G39: Red Sox 9, Twins 4

Red Sox - 202 111 002 - 9 12  1
Twins   - 001 000 012 - 4 10  2

David Ortiz mashed Minnesota's pitching for the second straight night. On Tuesday, he collected four hits, including two home runs. Tonight, he crushed two more dongs (giving him 11 for the year), added a double, and scored three times.

No Red Sox player had hit two home runs in back-to-back games since Ortiz himself did it on July 4-5, 2003, at Yankee Stadium. (H/t to Gordon Edes.) Ortiz is now #3 on the all-time Red Sox HR list with 384, trailing only Ted Williams (521) and Carl Yastrzemski (452).

Everyone in the starting lineup had at least one hit, with the exception of Jackie Bradley. Xander Bogaerts and Grady Sizemore each singled, doubled, and walked. Bogaerts scored twice and Sizemore drove in two runs. Mike Napoli doubled in the third inning, extending his on-base streak to 33 games.

Felix Doubront (6.1-7-1-1-5, 104) pitched well, working out of two jams with minimal damage. In the third, a double, walk, and single loaded the bases with no one out, but Doubront allowed only a sacrifice fly for one run. He gave up two singles to start the fourth, but then got two fly balls to right and a called third strike. Doubront also allowed two hits in the seventh before turning the ball over to Burke Badenhop, who issued a walk to load the sacks before getting a double play.

A.J. Pierzynski made the final out in the first, third, fifth, and seventh innings. He came up with two outs in the ninth - and drove in two runs with an opposite-field double.

The Orioles lost and the Yankees won, so Boston and New York are both 20-19, 0.5 GB Baltimore.

Felix Doubront / Kevin Correia

Pedroia, 2B
Victorino, RF
Ortiz, DH
Napoli, 1B
Sizemore, LF
Pierzynski, C
Bogaerts, SS
Middlebrooks, 3B
Bradley, CF

David Ortiz was released by the Twins after the 2002 season, and he loves reminding them what a terrible mistake they made.

What do I like? Whupping the Twins' ass.

In 55 games against Minnesota, Ortiz is hitting .345 (72-for-209) with 17 homers and 47 RBIs. .. Flo is a beast at Target Field: 25-for-48 (.521) with seven homers and 20 RBIs.

I told you, the weather gets hot, Papi gets hot.

In his last eight games, Ortiz has a 1.371 OPS (.419/.500/.871). Six of his 13 hits have gone for extra bases (including four home runs), and he has struck out only four times in 36 plate appearances.

Also: If you like the Schadenfreude posts, check out "Infinite Schadenfreude: The All-Purpose MFY Thread", to which I sometimes post when there isn't enough stuff for a JoS post. Like today. (Other people can post to it, too.)