It’s been almost two years since Boston Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz hit a walk-off home run at Fenway Park. Last night he delivered the walk-off blow as he wrapped his home run around Pesky’s Pole and was mobbed by his teammates at home plate.
We’ve waited for Big Papi to return from his struggles all season long. He’s shown flashes of brilliance but his walk-off home run means he’s fully back and back with vengeance. Ever since Victor Martinez arrived, Papi has been hitting the ball well. It also shows that not having the dreadlocked outfielder batting behind him may have had a little to do with it.
Speaking of Martinez, everyone last night was worried about how he’d mesh with Tim Wakefield and the knuckleball from hell. Martinez passed that test with flying colors as there were no problems at all between the two.
Wakefield had list pitched for the Red Sox back on July 8 before heading to the All-Star Game in St. Louis. He was placed on the DL shortly after the All-Star break and had been rehabbing his way back to the 25-man roster. It didn’t look like he missed a beat as his knuckler was downright nasty last night. He threw his first 17 pitches of the game for strikes and gave the Red Sox bullpen a rest as he went 7 innings.
Wake’s great game meant the end of the road for Brad Penny. As we learned earlier this morning, Penny asked for and was granted his release by the Red Sox. This now ends the speculation of who Billy Wagner will replace on the roster when he joins the club today.
Before the links, I’ll leave you with this quote from White Sox skipper Ozzie Guillen on Daniel Bard.
“Who’s that guy?” White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said. “He pitched pretty good. I’d rather face (Jonathan) Papelbon than that guy.”
Tazawa and Ramirez Form Unlikely Exchange Program [Jessica Camerato – WEEI.com]
Vintage form [Boston Globe]
From first pitch, knuckleballer was in command [Boston Globe]
There’s no closing argument [Boston Globe]
Youkilis clarifies comments [Boston Globe]
Red Sox Win On Ortiz’s Homer In Ninth [Hartford Courant]
Youkilis: Comments Weren’t A Slam At Fans [Hartford Courant]
Penny released [Extra Bases]
Youk: We’re all human [Full Count]
Big Papi pops the clutch [Full Count]
Jimmy Fund and the Red Sox: A Living Legacy [Full Count]
Red Sox release Penny [Full Count]
Ortiz walks off again [Providence Journal]
Martinez appears fine with knuckler [Providence Journal]
Red Sox journal: Ortiz shrugs off news of illegal seizure [Providence Journal]
Big Papi dusts off his Superman cape [Providence Journal]
Chris Carter’s apparent journey from Red Sox to Mets is currently stuck in limbo [Providence Journal]
Youkilis on Boston: ‘I love playing here’ [Providence Journal]
Potential Red Sox callups counting the days until Sept. 1 [Providence Journal]
Five Things We Learned: Wakefield Restores Order In Return [Alex Speier – WEEI.com]
Saito settles in for stellar Red Sox ‘pen [RedSox.com]
Tim Wakefield deals, Papi delivers [Boston Herald]
Criticizing media makes Red Sox look bad [Boston Herald]
Brad Penny feels pinch, gets released [Boston Herald]
Tim Wakefield strikes back [Boston Herald]
For more slices of Boston Red Sox goodness, head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Hartford Courant and Providence Journal websites.
And if the enemy papers are more your style you can check out the Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago Tribune or the Arlington Daily-Herald websites.
