G102: Red Sox 4, Mariners 2

Red Sox  - 100 300 000 - 4  9  0
Mariners - 000 000 020 - 2  5  0

Drew donged in the opening frame and Dice (7.1-5-2-3-6, 99) mowed down the Mariners in the first seven innings, moving the Red Sox to only 0.5 GB the Rays in the East.

A bunt single from Ellsbury and a line drive down the left field line from Pedroia started the Boston fifth. Drew made it 2-0 with a sac fly to right. Manny singled and Lowell doubled home FY. After Yook walked, Lowrie lofted a sac fly of his own -- 4-0 Sox.

Matsuzaka ran into trouble to start the eighth -- a single from Lahair (his 1st MLB hit), a one-out RBI double from Ichiro (snapping Dice's string of 24.2 consecutive scoreless innings) and a run-scoring single from Lopez -- but Okajima got out of trouble and Bot pitched a perfect ninth.

Oakland whipped Tampa Bay 8-1 and the Yankees (now 3.5 GB) took care of the Twins 8-2.

***

Daisuke Matsuzaka (2.65, 164 ERA+) / R. A. Dickey (3.73, 106 ERA+)

In seven road starts -- only 37.2 innings, though -- Dice's ERA is 2.15. Opponents are hitting .152 and slugging .220.

In his three July starts, Matsuzaka has allowed only one run in 18.1 innings (though he has allowed 12 hits and 13 walks). Opponents, while hitting only .188 this month, have a .342 on-base percentage.

Matsuzaka has a lower ERA in his five no-decisions (1.59) than he does in his ten wins (2.14).

Dice's opponents' OBP: After 0-1 count: .255. After 1-0 count: .409.

Matsuzaka is at his best in high leverage situations:

          PA   AVG   OBP   SLG
High      61  .096  .213  .096
Medium   210  .207  .332  .310
Low      115  .253  .383  .432

Which explains (somewhat) why he can have a 1.38 WHIP and a 2.65 ERA.

Also: Twins/Yankees and Athletics/Rays, both at 7 PM