An 11th inning bases-loaded walk gave Colorado a 3-2 win over Arizona on Friday to take a 2-0 lead in the National League championship series.
Diamondbacks reliever Jose Valverde walked Willy Taveras -- who earlier had taken a spectacular diving catch -- and the home team had no reply in the bottom of the inning as the Rockies won for the 19th time in 20 games.
The seemingly unstoppable Rockies now head home to Denver, where the series resumes today with Josh Fogg pitching against Arizona's Livan Hernandez.
PHOTO: AFP
Two wins from the three approaching games at Coors Field would give Colorado the first pennant of its 15-season history.
Leading off the 11th, pinch-hitter Ryan Spilborghs reached base on an infield single. Brad Hawpe walked with one out and Jamey Carroll then Taveras walked with two outs against Valverde, pitching more than an inning for just the second time this season.
The Diamondbacks tried almost everything to come back, sending pitcher Micah Owings to the plate as a pinch-hitter in the 11th, but he flied out for the second out, and Ryan Speier struck out Chris Young to complete a perfect inning and his first major league save in a game that lasted four hours, 26 minutes.
Colorado was ahead 2-1 in the ninth and not only blew the lead but came close to putting two men on with one out in the bottom of the inning.
With one out, closer Manny Corpas hit Young, then Young took third on Stephen Drew's single to center.
Eric Byrnes then hit a bouncer to second baseman Kaz Matsui. With no chance to throw out the speedy Young at home, Matsui tried for an improbable double play. His backhand flip to second was high for an error, and shortstop Troy Tulowitzki came off the bag to grab it.
Drew, however, didn't realize he was called safe and wandered off second base. Tulowitzki, who had started to argue, soon noticed. He ran toward Drew and threw to third baseman Jamey Carroll, who applied the tag.
It was a costly mistake by Drew, in his first full season in the majors. Tony Clark grounded out to end the inning.
The Rockies had taken the 2-1 lead in the fifth when Taveras, in his second match back from a leg injury, scored on a sacrifice fly.
Taveras drew a leadoff walk, advanced on Matsui's single and raced to third on a fly to left field, barely beating the throw.
With the Rockies clinging to that one-run lead in the seventh, Taveras' speed was a factor again. The Diamondbacks had a runner on first with two outs when Clark hit a drive to right-center.
Taveras raced into the gap and laid out with a fully extended dive to make an outstanding grab.
The Rockies won their previous seven games wearing black jerseys, but had to settle for pinstripe gray in this one. The Diamondbacks broke out the black, something they had reserved for home Saturday night games in the regular season.
Colorado starting pitcher Doug Davis, who had four hits in 58 at-bats all season, doubled leading off the third for his first extra-base hit since 2005.
He scored when Young singled to tie it 1-1.
Led by sluggers David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez, Boston beat Cleveland 10-3 in the opening game of the American League championship series on Friday.
Ortiz and Ramirez reached base all 10 times they came to the plate. Ramirez went 2-for-2 with an RBI single and three walks -- two of them with bases loaded -- and Ortiz went 2-for-2 with two walks and a hit-by-pitch.
That offense was plenty for starting pitcher Josh Beckett, who had pitched shutouts in his two previous playoff starts but this time got by on four hits over six innings.
The Red Sox ace gave up a first-inning homer to Travis Hafner before retiring 10 batters in a row.
By the time the Indians got another run, Boston led 8-2, Cleveland starter C.C. Sabathia was gone and the Red Sox were on their way to leading the best-of-seven series.
The 2003 World Series MVP and the only 20-game winner in the majors in the past two seasons, Beckett struck out seven while giving up two runs, a hit batter and a wild pitch, and he threw just 80 pitches. He has a 1.87 ERA in career postseason play.
And Boston's pitcher for game two may be even better in October.
Curt Schilling, who also has a World Series MVP award on his resume, was to face Fausto Carmona yesterday.
Sabathia and Carmona were among those tied for second in the AL with 19 wins in the regular season, and they are expected to be Beckett's toughest competition for the Cy Young Award. But in the playoffs, Sabathia hasn't been able to keep up.
Eight days after struggling but earning a victory in the first-round opener against the New York Yankees, Sabathia gave up eight runs and five walks in four-and-one-third innings.
The Cleveland ace gave up three consecutive singles in the first inning, then loaded the bases in the four-run third and again in the three-run fifth.
"A pitcher like C.C., when he gives you something to hit, you want to make sure you hit it, because otherwise you might never get to see that pitch again," Ortiz said. "He was a little wild tonight, and you've got to take advantage of it."
Ortiz has reached base 16 of 18 times this postseason, going 7-for-9 with eight walks and a hit-by-pitch. Ramirez has reached base 11 of his last 12 times since Game 2 of Boston's first-round sweep of the Los Angeles Angels.
Hafner put a fly ball into the wind in the first inning and watched as it sailed over the Cleveland bullpen.
The shot ended Beckett's hopes of a third consecutive shutout and a record-tying fourth of his career; only Christy Mathewson has done that.
But if the Indians were hoping for a sign that the 27-year-old right-hander was lacking his best stuff, they soon learned otherwise. Beckett struck out Victor Martinez to end the first and retired 10 in a row in all before hitting Ryan Garko to start the fifth.
Hafner's homer put Boston behind for the first time these playoffs but it didn't last long.
Kevin Youkilis, Ortiz and Ramirez all singled in the bottom half of the first to tie it 1-all. In the third, the Red Sox sent nine batters to the plate and scored four more runs to give Beckett a cushion.
Julio Lugo doubled and took third on Dustin Pedroia's sacrifice bunt. Youkilis walked, and Sabathia hit Ortiz to load the bases. Ramirez walked to bring in one run, and Mike Lowell, who had three RBIs, brought in a pair with a ground-rule double.
Jason Varitek made it 5-1 with an RBI groundout.
Bobby Kielty, making a start in right field in place of J.D. Drew, had a two-run single in the fifth.
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