Darling got the ball in the top of the first inning and Otis Nixon flied out to center to start. Billy Hatcher took strike three and Mike Greenwell flied out to right to end the inning. Viola got the ball in the bottom of the first and Stan Javier flied out to right to start. Mike Bordick popped up to right and Geronimo Berroa struck out swinging to end the inning.
Andre Dawson popped up to second to start the top of the second and Mo Vaughn flied out to left. Tim Naehring lined out to left to end the inning. Ruben Sierra walked to start the bottom of the second before Troy Neel grounded into a double play. Terry Steinbach walked but Scott Brosius popped up to second to end the inning.
The Sox struck first in the top of the third as Scott Cooper got a base hit to left to start. John Valentin took strike three but Dave Valle was hit with a pitch. Nixon walked to load the bases and Hatcher grounded out to third, but Cooper scored to put the Sox ahead. Greenwell grounded out to short to end the inning with the Sox ahead 1-0.
Junior Noboa grounded out to third to begin the bottom of the third and Scott Hemond flied out to left. Javier walked and Bordick popped up to short to end the inning.
Dawson grounded out to third to start the top of the fourth but Vaughn drew a walk. Naehring grounded into a double play to end the inning. Berroa walked to start the bottom of the fourth and Sierra popped up to first. Neel doubled to center and Steinbach hit a ball to right, Hatcher throwing out Berroa at the plate to end the inning.
Cooper singled to right to start the top of the fifth before Valentin lined out to center. Valle took strike three but Nixon singled to right. Hatcher flied out to center to end the inning. Brosius grounded out to third to start the bottom of the fifth before Noboa got a base hit to left. Hemond grounded into a double play to end the inning.
Greenwell popped up to short to open the top of the sixth and Dawson grounded out to short. Vaughn whiffed to end the inning. Viola came back for one final inning in the bottom of the sixth and Javier walked to start. Bordick grounded into a double play and Berroa lined out to short to end the inning. Viola tossed six shutout innings allowing 2 hits and 5 walks.
Naehring singled to center to start the top of the seventh but Cooper flied out to left. Valentin grounded into a double play to end the inning. Scott Bankhead came in to pitch the bottom of the seventh and Sierra struck out swinging to begin. Neel flied out to center and Steinbach flied out to right to end the inning.
Valle struck out swinging to start the top of the eighth and Nixon flied out to left. Hatcher grounded out to short to end the inning. Mike Brumley pinch hit for Brosius to start the bottom of the eighth and popped up to short to start. Noboa struck out swinging and Hemond flied out to right to end the inning.
Greenwell beat out a roller to short to start the top of the ninth and promptly stole second. Dawson took strike three and Vaughn was intentionally walked to get to Naehring. Tim grounded into a double play to end the inning. Jeff Russell came in to close out the bottom of the ninth and Javier grounded out to third to start. Mike Aldrete pinch hit for Bordick and walked, but Berroa flied out to left. John Briscoe pinch ran for Aldrete but Sierra flied out to center to end the game. The Sox had won it 1-0.
Hero of The Night is Frank Viola. He held the A's scoreless for six innings to earn the win. He allowed 2 hits and 5 walks.
The Good:
Otis Nixon was 1 for 3 with a walk.
Mo Vaughn walked twice in four plate appearances.
Scott Cooper was 2 for 3 with a run scored.
Scott Bankhead tossed two scoreless innings.
Jeff Russell earned his seventh save with a scoreless ninth inning.
The Bad:
Andre Dawson was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.
John Valentin was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.
The Ugly:
Billy Hatcher was 0 for 4 with a strikeout but drove in the only run.
Mike Greenwell was just 1 for 4 but stole a base.
Tim Naehring was just 1 for 4.
Dave Valle was 0 for 2 with 2 strikeouts but was hit with a pitch.
Final Thoughts:
The bats didn't really do much in this one but Viola and the bullpen bailed them out this time. That was one of Darling's best games he ever pitched and the Sox survived. The Sox are slumping a bit offensively in the last week but they were on a hot streak for a while. Still, the pitching has held up with a big win by Viola in the rematch of the 81 NCAA playoff game. Scott Bankhead is having a hell of an April and Russell was solid again. Cooper got a couple of hits and that's about it for highlights for this one. The Sox are winning games with offense and pitching this month and hopefully this will continue throughout the season. Relying on aging starters is a big risk but so far it has been working. The Sox look to make it two in a row against Oakland tomorrow afternoon when Danny Darwin (2-1) goes for Boston against Todd Van Poppel of the A's. The game begins at 4:00 PM Eastern time at Oakland Coliseum.
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