Another Night, Another Comeback

It looked the Evil Dice-K was making another appearance at Fenway Park last night, as Matsuzaka gave up three runs in the first inning, on two doubles and a home run.

But the Red Sox answered it back quickly, on Kevin Youkilis' two run single in the bottom of the first.

Dice-K then settled down, and actually pitched one of the better games of his career. He struck out seven and most importantly, he walked no one. He consistently threw first-pitch strikes, 84 out of his 109 pitches on the night.

And AL's Player of the Month for May, David Ortiz, hit his 12th home run of 2010 to put the Red Sox up 4-3, against Oakland starter Ben Sheets. And in his next at-bat, Papi was walked intentionally. That is a sure sign the old Papi is back with us, when he gets that kind of respect back.

Jonathan Papelbon got his 12th save of the year, despite giving up a long home run to Kevin Kouzmanoff in the ninth.

Tampa Bay and New York both won again last night, so the Red Sox remain at 5 games in the East. Tim Wakefield pitches the finale of the series this afternoon, as the Red Sox conclude the homestand with the Oakland A's.

And congrats to Jon Lester on being the AL Pitcher of the Month for May. Along with Papi, it's the first time two teammates have been Players of the Month since 2006, when Johan Santana and Justin Morneau turned the trick.