• World Champs swept away • Angels 11, Yankees 7 • UH beats Fresno St. 30-23, 30-17, 30-17 World Champs swept away By ASSOCIATED PRESS BOSTON — The Boston Red Sox and their Fenway faithful waited 86 years to hoist
• World Champs swept away
• Angels 11, Yankees 7
• UH beats Fresno St. 30-23, 30-17, 30-17
World Champs swept away
By ASSOCIATED PRESS
BOSTON — The Boston Red Sox and their Fenway faithful waited 86 years to hoist the World Series trophy.
They held it for only one.
There will be no repeat in New England. The Red Sox are out, the first team eliminated from the playoffs this October.
When Edgar Renteria grounded out to end Friday’s 5-3 sweep by the Chicago White Sox, Boston’s championship banner was still flying stiffly from the center-field flagpole at Fenway Park.
But no celebration. Not like last year, when Renteria grounded out for the St. Louis Cardinals, finishing off Boston’s sweep at Busch Stadium.
The Red Sox went quietly, chased in three games. There was no Curt Schilling with the bloody sock and the stitched-up ankle to bail them out — in fact, Schilling didn’t even throw a pitch this postseason, as he was scheduled to start Game 4.
Instead, there was Tim Wakefield pitching a decent but insufficient 5 1-3 innings in the deciding game, and Tony Graffanino — who replaced 2004 postseason star Mark Bellhorn at second base — hitting an infield popup with the bases loaded and the score 4-3 in the sixth inning.
So there’ll be no trophy tour of all of Massachusetts’ 351 cities and towns. No grandsons putting their arms around grandfathers who hadn’t been born the last time the Red Sox won the World Series in 1918 before 2004.
Boston became the sixth World Series champion to be swept out of the postseason the following year, and the first since Arizona lost in the opening round to St. Louis in 2002.
Blame it on a pitching staff that lost big-game starters Pedro Martinez and Derek Lowe to free agency and closer Keith Foulke to arthroscopic surgery on both knees that made him ineffective all season.
Blame it on a pitching staff that had the 11th-best ERA in the AL.
Angels 11, Yankees 7
NEW YORK — The Big Unit was a bust when the Yankees needed him most, and Chone Figgins’ clutch plays pushed the Los Angeles Angels within one win of the AL championship series.
Figgins made another sparkling grab on defense and hit a tiebreaking single, and Garret Anderson had four hits and five RBIs to lead the Angels over the New York Yankees 11-7 Friday night for a 2-1 lead in their best-of-five playoff series.
UH beats Fresno St. 30-23, 30-17, 30-17
HONOLULU — The University of Hawaii women’s volleyball team made short work of Fresno State on Friday night, beating the Bulldogs 30-23, 30-17, 30-17.
Hawaii’s Sarah Mason led all players with 13 kills. Teammate Victoria Prince added seven kills and accounted for two of the Rainbow Wahine’s four service aces.
Kasie Spencer was high for Fresno State with nine kills.
The Rainbow Wahine improved to 10-6 overall and 4-0 in the Western Athletic Conference. The Bulldogs dropped to 3-12 and 1-4.
