|
BOSTON STRONG -
THE ROAD TO REDEMPTION
The Red Sox pound out eight
home runs against the Tigers
September 4, 2013 ...
The Red Sox belted a franchise-tying eight home runs as they routed the Tigers, 20-4, to take two of three games against the American League Central leaders at Fenway Park on Wednesday.
The last time the Sox went deep eight times was July 4, 1977, in a 9-6 win against the Blue Jays at Fenway Park. The Red Sox homered in six frames and scored in seven of the eight innings they went to bat. When it was done, they had 19 hits, collected four
walks and two hit-by-pitches. Only five of Boston's 25 baserunners failed to cross home plate.
When Stephen Drew wrapped a home run around Pesky's Pole in the second inning, the Sox took a 2-0 lead. Jacoby
Ellsbury homered the next inning to tie the game at 3. David Ortiz hit his 25th of the season in the fourth to tie the game at 4. Then it all came untied in the sixth.
With the bases loaded and no outs, Mike Carp pinch-hit for David Ross and drew a walk.
The blast that blew the hinges off the game came from Middlebrooks, who's been rejuvenated since being recalled a month ago. Middlebrooks was on deck when the Tigers went to a
pitching change, relieving starter Rick Porcello and bringing in Al Alburquerque. Middlebrooks walked
over to the bench and swapped notes with hitting coach Greg Colbrunn. After Alburquerque missed with his signature slider, Middlebrooks crushed a fastball for his second career grand slam to push the Red Sox's lead to 10-4.
After Middlebrooks homered, the game started to look more like a show-and-tell of one-sided talent. Nava homered later in the inning. Ryan Lavarnway smacked a ball off the top
of the left-field wall the next inning. Originally ruled a double, it was overturned by crew chief Jeff Kellogg and the Red Sox homer total moved to six. Five batters later, Ortiz ran into his second homer of the game, delivering a souvenir to fans in the
right-field bleachers. Mike Napoli led off the next inning with a homer to right field. It was the first time a Major League team hit eight homers in a game since the Blue
Jays did it in 2010.
|
|
|
 |
|
DAVID ORTIZ (2000 HITS) |
Ortiz hit two milestones in the game, passing Billy Williams for 47th all-time with 427 career homers on this blast, which came after he collected his 2,000th hit on a sixth-inning double. Ortiz went 3 for 5 with two homers and four RBIs.
Ryan Dempster pitched six innings of four-run ball to collect his eighth win of the season in perhaps his last start for the time being, with Clay Buchholz likely to return to the Red Sox
next week. But Dempster's sturdy start was an afterthought by the time the sixth inning was over.
The Sox have catapulted themselves into the best run differential (plus-154) in the Majors while delivering the 16th 20-run performance in franchise history.
Theo Epstein and the Chicago Cubs claimed Daniel Bard off waivers today. In 16 minor league appearances this season between Double A Portland, Single A Lowell, and the Gulf Coast League, Bard gave up 13 runs on 14 hits in 151/3 innings, walking 27 and
throwing 11 wild pitches.
Clay Buchholz's unofficial paternity leave lasted one day. He was able to see the birth of his second daughter, Colbi. |
.jpg)
