In their first prolonged bad stretch of the 2013 season, the Red Sox needed somebody to step up and turn things around after losing three straight games to the lowly Twins and six of their last seven overall. Enter Jon Lester who threw a one-hitter tonight as Boston beat Toronto 5-0 at Fenway Park.
Not only did Lester (5-0) save the Red Sox' (22-14 overall, 13-8 home) exhausted bullpen but he turned in one of the best outings of his stellar career. Don't forget he had a no-hitter against the Royals in 2008 at Fenway and had the clinching win in Game 4 against Colorado in the 2007 World Series. After taking no decisions in his last two starts, he had great control as he struck out five and didn't walk anybody.
The Blue Jays (13-24 overall, 6-12 away) are one of the worst teams in MLB, that's the only thing that tempers this gem a bit. They could make many pitchers look like Cy Young in his prime at the moment. Their starting pitcher Ramon Ortiz (0-1) only allowed one earned run in five innings but he was still charged with the loss. It's a tough life buddy. Reliever Brett Cecil was the real culprit since he allowed three earned runs, in that case he should have taken the loss in my opinion.
The Red Sox had 10 hits and Shane Victorino was 2 for 3 with two walks and a run. Boston scored a run in the second on a ground out by Will Middlebrooks (2 doubles) then they put it away with four runs in the seventh. Dustin Pedroia (2 for 3, run, walk) had an RBI single, Daniel Nava (2 runs, walk) added a two-run double and Jarrod Saltalamacchia (2 hits) closed it out with an RBI double.
It could be another long day for the Blue Jays tomorrow afternoon (1:35 p.m.) as Clay Buchholz (6-0) faces Mark Buehrle (1-2), another pitching matchup which totally favors the home team.
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