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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- The Boston Red Sox found a cure for their
offensive doldrums -- the Minnesota Twins.
Jeff Frye hit his first home run in more than a year and
seldom-used Scott Hatteberg had a three-run homer as the Red Sox
overcame a third straight poor start by Jeff Fassero to beat the
Minnesota Twins 11-8 Wednesday night.
|  | | Scott Hatteberg's only hit in five at-bats was a big one -- a three-run homer in the third off the Twins' LaTroy Hawkins. |
Boston's punchless offense woke up in a big way in the first
three games of the four-game series against the Twins. The Red Sox
have scored 36 runs and hit 10 home runs in the series. It's
Boston's first three-game win streak since May 10-15, when they won
six in a row.
"It was spread all the way up and down the lineup," Boston
manager Jimy Williams said. "I always felt, in my mind, we have
good hitters on this team."
Every Boston starter had at least one hit and Ed Sprague, Nomar
Garciaparra and Frye had two apiece.
"It's nice to score 30 runs in three games," Sprague said.
"We've been swinging the bat well."
Fassero, activated from the disabled list before the game, gave
up four runs in 1 2-3 innings, and has yielded 12 earned runs in
seven innings over three starts. He was out since June 19 with a
cervical strain and weakness in his left shoulder.
Williams said the long layoff hurt Fassero, but the left-hander
wasn't showing any lingering affects of his injury.
"He had been a couple of weeks removed from pitching in a
game," Williams said. "I don't believe his mechanics were the
same as before."
John Wasdin (1-3) gave up one hit in 4 1/3 innings of relief to
pick up his first win of the season.
Wasdin said a new windup, that he developed with the help of
pitching coach Joe Kerrigan, was the key to his strong outing, in
which he relied almost exclusively on his fastball.
"I tried to just stay focused with that windup and it worked,"
Wasdin said. "I got four innings and I was very, very happy with
that."
Minnesota's David Ortiz hit a pinch-hit three-run homer off Rich
Garces, and Jacque Jones followed with a solo shot off rookie Tim
Young in the ninth. Derek Lowe got three outs for his 19th save in
23 chances, ending Minnesota's four-run rally.
"We made a little comeback, but they brought in their tough
closer and he shut the door," Ortiz said.
Twins starter Mark Redman (5-4) was even worse than his
counterpart. Redman went two-plus innings, giving up six earned
runs on five hits and three walks. Redman is 2-4 over seven starts
after starting the season as one of the Twins' more promising
prospects.
"Pretty much the same story as the past couple of nights,"
Twins manager Tom Kelly said. "We had a tough time with our
starter."
Minnesota's Matt Lawton, added to the All-Star team Wednesday
for the first time in his career, went 2-for-5 with three RBI.
The Red Sox sent nine men to the plate in a seven-run third
inning, highlighted by home runs by Frye and Hatteberg, who got a
rare start catching as Jason Varitek had the day off and Mike
Stanley was placed on the disabled list with a shoulder injury.
Garciaparra's RBI double chased Redman, and reliever LaTroy
Hawkins looked poised to stop the scoring with back-to-back
strikeouts after walking Morgan Burkhart. But Sprague hit an RBI
single and Hatteberg homered.
Frye's two-run homer was his first since June 14, 1999.
Lawton's double off the right-field wall scored Jay Canizaro and
Jason Maxwell to give the Twins a 4-2 lead in the second inning.
Game notes
It was the fifth time the Twins hit back-to-back homers
this season. ... With Wednesday's loss, the Twins have dropped five
straight series at the Metrodome following road trips. ... Wasdin
started warming up in the Red Sox bullpen after the first four
Twins batters reached base. ... Frye's last blast also came against
Minnesota. ... The Twins have given up 43 runs in four games.
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ALSO SEE
Baseball Scoreboard
Boston Clubhouse
Minnesota Clubhouse
RECAPS
Cleveland 15
Toronto 7
NY Yankees 12
Baltimore 6
Tampa Bay 4
Detroit 1
Chi. White Sox 6
Kansas City 3
Boston 11
Minnesota 8
Texas 9
Oakland 4
Seattle 6
Anaheim 4
Pittsburgh 9
Chicago Cubs 6
San Francisco 4
Colorado 2
NY Mets 11
Florida 2
St. Louis 4
Cincinnati 3
Montreal 6
Atlanta 5
Arizona 12
Houston 9
Philadelphia 5
Milwaukee 2
Los Angeles 7
San Diego 5
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