Some serious bombs were dropped on Fenway Park on Sunday, as the Red Sox finished out the regular season with a 12-7 victory over the Cleveland Indians. It was not Clay Buchholz’s best, as the ALDS game three starter got touched up for five hits and six earned runs.
Buchholz’s efficiency was a major concern, throwing seventy pitches in only three innings. It was Big Play Clay’s second shaky start, forcing the Red Sox to go to their bullpen five times, including a reach to Michael Bowden that resulted in his first Major League win.
For the third straight year, the Red Sox secured a 95-win season, thanks to some long ball assistance from a few unlikely faces. In his first game back, J.D. Drew belted two homers, while Alex Gonzalez officially shook off the shot to the wrist that he suffered earlier in the week with his eighth homer. Dustin Pedroia notched his fifteenth on the year, while Jed Lowrie made his second of the year really count, with a two-out grand slam in the 6th inning.
Tonight’s “Three Straight 95-Win Seasons… You’re Welcome” Award goes to Terry Francona. With a severely battered team, the skipper still finds a way to do it again, and again, and again… Thank you sir.