Yovanni Gallardo got the ball in the top of the first inning and Dustin Pedroia led off by grounding out to short. Xander Bogaerts grounded out to third but David Ortiz walked. Mr. Mookie Betts forced Ortiz at second to end the inning. Rodriguez got the ball in the bottom of the first inning and Adam Jones flied out to center to start. Jonathan Schoop struck out swinging and Manny Machado hit one up the elevator shaft to end the inning.
Jackie Bradley Jr grounded out to second to start the top of the second but Sandy Leon walked. Travis Shaw grounded into a double play to end the inning. Mark Trumbo took strike three to start the bottom of the second and Steve Pearce grounded out to short. Chris Davis walked but Matt Wieters flied out to left to end the inning.
Brock "The Hitman" Holt grounded out to second to start the top of the third and Andrew Benintendi grounded back to the mound. Pedroia beat out a roller to the left side of the mound Bogaerts got a base hit to center and Ortiz walked to load the bases. Mr. Mookie flied out to right to end the inning. JJ Hardy took strike three to start the bottom of the third and Nolan Reimold popped up to first. Jones struck out swinging to end the inning.
JBJ struck out swinging to start the top of the fourth and Leon flied out to left. Shaw walked but Holt lined out to right to end the inning. Schoop struck out swinging to start the bottom of the fourth and Machado also went down hacking. Trumbo also swung at air to end the inning.
The Sox struck first in the top of the fifth as Benintendi doubled off the right field wall but Pedroia lined one off Gallardo...right to Hardy to throw Dustin out at first. Bogaerts walked but Ortiz struck out swinging. Who else but Mr. Mookie clobbered a three run home run just over the wall in left to put the Sox on top. JBJ grounded back to the mound to end the inning with the Sox up 3-0.
The mood changed in the bottom of the fifth as out of complete nowhere Rodriguez apparently hurt himself in the middle of his at-bat to Pearce and had to leave the game. Rodriguez was throwing a no-hitter to boot, such a shame. Matt Barnes came in and walked Pearce but Davis struck out swinging. Wieters flied out to right and Hardy struck out swinging to end the inning. Rodriguez was diagnosed with a hamstring strain, lovely.
Rodriguez exits
Vance Worley came in to pitch the top of the sixth and Leon flied out to center to start. Shaw walked but Holt grounded into a double play to end the inning. Reimold grounded out to second to start the bottom of the sixth and Jones grounded out to short. Pedroia made a great diving catch to rob Schoop of a hit to end the inning.
Benintendi flied out to right to start the top of the seventh and Pedroia did the same. Bogaerts flied out to center to end the inning. The O's fought back in the bottom of the seventh as Machado lined out to first to start. Trumbo walked but Pearce beat out a roller to third for Baltimore's first hit of the game. That was it for Barnes as Fernando Abad was summoned to face Davis. Naturally Davis walked to load the bases and Wieters got a base hit to left to score Trumbo and Pearce. Brad Ziegler came in and struck out Hardy swinging, but Hyun Soo Kim pinch hit for Reimold. Kim got a base hit to right to reload the bases and Jones walked to score Davis to tie the game. Schoop struck out swinging to end the inning with the game tied 3-3.
O's tie it
Brad Bach came in to pitch the top of the eighth and the Sox caught a break when Schoop failed to catch a liner by Ortiz to start for a "single". Mr. Mookie then belted a 2 run home run to put the Sox back on top. JBJ grounded out to second, Leon struck out swinging and Shaw also went down hacking to end the inning with the Sox ahead 5-3.
Machado got a base hit to center to start the bottom of the eighth but Trumbo grounded into a double play. Pearce was hit with a pitch and that was it for Ziegler. Robbie Ross Jr came in to face Davis and struck him out swinging to end the inning.
Mychal Givens came in to pitch the top of the ninth and Holt got a base hit to left. Benintendi and Pedroia both struck out swinging followed by Bogaerts grounding out to third to end the inning. Craig "The Buzzard" Kimbrel came in to close out the bottom of the ninth and Wieters struck out swinging to start. Hardy lined out to right and Kim grounded out to third to end the game. The Sox had won the game 5-3.
Hero of The Night is Mookie Betts. He drove in all five runs with a 3 run home run and a 2 run shot.
The Good:
David Ortiz was 1 for 2 with 2 walks and a run scored.
Travis Shaw walked twice in four plate appearances.
Eduardo Rodriguez tossed 4 no-hit innings before leaving with injury.
Robbie Ross Jr struck out the only man he faced.
Craig Kimbrel earned his 21st save with a scoreless ninth inning.
The Bad:
Jackie Bradley Jr was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.
Matt Barnes allowed 2 runs in 2 1/3 innings.
Fernando Abad was charged with a run in an inning of work.
The Ugly:
Dustin Pedroia was just 1 for 5 with a strikeout.
Xander Bogaerts was just 1 for 4 but walked and scored a run.
Sandy Leon was 0 for 3 with a strikeout but walked.
Brock Holt was just 1 for 4.
Andrew Benintendi was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout but scored a run.
Brad Ziegler allowed an inherited runner to score but none of his own in 1 1/3 inning to vulture the win.
Final Thoughts:
If Sox fans were concerned after David Ortiz retires that the Sox are going to be down a slugger, they aren't anymore. Mookie Betts is the real deal and now a legitimate case for American League MVP. He's now hitting .315 with 28 home runs and 89 rbis and we still have 44 games left in the season. Still, he's a big reason the Sox just claimed a share of first place although there are concerns. The bullpen once again blew a lead with the same guys, Barnes/Abad/Ziegler as the perpetrators. The problem is those guys are pitching in those spots because Koji Uehara and Junichi Tazawa appear to be out of gas. Those two saved the Sox bacon time and time again for three full seasons but this seems to be it for them. Still, Kimbrel locked it down when it mattered. Another problem is now Rodriguez pulled something and had to leave the game. The Sox are already thin in the rotation after Steven Wright went down and now Rodriguez is gone too? The Sox already had no choice but to put Clay Buchholz back in the rotation but if E-Rod is hurt long term with a bad hammy, then what? Henry Owens again? This was the definition of a costly win but still, it was a win. The Sox are a month and a half away from the playoffs and they can go on a run if they pull themselves together, especially with the AL East gauntlet staring them in the face next month. The win improved the Sox to 66-52, tied for first place with the Orioles in the AL East. The Sox look to take sole possession of first place tomorrow night against the Orioles when David Price (10-8) matches up against Dylan "King Kong" Bundy of Baltimore. The game begins at 7:05 PM at Camden Yards.
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