Ray of Might

You know the old adage in sports. We all know it. And that would be that when you have a team on the ropes, you have to go for the jugular and put them away. When you have a team pinned after a flying suplex (little help here...wrestling terminology not my strong suit) and they're unconscious and barely breathing, you break the windpipe and erase all doubt.

The only problem with this analogy in relation to last night's epic cage match between Boston and Tampa Bay is that Tampa didn't exactly let up. You could make the argument that their pitching failed them a little bit, but JP Howell and Dan Wheeler have been lights out all season and all through the playoffs. They were victimized not by errors, necessarily. Longoria's error was big but it wasn't ultimately the deciding blow in this game. They were victimized by something that has fueled this Sox team all season and helped them get to where they are. Red Sox hitters are very patient in most cases, but more importantly they are patient when it matters most. The most beautiful thing in the game of baseball is the epic battle between pitcher and hitter...when the count runs full but seems to never end...when pitch after pitch is fouled off, only prolonging the inevitable. Coco Crisp's at-bat in the eighth last night was a great example of this scenario, though he didn't need a dozen pitches to get to Dan Wheeler. I feel like I can tell when a guy is locked into a pitcher in an at-bat. The way Coco was fouling off high fastballs indicated that he knew what Wheeler was coming with, no matter what. Before long, he had to throw something over the plate to get him out. If you're Wheeler, you'd much rather pitch to Coco in that situation than Pedroia.

So eventually, the patience paid off and you know what happens next. And while most people watching this game thought Coco made a mistake by going to second on the play, that was the best decision he could have made in that situation. By doing this, he not only forces Pena to cut off the throw and enable the run to score (which was a terrible throw, mind you). He also opens the possibility of getting into scoring position for the go-ahead run. And if he's thrown out, tie game and the Sox hit in the ninth with Pedroia, Ortiz and Youkilis. It's a win-win and a great decision by Crisp in the right situation. Veteran guys who have been there before and know the game and all the little nuances make plays like this. Tampa doesn't really have the quote-unquote veteran guys who have been there and seen this stuff before. That's a big deal; a really big deal.

So now what? Back to the Trop for Game 6 tomorrow night. Beckett against Shields, which is now looking like a much better matchup for Boston than Beckett against Kazmir. Tampa used its bullpen a lot last night, as did the Sox. However, this is huge for the psyche of the Sox moreso than for the psyche of Tampa. This marks the first time that 'pen has shown signs of fatigue and beatability, if you will. And those Tampa relievers have now got to be thinking that they're not bulletproof anymore. Because you know full well that this victory shot a much needed dose of adrenaline into the hearts of those Sox and you also know that they cannot wait to get back on the field on Saturday and let loose.

We know this much...Game 6 is going to be fun to watch, no matter where you're sitting.