Thursday, April 17, 2014
Red Sox Win, 77-76 (Or Something LIke That)
Each ace had a no-hitter thru 5 tonight. Xander broke up theirs with a dong in the 6th, but the White Sox broke up Lester's too. A single followed by a double-that-Don-called-a-homer tied it at one. And we stayed 1-1 until the 9th. (In the 7th we threw the go-ahead run out at the plate, perfect relay by Pedroia. I've been hearing people say how his relay throws are an underrated part of his game, much like Michael Anthony's back-up vocal work with Van Halen.) Napoli got the slow-roller type of Jeter-hit, then Carp got the inside-out swing type of Jeter hit. Then World Series JMVP David Ross hit one down the right field line for a go-ahead double.
After an intentional walk to Nava, the Red Sox made a sneaky move, pinch-running Sizemore for Carp at third. Sure enough, a safety* squeeze was on, and Herrera dropped down a beauty, run scores. Don't remember Sizemore pinch-running? That's because NESN didn't tell us about it! We all found out he was on base when he was crossing home plate. Even on the post-game, they made no mention of it. I rewound to see when exactly he came in. It wasn't after Carp got on base, because we saw Carp run first to third on the double. Then there was the walk, then a pitching change. If you look closely on the wide-shot of the field after the commercial, you can see the runner on third stretching his legs. That's Sizemore, just in.
So that gave us a two-run lead, and Koji came in and saved it. We take 2 of 3 in Chicago. I love our pitching this season. I think the numbers were something like a 3.40 starter ERA and a low-1's relief ERA in this 7-game road trip. The hitting has been hazy but you know how it is with summer heat and bats coming alive. We're good. Three games out of first, a game out of second, with a hundred and forty-something games to play.
*Not a true safety squeeze, since the bases were loaded. The runner has to make sure the bunt is on the ground, but at that point, it turns into a suicide squeeze, because he has to bolt for home with the force in effect. There's no wait-and-see once the ball is on the ground. NESN misses another chance to explain interesting aspects of baseball. I guess that's what I'm here for. Except they get paid and I don't.
After an intentional walk to Nava, the Red Sox made a sneaky move, pinch-running Sizemore for Carp at third. Sure enough, a safety* squeeze was on, and Herrera dropped down a beauty, run scores. Don't remember Sizemore pinch-running? That's because NESN didn't tell us about it! We all found out he was on base when he was crossing home plate. Even on the post-game, they made no mention of it. I rewound to see when exactly he came in. It wasn't after Carp got on base, because we saw Carp run first to third on the double. Then there was the walk, then a pitching change. If you look closely on the wide-shot of the field after the commercial, you can see the runner on third stretching his legs. That's Sizemore, just in.
So that gave us a two-run lead, and Koji came in and saved it. We take 2 of 3 in Chicago. I love our pitching this season. I think the numbers were something like a 3.40 starter ERA and a low-1's relief ERA in this 7-game road trip. The hitting has been hazy but you know how it is with summer heat and bats coming alive. We're good. Three games out of first, a game out of second, with a hundred and forty-something games to play.
*Not a true safety squeeze, since the bases were loaded. The runner has to make sure the bunt is on the ground, but at that point, it turns into a suicide squeeze, because he has to bolt for home with the force in effect. There's no wait-and-see once the ball is on the ground. NESN misses another chance to explain interesting aspects of baseball. I guess that's what I'm here for. Except they get paid and I don't.
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