SportsDystopia

In spite of going 18-3 with a 2.90 ERA this season, Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka has barely been mentioned as a candidate for the Cy Young award.  If there’s a reason, it’s probably because he led the league in walks, issuing 94 of them.  But the flip side to that coin is that he only allowed 128 hits, posting a .211 batting average allowed and becoming the best pitcher in baseball at not allowing free passes to hurt him.

In Friday night’s game 1 of the ALCS against the Tampa Bay Rays, he displayed that ability in it’s finest form, as he threw a no-hitter through 6 innings, and kept Tampa scoreless in spite of walking the bases loaded in the 1st inning of a game Boston would eventually win 2-0.

The Ray’s best opportunity to score came in the 7th innning, when Carl Crawford singled to open the inning and break up the no-hitter, then advanced to 3rd on Cliff Floyd’s single to center.  With runners on the corners, no outs, and trailing only 1-0, it’s surprising that Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon wouldn’t try a sacrifice bunt with the speedy Crawford just 90 feet from tying the game.  He didn’t, and Matsuzaka, as he has all season, again pitched out of trouble.  He got Rays catcher Dioner Navarro to hit a short fly out to left, struck out right fielder Gabe Gross, and then induced a grounder to short by shortstop Jason Bartlett to end the inning.

Boston added their 2nd run in the 8th, when Dustin Pedroia singled off tiring Rays starter James Shields, stole 2nd, and then scored on Kevin Youklis’ double.  Fittingly, the 2 players who had carried Boston all season had added the insurance run, though it would prove to be unnecessary, as Tampa never got on the board, even after getting 2 runners on again to start the bottom of the 8th before Matsuzaka was lifted.  But Hideki Okajima got a fly out from Carlos Pena, and then Evan Longoria hit into an inning ending double play off Justin Masterson.  The Rays would get no more chances, as Jonathon Papelbon was his usual dominant self, pitching a perfect 9th for the save.

Shields had a strong outing himself, going 7 and 1/3, allowing only 2 runs and 6 hits, but the Rays never provided him with any offense, getting only 4 hits all evening, and squandering the few opportunities they did have.

Game 2 is tonight, and Tampa could be facing real trouble, as their starter Scott Kazmir (12-8, 3.49 ERA) has struggled against Boston this year, going 0-2 in four starts with a 9.00 ERA.  He faces Josh Beckett (12-10, 4.03) , who has battled a strained side muscle lately, but has had more postseason success than anyone else this decade.  He pitched both the 2003 Marlins and last year’s Red Sox to World Series titles, and has always thrived in the October spotlights.

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