Drama Abound in Sox 2nd Straight Walk-off Win

After 2 dramatic games against the Detroit Tigers, the 3rd couldn’t involve more late game heroics, could it? The answer is a resounding yes it can. After nearly coming back for a victory in game 1 and a huge David Oritz walk-off double on Saturday night, Sunday ended with a walk-off bunt single followed by a throwing error that allowed Darnell McDonald to score. The series was filled with drama, but ultimately allowed the Sox to gain 1 game in the AL Wild Card chase.

The difference between Sunday’s walk-off and Saturday’s is the bullpen. After a gem for Clay Buchholz, Papelbon came in and blew a 3-run lead to force the Sox to come back in the bottom of the 9th. On Saturday, the Sox bullpen of Dustin Richardson, Scott Atchison and Hideki Okajima shut the Tigers down for 3 innings, allowing the Sox to comeback. If the Sox are going to surge down the stretch, the bullpen needs to pitch like Saturday and not like Sunday, allowing the Sox offense to put a big W on the scoreboard.

The Sox schedule over the next few weeks is tough with a 4-game set at home against the Cleveland Indians beginning on Monday, followed by a 10-game road trip to New York for 4, Toronto for 3 and Texas for 3. Despite the Indian’s 44-61 record, they have played the Sox tough this year, splitting the 4-game set they played in June at Progressive Field. The Indians are sending their star Fausto Carmona to the mound in game 1 and former Sox pitcher Justin Masterson in game 3, who threw a 2-hit shutout against the Sox in June.

As soon as the Sox go on the road, they face their AL East rival New York Yankees. This is certainly a make or break 4-game set for the Sox and could either spell the end of the year for the Sox or could propel them back into the playoff race. With the Sox beginning to click, I am still hopeful that the 4-game set with the Yankees will me the catapult needed to shoot the Sox back into contention. I’m crossing my fingers.