So it was that Ortiz and Mueller, no hayseeds, played the roles of avengers in chief as they unshackled the Sox from their winless May by powering them past the Indians, 9-5, before 17,370 at Jacobs Field.
"We got a much-needed win," manager Terry Francona said. "I think that's an understatement."
Ortiz, responding to public relations director Glenn Geffner's pregame prophesy that the Dominican basher would go deep twice, did just that, slugging a solo shot and a three-run blast to start the recovery. And Mueller, snapping a 5-5 deadlock in the the sixth inning, muscled a three-run homer to send the Sox toward their sorely needed victory. They added a run in the ninth when Manny Ramirez doubled and scored on Jason Varitek's single.
"I just figured out today that we only have played 27 games," Ortiz said. "Why do we have to panic? Sometimes we worry more than we need to."
No one beats himself up more than Mueller, who made a point of waiting stoically for reporters to face him when he believed he threw a game away the night before.
"He takes his outs very hard and he takes a bad play very hard," Johnny Damon said. "He expects to be awesome and tonight he was."
Just don't expect to hear it from Mueller. He has gone 4 for 7 since Francona moved him from second to eighth in the order to try to relieve the pressure of a 1-for-21 slump. He capped it by slugging a slider from Dave Riske for the game-breaking homer.
"I was very fortunate the ball carried," Mueller said. "I'm just trying to do the best I can every night, period. That's what everybody in here is trying to do. We're trying to be perfect every night."
