In a game that had 'Loss' written all over it (in big splotchy red letters, like the 'fan' mail Julio Lugo receives), one man turned the tables. Jason Bay, down 0-2, got a fastball over the plate which he absolutely crushed.
Bay is without a doubt the most important player on the Sox at the moment. With Youk out, he leads the team in value over replacement player (VORP), at 18.9. He's tied for first in the league for walks (with Marco "Regression to the Mean" Scutaro) and, lest you think he's not lifting the bat, he's tied for third in home runs (with Curtis Granderson and Ian Kinsler). He's 2nd in the AL for both OPS and OBP. Put that all together, and you have a phenomenal .323 / .477 / .677 line.
Meanwhile, Brad Penny put together another serviceable start: six and a third innings, only three runs. A few more like that and he might get a warmer welcome here. More importantly, the pen was brilliant, with Oki, RamRam and Paps combining for two and two thirds scoreless innings (1 walk, 1 hit total). Even Julio Lugo and Jacoby Ellsbury got hits and scored runs off of Grant "Regression to Sucking Like I Have All My Career" Balfour. All in all, a very good night for baseball.