AL: BOSTON at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">BOSTON (7) VS CLEVELAND (1) - MID 8TH - IN PROGRESS BOSTON ab r h rbi bb so lob avg D Pedroia 2b 4 1 2 0 1 0 0 .250 K Youkilis 1b 4 2 2 3 1 0 1 .421 D Ortiz dh 2 1 1 2 1 1 2 .400 M Ramirez lf 4 0 2 1 1 2 2 .471 M Lowell 3b 3 0 1 0 0 1 1 .263 B Kielty rf 3 0 1 0 0 1 3 .400 J Drew rf 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 .267 J Varitek c 3 0 1 0 0 0 1 .222 C Crisp cf 4 1 0 0 0 2 3 .150 J Lugo ss 4 1 1 0 0 1 3 .167 Totals 31 7 11 6 5 8 16 BATTING: 2B - M Ramirez (1, C Sabathia); D Pedroia (1, C Sabathia). 3B - K Youkilis (1, C Sabathia). HR - K Youkilis (2, 1st inning off C Sabathia 0 on, 1 Out). SF - D Ortiz 2. RBI - K Youkilis 3 (4), M Ramirez (8), D Ortiz 2 (3). 2-out RBI - M Ramirez. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - B Kielty 2, M Ramirez 1. GIDP - K Youkilis, J Lugo. Team LOB - 9. FIELDING: E - J Beckett (1, ground ball). DP: 1 (J Lugo-K Youkilis). CLEVELAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg G Sizemore cf 3 1 2 0 0 1 0 .263 A Cabrera 2b 3 0 1 0 0 1 2 .300 T Hafner dh 3 0 0 0 0 2 1 .167 V Martinez c 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 .333 R Garko 1b 3 0 0 0 0 2 1 .267 J Peralta ss 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 .300 K Lofton lf 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250 F Gutierrez rf 2 0 0 0 1 1 1 .143 C Blake 3b 3 0 1 0 0 2 2 .316 Totals 26 1 5 0 1 10 7 BATTING: 2B - G Sizemore (2, J Beckett). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - A Cabrera 1. GIDP - T Hafner. Team LOB - 5. FIELDING: E - R Perez (1, throw). Outfield assists - F Gutierrez (M Ramirez at Home). PB - V Martinez. DP: 2 (C Sabathia-J Peralta-R Garko, J Peralta-R Garko). ---------------------------------------------------- BOSTON - 101 000 23 -- 7 CLEVELAND - 100 000 0 -- 1 ---------------------------------------------------- BOSTON ip h r er bb so hr era J Beckett 7 5 1 1 1 10 0 2.08 CLEVELAND ip h r er bb so hr era C Sabathia 6 10 4 4 2 6 1 10.45 R Betancourt 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.00 R Perez 1/3 1 3 1 1 0 0 40.50 T Mastny 2/3 0 0 0 2 1 0 0.00 C Sabathia pitched to 2 batters in the 7th. WP - C Sabathia. HBP - J Varitek (by C Sabathia); M Lowell (by C Sabathia). Pitches-strikes: J Beckett 96-66; C Sabathia 112-70; R Betancourt 11-9; R Perez 13-8; T Mastny 16-8. Ground balls-fly balls: J Beckett 9-2; C Sabathia 9-2; R Betancourt 0-2; R Perez 1-1; T Mastny 0-1. Batters faced: J Beckett 27; C Sabathia 29; R Betancourt 3; R Perez 4; T Mastny 4. UMPIRES: HP--Gary Cederstrom. 1B--Dana Demuth. 2B--Randy Marsh. 3B--Kerwin Danley. LF--Brian Gorman. RF--Paul Emmel. Weather: 69 degrees, clear. Wind: 14 mph, out to center.</div>
AL: BOSTON at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">AL AT CLEVELAND - MID INNING UPDATE PLAY: J Ellsbury in left field. SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, NONE ON, 0 OUTS CURRENT SCORE: BOSTON 7 CLEVELAND 1 BOTTOM, 8TH DUE UP FOR CLEVELAND: G Sizemore (.263, 2-FOR-3)</div>
AL: BOSTON at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">AL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - BOSTON 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 3 7 11 1 CLEVELAND 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 1 (TOP 9) CURRENT PITCHERS: BOS - JOSH BECKETT CLE - TOM MASTNY DUE UP FOR BOSTON: M LOWELL (.263, 1-FOR-3, HBP) J DREW (.267, 0-FOR-0, BB) J VARITEK (.222, 1-FOR-3, HBP)</div>
AL: BOSTON at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">BOSTON (7) VS CLEVELAND (1) - END 8TH - IN PROGRESS BOSTON ab r h rbi bb so lob avg D Pedroia 2b 4 1 2 0 1 0 0 .250 K Youkilis 1b 4 2 2 3 1 0 1 .421 D Ortiz dh 2 1 1 2 1 1 2 .400 M Ramirez lf 4 0 2 1 1 2 2 .471 J Ellsbury lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 M Lowell 3b 3 0 1 0 0 1 1 .263 B Kielty rf 3 0 1 0 0 1 3 .400 J Drew rf 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 .267 J Varitek c 3 0 1 0 0 0 1 .222 C Crisp cf 4 1 0 0 0 2 3 .150 J Lugo ss 4 1 1 0 0 1 3 .167 Totals 31 7 11 6 5 8 16 BATTING: 2B - M Ramirez (1, C Sabathia); D Pedroia (1, C Sabathia). 3B - K Youkilis (1, C Sabathia). HR - K Youkilis (2, 1st inning off C Sabathia 0 on, 1 Out). SF - D Ortiz 2. RBI - K Youkilis 3 (4), M Ramirez (8), D Ortiz 2 (3). 2-out RBI - M Ramirez. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - B Kielty 2, M Ramirez 1. GIDP - K Youkilis, J Lugo. Team LOB - 9. FIELDING: E - J Beckett (1, ground ball). DP: 1 (J Lugo-K Youkilis). CLEVELAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg G Sizemore cf 4 1 2 0 0 1 0 .250 A Cabrera 2b 4 0 1 0 0 2 2 .286 T Hafner dh 4 0 0 0 0 2 1 .158 V Martinez c 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 .333 R Garko 1b 3 0 0 0 0 2 1 .267 J Peralta ss 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 .300 K Lofton lf 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250 F Gutierrez rf 2 0 0 0 1 1 1 .143 C Blake 3b 3 0 1 0 0 2 2 .316 Totals 29 1 5 0 1 11 7 BATTING: 2B - G Sizemore (2, J Beckett). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - A Cabrera 1. GIDP - T Hafner. Team LOB - 5. FIELDING: E - R Perez (1, throw). Outfield assists - F Gutierrez (M Ramirez at Home). PB - V Martinez. DP: 2 (C Sabathia-J Peralta-R Garko, J Peralta-R Garko). ---------------------------------------------------- BOSTON - 101 000 23 -- 7 CLEVELAND - 100 000 00 -- 1 ---------------------------------------------------- BOSTON ip h r er bb so hr era J Beckett 8 5 1 1 1 11 0 1.93 CLEVELAND ip h r er bb so hr era C Sabathia 6 10 4 4 2 6 1 10.45 R Betancourt 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.00 R Perez 1/3 1 3 1 1 0 0 40.50 T Mastny 2/3 0 0 0 2 1 0 0.00 C Sabathia pitched to 2 batters in the 7th. WP - C Sabathia. HBP - J Varitek (by C Sabathia); M Lowell (by C Sabathia). Pitches-strikes: J Beckett 109-74; C Sabathia 112-70; R Betancourt 11-9; R Perez 13-8; T Mastny 16-8. Ground balls-fly balls: J Beckett 10-3; C Sabathia 9-2; R Betancourt 0-2; R Perez 1-1; T Mastny 0-1. Batters faced: J Beckett 30; C Sabathia 29; R Betancourt 3; R Perez 4; T Mastny 4. UMPIRES: HP--Gary Cederstrom. 1B--Dana Demuth. 2B--Randy Marsh. 3B--Kerwin Danley. LF--Brian Gorman. RF--Paul Emmel. Weather: 69 degrees, clear. Wind: 14 mph, out to center.</div>
AL: BOSTON at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">AL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - BOSTON 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 3 0 7 12 1 CLEVELAND 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 1 (BOT 9) CURRENT PITCHERS: BOS - JOSH BECKETT CLE - TOM MASTNY DUE UP FOR CLEVELAND: V MARTINEZ (.333, 1-FOR-3) R GARKO (.267, 0-FOR-3) J PERALTA (.300, 0-FOR-3)</div>
AL: BOSTON at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">BOSTON (7) VS CLEVELAND (1) - MID 9TH - IN PROGRESS BOSTON ab r h rbi bb so lob avg D Pedroia 2b 4 1 2 0 1 0 0 .250 K Youkilis 1b 4 2 2 3 1 0 1 .421 D Ortiz dh 2 1 1 2 1 1 2 .400 M Ramirez lf 4 0 2 1 1 2 2 .471 J Ellsbury lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 M Lowell 3b 4 0 1 0 0 1 1 .250 B Kielty rf 3 0 1 0 0 1 3 .400 J Drew rf 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 .313 J Varitek c 4 0 1 0 0 0 1 .211 C Crisp cf 5 1 0 0 0 2 4 .143 J Lugo ss 4 1 1 0 0 1 3 .167 Totals 35 7 12 6 5 8 17 BATTING: 2B - M Ramirez (1, C Sabathia); D Pedroia (1, C Sabathia); J Drew (1, T Mastny). 3B - K Youkilis (1, C Sabathia). HR - K Youkilis (2, 1st inning off C Sabathia 0 on, 1 Out). SF - D Ortiz 2. RBI - K Youkilis 3 (4), M Ramirez (8), D Ortiz 2 (3). 2-out RBI - M Ramirez. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - B Kielty 2, C Crisp 1, M Ramirez 1. GIDP - K Youkilis, J Lugo. Team LOB - 10. FIELDING: E - J Beckett (1, ground ball). DP: 1 (J Lugo-K Youkilis). CLEVELAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg G Sizemore cf 4 1 2 0 0 1 0 .250 A Cabrera 2b 4 0 1 0 0 2 2 .286 T Hafner dh 4 0 0 0 0 2 1 .158 V Martinez c 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 .333 R Garko 1b 3 0 0 0 0 2 1 .267 J Peralta ss 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 .300 K Lofton lf 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250 F Gutierrez rf 2 0 0 0 1 1 1 .143 C Blake 3b 3 0 1 0 0 2 2 .316 Totals 29 1 5 0 1 11 7 BATTING: 2B - G Sizemore (2, J Beckett). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - A Cabrera 1. GIDP - T Hafner. Team LOB - 5. FIELDING: E - R Perez (1, throw). Outfield assists - F Gutierrez (M Ramirez at Home). PB - V Martinez. DP: 2 (C Sabathia-J Peralta-R Garko, J Peralta-R Garko). ---------------------------------------------------- BOSTON - 101 000 230 -- 7 CLEVELAND - 100 000 00 -- 1 ---------------------------------------------------- BOSTON ip h r er bb so hr era J Beckett 8 5 1 1 1 11 0 1.93 CLEVELAND ip h r er bb so hr era C Sabathia 6 10 4 4 2 6 1 10.45 R Betancourt 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.00 R Perez 1/3 1 3 1 1 0 0 40.50 T Mastny 1 2/3 1 0 0 2 1 0 0.00 C Sabathia pitched to 2 batters in the 7th. WP - C Sabathia. HBP - J Varitek (by C Sabathia); M Lowell (by C Sabathia). Pitches-strikes: J Beckett 109-74; C Sabathia 112-70; R Betancourt 11-9; R Perez 13-8; T Mastny 29-16. Ground balls-fly balls: J Beckett 10-3; C Sabathia 9-2; R Betancourt 0-2; R Perez 1-1; T Mastny 2-2. Batters faced: J Beckett 30; C Sabathia 29; R Betancourt 3; R Perez 4; T Mastny 8. UMPIRES: HP--Gary Cederstrom. 1B--Dana Demuth. 2B--Randy Marsh. 3B--Kerwin Danley. LF--Brian Gorman. RF--Paul Emmel. Weather: 69 degrees, clear. Wind: 14 mph, out to center.</div>
AL: BOSTON at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">AL AT CLEVELAND - PITCHING CHANGE BOS: JONATHAN PAPELBON (0-0, 0.00) STARTING THE 9TH CURRENT SCORE: BOSTON 7, CLEVELAND 1 DUE UP FOR CLEVELAND: V MARTINEZ (.333, 1-FOR-3)</div>
AL: BOSTON at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">AL AT CLEVELAND - MID INNING UPDATE PLAY: J Papelbon relieved J Beckett. SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, NONE ON, 0 OUTS CURRENT SCORE: BOSTON 7 CLEVELAND 1 BOTTOM, 9TH DUE UP FOR CLEVELAND: V Martinez (.333, 1-FOR-3)</div>
AL: BOSTON at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">AL FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - BOSTON 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 3 0 7 12 1 CLEVELAND 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 6 1 (FINAL) BATTERIES: BOS - JOSH BECKETT, JONATHAN PAPELBON (9TH) AND JASON VARITEK CLE - C.C. SABATHIA, RAFAEL BETANCOURT (7TH), RAFAEL PEREZ (8TH), TOM MASTNY (8TH) AND VICTOR MARTINEZ HOME RUNS: BOS - KEVIN YOUKILIS (2) OFF C.C. SABATHIA IN THE 1ST, 0 ON CLE - NONE</div>
AL: BOSTON at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">AL FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - BOSTON 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 3 0 7 12 1 CLEVELAND 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 6 1 (FINAL) BATTERIES: BOS - JOSH BECKETT, JONATHAN PAPELBON (9TH) AND JASON VARITEK CLE - C.C. SABATHIA, RAFAEL BETANCOURT (7TH), RAFAEL PEREZ (8TH), TOM MASTNY (8TH) AND VICTOR MARTINEZ WP - JOSH BECKETT (2-0) LP - C.C. SABATHIA (0-2) SAVE - NONE HOME RUNS: BOS - KEVIN YOUKILIS (2) OFF C.C. SABATHIA IN THE 1ST, 0 ON CLE - NONE TIME: 3:46 ATT: 44,588 PROBABLES: CLE - FAUSTO CARMONA (0-0, 9.00) BOS - CURT SCHILLING (0-0, 9.64)</div>
AL: BOSTON at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">BOSTON (7) VS CLEVELAND (1) - FINAL BOSTON ab r h rbi bb so lob avg D Pedroia 2b 4 1 2 0 1 0 0 .250 K Youkilis 1b 4 2 2 3 1 0 1 .421 D Ortiz dh 2 1 1 2 1 1 2 .400 M Ramirez lf 4 0 2 1 1 2 2 .471 J Ellsbury lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 M Lowell 3b 4 0 1 0 0 1 1 .250 B Kielty rf 3 0 1 0 0 1 3 .400 J Drew rf 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 .313 J Varitek c 4 0 1 0 0 0 1 .211 C Crisp cf 5 1 0 0 0 2 4 .143 J Lugo ss 4 1 1 0 0 1 3 .167 Totals 35 7 12 6 5 8 17 BATTING: 2B - M Ramirez (1, C Sabathia); D Pedroia (1, C Sabathia); J Drew (1, T Mastny). 3B - K Youkilis (1, C Sabathia). HR - K Youkilis (2, 1st inning off C Sabathia 0 on, 1 Out). SF - D Ortiz 2. RBI - K Youkilis 3 (4), M Ramirez (8), D Ortiz 2 (3). 2-out RBI - M Ramirez. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - B Kielty 2, C Crisp 1, M Ramirez 1. GIDP - K Youkilis, J Lugo. Team LOB - 10. FIELDING: E - J Beckett (1, ground ball). DP: 1 (J Lugo-K Youkilis). CLEVELAND ab r h rbi bb so lob avg G Sizemore cf 4 1 2 0 0 1 0 .250 A Cabrera 2b 4 0 1 0 0 2 2 .286 T Hafner dh 4 0 0 0 0 2 1 .158 V Martinez c 4 0 1 0 0 1 0 .316 R Garko 1b 4 0 1 0 0 2 1 .313 J Peralta ss 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 .286 K Lofton lf 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 .250 F Gutierrez rf 3 0 0 0 1 1 3 .133 C Blake 3b 3 0 1 0 0 2 2 .316 Totals 33 1 6 0 2 12 9 BATTING: 2B - G Sizemore (2, J Beckett); R Garko (1, J Papelbon). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - F Gutierrez 1, A Cabrera 1. GIDP - T Hafner. Team LOB - 7. FIELDING: E - R Perez (1, throw). Outfield assists - F Gutierrez (M Ramirez at Home). PB - V Martinez. DP: 2 (C Sabathia-J Peralta-R Garko, J Peralta-R Garko). ---------------------------------------------------- BOSTON - 101 000 230 -- 7 CLEVELAND - 100 000 000 -- 1 ---------------------------------------------------- BOSTON ip h r er bb so hr era J Beckett (W, 2-0) 8 5 1 1 1 11 0 1.93 J Papelbon 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0.00 CLEVELAND ip h r er bb so hr era C Sabathia (L, 0-2) 6 10 4 4 2 6 1 10.45 R Betancourt 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.00 R Perez 1/3 1 3 1 1 0 0 40.50 T Mastny 1 2/3 1 0 0 2 1 0 0.00 C Sabathia pitched to 2 batters in the 7th. WP - C Sabathia. HBP - J Varitek (by C Sabathia); M Lowell (by C Sabathia). Pitches-strikes: J Beckett 109-74; J Papelbon 22-12; C Sabathia 112-70; R Betancourt 11-9; R Perez 13-8; T Mastny 29-16. Ground balls-fly balls: J Beckett 10-3; J Papelbon 1-1; C Sabathia 9-2; R Betancourt 0-2; R Perez 1-1; T Mastny 2-2. Batters faced: J Beckett 30; J Papelbon 5; C Sabathia 29; R Betancourt 3; R Perez 4; T Mastny 8. UMPIRES: HP--Gary Cederstrom. 1B--Dana Demuth. 2B--Randy Marsh. 3B--Kerwin Danley. LF--Brian Gorman. RF--Paul Emmel. T--3:46. Att--44,588. Weather: 69 degrees, clear. Wind: 14 mph, out to center.</div>
Behind Beckett, Red Sox live to fight another day <h3>BOSTON 7, CLEVELAND 1</h3>By Todd Krepop PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer CLEVELAND (Ticker) - Josh Beckett's postseason mastery continuesand because of it the Boston Red Sox season is still alive. Beckett pitched eight dominant innings and Manny Ramirez drovein the go-ahead run as the Red Sox defeated the ClevelandIndians 7-1 in Game Five of the American League ChampionshipSeries. Cleveland holds a 3-2 edge in the series with Game Six in Bostonon Saturday. Beckett simply overmatched the Indians with a fastball that wastopping out at 98 miles-per-hour and a sharp breaking ball thatbaffled Cleveland much of the evening. The righthander allowed only a run in the first, five hits andone walk while striking out 11. Unfortunately for the Red Sox, Beckett will not be able to startthe rest of the series as they attempt to become the 10th teamin postseason history to come back from a 3-1 deficit. Boston,which overcame a 3-0 deficit against the New York Yankees in2004, was the last. In nine postseason games - eight starts - Beckett is 5-2 with a1.75 ERA. He is a perfect 3-0 during the 2007 playoffs, allowingthree runs in 24 innings. Even a bench clearing incident wasn't enough to rattle Beckett,who kept his cool after Kenny Lofton came charging at him afterflying out in the fifth. Lofton was jawing with Beckett as he jogged down to first andmade a bee-line to the Boston ace on the mound. Both benches andbullpens cleared but no punches were thrown. Beckett appeared to be upset with Lofton after the 40-year-oldveteran laid his bat in front of home plate on what Loftonthought was ball four. Plate umpire Gary Cederstromdisagreed and as Lofton popped out on the next pitch, Beckettappeared to yell something at Lofton. Ramirez gave the Red Sox a 2-1 lead in the third with acontroversial single. David Ortiz drew a two-out walk andRamirez followed with a deep fly ball off of C.C. Sabathia toright-center that bounced off the top of the wall and back inplay. Ortiz scored from first, but Ramirez went into hispatented home run walk and only made it to first. After time was called Ramirez went out to right field to arguewith umpire Paul Emmel, who made the call. First base coach LuisAlicea rushed out to restrain the Red Sox star player whilemanager Terry Francona raced out of the dugout. The umpires convened in right field, but didn't overturn thecall enraging Francona as he had to be escorted back to thedugout by his bench coach. Replays showed the ball appearing tohit the top of the yellow line before bouncing back into play. That would be enough for Beckett, who retired nine in a rowbetween the second and fifth innings and held the Indians3-4-5-6 hitters to one hit in 12 at-bats with five strikeouts. The Indians chance to get to Beckett came in the first inning asGrady Sizemore doubled to start the game and Asdrubal Cabreralined a single to right. But Beckett got Travis Hafner to groundinto a double play - scoring a run - but preventing a biginning. Meanwhile Sabathia grinded through five plus innings giving upfour runs on 10 hits. He didn't have a one-two-three inninguntil the fifth. That fifth inning convinced Indians managerEric Wedge to let Sabathia start the sixth. The decision backfired on Wedge as Sabathia gave up a double toDustin Pedroia and a triple to Kevin Youkilis to extend the RedSox lead to 3-1. Sabathia started the inning with 106 pitches. Ortiz added a sacrifice fly to close the scoring. Like his two previous postseason outings, Sabathia struggledwith his command. The burly lefthander has walked 14 batters andhit two more in 14 1/3 innings. Sabathia giving up walks was ararity during the season as he allowed only 1.38 free passesevery nine innings - second best in the AL. With the fans at Jacobs Field barely in their seats, KevinYoukilis belted Sabathia's 1-0 fastball over the left field wallto give the Red Sox a 1-0 lead. It was the first time thatBoston had scored first in the series. The winner of the ALCS will advance to the World Series to playthe Colorado Rockies, who swept the Arizona Diamondbacks in theNLCS.
AL: BOSTON at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ BOSTON (7) AT CLEVELAND (1) - HOW THEY SCORED ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ BOSTON 1ST: D Pedroia grounded out to shortstop. K Youkilis homered to left. D Ortiz struck out swinging. M Ramirez doubled to left center. M Lowell singled to right, M Ramirez thrown out at home. (1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 1, CLEVELAND 0. CLEVELAND 1ST: G Sizemore doubled to left. A Cabrera singled to right, G Sizemore to third. T Hafner grounded into double play, shortstop to first, G Sizemore scored, A Cabrera out at second. V Martinez singled to left. R Garko struck out swinging. (1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 1, CLEVELAND 1. BOSTON 3RD: D Pedroia singled to right. K Youkilis grounded into double play, pitcher to shortstop to first, D Pedroia out at second. D Ortiz walked. M Ramirez singled to deep right center, D Ortiz scored. M Lowell struck out swinging. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 2, CLEVELAND 1. BOSTON 7TH: D Pedroia doubled to deep center. K Youkilis tripled to deep center, D Pedroia scored. R Betancourt relieved C Sabathia. D Ortiz hit sacrifice fly to left, K Youkilis scored. M Ramirez struck out looking. M Lowell flied out to center. (2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 4, CLEVELAND 1. BOSTON 8TH: R Perez relieved R Betancourt. J Drew walked. J Varitek flied out to right. C Crisp grounded into fielder's choice to pitcher, J Drew safe at second on throwing error by pitcher R Perez. J Lugo reached on bunt single to pitcher, J Drew to third, C Crisp to second. T Mastny relieved R Perez. J Drew scored, C Crisp to third, J Lugo to second on passed ball by V Martinez. D Pedroia walked. K Youkilis walked, C Crisp scored, J Lugo to third, D Pedroia to second. D Ortiz hit sacrifice fly to center, J Lugo scored. M Ramirez struck out looking. (3 Runs, 1 Hit, 1 Error) BOSTON 7, CLEVELAND 1.</div>
Re: AL: BOSTON (1-3) at CLEVELAND (3-1) Beckett is the man.</p> Now back to Boston and we should be able to win the series. </p>
AL: BOSTON at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">AL FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E - - - - - - - - - - - - BOSTON 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 3 0 7 12 1 CLEVELAND 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 6 1 (FINAL) BATTERIES: BOS - JOSH BECKETT, JONATHAN PAPELBON (9TH) AND JASON VARITEK CLE - C.C. SABATHIA, RAFAEL BETANCOURT (7TH), RAFAEL PEREZ (8TH), TOM MASTNY (8TH) AND VICTOR MARTINEZ WP - JOSH BECKETT (2-0) LP - C.C. SABATHIA (0-2) SAVE - NONE HOME RUNS: BOS - KEVIN YOUKILIS (2) OFF C.C. SABATHIA IN THE 1ST, 0 ON CLE - NONE TIME: 3:46 ATT: 44,588 PROBABLES: CLE - FAUSTO CARMONA (0-0, 9.00) BOS - CURT SCHILLING (0-0, 9.64)</div>
AL: BOSTON at CLEVELAND <div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ BOSTON (7) AT CLEVELAND (1) - EVENT LOG ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Boston Starting Lineups -- D Pedroia 2B, K Youkilis 1B, D Ortiz DH, M Ramirez LF, M Lowell 3B, B Kielty RF, J Varitek C, C Crisp CF, J Lugo SS, J Beckett RHP. Cleveland Starting Lineups -- G Sizemore CF, A Cabrera 2B, T Hafner DH, V Martinez C, R Garko 1B, J Peralta SS, K Lofton LF, F Gutierrez RF, C Blake 3B, C Sabathia LHP. Umpires -- Gary Cederstrom (HP), Dana Demuth (1B), Randy Marsh (2B), Kerwin Danley (3B), Brian Gorman (LF), Paul Emmel (RF). Gametime Weather: 69 degrees, Clear, wind out to center at 14 mph. BOSTON 1ST: D Pedroia grounded out to shortstop. K Youkilis homered to left. D Ortiz struck out swinging. M Ramirez doubled to left center. M Lowell singled to right, M Ramirez thrown out at home. (1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 1, CLEVELAND 0. CLEVELAND 1ST: G Sizemore doubled to left. A Cabrera singled to right, G Sizemore to third. T Hafner grounded into double play, shortstop to first, G Sizemore scored, A Cabrera out at second. V Martinez singled to left. R Garko struck out swinging. (1 Run, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 1, CLEVELAND 1. BOSTON 2ND: B Kielty struck out looking. J Varitek hit by pitch. C Crisp struck out looking. J Lugo flied out to right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 1, CLEVELAND 1. CLEVELAND 2ND: J Peralta struck out swinging. K Lofton grounded out to pitcher. F Gutierrez walked. C Blake struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 1, CLEVELAND 1. BOSTON 3RD: D Pedroia singled to right. K Youkilis grounded into double play, pitcher to shortstop to first, D Pedroia out at second. D Ortiz walked. M Ramirez singled to deep right center, D Ortiz scored. M Lowell struck out swinging. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 2, CLEVELAND 1. CLEVELAND 3RD: G Sizemore struck out swinging. A Cabrera grounded out to second. T Hafner struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 2, CLEVELAND 1. BOSTON 4TH: B Kielty singled to right. J Varitek singled to left, B Kielty to second. C Crisp struck out swinging. J Lugo grounded into double play, shortstop to first, J Varitek out at second.(0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 2, CLEVELAND 1. CLEVELAND 4TH: V Martinez grounded out to shortstop. R Garko grounded out to pitcher. J Peralta grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 2, CLEVELAND 1. BOSTON 5TH: D Pedroia grounded out to shortstop. K Youkilis grounded out to third. D Ortiz singled to left. D Ortiz to second on wild pitch by C Sabathia. M Ramirez walked. M Lowell hit by pitch, D Ortiz to third, M Ramirez to second. B Kielty flied out to right. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) BOSTON 2, CLEVELAND 1. CLEVELAND 5TH: K Lofton flied out to left. F Gutierrez struck out looking. C Blake singled to center. G Sizemore singled to center, C Blake to third. A Cabrera struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 2, CLEVELAND 1. BOSTON 6TH: J Varitek grounded out to shortstop. C Crisp grounded out to third. J Lugo struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 2, CLEVELAND 1. CLEVELAND 6TH: T Hafner struck out looking. V Martinez grounded out to shortstop. R Garko struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 2, CLEVELAND 1. BOSTON 7TH: D Pedroia doubled to deep center. K Youkilis tripled to deep center, D Pedroia scored. R Betancourt relieved C Sabathia. D Ortiz hit sacrifice fly to left, K Youkilis scored. M Ramirez struck out looking. M Lowell flied out to center. (2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 4, CLEVELAND 1. CLEVELAND 7TH: J Drew in right field. J Peralta grounded out to third. K Lofton safe at first on error by pitcher J Beckett. F Gutierrez flied out to center. C Blake struck out looking. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 1 Error) BOSTON 4, CLEVELAND 1. BOSTON 8TH: R Perez relieved R Betancourt. J Drew walked. J Varitek flied out to right. C Crisp grounded into fielder's choice to pitcher, J Drew safe at second on throwing error by pitcher R Perez. J Lugo reached on bunt single to pitcher, J Drew to third, C Crisp to second. T Mastny relieved R Perez. J Drew scored, C Crisp to third, J Lugo to second on passed ball by V Martinez. D Pedroia walked. K Youkilis walked, C Crisp scored, J Lugo to third, D Pedroia to second. D Ortiz hit sacrifice fly to center, J Lugo scored. M Ramirez struck out looking. (3 Runs, 1 Hit, 1 Error) BOSTON 7, CLEVELAND 1. CLEVELAND 8TH: J Ellsbury in left field. G Sizemore flied out to left. A Cabrera struck out looking. T Hafner grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 7, CLEVELAND 1. BOSTON 9TH: M Lowell flied out to center. J Drew doubled to deep center. J Varitek grounded out to pitcher, J Drew to third. C Crisp grounded out to pitcher. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) BOSTON 7, CLEVELAND 1. CLEVELAND 9TH: J Papelbon relieved J Beckett. V Martinez struck out swinging. R Garko doubled to deep center. J Peralta grounded out to shortstop, R Garko to third. K Lofton walked. F Gutierrez flied out to center. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) BOSTON 7, CLEVELAND 1.</div>
Behind Beckett, Red Sox live to fight another day <h3>BOSTON 7, CLEVELAND 1</h3>By Todd Krepop PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer CLEVELAND (Ticker) - Josh Beckett's postseason mastery continuesand because of it the Boston Red Sox season is still alive. Beckett pitched eight dominant innings and Manny Ramirez drovein the go-ahead run as the Red Sox defeated the ClevelandIndians 7-1 in Game Five of the American League ChampionshipSeries. Cleveland holds a 3-2 edge in the series with Game Six in Bostonon Saturday. Beckett simply overmatched the Indians with a fastball that wastopping out at 98 miles-per-hour and a sharp breaking ball thatbaffled Cleveland much of the evening. The righthander allowed only a run in the first, five hits andone walk while striking out 11. "He's pitched real good obviously both time we saw him,"Cleveland manager Eric Wedge said. "My disappointment is thelack of adjustments by our hitters. Not to take anything awayform Beckett, but out hitters were in between all night long. Unfortunately for the Red Sox, Beckett will not be able to startthe rest of the series as they attempt to become the 10th teamin postseason history to come back from a 3-1 deficit. Boston,which overcame a 3-0 deficit against the New York Yankees in2004, was the last. In nine postseason games - eight starts - Beckett is 5-2 with a1.75 ERA. He is a perfect 3-0 during the 2007 playoffs, allowingthree runs in 24 innings. "We've leaned on him all year," Boston manager Terry Franconasaid. "Early he was up in that first inning. But he settleddown and when he established the breaking ball he really becamethe dominant pitcher we relied on all year." Even a bench clearing incident wasn't enough to rattle Beckett,who kept his cool after Kenny Lofton came charging at him afterflying out in the fifth. Lofton was jawing with Beckett as he jogged down to first andmade a bee-line to the Boston ace on the mound. Both benches andbullpens cleared but no punches were thrown. Beckett appeared to be upset with Lofton after the 40-year-oldveteran laid his bat in front of home plate on what Loftonthought was ball four. Plate umpire Gary Cederstrom disagreedand as Lofton popped out on the next pitch, Beckett appeared toyell something at Lofton. Ramirez gave the Red Sox a 2-1 lead in the third with acontroversial single. David Ortiz drew a two-out walk andRamirez followed with a deep fly ball off of C.C. Sabathia toright-center that bounced off the top of the wall and back inplay. Ortiz scored from first, but Ramirez went into hispatented home run walk and only made it to first. After time was called Ramirez went out to right field to arguewith umpire Paul Emmel, who made the call. First base coach LuisAlicea rushed out to restrain the Red Sox star player whilemanager Terry Francona raced out of the dugout. The umpires convened in right field, but didn't overturn thecall enraging Francona as he had to be escorted back to thedugout by his bench coach. Replays showed the ball appearing tohit the top of the yellow line before bouncing back into play. That would be enough for Beckett, who retired nine in a rowbetween the second and fifth innings and held the Indians3-4-5-6 hitters to one hit in 12 at-bats with five strikeouts. The Indians chance to get to Beckett came in the first inning asGrady Sizemore doubled to start the game and Asdrubal Cabreralined a single to right. But Beckett got Travis Hafner to groundinto a double play - scoring a run - but preventing a biginning. "We should have done more in that first inning," Clevelandmanager Eric Wedge said. "We really let him off the hook rightthere and we weren't able to do anything beyond that." Meanwhile Sabathia grinded through five plus innings giving upfour runs on 10 hits. He didn't have a one-two-three inninguntil the fifth. That fifth inning convinced Indians managerEric Wedge to let Sabathia start the sixth. The decision backfired on Wedge as Sabathia gave up a double toDustin Pedroia and a triple to Kevin Youkilis to extend the RedSox lead to 3-1. Sabathia started the inning with 106 pitches. Ortiz added a sacrifice fly to close the scoring. Like his two previous postseason outings, Sabathia struggledwith his command. The burly lefthander has walked 14 batters andhit two more in 14 1/3 innings. Sabathia giving up walks was ararity during the season as he allowed only 1.38 free passesevery nine innings - second best in the AL. With the fans at Jacobs Field barely in their seats, KevinYoukilis belted Sabathia's 1-0 fastball over the left field wallto give the Red Sox a 1-0 lead. It was the first time thatBoston had scored first in the series. The winner of the ALCS will advance to the World Series to playthe Colorado Rockies, who swept the Arizona Diamondbacks in theNLCS.
Behind Beckett, Red Sox live to fight another day <h3>BOSTON 7, CLEVELAND 1</h3>By Todd Krepop PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer CLEVELAND (Ticker) - Josh Beckett's postseason mastery continuesand because of it the Boston Red Sox season is still alive. Beckett pitched eight dominant innings and Manny Ramirez drovein the go-ahead run as the Red Sox defeated the ClevelandIndians 7-1 in Game Five of the American League ChampionshipSeries. Cleveland holds a 3-2 edge in the series with Game Sixin Boston on Saturday. "We're going to take this to Boston and see what happens,"Ramirez said. "We have nothing to lose." Beckett simply overmatched the Indians with a fastball that wastopping out at 98 miles-per-hour and a sharp breaking ball thatbaffled Cleveland much of the evening. "I felt good," Beckett said. "Like we always say, It's easy whenyou got everything going." The righthander allowed only a run in the first, five hits andone walk while striking out 11. "We've leaned on him all year," Red Sox manager Terry Franconasaid. "Early he was up in that first inning. But he settleddown and when he established the breaking ball he really becamethe dominant pitcher we relied on all year." Unfortunately for the Red Sox, Beckett will not be able to startthe rest of the series as they attempt to become the 10th teamin postseason history to come back from a 3-1 deficit. Boston,which overcame a 3-0 deficit against the New York Yankees in2004, was the last. "I have a lot of confidence in my teammates," Ramirez said. "Wetry to play hard everyday and leave everything on the field." In nine postseason games - eight starts - Beckett is 5-2 with a1.75 ERA. He is a perfect 3-0 during the 2007 playoffs, allowingthree runs in 24 innings. "He's the man of the playoffs," Ramirez said. "What can I say?That's why he is the number one starter." Even a bench clearing incident wasn't enough to rattle Beckett,who kept his cool after Kenny Lofton came charging at him afterflying out in the fifth. Lofton was jawing with Beckett as he jogged down to first andmade a bee-line to the Boston ace on the mound. Both benches andbullpens cleared but no punches were thrown. Beckett appeared to be upset with Lofton after the 40-year-oldveteran laid his bat in front of home plate on what Loftonthought was ball four. Plate umpire Gary Cederstrom disagreedand as Lofton popped out on the next pitch, Beckett appeared toyell something at Lofton. "He doesn't like it when I take my bat and flip it on a walk,"Lofton said. "He's the only pitcher who's had a problem with it.He was saying stuff I didn't like and I said something back.That's who he is. He's that kind of guy." Ramirez gave the Red Sox a 2-1 lead in the third with acontroversial single. David Ortiz drew a two-out walk andRamirez followed with a deep fly ball off of C.C. Sabathia toright-center that bounced off the top of the wall and back inplay. Ortiz scored from first, but Ramirez went into hispatented home run walk and only made it to first. "I thought it was out, but what can I say," Ramirez said. After time was called Ramirez went out to right field to arguewith umpire Paul Emmel, who made the call. First base coach LuisAlicea rushed out to restrain the Red Sox star player whileFrancona raced out of the dugout. "The hard thing is there is so much emotion when you think youhad another run," Francona said. "I think there is a point as amanager you don't care if it's right, you want the run." The umpires convened in right field, but didn't overturn thecall enraging Francona as he had to be escorted back to thedugout by his bench coach. Replays showed the ball appearing tohit the top of the yellow line before bouncing back into play. That would be enough for Beckett, who retired nine in a rowbetween the second and fifth innings and held the Indians3-4-5-6 hitters to one hit in 12 at-bats with five strikeouts. "He can dominate anyone with his stuff," catcher Jason Variteksaid. "In the playoffs it seems like he always does." The Indians chance to get to Beckett came in the first inning asGrady Sizemore doubled to start the game and Asdrubal Cabreralined a single to right. But Beckett got Travis Hafner to groundinto a double play - scoring a run - but preventing a biginning. "We should have done more that first inning," Indians managerEric Wedge said. "We had the people up there we wanted to, butwe left him off the hook. We really let him off the hook rightthere, and weren't able to do anything beyond that." Meanwhile Sabathia grinded through six plus innings giving upfour runs on 10 hits. He didn't have a one-two-three inninguntil the sixth. That sixth inning convinced Wedge to letSabathia start the seventh against the top of the Red Sox order. "C.C. probably pitched as good as he pitched the prior inning,"Wedge said. "He was pretty efficient." The decision backfired on Wedge as Sabathia gave up a double toDustin Pedroia and a triple to Kevin Youkilis to extend the RedSox lead to 3-1. Sabathia started the inning with 106 pitches. "It didn't work out," Wedge said. "He's thrown 120 pitchesbefore. He threw 110 pitches a couple of starts ago." Ortiz added a sacrifice fly to close the scoring. Like his twoprevious postseason outings, Sabathia struggled with hiscommand. The burly lefthander has walked 14 batters and hit two more in14 1/3 innings. Sabathia giving up walks was a rarity during theseason as he allowed only 1.38 free passes every nine innings -second best in the AL . "I can live with this better than I could my last start,"Sabathia said. "I thought I made some good pitches. They have atough lineup, but I felt like I was more aggressive than I wasthe last time and I went after them better than I did the lasttime." With the fans at Jacobs Field barely in their seats, KevinYoukilis belted Sabathia's 1-0 fastball over the left field wallto give the Red Sox a 1-0 lead. It was the first time thatBoston had scored first in the series. "I think getting ahead was a huge factor for us in this game,"Youkilis said. "I think getting the confidence and all theplayers getting that first run ahead is huge for this team.Knowing when Josh Beckett is on the mound, we know maybe thatone run could be all we need." The winner of the ALCS will advance to the World Series to playthe Colorado Rockies, who swept the Arizona Diamondbacks in theNLCS.
