With Jon Lester on the mound for the Boston Red Sox last night, you had to figure they had a pretty decent chance to escape Baltimore with a win. After all, he had never lost to the Baltimore Orioles as he was 13-0 in 16 career starts against them.
And that’s exactly what happened last night in a 6-2 win which moved the Red Sox out of last place, a ½ game ahead of the Orioles. If the Red Sox can take the first two games of their three-game weekend set, they could escape April with a .500 record as they now sit at 11-13.
The Red Sox got Lester a 1-0 lead before even he threw his first pitch. But after the first inning, the score was tied at 1-1. After that though, Lester dominated the Orioles like he’s done in the past. He didn’t allow another hit until Vladimir Guerrero tied it up at 2-2 with a solo home run in the 6th.
Lester’s cutter and changeup were nasty last night. When he throws those two pitches for strikes, he can be as dominant as anybody out there and that showed. But even Lester can’t explain why he’s owned the Orioles in his career.
“If I knew the answer to that, I’d do well against everybody,” Lester said, shaking his head. “I just pitch well against this team. … I just really don’t know. I’m aware of the track record I have against them, but I don’t know how to explain it. I feel comfortable against them. I really like pitching here at this park, I’ve always felt good here.”
With the way the Red Sox offense has been going, it didn’t look like Lester would have a chance for his third win of the season.
The Red Sox had runners on second and third with no outs in the 6th inning of off Orioles starter Brad Bergesen. But he recovered and struck out Kevin Youkilis and David Ortiz. The Orioles then decided to intentionally walk J.D. Drew to get to a struggling Jarrod Saltalamacchia. It worked out to perfection for the Oreos as Salty flew out to the warning track.
Salty came up with the same situation in the 8th inning and the Red Sox holding a 3-2 lead. Youk reached on a leadoff walk from Orioles reliever Jim Johnson. Mike Gonzalez came in and gave up a single to Big Papi. Mike Cameron pinch-hit for Drew and walked setting the stage for Salty.
This time though, Salty came through as he hit a single bringing in two runs. Gonzalez then struck out Carl Crawford and gave way to Jason Berken who got Marco Scutaro, making a rare start, to pop out. But Jacoby Ellsbury came through with his third hit of the night to provide the final margin of 6-2.
With Ellsbury starting heat up at the top of the lineup, things should start to look up for the Red Sox. Skipper Terry Francona has always said as Ellsbury goes, the Red Sox can win. That basically means, if Ellsbury can get on base, good things will happen for the Red Sox. Now if they could only get Crawford on base since he’s a game changer as well.
Everyone’s been worried about the slow start of Adrian Gonzalez. And when I say slow start, I mean the home runs. He was hitting .290 before last night’s game but he came through with three hits and two RBIs. His two doubles both went to left field and with the homestand starting tonight, the Green Monster might get a few dents from Gonzo.
Hopefully the warmer weather means the Red Sox will begin to heat up. This team is just too good to be 11-13 right now.
We’ll be back later with tonight’s lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and links from the day. 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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Lester’s performance is simply unbeatable [Boston Globe]
Ellsbury now a leading man [Boston Globe]
Gonzalez is closer to his comfort zone [Boston Globe]
Reddick is unfazed by crowded outfield [Boston Globe]
Jon Lester owns Baltimore [Boston Herald]
Jon Lester puts end to April fools joke [Boston Herald]
Sore hip hobbles Kevin Youkilis [Boston Herald]
Lester dominates as Sox beat Orioles, 6-2 [CSNNE.com]
Notes: Ellsbury hitting his stride at the plate [CSNNE.com]
For once, Lester enjoys April flowers [CSNNE.com]
Rapid reaction: Red Sox 6, Orioles 2 [ESPN Boston]
For Ortiz, left is right and right is … wrong? [ESPN Boston]
Adrian Gonzalez cites flaw in mechanics, still confident [ESPN Boston]
Closing Time: Red Sox head home in style after win over Orioles [Full Count]
Terry Francona Not Playing Favorites at Shortstop, Balancing Time Between Marco Scutaro and Jed Lowrie [NESN.com]
Kevin Youkilis’ Offense Starting to Pick Up, Should Have No Problem Hitting 30 Home Runs This Season [NESN.com]
Lester ends road trip on high note [Providence Journal]
Saltalamacchia delivers in the clutch [Providence Journal]
Boston’s batters can’t catch a break [Providence Journal]
Red Sox Journal: Scutaro gets the start, but his time may be getting short [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 Baltimore Sun website. You can also check out our Bloguin brother, the Oriole Post.
Photo credit: Getty Images
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