Red Sox - Angels Thoughts

- A bases clearing single? (the first in MLB post-season history)

- 2 HRs allowed? (1st HRs by allowed to RH batter since July)

- 27 runners LOB

- Beckett looking like Colon.

- K-Rod looking like...well, honestly K-Rod (had the 4th highest WHIP in MLB (2nd highest in AL) of relievers with 30 or more saves.

- 0 for 13 and 0 for 8. 20 - 39 (.513 AVG of Tex, Vlad, Hunter who combine for over half of the Angels 36 hits so far)

- 7 - 40 (.175 AVG of Pedroia, Papi, and Youk)

Just some interesting numbers, trends, and such.

Was Beckett rusty or is the oblique still causing trouble? This was the perfect situations for the Sox. Up 2 games to none. Their best post-season pitcher on the hill. Back home in Fenway park. Everybody though that tonight would be the clincher. However, the Angels showed why they had the best record in the majors, along with an 8-1 record against the Sox this season. The win was their 6th in a row at Fenway park.

Tonight, we have Lester against Lackey. Lester has been incredible at Fenway (11-1, 2.49 ERA) while Lackey, including his almost no-hitter versus the Sox at Fenway earlier this season, has a 2-4 record with a 6.34 ERA. This is a big game for the Sox, because I am not really looking forward to seeing Dice-K pitch again, especially to that Big 3. So, the question for tonight's game is which Lackey is going to show up? The battered Lackey from 2007 who blown up in Fenway or the Lackey from July, who lost a no-hitter and shut-out in the 9th thanks to Pedroia and Youk, but was UNTOUCHABLE up until then.

A final ominous sign from Buster Olney's blog over at ESPN.com:

"Mike Napoli hit two homers, and is just the sixth catcher ever to have a multi-homer game in the postseason. The previous five have all been on the team that won the World Series that year.

Multi-Home Run Postseason Game by Catcher
2008 - Mike Napoli (Angels)
2005 - AJ Pierzynski (White Sox)
1986 (aye curumba) - Gary Carter (Mets)
1976 - Johnny Bench (Reds)
1972 - Gene Tenace (A's)
1956 - Yogi Berra (Yankees)"

So, with that piece of info, maybe Chip Carey is right. The pressure is back on the Red Sox tonight. Haha.

Go Sox!