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A SEASON IN THE DRINK
(CHICKEN & BEER) ...
Another walk-off win
for the Red Sox
May 19, 2011 ...
The Sox pulled off their
fourth walk-off of the season in tonight's 4-3 victory over the
Tigers and their ace, Justin Verlander, who took a no-decision after
throwing 114 pitches over eight innings and allowing three runs on
six hits while recording nine strikeouts. The much-anticipated
pitchers' duel between Verlander and Josh Beckett, who departed after
the sixth inning with neck stiffness, was overshadowed by a dramatic
ninth inning that enabled the Sox to extend their winning streak to
six games and climb three games above .500 (23-20).
In the
top of the frame, Jonathan Papelbon exacted a bit of justice when he recorded
back-to-back strikeouts of Brennan Boesch and Miguel Cabrera, who had tied the
game at 3-3 in the eighth with back-to-back homers off Daniel Bard.
In the
bottom of the ninth, Carl Crawford came to the plate with one out and the bases
loaded and delivered a single to center off Al Alburquerque that scored pinch
runner Darnell McDonald.
The
Sox seemed to have the game in hand after Verlander gave up a solo homer to J.D.
Drew with two outs in the fourth that broke a 1-1 tie, and then David Ortiz's
mammoth leadoff shot over the Boston bullpen that gave the Sox a 3-1 lead in the
seventh. By then, Beckett was out of the game. With two starters on the disabled
list, manager Terry Francona took no chances and summoned Matt Albers to pitch
the seventh.
After
Albers threw a scoreless seventh, allowing one hit and striking out two, Bard
coughed up the lead when Boesch wrapped his homer around Pesky's Pole in right,
and Cabrera tied it with his blast into the Green Monster seats in left.
The
Sox were unable to generate a response in the bottom of the eighth against
Verlander, leaving Papelbon to hold the line in the ninth. After loading the
bases with one out on two singles and a walk, Papelbon struck out Boesch and
Cabrera. It set the stage for another walkoff win, and a second consecutive
one-run triumph over the Tigers.
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