Boston Red Sox outfielder Shane Victorino may have played Game 4 of the World Series if it was in Fenway Park instead of Busch Stadium, reports Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal.
2013 World Series: Shane Victorino may have played Game 4 under AL rules
Victorino did not want to leave in the middle of Game 4, which would have robbed John Farrell of a potential pinch-hitter.
Rob Grabowski-USA TODAY Sports
Victorino was a late scratch from Sunday’s lineup with back tightness. The outfielder has been plagued by numerous injuries for months, but has continued to play through them. Victorino, however, felt his back lock up in the fifth inning of Game 3, and the injury continued to bother him the next day.
More Red Sox: Doubront, Lackey save bullpen for Game 5
If the Red Sox were playing under AL rules, Victorino may have still been in the lineup. The outfielder, however, did not want to leave his manager shorthanded, telling MacPherson:
“I thought I could go, but if in the third or fourth inning I’m locked up, then we lose me, we lose a bench guy, so we lose two guys. Me being a National League player, I understood that. Let’s let Jonny go. Let me do my exercises seeing if I could get better, and if there’s a pinch, maybe I can help.”
Jonny Gomes replaced Victorino in the lineup and delivered the biggest hit of the game, smashing a three-run homer in the Red Sox 4-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Red Sox have not announced whether Victorino will be in the Game 5 lineup.
More from SB Nation MLB:
• World Series: Red Sox even series | Wong picked off to end Game 4
• Neyer: Mike Matheny’s short memory
See More:
