The umpire ruled the runner out at first base, and Red Sox fans are not going to disagree.
But even if Stephen Drew didn’t nip Evan Longoria at first in Monday’s one-run game, his cleanup work at shortstop would have been worth a tip of the cap anyway.
With two outs in the top of the sixth and runners on the corners, Ryan Dempster needed a stop to get himself out of the inning and keep the Red Sox ahead 2-1. Drew provided it, going to his left on a sharp shot from Longoria that skittered just left of the second base bag. He corralled the ball then quickly dug it out and fired to first to get Longoria and prevent the rally.
Longoria, whose one home run had provided the Rays’ only scoring of the day so far (a typical case for Tampa Bay), was not happy with the call.
Check it out in the video below.
