Clay Buchholz Dazzles as Red Sox Hold on for Win Over Blue Jays

Clay Buchholz tips his cap to the Fenway crowd after throwing 8 1/3 scoreless innings...his best outing of the season. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)

In the bottom of the opening inning, Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia, who had driven in Jacoby Ellsbury, scampered to second on a single by Victor Martinez, then to third on a passed ball by Toronto Blue Jays catcher Raul Chavez.

David Ortiz then, in a prime position to pad Boston’s early advantage, worked a favorable 2-1 count against starting pitcher Ricky Romero.

Trying to distract an already flustered Romero, Pedroia danced off the third base bag, taking far too large a lead given the circumstances.

Romero fired outside for ball-three. Once the ball snapped into Chavez’s glove, the hefty catcher caught Pedroia napping and fired a strike to third baseman Jose Bautista.

Pedroia tried to slide in safely headfirst, but instead slid into Bautista’s cleats, then his glove, and missed reaching the base by a good two feet.

He didn’t complain, with no reason to, and checked his jammed fingers, then hopped up, and made the frustrating walk back to the dugout as the crowd let out a stadium-wide groan.

Ortiz struck out swinging, and just like that, the inning was at an end. Boston did their best to ruin a once-promising inning, and missed a chance to further support starting pitcher Clay Buchholz.

The 25-year old wasn’t bothered by their inabilities. He, who made quick work of the Blue Jays in the first, did so again in the second by striking out Travis Snider to end the frame after a two-out single by former Red Sox star Kevin Millar.

Boston had an excellent chance in the first, but an even better one in the second. Jason Bay was hit by a pitch, Lowell doubled him to third, and J.D. Drew walked. The bases were loaded with nobody out.

It’s difficult to screw up this situation, as there are many ways to score even by making an out, but Boston managed to. Alex Gonzalez hit the first pitch he saw hard, but first baseman Lyle Overbay, who came into the game having made only two errors on the season, scooped it and made the gutsy throw home.

Chavez completed the force-out, touching the base before Bay arrived. Then the most unlikeliest of things happened. Jacoby Ellsbury, the speediest of speedy, grounded into a double-play. Two pitches by Romero, three outs recorded.

Buchholz breezed through the top of the third inning, needing only six pitches to retire the three batters he faced. The 37,000 fans clapped as he walked off the mound and into the dugout.

He took a seat on the bench, and stayed there as his offense continued to bend, but unfortunately not break Romero.

Pedroia singled to begin the bottom of the third, then Kevin Youkilis singled him over to third with one out. Once again, Ortiz struck out.

Then, once again, after a walk to Bay, the Red Sox squandered another opportunity with the bases loaded, as Mike Lowell’s cue shot to Overbay at first ended the threat.

Buchholz mowed down Toronto in order in the fourth. He would have liked more support from his ‘mates, but the way he was going, the one run may have been enough.

In the bottom of the frame, Boston’s offense found a new way to come up empty. Drew singled to start. The promising beginning soon turned depressing, as Drew took off on Romero’s 3-2 pitch to Gonzalez, which the Red Sox ninth-place hitter swung through.

Chavez gunned down Drew at second to complete the strike ‘em out, throw ‘em out double-play. At least the Red Sox made it quick and relatively painless this time.

After a quiet fifth, and top of the sixth, thanks to Buchholz’s continued dominance, Boston’s offense finally failed to fail. There was a walk to leadoff the bottom of the sixth, and another following the first out.

With that, Romero’s shaky outing was over, which therefore allowed the Red Sox offense to break out of their worrisome slump in the clutch. Gonzalez greeted reliever Casey Janssen with a single that drove home Bay.

Ellsbury proceeded with a terrible at-bat ending in strikeout, but Pedroia single that loaded the bases set the stage for Martinez’s walk, which forced in Boston’s third and final run.

Buchholz did his best to keep the now three-run lead intact, as he easily took care of business in both the seventh and eighth innings. Over a hundred pitches and growing weary, he allowed a single to Bautista to begin the ninth.

He then benefited from Gonzalez quick reflexes and shortstop on Aaron Hill ensuing liner, but as these two hot-shots exemplified, the end was near for Buchholz

Manager Terry Francona saw that he was fading and no longer fooling the Jays. So, he took him out in favor of setup man Hideki Okajima, and was booed by the sellout crowd in doing so.

The mood quickly changed as the young righthander handed the ball to his skipper. He walked off the mound to a well-deserved standing ovation and tipped his cap to the crowd.

It was not only the best outing of his season to date, but the best and longest since his no-hitter against the Baltimore Orioles in September of 2007. And to think that Okajima nearly ruined it.

Red Sox Nation wanted Buchholz to complete what he started. Letting him do so would not only give him a further sense of accomplishment, but keep Okajima in the ‘pen. Yet, Francona played it safe, and, as the fans feared, a nightmare ensued.

Okajima’s second pitch and first curveball was cranked into left-field by Adam Lind, scoring Bautista to end the shutout and undeservedly add a run to Buchholz’s final line.

Then Overbay knocked the second fastball he saw from Okajima into left-field to score Lind and bring Toronto within one run. For Buchholz, a three-run lead was enough. For Okajima, it clearly was not.

So, wisely, Francona jumped out of the dugout and did what he should have done when he took out Buchholz. He summoned in closer Jonathan Papelbon to try to stop the bleeding and secure a much-deserved victory for Buchholz.

Papelbon, unlike Okajima, did what was asked of him, needing only five pitches to even Buchholz’s record at 3-3, as both Vernon Wells and Millar popped up.

Though his heart didn’t deserve the strain it endured, Buchholz could breathe easy. He was asked about his start following the game, and answered with this statement: “I’ve evolved into a pitcher.” And, after nearly two years of ineffectiveness, a darn good one at that.