When Shane Victorino signed with the Boston Red Sox as a free agent in the off-season, they were coming off a last-place finish

BOSTON -- When Shane Victorino signed with the Boston Red Sox as a free agent in the off-season, they were coming off a last-place finish that was their worst in almost half a century. Kerryon Johnson Jersey . They had fired their manager for the second year in a row. He believed they could turn it around. And quickly. Victorino brought the Red Sox one big step closer to completing their comeback, sending them to the World Series with a seventh-inning grand slam that gave Boston a 5-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers in Game 6 of the AL championship series Saturday night. The Red Sox will open the Series on Wednesday night against the St. Louis Cardinals, the team they swept in 2004 to end their 86-year title drought. The Cardinals won the NL pennant on Friday night by eliminating the Los Angeles Dodgers in six games. "Its one of those moments you live for," Victorino said as he wandered around the Fenway Park infield while Red Sox fans serenaded him with his theme song, Bob Marleys "Three Little Birds," and its chorus, "Dont worry about a thing, Cause every little thing is gonna be all right." "Just listen to the crowd," Victorino said, referring then to the Boston Marathon bombings that left the city reeling during the first month of his first season in town. "The one thing I came here to do is to be a part of this city. With all we went through as a city, theres definitely a bond." Detroit took a 2-1 lead in the sixth and 21-game winner Max Scherzer protected it until the seventh, when Boston loaded the bases on a double, a walk and an error by rookie shortstop Jose Iglesias, traded by the Red Sox in July. Victorino fell behind Jose Veras 0-2 but lofted a hanging curveball over the Green Monster to set off a celebration in the Red Sox dugout and in the Fenway Park stands. "Its been a special ride, and were still going," second baseman Dustin Pedroia said. "Were not going to stop. We know what our goal is. We want to win the World Series." Junichi Tazawa got one out for the win, Craig Breslow pitched a scoreless eighth and series MVP Koji Uehara got the last three outs before the Red Sox poured out of the dugout to begin their now-familiar celebration on the mound. "The way I would sum it up is that I thought their starters were good," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "I thought their bullpen was great." Uehara, who inherited the closer job after the teams first two choices were injured, posted three saves and a win in the series. Then he joked about pitching so well under pressure. "To tell you the truth, I almost threw up," Uehara kidded through a translator. Its the 13th AL pennant for the Red Sox and their first since 2007, when they swept the Colorado Rockies to win it all for the second time in four seasons. Boston swept the Cardinals in 04, winning Game 4 in St. Louis to clinch the title that put an end to generations of disappointment. The latest trip comes one year after a 69-win season that prompted the team to jettison its high-priced stars, rebuild the roster and bring in manager John Farrell to replace Bobby Valentine. Victorino was one of the biggest additions, and he delivered on Saturday as he did for much of the season. "Since the first day of spring training, there wasnt one person more important than the next," said outfielder Jonny Gomes, another newcomer, who doubled to lead off the seventh, missing a homer over the Green Monster by no more than a foot. "Were all pulling in the same direction." Scherzer got one out in the seventh but left after walking rookie Xander Bogaerts to put runners on first and second. Drew Smyly got Jacoby Ellsbury to hit a grounder up the middle, but it popped out of Iglesias glove behind second base and everyone was safe. Veras came in and quickly got ahead of Victorino. But he hung a curveball and Victorino sent it toward the 37-foot left-field wall, which had already knocked down two Red Sox line drives. This one left no doubt. It was the second career post-season slam for Victorino, who also had a record-setting hit-by-pitch in the sixth but failed to get a bunt down in the third. "Hes come up big a number of times this season, none bigger," Farrell said. "Probably the last thing were thinking of, that hes going to hit a ball out of the ballpark, and thankfully the curveball stayed (up)." Scherzer and Clay Buchholz also matched up in Game 2, when the Tigers right-hander took a no-hitter and a 5-0 lead into the sixth. The Red Sox rallied against the Detroit bullpen, tying it on David Ortizs eighth-inning grand slam and winning it in the ninth on Jarrod Saltalamacchias walk-off single through a drawn-in infield. Both starters gave up hits in the first inning in the rematch, but it remained scoreless until Bogaerts doubled off the Green Monster with two outs in the fifth and scored on Ellsburys single. But the Tigers took the lead in the bottom half, chasing Buchholz with a walk and Miguel Cabreras single before Franklin Morales walked Prince Fielder on four pitches to load the bases with nobody out. Victor Martinez lined one high off the Green Monster to make it 2-1, holding at first with a two-run single. Brandon Workman came in and got Jhonny Peralta to hit a hard grounder to Pedroia, who chased down Martinez in the basepath for one out and then threw home to get Fielder in a rundown. Saltalamacchia ran him back to third and dove, somersaulting over him while making the tag. Workman struck out Alex Avila looking to end the inning. Scherzer worked out of a jam in the bottom half after putting runners on second and third with one out. He allowed three runs on four hits and five walks, striking out seven in 6 1-3 innings. Buchholz gave up two runs on four hits and two walks, striking out four in five-plus innings. Scherzer walked the first two batters in the third, but Victorino popped up a bunt and Scherzer made a sliding catch for the first out. Pedroia hit a high drive that was just foul of the Carlton Fisk pole above the Green Monster. After it was confirmed by replay, he hit a hard grounder down the line that Cabrera fielded, easily stepping on third base before throwing to first for the double play. NOTES: It will be the first World Series between the teams with the best record in each league since 1999. ... Detroit C Alex Avila, who absorbed a body shot and a foul ball off the mask in Game 5, took another ball off the mask in the fourth but remained in the game. ... The Dropkick Murphys sang the national anthem before the game, followed by "Shipping up to Boston," wearing Red Sox jerseys that said "Boston Strong" and the number 617. ... The Red Sox are 6-0 in Game 6 of the ALCS. ... Ellsbury had successfully stolen 18 bases in a row in the regular season and playoffs before being thrown out in the fifth. ... Victorino was hit by a pitch leading off the sixth, his sixth of the playoffs, extending his record and setting a major league record with the 10th post-season HBP of his career. Alex Rodriguez had the old record. Tracy Walker Jersey . General Manager Sam Presti said the three-time All-Star had knee swelling that would not subside, and the procedure was intended to solve the problem. He said doctors determined that a loose stitch was to blame for the swelling, that Westbrooks lateral meniscus has healed properly and the procedure was successful. Frank Ragnow Lions Jersey . Signs of a turnaround have emerged in this series at Minnesota. Brian Roberts had three doubles and a triple for the first four-extra-base-hit game of his 14-year career, and the Yankees used their bullpen to preserve a 6-5 win over the Twins on Friday. http://www.lionsfanspro.com/Customized.html?cat=904 . The Extreme Heat Policy was enacted at Melbourne Park just before 2 p.m. Thursday, suspending all matches on outer courts until the early evening and requiring the closure of the retractable roofs at Rod Laver and Hisense arenas before play could continue on the show courts.The volatile, and now tied, Western Conference Finals shift to Alamo City for a crucial Game 5 Thursday night between the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder. Watch the game live on TSN and TSN GO at 9pm et/6pm pt. Serge Ibaka returned to the Thunder lineup from a calf injury that was supposed to sideline him for the remainder of the postseason and the results were sparkling. Ibaka helped OKC to victories in Games 3 and 4 and his defense has been a huge reason for the shift in momentum. With Ibaka back in action, the Thunder have held the Spurs to 40 and 36 points in the paint for the two games at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Without Ibaka and the series at AT&T Center, San Antonio exploited his absence to the tune of 66 and 54 points in the paint. But Ibakas return isnt the only factor in OKC tying the series. Kevin Durant, the reigning MVP, has been brilliant, but Russell Westbrook has been amazing. The Thunder won Game 4, 105-92, and the dynamic duo of Oklahoma City was on full display. Westbrook finished with 40 points, 10 assists, five steals and five rebounds, while Durant poured in 31 points on just 22 shots. Westbrook became the first player since Michael Jordan in 1989 to have a postseason game with at least 40 points, 10 assists, five rebounds and five steals. "I just think myself and Kevin, obviously we want to win, and we want to get better," said Westbrook. "Tonight, we came out with a defensive mindset. I thought we did a great job of helping each other out defensively, and that led to us getting out in transition, getting open looks, and it looked easy for both of us." The Thunder shot 50.8 percent from the field over the first three quarters to build a substantial lead, one aided by a staggering 21-0 advantage in fasstbreak points. Devon Kennard Jersey. Tony Parker scored 14 points, while the other two-thirds of San Antonios Big 3 -- Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili -- totaled 14 points on 5-of-16 shooting. Kawhi Leonard scored 10 as the San Antonio starters, including Danny Green and Tiago Splitter, combined for 39 points, one shy of Westbrooks total. "Theyre talented obviously, but the athleticism and the length gives you a small margin of error, and youd better be smart the way you play, and you cant afford to screw that up as many times as we did," said Spurs coach Gregg Popovich. "And I think we have to play harder." To that end, Pop sat his starters midway through the third quarter, bringing some back in the fourth. Afterward, he indicated that he was resting players for Thursday, but after practice on Wednesday, he said some changes, albeit small ones, might be in order. "Weve considered a couple of tweaks here and there just in the game plan." Popovich said. "I dont know exactly where thatll be, but we saw a few things that we think might warrant a little tweak here and there." The Spurs, who are 8-1 at home this postseason, saw a similar scenario play out two years ago. They beat the Thunder in the first two games, then lost the last four as OKC marched into the NBA Finals. "I dont think about it," said Pop. Maybe Popovich should think about this - the Thunder have won seven straight over the Spurs with a full lineup, including Ibaka. "We know what were playing for," said Durant. "We know that the series is far from over, and we know we havent done anything, but what were supposed to do, which is win at home, taking care of our home court." Game 6 will be Saturday night in Oklahoma City. NFL Jerseys Wholesale Wholesale Jerseys 2019 Cheap Jerseys From China Discount NFL Jerseys China NFL Jerseys Youth NFL Jerseys Cheap Cheap NFL Black Jerseys ' ' '