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Closing Time: Red Sox take down Justin Verlander, Tigers to break through .500 barrier 05.29.12 at 11:04 pm ET
By Alex Speier

Scott Podsednik and Kevin Youkilis represented two of the five runs the Sox scored against Tigers ace Justin Verlander. (AP)

A compelling case can be made that, under the circumstances and given the degree of difficulty, the Red Sox’ 6-3 win over the Tigers on Tuesday was their best of the year.

The specter of Dustin Pedroia‘s absence loomed over the team entering the game. The task of facing Tigers ace of aces Justin Verlander — while featuring a starter in Daniel Bard who has been inconsistent — added to the daunting task in front of the Sox.

Yet they overcame what seemed like imposing odds, giving Verlander his biggest beating of the season en route to a 25-24 record. Bard was as good as he’s been in a month; the lineup received outstanding top-to-bottom contributions; and the bullpen delivered 11 outs to seal the victory. On a day when the Sox had every excuse to be flat, they delivered the proverbial character win to push past the .500 mark for the first time this year, improving to 25-24.

WHAT WENT RIGHT FOR THE RED SOX

– Bard showed his best pitch mix in at least a month. He summoned strikeouts when he needed them — most notably, punching out Miguel Cabrera on a nasty slider with two on and two out in the fifth, at a time when the Tigers slugger represented the tying run — and looked both assertive and confident on a night when he regularly hit 95 mph with his fastball, got swings and misses on his slider and effectively unbalanced Detroit with his changeup.

Just as he did in his previous start in Baltimore (after which Bard said he didn’t feel like himself on the mound), he allowed two runs on five hits in 5 1/3 innings. But Bard flipped his walks and strikeouts totals from that game, punching out four and walking two, on a night when he featured legitimate swing-and-miss stuff as a starter. It was the first time since May 2 that he walked fewer than four, and the first time since April 27 that he punched out more than three. In other words, it was Bard’s most impressive outing in a month, and offered a reminder that while there are inconsistencies in the experiment of his move from the bullpen to the rotation, there is upside as well.

With the win, Bard improved to 5-5 with a 4.62 ERA.

– David Ortiz had a monster game. He went 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles off of Verlander and a solo homer off left-handed reliever Duane Below, Ortiz’s fifth homer of the year against a left-hander. On the season, Ortiz is hitting .314 with a .966 OPS against lefties and .322 with a .997 OPS against righties. It was the first time this season that Ortiz has had three extra-base hits, and just the second time (along with a contest last July 26 against Kansas City in which he had three doubles) since the 2008 season that he has pulled the trick.

– Daniel Nava fought off a 100 mph fastball from Verlander on a full count for a bases-loaded, two-out double down the left-field that plated three runs and allowed the Sox to take a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth. That, in turn, allowed the Sox to play the game with a comfortable lead.

– The Red Sox played outstanding defense behind Bard. Ryan Sweeney made a pair of tremendous catches in right, one a sliding grab to pull a ball off the turf and the other to track down a rocket off the bat of Miguel Cabrera in deep right — with runners on second and third and two outs — to prevent at least two runs from scoring, Scott Podsednik made an excellent running catch in left-center and Mike Aviles seemed to be perfectly positioned all night in gathering one grounder after another at short.

– Podsednik continued to make a surprising impact, going 2-for-4 with a double and scoring a run. He is now 7-for-15 (.467) with a 1.200 OPS.

– The Sox became the first team since Sept. 2010 to collect as many as 10 hits off of Verlander, while also becoming the first team this year to score five earned runs against him.

– Vicente Padilla entered with a runner on base and two outs in the seventh and promptly induced an inning-ending flare to second. He has now inherited 16 runners this year and has stranded all of them.

WHAT WENT WRONG FOR THE RED SOX

– Jarrod Saltalamacchia left the game in the top of the seventh due to illness.

– Ryan Sweeney, despite his excellent defensive work, went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. It was the first time he’s struck out three times as a member of the Red Sox, and just the sixth time in his career.

– Andrew Miller gave up multiple hits for the first time this season, allowing a double to Miguel Cabrera and a single by left-hander Prince Fielder before being lifted with two outs. After making eight scoreless appearances to start the year, he’s permitted runs in two of his last three outings.

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  • Anonymous

    Great win for the Sox, but, is anyone else sickened by the return of Andy Pettite and his pinstripe bleeding heart. We don’t know yet if he’s still got it, but I wouldn’t bet against him.  After all those years of watching him win big games for NY, I thought we were finnally rid of him. Like Rivera now,I can only hope (as a Sox fan) that he never toes the mound again, and talks of him coming back are scary. He deserves tremendous repect as the greatest reliever ever (some people out there will say he was not that important to the Yankees run because he is a closer) and a decent guy, I will shed no tears if his recent injury ends his career.

  • Fenian

    Not sickened…WHO CARES….

    Pettite was not that good in his last go around…so who gives a sh*t…

    Don’t care about Rivera either…more concerned with when Bailey gets back…you need more focus on the Sox and less on the Yankees…they are an AARP team in worse shape than the Sox…at least the Sox have players coming back that can help them…same cannot be said for the Yankees

  • Hesher

    I have never been happier than when Donald Mcdonald went on the DL and Nava came up, The way this kid has been playing compared to that junk pile Mcdonald is incredible….I hope he can continue to play like he has been and hopefully i’ll never have to see Mcdonald play another major league game again.

  • Big Ted

    It’s Ronald McDonald to you.

  • John2231

    Andy Petitte, the performance enhancing druggy making a comeback, eh? Must be taking more PEDs. So obvious. Typical greasy, bloated ego, loud talking, smelly New Yorker.

    Don’t be concerned, he’s got nothing left but PEDs in his system.

  • Elaine Apthorp

    Great win for the Sox. I don’t get all this preoccupation with Yankee players. As a Sox fan who is genetically sick of the pinstripes I just don’t want to think about those guys at all except when I have to, i.e., when we’re playing them or when we’re neck and neck with them for a playoff spot–neither of which is the case at the moment.  But like I suspect most people who love excellence in baseball, I have nothing but respect for Mariano Rivera and cannot rejoice in the thought of his magnificent career ending with a freak injury. Period.

    And I also don’t get the hating on Darnell MacDonald. He does a lot of things well that a ballclub needs, being an able outfielder with a good arm who can play all three positions competently, a speedy baserunner, a competent bunter, etc. I sure wish one of his talents was hitting for average at the major league level, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. Ergo his fill-in maid-of-all-work status, and the likelihood that, given the solid performance of other emergency outfielders while DM’s been on the DL, his days with the big club in 2012 are probably numbered and probably should be. But I don’t get people hating on players because they’re not able to perform the way we need them to. As long as they play solid, professional fundamental baseball and give maximum effort and focus–as Darnell MacDonald does–I’m gonna give them the props that their professionalism deserves. One can lobby for A guy to play instead of B without speaking as though B is a piece of garbage. Nick Punto, for example, is a legit major leaue second baseman with a solid resume. He’s not Dustin Pedroia. Not even close. Duh. Neither is anybody else on the planet.

  • Anonymous

    As a long time Sox fan ,I despise the Yankees and get nearly as much pleasure out of them losing as the Sox winning. Pettite lost last night. We can only hope he won’t get it back.. Speaking of that Yankee corp, it would be nice if Jeter would start declining. I suppose it has to do with how long you’ve been a Sox fan. if you remember Bucky Bleeping Dent, then you know what I mean.

  • Anonymous

    Mac might do better as a reliever.

  • Anonymous

    I’l say it again, I have nothing but respect for Mariano,but I couldn”t care less how he goes out, just as long as he goes. The guy has never had a major injury.The Yanks don’t suffer as many key injuries as the Sox do, or so it has always seemed, over the years..

  • Hesher

    The thing is Mcdonald has ALWAYS been a below average player in the majors, he is a career minor leaguer and he should STAY in the minor leagues where he belongs…..You mean to tell me Daniel Nava was lower on the list of replacements than Mcdonald is? give me a break….Then management will sit here and say oh we can’t bring up Iglesias because he’s not a major league hitter, yea last time i checked Mcdonald wasn’t either.

  • Moneyball

    If I had to choose between Fitzgerald of today and Moss of ’07 I take the former in a heartbeat.  The talent may be comparable but there is a wide disparity in character.

  • Hood Rich

    Moss was a good soldier in 07 & 08… not so much in late 09 & 10…

    Would still take Moss..

  • jj

    Rice had Montana. Rice had a strong running game to compliment him. Rice used to dive when anyone came close. Thats how he did it and prolonged his career.

  • Innovator

    Fitzgerald in a Patriots uniform would completely alter the gameplan of opposing defenses against us….The amount of field that teams would have to cover against us with Fitz in our lineup would be double what it is at the present….You can get slot guys like Welker in the second round and pay them much less,but its so,so difficult to get a fitzgerald type ballplayer….I really hope they try to go after him this winter,and use Welkers money plus on him…

  • PatsIn13

    Not gonna happen pal Larry is signed through 2018 in Zona…….

  • EZ

    is he the next ochocinco when he turns 35  for the pats

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