The Thursday, August 17, 2017

* The Boston Globe

The Red Sox don’t a lot of homers, but they’re OK with that

Alex Speier

As Jackie Bradley Jr. stepped to the plate with one in the fifth Tuesday, a thought startled him.

“I was the first one to get out, so I was like, ‘Don’t be the second one to get out, too,’ ” Bradley said of stepping to the plate after eight straight Red Sox had reached base in what eventually proved an eight- inning that keyed a 10-4 win over the Cardinals.

“I feel like everybody was going up there and having a great approach. Kind of passing the torch.”

The torch flickered steadily rather than emitting a roaring fire, but it burned the Cardinals nonetheless. For St. Louis starter Mike Leake, it must have seemed like being swarmed by midges following Bradley’s leadoff fly out to left:

■ Eduardo Nunez (102 m.p.h. exit velocity)

■ Mookie Betts single (83 exit velocity)

■ hit by above the knee (ouch)

■ Hanley Ramirez two-run (111 exit velocity)

■ Rafael Devers intentional walk (the first of his career; there will be more)

■ Xander Bogaerts one-run single (109 exit velocity)

■ Mitch Moreland one-run single (87 exit velocity)

■ Sandy Leon two-run double (98 exit velocity)

■ Jackie Bradley Jr. one-run single (96 exit velocity)

■ Eduardo Nunez one-run single (103 exit velocity)

That’s a lot of hard contact wrapped around a little bit of luck leading to a lot of runs — without any home runs.

That last component — without any homers — has become a fascinating part of who the Red Sox are becoming. Even as they’ve seen an uptick in round-trippers and hard contact in August, the Sox are still last in the in homers. Yet they are putting crooked numbers on the board, as with Tuesday’s dramatic display.

“I think that shows our identity,” said Betts. “We understand that it doesn’t take home runs. We can beat people with a whole bunch of singles and doubles.

“Sometimes that’s worse [for a ] than one three-run homer. You make the guy throw more pitches. It’s constant pressure. Having guys on base every inning is extra pressure.

“With a homer, he can kind of reset. The constant guys in — single here, single here, single there — I think that’s worse.”

Tuesday marked the third time this year the Sox have scored 10 or more runs in a game without a homer, tied for most in the big leagues. They have scored at least five runs without a homer 15 times, four more than any other team.

Caveat: Those numbers reflect in part the fact that the Sox have had 45 games this year in which they haven’t hit a homer — third-most in the big leagues. But whereas a team like the Yankees is almost entirely reliant on homers (they’re 3-22 when they don’t clear the fences), the Red Sox (21-24 when not homering, a .467 winning percentage) and Astros (11-12, .478) have distinguished themselves as the two teams that remain competitive even when not hitting homers.

It was just a couple of weeks ago that the other side of the contact coin came into view — that the balls in play found gloves rather than grass, and the Red Sox lineup looked woeful. Lineups built around contact rather than power are vulnerable to hot and cold stretches — ditto lineups built around power but not contact. (Again: See Yankees, New York.)

Ultimately, the measure of the Red Sox lineup will come in October, likely against sluggers like Cleveland’s Edwin Encarnacion or ’s waves of high-contact power hitters. But Red Sox newcomer Addison Reed has first-hand exposure to the idea that a team without much power can emerge as a postseason force.

Red Sox leaders Through Tuesday Mookie Betts 18 Hanley Ramirez 18 Andrew Benintendi 17 Mitch Moreland 14 Jackie Bradley Jr. 13 SOURCE: MLB.com

In 2015, Reed and the Mets lost the World to a Royals team that had one of the lowest home run totals in the majors. Kansas City hit just two homers in the , yet took the championship in five games.

“I don’t like the statement that home runs win championships,” said Reed. “I think a solid offense, whether it’s hitting the ball out of the park or getting some base hits, it doesn’t matter. Getting runs is the ultimate goal.

“Scrappy teams like [Kansas City] are always tough to face. You can throw a good 0-and-2 pitch. A home run hitter who’s swinging for the fences will swing over it. Guys just trying to flip one over to the will put a nice little swing on it and get solid contact a lot of the time.”

That Royals team isn’t alone. Of the seven World Series winners since 2010, two finished in the bottom 10 in the majors in regular-season homers; five finished outside the top 10. Each of the last six World Series winners has had a higher runs-per-game rank than homer rank, suggesting an ability to manufacture runs rather than a reliance on a single big swing.

Meanwhile, each of the last seven champions finished in the top half of the big leagues in run prevention, with five of those clubs finishing in the top 10.

From that vantage point, the Red Sox — who now rank eighth in runs per game while having held opponents to the fourth-lowest average of runs per game — appear to have some notable similarities to recent World Series winners.

It would be a mistake to expect this offensive surge to continue indefinitely. Still, the fact that the Sox have had the best offense in the majors (6.15 runs per game) since the July 31 trade deadline suggests that they are a team capable of championship-caliber bursts.

In search of championship alchemy How the Red Sox compare to recent World Series winners (MLB rank in parenthesis). Year Team Runs/Game HR Runs Allowed 2017 Red Sox 4.8 (8) 124 (26) 4.0 (4) 2016 Cubs 5.0 (3) 199 (13) 3.4 (1) 2015 Royals 4.5 (7) 139 (24) 4.0 (9) 2014 Giants 4.1 (12) 132 (17) 3.8 (9) 2013 Red Sox 5.3 (1) 178 (6) 4.1 (13) 2012 Giants 4.4 (12) 103 (30) 4.0 (8) 2011 Cardinals 4.7 (5) 162 (13) 4.3 (15) 2010 Giants 4.3 (17) 162 (T-10) 3.6 (2) SOURCE: Baseball-Reference.com, .com

Fifty years later, 1967 remains a game-changer for Red Sox

Julian Benbow

As the calendar got closer and closer to the special celebration to commemorate the 1967 Red Sox team that forever changed the face of the franchise, the men who put together the “Impossible Dream” tried to reconnect ahead of time.

They traded old stories, sifted through the memories they made together, caught up on their current lives long removed from their playing days, but permanently placed in baseball history as the team that defied the odds to win the American League pennant.

But for Jim Lonborg, whose magical 22-9 campaign that year earned him the AL Cy Young Award, the beauty of reuniting was simply seeing his teammates again. He hadn’t seen some of them in three or four years. Some not there had passed away.

“It is hard to believe,” Lonborg said. “We’re missing a lot of guys right now. A lot of guys that we were very close to. That’s the thing that’s hardest, I think, about when you get a gathering like this.

“But a lot of good life has gone on since that time. Families have been started, grandkids have been born, good things have happened in Boston. So time’s gone by very fast.”

One thing stuck out to Carl Yastrzemski.

“We’re all gray,” Yastrzemski joked.

But for a few minutes, while they filed into a meeting room at Fenway Park before Wednesday’s pregame ceremony, slipping into their jerseys, 50 years didn’t feel like that long ago.

“It’s great to see them,” Yastrzemski said.

The greeting they got once they hit the field was fit for a team that revived baseball in Boston.

One by one, Gary Bell, Bucky Brandon, Hank Fischer, Ken “Hawk” Harrelson, Bill Landis, Lonborg, Dave Morehead, Jerry Moses, Rico Petrocelli, Billy Rohr, Mike Ryan, Jose Santiago, Reggie Smith, Mike Andrews, Lee Stange, George Thomas, and Gary Waslewski were greeted with ovations.

But the loudest roar was saved for Yastrzemski.

In honor of Tony Conigliaro, his brothers Billy and Richie brought the official game ball to the mound.

The Sox have won three World Series in the past 13 years, but the significance of 1967 is in the fabric of the franchise.

“I think the fact that we got so close and didn’t win almost was a better ending than having won it all and just expecting things to be perfect after that,” Lonborg said. “So, it was bittersweet, but I think if I was a writer, I would have written that into the script.”

“I wouldn’t change a thing,” Harrelson said.

They shifted the culture at Fenway, going from playing games where they could the fans in the stands to playing in front of sellout crowds.

“We continue to hear how this group of guys, that we had changed the attitude, changed the feelings and it changed the culture of baseball here in the New England area,” Smith said. “It gave them something to hope for.”

They was also a reprieve from the social unrest of the time as the country — and the city — dealt with issues from civil rights to the Vietnam War.

“Sports seems to do that,” Smith said. “It seems to bring people together for whatever reason. But it was a difficult time. There had been the riots in other parts of the country at that time, but for some reason or another, sports seems to bring everyone together to give them a common focus to rally behind.”

Looking back, it was hard to believe how fast 50 years could fly by.

“Going by too quick,” Yastrzemski said.

But the foundation of the franchise as it’s known today was laid 50 years ago.

“I think it’s great because we brought the fans back to the ballpark,” Yastrzemski said. “How many people showed up for Ted Williams’s final game? Ten thousand at most? How many people did we have Opening Day? I don’t think it was full. And I know my previous six years, we were lucky to have 10,000 people on a Friday night. So it brought baseball back to New England.”

Sandy Leon playing though pain for Red Sox

Peter Abraham

The ball was hit well enough that Sandy Leon didn’t have to run hard to make second base in the fifth inning on Tuesday’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals. For that he was grateful.

The 28-year-old has been playing with a sore left knee, the result of a game-winning dive across home plate on July 29. He has started only five of the 15 games since.

“It’s not too bad. It’s more a problem when I’m running than catching,” said Leon, who was not in the lineup against the Cardinals on Wednesday night.

Leon is hitting .238 with a .673 OPS, well off his career year of 2016 when he hit .310 with an .845 OPS and 26 extra-base hits in 78 games.

“If the offense is there, great. But my job is to ,” Leon said. “Whatever I can do to help the team when I hit, I try to do it. But I’m focused on the pitcher.”

Leon has caught all but one of Chris Sale’s 24 starts. After almost every one of them, Sale has praised Leon’s receiving and game-calling skills. Sale is 14-4 with a 2.51 and leads the majors with 241 .

“It makes me feel good that a pitcher like Chris feels that way,” Leon said. “It’s all him. He can throw whatever pitch I call and throw it for a strike. He’s fun to catch.”

Leon’s knee may not feel right until after the season. But he’s dealing with it.

“He doesn’t complain or mention any lingering effects from the knee,” manage John Farrell said.

Because the Sox have Christian Vazquez, they have been able to largely divide up the job. Vazquez has 62 starts and Leon 58.

“The fact that we have two guys who respect one another; they’re both talented and they’re got very good rapport with the guys that they’re catching,” Farrell said. “I think we’ve been able to kind of foster a really good situation for both. Hopefully it allows their production to remain consistent.”

The Sox plan to add a third catcher when rosters expand on Sept. 1. The leading candidate is Blake Swihart.

Swihart caught nine in the Gulf Coast League on Saturday then was activated off the A disabled list. He has not caught since but Farrell said the plan was for Swihart to catch two or three games a week through the end of the minor league season.

Swihart has been dealing with lingering issues with his surgically repaired left ankle and caught only 42 games this season.

Rotation riddle The Yankees arrive at Fenway Park for a three-game series that starts on Friday. Drew Pomeranz and Sale will start the first two games. The starter for the Sunday afternoon game is to be determined.

The Sox could bring Rick Porcello back on regular rest or use Doug Fister on five days’ rest.

“That’s going to require some conversation with our guys,” Farrell said.

Porcello has faced the Yankees three times this season and allowed seven earned runs over 19 innings.

He also has pitched well in his last two starts, giving up five earned runs in 13 innings.

Fister is 2-4 with a 5.30 earned run average in seven starts. He faced the Yankees in relief on July 15 and allowed three runs over 2⅔ innings.

If Fister does not pitch Sunday, the Sox will need a fifth starter by Tuesday in Cleveland.

And, yes, you read that right. The Yankees and Sox are playing on Sunday afternoon. ESPN picked up the Cardinals and Pirates.

Historic success Through Tuesday, Rafael Devers had 23 hits, the most for a Red Sox player in his first 23 games since Johnny Pesky had 23 in 1942. Ted Williams had 27 hits in his first 23 games in 1939.

On Tuesday, Devers recorded an RBI in his fourth consecutive game. Since the RBI became an official statistic in 1920. Devers, Tony Conigliaro, Bobby Doerr, and Williams are the only Sox players with an RBI in four or more consecutive games before turning 21.

Hembree’s vacation Heath Hembree had nine days off before his two innings against the Indians on Monday. Farrell said that was by design to give the righthander a break.

Hembree had 49 appearances through Aug. 4. Only six American League had more appearances to that point.

“One of the things you’re not proud of as a is to see a reliever in the top five in appearances for any reliever. I’ll be honest with you,” Farrell said. “That means they’re good. But maybe you’re going to them a little bit too frequently.

“So you pick spots where hopefully you can back off and even out some of the rapid pace of appearances.”

That’s one of the reasons the Sox have been carrying an extra reliever.

Price takes a day After throwing four times over five days, David Price was off on Wednesday and will resume his program on Thursday. “Each day he comes in, we kind of adjust the plan as needed and that’s the adjustment today,” Farrell said. Price has no discomfort, the manager said. He didn’t feel “as free” as he did last week . . . Jason Varitek, an assistant to Dave Dombrowski, was in uniform for the game . . . Farrell plans to get more work out of the . Through Tuesday, he had pitched only three times since coming off the disabled list on Aug. 5.

* The Boston Herald

Red Sox stage wild rally in 9th to sweep Cardinals

Jason Mastrodonato

Just when it looked like Xander Bogaerts wasn’t going to be able to contribute much down the stretch, the 24-year old finally loosened up.

One night after Bogaerts snapped a streak of 18 games without an RBI, he snapped his homerless streak with a leadoff dinger off St. Louis Cardinals closer to start the ninth inning. The Sox rallied for two more and walked off on the Cardinals for an 5-4 win at Fenway Park.

The Red Sox entered the ninth down 4-2 when Bogaerts hit his first homer in 30 games.

Mitch Moreland then drew a walk to force Rosenthal out of the game.

After Brock Holt struck out against lefty Zach Duke, Jackie Bradley Jr. drew a walk to set up a two-out, full-count, two-run double by Mookie Betts that ended the game in front of a roaring crowd that was on its feet all inning.

“It’s coming down to the final months and we have to play good as a team,” said Bogaerts, whose .485 OPS from July 4 through Monday ranked last in the majors. “We’re doing that right now. That was a great win today to go into the off-day tomorrow. That changes a lot of things as opposed to if we had lost today.”

Bogaerts had barely been hitting anything hard, much less going deep. Playing through a groin injury he suffered on July 1 and a hand injury he endured via a hit-by-pitch one week later, he became a complete slap-hitter to the right side.

But when Rosenthal threw a 91-mph heater low and on the plate in the ninth last night, Bogaerts wanted to see what happened if he turned on it.

“I just ran into a good one today,” he said. “I had a lot of stuff going on. I don’t remember the last time I was swinging to left field with the stuff I had going on. It was good these last few days to be more loose, as opposed to only being able to hit the ball the other way with weak contact.”

The hand injury has caused the most difficulty.

“Man, that definitely hit me hard, you know?” he said. “I stopped playing well after that. I just couldn’t use my hands. I started creating a lot of bad swings, a lot of bad habits because if I wanted to swing the way I normally swing it would hurt. It’s just trying to get back to that swing that I normally have and hopefully now I can just continue with that. Because it was definitely tough on me.”

Bradley might have been out at home but Cards catcher dropped the ball when he tried making the tag and Bradley scored the winning run.

The win saved the Sox from losing a game on the , who also won against the New York Mets. The Sox remain 41⁄2 games up in the with an off-day today and the Yanks coming to town tomorrow.

It was a sleepy game until the ninth.

It’s been hard to tell what to make of starter Eduardo Rodriguez since he returned from a month layoff due to another knee dislocation, his third in less than two years.

The velocity has ticked back up, and he sat around 93 mph last night, touching 95 mph while throwing a heavy dose of to a good-hitting Cards team. And while he hasn’t had any trouble walking batters, the opposite might be true.

His pitches have caught far too much of the plate, the Cards took advantage in the second inning to jump out to a 4-0 lead.

Rodriguez, who said his knee “feels good,” blamed the second inning on a loss of command, but “felt good after that to just keep the score what it was.”

The Sox manufactured two runs in the third, as a throwing by pitcher Lance Lynn kept it going. But it was, for a while, a night of missed chances. They grounded into three double plays.

One big inning changed the tone.

“This is a great win,” Bradley said. “And even greater now that we’re going to an off-day.”

Silverman: Jackie Bradley Jr. comes up big on bases and with glove

Michael Silverman

The position farthest from home plate is center field.

The distance from first base to home plate while running the bases is 270 feet.

Last night, Jackie Bradley Jr. made the path to home plate look much, much shorter, and the way he did it verged on extraordinary.

No wonder he played a starring role in an extra special Red Sox victory.

Last things first:

Bradley scored the winning run in the Sox’ madcap, 5-4 victory against the Cardinals with a dash home from first base on Mookie Betts’ two-out, Wall-ball double in the ninth inning. The Red Sox trailed by one at the time, and the lead runner, Chris Young, scored easily to tie the game.

With Bradley representing either the winning run or the third out that would send the game into , he had a plan before the ball was hit.

“I was telling (third base Brian Butterfield) before the play, anything off that wall, send me. Send me,” Bradley said. “Kind of helped that we got to the 3-2 count so I would get a running start. Hit off the wall and I was just trying to keep telling myself, ‘Get the truck off my back.’”

Intention is one thing.

Execution is another.

And the Cardinals certainly executed. Left fielder fielded Betts’ ball cleanly with his throwing hand and fired to shortstop Paul DeJong, who threw a strike to catcher Yadier Molina who could not hold on to it. If he had held on, Bradley would have been out.

The play was taking place behind Bradley.

“I could just see that getting ready for a play to happen,” Bradley said. “I’m just running, and I’m just trying to find any particular space or room I can in order to avoid the tag or go straight in.”

A problem was that Molina was blocking the plate quite effectively. Bradley slid head-first, his left arm and hand behind him because there was no place to put them.

He missed the plate.

“I pulled my hand back completely to try to avoid the tag so that I would at least slide past the tag,” Bradley said. “I knew I didn’t tag it at first because he was blocking the plate.

“I didn’t even pay attention to whether he had the ball or not. I was just trying to make sure I tagged the plate.”

But Molina had missed the ball, allowing Bradley, already on his belly, to make a caterpillar-like advance close enough to home plate to slap it and seal a win.

The Cards had pulled out to an early 4-0 lead in the second, when Red Sox starter Eduardo Rodriguez was struggling to shed rust.

The game was at serious risk of running out of control. Rodriguez clearly didn’t have it, and his defense was not helping. When Matt Carpenter singled in the fourth run, Bradley made a fine throw but could not cut down the runner at home plate. Catcher Christian Vazquez then muffed the throw, and the ball went to the backstop, allowing Carpenter, who already had advanced to second on the throw, to reach third base on the error.

Then came the distance-warping act from Bradley.

Pham singled to center field, and Bradley charged the ball.

As the ball approached, Bradley lined up the situation in front of him — the direction of the ball, the height of the bounce and the runner on third base.

He decided to throw for the out at home on Carpenter.

“Line drive, I actually started trying to take a sharper angle to it, but then it started coming toward me, so I had to readjust, and knowing I wasn’t going to catch it in the air, I just tried to get in front of it and make sure I’d keep it in front to body it up. It hopped right in my glove,” Bradley said. “I saw (Carpenter) was maybe one or two steps from third base. I felt like I was shallow enough to try to make a play at home.”

Bradley threw a pea. On a line. Carpenter was out.

That’s right. Bradley threw the runner on third out at home on a single to center field.

Bradley hadn’t done it before.

“On a base hit? No,” he said. “You don’t throw people out at home on base hits like that.”

But Bradley did.

And he scored from first on a Wall-ball double.

With Bradley in center or on the bases, home plate is always just around the corner.

50 years later, Red Sox salute 1967 'Impossible Dream' team

Rich Thompson

A routine pop fly to the left side of the made the “Impossible Dream” a reality.

The year was 1967, the date was Oct. 1, and the place was Fenway Park. The tightest pennant race in American League history was reduced to one out in the top of the ninth inning in the last game of the season.

Red Sox starter Jim Lonborg was in the process of finalizing a complete-game victory against Minnesota, with pinch-hitter Rich Rollins at the plate. Rollins popped the ball to Red Sox shortstop Rico Petrocelli, who secured the final out of a 5-3 win.

The Sox had to wait for the California Angels to beat the Detroit Tigers, 8-5, in the second game of a to clinch the franchise’s first American League pennant since 1946.

“That’s my claim to fame, the last catch,” Petrocelli said. “There was a pretty good hitter up in Rich Rollins and anything could have happened. But it was a short pop-up, no problem. I made sure I squeezed that ball so hard. That was it, and then we celebrated. I’ve seen it hundreds of times, and thank God I caught that ball. Just think about it, I would have been shot.”

A play Petrocelli made hundreds of times in his major league career became the stuff of legend. The catch was immortalized by Red Sox radio announcer Ned Martin, who made it the defining call of his long broadcasting career: “The pitch … is looped toward shortstop. Petrocelli’s back. He’s got it! The Red Sox win. And there’s pandemonium on the field.”

The Red Sox honored the members of the 1967 Impossible Dream season with a ceremony before last night’s game against St. Louis. The Red Sox were beaten by the Cardinals in seven games in the .

The Fenway fans were on their feet as the players were introduced. The biggest ovation was saved for left fielder Carl Yastrzemski, who earned the Triple Crown that year and was named the American League MVP.

“I think it’s great we brought Boston fans back to the ballpark,” Yaz said. “In my previous six years, we were lucky to get 10,000 people on a Friday night.

“We brought baseball back to New England. We had some great rookies come up that year, and some of the players that were here previous years all of sudden started thinking differently. Instead of being losers, we started thinking of being winners.”

One of the rookies who helped change the culture was Reggie Smith, who played center field, and right- handed slugger Tony Conigliaro, who never got to play in the World Series. The shortstop was hit in the left eye by Angels pitcher Jack Hamilton on Aug. 18.

“It was gratifying because of the culture of change that occurred at that time and us coming in and winning,” Smith said. “What it had done for the fan base here and the number of sellouts they have had since the time when you could count the people sitting in the stands.”

Players excited to face off with Pedro Martinez in Oldtime Baseball Game

Rich Thompson

Matt Nuzzo had no trouble recalling his favorite Pedro Martinez moment.

“It had to be the All-Star Game in 1999 where Pedro struck out five National leaguers,” Nuzzo said. “He was literally throwing the ball as hard as he can down the middle of the plate, and no one had a chance.”

Tonight, the former Everett High quarterback and Brown University shortstop has a chance to see Martinez try to offer a vintage repeat when both of them suit up in the 24th annual Oldtime Baseball Game at St. Peter’s Field in Cambridge.

The charity event, organized in part by Herald sports columnist Steve Buckley, will benefit the John Martin Fund and the ALS Therapy Development Institute of Cambridge.

Martinez, who pitched seven seasons of his Hall of Fame career with the Red Sox, will be the starting pitcher for the home team.

And the excitement of having him in the game is buzzing among his fellow players.

“That whole atmosphere at Fenway in ’99 was electric,” Nuzzo said. “I’ll never forget it with Ted Williams driving around (in a golf cart) and Pedro coming out and pitching the first.

“That was something that always stuck out in my mind.”

Nuzzo hopes he has an opportunity to show up those 1999 NL All-Stars who fanned against Martinez when he steps into the batter’s box.

“The rumor is I’m going to get my chance, and he is one of my favorite athletes ever, so it is going to be a surreal thing regardless of the outcome,” Nuzzo said.

Nuzzo is a three-time veteran of the Oldtime Game and knows that in previous years, ex-players such as Jim Lonborg, Mike Timlin and Dennis “Oil Can” Boyd have suited up for a good cause.

“But never anyone with the legendary status of Pedro,” Nuzzo said.

“I can assure you I am not going to walk, I’ll tell you that right now. I’m going to get my money’s worth, that’s for sure.”

Nuzzo will be wearing a gray throwback 1925 St. Louis Cardinals uniform identical to the one worn by Hall of Fame pitcher Grover Cleveland Alexander.

The Greg Montalbano Award also will be presented to Nuzzo, who spent three seasons in the organization. The award is named in memory of the former Red Sox minor league pitcher who was 31 when he succumbed to cancer in 2009.

Montalbano was a Westboro native who played collegiately at Northeastern. He participated in the Oldtime Baseball Game in 1997 and 1998 wearing the vintage 1925 St. Louis Cardinals uniform. Montalbano was drafted by the Red Sox in the fifth round in 1999 and pitched six seasons in the organization before illness ended his career.

“I never got to meet Greg, but I read about him and how he was a local kid,” Nuzzo said. “It’s an honor to wear his uniform and I think (Buckley) does a great job with this game and engaging the community and showing off the beauty of baseball.

“I wish I got to meet Greg, but his spirit is here, and I look forward to representing him.”

The game will be played in part to raise money to help the family of Martin, a NESN cameraman who is now dealing with the effects of ALS.

Martinez intends to pick up Martin and his family at his home and chauffeur them to the game.

Red Sox notebook: David Price rehab put on brief hold

Jason Mastrodonato

David Price’s second attempt to recover from an elbow strain he suffered in has been put on pause.

Price was held back from throwing yesterday.

“(Tuesday) when he threw, I don’t know that he felt as free as he did the three consecutive days in New York,” Red Sox manager John Farrell said before last night’s 5-4 win against St. Louis. “He is just going to go through treatment and then resume (today).”

The lefty also had his first attempt at recovery stopped many times throughout his rehab process until he finally was ready to pitch for the Red Sox on May 29. He made 11 starts with a 3.82 ERA before he landed back on the disabled list following his July 22 start.

He’s yet to throw off a mound since.

Doug Fister has been filling in to round out the rotation, but after he allowed five runs in 41⁄3 innings to Cleveland on Monday, the Sox are considering skipping the right-hander’s start Sunday. Instead, they could start Rick Porcello, who would fall on regular rest since the Sox have an off day today.

Drew Pomeranz and Chris Sale will start against the New York Yankees tomorrow and Saturday, then it will be either Porcello or Fister.

“I mean, that’s going to require some conversation with our guys before it’s just stated out there,” Farrell said. “The intent is to just give everybody an extra day, stay on turn, but if we happen to change that up, we’ll take care of that internally first.”

September Swihart?

Blake Swihart has not been forgotten.

And while the Red Sox haven’t made it easy for him, roping him from position to position and ultimately sending him to spring training with almost no chance to make the roster as the only catcher with options, it sounds as if Swihart will join the big league team when rosters expand in September.

As a catcher. And an infielder.

Swihart is catching again in the minors, having caught nine innings for the Gulf Coast League Red Sox on Saturday. Then he went back to Triple-A Pawtucket, where he played first base one game and served as the in another.

“He’ll get three times a week at Pawtucket (as a catcher),” Farrell said on Wednesday. “So as we look to September, I mean, we typically do bring a third catcher. He’s certainly a strong candidate for that.”

Swihart had been catching to start the season but couldn’t stay healthy in Pawtucket and eventually was asked to relearn some infield positions, which he hadn’t played since high school. He was asked to switch to left field last year, when the Red Sox used him in the outfield for 13 games before he messed up his ankle running into the side wall.

It sounds as if they’ll keep shuffling Swihart around the infield while also having him catch some, making him a super utility player and third catcher should he rejoin the big league team in September.

“It’s just a matter of getting past and managing some of the discomfort that’s in that ankle,” Farrell said. “There was a pretty severe injury to that, the procedure that was done following it. He’s had to take a step back. He’s had to take some treatment to quiet it down. But as we’re starting to get the activity back up, he’s tolerating it well. Still feel like he’s going to need to get some at-bats this winter, but that will all be determined further on.”

Swihart will be out of options next year, making it a make-or-break camp for him.

Security measures

As the city of Boston prepares for a free speech rally on Saturday just a week after a similar gathering in Charlottesville, Va., drew bloodshed, the Red Sox are hopeful that Fenway Park will remain a space less than a dozen blocks away from the rally location.

Red Sox president Sam Kennedy told the Herald that the Sox — who host the Yankees Saturday at 7 p.m. — had been in touch with the office of mayor Marty Walsh and the Boston police department about the rally.

“We do not anticipate any direct impacts to the Fenway Park area, but as always we will remain vigilant to ensure that our comprehensive security measures are enforced throughout the weekend,” Kennedy wrote in an email.

The rally, scheduled to take place from 12-2 p.m., was approved for space at the Boston Common for 100 people by Walsh, though with strict restrictions such as no weapons and no backpacks.

At Fenway Park, where the Red Sox will also host the Yankees tomorrow night and Sunday afternoon, it appears there will be no extra security, though the park has been tightly monitored all season.

Fans must go through metal detectors while a heavy police presence surrounds the perimeter.

Remy tribute on tap

Before Sunday’s game against the Yankees, the Red Sox will celebrate Jerry Remy’s 30-year career in the NESN broadcast booth with a pregame ceremony honoring the former Sox infielder. He is scheduled to throw out the ceremonial first pitch.

NESN will carry the ceremony live.

Remy recently announced that he would soon be starting chemotherapy to treat lung cancer, his fifth battle with the disease. The 64-year-old announced in June that he had been diagnosed again and was going to have surgery to treat it. He had originally hoped to return after the All-Star break.

* The Providence Journal

Red Sox 5, Cardinals 4: Mookie has a moment, walk-off double wins it

Tim Britton

BOSTON — An impossible dream?

These Red Sox are making most anything look achievable the way they’re playing this month.

Before Wednesday night’s game, Boston celebrated the 50th anniversary of its 1967 Impossible Dream team, the first to redefine the scope of the possible at Fenway Park. In Wednesday night’s game, the 2017 squad continued a magical August that in its own right is altering what looks possible this season.

In a fitting tribute, the Red Sox scored three times in the ninth inning to stun the visiting Cardinals, walking off with a thrilling 5-4 victory.

It’s the ninth walk-off win of the season for the Sox, with six of them coming in the month since the All- Star break. In the first 16 days of August, these Red Sox have compiled three signature late-game victories.

“Just an exciting, exciting way to finish it off,” manager John Farrell said. “This team is so resilient. We continue to grind away.”

“This,” said Jackie Bradley, Jr., “is a great win.”

The heroes were a pair of stars emerging from extended slumps. Xander Bogaerts started the rally with a home run, and Mookie Betts finished it off with a two-out, two-strike, two-run double off the Green Monster. Bradley raced all the way around from first with the winning run, scoring when Yadier Molina couldn’t hold onto the relay throw from left.

Bogaerts’ home run was his first since July 5 — the day before he was hit in the right hand. That’s an injury that the shortstop has acknowledged still bothers him, though one he has appeared to overcome of late. He collected three hits — including two sharp line drives to left field -- on Tuesday night before smashing a Trevor Rosenthal into the third row of the Green Monster seats.

“I don’t remember the last time I was swinging to left field with the stuff I had going on. It was good these last few days to be more loose as opposed to only being able to hit the ball the other way with weak contact,” said Bogaerts, explaining how the injury to his hand limited him. “I just couldn’t use my hands. I started creating a lot of bad swings, a lot of bad habits because if I wanted to swing the way I normally swing, it would hurt.

“It’s just trying to get back to that swing that I normally have.”

Two outs, two walks and two pitching changes later, Betts faced New England native John Brebbia with the tying and winning runs on base. And he, too, showed signs of emerging from a recent funk.

The right-handed Brebbia got ahead of Betts 1-2 before tempting him with a pair of sliders just off the plate. For weeks, that pitch has been a siren’s song to Betts, who had seen his rate elevate as his usually pristine pitch recognition and strike-zone discipline eroded.

This time, Betts laid off both pitches off the plate.

“It changes the whole at-bat to make him throw a strike,” Betts said. “Being able to lay off those definitely gave me a better opportunity.”

The better opportunity manifested itself in a Brebbia full-count that found the middle of the plate down. Betts banged it off the wall in left, and the 3-2 count gave Bradley just enough of a head start to beat the relay home.

“I was telling [third-base coach Brian Butterfield] before, ‘Anything off the wall, send me,’” said Bradley.

What made the ninth so cathartic for the Red Sox was the manner in which they had threatened throughout the night — with little to show for it. Only once did the Cardinals retire the side in order, though they proved adept at escaping jams by putting the ball on the ground for double plays.

A Betts single in the first had been erased by a . With two on in the fifth, Hanley Ramirez fouled out to first base. With runners at the corners in the sixth, Christian Vazquez hit into another double play. A leadoff walk in the eighth? You guessed it: a Ramirez double play.

Before Betts’ game-winning knock, Boston had been 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position; the one hit was a tapper to the pitcher that Eduardo Nuñez beat out in the third.

The rally made a winner out of Craig Kimbrel, who tossed a 1-2-3 ninth. A bullpen bridge that struggled in the Bronx was strong before that point, as Matt Barnes and Addison Reed combined to record eight outs. Barnes, in particular, looked strong in stranding a sixth-inning runner with consecutive strikeouts.

This was not a good night for Eduardo Rodriguez, but it wasn’t as bad as it could have been. The left- hander teetered early; for the second time in three nights, the Red Sox had a reliever warming in the second inning. But Rodriguez was able to largely settle in following that four-run frame, working into the sixth to keep Boston in the contest.

Afterward, glowing in the wake of another unexpected late-game win, Bradley was asked if this team has hit its stride.

“No,” he said. “Not yet. We could play very good baseball.”

Red Sox monitoring bullpen usage toward end of season

Tim Britton

BOSTON — Being among the league leaders in a stat category isn’t always a good thing.

“One of the things you’re not proud of as a manager is to see a reliever in the top five in appearances,” Farrell said. “I’ll be honest with you. It means they’re good, but it means you’re going to them maybe a little bit too frequently so you pick spots where hopefully you can back off and even out some of the rapid pace of appearances.”

Under Farrell, the Red Sox have never had a reliever rank in the top five in appearances in the American League. Only Koji Uehara in 2013, when he appeared in 73 games, has ranked in the top 10 during Farrell’s tenure with Boston.

This season, Matt Barnes is tied for fifth in the American League in appearances with 55 — three behind league leader Dan Jennings and on pace for 74. Addison Reed is one behind Barnes, though most of his games came in the with the Mets, of course. Further down the list is Heath Hembree with 50 appearances. Hembree ranks 13th among A.L. relievers in , as well.

That’s why, with Reed brought aboard and Joe Kelly returning from the disabled list, the Red Sox backed off Hembree for a more than a week earlier this month. His appearance on Monday night against Cleveland was his first in 10 days.

“That’s why we’re carrying an extra reliever right now,” Farrell said of his eight-man bullpen. “If there are innings that need to be picked up, you can go to someone else rather than going to the same guys over and over.”

Another addition who has helped distribute the load in the back end is Brandon Workman, who continues to pitch himself into more important spots with a 1.57 ERA in the majors this season.

Boston has to be careful with Workman, as well. Counting his time with Triple-A Pawtucket, he’s thrown more innings than Hembree this season. Workman has tossed 52 frames this year after throwing a combined 20 innings over the previous two years due to Tommy John surgery.

“You’re always mindful of the surgery, the rehab and all the work that’s gone into it,” Farrell said. “The stuff has ticked up, and he’s feeling great physically. There’s never been a question about his competitiveness and presence to pitch late in games. He’s got some momentum going.”

Farrell said he is still looking for spots to use Kelly, who’s pitched just three times since coming off the disabled list on August 5. Kelly has allowed two runs on five hit in 2 2/3 innings since returning.

David Price doesn’t throw on flat ground Wednesday

Tim Britton

BOSTON — David Price did not throw on Wednesday, as the left-hander didn’t feel as good during his Tuesday throwing session as he had previously, manager John Farrell said.

“When he threw [Tuesday], I don’t know that he felt as free as he did the three consecutive days in New York,” Farrell said. “He will resume [Thursday].”

Price has been day-to-day throughout this process, with the Red Sox not committing to a set schedule publicly. That said, Wednesday figured to be a day he would throw. Price long tossed out to 120 feet for those three consecutive days in the Bronx over the weekend before taking a scheduled day off on Monday. He threw out to 90 feet on Tuesday.

Price still has only thrown from flat ground. Once he throws off a mound, a clearer timetable for his return would present itself.

***

The Red Sox will throw Drew Pomeranz and Chris Sale in the first two games of their weekend series with the Yankees. They haven’t yet decided who will pitch the Sunday finale.

That’s Doug Fister’s day, but Boston could turn to Rick Porcello on regular rest because of Thursday’s off- day. That would push Fister back to Monday or Tuesday in Cleveland, meaning he’d face the Indians for a third straight start.

Fister was outstanding in his first start against Cleveland before getting knocked around in a makeup game earlier this week. Porcello has pitched much better of late, with a 3.69 ERA since the start of July. He’s won his last three starts.

***

Blake Swihart may not be a full-time catcher again this season, but the Red Sox may still bring Swihart up as a backstop come September.

Boston has used Christian Vazquez and Sandy Leon exclusively behind the plate this season. The team usually calls up a third catcher in September for greater roster flexibility, and Swihart is the only other catcher currently on the 40-man roster.

Since returning from his latest bout with ankle soreness, Swihart has caught two games in the Gulf Coast League. He’s also played five games at first base between the GCL and Triple-A Pawtucket.

The other catcher Boston could consider promoting is Dan Butler, who received a cup of coffee in the majors in 2014 and who has played well again for the PawSox. Butler, though, isn’t on the 40-man roster, and the Red Sox already have to clear at least one spot on that roster for when Carson Smith returns.

* The Springfield Republican

Jerry Remy's 30th season as NESN and Red Sox broadcaster to be celebrated in pregame ceremony

Jen McCaffrey

The Red Sox and NESN have announced a pregame celebration for Jerry Remy's 30th season as the club's broadcaster on Sunday, Aug. 20.

NESN will carry the ceremony live preceding the 1:35 p.m. game against the Yankees.

"Jerry is an incredible person who is beloved by Red Sox Nation," NESN President and CEO Sean McGrail said in a press release. "There have been so many great moments in his NESN broadcasting career and we are excited to celebrate his 30 years in the booth."

Remy, 64, has not been in the broadcast booth since the All-Star break as he continues treatment for lung cancer.

Remy has served as the Red Sox color analyst on NESN since 1988, announcing over 3,900 Red Sox games during his career. He was elected to the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 2006 for his playing and broadcasting accomplishments, and the following year, elected President of Red Sox Nation through online fan voting.

Boston Red Sox ceremonial first pitch goes wild, hits photographer in worst possible area

Jen McCaffrey

BOSTON - It will likely go down as one of the more memorable ceremonial first pitches in Fenway Park history.

On Wednesday night, as the Red Sox continued their annual fundraiser with the Jimmy Fund, 17-year-old cancer survivor Jordan Leandre was invited to throw out the first pitch.

As Leandre threw the ball toward home plate, it sailed high and outside hitting Lawrence Eagle Tribune photographer Tony Capobianco, who was standing behind the backstop, in a sensitive area.

NESN cameras caught video of the whole incident and it spread around the internet like wildfire.

Mookie Betts hits walk-off to lead Boston Red Sox over St. Louis Cardinals

Meredith Perri

BOSTON -- Mookie Betts slashed a pitch into left field Wednesday evening, driving in the game-tying and game-winning run to lead the Boston Red Sox over the St. Louis Cardinals 5-4 at Fenway Park.

Xander Bogaerts kick started the Red Sox comeback, launching a solo home run into the Green Monster seats to lead off the inning and make it a one-run game. Mitch Moreland walked in the next at-bat, and while the Cardinals picked up one out, Jackie Bradley Jr. also made his way on base with a walk to put the go-ahead run on first.

The Cardinals took an early 4-0 lead when St. Louis picked away at Red Sox starter Eduardo Rodriguez and Boston's defense in the second inning. Yadier Molina led off the frame with a double off the Monster before ultimately coming around to score the first of his team's four runs.

Boston pushed across two runs in the third inning behind an RBI single from Eduardo Nunez and a Mookie Betts .

Sox bullpen holds Cardinals scoreless

The Cardinals did not score a run after the second inning thanks, in part, to another strong night by the Red Sox bullpen. Matt Barnes, Addison Reed and Craig Kimbrel combined to give up just two hits over 3.2 innings of work while striking out a combined five.

Kimbrel earned the win.

Christian Vazquez struggles defensively in second

As the Cardinals worked their way into a four-run inning, they got a little help from Christian Vazquez.

The Red Sox catcher allowed a with a runner on third, making it a 3-0 game. Vazquez then missed a throw to the plate from Jackie Bradley Jr. in the next at-bat, allowing the runner to advance to third.

Bradley and Vazquez connected in the next at-bat, though, as Bradley threw out Matt Carpenter at the plate for his fourth of the year.

Eduardo Rodriguez gains momentum late

After he was nearly lifted in the second inning, Eduardo Rodriguez settled in late during his start against the Cardinals, making it through 5-1/3 innings despite the rough start.

He put down seven in a row between the third and fifth innings, and finished the outing with six strikeouts (three of which were to Paul DeJong). By the fifth inning, Rodriguez had found his and was effectively getting Cardinals batters to chase the pitch out of the .

Rodriguez has not earned a win since coming back from the disabled list on July 17.

Jackie Bradley Jr.'s dream play? Making catch while standing on right-center fence

Meredith Perri

BOSTON -- Jackie Bradley Jr. made a key play in the outfield Wednesday night.

That in itself isn't a surprise -- but the way he did it was.

In a game that the Boston Red Sox ultimately won in walk-off fashion, 5-4, over the St. Louis Cardinals, Bradley threw out a runner from third at the plate on a single to center. In fact, it was a repeat of a play he had just unsuccessfully attempted when catcher Christian Vazquez made an error catching the throw from center.

Had Bradley ever thought of gunning down a runner from third on a single?

"No," Bradley said after the game. "You don't throw people out on base hits like that."

Bradley, however has been thinking about a nearly impossible play. He wants to make a catch while standing on the right-center wall.

"I'll tell you a play I have thought about though," Bradley said. "I've thought about climbing that right- center field wall, standing on top of it and, in case the ball was a little too far, jump in, catch it and throw it back in play.

"Would that count as an out? Can y'all research that for me?"

The answer -- yes, it looks like it would count.

According to the Official MLB Rulebook, "A fielder may reach over a fence, railing, rope or other line of demarcation to make a catch. He may jump on top of a railing or canvas that may be in foul ground. No should be allowed when a fielder reaches over a fence, railing rope or into a stand to catch a ball. He does so at his own risk."

Wednesday's assist was Bradley's fourth of the season.

Xander Bogaerts ninth-inning homer sparks rally; Shortstop admits injured hand hampered power

Jen McCaffrey

BOSTON - Xander Bogaerts hadn't homered in 29 games before the ninth inning on Wednesday night.

In fact, the last homer Bogaerts had hit came on July 5, one day before he was hit on the hand by a pitch in Tampa Bay.

Bogaerts never spent time on the disabled list and has only been out of the lineup for five of the 33 games since, but the bruised hand clearly zapped his power.

Over that stretch he hit .200 with a .497 OPS.

"Man, that definitely hit me hard, you know? I stopped playing well after that," Bogaerts said Wednesday night after Boston's walk-off win. "I just couldn't use my hands. I started creating a lot of bad swings, a lot of bad habits because if I wanted to swing the way I normally swing it would hurt. It's just trying to get back to that swing that i normally have and hopefully now I can just continue with that. Because it was definitely tough on me."

Bogaerts entered in the top of the ninth with the Red Sox trailing 4-2 against St. Louis closer Trevor Rosenthal and smashed a solo homer over the wall to bring Boston with one run. Mookie Betts hit a two- run single later in the inning to give the Red Sox the win.

Boston retained its 4 1/2 games ahead of New York in the division, but if the Red Sox are to make any type of playoff run, they won't be able to do it without Bogaerts hitting well.

"I don't remember the last time I was swinging to left field with the stuff I had going on," Bogaerts said. "It was good these last few days to be more loose as opposed to only being able to hit the ball the other way with weak contact."

The Red Sox shortstop has started to find his grove over the last three games, pulling together a 5-for-12 stretch and he's hoping he's figured out a way to maintain it.

* The Lowell Sun

50 years later, still legendary

Matt Langone

BOSTON -- To a generation of Boston Red Sox fans, the mere mention of the 1967 season induces an ear- to-ear smile and vivid fond memories.

If you're from these parts but weren't yet born or weren't old enough to experience that memorable journey for yourself, you've very likely heard all about "The Impossible Dream." The tale has been told in great detail for decades from sports bars, to kitchen tables, to Fenway Park bleachers, to bedtime stories as parents tuck their children in.

Sox win thriller/14

Prior to the 1967 campaign, the Red Sox had gone through eight straight losing seasons. Attendance was way down and expectations were lower than low. Just 8,324 fans showed up to Fenway Park for Opening Day in '67, which was just about the norm for the team in the 1960's.

Then things changed.

Led by Hall of Fame slugger Carl Yastrzemski, who won the American League's Triple Crown, and pitcher Jim Lonborg, the AL's Cy Young Award winner, the Red Sox (92-70) won the pennant on the last day of the season after one of the most memorable races in baseball history, with four teams within a game-and-a- half of the lead with four days left in the season. The Red Sox beat the Minnesota Twins twice on the final weekend, with Yastrzemski going 7-for-8 and Lonborg winning his 22nd game.

It was Boston's first pennant since 1946. The Red Sox eventually lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series in seven games, but Boston fell in love with baseball and has remained dedicated ever since, with three World Series titles (2004, 2007, 2013) to enjoy for their efforts.

"It brought the fans back to the ballpark," said Yastrzemski, who batted .326 with 44 home runs and 121 RBI in 1967. "My previous six years to that we were lucky to have 10,000 fans on a Friday night."

Yastrzemski and his teammates were honored in a pregame ceremony at Fenway on Wednesday night to celebrate the 50th anniversary of "The Impossible Dream" before the Red Sox played, fittingly, the Cardinals.

The players in attendance included Mike Andrews, Gary Bell, Bucky Brandon, Hank Fischer, Ken Harrelson, Bill Landis, Lonborg, Dave Morehead, Jerry Moses, Rico Petrocelli, Billy Rohr, Mike Ryan, Jose Santiago, Reggie Smith, Lee Stange, George Thomas and Gary Waslewski. All were introduced individually to roaring ovations.

The players gathered in the Fenway interview room to field questions from the media before the ceremony. Hugs and laughs were exchanged, and even some playful ribbing.

"Hey, Yaz, how come you couldn't hit that hanging curve in New York?," Petrocelli joked as he stuck his head in amongst the reporters when Yastrzemski was fielding questions.

One thing was abundantly clear: these players still view that iconic 1967 season with the same mystique as the fans.

"It's great to have a chance to be able to see all these guys," said Lonborg, who went 22-9 and had a 3.16 ERA in '67. "It was just really, as they say these days, team chemistry. We sparked the fire and the fire is now Red Sox Nation. It was great to be a part of all that.

"We actually had a great finish to the season in 1966. I think we had the second-best record in the American League from the All-Star break on. I know, personally, that I left the team with a good feeling with the way I was pitching and progressing and I'm sure other players felt the same way, too. So when you come into spring training and you're filled with confidence that you've beaten a lot of good teams down the stretch, it's great. With the addition of (manager) Dick Williams and a little discipline were able to do it."

Of course, not everyone was able to be there. The skipper, Williams, passed away in 2011. Local hero Tony Conigliaro passed away in 1990 at just 45 years old. Conigliaro, the right fielder, was limited to just 95 games in 1967 because he was famously hit above the left cheek bone by a pitch from Angels' pitcher Jack Hamilton on Aug. 18 at Fenway. He was knocked unconscious and was taken off the field on a stretcher. The injury, which forced him to miss the entire 1968 season, caused eyesight problems for Conigliaro and ultimately cut his career well short of what it could've been.

"We're missing a lot of guys right now. A lot of guys that we were very close to," said Lonborg, who became a dentist in Massachusetts after his playing career. "That's the thing that's hardest when you get a gathering like this. But a lot of good life has gone on since that time. Families have been started, grandkids have been born. Good things have happened."

They rattled off moments from 1967 as if they happened yesterday. There was Petrocelli's catch on a popup by Minnesota's Rich Rollins to clinch the pennant. There was the June 21 brawl at Yankee Stadium after the teams exchanged , and 12 security guards were needed to resolve the situation. And, of course, there was Yastrzemski, who was the star of stars.

"Yaz was everybody's hero," said Petrocelli, one of four Red Sox all-stars in 1967, joining Conigliaro, Lonborg and Yastrzemski.

Fifty years later, they're all heroes in Boston baseball lore.

* The Worcester Telegram & Gazette

Magic of 1967 Red Sox season may well have started in Yankee Stadium

Bill Ballou

BOSTON — Pinpointing the exact moment the Impossible Dream began is like nailing down the exact date the Roman Empire fell.

Everything is open to interpretation.

But the 1967 Red Sox season evolved from mundane to memorable very quickly. In fact, the point can be made that the team’s metamorphosis from perennial loser to beloved champions began on April 14 at Yankee Stadium.

In the ninth inning of that game, the third of the season, Carl Yastrzemski made one of the best catches in franchise history to preserve what was to that point a no-hitter by Billy Rohr, making his first appearance in the major leagues.

Yankees left fielder Tom Tresh hit a bomb to left to begin the bottom of the ninth, his team trailing Boston, 3-0.

“Yastrzemski going hard, way back, way back... and he dives and makes a TREMENDOUS catch!” said announcer Ken Coleman.

Rohr won the game, 3-0, but lost the no-hitter when Elston Howard singled to right on a 3-2 pitch with two out. What would have been a first — a pitcher throwing a no-hitter in his big-league debut — was lost, but the event was the catalyst for a season that seemed to feature weekly baseball miracles.

“I remember it was in the early part of the season,” Yastrzemski recalled Wednesday, as the Red Sox recognized the 50th anniversary of that Impossible Dream team during a pregame ceremony at Fenway Park. “I remember the ball was hit very hard. Rohr had the no-hitter going at the time and after I made the catch, I thought to myself, ‘Well, now he’ll get the no-hitter.’ But he didn’t, of course.”

Asked if it was the best catch he made in his 23-year career, Yastrzemski answered, “Considering the circumstances, yes it was.”

The game was a microcosm of what the season would become. Howard was later traded to the Red Sox. The game was attended by Jacqueline Kennedy and John Kennedy Jr. Hall of Famer Whitey Ford was the losing pitcher and Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle pinch hit for Kennedy in the eighth and flied out.

“I remember that when Tresh hit the ball,” Rohr recalled, “the first thing that came into my mind was the only way Yaz was going to get to the ball was if it hit something. And then he just ran it down, almost impossible to do as hard as it was hit.”

Yastrzemski resembled a wide receiver diving for a touchdown pass, so if he had not made the play, Tresh had a chance at an inside the park home run, although Rohr disputes that notion.

“I would have tackled the son of a (gun) when he was going around third,” the lefty said. “It was the greatest catch I’ve ever seen and I had a really good view of it.”

With two outs in the ninth, Rohr got ahead of Howard, 1 and 2. The fourth pitch of the seemed to be an obvious called strike but Cal Drummond ruled it ball two. Two pitches later Howard dumped a single into right, then Rohr got the 27th out.

Howard’s hit went over the head of Reggie Smith, playing second base in place of the injured Mike Andrews, and not center field.

“When Elston Howard came over to us late in the season,” Smith said, “he was my roommate. So I asked him about the pitch and he said, ‘Yeah, it was a strike.’”

After the game, Mrs. Kennedy asked Rohr to autograph a ball for her and her son.

“If I’d have been thinking,” Rohr said, “I would have had him autograph a ball for me.”

There were 159 games left after Rohr’s near no-hitter, but the intensity of the season never let up. The Red Sox faltered, then recovered. The season seemed doomed 50 years ago Friday when Tony Conigliaro was beaned by Angels pitcher Jack Hamilton and lost for the season, but Boston signed Ken Harrelson from the A’s as baseball’s first free agent and went 30-16 after that.

Boston won the American League pennant on the final day of the regular season thanks to Jim Lonborg’s 22nd win, then lost the World Series to St. Louis (Wednesday night’s opponent) in seven games — the team’s first trip to the Series since 1946. No matter, the Impossible Dream team invented the franchise that the Red Sox have become.

When the Cardinals won the World Series to end the Impossible Dream there was no regional agony or recrimination. Heck, manager Dick Williams pitched Lonborg on two days’ rest for Game 7 and did not hear a syllable of criticism.

In fact, Lonborg thought it was a happy ending, that some of the magic of ’67 was preserved in the ultimate defeat.

“If I was a writer,” he said, “I would have written that into the script.”

Just like Rohr is probably more famous for his near no-hitter than he would have been if he’d pitched one.

* RedSox.com

Loud 9th: Sox hit Cards with their Betts shot

Ian Browne and Jenifer Langosch

BOSTON -- In what is shaping up as an August to remember for the red-hot Red Sox, Mookie Betts belted a two-out, two-strike, two-run double in the bottom of the ninth to cap a wild 5-4 win that stunned the Cardinals on Wednesday night at Fenway Park.

The low liner off the Green Monster was the capper of a three-run surge, giving the Red Sox their ninth walk-off win of the season, and fourth in their last nine home victories.

While maintaining a 4 1/2-game lead over the Yankees in the American League East, Boston has ripped off 12 victories in the last 14 games since July 31.

"I think we're just playing the game, playing hard and playing nine innings and not giving up no matter what the score is," said Betts. "I think we're just, like I said, learning our identity and grinding."

For the Cardinals, what seemed like a sure win came to a grinding halt, and the loss dropped them 2 1/2 games behind the Cubs in the .

"There was a lot of frustration at the end," said Cardinals manager Mike Matheny, referencing not only the outcome but also the club's multiple disagreements with home-plate umpire Chris Segal. The final one ended with Matheny being ejected.

With Boston trailing 4-2 heading into the final frame, Xander Bogaerts made it a one-run game by leading off the inning with a homer against Trevor Rosenthal, who was pitching with significantly diminished velocity and was pulled by Matheny after the next batter (Mitch Moreland) drew a six-pitch walk.

Lefty Zach Duke was lifted after a one-out walk to Jackie Bradley Jr. Matheny then went to rookie righty John Brebbia, but the Sharon, Mass., native couldn't get the job done while vying for his first career .

"Felt good about Brebbia. Felt good about Duke," Matheny said. "[Brebbia] made some really good pitches there in a very, very tough situation. I think he continues to go up in our view of how we can use him."

With two outs, Betts got enough of a 3-2 slider to find a piece of wall. Pinch-runner Chris Young scored from second to tie it and Bradley roared all the way around from first to make it to the plate, where catcher Yadier Molina couldn't hold on to the relay throw.

"As I'm watching it unfold, it was a good throw there and I thought they had him there, but they didn't catch it, so we were fortunate enough to win the game," said Betts.

It was a thrilling turn of events for the Red Sox, who celebrated the 50-year anniversary of their "Impossible Dream" before the game and pulled out a victory that was reminiscent of that '67 season.

"Obviously an exciting finish," said Red Sox manager John Farrell. "Bogey gets us started with the solo home run, and it's good to see him start to drive the ball a little more frequently. This team is so resilient."

St. Louis came up with four runs against Eduardo Rodriguez in the top of the second inning. (RBI single), Luke Voit (RBI double) and Matt Carpenter (RBI single) delivered the key knocks. But the Cardinals didn't score for the rest of the night. That proved to be costly.

Cards starter Lance Lynn scattered seven hits and allowed two runs (one earned) over six innings and was in position to get the win. But he wound up with a no-decision.

The Red Sox won all four matchups against the Cardinals this season.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

JBJ's unusual assist: Bradley had a couple of unique chances to throw out a runner at the plate during the four-run second, and he was successful on the second try. With Voit on third and one out, Carpenter stung a liner that fell just in front of Bradley. Voit got a late start because he was waiting to see if it got caught. Bradley fired home with a 95.5-mph throw that traveled 230 feet, according to Statcast™, but catcher Christian Vazquez couldn't hang on to the throw, and Carpenter advanced to third. Tommy Pham came up next, and his liner to center was eerily similar to the one by Carpenter. Again, Bradley fielded it on a hop. Carpenter, who had to stay close to third in case it was caught, was thrown out at the plate by Bradley on a 95.8-mph throw that went 254 feet.

"Line drive, I actually started trying to take a sharper angle to it, but then it started coming towards me, so I had to readjust, and knowing I was going to catch it in the air, I just tried to get in front of it and make sure I'd keep it in front to body it up," said Bradley. "It hopped right in my glove. I saw he was maybe one or two steps from third base. I felt like I was shallow enough to try to make a play at home."

Carpenter said his read and reaction were complicated by the fact that he was running on contact.

"When you're on contact, you have to make at least three hard steps home," Carpenter said. "When the ball is hit as hard as it was, take those three hard steps and then try to get back and tag in case he catches it, and then when he doesn't catch it, you're just in no-man's land. Looking back on it, I wasn't going to score either way. The only other option would be to stay there and not go and hope that the next guy drives me in. So I took a gamble that the guy wouldn't make a good throw, and he made a good throw."

JBJ's mad dash home: Bradley had a feeling Betts might hit the Green Monster in the bottom of the ninth, so he made his pitch to third-base coach Brian Butterfield.

"I was telling Butter before the play, 'Anything off that wall, send me.' It kind of helped that we got to the 3-2 count so I would get a running start," said Bradley. "It hit off the wall and I was just trying to keep telling myself, 'Get the truck off my back.'"

Bradley motored home at 28.6 feet per second, according to Statcast™, up a tick from his max-average effort of 27.3 feet per second. More >

QUOTABLE

"I get kind of spoiled. I see it all the time. It's just amazing when you sit back and just kind of watch what he does. It's like art. He's the best in the league in my eyes, for sure." -- Betts, on watching Bradley play defense

"Every umpire has a different zone, even though that's what's not supposed to happen. You try to do everything you can and just figure it out. I was able to get through six and give our team a chance to win." - - Lynn, on grinding through his 110-pitch effort on a night when he felt the strike zone was tight

SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS

The Red Sox are 14-1 in their last 15 Interleague home games and are 30-10 in their last 40 games against the NL Central.

WHAT'S NEXT

Cardinals: A big four-game series against division-rival Pittsburgh looms for the Cardinals, who will kick off the set by sending Adam Wainwright to the mound in Thursday's 6:05 p.m. CT game at PNC Park. Wainwright is coming off an outing in which he pitched through arm stiffness.

Red Sox: After a day off on Thursday, the Red Sox host the Yankees for a three-game rivalry showdown that begins on Friday at 7:10 p.m. ET. Lefty Drew Pomeranz will start the opener. The Red Sox are 5-7 against the Yankees this season, including 2-4 at Fenway Park.

JBJ's mad dash home all part of the plan

Ian Browne

BOSTON -- Moments before Jackie Bradley Jr. was off to the races to complete Wednesday's wild 5-4 victory over the Cardinals, his mind started racing with anticipation.

And he wanted third-base coach Brian Butterfield to know exactly what he was thinking.

"I was telling Butter before the play, 'Anything off that wall, send me,'" said Bradley. "And it kind of helped that we got the 3-2 count, so I would get a running start."

The Red Sox were down 4-3 with two outs. Pinch-runner Chris Young was on second and Bradley at first.

Bradley's inkling proved correct. Mookie Betts belted the 3-2 slider off the Green Monster, and as Young scored the tying run, Butterfield made Bradley's wish come true and waved him home.

"It hit off the wall and I was just trying to keep telling myself, 'Get the truck off my back,'" Bradley said. During the first-to-home dash, Bradley had a sprint speed of 28.6-feet per second, according to Statcast™. His max-effort average this season is 27.3-feet per second.

Truth be told, Bradley also needed some good fortune.

Shortstop Paul DeJong picked the one-hop throw from left fielder Tommy Pham and fired home in an attempt to nail Bradley and send the game to extra innings. DeJong's throw was in time, but catcher Yadier Molina couldn't keep the ball in his glove.

Bradley initially missed the plate with his left hand, but touched it with his right to end the game and set off the ninth walk-off celebration the Red Sox have had this season, and the eighth since June 12. It was Boston's 12th win in the last 14 games.

"Obviously I could just see that [Molina's] getting ready for a play to happen," said Bradley. "I'm just running and I'm just trying to find any particular space or room I can slide in order to avoid the tag or go straight in. I pulled my hand back completely to try to avoid the tag so that I would at least slide past the tag. I knew I didn't tag it at first because he was blocking the plate. I didn't even pay attention to whether he had the ball or not. I was just trying to make sure I tagged the plate."

Given how fast Bradley was moving, was he surprised he was nearly out?

"I'm not surprised. Hot shot off the wall, the left fielder made a great play, barehanded it out there -- I saw the replay -- hit the cutoff man, and off to the races from there," said Bradley.

It was the capper of an eventful night for Bradley. In the top of the second, he made one of the rarest assists you'll ever see, getting Matt Carpenter going from third to home on a line-drive single to center by Pham.

Carpenter stayed close to third because he felt he was going to have to tag to score the run. But Bradley couldn't catch it in the air. Once Bradley gloved it on the bounce, he made a 95.8-mph throw home to nail Carpenter.

"Line drive, I actually started trying to take a sharper angle to it, but then it started coming towards me, so I had to readjust, and knowing I was going to catch it in the air, I just tried to get in front of it and make sure I'd keep it in front to body it up" Bradley said. "It hopped right in my glove. I saw he was maybe one or two steps from third base. I felt like I was shallow enough to try to make a play at home."

Ultimately, the night would come down to another play at home, and Bradley raced in for the victory.

Yaz, 'Impossible Dream' team feted at Fenway

Ian Browne

BOSTON -- It has been 50 years since the Red Sox captivated their city with the "Impossible Dream" season. But the memories haven't faded away. In fact, they seem to get richer through time.

Seventeen members of the 1967 Sox -- led by Triple Crown winner Carl Yastrzemski and American League Cy Young Award winner Jim Lonborg -- were celebrated in an on-field ceremony prior to Wednesday's game against the Cardinals. Reggie Smith, Rico Petrocelli, Ken "Hawk" Harrelson and Mike Andrews were among the other players who came back for a sweet stroll down memory lane.

"Old stories have come up and old memories have come up, and it's just great to be able to have a chance to see all of these guys," said Lonborg.

It was only fitting that the festivities took place with the Cardinals in town. Hall of Famer Bob Gibson was the man who stopped the 1967 Red Sox just one game from winning it all in Game 7 of the World Series. Lonborg tried to match Gibson on just two days' rest, but it proved to be too tall an order.

But not even that ending seems to diminish the accomplishment of the team that came out of nowhere to win the pennant after many years of being out of contention. When you consider that Boston team was the ultimate underdog, perhaps it was more fitting that they came just short against a loaded St. Louis squad.

"I wouldn't change a thing," said Harrelson.

"I don't think the magic of this Impossible Dream team would have had this same feeling had we won everything," said Lonborg. "It was bittersweet, but if I was a writer, I probably would have written that into the script."

Nobody could have scripted what Yastrzemski would do in the season that defined his Hall of Fame career. Yaz went 7-for-8 in the final two games of the regular season, when the only thing that was on the line was everything.

"You know everything fell into place for me personally the last few weeks of the season," said Yastrzemski. "Because every time I came up, there were men on base. Pitchers couldn't pitch around me, so I had the chance to focus in and hit. If you didn't have men on base, then pitchers could pitch around me."

Five decades later, Yaz's teammates remain awed by his accomplishments. He hit .326 with 44 home runs and 121 RBIs.

"Ted Williams was a good friend of mine, a great hitter. He and [Stan] Musial were arguably the two best hitters that ever lived," said Harrelson. "Neither one of those ever had a year like Yastrzemski had in '67. Never had a year like that. Yaz had the most impactful year on a franchise in the history of the game."

But Yaz is the first to remind people that the role players also made that surreal season possible.

"Everyone down the stretch on that team contributed. It was like somebody different every day," Yastrzemski said. "And that's what it takes to win a pennant. And we were very fortunate that we had 25 guys and all of them contributed."

The enthusiasm of Red Sox fans also sprouted that season and there has been no turning back ever since.

"Definitely," said Lonborg. "We were the ones that sparked the fire, and the fire is now Red Sox Nation, so it's great to be part of all of that."

Leon to honor son on Players Weekend

Ian Browne

BOSTON -- Red Sox catcher Sandy Leon and his wife Liliana are expecting their first child in late October or early November and are hopeful they will have a World Series baby.

But Leon will get to honor his son in a unique way well before the birth.

MLB is holding an inaugural Players Weekend from Aug. 25-27, and all players can choose whatever name they want on the back of their jerseys.

While most are going with nicknames, Leon will have "Noah" on his during the Red Sox-Orioles series at Fenway Park.

"It makes me proud to be able to put my son's name on my jersey," said Leon. "That makes me feel good. My wife and I made that decision together. I don't have a nickname so I figured my son's name is perfect."

When Noah Leon is fully grown, perhaps he can throw that jersey on some day.

"We'll save the jersey so he can see it and be able to appreciate it in a couple of years," Sandy Leon said. What led Sandy and Liliana to pick Noah as the name for their first child?

"We're Christians," Sandy Leon said. "My father-in-law and mother-in-law, they're pastors in Colombia, so we read the , and we like the name."

The nickname is just part of the unique concept of Players Weekend. All players will wear colorful, non- traditional uniforms featuring alternate designs.

The players also get to wear and use uniquely colored and designed spikes, gloves, wristbands, compression sleeves, catcher's masks and bats.

Players will wear specially designed caps by New Era, and unique socks from Stance. During pregame workouts and postgame interviews, they will wear T-shirts highlighting a charity or cause of their choice.

"I think it's great," Leon said. "That's what it's all about, is playing the game and enjoying it, and it's a great idea to do something like this with the names on the jerseys. I really like it."

Their jerseys feature white space that players can use to honor family members or coaches who helped advance their careers.

Wearing Noah's name on his jersey will only heighten Sandy's excitement for becoming a father.

"Of course, we can't wait. And it will almost be the offseason when he is born, so you can spend a lot of time with the baby," Leon said. "And hopefully we are playing in the World Series when he is born."

Game-worn, Players Weekend jerseys will be auctioned at MLB.com/auctions with 100 percent of net proceeds donated to the MLB-MLBPA Youth Development Foundation, a joint effort established in July 2015 by MLB and the MLBPA with an initial commitment of $30 million focused on improving the caliber, effectiveness and availability of amateur baseball and softball programs across the U.S. and Canada.

The uniforms will first be worn by the Pirates and Cardinals during the MLB Little League Classic to be played in Williamsport, Pa., on Sunday, Aug. 20, during the 2017 Little League World Series. That game will take place at Bowman Field, home of the Williamsport Crosscutters, a Phillies affiliate in the short- season New York-Penn League.

Leader Watch: Red Sox walk-offs proving key

David Adler

The Red Sox and Yankees, who haven't finished 1-2 in the American League East since 2009, are back at the top of the division standings -- Boston first, New York second and in the first AL Wild Card spot. With every game important as the two longstanding rivals jockey for playoff position in the season's final two months, the Red Sox got a big, 5-4 win on Wednesday.

The Red Sox were down, 4-2, to the Cardinals entering the ninth inning at Fenway Park, three outs from seeing their lead in the East trimmed to 3 1/2 games. The Yanks had just beaten the Mets, 5-3, in a Subway Series contest at Citi Field.

But the Red Sox rallied. Xander Bogaerts homered. Mitch Moreland and Jackie Bradley Jr. walked. And with two outs, Mookie Betts finished the comeback, ripping a walk-off, two-run double to left field.

The Yankees had a game made up, and then they didn't. Boston went from giving away a game to its rivals to keeping pace atop the standings, 4 1/2 games up.

The Red Sox have nine walk-off wins this season, tied for the most in the AL with the A's. The Dodgers lead the Majors with 10 after the leaders came back to beat the White Sox, 5-4, a few hours after the Red Sox's walk-off.

It makes some intuitive sense that powerhouses like the Red Sox and Dodgers could end up with high walk-off totals -- they're talented teams with loaded rosters that might be more likely to emerge victorious at the end of a close game.

Last season, for example, the Indians led the Majors in walk-offs, as they won the AL Central and came within a win of a World Series title. In 2015, it was the Cubs, who went on to reach the NL Championship Series.

That's not to say that only teams with high walk-off totals will be playoff contenders (or that non-playoff teams can't collect walk-off wins). The 2016 Red Sox -- who won the division -- had only three walk-off wins during the regular season. That was tied for second fewest in the Majors, the polar opposite of what they've done this year.

A lack of walk-offs didn't stop Boston from reaching the postseason a year ago. But as the Red Sox play for October again, in a tight division race that could come down to the wire, their late, dramatic wins could prove to be difference-makers.

* ESPNBoston.com

Mookie Betts got the right hit at the right time -- for him and the Red Sox

Scott Lauber

BOSTON -- Down to his very last strike, with the Boston Red Sox down to their final out in the bottom of the ninth inning on Wednesday night, Mookie Betts laid off back-to-back sliders that narrowly missed clipping the outside corner of the plate.

Talk about a couple of hot takes.

A month ago -- even as recently as two nights ago -- Betts probably would have swung at either pitch. And in all likelihood, he would have missed them. Or maybe he would have lunged far enough over the plate to pop them up. It has been that kind of month for Betts, who was last season's American League MVP runner-up but has been a .262 hitter with seven extra-base hits since the All-Star break.

But when St. Louis Cardinals reliever John Brebbia, a rookie who grew up a half-hour south of Fenway Park in Sharon, Massachusetts, tried to get Betts to go fishing for a slider, the Red Sox star didn't bite.

"It was huge," Betts said. "It changed the whole at-bat. I was able to force him to throw a strike, and any time I can get a strike, I have a better chance of getting good wood on it. Being able to lay off those definitely gave me a better opportunity."

With Betts having worked the count full, Brebbia threw another slider. This one, though, was over the plate, and Betts drove it off the top of the AL East standings that are posted on Fenway Park's fabled Green Monster. Chris Young scored easily from second base, and Jackie Bradley Jr. motored home all the way from first, diving back to touch home plate after Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina couldn't handle the relay throw.

After hitting a walk-off two-run double, Mookie Betts was at the center of a celebration that included Xander Bogaerts, who homered to lead off the ninth. Maddie Meyer/Getty Images The Red Sox came all the way back, too. Trailing by two runs entering the ninth inning, they rallied for a 5- 4 win -- their ninth walk-off victory of the season and eighth since June 12. With a day off Thursday, Boston is assured of opening a three-game series against the second-place New York Yankees with no less than a four-game lead in the division.

"It's coming down to the final months. We have to play good as a team," said shortstop Xander Bogaerts, who started the comeback with his first homer since July 5, a leadoff shot in the ninth against Cardinals closer Trevor Rosenthal. "That was a great win to go into the off day. That changes a lot of things as opposed to if we had lost today."

Betts could be a game-changer, too. It's not that he has had a bad season. Most players would happily swap their numbers for his: .269 average, 34 doubles, 18 homers, 75 RBIs, 17 stolen bases, .796 OPS. Based on wins above replacement as calculated by FanGraphs, he has been the league's fourth-best position player.

Some of that is due to Betts' success with runners in scoring position. He has been one of the Red Sox's best clutch hitters, batting .390 (39-for-100) with 55 RBIs with men on second or third base -- a success rate that manager John Farrell attributes to heightened focus.

"I can't even explain what's going through my head when I step in the box," Betts said. "Right now, I could tell you something, but when I'm in the box, it's probably something different. I'm not exactly sure if it's extra focus or anything. I'm trying to do good all the time, but if that's the side I'm going to err on, I'll be happy with that."

Betts hasn't been happy with his season, though, especially when he compares it to last year. He says he has been too inconsistent, with not enough hot streaks, and cold spells that have lasted too long. And rather than repeating his MVP credentials from last season, he has been surpassed as a front-runner for the award by Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve and others.

The biggest problem? As Farrell sees it, Betts has chased pitches -- sliders, in particular -- off the plate that he was taking last year. He still has nearly as many walks (54) as strikeouts (56), a sign that he's being selective enough. But he hasn't hit the ball as hard as he normally does.

"There's been times where it looks like he gets a little pull-happy and there's some balls in the air," Farrell said. "I can't say that he's expanding the strike zone wholesale. That's not the case. He and a couple other guys, we're still trying to have them hit stride, which they haven't yet for a lengthy period of time."

Put Bogaerts in that category since he bruised his right hand July 6 at Tampa Bay. But Bogaerts notched three hits Tuesday night before taking Rosenthal deep.

Perhaps Betts' three-hit game Wednesday night, capped by his best at-bat in weeks, will get him going, too.

* WEEI.com

Red Sox 5, Cardinals 4: Are you buying into this team yet?

Rob Bradford

You might have forgotten, but it took until Aug. 25 before both the fans and many of the players bought into the 2013 Red Sox. A last-place finishe the year before and offseason strategy made up of Victorinos, Gomes, and Napolis had left the fandom a bit jaded.

But by the time the final week of August rolled around, the Red Sox had a series win against the then- powerhouse Dodgers and many had finally averted their eyes from the Aaron Hernandez chaos to realize there was a pretty good story brewing.

No David Ortiz. No home runs. Too much David Price talk. Too many expectations not met. First-place or not, there seemed to be that same reluctance to jump head-first into the pennant race pool when it comes to this year's Red Sox.

Maybe we've reached that same turning point found upon leaving Los Angeles almost four years ago.

After Mookie Betts' two-run, ninth-inning double handed the Red Sox a 5-4 win over the Cardinals -- amazingly their eighth walk-off for the Sox in their last 19 home wins -- this is becoming more of a trend than a coincidence. In case you haven't noticed, this is now a team that has now won 12 of its last 14 while sitting 4 1/2 games up on the Yankees and five out of the best record in the American League. (For a complete recap of the Red Sox' win, click here.)

"I think we’re just playing the game, playing hard and playing nine innings and not giving up no matter what the score is," said Betts, whose team has now claimed 30 come-from-behind wins. "I think we’re just, like I said, learning our identity and grinding."

A few weeks ago, there still really wasn't much of an identity. The fans felt it, as did the players.

"Our identity is being developed every time we take the field," Red Sox starter Rick Porcello told WEEI.com two weeks ago. "It's not always something you can put a catch-phrase on or say, 'This is them.' But at the end of the day, all our identity needs to be is to find a way to [expletive> win."

As it turns out, the identity has become just that -- winning.

In this case, it wasn't because of the usual springboard, starting pitching, with Eduardo Rodriguez hanging on after giving up four, second-inning runs. Perhaps you could once again identify outfield defense as an impetus for the victory thanks to Jackie Bradley Jr.'s 95 mph throw home, nailing Matt Carpenter at the plate to limit the damage in the second.

The bullpen has been a pretty consistent crutch, and was once again this time around, with the combination of Matt Barnes, Addison Reed and Craig Kimbrel teaming to throw 3 2/3 innings of scoreless relief. It was the 27th time the Red Sox' relievers had managed to go at least three innings without giving up a run.

But it has been the recent resurgence of some of the perceived staples on his lineup which might be punctuating belief in this team. It was Xander Bogaerts' leadoff homer in the ninth inning -- his first Fenway Park homer since May 25 -- that continued the notion that the shortstop's bad right hand is healing, and with it so is his bat.

"Man, that definitely hit me hard, you know? I stopped playing well after that," said Bogaerts regarding the July 6 game he was hit in the hand with a fastball. "I just couldn’t use my hands. I started creating a lot of bad swings, a lot of bad habits because if I wanted to swing the way I normally swing it would hurt. It’s just trying to get back to that swing that i normally have and hopefully now I can just continue with that. Because it was definitely tough on me."

And then there is Betts, who claimed three hits before rifling the line-drive off the left field wall in the ninth after working a full-count on Cardinals reliever John Brebbia. First it was Andrew Benintendi who started living up to expectations. Now it might be Bogaerts and Betts. That, along with the pieces that had already helped keep the Red Sox in first-place for most of the past few months, might allow for a few more believers.

A lot can happen. Maybe this team doesn't hit enough. Perhaps the inconsistencies of the back-end of the starting rotation will bite the Red Sox when it counts the most. Failure is still not out of the realm of possibility.

But judging by what this team has currently presented us, there seems to be enough signs that this is more four years ago than six.

Rafael Devers extended his hitting streak to six games. He is the first Red Sox hitter in the last 100 years to hit safely in as many as 15 of his first 18 games, all before turning 21. Devers is also just the sixth major leaguer to do so in that time, joining Preston Ward in 1948, Roberto Clemente in 1955, Johnny Callison in 1958, Ivan Rodriguez in 1991, and Omar Infante in 2002.

Red Sox notebook: David Price throwing session postponed

John Tomase

A few notes from the Red Sox clubhouse before Wednesday's series finale vs. the Cardinals. . . .

Red Sox manager John Farrell said left-hander David Price, sidelined since June 28 with a sore elbow, would delay his scheduled throwing session for one day and throw on Thursday.

"Will not throw today," Farrell said. "Will resume tomorrow. As we've talked about each day when he comes in, we kind of adjust the plan as needed and that's the adjustment today."

Is Price feeling discomfort?

"No," Farrell said. "Yesterday when he threw, I don't know that he felt as free as he did the three consecutive days in New York. Was just going to go through treatment and then resume again tomorrow."

In other news, Farrell said he's trying to manage the workload of his relievers, which is why Heath Hembree hadn't pitched in 10 days before Monday's outing.

"One of the things you're not proud of as a manager is to see a reliever in the top five in appearances, I'll be honest with you," Farrell said. "It means they're good for one. But two it means you're going to them maybe a little bit too frequently so you pick spots where hopefully you can back off and even out some of the rapid pace of appearances guys are going to make. So you try to do that a little judiciously."

Farrell also noted that outfielder Andrew Benintendi, who was hit on the knee in Tuesday's win, is good to go. Benintendi is in the starting lineup, batting third and playing left field.

* CSNNE.com

Drellich: Aggressive Red Sox run into a win, and some validation

Evan Drellich

BOSTON — Mookie Betts pulled into second base as Jackie Bradley Jr. made a swim move across home plate, a smooth maneuver that wound up unnecessary. One of the best anywhere, Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina, didn’t come up with the throw.

Afterward, third-base coach Brian Butterfield and some coaches happened to hear Betts describe his view of Bradley’s sprint.

“It seems like everybody is saying we’re too aggressive and guys are getting thrown out but the risk- reward,” Betts said. “You’re going to run into some outs, but you’re going to run into something like today. It just shows you that there’s a means to an end, and we’re just going to be an aggressive base-running team.”

Music to Butterfield’s ears.

“We noticed that Mookie said, ‘There’s the means to the end,’” Butterfield said. “We kind of went ‘Oh, play that one back’ — because that’s what we say all the time.”

Butterfield and the Red Sox aren’t changing their overall approach. They’ve run into more outs than anyone. Privately, conversations have indeed been held to address individual mistakes.

Within the clubhouse, perhaps the Sox do not need outside validation. But Wednesday night’s win, another moment of resiliency overall, showed everyone the other side of the running coin: the good that can come out of stretching a defense.

“I don’t know the inner workings of the Patriots — I want to know,” Butterfield said. “But I trust that they hit on things [that go wrong] and I know that they do. They’re the benchmark for us. They are. They should be for everybody.

“You can bet your bottom dollar that when a kid gets too aggressive, then we say OK, here’s the time that you slow down.”

Before Betts’ winning double, Bradley told Butterfield that he wanted to try for home on a ball off the Monster.

Well, Bradley didn’t exactly tell Butterfield that. Standing across the diamond at first base, Bradley signaled over to his third-base coach.

“We talk about being engaged on the bases,” Butterfield said. “We have hand signals to remind [them]. Part of our job is reminding the guy before the pitcher steps on the rubber. But, we love it when players are getting Ruben [first-base coach Ruben Amaro] and I engaged by looking at us.”

Bradley was the trail runner with Betts at the plate, the Sox down 4-3 and two out. Chris Young was on second base when Betts roped a hanging off the Monster.

“[Bradley is] over at first base and he’s looking at me and I was looking at my lead runner, and I look over at Jackie and he's going — ‘Watch the wall,’” Butterfield said, motioning with his arms the way Bradley did. “He goes, ‘Ball off the wall, you score me.’ Love that. ‘Cause you know he’s going to fight for everything that he’s got on a secondary lead. He’s gonna anticipate and he’s gonna give a great bolt.”

Bradley Jr., was probably getting waved in even without that pre-pitch conversation, Butterfield said. Because the Sox are sticking to their guns, which have at times appeared reckless.

“It’s OK,” Butterfield said of the criticism. “If you have a plan you got to stay with it, you got to do it with conviction.”

Are the Sox trying to be more aggressive compared to last year? Butterfield didn’t give a firm answer. But the way the Sox have played lately, with wins in 12 of 14, they do look like a team with fresh legs.

“There was a point last year at the midway point where I thought it was electric the way these guys were pushing it, and the way they were giving great effort and they made a lot of stuff happen with their legs,” Butterfield said. “We’re in the middle of August, the dog days of August.

"We’re in a pennant race and we’ve told the guys that we feel like we’re going that way as far as effort," Butterfield continued, pointing upward. "And we’re noticing some other people that we’re playing, it doesn’t seem like — this is when you get tired mentally. This is when you get tired physically, worn out, banged up. But you got to keep pushing it, and they’re doing a good job at doing that.”

* NESN.com

Watch Mike Matheny Go Nuts On Umpire, Get Ejected In Cardinals-Red Sox

Ricky Doyle

The final frame had it all.

Not only did the Boston Red Sox score three runs in the ninth inning Wednesday night — one on Xander Bogaerts’ solo home run and two on Mookie Betts’ walk-off double — en route to a 5-4 win over the St. Louis Cardinals at Fenway Park. But Cardinals manager Mike Matheny also was ejected with one out in the last inning for blowing up on home plate umpire Chris Segal.

Matheny stormed out of the after Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina started to get into it with Segal, who called timeout (on his own) right before John Brebbia was about to deliver an 0-2 pitch to Eduardo Nunez with runners at first and second. Brebbia had held the ball for a long time, seemingly in an attempt to control Boston’s running game, and Segal evidently wanted to reset things before the big offering, which didn’t sit well with Matheny, who could be heard telling the ump, “It’s not your show, man.”

Really, Matheny’s blow-up was the culmination of frustration that had been growing all night for the Cardinals. And it didn’t take long for Segal to give the ticked-off skipper the hook.

The problem for the Cardinals was that they still had a game to win. And although Nunez popped out to the right side for the second out of the inning, Betts ensured the Fenway Faithful went home happy by hitting a line drive off the Green Monster that plated both Chris Young and Jackie Bradley Jr. to give the Red Sox a walk-off victory.

Matheny explained his frustration after the game.

The win was big for the Red Sox, as they remain 4 1/2 games ahead of the New York Yankees, who defeated the New York Mets on Wednesday night. And the defeat was huge for the Cardinals, as they now sit in third place, 2 1/2 games back in the National League Central, with both the and winning their games.

Red Sox Notes: Mookie Betts Has Message For Doubters After Walk-Off Win

Adam London

The Boston Red Sox certainly have their flaws, but there’s no denying the team’s fight and flare for the dramatic.

This was on display Wednesday night at Fenway Park when the Red Sox rallied for three runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to edge the St. Louis Cardinals 5-4 in walk-off fashion.

Xander Bogaerts kicked off the ninth with a solo shot to trim St. Louis’ lead to one run, followed by walks to Mitch Moreland and Jackie Bradley Jr. Then, with two outs and a 3-2 count, Mookie Betts planted a double high off the Green Monster. Pinch-runner Chris Young scored with ease, while Bradley hustled all the way from first base, narrowly beating the throw home to give Boston its ninth walk-off win of the season.

The Red Sox have been troubled by base-running mistakes this season, but their aggressiveness on the base paths Wednesday night helped lift the team to its 12th victory in its last 14 games. After the big win, Betts had a message for all of the doubters who have knocked the Red Sox for their base-running tendencies.

“It seems like everybody is saying we’re too aggressive because guys are getting thrown out, but it’s risk reward,” Betts said, as seen on NESN’s Red Sox postgame coverage. “You’re going to run into some outs but you’re also going to run into something like today. It just shows you that there’s a means to the end, and we’re just going to be an aggressive base-running team.”

As for Bradley, there wasn’t a doubt in his mind that he was going to try and score the winning run if Betts put one off the wall.

“I was telling Butter (Red Sox third base coach Brian Butterfield) before the play, anything off that wall, send me,” Bradley said. “So it kind of helped that it got to a 3-2 count, so I could get a running start. It hit off the wall, and I was just trying to keep telling myself to get the truck off my back.”

The Red Sox are rolling at the perfect time, as they start a big weekend series against the New York Yankees at Fenway Park on Friday. If Boston’s pace continues, it could create a healthy gap atop the American League East standings.

Here are some other notes from Red Sox-Cardinals.

— Eight of the Red Sox’s last 19 wins at home have come via walk-off fashion.

— Boston’s bullpen tossed 3 2/3 scoreless innings, marking the 27th time this season the team’s relievers have thrown three-plus innings without allowing a run.

— Betts (3-for-4) leads the Red Sox with 34 multi-hit games, including 11 three-hit performances.

— Rafael Devers extended his hitting streak to six games with a double in the sixth inning. He’s the first Red Sox hitter in the last 100 years to hit safely in as many as 15 of his first 18 games, all before turning 21 years old.

— Andrew Benintendi extending his hitting streak to 10 games, which is longest by a member of the Red Sox since Rusney Castillo reached the mark in 2015. Benintendi is batting .412 through the first 12 games of August.

Red Sox Wrap: Mookie Betts’ Walk-Off Double Lifts Boston To 5-4 Victory

Adam London

The Boston Red Sox have had a flare for the dramatic this season, and their walk-off magic continued Wednesday night at Fenway Park.

Trailing the St. Louis Cardinals by two runs entering the ninth inning, the Red Sox mounted a comeback, capped off by Mookie Betts’ two-run walk-off double which gave Boston a 5-4 win.

Eduardo Rodriguez didn’t have his best stuff in the final game of the quick two-game set. The left-hander only lasted 5 1/3 innings in which he allowed four runs on eight hits with six strikeouts and a walk. But the Red Sox’s late-game heroics bailed out their starting pitcher.

With the win, the Red Sox improve to 69-51, while the Cardinals fall to 61-59.

Here’s how it all went down.

GAME IN A WORD

Thrilling.

It was an exciting night at Fenway in the finale of the quick two-game set, as the Red Sox notched their ninth walk-off win of the season.

IT WAS OVER WHEN…

Betts blasted a walk-off double off of the Green Monster to give the Red Sox a series sweep over the Cardinals.

ON THE BUMP

— After getting through the first inning without much trouble, Rodriguez struggled in the second.

Yadier Molina led off the inning with a booming double, followed by a Jedd Gyorko walk. With a runner in scoring position, Kolten Wong pushed the Cardinals’ first run across the plate with an RBI single, followed by an RBI double off the bat of Luke Voit.

Defensive struggles in the second would plague Boston as well, as a passed ball plated St. Louis’ third run of the contest. A Matt Carpenter RBI single boosted the Cardinals’ lead to 4-0, but a stellar throw from Jackie Bradley Jr. prevented the visiting club from earning its fifth run.

Rodriguez would have another shaky inning in the third but managed to pitch out of the inning unscathed. The lefty settled down in the fourth and fifth, though, as he posted 1-2-3 innings in each frame. Rodriguez came out for the sixth, but he was pulled with only one out in the frame.

— Matt Barnes came on in relief of Rodriguez and recorded the final two outs of the sixth via strikeout. Barnes stayed on for the seventh and tossed a scoreless frame.

— Addison Reed dodged a two-out double to pitch a scoreless eighth inning.

— Craig Kimbrel posted a 1-2-3 ninth inning.

IN THE BATTER’S BOX

— Betts was the lone Red Sox hitter to record a multi-hit game, going 3-for-4 with two singles, a double and a sacrifice fly.

— Xander Bogaerts trimmed St. Louis’ lead to one with a solo home run in the ninth inning.

— Rafael Devers (1-for-2) ripped a double off the Monster in the sixth inning

— Eduardo Nunez, Andrew Benintendi, Mitch Moreland and Christian Vazquez all reached base via single.

— Hanley Ramirez and Bradley went hitless in the ball game.

TWEET OF THE DAY

Brock Holt started his warm ups early with the help of a new friend.

UP NEXT

After a day off Thursday, the Red Sox will open up a weekend series with the New York Yankees on Friday. Drew Pomeranz is scheduled to get the ball for Boston and will be opposed by New York’s Jordan Montgomery. First pitch from Fenway Park is set for 7:10 p.m. ET.

* BostonSportsJournal.com

Two-out, two-run double in 9th seals 5-4 comeback win over Cards

Sean McAdam

For most of the season, Mookie Betts has underwhelming. He’s nowhere near matching the kind of numbers he put up a year ago, when he finished second to Mike Trout in balloting for the American League Most Valuable Player award.

Except, that is, when there are runners in scoring position. Then, Betts is again very valuable.

That was part of the motivation for John Farrell to move Betts out of the leadoff spot last week when the Red Sox were in Tampa. Too often, Betts was coming to the plate without any baserunners, so Farrell began hitting him cleanup, third, and, for the last little while now, second.

In the ninth inning, Wednesday, Farrell and the Red Sox got exactly the scenario they wanted: bottom of the ninth, runners at first and second, two out, and the Red Sox trailing by a run.

Up came Betts. Down went the St. Louis Cardinals.

Betts drilled a slider from Cards relievers John Brebbia hard off The Wall in left, scoring pinch-runner Chris Young with the tying run, and, just barely, Jackie Bradley Jr. with the winning run for a 5-4 walkoff win for the Red Sox.

The entire ninth inning was somewhat chaotic. The Cardinals plowed through three relievers in an attempt to get three outs, with closer Trevor Rosenthal getting the hook after a leadoff homer from Xander Bogaerts and a walk to Mitch Moreland. Then came a dispute between catcher Yadier Molina and home plate umpire Chris Segal over a timeout by Segal, eventually resulting in manager Mike Matheny’s .

Through it all, Betts got his opportunity and didn’t miss. He may have been hitting just .268 overall when the fateful at-bat began, but when he was finished clearing the bases, he was hitting a far more robust .390 with runners in scoring position.

“The only thing you can point to is probably his focus in those moments,’’ said Farrell, attempting to explain the success Betts has had with runners on base. “I can’t say he’s looking for a certain pitch; he’s looking in an area. He’s maybe taking what the pitcher is giving (him), rather than try to do too much. We’ve seen a numbers of base hits up the middle, (going) the other way, with men in scoring position.

“I think it’s the focus in those moments.’’

Betts himself isn’t sure he can explain the discrepancy – why he’s been so effective with runners on second and/or third, and why he struggled in other situations.

“I have no idea,’’ said Betts. “It just seems that that’s how things are going this season. When guys are on, I seem to do better. I’m trying to do good all the time. If that’s the (result with men in scoring position), I’m happy with that.

“I can’t even explain what’s going through my head when I’m stepping in the box. I’m not exactly sure if it’s extra focus or anything. Maybe it is; I’m not even sure I can answer that.’’

The walk-off win was the ninth for the Red Sox this season and fourth in the last nine home wins, and even with Betts’ hit, the win wasn’t assured. Bradley, running with the 3-and-2 pitch from first base, was waved in by third base coach Brian Butterfield.

The relay throw from shortstop Paul DeJong beat Bradley to the plate, but Molina, attempting to block Bradley’s path, juggled, then dropped the ball as Bradley slid around him. Only then could Bradley circle back, slap home plate and make the winning run official.

“I could just see that (Molina) was getting ready for the play to happen,’’ Bradley recounted. “I’m just running and trying to find any particular space or room in order to slide, to either avoid the tag or go straight in. I pulled my hand back, hoping to avoid the tag and slide past him. I knew I didn’t tag it at first, because he was blocking the plate.’’

Pedro: Chris Sale having ‘most amazing year I’ve ever seen’ from a pitcher

Sean McAdam

On the face of it, they would seem to have little in common.

One is compact, righthanded and a proud son of the Dominican Republic. The other is tall, lefty and a Florida native

But when Pedro Martinez looks at Chris Sale, he sees a lot of himself: the dominant stuff; the intimidating glare; the determination.

Maybe Martinez isn’t entirely objective. He is, after all, a Red Sox employee, serving as a special assistant to the Baseball Operations department. But Pedro knows pitching, and in Sale, he’s found something of himself.

“Everything about this year from Chris Sale has been impressive,’’ said Martinez. “I think it’s the most amazing year I’ve ever seen from someone pitching, like from my seasons, and now I’m really appreciating what Boston got to appreciate when I was taking the mound.’’

What’s not to like? Sale, who starts Saturday night against the Yankees, is 14-4 with a 2.51 ERA. He leads the American League in innings pitched (168.1), strikeouts (241) and WHIP (0.879). He leads in the traditional stats (wins) and new, peripherals (FIP, ERA+). He’s been the best pitcher in the A.L., maybe in all of baseball.

And for Martinez, they’re more alike than not.

“We are so similar,’’ remarked Martinez, “(comparing Sale’s current season) to the 1999 season and how everything was going. Even the (lack of) run support, the adversity in the game, the behavior from the bullpen … it’s almost similar in every aspect. Boston is seeing what it already saw in the ’99 season from me. It’s quite amazing to see how much the two seasons compare – his season to my season.’’

In 1999, Martinez’s second season with the Red Sox, he went 23-4 with a 2.07 ERA and 313 strikeouts, still a club record. He had an absurd 8.46 strikeout-to-walk ratio and averaged 13.2 strikeouts per nine innings.

Sale’s number are nearly as spectacular, with 12.9 strikeouts per nine innings and a career-best 7.7 stirkeout-to-walk ratio.

“The approach seems to be really close to the way I would approach games,’’ Martinez noted. “He works quick, he’s very economical with his pitches. And so was I. The only difference is, he’s a lefty and tall. He varies his arm angles more frequently, and I only did it on the changeup.

Sale has always had a plus fastball and slider, but what made him a more complete pitcher was the development of his changeup, which was arguably Martinez’s best pitch. Changing the arm angle on his slider, meanwhile, has made the breaking pitch an even better weapon.

“That gives him a little bit more loop on the breaking ball, so it looks more like a at times,’’ Martinez said. “It’s actually more like a ‘slurve’ sometimes; sometimes, it can be a pure slider. That is something that I was unable to do – I always wanted to have the curve break 12-to-6, if I could. But I was three-quarters (with my arm slot), so my curveball was like a little bit of a slurve, compared to his.

“But the approach is the same. The makeup, the look on top of the mound seems to be the same. He’s a hard-nose, a hard-working guy, just like I was. I don’t think this guy takes anything for granted, when it comes to how hard to work to achieve what he’s trying to achieve.’’

From pure stuff to competitiveness to demeanor, Sale is at the top of his game. Martinez loves to watch – whether it be on TV from his Miami home, or in person at Fenway. Sometimes, he feels an overwhelming sense of déjà vu.

“I’m absolutely enjoying his season,” said Martinez, “because now I’m getting to see some of the things I did in those seasons.’’

Even from south Florida, or back home in the Dominican, Martinez senses that Sale starts have become Events, must-see appointment viewing for baseball fans who appreciate mound excellence. In modern history, the franchise has seen the torch passed from one ace to another – from Roger Clemens, to Martinez, to Curt Schilling, and now, Sale.

“Boston couldn’t be any luckier,’’ observed Martinez, “to have the opportunity to see a performance like that. I’m glad I’m the past and he’s the present. I couldn’t be happier for the city of Boston to actually experience, again, the kind of atmosphere that we had in Fenway whenever I was going to pitch.

“I was always searching for someone that I wanted to consistently see, go out there and do the kind of things that I did and I now I’m getting to see them in Chris Sale. I’m extremely excited and it’s fun to watch, believe me. It’s something worth buying a ticket to go watch.’’

Martinez is a fan of the game, and spends time working as an analyst for TBS. He pays attention and knew how good Sale had been, pitching for poor clubs while in Chicago. But Martinez sensed earlier this year that Boston was about to have something special on its hands.

“I was the first one to say in spring training, ‘This guy has a chance to be even better than I was,’” boasted Martinez. “And people were looking at me like, ‘Whoa … Pedro, maybe you took it a little too far.’ Guess what? I don’t think I did. This kid, his (pitches) are difficult to center and he’s also very durable, very smart. He knows how to utilize everything he has to his advantage.’’

Martinez pitched in an era that was rife with PED use, yet still managed to dominate. In a time when bodies were swollen, so were the offensive numbers. But Martinez was the great equalizer. In 2000, he posted an ERA of 1.74. The next best qualifier in the American League was Roger Clemens, at 3.70, nearly two full runs higher.

Thanks to better testing and more stringent penalties, PED use has been greatly reduced, though not eliminated entirely. That makes Martinez more than a little bit envious.

“There’s no steroids, there’s no guys hitting .330 and 60 (homers),’’ Martinez said. “The level ground that he’s playing on makes it even more interesting. I’ll tell you what, as a player, I wouldn’t want it any other way than I had it. But I cannot think even think about what it would be like if I had the level ground that Chris Sale is getting. But without a doubt, if someone is going to (dominate), in either era – the steroid era or this era – Chris Sale is one guy suited to do it, on any level. He’s that good. I believe he’s that good.’’

Sale has 241 strikeouts with perhaps as many as nine more starts remaining in the regular season. If he averages slightly more than nine strikeouts per start, he’ll surpass Martinez’s club record. Martinez will be rooting for his record to fall.

“I would love for him to pass it and do even better, set up another record,’’ he said. “Set up whatever record he can set up. People would understand (that) through hard work and dedication and passion for the game, I think you can achieve whatever you want to achieve in the game. I always said that I wanted to be looked at, with my legacy, as a sign of hope, as a sign of progression, hard work, dedication, someone that did it clean.

“And this guy right now is doing it clean. I believe in him. I believe what he’s doing is good for the game. I always want to see the best out there and he’s doing absolutely the best out there. I wouldn’t be mad whatsoever — instead I’d be celebrating, because those are the kind of things that I expect from myself and I was actually hoping to see it from someone else, too.’’

It takes more than an electric fastball and pinpoint command to excel, though, and when it comes to the intangibles, Martinez sees Sale is well-equipped.

“This is a throwback kind of guy when it comes to his mental approach and determination,’’ Martinez gushed. “I think this is a very unusual guy coming out every five days. He’s like a throwback in a new era. This is a guy who’s not intimidated by anything. He doesn’t want to get recognition. He just wants to go out there, live up to expectations and do the best that he can as a ballplayer and that’s the big difference. He doesn’t want to be on the front page of the papers — he just wants to do his job.

“I can guarantee that when the season’s over, he’ll probably be deep in the bushes, hunting or fishing before you know it. This is a guy who doesn’t want a relationship with the cameras. He knows he’s a professional, he knows that it’s part of the package. But he doesn’t want to be exposed that much. But he does care about his game, about his job and he’s really proud of the way he goes about his job. That’s what makes him so unique and that’s why he doesn’t really care about anything else but his work and his teammates.’’

Unlike, say, Josh Beckett, or Rick Porcello, or David Price, Martinez didn’t need a year to assimilate in Boston. Coming from small-market Montreal, Martinez stepped into a baseball cauldron in Boston, but knew how to handle the bigger stage. And the same can he said of Sale, who has made the first-year transition seamlessly.

Rather than be intimidated by Boston, Martinez believes, Sale chose to see Boston as an opportunity.

“Without a doubt,’’ said Martinez. “The fact that he sees himself with a chance to win, with a bigger challenge in front of him, makes him even better. Every challenge that I was up against, especially if it was declared a challenge, I would do really well because I did not back away from any challenges out there. I actually fed off the challenges to be better. I think Boston represented a challenge for him and that’s made him even better than he was. So, I’m not surprised.’’

Still unknown, however, is how Sale performs in the post-season. Price, famously, has struggled, without a win as a starter and a career playoff ERA of 5.54. Sale has never thrown a pitch in the post-season, but Martinez harbors no doubts about the lefthander’s ability to handle the pressures of October.

“If you realize what the post-season is, it’s 27 out, nine innings, and a baseball game,’’ reasoned Martinez. “The only thing that changes is a player’s mentality — if you allow it to happen. So if you remain within yourself and you realize that it’s just a game, where you have to perform and do the things you have to do and you actually remain focused, I think it’s the same game. The game doesn’t change. The player’s attitude is what determines whether the game is different or not.’’

Martinez was heartened to hear that Sale seems to relish going into hostile territory and quieting opposing fans. On WEEI Wednesday, Sale said: “People in New York have never been really nice to me, but they hate me now. … I don’t go to New York to make friends.’’

“I’m glad he’s approaching it that way,’’ said Martinez with a chuckle. “People want to hurt you. But at the end of the day, they want to respect you and that’s what you want. You want to earn the respect of the fans. Whenever they hate you, they don’t really hate you. They’re intimidated by you and I’m glad he’s approaching it that way. If you’re hated in the next city you’re going to, it means you’re doing something special.

“I hope he continues to do that and get the biggest hatred out of New York. Because if he’s doing that, it means he’s doing really well against the Yankees. And that’s what we want.’’

What Martinez also wants is another chance to watch Sale pitch, in person. He plans on being at Fenway Saturday night when Sale faces the Yankees for the second time in seven days.

* Associated Press

Betts' 2-run double caps Red Sox 5-4 comeback win

BOSTON -- Mookie Betts finally had a pitch he could drive and the Boston Red Sox pulled out anther last at-bat win in Fenway Park.

Betts lined a two-run double off the Green Monster with two outs in the ninth inning, capping a three-run rally that lifted the Red Sox to a 5-4 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday night.

Xander Bogaerts opened the ninth with a solo homer for the AL East-leading Red Sox, who won for the 12th time in 14 games and maintained their 4 1/2-game lead over the second-place New York Yankees.

It was Boston's eighth walk-off win in its last 19 victories at home.

Cardinals manager Mike Matheny was ejected by home plate umpire Chris Segal in a wild ninth inning. Trevor Rosenthal gave up Bogaerts' homer into the Monster seats.

Zach Duke (0-1) struck out a batter and walked one before John Brebbia gave up Betts' hit after he laid off a pair of tough sliders, with Jackie Bradley Jr. beating a relay home with a headfirst slide for the winning run as catcher Yadier Molina dropped the throw.

"It changed the whole at-bat. I was able to force him to throw a strike," Betts said. "Anytime I get a strike, I've got a better chance to put good wood on it."

Bradley didn't see Molina drop the throw as he slid past the plate without touching it. He had to reach back after he stopped.

"I pulled my hand back completely to try and avoid the tag," he said. "I knew I didn't tag it at first. I didn't pay attention whether he had the ball or not. I was just trying to tag the plate."

Molina was arguing with Segal before Matheny came out.

"The fact that he was kind of going at it with our catcher, you hate to see it at that particular point of the game," Matheny said. "But a lot of barking going on all game long."

Kolten Wong had three hits, including an RBI single in St. Louis' four-run second inning, and Lance Lynn held Boston's offense down with six solid innings before the Red Sox rallied.

It was just the third loss in 11 games for the Cardinals, who were swept in the two-game series, their first visit to Fenway Park since the .

Craig Kimbrel (5-0) pitched one hitless inning for the win.

Lynn allowed two runs and seven hits, walking and striking out three.

Eduardo Rodriguez gave up four runs and eight hits in 5 1/3 innings.

The Cardinals jumped ahead 4-0 when Wong and Matt Carpenter sandwiched RBI singles around Luke Voit's run-scoring double. Wong scored on Christian Vazquez's passed ball.

Vazquez scored on a throwing error in the third when Lynn fired the ball wildly past first on Eduardo Nunez's . Betts added his sacrifice fly.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Cardinals: 1B Carpenter had his glove knocked off his left hand by Nunez, who was running down the line, and had the hand looked at briefly by the trainer, but stayed in. . Lynn struggled with a blister.

"Every once in a while you're going to get one of those," he said. "They seem to kind of fester when you don't need them to, but everything's fine."

Red Sox: Manager John Farrell said LHP David Price (left elbow inflammation) rested after throwing Tuesday. ... LF Andrew Benintendi returned to the lineup after getting hit by a pitch and leaving early Tuesday.

MEMORIES

The Red Sox honored their 1967 AL Champs -- known as the Impossible Dream team.

Led by Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski -- a Triple Crown winner that season -- there were 18 former players honored during an on-field pregame ceremony.

It's known as the team that triggered fan interest in Boston after years of small crowds.

"I think we were the ones that sparked the fire and the fire is now `Red Sox Nation' -- and it's great to be a part of that," said Jim Lonborg, who won the `67 Cy Young Award.

INTERSTING PLAY

Red Sox CF Bradley threw out Carpenter, who was on third, at the plate on Tommy Pham's bloop single.

Carpenter held on the bag, looking to , and was cut down as he tried to slide around Vazquez's tag.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: RHP Adam Wainwright (12-5, 4.87 ERA) is set to face Pittsburgh RHP Jameson Taillon (7-5, 4.50) Thursday. Wainwright has won his last five decisions.

Red Sox: After a day off, LHP Drew Pomeranz (12-4, 3.39) looks to extend his career-best six-game winning streak when Boston faces the rival Yankees in the opener of a three-game series in Fenway.

* The St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Beantown meltdown: Cardinals furious after Fenway fiasco

Derrick Goold

BOSTON • Long before the game unraveled, the Cardinals had reasons to come unhinged.

On the brink of solving their Boston problem and hopscotching around a possible injury to closer Trevor Rosenthal, the Cardinals ran into a foe they had feuded with most of the game and a decision no one could remember an umpire making.

He needed “a break.”

Holding on to a one-run lead and turning to their third reliever of the inning to secure it, the Cardinals were already seething over a checked-swing call when home-plate umpire Chris Segal called time out, on his own. Reliever John Brebbia was into his delivery and floated a pitch. Catcher Yadier Molina, helmet on and hands behind his back, confronted Segal and, after interceding, manager Mike Matheny became furious once he heard the reason. Ejected, Matheny shouted at Segal that it wasn’t his “show” and fans didn’t come to watch the umpire. They wouldn’t for much longer.

A handful of pitches later, Boston’s Mookie Betts drilled a game-winning, two-run hit off Fenway Park’s Green Monster. Jackie Bradley Jr. scored from first base, and though Paul DeJong’s throw beat him, Molina didn’t complete the tag. Boston danced away with a 5-4 victory Wednesday night, leaving the Cardinals only to count the times they thought they had the game won.

“Many,” Molina said.

“Enough,” Matheny counted, adding: “Eventually something is going to give. You can only watch it so long without (breaking). It all came to a head there in the last inning.”

Its lasting bruise was only starting to purple in the hour afterward. The Cardinals are retracing their steps back to .500, having lost their third consecutive game, and slipped to 2½ games behind the division-leading Cubs. Matheny will face at least a fine for his ejection. Fenway continues to find new ways to torment the Cardinals, sending them to Pittsburgh fuming after losing a four-run lead one night and allowing an eight- run inning the night before. And while they can forget interleague play at Fenway for a few years, a more immediate issue will greet them Thursday at PNC Park: Rosenthal’s health.

A trigger for all that happened in the ninth inning was a tightness Rosenthal felt in his right arm that cost him command and led to a curious drop in velocity.

Rosenthal entered the ninth with a two-run lead. Xander Bogaerts cut it to one on the second pitch of the inning. It was a 91.4-mph fastball that Bogaerts put in the seats above the Monster. Rosenthal touched 95 mph with his fastball, a pitch that usually sizzles in the high 90s and can hit 102 mph. The Cardinals are concerned that Rosenthal could have some issue near his shoulder similar to what limited him during and coming out of spring training.

“Check with the trainer, see what we’ve got to deal with,” Matheny said.

Rosenthal walked the second batter he faced to put the tying run on base, and in came lefty Zach Duke. He struck out the first batter he faced, and appeared to get a checked-swing strike from Bradley before third- base ump waved it off. Molina stalked the third-base line, shaking his head at Carapazza. The Cardinals’ dugout was not quiet. Duke would walk Bradley, nudge the tying run to second, and bring Brebbia to the mound. Like Duke, he retired the first batter he faced, but not before Segal called “time out.”

The Cardinals wanted Brebbia to hold the pitch an uncomfortable amount of time. It’s a way to control the running game and disarm the batter.

“If you can throw it right before (the batter) calls time — the longer that he holds the ball the better,” Matheny said. “That’s an advantage for us. That’s the play we’re trying to do. The umpire doesn’t need to have a break. First I’ve ever heard of it. That’s what pushed me over the edge.”

Molina also couldn’t recall an ump taking “a break.”

A comment was not available from the umpires.

The inning, the moment, the opponent, the call — all ignited an anger from the Cardinals that had been percolating from their dugout throughout the game. Lance Lynn and Molina grumbled often at Segal and his strike zone. At times, Boston players appeared unsure about pitches. Several times the body language of all the players said strike, and the ump said ball.

“You try not to pay attention to it,” Lynn said. “You know he’s not calling the low one, and the high one is a 50-50. Throw it over the plate, I guess. When it comes down to it, you have to throw it over the plate. It’s our job as pitchers to figure it out.”

Lynn thought he had the final out of the fifth inning on his 82nd pitch, but a challenge from Boston proved otherwise. The Red Sox had already cut the Cardinals’ four-run lead down to 4-2, and now along with the strike zone had a chance to inflate Lynn’s . A review of the groundout showed that Matt Carpenter’s foot was not on first base before Betts’, and that prolonged the inning. It took Lynn another seven pitches to get the out, and that put him at 100 as the trouble started in the sixth. Molina and Matheny both visited him on the mound to check on a blister he had, but Lynn remained in the game.

He got ahead 0-2 before giving a walk to Mitch Moreland and putting the tying run on base. He got behind 2-0 before getting the double play that ended the inning and his quality start.

It came on his 110th pitch.

“He was frustrated with the zone all day long,” Matheny said. “Not blatant misses, but enough quality pitches at the bottom of the zone. Those are pitches we need to get.”

The runs the Cardinals had all came in the second. Molina opened the inning with a double and rookie Luke Voit extended it with an RBI double. Carpenter drove home the fourth run with an RBI single, and an error allowed him to reach third with the potential fifth run. Tommy Pham lined a ball to center and Carpenter got caught in between. He was running on contact — but Pham’s liner was high enough that it might be caught. When it fell for a single, Carpenter raced for home and was thrown out. The Cardinals’ lead froze at 4-0.

Like the calls in the ninth, it proved not to be enough.

By then, the Cardinals had had enough.