When the Boston Red Sox arrived in New York on Friday, fans around New England had their pens in hand ready to fill out their playoff ticket order forms. But when you're a Red Sox fan, you either feel on top of the world or like the world is on top of you, and after Boston dropped two to the New York Yankees this weekend, the melodramatic citizens of the Red Sox nation are preparing for a return to mediocrity.
Without all-star shortstop Nomar Garciaparra, the Red Sox are 13-5, their best start since 1995 when they went on to win the division. But Boston took a five-game winning streak into the Big Apple only to see it snapped on Friday night, and it lost a ten-inning heartbreaker to the Bronx Bombers on Sunday.
Despite the rough weekend, the Red Sox remain in first place in the AL east, one game ahead of Toronto and two ahead of the Yankees. Baseball analysts may have predicted that the Yankees pitching staff would be unhittable, but the rotation known as "Pedro and four other guys" has been a formidable match for New York in seven games this season. The Red Sox have taken four of seven games against the Yanks, and two of the three they lost were one-run games in which the Red Sox lost a lead.
The one Red Sox starting pitching blemish the season occurred on Friday. It seemed like Hideo Nomo's alter ego took the mound, as the same Red Sox starter who pitched a no-hitter two weeks ago couldn't make it past the second inning. After striking out Chuck Knoblauch to open the game, Nomo walked three of the next four hitters and gave up a grand slam to Tino Martinez. Nomo also allowed two more hits, another run, and hit a batter in the second inning, and the Yankees went on to win 6-1.
The Red Sox bullpen let up only one more run for the next seven innings, but Boston was unable to crack New York starter Andy Pettitte. The left-hander gave the bullpen - which worked 11 innings during the Yanks' 17 inning win over Toronto the night before - a much- needed night off, giving up only six hits and striking out seven over nine innings. The only run against him came on a Troy O'Leary double with two outs in the ninth.
The return of Bernie Williams provided a boost to the Yankees, as the slugger had missed ten games after returning to Puerto Rico to care for his ailing father. Williams went 0-for-3 with a walk but aided the Yankees cause with a spectacular leaping catch to rob Carl Everett of a home run in the third inning.
It was the first Red Sox loss this season by more than one run.
Saturday's game was a re-match between Boston's Frank Castillo and New York's Mike Mussina, but it may as well have been a battle between Mussina and Manny Ramirez, as the Sox designated hitter provided Castillo with all he needed for a victory. Ramirez won a 12-pitch contest against Mussina to open the third, and his single sparked a four-run rally that propelled the Red Sox to their 8-3 victory.
Ramirez has been confined to the DH role all season because of a hamstring injury, but just having his bat in the lineup has been enough to cause Red Sox fans to fall in love with their off-season acquisition. Ramirez was leading the league through Saturday with a .403 batting average, and one can only wonder how much higher his team-leading RBI total would be if he were hitting behind Nomar Garciaparra.
While the veteran Ramirez may have been responsible for Mussina's undoing on Saturday, it was rookie Shea Hillenbrand who provided the real offensive fireworks for the Red Sox. Hillenbrand hit his second home run of the year to open the third inning, and with the bases loaded and the Red Sox down 3-2 in the fourth, the third-baseman launched a double that scored two and put the Red Sox up for good.
Hillenbrand has hit safely in 18 of 19 games this season and had a double in the second yesterday to extend his hit streak to eight.
Brian Daubach and Lou Merloni added runs with sacrifice flies, and Ramirez homered in the eighth to make it 7-3. Yankee reliever Randy Choate walked in another run in the ninth.
Castillo gave up three runs and six hits over five innings to beat the Yankees for the second time in six days. Paul O'Neill hit his sixth homer of the year in the first, but the Red Sox bullpen kept the Yankees off the scoreboard to give Castillo his second win of the year.
Bt Red Sox fans had their hearts broken on Sunday after Derek Lowe gave up home runs to Paul O'Neill and David Justice in the tenth inning to give the Yankees the win. The Red Sox took a 3-2 lead on a Varitek RBI-single in the top of the tenth, and with two outs in the bottom of the inning, Justice launched Lowe's pitch into the first row of the right field seats.
The game saw the major league debut of Yankee pitcher Ted Lilly, and Ramirez greeted him with a warm welcome. Ramirez launched solo homers in the second and fifth innings to score the first two Red Sox runs, but the rookie kept the Sox at bay during six and two-thirds innings.
Other than Ramirez, the Red Sox bats were silent for most of the day. Red Sox hitters struck out 16 times and left ten men on base during the game.
The Yankees runs all came by way of the long ball. Jorge Posada hit one off of Tomo Ohka in the fifth, and Scott Brosius tied the game at two in the seventh with a home run against Rich Garces.
Boston will face another difficult match-up this week with three games against the Minnesota Twins, the surprise leaders of the AL Central.
