One day after being dominated by Tommy Hanson, Jon Lester and the Boston Red Sox turned the table on the Baltimore Orioles.
Lester threw seven shutout innings allowing just five hits, no walks and eight strikeouts.
Dustin Pedroia and Jason Varitek both had RBI singles and J.D. Drew hit a two-run homer, his 10th of the season.
Jonathan Papelbon made on out in the ninth to earn his 19th save of the season and tie a club record with 132 saves in his career as a Red Sox.
Star of the Game – Lester
Lester now improves to 8-0 in 10 career starts against the Orioles.
Next Game – 6/30 vs. Baltimore Orioles – John Smoltz/Rich Hill
Let’s hope Smoltz is better this time around.
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After a dicey first inning, Smoltz warmed to the task of becoming his old self. He is likely to pick up where he left off, retiring the last 8 batters and striking out the side. Woohooo!
Do you remember the old Boston Braves fans saying “Spahn and Sain and Pray for Rain”??? As Sox pitchers are all getting stronger as the season rolls on, the rotation of Beckett, Lester, Penny, Wake, Smoltz, Buchholz, (Daisuke) must be, to opposing teams, like facing Spahn, Sain, Spahn, Sain, Spahn, Sain, while THEY pray for rainouts.
The rotation is becoming as relentless as the lineup. Are we developing a deeper version of Maddux, Smoltz, Glavine?
Might they look at the Pen in the same way? Not only virtually interchangeable, but virtually unhittable. Spahn, Sain, Spahn, Sain, Spahn, Sain, Spahn????? I picked up a stat that the Sox are now 37 – 1 in games where they led in the 7th inning. What a Pen. MDC nor Saito are too essential to this reality to be considered trade bait..
The scores on this road trip have been W11-3, W6-4, L9-3 (Smoltz debut), W4-1, L2-1, W4-0. The last homestand scores were W8-2, W6-1, L2-1(Lester/rain), L8-2(Daisuke DL), W3-0, W6-5. The Sox can win even when not hitting. The message is DON’T waste even a piece of this rotation or bullpen in a trade unless it is for a top-50 player. Sox pitching wins games. Think Spahn, Sain 12X.
I agree 100% with you , Gerry! the pitching staff is def. winning games – why trade any one on the rotation or pen UNLESS you get truly top-notch player, not just serviceable…
even with relatively poor hitting and the line-up not jacking out rally’s with any consistency.. we are having a great June and nearly the best record in MLB (esp. and more so unless one can count the Dodgers as having any parity at all with AL East…).
BTW, i am sickened by the media’s insistence upon dramatizing m ramirez’s return from suspension… what kind of message are they sending to all of us, esp. KIDS?! cheat and be glorified?!?!