Tribe tramples Matsuzaka, ends Sox win streak

Cleveland 8, Sox 4
WP: Byrd (6-1)
LP: Matsuzaka (7-3)
HRs: BOS-Lowell (10); CLE- Sizemore (9), Shoppach (2)

SUMMARY
The Indians pulled the E-brake on the Red Sox express, belting out 18 hits and running Dice-K from the game with a 4-run 6th.

Paul Byrd shut down the Boston lineup, Matsuzaka lost his first game since mid-April, and J.D. Drew racked up another 0-4...

...but at least Youk extended his hitting streak to 22 games.

HERO: Byrd 6IP, 9H, 2R, 1ER, 0BB, 1K, W
He wasn't spectacular-he rarely is-but Paul you old Byrd did something not many hurlers have been able to do lately: shut down the potent and usually patient Boston offense.

GOAT: Dice-K 5.2IP, 12H, 6ER, 0BB, 4Ks, HR, L
In his last two starts he has allowed 19 hits and 11 earned runs in 10.2 innings of work.

Somebody call Mr. Miyagi, please.

RECAP
What started out looking like another chapter for the 2007 Championship Season DVD turned into a major buzzkill for the Sox and its Nation as Cleveland came out with sticks swinging and gave Boston a taste of its own medicine in the form of a come-from-behind win.

More troubling than the loss itself, though, was the way Daisuke Matsuzaka got battered around like an origami swan in a tsunami. For the second straight outing he had one particularly bad inning that severely shifted the momentum of the game; last time the Boston batters were able to bail him out of that potential disaster, this time they could not.

Last week against the Rangers it was a sudden bout of stomach flu that caused Dice to give up the cycle +1 homer while allowing five runs in the 4th inning in Arlington. Tonight there were no convenient excuses as to why Cleveland was able to string together four consecutive hits and five total in the 6th off Dice-K, the big blow being a 2-run homer by Grady Sizemore (2-5, 3R, 2RBI) that bulged what started as a 2-2 tie to a 6-2 Tribe edge.

Okay, granted his record is a very respectable 7-3, but with tonight's debacle thrown in, Matsuzaka has now had four games where he has allowed five or more earned runs in his 11 starts, not so great for a $103 million dollar investment who has a veritable Tank Johnson-like arsenal of pitches and a supposed rubber arm.

But let me get off the Dice-K ragfest (I'll leave that to the Boston writers/EEI shows) and explain how the good times came to a emphatic finish tonight at Fenway.

The Sox hitters got Matsuzaka a quick lead when they brought a run across in the 2nd inning on an error by Josh Barfield that allowed Drew to reach, a double by Mike Lowell (2-4, R, 2BI) and an RBI ground out by Tek.

They would add a second run in the 4th, when birthday boy Manny Ramirez (1-3) led off the inning with a double to deep right, then moved to third on a wild pitch by Byrd. Drew grounded out (of course), but at least he got the RBI as Manny scooted home with run #2.

You knew it wouldn't last though because Dice was wriggling out of jams from the first inning on, when he loaded the bases before inducing an inning-ending DP by Trot (1-5, R). In the 5th all that dancing finally caught up with him when Cleveland tied the score on a single by Kelly Shoppach (4-5, 3R, RBI), a double by Sizemore, an RBI ground out by Casey Blake and an RBI double by Travis Hafner.

Before anyone could even get settled into the fact that it was a new game again the Tribe laid the beatdown on Dice in the 6th, and it was all over but the thwarted comeback.

Trot started the onslaught (of course) with a ground rule double into the stands in right. After Peralta flied out deep to Coco, Dave Delucci doubled to score Trot, then Barfield singled to score Deluccci and make the score 4-2 Cleveland.

Not content to let up there, Shoppach lined a single to left, and it didn't even matter that Manny picked Barfield off rounding second, because Sizemore then drilled a belt-high splitter over Drew's head and into the bullpen, sounding the death blow for the Boston winning streak.

Boston would have a great shot at getting back in the game in the bottom of the 7th, but when that platinum-plated opp fell by the wayside, you could tell it just wasn't meant to be.

The Sox loaded the bases on consecutive singles by Tek, Cora and Pedroia, chasing Byrd from the game, but Coco quickly fouled out to third, Youk fanned, and after nearly wrapping one around Pesky's Pole, Papi lined out to meekly end the threat.

J.C. Romero would make sure Lowell's 2-run homer in the bottom of the 8th was meaningless when he came in and allowed two runs in the top of the inning, including a home run to Shoppach on the first pitch he threw.

And so the 5-game winning streak ended, as well as Youk's consecutive multi-hit game streak and Dice-K's streak of wins in his last six decisions.

As they say, all good things must come to an end.

As long as the Stankee's run of 10 straight division titles falls as well.

NOTES:

• Papi returned after a three game hiatus and went 1-4 with single, but still appears hampered by his myriad of minor ailments
• The Sox did manage 10 hits themselves, 2 each by Lowell, Tek & Pedroia, but the team that leads the league in walks on drew only one base-on-balls beacuse...
• ...Byrd has not allowed a walk in 43 innings spanning six games
• Ramirez celebrated his 35th birthday by getting his 10th double and has now had a hit in 8 of the last 9 games
• Sizemore does matter: after beginning the series 0-9 with 6 Ks, Grady went on a rampage, reaching on a double, homer and walk before grounding out in the 8th
• Former Sox property Shoppach also went ballistic, ripping off half as many hits and the same number of runs tonight as he'd had all month
• Pedroia's pair of hits extended his streak to 10 consecutive games and his aveage climbed to .308
• Drew had a bead on Sizemore's homer, but appeared to ease up when he got near the low bully wall where he cracked his spine earlier this season
• No relief: for once the Sox pen was shaky, too; three relievers (Snyder, Romero & Pineiro) combined to allow 6 hits, 2 walks and 2 runs in 3 1/3
• Lugo got the night off; Coco was 0-4 in his leadoff spot, although he did have a sac bunt and another nice diving catch (not quite a CoCoCatch, though)
• Lowell took over the team lead with his 10 homer; Papi, who has 9, hasn't homered in 16 games & 56 ABs, longest drought of his career
• Matsuzaka threw 106 pitches and his ERA rose to 4.83 (okay, I'm done with him!)

QUOTES:

"Not only my fastball, but, overall, I think I had problems with my control."--Dice-K; how do you say 'Captain Obvious' in Japanese?

"We knew coming in he is not going to walk anybody. You have to hit
him to beat him."--Tito on Byrd

"I take a lot of pride in making them earn their way to first base."--Byrd

RECORD: 36-16

AL EAST: Up 11 gms on BAL

UP NEXT: Thu-off; Fri vs. NYY 7P