Red Sox at Rays, ALCS Game 1

SOX WIN, LEAD ALCS, 1-0 (12:06, END 9, 2-0 SOX)
Papelbon dominated, needing only little more than his fastball to retire the Rays in order. He struck out Crawford on four pitches. Floyd popped foul to Youkilis. Navarro struck out on five pitches, flailing at the only sinker Papelbon threw.

The hero is Matsuzaka, who gave perhaps his best, most clutch performance as a member of the Red Sox. Youkilis had three hits. Masterson induced the double play that got the Sox out of their final jam. Lowrie had a sacrifice fly to get Boston on the board. Papelbon owned the ninth. Beating Shields, the Rays ace, on a night he was on is an enormous boon to the Red Sox.

HERE COMES PAPELBON (11:55, MID 9, 2-0 SOX)
The last time Papelbon faced these Rays, he blew a save, allowing two runs on three hits. These are the playoffs, though, where Papelbon has never allowed an earned run. Crawford, Floyd, and Navarro are due up -- two lefties and a switch hitter.

Ellsbury, by the way, lined to left to end the inning.

PRICE IN (11:51, TOP 9, 2-0 SOX)
Phenom David Price is replacing Balfour with two outs and no one on. Balfour got out Lowrie, and Varitek flied to the warning track in center.

Jonathan Papelbon is in the Sox bullpen, raring to go in the bottom half.

MASTERSON DOUBLES UP (11:45, END 8, 2-0 SOX)
Masterson started Longoria with two balls, but he didn't give in. He threw two more pitches low and out of the strike zone, but Longoria chased them both. On 2-2, Masterson threw a low strike. Longoria rolled it slowly to Lowrie, who flipped to Pedroia. With Upton bearing down on him, Pedroia made a smooth turn and throw to first, ending the inning.

The Rays will be thinking about the seventh and eighth for a while. They had two on with no outs two innings in a row and came away with nothing -- and in the eighth, they had the heart of their order at the plate.

OKAJIMA GETS IT DONE (11:39, BOT 8, 2-0 SOX)
It wasn't smooth. Swinging on 3-0, Pena flared to left. Drew made a running catch at his knees, stifling the Rays' rallying. Francona then called on Masterson to face Longoria. Papelbon is warming up.

IWAMURA, UPTON SINGLE, MATSUZAKA EXITS (11:35, BOT 8, 2-0 SOX)
Matsuzaka, who flirted at one point with a no-hitter, has left the game. He allowed four hits, two this inning to Iwamura and Upton. Iwamura slapped a clean hit to the opposite field. Upton smoked one down the third base line. Youkilis stopped the ball, but couldn't corral it.

His stop perhaps saved a run, but the play put two men on and forced Francona to take the ball and give it to Okajima. He will face Carlos Pena with two on and no outs. Go-ahead run at the plate.

BALFOUR WIGGLES OUT (11:27, MID 8, 2-0 SOX)
The Red Sox had a chance to virtually end the game. Instead, Balfour left the bases loaded by retiring Bay and Kotsay. Balfour threw Bay two straight balls, then came back to strike him out with a 3-2 heater. He got ahead 0-2 on Kotsay, showed him a head-high fastball, then got him to sky a pop to Longoria at third.

TBS replays showed some angry-looking reactions in the Sox dugout after Balfour beaned Pedroia. Obviously, right now is no time for retaliation. But with the history of these two teams, it's something to think about for down the road in this series.

Matsuzaka is still in the game. Masterson has been warming.

SCARY MOMENT (11:20, TOP 8, 2-0 SOX)
The first pitch Balfour threw hit Drew on the shoulder, right in front of his face. Drew crumpled to the ground and Terry Francona and a trainer came to check on him. He walked to first, loading the bases, and stayed in the game. Still one out.

SOX TACK ONE ON (11:16, TOP 8, 2-0 SOX)
Pedroia stole second, opening up first base. Howell walked Ortiz to bring the force back into play with Youkilis up. With righty Grant Balfour warming, Maddon stuck with Howell. It backfired. Youkilis lined his third hit of the night to left, just off the glove of the diving Crawford. Youkilis had a double, and the Sox have a 2-0 lead.

One out, men on first and second. Balfour is now coming in to face Drew, perhaps one batter too late.

PEDROIA KOs SHIELDS (11:07, TOP 8. 1-0 SOX)
Pedroia lined a single to center with one out in the eighth, easing his 1-for-19 slump and forcing Shields from the game. Joe Maddon trudged from the dugout and took the ball. Shields received a much-deserved standing ovation as J.P. Howell jogged in from the Rays bullpen. He'll face Ortiz, a lefty-lefty matchup.

Shields struck out six, allowed five hits, and only one run. He can't win, but he pitched a tremendous 7 1/3 innings. The only reason he allowed the run was Kotsay's excuse-me double.

MATSUZAKA ESCAPES (11:00, END 7, 1-0 SOX)
All those walks and hits this season may have given Matsuzaka perfect experience for one of the most important challenges of his Red Sox career -- men on first and third, no outs, one-run lead, bottom of the seventh, ALCS Game 1. He got out of it without allowing a run.

Navarro flied to left, but not deep enough to allow the speedy Crawford to try to test Bay's arm. Matsuzaka went 3-1 on Gross, then threw him a gutsy changeup for strike two. He struck him out with a 3-2, 91-mph fastball -- those might have been the best, most clutch pitches he threw all night. Barlett grounded Matsuzaka's 106th pitch of the night to Lowrie, who flipped to Pedroia and ended the inning.

RAYS RALLYING (10:50, BOT 7, 1-0 SOX)
Floyd followed Crawford with a single to the gap in left-center. Men on first and third, no outs.

NO-NO NO MORE (10:48, BOT 7, 1-0 SOX)
Carl Crawford ripped a line-drive single through the right side on the first pitch of the seventh inning. Matsuzaka had not allowed a hit to that point, and he had retired 16 of 17 batters.

Manny Delcarmen and Hideki Okajima were both warming in the bullpen when the inning began, and they still are.

SOX SQUANDER CHANCE (10:43, MID 7, 1-0 SOX)
As good as Matsuzaka has been, the Rays remain one swing away from trying the game. The Red Sox easily could have changed that, but they wasted two singles from Drew and Bay that began the inning. Kotsay had the first chance to capitalize. He flared another check-swing hit to center, but Iwamura made a leaping, backhanded catch.

Lowrie struck out on six pitches, battling for a while after falling behind 0-2 but ultimately succumbing. That left it up to Varitek. The Captain couldn't come through. He popped the first pitch he saw right behind the mound, and Bartlett squeezed it.

The Red Sox have full control. But, again, that is more tenuous than it needs to be.

Related to nothing: L'il Wayne is attendance, wearing a Dodgers hat.

PEDROIA ROBS PENA, RAYS STAY HITLESS (10:34, END 6, 1-0 SOX)
He may be scuffling at the plate, but Pedroia proved his value to the Sox in the field. After Upton popped up to Pedroia, Pena crushed a ball to the right side, seemingly giving the Rays their first hit. Playing in short right with a shift on for Pena, Pedroia dove to his right and made a backhanded stab on one hop. Longoria followed by flying to Drew in foul territory.

Matsuzaka rolled with another 10-pitch inning. Matsuzaka has retired 10 batters in a row without walking any, and he's gone to three balls on just one of those batters. He's thrown 89 pitches through six, so he could have enough left in him to go the distance if you-know-what keeps up.

PEDROIA STAYS COOL (10:24, MID 6, 1-0 SOX)
The Red Sox, with a chance to build on their lead, went in order. Pedroia led off by grounding out, fouling off a few pitches but ultimately submitting a weak at-bat in moving to 1 for 19 in the playoffs. His struggles are apparent, because he did something quite of character. He swung at an outside pitch that looked like a ball and pulled it to third base. He typically excels at hitting the ball where it is pitched.

Shields made Ortiz look bad with an 81-mph changeup in the dirt, and then Youkilis popped to Pena in shallow right. Shields has been great, his only blemish, really, the awkward double by Kotsay.

MATSUZAKA TAKING OVER (10:18, END 5, 1-0 SOX)
Dice-K has forced the Rays to abondon their patient approach. He's also retired 13 of the last 14 batters he faced and has not allowed a hit. He needed only 10 pitches to cruise through the fifth, getting Gross to ground to second, Bartlett to strike out looking, and Iwamura to fly to right center. What began as a shaky outing might be turning into a memorable performance.

SHIELDS LIMITS DAMAGE (10:07, MID 5, 1-0 SOX)
He found himself a tough spot, but a little luck, good defense, and some money pitches allowed Shields to escape with allowing just the one run. With the infield playing in and Kotsay on third, Varitek smashed a one-hopper right at Iwamura. Kotsay had to stay put, and Varitek, unlucky, was out at first. Ellsbury couldn't score Kotsay, either -- he flared a 2-2 cutter to shallow center, where Bartlett made a nifty, over-the-shoulder catch.

SOX SCORE FIRST (10:02, TOP 5, 1-0 SOX)
Bay led off with a walk. Kotsay followed with a strange hit -- he checked his swing, but still made pretty solid contact and flared a double the other way, to left. He slid into second, putting two men in scoring position with no outs and Jed Lowrie coming up. Lowrie got the job done, lacing a sacrifice fly to deep right.

MATSUZAKA ROLLS (9:58, END 4, 0-0)
Dice-K may be his nibbling self in full tonight, but the Rays sure can't figure him out. He's struck out six already and the Rays have no hits. Best of all for the Red Sox, he needed only nine pitches to strike out Crawford and Floyd and get Navarro to pop foul to Youkilis behind third. This, again, is a vintage Matsuzaka performance -- he's frustrating, sure, but he's also dominating. Don't forget that the latter matters more than than the former.

YOUKILIS HOT, SOX NOT (9:50, MID 4, 0-0)
The Red Sox still can't get anything going. Shields again retired nemesis Ortiz, as the slugger drilled a sharp grounder right at Pena. Youkilis may have solved Shields -- he followed by raking a liner to left. But Drew rolled the very next pitch weakly to second base. Iwamura, Bartlett, and Pena teamed for a 4-6-3 double play to end the inning. Through four, Shields has used only 48 pitches -- 10 fewer than Matsuzaka through three.

The teams have two hits combined, and Youkilis has them both.

MATSUZAKA CRUISES (9:44, END 3, 0-0)
Not as sharp as last inning for Dice-K, but close. Iwamura ripped a the first pitch he saw to lead off the inning, but he smashed it right at Drew in right. Upton continued his poor performance against Matsuzaka, striking out on a 2-2, 93-mph fastball; Upton is now 1 for 15 career against Matsuzaka.

Matsuzaka, finally, was rolling. But then he issued a six-pitch walk to Pena, Pena's second walk of the game and Matsuzaka's fourth. Longoria struck out on three pitches to make sure the walk wouldn't matter.

Pitch check: Matsuzaka is up to 58, 31 strikes.

SHIELDS SETTLES IN (9:33, MID 3, 0-0)
After a little trouble in the first, Shields has found a very nice rhythm. Varitek swung over a nasty changeup, striking out in three pitches. Ellsbury swung at the first pitch and flared to very shallow left, where Bartlett made an easy running catch. Pedroia popped high to Barltett, making him 1 for 18 now in the playoffs.

Shields needed just seven pitches to cruise through that inning. The only fair ball hit hard tonight, by either team, was Youkilis's double in the first.

EASY ONE FOR DICE-K (9:28, END 2, 0-0)
Matsuzaka got a much-needed 1-2-3 inning. Dioner Navarro struck out on three pitches, with a feeble swing at an eye-level pitch. Gabe Gross followed with another K, his on five pitches. Matsuzaka went to -- surprise! -- a full count on Jason Bartlett. He fouled off a pitch, and Varitek couldn't find it, but he may not have had a play, anyway. It didn't matter -- Bartlett popped to Youkilis at third.

Matsuzaka got out of the inning with no trouble at all, but he still threw 15 pitches. He's now at 42 overall -- 21 strikes, 21 balls.

QUICK ONE (9:16, MID 2, 0-0)
Shields settled things down with a 1-2-3 innings, easily retiring Bay (fly to right), Mark Kotsay (grounder to first), and Jed Lowrie (swinging strike out). Shields has been doing a nice job not relying too much on his excellent changeup, but rather firing fastballs and cutters to set up the change.

DICE-K BEING DICE-K (9:13, END 1, 0-0)
Vintage Daisuke Matsuzaka to begin the ALCS -- he walked three men to load the bases, threw more balls than strikes, fired at least four pitches to every batter he faced but one, and, of course, emerged without allowing a run. He David-Blained by getting Cliff Floyd to ground to second with two outs. He pitched so according to form it was hard to believe, if that makes sense. It's baflling and completley expected at the same time.

Matsuzaka started ominously, firing a first-pitch ball and then walking Akinori Iwamura on five pitches, three of which were not close. B.J. Upton popped to left, a hit that came oh-so close to hitting the B Ring catwalk before it settled into Jason Bay's glove. Carlos Pena earned another five-pitch walk -- at that point, Matsuzaka had thrown nine balls against five strikes, and Jason Varitek decided it was time for a chat.

Dice-K immediately fired two straight strikes to begin Evan Longoria's at-bat, then struck him out looking with an 85-mph curveball down in the zone. He walked Carl Crawford on seven pitches to bring up Floyd, who he got on the second pitch he threw.

Amazing. Also damaging. Dice-K threw 27 pitches, 15 balls. Looks like he's headed for another five-inning start.

SHIELDS SHEDS EARLY TROUBLE(8:52, MID 1, 0-0)
J.D. Drew had a chance to give the Red Sox an early lead and neutralize the raucous Tropicana Field crowd, coming to bat with men on second and third with two out. James Shields, battling all inning long, reaffirmed the message the Rays have been sending all season long: The Rays will not back down. Shields struck out Drew swinging over an 84-mph changeup.

Shields started strong. He threw Jacoby Ellsbury four pitches -- three straight 91-mph fastballs to go 0-2 and then 1-2, and then his devastating changup. The 82-mph change darted down and away, and Ellsbury swung over it for strike three. Pedroia took a 3-2, 90-mph fastball at the knees and just off the outside corner for a walk.

Up came David Ortiz, who had owned Shields to the tune of 7 for 14 with two homers and four doubles. Shields pitched him carefully, going to 2-1, and then left a cutter over the plate. Ortiz just missed it, flying to B.J. Upton in center. Kevin Youkilis, 0 for 17 against Shields before tonight, drove a ground-rule double the other way, just inside the right-field foul line. The Sox caught a tough break when the ball hopped into the crowd, because Pedroia was running with the pitch and would have scored with ease.

Instead, after Drew's at-bat, Pedroia remained at third and Youkilis at second.

MORE PROOF WE'RE NOT IN FENWAY (8:30, PREGAME, 0-0)
A pick-up truck painted with the Rays logo, its bed filled with scantily clad women throwing t-shirts, is driving around the warning track. The 11 remaining original season-ticket holders are throwing out 11 first pitches to Rays players. First pitch is minutes away.