Sunday night's game between the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees marked the beginning of the 2010 MLB regular season.
Despite the return of Red Sox legend Pedro Martinez to throw out the first pitch, the season's inaugural game was anything but a pitchers' duel.
It didn't take long for Boston's Josh Beckett to run into trouble against the stacked Bronx Bomber lineup.
In the second inning with two outs, Beckett gave up a line drive off of Pesky's pole in right field for a home run to Jorge Posada. Then, Curtis Granderson continued the trend with a shot into the right center field bleachers.
In the top of the fourth, the Yankees added to their two out success by rattling off another three runs, capped by a double-steal resulting in Brad Gardner taking home on a throw to second base.
After four and two thirds innings, Beckett was chased from the game having given up eight hits and five runs.
C.C. Sabathia, on the other hand, cruised through the first five innings allowing only two runs on four hits. The sixth inning was not so kind for the Yankees ace, however. In the sixth, a Kevin Youkilis two run triple and an Adrian Beltre RBI single tied the game back up at five.
Despite an inauspicious start to the season by Ramon Ramirez, giving up two earned runs in .1 innings pitched, the Boston bullpen shined in their first outing of the season.
Scott Schoenweis, Hideki Okajima, Daniel Bard, and Jonathon Papelbon each pitched a shutout inning against the dangerous Yankee lineup.
Though the battle was defined by offense, one hit in particular can be seen as a major turning point in the game.
With a 7-5 deficit in the seventh inning, Dustin Pedroia stepped to the plate representing the tying run. On a 1-1 pitch, Pedroia showed a flashback to his MVP season by lifting a high fly ball down the left field line.
The barely 300 ft. fly ball just cleared the Green Monster, tying the game at seven.
Later in the seventh, Kevin Youkilis came through with a big double to put him into scoring position representing the go-ahead run. After being moved over to third, Youkilis scored when a Demaso Marte fastball popped out of Jorge Posada's glove and to the backstop.
Youkilis ended the game with two doubles and a triple, becoming the first Red Sox player since Carlton Fisk to open the season with three extra-base hits.
Dustin Pedroia added an insurance run with an RBI single in the eighth inning, capping a three-RBI opener.
In the ninth, Papelbon came on to shut the door for the Red Sox, taking only 10 pitches to pick up his first save of the year.
Though the first game of the year is not something to judge a team off of, hopes are high in Boston for the upcoming Red Sox season.
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