August 13 - Mo' Willie

Willie Mo Pena fell within a single of the cycle yesterday, the second time in the last 20 days that he has come within a hit of the cycle. He had a moon shot over the monster seats, his second triple of the year, and a double, as the Red Sox beat the Orioles in 10 innings 8-7.
Manny Ramirez extended his hitting streak to 27 games with his game-winning RBI single, but Willie Moe was the highlight of the game. Although he struck out in his final at bat, he still recieved quite a reception throughout the game after his homerun and triple. As the Red Sox prepare for the return of key players, including Trot Nixon, many fans, including myself, are hoping the Sox can find another place for Trot (the bench?) when he does return.

Since Trot went on the DL, Willie Moe has hit as many homeruns as Trot hit the whole season (he also struck out twice as much). If Willie Moe, who is hitting over .300, can learn some plate discipline, he has the potential to be a 35 HR, .315 AVG player. Imagine the middle of the lineup (Papi, Manny, Willie Mo) having a combined total of 115+ HRs.

PREDICTION: Trot is not wearing a Boston uniform next year. Do you think Theo would have traded for Wille Moe if he planned on being a replacement outfielder for the next few years. Let us not forget, Wille Mo is only 25 years old. With a little bit of coaching on plate discipline he has the potential to be even greater than a 35 homer guy.

In the last week, we've seen him collect a dozen hits, hit three 425+ ft. homers, but strike out about 10 times. If he ceases to chase curves that are within a foot of the strike zone, he could evolve into a 45 homer player with an average around .315. Two years ago, with the Reds, Willie Moe hit 26 homers in 110 games: while he was only 23.