Sometimes you just tip your cap to the other guy – unless your name is Manny Ramirez. Other than the Boston’s free-agent signee, the Red Sox swung soggy bats against Yankees starter Andy Pettitte last night at the Stadium.
Ramirez, who occupies another universe when it comes to hitting, was the only player impervious to Pettitte’s guile.
“We haven’t quite found the answer to Pettitte,” Boston catcher Jason Varitek said after the Yankees beat David Cone and the Red Sox 7-3. “You hate to come in every time and give the guy credit, but he sure pitched his butt off again.”
Batting cleanup as the designated hitter, Ramirez went 3-for-4 with two RBIs and one run scored. He had his team’s only extra-base hit, lining a two-run double to right-center in the ninth.
“He’s a pure hitter,” Red Sox manager Jimy Williams said. “The man’s just a pure hitter.”
The other eight hitters had a combined five hits off Pettitte, and none was for extra bases. The Red Sox entered the game fifth in the AL in runs scored and third in the league in batting average.
“Pettitte was really tough tonight,” Williams said. “We just couldn’t seem to get anything going.”
Ramirez leads the league or is near the top in nearly every hitting category, including batting average and RBIs. His 56 RBIs were 12 more than his closest competitor – Seattle’s Bret Boone – after last night’s action. Not only that, but he’s helped some of Boston’s younger hitters simply by being their teammate.
“He’s the ultimate right-handed hitter in major league baseball right now,” Boston rookie Shea Hillenbrand said before the game. “I watch his approach on a daily basis, his approach to have such success and keep on top of the mental aspect of the game.”
As for the rest of the Boston lineup, Pettitte kept them off-balance. Nobody had more than one hit off the Yankees’ left-hander, who was facing the Red Sox for the third time this season.
Pettitte picked up his second win of the season against the Red Sox, who have scored just nine earned runs off him in his 23 1/3 innings.
“Give credit to the guy,” Varitek said. “He’s got great stuff and he’s a great pitcher.”
