2007 American League Division Series
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Overview
The 2007 American League Division Series pitted the AL East Champion Boston Red Sox (96-66) versus the AL West Champion Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (94-68). Behind very strong pitching and timely hitting, the Red Sox swept the Indians in 3 games.
- Managers: Terry Francona (Boston) & Mike Scioscia (Los Angeles)
- Venues: Fenway Park (Boston) & Angel Stadium of Anaheim (Los Angeles)
Schedule
- Game 1: Wednesday, October 3 6:30 PM at Fenway Park
- Pitching Matchup: Lackey v. Beckett
- Game 2: Friday, October 5 8:30 PM at Fenway Park
- Game 3: Sunday, October 7th 3:00 PM at Angel Stadium of Anaheim
- Pitching Matchup: Schilling v. Weaver
Boxscores
Game 1: October 3, 2007 at Fenway Park
Josh Beckett showed his familiar postseason form, retiring 19 consecutive batters after a leadoff single. He allowed just four hits and ran his postseason scoreless streak to 18 innings. It was the first shutout by a Red Sox pitcher in a postseason game since Luis Tiant (who accomplished the feat in Game 1 of the 1975 World Series). The Sox got on top early with a first inning solo shot into the Monster Seats by Kevin Youkilis. They followed up with a 3-run bottom of the third inning, when David Ortiz hit a 2-run home run to right field, and after Manny Ramirez walked and took second on a wild pitch, Mike Lowell drove him in with a single up the middle. On a night when Beckett often looked unhittable, it was more than enough offense.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Angels | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Boston Red Sox | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | X | 4 | 9 | 0 |
| W: Josh Beckett (1-0) L: John Lackey (0-1) S: None | ||||||||||||
| HR: LAA: None BOS: Kevin Youkilis (1), David Ortiz (1) | ||||||||||||
Game 2: October 5, 2007 at Fenway Park
A 6-3 win for the Red Sox concluded in the bottom of the 9th inning with a dramatic 3-run walkoff homerun by Manny Ramirez, a towering blast off of K-Rod that disappeared into the night.
Daisuke Matsuzaka's final numbers (4.2IP 7H 3R 3ER 3BB 3SO) were not what the Red Sox were hoping for from their young star. He did manage to keep himself within reach and was helped by the excellent bullpen management of Terry Francona. This game will also be known for the "Anti-Bartman" incident in the 5th inning; Danny Vinik, the 17 year old son of Red Sox limited partner Jeffrey Vinik and sitting in the front row, prevented the second out by catching a popup inches above the glove of Angels catcher Jeff Mathis to extend Manny Ramirez' AB and allow him to take first base on ball four. This led to a gametying RBI by Mike Lowell.
A rare throwing error to first by Mike Lowell extended the Angels' 8th inning which led to a baserunner on third with 2 outs before Jonathan Papelbon was able to get out of the jam. The score remained even at 3-3. Julio Lugo kicked off the top of the 9th inning with a base-hit. Dustin Pedroia completed the hit-and-run with Lugo, moving him to second base. Kevin Youkilis struck out and then the Angels walked David Ortiz for the fourth time, the second intentional one to him. With 2 outs Manny Ramirez took ball one from K-Rod before launching the next 96-mph inside fastball on its way over the Monster, sending the Red Sox and Fenway Park into latenight delerium and a 2-0 series lead going into Anaheim.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Angels | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 |
| Boston Red Sox | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 1 |
| W: Jonathan Papelbon (1-0) L: Justin Speier (0-1) S: None | ||||||||||||
| HR: LAA: None BOS: Manny Ramirez (1) | ||||||||||||
Game 3: October 6, 2007 at Angel Stadium of Anaheim
The Red Sox sweep the series 3 games to none with a 9-1 domination of the Angels. Curt Schilling pitched 7 shutout innings in a masterful performance, keeping the Angels hitters off-balance throughout. A 7-run 8th inning off the Angels' bullpen put it out of reach.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Red Sox | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 9 | 10 | 0 |
| Los Angeles Angels | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 0 |
| W: Curt Schilling (1-0) L: Jared Weaver (0-1) S: None | ||||||||||||
| HR: BOS: Manny Ramirez (1), David Ortiz (1) LAA: None | ||||||||||||
Trivia
- Although the Red Sox and Indians ended the regular season with the same record, the Red Sox received home-field advantage by virtue of winning the season series against Cleveland, 5 games to 2.
- The Red Sox also got to choose whether their series started on October 3 or October 4, the first time a team was given this choice.
- Forty years ago Friday (Game 1), Red Sox starter Jim Lonborg did the same, only his consecutive batters retired were the first 19 batters of the game. Lonborg ended up with 6 1/3 perfect innings, and 7 2/3 no-hit innings. He pitched a one-hit shutout as the Red Sox beat the Cardinals in Game 2 of the World Series.
- The Game 2 home run was Ramirez's first walk-off homer since September 10, 1996 and his first as a member of the Red Sox.
- Big Papi and Manny hit back-to-back homers in the 4th inning of Game 3, for the 2nd time in the post-season history.
- The umpires for this series were Gary Darling, Dan Iassogna, Brian Runge, Ted Barrett, Tim Tschida, C. B. Bucknor
External Links
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