The Red Sox and the Yankees are constitutionally forbidden from playing a game in less than four hours. That's the only explanation, right? Luckily for us, the Sox only really started getting their act together as the clock crept towards midnight, as a pair of clutch home runs gave them a 5-4 win and a 1-0 advantage in the 133 games these two old foes are slated to play against each other this year.

The first three hours were a cavalcade of Boston frustration. Jon Lester and a parade of relief pitchers had trouble finding the plate. The Sox, who put Joba Chamberlain on the ropes a couple of times early, left him there, thanks in large part to the inning-ending stylings of J.D. Drew. 14 men left on base = not a good time.

And when the Yankees brought Mariano Rivera in to get the last out of the 8th (which he did, striking out Pedroia), it looked bleak. Sure, we've gotten some big hits off Big Mo in the past, but it's not exactly the kind of thing you can count on. He's not a Hall of Fame reliever for nothing...but nobody told that to Jason Bay. After a Youk single and Drew NOT hitting into a game-ending DP (we had already started composing that lede in our heads), Bay hit one to the rightmost edge of the Monster, tying the game at 4. A couple innings later, Kevin Youkilis blasted a Damaso Marte offering into the night, sending everybody happily scrambling for the train.

The Red Sox couldn't decide how excited they were. "To me, it's just another game," said David Ortiz, who was 1-for-6 and maybe officially needs some time with a motivational speaker. "[Bay] just misses that ball, it's game over. It was awesome. Great swing, great result," said Youk, who wanted to deflect attention from his walkoff job (his second ever). Tony Massarotti toasts Youk, and makes the point that the guy you look to for late-inning heroics may have officially changed. They'll do it all again today. Cancel those dinner reservations.

The NFL Draft starts today, which means five billion words have been written about something that nobody really knows anything about and might not mean much in the long run. Five billion and twenty. The Pats have the #23 pick, which they might use or might trade. Either way, we'll let you know.

A woman in Kentucky is facing extortion charges for trying to shake down Louisville coach and former Celtic arsonist Rick Pitino. The charge is that she tried to strongarm cars, tuition for her kids, and millions of dollars, which, having lived through the Pitino era in Boston, seems not quite enough of a demand. In other words, don't call us as character witnesses.

Filed in Sports and tagged David Ortiz, Jason Bay, Kevin Youkilis, Patriots, Red Sox, Rick Pitino, sports redux, sportsredux, Yankees

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