May 25, 2007
...
It was a
10-6 roller coaster ride worthy of the nearby Six Flags, that
concluded at almost 1:30 a.m. Eastern time in front of 33,552, after
a 1-hour-57-minute rain delay, that apparently pushed back Diasuke
Matsuzaka, not only in start time, but in performance as well.
From
Manny Ramirez getting caught off second base on a grounder to the second baseman
(unassisted), to Ramirez's jete in left field in the fourth inning that allowed
a triple to Mark Teixeira, to Ramirez's tiebreaking single off the second base
bag in the fifth, to Ramirez's lackadaisical catch of a fly ball in left in the
sixth, the fingerprints of the slugger were indelible. But so too were those of
Matsuzaka and, while Ramirez's results were mixed, the Japanese pitcher's listed
much more toward the negative.
Once the
rain delays were over, Matsuzaka failed to continue his string of stellar
starts, giving up a Ramirez-aided triple to Teixeira, a Sammy Sosa double, and a
Frank Catalanotto home run to consecutive batters to open the fourth. The lead,
which had been 4-0, dwindled to a run, and then it was gone, thanks to a two-run
home run by Ramon Vazquez. All the runs allowed by Matsuzaka came in one inning.
But the
lead was back in the hands of the Sox soon thereafter, as Kevin Youkilis
(single, extending his career-best hitting streak to 17 games), David Ortiz (RBI
double), and Ramirez (RBI single) provided two runs in the fifth. The Sox piled
on four more in the sixth, highlighted by Jason Varitek's RBI triple, but that
was hardly enough to end the concern over Matsuzaka's poor start.
Having
allowed just five runs (three of which came against the Braves in a blowout)
over his last 24 innings, Matsuzaka had begun to get comfortable with his
surroundings and American baseball in a way that was producing results worthy of
his reputation and contract.
Three
straight walks issued by Rangers starter Brandon McCarthy to start the second
inning were interrupted only by a Varitek sacrifice fly, before McCarthy came
back to walk Coco Crisp.
Fortunately for Dustin Pedroia, and unfortunately for McCarthy and the Rangers,
the pitcher stayed close enough to the strike zone on a pitch to the second
baseman (his 57th of the game, while getting just four outs) to allow Pedroia to
dump a hit into right-center for a single that scored two, making it 3-0. It
became 4-0 when Sosa dropped Julio Lugo's pop near the foul line in right,
allowing Crisp (who likely would have scored on a sacrifice fly, anyway) to come
home. Pedroia was forced at second on the play. Youkilis's fly to the warning
track in left finally ended McCarthy's inning at 47 pitches and four runs, and
his evening at 66 pitches and two innings when he left with a blister on his
right middle finger.
It was,
in the end, another one-inning meltdown for Matsuzaka, this time the fourth,
though it was contrasted by enough offense to give Matsuzaka (7-2) the win. He
allowed five runs on seven hits and three walks, with six strikeouts.
Mike
Timlin pitched one inning last night in his first rehab appearance with
Pawtucket, allowing one walk while throwing 16 pitches (seven strikes).
