GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: AL: BOSTON (84-56) at BALTIMORE (60-78)

AL: BOSTON at BALTIMORE

<div class="pre">BOSTON (7) VS BALTIMORE (6) - FINAL

BOSTON ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Lugo ss 5 0 1 1 0 0 1 .239
D Pedroia 2b 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 .325
D Ortiz dh 4 1 1 2 1 0 0 .317
M Lowell 3b 4 0 0 0 1 0 3 .327
K Youkilis 1b 3 1 2 0 1 0 0 .291
B Kielty lf 3 0 0 0 0 2 2 .250
a-J Ellsbury ph-lf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .444
J Drew rf 3 1 0 0 1 1 4 .252
C Crisp cf 4 3 3 3 0 0 0 .270
D Mirabelli c 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .219
R Clayton pr 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 .254
K Cash c 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 .105
b-J Varitek ph-c 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 .264

Totals 36 7 10 7 4 4 10

a-singled to left for B Kielty in the 8th; b-singled to left for K Cash in the
9th.

BATTING: HR - C Crisp (6, 4th inning off G Olson 2 on, 1 Out), D Ortiz (27, 5th
inning off R Cherry 0 on, 1 Out). RBI - J Lugo (65), D Ortiz 2 (96), C Crisp 3
(54), J Varitek (61). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - M Lowell 2.
GIDP - J Drew. Team LOB - 6.

BASERUNNING: SB - C Crisp (23, 2nd base off D Baez/R Hernandez).

FIELDING: DP: 1 (M Lowell-K Cash-K Youkilis).


BALTIMORE ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
B Roberts 2b 4 0 0 0 1 0 0 .296
T Redman cf 5 2 3 0 0 1 0 .357
N Markakis rf 3 2 2 1 2 1 0 .297
M Tejada ss 5 0 2 2 0 0 2 .308
K Millar 1b 5 1 1 2 0 3 5 .261
A Huff dh 3 1 1 0 1 0 0 .274
M Mora 3b 4 0 1 1 0 0 3 .266
R Hernandez c 3 0 0 0 1 1 1 .243
J Payton lf 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 .253

Totals 36 6 10 6 5 6 12

BATTING: 2B - N Markakis 2 (39, T Wakefield 2); A Huff (27, T Wakefield). HR -
K Millar (15, 3rd inning off T Wakefield 1 on, 2 Out). RBI - M Tejada 2 (72), K
Millar 2 (59), M Mora (50), N Markakis (91). 2-out RBI - K Millar 2, M Mora, N
Markakis, M Tejada. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - R Hernandez 1, K
Millar 2, M Mora 2. GIDP - M Tejada. Team LOB - 8.

BASERUNNING: SB - T Redman (3, 2nd base off T Wakefield/D Mirabelli), M Mora
(9, 2nd base off T Wakefield/K Cash).

FIELDING: DP: 1 (M Tejada-B Roberts-K Millar).


----------------------------------------------------
BOSTON - 002 310 001 -- 7
BALTIMORE - 103 200 000 -- 6
----------------------------------------------------

BOSTON ip h r er bb so hr era
T Wakefield 3 2/3 9 6 6 2 0 1 4.39
K Snyder 1 1/3 0 0 0 1 1 0 3.55
C Buchholz (W, 3-0) 3 1 0 0 2 3 0 1.50
J Papelbon (S, 34) 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 1.58

BALTIMORE ip h r er bb so hr era
G Olson 3 2/3 5 5 5 2 3 1 7.79
R Cherry 2 1/3 1 1 1 0 1 1 9.64
J Hoey 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 11.47
J Walker 1/3 0 0 0 0 0 0 2.98
C Bradford 2/3 2 0 0 1 0 0 3.56
D Baez (L, 0-6) 1 2 1 1 1 0 0 6.37

WP - G Olson. IBB - D Ortiz (by D Baez). Pitches-strikes: T Wakefield 74-45;
K Snyder 18-10; C Buchholz 52-29; J Papelbon 11-9; G Olson 67-43; R Cherry
30-19; J Hoey 9-7; J Walker 2-2; C Bradford 16-10; D Baez 21-11. Ground
balls-fly balls: T Wakefield 4-7; K Snyder 2-1; C Buchholz 3-3; J Papelbon 0-1;
G Olson 3-5; R Cherry 3-3; J Hoey 1-2; J Walker 0-1; C Bradford 2-0; D Baez
2-1. Batters faced: T Wakefield 22; K Snyder 5; C Buchholz 11; J Papelbon 3; G
Olson 18; R Cherry 8; J Hoey 3; J Walker 1; C Bradford 4; D Baez 6.

UMPIRES: HP--Wally Bell. 1B--Mike Dimuro. 2B--Bill Welke. 3B--Laz Diaz.

T--3:14. Att--27,472.
Weather: 89 degrees, clear. Wind: 8 mph, out to
center.</div>

 

AL: BOSTON at BALTIMORE

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
AL
BOSTON 7
BALTIMORE 6 FINAL</div>

 

AL: BOSTON at BALTIMORE

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BOSTON (7) AT BALTIMORE (6) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BALTIMORE 1ST: B Roberts flied out to left. T Redman singled to left.
T Redman stole second. N Markakis walked. M Tejada singled to left, T Redman
scored, N Markakis to second. K Millar flied out to center. A Huff walked,
N Markakis to third, M Tejada to second. M Mora grounded out to second. (1 Run,
2 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 0, BALTIMORE 1.

BOSTON 3RD: C Crisp singled to right. D Mirabelli singled to left, C Crisp
to third. J Lugo singled to center, C Crisp scored, D Mirabelli to second.
R Clayton ran for D Mirabelli. D Pedroia grounded out to pitcher, R Clayton to
third, J Lugo to second. D Ortiz grounded out to pitcher, R Clayton scored,
J Lugo to third. M Lowell flied out to left. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 2, BALTIMORE 1.

BALTIMORE 3RD: K Cash catching. T Redman grounded out to first. N Markakis
doubled to deep right. M Tejada flied out to center. K Millar homered to
left, N Markakis scored. A Huff doubled to deep right. M Mora singled to
center, A Huff scored. M Mora stole second. R Hernandez grounded out to
shortstop. (3 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 2, BALTIMORE 4.

BOSTON 4TH: K Youkilis walked. B Kielty struck out swinging. J Drew
walked, K Youkilis to second. K Youkilis to third, J Drew to second on wild
pitch by G Olson. C Crisp homered to left, K Youkilis and J Drew scored.
K Cash struck out swinging. R Cherry relieved G Olson and inherits an 0-2 count.
J Lugo popped out to shortstop. (3 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) BOSTON 5, BALTIMORE 4.

BALTIMORE 4TH: J Payton flied out to right. B Roberts flied out to right.
T Redman singled to right. N Markakis doubled to deep left center, T Redman
scored. M Tejada singled to shallow center, N Markakis scored. K Snyder
relieved T Wakefield. K Millar struck out looking. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors)
BOSTON 5, BALTIMORE 6.

BOSTON 5TH: D Pedroia lined out to left. D Ortiz homered to right.
M Lowell grounded out to shortstop. K Youkilis flied out to right. (1 Run,
1 Hit, 0 Errors) BOSTON 6, BALTIMORE 6.

BOSTON 9TH: D Baez relieved C Bradford. C Crisp reached on infield single
to second. J Varitek hit for K Cash. C Crisp stole second. J Varitek singled
to left, C Crisp scored, J Varitek to second advancing on throw. J Lugo bunt
grounded out to catcher. D Pedroia grounded out to shortstop, J Varitek to
third. D Ortiz intentionally walked. M Lowell flied out to center. (1 Run,
2 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 7, BALTIMORE 6.</div>

 

AL: BOSTON at BALTIMORE

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BOSTON (7) AT BALTIMORE (6) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Boston Starting Lineups -- J Lugo SS, D Pedroia 2B, D Ortiz DH, M Lowell 3B,
K Youkilis 1B, B Kielty LF, J Drew RF, C Crisp CF, D Mirabelli C, T Wakefield RHP.

Baltimore Starting Lineups -- B Roberts 2B, T Redman CF, N Markakis RF,
M Tejada SS, K Millar 1B, A Huff DH, M Mora 3B, R Hernandez C, J Payton LF,
G Olson LHP.

Umpires -- Wally Bell (HP), Mike Dimuro (1B), Bill Welke (2B), Laz Diaz (3B).


Gametime Weather: 89 degrees, Clear, wind out to center at 8 mph.


BOSTON 1ST: J Lugo grounded out to third. D Pedroia flied out to center.
D Ortiz flied out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 0, BALTIMORE 0.

BALTIMORE 1ST: B Roberts flied out to left. T Redman singled to left.
T Redman stole second. N Markakis walked. M Tejada singled to left, T Redman
scored, N Markakis to second. K Millar flied out to center. A Huff walked,
N Markakis to third, M Tejada to second. M Mora grounded out to second. (1 Run,
2 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 0, BALTIMORE 1.

BOSTON 2ND: M Lowell flied out to right. K Youkilis singled to center.
B Kielty struck out swinging. J Drew grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) BOSTON 0, BALTIMORE 1.

BALTIMORE 2ND: R Hernandez popped out to first. J Payton grounded out to
third. B Roberts lined out to center. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 0,
BALTIMORE 1.

BOSTON 3RD: C Crisp singled to right. D Mirabelli singled to left, C Crisp
to third. J Lugo singled to center, C Crisp scored, D Mirabelli to second.
R Clayton ran for D Mirabelli. D Pedroia grounded out to pitcher, R Clayton to
third, J Lugo to second. D Ortiz grounded out to pitcher, R Clayton scored,
J Lugo to third. M Lowell flied out to left. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 2, BALTIMORE 1.

BALTIMORE 3RD: K Cash catching. T Redman grounded out to first. N Markakis
doubled to deep right. M Tejada flied out to center. K Millar homered to
left, N Markakis scored. A Huff doubled to deep right. M Mora singled to
center, A Huff scored. M Mora stole second. R Hernandez grounded out to
shortstop. (3 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 2, BALTIMORE 4.

BOSTON 4TH: K Youkilis walked. B Kielty struck out swinging. J Drew
walked, K Youkilis to second. K Youkilis to third, J Drew to second on wild
pitch by G Olson. C Crisp homered to left, K Youkilis and J Drew scored.
K Cash struck out swinging. R Cherry relieved G Olson and inherits an 0-2 count.
J Lugo popped out to shortstop. (3 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) BOSTON 5, BALTIMORE 4.

BALTIMORE 4TH: J Payton flied out to right. B Roberts flied out to right.
T Redman singled to right. N Markakis doubled to deep left center, T Redman
scored. M Tejada singled to shallow center, N Markakis scored. K Snyder
relieved T Wakefield. K Millar struck out looking. (2 Runs, 3 Hits, 0 Errors)
BOSTON 5, BALTIMORE 6.

BOSTON 5TH: D Pedroia lined out to left. D Ortiz homered to right.
M Lowell grounded out to shortstop. K Youkilis flied out to right. (1 Run,
1 Hit, 0 Errors) BOSTON 6, BALTIMORE 6.

BALTIMORE 5TH: A Huff flied out to right. M Mora bunt grounded out to
catcher. R Hernandez walked. J Payton grounded into fielder's choice to
third, R Hernandez out at second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 6,
BALTIMORE 6.

BOSTON 6TH: B Kielty grounded out to first. J Drew struck out swinging.
C Crisp grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 6, BALTIMORE 6.

BALTIMORE 6TH: C Buchholz relieved K Snyder. B Roberts walked. T Redman
singled to right, B Roberts to second. N Markakis walked, B Roberts to third,
T Redman to second. M Tejada grounded into double play, third to catcher to
first, B Roberts out at home, T Redman to third, N Markakis to second. K Millar
struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) BOSTON 6, BALTIMORE 6.

BOSTON 7TH: J Hoey relieved R Cherry. K Cash grounded out to shortstop.
J Lugo flied out to right. D Pedroia popped out to third. (0 Runs, 0 Hits,
0 Errors) BOSTON 6, BALTIMORE 6.

BALTIMORE 7TH: A Huff grounded out to catcher. M Mora flied out to left.
R Hernandez struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 6,
BALTIMORE 6.

BOSTON 8TH: J Walker relieved J Hoey. D Ortiz flied out to right.
C Bradford relieved J Walker. M Lowell walked. K Youkilis singled to right,
M Lowell to second. J Ellsbury hit for B Kielty. J Ellsbury singled to left,
M Lowell to third, K Youkilis to second. J Drew grounded into double play,
shortstop to second to first, J Ellsbury out at second.(0 Runs, 2 Hits,
0 Errors) BOSTON 6, BALTIMORE 6.

BALTIMORE 8TH: J Ellsbury in left field. J Payton lined out to center.
B Roberts flied out to left. T Redman struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits,
0 Errors) BOSTON 6, BALTIMORE 6.

BOSTON 9TH: D Baez relieved C Bradford. C Crisp reached on infield single
to second. J Varitek hit for K Cash. C Crisp stole second. J Varitek singled
to left, C Crisp scored, J Varitek to second advancing on throw. J Lugo bunt
grounded out to catcher. D Pedroia grounded out to shortstop, J Varitek to
third. D Ortiz intentionally walked. M Lowell flied out to center. (1 Run,
2 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 7, BALTIMORE 6.

BALTIMORE 9TH: J Varitek catching. J Papelbon relieved C Buchholz.
N Markakis struck out swinging. M Tejada popped out to second. K Millar struck
out looking. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) BOSTON 7, BALTIMORE 6.</div>

 

Crisp's big night leads Red Sox past Orioles

<h3>BOSTON 7, BALTIMORE 6</h3>BALTIMORE (Ticker) -- Coco Crisp has been on fire with theglove all season. On Thursday, he took control of a game withboth his bat and legs.


Crisp had a home run and scored three times to lead the BostonRed Sox to a 7-6 victory over the Baltimore Orioles.

Rookie sensation Clay Buchholz, who pitched a no-hitter againstthe Orioles on Saturday, made his first appearance out of thebullpen, allowing one hit in three scoreless frames for the RedSox, who have won five of their last six games.


With the game tied at 6-6 in the ninth, Crisp beat out aninfield dribbler to second base and promptly stole second base.When pinch hitter Jason Varitek drove a single to left field,Crisp easily beat the throw to the plate to give Red Sox thelead.


Boston's center fielder made a number of nice plays in thefield, most notably tracking down a deep line drive by JayPayton leading off the eighth. His three-run homer in the fifthgave Boston its second lead of the game in a back-and-forthcontest. Crisp's leadoff single in the third led to the team'sfirst run of the night.


Buchholz (3-0), who became just the third player in history tothrow a no-hitter in one of his first two starts last Saturday,was the second man out of the Red Sox bullpen. He worked hisway out of a bases-loaded jam in the sixth before cruisingthrough the seventh and eighth. He has now allowed one hit in12 career innings against Baltimore.


All-Star closer Jonathan Papelbon took over in the ninth,striking out two in a scoreless frame to pick up his 34th saveof the season.


Danys Baez (0-6) suffered the loss for the Orioles.

Five and one-third scoreless innings from the bullpen bailed outBoston starter Tim Wakefield, who was the hottest pitcher inthe American League through much of August before a back injurycaused him to be scratched from a start over the weekend.

He entered Thursday's contest having earned a decision in eachof his 26 outings and was carrying a 22-inning scoreless streakinto his 27th start contest.


With the time off, Wakefield clearly was not his sharpest,getting charged with six runs and nine hits in just 3 2/3frames, walking two and failing to notch a strikeout. It wasjust the third time this season that he has failed to last atleast five innings.


David Ortiz's solo blast in the fifth - his 27th homer of theseason - tied the game at 6-6 and assured Wakefield of notearning a decision for the first time this season. Oriolesstarter Garrett Olsen did not fare much better, allowing fiveruns and five hits while striking out three and issuing a pairof walks in 3 2/3 innings. He was pulled due to a strained leftforearm.


It was the third time this season that Olsen has struggledagainst Boston, which now has managed 13 runs in 15 1/3 inningsagainst Baltimore's rookie.


Kevin Millar and Miguel Tejada each drove in a pair of runsBaltimore, which fell to 5-10 against the Red Sox this season.

 

Crisp's big night leads Red Sox past Orioles

<h3>BOSTON 7, BALTIMORE 6</h3>BALTIMORE (Ticker) -- Coco Crisp has been on fire with theglove all season. On Thursday, he took control of a game withboth his bat and legs.


Crisp had a home run and scored three times to lead the BostonRed Sox to a 7-6 victory over the Baltimore Orioles.

Rookie sensation Clay Buchholz, who pitched a no-hitter againstthe Orioles on Saturday, made his first appearance out of thebullpen, allowing one hit in three scoreless frames for the RedSox, who have won five of their last six games.


"He got out of a jam and got the win," Boston manager TerryFrancona said of Buchholz. "To win it was huge."


With the game tied at 6-6 in the ninth, Crisp beat out aninfield dribbler to second base and promptly stole second base.When pinch hitter Jason Varitek drove a single to left field,Crisp easily beat the throw to the plate to give Red Sox thelead.


"He's really starting to hit the ball well," Francona said. "Hisstolen base really put the pressure on the defense."

Boston's center fielder made a number of nice plays in thefield, most notably tracking down a deep line drive by JayPayton leading off the eighth. His three-run homer in the fifthgave Boston its second lead of the game in a back-and-forthcontest. Crisp's leadoff single in the third led to the team'sfirst run of the night.


"They hit a lot of balls hard, but Coco's out there," Buchholzsaid.


Buchholz (3-0), who became just the third player in history tothrow a no-hitter in one of his first two starts last Saturday,was the second man out of the Red Sox bullpen. He worked hisway out of a bases-loaded jam in the sixth before cruisingthrough the seventh and eighth. He has now allowed one hit in12 career innings against Baltimore.


"I was overthrowing and got a visit on the mound," Buchholzsaid. "He (pitching coach John Farrell) told me to sit back,and everything started clicking."


All-Star closer Jonathan Papelbon took over in the ninth,striking out two in a scoreless frame to pick up his 34th saveof the season.


Danys Baez (0-6) suffered the loss for the Orioles.

Five and one-third scoreless innings from the bullpen bailed outBoston starter Tim Wakefield, who was the hottest pitcher inthe American League through much of August before a back injurycaused him to be scratched from a start over the weekend.

"His knuckleball was inconsistent," Francona said. "The layoffdidn't help."


He entered Thursday's contest having earned a decision in eachof his 26 outings and was carrying a 22-inning scoreless streakinto his 27th start contest.


With the time off, Wakefield clearly was not his sharpest,getting charged with six runs and nine hits in just 3 2/3frames, walking two and failing to notch a strikeout. It wasjust the third time this season that he has failed to last atleast five innings.


"I felt fine," Wakefield said. "My mechanics were OK. No pain.There's no excuses. I struggled to get it back."


David Ortiz's solo blast in the fifth - his 27th homer of theseason - tied the game at 6-6 and assured Wakefield of notearning a decision for the first time this season.

Orioles starter Garrett Olsen did not fare much better, allowingfive runs and five hits while striking out three and issuing apair of walks in 3 2/3 innings. He was pulled due to a strainedleft forearm.


It was the third time this season that Olsen has struggledagainst Boston, which now has managed 13 runs in 15 1/3 inningsagainst Baltimore's rookie. Olsen left the game in the fourthinning with forearm tightness.


"Each time I go out there, I get more confident, unfortunatelytonight I left with an injury," Olsen said. "I look forward togetting back out there."


Kevin Millar and Miguel Tejada each drove in a pair of runsBaltimore, which fell to 5-10 against the Red Sox this season.

"We came up on the short end of the stick tonight," Millar said."We swung the bats well, but didn't get the big hit we needed."