CARLOS BAERGA

DUQUETTE PUSHES ALL THE RIGHT BUTTONS ...  1995 ALDS, GAME #3
The Sox get swept away, 1-2-3

October 6, 1995 ... The brush came out, used to color them with sweeping strokes. The Red Sox were emphatically sent packing from the American League playoffs by Charles Nagy and the Cleveland Indians in Game #3, dropping an 8-2 decision at Fenway Park that brought this inaugural Division Series to a close in the three-game minimum. The defeat stretched the Sox' record for ignominy to 13 straight postseason losses and it marked their third straight playoff sweep.

They entered the game with their collective backs against the wall and Jose Canseco's rather large 245-pound back against the right-field wall. So certain were the Indians that they would be returning to Cleveland immediately that they had checked out of their airport hotel, their bags packed and ready to leave on a jet plane.

The Sox were rubbed out in three in the maiden voyage of the best-of-five first round, the format Red Sox CEO John Harrington had spent almost two years devising. Little did he know it would come back to bite him. But the Sox had only themselves to blame. They had former University of Connecticut star Nagy on the ropes like Peter McNeeley vs. Mike Tyson, except their punches were empty and their swings hit only air.

Two on, two outs in the first. Runners at second and third, one out in the third. Bases loaded, two outs, one run in the fourth. Two on, one out in the fifth. One run -- until it was too late.

It was 3-1 after five, and Tim Wakefield looked as if he were finding himself again. But after a pair of 1-2-3 innings in the fourth and fifth, the Indians broke it open with two runs in the sixth on an RBI single by Paul Sorrento and an RBI double by Sandy Alomar.

Finally, Wakefield (5 1/3 innings, seven runs) and probably Boston's chances were gone. The damage continued against Rheal Cormier, who surrendered a two-run single to left to Omar Vizquel. Carlos Baerga promptly brought him home with a double, chasing the lefthander in favor of Mike Maddux.

His first pitch was a strike, and all of Red Sox Nation was making faces and sticking their tongues out at Tribe Nation. A first-pitch strike normally means Wakefield is on his game. He tends to gain momentum from that first pitch. So it was a good sign when Wakefield got that first offering over against Kenny Lofton.

The ball found new right fielder Canseco immediately. Lofton's fly sent Canseco backpedaling toward the wall, where the 245-pounder who is customarily a designated hitter made a theatrical catch as he smiled to teammates in the Sox bullpen. The next two batters went down quickly.

In the second, Wakefield struck out Albert Belle but then started to lose the strike zone. He threw six straight balls, walking Eddie Murray. He went 2-0 to Jim Thome, who was 1 for 10 in the series before he launched a 2-1 knuckler into the right-field stands, silencing The Nation.

Wakefield's woes continued in the third when he got two quick outs and then lost his control again. He allowed a two-out single to Carlos Baerga before throwing 11 pitches to Belle, who eventually took a walk. After the zillionth passed ball of the year by Macfarlane, Murray walked, followed by a Thome bases-loaded walk for his third RBI of the game. Then an overanxious Manny Ramirez swung at the first pitch and popped out in foul ground to Tim Naehring, taking the Indians out of a potentially big inning.

For its part, the Sox offense remained in its daunting slump. The Sox entered the game hitting .177, which wasn't much worse than the Tribe's .184 average. But Nagy appeared on his game, though he hadn't faced the Red Sox since late in the 1992 season.

He walked two batters in the first, but Vizquel saved the show when he ranged far behind second base after Canseco's grounder up the middle hit Nagy and changed direction. Vizquel's diving stop and flip to second got the force for the final out.

Trailing, 3-0, in the bottom of the third, the Sox had a major opportunity when Dwayne Hosey walked and advanced to third on John Valentin's double, which hit the wall after Belle's mistimed leap. Vaughn, who had lined out to third in his first at-bat, ran the count to 3-1 before he started swinging at air. He struck out -- not even close to making contact -- on a pitch low and away. Canseco followed with a line out to left field as the Sox wasted another great chance. For the series, Vaughn finished 0 for 14 with seven strikeouts while Canseco was 0 for 13.

The Sox ended a 14-inning playoff scoring drought in the fourth when Mike Macfarlane's bases-loaded sacrifice fly to center brought in Reggie Jefferson, who had started a singles brigade that was continued by Naehring and Luis Alicea, all of them up the middle. With two outs and runners on first and second, Dwayne Hosey hit a sharp grounder down the first base line on which Paul Sorrento made a diving stop and throw from the ground to Nagy covering. That ended what might have been a big Sox threat.