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Haren Outduels Beckett As D-Backs Down Sox, 2-1
By Administrator | June 24, 2008
If you like offense, this wasn’t the game for you. Arizona starter Dan Haren and Red Sox starter Josh Beckett were both dominant in their outings last night… problem is: Haren was just a little bit better. Haren tossed seven shutout innings, limiting the Sox potent offense to two hits in the Diamondbacks’ 2-1 win over the Red Sox at Fenway Park. He walked one a struck out five.
For his part, Beckett was almost as good… he limited Arizona to two runs on five hits and a pair of walks over eight innings while striking out eight Snakes. The game really came down to one pitch, a low inside fastball that Arizona outfielder Chris Young golfed with a two-iron — lining it off the Green Monster for an rbi-double that left runners at second and third. A groundout by catcher Chris Snyder drove in the second Diamondbacks run… as it turned out, that would be all they needed.
Haren was acquired from the Oakland A’s in an eight-player deal last winter… and while he has been good all season, last night he was as good as he gets. After the game, he said: “I was pretty aggressive with my fastball, probably (threw) more fastballs than I usually do. It really wasn’t the game plan coming in, but I was just able to keep it down and away”.
Of Haren, Beckett said: “He’s tough. It doesn’t matter who he’s pitching against. There are a few pitchers in the big leagues today that I enjoy watching and pitching against… (he is) obviously one of them”.
AZ set-up man Tony Pena loaded the bases with one out in the eighth inning… he surrendered a sac fly to J.D. Drew to bring Manny Ramirez to the plate with the tying run at second base. ManRam then ripped a rope at third baseman Mark Reynolds… the ball was hit so hard that it handcuffed Reynolds and knocked him backwards — but he recorded the out to preserve the tie.
Closer Brandon Lyon worked the ninth for his 16th save in 18 chances.
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Brandon Moss made his major league debut at first base last night when Kevin Youkilis had to leave the game after being hit with a warm-up throw from Mike Lowell. Between the bottom of the fourth inning and top of the fifth inning, during infield warmups, Lowell threw a ball that short-hopped Youk. He tried to scoop the throw, but it ricocheted off his glove and hit him under the right eye. He was removed from the game and taken for a precautionary CT scan… Terry Francona said the scan came back negative.
Lowell said: “Well, I felt terrible about it. I short-hopped him and I probably short-hop him five times a game in between innings. It wasn’t even a hard throw. I kind of lobbed it, he went to scoop it and hit off his glove and then I saw it hit him. I thought it hit him in the side of the head but, afterwards, I saw him shaken up and touching his eye”.
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The Diamondbacks have won only seven of their last twenty-one road games… the Red Sox dropped to 1-3 on their current six-game homestand after winning 19 of its previous 22 in Fenway Park.
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OF Eric Byrnes was activated from the 15-day DL before the game after being sidelined with a right hamstring strain since May 27.
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The game’s start was delayed by rain for 32 minutes.
Topics: Sox Games, Sox Players |
