Martinez, Smith Propel Wild Card Leaders to Victory

Starting pitcher Paul Byrd gave the Wild Card-leading Boston Red Sox five solid innings and left with a slim 3-2 lead. As Byrd neared the end of his outing, Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Jason Hammel took the mound in the first inning against the Cincinnati Reds. Both teams are fighting for their lives in this season’s final month. Boston entered play with a 1 1/2 game lead over the Texas Rangers in the Wild Card standings; if they lost, the Rangers would close to within a game. It’s a somewhat different story in Colorado. Heading into the second game of a three-game series with the Reds, the Rockies not only held a 3 1/2 game lead in the Wild Card over the fading San Francisco Giants, but were on the Los Angeles Dodgers' doorstep, just 3 1/2 behind the NL West division leaders. It was a playoff atmosphere for both Boston and Colorado and a must-win against their respective foes. Byrd, coming off a terrible start in which he allowed seven runs on 10 hits against ...