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“DIARY OF A WINNER”
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BOSTON STRONG - August 13, 2013 ... Time and again, manager John Farrell's team has proved to be resilient, and it happened again in tonight's 4-2, 11-inning victory over the Blue Jays. Shane Victorino ripped a two-run single up the middle with two outs in the top of the 11th for another Sox comeback. Late-inning success stories such as this one are as big a reason as any for the Red Sox being in such a good spot heading down the stretch. Of the team's 72 victories, 19 have been registered in the last at-bat. Victorino is hitting .287 but with less than expected power because of the leg injury. But tonight was an example of how he is still able to contribute. Jarrod Saltalamacchia (walk) and Will Middlebrooks (single) set the table for Victorino, who has had his share of big hits in the late innings. Earlier in the night, Victorino made a big play on defense, firing a strike from right field to nail Jose Reyes on a single by Edwin Encarnacion. In this one, defense also played a big role. Napoli shook off his 0-for-5 performance at the plate by making a tumbling catch in foul territory to open the 11th. And Middlebrooks, playing his third game since his return from the Minors, made a diving stop on a grounder by Jose Bautista for the second out. Koji Uehara, the third reliever deployed by Farrell, came up aces again to pick up the win, lowering his ERA to 1.32. Uehara retired all four batters he faced, and with his 55th appearance of the season, his $4.25 million option for 2014 was vested. Uehara has not allowed a run in his last 17 1/3 innings. David Ortiz gave the Sox a chance to pull back in front in the top of the 10th when he lined a double off the wall in right. But Jonny Gomes grounded out and Napoli struck out looking. That made Napoli 5-for-37 in August. After struggling in recent weeks, Ryan Dempster was strikingly efficient in this one, throwing 88 pitches over seven innings. The veteran righty gave up four hits and a run, walking two and striking out four. Dempster left with a 2-1 lead, in position to get his second win since June 25. Farrell opted to go to Tazawa in the eighth and that backfired instantly. J.P. Arencibia, the first batter Tazawa faced, worked the count to 3-1 and ripped a fastball over the wall in left for a game-tying solo homer. In seven games against the Jays this season, Tazawa has a 9.00 ERA and has given up five homers. Dempster had a one-hit shutout through four. Brett Lawrie gave the Jays some life in the fifth with a one-out double. With two outs, Arencibia came through with an RBI single to left to break the scoreless tie. Early on, it looked like Dempster could be in line for a tough-luck loss. With the bases loaded and one out in the top of the sixth, Napoli struck out looking and Stephen Drew flew out to center, keeping the Sox in a 1-0 hole. But the bats got untracked in the seventh. Middlebrooks got it started with an opposite-field double off the wall in right. Jacoby Ellsbury followed with a game-tying RBI single to right. With two outs, Dustin Pedroia belted an RBI single through the hole on the right side and just out of the reach of second baseman Maicer Izturis, giving the Sox their first lead of the night at 2-1. In August, Pedroia is 8-for-17 with runners in scoring position. Middlebrooks is 5 for 12 with two RBIs and three runs scored since returning from Triple A Pawtucket. The Sox have won two of those games. Backup catcher David Ross continued his rehabilitation assignment with Triple A Pawtucket, going 0 for 3 in five innings of work. He remains on track to rejoin the team in San Francisco. Lefthanded reliever Matt Thornton is coming back quicker than expected from a strained rib cage muscle on his left side. He has started throwing and could return when he is eligible to be activated Aug. 19. Clay Buchholz threw briefly in the bullpen before the game, mainly to smooth out some mechanical issues. He is scheduled for a longer bullpen session on Wednesday that will include some simulated innings. If that goes well, the next step would be pitching a simulated game later in the week. |
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