G89: Red Sox 6, Yankees 4

Red Sox - 003 030 000 - 6 12  0
Yankees - 300 000 001 - 4  6  1

Mike Lowell's three-run home run in the fifth broke a 3-3 tie and carried the Red Sox through a 88-minute rain delay and a win in the second game of the MFY series. The first trio of Boston runs scored in the third on Lowell's sac fly and Kevin Youkilis's triple.

You must see highlights of Yook's triple (here). It was hit to deep left and Johnny Damon raced back. He leapt at the wall, had the ball hit in and then pop out of his glove. As Damon fell to the warning track, the ball bounced a couple of times on the top of the outfield fence, and stayed balanced on top before falling and rolling several feet away from Damon. Game pictures here (and here), including this one:

The bullpen snuffed out two rallies. In the seventh, Hideki Ojakima left the bases loaded with two outs for Manny Delcarmen, who got Alex Rodriguez to hit into a force play. Then, in the eighth, after MDC walked Jason Giambi and retired Jorge Posada on a fly out, Javier Lopez came in and ended the inning with one pitch -- a double play grounder from (Whatta ya know!) Robbie Cano.

Beckett (6-4-3-2-4, 102) had a rough first inning -- two doubles and a walk among the first four batters -- but settled down, retiring the side in the second and third on 20 total pitches. A fantastic running-and-sliding catch into foul territory from Jacoby Ellsbury saved Beckett's bacon in the fourth, when he left the bases loaded.

In the two games of the series, New York is 2-for-24 with runners on base. It should be 1-for-23, but Derek Jeter was credited with a double although his fly ball to left-center was clearly caught by Coco Crisp. That should have ended the game, but it brought Bobby Abreu to the plate as the potential tying run.

Abreu flew to deep center (truping however many Yankee fans remained) to end the game (again). Give Jonathan Papelbon an asterik for a one-inning, five-out save. He had struck out Brett Gardner -- the batter before Jeter -- for what should have been the third out, but Gardner was awarded a walk instead.

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Rain delay (tarp out at 4:20) in the top of the 8th!
Lugo on first and none out against Farnsworth.

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Josh Beckett (3.65, 117 ERA+) / Darrell Rasner (4.42, 91 ERA+)

Dear Red Sox:

Today is George Steinbrenner's 78th birthday. Ruin it.

Thanking you in advance ...

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Also: Royals at Rays, 5 PM