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SWEPT AWAY BY A "RALLY MONKEY" ...
The Sox
sweep the Twins behind Tim Wakefield
April 22, 2009 ...
Behind a second straight complete game by Tim Wakefield (in a
rain-shortened seven innings) and a lively offense in which seemingly
no one is struggling, the Sox smashed through the Twins in a one-day,
two-game series sweep that gave manager Terry Francona a nice 50th
birthday present to take into today's day off. It was a 10-1 win in
Game 1, a 7-3 win in Game 2, and a seven-game winning streak.
Those
worries about the Sox? They are quickly dissipating. So to all those who
questioned the Red Sox' decision to bring back Wakefield for a 15th season, the
knuckleballer answered again in the first game of the doubleheader. His success
might not last beyond his next start. It might last all season. But over his
last two starts, he has quelled the skepticism over the decision to put him back
in a rotation that looked stacked before the season. Seven no-hit innings? Done.
A five-hit, one-run, seven-inning start? Done. Two straight complete games? Done
and done.
With 18
innings on the docket, pitching coach John Farrell had emphasized the night
before just how important it was for Wakefield to pitch deep into Game 1. And so
he did.
The starting
pitching also is displaying the form expected at the beginning of the season.
Six of the seven wins on the current streak have gone to starters, including
Brad Penny in Game 2. Though Penny might not have wowed in the same way
Wakefield did, he turned in a solid six innings in which he gave up two earned
runs and six hits. Francona praised his fastball command and the use of his
breaking ball.
And though
the offense wasn't nearly as overwhelming in Game 2 (five hits) as it was in
Game 1 (14 hits), it was efficient. The Sox scored all seven runs in the
nightcap in the first four innings against starter Francisco Liriano, the big
blast a three-run homer into the Monster seats by Jeff Bailey in his first
at-bat of the season. Three two-run homers in the first three innings of Game 1
by Youkilis, Nick Green, and Mike Lowell, gave the Sox all they needed.
But that
game had an odd ending, too, because there could have been more. The Sox had
four runs in and two players in scoring position with one out in the seventh
with Jacoby Ellsbury at bat when the game went into a rain delay. So with a
second game on tap, the opener was called after a 1-hour-25-minute delay. Not
exactly the norm. (The second game was delayed 47 minutes at the start.)
As the first
game began, fans barely filled one in every three seats at Fenway Park. It was a
late-arriving crowd, and an early-departing one. Even those hardy fans who stuck
it out through nearly 25 minutes of rain headed for the exits when the tarp was
first placed on the field at 2:45 p.m.
The Sox
started the seventh with a near homer by Ortiz, then followed with three
consecutive walks, an RBI single by Lowell, a sacrifice fly by George Kottaras,
and then a two-run double by Green that stood as the final play of the game. The
Sox have scored 55 runs during their seven-game win streak, and 29 over the last
three games.
That left
Ortiz, who had three hits in two games, all going to left field, with a message
for those who weren't sure about him or the Sox' offense during the slow start.
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