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September 28, 2007
BOSTON _ It was the top of the seventh inning at Fenway last night when the scoreboard on the Monster showed the Baltimore Orioles had come back from five-run deficit to get within a run of the Yankees when the 36,843 fans in attendance erupted and begin The Chant of “Yankees . . .”
Meanwhile, Red Sox starter Daisuke Matsuzaka gave the type of performance the club was looking for in preparation of the upcoming postseason. He improved to 15-12 with an impressive eight-inning 119-pitch performance to lead Boston to a 5-2 victory over the Minnesota Twins.
At this point the wait was on.
At the conclusion of the Red Sox game, the Yankees and Orioles were in the seventh inning.
The emergence and transformation of the Japanese sensation to Major League Baseball has been an interesting one. The crafty right-hander has lived up to expectations, but hasn’t gone above and beyond. What makes his 15 wins impressive, however, is the fact there wasn’t much of a cultural shock to his game, at least not one that was noticeable.
“He’s had a very successful first season,” said Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein. “He certainly made a baseline performance that he can approve upon going forward. He’s made a lot of adjustments this season, probably more than any of us can appreciate.”
Dice-K begin his first season with the Red Sox on a high note, recording a 7-2 record in his first 10 appearances through the end of May. It reached some peaks and hit some valleys in the second portion of the season, but he ended his first regular season with the Red Sox in fine fashion last night.
“Certainly the second half there were a few bumps in the road than he anticipated, but overall it’s been a successful first season,” Epstein said.
The Red Sox gave Matsuzaka a two-run cushion in the bottom of the first inning as Mike Lowell and J.D. Drew each provided a RBI for a 2-0 Boston lead. Lowell, who has been on a tear this season, collected his second RBI of the night to give the Red Sox a 3-0 advantage in the third inning. The run was the veteran’s 118th RBI of the season.
Boston added to its lead in the bottom of the sixth inning. Lowell reached on a one-out double and was driven home on a two-out single by Kevin Youkilis for a 4-0 advantage. With a four-run lead, Matsuzaka couldn’t keep the Twins at bay for long as Minnesota scored a pair in the top of the seventh, including a solo home run by Justin Morneau.
Red Sox slugger David Ortiz continues his offensive dominance as he smoked his 35th homer of the season, a solo shot into the Monster Seats in the bottom of the eighth inning to give Boston a 5-2 advantage. He fell a triple shy of the cycle last night.
Posted by Joe McDonald 
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