Come Together

The 2005 Red Sox may have had their watershed moment last night versus Tampa Bay.

The Sox went out to a 5-0 lead and seemed to be in control and then in the 3rd inning the Red Sox leading pitcher Matt Clement was beaned off the head with a Carl Crawford line drive and crumpled to the mound. Tampa Bay came back to tie up the game 5-5 in the 3rd and the rest of the game was a see-saw affair. Tampa Bay took an 8-6 lead into the 9th inning after Massachusetts own Manny Delcarmen made his major league debut pitching a 1-2-3 8th inning.

Varitek then homered in the 9th and Bill Mueller doubled to drive in Adam Stern and tie the game. Damon came through with a homerun in the top of the 10th and Varitek provided an insurance RBI. Schilling was somewhat shaky in 2 innings of work but came away with the win.

In the game Trot Nixon also strained his back and had to leave in the 3rd inning. This was a game the Sox could not afford to let slip away and it was great to see them battle and claw back in order to get the win. The appearance of Delcarmen in the 8th is a great local story as he is a local kid drafted out of West Roxbury High, making his Major league debut for the old town team and pitched a clean 8th inning while hitting 94-95 mph on the radar gun.