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THE "IDIOTS" REVERSE THE CURSE
Schilling holds down the Yankees
April 17, 2004 ... Leave it to the quiet slugger in the powder blue leather coat and Allen Iverson cap to put
it in perspective. Yes, the Red Sox mauled the once-mighty Yankees for the second time in as many days yesterday at Fenway Park.
By all accounts, things looked just dandy for the Sox as Curt Schilling discombobulated the Steinbrenner Nine into the seventh inning and picked up some timely help from his relief corps and shorthanded lineup to coast to a 5-2 victory before 35,023 in the Fens.
Ramirez pitched in with his 350th career homer, a blast over the Wall off Mike Mussina leading off the fifth inning. But the Sox already had scored all the runs they needed as they exploited a rare bout of wildness by Mussina to score twice in the second and capitalized
on shortstop Derek Jeter's second error in as many games in the third to score again. Johnny Damon (2 for 4 with a walk and two RBIs) produced Boston's final run by doubling home Pokey Reese in the eighth.
Schilling set the tone as he went all but unscathed while scattering six hits and four walks. He struck out eight, including Jeter three times and Rodriguez twice, as he mixed his cutter, curve, and nasty splitter with a fastball that ranged from 92 to 97 on the radar
gun. Dinged only by Clark's homer in the fifth, Schilling stranded runners at second and third in the second by blowing a third- strike splitter past Clark. He left a runner at third by getting Jorge Posada to bounce a splitter into a double play to end the fourth. And he used his splitter
to get Clark to bounce to first in the sixth and leave the bases loaded.
Not that Foulke is chopped liver. Though he surrendered his first run of the season on Jeter's ninth-inning single, Foulke nailed down the victory despite pitching in his third game in as many days. He went 1 1/3 innings Thursday against the Orioles, one inning Friday
against the Yankees, and one inning again yesterday. How much is too much for Foulke, who leads the pen with nine innings pitched over seven appearances in the first 10 games? For the second straight game, Francona sent Foulke into a non- save situation, with the Sox leading by four
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