BOS 11, BAL 5: Less than Lester, Still Good Enough

Even an uninspiring performance by Jon Lester was enough to get the job done against an Orioles team that has all but thrown in the orange towel, as Boston beat Baltimore, 11-5, on Saturday.

It was the Red Sox bats that locked up the 12th consecutive series win against the Orioles, behind a shaky outing six inning stretch where Lester gave up ten hits. But as he continued to miss his spots (only 62 strikes over 102 pitches), the offense was busy at work against an already depleted Orioles pitching staff.

9/19: Lester looks to clip some wings

GAME NOTES: Lester starts on one extra day of rest. Lester is inching up on 200 innings pitched on the year, so I see no reason why they shouldn’t be a little cautious this late in the season. David Hernandez? Fah! Lester eats David Hernandez for lunch.

BOS 3, BAL 1: Clay Out of Control

Both Clay Buchholz and Jason Bay weren’t feeling quite right last night, but somehow emerged as the heroes of Friday night’s series opener against the Baltimore Orioles.

Buchholz’s six strong innings, combined with Bay’s 34th home run of the year, lifted the Red Sox past the Birds, 3-1.