In the bottom of the second inning, Ortiz hit a solo shot to tie the game at 1-1. With the ballgame tied at 2-2 in the bottom of the ninth, Ortiz twisted a homer around the Pesky Pole to give Boston a 3-2 win.

On the mound for the Red Sox was Tim Wakefield — who hadn’t pitched since July 8th due to a back injury. In his return, the knuckleballer was very good. He allowed only one earned run on six hits in seven innings of work.

The win was an important one for the Red Sox. They remain within 6 games of the New York Yankees in the AL East and continue to sport a lead of 2.5 games in the AL Wild Card race.

David Ortiz Hits a Walk Off Home Run (Image: Zuma Press)

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David Ortiz Hits Walk Off Homer for Red Sox

In 17 starts this season, Wakefield is 11-3 with a 4.31 ERA. The 43-year-old knuckleballer was on pace to set his career-high in wins but now his focus is just on getting back to Boston and helping his team make the playoffs.

To make room for Wakefield, Brad Penny will be ousted from the rotation. Though he was pitching decently well early in the season, Penny has struggled as of late. In August, he is 0-3 with a 8.31 ERA. In his last outing, he gave up ten hits and eight earned runs against the New York Yankees.

Right now, the Red Sox are trying to battle off the Texas Rangers and the Tampa Bay Rays to win the AL Wild Card race. If they can get hot, they may still be able to catch the Yankees in the AL East. Currently, they trail the Yankees by 6.5 games.

Tim Wakefield - Boston Red Sox

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Tim Wakefield to Return for Red Sox

“It’s a minor setback,” explained Wakefield, “that’s all.”

Earlier in the month, Wakefield was named to the All-Star team for the first time in his career — quite an accomplishment for a 42-year-old who has been in Major League Baseball since 1992.

On the season, Wakefield has a 4.31 ERA to go along with a record of 11-3. Prior to this injury, he was on pase to win the most games of his big league career.

With Wakefield heading to the DL, the Red Sox called up Clay Buchholz. The 24-year-old will make his second start of the season in Wakefield’s spot in the rotation. Buchholz’s other start saw him go 5.2 innings and give up only one earned run.

Tim Wakefield - Boston Red Sox (Image: Zuma Press)

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Tim Wakefield Headed to the DL

In five innings of work, Wakefield allowed seven hits and two walks while allowing five earned runs and striking out five batters. His ERA for the season is now 2.91 and he has a record of 3-1.

At the plate, Mike Lowell was 2-for-5 including a homer in the fifth inning. Reigning AL MVP Dustin Pedroia was 2-for-3 with two runs, one RBI and three walks.

For the Rays, Carlos Pena was the hitting star. He hit his 11th home run of the season in the 4th inning and finished the night 2-for-3 with one run, two RBI and two walks. Starting pitcher Jeff Niemann got lit up in his three innings of work — allowing five earned runs on seven hits.

With the win, the Red Sox improved their record to 15-9. The loss dropped Tampa Bay to 10-15.

Tim Wakefield, Boston Red Sox (Image: Flickr)

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Tim Wakefield Helps Red Sox Top Rays

You probably have no idea who Eri Yoshida is and, really, I didn’t either until I read the article. Yoshida is a 16-year-old Japanese school girl who was recently drafted to play professional baseball in a new Japanese pro league. She’s a right-hander who is only 5 feet and 114 pounds, throws a sidearm knuckleball and is a big fan of Boston Red Sox knuckleballer Tim Wakefield.

Apparently, Yoshida threw a hitless inning against male batters during a tryout this month and was among 33 players picked in the draft.

Now that’s awesome!

Photo provided by Newscom

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Eri Yoshida Is The First Woman To Play Professional Baseball