Basketball Betting

Dice-K flirts with no-hitter as Red Sox handle Phillies

Baseball Betting Lines

05/22/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Daisuke Matsuzaka had a no-hitter broken up with two outs in the eighth inning with Juan Castro's flare single to shallow left, and the Red Sox handled Philadelphia, 5-0, in the second installment of a three-game interleague set at Citizens Bank Park.

Matsuzaka (3-1) walked four, struck out five and was pulled after getting the final out of the inning with 112 pitches. It represented his third win in four starts and the Japanese import was backed by several defensive gems in the near no-no.

Dustin Pedroia made a leaping grab in the first on a humpback liner to start a double-play, Matsuzaka snagged a line shot off the bat of Jayson Werth for the final out of the seventh and Adrian Beltre came up with perhaps the most important play with nobody out in the eighth and Raul Ibanez on first.

Carlos Ruiz ripped a ball to the left side, which Beltre got with a diving stab to his left. He doubled off Ibanez at first, but next up was Castro, whose soft looping hit was just out of shortstop Marco Scutaro's reach with the outstretched webbing.

Beltre also did the job at the plate, knocking in two runs. J.D. Drew picked up two hits and an RBI in the win, Boston's fourth in five games.

Kyle Kendrick (2-2) was charged with five runs and eight hits in 4 2/3 innings for the Phillies, who had won six of eight and took the opener to this series Friday, 5-1, against Sox ace John Lackey.

With Matsuzaka's keeping the Phillies off the scoreboard, Boston built a 5-0 lead over the first five innings.

The game's first run came in the fourth, in which David Ortiz reached base on a fielder's choice. He went to third on a double by Beltre, then scored when Jeremy Hermida lofted a sacrifice fly to left field.

Drew's looping single to left scored Scutaro an inning later to kick off a two-out, four-run rally. Ortiz delivered a double to right to score Jacoby Ellsbury in the center fielder's first game back from the disabled list. Beltre capped it with another double, scoring two for a 5-0 affair and ending Kendrick's outing.

From there, the no-hit watch was on as Matsuzaka breezed through the next two innings to reach the fateful eighth. Daniel Bard picked up where Matsuzaka left off with a spotless ninth.

Game Notes

Ellsbury had been sidelined since April 11 with a hairline fracture in four of his left ribs. He was hurt in a collision with Beltre and was batting .333 with four doubles and an RBI in six games prior to the injury. To open up a roster spot, Boston designating outfielder Jonathan Van Every for assignment...The Phillies had to place shortstop Jimmy Rollins back on the disabled list after he re-injured his right calf in Friday's game. He singled with one out in the sixth, then appeared to pull up lame at first base. He was on the DL with the same injury from April 13 to May 17. To take Rollins' spot on the roster, infielder Wilson Valdez was recalled from Triple-A Lehigh Valley.