On a cold windy night at Fenway Park the Red Sox and Tigers battled through out the evening as the starting pitchers for both teams struggled out of the gate. But in the end it was Boston that came out of it with a 4-2 win and a doubleheader sweep. The sweep combined with the Yankees loss to the White Sox put them 9 ½ games in front of New York.
The Sox sent Curt Schilling to the hill but he was far from vintage Schilling. In the first Detroit fired out of the chute with a Curtis Granderson double off of Coco Crisp’s glove in left centerfield, Schilling then hit Placido Polanco with a pitch. Gary Sheffield would strike out looking but then Magglio Ordonez walked to load the bases with just one out. Schilling then buckled down and got Carlos Guillen to whiff but Sean Casey put a charge into one sending rightfielder Eric Hinske to the warning track in front of the bullpens to end the inning.
The Sox were actually able to strike first again getting yet another solo run in the first inning. Crisp opened with a single to right and stole second. Alex Cora, who continues to do all the little things, grounded out to Casey at first to move Crisp to third. Kevin Youkilis then singled to left to score Crisp. Manny Ramirez would strike out looking, but a passed ball charged to Detroit catcher Mike Rabelo would send Youk to second. Mike Lowell would walk giving the Sox runners at first and second but Jason Varitek would ground out to Polanco to end the threat.
Detroit would put heat on Schilling again in the second when with one out Rabelo would get a wind blown double to right that fell in front of a diving Hinske. Schilling would strike out Brandon Inge for the second out but once again Schilling would labor. He then walked Granderson and Polanco to load the bases but he would get Sheffield to ground into a fielders choice to Lowell at third to end the threat and keep the score 1-0 Boston.
Detroit which had left 6 runners on base in the first two innings got even in the third when Ordonez lead off with a double to right, Guillen followed with a RBI ground rule double into the rightfield grandstand to score Ordonez. Casey would ground out to short to move Guillen to third, Marcus Thames would strike out swinging and Rabelo grounded out to Youkilis at first with Schilling covering. Schilling was already at 70 pitches and really looking like he didn’t have it together.
For as big a struggle as it was for Schilling at this point Chad Durbin wasn’t much better. He got Manny to strike out for the second time in the third and he would give up a two out single to Varitek but would escape with no damage as Hinske grounded out to third. Durbin was at 68 pitches through 3 innings.
In the fourth the Motowners would jump out and take a 2-1 lead on a lead off solo homerun by Inge. It was originally ruled a single but replay clearly showed the ball hit above the yellow line on the Green Monster. The umpires discussed it and got the call right.
Detroit threatened again in the fifth, when Guillen lead off with his second ground rule double of the game into the bullpen. Casey would fly out to Hinske moving Guillen to third. Thames would then ground to Mike Lowell at third who got Guillen in a run down that would go Lowell to Varitek to Lowell to Schilling to Cora to Youkilis who tagged Guillen out. Thames would get all the way to second on the run down. But that rundown was no where near the play of the inning or the game. Rabelo ripped the ball into right field as the ball sliced toward the pole and the warning track of the rightfield corner Hinske laid out and made a spectacular diving catch that is surely ESPN Web Gem material to end the inning and keep the game at 2-1. Hinske was a bit a shaken on the play but did get up and stayed in the game.
Schilling would last one more inning laboring through six but holding the powerful Detroit offense to just 2 runs on 8 hits with 4 walks and 6 strike outs on 118 pitches. Durbin would also falter in the 6th inning. Granderson would rob Varitek on a diving catch in center, Hinske would get aboard on an error to Inge and when Durbin walked Pena that was his night. He would get yanked after 5 1/3 allowing 2 runs on 3 hits with 5 walks and 3 K’s on 108 pitches. Wilfredo Ledezma would come on to pitch and get Dustin Pedroia to pop out to Polanco, but then he’d walk Crisp to load the sacks and Cora would have an infield single on a chopper to second to score Hinske and tie the game at 2-2. Youkilis would then fly out to Ordonez to end the threat.
But the Sox weren’t done as they came right back at a shaky Ledezma in bottom of the 7th. With one out Lowell would single to center, Varitek would force him on a fielders choice to Inge at third and then the defensive hero would become the offensive hero. Hinske would drive a ball into the Red Sox bullpen for his first home since last October first to give the hometown team the 4-2 lead they wouldn’t give up.
Brandon Donnelly, who got the win in relief, would come on to pitch a clean seventh and only allow one hit to Rabelo to start the 8th and get Inge swinging before Javier Lopez would come in and shut the door with a 4-6-3 twin killing.
Hideki Okajima would come on to pitch a 1-2-3 ninth against the same three hitters he faced in game one to record his second save of the season as the Red Sox swept the day-night doubleheader and took 3 of 4 games in the series from the Tigers.
The Sox wrap up the ten game homestand when they start up in interleague play with a three game weekend series against the Atlanta Braves.
Notes and Musings:
Josh Beckett was placed on the 15-day DL with the finger avulsion.
Devern hansack was recalled from Pawtucket after the game.
Boston manager Terry Francona stayed away from Jonathan Papelbon in the ninth after he threw 13 pitches in the game one win.
Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz sat out the second game with flu like symptoms. According to Francona, Ortiz shouldn’t have played the first game but made himself available because of the day-night doubleheader. With Ortiz out, Manny Ramirez was the DH and Wily Mo Pena played leftfield. Ortiz was willing to pinch hit if he was needed.
Red Sox rightfielder J.D. Drew remained out of the line up for game two. Drew hasn’t played since removing himself from the game in the late innings on Tuesday night after he ran into the bullpen wall trying to catch a homerun. Eric Hinske started again in rightfield in place of Drew.
Short stop Julio Lugo was also out of the game two line-up with Alex Cora moving over to short after playing second base in the day game. Coco Crisp batted lead off with Lugo out.
The Sox have moved Tim Wakefield’s start from Sunday against Atlanta to Monday against the Yankees in the Bronx.
Kevin Youkilis extended his hit streak to 11 games with a RBI single in the first inning of game two. He batted third in the nightcap with Ortiz on the bench.
The Tigers did not start catcher Ivan Rodriguez in game two after he caught the day game. Leftfielder Craig Monroe also sat in game two.
The Boston Globe’s Gordon Edes mentioned that with the Yankees once again scuffling the Joe Torre watch may heat up again especially with games against the cross-town rival Mets this weekend and the Red Sox next week.
Tigers starting pitcher Chad Durbin gets a little over 8 runs of support per 9 innings in each of his starts. Going into the nightcap, Durbin was 1-0 with a 9.39 ERA in 3 career outings at Fenway.
Detroit’s Gary Sheffield said after facing Hideki Okajima in the first game he was the toughest lefty he had faced in along time.
NESN’s Jerry Remy lost it in the pre-game show with a laughing fit. Seems he fell off the table just before going on camera. NESN actually showed the video, He was playing some ‘air guitar’ prior to the game and while ‘rocking out’ and doing his Keith Richards imitation the Remdawg took a header.
The Green Monster seats for the Saturday, June 16th game against Barry Bonds and the San Francisco Giants are available via an on-line auction with the proceeds benefiting the Red Sox Foundation. Packages of 3 and 6 tickets are available and include food, beverages and other amenities. Bids are being accepted until June 11th at redsox.com.
The Sox open interleague play against the Atlanta Braves tomorrow night. Last season the Sox were 16-2 against the senior circuit. We will see two of the Braves top pitchers as John Smoltz (5-1 3.19 ERA) will throw Saturday and Tim Hudson (5-1 1.77 ERA) will go Sunday.
NESN analyst Dave McCarty during the pre-game show told of his experience as Wally the Green Monster. Once in 2004 when he was on the DL he told Curt Schilling he wanted to be Wally. Schill thinking McCarty was joking got him the costume, he suited up and went on the field between innings.
Schilling is also the owner of a major league record 69 consecutive starts without an unearned run. The last time was June 14, 2004 when he allowed two unearned runs against Colorado.
The Red Sox have yet to lose on a Thursday in 2007. With the sweep they are now 7-0.
The Sox are still yet to wear their red jerseys in 2007. The one game they wore an alternate jersey it was green on Arnold ‘Red’ Auerbach night against the Yankees.
