World Series: Game 5 Preview
Game 1 starters Jon Lester and Adam Wainwright will go at it again in Monday’s Game 5.
With the World Series tied 2-2, the Boston Red Sox will meet the St. Louis Cardinals beneath the shadow of the Gateway Arch one more time before the series switches back to historic Fenway Park on Wednesday.
First pitch in Game 5 of the World Series is scheduled for shortly after 8:00 p.m. ET Monday at Busch Stadium in downtown St. Louis.
Boston rebounded from Saturday’s controversial finish in Game 3 with a spirited performance Sunday to take Game 4 from St. Louis, with the final score reading 4-2
David Ortiz continued his unbeatable performance this World Series, going 3 for 3 at the plate with a walk and two runs scored. He’s now 8 for 11 (.727) in the series, with four walks and five runs scored.
It wasn’t Ortiz that made the headlines Sunday though. That feat was left to Jonny Gomes, who hit a three-run homer in the sixth to give the Red Sox a 4-1 go-ahead lead. Gomes hadn’t featured in manager John Farrell’s original starting lineup but was called upon to spell Shane Victorino, suffering a sore back.
Gomes finished the game 1 for 2 with a pair of walks and the most important hit of the day. The homer erased a strained performance from Red Sox starter Clay Buchholz (0-0, 4.35 ERA), who failed to record a decision for the fourth time this postseason.
Buchholz was lifted from the game after four innings. Felix Doubront (1-0, 1.29 ERA) pitched 2 2/3 innings and became the pitcher of record. Farrell would go on to insert a further four pitchers into the game, including John Lackey – penciled in to start Game 6 prior to this game – and Koji Uehara, who picked up the save.
The loss went to St. Louis’ Lance Lynn (5-2, 5.19 ERA), who pitched a solid game until the game-deciding sixth.
The Cardinals put up a fight, clawing back a run in the seventh as Matt Carpenter’s single scored Shane Robinson. In the ninth, the tying run came to the plate in the form of Carlos Beltran, but in a second night of shocking finishes, Uehara picked-off pinch runner Kolten Wong at first base to close the game without Beltran getting the chance to swing the bat.
It marked the first time in World Series history that a game finished with a pick-off. And that coming one day after the first time a World Series game had ended as a result of an obstruction call.
Game 5 sees a rematch of Game 1 starters. Boston will send Jon Lester (3-1, 1.67 ERA) to the mound while St. Louis will counter with Adam Wainwright (2-2, 2.25 ERA).
Lester got the better of the first meeting in Boston. The lefthander threw 7 2/3 innings of scoreless ball, giving up five hits and striking out eight.
Wainwright allowed three earned runs on six hits, collecting one walk and four strikeouts in five innings. The Red Sox added a couple of unearned runs to his line, before taking the game 8-1.
The Red Sox will hope for more of the same from Lester Monday, as well as Ortiz to continue his impressive run. The Cardinals will simply looking to get out of St. Louis with a win.
Get Boston Red Sox vs. St. Louis Cardinals odds and trends now.
Historically speaking, Boston enters Game 5 with a huge advantage.
The Red Sox are 7-2 (.778) all-time in Game 5 of the World Series, including a 2-1 (.667) record when the series is tied 2-2. In addition, the Sox have beaten the Cardinals in both times (1946, 1967) the clubs have met in a Game 5.
St. Louis is 6-10 (.375) all-time in Game 5 of the World Series, and 4-6 (.400) when the series is 2-2 entering the game. While that might spell trouble in Monday night’s game, the Cardinals are far from out of contention, according to the history books at least.
When splitting the opening four games of a World Series, St. Louis has won 8 of 10 titles. Furthermore, when losing Game 5, the Cardinals have still won 6 of 10 titles, including the 1946 and 1967 championships against the Red Sox. Boston meanwhile has gone 0-3 when a World Series is tied after four games.
St. Louis (-117) opens as a very narrow favorite over Boston (+108) on the moneyline in a game that really could go either way.
Errors could prove costly in this one. Boston has committed two errors in each of the last three games, and seven in total this World Series. St. Louis has managed to go two games without an error after starting the series with four errors, including three in Game 1. The Cardinals will be hoping Wong’s base-running error on Sunday night, which doesn’t officially count as an error but certainly was a mistake, doesn’t prove to be costly in the long run.
