April 19, 2009

G12: Red Sox 2, Orioles 1

Orioles - 000 000 001 - 1  6  0
Red Sox - 010 010 00x - 2 6 0
Lester pitched seven shutout innings, allowing four hits and two walks while striking out nine.

Kevin Youkilis got the Sox offense going with a leadoff double in the second. He scored two outs later on Mike Lowell's single to right. In the fifth, Nick Green doubled and scored on Dustin Pedroia's single.

Since Jonathan Papelbon had worked Friday and Saturday, Takashi Saito was called in for the ninth, after Ramon Ramirez retired the Orioles in order in the eighth. It was the second consecutive day of work for Saito, something Terry Francona said he was determined not to do.

Saito allowed singles to Nick Markakis and Aubrey Huff to begin the inning. Ty Wigginton's groundout to third scored Markakis, cutting the lead to 2-1. With the tying run at second, Saito got Luke Scott to line out to right and then struck out pinch-hitter Gregg Zaun.

***

Koji Uehara (7.20, 72 ERA+) / Jon Lester (9.00, 58 ERA+)

Uehara, a 34-year-old right-hander, pitched for 10 years in Japan before signing with the Orioles as a free agent. In two starts, against the Rangers and Yankees, he has a combined 10-12-8-5-3 line. ... Which is actually better than Lester's 11-18-11-2-10 showing so far.

Uehara, on Fenway Park:
I know it's a very historic venue. The Green Monster itself is really famous in Japan, but obviously I've only seen it on television. ... Maybe Ortiz is bigger.

87 comments:

allan said...

Beckett's suspension is knocked down to 5 games -- a moot point, since it's still one start. The Red Sox want him to accept it, so he will:

"Everybody has to answer to somebody, and my boss told me this was the best thing for the ball club. If it was up to me, obviously, we would have gone through with this whole thing, because I don't think I deserve even one game. When your boss tells you that something is best for the whole group, that's what we do."

***

Jacoby Ellsbury, CF
Dustin Pedroia, 2B
David Ortiz, DH
Kevin Youkilis, 1B
J.D. Drew, RF
Jason Bay, LF
Mike Lowell, 3B
George Kottaras, C
Nick Green, SS

Brian Roberts, 2B
Adam Jones, CF
Nick Markakis, RF
Aubrey Huff, 1B
Ty Wigginton, 3B
Luke Scott, DH
Ryan Freel, LF
Chad Moeller, C
Robert Andino, SS

allan said...

Tito: "I don't think that the organization felt like it was ever going to get lessened more than five ... because they want you to miss a start."

The Red Sox agree with Beckett that the entire thing is bullshit.

allan said...

Yanks facing Pavano.

Dear Carl: Please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, pitch like an ace!!!

andy said...

God bless him but Damon sucks in the outfield now. He was not running hard at all for that shallow fly and he had a better view then the infielder that was running out looking over his wrong shoulder with his back to the ball. There are many holes in this team's defense. What is Wang's ERA now. It was 20 something before the game. Wow just wow. I thought Lester had it bad.

Unknown said...

Good way to start.

Unknown said...

Not quite foul enough...

Unknown said...

Thanks for the free out, Ty.

Benjamin said...

Youk!

allan said...

yook = the man

Unknown said...

YOUK!

allan said...

i don't expect to watch much of this one, except in little bits here and there. maybe i'll watch the archived game late tonight.

Unknown said...

3-0 Spiders

allan said...

go spiders!

Unknown said...

Lowell delivers.

Benjamin said...

Remy re morning baseball: "The only good news is it's over early."

Can I have your job?

Edward Lee said...

I like this Kottaras kid's tactic of not standing up for the high fastball.

Benjamin said...

I like *this* Jon Lester better than the last couple we've seen. Can we keep him?

Benjamin said...

That wasn't that much worse than the trap Youk got doubled up on a few games ago.

Benjamin said...

Bleh.

Benjamin said...

Laura's boy.

Unknown said...

Lyndon starting to look better at the plate.

Come on FY, drive him in.

charlie pioli said...

Every homer that goes out of the new Yankee Stadium now, there will be speculation if it's because of how the park was built. Of how the dimensions in right field are to shallow. I love it!
The Yankees are questioning their 1.5 billion stadium after 4 games!

Unknown said...

Wasted opportunity...

Edward Lee said...

Not a good sign that Ortiz can't hit Uehara's flat, 88mph fastball.

Unknown said...

Frozen.

Unknown said...

"Not a good sign that Ortiz can't hit Uehara's flat, 88mph fastball."

Yeah, not exactly encouraging.

Benjamin said...

The Yankees are questioning their 1.5 billion stadium after 4 games!

Also the exhibition games they had there in the pre-season. It's hard to judge weather-related effects in just a couple months, but there've been crazy amounts of home runs hit there in so few innings.

andy said...

That left to right pitch he throws is filthy dirty.

Unknown said...

OTT

Lester on the Fuck Train.

Unknown said...

Can we keep Green as the starting shortstop after Lugo comes back?

Unknown said...

Fuck Yeah!

Unknown said...

Pavano escapes the bases-loaded jam, still 3-1 Spiders.

And Papi Ks again...

Unknown said...

Very big K.

Unknown said...

Pitch count rising.

Unknown said...

Another big K.

Unknown said...

Nicely done.

Spiders with runners on 1st and 3rd, 1 out.

Unknown said...

Lester is looking sharp, I'm liking this...

Unknown said...

Spiders load the bases on walks.

Burnett out, still 3-1.

Unknown said...

Lester back out for the 7th.

Wigginton single.

Unknown said...

Ram-Ram warming, Spiders fail to score.

Amy said...

Quiet thread here. It is perhaps way too nice out to stay in and watch baseball. I just came inside myself.

Benjamin said...

Yeah, it's really beautiful out there.

Amy said...

A real bonus day, since they predicted rain for today.

Two away. Looks like Lester has been Lester today.

Unknown said...

And we're through 7.

Unknown said...

Indians are fucking it up.

4-2 MFY

Unknown said...

Might be fan interference on the Posada ball...

Unknown said...

Clean inning by Ramirez.

Unknown said...

MFY's get the call to go their way.

allan said...

Pavano: 6-4-1-1-4

Unknown said...

4-3 MFY, not 4-2. Can't count today.

allan said...

Jays shutout A's 1-0 -- are now 10-4.

Unknown said...

Lyndon single leading off the inning.

Unknown said...

FY GIDP...

Amy said...

Who will pitch the ninth? Papelbon again? Wish we had a cushion, but not worrying.

Unknown said...

Papi 0-4...

Unknown said...

Saito in.

Amy said...

Saito. OK.

Amy said...

Oh, Shit.

Amy said...

Not a great start. Anyone else warm in the bullpen?

Benjamin said...

Meh.

Amy said...

Shit shit. COME ON. Who is this Saito guy? I know nothing of him.

Unknown said...

Saito, don't fuck this up.

allan said...

HEY -- what's going on?

Close that door!

Unknown said...

A K and a DP would be nice.

Or some infield popups.

allan said...

Saito put up amazing Bot-like numbers in the NL, but also was hurt last year.

Amy said...

Why not a triple play, Kevin?

Benjamin said...

Who is this Saito guy? I know nothing of him.

All-star closer for the Dodgers with elbow issues on a one-year contract for us.

Unknown said...

Bleh.

Shut the fucking door already.

Amy said...

Uh oh. Not feeling as unworried as I was a few minutes ago. Tying run in scoring position. And only one out.

Benjamin said...

There's one, at least.

Unknown said...

"Why not a triple play, Kevin?"

Not exactly easy to do with runners at first and third.

Benjamin said...

And #2

Unknown said...

One more to go.

Amy said...

Yeah, true, but one can dream, no?

Line drive caught by first baseman, runner who had been on first out, and then throw out the guy on 3B before he gets home.

Amy said...

One more strike to go!

Benjamin said...

Water!

Unknown said...

Water.

allan said...

Win.

Amy said...

Dirty water in Boston!

laura k said...

Quiet thread today. I thought I'd wait til everyone was done having heart attacks to say hi.

I was stuck in training at work today, being bored to death, until the 8th.

winning several games in a row > almost anything

allan said...

6-6. If the MFY lose, we jump into 3rd.

allan said...

Tied for 2nd, actually.

Benjamin said...

Spiders won't let that happen.

Benjamin said...

And they didn't. MFYs win.

9casey said...

I love the headline at redsox.com Vintage Lester brilliant against Orioles


"Vintage" like all the way back to 2008.

He was great though.....

This was also baffling on beautiful day in the Bronx:
Att: 43,068.

Total Seating Capacity
52,325

That's a joke...The expensive seats are just not selling...the upper deck and the bleachers looked filled, but to turn on the game and see behind home plate empty must be embarassing

Jere said...

You all were right--it was a great day to be outside--but being in the sun helped. We took a risk and sat in the good seats by third, and made it through the whole game there, even though the place was packed. Great win.

9casey: Yeah, it seems like the norm at YS is that bleachers and upper deck are filled, but empties reign in the main level and especially the "between the dugouts" first 9 rows, as we all pretty much expected.

Jere said...

Didn't get talked about in detail here, but I checked out the controversial HR by Posada (tipped off my an email my mom sent me: "too bad the Yanks cheated to win"), and I'll just say this: Remember how they stepped up security after the Maier play? Because there was that walkway right behind the wall--had people been in their seats, they wouldn't have been able to interfere. So with all this talk of controversial HRs and replays, why didn't they attempt to avoid possible interference when they built the new park??