Lowe got the ball in the top of the first inning and Derek Jeter was retired on a nubber to Lowe to start. Nick Johnson was hit in the backside but Bernie Williams flied out to left. Jason Giambi grounded out to second to end the inning. The Sox wasted no time getting to Pettitte in the bottom of the first as Rickey Henderson led off with a full count base hit to center to begin. Johnny Damon dropped down a sacrifice bunt to move Henderson to second and Nomar Garciaparra doubled off the Monster to score Rickey. Manny Ramirez was intentionally walked but Tony Clark hit a routine grounder to Jeter....bobbled for an error to load the bases. Shea Hillenrband walked to score Nomar but the Yankees caught a break when Jason Varitek smacked a line drive off Hillenbrand into right for runner interference base hit. Trot Nixon popped up to short to end the inning with the Sox ahead 2-0.
Lowe cruised in the top of the second inning as Jorge Posada grounded out to first to start. Robin Ventura grounded out to short and Rondell White struck out swinging to end the inning. Pettitte settled down in the bottom of the second as Rey Sanchez grounded out to second to start. Henderson also grounded out to second and Damon flied out to center to end the inning.
Shane Spencer was frozen for strike three to start the top of the third before Alfonso Soriano struck out swinging. Jeter grounded out to third to end the inning. The Sox threatened in the bottom of the third although Nomar popped up to Soriano in shallow right to start. Ramirez grounded out to first but Clark broke an 0 for 23 slump with a base hit off the glove of Soriano. Hillenbrand chopped a single up the middle but Varitek waived at strike three to end the inning.
The Yankees struck back in the top of the fourth although Johnson flared a pop up to Henderson to start. Williams walked and Giambi dumped a base hit to right to move Bernie to third. Posada beat out a double play ball to score Williams but Ventura took strike three on the inside corner for strike three to end the inning with the Yankees down 2-1.
Mysteriously Pettitte left the game and Adrian Hernandez took over on the mound for the bottom of the fourth inning. Nixon dropped a base hit to right and Sanchez lined a single to left but Henderson struck out swinging. Damon popped up to a running White and Nomar struck out swinging to end the inning.
Lowe turned up the heat in the top of the fifth as White struck out swinging to start. Spencer struck out swinging and Soriano whiffed as well to end the inning. The Sox struck again in the bottom of the fifth as Ramirez was rung up for strike three to start. Clark walked and took second on a wild pitch as NESN analyst Tom Caron chatted with New England Patriots owner Bob Kraft. Hillenbrand doubled in the left field corner to score Clark and Varitek ripped a base hit to center to score Shea. Nixon beat out a double play ball but Sanchez struck out swinging to end the inning with Boston ahead 4-1.
The Yankees beat the ball in the dirt in the top of the sixth as Jeter grounded out to third to start. Johnson grounded out to second and Hillenbrand made a great play to rob Williams of a hit to end the inning. Henderson lined a base hit inside the bag at third to start the bottom of the sixth and Damon walked to chase Hernandez. Steve Karsay came in and Nomar grounded out to first to move both runners over. Ramirez was intentionally walked to load the bases but Clark struck out swinging. Jeter made a nice play to force Manny at second to end the inning.
Lowe returned for one final inning in the top of the seventh as Giambi struck out swinging to start. Damon ran down a line drive at the centerfield wall by Posada and White went down swinging to end the inning. That was it for Lowe who was outstanding, allowing just 2 hits and a run in 7 innings of work while striking out nine.
Varitek flied out to right to start the bottom of the seventh but Nixon walked. Sanchez flied out to center and Henderson popped up to Johnson to end the inning.
"El Guapo" Rich Garces came in to crap his pants in the bottom of the eighth as John Vander Wal pinch hit for Spencer to start. Vander Wal hit a line drive to Clark but Soriano doubled down the left field line. Soriano swiped third but Jeter hit a home run all the way to Neptune to cut the lead. Sox analysts Don Orsillo and Jerry Remy questioned why Lowe didn't return for the eighth inning at 94 pitches but Johnson struck out swinging. Williams grounded out to first to end the inning with the Sox still ahead 4-3.
Mike Stanton took over on the mound for the bottom of the eighth as Damon singled down the third base line, but Nomar banged into a double play. Ramirez flied out to Vander Wal to end the inning. Ugueth Urbina came in to close out the top of the ninth and Giambi grounded out to short to start. Posada dumped a base hit to center and Gerald Williams pinch ran for him. Ventura doubled into the right field corner and Enrique Wilson pinch ran for Robin. Urbina recovered to strike out White swinging to bring up Vander Wal. Wal took strike three on the outside corner that actually wasn't close to end the game. The Sox had hung on to win 4-3.
Hero of the Night is Derek Lowe. He dominated the Yankees by allowing just 1 run in 7 innings, just two hits and striking out nine batters.
The Good:
Rickey Henderson was 2 for 5 with a run scored.
Johnny Damon was 1 for 3 with a walk.
Tony Clark was 1 for 3 with a walk and a run scored.
Shea Hillenbrand was 2 for 3 with a walk, 2 rbis and a run scored.
Jason Varitek was 2 for 4 with an rbi.
Trot Nixon was 1 for 3 with a walk.
Ugueth Urbina earned his sixth save with a scoreless ninth inning.
The Bad:
Rich Garces allowed a 2 run homer to Jeter in the bottom of the eighth.
The Ugly:
The Ugly:
Nomar Garciaparra was just 1 for 5 but drove in a run and scored a run.
Manny Ramirez was 0 for 3 with a strikeouts but walked twice.
Rey Sanchez was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout.
Final Thoughts:
Always good to beat the Yankees three out of four and listen to their fans cry after. YES Network, John Sterling, Joe Torre and fans in AOL Chatrooms were all over home plate umpire Larry Young for having the AUDACITY to ring up Vander Wal at the end. The Sox have had plenty of calls go against them, especially in the 1999 ALCS so none of us in Boston want to hear it. The bottom line is Lowe dominated the Yankees and the Sox took advantage of Pettitte having to leave the game to score the runs they did against Hernandez. Other than Jeter's home run off of Garces, this was a good day all around. Its only April and there's a long way to go but its still a feel good win on Patriots Day. With the Boston Bruins and Boston Celtics in the playoffs together for the first time in seven years, this is shaping up to be a fun spring season. The Sox now hit the road and their first stop is a brief two game set in Toronto with the Blue Jays. Tomorrow night Frank Castillo gets the start for the Red Sox against Brandon Lyon of Toronto. The game begins at 7:05 PM at the Skydome.
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