The Sox wasted no time scoring in the top of the first although Mr. Mookie Betts looked at strike three. Andrew Benintendi flied out but Dustin Pedroia walked. Pedroia somehow stole second as Mitch Moreland walked. Hanley Ramirez finally got a clutch hit with a single to score Pedroia. Jackie Bradley Jr grounded out but it was 1-0 Boston.
Sox starter Drew Pomeranz shockingly didn't give up the lead in the bottom of the first. Jose Bautista flied out to left, Russel Martin grounded out to second and Josh Donaldson grounded right back to Drew to end the inning.
The Sox struck again in the top of the second although Christian Vazquez grounded out to start. Tzu-Wei Lin tripled over the head of Kevin Pillar but looked stranded when Deven Marrero struck out swinging. Luckily Mr. Mookie saved the day with a single to score Lin to increase the lead. Benny The Kid struck out to end the inning but it was 2-0 Red Sox.
This time Drew gave it up in the bottom of the second. Justin Smoak singled to center and Kendrys Morales walked. Troy Tulowitzky was robbed of a hit by JBJ but Smoak moved to third....then scored on the sac fly by Steve Pearce. Pillar took strike three but it was 2-1.
The Sox squandered a chance in the top of the third when Pedroia watched strike three go by. Mitch Moreland singled but was erased on the Ramirez force. JBJ singled Ramirez to third but Vazquez whiffed to end the inning. Things looked bad to open the bottom of the third when Darwin Barney hit a routine fly to Benny The Kid who threw his glove at the ball and ran away rather than simply catch it. Barney took second on the error as Bautista walked. Suddenly the Sox woke up as Martin lined out to Betts and Donaldson grounded into a double play to end the inning.
The Sox roared back with unusual efficiency in the top of the fourth inning. Lin and Marrero both drag bunted their way on and Mr. Mookie crushed a 3 run bomb to center to give the Sox a commanding lead. 2 bunts and a blast....wow. Benny The Kid whiffed, Pedroia grounded out and Moreland grounded out to end the inning with the Sox now up 5-1.
Pomeranz returned for the bottom of the fourth and got some big help when Marrero dove to snare a line drive off the bat of Smoak. Drew blew away Morales but Tulowitzky singled up the middle. Pearce popped up to Marrero in foul territory to end the inning.
Biagini settled down in the top of the fifth as Ramirez flied out to left, JBJ popped up to first and Vazquez struck out to end the inning. Pomeranz got some more good defense in the bottom of the fifth as Benny The Kid sprinted down a line drive by Pillar. Barney beat out a great diving stab by Lin and Bautista followed with a swinging bunt single. Martin then grounded into a double play to end the inning.
Biagini returned for the top of the sixth inning and the Sox tagged him again. Lin flied out to Pillar but Marrero singled to right. Mr. Mookie then launched a cheap line drive home run just by the left field foul pole to put the game out of reach. That was it for Biagini as Jays manager John Gibbons waddled to the mound to bring in Aaron "Fruit" Loup. Benny The Kid struck out but Pedroia walked. Moreland grounded out to end the inning with the Sox now up 7-1.
Pomeranz came back for the bottom of the sixth and Donaldson grounded out to start. Smoak doubled but Drew froze Morales on the inside corner for strike three. Tulowitzky grounded out to end the inning. Pomeranz had thrown 6 innings of 1 run ball and put the Sox in front for a big series sweep, good work Drew.
Glenn Sparkman took over in the top of the seventh and the Sox pounded him into submission. Ramirez singled past the diving Pillar. JBJ beat out an infield single and Vazquez singled sharply to load the bases with nobody out. Unfortunately Lin struck out but Marrero hit a ground rule double over the head of a fooled Bautista to score Ramirez and JBJ. Mr. Mookie then singled home Vaz and Marrero to give Betts EIGHT rbi's on the day. The hits kept coming as Benny The Kid hit a sure single that got by the lunging Pearce, getting credit for a double since technically Pearce didn't touch it. Betts scored on the play to make it 12-1. Pedroia then hit a ground rule double past the diving Bautista to score Benny. That was it for the rookie as John Gibbons waddled to the mound to get him out of there, bringing in Jeff Beliveau. Moreland grounded out but Pedroia moved to third amidst sarcastic applause from the irate Skydome crowd. Ramirez then blasted a 2 run bomb to increase the torture for Toronto. JBJ then poked a single to left but Vazquez grounded out to end the inning. The Sox scored 8 runs in one inning, the Jays had scored 6 runs in this series total until now. THAT'S dominance. Mr. Mookie also broke a Red Sox record with 8 rbi's out of the leadoff spot.
Fernando Abad got the ball in the bottom of the seventh and got Pearce to ground out. Pillar whiffed and Barney grounded out to end the inning.
The Jays emptied their bench in the top of the eighth as Ezequiel Carrera took over for Bautista in right, Luke Maile took over behind the plate and Ryan Goins came in to play third. Lin responded with his 3rd hit of the game, a ground ball into center. That was it as Marrero grounded into a double play and Mr. Mookie flied out to the wall to end the inning. Abad returned for the bottom of the eighth inning and Carrera grounded out to begin. Maile flied out and Goins struck out to end the inning.
Dominic Leone had mop up duty in the top of the ninth inning and Benny The Kid drew a walk to begin. Some yahoo shouted "You suck Pedroia!" and Dustin responded with a base hit to right as if to say "Ferme Le Bouche." Moreland banged into a double play but Benny moved to third. Sam Travis pinch hit for Ramirez and Pillar made a hell of a catch to rob him of a sure rbi double to end the inning. In a 15-1 game for Pillar to hustle is a great sign that deserves respect. Abad returned to finish the game and he got Smoak to fly out to begin the bottom of the ninth. Morales walked but Tulowitzky looked at strike three. Pearce popped up to end the game. The Sox had swept the series with a 15-1 pounding.
Hero of the Night is Mookie Betts. He hit a 2 run bomb, a 3 run bomb and drove in 8 runs total.
The Good:
Dustin Pedroia was 2 for 4 with 2 walks, an rbi and a stolen base.
Hanley Ramirez was 3 for 5 with 3 total rbis and 2 runs scored along with a 2 run homer.
Jackie Bradley Jr was 3 for 5 with a run scored.
Tzu-Wei Lin was 3 for 5 with 2 runs scored.
Deven Marrero was 3 for 5 with 2 rbis and 3 runs scored.
Drew Pomeranz earned his 8th win of the year by tossing 6 innings of 1 run ball.
Fernando Abad earned a save with 3 innings of shut-out ball.
The Bad:
Sam Travis was 0 for 1 as a pinch hitter.
The Ugly:
Andrew Benintendi was just 1 for 5 with a hat trick of 3 strikeouts but walked, drove in a run and scored.
Mitch Moreland was just 1 for 5 but walked.
Christian Vazquez was just 1 for 5 with a run scored.
Final Thoughts:
The Sox sent a message in this one that they want the division title. With the New York Yankees flushing themselves down the toilet, the Sox had to beat the Jays to gain some ground and they did one better. The sweep of the Jays pretty much showed that Toronto will need a miracle to recover and the Sox just need to keep the offense going. Everyone was hot today but the key is keeping this pace. Usually when the Sox scores double figures, they can't even buy a run the next game. Still this was a win to celebrate and it was never in doubt. The 21 hits were great to see although now stat geeks can piss themselves in excitement if the offense goes cold tomorrow. "Well the Sox scored 16 runs in 2 games...I know everything!" Anyway the in propelled the Sox to 47-35, 3 games ahead of the plunging Yankees for first place in the AL East. Tomorrow night the Sox open a 3 game set in Texas against the Rangers. The much maligned Rick Porcello (4-10, 5.06) ERA will be the hard luck loser as Martin Perez (4-6, 4.70) most likely throws a 2 hit shutout. The game starts at 8:05 PM in Arlington Park.
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