The eighth pitch Jon Lester threw last night at Fenway produced his first out, and sent a clear message to the that they were probably in for a frustrating evening’s work.
That’s certainly how it turned out, as the streaking Red Sox rolled to a 14-2 victory, requiring only five innings from Lester, who yielded six hits and one run en route to improving his record to 13-5. That first out came via a pretty impressive strikeout, the first of five by Lester, as Brian Roberts was blown away on a 97 mph heater. If it wasn’t the fastest pitch Lester has tossed this season, it was on the short list of the best by a 24-year-old left-hander who just keeps getting better. Two batters later, Lester demonstrated a second reason he has emerged as the dominating ace of the staff, ending the first inning by fanning Nick Markakis on an absolutely filthy 1-2 curveball.
But overall, Lester’s performance wasn’t nearly as efficient and sharp as his 1-2-3 first, as he allowed 10 base runners (six hits and four walks) in innings 2-5. He was in trouble in each of those frames, but pitched out of the jams thanks to terrific defense from his mates. The Sox turned line drives into double plays in the second (on a dreadful umpiring call at the plate) and third. And in the fourth and fifth, left fielder Jacoby Ellsbury made terrific catches to spike potential Baltimore rallies.
The Sox improved to 20-9 since the Manny Ramirez trade, while the floundering Dodgers entered last night’s late game vs. San Diego only 14-16 since acquiring Ramirez. With Ortiz comfortable with the new configuration, Pedroia hotter than Ramirez has ever been and a cavalry of Josh Beckett, Mike Lowell, J.D. Drew, Bartolo Colon and Sean Casey on the way from the disabled list, matters couldn’t look better for the Sox heading into the season’s final 24 games. With the win, the Red Sox climbed to within four games of the AL East-leading Tampa Bay Rays, who saw a five-game winning streak end in their series opener against the New York Yankees in St. Petersburg, Fla. The Sox also extended their wild card lead to four games over AL Central co-leaders Minnesota and Chicago.
Nation Notes: Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell are expected to return during the weekend series in Arlington, Texas, against the Rangers. Kevin Youkilis’s chances of playing today are 50-50. Youkilis was scratched last night after suffering back spasms during the national anthem.
