This game felt like it should've been easier after a six-run outburst in the second inning.
For one, Javier Vazquez didn't make it out of the sixth inning after cruising through the first five and using only 60 pitches. He ended up throwing 27 in the sixth alone, only able to retire the first two batters. His night ended when he walked Jeff Clement to bring the tying run to the plate after he was staked to leads of 6-0 and 7-1.
Octavio Dotel bailed him out by getting Kenji Johjima to pop up, but he ran into trouble in the seventh. With Ichiro Suzuki on third and two outs, Dotel inexplicably walked the .172-hitting Willie Bloomquist. Adrian Beltre now represented the tying run at the plate, and Dotel worked into more trouble when he fell behind 3-0 to Adrian Beltre.
But after Beltre took strike one, it was Bloomquist's turn for inexplicable action. He went on first move, which made it a great time for Dotel to do the "fake to third, throw to first" move. He had Bloomquist picked off, but he bounced the throw to Juan Uribe, who couldn't apply the tag. But Ichiro then took off, and Uribe fired a strike to Toby Hall, who applied the tag for the final out.
Still... the Sox won by four, with little drama in the eighth and nine innings That's pretty good.
They did the bulk of the scoring off Jarrod Washburn in the second, which is totally weird because Washburn is a lefty. Paul Konerko led off with a single to right, and Joe Crede ripped a double to third. Brian Anderson then hit his fourth career homer at Safeco Field (the only stadium he's homered in besides The Cell) over the center field fence for a 3-0 lead.
The Sox weren't done. Juan Uribe walked (the first of two on the night for him), and Orlando Cabrera hit a deep fly that should've been caught by Raul Ibanez. It glanced off his glove, and Uribe scored. Carlos Quentin then hit another homer to center, and the Sox had a 6-0 lead.
Ibanez gave the Sox another gift run in the fifth when Nick Swisher hit a liner down the left field line. Ibanez played a carom that actually never happened, and the ball rolled into the corner. Jermaine Dye, who walked, scored from first.
Toby Hall scored the other Sox run when he doubled, advanced to third on a Cabrera sac bunt, and scored on Quentin's single. Quentin had three hits and three RBI on the day.
One day after his wallbanging catch, Anderson nearly made another amazing grab when Ichiro belted one to deep right center. Anderson had been shaded toward left, but he hauled ass and nearly made up the ground. He dove, but the ball glanced off the heel of his mitt. Guess we can't expect a Web Gem every night.
Record: 18-17 |
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