Late Rallies Help Sox Strike Even (21-21)

Clay Buchholz wasn't too
good, allowing 5 runs

After long last, the Red Sox are back at the .500 mark. After being 11-11 and going on a miserable losing streak, they are finally back at 21-21. Tommy Hunter and Clay Buchholz threw two perfect innings each to start the game, and this was looking like a pitching duel. However, the Red Sox broke out in the third when a Daniel Nava single and Marlon Byrd double put two runners in scoring position with no outs. Mike Aviles singled up the middle to score Nava, and Byrd would score later on a sacrifice fly by Dustin Pedroia-- barely beating the throw by Nick Markakis to make it 2-0. The Orioles would take the Red Sox' two runs and raise them two more in the third when they loaded the bases to start the inning. After an 11 pitch at bat, Xavier Avery walked in a run, and the O's would get another cheapie when J.J. Hardy knocked an infield hit to tie it at 2-2. Nick Markakis would walk in a run to give the Orioles a lead before Adam Jones drove in a run on a double play to make it 4-2 in the third. The Orioles would score another in the fourth when Chris Davis led off the inning with a line drive home run to right-center.

David Ortiz hit his 10th
home run of the year

Things were looking bleak when the Orioles had a 5-2 lead heading into the sixth, but David Ortiz put all that behind him by hitting a moonshot onto Eutaw Street behind right field. Ortiz's slam would power the Red Sox' offense as a double and a single put a pair in scoring position with no outs. They would score two on a sacrifice fly by Daniel Nava as well as scoring on an obvious balk (even I picked it up!) by Tommy Hunter to tie the game at 5-5. The offense continued to roll for the Red Sox in the seventh when they loaded the bases with just one out. Adrian Gonzalez hit a deep fly ball to left, caught on the warning track, but it would drive in the speedy Mike Aviles to give the Sox a 6-5 lead. Will Middlebrooks proceeded to give the Red Sox an insurance run by driving a clean single up the middle to make things 7-5. The Red Sox would get another insurance run in the eighth when Dustin Pedroia drove in Che-Hsuan Lin on a single to make it 8-5. The O's took a run in the eighth but it didn't matter as the Red Sox won 8-6.

Bright Spots:
Andrew Miller- 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 K, W (1-0)
Alfredo Aceves- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, SV (10)
Mike Aviles- 2-5, 1 R, 1 RBI
Dustin Pedroia- 2-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI
David Ortiz- 1-4, 1 R, 1 HR, 1 RBI
Adrian Gonzalez- 1-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 RBI
Will Middlebrooks- 3-5, 1 R, 1 RBI
Daniel Nava- 2-3, 1 R, 1 RBI

Dull Spots:
Rich Hill- 0.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R

Player of the Game:
Dustin Pedroia- Pedroia had a very strong night last night, going 2-4 with a double to go with scoring a run and driving in two-- he is now .305/5/20 this year.