CC, despite falling behind most hitters, was effective... until the sixth, when he lost command of his arsenal. Swisher misplaying a Youkilis liner certainly didn't help.
The double-steal featuring DJ and GGBG was a thing of beauty, and Girardi should get a lot of credit for that gutsy call. They 1) took advantage of the speed on the bases, 2) took advantage of a poor catcher in V-Mart, and 3) got a modicum of revenge for Ellsbury's steal of home last year.
There's a reason Pedroia's OPS is .140 higher at home than on the road. He can lift high pitches, which would be either fouls or outs at other stadiums and turn them into doubles or homers at Fenway. I won't kill Park too much: he got squeezed in that inning (especially on the 1-1 pitch to Pedroia).
That stupid wall turned Pedroia's and Youikilis' flies into hits while taking away a homer from Arod. Were there not enough reasons to hate the Red Sox?
Anyway, let's all take it easy. The Yanks lost eight straight to Boston last year and still managed to do okay (including a tough first-game loss at Fenway).
In my mind, it's better to lose a game by two runs than one. Then all the 'what-ifs' enter our heads. Getting beat by two means we can more easily say, 'it just wasn't our night.'
Not one of our pitchers looked particularly good. It sucks to have an off-day after a loss like this - thanks, MLB!
Our pitchers won't give up nine runs in most games. At the end of the day, it's one loss.
Pedroia's 7th-inning pop-homerun off Chan Ho. It upped Boston's chances of winning by 30%.
Comment of the Game:
'Free Bradshaw', way back at 10:08 (though I've got to tell you, the jerk-off lines will tire quickly).