Out at home

There were several key plays in last night's Boston loss to Detroit. Probably the one that stands out the most as the Red Sox' last best chance was Manny Ramirez getting thrown out at home with one out in the bottom of the 8th, down 7-4. If Manny's safe, the deficit is 2 runs, with 2 on and 1 out. If he hadn't run, they would have been down 3 with the bases loaded and 1 out. When he was thrown out, they lost a potential run, and they lost the opportunity to score a run on an out, and they lost an at-bat with runners on in the 8th. Very costly.

There's been some discussion over whether Manny was running hard or jogging. I think Manny was fine, and should never have been sent. The ball was hit pretty hard, pretty much right at the center fielder, and, this is a key point, Manny had to hold up to make sure that the 2nd baseman didn't catch it. He wasn't off with the hit - his first move was back to 2nd. Granderson had the ball in CF before Manny reached 3rd - he should never have been sent. This one's on DeMarlo Hale.

Video of the play can be seen here.