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SWEPT AWAY BY A "RALLY MONKEY" ...
Jacoby Ellsbury steals a team record
August 25, 2009 ...
Along with Jacoby Ellsbury, who broke the team's season stolen base
record, Jason Bay, whose homer broke a 3-3 tie, did prompt a raucous
celebration from the 38,059 at Fenway Park, treated not only to a 6-3
Red Sox win, but a win full of intrigue and drama, miscues, and more
miscues.
The 0-2
Scott Linebrink breaking ball to Bay in the eighth. Two offspeed pitches, one a
called strike, one a foul, had set up the pitch. Bay took it out, the ball
heading to the top of the Monster seats, and sending the home team on its way
past the White Sox.
Bay can look
bad, striking out looking on pitches from Freddy Garcia in the second and fourth
innings. He grounded to third in the sixth. And then, just when it seemed his
night might be coming to a quiet close, one swing changed everything.
But a bit
earlier, in the White Sox' eighth, it had appeared that it might not be that
easy. Hideki Okajima dropped a Carlos Quentin pop to start the inning, showing
exactly why pitchers don't normally go for popups. Then catcher Victor Martinez
tossed the ball back to the mound with the next batter, Paul Konerko, at the
plate. But it sailed past the belatedly outstretched glove of Okajima, and
reached center field, and Quentin reached second base. Konerko singled to right,
giving the White Sox a prime chance. No outs, men on the corners. But Chicago
left them there, as Okajima got Jermaine Dye to pop to short and A.J. Pierzynski
to strike out. Manny Delcarmen came on and induced Alex Rios to pop to second.
Those
weren't the only wacky plays, with the White Sox getting two runs in the seventh
when, with two outs and men on second and third, Alexei Ramirez struck out.
Except the ball from Jon Lester bounced up and across the plate and got away
from Jason Varitek for a wild pitch, with Konerko scoring. Then Chicago took a
3-2 lead on an RBI single by Jayson Nix on a ball that went in and out of the
glove of Mike Lowell. That would be it for the White Sox.
The Red Sox
tied it in the bottom of the seventh. With one out, Varitek doubled, then was
removed for pinch runner Nick Green. That brought up pinch hitter Martinez (for
Alex Gonzalez), and he singled to left, scoring Green. Martinez came through
again in the eighth after Bay's homer. He doubled to left, scoring Green, who
had singled. Martinez came across on an Ellsbury single.
Ellsbury
could only laugh as he asked reporters to wait while he took his first drug test
of the season. Drug testers were waiting for Ellsbury and a few other Sox
players who were randomly selected. Ellsbury said it was the first time he'd
been tested this season, but he didn't seem to mind after breaking Tommy
Harper's team record set in 1973. |
