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August 11, 2007
BALTIMORE – Manager Terry Francona may not know it, but there’s a guy on his team who might be able to come off the bench and give the Red Sox some speed on the basepaths in a pinch-running role.
Josh Beckett.
The Red Sox right-hander raced off the mound when Francona lifted him with two outs in the ninth inning of what became a nice bounce-back 6-2 victory over the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards.
Most pitchers stroll to the dugout. Some jog.
Beckett sprinted, flying the distance between the mound and the Boston dugout in roughly 2.3 seconds.
“I didn’t even notice,” said Francona. “I was talking to (catcher) Jason (Varitek), awaiting (reliever Manny) Delcarmen. As long as he didn’t pull a hamstring I don’t care.”
It wasn’t that Beckett was upset with his manager for being taken out of the game one out shy of what would have been his second complete game of the year. Nor, he said, was he irritated he had lost his shutout with two outs when Miguel Tejada singled past third baseman Mike Lowell on his 110th pitch of the game, an 0-and-2 curveball.
Beckett, who was yanked when Kevin Millar followed Tejada’s hit with an RBI double into the left-field corner, was more upset that he wasn’t able to give the bullpen a complete day of rest.
“I was just mad at myself when I came out,” said Beckett. “I just couldn’t get that final out. It’s nice to have complete games and some numbers, but to me, I wanted to save the guys in the bullpen. We’re going to need them down the stretch. And to have to have two guys come in after me is frustrating.”
But even the perfectionist in Beckett couldn’t let that frustration weigh him down after a marvelously dominating effort.
Beckett, who was backed up by Delcarmen (12-pitch walk to Aubrey Huff) and Jonathan Papelbon (popup, 27th save on three pitches), earned his 15th win of the year, tops in the major leagues, though the Angels’ John Lackey also was shooting for victory number 15 later last night.
He allowed eight hits, three of them in the final inning – a leadoff opposite-field double by Brian Roberts and the two-out hits by Tejada and Millar. Beckett also fanned eight, keeping his pitch count manageable so he was able to try for what would have been his third career shutout.
“It’s hard to find anything wrong with that game,” conceded Beckett. “They didn’t exactly crush the ball in the ninth inning.”
He certainly looked sharp from where Varitek sat.
“He was in a little ‘feel’ mode for the early innings (trying to get a feel for his pitches) but then he settled in,” said Varitek.
In general, Beckett, now 15-5, played the role of stopper, giving the Sox exactly what they needed after having blown a four-run lead in the eighth inning in suffering a disheartening 6-5 loss Friday night.
“That’s very reassuring. It allows us to put (Friday) in the past in a hurry and that’s a big compliment to Beckett,” said Francona of having Beckett on the mound yesterday.
But then again, Beckett has been outstanding in almost all of his 22 starts this season. He’s a strong candidate for the Cy Young Award. And while he’s certainly no shoo-in because there are several other pitchers having equally impressive seasons, Beckett’s statistics to this point place him squarely on the Cy Young radar screen.
Aside from leading the majors in wins, Beckett also entered yesterday’s game in the top 10 in the American League in several categories.
He was eighth in earned-run average at 3.31, and yesterday’s effort lowered his E.R.A. to 3.24. Beckett also was eighth in strikeouts with 132, and he raised that total to 140. There are other numbers that stand out. On the road, he’s now 8-1 with a 1.65 E.R.A. (12 earned runs, 65 1/3 innings). And in 17 of his 22 starts he has allowed three or fewer earned runs, a model of consistency.
One reason for his vast improvement over last year (16-11 but with a 5.01 E.R.A.) is his willingness to utilize all of his pitches. A year ago, Beckett tried to blow hitters away, relying mostly on his fastball.
Yesterday, Beckett had his good zip, touching 97 on the radar gun numerous times, even in the ninth inning. Indeed, Millar’s hit came on a 97-mile-an-hour heater on Beckett’s 115th and final pitch. Of Beckett’s eight strikeouts, five came on fastballs and three on curveballs.
“He was pretty dominant against a good-hitting team,” said Varitek.
And he gave the Red Sox just what the doctor ordered.
--STEVEN KRASNER
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