Games one and two of the ALDS between the Boston Red Sox and the Tampa Bay Rays was all Boston all the time.  The Red Sox swept the first two games in Boston by a combined score of 19-6 and put the Rays on the ropes.  A trip to Tampa was now in order for game three and it went exactly how everyone predicted.  Rays closer Fernando Rodney blew a save in the top of the ninth and Sox closer, Koji Uehara, who has been nearly unhittable since taking over the role, came in and gave up a walk off home run to Rays catcher Jose Lobaton.  Wait, that’s not how it was written up?  Color me shocked.  That’s how we got to a game four, though, and now the Sox have one more shot to end this or they’ll have to fly back to Boston.

For Boston, they will send Jake Peavy to the mound.  When you think of sending Peavy to the mound you have to feel good, that is until you look at his postseason stats from his time with the Padres.  In two career postseason starts, Peavy gave up eight earned runs in four and a third innings and five earned runs in five and a third innings.  That’s not the kind of history you want to send to the mound when you need a win to move on, but those stats are from seven seasons ago, and if you know anything about Peavy then you know he will be ready to put those performances in the past.  This is why the Sox went out and traded for Peavy at the break, for moments like this, and this will be Peavy’s opportunity to prove that they made the right move when they gave up so much to get the right hander.

The Rays will counter with one of the best young pitchers in the league, like they do almost every time they send a pitcher to the mound, in the form of Jeremy Hellickson.  Hellickson has a very small sample size in the postseason as well, and while he wasn’t very successful either, you have to feel a little better about his past than you do about Peavy’s.  In his one start in 2011 against the Texas Rangers, he went only four innings and gave up three earned runs.  Not bad for a guy in his first postseason start, but the Rays are going to need a lot more from the 26-year-old right hander this time.

Neither of these starters look like they have the clear advantage when you look at their regular season stats, but Peavy obviously has the experience factor over Hellickson.  Unlike many of the other LDS series, this one will not be about the pitching, it will be about the hitting.  If the Rays are going to win they are going to have to slow down the Red Sox offense, most importantly
David Ortiz.  Ortiz got on base four times in game three, thanks in large part to three walks. If the Rays are going to slow down this offense, they are going to have to stop Ortiz who is the leader of this Sox team.  For the Rays it is as simple as finding a way to get on base in front of Evan Longoria and letting their superstar put the team on his back like he has done so many times in the past.  Game three was a prime example, where he hit a game tying three run home run.

The lineups for game four should be pretty similar to game three with two more right handers on the mound, and you can probably expect more of the same.  The Rays seem to play better at home and you shouldn’t be surprised if they force a game five.  Don’t be surprised if it comes down to the final inning of the game, either.  Catch this game on TBS 8:30PM EST, it’s sure to be another exciting game.