UnMatchedSox

For the first time in more than a decade the Boston Red Sox are the champions of the American League East. The Sox beat the Twins 5 to 2 and rather than make it close, the Yankees cooperated and lost 10 to 9 in the 10th at Baltimore. Ortiz had another great night at the plate, going 3 for 4 with 2 RBI. Not to be outdone Mike Lowell had another good night, going 2 for 4 and added another 2 RBI to his record for number of RBI in a season by a Red Sox third basemen. The story of the night, however, would be the strong outing from Dice-K. He went 8 strong innings giving up 2 runs on 6 hits and fanned 8. Papelbon worked a perfect 9th and the rest is history.

There are some things I just love being wrong about and while I didn’t commit them all to this web site I’ve made a lot of predictions that have all been wrong.

The Yankees were going to catch the Sox and win the division.
We probably wouldn’t see Okajima again in the regular season.
Daisuke is hitting the wall and we might not get another good game out of him this year.

Fortunately for me and Sox fans everywhere, I haven’t got a clue.

Big Papi went 4 for 4 with 2 runs batted in and 2 runs scored, but the Sox still lost to the Minnesota Twins 5 to 4. Beckett wasn’t his usual self, allowing 10 hits and 5 runs through 6 innings and it was all the runs the Twins would need. Corey, Delcarmen, and Okajima all pitched well, collectively giving up no runs, 2 hits, and fanning 4 in the final three innings.

Sox prospect, Clay Buchholz, was shutdown for the remainder of the regular season and playoffs. Citing shoulder fatigue, similar to that of closer Jonathan Papelbon last season, the Sox medical made the call that Clay is done for the year.

Today is the 88th birthday of Red Sox icon Johnny Pesky. Happy Birthday Johnny.

The New York Yankees lost 4 to 1 to the Toronto Blue Jays in their final home game of the season, falling two games back on the Sox.  A win would have clinched a playoff spot, but even more importantly it would have made the AL East race a whole hell of a lot tighter.

The Red Sox lead over the division rival Yankees is done to a game and a half thanks to outfielder Delmon Young. Young homered in the 2nd to put Tampa Bay out in front and they never surrendered the lead. Despite a 9-0 record at Tropicana Field, Tim Wakefield struggled mightily giving up 4 earned runs on 7 hits in only 5 innings of work. Meanwhile, the Sox bats were stymied for 5 innings by Edwin Jackson until they managed to string some singles and walks together to score three in the 6th and pull within striking distance. In the bottom of the 6th, Josh Wilson laid down a sac bunt to add some insurance they would later need when Alex Cora hit solo shot in the 8th.

With the lead on the division down to a game and a half, the race is on for the East. Boston has a slim lead, but New York is playing strong. The Yankees finish their home series with Toronto tonight and finish the season with 6 games on the road; 3 in Tampa and 3 in Baltimore. The Sox, on the other hand, head home for a 6 game homestand with 2 against Oakland and 4 against Minnesota. Given that Detroit is 5.5 off in the Wild Card hunt, it looks like both New York and Boston are in not matter what.