We didn’t get a chance to recap the debacle on Monday night at the Fens after server issues at headquarters yesterday but we’re back today.
After Monday night’s low scoring affair between the Kansas City Royals and Boston Red Sox, the two teams broke into a slugfest thanks to some not so stellar starting pitching last night. When all was said and done, the Red Sox walked off the field with a 13-9 win.
While the loss on Monday allowed the New York Yankees to move to within two games of the Red Sox in the AL East, the win on Tuesday allowed them to maintain that lead. The Rays continue to fall out of contention as they are now 10.5 games back.
Andrew Miller had some serious control issues in his last start and even then he was able to pick up the win. He wouldn’t be so lucky last night.
While his fastball had good velocity on it topping out at 95 MPH, he had trouble finding Jason Varitek‘s glove with it. When you get behind to most of the hitters you are facing like Miller did last night, there’s going to be trouble. And when you throw only nine of 22 first pitch strikes, it could turn out to be a long night.
And even with the offense helping Miller out last night, he still didn’t get out of the 4th inning. He ended up going 3.2 innings, allowing seven runs (five earned) on nine hits and two walks. Thankfully for Miller, Alfredo Aceves and the offense saved his butt.
Like he’s been all season long, Aceves just continues to get the job done. Just two days after throwing 46 pitches, he was back out there doing his thing. He gave the Red Sox 3.1 innings of scoreless baseball allowing just three hits while striking out three.
You know that Aceves pitching well just has to irk the Yankees right now. After all they gave up on him because they thought he wouldn’t be healthy or stay healthy this year.
Besides Aceves, when you take a look at what the Red Sox 3-4-5 hitters did last night, you’ll understand why they battled back and won.
The combination of Adrian Gonzalez, Dustin Pedroia and David Ortiz went 10-for-13 with 8 RBIs. .
Gonzo was 2-for-3 with two RBIs while Pedroia was a home run short of the cycle with four hits and a RBI. Papi had a career-high three doubles as part of his four hit effort while knocking in five runs.
When you’re getting production like that from the middle of your lineup, you’re definitely not going to lose too many ball games.
I’m not sure how many more chances Miller is going to have to get his act together. And with Clay Buchholz seemingly on his way back soon, it might not be too long. With the way he’s pitching right now, his stuff is better suited for the bullpen. While the offense really is that good, it may not be able to bail him out every time.
We’ll be back later with this evening’s lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and links from the day. But for now, enjoy the overnight links from the media by clicking on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.
To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click
Why 2011 could be Dustin Pedroia’s best season yet [Alex Speier – WEEI.com]
Pedroia is spot on in Sox win [Boston Globe]
Some trade small talk [Boston Globe]
Playing long ball is tiring [Boston Globe]
Sox pick up Andrew Miller [Boston Herald]
Red Sox offense roars back to life [Boston Herald]
Tito OK with status quo [Boston Herald]
Worcester native Tim Collins proving his worth with Royals [Boston Herald]
Dustin Pedroia impressive when batting 4th [Boston Herald]
Red Sox bat around Royals, 13-9 [CSNNE.com]
Miller tosses another poor outing for Red Sox [CSNNE.com]
Aceves holding down the fort in long relief [CSNNE.com]
Pedroia cleaning up out of the fourth spot [CSNNE.com]
Video: Pedroia with Jim Rome [ESPN Boston]
Offense comes through with quick turnaround [ESPN Boston]
Gonzo still hitting, but EXBH scarce [ESPN Boston]
Video: ‘BBTN’ on Red Sox trade needs [ESPN Boston]
Dustin Pedroia continues to clean up for Boston Red Sox [ESPN Boston]
Closing Time: Red Sox offense proves it’s as easy as 3-4-5 [Full Count]
Control issues plague Andrew Miller in a new way [Full Count]
Video: Dustin Pedroia Narrowly Misses Cycle, But More Than Happy to Come Away With Win [NESN.com]
Video: Andrew Miller Limits Walks Against Royals, But Struggles With Command Lead to Another Rough Outing [NESN.com]
Alfredo Aceves Proves Immense Value Once Again, Stymies Royals As Red Sox Offense Takes Over [NESN.com]
Red Sox Take Out Lingering Frustration on Kansas City Pitching, Pull Out 13-9 Victory [NESN.com]
Sox bats overcome rough outing by Miller [Providence Journal]
Sox catchers take a defensive stand [Providence Journal]
Red Sox Journal: Francona likes his team as is [Providence Journal]
For more slices of Red Sox goodness, head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, CSN New England, ESPN Boston, NESN, Providence Journal, RedSox.com and WEEI websites.
And if you must check out the enemy news, head over to the Kansas City Star and the Topeka Capital-Journal websites.
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
Photo credits: AP Photo, AP Photo
Thurs. Aug. 11 Jacksonville 7:30 p.m.
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