It was looking like the Rays would not get the chance at a winning rally, but then they had two of them in the later innings Friday only to come up short. Boston beat the Rays 2-0 to take the first game of the ALCS at the Trop.

Boston's Daisuke Matsuzaka took a no-hitter into the seventh inning but there the Rays put runners on the corners with nobody out. Tampa Bay could not score. Then in the eighth it was first and second with no one out, and again Boston got out of the jam as Justin Masterson induced a double play from Evan Longoria.

"We didn't have many opportunities, we had some we didn't take advantage of them," said Rays manager Joe Maddon. "It was really a well pitched game, on both sides. It was a clean game, it was a good game. There was not a lot of hitting. They just got a couple more runs."

The Rays wasted a great pitching performance from James Shields, who went into the eighth inning. Boston's first run came with the help of a check-swing from Mark Kotsay that turned into a double in the fifth inning. With runners on second and third after the excuse-me hit Jed Lowrie hit a sac fly to make it 1-0.

Surely the Rays would have taken a similar cheapie in the seventh. Carl Crawford led off with a solid single to right for Tampa Bay's first hit against Matsuzaka, then Cliff Floyd singled to center to set up a great chance to tie the game. Needing just a moderately deep fly ball to score the speedy Crawford, the Rays came up short.

Dioner Navarro did hit a fly ball to left but was not deep enough to risk sending Crawford. Then Gabe Gross, in an at-bat where he looked defensive, swing and missed at a 3-2 pitch down and away by Matsuzaka. Jason Bartlett then hit a grounder to short.

"Listen, it happens... it just takes a good at-bat. You gotta score runs wiht outs in these situations also, we weren't able to do that," Maddon said.


Boston would add a run in the eighth when Kevin Youkilis, who was 3-for-4 on the night, hit an RBI double that Carl Crawford made a great play to get to but let it go off his glove. That came off J.P. Howell, who relieved Shields after Dustin Pedroia singled wiht one out. Pedroia then stole second, Howell walked David Ortiz and Youkilis came up with his hit.

Grant Balfour came on and escaped further damage. He hit J.D. Drew with the first pitch to load the bases but then struck out Jason Bay on a 3-2 pitch, and got Kotsay to pop out to left.

Then in the eighth the Rays chased Matsuzaka, with Aki Iwamura and B.J. Upton starting the inning with singles. Hideki Okajima came on and his first three pitches to Carlos Pena were balls. Maddon then gave Pena the green light and he swung, but the ball was caught by Drew in right field.

Maddon said he thought the team's best shot was a three-run homer at the time.

Justin Masterson, a groundball pitcher, came on to face Evan Longoria and after falling behind 2-0 got Longoria to ground into a killer double play.

"This is probably how it's going to be. It's going to be a battle every game," Youkilis said.

In effect Boston now has the home-field advantage that Tampa Bay worked so hard to procure during the regular season.

The crowd Friday was decidedly as pro-Rays as there ever has been for a Tampa Bay-Boston game at the Trop, with home fans staying wild and loud throughout even though their team never scored a run.

Matsuzaka walked three batters in the first inning but got Cliff Floyd to ground out to second.

"He had a little bit of a high-wire act in the 1st inning, but as he got into the middle of the game he really threw the ball well, got into a good groove and the ball had a lot of life," said Red Sox manager Terry Francona.

Matsuzaka, who did not lose on the road all regular season, struck out nine while walking four. Shields struck out six and allowed six hits.

Rookie David Price came on to get the final out of the eighth for the Rays.

Tampa Bay looks to even up the series Saturday night, with Scott Kazmir facing Josh Beckett.

All of the playoff action can be heard on sister station 1250 WHNZ.