The Boston Red Sox made great use of their time at Fenway Park in the 2018 World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Just two of the five games in that Fall Classic were played in Boston, and the Red Sox earned wins in both of them, including a 4-2 victory in Game 2 that sent them to Los Angeles with a 2-0 series lead.
NESN will air Game 2 of the World Series on Wednesday night at 8 p.m. ET. Here are a few things you might have forgotten about that game.
1. Playoff Price?
The 2018 postseason allowed David Price to exorcise some demons.
Infamously known for collapsing during the playoffs, the southpaw delivered a tremendous outing in the clinching game of the American League Championship Series. But when he took the mound for Game 2 of the World Series, everyone was asking the same simple question: Can he do it again?
In a word, yes.
Price allowed just two runs over six innings, giving up three hits with three walks while striking out five. It wasn’t until the fourth inning that he wandered into trouble, loading the bases with no outs, but he escaped only surrendering two runs in the frame — via a Matt Kemp sacrifice fly and a Yasiel Puig single.
With the performance, Price joined some pretty elite company.
Red Sox to throw 6.0+ innings and allow 2 or fewer runs and 3 or fewer hits in consecutive postseason appearances:
David Price (2018)
Derek Lowe (2004)
Pedro Martinez (1999)
Jim Lonborg (1967)— J.P. Long (@SoxNotes) October 25, 2018
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2. The J.D. difference
Talk about a signing that paid off immediately.
J.D. Martinez was an impactful player from the moment he joined the Red Sox, so it was only fitting he came through with a critical hit.
Down 2-1 in the fifth inning, the Red Sox loaded the bases and brought the tying run home on a Steve Pearce walk. Then, up strolled Martinez, who blooped a single into right field off Ryan Madson to bring in a pair and put the Sox up by the deciding score.
Tie game?
Enter J.D. #DoDamage pic.twitter.com/puktTdvH4J
— Red Sox (@RedSox) October 25, 2018
“I faced him (in Game 1) and it was a very similar situation. He was a little wild, and I went up there kind of passive,” Martinez said after the game. “I said, this is the time, I said, ‘Trust your eyes. Go up there and trust your eyes, and if it’s a ball, it’s a ball. But don’t go up there being passive.’
“It wasn’t a bad pitch. It was a good pitch. I was just fortunate enough to stay inside of it and dump it in, really.”
3. Lights out
The bullpen was a big question mark entering the 2018 postseason, but it simply was electric for that entire run.
Game 2, you could argue, was the unit’s Mona Lisa.
The relievers had to walk a tightrope at the end of the game, tasked with protecting a two-run lead over three innings against a potent Dodgers lineup.
Joe Kelly got the seventh, Nathan Eovaldi the eighth and Craig Kimbrel the ninth, and each tossed a 1-2-3 inning, combining to strike out three.
4. Another memorable Benintendi moment
While Andrew Benintendi’s diving grab to end Game 4 of the ALCS is the catch most will remember from that postseason, he had another head-turner in Game 2 of the World Series.
With the Dodgers up 2-1 in the fifth, the left fielder robbed Brian Dozier of a liner that likely would have gone for two bases had Benintendi been unable to reel it in.
Air Benny. #WorldSeries pic.twitter.com/WHI9GYlQKF
— MLB (@MLB) October 25, 2018
The bottom half of that frame was when the Red Sox took the lead, and Benintendi’s highlight-reel play certainly positioned Boston to do so.
5. Icons on hand
The Red Sox pulled out all the stops for the pregame ceremony, bringing back a slew of members from the 2004 World Series-winning team.
Pedro Martinez, David Ortiz, Kevin Millar, Tim Wakefield, Jason Varitek, Keith Foulke and Alan Embree all threw out the first pitch, which came one night after Carl Yastrzemski did the honors.
And since Dave Roberts was managing the Dodgers, it resulted in a cool moment during the ceremony.
The band's back together! #WorldSeries pic.twitter.com/OxCaYFAa0o
— MLB (@MLB) October 25, 2018
6. A postgame celebration to remember
While the Red Sox didn’t party hard following the Game 2 win, as they obviously had plenty more work to do, there were two notable things that happened after the victory.
For one, the Red Sox clubhouse was heard blaring The Eagles’ “Hotel California.” And though that could be looked at as walking under a ladder given the Aaron Judge “New York, New York” fiasco, it ultimately worked out just fine for Boston.
Then, Red Sox star Mookie Betts was seen bringing food to the homeless in a great gesture that, as it turns out, he did often.
Little birdie told me an amazing story. This was the scene last night around 1am out in front of the Boston Library. Trays and trays of food fed the homeless. The man that delivered the food wasn’t looking for attention or praise BUT deserves it. God Bless you Mookie Betts pic.twitter.com/4Ox7O0edo4
— Lou Merloni (@LouMerloni) October 25, 2018
