Castillo got the ball in the top of the first inning and Chuck Knoblauch grounded out to second to start. Derek Jeter grounded back to the mound and Paul O'Neill flied out to left to end the inning. The Sox struck first against Mussina in the bottom of the first as Darren Lewis tripled into the right field corner to start. Trot Nixon grounded out to first but Lewis scored to give the Sox the lead. Jason Varitek struck out swinging but Manny Ramirez got a base hit to center. Troy O'Leary flied out to center to end the inning but the Sox were ahead 1-0.
David Justince lined out to right to start the top of the second and Jorge Posada flied out to right. Tino Martinez hit one up the elevator shaft to end the inning. Mussina cruised in the bottom of the second as Shea Hillenbrand flied out to left to start. Brian Daubach struck out swinging and Lou Merloni flied out to center to end the inning.
Alfonso Soriano flied out to center to begin the top of the third but Scott Brosius doubled to right. Clay Bellinger took strike three and Knoblauch hit one up the elevator shaft to end the inning. Lansing grounded out to short to start the bottom of the third and Lewis grounded out to third. Nixon struck out swinging to end the inning.
Castillo cruised in the top of the fourth as Jeter grounded out to second to start. O'Neill flied out to right and Justice grounded out to first to end the inning. The Sox blew a rally in the bottom of the fourth as Varitek flied out to center to start. Ramirez struck out swinging but O'Leary got a base hit to center. Hillenbrand got a base hit to left and a wild pitch moved both runners over, but Daubach took strike three to end the inning.
Posada grounded back to the mound to open the top of the fifth and Martinez flied out to center. Soriano grounded out to third to end the inning. The Sox rallied in the bottom of the fifth as Merloni doubled off the Monster to start. Lansing dropped down a bunt and was able to beat it out for a single before Lewis drove home Merloni with an rbi single. Nixon banged into a double play and Varitek popped up to second to end the inning but it was 2-0 Sox.
Castillo returned for one final inning in the top of the sixth and Brosius singled to left to start. Bellinger forced Brosius at second and swiped second base. Knoblauch struck out swinging and Jeter flied out to right to end the inning. Castillo was outstanding, tossing 6 shutout innings while allowing just 2 hits.
Castillo gets it done
The Sox beat the ball in the dirt in the bottom of the sixth as Ramirez grounded out to short to start. O'Leary and Hillenbrand both grounded out to first to end the inning.
Pete Schourek came in to pitch the top of the seventh and O'Neill walked to start. Justice flied out to center and Posada banged into a double play to end the inning. The Sox caught a break in the bottom of the seventh as Daubach doubled off the Monster to start. Merloni dropped down a bunt and Mussina airmailed the throw to first to score Daubach with another run. Lansing lined out to right, Lewis flied out to right and Nixon struck out swinging to end the inning with the Sox ahead 3-0.
Mussina gifts the Sox a run
Martinez hits one out
The Yankees fought back in the top of the eighth with Craig Grebeck taking over for Merloni at short. Martinez smashed a 599,000 foot home run to cut the lead and chase Schourek. Tim Wakefield came in and Soriano grounded out to short. Brosius singled to center and Luis Sojo pinch hit for Bellinger. Sojo popped up to third in foul territory and Knoblauch grounded into a force to end the inning with the Sox ahead 3-1.
Somehow the Sox tagged Ramiro Mendoza in the bottom of the eighth as Varitek singled in the hole at second to start. Ramirez and O'Leary both singled to left to load the bases and Hillenbrand scored Varitek by forcing Ramirez at third. Daubach banged into a double play to end the inning but the Sox were ahead 4-1.
Rod Beck came in to close out the top of the ninth and Jeter singled to left to start. O'Neill struck out swinging and Jeter took second on defensive indifference. Jeter moved to third on a grounder to second by Justice but Posada whiffed to end the game. The Sox had won it 4-1.
Sox win
Hero of the Night is Frank Castillo. He held the high powered Yankees to just 2 hits and no runs in 6 innings of work to get the win.
The Good:
Darren Lewis was 2 for 4 with an rbi and a run scored.
Manny Ramirez was 2 for 4.
Troy O'Leary was 2 for 4.
Lou Merloni was 1 for 2 with a run scored.
Mike Lansing was 1 for 3.
Tim Wakefield pitched a scoreless eighth inning.
Rod Beck earned his first save with a scoreless ninth inning.
The Bad:
Pete Schourek allowed a run in the seventh inning.
The Ugly:
Trot Nixon was 0 for 4 with 2 strikeouts but drove in a run.
Jason Varitek was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout but scored a run.
Shea Hillenbrand was just 1 for 4 but drove in a run.
Brian Daubach was just 1 for 4 with 2 strikeouts but scored a run.
Honorable Mention:
Craig Grebeck played shortstop in the top of the ninth.
Final Thoughts:
Don't think too much into it but its better to win 3 games out of 4 than to lose them. In essence if Derek Lowe didn't blow the Pedro Martinez/Roger Clemens game, the Sox would have swept all four games. Sox manager Jimy Williams may have demoted Lowe if Beck is now the closer. It was the right move to make as Beck saved 51 games for the Chicago Cubs three years ago and is throwing as hard as he was then. That's not to say Lowe can't get his job back, but if Beck's on a hot streak then it would make sense to ride the hot hand. Offensively the Sox didn't do much but against the good pitching of the Yankees, what they did was just enough. Apart from Shea Hillenbrand and Manny Ramirez, not a single hitter is above .262 and that's not a recipe for success. Still, its April and the men have plenty of time to turn things around, especially when Nomar Garciaparra comes back. The Sox now travel to Tampa Bay for another set with the Devil Rays. Tomorrow night Tomo Ohka (1-0, 4.50 ERA) takes on Travis Harper of the Rays at 7:15 PM at Tropicana Field.
No comments:
Post a Comment