Six runs in the first two innings gave the Boston Red Sox the boost they would need to win the championship of the American League East bracket the 1975 Strat-O-Matic Tournament presented by Press Room Pass.
After Fred Lynn put Boston up with a RBI single in the first inning, Carlton Fisk drilled a three-run homer to expand the margin for the Red Sox.
A run-scoring double by Cecil Cooper followed by a RBI triple by Denny Doyle made it 6-0 in the second frame.
Boston’s Carl Yastrzemski added a another run with a single in the fourth that chased New York starter Doc Medich as the Red Sox led by seven.
Red Sox starter Bill Lee was cruising along until the sixth. With one of his five hits, Elliott Maddox along with Thurman Munson, Chris Chambliss and Graig Nettles each drove in a run to send Lee to the showers with one out in the sixth.
Roger Moret and Dick Drago would finish on the mound for Boston.
Lynn’s two-run homer in the seventh put the Red Sox up 9-4, while Nettles knocked in the final tally for the Yankees with a sacrifice fly in the eighth.
American League East Division Championship
(1) Red Sox 9, (3) Yankees 5
(4) Twins or (6) Angels at (1) Red Sox, AL championship
IN REAL LIFE:
Fred Lynn had one of the more incredible seasons in history during 1975. Not only was he the American League Rookie of the Year, he was also named the Most Valuable Player.
Lynn made an all-star appearance and earned the first of four Gold Gloves. He hit 21 homers and drove in 105 runs, while batting .331. He also topped the AL in doubles (47) and runs scored (103).
As good as he was in 1975, Lynn posted career-high numbers in 1979 with 39 homers and 122 RBI as he won his only batting title with a .333 average.
Joining the Red Sox at the end of 1974, Lynn was in Boston until 1980.
In 1981, he began a four-year stint with California. In his ninth and final all-star game, Lynn hit a grand slam to earn the MVP in the 1983 mid-summer classic.
Lynn finished in 17-year career with 306 homers and 1,111 RBI, while playing in Baltimore (1985-1988), Detroit (1988-1989) and San Diego (1990).