Good Will's (Not) Bunting; Sox Win, 8-6

Will Middlebrooks (NESN)

Red Sox rookie third baseman Will Middlebrooks is making it very tough for BenCher to banish him to the hinterlands of Rhode Island. All the kid did tonight was go 3 for 5, with an RBI in Boston's comeback 8-6 win over the (try to read the next three words without laughing) first place Orioles. David Ortiz began the comeback (necessitated by another awful Buchholz start) with a mammoth moon shot onto Eutaw Street.  Nava, Aviles and Pedroia (2 RBIs) all had two hits each in a balanced Red Sox offense.

Once again, the bullpen came to the rescue as well. Andrew Miller got the win with an inning and two-thirds of scoreless work, but it was really Vicente Padilla ('The Fearless One') who put out a raging fire in the 8th (second and third, one out). Alfredo Aceves pitched a solid ninth for his tenth save. So, except for Buchholz, this was a true team victory. Not only did the Carmine Hose beat the first place team in our division, but they also caught the Evil Ones and reached .500.