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Game Story: Sox take advantage of slumping O's »
September 7, 2007
BALTIMORE — How often do you see a runner at third fake a mad dash toward home plate, trying to get the opposing pitcher to balk?
And how often does it work? Almost never?
Well it worked for the Sox’ Coco Crisp in the fourth inning last night. Crisp’s fake of a steal of home forced Orioles starter Daniel Cabrera to balk, enabling Crisp to trot home with the run that put Boston ahead, 3-0.
And it led to a spirited bench-clearing gathering around home plate after Cabrera’s next pitch following Crisp’s fake dash went behind Dustin Pedroia’s head.
Plate umpire Mike DiMuro quickly jumped out in front of the plate after the errant pitch and issued warnings to Cabrera, the Orioles’ bench and the Red Sox’ bench. The Sox, meanwhile, began spilling out of their dugout in anger at what they had just witnessed.
Third-base umpire Bill Welke tried to head them off at the pass and basically was successful in sending them back to the dugout until Cabrera engaged began engaging in a shouting match with members of the Sox and had to be restrained by teammates and umpires Laz Diaz, Wally Bell and DiMuro.
So the Sox piled back onto the field as Cabrera broke free of restraints, ran from the mound to the infield grass near third base, threw his glove and the ball to the turf and motioned for them to come and get him. As he was doing that, catcher Ramon Hernandez had to be restrained by, among others, the Sox’ David Ortiz, from getting at someone on the Sox, whose identity wasn’t clear in the confusion in front of the Boston dugout on the third-base side.
Players then rushed out of both bullpens, which, interestingly enough at Camden Yards, are basically on top of each other in center field, so they entered the scene together.
After the uprising was calmed down, and the relievers strolled back to their respective bullpens, side by side, the umpires had a meeting near the mound with Cabrera standing on the pitching rubber. Then they had an animated chat with Baltimore manager Dave Trembley, who clearly was unhappy with their decision that Cabrera would be ejected from the game, no doubt for breaking away from the pack and physically challenging the Sox.
Mirabelli out for a while
Doug Mirabelli’s left hamstring, which he strained while running the bases in the third inning Thursday night, was “more tender than we were hoping,” said manager Terry Francona yesterday before prior to batting practice.
So Mirabelli, who had been making his first appearance since Aug. 17, when he suffered a right calf strain, will be out for a while. There is no timetable for his return.
Francona, though, said the Sox have no plans to add another catcher to the roster as of now, electing to go with Jason Varitek and Kevin Cash. Francona said Mirabelli could work behind the plate in an emergency.
Mirabelli, meanwhile, said he wants to make sure he’s healthy when he does return so he doesn’t re-aggravate either the calf or the hamstring injury. Clearly he’s hoping to be ready to play when the postseason roster is set.
Ramirez still on the mend
Manny Ramirez’s rehabilitation from an oblique strain continues to progress, Francona said, but it will continue in FortFt. Lauderdale, Fla., because the Sox’ left fielder has been given permission to go home for personal reasons. He was scheduled to depart from Boston yesterday and was expected to return to Boston tomorrow.
“He’s getting close to resuming baseball activities,” said Francona, who added that, as with Mirabelli, there is no timetable for Ramirez’s return to the lineup.
Moss is on first base
Brandon Moss, an outfielder in the Red Sox system, is going to play first base for Santiago in Winter Ball.
Francona said Moss, who was promoted from Pawtucket to Boston when the rosters expanded on Sept. 1, was willing to go to winter ball and willing to learn a new position, giving him more versatility. Francona was on the field at Camden Yards early yesterday afternoon with Moss, showing him various footwork and positioning aspects of playing the position as well as talking about the mental and physical aspects of being a first baseman.
Francona knows from experience. He had to make the switch from outfielder to first baseman during his professional career.
No excuses from Wakefield
Tim Wakefield reiterated yesterday that his back was not bothering him in his disappointing start Thursday night (6 runs, 9 hits, 32/3 innings). The knuckleballer said he didn’t feel comfortable at all on the mound, but wasn’t using a 10-day layoff (he was scratched from a start last Friday because of a sore back) as an excuse. He’s scheduled to throw a side session today.
Around the bases
Eric Gagne, who had a successful bullpen session (20-25 pitches) on Thursday will throw another side session today. … The opposition has only one hit in its last 45 at-bats against flame-throwing Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon, computing to a miniscule .022 batting average against the right-hander. The Angels’ Orlando Cabrera had that hit, a single on Aug. 17. Papelbon has retired the last 16 batters he has faced. Overall, opposing batters are hitting only .135 (24 for 178) against Papelbon. … The Orioles are batting .029 against Red Sox rookie right-hander Clay Buchholz in two games. Buchholz no-hit Baltimore last Saturday (the Orioles were 0 for 26 — one out came on a pickoff) and he coughed up one hit in nine at-bats to the Orioles in three impressive relief innings Thursday night.
--STEVE KRASNER
Posted by Corey Bourassa 
at 10:58 PM to Krasner
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