Wakefield Dominates Tigers in 5-0 Win

Tim Wakefield dazzled the Tigers over eight shutout innings of two-hit ball in a 5-0 Red Sox win. Nate Robertson opposed Wakefield for the Tigers and was not nearly as good, finishing with four runs on ten hits and two walks in 6 1/3 innings of work. Robertson’s final act was a pitch that was launched out of the park for David Ortiz’s seventh HR of the season. Manny Ramirez followed him with a first-pitch HR off a reliever making his major-league debut, Freddy Dolsi.

Sox Stud of the Game:
Manny Ramirez went 3-5 with his 497th career home run. Three away from 500 career blasts, Manny already figures to be a lock for the Hall of Fame, but round numbers like 500 are really nice too. Just ask Jose Canseco, who claims he was outed from baseball as he approached the milestone.

Diamond Dud of the Game:
You could point to Dustin Pedroia’s 0-5, Coco Crisp’s 0-4, and Mike Lowell’s 0-4. All three went hitless but in a shutout win, it didn’t really hurt the Red Sox at all. I’m a little disappointed in Mike Lowell, who I thought had started to bust out of his slump. At least he’s seeing the plate: he struck out just once with one walk.

One Tigers Pitcher Needs to Go:
If I were a Tigers fan, I would be absolutely furious that Jim Leyland continues to throw Nate Robertson out to the mound. He has been nearly as bad as Barry Zito this season. Robertson now has a 6.64 ERA and has allowed at least four runs in all of his starts this season, which fuels the argument that he is a garbage pitcher.

Tags: David Ortiz, Detroit Tigers, Manny Ramirez, Mike Lowell, Nate Robertson, Red Sox, Tim Wakefield

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