Happy Birthday
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by Smmonroe2
Tim Wakefield turned 41 today and showed he can still pitch with the young guns. Wakefield picked up the win pitching seven innings, while giving up six hits, striking out five walking one and throwing 94 pitches in a Red Sox 7-4 win over the Baltimore Orioles. Visiting pitcher Jeremy Guthrie wasn’t so bad either pitching five and a third giving up nine hits, striking out three, giving up back to back homeruns to Eric Hinske and Doug Mirabelle, while walking a season high four. Rob Bell got the loss for the Orioles giving up four runs on 4 hits and walking one.
All of the Red Sox starters got a hit except Kevin Youkilis who reached on an error. Dustin Pedroia had two RBIs and walked twice, while Doug Mirabelli had a huge game going 3 for 3 hitting a homerun walking once and driving in the go ahead run after making a base running mistake on a David Ortiz deep fly that turned in to an inning ending double play. Eric Hinske had a good few at bats before being pinch ran for by JD Drew by hitting a homerun in the fourth the first of the back-to-back jacks.
Baltimore made it interesting when they were trailing in the fifth 3-0 only to have a three run inning Corey Patterson and Jay Payton driving in runs. The Baltimore bullpen has had a tough season and continued to show it today when Rob Bell came in to the game with a 3-3 tie and never made it out of the seventh inning. After getting two quick outs he crumbled and gave the game to the Red Sox. Mirabelli gave the Sox the lead on a single to right field. Alex Cora then drove a run home on a base hit off of Brian Roberts glove and Dustin Pedroia put the last two runs on the board when he hit a double that right fielder Nick Markakis almost got to, but almost only counts in horse shoes and hand grenades and it allowed two runs to score.
Hideki Okajima came out and pitched the eighth for the Red Sox giving up one hit and then turned a double play.
Eric Gagne came in to make his Red Sox debut and gave up an odd double and then a run but he did strike out the first two that he faced and did get the final out to preserve the win.
The Sox now travel to Seattle for 3 games then to Los Angeles for 3 more then to Baltimore for 3 before returning home for six games.
