A bump in the right direction

By Gordon Edes, Globe Staff, 9/3/2003

CHICAGO -- Having witnessed the damage Gabe Kapler only recently inflicted on center fielder Johnny Damon in their NASCAR-worthy collision, Trot Nixon was waiting for Kapler as the Red Sox left fielder trotted back to the dugout last night after narrowly averting another head-on encounter with Nomar Garciaparra. "I told him coming in, `Skip isn't going to let you play shortstop tomorrow,' " Nixon said. "Kap didn't want to talk to me."

Kapler played last night not because he accidentally put a guy out of commission, which is what happened with Damon Saturday in Fenway Park, but because manager Grady Little decided Kapler deserved to play instead of Manny Ramirez, who has been in MannyLand the last couple of days.

The message could not have been more unmistakable. Effort counts. Caring counts. Desire counts.

And talk about sweet justice. With Ramirez sitting on the bench in a blue warmup vest over his uniform jersey, Kapler hit his first home run in more than two months (June 29), just one of two hits the Sox had all night off White Sox ace Bartolo Colon, and it was the difference-maker in a gripping 2-1 win over the team that leads the American League Central.

"We're trying to do things right," Little said. "The more things we do right, the more wins we'll come away with."

On a night when Colon faced just two batters over the minimum, walking one batter who was erased on a double play and whiffing five, Nixon had the other hit, a 422-foot home run in his first at-bat since his game-winning grand slam in Philadelphia the day before.

This game was every bit as dramatic as the wild one against the Phils. Great pitching by both starters, Colon and John "Cancel That Funeral" Burkett. A terrific performance out of the Boston pen, especially Scott Williamson, who induced a huge double play after inheriting runners on the corners in the seventh, then setting down the heart of the White Sox order in the eighth. A splendid catch by former Sox center fielder Carl Everett, diving to take away extra bases from Bill Mueller.

But for a part-timer like Kapler to win it playing in place of Ramirez, whose 16 career home runs vs. the White Sox easily lead the team, not only KO'd Chicago but airbrushed controversy right out of the picture, at least for a day.

"No doubt about that," Burkett said. "We all know in this room that Kap is a great addition to this team. He's focused every night, whether he's pinch hitting or pinch running, or under these circumstances getting the opportunity to start.

"This was a big game, and he responded. It was fun to watch."

Kapler and Garciaparra bumped into each other on a short fly that Kapler gloved at the last moment.

"He just plays so hard, boy," Little said. "The other day when he hit that wall in Fenway in foul territory, a lot of players would have gone on the DL for two weeks. He just trotted back to left field and kept on playing."

His home run last night, which was his third of the season and came with one out in the sixth, was Kapler's biggest moment in a Sox uniform since his remarkable debut in Fenway Park, when he had seven hits, including two home runs, and knocked in seven runs in the span of two games.

"Boston fans don't know Kap well, but he's a flat-out gamer who just plays it hard," Nixon said. "He's exactly the kind of player Boston fans love. Kap's one of those guys who should be playing someplace every day."

He's the kind of player capable of doing something special on a night your $20 million superstar is told to sit.

"Everybody on this team is capable of helping the Red Sox win a ballgame," Nixon said. "That's one of the beautiful things, that the front office did a great job with our bench. I've never won a championship, but that's what you need. The teams that win, they win no matter who is out there."

Little made no promises about when he'll play Ramirez. He was available to pinch hit last night, and with lefthander Mark Buehrle going tonight, it makes sense that Ramirez will be in the lineup someplace. But chances are, so will Kapler.

"I love these guys, man," Burkett said. "They're a great group of guys. It's a tough grind to get to the playoffs, but I'd love to see what this team could do in a playoff situation, because we have the right character, and the drive to excel."

And some guys have more than others. Talent still wins out more than anything, but having a Gabe Kapler can help an awful lot.