Bosox sting Rays to reach ALCS
Print Edition
The Boston Red Sox advanced to the American League championship series with a 3-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday, while the Detroit Tigers forced a decisive fifth game in their series with an 8-6 win over the Oakland Athletics.
Shane Victorino’s infield single broke a seventh-inning deadlock and journeyman Craig Breslow gave Boston a huge boost out of the bullpen as the Red Sox rebounded in St Petersburg, Florida, to win the best-of-five playoff 3-1.
“It feels great,” said Boston outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury. “We played a great team. When it is time to play we grind down and we are focused.”
Koji Uehara got the final four outs — one night after giving up a game-winning homer.
Back in the ALCS for the first time in five years, Boston opens at home on Saturday against the Athletics or Tigers. Oakland hosts Detroit in a decisive Game 5 tomorrow.
Both managers mixed and matched all night in a tense game that felt more like a chess match. Desperately trying to avoid elimination, Rays skipper Joe Maddon used nine pitchers.
Breslow relieved Boston starter Jake Peavy in the sixth and struck out his first four batters — all of them in the middle of Tampa Bay’s lineup.
Xander Bogaerts scored the leveling run on Joel Peralta’s wild pitch in the seventh and Victorino followed with an RBI infield single. Dustin Pedroia drove in Bogaerts with a sacrifice fly in the ninth to make it 3-1, and Uehara struck out Evan Longoria to end it.
Interesting game
“It was an interesting game,” said Maddon. “We just couldn’t score runs against their pitching.”
On a night of desperation, dispute and finally, delirium, the Tigers are heading back to California with the help of Max Scherzer and some fans in right field.
Playing catch-up most of the way, the Tigers drew level first with Jhonny Peralta’s three-run homer in the fifth inning and then on Victor Martinez’s solo shot in the seventh. A couple of fans tried to catch Martinez’s drive, and at least one of them bobbled the ball as he reached over the railing above the wall — preventing right fielder Josh Reddick from having any chance at a leaping grab.
Reddick and center fielder Coco Crisp immediately protested, pointing up at the stands in the hope of a fan-interference call. But umpires upheld the home run after a replay review.
Max Scherzer struck out Reddick and Stephen Vogt before getting pinch-hitter Alberto Callaspo to line out to center.
Detroit, which had no hits through the first four innings at Comerica Park, added three runs in the eighth on a wild pitch and a two-run double by Omar Infante that made it 8-4.
Yoenis Cespedes hit a two-run single in the ninth, bringing the potential tying run to the plate, but Joaquin Benoit struck out Seth Smith to end it.
The Tigers can now send Justin Verlander to the mound for Game 5 in Oakland. Verlander shut out the A’s in Oakland in the decisive fifth game of the division series last year.
Oakland hasn’t announced a starter for the do-or-die game.
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