Down Goes Texas: Adrian's Two Homers Lead Big Sox Attack

Regardless of your feelings regarding Justin Verlander, the Tigers, and Boston's chances against them in a short series, this is a big weight off of everyone's shoulders.

After falling four times in embarassing fashion to the Texas Rangers to start the season series, the Sox finally dealt them a taste of their own medicine. One might even call it overkill, with Boston putting up 11 big ones on Colby Lewis and the bullpen.

While the big news today was the return of Jacoby Ellsbury--and he certainly made an impact both at the plate and in the field--it was Adrian Gonzalez who stole the show. After going without for over 20 games, Gonzo took Lewis deep in both the first and fourth innings. That's right folks, it's time for Adrian to turn the power back on, and damned if it isn't overdue.

Of course, there were other contributors. There would have to be with eleven runs on the board. Jarrod Saltalamacchia threw in a pair of doubles as he continues to try and fight out of his August slump. Ryan Lavarnway adjusted quickly to Lewis' tough slider and chipped in a couple of hits too. And then there were the late-inning heroics of Marco Scutaro and Dustin Pedroia, who hit nearly identical doubles to really put the game away once and for all (memo to teams: don't intentionally walk someone to get to Dustin Pedroia. Not even Adrian. It pisses him off).

John Lackey was kind of the guy we've come to expect this month. He was strong early, ran into trouble in a three-run third, and then seemed to just barely hold on for the next three or four frames. All-in-all, though, he gave the Sox a chance to win (well, they'd already seized it, but still) and given his past performances against Texas, we'll call this a successful outing. He even tipped his cap to Ellsbury after a big play, so that whole "expressive" thing works both ways!

What's more, we've got Josh Beckett on the hill tomorrow, and David Ortiz on the way back. 

Oh, and the Yankees lost. Tied for first again, percentage points be damned!