BOSTON STRONG -
THE ROAD TO REDEMPTION
 2013 ALDS, GAME #4
The Sox win the ALDS

October 8, 2013 ... In a gritty performance all the way around, the Red Sox dispatched the pesky Tampa Bay Rays, 3-1, in a tense Game 4 of the American League Division Series at Tropicana Field.

With nine outs to go, Boston was down 1-0 and faced the very real possibility of having to face Tampa Bay ace David Price in a winner-take-all Game 5 showdown.  The Red Sox easily dispatched of the Rays in the first two games of the best-of-five Division Series at Fenway Park. But the two games on the road were tense, nail-biting affairs.

John Farrell's team can rest up in advance of Game 1 of the ALCS. The opponent will either be the Tigers or the Athletics, who will play Game 5 of their ALDS in Oakland.

This is the first trip to the ALCS for Boston since 2008. With another four wins, the Red Sox can get back to the World Series for the first time since '07. It has been a surreal ride for a team that won 69 games a year ago, only to bounce back with 97 in the regular season, and then a 3-1 series victory against a solid Rays team.

The game turned in the top of the seventh, when the Sox at last put together the sustained rally they needed, albeit one that was of the small-ball variety.  Xander Bogaerts pinch-hit for Stephen Drew for his first career postseason plate appearance and reached with a walk against Jake McGee.  It became that thanks in large part to Jacoby Ellsbury. The leadoff man was marvelous in this series and belted a single to right-center, and Bogaerts raced to third.  Rays manager Joe Maddon, who made a flurry of pitching changes from the second inning on, went to right-hander Joel Peralta.  That's when things started happening for the Red Sox. Peralta's first offering was a wild pitch, and Bogaerts roared in with the tying run. Ellsbury was also off on the pitch, and he stole second and then scooted to third to put the go-ahead run 90 feet away.  Victorino hit a broken-bat dribbler to shortstop and beat Yunel Escobar's throw to first, scoring Ellsbury with the go-ahead run.

From there, Boston's bullpen took it home. The first man in was Craig Breslow, and he did a brilliant job, striking out James Loney to end the sixth and then whiffing the heart of the Rays' order in the seventh. Breslow retired another batter in the eighth and departed after giving up an infield single to Escobar.  Junichi Tazawa came on for just one batter, striking out pinch-hitter Matt Joyce.  Although Koji Uehara surrendered a walk-off homer to Jose Lobaton to end Game 3, Farrell went right back to his ace closer for the four-out save.  And this time, the righty, who has been brilliant nearly all season, came through.  Uehara fired a 1-2-3 ninth, striking out Longoria to end the series.
 

CRAIG BRESLOW, JUNICHI TAZAWA & KOJI UEHARA

Jake Peavy turned in a strong performance for the Red Sox, allowing five hits and a run over 5 2/3 innings. He walked none and struck out three while throwing 74 pitches.  The low pitch count indicated the urgency of the game.  Aside from one hiccup, Peavy was tremendous.

But by the time the game ended, the champagne that flowed around the clubhouse made it clear this was far more than just another game.

Former Rays and Red Sox outfielder Rocco Baldelli threw out the first pitch. The Rhode Island native now works for the Rays in their baseball operations department.  David Ortiz drove in three runs during the series. That gave him 50 postseason RBIs in his career. Only six players in history have reached that mark. Former Yankees outfielder Bernie Williams has the record with 80. Ortiz's former teammate, Manny Ramirez, is second with 78.  Jacoby Ellsbury was 9 of 18 in the Division Series with seven runs scored, two RBIs, four stolen bases and a walk. Over 26 career postseason games dating to 2007, Ellsbury is hitting .310 with a .795 OPS.  Shane Victorino was 6 for 14 in the series with two runs and three RBIs. He also was hit by a pitch four times, a Division Series record.

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