***Update*** St. Louis Cardinals advance to the 2013 World Series with 9-0 blow out of Dodgers and Kershaw.
CLICK HERE for MLB Playoff Standings Entering Saturday
The MLB Playoff Standings now have two teams just one win away from clinching their pennants. The Boston Red Sox are just one win away from capturing the A.L. Championship as they defeated the Detroit Tigers in Game 5 by the score of 4-3. Here is all the action as pitching proved dominant in this game one again.
Red Sox Hold On in Game 5
Boston was cruising in this game after Mike Napoli smacked a solo home run, his second of the ALCS, giving the Red Sox a one-run lead. Not only was this home run special because it opened up the scoring, but it was a pure bomb. If Austin Jackson made an attempt to go after this ball, he was just doing it for the cameras as Napoli jumped all over an Anibal Sanchez fastball, sending it over the wall to straight centerfield.
That got the Red Sox going and the fun did not stop there for Boston. First of all, it was evident the Red Sox were not going to let Sanchez step all overt them. Dustin Pedroia smacked a single to left in the first inning, breaking up Sanchez's hitless innings streaking that peaked at 6 2/3. David Ortiz could not follow up with anything productive. However, Napoli opened up the second inning with his home run.
Xander Bogaerts made John Farrell look like a genius as he doubled to left field, later coming in to score on a David Ross double. Bogaerts then raced home as Jacoby Ellsbury reached base with a single. The Red Sox placed a three-spot on the board, later adding another run in the top of the third inning. Meanwhile, Jon Lester continued to cruise along, posting pivotal shutdown innings.
Lester went 5.1 innings, allowing two earned runs on seven hits, earning his second win of the postseason. The Tigers made things interesting in three straight innings, slowly chopping at the Red Sox's lead. Miguel Cabrera singled in Jackson in the bottom of the fifth, catcher Brayan Pena, who took over for an injured Alex Avila, singled to drive in Victor Martinez and then a Cabrera double play led to another score, making it a one-run game entering the eighth inning.
However, as dominant as always, the Red Sox held the lead, as Craig Breslow and Koji Uehara combined to close out the deal in the eighth and ninth innings. Neither guy allowed a hit and Uehara recorded two strikeouts in the outing, picking up his second save of the series.
It was Lester, the Red Sox's bullpen and Napoli who all played hero today. Napoli finished 3-4 with two runs scored, a homer and an RBI. Pedroia is waking up at a pivotal time as the Red Sox are now trying to go for the kill. He, along with Ross, finished with two hits in this game.
Looking Ahead: Advantage Tigers as Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander take the mound to close out the series. The Red Sox will have Clay Buchholz and John Lackey on the mound in the last two games of the series at Fenway Park. Pick your poison Red Sox, the Tigers are bringing the heat with their best pitchers left for the end.
N.L. Championship: Cardinals/Dodgers Resums Friday
The St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Dodgers used Wednesday as a travel day and Thursday as an off day. The series shifts back to Busch Stadium, with the Cardinals leading 3-2. However, everybody knows Clayton Kershaw is getting the ball for the Dodgers. He can take control of a game and once he is on a groove, it is difficult to stop the lefty.
The Dodgers will have to remain consistent so they can give Kershaw some innings to work with early on. This would avoid pressure and any insecurities as Kershaw will be allowed to settle in early. Michael Wacha will also share the same pressure, but he has proven to master any adversity in his brief postseason career.
Wacha kept the Cardinals in the race, winning Game 4, pushing for a Game 5 against the Cardinals. He followed this performance by outpitching Kershaw, winning his second postseason game in as many starts.
Both teams will resume their series on Friday at a new time, 8:30 p.m. ET as the series will now be played in St. Louis. The Cardinals have the crowd. The Dodgers won the last game.
Which of these four teams remaining in the MLB Playoff Standings will surface as the winner?
MLB Playoff Standings:
Boston Red Sox 3
Detroit Tigers 2
Los Angeles Dodgers 2
St. Louis Cardinals 3
*The Red Sox host Games 6 & 7.
