My Fenway Visits – 2004 (#1)

Game 1: May 30 – McCarty HR Wins It with Walk-Off in 12th

Result: W 9-7 over Seattle

Sox Record: 31-19

WP – A. Martinez (2-0) LP – Putz (0-2)

Attendance – 35,046

My Ticket: Rightfield bleachers, with my brother, his first game at Fenway ever…yes, I am a bad big brother.

The Sox showed their depth in this game, getting contributions from Anastacio Martinez, Andy Dominique, Kevin Youkilis, and Dave McCarty to take the final game of a three-game series against Mariners at Fenway. The biggest hit of the game was McCarty’s 12th inning blast to straight-away centerfield off J.J. Putz with Jason Varitek on base gave them the 9-7 win. McCarty also scored the game-tying run in the eighth when Andy Dominique rapped a single to right-center in his third major-league at bat.

The Sox took an early 3-0 lead while Curt Schilling tossed 5 2/3 perfect innings to start the game. In the eighth inning, and Schilling out of the game, the Mariners rallied for 6 runs, keyed by a 3-run HR by Raul Ibanez off of Keith Foulke, to stake the last-place Mariners to a 7-5 lead. The Sox then scored 2 in the bottom of the frame, with McCarty contributing a clutch double scoring the tying run on Dominique’s single.

Kevin Youkilis was 3 for 5 on the day with a double and 3 runs scored to lead the Sox, who are battling injuries to Johnny Damon, Nomar Garciaparra, Trot Nixon, and Bill Mueller. Andy Dominique was 2 for 2 on the day. The two hits were the only ones he would get during the 2004 season for the big league club in 11 at bats. Rookie reliever Anastacio Martinez threw scoreless innings in the 11th and 12th innings, allowing only 1 walk to the seven batters he faced to earn his second win on the season.

My Fenway Visits – 2004 (#2)

NOTE: The RS9 were 4-0 with yours truly in attendance in ’04

Game 3 – July 8: Mueller Double Gives Sox Walk-Off Win & Sweep of A’s

Result: W 8-7

Sox Record: 46-37 (2nd, AL East; 1st Wild Card)

WP – Leskanic (1-4)

LP – Lehr (0-1)

Attendance- 35,144

My Ticket: Green Monster standing room ticket –> My 3 friends and I hustled from work to Fenway and perched ourselves on the walkway from the seats to the stairs behind the centerfield bleachers. Mueller’s GW hit bounced off the wall about 5 feet to the right of us.

The Red Sox showed that they were getting healthy and the results are better. Their 8-7 10-inning win over the Oakland A’s gave them a three-game sweep over the A’s, the first time Boston has won three straight games in a month. Bill Mueller’s two-out double in the 10th inning scored Johnny Damon, lifting the Red Sox and making their record 4-4 in extra-inning games. Mueller missed 37 games earlier this season after arthroscopic surgery on his right knee, but returned 6 games ago.

Justin Lehr (0-1) started the 10th for the A’s. He struck out Jason Varitek and got Mark Bellhorn to ground out before Damon singled to left. Mueller then hit a ball to the wall in center field that was bobbled by CF Mark Kotsay. Damon beat Bobby Crosby’s throw to the plate.

Keith Foulke blew his second straight blown save opportunity, and fourth in 17 chances, when he gave up a game-tying triple to Jermaine Dye in eighth inning. Curt Leskanic (1-4) pitched two-thirds of an inning for the win.

Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz homered for Boston, which blew a 7-1 lead. Ortiz gave the Red Sox a 1-0 lead when he sent his 23rd home run, and first hit in nineteen ABs over the Boston bullpen in the first inning. Boston added three runs in the third. Ortiz doubled with two outs and Mueller on base and Ramirez hit his 24th home run. The Red Sox added three more runs in the bottom of the fifth on a sacrifice fly by Trot Nixon and a two-run double by Kevin Millar.

Schilling pitched 5 1-3 innings and gave up three earned runs on 11 hits. He didn’t allow a walk. It was the 16th time in 18 starts he threw more than 100 pitches. But it was only the second time this season he has given up 10 or more hits in a game.