I will be in section 29 tonight at Fenway to welcome the Sox back from one helluva road trip. The Sox took 2 of 3 from the Jays up at SkyDome and proceeded to stomp the Yankees in three straight at the Stadium. Tonight, they host the Devil Rays as Tim Wakefield takes to the hill for the carmine hose. Wakefield has been rock solid in his last two outings and he may need to have that knuckler working for him again tonight. That’s because Tampa Bay counters with 36 year-old Paul Abbott, a journeyman of sorts who has experienced considerable, albeit uncharacteristic, success here in the early goings of 2004. He comes into tonight with a 2-1 record and a shiny 2.37 ERA.

Ah, the joys of small sample sizes.

Truth is, it’s hard not to root for a guy like Abbott. A model of perseverance, he is now in his 20th season as a professional baseball player despite having pitched just 643 career Major League innings. He spent the better part of his career, when not injured, playing and rehabbing in places like Elizabethton, Kenosha, Portland, Tacoma and Las Vegas clinging to his dream. His career highlight is and probably always will be the fact that the 2001 Seattle Mariners, a team of historical significance, won 22 of Abbott’s 27 starts that season. He even won 10 straight decisions at one point.

His time at the top, if you could ever even call it that, was short-lived however as the injury bug bit him once again in early 2002. He was abysmal all of April until the M’s pulled the plug on his season and subsequently his tenure with the club. He spent 2003 with Arizona and Kansas City’s organizations before landing in Tampa Bay for 2004.

Thus far, he has been healthy and effective.

Seems like the perfect night for a little mean regressing, no?