Pedro was not sharp to begin the game in the top of the first inning. Shannon Stewart and Craig Grebeck stroked back to back singles to open the game. Both runners moved over on a ground out by Raul Mondesi and Stewart scored on a wild pitch. Carlos Delgado flied out and Brad Fullmer struck out to end the inning with the Jays up 1-0. The Sox answered in the bottom of the first. Jose Offerman walked and John Valentin singled him to third. Trot Nixon banged into a double play but Offerman scored to tie the game 1-1. Brian Daubach grounded out to end the inning.
Pedro settled down in the top of the second inning. Tony Batista and Darrin Fletcher flied out and Jose Cruz popped up to end the inning. The Sox failed to score in the bottom of the second. Carl Everett was hit with a pitch but was thrown out at second trying to steal. Mike Stanley and Troy O'Leary grounded out to end the inning.
The Jays struck back in the top of the third inning. Alex S Gonzalez and Stewart hit back to back singles and Grebeck walked to load the bases. Mondesi popped up but Delgado hit a sacrifice fly to give the Jays a 2-1 lead. Fullmer struck out again to end the inning. The Sox failed to answer in the bottom of the third inning. Jason Varitek singled and moved to second on the ground out by Donnie Sadler. Jose Offerman grounded out but moved Varitek to third. With the tying run 90 feet away, Valentin popped up to end the inning.
To drive home the fact Pedro was mortal in this one, Batista led off the top of the fourth with a solo blast to give Toronto a 3-1 lead. Fletcher struck out but Cruz walked. Gonzalez whiffed but Cruz stole second. Stewart grounded out to end the inning. The Sox threatened in the bottom of the fourth inning. Nixon flied out but Daubach singled and Everett walked. Stanley struck out but O'Leary walked to load the bases. With the tying run at second....Varitek flied out to end the inning.
Pedro cruised in the top of the fifth inning. Grebeck struck out, Mondesi flied out and Delgado grounded out to end the inning. The Sox looked to fight back in the bottom of the fifth when Sadler led off with a double, but he was stranded. Offerman grounded out, Valentin flied out and Nixon flied out as well to end the inning.
Things didn't start out well in the top of the sixth when Sadler damn near took out the hot dog vendor with a bad throw, allowing Fullmer to reach. Batista singled but Fletcher banged into a double play. Cruz whiffed to end the inning. The Sox knocked Carpenter out in the bottom of the sixth. Daubach and Everett singled to open the frame but Stanley struck out. O'Leary moved both runners over with a ground out and Varitek walked to load the bases. Sadler atoned for his error by drawing a walk to cut the lead 3-2 and chase Carpenter. Old friend Paul Quantril got Offerman to ground out to end the inning but the Sox were back in it.
Pedro responded in the top of the seventh inning. Gonzalez flied out and Stewart grounded out, but Grebeck singled. Mondesi grounded out to end the inning. Valentin flied out to begin the bottom of the seventh and that was it for Quantril. Pedro Borbon Jr was brought in and got Nixon to ground out. Daubach flied out to end the inning.
Pedro had enough left in the tank to come out for the top of the eighth inning. Delgado walked but Fullmer flied out. Batista struck out and Fletcher flied out to end the inning. Pedro was shaky early but he recovered to toss 8 innings of 3 run ball. Usually that would be enough to win. Today it wasn't. John Frascatore got the call in the bottom of the eighth. Everett singled but Stanley struck out again and O'Leary banged into a double play to end the inning.
Rich Garces was first out of the pen in the top of the ninth. He struck out both Cruz and Gonzalez before Stewart popped up to end the inning. Toronto closer Billy Koch took the mound in the bottom of the ninth looking to close it out. Varitek struck out but both Sadler and Offerman singled. With a chance to tie the game...Valentin popped up and Nixon grounded out to end the game. The Jays had won it 3-2.
Jackass of the Night is John Valentin. He left too many men on base when a single would have tied the game or put the Sox ahead.
The Good:
Brian Daubach was 2 for 4 with a run scored. Carl Everett was 2 for 2 with a walk and a hit by pitch. Jason Varitek was 1 for 3 with a walk. Donnie Sadler was 2 for 3 with a walk and an rbi. Pedro Martinez was mortal but mortal for him is pretty damn good. He tossed 8 innings of 3 run ball against a loaded Toronto lineup. He gave up 7 hits and 3 walks while striking out 7. Rich Garces pitched a scoreless ninth inning.
The Bad:
Trot Nixon was 0 for 5. Mike Stanley was 0 for 4 with a hat trick, he's really been struggling lately.
The Ugly:
Jose Offerman was just 1 for 4 but walked and scored a run. Troy O'Leary was 0 for 3 but walked.
Final Thoughts:
Talk about a lack of clutch hitting. The Sox had their chances to pick up Pedro in this one but pissed them all away. This is where they miss Nomar Garciaparra big time. His all-star bat was sorely missed in a game like this when one hit could have turned the tide of the game. That's twice now Pedro was failed by the offense but pitched well enough to win. What a difference a year makes. Valentin looks slowed due to his bad knee, Offerman is having a down year, O'Leary and Stanley look lost at the plate and Nomar is out hurt. When 5 of the 9 guys that produced last year are banged up or slumping, that's not a recipe for success. The Sox look to come back tomorrow with Jeff Fassero taking on Kelvim Escobar. The loss dropped the Sox to 25-16 but still good for first place in the AL East.
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