Empyreal Environs

Jarrod Saltalamacchia tried to get David Ortiz across home plate in the first. The Red Sox catcher laced the ball to the right field corner but rather than motor around the bases Ortiz slowed down to watch the progress of the play. Jerry Royster sent Ortiz home despite the runner’s slow pace and the ersatz first baseman was thrown out for the final out of the inning.

Maybe Royster got advice from Dale Sveum, current manager of the Cubs.

Saltalamacchia and Ortiz paired up successfully in the fourth. Leading off Ortiz cleaned out a fastball for a double to right. Saltalamacchia launched Jeff Samardzjia’s hanging splitter into to benches in right for a 2-0 lead.

Boston tacked on runs in the sixth and seventh innings. Will Middlebrooks drove in Ortiz with a liner to center but on the play it was Saltalamacchia’s turn to make a blunder on the basepaths. Royster tried to hold the catcher up at second but Saltalamacchia ran through the stop sign. In the seventh Mike Aviles visited the double-friendly right field like his teammates before him and scored on Scott Podsednik’s single to center.

Jon Lester stifled the Cubs lineup until the seventh inning. The two runs proved vital as Luis Valbuena clouted his first four-bagger of the season with runners on first and third with one out.

It wasn’t Samardzjia or Royster who had the worst game but Alfonso Soriano. In the bottom of the sixth the left fielder failed to run out a hot shot to Middlebrooks that was bobbled. Sveum defended his player, saying that “100 percent of every player in the history of baseball would do the same thing.” Sveum learned backing up his players from the Terry Francona method of management.

Game 65: June 16, 2012
Boston Red Sox 32-33	4	W: Jon Lester (4-4) H: Scott Atchison (3), Vicente Padilla (15) S: Alfredo Aceves (16)
		2B: Jarrod Saltalamacchia (12), David Ortiz (21), Mike Aviles (16) HR: Saltalamacchia (12)
Chicago Cubs 22-43	3	L: Jeff Samardzjia (5-5)
		2B: Jeff Baker (5) HR: Luis Valbuena (1)