"I hate that term, but I'll tell you what, he's swung the bat good," manager Terry Francona said, in response to a question about whether Ellsbury had turned the corner. "I'm sure he feels better about himself. The approach is there. He's getting to some pitches, swinging at strikes. Yeah, I think certainly that better days are ahead for him."
Ellsbury's assessment of his recent adjustments? "Be early," he said. "Be early to the ball and get a pitch I can drive. Sounds pretty simple.
"There's nothing wrong with my swing. My swing is fine. Just a matter of being on time, being ready to hit."
But the increasing reality for this Red Sox team is that it can no longer simply rely on its 3-4 hitters, as it has so often in the past. David Ortiz and Manny Ramírez anchored the Sox' offense for years. Now? Not so, with Ramírez in Hollywood and Ortiz not back to form after a wrist injury.
As important, if not more so, is pitching. The Sox got a stellar performance from Josh Beckett Tuesday night, followed by one last night from Tim Wakefield, who has pitched well all season and deserves better than his 7-8 record. Eight runs helped in that regard, allowing Francona to get work for his relievers headed into today's off day.
"It felt great," said Wakefield. "It was welcome support, that's for sure."
And it led to the Sox' fifth win in their last six games. While they were against also-rans Oakland and Kansas City, it didn't lessen the impact of keeping up with the hot Rays. In each of the five wins, the opposition scored no more than two runs, for a total of nine.
"The key, the key, the key of this is pitching," Alex Cora said for emphasis. "That's why we had that lead last year. The offense was great, then you start putting those starts, like seven innings, seven innings, seven innings. Everything starts falling where it should be."
With three runs in the fifth inning, sparked by a two-run double to straightaway center by No. 2 hitter Jed Lowrie, the Red Sox took the lead on Kansas City, which had been playing well before the Sox arrived. But that lead could have come earlier.
