Bonderman is man of the hour

The pitching matchup brought hopes of a duel -- Jeremy Bonderman, second in the American League in strikeouts with 159, and Curt Schilling, third with 153. And the circumstances -- a pennant race -- gave it added consequence.

Last night, Bonderman took his 11-5 record to the mound against the Red Sox, and, like Schilling, he came away with no decision -- Francisco Rodney got the W in the Tigers' 3-2 victory. But Detroit manager Jim Leyland made it clear, Bonderman's start was the reason for the win.

Prompted to talk about Sean Casey, who went 3 for 4 with a two-run double in the seventh, Leyland changed directions.

``The big thing tonight was Bonderman," Leyland said. ``I'll get to Casey in a minute, but it's like I said, when you face Curt Schilling and those guys, the one thing you've got to do is pitch good against them or you've got no chance, and Bonderman pitched good against them, very good against them."

Bonderman left after 7 2/3 innings, allowing 5 hits and 2 runs, striking out 8, and walking 1. The first run he allowed came with one out in the third, when Coco Crisp hit a home run to right field, the 14th homer he's given up this season.

Crisp (infield single) scored the second run as well, which was charged to Bonderman after he gave way in the seventh to lefthander Wilfredo Ledezma. David Ortiz greeted Ledezma with a single, scoring Crisp.

Despite the no-decision, Bonderman's night was his best at Fenway Park in his four-year major league career. In his three previous appearances here, Bonderman was 0-3 with a 7.53 ERA. It's a deceiving statistic, because Bonderman lasted just two innings in an 8-hit, 7-run stint here in 2003.

But the past is no longer of concern -- for Detroit or Bonderman with his 3.69 ERA -- and the 23-year-old pitcher's solid season has caught the attention of his competition.

``If I could start a major league team with five starting pitchers, he is on my list," said Schilling. ``He is one of the best pitchers, and definitely one of the top two or three young pitchers, in the game."

Not getting the win was frustrating, Bonderman said, but that was overshadowed by taking the first two games of this three-game series against the Sox, especially after carrying a five-game losing streak to Boston. And despite his previous troubles at Fenway, Bonderman was excited about the start.

``I love this place," Bonderman said. ``It's a great place to pitch. The energy in this place is unbelievable and every time you go against one of the best pitchers in the game, you've got to bring your `A' game. I was able to have good stuff tonight and able to keep my team right there and give my team a shot.

``Any time you've got Manny [Ramírez] and David Ortiz, you've got to work. I was able to keep the other guys off base, and I was able to get those guys out. It was a great team win."

There were few glitches in Bonderman's start. He faced just four batters in each of the first, second, third, sixth, and seventh innings, and set the side down in order in the fourth and fifth. His pitch count ended at 103 (63 for strikes).

Sox manager Terry Francona was also impressed.

``He's got probably one of the best righthanded sliders in the game," Francona said. ``And even though the gun only said 92, 93, even 94, it had some finish to it. [He threw to] both sides of the plate. He tied up some of our righthanded hitters and then threw that breaking ball away. He's pretty good."

For Leyland, the only disappointment in Bonderman's night was that his starter didn't get the win.

``He's as tough as they come and he's matured so much," Leyland said. ``He's a professional, and he knows what he did for our team tonight."

(Correction: Because of a reporting error, the first name of Detroit Tigers pitcher Fernando Rodney was incorrect in a story on the Tigers' pitchers in the Aug. 16 Sports section.)