The Red Sox took Game 1 tonight (or should I say morning?) with a 4-1 victory over the Angels. Lester pitched fantastic, and the Sox needed every bit of it, as their offense struggled for a good part of the night. In the first inning Lester struggled with his control, and seemed to be a little rattled, but he was able to get Kendrick to ground out with bases loaded. Lester was cruising, but in the 3rd Lowrie had an error, which would have gotten Lester out of in the innings, but instead Hunter hit an RBI single, and the Angels took a 1-0 lead.
All was quiet as Lester and Lackey dueled. The Sox came up in the 6th, and it seemed like Lackey was going to set the Sox down, much like he had all night. He struck out Papi, then walked Youk, but got the 2nd out as Drew popped out. Then the game changed for the night, as Jason Bay State hit a 2 run homerun to left field. That was all that Lester and the Sox would need. Lester set the Angels down in order by striking out the side in the 6th. Lackey was playing fine, but ended up getting taken out of the game in the top of the 6th, because Gary Matthews Jr. couldn't find a pop fly off Ellsbury's bat, and Jacoby came around all the way to third. That was the night for Lackey, but Oliver came in and he got Papi to strikeout and end the inning.
The Sox went into cruise control as Lester took the side out in order in the 7th. The 8th inning was scary as Masterson came in. I was really surprised to see him in the game and not Okajima. Just seemed like a lot of pressure to put on a rookie. I mean it was a 1 run game, but all is well that ends well. Ellsbury made a driving catch, which took a hit away from Teixeira. Vlad ripped a single, so the tying run is on, and Hunter is at the plate. This is when Vlad cost them the game. Hunter hits a bloop single over Youk's head, but Vlad tried for third. Youk was quick to pick up the ball and threw Vlad out by a mile. After a long at bat Masterson gets Kendrick to ground out, and the inning finally came to a close.
Boston added 2 more runs in the 9th on an Ellsbury/Ortiz RBI singles. So the stage was set for one of the best closers in the game, and he did what he does best...shut them down. He struck out the side, while allowing 1 hit. The Sox now have the advantage in this series, as they have 2 home games coming after the Friday's game.
Boston still has some things to worry about. Drew and Lowell combined to be 0-8, and Lowell seemed to be in a serious amount of pain towards the end of the game. Masterson controlled the setup spot, but it was a wild ride. In the end, the Sox did what they had to do, and Lester everyday is looking more and more like an ace. Game 2 is Friday at 9:35pm on TBS.
-BMack
