That's when the wheels started turning.
The first move was for Red Sox manager
John Farrell to bring on Chris Capuano to face lefty-hitting Roger Bernadina. The goal was to have the lefty reliever get through the inning, with Capuano representing the only member of the bullpen equipped to go multiple innings.
But after a Bernadina run-scoring ground out put runners on second and third with one out, Farrell decided to prioritize keeping things within striking distance instead of worrying about extra innings. (
Andrew Miller was not available for duty, with
Craig Breslow, Edward Mujica, Koji Uehara and Junichi Tazawa all unable to go more than a single frame.)
The strategy worked, with the sinkerballing Burke Badenhop coming on to get a pair of ground outs to keep the score at 3-2 heading into the eighth.
After an uneventful home half of the seventh, and a 1-2-3 eighth from Breslow, Farrell's decision-making once again was put on center stage.
With lefty Manny Parra on the hill for a second straight night,
David Ortiz kicked things off in the home half of the eighth with a strikeout. He was followed by Mike Napoli's walk. Then Farrell decided to make a pivotal move, calling on Jonny Gomes to pinch-hit for
Grady Sizemore. The thinking was to get Parra out of the game, bringing in righty J.J. Hoover, who would have to face back-to-back left-handed hitters A.J. Pierzynksi and Jackie Bradley after Gomes.