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Power Surge Continues As Rays Blast Red Sox, 13-4

Tribune photo by CHRIS URSO

Rays DH Willy Aybar is congratulated by teammate Carl Crawford at the plate after Aybar hit a two-run home run in the third inning.

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By MARC LANCASTER | The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 14, 2008

BOSTON - The Rays demonstrated over the long haul of the regular season that they were the best team in the American League East.

One more win and they'll be the undisputed champs of the entire league.

Another remarkable show of force Tuesday night put the Rays on the brink of the World Series, their 13-4 demolition of the Red Sox following much the same blueprint as the previous day's blowout win.

Tampa Bay now holds a commanding 3-1 lead in the ALCS with an off day looming today. If the Rays can't close it out here Thursday in Game 5, they'll have two more chances to do so over the weekend at Tropicana Field. After dropping its first seven games at Fenway Park this season, Tampa Bay has won the last four.

While the Rays' Game 3 success against Jon Lester came out of nowhere, the beating they administered to knuckleballer Tim Wakefield on Tuesday looked much like their last crack at him. Wakefield recorded only eight outs, one more than he did in a blowout loss at the Trop on Sept. 17, as the Rays once again blasted three home runs against him.

Carlos Pena started it off with an opposite-field two-run drive to left-center in the first and Evan Longoria followed two pitches later with one of his own. Wakefield set the Rays down in order in the second and retired the first two batters in the third before Carl Crawford (who had five hits to tie an LCS record) reached on an infield single and Willy Aybar (who had five RBIs) mauled a 65-mph knuckler, launching it down the line and over the Green Monster for a 5-0 lead.

The rout reached epic proportions when the Rays got deeper into a worn-out Red Sox bullpen. They sent 10 men to the plate against Javier Lopez in the sixth, scoring five times – including Longoria drawing their latest bases-loaded walk in a season full of them. They did it the hard way, too, as everything after Jason Bartlett's one-out triple was either a walk or a single.

In the meantime, Andy Sonnanstine did what he does best. The right-hander kept the game moving and kept the ball in play and eventually was rewarded with his second win in as many postseason starts.

The last one, in Game 4 at Chicago, clinched the Division Series for the Rays. This one put them on the verge of taking another huge step.

Reporter Marc Lancaster can be reached at (813) 259-7227.

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