The pieces of that ninth inning - which was ultimately punctuated with Kiké Hernandez's walk-off sacrifice fly, allowing the Red Sox to advance to the American League Championship Series - were subtle.
First there was the leadoff single from Christian Vazquez ...
Then came the sacrifice bunt by Christian Arroyo ...
Next was a slow roller from pinch-hitter Travis Shaw ...
And, finally, Hernandez finished things off ...
"A lot of people were talking about the bunt, giving outs away, but we didn't need to score four runs in the ninth," said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. "We only needed to score one. Christian did a good job getting on base. Christian did a good job putting the bunt down. Travis did a good job putting the ball in play. It's something we always talk about.
"Then Kiké put the ball in the air. Old school baseball right there. Fundamental baseball, and we won the ALDS playing good fundamental baseball."
About that bunt ... Evidently, there was somewhat of a story behind it. It turns out that the guy seen cheerleading in the Red Sox' dugout, while pushing players in the laundry cart, Jose Iglesias was part of this ninth-inning equation without barely anyone realizing.
Appearing on the Red Sox Radio Network Pregame Show with Will Flemming, Arroyo explained exactly how Iglesias impacted one of the most important moments of the game.
"I truly believe that without Jose Iglesias, we might not be here," said Arroyo regarding the infielder, who isn't eligible for postseason play but has been a constant presence in the Red Sox' dugout. "Again, that is just a testament to the teammate that he is, and a person and a player. I have so much respect for the guy. He has stuck around with us this entire time. He has been basically like a player-coach right now.
"And you want to know something crazy, too? The other day in Tampa … Why I did this I have no idea … When I went to bunt with two outs and I popped out, the next inning Iggy sat down with me and said, ‘Hey, when you bunt, you move your back foot a lot.’ So I said, ‘OK.’ So I watched the video and we watched over it together. This is during the game. Granted we were winning 14-6 or 11-6 or something. We had a pretty commanding lead. I said, ‘What should I do?’ He goes, ‘Well, I have always done this. Maybe not move your back foot so much.’ I’m not going to lie, this is the honest to God truth, that at-bat I said, ‘Do not move your back foot at all. Stay in line. Get the bunt down and do what you got to do.’ As soon as I put the bunt down the only person I could think of was Jose Iglesias."
It proved to be some of the most important advice of the season.
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