Foulke unbeatable in postseason
BOSTON (AP) -- Keith Foulke has been unbeatable in the postseason. In fact, nobody has even scored against him.
Foulke finished off another fine effort by Boston�s bullpen Sunday night, preserving a 6-2 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals that gave the Red Sox a 2-0 lead in the World Series.
The right-hander with the nasty changeup hasn�t allowed a run in nine postseason games spanning 12 innings.
�I appreciate you bringing that up. That�s always a great sign,� he said sarcastically, rolling his eyes. �I�ve learned from my past playoffs where I didn�t pitch so well. I�m just going out there and trying not to make mistakes.�
Thanks in large part to Foulke and his stellar setup men, Boston is two wins from its first World Series title since 1918.
�It�s easy to be consistent when you have guys down in the bullpen like we have. We keep each other in check,� lefty Alan Embree said. �We�ve done well together all year�it�s not just the playoffs.�
Foulke entered with a runner on first and two outs in the eighth inning of Game 2. He retired all four batters he faced, striking out two�his latest lights-out performance in October. The closer has allowed only five hits in the postseason, going 1-0 with two saves and 16 strikeouts.
�I think he�s starting to get his credit now,� teammate Kevin Millar said. �He doesn�t blow the radar guns away, but he spots his 88 mph fastball as well as anyone in baseball.�
TAKE NOTHING FOR GRANTED: The Boston Red Sox certainly didn�t plan to lose the first three games of the AL championship series against New York. But the lesson they learned could pay off now that they have a 2-0 lead over St. Louis in the World Series.
�We are not going to fall into the trap after winning the first two,� reliever Alan Embree said. �You saw what happened with the Yankees.�
Boston made history by becoming the first major league baseball team to win a seven-game series after losing the first three. Twenty-five others tried and failed.
The Red Sox have won their last six games, but the Cardinals are 6-0 at home in the postseason. The next three games are in St. Louis, starting Tuesday night.
�We get to go home to a place we feel comfortable and a place we played well all year,� catcher Mike Matheny said.
Just don�t expect the Red Sox to ease up with a 2-0 lead.
�We know how good of a team they are,� Boston manager Terry Francona said.
GETTING A START: Marlon Anderson made his first start of the postseason for the Cardinals, serving as the designated hitter in Game 2. He batted ninth and went 0-for-2.
Anderson was the Cardinals� top pinch-hitter this season, going 17-for-51. He also had six steals. He has had some success against Boston starter Curt Schilling, going 3-for-10 in his career.
Manager Tony La Russa chose Anderson over John Mabry (2-for-13 lifetime against Schilling) and Roger Cedeno (3-for-15).
So Taguchi got his first postseason start in left field in Game 1, with Reggie Sanders serving as DH. Sanders returned to left field for Game 2.
BAD HOP: Cardinals manager Tony La Russa spoke with Red Sox groundskeeper Dave Mellor on Sunday, a day after David Ortiz�s hard grounder took a wicked hop and hit second baseman Tony Womack on the collarbone, knocking him out of Game 1.
�The groundskeeper came up and apologized for the bad hop on Womack. I�ve never had that happen,� La Russa said. �We were playing four or five steps in the dirt, we weren�t really in, and we had a chance to get a double play or throw the guy out at the plate.�
Mellor said it wasn�t really an apology. He just wanted to talk it over with La Russa and see how Womack was feeling.
�There was nothing wrong with the field,� Mellor said. �I don�t like to see anybody get hurt. It looked like it was a hard shot with some topspin.�
Womack was back in the lineup for Game 2.
�Could they erase that score that gave up that run, too?� Womack said. �That happens. That�s baseball.�
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