GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: AL: NY YANKEES (84-63) at BOSTON (89-59)

Beckett helps Red Sox recover from stunning loss

<h3>BOSTON 10, NY YANKEES 1</h3>BOSTON (Ticker) -- In the battle of the major league's only18-game winners, Josh Beckett clearly outclassed Chien-MingWang.


Beckett tossed seven impressive innings and David Ortiz andJacoby Ellsbury combined for five hits and five RBI as theBoston Red Sox rebounded from a disheartening loss to roll pastthe New York Yankees, 10-1, on Saturday.


Mike Lowell drove in two runs and Eric Hinske homered for Boston(90-59), which extended its lead over second-place New York(84-64) in the American League East Division to 5 1/2 games.

"We're trying to play good baseball and let everything else kindof work itself out," Beckett said. "We have been able to dotha pretty consistently throughout the whole year, and tonightwas no different."


After squandering a five-run, eighth-inning lead on Friday, theRed Sox scored 10 unanswered runs in this one to erase an early1-0 deficit. Lowell began the outburst with an RBI single inthe first inning and J.D. Drew put Boston ahead for good with arun-scoring base hit in the fifth.


Ellsbury, who entered the game as a pinch runner for KevinYoukilis in the fifth, plated a run with a single in the sixth,giving the Red Sox a 3-1 advantage. Ortiz followed with atwo-run double, which ended the afternoon for Wang.

Scoring on Ortiz's double was Ellsbury, who slid past JorgePosada and touched the plate with his hand after New York'scatcher failed to apply a tag.


"Fortunately, I did not barrel into him and slid," Ellsburysaid. "I don't know what he was thinking, but he didn't get thetag on me and we got the run in."


Earlier in the inning, Posada was run over by Hinske but held onto the ball, preventing the run from scoring.


"I realized I was going to be out and my only play was to try torun him over," said Hinske, who was attempting to score fromthird on a grounder by Dustin Pedroia. "I hit him pretty goodand he held on to the ball. I ended up being out, but I thinkit pumped the team up a little bit."


The single by Ellsbury extended his hitting streak to 13 games,the longest stretch by a Red Sox rookie outfielder since JimRice had a 13-game run from July 6-20, 1975.


"He's been a catalyst so often for us, coming up in bigsituations, using his legs, his bat, his defense and has givenus a huge lift when we needed it," Boston manager Terry Franconasaid of Ellsbury.


Boston put away the game with a four-run seventh, which washighlighted by Ellsbury's two-run single. Hinske capped thescoring with a solo blast in the eighth, his sixth homer of theseason.


The offensive support was more than enough for Beckett (19-6),who continued his bid for the AL Cy Young Award by yielding justone run and three hits. The righthander, who has won six ofhis last seven decisions, walked two and struck out seven.

"I thought Beckett did exactly what we have kind of come toexpect and also needed," Francona said. "He pitched like an aceof a staff today against the best lineup in baseball. He wentout there and did exactly what we needed."


"He was able to utilize his pitches, keep the ball down when hewanted to, elevate when he wanted to," Red Sox catcher JasonVaritek said. "Use his changeup, use his curveball and use bothsides of the plate, and that is the key to executing yourpitches."


Beckett, who improved to 9-1 following a loss by Boston thisseason, has won 50 games over the last three campaigns. He istied with Minnesota's Johan Santana for the most in the majorsduring that span.


"(I) just do what I always do, just go out there and try toexecute pitches," Beckett said of his record after team losses."They have a good team and they showed why they've won so manygames since the All-Star break last night."


Wang (18-7) was tagged for five runs, nine hits and three walksin 5 2/3 frames, his shortest outing since lasting only 2 2/3innings against Toronto on August 8. The Taiwanese righthander- who recorded three strikeouts - lost for the first time sincethe brief outing vs. the Blue Jays, halting a five-game winningstreak.


"Sometimes I lost control and got behind in the count and gaveup hits," Wang said.


"It looked at times like he had the good downer, and othertimes, it looked a little flat," Yankees manager Joe Torre said."He was just inconsistent today, whether it was his releasepoint or whatever it was. He just obviously wasn't as good ashe has been lately."


Derek Jeter went 2-for-4 with a solo homer for the Yankees,whose lead over the Detroit Tigers (81-67) in the AL wild cardrace slipped to three games. The Tigers are visiting theMinnesota Twins.


Jeter's first-inning blast was the 193rd of his career, movinghim past Tino Martinez for 13th place on the Yankees' all-timelist.