Clemens got the ball in the top of the first inning and Tim Raines popped up to short to start. Steve Sax lined out to short and Robin Ventura took strike three to end the inning. The BoSox rallied in the bottom of the first against McCaskill as Wade Boggs singled in the hole at second to start. Jody Reed singled to right to move Boggs to third and Wade scored on the lineout to left by Mike Greenwell. Ellis Burks beat out a roller to third and McCaskill threw a wild pitch and Matt Merullo the catcher threw the ball away to allow Reed to score. Phil Plantier walked but Jack Clark took strike three. Mo Vaughn grounded out to first to end the inning with the Sox ahead 2-0.
Frank Thomas grounded out to second to start the top of the second but George Bell singled to center. Dan Pasqua struck out swinging and Merullo took strike three to end the inning. Tony Pena grounded out to short to start the bottom of the second before Luis Rivera popped up to first in foul territory. Boggs drew a walk but Reed flied out to right to end the inning.
Lance Johnson singled to center to start the top of the third before swiping second. Craig Grebeck lined out to first and Johnson moved to second on the grounder to first by Raines. Sax grounded out to third to end the inning. Greenwell grounded out to first to start the bottom of the first and Burks flied out to center. Plantier singled to right and Clark grounded out to short to end the inning.
Ventura lined out to right to start the top of the fourth before Thomas walked. Bell singled to left to move Thomas to third and swiped second during the swinging strikeout by Pasqua. Merullo struck out swinging to end the inning. Vaughn grounded out to first to start the bottom of the fourth before Pena struck out swinging. Rivera singled in the hole at short and Boggs walked, but Reed popped up to first in foul territory to end the inning.
Johnson flied out to left to start the top of the fifth and Grebeck grounded out to second. Raines struck out swinging to end the inning. The Sox did nothing in the bottom of the fifth as Greenwell flied out to center to start. Burks also flied out to center and Plantier struck out swinging to end the inning.
The White Sox struck back in the top of the sixth as Sax doubled to left to start. Ventura also doubled to left to score Sax and Thomas walked. Bell banged into a double play and Pasqua took strike three to end the inning with Chicago down 2-1.
The BoSox rallied in the bottom of the sixth as Clark walked to start. Vaughn singled to center and Bob Zupcic pinch ran for Clark. Pena dropped down a bunt to move the runners over and Rivera singled to left to score Zupcic. Vaughn moved to third on the hit but Wilson Alvarez came in to pitch to Boggs. Wade hit a sac fly to center to score Vaughn to ice the game. Reed lined out to left to end the inning with the Red Sox up 4-1.
Clemens returned for one final inning in the top of the seventh and Merullo grounded out to second to start. Johnson and Grebeck both struck out swinging to end the inning. Clemens was masterful, tossing 7 innings and allowing just the one run while striking out nine.
The BoSox rallied again in the bottom of the seventh as Greenwell walked to start. Ventura booted a routine grounder by Burks for an error but Plantier struck out swinging. Zupcic singled to left to score Greenwell and move Burks to third. Vaughn forced Zupcic at second but Burks scored another run. Pena grounded out to third to end the inning with the BoSox ahead 6-1.
Danny Darwin came in to throw up on himself in the top of the eighth inning as Raines doubled to left to start. Sax singled Raines to third before he swiped second himself. Ventura lined a base hit to right to score both runners and chase Danny from the game, Greg Harris came in and Thomas walked to bring the tying run to the plate. Bell flied out to left and Pasqua earned the golden sombrero by taking strike three. Merullo was plunked to load the bases and Sox manager Butch Hobson brought in Tony Fossas to pitch to Johnson. Johnson grounded back to the mound to end the inning with the Sox still ahead 6-3.
Terry Leach came in to pitch the bottom of the eighth and Rivera grounded out to first to start. Boggs flied out to center and Reed grounded out to third to end the inning.
Jeff Reardon came in to pitch the top of the ninth and Warren Newson pinch hit for Grebeck. Newson singled to right but was doubled off of first on the bullet to first by Raines. Sax singled to center and Esteban Beltre ran for him. Ventura doubled to right but Thomas flied out to right to end the game. The Sox had won it 6-3.
Hero of the Night is Roger Clemens. He dominated the White Sox by holding them to 1 run in 7 innings of work. He allowed 5 hits and struck out 9 batters.
The Good:
Wade Boggs was 1 for 2 with 2 walks, an rbi and a run scored.
Phil Plantier was 1 for 3 with a walk.
Bob Zupcic was 1 for 1 at the plate with an rbi and a run scored.
Luis Rivera was 2 for 4 with an rbi.
Greg Harris got the first 2 outs of the eighth inning.
Tony Fossas retired the only man he faced.
Jeff Reardon earned his third save with a scoreless ninth inning.
The Bad:
Tony Pena was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.
Danny Darwin allowed 2 runs without recording an out.
The Ugly:
Jody Reed was just 1 for 5 but scored a run.
Mike Greenwell was 0 for 2 but walked, drove in a run and scored a run.
Ellis Burks was just 1 for 4 but scored a run.
Jack Clark was 0 for 2 with a strikeout but walked.
Mo Vaughn was just 1 for 4 but drove in a run and scored a run.
Final Thoughts:
So THAT'S what offense looks like? Granted they didn't hit home runs out of Fenway but they finally drove some guys in when they were in scoring position. Rivera's rbi single, Zupcic's rbi single and even the grounders to drive in runs. After a month of futility it was nice to see them score some runs. They needed them too because Darwin crapped his pants big time. That was his first hiccup all season really and its a good thing Harris, Fossas and Darwin got the outs they did. Sox manager Butch Hobson has taken some criticism for not switching up his batting orders but he's been managing the bullpen really well so far. Fossas has been the guy that if you absolutely need to get a lefty out, he's the one to do it. Hopefully the Sox can keep scoring like this the rest of the season because their pitching's been pretty good all things considered. Clemens was his usual self and not much needs to be said about his greatness. The Sox have one more game this month and its tomorrow night against the White Sox. Frank Viola (1-2) goes for Boston up against Alex Fernandez of the White Sox. The game begins at 7:35 PM at Fenway Park.
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