The Boston Red Sox made their first game in Houston's Minute Maid Park a memorable one, taking a 6-1 win over the Astros last night.
Dice-K was back to his early season top-notch self, improving to 9-1 after five scoreless innings. Matsuzaka gave up two hits with three walks and four strikeouts. He was yanked after 87 pitches as Terry Francona didn't want to stretch him out too much in his second start for the Sox after coming back from the DL.
Kevin Youkilis had four hits, the locked in Dustin Pedroia was 3 for 5 with two runs, one walk and an RBI while J.D. Drew (three-run homer) and Mike Lowell (two-run single) had the most important swings of the game.
The Sox (50-32) jumped out to the 3-0 lead in the third with Drew's home run. Pedroia extended the advantage to 4-0 with an RBI single in the seventh which drove in Julio Lugo.
Craig Hansen and Manny Delcarmen each put up scoreless innings (the sixth and seventh respectively) before the increasingly shaky Hideki Okajima gave up two hits, including a solo home run to Houston's (37-43) Reggie Abercrombie.
Jonathan Papelbon came in to strike out Lance Berkman with a nasty splitter, stranding Miguel Tejada at first.
Lowell's two-run single gave the Sox some more breathing room in the ninth and Papelbon recorded the final three outs for his 24th save of the season.
Jon Lester-who's been in a groove lately-goes for the Red Sox tonight against the Astros' Brandon Backe.
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