Dice-K, Make My Day, or How Sweep it Is

So Charissa has been going to the wall on the third base side for the last three days trying to get autographs. We got Kyle Snyder on Friday but no luck yesterday. Today we get there at noon and go in as soon as the gates open. Charissa goes down to the wall in one of the aisles and she is a little back in line. The pitchers are playing catch along the third base line in shallow outfield. They finish up and I realize that Daisuke Matsuzaka is walking towards Charissa's line. He begins signing and she is getting closer and closer. I think that she had looked pretty close to the front but now she seems miles away from Dice-K as people push and shove to get to the front. Then he takes Charissa's ball. He signs it (or as she says it, "his $103 million hand touched me) and she says thank you. He bows to her and she bows back; then she turns to walk away. as she goes up the aisle past the people who are still in line and I'm thinking, 'stop talking to people. Look disappointed,' because I can just see someone snatching the ball out of her hands and running. I come towards her and I can see that her hands are trembling. She hands me the ball and there it is, a big "D' with some scribbly crap after it and the number 18.

Tavarez and Loe are the Sox and Rangers number five pitchers, respectively. Both of them had fairly good outings. Tavarez: 5.2 IP, 4R 4ER, 6H, 1BB, 1HB, 6k. Loe 6IP, 3R, 3ER, 7H, 1BB, 0HB, 2K.

Varitek hit a three run home run in the fourth in support of Tavarez but Tavarez got no decision after giving up a three run upper-decker to Teixeira and an RBI single to Ian Kinsler. Piniero got the win for the Sox after Otsuka blew the save for the Rangers, allowing two runs on three hits in the eighth and Gagne gave up a lead off homer to Pedroia.

Okajima came in to save the game for Piniero and had to make it close for us. He gave up one run on an RBI single by Teixeira (who wouldn't go away) allowing the Rangers to come withing one. Then, Sammy Sosa came up to bat. He hit a long two-strike fly ball which Crisp caught, ending the game and securing the sweep.