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BOSTON (AP) -Big Papi has his home run swing going for the
Red Sox
, while
Manny Ramirez
's chase for 500 is still on hold.
David Ortiz
homered twice and drove in four runs, helping Boston beat the
Milwaukee Brewers
11-7 on Sunday and complete a sweep of their interleague series despite a subpar outing by ace
Josh Beckett
.
''Today was the best I think he swung the bat,'' Boston manager
Terry Francona
said of Ortiz. ''He had balance, some aggression without trying to generate it. That was as good as I've seen.''
Kevin Youkilis
added a two-run homer and
Dustin Pedroia
also went deep for Boston, hitting a solo shot ahead of Ortiz's first of the game.
Eight homers in the game, and Ramirez didn't have one of them.
The player many in Fenway Park hoped to see hit a home run went 1-for-5 with a single and remains two shy of becoming the
24th player in major league history to reach the 500-home run milestone. He has just two homers in his last 24 games.
Ortiz, though, hit his third in three games after a three-run shot in the opener of a day-night doubleheader Saturday.
''That's what he does when he's going good,'' Pedroia said. ''Everything looks easy.''
Ryan Braun
hit his 12th and 13th homers, J.J. Hardy had a two-run shot and
Prince Fielder
also homered for the Brewers, who lost their fifth straight.
''We did a nice job of swinging the bats against Beckett, one of the best pitchers in the American League,'' Milwaukee manager
Ned Yost
said. ''We just didn't pitch well today.''
Boston improved to 31-8 since 2006 in interleague games, 18-3 at Fenway.
Beckett (5-3) pitched seven innings, allowing six runs - all on homers - and six hits, while striking out nine and walking
one.
''Guys swung the bats well today,'' Beckett said. ''I just try to focus on positive things.''
Trailing 4-3, the
Red Sox
scored three in the fourth, two in the fifth, one in the sixth and two in the seventh.
In the fourth, Fielder - the only infielder who didn't have one of Milwaukee's four errors Saturday night - dropped a throw
that allowed
Mike Lowell
to reach. Milwaukee starter
Carlos Villanueva
(2-5) then loaded the bases on Youkilis' single and
Jason Varitek
's walk before walking
Julio Lugo
to force in the tying run.
Jacoby Ellsbury
followed with a two-run single, making it 6-4.
Villanueva gave up six runs - five earned - in four innings.
''I felt fine. I felt like I had command of all of my pitches,'' he said. ''It's just hard to explain.''
Mark DiFelice
, making his major league debut, gave up a double to Pedroia in the fifth, and Ortiz followed by homering into the Brewers'
bullpen to make it 8-4.
Braun's second of the game and Fielder's sixth of the season - the first time Milwaukee's had consecutive homers this season
- cut it to 8-6 in the sixth. Pedroia had a sixth-inning RBI single, and Youkilis homered in the seventh.
Braun's first homer gave Milwaukee a 2-0 lead in the first. After that, Beckett struck out the next four batters and breezed
through the second and third innings until Hardy's two-run shot moved Milwaukee back in front 4-3 in the fourth.
Ortiz's RBI double sliced the lead to 2-1 in the bottom of the first, and Boston jumped ahead 3-2 in the third when Ortiz
and Pedroia hit back-to-back homers.
Milwaukee regained the lead on Hardy's homer.
Ellsbury was caught stealing in the fourth, the first time for the rookie after a club-record 25 successful attempts.
Notes: DiFelice, 31, became the third-oldest player in team history to make his debut. ... It was Ortiz's 31st career multihomer
game, 29th with the
Red Sox
, third most behind
Ted Williams
and
Jim Rice
. ... Boston manager
Terry Francona
said before the game that the team expects to recall RHP
Justin Masterson
to start Tuesday, and RHP
Bartolo Colon
would make his
Red Sox
debut on Wednesday. Colon, signed as a free agent in February, has been rehabbing a strained oblique. ... Francona didn't
use LHP
Hideki Okajima
, who has been bothered by a sore wrist, for the second straight day. ...
Red Sox
OF
Brandon Moss
, who had an emergency appendectomy on May 3, will play in Florida on Monday and then go to Triple-A Pawtucket later this
week.
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