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Baseball Today: Tuesday, August 7 »
August 7, 2007
By SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer
ANAHEIM – For six innings, Curt Schilling’s first start in seven weeks was a qualified success.
He limited the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim to two runs through that point and his fastball had more life than it had when he last took the mound for the Sox, in Atlanta, on June 18.
But in the seventh, reality bit, even if Schilling’s split-finger fastball didn’t. In the span of two hitters, Schilling left a splitter up to the slashing Maicer Izturis and slumping Jeff Mathis (0-for-18), resulting in a leadoff homer and double, respectively, and leading directly to a 4-2 loss.
The defeat shaved a game off the Sox’ lead in the East, leaving the fast-charging, second-place New York Yankees just six games behind in the division. That represents the smallest lead the Sox have had since May 11.
''Really bad hanging splits,'' bemoaned Schilling, who was charged with all four runs in six-plus innings. ''That’s what this game boiled down to.''
Even the two runs the Angels managed in the fourth were the result of a poorly executed split-finger fastball, historically Schilling’s out pitch. Casey Kotchman drilled a single up the middle on a splitter that Schilling left up, catching too much of the plate.
He blamed himself, too, for not fielding his position as he should have, setting up the two-run single. With Vladimir Guerrero on first with a leadoff single, Garret Anderson hit a grounder to Kevin Youkilis. Youkilis, not far from the bag, threw to second to nail Guerrero, the lead runner, but Schilling assumed that Youkilis would get back to the bag to take the throw to try for the double play.
When Schilling realized Youkilis wans’t going to the bag, he broke himself, but lost the footrace.
Gary Matthews Jr. followed with a liner to left, and Brandon Moss, inserted into the game in the bottom of the fourth after Manny Ramirez got himself ejected, made an ill-advised to third to try to cut down Anderson. By doing so, Anderson had time to get to second, giving the Angels two men in scoring position. Kotchman’s single then scored them both.
''I made a bad assumption,'' said Schilling, ''and you can’t do that.''
Still, the reviews were mostly positive on his return.
''One thing that was encouraging (from the loss),'' said manager Terry Francona, ''was that he didn’t forget how to pitch . . . I thought he looked like a pretty good pitcher.''
Moss, whether he liked it or not, found himself in the middle of everything – in a hurry.
In addition to the throw to third, he juggled a line drive by Chone Figgins for several seconds in the seventh, allowing Mathis to score from third with an insurance run.
''I lost it in the lights,'' said Moss of the play. ''I’m surprised it hit my glove.''
When Mathis broke for the plate before Moss could coral the ball for the putout, the Sox thought they had an easy appeal play at third. But Rule 2.00 states that once a ball hits a fielder’s glove, a baserunner may tag and Mathis’s run stood.
''If I catch (the ball right away),'' said Moss, ''there’s a pretty good chance I throw him out.''
Finally, Moss found himself center stage in the ninth when an error by Orlando Cabrera and a walk by David Ortiz put the tying runs on base. But Moss was overmatched by Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez and went down swinging.
''I don’t think,'' said a sympathetic Schilling, ''there’s any way to make your debut with the Boston Red Sox behind the scenes.''
The Sox had grabbed a 2-0 lead off Jered Weaver in the third when Dustin Pedroia worked a two-out walk and Youkilis hammered a pitch out to left for his third homer in the last 10 games.
But the Sox didn’t score again, stung by missed opportunities. They left a man in scoring position in the fourth, two on in both the fifth and sixth, and couldn’t cash in against Scot Shields in the eighth when a walk to Moss and a single to right by Drew gave them two on and no out.
In the late innings, it would have helped to have the blistering hot Ramirez (18 RBI in 14 games) in the game, but he had been ejected by home plate umpire James Hoye after arguing a check-swing third strike in the top of the fourth.
''I think Manny may have said the magic words,'' said a diplomatic Francona.
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