The Walkoff: Ortiz Slam Ties It In 8th, Salty's RBI Single In 9th Gives Red Sox 6-5 Win Over Tigers
BOSTON (CBS) – Never rule out Boston sports teams.
Just a few hours after Tom Brady led the New England Patriots to an amazing comeback win over the New Orleans Saints at Gillette Stadium, the Boston Red Sox pulled off a dramatic comeback of their own at Fenway Park in Game 2 of the ALCS against the Detroit Tigers. The series is now tied 1-1 as it shifts to Detroit for Game 3 on Tuesday.
RECAP: Sox Walk Off With Dramatic Win In Game 2
The Red Sox bats were once again shut down by Detroit's' starter – this time it was Max Scherzer, who held the Sox hit-less through 5.1 innings and struck out 13 over 7 innings – but David Ortiz picked up the offense with one swing of the bat.
With Boston trailing 5-1 in the bottom of the eighth, Ortiz clubbed a grand slam to tie everything at 5-5, and Jarrod Saltalmacchia ended it with an RBI single in the bottom of the ninth.
Those two swings of the bat gave Boston their first win of the series, and shift the momentum slightly in Boston's favor. Detroit may have stolen home-field advantage after taking Game 1, but the Red Sox now have some faith in their bats after striking out
Here's the complete breakdown of Boston's amazing comeback win:
The Turning Point AND The Man
We're going to clump these two into one category, because it just feels like the right thing to do.
David Ortiz clinched both with one swing of the bat in the eighth. The Red Sox were once again being shut down by Detroit pitching and faced a 5-1 deficit, but after they loaded the bases against the Tigers' bullpen, Ortiz crushed Joaquin Benoit's first pitch into the Boston pen for yet another memorable postseason home run.
Papi has done it over and over again throughout his playoff career, so this is nothing new. But it never gets old, for fans or for Ortiz.
The Man Part 2
Gotta give some love to the cop in the Boston bullpen. So much love for Papi's grand slam, and so little concern for Torii Hunter.
The Goat
Jim Leyland called on Benoit to get a four-out save, and that was out the window after his first pitch. The Tigers' closer looked rattled in his inning of work in Game 1, and could be completely broken after this one.
The Outlook
My, how things can change quickly. The Red Sox were looking an 0-2 series hole in the face until Ortiz blew the non-existent roof off of Fenway.
Instead of down 0-2 and facing Justin Verlander, the series is now all tied up as it shifts to Detroit for Game 3 on Tuesday. The Sox still have plenty of work to do, as they've struck out 32 times in 59 at-bats, but they have one heck-of-a-win to build off of.
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