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Red Sox look to go up 2-0 in ALDS

Oct 5, 2007 - 5:41 PM LA Angels at Boston 8:37 pm EDT American League Division Series Red Sox lead, 1-0

BOSTON (Ticker) -- Daisuke Matsuzaka has the toughest test this postseason, following Josh Beckett in the Boston Red Sox's rotation.

Matsuzaka will look to match his teammate's Game One shutout when the Red Sox host the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in Game Two of the American League Division Series on Friday.

Beckett got Boston off on the right foot on Wednesday, tossing a four-hit shutout with eight strikeouts and no walks to give his team a 1-0 advantage in the best-of-five series.

In doing so, Beckett became just the second pitcher in postseason history to not issue a walk or allow an extra-base hit during a postseason shutout, after Don Larsen's perfect game for the New York Yankees in the 1956 World Series.

"He was strike-one all night and didn't give us a chance to put him in a situation where he had to worry about baserunners so he took care of business pretty well," Angels outfielder Garret Anderson said.

Boston, which swept Anaheim in the 2004 ALDS, got homers from David Ortiz and Kevin Youkilis in the opener.

Matsuzaka was the surprise announcement as Game Two starter earlier in the week, getting the nod over veteran Curt Schilling. The Japanese righthander, who went 15-12 with a 4.40 ERA in his first season in the majors, has yet to face the Angels in his major league career.

He ended the regular season on a high note September 28, allowing two runs and six hits over eight innings to earn a win against the Minnesota Twins.

"I think Daisuke's considered a rookie by major league standards, and he's definitely had a lot thrown at him for the first time, but he's not a rookie," Boston manager Terry Francona said.

"He's a pretty established professional pitcher. He's just had a lot thrown at him this year that is - I mean, it is the way it is, and we're thrilled to have him, but we knew he was going to go through a lot of firsts. I mean, culturally, baseball, everything. And he's handled it very well.

The Angels will counter with Kelvim Escobar, who post a career high in wins in going 18-7 with 3.40 ERA during the season. The veteran righthander also missed out on the 10 meetings with the Red Sox this season, but has faced them 36 times - 11 starts - in his career, going 6-7 with a 4.64 ERA.

The Venezuelan had a rough start to September, pitching to a 10.19 ERA and allowing a .367 batting average over his first four starts in the month before recovering to earn a win on September 29, yielding one run in six innings against Oakland.

"He has terrific stuff," Anaheim manager Mike Scioscia said of his pitcher. "He's pitched in games that if you look back on them were maybe swing games. Gave us some momentum, important games during the season and pitched incredible baseball.

"So hopefully Kelvim will be able to establish the strike zone early. He has five pitches that he can throw over the plate at any count. And I think that's what makes him so tough. So I don't think there's any magic spell or formula he needs to take into the game. He needs to get into the zone early and put guys away and his stuff will speak for itself."

Game Three will be in Anaheim on Sunday.