Projo Sox Blog

BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Amazing what a 3-and-1 cookie can do to jump-start a player, a team and its spirited fan base.

Saturday night, it was a 94-mph fastball down the middle, thigh high, from Cleveland starter Fausto Carmona that turned outcast J.D. Drew into the hero of the moment as he rounded the bases after crushing a two-out grand slam in the first inning that gave the Red Sox a quick 4-0 lead.

Carmona didn’t want to walk in a run. He was one pitch from escaping a bases-loaded, none-out jam, having fanned the dangerous Manny Ramirez and retired Mike Lowell on a fly ball to shallow right.

So because Carmona didn’t want to gift-wrap one run for the Red Sox, he actually gave them four. It was the fifth pitch in the at-bat, and the speed of the pitch wasn’t about to fool Drew, who is selective to a fault, agonizing fans in his generally passive approach at the plate. The first two pitches were at 95 mph, the next two at 96.

Drew had fouled off one pitch and had taken the others for balls, so he was hitting ahead in the count, which is a hitter’s game plan. Adding to that was the fact the bases were loaded, meaning Carmona had to throw a strike, which narrowed down Drew’s focus at the plate to a certain pitch in a certain spot.

If he didn’t get it, he could always take a bases-loaded walk and force home a run. Or even if it was a strike, if it wasn’t in his zone, he could lay off and wait for a 3-and-2 pitch that might be more to his liking.

But this pitch was right in Drew’s wheelhouse, a get-me-over fastball, even if it did have some zip to it. As far as Drew was concerned, it was such a perfect pitch to hit it might just as well have been on a tee. And Drew didn’t miss it.

Nor did Drew miss another 94-mph fastball in the third, drilling an RBI single up the middle on a 1-and-0 pitch after Carmona had walked the first two batters on nine pitches, making it a 5-1 game.

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At this stage of his career, Curt Schilling has to get the corners from the umpires and he has to have a little luck, too, because while he’s not going to walk many, he won’t strike out many, either. So some hard-hit balls have to become outs.

Or foul balls.

Grady Sizemore, the Indians’ leadoff hitter, lofted a high drive down the right-field line on an 85-mph cutter that went over the foul pole in the first inning. The umpires called it foul, though replays were inconclusive.

Schilling also took advantage of struggling Cleveland DH Travis Hafner (.158, 3 for 19 coming in). Schilling served up two hittable pitches to Hafner with two on and two outs in the third and Boston on top, 4-1.

But Hafner, who had 24 homers and knocked in 100 runs this season, is so messed up at the plate that he fouled off a down-the-middle straight 91-mph fastball and bounced out softly to first, ending the inning, trying to pull a hanging 85-mph splitter on the outer half of the plate.

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The key for Carmona to be successful was for the right-hander to get ground balls.
That’s what he said on Friday, and the theme was echoed by manager Eric Wedge and pitching coach Carl Willis.

On paper, two batters into the game, it looked as if Carmona were following his plan beautifully. Dustin Pedroia hit the ball on the ground. So did Kevin Youkilis.

But sinkerball pitchers have to have some luck, too. And Carmona didn’t have any.

Pedroia reached out, chopped a weak bouncer over the mound and beat it out for an infield single. Youkilis hit a roller deep in the shortstop hole and Pedroia was safe at second on the Indians’ forceout attempt. Youkilis was credited with an infield single.

Those two weak ground balls set the stage for Drew’s grand slam and an early 4-0 advantage.

In the second inning, Youkilis was credited with another infield single, this time when his weak ground ball toward the shortstop hole hit the lip of the infield where the dirt meets the grass, throwing off the timing of shortstop Jhonny Peralta as he charged the ball, leaving him with no play.

This one, though, didn’t hurt. Carmona got David Ortiz to hit a sinker on the ground and the Indians turned it into an inning-ending double play. Carmona, however, did not retire a batter in the third and was lifted.

* * * *
When Ortiz came to the plate with runners at first and second and none out, the Indians didn’t employ an over-shift on the Sox’ designated hitter. Peralta was on the shortstop side of the second-base bag, though he was shaded closer to it than normal. Ortiz walked.

In the second, Ortiz came to the plate with runners at first and third and one out. This time Peralta played him on the second-base side of the bag. It was perfect positioning. Ortiz ripped a ground ball right at him, and Peralta turned the inning-ending double play.

* * * *
Cleveland catcher Victor Martinez was not happy with plate umpire Dana DeMuth.
After Carmona’s torturous 36-pitch first inning was over, he turned and had some words with DeMuth, whom he presumably thought was squeezing his young pitcher. Martinez had to be led away by a couple of Indians.

Martinez still had to be riled up as he came to the plate, leading off the second. And he directed that anger toward an 89-mph fastball from Schilling, lofting a homer over the right-field foul pole. He took his time rounding the bases, even though the homer only cut Cleveland’s deficit to 4-1.

* * * *
Naturally, the Red Sox were hoping for a long and solid outing from Schilling.
But the pitcher had to be on a short leash because if Boston didn’t win last night, its season was over. Patience was not going to be the order of the night when it came to making pitching changes.

So no doubt to that end, an hour before the scheduled first pitch, left-hander Jon Lester was in the right-field corner, pitching to bullpen catcher Mani Martinez on the flat ground. Martinez was in a catcher’s crouch and Lester was loosening up.

Lester, a starter in his budding career, is not used to coming out of the bullpen. On this playoff roster, Lester is the long man, the pitcher stretched out to give the Sox multiple innings out of the bullpen. So that relatively brief session likely was to get him loose enough to be able to get ready at a moment’s notice should Schilling falter early.

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