Box Score Bank: Clay Day

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BREAKING NEWS: Clay Buchholz is having an awful season.

Actually, I'm sure you already knew that, but just for fun let's provide a few details.

For one, he's given up more earned runs (28) than any pitcher in baseball. Not surprisingly, he also has the league's worst ERA (8.69) and is tied for the second-worst WHIP (1.90). The fact he also sports a 3-1 record defies most logic and only supports the claim that WL record is one of the more bogus statistics in sports (right up there with NBA -).

Yup, Clay's been horrendous. So it wouldn't hurt to throw a little positivity his way. (It wouldn't help either, but lay off, I needed a segue). And with the Orioles in town, I've got the perfect thing.

So let's set the Box Score Bank for

September 1, 2007

Beautiful Girls by Sean Kingston was the No. 1 song in America. Spider-Man 3 was tops at the box office. The Pats were eight days away from Week 1 of their undefeated regular season; Will Middlebrooks was nine days shy of his 19th birthday.

And over at Fenway Park, rookie Clay Buchholz, in his second Major League start, was spinning a no-hitter against the Baltimore Orioles.

Final Score: Red Sox 10, Orioles 0

To be honest, I figured that Baltimore's line-up would be a lot more pathetic than it actually was. I mean, they weren't the 1999 Indians or anything, but

Brian Roberts, Corey Patterson, Nick Markakis, Miguel Tejada, Kevin Millar, Aubrey Huff, Jay Payton

Those are real Major Leaguers and Clay was simply dominant. He needed only 115 pitches to get through the nine innings, with nine strikeouts, three walks and an HBP sprinkled throughout.

And the bats did their part, as well. The Sox line-up collected 14 hits on their way to scoring 10 runsthanks in large part to three-run homer by Kevin Youkilis and a three-run double from David Ortiz. With two outs in the eighth inning, young Jacoby Ellsbury pinch hit for Bobby Kielty with the bases loaded and hit a two-run double. It was the second two-bagger and second and third RBI of Ellsbury's Major League career.

But the story was Buchholz.

The kid's star shined so bright that night, and we all just assumed it would keep shining for the extent of his Red Sox career.

Almost five years later, and we're still waiting for him to consistently tap into all that potential. Let's see if the Orioles can't help him get back on that track.

Rich can be reached at rlevine@comcastsportsnet.com. Follow Rich on Twitter at http:twitter.comrich_levine

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