|
 |
|
WILL MIDDLEBROOKS |
BOSTON STRONG -
THE ROAD TO REDEMPTION
Will Middlebrooks sparks a
ninth inning comeback as the
Sox edge the Rays, 4-3
May 16, 2013 ...
One strike away from defeat, the Red Sox instead pulled off perhaps their most dramatic victory of the season. Will Middlebrooks was pinned in a 1-2 count from Rays closer Fernando Rodney, who had just thrown him a 100-mph fastball for a ball.
His team down two runs with two outs in the top of the ninth, Middlebrooks somehow stayed back on an 85-mph changeup and hammered it into the gap in left-center for a three-run double that led the Red Sox to a 4-3 victory in the rubber match of a three-game series.
When the inning started, the Rays held a 3-1 lead. But Fernando Rodney opened the ninth by walking Dustin Pedroia and David Ortiz. He struck out Mike Napoli, then walked Daniel Nava to load them up. Rays pitching coach Jim Hickey came out to settle Rodney down and it
worked initially, as the righty struck out Stephen Drew on three pitches. But he couldn't put away Middlebrooks, even after starting him 0-2. If Rays left fielder Matt Joyce had been able to cut off the gapper, it likely would have only tied the game. But the ball skidded past
him and rolled all the way to the wall, enabling Nava to score from first.
Junichi Tazawa, who came on to pitch the eighth, finished off the win in the ninth.
Starter Felix Doubront struggled with pitch efficiency and command, but this performance represented a step forward from his recent struggles. Doubront pitched five-plus innings, allowing three hits and two runs. He walked a season-high six and struck out seven,
throwing 104 pitches.
In Double AA Portland, Daniel Bard walked five of the nine batters he faced and threw two wild pitches. Only eight of his 30 pitches were strikes. Andrew Bailey is scheduled to pitch an inning for Triple A Pawtucket at McCoy Stadium after throwing 15 pitches in
a simulated game. It was the worst-case scenario for righthander Joel Hanrahan, who went in for surgery by Dr. James Andrews. In addition to flexor tendon surgery, Hanrahan required Tommy John reconstruction surgery to repair a torn ulna collateral ligament in his elbow.
Former Boston College and Patriots quarterback Doug Flutie was at the game, wearing a Sox jersey. There was a heartwarming moment before the game. The Rays had 9-year-old Alayna Adams of Dunedin throw out the first pitch with her mother, Dana, also on the
mound. The catcher proved to be Army Lieutenant Colonel William Adams, home after a one-year deployment to Afghanistan. William Adams had on a Rays uniform with full catcher's gear and surprised his family. His wife and daughter ran to the plate to hug him. The crowd then gave the family
a standing ovation. |
.jpg)
