Posted on 04/26/2009 8:27:25 PM PDT by Red Steel
BOSTON -- It was a rivalry weekend in which the Red Sox provided countless forms of excitement for their fans.
There was a walk-off win Friday night, a slugfest victory on Saturday and finally a 4-1 triumph on Sunday that included an electrifying straight steal of home by Jacoby Ellsbury.
Just like that, the red-hot Red Sox swept the Yankees in this three-game set to run their winning streak to 10 games.
Boston's first double-digit winning streak since a 12-game run from June 16-29, 2006, has come on the heels of a 2-6 start.
Having completed a 9-0 homestand, the Red Sox will open a nine-game road trip in Cleveland on Monday night.
Ellsbury's steal of home with the bases loaded and two outs in the fifth inning came against Yankees left-hander Andy Pettitte. It was the first steal of home by a Red Sox player since Jose Offerman on Aug. 30, 1999. Ellsbury became the first Boston player to register a straight steal of home since Billy Hatcher on April 22, 1994.
Justin Masterson, making his second start in place of injured right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka, turned in another strong performance. Masterson went 5 1/3 innings, allowing six hits and one run, walking one and striking out four while throwing 99 pitches.
Their bullpen spent after the chaos of the previous two games, the Red Sox went to some new faces but got good results. Left-hander Hunter Jones recorded the final two outs of the sixth inning in his second Major League appearance.
Michael Bowden, also pitching his second Major League game after being activated just for Sunday's game, gave the Red Sox a big lift with two shutout innings.
With closer Jonathan Papelbon unavailable because of his recent workload, Takashi Saito came on for his second save, completing the sweep.
The first big league game I attended in 1967, Ray Oyler hit into a triple play against the Yankees.
Every time Ellsbury came up to bat for the rest of the night, he got a standing ovation.
Another unforgettable moment at Sunday's game at Fenway: Captain Richard Phillips of the Maersk Alabama threw out the first pitch... to Jacoby Ellsbury!
Captain Richard Phillips shakes hands with Jacoby Ellsbury as he gets the ball from the first pitch. (Photo by John Wilcox)
Tacoby Bellsbury to the Skanks: Here’s some jalapenos for your burrito.
This is what happens when you tear down the House that Ruth Built.
The “Curse of the Bambino” now belongs to the Yankees.
Wonderful games! My poor corgi was scared to death at all my hollering and cheering:)
I LOVE that they gave the ball to the captain!
how about this: I think I witnessed the last “straight steal of home”. They mentioned a game in April of ‘94 (IIRC) where Billy Hatcher stole home. I think I was at that game (vs.
Angels, sitting in right field seats). Later that season I think he stole home again (this time vs. Blue Jays—and I
think I saw that on TV)
Another memorable Sox moment for me was when I was in Toronto and saw them play at the SkyDome. Mike Greenwell tried to make a catch but smashed into the wall and medical personnel rushed to take him off the field. I could see it clearly— I was just to the right of home plate, looking right down the third base line at him. He held up his hand
as they put him on the stretcher and said later “I wanted
my wife to see I was all right” (he was conscious, at
least...)
Nothing like a song about a man’s love for a 13 year old girl.
Great moments!
Red Sox, 470 or 480 straight sellouts, a record
Yankee Stadium, many empty seats (especially later
when team’s losing by 18 runs...)
I’ll admit the steal of home may have rattled Petite but.. the batter hit a double to right field a few pitches later so Ellsbury could have walked home had he not stolen it.
Ellsbury was a real problem for HGH last night. That’s what speed can do for a club.
Nice to see him do his thing the past few days.
Well it gets crazier. The Boston Red Sox have now won 11 games in a row. Our grandchildren are going to want to hear about these times so let’s savor the moment. Never before in the history of professional baseball has a team been so dominant as now.
Wakefield is in one of his pitching grooves that he gets into once in awhile. I hope this one lasts the longest. :-)
Wakefield could very well be pitching when he’s 60 years old. He’s a knuckleball thrower so it just might happen.
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