April 25, 2007
...
The
Baltimore Orioles' lineup barely touched Curt Schilling in tonight's
6-1 Red Sox win. In seven innings, he allowed one run, a home run by
Miguel Tejada, which was not enough to overcome the damage the Sox
inflicted on the Orioles' expensively renovated bullpen in a
three-run seventh and two-run ninth.
The game
evolved into a pitching duel between Schilling and Orioles right-hander Daniel
Cabrera with each pitcher giving up a home run, Cabrera's to Alex Cora (11 for
18 against Cabrera) and the Sox seizing the opening given them when Cabrera
walked Wily Mo Pena to open the seventh.
Cora
bunted Pena over, and Cabrera temporarily kept the Sox at bay when Julio Lugo
flied to right. But then Cabrera issued the last of his five walks, to Kevin
Youkilis, and Orioles manager Sam Perlozzo went to his pen, which had been
redone, at the tune of $41.5 million, with the signings of lefthander Jamie
Walker, submariner Chad Bradford, and former Devil Rays closer Danys Baez.
Walker,
who went to the World Series with the Tigers last season, got two quick strikes
on Ortiz, but after running the count full with five two-strike fouls, Ortiz
dumped a single into left-center, scoring Pena. That brought in Bradford, who
worked one summer (2005) for the Sox. He gave up an RBI single to Manny Ramirez,
then walked J.D. Drew and Mike Lowell, forcing in a run.
The Sox
scored twice more in the ninth on three singles and Ramirez's sacrifice fly, a
ball that would have been extra bases except for a terrific catch by Corey
Patterson in center field.
Jon
Lester was rained out of his rehab start yesterday for Pawtucket in Rochester,
N.Y. He is now scheduled to pitch tomorrow night in McCoy Stadium against
Buffalo. That would allow Lester to make one more rehab start before his 30-day
assignment ends Wednesday.
Alex
Cora drew the start at second base over Dustin Pedroia, Francona said, because
Cora was 9 for 16 against Orioles starter Daniel Cabrera coming into the game.
Sure enough, Cora homered off Cabrera with one out in the third inning to put
the Sox ahead, 1-0, and singled off the right-hander to open the fifth.
Strained
obliques can be a tricky proposition, as the Sox are learning with center
fielder Coco Crisp, who was scratched from last Sunday's lineup with tightness
in his oblique, came into the game late as a defensive replacement, could have
played Monday, according to manager Terry Francona, but now won't play until
tomorrow in New York at the earliest. Crisp worked out Tuesday and came to the
park saying the muscle was still bothering him.
Closer
Jonathan Papelbon, who did not pitch in the Toronto series, came into last night
averaging a American League-best 15.95 strikeouts per nine innings (13 K's in 7
1/3 IP). But that's not the best in the majors. Francisco Cordero of the Brewers
checked in at 16.39 (17 K's in 9 1/3 IP). Last season, Papelbon's first as the
closer, he finished with 9.88 strikeouts per nine innings. Joe Nathan of the
Twins led the AL at 12.51
