The Sox pounced on Blue Jays starter RA Dickey right from the start. Jacoby Ellsbury doubled and Shane Victorino singled him to third. Dustin Pedroia singled home Jacoby and Mike Napoli doubled both runners home. Will Middlebrooks then smashed a 2 run bomb to give the Sox a 5-0 lead before making an out...just 8 runs short of their own major league record. The party ended when Daniel Nava flied out, Jarrod Saltalamacchia lined out and Jackie Bradley Jr struck out to end the inning.
Lester was handed a 5-0 lead and he didn't disappoint in the bottom of the first inning. Jose Reyes grounded out, Rajai Davis struck out and Melky Cabrera grounded out to end the inning.
Jose Iglesias singled to lead off the top of the second but Dickey settled down. Ellsbury popped up then both Victorino and Pedroia struck out. The Jays mounted a threat in the bottom of the second inning. Edwin Encarnarcion struck out but JP Arencibia singled. Mark DeRosa flied out but Maicer Izturis singled. Henry Blanco struck out swinging to end the inning.
The Sox got another run off Dickey in the top of the third. Napoli struck out but Middlebrooks doubled. A passed ball moved Will to third and Nava hit a sac fly to score him to make it 6-0. Saltalamacchia flied out to end the inning. Emelio Bonifacio struck out to open the bottom of the third. Reyes singled but was erased on the force by Davis. Cabrera popped up to end the inning.
The Sox got to Dickey again in the top of the fourth. JBJ grounded out but Iglesias doubled. Ellsbury singled home Jose and took second on the throw home. Victorino walked but Pedroia struck out. The Sox pulled off a double steal with Ellsbury taking third and Victorino second, but Napoli grounded out to end the inning with the Sox ahead 7-0. Lester kept up the pace in the bottom of the fourth. Encarnarcion grounded out and Arencibia struck out. DeRosa was hit with a pitch but Izturis grounded out to end the inning.
Middlebrooks struck again by launching his second home run of the day off Dickey to open the top of the fifth. Nava lined out and Saltlalamacchia grounded out, but JBJ walked to chase Dickey. Dave Bush relieved him and got Iglesias to fly out to end the inning. Lester continued the shut out in the bottom of the fifth. Blanco flied out but Bonifacio singled. Reyes grounded out and Davis flied out to end the inning.
Bush managed to slow down the Sox in the top of the sixth. Ellsbury flied out and Victorino grounded out, but Pedroia singled to third. Napoli flied out to end the inning. Lester remained red hot in the bottom of the sixth. Cabrera popped up then both Encarnarcion and Arencibia flied out to end the inning.
Lester was pitching a shutout but this was Middlebrooks' day. Middlebrooks smacked his third home run of the day to lead off the top of the seventh. Not to be outdone, Nava blasted a solo shot of his own to make it 10-0. Saltalamacchia struck out, JBJ grounded out and Iglesias flied out to end the inning. Have a day Middlebrooks! Lester came back for the bottom of the seventh. DeRosa struck out and Izturis grounded out but Bonifacio lined out to end the inning.
Ellsbury decided to join the homer parade in the top of the eighth by blasting his first of the year to put the Sox up 11-0. Mike Carp pinch hit for Victorino and lined out. Pedroia walked and Napoli joined the homer parade as well, crushing a 2 run bomb to wrap up the scoring 13-0. That's 6 total home runs by the Sox. Middlebrooks came a few feet short of his fourth home run but was caught. That was it for Bush as Brett Cecil was given the ball next. Nava walked but Saltalamacchia flied out to end the inning. Sox manager John Farrell began emptying his bench with the game well in hand in the bottom of the eighth. Clayton "Vigo" Mortensen came in to pitch, Carp moved to first base, Daniel Nava went to right field and Pedro Ciriaco replaced Pedroia at second. Reyes singled but was erased on the force by Davis. Cabrera and Encarnarcion both struck out to end the inning.
Cecil showed his muscle in the top of the ninth by striking out JBJ, Iglesias and Ellsbury in short order. Vigo returned for the bottom of the ninth to preserve the shut-out. Arencibia struck out and DeRosa grounded out. Izturis singled but Blanco struck out to end the game. The Sox had won 13-0.
Hero of the night is easy. Will Middlebrooks smashed 3 home runs to help beat the Jays.
The Good:
Lot of good in this one. Jacoby Ellsbury was 3 for 6 with 2 runs scored, 2 rbi's, a solo home run and a stolen base. Shane Victorino was 1 for 3 with a walk and a run scored. Dustin Pedroia was 2 for 4 with a walk, rbi and 2 runs scored. Mike Napoli was 2 for 5 with 2 runs scored and 4 rbi's, two of them coming off his 2 run home run. Daniel Nava was 1 for 3 with a walk, run scored, solo home run and 2 total rbi's. Jose Iglesias was 2 for 5 with a run scored. Jon Lester was outstanding, tossing 7 innings of shut-out ball allowing a paltry 5 hits while striking out 6. Clayton Mortensen struck out 4 in 2 innings of scoreless relief.
The Bad:
Mike Carp was 0 for 1 as a pinch hitter. Jarrod Saltalamacchia was the lone rally killer, going 0 for 5 with a strikeout.
The Ugly:
Jackie Bradley Jr was 0 for 4 but walked.
Honorable Mention:
Pedro Ciriaco played second base in the late innings
Final Thoughts:
What a ballclub. The team missing David Ortiz and Stephen Drew has won 5 of their first 7 games and they've done it in style. Will Middlebrooks may be the next great Sox third basemen and this game showed you why. He hit 15 homers in half a year last year and the power show displayed here is a taste of things to come...if he doesn't get hurt again. Lester again pitched well, proving that last year was just a fluke. All in all the Sox played their first 6 games on the road and won 4 of them. Tomorrow the Sox play their home opener at Fenway Park against the Baltimore Orioles. Clay Buchholz gets the start opposite Wei-Yin Chen at 2:00 PM.
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