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..

Jays Bash Penny, Sox (7/18/09)

Before the game the Boston Red Sox made some roster moves. Clay Buchholz was sent down to Pawtucket and Jed Lowrie was called up to take his place. Jonathan Van Every was released as well, so much for him.

                                                                         OUT

                                                                       IN

As for the game, if the Sox are going to get back to the ALCS this year, they're going to need better from Brad Penny (6-4, 5.02 ERA). He got rocked for 6 runs in just 5 innings to put the Sox in a hole they couldn't climb out of. Rookie pitcher Mark Rzepcynski held the Sox to just 1 measly run in 6 innings. The Sox took an early lead but Jose Bautista capped off a 3 run fourth inning to put the Jays ahead and Adam Lind smashed a two run home run to ice it. Rocco Baldelli drove in a run and Jed Lowrie hit his first home run of the year, but the game belonged to Toronto. The Jays took the game 6-2 at the Skydome.

Rzepcynski got the ball in the top of the first and JD Drew struck out swinging to start. Dustin Pedroia got a base hit to left and moved to second on the Kevin Youkilis grounder to second. David Ortiz grounded out to second to end the inning. Penny got the ball in the bottom of the first and Marco Scutaro flied out to right to start. Aaron Hill lined out to left and Adam Lind grounded outn to first to end the inning.

The Sox struck first in the top of the second as Jason Bay doubled to the centerfield wall to start. Mike Lowell walked and Rocco Baldelli lined a base hit to right. Bay scored easily and Lowell JUST slid into third in time. Baldelli took second on the throw but Jed Lowrie watched strike three go by. George Kottaras popped up to third and Drew grounded out to second to end the inning with the Sox up 1-0.

                                                              Safe by not that much

The Jays answered in the bottom of the second as Scott Rolen got a base hit to center to start. Lyle Overbay singled to right to move Rolen to third and Alex Rios walked to load the bases. Old pal Kevin Millar banged into a double play but Rolen scored to tie the game. Jose Bautista flied out to right to end the inning with the game tied 1-1.

                                                               Rolen ties the game    

Pedroia lined out to center to start the top of the third but Youkilis hit a ground rule double down the right field line. Ortiz grounded out to second to move Youk to third but Bay struck out swinging to end the inning. Raul Chavez led off the bottom of the third by grounding out to Penny to start. Scutaro took strike three and Hill lined out to second to end the inning.

Lowell led off the top of the fourth with a grounder to short and the Toronto announcers took a shot at the recently released Julio Lugo, saying Terry Francona said the Lugo they got in 2007 wasn't the same from the previous few years. Baldelli flied out to right and Lowrie flied out to center to end the inning. The Jays took command in the bottom of the fourth as Lind flied out to left to start. Rolen dumped a base hit to center, Overbay got a base hit to right and Rios got a base hit to left to score Rolen. A passed ball moved the runners over before Millar took strike three. Bautista doubled to center to score both runners to ice the game. Chavez flied out to right to end the inning with the Jays ahead 4-1.

                                                        Bautista ices it

The Sox blew a rally in the top of the fifth as Kottaras walked to start. Drew forced George at second and Pedroia walked. Youkilis struck out swinging and Ortiz grounded out to second to end the inning. Penny came back for the bottom of the fifth and Scutaro doubled to right to start. Hill grounded out to short but Lind hit a home run off the roof of the Skydome to increase the lead. Rolen flied out to center and Overbay struck out swinging to end the inning. That was it for Penny who got rocked for 6 runs in just 5 innings.

                                                             Nice going Penny

The Sox failed to respond in the top of the sixth as Bay walked to start. Lowell flied out to left and Baldelli grounded into a double play to end the inning. Justin Masterson came in to pitch the bottom of the sixth and Rios popped up to second to start. Millar took strike three and Bautista flied out to right to end the inning.

Jesse Carlson came in to pitch the top of the seventh and Lowrie greeted him with his first home run of the season to cut the lead. Hill robbed Kottaras of a base hit and Rolen made a diving catch to rob Drew of a hit. Jeremy Accardo came in to face Pedroia and Dustin flied out to right to end the inning with the Sox down 6-2.

                                                       Home run Lowrie

The Jays beat the ball in the dirt in the bottom of the seventh as Chavez grounded out to second to start. Scutaro and Hill both grounded out to short to end the inning.

Jason Frasor came in to pitch the top of the eighth and Youkilis struck out swinging to start. Ortiz flied out to left and Bay was frozen for strike three to end the inning. Ramon Ramirez came in to pitch the bottom of the eighth and more ineptitude occurred. Lowrie and Lowell collided on a pop up for an error to move Lind to second and Rolen walked. Overbay flied out to left, Rios struck out swinging and Millar watched strike three go by to end the inning.

                                                              Keystone Kops

Scott Downs came in to close out the top of the ninth and Lowell doubled to left to start. Baldelli struck out swinging and Lowrie flied out to right to bring up pinch hitter Jason Varitek. Varitek grounded out to third to end the game. The Jays had won it 6-2.

                                                           Jays win

Jackass of The Night is Brad Penny. The Sox bats didn't do much but Penny allowing 6 runs in 5 innings put the game away early.

                                                  "Bad" Penny is Jackass

The Good:

Dustin Pedroia was 1 for 3 with a walk.

Jason Bay was 1 for 3 with a walk and a run scored.

Mike Lowell was 1 for 3 with a walk.

Justin Masterson tossed 2 scoreless innings.

Ramon Ramirez tossed a scoreless eighth inning.

The Bad:

JD Drew was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.

David Ortiz was 0 for 4.

Jason Varitek was 0 for 1 as a pinch hitter.

The Ugly:

Kevin Youkilis was just 1 for 4 with 2 strikeouts.

Rocco Baldelli was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout but drove in a run.

Jed Lowrie was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout but hit a home run.

George Kottaras was 0 for 2 but walked.

Final Thoughts:

That was a bad game and more concerning for the future rather than the present. The Sox couldn't get over the Tampa Bay Rays last year with Josh Beckett, Daisuke Matsuzaka and Jon Lester so they needed more help. Brad Penny was supposed to be that help and so far he's nowhere close to what they need him to be. Again, the Sox are good enough to keep a lead in the AL East or the wild card but once October starts, they're going to need Penny to step up. The offense got shut down by a rookie and that pop up error was just a microcosm of the game. The Sox have two weeks until the trade deadline, they may need to ship someone for another starter because this isn't going to cut it. The loss dropped the Sox to 55-35, 2 games ahead of the New York Yankees for first place in the AL East. The Sox look to bounce back in a battle of aces as Jon Lester (8-6, 3.87 ERA) takes on Roy Halladay of the Blue Jays. The game begins at 1:05 PM at the Skydome.

Royals Drop Sox on Opening Day (4/2/07)

Well...that sucked. The revamped Boston Red Sox who added some key pieces in the off-season picked up where they left off in 2006 by dropping a big fat turd on Opening Day. Curt Schilling (0-1, 11.25) looked old as the Kansas City Royals pounded him for 5 runs in just 4 innings. Hideki Okajima made his ML debut by allowing a home run on the first pitch he threw, the Red Sox offense made Gil Meche look like Cy Young and the Royals ran away with this one 7-1 at Kauffman Stadium.

                                                          "Sox lost?"

Meche got the ball in the top of the first and Julio Lugo made his Red Sox debut leading off by striking out swinging. Kevin Youkilis dropped a base hit to right for the first hit of the season and David Ortiz doubled him home to put the Sox up 3 batters into the game. Manny Ramirez flied out to deep center before JD Drew made his Red Sox debut by drawing a walk. Mike Lowell struck out swinging to end the inning with the Sox up 1-0.

                                              Ortiz drives in the first run

Schilling got lit up right off the bat in the top of the first as David DeJesus flied out to right to start. Mark Grudzielanek stroked a high fastball to left for a hit before Mark Teahen hit a splitter up the middle for another hit. Mike Sweeney singled over the head of Dustin Pedroia to load the bases. Alex Gordon made his major league debut by striking out on a splitter in the dirt. Ryan Shealy drew a full count walk to tie the game. Ross Gload popped up to center to end the inning but the game was tied 1-1.

                                                     Grumpy Curt

Jason Varitek led off the top of the second by popping up to second to start. Coco Crisp grounded out to second and Dustin Pedroia lined a base hit to left...but made a rookie mistake by getting thrown out at second trying to stretch to end the inning. The Royals struck again in the bottom of the second although John Buck grounded out to short to start. Former Sox catcher Tony Pena's son Tony Jr tripled off the left field wall but Curt came back to freeze Dejesus. Grudzielanek singled home Pena Jr to give the Royals the lead. Teahen whiffed to end the inning but the Royals were up 2-1.

The Sox offense was done for the night as Lugo led off the top of the third by watching strike three go by. Youkilis flied out to right and Ortiz grounded out to first to end the inning. Schilling settled down in the bottom of the third as Sweeney popped up to center to start. Gordon took strike three and Shealy grounded out to third to end the inning.

Ramirez led off the top of the fourth by grounding out to third. ESPN showed the replay of George Brett's gold medal sprint out of the dugout after the "pine tar" incident and Drew got so excited that he got a base hit to right. Lowell forced Drew at second and Varitek watched strike three go by to end the inning. The Royals iced the game in the bottom of the fourth although Gload grounded out to second to begin. Buck doubled to left and Pena Jr drew a walk, but Dejesus flied out to left. Grudzielanek added the insurance runs by doubling over the head of Drew for another 2 runs. Teahen singled up the middle to score Grudzielanek and put the game out of reach. Sweeney whiffed to end the inning and Schilling was done for the day. The 40 year old Curt lasted just 4 innings and allowed 5 runs, not his shining day.

                                                       Brutal

Meche continued to cruise in the top of the fifth inning as Crisp was rung up on a full count strike three to start. Pena Jr made a great play to Pedroia of a base hit before Lugo was rung up on a high curve by the notorious Tim Tschida to end the inning. Javier Lopez came in to pitch the bottom of the fifth and plunked Gordon to start. Shealy grounded into a double play and Gload grounded out to first to end the inning.

Youkilis hit a hard grounder to third and Gordon threw the ball away but the alert Shealy threw out Youkilis at second. ESPN analyst Jon Miller said it wasn't a smart thing to do with Ortiz, Ramirez and Drew coming up and sure enough, Ortiz was hit on the left foot. Ramirez banged into a double play to end the inning anyway.

Hideki Okajima's major league debut started auspiciously as the first pitch he threw was hit 5 million feet into the Gulf of Mexico for a home run by Buck to increase the lead. Okajima recovered to get Pena Jr to strike out swinging and Dejeus to fly out to the centerfield warning track. Grudzielanek grounded out to third to end the inning with the Royals ahead 6-1.

                                               Welcome to the big leagues

Meche dominated in the top of the seventh as Drew grounded out to first to start.  Lowell flied out to left and Varitek grounded out to short to end the inning. Okajima returned for the bottom of the seventh and Teahen whiffed on a high fastball to start. Sweeney stroked a base hit to left then moved to second on the grounder by Gordon. That was it for Okajima who looked good after the first pitch and Brendan Donnelly was brought in. Donnelly made his Sox debut by punching out Shealy swinging to end the inning.

Meche returned for the top of the eighth and Crisp grounded out to first to start. Pedroia dropped a base hit to center to chase Meche after 7 1/3 brilliant innings. Joel Peralta came in and Lugo singled up the middle, but Youkilis whiffed to effectively end the game. Ortiz waived at strike three down and in to end the inning. Joel Pineiro made his Sox debut in the bottom of the eighth by allowing a single off the first base bag by Gload to start. Buck popped up to short but Pena Jr hit another triple off the left field wall to increase the lead. Sox manager Terry Francona came out to argue that Lowell made the tag but New York Yankees personal umpire Tschida told him to get lost. Francona did take Pineiro out and bring in lefty JC Romero. Dejesus grounded out to first and Grudzielanek flied out to center to end the inning with the Royals leading 7-1.

                                               Another triple for Pena

Peralta returned for the top of the ninth and Manny took strike three to start. Wily Mo Pena pinch hit for Drew only to strike out swinging but Lowell extended the torture by doubling down the left field line. Varitek flied out to right to end the game. The Royals had defeated the Sox on Opening Day 7-1.

             Royals win this one


Jackass of the Night is Curt Schilling. He lasted just 4 innings and gave up 5 runs to take the loss. He allowed 8 hits and 2 walks.

                                                    Schilling the Jackass



The Good:

Kevin Youkilis was 2 for 4 with a run scored.

David Ortiz was 1 for 3 with an rbi and a hit by pitch.

JD Drew was 1 for 2 with a walk.

Dustin Pedroia was 2 for 3.

Javier Lopez tossed a scoreless 5th inning.

Brendan Donnelly struck out the only man he faced.

JC Romero retired the last 2 hitters he faced.



The Bad:

Manny Ramirez was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.

Wily Mo Pena struck out as a pinch hitter.

Jason Varitek was 0 for 4 with a strikeout

Coco Crisp was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.

Joel Pineiro allowed a run in 2/3 of an inning.



The Ugly:

Julio Lugo was just 1 for 4 with a hat trick of 3 strikeouts.

Mike Lowell was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout.

Hideki Okajima allowed a home run on the first pitch in 1 2/3 total innings.




Final Thoughts:

The Sox seem to have a habit of losing Opening Day only to go on to have a successful season so let's hope the tradition continues. Today was a bad day all around as Schilling got beat up, the offense only scored a single run and Okajima got tagged on the first pitch he threw. The Royals aren't very good and the Sox have to win some of these road games early if they want to get ahead of the New York Yankees early. Still, its only one game and better to lose the first one than to lose the last one at the end of the season. The Sox ran themselves into outs but I'm sure that'll be addressed and corrected as the season goes on. After an off-day tomorrow the Sox look to rebound Wednesday night against the Royals. Josh Beckett makes his season debut opposite Odalis Perez at 8:10 PM Eastern time at Kauffman Stadium.

Hansack "No-Hits" Orioles In Season Finale (10/1/06)

In a season that turned into a complete disappointment, the 2006 Boston Red Sox season ended on a high note. The Red Sox finished in third place for the first time since finishing dead last in 1997 but tonight career minor leaguer Devern Hansack (1-1, 2.70 ERA) ended the season with an unofficial no-hitter. Hansack held the Baltimore Orioles hitless for 5 innings as the Red Sox bashed Hayden Penn and the Baltimore bullpen for 9 runs. Then a huge rainstorm swept through Boston and since it was the last game of the year with nothing on the line, the umpires said to hell with it and called the game. It goes down in the record books as an unofficial no-hitter for Hansack and a 9-0 season ending win over the Orioles at Fenway Park.

                                                       Frodo is glad to see the season end

Hansack got the ball in the top of the first inning and Brian Roberts led off with a grounder to third to start. Corey Patterson struck out swinging on a hanging slider and Melvin Mora flied out to left to end the inning. In what could be his final game in Boston, Trot Nixon led off the bottom of the first against O's starter Hayden Penn with a ground ball base hit up the middle. Mark Loretta was plunked but David Ortiz hit one up the elevator shaft. Mike Lowell clobbered his 20th home run of the season to put Boston on top. Jason Varitek flied out to center and Eric Hinske struck out swinging to end the inning with the Sox up 3-0.

                                                   Last home run of the season for Lowell

Hansack froze Miguel Tejada for strike three on the outside corner but Fernando Tatis walked. Chris Gomez banged into a double play to end the inning. Carlos Pena dropped a base hit to right to start the bottom of the second and Gabe Kapler hit a grounder under the legs of Mora for an error. Alex Cora hit a bullet to Roberts who doubled off Pena at second for a double play and Nixon

                                                             Yerrrr out!

David Newhan grounded out to first to start the top of the third and Brandon Fahey grounded out to second. Raul Chavez flied out to right to end the inning. The Sox poured it on in the bottom of the third although Loretta flied out to right to start. Ortiz walked and Lowell hit one in the hole at short, but Varitek struck out swinging. Hinske walked to load the bases and Pena walked to score Ortiz with another run. Kapler then cleared the bases with a double down the third base line. Kapler took third on the throw and that was it for Penn. Julio Manon came in to pitch and Cora grounded out to second to end the inning with the Sox ahead by a touchdown 7-0.

                                                       Kapler with his final rbis

Hansack stayed strong in the top of the fourth as Roberts struck out swinging to start. Patterson struck out swinging and Mora popped up to Pena in foul territory to end the inning. The Sox struck again in the bottom of the fourth although Newhan made a great sliding catch to rob Nixon of a hit to start. Loretta smashed his 5th home run of the season just inside the left field foul pole to increase the lead and Ortiz walked. Doug Mirabelli came in to pinch run and that was it for Ortiz for the 2006 season, hope he wins MVP. Lowell took strike three and Varitek struck out swinging to end the inning with the Sox up 8-0.

                                                       Loretta hits one out

Dustin Pedroia took over at second for Loretta to start the top of the fifth as the rain came. Tejeda struck out swinging and Tatis took strike three to start the bottom of the fifth. With the rain coming down and unlikely the game would last much longer, Sox manager Terry Francona pulled Trot Nixon out so he could get one last standing ovation at Fenway. David Murphy replaced him and Gomez flied out to center to end the inning. Hansack had thrown 5 no-hit innings and Nixon got a heroes sendoff.

                                                       Goodbye Trot

Russ Ortiz came in to pitch the bottom of the fifth and Hinske hooked his first home run in a Sox uniform around the right field foul pole to increase the lead. Pena walked but Kapler banged into a double play. Cora grounded out to first to end the inning with the Sox ahead 9-0.

                                                    Hinske's first homer in the last game.

Before the top of the sixth inning could commence, umpires had the tarp pulled on the field for a rain delay. The area was so soggy it took a whole team to move it into position as what was left of the crowd roared with laughter. An hour later with it pouring out, the game out of reach and nothing left to play for...the game was called and the Red Sox were winners in their final game. Hansack had pitched a 5 inning no-hitter.

                                                              Red Sox win

Hero of the Night is Devern Hansack. He threw a 5 inning no-no against the Orioles to earn his first ML win.

                                                           Hero Hansack

The Good:

Trot Nixon was 1 for 3 with a run scored.

Mark Loretta was 1 for 2 with a hit by pitch, home run and 2 runs scored.

David Ortiz walked twice and scored a run.

Mike Lowell was 2 for 3 with a 3 run home run and 2 total runs scored.

Eric Hinske was 1 for 2 with a walk, home run and 2 runs scored.

Carlos Pena was 1 for 1 with 2 walks, an rbi and a run scored.

Gabe Kapler was 1 for 3 with 3 rbis.

The Bad:

Jason Varitek was 0 for 3 with 2 strikeouts.

Alex Cora was 0 for 3.

The Ugly:

None

Honorable Mention:

Dustin Pedroia played second base in the top of the fifth.

Doug Mirabelli pinch ran for Ortiz in the bottom of the fourth.

David Murphy replaced Trot Nixon for the final out of the bottom of the fifth.

Final Thoughts:

Sox manager Terry Francona had some chilling words before the game today when he said "This is the first time since I've been here that we know this is the last game of the year." The 2004 and 2005 seasons were very successful so Francona and the remnants of the "Idiots" aren't used to failure. This could possibly be Trot Nixon's last game here after nearly a decade and it'll be sad to see him go. Injuries and incompetence are the reasons the Sox are in third place at the end of this season. Curt Schilling had a nice bounceback season but Josh Beckett served up longballs like hot dog vendors serving barkers. Jonathan Papelbon and Jon Lester looked good but both of them were lost for the year. Coco Crisp for about a week looked like the real deal before he got hurt. The catching situation nosedived in August and the Sox didn't really have a third starter when both Matt Clement and Tim Wakefield went down. Julian Tavarez looked like a starter for next year's team with his September showing but the Sox are gonna have to do better than that if they want to rebound in 2007. The Sox are going to need another elite starter because Schilling is getting old and Beckett didn't appear to be the answer. They're also going to need to replace Nixon in right field if he's gone. Mark Loretta is rumored to not be coming back either. One thing is for sure, if the Sox can remain healthy and add a few key pieces, 2007 could be a good year. Hats off to Hansack who pitched a no-hitter, even if it was only 5 innings. At least the season ended on a positive as the Sox finished 86-76. Its now on to 2007....hope that season turns out better.