It was touch and go for a while there tonight. The Sox jumped out to a 2-0 lead, the Jays came back and went up 3-2. The Sox went up 4-3, the Jays came back and made it 5-4. The Sox went up 6-5, and the Jays finally didn't have an answer. And then things just got out of control. Boston scored 12 runs between the 6th and 8th innings, including a big crooked number 7 in the bottom of the 8th and wound up winning 18-6 to snap their losing streak. But the big story is that the wait is finally over for 45 year old knuckleballer Tim Wakefield. Struggling to get the elusive win number 200 for nearly a month and a half, he has finally joined the ranks of the 200 game winners in Major League Baseball History.
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| Photo Credit: zimbio.com |
This wasn't just any win either.With the Sox reeling in the midst of a suddenly increasingly tight AL Wild Card Race, the Sox needed a win in the worst way. Tampa Bay had closed the gap to just 3 games, and with injuries mounting, things were certainly starting to look grim. But Kevin Youkilis rejoined the Sox lineup tonight and while Wake wasn't stellar he kept them in the game until the offense erupted. And Sox fans came finally take a collective sign of relief as the Rays were finally stopped tonight as well by the Orioles pushing their lead back out to 4 games. If the Sox can build on this win it will be huge in terms of momentum as the Rays come to Fenway for four games starting on Thursday.
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| Photo Credit: pinstripedbible.com |
Wakefield is in the midst of his 19th major league season and has been with the Sox since 1995. He is third all-time in Red Sox history in wins with 186, second in strikeouts behind only Roger Clemens (2037), and is their all time leader in games started (428) and innings pitched (2997).
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