Walk Off Hero (s)
Yes, of course, the hero of last night’s game was David Ortiz. I think we can all agree on that. He drove in 5 runs with two swings of the bat, and hit the ball hard every time up. He just as easily could have gone 5-5 with a couple more doubles if Carlos Pena weren’t positioned perfectly down the first base line.
But beyond just David Ortiz, I want to give credit where credit is due to the Red Sox Bullpen. Lester looked very shaky, and was pretty lucky that the Devil Rays only managed to put up the four runs in the first. They left 2 men on in the first 4 innings and this game could have been much worse. But luckily, we have Julian Tavarez sitting out in right field on a daily basis to bail the starters out when they struggle. He got up for the first time in the first inning. He warmed in the second and third as well before coming in to save the day. He pitched 3 innings of no-hit baseball before he was surprisingly removed for Manny Delcarmen, who immediately drew a pinch hitter. But regardless, he did his job as well. Okajima saw only one batter, further evidence that he is being more or less rested until the playoffs. And of course, Papelbon kicked ass and shut them down.
But let’s not forget the real key to that victory last night - Julian Tavarez. He was Big Pimpin last night, throwing a mini no-hitter to get the team to the rest of the bullpen who was rested up and ready to go. He has been great this year - and who would have ever guessed we’d be saying that about him after being so innefective during the first half of last year? I guess the league transition is real.
Here’s Big Pimpin Julian himself, taken down in Baltimore last weekend.
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