JASON VARITEK

THE "IDIOTS" REVERSE THE CURSE
Pedro breezes by Oakland
as the Red Sox sweep

September 8, 2004 ...  The streaking Sox all but did no wrong as they whipped A's bulldog Tim Hudson behind the latest mastery by Pedro Martinez to win their 20th game in 22 tries and complete a staggering three-game sweep, 8-3, before 39,575 at Network Associates Coliseum. With the victory, the Sox climbed within two games of the division-leading Yankees for the first time since June 2nd, a span of 85 games and a whole lot of tumult. The Sox also expanded their lead over the Angels in the wild card race to five games as they finished a defining nine-game stretch against the Angels, Rangers, and A's at 8-1.

Martinez (.715) and Hudson (.711) entered the game with the two highest career winning percentages among active pitchers, but Martinez turned the matchup into a laugher as he two-hit the A's over six scoreless innings to improve to 16-5 and remain in contention for the Cy Young Award with Curt Schilling, Minnesota's Johan Santana, and Oakland's Mark Mulder. It helped that the Sox staked him to a 3-0 lead after one inning and 7-0 cushion after three.

Even though Hudson had won his last four starts, he was no match for the Sox, who battered him for seven runs on six hits, five walks, and a hit batsman over three innings, his shortest start since Sept. 3, 2003 in Baltimore. He fired 38 pitches in a nightmarish first inning and 79 over his three-inning thrashing.

Every member of the starting lineup produced for the Sox, either knocking in or scoring at least one run, as they completed their first three-game sweep in Oakland since May 7-9, 2002. With the Sox in complete command after six innings, Francona pulled Martinez after 83 pitches and sent out Pedro Astacio for his debut in a Boston uniform. Astacio survived the seventh before he surrendered two runs in the eighth. Terry Adams allowed the final run in the ninth before Keith Foulke needed to rescue him from a bases-loaded mess.

The blowout also allowed Francona to return Pokey Reese to action at second base for the first time since July 19 and send Trot Nixon to play right field for the first time since July 24. Third baseman Kevin Youkilis also appeared as a defensive replacement, his first action since Aug. 15. And catcher Sandy Martinez made his Sox debut, striking out as a pinch hitter in the ninth.

Pedro Martinez, who won his 117th game for the Sox, tying Smoky Joe Wood for fifth place on the club's all-time list, extended his streak of scoreless innings to 16 as he lowered his ERA to 3.44. Martinez is 12-2 since May 22. He allowed only a one-out single to Marco Scutaro in the third inning and a leadoff double to Eric Byrnes in the sixth.  As for the pitching-rich A's, they dropped to 1-8 this year against the Sox as their staff posted an 8.00 ERA over the nine games, their highest against any team in a regular season since they logged an 8.58 ERA against Milwaukee in 1994.