Sunday, August 14, 2016

'Ziggy Stardust' Rescues Bullpen, Red Sox Win, 6-3

It was happening again. The Red Sox bullpen was in the process of imploding and endangering a late Boston lead. In this case, an eighth-inning 6-3 advantage was in jeopardy thanks to the wildness of Matt Barneswho loaded the bases with no outs on three walks. Brad Ziegler entered the game and struck out the side with his frisbee-like delivery. Whew! A lot of good offense was preserved—including a monster two-run HR by Brock Holt and a laser-like Pesky Pole HR by Sandy "Babe" Leon. The 6-3 win allowed Boston to pick up a full game on the losing Orioles and tighten the AL East race even further. Dustin Pedroia, Mookie Betts and Andrew Benintendi also had RBIs in the victory.