It's always rough to go into Yankee Stadium and lose the opening game of a series - especially when your ace faces off against their ace and theirs comes out on top. Sadly for the Red Sox, starter Jon Lester had flashes of brilliance where he sent Yankee after Yankee back to the dugout, but his few lapses were more than enough as CC Sabathia gave up just a single run in seven and a third innings.
Though the Sox kept things interesting in the ninth inning, with back-to-back hits by Dustin Pedroia and David Ortiz with just one out, Mike Napoli struck out and then Stephen Drew grounded the ball back to Yankees closer Mariano Rivera, who made the play to end the game. Dustin Pedroia scored the only run for the Red Sox in the seventh inning, and had three hits on the night, continuing to tear things up on the field despite the UCL tear in his left hand.
The Sox know as well as anyone that if you leave your scoring against the Yankees untl the end of the game, it's likely that your chances will be limited. Mariano Rivera is legendary for a reason, and he doesn't blow many save opportunities. Tonight was no exception, even though the Sox managed to bring the tying run to the plate.
The Red Sox will still maintain sole possession of first place even after losing tonight's game to the Yankees - but the Yanks do pick up a full game in the standings, trailing the Sox by just a single game with two more games to play in this weekend series. Tomorrow's game will see Felix Doubront facing off against Phil Hughes.
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