On a night that started less-than-auspiciously, the Red Sox came back from a three-run deficit with a big seventh inning to defeat the Orioles, 9-6.
That less-than-auspicious start came courtesy of Jon Lester, who was anything but what we have come to expect from the young ace against the Orioles in the first inning. After allowing a pair of 1-out hits, Lester hit Ty Wigginton with a pitch to load the bases, and gave up a double down the left field line to Adam Jones to give the Orioles a quick 2-1 lead (David Ortiz had doubled in Marco Scutaro in the top of the frame).
The worst was yet to come for Lester, though, as the first pitch to Felix Pie slipped out of Lester's hand and soared well behind Felix Pie's head, letting a run come in from third. There was clearly nothing intentional about it--it missed by a mile, it didn't have any steam behind it, and there was a man on third--which perhaps made it all the more troubling to see such a mistake coming from Lester's left hand. Pie ended up doubling in a fourth run to finish the scoring in the first.
While the Orioles would tack on a fifth run in the second inning, it was a different Lester from there-on-in. Facing a 5-2 deficit after a Ryan Kalish double brought the Red Sox closer, Lester retired the next ten batters he faced, striking out five of the last six in the group. He ran into trouble again, loading the bases in the sixth, but struck out Lugo to end the night.
When all was said and done for Lester, he had thrown 120 pitches to get through just six innings, allowing five earned runs on eight hits and two walks, while racking up an impressive ten strikeouts. One of those nights FIP loves, but ERA would rather forget.
Oh, and he also picked up a win.
After Lester threw his last pitch, the Red Sox came out and decimated the Orioles bullpen. J.D. Drew had already brought the Sox within two with a solo shot off Orioles starter Jake Arrieta in the fifth. That deficit was quickly erased when, after a Darnell McDonald single, Marco Scutaro launched his eighth home run of the season into the left field seats to tie the game at five.
Drew followed that up with a walk, and was doubled in by Victor Martinez to give the Sox a lead. With a runner on second and David Ortiz coming up to bat, the Orioles decided they'd rather face the next guy, giving Ortiz the intentional base on balls.
The next guy was Adrian Beltre.
Yeah.
It didn't take long for the Orioles to regret their decision. Adrian Beltre came to the plate, he saw an inside fastball, and he conquered it. The ball sailed into the left field seats, giving the Sox a four run lead. Daniel Bard allowed a run in his two innings, and Papelbon closed the game out with a 1-2-3 inning interrupted only by home plate umpire Tom Hallion taking a foul ball to the midsection.
With the win, Jon Lester improve to 13-0 against the Orioles. Even when it seems like the Orioles have solved him, he still walks away with the W.