Blue Jays 11-5, FINAL: The game has been called after a 62-minute delay. The magic number is still two, pending the outcome in Anaheim.
10:28 p.m.: Still raining here, but there's baseball at Fenway. The Angels-Rangers game is on the scoreboard in center and the Angels have taken a 3-0 lead in the first inning. Maybe that game will end first tonight.
10:08 p.m.: It is still raining steady here at the ballpark, and there's no word on when we might be able to resume. We might not get going again until 11 p.m. The Sox have runners at second and third, down 11-5 with nobody out in the seventh. We'll keep you posted.
9:33 p.m.: Holy umbrellas, Batman! It is POURING at Fenway right now and we are in a much-needed delay. This is Noah-style rain and we're not sure how long this is going to last. It's 11-5 Jays and the Sox are still batting in the seventh.
Mid 7th, Blue Jays 11-4: Manny Delcarmen has fallen out of favor in the Red Sox bullpen, but he does well in garbage-time duty tonight, keeping the Jays off the board. Delcarmen is now a longshot to make the postseason roster, but still has a chance to redeem himself with a solid final week.
End 6th, Blue Jays 11-4: David Ortiz makes it 28 homers for the season with a shot into the bleachers in right. Ortiz now has 95 RBI. The quest for 30-100 could be the most interesting aspect of the weekend — assuming the Sox have clinched by then.
Mid 6th, Blue Jays 11-3: Not exactly a clean inning, but Dustin Richardson is doing something the other two pitchers couldn't: Not allow any runs.
End 5th, Blue Jays 11-3: About all that's left to root for is Youkilis connecting for his first 3-homer game. No dice in the fifth, as he grounds out. He should get one more chance before Francona lifts him.
Mid 5th, Blue Jays 11-3: Dustin Richardson makes his major league pitching debut, and that's all you need to know about the state of this game. Jones allows two more runs, and there's rain in the area. What a lovely night at the ballpark…
End 4th, Blue Jays 9-3: Scott Richmond has done a much better job of settling down, allowing just the Youkilis homer over the past three innings.
Mid 4th, Blue Jays 9-3: Remember that Sunday night game in April, when Bowden and Hunter Jones dominated the Yankees? Yeah … not so much. Jones relieves Bowden and allows a two-run homer to Jose Bautista. Put the champagne back in the cooler, boys.
End 3rd, Blue Jays 7-3: If the Red Sox could arrange for Kevin Youkilis to bat 3 or 4 times in an inning, they'd have a chance. Youkilis makes it two homers in two ABs, giving him 27 for the season. Youkilis has never had a 3-homer game, but we've got a lot of time left tonight.
Mid 3rd, Blue Jays 7-2: Remember when Michael Bowden was being touted as a top pitching prospect? Yeah … not so much. Bowden allows a three-run homer to Rod Barajas, and the chances of clinching the Wild Card tonight are becoming increasingly remote. We don't doubt the Red Sox will score more runs, but the hole is getting deeper and deeper.
End 2nd, Blue Jays 4-2: The Red Sox had a chance to inch a little closer — or even take the lead — leaving the bases loaded. Scott Richmond went 3-and-0 to Dustin Pedroia with the bases full and two outs, but recovered to get Pedroia on a fly to right. Not exactly a blistering pace so far. We should still be playing when the Rangers and Angels take the field at 10:05 p.m.
Mid 2nd, Blue Jays 4-2: After throwing 40+ pitches in the first inning, Bowden settles down with a 1-2-3 inning, including his third strikeout. Not sure how many innings Bowden has in him tonight, but a couple more quick ones will do the bullpen a world of good.
End 1st, Blue Jays 4-2: Looks like we've got ourselves a shootout. Kevin Youkilis follows a two-out single by Victor Martinez with a two-run homer to cut the deficit in half. The Red Sox are 6-0 against the Jays at Fenway this season, so we're far from done here tonight.
Mid 1st, Blue Jays 4-0: Not exactly the start the Red Sox were looking for. Michael Bowden, pressed into emergency start duty after Josh Beckett was scratched with back spasms, allows four runs on five hits — all of the loud variety. Aaron Hill homers with one out, then single, double, single, double before Bowden settles down and strikes out the final two of the inning.
7:02 p.m.: Johnny Pesky turned 90 today, and No. 6 just threw out the first pitch to Jason Varitek.
6:40 p.m.: Josh Beckett will not start tonight's game, having been scratched earlier this afternoon with upper back spasms. It is not known when Beckett will pitch again this week, although manager Terry Francona hinted the team will skip this start altogether and pitch him as planned on Saturday. Michael Bowden gets the ball against the Jays. Jon Lester threw a bullpen session this afternoon and both he and Francona declared all systems go for a Thursday start.
Such an outcome seemed so unlikely Friday night, with Lester writhing around on the Yankee Stadium mound after taking a line drive off his right leg. Lastly, Mike Lowell received a shot of Synvisc in his right hip, which should allow home greater mobility in the Divison Series. Lowell will sit out the next few nights, then play over the weekend to get his timing down at the plate.
3:45 p.m.: The Red Sox look to clinch a spot in the postseason tonight … with a little help from their friends in Anaheim. Despite being swept in New York over the weekend, the Red Sox' magic number was lowered to two. The Red Sox play at their usual 7:10 p.m. starting time and should be wrapping up against the Blue Jays about the time the Rangers get under way against the Angels. A Red Sox victory and a Rangers loss and the Red Sox can book their flights for Anaheim next week.
