Josh Beckett Struggles Again, but Red Sox Sneak Past Blue Jays

Red Sox win over the Blue Jays. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)" title="Jonathan Papelbon" width="354" height="512" />

Jonathan Papelbon, as always, made things interesting in the ninth inning. But he managed to work out of a bases-loaded, one-out jam by striking out the final two batters to seal the Red Sox win over the Blue Jays. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)

Entering his start against the Toronto Blue Jays on Aug. 18, Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Josh Beckett had allowed just 12 home runs on the season, spanning 23 starts.

In that outing, he lasted only 5 1/3 innings while relinquishing three home runs, and seven runs on nine hits in all.

Five days later, against the New York Yankees, he was even worse, allowing eight runs on nine hits and five home runs.

He not only wasn’t his usual self, but he was prone to the longball, a bad sign this late in the season.

Pitching coach John Farrell suggested that his pitching woes were due to the mechanics of his delivery.

His explanation: “There may be some times when maybe some added effort or an attempt to get some added velocity has caused him to get a little spread out (with his delivery) and caused him to throw the baseball on a little bit more of a flat plane rather than the downward angle that all pitchers need.”

Farrell also said Beckett had no injury, and that his issues would go away with some minor adjustments.

Evidently, Beckett hasn’t made the adjustments necessary. His first inning against the Blue Jays on the night of Aug. 26 was rusty, as the rust had yet to wear off his repertoire of pitches.

His fastball was still flat, and though his offspeed pitches, a curveball and a slider, did have their moments, they weren’t consistently sharp.

Marco Scutaro led off the game and socked one of Beckett’s straight fastballs into right-field, then Aaron Hill followed with a single of his own, this coming on a hanging curveball.

The runners were moved over on a groundout, but then Beckett struck out Lyle Overbay and, after issuing a walk to Vernon Wells, struck out Randy Ruiz as well to end the threat.

He threw 27 pitches in that first inning, substantially higher than his season average of 15 per inning.

The old Beckett, the Beckett who dominated for the first four and half months, showed up against Ruiz, or the pitch count would have been even higher, but that Beckett soon vanished.

The new Beckett returned after the old one retired the first two batters of the frame. He walked Jose Bautista, mislocating both his curveball and fastball in doing so, then issued a free pass to Scutaro after repeatedly missing the target with his fastball.

This time, Toronto made him pay, as Hill drove a curve that floated over the heart of the plate into the Green Monster seats in left for a three-run homer. Beckett threw 30 pitches in that inning.

He walked two more in the third inning, but left them stranded with strikeout of Travis Snider. He hit Scutaro in the head with a pitch in the fourth, knocking him out of the game, then, by proceeding to fan Hill and Lind, increased his scoreless innings streak to two.

His offense tried to will him back to normal by supporting him in the bottom of the fourth against Toronto starting pitcher Scott Richmond.

Kevin Youkilis and David Ortiz led off the frame with singles. J.D. Drew continued his magnificent month at the plate by knocking in Youkilis for Boston’s first run.

Jason Varitek brought the Red Sox within one, shooting a sacrifice fly to deep right to score Ortiz. Alex Gonzalez kept the inning alive with a single, then Jacoby Ellsbury took advantage.

The speedy center-fielder clubbed a full-count slider to center-field and into the triangle, the deepest part of Fenway Park. It turned out he hit it too far, as the ball bounced high off the warning track and into the stands, which stood 420 feet away from the plate.

Ellsbury neared second as his rocket fell amongst the fans, and he cursed the Baseball Gods as he touched the bag. Drew scored to the tie the game, and Gonzalez would have to take the lead, but was sent back to third base because of the ground-rule double.

If the ball hadn’t jumped into the seats, Gonzalez would have not only scored, but Ellsbury might have as well. Alas, the Red Sox were forced to settle with a 3-3 tie.

Boston, despite the disappointment, had the momentum. Unfortunately, that lasted as long as the commercial break, as Beckett wasted little time in giving the lead right back to Toronto.

He allowed a leadoff double to Overbay and two outs later Rod Barajas pounced on lazy first-pitch fastball and deposited it off the Sports Authority sign that hung above the Green Monster seats.

He struck out Snider to end the frame, but though it was his ninth strikeout, it finished off another porous outing by the Red Sox “ace.”

It was better than his previous start, and the one before that, but that’s not an achievement.

There is no way a pitcher of his stature can be pleased with a 108-pitch, five-inning start in which he surrendered five runs on two homers, five hits in all, and five walks.

I never thought I’d have to say this, but I breathed a sigh of relief knowing Beckett’s night was done.

Coinciding with that, the Red Sox came alive once more. Jason Bay duplicated Barajas’ shot, except his two-run, game-tying homer in the bottom of the fifth hit a bit higher on the Sports Authority sign.

The game was now tied, and Beckett wouldn’t be there to give Toronto the lead back.

In fact, the Blue Jays wouldn’t score another run. The Red Sox did, though. With the bases loaded in the eighth inning, Casey Kotchman, pinch-hitting for Gonzalez, roped a grounder that ate up Overbay at first base.

The ball bounced off his chest and trickled away, erasing any chance they had of turning an inning-ending double play. Overbay recovered and got the out at second, but the damage was done. Ortiz scored from third for Boston’s sixth and final run.

With the way closer Jonathan Papelbon pitched the ninth, it appeared a one-run lead wasn’t enough. The energetic and hard-throwing righthander did what Nick Green did the night before and threw nothing but fastballs.

But unlike Green’s 35 straight that had movement, Papelbon’s 28 straight went Beckett’s route and were straight as a string.

Again, like Beckett, he had an annoying on-off switch. He struck out Lind to begin the frame, but then made things interesting, as he always does, by allowing back-to-back singles to Overbay and Wells.

Two-on with one-out wasn’t enough for Papelbon. What would make Red Sox Nation, his teammates, and his manager, Terry Francona, sweat, is if he loaded the bases. So, he did as quick as he could, clipping Ruiz with his second pitch.

But, as is usually the case, Papelbon turned the light back on and struck out Barajas on three pitches, then completed Snider’s Golden Sombrero by whiffing him as well. He pumped his fist. His outing went according to plan.

Papelbon closed the door the only way he knows how, but Boston’s fans can’t breathe easy until their supposed ace irons out the wrinkles. Because the Red Sox bats can only bail him out for so long, and, believe me, they don’t want to have to.