Making tracks

"Everybody's huddled around Coco," said outfielder J.D. Drew, who tripled in a run and scored when the Sox broke open a 3-1 game with two runs in the seventh, the Sox adding three more in the eighth and another in the ninth, all at the expense of a Seattle bullpen that had put up nothing but zeroes in the first two games of the series.

"I'm thinking, 'Is that the story, Coco almost getting struck by a four-wheeler with a moose on it?' "

Well, yes and no. There was Beckett, striking out seven in the first three innings and nine in 6 2/3 innings overall en route to his 14th win, matching Carlos Zambrano of the Cubs, C.C. Sabathia of the Indians, and John Lackey of the Angels for most in the majors. There was shortstop Julio Lugo, slipping undetected behind Raul Ibanez for a pickoff play at second that squashed a Mariners threat in the fourth. There was Manny Ramírez hitting his 19th home run and David Ortiz stealing his second base, a surprise of such magnitude that no one on the Mariners bothered to cover the bag, catcher Jamie Burke's throw sailing into center field.

And there was Ichiro, going 0 for 5 for the second straight game, 1 for 14 in the series, and 5 for 36 against the Sox this season.

"We value so much keeping him off base," Sox manager Terry Francona said. "That doesn't mean we can do it. But our guys made good pitches, and I think the success you have against [the Mariners] has a direct correlation to keeping him off base, because he can do so many things.

"But rather than pat ourselves on the back or pounding our chests, just move on and let him beat up on somebody else."