MLB

Cardinals even sloppy World Series against Red Sox

BOSTON — Can anybody catch or throw the ball here?

The World Series is supposed to be a stage for baseball’s elite. After two Cardinals-Red Sox games, you wonder how any player handles a fork and knife with these hands.

One night after the Cardinals committed three costly errors in Game 1 and handed the Red Sox a victory, the AL champs made two big errors on the same play Thursday night in Game 2 that the Cardinals won, 4-2, in front of a Fenway Park crowd of 38,436.

“Uncharacteristic of the way I think we have taken care of the baseball this year,’’ Red Sox manager John Farrell said of a fielding error by catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia and a throwing miscue by reliever Craig Breslow in the three-run seventh inning.

The best-of-seven Series shifts to St. Louis for Game 3 Saturday night tied, 1-1. Games 4 and 5 also will be played in the AL title holder’s ballpark Sunday and Monday nights.

Twenty-two year-old right-hander Michael Wacha went six innings, allowed two runs and three hits to pick up the victory, his fourth of the postseason. John Lackey gave up three runs and five hits in 6¹/₃ innings and was tagged with the loss.

Believing what he was seeing, Cardinals manager Mike Matheny stayed with right-handed reliever Carlos Martinez in the eighth when he had several options.

After second baseman Matt Carpenter allowed Jacoby Ellsbury to reach on a leadoff fielding error, Shane Victorino and Dustin Pedroia fanned.

With righty Trevor Rosenthal and lefty Randy Choate in the pen, Matheny allowed Martinez to face David Ortiz and he reached on a single.

Surely, Rosenthal and his 100-mph fastball would surface with the potential go-ahead run at the plate. But Matheny stayed with Martinez and he popped up Mike Napoli for the final out.

“It’s not an easy decision knowing we have a left-hander up and ready to go,” Matheny said of allowing Martinez to face Ortiz, whose two-run homer in the sixth inning gave the Red Sox a 2-1 lead. “A lot of it has to do with what we see, how the ball is coming out of Carlos’ hand at the time. Not an easy call but we liked the way Carlos was throwing the ball at that particular time.’’

Rosenthal whiffed the final three Red Sox batters, the last on a 99-mph fastball, for the save.

After the Cardinals gifted them Game 1 with atrocious fielding, the Red Sox returned the favor in the seventh Thursday night when the Cardinals took advantage of two Red Sox errors to score three runs and erase a 2-1 deficit.

With one out, Lackey walked David Freese and gave up a single to Jon Jay. The left-handed Breslow was summoned to face the left-handed hitting Daniel Descalso and walked the No. 9 hitter on a 3-2 pitch.

Matt Carpenter, another lefty swinger, lifted a fly to left that Jonny Gomes fielded on the run. His throw home to get pinch-runner Pete Kozma was wide of the plate and glanced off Saltalamacchia’s glove.
With Jay racing for the third, Breslow got the ball and fired it into the seats beyond third. Jay scored and Descalso went to third.

Carlos Beltran, who played with a bruised right rib area that required a pain-killing shot, scored Descalso with a single to right.

“I’m sure Craig would like to have that ball back and hold it with a chance to shut down the inning right there,” Farrell said. “We gave them the run.”

Considering the way the first two games have gone, it’s surprising the Cardinals didn’t drop it or throw it away.