Pen bails out Lackey for close win

Ty Hampton
-Swaggerista

A combination of the bats, the bullpen and some good old-fashioned luck bailed out John Lackey (4-1) as he collected his 4th win of the year in a close-fought 7-6 Red Sox victory Monday.

Lackey came out and gave up 4 runs in the first 2 innings, luckily the Sox countered with 3 of their own to stay in the game early. While the Sox didn’t go deep, David Ortiz had a clutch 2-out, RBI-single in the middle innings and Pedie and V-Mart added 2 RBIs and 3 RBIs at the plate respectively in the effort.

Over 6 innings pitched, Lackey gave up 8 hits, including a homerun, for 6 earned runs with 3 walks and 6 strikeouts. The bullpen however was about as efficient as we’ve seen them all year. Okajima, Bard, and Papelbon came in and did their duty for an inning each to close this thing out without as much as a hit – only giving up a walk between the three of them.

The luck came into play when the Sox again picked up a walk-in run with Pedroia at the plate in a crucial spot in the game. That run ended up making all the difference, and Boston’s continued patience at the plate could never seem more appropriate.

Red Sox record: (17-16)

Yay’s:
- The pen finally looked spectacular – something that is going to be crucial with Josh Beckett having a rough start and on nights where Lester, Lackey, Dice-K or Bucholz aren’t up to snuff.

- The Sox just finally eeked back over .500 with this win for the first time in nearly a month, pulling within 5.5 games from the AL East leading Rays. See people, adjustments need to be made but those of you who are counting the Sox out already this year just need to chillax my man.

Nay’s:
- JD Drew missed action Monday undergoing bouts of vertigo. This guy sure has some luck. If it’s not a nagging shoulder, he comes down with a debilitating case of the dizzies. Holy schnikes man!

- The worst news from Monday however was that Josh Beckett aggravated his back worse in throwing practice. Luckily, you’ve got a guy like Wake just sittin’ around in the pen thirsty for some more starting opportunities.