Old pal Justin Masterson got the ball and immediately peed his pants in the top of the first. Jacoby Ellsbury singled and Shane Victorino was hit with a pitch. Dustin Pedroia singled to load the bases and Mike Napoli singled home Ellsbury and Victorino to make it 2-0. Daniel Nava singled home Pedroia and Will Middlebrooks moved the two runners over with a ground-out. The rally stalled when Jarrod Saltamacchia forced Napoli at home and Stephen Drew struck out to end the inning. Alfredo "The Vulture" Aceves (1-0) got the ball in the bottom of the first. Michael Brantley and Asdrubal Cabrera lined out and Carlos Santana struck out to end the inning.
The Sox threatened in the top of the second inning. Mike Carp doubled but had to stay on the infield single by Ellsbury. Victorino singled to load the bases but Masterson pulled a houdini. Pedroia struck out, Napoli popped up and Nava lined out to end the inning. Aceves pitched well in the bottom of the second. Nick Swisher singled but Jason Giambi popped up. Mark Reynolds grounded into a force and Cord Phelps struck out to end the inning.
Masterson cruised in the top of the third. Middlebrooks popped up then both Saltalamacchia and Drew grounded out to end the inning. Aceves ran into trouble in the bottom of the third. Lonnie Chisenhall singled but was thrown out at second trying to stretch a double. Drew Stubbs walked and stole second but Brantley grounded out. Cabrera grounded out to end the inning.
The Sox threatened to knock Masterson out in the top of the fourth. Carp doubled but Ellsbury lined out. Victorino and Pedroia singled to load the bases but Napoli whiffed. Nava grounded out to end the inning. Another chance wasted. Aceves responded with a good bottom of the fourth. Santana grounded out, Swisher lined out and Giambi flied out to end the inning.
The Sox finally broke through again in the top of the fifth inning. Middlebrooks struck out and Saltamacchia grounded out but Drew walked and Carp tripled him home to make it 4-0. Ellsbury struck out to end the inning. The Indians threatened in the bottom of the fifth. Reynolds popped up and Phelps grounded out but Chisenhall singled. Stubbs doubled and Brantley walked to load the bases. Cabrera lined out to end the inning.
Corey Kluber took over for Masterson in the top of the sixth where the Sox iced the game. Victorino singled but Pedroia struck out.Napoli doubled Shane to third. Nava singled home Shane but was out trying to steal second. Middlebrooks flied out to end the inning with the Sox up 5-0. Aceves promptly puked on himself in the bottom of the sixth. Santana walked and Swisher cracked a 2 run home run to make it 5-2. Giambi then went back to back to make it 5-3. Reynolds doubled to chase Aceves...brutal. Junichi Tazawa was brought in and Phelps grounded out. Chisenhall flied out and Stubbs struck out to end the inning.
Old friend Rich Hill got the ball in the top of the seventh. Saltalamacchia flied out and Drew lined out before Jonny Gomes pinch hit for Carp. Gomes whiffed to end the inning....big help Jonny. Nava moved to first and Jackie Bradley Jr came in to play left in the bottom of the seventh. Tazawa turned up the heat in the bottom of the seventh. Brantley, Cabrera and Santana all struck out in short order.
The Sox struck again in the top of the eighth. Ellsbury singled to chase Hill. Joe Smith came in and uncorked a wild pitch that advanced Ellsbury to second base. Victorino then tried to bunt his way on and Smith threw the ball into the first base bleachers to score Ellsbury. Pedroia whiffed and Napoli banged into a double play to end the inning but the Sox had a 3 run lead again, 6-3. Koji Uehara got the ball in the bottom of the inning. Swisher grounded out before Giambi and Reynolds struck out in short order. Wow....
Vinnie Pestano was brought in to pitch the top of the ninth. Nava lined out as Middlebrooks and Saltalamacchia both struck out to end the inning. Talk about the Bash-Less Brothers. Andrew Bailey came on to close out the bottom of the ninth. Phelps flied out then Andrew struck out both Chisenhall and Stubbs to end the game. The Sox had won it 6-3.
Hero of the Night is Mike Carp. As a pinch hitter he hasn't done much but he was all over the bases tonight going 3 for 3 with two doubles and a triple that drove in the 5th run.
The Good:
Jacoby Ellsbury was 3 for 5 with 2 runs scored. Shane Victorino was 3 for 3 with 2 runs scored. Dustin Pedroia was 2 for 5 with 2 runs scored despite earning a hat trick. Mike Napoli and Daniel Nava were both 2 for 5 with 2 rbi's. Junichi Tazawa struck out 4 in two scoreless innings. Koji Uehara pitched a scoreless eighth. Andrew Bailey notched his first save with a scoreless ninth inning.
The Bad:
Will Middlebrooks and Jarrod Saltamacchia were 0 for 10 with 3 strikeouts combined. Jonny Gomes struck out as a pinch hitter.
The Ugly:
Stephen Drew was 0 for 3 but walked and scored. Alfredo Aceves fell apart in the top of the sixth but earned the win by giving up 3 runs in 5+ innings.
Honorable Mention:
Jackie Bradley Jr played left field to end the game.
Final Thoughts:
Another road win for the Red Sox is always a good thing without David Ortiz on the roster. Luckily they will be getting him back very soon. The team continues to show balls both at the plate and on the mound to build a lead and keep it more often than not. Building leads were certainly not easy last year. The win improved the Sox to 10-4 which is remarkable considering this year's team wasn't constructed to win much. Not only that, they survived an Alfredo Aceves start to boot. Tomorrow Jon Lester goes for the Sox against Zach McAllister.
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