Red Sox Cut It Close, But Fall To Yankees (64-79)

Cook got off to a good start

Last night's game was another good one for the second matchup of this series, however, the Red Sox lost this close one. Both Aaron Cook and David Phelps got off to good starts, pitching scoreless baseball for three innings. However, in the fourth, the Yankees got going, starting on a homer to right-center for Curtis Granderson-- hi 36th of the season. Alex Rodriguez followed him up with a bloop single to center, and he would also score when Robinson Cano went the other way for his 30th home run, over the green monster to make it 3-0. The Red Sox weren't just going to let that sit, though, as Dustin Pedroia came into the bottom of the fourth with a one out double. Pedroia would score when James Loney hit a hard ground ball through the right side of the infield to cut it to 3-1 against the Yanks.

He faltered in the fourth though

It stayed right there at 3-1 for a couple more innings, but both teams were ready to contribute again in the seventh inning. The Yankees started their rally with a single for Derek Jeter. However, just as soon as it had started, their rally ended when Curtis Granderson nailed his 37th home run of the season to right-- making it 5-1. The Red Sox weren't going to sit with that either though, as they came into the seventh with a pair of one out doubles to put two in scoring position. They scored a run when Mauro Gomez grounded out to third and another when Mike Aviles doubled to left to cut it to a 5-3 deficit. Each team's bullpen held it like that up until the ninth with Rafael Soriano on the mound. Jarrod Saltalamacchia led things off by belting his 24th home run to right field to cut it to 5-4. However, that would be all they would get in a tough loss.

Bright Spots:
Chris Carpenter- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB
Dustin Pedroia- 2-3, 1 R, 1 2B
James Loney- 2-4, 1 2B, 1 RBI
Jarrod Saltalamacchia- 3-3, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 1 RBI
Mike Aviles- 1-2, 1 2B, 1 RBI

Dull Spots:
Alfredo Aceves- 1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 K
Pedro Ciriaco- 0-4, 1 LOB
Cody Ross- 0-4, 3 K, 2 LOB
Scott Podsednik- 0-2, 1 K, 1 LOB
Jose Iglesias- 0-2, 1 K, 1 LOB

Player of the Game:
Jarrod Saltalamacchia- Could Salty's slump have come to an end? He went 3-3 with a double, two runs scored, and a home run last night-- he is now .232/24/54.

Angels Sweep Sox Again After Tough Loss (62-70)

Lester allowed five runs in eight innings

This game pretty much exemplified this season, the pitching was bad from their ace, their offense couldn't hit when it counted, and the game wasn't even particularly close. The Angels jumped out to a lead in the first after Mike Trout walked and Torii Hunter singled, putting runners at the corners. Both runners came home when Albert Pujols knocked a double on a ground ball down the third base line and past the diving Pedro Ciriaco. However, the Red Sox bats got right to work as they loaded the bases on two walks and a single with one out. They got one run back when Mike Aviles drove in James Loney with a sacrifice fly. However, the Angels didn't stop in the third, as they got into a good scoring position with a pair of one out singles.

Loney hit his first Red Sox HR

Back-to-back singles by Mark Trumbo and Alberto Callaspo would net the Angels two more runs to make it 4-1. The Angels just kept on rolling over Jon Lester (8-10, 4.98) in the fourth when they put runners at first and third with no outs. They scored a run on a double play ball by Mike Trout which increased the Angels lead to four runs at 5-1. There was a rare scoreless inning in the fifth but the Red Sox cut into the Angels' lead a bit in the sixth. On a weird hit, James Loney turned a low-inside curveball (not a bad pitch by any means) into a hard line drive home run to right field to make it 5-2. However, that would be one of relatively few blemishes in a great outing for Zach Greinke as he exited after the seventh with a line of 7 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 7 K. The Angels relief corps (an inning of Kevin Jepsen and an inning of Ernesto Frieri) shut down the Red Sox for the next two in a rough loss.

Bright Spots:
James Loney- 3-4, 2 R, 1 HR, 1 RBI
Mike Aviles- 2-3, 1 RBI

Dull Spots:
Scott Podsednik- 0-5, 3 K, 2 LOB
Jacoby Ellsbury- 0-4, 1 K, 2 LOB
Pedro Ciriaco- 0-4, 1 K, 2 LOB

Player of the Game:
James Loney- Loney had his first good night in a Red Sox uniform as he knocked a home run and scored another run in a 3-4 night-- he is now .412/1/4 in Boston.

Red Sox Edge Royals Behind Ciriaco, Ross (61-67)

Doubront had a bad inning

This was a great game in so far as the Red Sox won, it was some good baseball, and there were a few strong individual performances-- all great in the position the Red Sox are in right now. The Red Sox took off to a 1-0 lead in the first, scoring when Cody Ross drove in Pedro Ciriaco with a single. They scored again in the second inning when Mike Aviles hit a high fly ball off the monster, scoring Mauro Gomez all the way from first to give the Red Sox a 2-0 lead. Felix Doubront held the Royals in check for the next few innings, but they finally got to him in a big fourth inning. With two outs and two strikes, the Royals put together a sustained rally--starting with singles by Eric Hosmer and Johnny Giavotella. They scored one run when Tony Abreu hit a soft liner to left for an RBI single and they scored three more when Lorenzo Cain drilled one into the monster seats in left to make it 4-2.

Loney made his Red Sox debut

However, the Red Sox came back in the fifth-- starting with a one out solo home run for Pedro Ciriaco. After that, the Red Sox managed to put runners at the corners for James Loney. In his second at bat with the Red Sox, Loney took a first pitch fastball up the middle for an RBI single to make it 4-4. After putting runners at first and second with no outs, the Red Sox finally scored on a two out RBI single by Jacoby Ellsbury. They did some more damage in the seventh as they loaded the bases with two outs. Scott Podsednik hit a seemingly inning ending ground ball but in a Buckner-esque play, the ball rolled right through Alcides Escobar's legs for a run. They scored another on an infield single by Pedro Ciriaco. The Royals scrambled for two runs in the eighth on a sacrifice fly and an RBI single (Tony Abreu again!). However, the Red Sox got one back on a homer for Dustin Pedroia to make it 8-6 and won.

Bright Spots:
Craig Breslow- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 K
Mark Melancon- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 K, SV (1)
Pedro Ciriaco- 3-5, 2 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI
Jacoby Ellsbury- 2-5, 1 R, 1 RBI
Dustin Pedroia- 2-5, 1 R, 1 HR, 1 RBI
Cody Ross- 2-4, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 RBI
James Loney- 1-5, 1 RBI
Mike Aviles- 2-4, 1 2B, 1 RBI

Dull Spots:
Nobody!

Player of the Game:
Pedro Ciriaco- Ciriaco did a fantastic job leading off, going 3-5 while scoring two runs, driving in two more, and knocking a home run-- he is now .360/2/16.

Cook, Gomez Shine But Sox Fall Blow Huge Lead (60-67)

Gomez went 4-6 with 3 RBIs

Last night was just another episode in the disappointment that is the 2012 season as they blew a huge lead to fall in extras in one of the worst teams in baseball. The Royals started off hot, beginning the game with four consecutive hits. Two runs came in on Alex Gordon's double off the wall and Gordon scored on Billy Butler soft shot to right to make it 3-0 very early on. Cook held the Royals quiet in the bottom of the second and that was when the Red Sox got to work, starting with a one out solo blast to left for Mauro Gomez-- his first major league home run to cut it to 3-1. After that, Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Ryan Lavarnway each singled then promptly scored when Mike Aviles put one just over the green monster for a three-run homer to give the Red Sox a 4-3 lead. However, the Red Sox were far from done as they loaded the bases with no outs in the third. They scored three-- two on an error by Jeremy Guthrie and one on a sacrifice fly by Jarrod Saltalamacchia to make it 7-3.

Ross had an RBI single

The Red Sox still weren't done though as they put runners at the corners and two outs in the fourth inning. They wound up scoring two runs on RBI singles by Cody Ross and Mauro Gomez to give them a commanding 9-3 lead. Aaron Cook held it there for the next few innings, but when he turned it to the bullpen for the seventh, things got ugly. The Royals loaded the bases on a hit and two walks with one out off Andrew Miller. Miller allowed two to score on an RBI single by Alex Gordon before being pulled for Mark Melancon. Melancon allowed two more runs to come in on a double by Billy Butler and a single for Salvador Perez. Finally, Craig Breslow came in and allowed the inevitable game tying two-run triple that make it 9-9. It stayed there all the way until the twelfth inning when the Royals took a run on an RBI single for Tony Abreu and that was basically it.

Bright Spots:
Aaron Cook- 6 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 1 BB
Craig Breslow- 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, K
Andrew Bailey- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R
Vicente Padilla- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
Scott Podsednik- 2-6
Jacoby Ellsbury- 2-5, 2 R, 1 2B
Cody Ross- 3-5, 1 R, 1 RBI
Mauro Gomez- 4-6, 1 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI
Jarrod Saltalamacchia- 2-5, 1 R, 1 RBI
Ryan Lavarnway- 2-4, 1 R, 1 BB
Mike Aviles- 2-6, 1 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI
Pedro Ciriaco- 2-5, 1 R

Dull Spots:
Andrew Miller- 0.2 IP, 2 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 1 K
Mark Melancon- 0.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R

Player of the Game:
Mauro Gomez- In his first game filling in for the traded Gonzalez, Gomez was fantastic-- driving in three and hitting his first MLB home run in a 4-6 day-- he is now .318/1/6.

Red Sox Swept After High Scoring Heartbreaker (59-66)

Morales lasted all of 2.2 innings

Last night was an incredibly disappointing game as the Red Sox blew a huge lead to fall to the Angels in extra innings. After a double by Dustin Pedroia, the Red Sox scored on a first inning RBI single by Adrian Gonzalez. They put together a huge inning in the second-- starting with a leadoff double by Mauro Gomez. Gomez scored on a single by Scott Podsednik, who would score later on an RBI single to center by Jacoby Ellsbury. Ellsbury and Ciriaco (who also singled) would both score when Dustin Pedroia got ahold of one and sent it to left for a three-run homer to make it 6-0 in the second. However, it didn't take long at all for the Angels to complete disintegrate that lead-- as they scored eight times in the third inning on RBI singles for Howie Kendrick, Chris Iannetta, Mike Trout, and Torii Hunter, RBI walks by Kendrys Morales and Vernon Wells, and reaching on an error by Erick Aybar. When the dust settled on the third, it was 8-6 Angels.

Pedroia drove in five runs

However, the Red Sox fought back-- starting in the eighth when Cody Ross drove in Dustin Pedroia, who had reached on a single. The Red Sox would come back all the way to tie it up again in the sixth on a long home run to left for Mike Aviles. They went on to put Pedro Ciriaco at second base, who scored and gave the Red Sox the lead when Jacoby Ellsbury drove him in with a double. However, the Angels went on to put runners at first and second with two outs for Mike Trout. Trout singled to drive in a run and tie the game at 9-9 in the seventh inning. The Red Sox went on to put together a two out rally in the eighth-- singling four consecutive times (Podsednik, Ciriaco, Ellsbury, and Pedroia) and scoring twice. However, the Angels came right back to take the lead on a Vernon Wells long-ball and two RBI singles by Mike Trout and Torii Hunter. The Red Sox would tie it in the bottom of the ninth on a home run by Cody Ross to send it to extra innings at 12-12. A Kendrys Morales home run and a Vernon Wells RBI double gave the Angels two more runs to send them to a 14-13 win as a Dustin Pedroia RBI wasn't enough.

Bright Spots:
Junichi Tazawa- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R
Mark Melancon- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
Vicente Padilla- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
Pedro Ciriaco- 4-6, 4 R, 1 2B
Jacoby Ellsbury- 3-6, 1 R, 1 2B, 3 RBI
Dustin Pedroia- 4-6, 3 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 5 RBI
Cody Ross- 2-5, 1 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI
Mike Aviles- 1-5, 1 R, 1 HR, 1 RBI
Scott Podsednik- 2-4, 2 R, 1 RBI

Dull Spots:
Franklin Morales- 2.2 IP, 6 H, 6 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K
Clayton Mortensen- 0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 BB
Andrew Bailey- 0.2 IP, 3 H, 1 R
Alfredo Aceves- 1 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 1 BB, 1 K

Player of the Game:
Dustin Pedroia- Pedroia had a fantastic game, going 4-6 with 3 runs scored, 5 driven in, a double, and a home run-- he is now .281/11/52.

Red Sox Coast To Rout Over Indians (57-59)

Lester struck out 12 in 6 innings

While it's nice to see your team win close games like walk-offs, every once in a while, it's awfully fun to watch them just beat up on a team and that's what we got today. They started off hot, scoring on an RBI double by Dustin Pedroia in the first. Then again in the first as Adrian Gonzalez blasted a two-run homer to make it 3-0. The Indians got their first and only run of the game in the first on a sacrifice fly by Carlos Santana. With two men on base and two outs in the second, the Red Sox kept going as they scored twice on a double by Carl Crawford to make it 5-1. Indians starter Corey Kluber (0-0, 6.10) settled down briefly in the third before going back to doing damage in the fourth as he allowed the Red Sox to put a man on second with one out. Kelly Shoppach delivered with an RBI single to make it 6-1 and knock Kluber out after just four innings.

Crawford went 3-4 with 3 RBIs

Kluber was lucky he got out of things before they got really ugly in the fifth inning, starting with the Red Sox putting two men on and no outs. RBI singles by Cody Ross and Jarrod Saltalamacchia scored those two runners and made it 8-1. Danny Valencia picked up his first RBI with the Red Sox next on a sacrifice fly. After him, Kelly Shoppach struck out to jeopardize the Red Sox chances by leaving two men on with two outs. Luckily, they delivered as Jacoby Ellsbury delivered a two-run double. He was followed by an RBI double for Carl Crawford and, two batters later, a two-run double by Adrian Gonzalez to make it 14-1. Lester continued to coast for a couple more innings after that, leaving with a line of 6 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 12 K and picking up the win. The Red Sox easily held the Indians and won 14-1.

Bright Spots:
Jon Lester- 6 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 12 K, W (6-10)
Clayton Mortensen- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB
Alfredo Aceves- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 K
Jacoby Ellsbury- 2-5, 2 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI
Carl Crawford- 3-4, 2 R, 3 2B, 3 RBI
Dustin Pedroia- 2-3, 3 R, 1 2B, 1 BB, 1 RBI
Adrian Gonzalez- 2-3, 2 R, 1 HR, 1 2B, 4 RBI
Cody Ross- 1-4, 1 R, 1 RBI
Mike Aviles- 3-3, 3 R, 1 2B, 1 SB
Kelly Shoppach- 1-4, 1 RBI

Dull Spots:
None!

Player of the Game:
Carl Crawford- Crawford really pulled off a well rounded game here, going 3-4 with 3 doubles, 2 runs scored, and 3 RBIs-- he is now .280/3/16.

Middlebrooks Reportedly With Broken Wrist

Despite the win last night, the Red Sox got depressing news to go hand in hand with that win. After being hit on the wrist in the ninth inning of last night's game, Will Middlebrooks reportedly has suffered a broken wrist. This is a particularly nasty injury as it almost derailed David Ortiz's career and can definitely be a nagging injury. Hopefully, it has no real effect on Middlebrooks' career-- but he will miss at least a good portion, if not all of the remaining season. This raises the question of who will play third base in Middlebrooks' absence. The main candidates should be Mike Aviles, Pedro Ciriaco, Nick Punto, and Danny Valencia. Aviles has played plenty of third in his career, but he's been below average with a -17.7 UZR and has been great at shortstop this year with an 11.6 UZR-- he should remain at shortstop. Ciriaco is the most intriguing option on this list, as he hasn't played much third in his career (just 6 innings) but it would present the Red Sox with an opportunity to get his bat in the lineup. Punto and Valencia should remain backup plans as neither have hit well-- .200 and .198, respectively-- or played good defense at the hot corner. I think the Red Sox should try and move Ciriaco to third with Aviles sticking at short.

Red Sox Pound Darvish, Rangers To Return To .500 (55-55)

Cook made a bid to stay in
the rotation

This series did not look promising for the Red Sox, but they still managed to pull of a big win in the first game against rookie phenom Yu Darvish. The Rangers actually scored first in this game, beginning on Nelson Cruz's leadoff double in the second inning. They quickly grabbed the first run as David Murphy singled to center. In the third inning, however, the Red Sox matched and raised the Rangers rally-- beginning with a leadoff double by Jacoby Ellsbury. Ellsbury scored when Carl Crawford doubled down the first base line to put himself at second, still with no outs. There would be one out by the time Crawford came in, but he did as Adrian Gonzalez doubled on just about the same hit Crawford had. The Red Sox just kept rolling in the fourth inning, putting runners at first and second with one out. One would score when Jacoby Ellsbury doubled to left, also putting runners at second and third. Both Ellsbury and Mike Aviles (who was on third) would score on a sacrifice fly for Carl Crawford and a Dustin Pedroia double, respectively, to make it 5-1.

Pedroia had 3 doubles 

There was no more scoring for the Red Sox until a Dustin Pedroia leadoff double got things started in the seventh. Adrian Gonzalez drove Pedroia in with an RBI single but that was all they got in the inning, pushing it to 6-1. However, it was in the eighth that the Red Sox did some real damage off the Rangers' bullpen corps. With a man on first and one out, Carl Crawford doubled off the green monster in left-center to score Ellsbury from first base and make it 7-1. They kept going in the inning, though, as Dustin Pedroia walked to put runners at first and second with one out. Adrian Gonzalez delivered with a single to right to score Crawford and move Dustin Pedroia to third to put runners at the corners. One more scored in the inning on a sacrifice fly for Cody Ross to make it 9-1. The Rangers got a run on an Adrian Beltre home run in the top of the ninth, but it wasn't nearly enough as the Red Sox won.

Bright Spots:
Aaron Cook- 7 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 2 K, W (3-5)
Jacoby Ellsbury- 3-5, 3 R, 2 2B, 1 RBI
Carl Crawford- 2-4, 2 R, 2 2B, 3 RBI
Dustin Pedroia- 3-5, 1 R, 3 2B, 1 RBI
Adrian Gonzalez- 3-5, 1 2B, 3 RBI
Cody Ross- 1-4, 1 RBI
Ryan Kalish- 1-3, 1 R, 1 SB
Mike Aviles- 1-3, 1 R

Dull Spots:
Nobody!

Player of the Game:
Carl Crawford- Crawford did it all last night, going 2-4 with two doubles, two runs scored, and three runs batted in-- he is now .292/3/13.

Morales, Gonzalez Power Sox To Avoid Sweep (54-55)

Morales got his third win

If the Red Sox had been swept by the Twins today, it would be about time to punt this season and sell on the waiver wire. However, with Franklin Morales going for them, they managed to pull off a solid win in Boston. It took them a few innings, but they finally got an early rally going in the third inning. A single and a double put runners at second and third with no outs. They would score one in the inning when Carl Crawford grounded out to shortstop and another when Adrian Gonzalez drove Jacoby Ellsbury in with a bloop single to center. The Twins finally cracked the scoreboard after a leadoff walk and stolen base for Alexi Casilla. He would eventually score on a deep sacrifice fly by Ben Revere. However, the Red Sox would more than make up for that run as Adrian Gonzalez powered a two-run homer over the monster in the bottom of the fifth to make it 4-1.

Gonzalez drove in three runs

That fifth inning blemish was the only bad mark on a very strong start for Franklin Morales, seeing him go 6 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 4 K. The Red Sox continued to add onto their lead, starting in the seventh inning. That was when they put runners at first and second with one out for Cody Ross. Ross delivered by driving a ground ball back up the middle to score a run and make it 5-1. A one out double by Ryan Kalish in the eighth set the Red Sox up to score some more. Kalish stole third and eventually scored on a sacrifice fly by Jacoby Ellsbury. Vicente Padilla came into the game in the ninth, with a five run lead. However, he did his best to cut that lead-- allowing a leadoff home run to Josh Willingham and later, a two-run homer to Ryan Doumit. Luckily, Alfredo Aceves did what he couldn't do last night-- shut the door with a 1-2-3 inning to put the Red Sox at just a game under .500.

Bright Spots:
Franklin Morales- 6 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 4 K, W (3-2)
Mark Melancon- 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 K
Alfredo Aceves- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 K, SV (23)
Jacoby Ellsbury- 1-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 RBI
Carl Crawford- 3-5, 2 R, 1 SB, 1 RBI
Adrian Gonzalez- 2-3, 1 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI
Cody Ross- 2-4, 1 RBI
Will Middlebrooks- 2-4, 1 SB
Ryan Kalish- 1-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 SB
Mike Aviles- 2-3, 1 R, 1 BB

Dull Spots:
Vicente Padilla- 0 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 1 BB
Jarrod Saltalamacchia- 0-4, 1 K, 4 LOB

Player of the Game:
Adrian Gonzalez- Gonzalez's bat powered the Red Sox in this game as he went 2-3 with a two-run homer and an RBI single and is now .304/11/66 this season.

Red Sox Tease Fans Again In Heartbreaker (53-55)

Buchholz lowered his ERA to 4.48

The Red Sox have practically entered a new league of heartbreaking as they've blown leads and lost in back-to-back games against the lowly Minnesota Twins. They started off strong, with Ryan Kalish working a leadoff walk against Cole DeVries in the first. He would score almost immediately on an RBI double by Carl Crawford to give the Red Sox a 1-0 lead. It quickly became 2-0 in the second inning when Mike Aviles lifted one over the green monster. After that, DeVries settled down and Clay Buchholz continued his masterful outing as nobody else scored until the fifth. That was when Jamey Carroll singled with one out, and advanced to second on a faulty pickoff throw by Buchholz. He would score on a throwing error by Kelly Shoppach to cut it to 2-1. It took them until the eighth, but after putting men on first and second, they tied the game on a Justin Morneau sacrifice fly.

Ciriaco hit his first major league homer

That was when the real excitement started to happen, as Pedro Ciriaco came in to pinch-hit for Ryan Kalish leading off the eighth. Ciriaco delivered by hitting the first home run of his major league career over the green monster to give the Red Sox a 3-2 lead. They continued in that inning as Dustin Pedroia stole second base with two outs, after reaching on a hit by pitch. Cody Ross delivered with a clutch RBI single to give the Red Sox a 4-2 lead heading into the ninth. After Alexi Casilla doubled with one out, the Twins quickly made it a one-run game on an RBI single by Jamey Carroll. They then put two men on with two outs and two strikes to Joe Mauer. Alfredo Aceves painted the corner with a fastball, which was called a ball that ran it to a full count. The next pitch was left up and Mauer devoured it, going the other way for a three-run homer to make it 6-4. That was it, the Red Sox had broken our hearts again.

Bright Spots:
Clay Buchholz- 7 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K
Pedro Ciriaco- 1-1, 1 R, 1 HR, 1 RBI
Carl Crawford- 1-4, 1 2B, 1 RBI
Cody Ross- 1-4, 1 RBI
Mike Aviles- 1-4, 1 R, 1 HR, 1 RBI

Dull Spots:
Andrew Miller- 0.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 2 BB
Alfredo Aceves- 1.2 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 1 K, L (2-7)
Kelly Shoppach- 0-3, 3 K, 1 LOB
Nick Punto- 0-3, 1 K, 1 LOB

Player of the Game:
Clay Buchholz- Buchholz tragically did not win this game because of a horrible bullpen, but his seven strong innings were the highlight of the night-- he is now 9-3/4.48/80.

Aviles, Buchholz Lead Sox In Clutch Win (49-49)

Buchholz allowed a run in seven strong

With Clay Buchholz going against rookie Martin Perez, it didn't really look like a potential pitching duel. Buchholz has been good lately, but his ERA was 5.19 entering play, and Perez had just been brought up for triple-A and was struggling down there. However, it quickly emerged as a definite pitchers duel after three shutout innings on both sides. The Red Sox had gotten to Perez a bit, loading the bases in the second inning, but he had been impressive nonetheless. Anyhow, it was in the fourth inning that the Red Sox finally got a bit going after a leadoff walk for Cody Ross. Will Middlebrooks flew out and Carl Crawford struck out, leaving Ross at first with two outs, but Kelly Shoppach came through. Shoppach lifted one to right center that just evaded David Murphy's reach as it became an RBI double.

Aviles had the go-ahead RBI single

Clay Buchholz actually held that lead for a few innings, as he was very good last night. Finally in the sixth inning, though, it was Elvis Andrus who broke out with a one-out double. Andrus got to third on a wild pitch and despite the infield being in, scored on a soft grounder by Josh Hamilton to tie it at 1-1. It stayed tied for one more inning before Clay Buchholz was taken out of the game after seven with a line of 7 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 1 K. For the first time this season, Buchholz's ERA is below 5.00-- as he's really come a long way since April. Neither team scored in the eighth, but the Red Sox put together a two-out rally in the ninth. Two two-out walks off Joe Nathan put them in a position to score with Mike Aviles at bat. Aviles worked a long at bat before blooping a soft line drive just over the head of Elvis Andrus. The run scored and the Red Sox won 2-1.

Bright Spots:
Clay Buchholz- 7 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 1 K
Vicente Padilla- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 K, W (4-0)
Alfredo Aceves- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, SV (21)
Will Middlebrooks- 2-4
Kelly Shoppach- 1-2, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 BB
Mike Aviles- 1-4, 1 RBI

Dull Spots:
Pedro Ciriaco- 0-4, 1 LOB
Dustin Pedroia- 0-4, 1 LOB
Carl Crawford- 0-3, 1 K, 4 LOB

Player of the Game:
Clay Buchholz- Despite some last minute heroics by Mike Aviles, he wouldn't even have had a chance if Buchholz wasn't quite so good in his seven innings-- he is now 8-3/4.93/73.

Lester Hammered As Sox Return To Last (48-48)

Lester was simply crushed in every
aspect

This was a horrible game from start to finish, and I don't even want to write about it. The Blue Jays started off ridiculously strong as Brett Lawrie homered on the first pitch of the game, a sign of what was to come. After a walk and a single, Edwin Encarnacion drove in a run with a ground-rule double and J.P. Arencibia drove in another with a groundout. They took two more in the inning on an RBI double by Rajai Davis and an RBI bunt by Jeff Mathis to give them a very early 5-0 lead. However, the Red Sox bats came out strong too as they put runners at the corners with one out. Adrian Gonzalez came through with a bomb to right-center to score three and put the Red Sox right back in it at 5-3. That was before a second inning where back-to-back home runs over the monster by J.P. Arencibia and Rajai Davis netted the Jays four runs and a 9-3 lead, though.

Tazawa tossed three shutout innings

A rare sight in this game, a couple of scoreless innings followed that second. The Red Sox finally broke the snide with a sacrifice fly in the fourth that cut it to 9-4. However, a two-run shot by Travis Snider in the fifth extinguished that hope. The Red Sox would benefit from a homer of their own in the fifth, though, as Jacoby Ellsbury lifted one to center to make it 11-5. A two-out double by Ryan Sweeney in the sixth set up an RBI double for Mike Aviles, who scored on an RBI single by Nick Punto to make it 11-7 and make it reasonably close. However, it wouldn't stay that way for long as the Blue Jays erupted in the eighth for four runs to make it 15-7 and officially close the book on a miserable game and a miserable series for the Red Sox.


Bright Spots:
Junichi Tazawa- 3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 5 K
Alfredo Aceves- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 K
Jacoby Ellsbury- 2-5, 2 R, 1 HR, 1 RBI
Adrian Gonzalez- 2-4, 2 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI
Mike Aviles- 1-3, 1 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI

Dull Spots:
Jon Lester- 4 IP, 9 H, 11 R, 5 BB, 2 K, L (5-8)
Mark Melancon- 0.1 IP, 5 H, 4 R
Daniel Nava- 0-4, 1 K, 1 LOB
Cody Ross- 0-4, 1 LOB

Player of the Game:
Adrian Gonzalez- Gonzalez's first inning home run was one of very few bright spots in a horrible game, he is now .296/9/58 this season.

Red Sox Finish Strong To Win Series Over Rays (45-44)

Beckett settled down after the
first inning

The Red Sox continued their run of staying around .500 but yet in the thick of things as they moved within a game of the Rays today. They scored first in the first inning after a pair of one out walks. Adrian Gonzalez would deliver with a line drive into left for an RBI single to make it 1-0. However, the Rays answered in a big way in the bottom of the first-- putting runners at the corners with no outs. Ben Zobrist hit a hard liner off of Josh Beckett's glove and hustled out an infield hit to tie it at one. The Rays weren't done scoring though, as a few batters later a soft single to center by Desmond Jennings would give the Rays a 3-1 lead and it wasn't looking like Josh Beckett's best day. Luckily, Beckett didn't even have to work with a deficit for all that long as the Red Sox got right back to business in the second. After a one out single by Will Middlebrooks, Mike Aviles had the big blow with a two-run homer to center to make it 3-3.

Nava had the go-ahead home run

Both Josh Beckett and James Shields settled down from that point on, but neither was really good. That finally caught up to Shields in the fifth as Daniel Nava got ahold of an outside pitch, pulling it to right for a go ahead home run to make it 4-3. The Red Sox kept rolling right along in the fifth and proceeded to load the bases on two hits and a walk, with just one out. This time it was Will Middlebrooks with the big hit, as he singled hard up the middle to bring in two runs and give the Red Sox a comfortable 6-3 lead. After loading the bases with one out in the sixth, the Red Sox got some more insurance on a sacrifice fly by Cody Ross to make it 7-3. Beckett left after the sixth with a decent 6 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 7 K. The bullpen would hold the Rays and give the Red Sox a comfortable 7-3 win and a series win.

Bright Spots:
Josh Beckett- 6 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 7 K, W (5-7)
Mark Melancon- 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 K
Jacoby Ellsbury- 3-5, 1 R, 1 2B
Daniel Nava- 1-3, 2 R, 1 BB, 1 HR, 1 RBI
David Ortiz- 2-4, 1 BB
Adrian Gonzalez- 2-4, 1 R, 1 RBI
Cody Ross- 1-4, 1 R, 1 RBI
Will Middlebrooks- 3-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI
Mike Aviles- 2-4, 1 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI

Dull Spots:
Pedro Ciriaco- 0-4, 2 K, 4 LOB

Player of the Game:
Will Middlebrooks- Middlebrooks made more case for the Youkilis trade as he went 3-4 with a double, a run, and two RBIs-- he improved to .301/11/41 on the season.

Red Sox Ride Huge First Inning Into Third Place (40-35)

Lester earned the win with seven
strong innings

The Red Sox are as hot as they've been all year right now as with a win today, coupled with a Rays' loss, the Red Sox moved into third place in the AL East. After a Brett Lawrie double to lead things off, the Blue Jays scored first when Colby Rasmus drove him in with a soft single to center. However, the Red Sox really turned things around with a huge first inning off Jays' ace Ricky Romero. After he walked Daniel Nava to start things off, Dustin Pedroia doubled to right-center to tie the game. A walk and a single loaded the bases with no outs for Adrian Gonzalez. Two runs came in to score as first baseman Edwin Encarnacion botched the play on the grounder. A Will Middlebrooks groundout and a Mike Aviles single would make it 5-1 in the first inning. A 3-2 single up the middle by Darnell McDonald would be the last run of the first as the Sox left with a 6-1 lead.

Ortiz hit the 399th home run of his
fruitful career

After two one out walks in the second, Adrian Gonzalez singled in another run to make it 7-1. The Jays got one back in the fourth when Jose Bautista absolutely clobbered one over the monster. However, after a walk and a double to start off the first, the Red Sox would answer for that Blue Jays' run. A bloop RBI single by Adrian Gonzalez and a Mike Aviles double to left-center made it 9-2. In the fifth, the Red Sox reached the double digit mark as David Ortiz crushed a home run-- the 399th of his career-- over the bullpens in right-center. In the sixth, the Blue Jays got a pair of runs of their own when Edwin Encarnacion crushed a ball over the monster to make it 10-4. The score stayed put there as Jon Lester pitched very well-- exiting after seven with a line of 7 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 0 BB, 4 K. He earned the win as Mark Melancon and Clayton Mortensen pitched a pair of scoreless innings in an all around good win for the Red Sox.

Bright Spots:
Mark Melancon- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R
Clayton Mortensen- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R
Dustin Pedroia- 1-5, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 RBI
David Ortiz- 1-2, 4 R, 3 BB, 1 HR, 1 RBI
Cody Ross- 2-3, 2 R
Adrian Gonzalez- 2-5, 1 R, 3 RBI
Mike Aviles- 2-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI
Darnell McDonald- 1-3, 1 RBI

Dull Spots:
Nobody!

Player of the Game:
Adrian Gonzalez- Gonzalez put together a great game in the offensive marathon by going 2-5 with 3 RBIs to become .269/6/43 this season.

Red Sox Vault Into Fourth After Rout Of Marlins (35-33)

Doubront didn't have his best
stuff but he got the win

Last night was a good one as they absolutely pounded the Marlins and as a result of that, moved out of last place. After two singles to lead off the game, the Marlins actually scored first on a double play ball hit by Giancarlo Stanton. With runners at the corners and one out in the second, they pushed home another run on a groundout by Gaby Sanchez-- those would be their only bright spots in this game though. After a pair of two-out singles in the bottom of the second, Mike Aviles really made the rally pay off with a three-run homer over the monster in left-center. The Red Sox got a few more runs in the third after loading the bases with one out for Cody Ross. Ross would clear the bases with a double to left that took a huge bounce away from Marlins' left fielder Logan Morrison to give the Red Sox a 6-2 lead. The Marlins would cut the lead a little when Logan Morrison redeemed himself with a leadoff homer off the Pesky Pole and again on an RBI single by Gaby Sanchez but it was still 6-4 Red Sox.

Mike Aviles and Jarrod
Saltalamacchia each homered

And it was about to become much more than that as they Red Sox put runners at the corners with one out. Ryan Kalish scored one with an infield single but David Ortiz had the big blow as he crushed a high home run to deep right to make it 11-4. Two batters later, Jarrod Saltalamacchia delivered with a blast of his own as he homered to dead center to make it 12-4. The Red Sox got right back to business in the fifth as they loaded the bases on two walks and a single for David Ortiz. The damage would not be quite as great this time as the only run of the inning came on a wild pitch by Marlins' reliever Chris Hatcher. In the seventh, the Marlins had a little bright spot as John Buck hit a no-doubt shot to left field, staying just fair to make it 13-5. However, the Red Sox made up for the Buck home run with a two-out walk and then a two-out homer for Will Mddlebrooks to left field to make it 15-5. That would be the final score as the Red Sox absolutely pounded the Marlins and are now out of last and only six games out of first!

Bright Spots:
Mark Melancon- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 K
Daniel Nava- 4-5, 2 R
Ryan Kalish- 2-5, 2 R, 1 RBI
David Ortiz- 1-4, 2 R, 1 HR, 4 RBI
Cody Ross- 1-4, 1 2B, 3 RBI
Jarrod Saltalamacchia- 2-4, 3 R, 1 HR, 1 RBI
Kevin Youkilis- 2-3, 1 R, 1 2B
Will Middlebrooks- 1-1, 1 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI
Mike Aviles- 2-5, 2 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI

Dull Spots:
None!

Player of the Game:
Mike Aviles- Aviles had a heck of a game, leading the Red Sox' offense by going 3-5 with a three-run homer and scoring twice to become .268/9/40.

Battery Powers Sox In Win Over Cubs (32-33)

Lester pitched very well
through six innings

The Red Sox really needed a win last night to take advantage of the worst team in the league and to climb within a game of the .500 mark. A two out walk by David Ortiz in the first inning could have started a rally. Jarrod Saltalamacchia carried on with that by doubling off the wall in right-center. As Ortiz rounded third and headed for home, the Cubs nabbed him at the plate to end the inning. Ortiz would redeem himself in the fourth inning, however, as he led off the inning with a double. Saltalamacchia kept his good game going by crushing a home run to dead right field to score Ortiz and himself and make it 2-0. The Red Sox couldn't make anything else out of the inning, though, as the next three batters all struck out. A pair of one out walks in the sixth put the Red Sox in a position to score and extend the lead. Will Middlebrooks would do just that when he singled up the middle to score Ortiz from second. Future opportunities to score would be squandered, though, when Jarrod Saltalamacchia was thrown out at third.

Saltalamacchia had a home
run and a double

The Red Sox offense kept piling it on in the seventh inning, when Mike Aviles led the inning off with  a double. After a Jon Lester strikeout, Scott Podsednik drove him in with a single up the middle to make it 4-0. That strikeout may have affected Lester in some way as he became startlingly inefficient in the seventh. Jeff Baker doubled to lead off the inning and was moved to third base on a groundout by Tony Campana. Wellington Castillo walked to put two runners on and bring the tying run to the on deck circle. They would both come in to score, plus one more, when Luis Valbuena of all people hit a high fly ball to left-center to cut it to 4-3. Lester struck out David DeJesus to finish his night and he was taken out with a line of 6.2 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 8 K. Scott Atchison would finish off that inning, Vicente Padilla came in for the eighth, then Alfredo Aceves came in for the ninth and earned his 16th save of the season.


Bright Spots:
Jon Lester- 6.2 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 8 K, W (4-4)
Vicente Padilla- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 K
Alfredo Aceves- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 K, SV (16)
Scott Podsednik- 2-4, 1 RBI
David Ortiz- 1-2, 2 R, 1 2B, 2 BB
Jarrod Saltalamacchia- 2-3, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 2 RBI
Will Middlebrooks- 1-4, 1 RBI
Mike Aviles- 2-4, 1 R, 1 2B

Dull Spots:
Dustin Pedroia- 0-5, 3 LOB
Ryan Sweeney- 0-4, 2 K, 3 LOB

Player of the Game:
Jarrod Saltalamacchia- Saltalamacchia played a great game both at and behind the plate, going 2-3 with a homer and a double and leading a great performance by Jon Lester-- he is now .254/12/32.

Red Sox Win Series Behind Doubront, Six Run Eighth (31-32)

Doubront held a no-hitter
into the sixth

This was a series (and game) that the Red Sox really needed to win-- as the Blue Jays had lost earlier in the day, and if the Red Sox won, they would tie them for fourth. It was fairly low scoring to start off the game and neither team scored through the first couple of innings. Mike Aviles would lead off the third in a good way, though, singling to center and advancing to second when center fielder Justin Ruggiano bobbled to ball. The Red Sox would manufacture a run as Felix Doubront bunted him to third and Scott Podsednik drove him in with a groundout to second base. Another run came in the fourth when David Ortiz went to the opposite field for a solo home run-- his 15th of the year. The Red Sox didn't score again until the sixth-- and the words "no hitter" were being mentioned as Felix Doubront still hadn't allowed a hit. The Red Sox would pile up a few insurance runs anyway as Scott Podsednik singled and got to second on a single by Dustin Pedroia. Adrian Gonzalez singled through the hole into right and David Ortiz knocked a sacrifice fly to make it 4-0.

Ortiz had his 15th home run
and had 3 RBIs

With two outs in the bottom of the sixth-- boom! Jose Reyes ended Doubront's no hitter in a big way, crushing a home run to left to cut it to 4-1. The Marlins kept it going in the seventh, leading things off with a single and a double to put two in scoring position and no outs. After an Omar Infante pop up, Justin Ruggiano grounded to Mike Aviles. Hanley Ramirez easily scored from third but Giancarlo Stanton got greedy and was out trying for third base. Still, with only a 4-2 lead, the Red Sox needed some insurance, and in the eighth-- they got just that. Nick Punto doubled and Scott Podsednik singled to lead off the inning and put runners at the corners. Three consecutive singles by Dustin Pedroia, Adrian Gonzalez, and David Ortiz made it 7-2. Will Middlebrooks was hit to load the bases-- and Jarrod Saltalamacchia knocked a sacrifice fly to make it 8-2. A Nick Punto single later in the inning would score two more and make it 10-2. The Red Sox bullpen held that lead (thankfully) and the Red Sox would win the game and series.

Bright Spots:
Felix Doubront- 7 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 9 K, W (7-3)
Matt Albers- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R
Scott Podsednik- 2-5, 2 R, 1 RBI
Dustin Pedroia- 2-5, 2 R, 1 RBI
Adrian Gonzalez- 3-5, 1 R, 2 RBI
David Ortiz- 2-2, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 HR, 3 RBI
Mike Aviles- 2-4, 1 R
Nick Punto- 2-2, 1 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI

Dull Spots:
Will Middlebrooks- 0-4, 2 K, 4 LOB
Ryan Sweeney- 0-4, 3 LOB

Player of the Game:
Felix Doubront- Even when this game was close, Doubront kept the Sox in it-- holding a no-hitter until the sixth inning and going seven strong-- he is now 7-3/4.17/81.

Red Sox Edge Marlins In Pitching Duel (30-32)

Buchholz was brilliant
last night

When it comes to the Boston Red Sox, we haven't seen a whole lot of true pitching duels in recent years. Last night, though, with Clay Buchholz facing Mark Buehrle-- not exactly a match up of aces-- we saw a big one. Neither team scored until the seventh inning (or after) and the Red Sox only managed a hit before the seventh. Buchholz escaped several jams-- even in the first inning, when Jose Reyes tripled to lead off the game, but Buchholz struck out the side to strand him. He got into another jam in the third inning, when a two out rally had put runners at first and second. Hanley Ramirez hit a slow grounder up the middle and beat it out for an infield single, but Jose Reyes had rounded third and was easily thrown out at the plate to end the inning. Buchholz was dominant after that, and the Red Sox finally got going in the seventh inning. With one out, Will Middlebrooks hit a slow line drive into right field that just avoided being caught by Giancarlo Stanton. Adrian Gonzalez flew out, so it was all up to Kelly Shoppach to drive him in.

He allowed a run in seven
innings for a win

Shoppach would drive a pitch directly into the gap. Middlebrooks easily came all the way around first and Shoppach had an RBI double to make it 1-0. However, the Red Sox weren't done yet as Mike Aviles stepped up to the plate and promptly delivered a bloop single to center to score Shoppach and make it 2-0. Darnell McDonald then singled on another blooper to center to put runners at the corners with two outs for Clay Buchholz. The Red Sox did not pinch-hit for Buchholz, and he almost delivered as it took a fantastic diving catch by center fielder Chris Coghlan to prevent an RBI single. The Marlins would get one of those runs back almost immediately as Logan Morrison crushed a line drive home run to deep right to cut the lead to 2-1. Clay Buchholz got out of the inning with minimal damage and left the game after with a 7 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 9 K line. Vicente Padilla and Alfredo Aceves-- picking up his 15th save-- each threw a scoreless inning to help the Red Sox win for the first time in a while.

Bright Spots:
Clay Buchholz- 7 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 9 K, W (7-2)
Alfredo Aceves- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 K, SV (15)
Kelly Shoppach- 2-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 RBI
Mike Aviles- 1-4, 1 RBI
Darnell McDonald- 2-4

Dull Spots:
Scott Podsednik- 0-4, 1 K, 1 LOB
Dustin Pedroia- 0-4, 1 K, 1 LOB
Kevin Youkilis- 0-3

Player of the Game:
Clay Buchholz- For his last seven times up, Buchholz had been fantastic and he was again tonight, allowing a run in seven strong innings-- he is now 7-2/5.38/55.

Red Sox Roughed Up By Nats In Series Opener (29-29)

Doubront had his first bad start
in a while

It appears that the Red Sox may be going in a downward spiral again as they've lost four or their last five and that continued last night. They got off to a decent start after the Red Sox put two men on base with two outs in the second inning. Both of those runners would come in when Mike Aviles hit a high fly ball that banged off the monster in center field to make it 2-0 Red Sox. Things would take a dramatic turn for the worse very quickly, however, as the Nationals put two runners in scoring position with one out in the top of the third. One would score when Ryan Zimmerman took one right back up the middle for a single to cut the Red Sox' lead to 2-1. Zimmerman and Michael Morse, who walked in the next at bat, both scored when Ian Desmond took a ball to the gap in right-center to give the Nationals a 3-2 lead. The Nationals kept going in the fourth after a leadoff double by Tyler Moore. Moore would score on a double by Danny Espinosa and Espinosa would score on a two-run homer by phenom Bryce Harper to make it 6-2.

Punto walked and scored
in the ninth

That score held for a while, but a leadoff single in the sixth by Tyler Moore put the Nationals in business. The next two hitters got out but Bryce Harper singled him in after Moore stole second base, putting the Nationals up to a commanding lead of 7-2. The Red Sox would cut the lead by a little bit in the eighth inning when Adrian Gonzalez crushed a ball in the air to deep center. As the ball fell into the stands for a solo home run, it became the 200th home run of Gonzalez's career, yet only the fifth of the season for the first baseman. The Red Sox got another small rally going in the ninth after Nick Punto walked with one out. Daniel Nava drove him in with a double to deep center to bring Punto all the way around from first base to cut it to a three-run lead for the Nationals. However, Tyler Clippard came in to pitch and got Dustin Pedroia and Adrian Gonzalez to fly out harmlessly to end the game with a score of 7-4. 

Bright Spots:

Scott Atchison- 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R

Andrew Miller- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R

Daniel Nava- 2-5, 1 2B, 1 RBI

Adrian Gonzalez- 2-5, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 1 RBI

Mike Aviles- 1-3, 1 2B, 2 RBI

Dull Spots:

Felix Doubront- 4 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 2 BB, 6 K, L (6-3)

Matt Albers- 1.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 3 K

Jarrod Saltalamacchia- 0-4, 2 K, 4 LOB

Kevin Youkilis- 0-4, 3 K, 4 LOB

Player of the Game:

Adrian Gonzalez- Gonzalez had a good offensive game, going 2-5 with a double and his 200th career home run to make him .275/5/32 this year. 

Red Sox Lose Extra Inning Heartbreaker To O's (28-27)

Lester was decent, but
was hurt by bad defense

The Red Sox fell back into last place at 28-27 after last night's extra inning debacle that saw them lose to the first place Orioles. After a couple of scoreless innings, the Orioles got going in the third when they put runners at the corners with two outs. Adam Jones delivered by driving a single into left-center that both scored a run and moved Robert Andino to third base. After that, it was Matt Wieters delivering with an RBI single to left field to score another run and give the O's a 2-0 lead. Both of those runs were unearned after an error earlier in the inning to shortstop Mike Aviles. After a few more scoreless innings, the Red Sox got in business in the fifth when Daniel Nava and Mike Aviles singled to start the inning. Scott Podsednik did the Bobby Valentine thing and bunted them over-- however, first baseman Mark Reynolds thought he could be a hero and tried throwing it to third base to get the lead runner. His throw was both wide and late, and deflected off third baseman Steve Tolleson's glove to score a run to make it 2-1. They would score again when Dustin Pedroia hit a sacrifice fly to center, scoring Mike Aviles.

Saltalamacchia had a two-out, two-
strike, two-run homer in the bottom
of the ninth to tie the game at 6-6

The Orioles would answer in the sixth, however, leading off the inning with a Matt Wieters double and Mark Reynolds single. Steve Pearce hit a sac fly to center to score a run and that would be all. The Red Sox answered that in the bottom half, putting two runners on with one out. A Mike Aviles RBI single and Scott Podsednik sacrifice fly would give the Red Sox a 4-3 lead. However, the Orioles would score three times in the seventh-- on RBI singles by J.J. Hardy, Mark Reynolds, and Steve Pearce to make it 6-4. The Red Sox answered for that in the best possible way when Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit a two-out, two-strike, game-tying two-run homer just over the green monster in the bottom of the ninth. However, two RBI singles in the tenth by Ronny Paulino and Endy Chavez netted the Orioles a 8-6 lead and a win.

Bright Spots:
Matt Albers- 1.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 K
Scott Podsednik- 2-3, 1 BB, 1 RBI
Jarrod Saltalamacchia- 3-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 2 RBI
Daniel Nava- 2-5, 2 R
Mike Aviles- 3-5, 1 R, 1 RBI

Dull Spots:
Scott Atchison- 0.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 1 BB
Alfredo Aceves- 2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 2 K, L (0-3)
Adrian Gonzalez- 0-5, 5 LOB
Kevin Youkilis- 0-5, 2 K, 3 LOB

Player of the Game:
Jarrod Saltalamacchia- It couldn't be anybody else after Salty tied the game with his clutch two-run homer as part of a 3-4 day to make him .279/11/27 this year.