When it comes to addressing pending questions, the Red Sox managed to satisfactorily answer more than a fidgety, under-the-gun SAT-taker last night at Fenway, resulting in an exhale-inducing, 9-2 win over the Yankees.
Hours after saying he would be open to a trade, Manny Ramirez showed he wasn’t about to give up on his current team once again by going 3-for-5 with two doubles and two RBI. Rookie Jacoby Ellsbury (3-for-4) snapped out of a month-long slump, and David Ortiz (2-for-4, three RBI) provided some much-needed reassurance that his wrist injury has sufficiently healed by crushing his first homer at Fenway since May 18.
If that wasn’t enough, Jon Lester (9-3) extended his unbeaten streak to 10 consecutive starts by holding the Yankees to two runs on nine hits in seven strong innings, while striking out eight. He became the first Sox southpaw other than David ‘Boomer’ Wells to defeat New York at Fenway since Darren Oliver on April 12, 2002. Manny Delcarmen and Mike Timlin finished the job for the Sox, combining on two innings of one-hit, shutout relief.
It all added up to the end of the Sox’ collective hitting slump and the termination of a four-game losing streak to the Yankees, bringing them back to within one game of the division-leading Tampa Bay Rays. The Red Sox also avoided losing three straight home games for the first time since July 17-19 of last year, while ending the Yankees’ winning streak at eight. The Sox, who batted .165 in the first two games of the series and scored only three runs, immediately snapped out of the funk in the first with a three-run rally. Ramirez followed singles by Dustin Pedroia and Ortiz with a one-out, run-scoring double to right-center. Mike Lowell then slammed a two-run single to center.
Nation Notes: With the trade deadline bearing down, the bullpen remains a concern for the Sox. There have been inconsistencies, especially with some of the younger pitchers (Manny Delcarmen, Craig Hansen) and at least one veteran (Hideki Okajima). Even Justin Masterson, who had been incredible in his first relief appearance at the major league level, came back down in his second shot at it. Masterson faced three batters Saturday, allowed a hit to each one, and watched both of his inherited runners score. Bartolo Colon is scheduled to throw a side session today, after throwing 35 pitches a few days ago. There should be more news after today’s session, but the team might try to get Colon in a game soon.
