SOONER OR LATER THEY'LL FACE A 4TH OR 5TH STARTER....:

On the Road: The Champion's Travels (John Perrotto, 4/16/08, Baseball Prospectus)

The Red Sox are at the tail end of a rather murderous stretch that started when they went to Japan to open the regular season with a two-game series against the Athletics in the Tokyo Dome on March 25-26. That was followed by three exhibition games in Los Angeles against the Dodgers, two more regular-season games against the Athletics in Oakland, and then three games in Toronto against the Blue Jays. The final totals for the trip: 19 days, 16,000 miles, and three countries. [...]

The road hasn’t gotten easier for the Red Sox since they returned from their around-the-world adventure. After spending last week at home with three-game series against first the Tigers and then the Yankees, the defending world champions are now in the midst of a four-game trip that included the two games against the Indians in Cleveland on Monday and Tuesday, and then a two-game series starting Wednesday night in New York against the Yankees. That itinerary, containing games against some of the best teams in the league, is enough to make even the most seasoned traveler’s head spin.

"It’s been a pretty grueling stretch," Francona admitted. "Everybody felt the effects at some time. Some guys felt it when we first got to Japan, others when we got back to the United States and others not until the very end of the trip in Toronto."

Even on the current four-game trip, it hasn’t been easy. The trip started in Cleveland after a Sunday night game in Boston against the Yankees. That meant the Red Sox didn’t get into their hotel until 4 a.m. They did not figure to get into New York on Wednesday morning until around 4 a.m. It will likely be another early morning arrival Friday in Boston following the two-game series with the Yankees. In all, the Red Sox will play on 20 consecutive days before their next open date on April 28.