The Boston Red Sox swept the New York Yankees in the Bronx for this weeks two game series. After a long rain delay leading me to believe game 1 wasn't going to be played, the Red Sox started the game on top and never lost the lead.
Jon Lester got the start in game 1 and pitched 7 strong innings with 10 strikeouts. Although he allowed two home runs (one to Johnny Damon and one to Mark Texiera), the Sox provided enough offense to maintain the lead and give Jonathan Papelbon the opportunity to get a five out save. Phil Hughes only last 4 innings and gave up four runs (three earned) for the Yankees in a losing effort. Back to the two home runs allowed by Lester, I hate Johnny Damon and Mark Texiera. Damon left Boston on an awful note and went to New York for the money (much like anyone else), which panned out to be a great decision. Texiera simply looks like a dork, can't deliver for what he's being paid, and made a big stink over getting booed in Boston. Kudos to the fans that didn't boo simply to make him look and feel like a total nobody.
Jason Bay did it again on Monday night and hit a two run blast in the 7th inning for some insurance. Night in and night out, Bay is coming up clutch proving even more so that he is a much better asset to the team than Manny Ramirez would have been at this point.
In game 2 Tuesday night the Sox didn't skip a beat. The Red Sox held the lead throughout the entire game even though Josh Beckett had another rough game. Of course, it wouldn't be a game unless Jason Bay hit another home run. Bay hit a three run homer last night, his team leading seventh of the season, and gave the Red Sox enough to sweep the Yankees at home.
This Season's Rivalry
The Sox won the game 7-3 and currently lead the season series 5-0. There are still a lot of games left for the Red Sox/Yankees rivalry, but it's nice to begin with a season sweep looking ahead to the next meeting in June. After the game, Captain Jason Varitek had this to say:
"For us, right now it's winning games, no matter who we're playing, we came here after losing three out of four. It was big for us to come in here and get some games.
Our Captain makes a great point and I definitely agree with him, but it's still nice to have bragging rightsfrom now until June and possibly even further into the season. After sweeping the Yankees again, the Red Sox are currently one game back of first place behind the Toronto Blue Jays. The Sox are starting another two game series tonight at Fenway Park against the Cleveland Indians. Justin Masterson, who has done a great job in his fill in role so far, will face Carl Pavano in game 1. The Tampa Bay Devil Rays will visit Fenway over the weekend so we can get a few back from them after what happened earlier in the week. We're coming for first Toronto!
