Tim Wakefield has never been to an All-Game and this year may be his best and last chance. With a 10-3 record, the few blips that bounced his ERA above 4.00 can be ignored along the way, especially with a win in a head to head duel with 8-3 Felix Hernandez (2.54 ERA) tonight.

" I might've been given a bad break, but I have an awful lot to live for. Thank you."

Those were the final words Lou Gehrig ever spoke to the hearts of America. His succinct and supple speech on Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day at Yankee Stadium on July 4, 1939 remains one of the most beautiful bits of poetry our ears have ever heard.

Saturday, July 4, 2009 marks the 70^th anniversary of Gehrig's farewell speech, and it will be celebrated around Major League Baseball. MLB is launching the "4ALS Awareness" campaign to raise money for ALS research in an attempt to help fight the illness that has become commonly known as Lou Gehrig's Disease.

Throughout MLB, players will wear "4ALS" patches, first bases will be auctioned in memory of Gehrig (he played 1B), and every major league ballpark will read Gehrig's speech during the seventh inning stretch.

Gehrig stepped up to the microphone in front of more than 60,000 people, baggy uniform cascading down a feeble and slumping body, and barely spoke for 30 seconds. Politicians need hours, weeks, and months to get a message across to a nation. Gehrig needed 30 seconds.

In a time of economic recession, heartache, worry, and bleakness, the world could use a little bit of Lou Gehrig. The world could use a little reminder that we still have an awful lot to live for. Gehrig's life was blessed with the underlying power that it also represents a message that can resonate with any family in any suburb.

One day not too long ago, I stood just outside the third base dugout on the diamond of a neighborhood park. The dugout sat adjacent to a McDonald's that was perfect for an after practice cheeseburger.

The all-dirt diamond kicked up some of the nastiest hops a nine-year-old boy would ever want to see. You better have had a good dentist if you were going to roam shortstop there.

It was the first practice of the summer, and my Pony League coach asked me what number I would like to wear for the upcoming All Star season.

"I would like No. 4, please," I told Coach.

"Okay, any specific reason?"

"Yeah, because that's the number Lou Gehrig wore for the Yankees," I told him, confidently.

My coach had this wry smile that he held for three long seconds, pondering how a nine-year-old boy could idolize a baseball legend that played some 60 years prior. "Okay, well No. 4 is yours then."

And that was where it all began for me, the moment Gehrig's life and legacy seeped into my soul. All the way up through high school ball I proudly donned '4' on my back.

It wasn't until my freshman season in college that I had to change. Number 4 went to a 5'9" middle infielder. So naturally, I have worn '44' for the last two seasons. If you can't have one Gehrig, you might as well have two then, right?

Gehrig was a great, great baseball player, but he wasn't the best to ever live. That could easily be said about his teammate, Babe Ruth.

What makes Gehrig truly spectacular is that he accomplished some astonishing things in his career, and yet he is still remembered for how he played the game and the way he carried himself as a man.

Gehrig was born in New York City to German immigrants, and was the only child of four to survive. He grew up like most people with immigrant parents; both parents worked long, hard hours and he was raised on the principles of hard work and perseverance.

His road to becoming a legendary icon began at Columbia University in 1921 at the request of his mother, Christina. She was adamant that Lou received an education. After all, she and her husband didn't struggle to get to the United States for nothing.

But after two seasons at Columbia, Gehrig decided to sign a professional contract with the New York Yankees when scout Paul Krichell approached him and offered a $1,500 signing bonus. Christina wasn't happy, but she supported her son's decision to chase his childhood dream.

It wasn't long before Mrs. Gehrig could watch her baby boy play in The Bronx. Gehrig was called up to the big leagues that September, and hit so well that Yankees manager Miller Huggins petitioned for Gehrig to be added to the World Series roster in place of injured Wally Pipp.

But New York Giants manager John McGraw exercised his right to refuse Huggins' petition, and therefore Gehrig was left off the roster. The Yankees won the World Series, anyway.

Gehrig spent 1924 playing in the minor leagues at Hartford, and then joined the Yankees for good in the spring of '25. When Gehrig took over for Pipp at first base, he would never leave. Fourteen seasons later, and a legend had been cemented.

If you want history, Gehrig made it. If you want stats, Gehrig has it. With a .340 career batting average, 2,721 hits, 493 home runs, and 1,995 RBI, Gehrig was one of the most pure hitters of his time.

Over a modern 162 game season, Gehrig's career numbers would project out to .340, .447 OBP, 37 homers, 149 RBI, 141 runs, and almost twice as many walks as strikeouts.

Among Gehrig's many accomplishments, he holds the career record for grand slams with 23; he won the Triple Crown in 1934; his 184 RBIs in '31 are the most ever in a single season in the American League, and are second most in baseball history behind Hack Wilson's 191 RBIs in 1930 with the Chicago Cubs; he is the only player ever to drive in 500 or more runs over a three year span (1930-'32).

And remember, Gehrig spent those years hitting behind Babe Ruth, arguably the most prolific power hitter in baseball history.

Of course, the Iron Horse is most known for his 2,130 consecutive games played streak, which was a record until Cal Ripken Jr. eclipsed the mark in 1995. During the streak, Gehrig played through broken toes, fingers, and back spasms.

Once late in his career, Gehrig's hands were X-rayed and doctors were able to spot 17 different fractures that had fused back together during his streak.

But the end came abruptly in the summer of '39, with Gehrig retiring at 36 years old after being diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS. The disease destroys the nerve cells controlling muscles and causes complete paralysis. Most patients die within 3-5 years of being diagnosed.

The Hall Of Fame waived its customary two-year waiting period and opened up its doors to Gehrig in 1939, the same year as his retirement. They wanted Gehrig to be able to accept the honor before his illness captured him.

Gehrig passed away on June 2, 1941, 17 days shy of his 38^th birthday, but the sadness placidly surrendered to the joy and grace of his name.

Gehrig was ahead of his time in social activism, saying, "There is no room in baseball for discrimination. It is our national pastime and a game for all." Jackie Robinson wouldn't come along to officially break the color barrier in baseball until 1947.

Mostly, though, Gehrig is remembered for his humility and honesty while living in a city that craves showmanship, and working for a franchise that defined the American sports celebrity.

Gehrig spent most of his years living in the shadow of Ruth, an iconic figure equally know for his womanizing and party habits in addition to his tantalizing baseball talent.

And Gehrig spent his last years playing in the shadow of Joe DiMaggio, The Yankee Clipper who, when not on the field, stayed in the public spotlight by marrying Marilyn Monroe and later becoming a famous line of Simon & Garfunkel's 1968 number one single, "Mrs. Robinson."

But all the while, Gehrig remained a symbol for the working class of New York, and the middle class of America. He was a loving family man, and that image waltzes with everyday reality.

You don't need to be Ruth to have it made. You don't need the glamour of DiMaggio to have happiness. Even in the face of struggle, you don't need to be rich or famous to make it through. You simply need to stay true to your core, and follow Gehrig's path of dignity.

"Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the Earth."

That Gehrig line will forever rest in baseball lore.

But it's kind of funny, because that's how I feel when I get to dive into and celebrate the illustrious life and legacy of Lou "The Iron Horse" Gehrig.

Teddy Mitrosilis is the author of Ballpark Banter. He also writes for Bleacher Report. You can reach him at tm4000@yahoo.com.

The Red Sox might be the deepest team in baseball, even with Matsuzaka on the DL and Jed Lowrie still rehabbing in the minors. The clearly have to chips to make a big move (or a small one) before July 31st... but do they NEED to?

Jason Bay is one of the AL's most productive hitters, despite a .268 BA at present. Jacoby Ellsbury has proven that he can handle the everyday role in center. And JD Drew and Rocco Baldelli have combined to hit .271 with 14 homers, 48 RBI and 55 runs, while offering a nice lefty/righty option for Tito.

Youkilis and Pedroia make up one of the best right sides of the infield in baseball, but Youk may find himself across the diamond for much of the second half. That is where one potential problem lies... at third base. Mike Lowell could be ready to contribute after the All-Star break, but if he's not going to be the .285 BA, 20 HR, 85 RBI guy he was on pace to become, the Sox will have to find someone who can. Problem is... there just aren't alot of options at 1B or 3B that are better than simply moving Youkilis to third and playing Kotsay and/or Bailey at first. We took a look at some options yesterday that included Nick Johnson, Garrett Atkins and the unlikely option of trading for Victor Martinez.

We'll talk more about the 1B/3B options in a sec, but let's take a look at the rest of the squad first...

Nick Green has become a reliable option at short both at the plate and on the field. It took Greenie a while to adjust to life at short, but he's making fewer and fewer errors with every start and has even had some web gems worthy plays along the way. He's in a bit of a funk at the plate right now, resulting in an alarming home/road split of .310 and .226, but that's what we have Julio Lugo for, right? Julio has seen his playing time all but erased over the past month, but Theo and Co. have not found a viable suitor for his expensive contract, so he'll likely share time with Green and Lowrie for the rest of the season. Carrying three short stops isn;t wise in my opinion, but Lowrie keeps getting plunked in the minors and it has caused some set backs... if he can't get it together, I think we could see a Coco Crisp-esque second half from Lugo this year.

Remember, Coco was as frustrated as Lugo is now in 2008 and when he got the chance to play, he hit .315 in the second half and .375 in September... we should also take comfort in knowing that Coco's second half surge was probably a major factor in the trade that landed us Ramon Ramriez (5-2, 1.82 ERA in '09)... what would Lugo bring us if he "pulled a Coco" this year I wonder...?

Jason Varitek has been better in 2009 than he was in 2008, but he's still hitting .234 right now, despite the 11 ding dongs. The Sox still need to think about a long term solution here, but I think the combo of Tek and Kottaras should work fine through 2009. I still think the Sox will make a move for a catcher, either in July or during the offseason... and I still believe that Joe Mauer can be acquired.

Lastly, a quick look at the starters. Josh Beckett and Jon Lester have put their April struggles behind them and become the 1-2 punch we expected them to be this year. Matsuzaka is a mess, but I still think he can contribute in September... Tim Wakefield has already won 10 games and should be an All-Star. And Brad Penny has been a hair better than mediocre, but with six wins already in the books, he's the bargain the Sox hoped he would be. John Smoltz is the wild card here... I think he can win games, but the first game jitters and some bad weather have put a cramp in his style sense his retunr to the majors. If Clay Buchholz doesn't get traded in July, he'll be ready to step in if Smoltz (or anyone else) struggles down the stretch and we also have Michael Bowden waiting in the wings as well.

In short, the Sox positioned themselves to make a run at another World Series in 2009 with Penny and Smoltz... but they're also set for the long term with Buchhy and Bowden in the minors... I see no reason to jeopardize the future for a "bit part" in 2009.

So... do you still think the Sox NEED to make a move this month?

If you do, my guess is you want to see them trade for a productive bat to help at 3B, 1B or DH. With David Ortiz posting a .320, 7 HR, 18 RBI line in June, I'm not as desperate for another big bat as I was 30 days ago... but I won't deny that adding one now wouldn't hurt.

Here's one scenario: Jed Lowrie returns and Lugo remains, resulting in Daniel Bard heading back to the minors. Then the Sox trade some prospects for Nick Johnson, forcing them to send Jeff Bailey back to Pawtucket as well.

My question to you all is this: Is Nick Johnson any better than Mark Kotsay and/or Jeff Bailey as the back up 1B? Is a trade for a Johnson-like player worth losing prized prospects when Kotsay and Bailey are capable of hitting around .280 and providing adequate defense at first?

I say no... but there are a million possible trade scenarios out there. So I ask you Bottom Liners: What move or non-move would you do if you were Theo Epstein?

Hit the comments section with your thoughts.

Not only would the Orioles blow a four-run lead, thanks to four walks by the relief corps -- mainly, Jim Johnson and George Sherrill -- plus a two-run shot by Kevin Youkilis and giving up bases load single to ex-Ray Rocco Baldelli to the the game. The pesky Red Sox would decide the game in the 11th as Julio Lugo plated in the winning run off reliever Danys Baez, and they would steal one from the Orioles, 6-5.

Amazingly, Sherrill struck out two Boston batters -- Jason Bay and David Ortiz -- for two outs in the frame; however, after giving up a single to Jacoby Ellsbury and a walk to Jeff Bailey, Jason Varitek earned a contoversial walk and then the flood gates opened thanks to Baldelli's single.

It was a warm day, and after the amazing come-from-behind-historic-victory last night at the Yard, it looked for about eight innings that the Orioles would get a rare series win over their rival.

What can one say about Brad Bergesen -- who is now easily the best pitcher on the staff. He threw eight innings of four-hit ball and struck out six and walked none. Once again, Bergesen threw strikes and was efficient on the mound, throwing only 103 pitches in his outing.

The Orioles jumped all over a shaky Josh Beckett -- who started for Boston. Baltimore's offense came through in the first four innings as Felix Pie had an RBI-single in the first, then they took a 2-0 lead as Luke Scott homered. They scored twice third to take a 4-0 lead as Nick Markakis had a two-RBI double and Baltimore's final run came as Ty Wigginton homered to put them up, 5-0.

However, after the Wigginton homer, the Orioles would have a hell of a time producing any offense, Crazy enough, the Orioles are only 6-15 in day games this season, and only 1-6 versus the Red Sox this season. Well, I don't know if this loss compares to the Mother's Day Massacre of several years ago when former Oriole manager Sam Perlozzo yanked Jeremy Guthrie in the ninth inning with a 5-0 lead, but to have seen the way that Baltimore lost this game was galling.

It's simple, if the Oriole pitchers had thrown strikes in the ninth -- we would have won. However, the umpiring was very, very questionable in this series -- to the point where there were several discussions from Oriole players/management to the respective umpires -- but Red Sox fought, executed and when they smelled blood, they attacked.

Down 5-3 headed into the top of the ninth, Kevin Youkilis hit a two-run homer and Rocco Baldelli notched a pinch hit game-tying two-run single.

Julio Lugo drove in the go-ahead run in the 11th inning on an RBI single and the Red Sox pen did the rest.

The bullpen pitched four scoreless innings retiring all 12 batters in a row.

Daniel Bard pitched two innings with four strikeouts and Ramon Ramirez pitched the 10th inning. Jonathan Papelbon closed the door in the ninth for his 20th save of the season.

Including starter Josh Beckett and the bullpen, Boston's pitching retired 24 straight batters to earn the comeback win.

Star of the Game - The team

That was a well fought, hard earned team victory. Yes, I could do the three star system here but I think for the Red Sox to bounce back like that after the previous loss to Baltimore says something about this team.

Next Game - Day off

Boston returns to Fenway to take on Ken Griffey Jr. and the Mariners

Reports have suggested that Lowell may be held out until after the All-Star break, which would give him 19 days off.  He had offseason surgery on the same hip so the team is proceeding with caution, but this also could be a sign of trouble to come for the 35-year old.

So far in 2009, Lowell is hitting .282 with 10 home runs and 41 RBI in 266 at-bats.  He has been fairly productive for his fantasy owners, and has stayed relatively healthy up to now.

In his place, 1B Kevin Youkilis will move across the diamond to 3B while Jeff Bailey has been recalled from the minors and should see some time at 1B.  OF Mark Kotsay has also seen action in 10 games at first base for the Red Sox this season, including a start Wednesday against Baltimore, and seems to be in the mix for playing time as well.

Bailey is hitting .216 with three home runs and nine RBI in 74 major league at-bats this season.  On Tuesday after being recalled from Triple-A, he went 3-for-4 with three runs scored against Baltimore.  In 139 at-bats in Triple-A this season, Bailey has hit .259 with seven home runs and 13 RBI.  In 2008 in Triple-A he hit .301 with 25 home runs, so he appears to have some power potential.

Kotsay is hitting .289 with one home run and two RBI in 45 at-bats this season.  He missed time early in the season while rehabbing from offseason back surgery.

Bailey and Kotsay both have very limited fantasy value right now.  If you're in a deep AL-only league each guy could be a short-term solution if you need the help, but nothing more unless Lowell remains out for an extended period of time. 

If you're a Lowell owner, he is worth hanging onto as long as you have the roster space since he is not expected to miss a lot of time.  But if you don't have a suitable replacement on your roster right now, these guys could be worth consideration if they are available in your league.  All stats are through Wednesday.

1.  Scott Rolen, Toronto Blue Jays (.333, 6 HR, 30 RBI)
2.  Kevin Kouzmanoff, San Diego Padres (.239, 10 HR, 40 RBI)
3.  Pedro Feliz, Philadelphia Phillies (.292, 5 HR, 39 RBI)
4.  Ian Stewart, Colorado Rockies (.215, 14 HR, 39 RBI)-also eligible at 2B
5.  Gordon Beckham, Chicago White Sox (.278, 2 HR, 14 RBI)
6.  Garrett Atkins, Colorado Rockies (.224, 6 HR, 25 RBI)-also eligible at 1B
7.  Casey McGehee, Milwaukee Brewers (.322, 5 HR, 21 RBI)-also eligible at 2B
8.  Jhonny Peralta, Cleveland Indians (.258, 4 HR, 33 RBI)-also eligible at SS
 

"He will get a couple of starts before the All-Star break and then have a couple of days off," Wakamatsu said. "Hopefully, he will come back pitching well in the second half."