There are team wins in baseball and there are also TEAM wins. Last night at Fenway Park, the Boston Red Sox got a TEAM win over the Oakland Athletics 8-6.
With Clay Buchholz allowing the A’s to put the Red Sox in 4-0 hole early, the bats rallied the team back. And when Buchholz allowed the A’s to regain the lead, it was the bats who got the lead back again with the bullpen making sure, the Red Sox kept it.
Buchholz is at his best when he’s pitching efficiently. And by efficiently I mean not waiting for what seems like an eternity before throwing a pitch. When he struggles, he slows down. Whether this is a by-product of his back bothering him or just a coping mechanism, he needs to pitch confidently and not look like he’s lost his focus.
After that rough first inning which saw the A’s plate four runners on five singles, he settled down and retired eight of the next nine batters. And it’s not like all those balls were hard hit either, it was just a matter of where they were hit. But you saw when he had the confidence, he looked like a better pitcher.
His rising pitch count and the fact the A’s scored six runs (five earned) off of him chased him from the game after 4 2/3 innings. Definitely not what we expected or needed from the youngster. But the bullpen came in and did the job.
Scott Atchison worked an inning allowing just a hit. Tommy Hottovy made his MLB debut and retired the only batter he faced in a lefty on lefty matchup. While Bobby Jenks struggled a bit, he got the job done after a double, a balk and a walk by getting a big inning-ending double play. Daniel Bard allowed a hit and Jonathan Papelbon worked a 1-2-3 9th inning to preserve the win for Jenks.
The other half of the TEAM win was led by the bats of Adrian Gonzalez, Kevin Youkilis, David Ortiz and Carl Crawford.
Gonzalez continues to make Theo Epstein look like a genius as he added three more hits last night. His only RBI on the night would come in the 1st inning when he brought in Jacoby Ellsbury on a groundout when the Red Sox would eventually cut the lead in half after Big Papi brought in Youk with a single.
An Ellsbury sac fly in the second cut the lead to 4-3 and they would eventually take the lead in the third inning on a Big Papi double and Jed Lowrie single.
Crawford’s big hit would come in the seventh inning with the bases loaded.
Joey Devine took over for former Red Sox pitcher Craig Breslow and got Dustin Pedroia to ground out. He then allowed a double to Gonzo, he hit Youk with a pitch in the thigh and walked David Ortiz. A’s skipper Bob Geren stuck with Devine and it worked as he got Lowrie to pop out. He then went to Brian Fuentes who fell behind Crawford and was forced to throw strikes.
On a 3-2 count, Crawford got jammed but put enough muscle on it to get it into center field that allowed two runs to score and give the Red Sox a 7-6 lead. Jarrod Saltalamacchia would add an insurance run in the 8th with a solo blast and that’s all the Red Sox would need on a chilly June at the Fens.
A nice comeback win ended up paying dividends later for the Red Sox as the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim beat the New York Yankees 3-2 out on the west coast. The Red Sox win coupled with the loss by the Yanks, puts the Red Sox back to within a game of a first place. But more importantly, that win snapped a four-game losing streak and hopefully puts the Red Sox back in the right direction after temporarily losing their way.
We’ll be back in a little while with this afternoon’s lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and any links from the morning. But for now enjoy the overnight links by clicking on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.
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Dicey legacy: Will Matsuzaka impact interest in pitchers from Japan? [Alex Speier – WEEI.com]
Crawford’s hit helps Sox snap four-game skid [Boston Globe]
Major relief for Hottovy to get call [Boston Globe]
Matsuzaka surgery set [Boston Globe]
Carl Crawford delivers with late hit again as Red Sox top A’s [Boston Herald]
Constant change [Boston Herald]
Hottovy finally gets shot with Sox [Boston Herald]
Sox rally to end four-game slide, 8-6 [CSNNE.com]
Crawford gets it right against a lefty [CSNNE.com]
Red Sox notes: Buchholz struggles to find form [CSNNE.com]
Red Sox pitchers and Tommy John surgery [ESPN Boston]
Rapid Reaction: Red Sox 8, Athletics 6 [ESPN Boston]
Francona: Yocum to do Matsuzaka surgery [ESPN Boston]
Buchholz gives up season high in runs [ESPN Boston]
A night to remember for a kid who didn’t quit [ESPN Boston]
Scutaro to start rehab tomorrow; Matsuzaka set for surgery next week [Extra Bases]
In the clutch, it’s Carl Crawford [Extra Bases]
Closing Time: Carl Crawford comes through in the clutch again [Full Count]
It’s official: Daisuke Matsuzaka headed for Tommy John surgery, ‘probably next week’ [Full Count]
The $142 million man is money when it matters [Full Count]
MLB Power Rankings, 6/4: Are the Red Sox in the top 10? [Full Count]
Bobby Jenks isn’t worried about looking pretty right now [Full Count]
Picnic in the Park to Give Fans Chance to Get Up Close and Personal With Red Sox on July 24 [NESN.com]
Media, Fans Surprised at Lack of Support for Red Sox in All-Star Voting [NESN.com]
Carl Crawford, Red Sox Bullpen Come Up Big As Sox Grind Out Win to Snap Skid [NESN.com]
Red Sox Hope Tommy Hottovy Can Pick Up Where Rich Hill Left Off Before Unfortunate Injury [NESN.com]
Crawford, bullpen come through [Providence Journal]
Miller keeping his eyes on the long-term prize [Providence Journal]
Sox have options to fill hole left by Matsuzaka [Providence Journal]
Red Sox Journal: Hottovy’s long journey leads to Fenway [Providence Journal]
Youk, Crawford, Adrian design jerseys, T-shirts [Providence Journal]
For more slices of Red Sox goodness, head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, CSNNE, ESPN Boston, NESN, Providence Journal, RedSox.com and WEEI websites.
And if you must check out the enemy news, head over to the Oakland Tribune and San Francisco Chronicle websites.
Photo credit: Elsa – Getty Images
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