A Night of Firsts

Dad --

Did you see? Oh my God. It was awesome.

Papi hit his first home run of the season!

Varitek continued his tradition of homering on May 20th.

And Ellsbury tied the major league record for most putouts in the outfield during a 9 inning game.

Pretty Damn Cool!

Let's start with Papi. In the 5th with Pedroia at 3rd and two outs in the inning, Papi got a pitch that stayed over the plate and swung for the bleachers as he always does. But unlike every other time Papi's swung this season, this time, the ball actually ended up there. It was a great moment. For the club, for the fans, but most of all for David Ortiz himself. He finally got that one out of the way. The sigh of relief that came as he crossed the plate was like Atlas finally taking the globe off his shoulders. It was truly a sight to see.

Then there was Varitek, who last year couldn't hit to save his life. Well this year he seems to be doing quite well. Before last night's game he'd already gotten five home runs. Well last night he added to that tally, not once, but twice. And as it turns out, getting home runs on May 20th is standard issue for the Captain.

Dad, did you know that starting in 2001 Varitek has gotten at least one home run every May 20th except for '06, '07, and '08? And in those three years he's gotten at least one hit. So it appears if the Sox want to do well, they need to continue to start Varitek on May 20th.

And finally there's Ellsbury. The speedy center fielder tied a major league record last night. And it wasn't for stolen bases. He recorded not one, not five, not even ten putouts which tied the Red Sox record. Nope, Ellsbury went two better and recorded an astounding 12 putouts over the nine innings he played. It was actually starting to appear that he wouldn't even make that. But as the perfect end to what was already a pretty amazing night, Ellsbury tied that record with the final out of the game.

Overall Dad, I'd say the game was pretty awesome. Of course the Sox won and have one more game left against the Jays before this series is over. Tonight probably won't be as special, but a win and a sweep would be pretty cool just the same.

XO
Jenn