Empyreal Environs

Game 111: August 8, 2005
Rangers (56-55), 6
Red Sox (64-47), 11
L: Steve Karsay (0-1)
W: Jeremi Gonzalez (2-1)

Wade Miller had another brutal beginning, giving up 3 runs in the 1st inning. Miller continues to have short outings, this one lasting only 4.1 innings, in which he gave up 10 hits, 5 runs (4 earned), 3 walks, and 2 strikeouts. He’s been reminiscent of Pedro Martinez circa 2003, which you will recall was the year he was still recovering from his injury. Ricardo Rodriguez had a similarly rough start as the Red Sox rallied to score 4 runs to take the lead, but Rodriguez only lasted .2 of an inning.

Anytime you see Miller start, you might as well pencil in Gonzalez for a few innings of relief. He shut out Texas over 2.2 innings, earning his win and neutralizing the formidable artillery of the Rangers’ offense.

In the 1st inning, David Ortiz hit his 26th homer, this time with Edgar Renteria on base. Someone must have given the Red Sox a baserunning clinic, because Manny Ramirez tagged up from second base on a Millar fly ball to left field. His heads up tag led directly to him scoring on Roberto Petagine’s grounder up the middle. Tony Graffanino hit Rodriguez with his comebacker, deflecting towards Alfonso Soriano and scoring Jason Varitek. Predictably, though through unpredictable means, the Red Sox took the lead right back in the bottom of the 1st inning.

The 2nd inning featured the full range of the defensive spectrum. With the bases loaded and 2 out, Petagine demonstrated atrocious fielding technique by allowing a ground ball hit by Mark Teixeira go right through his legs, allowing the tying run to score. Kevin Millar, someone you wouldn’t normally associate with acceptable defense, deftly maneuvered to rob Hank Blalock of an RBI-generating hit by placing himself in the path of a short fly ball to end the inning. By “deftly,” I mean rolling like a potato bug, and by “maneuvered,” I mean ungainly moving his bulk around the outfield. But he got his team out of trouble.

Graffanino was impressive in all facets of the game. In the 4th inning he scored on a wild pitch, another beneficiary of the baserunning workshop that I think occurred. With 2 runners on and 1 out, Graffanino hit a Monster seat homer in the 5th inning. He was intentionally walked in the 7th, stole second, and scored on a Johnny Damon infield hit. If the replacement second baseman sustains such production, Mark Bellhorn won’t be returning to the Red Sox any time soon.

Add nearly the entire crew to the inept, adamant umpire list: Joe Brinkman made a bad call in the 4th by calling Ortiz out. The designated hitter wasn’t tagged by Soriano, nor did he appear to be out of the basepath. The 7th inning saw Derryl Cousins call out Gabe Kapler at first for a seeming double play, but on replay it was clear that Kapler was safe. Adam Dowdy, late of the Pacific League, was on the receiving end of players’ dirty looks and invectives, but this is likely more a result of him being a rookie rather than how he actually called the game.

Alex Cora got in on the good baserunning dividends in the 7th by stealing third base, forcing an awkward throw from catcher Rod Barajas and enabling him to score. I had to rub my eyes and ensure my prescription was correct. Are these my Red Sox?

NESN showed a kid in the Monster seats that had a sign upon which was written “Varitek, hit one to the upper deck.” That kid thinks Fenway has an upper deck. A Jere “terrible job” to him for listening to that song that says that Fenway has an upper deck and believing it. Maybe next game he’ll wave some rally towels.