SSDD - Sox pitchers blow another 3-0 lead, lose again

Baltimore 6, Sox 3
WP: Cabrera (4-1)
LP: Hansen (0-2)
SV: Sherrill (15)
HRs: BOS-Tek (4), Lowell (4); BAL-Payton (3)

SUMMARY:
For the third game in a row Boston jumped out to a 3-0 lead, only to have its suddenly abominable pitching staff fail to hold it once again.

Despite a quality start from Jon Lester, three relievers combined to surrender four runs on three hits and a walk in the 7th, the big blow being a grand slam by ex-Sox Jay Payton off Hideki Okajima that ensured Boston of a losing record on this roadie.

SUPERSTAR: Payton 1-4, R, 5BI, GS
Hit a game-winning grand slam and drive in five runs, earn the superstar of the game award. Simple as that.

THE BIGGEST LOSER: Okajima 1.1IP, 1H, 1ER, 1K, 1GS
Sure his numbers don't look so bad, because the men on base weren't his. But when you're brought in to shut a team down when your club is in a tough spot, the last thing you want to do is what Oki did - allow a game-losing grand slam.

RECAP:
The day started out bad for Boston and it ended even worse as the Sox wrapped up a losing road trip with a gut-punch loss in Camden Yards this afternoon.

As the 10 game trip wound down the losses for the Sox just kept piling up: four 'L's in a row; five in its last six games; six in its last eight games; first place in the AL East; pitcher Clay Buchholz, who was placed on the DL due to a split fingernail; and JD Drew, whose badly sprained wrist might land him on the DL, too.

All that losing added up to a terrible trip for the road weary team, and to say that tomorrow's off day, the club's fist in 3 1/2 weeks, will be greatly appreciated and thoroughly enjoyed would have to be the understatement of the year.

What made this loss so tough to take was the fact that for the third game in a row the Boston batters managed to build a 3-0 lead for its pitcher, but instead of the starter coughing up the lead like a cat with a mega hairball, this time it was the shaky pen that let the offense down again.

As the late, great Rosanne Rosannadanna used to say, "if it ain't one thing it's another..."

Like many of the recent losses this game started out great for Boston. They scored a run in the 1st inning off Daniel 'Hairtrigger' Cabrera (7IP, 10H, 3ER, 0BB, 3K, 2HRs) when Dustin Pedroia singled in Jacoby Ellsbury, who led off the game with a single and then stole second base one pitch later, but they missed many opportunities to add to that lead against the erratic righty.

Entering this game Cabrera held a 1-9 record and a plus 7.00 ERA against the Sox in his career, and although he sprayed 10 hits around the Yard today somehow he managed to hold it together and keep his team in the game, as much a testament to his maturity as it is to Boston hitting into three double plays in the first four innings.

Meanwhile Sox starter Jon Lester (6IP, 5H, 2ER, 2BB, 4K) was plowing through the Oriole lineup like Scott Baio through 1980s starlets, and Boston tacked on a couple more runs on solo shots by Captain Tek with one out in the 5th and Mike Lowell with two outs in the 6th.

The 6th is when Lester ran into his first rough inning of the day and when Baltimore crept right back in it by scoring three runs on a pair of singles, a double and an RBI groundout by Jay Payton, and even though Lester ended the inning in style by striking out Audrey Huff and Millah, you just knew there was trouble looming on the horizon the way the team has been going lately.

Call it the Rays syndrome.

Sure enough acting manager Brad Mills removed Lester after the 6th, and after retiring the first two batters he faced, Javier Lopez set off the chain of events that would lead to Boston's demise in this one.

Shortstop Freddie Bynum began the rally with an innocent enough infield single that was bobbled by Dustin Pedroia, but when Millsy quickly went to his 7th inning setup man in training Craig Hansen, the young righty imitated the Manny he's replacing by serving up a single and a walk to the two batters he faced to load the bases, and it was up to Okajima to put out the fire and rescue the win.

Unfortunately Oki didn't get the memo as disgruntled ex Sox Payton looped a fly ball down the left field line and into the seats for a soul-crushing four run homer, and from that point on it was 'pack up the bus' time for the team and the legions of Nation members who made the trek to Camden today.

The game left such a sour taste in my stomach that I couldn't even enjoy what might have been the MLB highlight of the year so far.

I'm sure you've all seen the replay by now, when the Orioles had two on and one out against Lester in the bottom of the 4th with old friend Millah coming to the plate.

That's when the original idiot did what he normally does against his former team, i.e. hit a drive to the outfield that looks like extra bases and a Baltimore lead.

But Manny Ramirez flew into the frame and at the last minute reached up above his head and snagged the sinking liner as it was headed for the warning track. Ramirez then partially scaled the outfield wall, slapped hands with a Sox fan in the first row of the bleachers, then threw the ball back to the infield as Pedroia relayed it to first base to complete one of the oddest, coolest and memorable double plays in Boston history.

Too bad even a classic display of MBM couldn't brighten up what turned out to be a dismal day in the Nation.

RECORD: 24-19
AL EAST: 1/2 GB of TB
STREAK: L4
LAST 10: 4-6
UP NEXT: THU-Off; Fri vs. Milwaukee @ Fenway 705 Suppan vs. Matsuzaka