dog days

Jonathan Papelbon, who’ll be a free agent after this season, is certainly making himself attractive to potential suitors. The former Mississippi State pitcher notched his 23rd consecutive save for Boston on Tuesday night and now has 28 in 29 chances this season. Papelbon, who has been known for hair-raising escapes in the past, has been more efficient of late. He hasn’t allowed a run since July 16. On Tuesday, protecting a 3-1 lead against Tampa Bay, he retired all three batters he faced on just 10 pitches, nine of them strikes. Another former Bulldogs star, Mitch Moreland, playing for another playoff contender in Texas, has had six hits in two games, both wins, against the Los Angeles Angels, who are chasing the Rangers in American League West. Moreland has boosted his average to .277. The Angels are now 6 games back heading into Game 3 of this big series tonight. Meanwhile, former MSU ace Paul Maholm starts tonight for Pittsburgh looking for something to smile about. The left-hander is 0-4 with a 5.80 ERA in his last six starts for the fading Pirates. Maholm (6-13, 3.60) faces a desperate St. Louis club that has dropped 7 games back of first-place Milwaukee in the National League Central.

P.S. Pascagoula’s Senquez Golson is rolling the dice. He reportedly turned down a $1.4 million signing offer from the Boston Red Sox to enroll at Ole Miss and play football for the Rebels. That’s a lot of money, and it may never be there for Golson again. He must really like football.