The Starter:
It's not a secret: Daisuke Matsuzaka was great in his Major League Baseball debut. He lived up to the hype and delivered a great performance on a cold, cold day. Matsuzaka went 7 innings, struck out 10, gave up one walk and one run to earn his first MLB victory.
The 'Pen:
JC Romero filled in for Matsuzaka for the eighth and gave up just one hit. Romero continues to really impress me, personally. I think he's going to have a great season in our bullpen.Jonathan Papelbon closed it out for his first save of the season. Has he lost a step since last season? Not a bit. His fastball was electric and had that late pop we're all so accustom to seeing. Papelbon struck out two without allowing a baserunner.
The Lineup:
Julio Lugo broke out of a slump and went 2-for-5. He stole third which lead to a run when Royals' catcher John Buck had a terrible throw to third.JD Drew continues to seem comfortable as a Sox. He went 1-for-3 with a walk and a run. Drew is showing early signs of being one of the best number 5 guys in the season.
The first inning scoring trend continues. Manny Ramirez hit a double in the first to score Kevin Youkilis. Ramirez went 2-for-5.
Also joining the hit parade was Mike Lowell and Dustin Pedroia, who both went 2-for-4 on the evening. David Ortiz struggled, however, going 1-for-5 with a run and four strikeouts.
Winner: There's no question about it, Matsuzaka deserves to take home The Mueller today.
Winner (?): It's hard to pick out a loser in this group. Ortiz struggled, but he did score a crucial run. Varitek went hitless and left four on-base, but he handled Matsuzaka extremely well. Youkilis went 0'fer, but did score a run. So you get to choose.