G13: Red Sox 12, Orioles 1

Orioles - 001 000 000 -  1  5  1
Red Sox - 210 003 60x - 12 16  2

Four-game sweep! We win a high-scoring game (10-8), a "normal" game (6-4), a tight game (2-1) and a rout (12-1)!

Masterson (5.1-4-1-2-3, 84) pitched into the sixth and the pen turned in 3.2 shutout innings.

Boston got on the board right away as Ellsbury got a pop-up double down the left field line, stole third and scored on Pedroia's single. Pedroia -- 4-for-6, with 3 runs, 3 RBI -- scored on a fielder's choice. Varitek's home run to left in the second made it 3-0.

The Red Sox broke it open in the sixth as Varitek singled with one out. Then, with two gone, Ellsbury and Pedroia singled and Ortiz tripled (he also doubled, back in the first).

Baldelli left the game after third innings with a mild left hamstring strain.

Boston sent 12 men to the plate in the seventh as Radhames Liz and Matt Albers were given the Wang treatment. Bay walk, Lowell double, Varitek 5-3, Green HBP, Ellsbury single, Pedroia single, Ortiz HBP, Youkilis single, Carter F8-SAC, Bay single, Lowell single, Varitek K.

Lefty Hunter Jones made his major league debut in the ninth. Luke Scott grounded out to second. Gregg Zaun grounded out to third (and Yook made a tremendous scoop of Velazquez's low throw). Velazquez made a wild throw on Robert Andino's grounder for an error. Felix Pie put the cherry on top of this game by popping out to left.

***

Mark Hendrickson (3.00, 172 ERA+) / Justin Masterson (4.50, 117 ERA+)

With Daisuke Matsuzaka on the disabled list, Masterson, who threw 60 pitches over four innings last Tuesday in Oakland, gets the ball on Patriots Day. He thinks he'll be good for 75 pitches or 5-6 innings.

Jason Bay:

I played a 10 o'clock game in 'A' ball about seven years ago or something. There were like 3,000 elementary students. They bussed in for it. It will be a lot like that, I guess.

Dustin Pedroia:

It's going to be early. I usually wake up around that time.

In two starts this season, Hendrickson has allowed 10 runs in nine innings, but seven of the runs have been unearned.

I remember Hendrickson best for his Fenway Park cameo back on July 20, 2005. Laura and I were there celebrating our 20th anniversary of meeting. The 6-9 lefty faced only six batters: single, walk, single, double, walk, double. Boston grabbed six runs in the first inning and cruised to a 9-4 victory.

Hendrickson Against the Red Sox

           ERA    IP    H   BB    K
Career     8.56   62   95   26   24
@Fenway    8.42   31   49   14   15

Red Sox Batters vs Hendrickson

          GMS    AVG    OBP    SLG
Career     14   .351   .403   .539
@Fenway     8   .350   .409   .500

I guess what I'm trying to say is he ain't no good.

Yet the six players now on the Red Sox that have faced him -- David Ortiz, Jason Varitek, Rocco Baldelli, Kevin Youkilis, Jason Bay and Mike Lowell -- have not done well, hitting a combined .216/.280/.311.

Also: Seven of Boston's first 13 games have been played during the day. ... Red Sox bullpen ERA for the last five games? 0.86 (two runs in 21 innings).