David Ortiz has been hurt all season long with shoulder and knee problems, but this time Ortiz let Jeff Weaver feel some pain with a go-ahead grand slam homerun that catapulted the Boston Red Sox (74-49) to an eventual 10-5 victory.
After being down 5-0 going into the bottom of the fifth inning, Boston rallied back to score six runs in the frame aiding Curt Schilling to his first win since his one-hitter two months ago.
Schilling who is now 7-5 on the season pitched for 6 innings, giving up eight hits, five runs, walking three, striking out two and giving up two homers in the outing.
The biggest inning for Schilling was the top of the sixth where he needed to take the lead given to him and hold onto it. He did so throwing a 1-2-3 inning to end his night keeping the momentum in favor of his ball club.
The Angels (71-51) got to Schilling early scoring one run in the first on a Garrett Anderson fielder’s choice to first, three in the second on a RBI single by Reggie Willits and a two-run homerun by Chone Figgins, his third of the season.
Vladmir Guerrero also homered off of Schilling in the fifth inning over the Green Monster.
Julio Lugo started off the scoring in Boston’s sensational six run fifth inning comeback on a two-run RBI single to center field scoring Eric Hinske and Coco Crisp.
Kevin Youkilis singled to left loading the bases for Ortiz and he did the rest crushing a Jered Weaver inside fastball to right.
It was crushed so badly that Ortiz straight out “pimped” his homerun with a long stare at the ball in flight and flipped the bat off to the side as Alex Cora who was on third base during the at-bat pumped his fist in the air knowing it was gone as soon as it came off the bat.
Weaver only faced two more batters after the grandslam only pitching for 4 1/3 innings making his record on the season 8-6. Weaver gave up eight hits, six runs, while walking one and striking out five in the outing.
Boston added four more runs, but the Red Sox bullpen of Hideki Okajima, Mike Timlin, and Jonathan Papelbon were solid in relief allowing no runs all pitching one inning and only allowing one hit.
Timlin gave up the lone hit to Willits on a bunt single.
