Jesse Litsch, now a close friend of Red Sox Nation, shut down the Yankees, holding them to one run on an A-Rod groundout. The Jays put up three in the third against Pettitte and added and unearned run in the fourth on a Jeter error, and it was plenty for Litsch and reliever Casey Janssen.
The Sox now own a two game lead heading into the final six of the regular season. The magic number is five for those of you keeping score at home.
Tomorrow, Oakland comes to town to face Curt Schilling while the Yanks travel to the Trop for a series against the Rays. Schilling is just 1-3 in his last five starts but has pitched better than that. His ERA is 3.03 and he has 16 K’s and just four walks, going at least six innings in each of the five starts. There have been flashes of the “old Schilling” in those games.
His opponent, Chad Gaudin, is going in the other direction. He is also 1-3 in his last five starts but has an ERA of 7.01 and WHIP of just under two. Even a Red Sox line-up without Manny and Youk should be able to get a few runs in support of Schill.
Until then, we sing the praises of all things Toronto for the assist, and hope for a long, bumpy flight from New York to Tampa.
