Ray of Hope: Karstens hurt, but not from line drive

Ahhh, spring!

That time of year to savor freshly cut grass, the chirping of birds, and the crack of bone when a line drive hits Jeff Karstens. (Or is it Rasner, I forget?)

Anyway, this spring is slightly different.

As Ed Price notes, Jeff pulled his groin today. A tweaked muscle got him before Dustin Pedroia's bat had the chance.

Evidently, this creates an opening for Darrel Rasner to get whacked by a batted ball.

Wait a minute: Have we done this before?

Also, Kei Igawa got into the act today.

No, he didn't play goalie with his ribs.

He just got totally smacked around. Four runs, five hits, three walks, 10 outs.

Later, Girardi claimed Kei pitched better than the numbers show.

Wow. Japanese baseball must be worse than we thought.

And, just maybe, we are worse than we thought.