The Red Sox remain winless despite Adrian Gonzalez picking up his first homer with the team as the Indians clinched the series with an 8-4 win.
Daisuke looked about as sloppy as the rest of the starting staff to begin his outing. A two-run homer to Shin-Soo Choo in the first inning was especially reminiscent of the Texas series. But for much of the rest of the game, despite having issues with pitch counts and some walks, he settled down, escaping the game with just one more run on his record in five innings.
Up until Daisuke left, the Red Sox were actually able to keep close to the Indians, taking advantage of some lucky bounces off of gloves, a check-swing from J.D. Drew that actually ended up going for a base hit to left, and an RBI infield single from Marco Scutaro to score two runs.
But then came the bullpen. Specifically, Dennys Reyes and Dan Wheeler. Reyes wasted no time making it known he would not be effective, hitting the first two batters he faced before walking the third. His night was done. In came Dan Wheeler, and then things got ridiculous.
With the bases loaded and zero outs, Michael Brantley lined a ball to Kevin Youkilis, who knocked the ball down, stepped on third, and then fired home to Jason Varitek. With a tag needed to complete the double play, Varitek caught the ball with his foot on home, and then just walked forward, assuming the force out achieved. The run scored.
Of course, the home run that Asdrubal Cabrera hit next simplified things some, giving the Indians a secure 7-2 lead they would not give up.