Game 2 Final: Red Sox 7, Angels 5

SOX WIN, LEAD SERIES 2-0 (1:28, END 9, 7-5 SOX)
Things could not be any better for the Red Sox. If they can get a win at home in the next two games from either Josh Beckett or Jon Lester, they will advance to the ALCS for the fourth time in six years. The Angels will fly to Boston early Saturday morning with the weight of having lost 11 consecutive playoff games to the Red Sox, an all-time record.

Papelbon slammed the door in the ninth with some defensive brilliance by Youkilis. Hunter led off and tried to drop a bunt to third. Youkilis made a fantastic, barehanded, charging play to nail him by a few steps at first. Gary Matthews Jr., pinch hitting, lofted a ball high and short down the left field line, toward the fence. Youkilis hustled over, stuck his glove into the camera pit and came away with the ball. Kendrick, Papelbon took care of himself, striking him out a 95-mph heater. Kendrick looked absolutely foolish; Papelbon beat himself three times on the chest and embraced Varitek.

DREW PLAYS HERO (1:13, TOP 9, 7-5 SOX)
J.D. Drew gave the Red Sox the lead with a home run to right center, crushing a low-and-inside 2-2 slider with one out and Crisp on second base. He annihilated the ball; there was no doubt from the moment it left his bat and Angels Stadium groaned. Add this to his first-inning grand slam from Game 7 of last year's ALCS to his chapter in Red Sox lore.

The Red Sox got the good end of a controversial call by second base umpire Ed Rapuano before the home run. Aybar sneaked behind Crisp at second base, and Rodriguez whirled and fired. The throw definitely beat Crisp, leaning the wrong way when Rodriguez released the ball, to the base. But Rapuano ruled Crisp got his cleat under the tag.

Jason Bay just reached with a dribbled infield hit. He's 3 for 5 with a homer of his own tonight. Kotsay followed with another single. It's dead quiet here.

ORTIZ LEADS OFF WITH A DOUBLE (1:07, TOP 9, 5-5)
Ortiz crushed a double off the wall to right, just over the jump of Reggie Willets, whose glove nicked the ball. Ortiz didn't start sprinting hard until after he rounded first, and he wound up on second easily. He may have had a chance for a triple if he ran hard the whole way. Coco Crisp is running for him.

TO THE NINTH (1:04, END 8, 5-5)
Papelbon got Guerrero to pop to second base to end the inning. Papelbon walked off the mound and did a little half headshake, as if to say, "I know I shouldn't have expected myself to not allow that run to score, and I did my job, but I still think I could have kept Figgins at third." Or something like that.

Teixeira, by the way, is 3 for 3 with a walk, a sacrifice fly,and three runs.

TIE GAME (1:01, BOT 8, 5-5 SOX)
The first pitch Papelbon threw was a high, nasty, 96-mph fastball, and Anderson popped foul to Youkilis. It seemed, for a second, Papelbon might pull this off. But no -- Teixeira lofted the second pitch he saw -- a 96-mph heater -- high in the air to deep center field. Figgins scampered home easily, and the Angels have come all the way back from that 4-0, first-inning deficit.

LEAD-OFF TRIPLE, PAPELBON IN (12:56, BOT 8, 5-4 SOX)
Figgins roped a line drive to right-center, all the way to the wall in the gap. Figgins motored around the bases, all the way to third for the Angels first extra-base hit of the game; their previous 19 hits were all singles.

That was enough for Masterson, Francona decided. Papelbon is in the game, trying for a six-out save with a man already on third with no outs. Oh, Anderson, Teixeria, and Guerrero are coming up. Converting this save would be legendary, nothing less.

K-ROD ENTERS, MASTERSON REMAINS (12:52, MID 8, 5-4 SOX)
Shields blew through the first two batters he faced, sawing off Varitek's bat on a grounder to first and freezing Cora for strike three. He walked Ellsbury, though, and Scioscia summoned Francisco Rodriguez, his 60-save closer, with Pedroia coming to the plate.

After Ellsbury stole second with no resistance, Pedroia grounded to Aybar, who made a nice play ranging toward his right. Masterson is still in the game, trying to protect the slimmest of leads, with Figgins coming up.

MASTERSON PRESERVES LEAD (12:40, END 7, 5-4 SOX)
Walking in a run never implies a smooth performance, but Masterson certainly could have left the Sox in worse shape after the seventh. He struck out Aybar and left the bases loaded, maintaining the Red Sox precarious lead.

Scot Shields entered for Arredondo with Varitek on deck.

ANGELS CHIP AWAY (12:36, BOT 7, 5-4 SOX)
Mike Napoli walked with the bases loaded to cut the lead to one. How did it get there? Masterson got Hunter to fly to left. Teixeira tagged and hustled to third, importantly putting a runner 90 feet away from home with less than two outs -- and with Rivera coming to the plate. Masterson and Rivera wrestled to a 3-2 count before Masterson left a changeup high and walked him, loading the bases with one out and putting the tying run in scoring postion.

Up came Kendrick, who provided a terrible at-bat. Masterson struck him out on an 0-2 count, getting him to chase a low, outside, 84-mph slider. Kendrick, by Dan Shaughnessy's rough count, has stranded 12 men on base this series. Ouch. Napoli bailed him out a little. Now Aybar is up.

THE TEX AND VLAD SHOW (12:26, BOT 7, 5-3 SOX)
Teixeira led off the inning and tomahawked a high fastball through the middle, his third single of the game and sixth hit this series; he's reached base all four plate appearances this game. Francona stuck with Okajima against Guerrero, perhaps because Guerrero had been 0 for 5 against Okajima. That changed quickly -- he destroyed a single to left field. Guerrero stats -- for the series and the game -- are the same as Teixeira's.

The back-to-back singles brought Francona trudging toward the mound. He summoned Justin Masterson for an enormous at-bat against Hunter. Two on, no outs, the tying run at the plate. Big test for the Sox bullpen.

SOX STAY HOT WITH TWO OUTS, STRAND PAIR (12:18, MID 7, 5-3 SOX)
Ortiz popped up to second base. Youkilis crushed a liner that Aybar made a stellar, backhanded stab on. Drew reached, but only a dribbler to short (which was the Red Sox' eighth two-out hit). Bay followed with a teriffic piece of hitting, waiting on a low pitch and shooting it the other way for the ninth two-out hit of the night for the Red Sox. Kotsay nailed the hardest ball of the inning, but it beamed straight into Rivera's glove, and Arredondo got out of another a jam.

Terry Francona is almost certainly willing to bring Jonathan Papelbon into the game in the eighth inning, so it may be imperative the Angels do some damage this inning if they want to snap their 10-game playoff losing streak against the Red Sox.

OKAJIMA GETS IT DONE (12:07, END 6, 5-3 SOX)
Despite going to three-ball counts on two batters and a blast to the wall by Anderson, Okajima retired the side in order. He opened his outing with three straight balls to Aybar, then worked it back to full and got him to ground to Cora. Figgins flied to center. Anderson crushed a high fly to right, sending Drew to the warning track. Anderson twirled his bat and trotted to first like he knew it was gone; it was not. Drew hopped at the wall, his back falling into it, and caught the deep fly. Just that close to a one-run game.

ARREDONDO SQUIRMS LOOSE, DICE-K DONE (11:55, MID 6, 5-3 SOX)
Arredondo immediately put himself into a jam, walking Cora to load the bases with one out and the top of the Red Sox lineup looming. Ellsbury swung over an 86-mph sinker. Pedroia, already 0 for 3 on the night, ripped a liner, but right at Kendrick. The ball hopped into his glove, and he fired to first to end the inning.

If the Sox squander the lead and lose this, this is the inning they'll think about on the plane back to Boston -- bases loaded, two of their best hitters at the plate, and no runs.

Matsuzaka is done for the night. Okajima is in the game. Matsuzaka allowed three runs on eight hits in five innings. He threw 108 pitches.

SANTANA OUT, ARREDONDO IN (11:45, TOP 6, 5-3 SOX)
Manager Mike Scioscia can't afford to risk anything right now, so he is going to perhaps his best non-closer reliever. Arredondo has replaced Santana with men on first and second and one out. Jason Varitek gave Boston its first non-two-out hit. Cora is up in a big spot.

BULLPEN ACTION (11:42, TOP 6, 5-3 SOX)
Jose Arredondo is throwing for the Angels, Hideki Okajima for the Sox.

Also, Hunter just dropped Kotsay's liner to center for the Angels' second error, putting a man on first with one out.

MATSUZAKA ESCAPES (11:39, END 5, 5-3 SOX)
When it appeared the game was slipping from Matusaka's reach, he bailed himself out with three straight outs. But he lived dangerously to do so, and he may have to turn the game over to the bullpen.

Dice-K went to 3-1 on Rivera before coming back to strike him out, after several foul balls, on a curve ball. Kendrick flew to center, deep enough for Guerrero to tag at second and go to third. Kendry Morales, a .213 hitter, pinch hit for Mathis. He popped to shortstop.

Matsuzaka threw 36 pitches that inning, bringing his total to 108. We'll see if he comes back for the sixth.

Mike Napoli is now catching, replacing Mathis.

HUNTER BRINGS THE DOG (11:28, BOT 5, 5-3 SOX)
Just after that last update, Manny Delcarmen started throwing in the bullpen. Matsuzaka validated that move by going 3-2 to Hunter and then yielding a hard single through the left side. Mark Teixeira scored with a tremendous slide, going around Varitek and tapping his left hand on home plate. Still no outs, and the Angels could put up a big number here.

DICE-K GETS WILD (11:23, BOT 5, 5-2 SOX)
Matsuzaka walked the lead-off hitter for the second straight inning, losing Teixeira after starting him 1-2. Dice-K quickly threw three straight balls to Guerrero. He fought back to 3-2. Guerrero fouled off a pitch, then took an inside cutter for ball four. John Farrell came out for a chat with no outs and two on. He's already thrown 12 pitches this inning, making his total 87.

QUIET INNING (11:15, MID 5, 5-2)
No hits, no walks. Strike out by Ortiz, flies to right by Youkilis (who sent one to the warning track) and Drew.

We're halfway to the Red Sox going back to Boston with a 2-0 lead, but the Angels seem to be getting to Matsuzaka. Teixeira and Guerrero, the Angels' hottest hitters, are leading off.

ANGELS STRIKE BACK (11:11, END 4, 5-2)
Matsuzaka has allowed multiple base runners in three of four innings, and Figgins made him pay in the fourth with a two-out RBI single. Rivera walked to lead off the inning, and Dice-K's first walk came back to haunt him. After Kendrick struck out for the second time, Mathis blooped a single to left, just out of the diving Bay's reach. Aybar came to the plate, one out and two on, and grounded to first to push the men over.

Figgins came through with a great piece of hitting, slicing an outside fastball the other way to left, and Rivera scored. Up came Anderson with a chance to tie the game, or at least cut the deficit with a single. He went to 2-2, fouled off a pitch, and then flailed at an 83-mph curve in the dirt. It could have been worse for Boston if not for that pitch.

Matsuzaka, despite all the base runners, had been very economical until that inning. He needed 26 pitches to finish the fourth, and he's now thrown 72 total, 47 for strikes. Of his last 44 pitches, 25 were strikes, 19 balls.

One reason why the Angels can't beat the Red Sox: They have not homered in 61 straight postseason innings, a stat TBS showed earlier.

ANOTHER TWO-OUT RALLY (10:48, MID 4, 5-1 SOX)
The Red Sox have seven hits this game, and all of them have come with two outs, the most recent a pair of doubles by Cora and Ellsbury to extend the Sox' lead.

To lead off, Kotsay flew to Hunter in center. Varitek grounded sharply down the first-base line, but Teixeira made a diving play and flipped to Santana covering.

Cora then ripped a laser to the right-center gap and scooted to second easily. Ellsbury crushed a ball over Rivera's head and also strolled into second standing up. Pedroia grounded to third, but the damage had been done.

HUNTER FAILS TO DELIVERS, HURTS SELF (10:42, END 3, 4-1 SOX)
The Angels had an opportunity to leap back into the game, but Hunter, who before the game challenged his teammates to play with "the dog" in them this game, failed to deliver with two outs and two on. And worse, he injured himself protesting a close call at first.

Figgins flew to Drew in right and Anderson grounded sharply to Pedroia. Teixeira remained on fire this series with a hard single through the middle; he's 4 for 6 now. Guerrero followed with a liner to center, also making him 4 for 6. Hunter, though, could not come through. He dribbled a 2-2 pitch toward short. Cora charged and fired.

First base umpire Kerwin Dantley called Hunter out on a bang-bang play. After he crossed the base, Hunter leaped and screamed at Dantley. His right knee buckled when he landed, and Hunter crumpled to the ground. He stayed there for a moment and grabbed his right leg. He walked out to center field, and he remains in the game.

SOX GO IN ORDER (10:29, MID 3, 4-1 SOX)
Santana, who was excellent at the very beginning, has settled into a nice rhythm. Youkilis flied to right, Drew struck out, unable to check his swing on an 84-mph slider, and Bay grounded to third.

Though they couldn't get any baserunners, the Sox cobbled some professional at-bats. Santana needed 17 more pitches to retire the side, and he's thrown 62 total right now.

DICE-K STRONG (10:21, END 2, 10:20)
Matsuzaka retired the side in order, striking out Kendrick and Jeff Mathis, Kendrick on an 82-mph outside curve and Mathis on a high fastball. Dice-K is mixing his pitches very well right now. Aybar flared weakly to right.

Matsuzaka got his first-pitch strike streak up to seven before he fired a horrendously off-target fastball to Jeff Mathis. He is still extremely economical, having thrown 28 pitches, 22 for strikes. We have only a very small sample, but is Dice-K reinventing himself for the postseason?

PEDROIA ROBBED (10:12, END 2, 10:13)
The Red Sox went scoreless in the second, but just barely. Pedroia, with one out and a man on first, unloaded on a 96-mph fastball, driving it to left. Anderson backpedaled toward the short wall by the left-field foul pole, smoothly stuck his glove in the air and snagged the blast on the warning track. Hard to tell if it would have been a home run, but if not, it would have been mighty close.

Cora reached on an error by shortstop Erick Aybar to start the inning, and Ellsbury chopped to second and made first on a fielder's choice. Pedroia followed, and then Ortiz grounded feebly to first.

Pedroia and Ellsbury are both 0 for 5 now lifetime against Santana, although, obviously, it seems Pedroia figured something out. Santana has 45 pitches now, 31 strikes.

DEJA VU (10:03 , END 1, 4-1 SOX)
Like Santana, Matsuzaka retired the first two hitters he faced. And like Santana, he was beseiged by hits from there on out. Three straight singles from Mark Teixeira, Vladimir Guerrero, and Torii Hunter gave the Angels a run they desperately needed. They're still down three, but they've got some life. Teixeira's single was an absolute rocket, Guerrero's was a flare to center, and Hunter's rolled just between Pedroia and Alex Cora.

There was no nibbling for Dice-K in the first tonight. He threw first-pitch strikes to every batter he faced -- Figgins, Garrett Anderson, Mark Teixeira, Vladimir Guerrero, Torii Hunter, and Juan Rivera. Matsuzaka threw only 16 pitches, 13 of which were strikes.

Bay, by the way, is the first Red Sox player to ever homer in his first two career playoff games.

BAY DELIVERS BLOW (9:51, MID 1, 4-0 SOX)
That was stunning. Ervin Santana started out sharp, but the Red Sox belted three straight singles, followed by a smash to center field by Jason Bay for a three-run homer that landed in the rock pile. If that wasn't an early knockout, it was at least good enough for a standing eight. Not to jump the gun, but if the Angels don't get to Daisuke Matsuzaka early, the series could for all intents and purposes be over.

Jacoby Ellsbury popped a 97-mph fastball to foul territory, and Chone Figgins retired him. Dustin Pedroia lunged at an 87-mph slider, taking a rare very poor swing. David Ortiz roped a slider down the middle to right field for a single, a shot over the head of Howie Kendrick, who was playing in not-all-that-shallow right. Kevin Youkilis flared a single to right, pushing Ortiz to third.

J.D. Drew, 0 for 4 in Game 1, came up for a very key early at-bat. He hooked Santana's first pitch, an 85-mph slider, foul. He looked at a 96-mph low for ball one. Then he smoked a 100-mph heater up the middle, so hard it bounced deep in the infield dirt and still nearly sneaked between Juan Rivera and Torii Hunter in right center. Drew rolled into second for a double, and Ortiz scored.

Then Bay came to the plate. He clobbered the fifth pitch he saw, an 87-mph slider, high into the night and over the wall in dead center. Mark Kotsay blooped another hit, to right, before Jason Varitek popped out to end the inning.

The Angels have got to be absolutely stunned right now. Santana threw 30 pitches that inning.

Anybody miss Manny Ramirez?

Ortiz has now hit in 13 straight ALDS games.

HERE WE GO(9:35, PRE 1, 0-0)
We are moments away from Ervin Santana throwing the first pitch to Jacoby Ellsbury. Brad Mills and Alfredo Griffin exchanged lineup cards with "Enter Sandman" blaring over Angels Stadium. Sad to say, Thundstix are back.

Before the game, Patriots personnel man Scott Pioli was in the Sox dugout. He and Theo Epstein walked toward the clubhouse together down a small set of stairs. Pioli patted Epstein on the back and said, "Get it done tonight."