That was a little too close for comfort for the Boston Red Sox. The Sox took leads of 6-0 and 8-3 but nearly blew the game against the scrappy Toronto Blue Jays. The Sox offense came alive to pound Blue Jays pitching for 10 hits and 8 runs but still had to hold on to survive against them. Mike Torrez (1-1, 4.50 ERA) earned the win although he was knocked out in the sixth inning. Bob Stanley and Tom Burgmeier failed to hold the Jays down and it took Luis Aponte to save the day in the ninth inning. Carl Yastrzemski hit a three run homer in the fifth inning to pace the offense as the Red Sox defeated the Blue Jays 8-7 at Exhibition Stadium.
Dave Stieb got the ball in the top of the first inning and Jerry Remy grounded out to first to start. Dwight Evans walked but Jim Rice struck out swinging. Carl Yastrzemski grounded out to second to end the inning. Torrez got the ball in the bottom of the first and Damaso Garcia grounded out to second to start. Rance Mulliniks grounded out to second and Lloyd Moseby took strike three to end the inning.
The Sox struck first in the top of the second as Carney Lansford walked to start. Dave Stapleton struck out swinging and Glenn Hoffman took strike three, but Carney stole second base. Rick Miller lashed a base hit to right to score Lansford to put Boston on top. Gary Allenson grounded out to third to end the inning with the Sox up 1-0.
Al Woods singled to right to start the bottom of the second but Hosken Powell banged into a double play. John Mayberry struck out swinging to end the inning.
Remy flied out to left to start the top of the third but Evans struck out swinging. Rice grounded back to the mound to end the inning. Ernie Whitt flied out to center to open the bottom of the third before Wayne Nordhagen grounded out to short. Alfredo Griffin popped up to third to end the inning.
The Sox did nothing in the top of the fourth as Yaz struck out swinging to start. Lansford watched strike three go by and Stapleton popped up to short to end the inning. Garcia singled to center to open the bottom of the second but Mulliniks grounded into a double play. Moseby grounded out to second to end the inning.
The Sox exploded in the top of the fifth as Hoffman singled to center to begin. Miller singled to right and Allenson doubled to left to score Hoffman. Remy also doubled to left to score Miller but Evans grounded out to short. Rice hit a ground ball to third and Allenson was thrown out at home but Yaz capped the rally with a three run blast to increase the lead. That was it for Stieb as Dale Murray came in to pitch to Lansford and Carney grounded out to second to end the inning with the Sox up 6-0.
Torrez cruised in the bottom of the fifth as Woods flied out to left to start. Powell grounded out to short and Mayberry grounded out to first to end the inning.
The Sox beat the ball in the dirt in the top of the sixth inning as Stapleton grounded out to short to start. Hoffman grounded out to third and Miller also grounded out to short to end the inning. All of a sudden Torrez lost it in the bottom of the sixth although Whitt grounded out to first to start. Nordhagen and Griffin drew back to back walks then scored on the double to right by Garcia. Mulliniks singled to center to score Nordhagen and chase Torrez. Mike cruised through five but allowed 3 runs in just 5 1/3 innings. Bob Stanley came in to pitch and Moseby lined out to Remy but Woods singled to center. Powell struck out swinging to end the inning with the Jays down 6-3.
Allenson popped up to short to start the top of the seventh and Remy grounded out to first. Evans ripped a base hit to left but Rice lined out to short to end the inning. Mayberry grounded out to first to begin the bottom of the seventh and Whitt flied out to left. Nordhagen took strike three to end the inning.
The Sox poured it on in the top of the eighth as Yaz singled to start. Lansford was plunked and Stapleton dropped down a sacrifice bunt to move both runners over. Hoffman delivered with a base hit to center to score both runners but was forced at second on a grounder by Miller. Miller was thrown out at second trying to steal to end the inning with the Sox now ahead 8-3.
The Jays exploded in the bottom of the eighth as Griffin beat out a roller to third to start. Stanley threw a pickoff throw over the CATCHER'S head for an error but Garcia walked. Mulliniks walked to load the bases and that was it for Stanley. Sox manager Ralph Houk brought in Tom Burgmeier to face Moseby but Jays manager Bobby Cox pinch hit Jesse Barfield for Lloyd. Barfield ended up pulverizing a grand slam all the way to Newfoundland to cut the lead. Woods struck out swinging and Bobby Bonnell pinch hit for Powell only to pop up to Burgmeier. Mayberry popped up to short to end the inning with the Jays down 8-7.
Roy Lee Jackson came in to pitch the top of the ninth and Allenson struck out swinging to start. Remy beat out a roller to first but was thrown out at second trying to steal. Evans grounded out to short to end the inning. Luis Aponte came in to close out the bottom of the ninth and Garth Iorg pinch hit for Whitt to start. Iorg struck out swinging but Nordhagen singled to right. Tony Johnson pinch ran for Nordhagen and Otto Velez pinch hit for Griffin only to take strike three. Garcia struck out swinging to end the game. The Sox had held on to win 8-7.
Hero of the Night is Glenn Hoffman. His two run single in the eighth ended up being the difference in the game.
The Good:
Jerry Remy was 2 for 5 with an rbi and a run scored.
Carney Lansford walked, was hit with a pitch, stole a base and scored two runs.
Rick Miller was 2 for 4 with an rbi and a run scored.
Luis Aponte earned his second save with a scoreless ninth inning.
The Bad:
Dave Stapleton was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.
Bob Stanley was charged with 3 runs in 1 2/3 innings.
Tom Burgmeier allowed a grand slam in one full inning.
The Ugly:
Dwight Evans was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout but walked.
Jim Rice was 0 for 4 with a strikeout but scored a run.
Garry Allenson was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout but drove in a run.
Mike Torrez got the win but allowed 3 runs in 5 1/3 innings.
Final Thoughts:
Don't look now but the Sox are on a winning streak. They finally got some clutch hits but now the pitching faltered. They can't win every game ten to nothing but once in a while would be nice. Torrez falling apart in the sixth inning and the Barfield grand slam were the only hiccups in the game. Torrez cruised through the first five innings and Aponte slammed the door in the ninth. Kudos to Yaz and Hoffman for leading the charge on offense and a steal by Lansford plus a sacrifice bunt by Stapleton paid dividends in the end. Its better to be on a win streak than a losing streak so not much to complain about apart from the shoddy pitching. The Sox look to make it five wins in a row tomorrow afternoon against the Blue Jays. Bob Ojeda gets the start for the Red Sox against Luis Leal of the Jays at 1:35 PM at Exhibition Stadium.
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