"For anyone still wondering why games between the Red Sox [team stats] and the Yankees drag on and on, all the proof could be found at the very start of last night's series finale between the teams at Fenway Park [map].

It took Jon Lester [stats] 43 pitches to get three outs in the first inning.

That's nearly half as many as are thrown in a full, normal outing for a starter. It's a bad beginning for anyone, and a guaranteed short night for most.

That Lester managed to last five innings and throw 114 pitches while allowing just a single run counts as something of a minor miracle."