Sox Win Despite Cruddy Rain Soaked Weather!
By Matt DeLucia
On a rain soaked night at Fenway Park, last night the Boston Red Sox needed something special. They needed someone or something to happen in the game, to get the jump on the Toronto Blue Jays. And did they ever get that something special they needed, but it wasn’t from who everyone expected it to come from. Most of the faithful crowd who witnessed the Sox win, despite cruddy rain soaked weather conditions. Thought it would come from their ace Josh Beckett, but unfortunately for them on this night, Beckett was no where near his usual self.
It came from Jason Varitek and Casey Kotchman, as they both had pivotal plays in the Sox 6-5 win, over the Jays. Strangely enough both plays came in the 8thinning of the ballgame. With Tek’splay coming in the top of the eighth, in the form of a great defensive play at the plate. And then it was Kotchman’s turn for heroics, in the bottom of the inning, the play which sealed the victory for the Sox.
Beckett, who was in search of his 15th victory of the season, lasted only 5 innings. Beckett was the Sox pitcher who allowed the Jays to score. All five of the Jays runs came via the home run ball, as Aaron Hill, got the Jays on the board with a 3 run home run in the second. Rod Barajas, also added another 2 run shot in the top of fifth, which pretty much spelled the end of the night for Beckett.
Varitek’s play came with one out in the top of the eight, with the score knotted at 5. With the Jays Travis Snider on first base, John McDonald smashes a double deep into the left-field corner. The ball is bouncing around in the corner until the Sox left fielder Jason Bay, grabs it and chucks it into the relay man. Meanwhile with Snider trying to score the go ahead run all the way from first. The relay man who on this play was Alex Gonzalez, turns and fires a perfect strike to the waiting Varitek.
Acting on instincts and knowledge of how to play the game. The man that wears the “C” on his chest for the Sox, just moments before Snider touches the plate, sticks his leg out and blocks the plate. Snider who actually would have beaten the throw and scored, runs right into Tek’s outstretched leg, and never touched the plate. All of this gave Varitek just enough time to put the tag on Snider, and nail him at the plate.
Daniel Bard, the young pitcher for Boston had this to say about the teams captain, Jason Varitek. “He’s a warrior, man,” Bard said of Varitek. “He’s intimidating when you see him walking out in his full gear, and that’s exactly why. He’s a competitor, and that’s the reason the Red Sox still want him here, because he does stuff like that for the team. That’s not going to show up in the stats or it’s not going to be in the box score tomorrow, but that’s as big a play as you could ask for on a night like tonight.”
After a rain delay which lasted 49 minutes, Hideki Okajima (winning pitcher) retired the Jays in the eighth. By getting Hill to fly out to right with a runner still at third. Which then set the stage for Kotchman to put the Sox ahead in the bottom in the inning. After a David Ortiz walk, then a Bay strike out, J.D. Drew came up and delivered a double to center. Giving the Sox runners on 2nd and 3rd with only out.
Until the Jays decided to intentionally walk Varitek and loading the bases for Kotchman. Kotchman nailed the second pitch he saw from reliever Brian Tallet, sending a sharp low liner down to first base. The ball was hit so sharp and quickly that Lyle Overbay couldn’t handle it cleanly. Overbay’s only play after he deflected it was to force out Varitek, at second. Which allowed Ortiz all the time in the world to come trotting home from third with the winning run.
Both plays were extremely huge for the Sox, in regards to the AL East and the AL Wild Card picture. As the NY Yankees, won in 10 innings over the White Sox, which keeps Boston 6 back as of now. More importantly for the Sox, the Texas Rangers lost to the Twins, which drops them 2 1/2 back in the Wild Card.