Ramirez Gets Big Hit for Red Sox

Manny Ramirez was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the 10th inning Friday night, giving the Boston Red Sox a 3-2 win over the Oakland Athletics.

Mike Timlin (7-2) got out of a 10th-inning jam when he retired Mark Ellis on a groundout with Marco Scutaro at third.

Juan Cruz (0-3) started the bottom of the 10th after Justin Duchscherer pitched 2 1/3 perfect innings. Cruz gave up a leadoff double to Tony Graffanino. Alejandro Machado pinch ran and took third on Johnny Damon’s groundout.

Oakland Manager Ken Macha then removed left fielder Jay Payton for a fifth infielder, Keith Ginter, who played behind Cruz. Cruz hit Edgar Renteria on the right elbow, then intentionally walked David Ortiz to load the bases.

Keiichi Yabu relieved and hit Ramirez on the left elbow with a 1-and-1 pitch.

Ortiz tied the score in the sixth inning with his 43rd homer as Boston maintained a 1 1/2 -game lead in the AL East over the second-place New York Yankees, who beat Toronto, 11-10.

It was the first major league game to end on a hit batter since Aug. 23, 2002, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. In that one, Atlanta’s Kevin Gryboski hit the Dodgers’ Paul Lo Duca.

Boston’s Tim Wakefield came close to his third consecutive complete game, leaving after nine innings with the score tied at 2-2. He gave up two runs and seven hits with three strikeouts and a walk. In his previous start, he gave up three hits in eight innings but lost, 1-0, to Randy Johnson and the Yankees in New York.

Wakefield retired 12 of the last 13 batters he faced Friday. Timlin set down the first two batters in the 10th before Scutaro doubled and took third on a wild pitch.

Kevin Millar scored the first run in the second inning when he doubled, took third on Kevin Youkilis’ single and came in on a passed ball by Jason Kendall on a third strike to Doug Mirabelli.

The Athletics were hitless through three innings, then scored two runs and had four hits in the fourth. The runs came in on RBI singles by Kendall and Payton.

The start of the game was delayed 1 hour 37 minutes because of rain.