Every dad should have had the luxury of celebrating Father’s Day the way the Red Sox did yesterday at Great American Ball Park.On an idyllic afternoon along the banks of the Ohio River, their 9-0 interleague pasting of the Cincinnati Reds was the equivalent of a stress-free couple of hours in a backyard hammock with a frosty beverage in hand and the peace of mind that all of the month’s bills had been paid. They belted four home runs, including one each by the top three in the batting order for the first time in nearly 11 years, providing Josh Beckett more than enough support in his best start of the season. Beckett (7-4), allowed only six hits in seven innings, while striking out six, for his first scoreless outing since a shutout of the Los Angeles Angels on four hits in Game 1 of last fall’s Division Series.
The Red Sox pounded Cincinnati starter Homer Bailey for five runs on four hits, including three homers, in only 2 innings and coasted from there to capture their eighth straight interleague road series. Jacoby Ellsbury (third inning off Bailey), Dustin Pedroia (sixth inning off Gary Majewski) and J. D Drew (third inning off Bailey) all cleared the fences, marking the first time since July 7, 1997 (Nomar Garciaparra, John Valentin and Mo Vaughn), that the top three in the Sox order went deep in the same game. Coco Crisp also clobbered a two-run home run into the right field seats off the aptly named Bailey.
The Sox improved to 5-1 in interleague play this season and 33-9 against NL opponents since the start of 2006, which is tied with the Detroit Tigers for the best record in that span. The Sox are 19-6 in their last 25 road interleague games.
Nation Notes: David Ortiz will have the cast removed from his left arm today in order to have the torn tendon sheath in his left wrist evaluated. A decision then will be made about keeping the cast off and beginning the rehabilitation process.
