The Red Sox had finally scored after being shut out for 31 innings when Victor Martinez hit a towering two-run home run to left field off reliever Phil Coke to give the Sox a 2-1 lead. The game seemed all but over.
They'd bring in Daniel Bard. Then Jonathan Papelbon. The Red Sox win.
Things didn't work out that way, though, as Bard gave up back-to-back homers to Johnny Damon and Mark Teixeira in the bottom of the eighth as the Yankees retook the lead. A two-run single from Nick Swisher later in the inning put the game out of reach. Mariano Rivera entered the game and earned his 32nd save, giving the Yankees the series sweep and extending their AL East lead to 6 1/2 games. The loss also puts the Red Sox into a tie for the wild-card lead with Texas.
Yankees 5, Red Sox 2
Yankee Stadium, Bronx, N.Y.
August 9, 2009
Headliner: The Yankees were criticized — especially in Boston — for spending hundreds of millions of dollars in the offseason. This weekend, they showed it was worth every penny. On Friday, it was A.J. Burnett, on Saturday, it was CC Sabathia, and on Sunday, it was Mark Teixeira.
The first baseman was 1-for-3 with a single and a strikeout when he dug into the batter's box with the game tied in the eighth inning. Teixeira got under the second pitch of his at-bat and hit the ball a mile into the air. When it came down, it was in the right-field bleachers and the Yankees had a lead.
Dirt Dog: Much like Josh Beckett and Clay Buchholz in the previous two games, Jon Lester deserved better. The lefty struck out seven Yankees in seven innings, but left the game on the hook for a loss, courtesy of an Alex Rodriguez solo home run.
Victor Martinez's two-run homer put Lester in line for the win before the disastrous bottom of the eighth inning.
The seven-inning effort brought Lester's ERA down to 3.65, but for the second straight quality start, he couldn't get the W.
Better Luck Next Time: The Yankees chose not to use their eighth-inning man, Phil Hughes, and it came back to bite them. The Red Sox used theirs and got the same result.
Daniel Bard got hit. Hard.
After retiring the first two batters, Bard gave up a homer to Johnny Damon that tied the game at two runs apiece. Two pitches later, the Red Sox were down a run after Teixeira's bomb.
Bard couldn't get out of the inning, walking Alex Rodriguez in the following at-bat. Hideki Okajima couldn't close the door either, giving up a double, a single and another single.
Key Moment: It really looked like the Red Sox were ready to celebrate a win for the first time since Sunday. Two swings of the bat, however, changed things quickly. Damon launched his 21st home run of the year just before Teixeira hit his 29th, ending a long week for the Red Sox.
On Deck: After a 3-6 road trip, Fenway Park will never look so nice. The good news for the Red Sox is that they finally scored, so the offensive drought could be turning around.
On Monday night, they'll look to Brad Penny as the Tigers come to town. Detroit will counter with Edwin Jackson, who is 8-5 with a shiny 2.62 ERA.