On to Game 7 as Sox top Rays

"We've come down to the last game and whoever plays better moves on," said Sox manager Terry Francona. "It's probably appropriate."

There was no guarantee there would be any Boston bounce after the Thursday miracle. To a man, the Rays said they would be able to put the big choke in their rearview mirror. Game 5 would not impact Game 6, they said. Just another loss.

But it was not just another random loss. It was a moment of abject devastation for the young Rays and last night's defeat only enlarged the magnitude of Game 5. The Rays are free-falling and the Red Sox are more confident by the inning.

Three days ago, the Rays led, 7-0, with two outs in the seventh. Champagne was in their clubhouse. And then the Red Sox cut their hearts out. The Rays had two full days to think about it. And now they are trying to do what the Yankees could not do in 2004, what the Indians couldn't do in 2007. They are trying to close the deal against the redoubtable Red Sox. Tonight they get one last chance against lefthander Jon Lester, who has been Boston's best pitcher in this postseason. Matt Garza goes for Tampa Bay. He was dominant at Fenway in Game 3.

Josh Beckett was supposed to be ripe for another beating last night. He strained an oblique muscle at the end of the regular season and was roughed up in his first two playoff starts. But like the rest of his teammates, Beckett found a way to win. Throwing an array of breaking stuff and 91-mile-per-hour fastballs, he held Tampa at bay for five serviceable innings, turning a 4-2 lead over to his bullpen. Hideki Okajima, Justin Masterson, and Jonathan Papelbon blanked the dumbstruck Rays, allowing zero hits over the final four frames.