there.”

With help from Willis’ mastery on the mound, the Tigers were able to hold on for a 6-0 victory over the Rangers. The victory lifted the Tigers to 21-16, while the Rangers dropped to 23-15 with the loss.

Dontrelle Willis, Detroit Tigers (Image: Zuma Press)

Roger Clemens had been very quiet recently. On Tuesday, he let his voice be heard on ESPN Radio. Appearing on “Mike and Mike in the Morning”, Clemens talked about the new book that was released on Tuesday. You can watch and listen to the video of the interview at the end of this entry.

The book, which is called American Icon: The Fall of Roger Clemens and the Rise of Steroids in America’s Pastime, was written by four reporters from the New York Daily News.

“I’ve seen excerpts of the book,” said Clemens. “They’re completely false.”

Clemens also insisted that he never used steroids and talked about his relationship with Andy Pettitte. But mostly, the topic surrounded the book.

“It’s piling on,” said Clemens of the book, “it’s hurtful at times. I’m trying to move on.”

Here is the Roger Clemens video of his ESPN Radio interview:

Dom DiMaggio, who played for the Boston Red Sox from 1940 to 1953, died on Friday at the age of 92. The younger brother of Joe DiMaggio was nicknamed “The Little Professor” and made the All-Star game seven times (1941, 1942, 1946, 1949, 1950, 1951 and 1952).

Dom DiMaggio, Boston Red Sox (Image: Newscom)

In his career, which was partially interrupted due to World War II, had a batting average of .298, an on-base percentage of .383, 87 homers, 618 RBIs, 1046 runs, 308 doubles and 57 triples.

Dom DiMaggio was born in 1917 in San Francisco, California. His brother Joe DiMaggio was born in 1914 in Martinez, California and had a Hall of Fame career with the New York Yankees. Vince DiMaggio, the oldest of the DiMaggio brothers, was born in 1912 in Martinez, California and made the All-Star team twice while with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Vince DiMaggio died in 1986, while Joe DiMaggio died in 1999.

Dom DiMaggio’s funeral will be at St. Paul’s Church on Monday in the city of Wellesley, which is just a few minutes from Boston.

No many people consider the Kansas City Royals a threat to do much of anything this season. However, they have one player on their team that gives them a chance — Zack Greinke. The 6-foot-2 right-handed pitcher is currently the best pitcher in baseball.

After four starts, the 25-year-old flamethrower has a 0.00 ERA and has won all four of his starts. His latest win came on Friday night against the Tampa Bay Rays. He gave up only three hits, one walk and one unearned run while striking out ten batters. The unearned run was the first run of any kind he has allowed this season.

Last year, Greinke was very good. He had a 3.47 ERA with a record of 13-10. This season, though, he’s taken his pitching to a whole other level.

Early in his career, Greinke had some issues — both baseball and personal in nature — that didn’t allow him to reach his potential. But now that he has everything sorted out, he’s definitely the leading candidate for the 2009 American League Cy Young Award.

One of the best pitchers of this generation may be close to hanging up his glove for good. Tom Glavine, a man who has won 305 games in his career and is a lock for the Hall of Fame, said that his ailing shoulder may force him into retirement.

The left-hander has a sore left shoulder that was operated on over the offseason. At 43, Glavine says he would rather retire than be forced to go through another complete rehab. His plan at the moment is to rest for two weeks and then see how his shoulder responds to the time off.

Prior to this season, the Atlanta Braves gave Glavine a $1 million contract that included many incentives. Last season, injuries held him to 13 appearances in which he had a 5.54 ERA and a record of 2-4.

Glavine’s career record is 305-203 to go along with a 3.54 ERA. The best season in his career was arguably in 1998 when he was 20-6 with an ERA of 2.47.

The Braves are currently 5-2 and sit in second place in the National League East.

Tom Glavine won his 300th game while with the Mets (Image: Flickr)

Mark Fidrych, who earned the nickname “the Bird” during his playing career, was found dead on his farm. Initial reports indicate that the cause of death could very well be an accident.

Mark Fidrych, Detroit Tigers (Image: Newscom)

Fidrych, who was 54 years old at the time of his death, played in an All-Star game for the Detroit Tigers and his eccentric ways immediately made him a fan favorite. Known for his curly hair and unique delivery, Fidrych took the league by storm as a rookie in 1976. Winning Rookie of the Year, the Tigers pitcher finished the season with a 2.34 ERA and a record of 19-9.

Shortly after he rose to fame, a string of injuries caused his career to end prematurely. When he retired, he had a career ERA of 3.10 and a record of 29-19. He attempted to break back into the major leagues with the Boston Red Sox in the early 1980s, however he could never regain his big league form and struggled on the minor league level.

According to accounts at the scene, Fidrych was found underneath a dump truck. He was currently working for a company that did road construction. The man who found him, Joseph Amorello, says that it appears as if Fidrych was working on the dump truck at the time of the accident.

In a recent interview, Dustin Pedroia of the Boston Red Sox had negative things to say about his hometown of Woodland, California. In retaliation, a Woodland-area man allegedly made death threats to the Pedroia family. The man was later caught and arrested.

Dustin Pedroia, who was the 2007 American League Rookie of the Year and the 2008 American League Most Valuable Player, said in an interview that Woodland was a “dump” and that the city “sucks”. He also said that everyone is looking to get out of town. Pedroia insists that he was misquoted.

Prior to the interview, Pedroia was a hometown hero. After the Red Sox won the 2007 World Series, Pedroia returned home as the conquering hero. Earlier this year, Pedroia’s family was in the spotlight after it was revealed that his brother is an accused child molester.

Five games into the 2009 baseball season, Pedroia isn’t off to a hot start. He’s hitting just .158 with one homer and one RBI.