Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Cut It Out, Shane!; Sox Eke Out 'Victorino', 13-2

(Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)
Hey, Shane—buddy—throw away that left-hand batting helmet. No need for it. Even though he was facing a lefty tonight, Shane Victorino has been 'Babe' Victorino from both sides since he abandoned switch-hitting (hitting .275 against righties). The 'Flying Hawaiin' knocked in seven runs, homering twice, in a 13-2 wing-clipping of the Orioles. Victorino reached base in all five plate appearances. Some of his teammates joined in the fun. Mike Napoli's home run over the Monster is still rolling toward East Longmeadow. Dustin Pedroia had three hits, and Jacoby Ellsbury scored three times. Oh, and by the way, Felix Doubront was terrific again—going 6 2/3 innings and yielding just two runs on four hits. The left-hander struck out seven in his 10th win of the year. As icing on the cake, Fernando 'Quiver This' Rodney blew another save as Tampa lost to the Angels, 6-5. Boston's AL East lead is now 2 1/2 games.