They did it again. Every time this Red Sox team seems in danger of drowning, they miraculously find a life jacket.
It's happened several times during the season. On their last West Coast swing, they went to play the surging Dodgers for three games and lost the first one 2-0. Last August's trade was all over the papers and angry feelings still remained. Carl Crawford announced how badly he wanted to sweep his former team. No way.The Sox prevailed easily in the last two contests and silenced Crawford.
The same seemed to be happening on Monday. Everything had been going Boston's way as they headed for Tampa. A 2-0 series lead, a pair of decisive wins at Fenway, and their top pitcher (record-wise) in Clay Buchholz. But Bucky was obviously off his game, often falling behind in the early innings. Even with a 3-0 lead, he looked shaky. After a single and double put men on second and third in the sixth, he was allowed to pitch to Evan Longoria, who hit a changeup out of the park to tie the contest. The Sox were obviously scuffling, though they managed to keep the game tied going into the ninth. Then, with two out in the bottom half, the impossible happened. Backup catcher Jose Lobaton shocked Koji Uehara with a walkoff homer to take game three. For a few seconds, I couldn't believe what had taken place. Uehara had been so automatic for so long that even a baserunner was a rarity.
Like lots of fans, I was worried. The Rays had faced two of Boston's best in Buchholz and Uehara and come away with a win. Momentum seemed to be shifting. The pom-poms from the suddenly- involved Rays fans were waving on Tuesday night. Sox starter Jake Peavy had a very poor postseason mark. A Tampa victory would force game 5 at Fenway with another "fold" looming.
No need to worry, though. Joe Maddon's unusual pitching move failed to work. Though the Bosox were held scoreless by his first four hurlers, his team was only able to reach Peavy for one run. And in the seventh, the Sox finally found a pitcher they could hit a little in Jake McGee. They scrapped out two runs for the lead, and reached erratic Fernando Rodney for an insurance tally in the ninth. Meanwhile, John Farrell's bullpen of Craig Breslow, Junichi Tazawa, and Uehara did some of their best work of the year in (finally) lively Tropicana Field. Again, Farrell's Bearded Men had looked adversity in the eye and conquered it.
For years, Sox squads had cracked under pressure. But at least for now, things have turned around.
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