Save it. No, I'm not serious about that title. Photo itself offered (thanks Yahoo!) without comment.
So man oh man did Shaun Marcum let me down. He's not on my fantasy team. No, he just didn't allow me to use either of the fantastic (and distinct) puns I had ready for the title. For example:
If he had been July 7 or August 20 Shaun Marcum (awful), you would've seen: Marcum it down. Sox sweep Jays.
If he had been July 29 - August 15 Shaun Marcum (excellent), you would've seen: Marcum it down. Sox unable to sweep.
He didn't really end up being either of those Shaun Marcums, and I was forced to go with the above title. Absolutely ridiculous.
The game looked pretty good from the beginning. This "pitch completely to contact, almost ignoring the strikeout stat entirely" Schilling is doing okay for himself. He (mostly) cruised through the first four innings. The 5th inning was an entirely different story: the Jays rocked Schill to the tune of 19 million bloop singles, scoring 3 runs to take the lead (which the Sox had gained in the 1st via YaGoBoy Ellsbury's 2B and an RBI groundout from J.D. Drew.) 3-1 Jays.
The Sox got one back in the bottom half of the 5th, with Jason Varitek scoring on a YaGoBoy sacrifice fly. 3-2. Schill held the Jays scoreless in the 6th, while the Jays brought in Brian Wolfe to relieve the inconsiderate Marcum. After Youk was HBP, 'Tek followed him with a HR to right, giving the Sox back the lead, 4-3.
Bryan Corey, making his 2007 ML debut, held the Jays scoreless in the 7th thanks to 3 outs on the ground, 2 coming via DP. Then all hell broke loose. MDC came on in the 8th, and given the bullpen usage lately, this was an unquestionable move. He got Frank Thomas to groundout, then proceeded to give up a HR to Troy Glaus that tied the game. 4-4. Crapola.
After the Sox did a fantastic job of not-scoring in the bottom of the 8th, Okajima came on to try to keep the game tied. Not so, says Vernon Wells. Oki hit Gregg Zaun, allowed a S from John McDonald to move PR Russ Adams to 2B, and then served up a HR to Vernon Wells to give the Jays a two-run lead. Jeremy Accardo didn't allow a baserunner in 1 2/3 to preserve the lead and secure the win. 6-4 Jays.
Other thoughts:
- Great game from Varitek. Reached base in all four PAs, scored twice and knocked in two.
- Coco ought to be recognized as well, going 2 for 3 and being the only Sox hitter able to get a sacrifice down. (If you watched the game, you know that 1,348 sacrifices were attempted.)
- Would this game have been different if Dustin Pedroia had started over Alex Cora? I don't know. I really don't know. But yes, it would have.
- Sorry for not having game stories up the last couple days. If "burnout" is a viable excuse, then that's my story.
'Tek. That's right.