G40: Red Sox 8, Blue Jays 3

Blue Jays - 000 000 210 - 3 14  0
Red Sox   - 002 060 00x - 8 15  0

The Red Sox battered Cecil with a four-dong fifth, with home runs from Jason Varitek (his second of the night), David Ortiz, Jason Bay and Mike Lowell.

The big man slammed a 1-1 fastball into the camera well in dead center field. (He also doubled off The Wall in the eighth.) It increased the Red Sox's lead from 3-1 to 5-1 and sent Fenway into a frenzy. After Kevin Youkilis (3-for-5) singled to left, Bay hit a bomb over everything in left and Dr. Doubles followed him with a shot into the Monster Seats.

Penny (6.2-9-2-1-2, 96) pitched well, but wilted in the seventh. ... Jacoby Ellsbury set a new Red Sox record (and tied the major league mark) for most putouts by an outfielder with 12 catches. By inning: 222 212 001.

***

Brett Cecil (1.80, 254 ERA+) / Brad Penny (6.69, 74 ERA+)

Cecil is a rookie lefty who turns 23 in July. He has made three starts for the Jays -- facing Cleveland, the Athletics and the White Sox this month -- pitching at least six innings every time out. Totals: 20 innings, 17 hits, 4 walks, 15 strikeouts.

BP 2009 describes Cecil, a 2007 supplemental-round pick, as a "big lefty with low-90s velocity, a plus slider, and a decent changeup ... projects as a mid-rotation horse".

Penny has also gone at least six innings in each of his last three starts, though he has had less success (18.2-21-5-14) than Cecil.

***

Terry Francona talked a lot about David Ortiz on WEEI today. Extra Bases has lengthy quotes. One quote, in response to whether Ortiz could be finished as a hitter, Tito said:

No, I don't feel that way. You can go back and go a long way, because I've done some research, and look at Yaz. He had some injuries, and he went, what, 56 games one year. It was a pretty good dry spell, and he had what, 10 years in the major leagues and everyone thought he was done. I mean, everyone thought Pedroia was done before he got started. ...

Research? Does Tito have a B-Ref subscription?

Yaz did not hit a home run in his first 57 games in 1972. That drought lasted until July 22! Yet what Tito may not know is that, when combined with a homer-less streak to end the previous season, Yaz actually went 72 games without a home run -- from September 4, 1971 to July 21, 1972.

That link shows all of his HR-less streaks, including a 43-gamer in 1976: July 10 to August 22 (my first game at Fenway!).