White Sox Take Game 1 of Doubleheader (9/4/10)

If the Sox have any hope of making the playoffs, their makeshift lineup will have to do better than Game 1 of the doubleheader against the visiting Chicago White Sox.

The White Sox were able to solve the mystery of Clay Buchholz (15-6, 2.20 ERA) if only for 2 runs but they were enough. Buchholz pitched a scoreless top of the first before Jon Danks (13-0, 3.56 ERA) took the mound and began his brilliant afternoon. Danks retired the side in order as Buchholz ran into trouble in the second.

Paul Konerko led off the second with a single before new aquisition and former Sox star Manny Ramirez followed with a single of his own to move Konerko to third. AJ Pierzynski banged into a double play but Konerko scored to give Chicago the 1-0 lead. Andruw Jones doubled to extend the inning but Alexi Ramirez struck out to end the frame. The Sox tried to tie the game in the bottom of the second when Adrian Beltre led off with a single. David Ortiz whiffed but Mike Lowell doubled and Jed Lowrie walked to load the bases. The wheels fell off as Bill Hall struck out and Darnell McDonald grounded out to keep the game 1-0.

The Sox got some good defense in the top of the third inning. Omar Vizquel worked a 2 out walk and advanced to third on a single by Alex Rios. Alert Clay Buchholz then caught Vizquel in a rundown trying to steal ending with Jed Lowrie tagging him out. The Sox failed to capitalize on the momentum by not scoring a run in the bottom of the inning.

The White Sox struck again in the top of the 4th. Konerko led off with a ground rule double and moved to third on Manny's ground out. Pierzynski singled home Konerko but was erased on the double play ball hit by Andruw Jones. The score was now 2-0 Chicago and Danks continued to mow the Red Sox down. Ortiz, Lowell and Lowrie failed to reach base as the inept offense continued to flounder.

Buchholz then pitched a scoreless top of the 5th before the offense finally got on the board in the bottom of the inning. Hall opened with a single and McDonald walked, bringing up Marco Scutaro who singled in Hall to cut the deficit in half. That was all the Sox got as JD Drew and Victor Martinez both flied out and Adrian Beltre lined out to end Boston's only real threat of the afternoon.

Shockingly, Buchholz was pulled after 95 pitches for Scott Atchinson. Atchinson gave up 3 singles in the inning but benefitted from a double play to escape without any runs scored. In the bottom of the 6th, Lowrie worked a 2 out walk and Hall singled but McDonald grounded out to end the inning.

Atchinson returned for the top of the 7th but allowed a leadoff double to Andruw Jones. Alexi Ramirez reached on a fielder's choice when Jones was forced at third, but then scored when Gordan Beckham doubled to increase the lead 3-1. Dustin Richardson relieved Atchinson and got out of the inning without any further trouble but the damage was done. It may as well been 30-1 as Danks (who was roughed up by the Yankees last start) shut Boston down in the bottom of the 7th.

Tim Wakefield took the mound for the 8th and pitched a 1-2-3 inning as Sergio Santos replaced the outstanding Danks. The Sox went quietly in the 8th and it appeared the month long slump of the Sox replacements appeared to be at its critical point.

Wakefield pitched a scoreless 9th as Bobby Jenks came in and nailed down the save for Chicago in the bottom of the 9th. The Sox look to John Lackey to win game 2 opposite Gavin Floyd.

Dice K Paces Win Over O's (9/2/10)

With the season hanging in the balance every game, the Boston Red Sox needed a big game from Daisuke Matsuzaka (9-4, 4.29 ERA) against the Baltimore Orioles. Dice K made sure to do his part for five innings before falling apart in the sixth inning. The Boston bats pounded O's starter Brad Bergesen for five runs in the second inning and needed a Mike Lowell rbi ground out for some insurance. After Dice K was charged with 4 runs, Scott Atchison, Hideki Okajima and Jonathan Papelbon slammed the door from there. The Sox needed a win to keep pace with the idle Tampa Bay Rays and they got it with a 6-4 victory at Camden Yards.

                                                              Audrey Bitoni approves of the win

Bergesen got the ball in the top of the first inning and Marco Scutaro beat out an infield single to third to start. JD Drew banged into a double play but Victor Martinez drew a walk. David Ortiz grounded out to second to end the inning. Matsuzaka got the ball in the bottom of the first and Brian Roberts grounded out to second to start. Nick Markakis flied out to left and Ty Wigginton grounded out to short to end the inning.

The Sox hadn't even come back from commercial yet when Adrian Beltre led off the top of the second with his 25th homer of the year to give the Sox a the lead. Jed Lowrie walked and Mike Lowell singled to third, bringing up Daniel Nava. As commentator Heidi Whatney babbled on about CT scans, Nava hit a ball that Wigginton misplayed, allowing Lowrie to score the game's second run. Ryan Kalish doubled in a hobbling Lowell and moved Nava to third, increasing the lead. Scutaro then walked to load the bases for Drew. Drew popped up to center and Martinez also failed by popping up to short. Ortiz stepped in and slapped a single to left which scored Kalish and Nava, increasing the lead. Lowrie whiffed to end the inning but Dice K now had a 5 run lead to work with as the Sox led 5-0.

                                                    Beltre puts the Sox on top

Lowell let a ground ball by Luke Scott go under his glove for an error to start the bottom of the second but Felix Pie banged into a double play. Dice K then struck out Matt Weiters looking to end the inning.

Lowrie led off the top of the third by taking strike three but Lowell singled to center. Nava popped up to center but Kalish walked. Then came a peculiar play when Scutaro bounced a ball to Josh Bell at third place who stepped on third for the final out but then threw to first, catching Wigginton off guard. There was nothing peculiar about Dice K who snared a line drive by Nolan Reimold to begin the bottom of the third. Cesar Izturis followed by grounding out to first and Dice K punched out Josh Bell to end the frame.

Drew singled to leadoff the top of the fourth but Martinez struck out swinging. Drew advanced to second on the groundout by Ortiz as Adrian Beltre was intentionally walked. Lowrie hit a warning track fly ball to right to end the inning. Dice K opened the bottom of the fourth by striking out Roberts swinging but Markakis doubled to left. Wigginton flied out to Drew which advanced Markakis to third. Luke Scott then popped up to third to end the inning with Dice K at 58 pitches.

Lowell went down hacking to start the top of the fifth before Nava flied out to left. Kalish popped up to short to end the inning. Dice K whiffed Pie to open the bottom of the fifth before Matt Wieters doubled to center. Dice K then struck out Riemold swinging on a high fastball before Izturis popped up on the first pitch to third to end the inning. Dice K had thrown 5 shut out innings without walking anyone.

Bergesen came back for the top of the sixth and got Scutaro to ground out to short to begin the inning. Sox broadcasters Jerry Remy and Don Orsillo then started to uncontrollably laugh at the old "Tooth hurty" joke as Drew singled to right. Rich VandenHurk replaced Bergesen and got Martinez to ground into a double play on the first pitch, ending the inning.

                                                   Remy & Orsillo lose it

Then, the dreaded Dice K Disease struck in a bad way in the bottom of the sixth. Bell opened the inning with a single in the hole at second before advancing to third on a double from Roberts. A single to center by Markakis put Baltimore on the board as Bell crossed the plate and Roberts moved to third. Wigginton brought Roberts home with a ground out to cut the lead. With Scott Atchinson warming in the bullpen, Luke Scott walked but Dice K beared down to punch out Felix Pie swinging. Then the night ended for Dice K by allowing a double to Wieters that scored Scott and Markakis. Atchinson came in for Dice K and  managed to strike out Reimold to end the inning, but the damage had been done. The 5-0 lead was now down to 5-4.

                                             Great through five, batting practice in the sixth

VandenHurk did himself no favors to preserve the score by walking Ortiz and hitting Beltre with a pitch to open the top of the seventh. Lowrie flied out to center but Ortiz moved to third, prompting manager Buck Showalter to bring in Matt Albers to pitch to Mike Lowell. Lowell did his part by beating out a double play ball to score Ortiz from third. Nava grounded out to second to end the inning with the Sox ahead 6-4.

                                                         Lowell drives in a run

Atchison returned for the bottom of the seventh with Eric Patterson in for Nava in left. Izturis struck out swinging to start before Bell grounded back to the mound. Roberts flied out to center to end the inning.

Kalish grounded out to second to start the top of the eighth before Scutaro flied out to left. Drew singled to center but Martinez popped up to short to end the inning. Atchison got Markakis to ground out to second to start the bottom of the eighth before Wigginton took strike three. That was it for Atchison as Hideki Okajima came in to get Scott to pop up to third to end the inning.

Alfredo Simon came in for the top of the ninth and Ortiz struck out swinging to start. Beltre grounded out to short and Lowrie flied out to left to end the inning. Jonathan Papelbon came in to close out the bottom of the ninth although Pie greeted him with a base hit to left. Wieters singled to center and old friend Julio Lugo pinch ran for him. Corey Patterson pinch hit for Reimold and dropped down a sac bunt to move the runners over, but Papelbon got a big punch out when Izturis struck out swinging. Bell also went down hacking to end the game. The Sox had won it 6-4.

                                                                   Sox win

Hero of the Night is Scott Atchison. He put the fire out in the sixth inning and tossed 2 full scoreless innings to keep the Sox ahead.

                                                           Hero Atchison

The Good:

JD Drew was 3 for 5.

Adrian Beltre was 1 for 3 with a walk and a solo home run.

Mike Lowell was 2 for 4 with an rbi and a run scored.

Ryan Kalish was 1 for 3 with a walk and a run scored.

Hideki Okajima retired the only man he faced.

Jonathan Papelbon earned his 35th save of the season with a scoreless ninth inning.

The Bad:

None

The Ugly:

Marco Scutaro was just 1 for 4 but walked.

Victor Martinez was 0 for 4 with a strikeout but walked.

David Ortiz was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout but walked, drove in two runs and scored a run.

Jed Lowrie was 0 for 4 with a strikeout but walked and scored a run.

Daniel Nava was 0 for 4 but scored a run.

Daisuke Matsuzaka got the win but allowed 4 runs in the sixth inning and left after 5 2/3 innings. He struck out 6 and walked 1.

Honorable Mention:

Eric Patterson played left field in the final two innings.

Final Thoughts:

With the season riding on every game at this point, the Sox need to make a statement by going on a long winning streak. It may be impossible given their injury woes but that's what they're going to need to do. They're eight games behind the New York Yankees who won their game tonight and could pull away quick if the Sox go into a rut. Dice K once again had one bad inning but thankfully Sox manager Terry Francona pulled him before the damage got any worse. Kudos to Scott Atchison who put his walkoff disaster behind him and rescued the Sox in this one. The losses of Jacoby Ellsbury, Kevin Youkilis and Dustin Pedroia hurt big time but the name of the game is pitching. The Sox are gonna need Clay Buchholz, Jon Lester, Dice K and John Lackey to step up if they have any hope of a fourth consecutive playoff trip. The win improved the Sox to 76-58, 8 games behind the Yankees for first place in the AL East. Tomorrow is a doubleheader against the Chicago White Sox. Jon Danks goes for Chicago in Game 1 up against Clay Buchholz (15-5, 2.26 ERA) of the Red Sox. The game begins at 1:05 PM at Fenway Park..

Sox Comeback To Beat O's (9/1/10)

With the rosters expanded (Sox brought up Dustin Richardson and Robert Manuel while activating Eric Patterson and Jared Saltalamaccia from the DL) the Sox now had more help to get them through the rest of the year. In this game it was the same cast of characters that mounted the big comeback to win the game.

Jon Lester (15-8, 3.27 ERA) was off in the beginning but recovered to post a solid night while Jake Arrieta did what he could through 5 innings. It started off right for Boston when David Ortiz doubled in Marco Scutaro to give the Sox a 1-0 lead, but Lester returned to his Toronto form in the bottom of the inning.

Lester got Brian Roberts to ground out but allowed a single to former Sox player Julio Lugo. Nick Markakis followed with a single and Jon plunked Ty Wigginton to load the bases. Adam Jones then gave the O's the lead when he doubled in Lugo and Markakis. Lester then uncorked a wild pitch that scored Wigginton and moved Jones to third. Felix Pie then doubled as Lester looked completely lost, now trailing 4-1. He managed to recover to strike out Matt Weiters and get Nolan Riemold to ground out.

Arrieta opened the top of the second by getting both Jed Lowrie and Mike Lowell out. Daniel Nava singled and then Ryan Kalish doubled to score Nava, cutting the deficit in half. Marco Scutaro then grounded out to end the inning but the Sox proved they weren't about to go quietly. Lester continued to struggle in the bottom of the 2nd inning. He managed to get Josh Bell to fly out and strike out Brian Roberts, but Lugo again singled off of him. Markakis worked a walk and then Wigginton singled home Lugo. Facing the threat of being yanked, Lester struck out Adam Jones to end the inning.

The Sox couldn't answer back in the third as Drew, Martinez and Ortiz were retired in order without a defense. Lester than appeared to find his groove when he retired the side in the bottom of the third. In the top of the 4th, Beltre led off by flying out and Lowrie followed by doing the same. Mike Lowell singled and advanced to second on a wild pitch, but could not score when Nava struck out swinging. Lester then continued his resurgance when he retired the side in order, striking out Roberts and Lugo in the process.

The Sox got a run back in the top of the 5th. Bergesen struck out Kalish and got Scutaro to fly out to open the frame but JD Drew wasn't so easy. Drew belted his 18th homer of the year to cut the deficit to 5-3 before Martinez struck out swinging to end the inning. The Sox still trailed but they were slowly mounting a comeback.

Lester aided the comeback by continuing to pitch effectively. He retired the side in order in the bottom of the 5th, including punch outs of Wigginton and Jones. Big lefty Mark Hendrickson (1-5, 5.20 ERA) took over for Arrieta and worked around a Jed Lowrie single to retire the side and keep the lead intact. Lester came back for the bottom of the 6th and struck out Pie to begin. Wieters and Reimold hit back to back singles but got Bell to pop up. Brian Roberts walked to load the bases but Lester punched out Lugo for his 10th K of the game.

The Sox then turned the game around in a hurry in the top of the 7th. Darnell McDonald pinch hit for Nava and singled to open the frame. Bill Hall pinch hit for Kalish and struck out bringing up Marco Scutaro. Marco then launched his 8th homer of the year to tie the game at 5 apiece. JD Drew then walked to chase Hendrickson from the game. Alfredo Simon came on and allowed a double to Victor Martinez that scored Drew before intentionally walking David Ortiz. Beltre was miffed so he socked a 3 run blast (24th) to increse the lead 9-5. Lowrie and Lowell grounded out but the Sox had showed some life to take the lead.

Daniel Bard took the mound in the bottom of the 7th and got Markakis to fly out.Wigginton singled but Bard got pinch hitter Jake Fox (in for Adam Jones) to bang into a double play to end the threat right then and there. In the top of the 8th, Simon worked around a walk to Marco Scutaro to retire the side.

The O's got to Bard in the bottom of the 8th. Felix Pie doubled to lead off and Matt Wieters moved him over to third on a ground out. Reimold then scored Pie on a sac fly but Bard slammed the door by striking out Bell. Matt Albers took over and retired the Sox in order in the top of the 9th. Sox closer Jon Papelbon took the mound in the bottom of the 9th. Papelbon struck out Roberts and got Lugo to ground out before the game was delayed when one of the umpires left the game. When play resumed, Markakis grounded out to end the game and giving Papelbon his 34th save of the year. The Sox are still 8 behind the Yankees and 7 behind the Rays as they look to the series finale tomorrow with the matchup of Daisuke Matsuzaka against Brad Bergesen.