Red Sox 7, Indians 1
Facing postseason elimination, the Boston Red Sox turned to their ace, Josh Beckett, to save their season and keep their World Series aspirations alive. Beckett delivered, pitching eight strong innings, yielding just one run and striking out 11 in Boston’s 7-1 win over Cleveland in Game 5 of the ALCS. Besides giving up a solo home run to Travis Hafner in the first inning, Beckett was absolutely fantastic.
Kevin Youkilis got the Red Sox scoring started in the first inning, hitting a solo blast off C.C. Sabathia, who struggled in another postseason start, giving up 10 hits and four earned runs. Then in a bizarre situation in the third, Manny Ramirez hit an apparent home run, yet officials determined that the ball never left the park. Replays showed that the ball clearly hit the yellow stripe on the top of the wall, which signifies a home run, but Ramirez wound up with only a single and David Ortiz scored to Give Boston a 2-0 lead. The BoSox then tacked on two runs in the seventh inning and three more in the eighth, but it turned into unnecessary insurance with Beckett on the mound.
The Indians can close out the series Saturday night, but they’ll have to do it in Boston. Game time is at 8:00pm and will pit youngster Fausto Carmona vs. veteran Curt Shilling.
