September 4, 2007
...
He was available, all right. That much was obvious as Jonathan
Papelbon swaggered out of the bullpen, the same spot where Jacoby
Ellsbury earlier had sent the second home run of his brief major
league career. Papelbon had pitched two straight days, Sunday and
Monday, and three of four, but he was going to pitch again. He was
needed, regardless of the seven pitches he had thrown Sunday and the
16 Monday, because the Red Sox carried only a two-run lead into the
ninth inning against the Blue Jays last night. Papelbon, ended it
with a 96-mile-per-hour third strike that secured a 5-3 victory,
Boston's 84th win of the season. Pitching three straight days for the
first time since Aug. 30-Sept. 1, 2006, Papelbon recorded his 33d
save.
Josh Beckett
recorded his major league-leading 17th win and Ellsbury did his best to enter
his own accomplishment into the record books. Ellsbury managed to get
three-quarters of the way through the cycle in his three at-bats last night, his
third-inning single being followed by a home run in the fourth and a triple in
the sixth.
But even in
that endeavor, Coco Crisp gets a bit of an assist, along with first base umpire
Kerwin Danley. After J.D. Drew walked to open the fourth inning, and Kevin
Youkilis followed with a line single to center, Jason Varitek struck out
swinging. Crisp then grounded a ball to second baseman Aaron Hill, and with
Youkilis coming down hard on the second base bag, Hill made the flip to John
McDonald, who relayed to Lyle Overbay. Just a second too late. Crisp was safe.
Drew scored the first run of the game.
And that
opening, small as it was, enabled Ellsbury to send the first pitch from Blue
Jays starter Roy Halladay into the Red Sox bullpen for a two-run home run that
increased the lead to 3-0. That was followed by doubles by Julio Lugo and Dustin
Pedroia that produced the fourth run of the inning.
It was just
enough to keep Boston ahead, as Beckett allowed a home run into the bullpen,
another first-pitch homer, this one off the bat of Matt Stairs in the fifth.
With Hill (infield single, kicked by Beckett) and McDonald (walk) aboard,
Beckett threw a high changeup that didn't get past the No. 2 batter in the Blue
Jays' order. Other than that, Beckett didn't give anything, and his eight
innings of work preserved a well-used bullpen, leaving only Papelbon to finish
the job with nine pitches.
As a
motionless Alex Rios stood in the batter's box, having been called out on a
97-m.p.h. fastball from Beckett to end the eighth, the crowd amped up with a
roar. Though it wasn't quite the best pitching performance of the week, the fans
appreciated his eight innings of work, probably as much as the bullpen did.
Neither Halladay nor Beckett was quite at his peak, but that hardly mattered to
the 36,839 who watched Ellsbury endear himself ever more to them, coming just
one double short in his quest for the cycle.
Youkilis
showed his appreciation by slamming a solo homer off Halladay in the bottom of
the eighth, providing Beckett and the Sox with an insurance run.
Manny
Ramirez spent the afternoon working the core area of his body, with some
rotational work with a medicine ball at a "crisp rate," according to Francona.
But the manager said there are no definitive answers as to when he will return,
or even when the left fielder will start swinging a bat. Ramirez has not played
since leaving the Aug. 28 game in New York with a strained left oblique.
Curt
Schilling packed up his things and left the clubhouse shortly before 4 p.m. today because of a family matter. Schilling is fine and is still on track to
start tonight's series finale against the Blue Jays.
