Posted on 10/08/2004 11:29:40 AM PDT by GraniteStateConservative
American League division series; Red Sox lead 2-0.
4:05 pm EDT, Fri. Oct 8, 2004
TV: ESPN
Nothing more than an extra arm in spring training, Bronson Arroyo has emerged as Boston's No. 3 starter in the playoffs -- an impressive slot considering who he follows in the rotation.
Arroyo will try to follow strong performances by Curt Schilling and Pedro Martinez and pitch the Red Sox into the AL championship series for a second straight year as they try to close out the frustrated Anaheim Angels in Game 3 at Fenway Park.
Arroyo, who wasn't even installed as Boston's fifth starter until May, spent the last three months of the season providing the Red Sox with one quality start after another. He went 8-2 after July 26, and was unbeaten in nine straight outings to close the regular season.
``Yeah, it's been an amazing year for me,'' Arroyo said. ``You know, I knew I had an outside shot of being a good starter in spring training and everything has worked out where I had an opportunity, and the organization has given me the fifth ball every fifth day and I had not had the opportunity before this. I'm just glad that I've proven myself to be consistent enough to be given the ball in Game 3.''
The 27-year-old right-hander maintained his poise in several key starts during Boston's second-half run to the AL wild card, earning the respect of manager Terry Francona and the rest of his teammates.
``Bronson has earned his stripes,'' Francona said. ``He's made a lot of starts this year and we've seen him evolve into a pretty good major league pitcher. And we would not give him the start if we didn't think he could handle it.''
Just as he has for the better part of the last three months, Arroyo will again follow Schilling and Martinez, both of whom handcuffed the Angels in Anaheim to stake the Red Sox to a commanding 2-0 lead with the series shifting to Boston for Games 3 and 4.
``I think it's definitely going to calm me down personally,'' Arroyo said of the 2-0 cushion he'll be working with in his first career playoff start. ``You now, if you're down 2-0 and it's a do-or-die game like it is for them, it's going to allow me to go out and try to be aggressive early in the game and just try to establish the strike zone. And just like being up ten in a baseball game, you don't have to worry about being so picky with shots or whatever. I can go out and throw the ball and hopefully our offense will come through tomorrow.''
Boston's offense clicked on all cylinders in the first two games, knocking around Anaheim starters Jarrod Washburn and Bartolo Colon and the vaunted Anaheim bullpen for 17 runs.
But rather than complaining about his team's poor pitching, manager Mike Scioscia was more concerned with his team's lack of aggressiveness in key situations.
``The one thing that I think hurt us tonight, and it does bother us, is the fact we didn't do the things offensively that we needed to do,'' Scioscia said after Wednesday's 8-3 loss in Game 2.
``We didn't get our bunts down, we had a chance to go from first to third a couple times and we didn't take advantage of it. Those are things we have to have in our game and we know, we talked about it, and we are going to have to take that aggressiveness, bring it to that level as we go back to Boston.''
The Angels, who have lost six straight to the Red Sox dating to the regular season, will try to get a lift from right-hander Kelvim Escobar, who helped pitch Anaheim into the playoffs last weekend in Oakland.
Escobar allowed four runs and six hits over 5 1-3 innings, but did not receive a decision in the Angels' AL West-clinching 5-4 victory over the Athletics on Saturday. The 28-year-old Venezuelan is hoping the performance under pressure serves him well in Friday's must-win game at Fenway.
``I don't think I get any pressure, because when you put pressure on yourself, I think you try to do too much, and it never works out that way,'' said Escobar, who will be making his postseason debut.
``But that weekend in Oakland, it was huge for us. It was kind of like a playoff game, and I couldn't sleep the night before, with the excitement, knowing that if we win the game, we clinched our division. But I try not to think too much and put pressure on myself.''
The Angels managed three runs in each of the first two games. Unlike 2002, when Anaheim lost Game 1 of each series en route to first-ever World Series title, the Angels weren't able to climb out of their early hole Thursday night.
``I don't care what happened in 2002,'' catcher Bengie Molina said. ``I wanted to win Game 1. And Game 2, too.''
Ironcially, the Red Sox were the last team to overcome an 0-2 deficit in the ALDS, doing it last year against Oakland. However, Boston lost the first two games on the road in that series.
The last AL team to come back from dropping the first two first-round games at home was the New York Yankees, who also did it against the A's in 2001.
``We're down two games, but we'll go there and play our best and you never know what might happen,'' Anaheim's Chone Figgins said.
Lineups/Bench (AVG/OBP/SLG)
CF-L Johnny Damon (.304/.380/.477)
2B-B Mark Bellhorn (.264/.373/.444)
LF-R Manny Ramirez (.308/.397/.613)
DH-L David Ortiz (.301/.380/.603)
1B-R Kevin Millar (.297/.383/.474)
RF-L Trot Nixon (.315/.377/.510)
C-B Jason Varitek (.296/.390/.482)
SS-R Orlando Cabrera (.264/.306/.383)
3B-B Bill Mueller (.283/.365/.446)
C-R Doug Mirabelli (.281/.368/.525)
1B-L Doug Mientkiewicz (.238/.350/.326)
MI-R Pokey Reese (.221/.271/.303)
3B-R Kevin Youkilis (.260/.367/.413)
OF-R Gabe Kapler (.272/.311/.390)
OF-L Dave Roberts (.254/.337/.379)
Rotations/Bullpen (ERA/IP)
RHP Pedro Martinez (217.0, 3.90)
RHP Curt Schilling (226.2, 3.26)
RHP Bronson Arroyo (178.2, 4.03)
RHP Tim Wakefield (188.1, 4.87)
RHP Keith Foulke (83.0, 2.17)
RHP Mike Timlin (76.1, 4.13)
LHP Alan Embree (52.1, 4.13)
LHP Mike Myers (42.2, 4.64)
RHP Curtis Leskanic (43.1, 5.19)
RHP Derek Lowe (182.2, 5.42)
Lineups/Bench (AVG/OBP/SLG)
2B-B Chone Figgins (.296/.350/.419)
1B-L Darin Erstad (.295/.346/.400)
RF-R Vladimir Guerrero (.337/.391/.598)
CF-L Garret Anderson (.301/.343/.446)
DH-R Troy Glaus (.251/.355/.575)
LF-B Jeff DaVanon (.277/.372/.418)
C-R Ben Molina (.276/.313/.404)
SS-R David Eckstein (.276/.332/.339)
3B-L Dallas McPherson (.225/.279/.475)
C-R Jose Molina (.261/.296/.374)
C-R Josh Paul (.243/.308/.371)
1B-L Casey Kotchman (.224/.289/.276)
IF-B Alfredo Amezaga (.161/.212/.247)
OF-L Curtis Pride (.250/.268/.325)
OF-R Adam Riggs (.194/.216/.278)
Rotations/Bullpen (ERA/IP)
LHP Jarrod Washburn (149.1, 4.64)
RHP Bartolo Colon (208.1, 5.01)
RHP Kelvim Escobar (208.1, 3.93)
RHP John Lackey (198.1, 4.67)
RHP Troy Percival (49.2, 2.90)
RHP Francisco Rodriguez (84.0, 1.82)
RHP Brendan Donnelly (42.0, 3.00)
RHP Scot Shields (105.1, 3.33)
RHP Kevin Gregg (87.2, 4.21)
RHP Ramon Ortiz (128.0, 4.43)
Who could have predicted that???
Best managing by a Red-Sox Manager since, well, forever. Not putting-in a pinch runner for Ortiz was the perfect move.
I have long predicted this season that David Ortiz would be the difference.
The Red Sox WIN!!!!!
My reverse psychology worked! All night I was saying "They are going to blow it...they are going to blow it..." and sure enough, they didn't blow it! (But they came close)
Who could have predicted that???
Not me! ;-D
What a shame ESPN cut off the celebrations... I really wanted to see more.
Tom Caron, RemDawg, et al are on NESN *now* with the post-game show!
I was screaming at the TV to put Roberts in to run for Ortiz. Now Francona looks like a genius, and what the hell do I know about managing a baseball team?
Now let's hope the Yankees/Twins series goes the full five games so that whoever the Sox play will be worn out. Each of the Sox starters are going to have a full week of rest.
You are effing kidding me. You can't just admit that you gave up on them?
Well there is still room on the bandwagon, but you'll have to sit in the back.
I had just said C'mon Big Poppy, play the hero!
When they cut to commercial for what turned out to be the Angels' last pitching change of 2004, my wife turned to me and said, "Watch; first pithc, homer, Sox win." She called it on the nose.
Red
Glad they pulled him!
I've always thought that first ball swinging in key situations was a stupid move. In all the years i've watched baseball this is the first time i've ever seen it work.
Of course, if facing the Yankees, it is no contest. El Duque has a sore shoulder, Brown is lame-o and Mussina is beatable. The rest of Yankee starting staff is questionable at best, and the set-up guys other than Flash are a disaster.
Rivera has already blown two saves against the Sox and obviously Schilling and Wakefield will be up to the task. Senor Plunk may finally act-up against his daddies and win one, too.
I expect the Red Sox to have an easy time of it against the Yankees. Not much drama, perhaps a close game or two. Even a Yankee win to save face. However this Yankee fan is not sanguine about his beloved squads chances against the mighty Red Sox. What I noticed while watching the season series is solid evidence for an irreversible and unmistakable Boston triumph against New York.
The curse shall be lifted, the Bambino will be laid to rest and the Red Sox will move on into the World Series, probably against St. Louis, a franchise who gave generations of Boston fans fits in 1947 and 1967. If Atlanta wins out, then irony abounds, considering the Braves/Bees were a Boston team a half-century ago.
Just my humble opinion.
You know where we go. We have Curt for 3 games in the ALCS and Petey and Arroyo for the rest. Two guesses and the first doesn't count.
This team has brass balls and icewater in their veins.
Well those Yankees are starting to look scary again. They are up 3-1 already in Minnesota. I must say, the Red Sox are better off playing the Twins. I really hope that Minnesota can pull it out. Ramirez and Ortiz can hit a lot of homers in that dome out there. If Pedro has to pitch Game 2 in Yankee Stadium, he's going to have a meltdown.
Before we traded him, Nomar had a big 1st pitch wall ball double earlier this season to win the game.
Lots of celebration going on on WEEI radio with Castiglione and Trupiano also... Geesh, I need to calm down before the debate (15 minutes away!).
I had heart palpitations and wobbly knees when we were up 3-1. This season will be the death of me, but I'll have a big smile on my face!
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