The Sox blow their chances
August 31, 2007
...
For an instant, the ball that blasted off Miguel Tejada's bat found
its way into the glove of Coco Crisp, who had raced to the depths of
center field to make the play. But once Crisp ran full speed into the
wall, the ball squirted from his glove, giving the Baltimore cleanup
hitter the double that had been nearly plucked away by the Red Sox
center fielder.
The center
fielder couldn't come out of the game, given the unavailability of Manny Ramirez
(strained left oblique) and the early departure of J.D. Drew (right foot
contusion). The Thumping felt much like the beating the sinking and stinking
Orioles, losers of their last nine games before tonight, handed the stumbling
Sox.
Baltimore
was supposed to be the perfect punching bag for the down-and-out-in-New York
Sox. Instead, it was Baltimore that threw most of the punches, scoring four runs
in the fourth and five in the sixth for a 9-3 lead. Their toxic bullpen nearly
gagged up the advantage, but closer Danys Baez got Jason Varitek to ground into
a double play in the ninth, sticking the limping Sox with a 9-8 loss.
Boston has
lost four straight games, a blemish made less painful by the 9-1 bludgeoning the
Devil Rays laid upon the Yankees last night. The Sox still hold a five-game
American League East lead over New York.
Tim
Wakefield, battling a creaky back this week, was a late scratch, and the Sox are
hopeful the 16-game winner can make his next start. But his back never loosened
yesterday afternoon, forcing Julian Tavarez into action. Tavarez, originally
slated to pitch tonight (rookie Clay Buchholz will take the mound instead),
breezed through the first three innings by allowing only two hits while throwing
38 pitches. But Tavarez couldn't escape the fourth as the Orioles struck four
times, swiping a lead they wouldn't give up despite the best efforts of the
battered Boston lineup (15 hits against six pitchers). Drew, leading off the
second, fouled a pitch off the top of his right foot, forcing Bobby Kielty, who
was suffering from back spasms, to replace him in right field the following
inning.
Kevin
Youkilis was hit by pitches twice, by starter Radhames Liz and reliever Chad
Bradford. And then there was Crisp, who completed the game (and made a terrific
catch in the ninth) despite his run-in with the wall. Incredibly, the Sox had
their chances to produce even more runs. But in four of the final six innings,
including the eighth and ninth, Boston grounded into double plays to let
Baltimore pitchers escape major damage.
On the other
side, the Baltimore bats took advantage of two shaky innings by Tavarez and Mike
Timlin, who made his 1,000th career appearance. Down, 2-0, in the top of the
fourth (David Ortiz cranked a solo shot in the first and Eric Hinske cracked an
RBI double in the second), the Orioles' first eight batters reached base, two
via fielder's choices.
By the time
left fielder Jay Payton, Baltimore's seventh batter of the inning, made his way
to first, four base runners had crossed home plate and Tavarez's night was
finished. Tejada struck the biggest blow, pulling a 1-and-1 sinking fastball
that stayed up in the zone into the Monster seats for a two-run homer. The
Orioles, who batted around that inning, also sent nine batters to the plate in
the sixth. After designated hitter Aubrey Huff led off with a single off Javier
Lopez, Timlin trotted in from the bullpen, becoming the 13th pitcher to reach
the 1,000-game milestone.
Timlin heard
cheers during his bullpen-to-mound commute, but was booed when he retreated to
the dugout later in the inning. The righthander gave up four hits and four
earned runs in two-thirds of an inning, none bigger than a bleacher bomb by
right fielder Nick Markakis, who jumped on a meaty 1-and-2 changeup to drive in
three runs. And not even eight Boston hits in the final three innings could
close such a gap.
The
most-watched oblique muscle in town was put under examination yesterday, and the
results seem to be positive. Manny Ramirez, out since Tuesday because of a
strained left oblique, underwent an MRI to determine the severity of the injury.
Ramirez did not play last night against Baltimore and will not play tonight.
Ramirez, who sat out the last two games of the series against the Yankees, was
at Fenway Park today. He did not take batting practice but was wearing his
standard workout gear in the clubhouse. Ramirez had a heavy bandage taped around
his midsection.
