It Ain't Over Yet

Back-to-back-to-back homers is usually a good sign. Unfortunately, when Kevin Youkilis, David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez did it Tuesday night, they were already down by seven runs. Hanging knuckleballs and costly errors did the Red Sox in, while a seven run fifth inning and a throwback pitcher gave the Indians the 7-3 win. Cleveland now leads the series 3-1, and has one more game at home before possibly heading to the World Series. So what's the problem? That would be Josh Beckett starting on Thursday. Beckett is the only Boston pitcher to look halfway decent in this series, while C.C. Sabathia is the only Indians starter who hasn't.

Another problem for Cleveland is that when it comes to facing ALCS adversity, Terry Francona knows how to get his Red Sox to rally. I don't need to remind you what happened in 2004. Plus, if Boston were to win on Thursday, it is very unlikely for Curt Schilling to have two bad starts in a row. Remember, this Indians team is young and inexperienced. And what happens when they have to turn to Joe Borowski, possibly the game's shakiest closer? We saw on Tuesday night the determination that Boston's veterans had. The pressure felt by Cleveland will be ten fold what is felt by the Red Sox. How they respond during Game 4 is extremely important. They need to end this now.