White Sox 9-5, FINAL: Despite the best efforts of Nick Green (two scoreless innings) and J.D. Drew (two homers), the Red Sox see their Wild Card lead over Texas cut to 1 1/2 games.
Mid 9th, White Sox 9-4: A tremendous performance by Nick Green, who finishes off his two no-hit (three walk) innings by stabbing Scott Podsednik's comebacker. It was the longest hitless appearance by a Red Sox position player since Eddie Lake in 1944.
9:53 p.m.: Jacoby Ellsbury left the game after the fifth inning with a mild left ankle sprain and his availability for the weekend is unknown.
Mid 8th, White Sox 9-2: Maybe we've got something here with this Green kid. The shortstop-turned-pitcher allows just a two-out walk, hitting 90 on the gun and getting through the heart of the White Sox order without incident.
End 7th, White Sox 9-2: This is what it's come to tonight: Nick Green is making his major league pitching debut. What could possibly go wrong?
Mid 7th, White Sox 9-2: As we take time to stretch here at Fenway Park, a reminder that the Jimmy Fund Marathon is well underway and your donations are greatly appreciated. Call 877-738-1234 or visit www.jimmyfund.org. The brave kids thank you!
End 6th, White Sox 9-2: No carryover from the fifth-inning uprising. Ramon Ramirez on to pitch the seventh.
Mid 6th, White Sox 9-2: If there's a silver lining tonight, it's the work of Manny Delcarmen, who has retired 6 of 7 batters since replacing Tazawa. Delcarmen has been working in the shadows lately in an inconsistent season. But he still can be a factor down the stretch, and tonight may have him pointed in the right direction.
End 5th, White Sox 9-2: The Red Sox try to claw back into it, getting back-to-back homers from J.D. Drew and Alex Gonzalez (!), then back-to-back singles from Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia.
But with two outs, Pedroia gets hung up between first and second on a wild pitch, and after a rundown, Ellsbury is thrown out at the plate to end the inning. Even worse, Ellsbury appeared to injure his leg on the collision at home and Rocco Baldelli has replaced him in center.
Mid 5th, White Sox 9-0: Wow, maybe Delcarmen should have started. Manny works a highly-effecient 1-2-3 inning. Big deal. Tazawa did the same in the first inning, and look where that got him.
End 4th, White Sox 9-0: Ortiz breaks up eight in a row retired by Danks with an infield single. That's your Red Sox offensive highlight of the evening. Thanks for coming, everybody! Manny Delcarmen replaces Tazawa to start the fifth.
Mid 4th, White Sox 9-0: Just when it looked like Tazawa might salvage one decent inning out of this horror show, getting the first two men out, the White Sox strike again. Paul Konerko walks, then scos on Jim Thome's double. Konerko has scored three times tonight. Tazawa is at 85 pitches, as he takes a bullet for the bullpen in a lost cause.
End 3rd, White Sox 8-0: Staggered early, the Red Sox offer no response, going down in order against Danks. While no comeback is never out of the question, it doesn't feel like a four-game sweep is in the cards tonight.
Mid 3rd, White Sox 8-0: Tazawa has now allowed more runs in three innings tonight (8) than he had in his first 16 innings as a major leaguer (7). In retrospect, perhaps the youngster was due for a stinker. It hasn't been pretty, that's for sure.
8:10 p.m.: Not tonight for Tazawa and the Red Sox. Quentin gets revenge for his beaning by hitting a two-run homer to left, part of a three-run inning so far as the White Sox have taken a 7-0 lead. Somewhere, Brad Penny is thinking, "I could have done that."
End 2nd, White Sox 4-0: David Ortiz makes a bid for yet another homer, chasing Mark Kotsay to the low wall in right for a loud out. That's as close as the Red Sox would get to scoring in the inning.
Mid 2nd, White Sox 4-0: The legend of Tazawa takes a big hit in the second inning, as the White Sox erupt for four runs. Tazawa loads the bases with nobody out, giving up a pair of singles, then hitting Carlos Quentin on the bill of his helmet. Tazawa almost got out of it with one run, but the White Sox finally got a clutch hit, as Jayson Nix doubled home two runs.
End 1st, 0-0: White Sox starter John Danks has been on a roll the past three starts, allowing just fouearned runs over 21 2/3 innings. He allows a leadoff single to Jacoby Ellsbury, but finishes the inning strong with a pair of strikeouts. Danks has never beaten the Red Sox, posting a career 0-3 record with a 6.06 ERA.
Mid 1st, 0-0: The sudden emergence of Junichi Tazawa the past three weeks has become one of the most impressive stories of the season. Tazawa is making his fourth start tonight and he works an easy first inning, getting two fly outs and a groundout.
7:06 p.m.: David Cassidy gets happy doing the National Anthem and Denis Leary and Lenny Clarke handle first-pitch duties. All the celebs reminds us that it's Jimmy Fund Marathon time once again. If you can make a donation, call 877-738-1234 or visit www.jimmyfund.com.
6:50 p.m.: The Billy Wagner Era begins tonight, after the left-hander officially joined the roster this afternoon. Wagner, who threw a bullpen session today, will not be available tonight, but he did pose for the team picture this afternoon, so there's no turning back now.
Wagner's arrival equaled Brad Penny's departure. Penny pitched his way off the team in August, posting a plus-9.00 ERA over his past five starts. The emergence of Tazawa and the triumphant return of Wakefield Wednesday night sealed Penny's fate. Amazingly, both Penny and John Smoltz, a pair of National Leaguers, where finished off by the Yankees. One wonders if the Cardinals will be calling Penny, after resurrecting Smoltz and Julio Lugo.
3:15 p.m.: The Red Sox turned back the clock for a victory Wednesday night, with Tim Wakefield pitching like it was 1995 and David Ortiz hitting like 2004. Tonight is about the future, as rookie Junichi Tazawa looks to build on his surprising start, rendering Brad Penny obsolete. The Sox are looking for a sweep tonight, and hope to distance themselves further from their pursuers in the wild-card race.
