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The Florida Marlins kicked off their AL East six-game gauntlet by losing to the Red Sox 8-2 in a brisk game that lasted just two and a half hours, but was over long before that.
Starter Chris Volstad, who took the loss and fell to 4-7, threw well for three innings but was greeted in the fourth by a mammoth blast off the bat of David Ortiz. That homer opened the flood gates as the Red Sox tacked on five more runs that inning knocking Volstad out of the game with all eight runs charged to the 6-foot-8 righty.
Burke Badenhop relieved Volstad and finished the game by throwing the
remaining 4 1/3 innings while shutting out the Boston hitters. But his
admirable performance was overshadowed by Red Sox starter Tim
Wakefield. The 42 year-old knuckleballer perplexed and flummoxed
Marlins hitters with pitches that would not break the speed limit on
many highways. He allowed just two earned runs in six innings while
striking out four. The Boston bullpen slammed the door on the Marlins
by allowing just one baserunner over the final three innings.
While the Marlins’ offense had difficulty scoring, Chris Coghlan, Jorge Cantu, and Emilio Bonifacio collected two hits each.
Today’s 7:10 p.m. game will feature lefty Andrew Miller versus former Marlin Brad Penny. Miller is coming off two of his best starts this season and has struck out 13 while walking just one batter over that period while Penny has compiled a 5-2 record this season and has been a major reason for the Red Sox first place position.
