Tough lineup to beat
BOSTON -- Manny Ramirez set a postseason career record with his 23rd homer, Boston teammate David Ortiz tied another October mark and the Red Sox and Cleveland Indians were tied at 6-6 after nine innings in Game 2 of the AL championship series Saturday night.
The Red Sox, who won the opener 10-3, scored 3 runs in the fifth to take a 6-5 lead. Ramirez tied it with a 2-run drive, and Mike Lowell followed with a solo shot.
Both came out of the dugout to acknowledge the cheers. When Ramirez went to left field in the top of the sixth, he raised his cap to the roaring crowd.
There are no easy outs in Boston's lineup, certainly not in the playoffs.
"One through nine is important," Lowell said before the game. "We don't want the guys hitting behind or in front of that David-Manny combination not being able to do their job."
For most of the season, 101 of his 154 games, Lowell batted sixth. Still, he drove in 120 runs and hit .324, both career highs. He's batted fifth in the playoffs.
Ortiz and Ramirez each reached base in all 5 plate appearances during Boston's 10-3 win over Cleveland in Game 1 of the best-of-seven ALCS.
"What they're doing right now is pretty incredible," Indians manager Eric Wedge said before Game 2. "You've got a guy behind them that only knocked in 120. So it's not just about those two guys. But, obviously, they're the backbone of what they do here offensively."
The lineup starts with rookie second baseman Dustin Pedroia, who hit .317 in the regular season.
"He's out there every day," Boston manager Terry Francona said. "He seems like a veteran to me."
No. 2 hitter Kevin Youkilis reached base three times in the opener and scored every time.
Then comes Ortiz and Ramirez. Swinging at pitches in the strike zone and avoiding ones that just missed, they combined to go 4-for-4 with 5 walks and a hit by pitch Friday night.
Lowell had a double and 3 RBI. Bobby Kielty, playing in place of J.D. Drew because lefty C.C. Sabathia started for Cleveland, singled in 2 runs. The last three hitters -- Jason Varitek, Coco Crisp and Julio Lugo -- each had a double.
"When the lineup flips over, Lugo, Dustin and Youk, if they're on base, there's nowhere to put them," Lowell said. "So they've got to pitch to them. So that's to our advantage."
During the regular season, the Red Sox were second in the AL in on-base percentage and third in runs and total bases. They amassed those numbers despite a subpar year from Drew, who batted fifth most of the season. He hit .270 with 11 homers and 64 RBI after signing a five-year, $70 million contract as a free agent.
But even he had his moments, hitting .393 with 15 RBI in his last 18 games.
Saturday night, the Indians tied it in the sixth when Jhonny Peralta walked, took third on Kenny Lofton's single and scored on Franklin Gutierrez's groundout.
Neither starting pitcher made it out of the fifth.
Curt Schilling allowed 5 runs in 4¿ innings for Boston, a rare blemish on his postseason record of 9-2 with a 1.93 ERA entering the game. Fausto Carmona went 19-6 this season with a 3.06 ERA, second-best in the AL, but the right-hander gave up 4 runs and 4 hits with 5 walks in 4 innings.