the joy of sox: G3: Red Sox 6, Phillies 2

April 9, 2015

G3: Red Sox 6, Phillies 2

Red Sox  - 006 000 000 - 6 11  0
Phillies - 002 000 000 - 2  5  3

It's my absolute favourite kind of Red Sox inning. The first two batters are retired - then the offense decides to kick some ass.

So it in the third inning. Mookie Betts lined out to left and Dustin Pedroia grounded out to shortstop. But then David Ortiz cracked a ball into the shift that second baseman Chase Utley couldn't handle. Hanley Ramirez chopped a ball over the head of pitcher Buchanan. It tipped off his glove; he picked up the ball up and threw it very wild past first base for an error. Boston had runners at second and third. A bit rattled, perhaps, Buchanan walked Pablo Sandoval. Shane Victorino grounded to third. Cody Asche backhanded the ball, looked at second, then threw late and off target to first. Ortiz scored.

A visit from the pitching coach did absolutely no good, as Ryan Hanigan walked on four pitches to force home another run. Then, on a full count pitch, Xander Bogaerts lifted a pop fly down the right field line. Jeff Francoeur ran over towards the line, but he couldn't get to it. It fell safely and rolled away from him, along the fence. All three runners scored, and the Red Sox led 5-0. Justin Masterson finished the scoring by lining a single to center, scoring Bogaerts. And Betts, who had begun the inning, grounded into a fielder's choice.

Masterson (6-3-2-2-7, 95) was quite good, with the third inning being his only shaky frame. He allowed two hits and two walks in that inning. In the other five innings of work, he retired 15 of 16 batters, allowing only a single.

Craig Breslow, Tommy Layne, and Edward Mujica each pitched an inning of relief. ... The Phillies made a little noise in the seventh against Breslow, with a walk and a single. Ben Revere then clubbed a two-out drive to deep right that Victorino sprinted back on, stretching out his arm and glove towards the warning track and hauling in the baseball.

Bogaerts reached base five times, on two singles, a walk, a triple, and an infield error. ... Ortiz singled and walked twice. ... Ramirez, Victorino, and Masterson (!) each had two hits.