Yankees Walkoff Sox in Game 1 (10/13/99)

Disappointing, frustrating, a lost chance....so many words can describe tonight's Boston Red Sox loss to the New York Yankees in Game 1 of the American League Championship Series. The Red Sox bolted out to a 3-0 lead over Orlando Hernandez in the second inning but were shut down the final 8 innings. The Yankees chipped away at Boston starter Kent Mercker and tied the game in the 7th against Derek Lowe after a muffed relay throw by catcher Jason Varitek. The Sox were screwed on a blown call in the top of the tenth and Bernie Williams settled matters with a walkoff home run off Rod Beck to give Game 1 to the Yankees 4-3 at Yankee Stadium.

                                                     Dammit

Hernandez got the ball in the top of the first inning and the Sox immediately rallied. Offerman led off by ripping a base hit to center before John Valentin hit one in the hole at short. Jeter tried to throw Offerman out at second but airmailed the throw, scoring Jose all the way from first and advancing Valentin to third. Brian Daubach pounded a base hit to right to score Valentin with another run. Nomar Garciaparra popped up to left but Troy O'Leary drew a walk. Mike Stanley flied out to the right field wall to move Daubach to third but Jason Varitek popped up to second to end the inning with the Sox ahead 2-0.

                                                   Valentin scores a run

Mercker got the ball in the bottom of the first and Chuck Knoblauch popped up to Varitek in foul territory only for him to muff the ball for an error. The error proved harmless as Knoblauch grounded out to short although Derek Jeter drew a walk. Paul O'Neill hit a rocket to Offerman but he couldn't throw Paul out at first for an infield base hit. Williams grounded back to Mercker but both runners moved over. Nomar then jumped 10 feet in the air to rob Chili Davis of a hit to end the inning.

The Sox struck again in the top of the second as Darren Lewis drew a walk to start. Lewis swiped second easily and Trot Nixon advanced Darren to third with a bloop single to right center. Offerman then squibbed a hit past Scott Brosius and Hernandez to score Lewis with another run. At this point the Sox were up 3-0 with 2 on and nobody out and the Sox let the Yankees off the ropes. Valentin popped up to center, Daubach popped up to third in foul territory and Nomar flied out to left to end the inning. The Sox should have blown the doors off Hernandez yet only led 3-0.

                                                Sox looked good early

Naturally the Yankees wasted no time getting back in the game in the bottom of the second inning. Tino Martinez popped up to right before Jorge Posada grounded out to short. Shane Spencer started the rally with a bloop single to left and Scott Brosius pounded a home run just over the head of Troy O'Leary to cut the lead. Knoblauch was robbed at the wall by O'Leary to end the inning but the Yankees had cut it to 3-2.

                                                    Brosius with a home run

Hernandez settled down in the top of the third inning as O'Leary struck out swinging to start. Stanley dumped a base hit to left but Martinez reached into the stands to catch a pop up by Varitek. Jeter made a jumping catch to rob Lewis of a hit to end the inning. The Yankees threatened in the bottom of the third when Jeter doubled past Lewis to the wall to start. O'Neil whiffed at strike three outside but Williams hit one off the glove of Valentin. Nomar tried to throw out Jeter going back to second but threw the ball away for an error to allow Derek to go to third. Mercker got a big out when Davis lined out to Offerman and Nomar made a leaping catch to rob Martinez of an rbi double to end the inning.

Nixon led off the top of the fourth by striking out swinging to start. Offerman popped up to left but Valentin caught Spencer asleep in left with a double. Daubach whiffed to end the inning and waste another baserunner. Mercker held on in the bottom of the fourth as Posada grounded back to the mound to start. Spencer was frozen for strike three on a borderline call but Nixon dove and missed a line drive catch of Brosius. Offerman made the heads up play to trail him and threw the ball back into the field to hold Scott to a triple as Nixon gathered his bearings. Knoblauch walked and Jimy Williams ran out to the mound to tell Mercker to get one more out or else he'll kick his ass. Mercker did manage to get Jeter to ground into a force to end the inning. Mercker on two days rest held the Yankees to 2 runs in 4 innings, making one mistake to Brosius.

                                         "OWOWOWOWOWOWWWWWW!!!"- TN

Offerman got a heroes welcome in the dugout after saving Nixon's ass but the offense failed to get anything done in the top of the fifth. Nomar flied out to center to start and O'Neill made a diving catch to rob O'Leary of extra bases. Stanley flied out to right to end the inning. Rich Garces was first out of the bullpen in the bottom of the fifth and O'Neill grounded out to second to start. Williams flied out to center and Davis grounded back to the mound to end the inning.

Varitek tried to start a rally in the top of the sixth with a base hit to right over the head of Knoblauch. Lewis tried to bunt Varitek over to second but did it too hard and Varitek was thrown out at second. Lewis was thrown out at second trying to steal on the Nixon strikeout to end the inning. Garces returned for the bottom of the sixth and Offerman nearly cleaned out Nixon on the fly out by Martinez. Posada flied out to center and Spencer whiffed to end the inning.

Hernandez cruised in the top of the seventh inning as Offerman flied out to center to start. Valentin flied out to the right field wall and Daubach flied out to center to end the inning. The Sox had done nothing against Hernandez since the second inning. The Yankees tied the game against Derek Lowe in the bottom of the seventh inning as Brosius put himself a double away from the cycle with a base hit to left to start. Knoblauch dropped down a bunt to move Brosius to second and Jeter sliced a base hit to right. Nixon threw to the plate and the ball beat Brosius...but it went under the legs of Varitek. Brosius tagged the plate to tie the game. Jeter advanced to second on the throw and Nomar bobbled a grounder by O'Neill for an error. Williams beat out a double play ball and stole second, but Davis whiffed to end the inning with the game tied 3-3.

                                                       Tie game

Hernandez returned for the top of the eighth and Nomar hit one up the elevator shaft to start. O'Leary grounded out to first and Stanley flied out to center to end the inning. Hernandez was down 3-0 with no outs in the second and allowed nothing the next 6 innings, unbelievable. Lowe returned for the bottom of the eighth and Martinez took strike three to start. Posada grounded out to second and Spencer was rung up for strike three to end the inning.

Yankees closer Mariano Rivera took the mound in the top of the ninth and the Sox went quietly. Varitek grounded out to second, Lewis was frozen for strike three and Nixon grounded back to the mound to end the inning. Lowe returned for the bottom of the ninth and Brosius was denied the cycle with a called strike three to start. Knoblauch beat out an infield single to third but was erased on the force by Jeter. That was it for Lowe as Sox manager Jimy Williams wanted lefty Rheal Cormier to face O'Neill. O'Neill grounded back to the mound to end the inning.

The Sox got screwed in the top of the tenth as Offerman led off with a base hit to right. Valentin hit a grounder to third and Brosius flipped to second but Knoblauch dropped it...BUT THEY CALLED OFFERMAN OUT! Jimy Williams bolted out of the dugout and was told by Rick Reed that the ball came out in the transfer throw. An irate Tim McCarver on commentary showed on the replay Knoblauch never caught the ball to begin with. What should have been first and second and nobody out was now one out and a man on. Naturally Daubach banged into a double play to end the inning when he should have been bunting to end the inning. What a bag job!

                                                   "Out"

Rod Beck came on for the bottom of the tenth with diminished velocity and Bernie Williams sent the second pitch he threw into the centerfield bleachers to win the game. The Yankees took Game 1 4-3.

                                                    Boooooooooooooooo!



Jackass of the Night is Rod Beck. Yeah the Sox got screwed in the top of the tenth but how do you give up a walkoff home run to Bernie Williams?

                                                  Jackass Beck



The Good:

Jose Offerman was 3 for 5 with an rbi and a run scored.

Kent Mercker held the Yankees to 2 runs in 4 innings on just two days rest.

Rich Garces tossed two scoreless innings.

Rheal Cormier got the only man he faced.



The Bad:

Nomar Garciaparra was 0 for 4 with 2 errors.



The Ugly:

John Valentin was just 1 for 5 but scored a run.

Brian Daubach was just 1 for 5 but drove in a run.

Troy O'Leary was 0 for 3 but walked.

Mike Stanley was just 1 for 4.

Jason Varitek was just 1 for 4 with an error.

Darren Lewis was 0 for 3 but walked, stole a base and scored a run.

Trot Nixon was just 1 for 4.

Derek Lowe allowed the tying run in 2 2/3 innings of work.




Final Thoughts:

With all that happened, the key to the game was really the top of the second inning. They had Hernandez down 3-0 with 2 on and nobody out and couldn't score. Forget the top of the 10th inning and forget Beck, had the Sox knocked Hernandez out or even scratched out one more run they probably win this game. This is why the Yankees are the champs, they always make the clutch pitch, get the clutch hit or make the clutch catch. Mercker did the best he could on two days rest but still, that should have been Tim Wakefield making the start. Varitek's error was huge but the Sox couldn't generate any offense...until the tenth. If the Sox lose in 6 or 7 games, that bad call by Rick Reed is going to haunt them big time. Supposedly after the game he apologized and admitted he made a bad call but that doesn't help the Sox now. Still, the Sox went toe to toe with the Yankees and they needed a bad call to scrape by with a win. If the Sox can take Game 2 on the mound, they got Pedro going in Game 3 and the Sox can get cooking. The Sox look to bounce back in Game 2 tomorrow night when Ramon Martinez takes on David Cone at 8:00 PM at Yankee Stadium.

Sox Rally Late in Game 3 (10/9/99)

For six innings the Boston Red Sox were on the brink of elimination in a fierce battle with the Cleveland Indians in Game 3 of the American League Division Series. The Indians took a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning but the Sox caught a break when Cleveland starter Dave Burba left after the fourth inning. The Sox without Nomar Garciaparra scored two runs to take the lead but Cleveland tied it against Boston starter Ramon Martinez. John Valentin put Boston on top with a home run but an error by Valentin tied the game in the top of the seventh. Then the Sox rallied in the bottom of the seventh against Ricardo Rincon. Valentin atoned for his error with a two run double and Brian Daubach smashed a back-breaking three run home run. Lou Merloni provided the final dagger as the Sox staved off elimination with a 9-3 win in Game 3 at Fenway Park.

                                                         Kristi Cline approves of the win

Martinez got the ball in the top of the first inning and Kenny Lofton led off by popping up to Jose Offerman in right field. Omar Vizquel hit a pop up to the same spot but this time Offerman fell down and Omar got a "single". Roberto Alomar beat out a double play ball but Sox manager Jimy Williams felt that Alomar was out. Manny Ramirez took strike three to end the inning. Burba got the ball in the bottom of the first and Jose Offerman led off by grounding out to second. John Valentin flied out to right and Butch Huskey popped up to second to end the inning.

Jim Thome struck out swinging to start the top of the second before Harold Baines popped up to right. David Justice walked before Travis Fryman ripped a base hit to left. Sandy Alomar Jr took strike three on the outside corner to end the inning. Mike Stanley grounded out to short to start the bottom of the second before Troy O'Leary grounded out to second and Lou Merloni flied out to center to end the inning.

Lofton led off the top of the third by taking strike three on the inside corner. Vizquel flied out to left and Alomar grounded out to third to end the inning. Jason Varitek led off the bottom of the third with a liner right to Ramirez to start. Lewis flied out to right and Nixon flied out to center to end the inning.

The Indians struck first in the top of the fourth as Ramirez grounded out to third to start. Thome ripped a base hit up the middle and moved to third on a base hit to center by Baines. Justice scored Thome with a sac fly to center and Fryman struck out swinging with the Indians up 1-0.

                                                                    Indians strike first

Offerman walked to start the bottom of the fourth but Valentin flied out to center. Huskey singled to right but Stanley grounded into a double play to end the inning. All of a sudden Jaret Wright started warming up and camera showed a visibly upset Burba leaving the Indians dugout. 

Sandy Alomar grounded out to third to start the top of the fifth before Lofton was rung up for strike three. Vizquel grounded out to short to end the inning. Apparently Burba left with an injury as Wright came in to pitch the bottom of the fifth and O'Leary hit a ball off his shin, fielded by Fryman for the out. Merloni hit a seeing eye single into right and moved to third on a double off the monster by Varitek. Lewis blooped a base hit to center to score Merloni and move Varitek to third. Nixon hit a sac fly to right to score Varitek to put the Sox on top but Offerman hit a rocket but right at Thome to end the inning with the Sox ahead 2-1.

                                                            Sox take the lead

The Indians finally chased Ramon in the top of the sixth as Roberto Alomar doubled to center immediately. Alomar moved to third on the Ramirez grounder to first and Thome walked to put runners at the corners. Baines hit a double play ball to Stanley who flipped to Merloni who threw wide of first for an error to score Alomar to tie the game. Justice was intentionally walked and that was it for Martinez. He lasted 5 2/3 innings allowing just 2 runs on 5 hits and 3 walks while striking out six. Derek Lowe came in and got Fryman to ground into a force at third to end the inning with the game tied 2-2.

                                                  Ramon deserved better defense

The Sox wasted no time getting the lead back in the bottom of the sixth as Valentin launched a home run to dead center to put Boston back on top. Brian Daubach pinch hit for Huskey and struck out swinging before Stanley grounded out to short. O'Leary flied out to right to end the inning with the Sox ahead 3-2.

                                                              Home run Valentin

The Sox defense failed in the top of the seventh as Sandy Alomar lined out to Stanley to start. Lofton singled to left before moving to second on a grounder to Lowe by Vizquel. Lofton stole third and Roberto Alomar walked to put runners at the corners. Ramirez hit routine grounder to Valentin who threw the ball in the dirt, Stanley unable to pick it for an error to score Lofton. Thome struck out swinging to end the inning with the game tied 3-3.

                                                        Another damn error

The Sox exploded in the bottom of the seventh as Merloni walked to start. Varitek was plunked and that was it for Wright. Indians manager Mike Hargrove brought in Ricardo Rincon to face Lewis and Darren dropped down a bunt....getting Merloni thrown out at third. Things looked bleak when Nixon struck out swinging but Offerman walked to load the bases. Valentin stepped up with a double down the left field line to score Varitek and Lewis. Daubach pounded a three run bomb to ice the game. Sean DePaula replaced Rincon and Stanley walked before O'Leary dropped a base hit to left. Merloni lined a base hit up the middle to score Stanley, moving Troy to third. Varitek popped up to second to end the inning but the Sox were ahead 9-3.

                                                         Home run Daubach

Baines singled to center to start the top of the eighth but Justice forced him at second. Fryman grounded into a double play to end the inning. Steve Reed came in to pitch the bottom of the eighth and Lewis singled to right to start. Nixon flied out to center but Lewis was thrown out at home on a double by Offerman. Valentin lined out to left to end the inning.

Rod Beck came in to close out the top of the ninth and Sandy Alomar beat out a roller to third to start. Sandy moved to second on the Alomar grounder to first. Vizquel got a base hit to left to put runners at the corners. Vizquel took second on defensive indifference but Roberto Alomar struck out swinging. Ramirez popped up to third to end the game. The Sox had won it 9-3.

                                                                     Sox win

Hero of The Night is John Valentin. His two run double put the Sox up for good after his home run put them on top the inning before.

                                                            Hero Valentin

The Good:

Jose Offerman was 1 for 3 with 2 walks and a run scored.

Butch Huskey was 1 for 2.

Brian Daubach was 1 for 2 with a 3 run home run.

Jason Varitek was 1 for 3 with a hit by pitch and 2 runs scored.

Lou Merloni was 2 for 3 with a walk, an rbi and a run scored.

Darren Lewis was 2 for 4 with an rbi and a run scored.

Ramon Martinez tossed 5 2/3 innings and allowed just two runs on 5 hits and 3 walks while striking out six.

Derek Lowe allowed an unearned run in 2 1/3 innings to get the win.

Rod Beck pitched a scoreless ninth inning

The Bad:

None

The Ugly:

Mike Stanley was 0 for 3 but walked and scored a run.

Troy O'Leary was just 1 for 4.

Trot Nixon was 0 for 3 with a strikeout but walked.

Final Thoughts:

The Sox live another day. That was a gutsy win by the Sox in a game they needed to win to stay alive. Grumpy Indians fans are saying if Burba never got hurt, the Indians would have won. Same as how the Indians might not have won if Pedro Martinez didn't get hurt. Consider both teams even in the injury department so its on to Game 4. The Sox were teetering on the brink after the Indians took the lead but rallied against Wright and the Indians bullpen. Kudos to Derek Lowe and Rod Beck for slamming the door despite the errors. At least Valentin atoned for his error in a big way with the offense and Daubach had the biggest hit of the game. Don't forget Merloni for filling in for the injured Nomar Garciaparra. If the season is going to end, at least the Sox are going down swinging. The Sox look to stave off elimination tomorrow night in Game 4 when Kent Mercker goes for the Sox against Bartolo Colon on three days rest. The game begins at 7:30 PM at Fenway Park.

Indians Smash Red Sox in Game 2 (10/7/99)

Well so much for this season. After the Boston Red Sox were eliminated from the playoffs last year, they essentially replaced Mo Vaughn with Jose Offerman and said "Let's run it back." Well this season is about to turn out exactly like last year as the Cleveland Indians pounded the Sox in Game 2 of the American League Division Series. The Sox have now lost 18 out of their last 19 post-season games after today's rout. Bret Saberhagen got pounded for 6 runs in just 2 2/3 innings including allowing the backbreaking 3 run home run to Harold Baines. John Wasdin wasn't much better as he surrendered a grand slam to Jim Thome an inning later. Meanwhile Charles Nagy held the pitiful Boston attack to just 6 hits and a run in 7 innings. The Sox have scored a combined three runs in the playoffs and are on the brink as the Indians beat the Sox 11-1 at Jacobs Field.

                                                                Not good

Things went bad right from the start as Jose Offerman led off with a base hit up the middle but was promptly thrown out at second trying to steal. The Sox would have just five hits the rest of the game as John Valentin watched strike three go by. Jason Varitek flied out to the left field wall to end the inning. Saberhagen got the ball in the bottom of the first and Kenny Lofton was rung up for strike three to start. Omar Vizquel grounded out to short but Roberto Alomar doubled off the left field wall. Manny Ramirez struck out swinging to end the inning.

Nomar Garciaparra led off the top of the second by grounding out to short but Troy O'Leary ripped a base hit to center. Mike Stanley banged into a double play to end the inning. Jim Thome popped up to Garciaparra to start the bottom of the second but Harold Baines shot a base hit to right. David Justice banged into a double play to end the inning.

The Sox struck first in the top of the third although Butch Huskey lined out to second to start. Trot Nixon doubled to right on a 3-0 count but Damon Buford struck out swinging. Offerman ripped a base hit to right but got caught in a rundown to end the inning, but not before Nixon scored to give the Sox a 1-0 lead.

                                                        "You're out you dummy!"

The Indians finally exploded in the bottom of the third as Travis Fryman walked to start. Sandy Alomar Jr forced Fryman at second but Lofton walked. Vizquel tripled just out of the reach of Nixon to clear the bases and give the Indians the lead. Roberto Alomar doubled to right and moved to third on the fly out to center by Ramirez. Thome walked and Baines put the game on ice with a three run bomb into the Baltic Sea. That was it for Saberhagen who fell apart in the third inning, allowing 6 runs on 5 hits and 3 walks. John Wasdin came in to get Justice to fly out to right to end the inning with the Indians up 6-1.

                                                      Well this game is over

The Sox failed to respond against Nagy in the top of the fourth as Valentin flied out to center to start. Varitek flied out to right and Garciaparra struck out swinging to end the inning. The Indians struck again in the bottom of the fourth as Fryman walked to start. Sandy Alomar struck out swinging as Fryman stole second. Lofton walked but Vizquel dumped a base hit to left to load the bases. Roberto Alomar hit a sac fly to score Fryman and Ramirez walked to reload the bases. Thome did the honors with a grand slam into Lake Eerie to wrap up the scoring. Baines flied out to left to end the inning with the Indians up 11-1.

                                                                  Indians pour it on

O'Leary grounded out to first to start the top of the fifth but Stanley doubled to left. Huskey grounded out to short and Nixon lined out to Thome to end the inning. Tim Wakefield came in to pitch the bottom of the sixth and Justice struck out swinging to start. Fryman walked but Sandy Alomar popped up to second. Lofton swung and missed for strike three but a passed ball by Varitek allowed Lofton to reach first. Vizquel struck out swinging to end the inning.

Buford flied out to center to start the top of the sixth before Offerman grounded out to first. Valentin struck out swinging to end the inning. Wakefield returned for the bottom of the sixth and Roberto Alomar dumped a base hit to center to begin. Ramirez struck out swinging and Thome flied out to center, but Baines walked. Justice popped up to third to end the inning.

Nagy returned for one last inning in the top of the seventh and Varitek grounded out to first to start. Garciaparra grounded out to third and O'Leary flied out to center to end the inning. Nagy was almost unhittable in this one. Tom Gordon came in to pitch the bottom of the seventh and hit Fryman to start. Sandy Alomar and Lofton struck out swinging but Vizquel walked. Roberto Alomar flied out to left to end the inning.

Steve Karsay came in to pitch the top of the eighth with Richie Sexson now playing first for Thome. Stanley greeted Karsay with a base hit to right but Huskey struck out swinging. Nixon walked but Buford flied out to left. Offerman flied out to center to end the inning. Rod Beck came in for the bottom of the eighth with Lou Merloni now at short. Ramirez struck out swinging before Sexson flied out to center. Baines grounded out to first to end the inning.

Michael Jackson came in to pitch the top of the ninth with Einar Diaz behind the plate and Enrique Wilson now at second. Valentin flied out to left, Varitek popped up to second and Merloni also popped up to second to end the game. The Indians had won it 11-1.

                                                                Sox on the brink

Jackass of the Night is Bret Saberhagen. He got hammered for 6 runs in just 2 2/3 innings allowing 5 hits and 3 walks.

                                                             Jackass Saberhagen

The Good:

Jose Offerman was 2 for 4 with an rbi.

Troy O'Leary was 1 for 3.

Mike Stanley was 2 for 3.

Trot Nixon was 1 for 2 with a walk and a run scored.

Tim Wakefield tossed two scoreless innings.

Tom Gordon pitched a scoreless seventh inning.

Rod Beck pitched a scoreless eighth inning.

The Bad:

John Valentin was 0 for 4 with 2 strikeouts.

Jason Varitek was 0 for 4.

Nomar Garciaparra was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.

Lou Merloni was 0 for 1 at the plate.

Butch Huskey was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.

Damon Buford was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.

John Wasdin allowed 5 runs in just 1 1/3 innings.

The Ugly:

None

Final Thoughts:

What a shame the year is about to end like this. After Pedro Martinez strong armed the Sox to the post-season, it all crashed and burned. The Cleveland Indians offense is one of the best in the game and apart from Pedro and Nomar Garciaparra, the rest of the team is painfully average. Guys like Stanley, Valentin and O'Leary had good seasons but when it comes to October, they aren't getting it done. Jim Thome has more home runs by himself than the Sox have hit as a team. This has a similar feeling to 1995 where the Red Sox are trying to counter Manny Ramirez, Jim Thome and Roberto Alomar with Butch Huskey, Troy O'Leary and Jose Offerman. It seems like the injury to Pedro Martinez sucked the life out of the team and they can't wait for the season to end. After an off-day tomorrow the season might just end this Saturday afternoon in Game 3. The only man standing between the Red Sox and winter is Ramon Martinez and he goes against Dave Burba of the Indians at 4:00 PM at Fenway Park.

Sox Lose Pedro, Game 1 To Indians (10/6/99)

You couldn't have imagined a worse way to start the post-season than the Boston Red Sox. Facing their nemesis the Cleveland Indians, the Red Sox managed to lose not only Game 1 of the American League Division Series but their ace as well. Pedro lasted just four innings before leaving with a back problem with the Sox clinging to a 2-0 lead. The Indians tied the game in the bottom of the sixth with a Jim Thome bomb against Derek Lowe then rallied in the ninth inning. After Lowe hit Manny Ramirez, Rheal Cormier allowed a base hit to old friend Wil Cordero, then Rich Garces hit Richie Sexson then the game winning walkoff hit to Travis Fryman, The Indians took Game 1 and most likely the series 3-2 at Jacobs Field.

                                                                This sucks

Bartolo Colon took the mound in the top of the first inning and Jose Offerman grounded out to third to begin. John Valentin grounded out to short and Jason Varitek struck out swinging to end the inning. Pedro Martinez took the mound in the bottom of the first as Kenny Lofton flied out to Darren Lewis to start. Omar Vizquel hit a broken bat grounder to second but Roberto Alomar grounded a single up the middle. Alomar stole second but Manny Ramirez struck out swinging on a 3-2 pitch to end the inning.

The Sox struck first in the top of the second inning when Nomar Garciaparra launched a home run to dead center to put Boston on top. Troy O'Leary grounded out to first but Mike Stanley ripped a base hit to left. Brian Daubach struck out swinging before Darren Lewis lined out to second to end the inning with Boston ahead 1-0.

                                                        Nomar starts the Sox off

Jim Thome led off the bottom of the second with a ground out to second but Harold Baines singled off the glove of Nomar. David Justice forced Baines at second but Travis Fryman flied out to center to end the inning.

Trot Nixon led off the top of the third by striking out swinging but Offerman drew a walk. Valentin looked to have hit a double play ball but Alomar threw the relay to first away for an error. Varitek popped up to left to end the inning. Sandy Alomar Jr whiffed on a 95 mph fastball to start the bottom of the third but Lofton walked. Vizquel flied out to center but Roberto Alomar dumped a base hit to right to put runners at the corners. Ramirez forced Alomar at second to end the inning.

The Sox struck again in the top of the fourth as Garciaparra doubled off the left field wall to start but O'Leary struck out swinging. Stanley ripped a base hit to left and Nomar made a mad dash home, scoring and allowing Mike to reach second. Daubach struck out on a 100 mph fastball and Lewis grounded out to third to end the inning with the Sox up 2-0.

                                                      Stanley drives in a run

Thome struck out swinging to begin the bottom of the fourth before Baines popped up to second. All of a sudden Pedro started clutching at his back covering first base on the grounder to first by Justice to end the inning. Turns out Pedro pulled a muscle in his back and left the game after 4 dominant shut-out innings.

                                                      It was all downhill from here

Nixon struck out swinging to start the top of the fifth before Offerman drew a walk. Valentin banged into a double play to end the inning. Sure enough, Derek Lowe came in to pitch the bottom of the fifth and Fryman grounded out to second to start. Sandy Alomar grounded back to the mound and Lofton took strike three to end the inning.

Varitek struck out swinging to start the top of the sixth before Garciaparra walked. O'Leary then hit a rocket but was snared at the left field wall but Nomar thought it was off the wall, getting doubled off first to end the inning. That mistake proved fatal in the bottom of the sixth as Vizquel grounded out to short to start. Roberto Alomar grounded back to the mound and Ramirez hit a routine grounder to Valentin.....who threw low to Stanley for an error. Sure enough, Thome hit a home run all the way to the moon to tie the game. The Indians were 1 for 33 against Lowe during the regular season and had done nothing against him up until this point. Baines grounded out to second to end the inning with the game tied 2-2.

                                                          Saw that coming

Stanley tried to start a rally with a base hit to center to start the top of the seventh but Daubach earned the hat trick with a swinging strikeout on a 98 mph fastball. Lewis took strike three on the outsider corner and Nixon grounded out to second to end the inning. A ticked off Lowe dominated the bottom of the seventh as Justice struck out swinging to start. Fryman struck out swinging and Sandy Alomar struck out swinging to end the inning.

Colon came back for the top of the eighth and Offerman popped up to Vizquel over his shoulder. Valentin and Varitek both struck out swinging to end the inning. Lowe returned for the bottom of the eighth and Lofton grounded out to second to start. Vizquel then hit a bullet but right to Valentin for the second out. Roberto Alomar popped up to Valentin in foul territory to end the inning.

Paul Shuey came in to pitch the top of the ninth and Garciaparra struck out swinging to start. O'Leary popped up to center and Stanley popped up to left to end the inning. Mostly due to the Indians being completely inept all year against Lowe, he was brought back for the bottom of the ninth. He promptly hit Ramirez and was replaced by Rheal Cormier. Thome flied out to left and old friend Wil Cordero pinch hit for Baines. Naturally Cordero ripped a base hit to right to chase Cormier from the game. Rich Garces came in to pitch with Richie Sexson in to pinch hit for Justice. Sexson walked to load the bases and Fryman did the honors with a base hit to left to score Ramirez to end the game. The Indians had walked off the Sox 3-2.

                                                           Indians win

Jackass of the Night is Rich Garces. He allowed the walk and walkoff hit to Fryman to end the game.

                                                          Jackass Garces

The Good:

Jose Offerman walked twice in four plate appearances.

Nomar Garciaparra was 2 for 3 with a walk, a home run and 2 runs scored.

Mike Stanley was 3 for 4 with an rbi.

Pedro Martinez tossed 4 scoreless innings before leaving with injury. He allowed 3 hits and a walk while striking out 3.

The Bad:

John Valentin was 0 for 4 with a strikeout and an error.

Jason Varitek was 0 for 4 with a hat trick of 3 strikeouts.

Troy O'Leary was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.

Brian Daubach was 0 for 3 with a hat trick of 3 strikeouts.

Darren Lewis was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.

Trot Nixon was 0 for 3 with 2 strikeouts.

The Ugly:

Derek Lowe took the loss but was victimized by a big error and someone else allowed his inherited runner to score. He essentially tossed 4 innings and allowed one earned run.

Rheal Cormier faced two batters and retired just one of them.

Final Thoughts:

This is definitely worse case scenario for the Boston Red Sox. Not only did they lose a crucial game to the Indians but they lost Pedro Martinez as well. The preliminary report is Pedro should be able to make his next start but as we saw last year, that start may never come. The Sox bats were completely dominated by Bartolo Colon and they made too many mistakes against an offense this good. Apart from Stanley and Garciaparra, not a single Sox batter had a hit in the game. As mentioned earlier, the real story is the loss of Pedro because we saw last year that the Sox didn't win a single game after he won Game 1. If history repeats itself then this series is already over. The Indians pitching apart from Colon isn't lights out but Red Sox pitching outside of Pedro isn't exactly the New York Yankees. Still, this was only one game and there's at least two more to go. The Sox turn to Bret Saberhagen in Game 2 tomorrow afternoon to turn the tide when he faces Charles Nagy of Cleveland. The game begins at 5:00 PM Eastern time at Jacobs Field.