It was a nice comeback for the Sox after they were blitzed Friday, 15-5.
“We were fortunate the way it worked out,’’ said manager Terry Francona. “It worked out really well. We can let the guys regroup for a couple of days now.’’
The announced attendance for Game 1 was 37,314, which extended the Red Sox’ sellout streak to 695, although there were hardly that many people in the stands. With so many empty seats, the Sox let Game 2 patrons into the park in the eighth inning of the opener as the game resumed for good after a delay of 2 hours 15 minutes. The second game was also deemed sold out.
The three hours of delays in Game 1 didn’t deter the Sox, who struck for nine runs in the first five innings. The nightcap, which didn’t start until 6:50 p.m., had a one-hour rain delay after the fourth inning that curtailed starter Erik Bedard’s outing. Bedard had pitched four-plus scoreless but tedious innings, walking four, three of them in the first inning.
When play resumed, Bedard was replaced by Alfredo Aceves, who shut down the A’s for three innings. Daniel Bard and Jonathan Papelbon completed the three-hit shutout.
David Ortiz was the hitting star of the doubleheader. He went 2 for 4 with two doubles and two RBIs in the first game and had three hits, including a two-run homer, in the nightcap. Ortiz now has 27 homers, 86 RBIs, and a 12-game hitting streak (24 for 46, .522).
The homer followed a second-inning leadoff double by Dustin Pedroia (3 for 8, 3 RBIs). The Sox added a run in the fourth on singles by Pedroia, Ortiz, and Jed Lowrie, and a Jarrod Saltalamacchia grounder to first. Saltalamacchia’s bloop double to right in the sixth brought home Lowrie with the fourth Sox run.
It was a good day and night overall for the catching tandem of Saltalamacchia and Jason Varitek, who knocked in five runs between them.
Varitek drove in three runs in the opener, two of them coming on a two-out home run (his ninth) into the Sox bullpen in the second.
