2007 American League Division Series

Team (Wins) Manager Season Boston Red Sox (3) Terry Francona 96–66, .593, GA: 2 Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (0) Mike Scioscia 94–68, .580, GA: 6
Dates:	October 3–October 7
Television:	TBS
TV announcers:	Ted Robinson, Steve Stone
Radio:	ESPN
Radio announcers:	Dan Shulman, Dave Campbell
Umpires:	Gary Darling, Dan Iassogna, Brian Runge, Ted Barrett, Tim Tschida, C. B. Bucknor
Team (Wins) Manager Season Cleveland Indians (3) Eric Wedge 96–66, .593, GA: 8 New York Yankees (1) Joe Torre 94–68, .580, GB: 2
Dates:	October 4–October 8
Television:	TBS
TV announcers:	Chip Caray, Tony Gwynn, Bob Brenly
Radio:	ESPN
Radio announcers:	Jon Miller, Dusty Baker
Umpires:	Bruce Froemming†, Laz Díaz, Ron Kulpa, Fieldin Culbreth, Gerry Davis, Jim Wolf †: Froemming was officiating his final games after a record 37 full seasons as a major league umpire.
< 2006 ALDS 2008 >
2007 ALCS	2007 World Series

The 2007 American League Division Series (ALDS), the opening round of the 2007 American League playoffs, began on Wednesday, October 3 and ended on Monday, October 8. The 2007 AL Division Series consisted of three AL division champions and one wild card team, participating in two best-of-five series. They were:

• (1) Boston Red Sox (Eastern Division champions, 96–66) vs. (3) Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (Western Division champions, 94–68): Red Sox win series, 3–0.
• (2) Cleveland Indians (Central Division champions, 96–66) vs. (4) New York Yankees (Wild Card qualifier, 94–68): Indians win series, 3–1.

Although the Red Sox and Indians ended the regular season with the same record, the Red Sox received home-field advantage by virtue of winning the season series against Cleveland, five games to two. The Red Sox also got to choose whether their series started on October 3 or October 4, the first time a team was given this choice. Although the team seeded first normally faces the wild card team, the Red Sox are in the same division as the wild card Yankees, so played the Angels instead.

The Red Sox and Angels met for the third time in the postseason, following the 1986 AL Championship Series and the 2004 ALDS, with Boston winning all three and extending their postseason victory streak over the Angels to nine consecutive games (the Angels hadn't beaten the Red Sox in the playoffs since Game 4 of the 1986 ALCS). The Indians and Yankees met in the postseason for the third time with the Indians winning, following their triumph in the 1997 ALDS and the Yankees' win in the 1998 ALCS.

The Red Sox and Indians met in the AL Championship Series, with the Red Sox becoming the American League champion and going on to beat the Colorado Rockies in the 2007 World Series.

[edit] Matchups

[edit] Boston Red Sox vs. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

Boston wins the series, 3–0.

[edit] Cleveland Indians vs. New York Yankees

Cleveland wins the series, 3–1.

[edit] Boston vs. Los Angeles

[edit] Game 1, October 3

Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts

WP: Josh Beckett (1–0)  LP: John Lackey (0–1)  
HRs:  BOS – Kevin Youkilis (1), David Ortiz (1)

In Game 1, Boston starter Josh Beckett threw a complete-game shut out, allowing the Red Sox to win the opener. After giving up a leadoff single to the game's first batter, Chone Figgins, Beckett proceeded to retire nineteen straight Angels batters with just the second Angels hit coming off the bat of Vladimir Guerrero in the top of the seventh inning (Guerrero was stranded at first base after Beckett got the next two batters out). Beckett was backed by a solo home run from Kevin Youkilis in the bottom of the first inning, then a two-run home run from David Ortiz in the third inning, scoring Youkilis who had doubled to left field in the previous at bat. Beckett shut out the Angels, surrendering just four hits, walking none, and striking out eight batters. Los Angeles starter John Lackey gave up nine hits and four runs over six innings, settling down after the third inning, giving up a hit and a walk before exiting after the sixth inning. Ervin Santana relieved Lackey in the seventh inning and threw two perfect innings, but the Angels offense couldn't put any runs on the board, and they dropped the opener by a 4–0 score.

[edit] Game 2, October 5

Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts

WP: Jonathan Papelbon (1–0)  LP: Justin Speier (0–1)  
HRs:  BOS – Manny Ramírez (1)

Neither starting pitcher in Game 2 made it into the sixth inning of the contest. Game 2 became a battle of the bullpens beginning with the Red Sox in the fifth inning with starter Daisuke Matsuzaka lasting just 4+²⁄₃ innings giving up three runs on seven hits. Meanwhile, Angels starter Kelvim Escobar gave up three runs on just four hits and five walks. Scot Shields came on in relief of Escobar and pitched two hitless, scoreless innings, walking three batters, one intentionally. Boston's four relievers—López, Delcarmen, Okajima, and Papelbon—threw 4+¹⁄₃ hitless, scoreless innings striking out four and only walking two batters (both by Papelbon). In the bottom of the ninth, after a Julio Lugo single, the Angels intentionally walked Ortiz giving him four walks on the night—tying a post-season record. The Red Sox won Game 2 on a three-run walk-off home run from Manny Ramírez off Angels closer Francisco Rodríguez. With the win, the Red Sox took a 2–0 series lead over Los Angeles.

[edit] Game 3, October 7

Angel Stadium of Anaheim in Anaheim, California

WP: Curt Schilling (1–0)  LP: Jered Weaver (0–1)  
HRs:  BOS – David Ortiz (2), Manny Ramírez (2)

In Game 3, Curt Schilling shut down the Angels until the ninth inning. In the fourth, David Ortiz and Manny Ramírez both homered off Jered Weaver in the fourth inning to put the Sox up 2–0, then broke the game open with seven runs in the eighth to complete a sweep. This was the Red Sox' ninth consecutive postseason game victory over the Angels.

[edit] Composite box

2007 ALDS (3–0): Boston Red Sox over Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

[edit] Cleveland vs. New York

[edit] Game 1, October 4

Jacobs Field in Cleveland, Ohio

WP: CC Sabathia (1–0)  LP: Chien-Ming Wang (0–1)  
HRs:  NYY – Johnny Damon (1), Robinson Canó (1)  CLE – Asdrúbal Cabrera (1), Víctor Martínez (1), Travis Hafner (1), Ryan Garko (1)

Johnny Damon led off the game with a home run off Cleveland starter CC Sabathia, but Game 1 quickly became a one-sided affair as Chien-Ming Wang was tagged for eight earned runs in 4+²⁄₃ innings. Kenny Lofton's two-RBI single in the bottom half of the first gave the Indians a lead that they would not relinquish. Sabathia earned the win despite walking six in five innings, and departed after throwing 114 pitches. Lofton tallied three hits and four RBI for Cleveland. The win marked Cleveland's first over the Yankees since 2006, snapping an eight-game losing streak.

[edit] Game 2, October 5, "The Bug Game"

Jacobs Field in Cleveland, Ohio

WP: Rafael Pérez (1–0)  LP: Luis Vizcaíno (0–1)  
HRs:  NYY – Melky Cabrera (1)

Game 2 featured an old-fashioned pitchers’ duel between Fausto Carmona and postseason veteran Andy Pettitte. Carmona looked to be the hard-luck loser until the eighth, when heralded phenom Joba Chamberlain allowed the tying run to score on two walks and two wild pitches. With that and Melky Cabrera's third inning home run to show for the game's only runs, the game went into extras, where Travis Hafner drove home the winning run on an eleventh-inning single.

Late in the game, a swarm of insects circled the mound in the late innings. Play was stopped for a short time to accommodate the players, including Chamberlain, who threw only 12 of his 25 pitches for strikes in suffering a blown save without surrendering a hit.

[edit] Game 3, October 7

Yankee Stadium (I) in The Bronx, New York

WP: Phil Hughes (1–0)  LP: Jake Westbrook (0–1)  
HRs:  CLE – Trot Nixon (1)  NYY – Johnny Damon (2)

The Yankees would take Game 3 for their only win of the series despite an early exit from starter Roger Clemens, who left with a strained hamstring. Rookie Phil Hughes relieved him and threw 3+²⁄₃ scoreless innings for the win, striking out four. Cleveland led 3–1 halfway through when Johnny Damon hit a three-run home run off starter Jake Westbrook, giving the Yankees the lead for good. Any hope for Cleveland to rally was put out of reach by a key sixth inning error that allowed two unearned runs to score on a Robinson Canó single.

[edit] Game 4, October 8

Yankee Stadium (I) in The Bronx, New York

WP: Paul Byrd (1–0)  LP: Chien-Ming Wang (0–2)  SV: Joe Borowski (1)  
HRs:  CLE – Grady Sizemore (1)  NYY – Robinson Canó (2), Alex Rodriguez (1), Bobby Abreu (1)

Chien-Ming Wang was called upon to start Game 4 on three days' rest for the Yankees. Grady Sizemore hit a leadoff home run off Wang, who would subsequently be charged with three other earned runs in lasting only one-plus innings. Cleveland starter Paul Byrd labored but earned the win with five innings of two-run ball. Mike Mussina came on in relief for New York and threw 4+²⁄₃ solid innings, but gave up a key two-run single to Víctor Martínez that proved to be the difference in the Indians’ 6–4 win. Yankees Captain Derek Jeter, a hero of many postseasons in the past, hit into two rally-killing double plays. The Yankees chipped away in the late innings on three solo home runs, including one in the seventh by Alex Rodriguez, but could not mount a comeback against Joe Borowski, who earned the save. The loss marked the third time in five years (2003, 2004, and 2007) the Yankees were eliminated from a postseason series at home. This was the final postseason game ever played at the old Yankee Stadium and the final game that Joe Torre managed for the Yankees, as of 2009.

[edit] Composite box

2007 ALDS (3–1): Cleveland Indians over New York Yankees

[edit] Series quotes

Manny Ramírez with an absolute rocket into the Boston night and the Red Sox lead the series two games to none.

—Ted Robinson, calling Manny Ramírez's game winning HR in the bottom of the ninth of Game 2.

And this crowd will tell you the story. Three and two, bases loaded, tie game...INDIANS WIN!

—Chip Caray, calling Travis Hafner's walkoff single in the eleventh of Game 2.

Rob Quinlan pinch hitting pops up and that does it! The Red Sox sweep the Angels and they are in the American League Championship Series!

—Robinson, calling the final out.

AND THE GAME IS OVER! The Cleveland Indians have won the series in four games! Six to four your final score! The Indians are headed to Fenway Park and an era ends, perhaps, in New York.

—Caray, calling Jorge Posada's series-ending strikeout.

AND HERE COME THE YANKEES!

—Caray, calling an Alex Rodriguez single in Game 3 of the series.

[edit] See also

• 2007 National League Division Series

[edit] Notes

[edit] External links

• BOS vs. LAA at Baseball-Reference
• CLE vs. NYY at Baseball-Reference