G128: Red Sox 8, Blue Jays 4

Red Sox   - 100 410 020 - 8 11  0
Blue Jays - 200 200 000 - 4  8  0

Byrd (6-6-4-2-4, 86) hung in there, despite allowing two two-run home runs and not recording a 1-2-3 inning. With two outs in the sixth, he allowed a single and a walk -- putting the tying runs on base -- but got Zaun to ground out to second.

Pedroia hit a bomb to left in the first and the first five Sox reached base in the fourth. Bay singled, Lowrie walked, Varitek walked, Cora was HBP, and Crisp singled. Ellsbury's grounder scored a run, as did FY's sac fly (it also ended Marcum's evening).

Varitek hit a solo home run to start the sixth and was HBP and scored in the eighth. He reached base in four of his five plate appearances and scored three runs. ... Crisp singled three times from the #9 spot. ... Okajima pitched a clean eighth.

Elsewhere: Tampa Bay beat Chicago 9-4, Minnesota beat Los Angeles 9-0, and New York beat Baltimore 9-4.

***
Paul Byrd (4.55, 96 ERA+) / Shawn Marcum (3.36, 126 ERA+)

Byrd makes his third straight start against Toronto.

              IP    H  R ER BB  K  PIT
0809 at Tor   9     6  2  2  0  2   94
0816 vs Tor   7.1  10  4  4  0  0   96
0822 at Tor   ?

Marcum's last start was against the Red Sox -- last Sunday (5-5-1-4-4, 95).

The Red Sox have lost their last six games at Skydome. We need at least two wins in these three games.

Also: Yankees/Orioles (7 PM), Rays/White Sox (8 PM) and Twins/Angels (10 PM)

East 
Rays       77  49  .611   ---
Red Sox    73  54  .575   4.5
Yankees    67  60  .528  10.5 
Blue Jays  66  61  .520  11.5 
Orioles    61  65  .484  16.0
 
Wild Card
Red Sox    73  54  .575   --- 
Twins      73  54  .575   --- 
Yankees    67  60  .528   6.0
Blue Jays  66  61  .520   7.0