Nice to Win Again

A Big Papi homer and a botched double play that scored a run turned out to be the only runs we needed. Our pitching was actually effective last night. Becket was on fire. He gave us six scoreless innings, and the one run he did allow, was an inherited runner that Mike Timlin let score. Entering the 7th inning, Beckett's pitch count was a miniscule 62, averaging roughly 10 pitches per inning. In the back of my mind, with the dominatant nature of his pitching performance and his low pitch count, I was thinking complete-game shutout. However, he was forced to leave after six-plus with a small cut on his finger.
Still, it was one of his best performances of the year.
This is the guy we traded Hanley Ramirez for.
This is the guy we were willing to take the "extra baggage" of Mike Lowell for.
This is the guy who just got a three-year contract extension.
This is the guy we expect to be at the top of our rotation when we lose Curt Schilling.
This guy was lights-out.
And for once, our bullpen kept the lead.
We won the series, and we won back our pride.
My faith is back, and with Schill on the mound, it is stronger than ever.