McAdam: Red Sox continue to do damage with two outs to build 2-0 series lead

In the second inning Wednesday night, Ian Kinsler's two-out single scored Xander Bogaerts from second base.

In the fifth, a bases-loaded two-out walk by Steve Pearce forced in one run, and immediately thereafter, J.D. Martinez's two-out, opposite-field single to right scored two more.

Sensing a pattern here? All four runs came after two were out.

And that wasn't anything new for Game 2 of the World Series, even if they were key in the Red Sox' 4-2 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Since the postseason began, fully 53 percent of their runs -- 36 of 68 -- have come with two outs.

Since the start of the postseason, the Sox are 17-for-41 for a .411 average with two outs and runners in scoring position. In the game's toughest at-bats, the Red Sox are hitting like Ted Williams and reaching base more than half the time.

Those runs carry with them their own added value: not only do they extend innings, but they can also be soul-crushing to the opposition. Just when they feel like they're a pitch away from working out of a jam and getting off the field, a walk or a base hit adds to their deficit.

"It has to be tough (for other teams),'' agreed Alex Cora in the aftermath of the win that has the Red Sox halfway to another title. "One thing in the playoffs -- and we talked about it before we started -- was to get their leadoff guy out and don't give up two-out hits or runners. And we've been doing that to the opposition.''

Over and over, again and again. Just when you think you're out, the Red Sox lineup pulls you back in.

Part of their success in such situations speaks to the fact that the Red Sox, comparatively speaking, don't strike out a lot. During the season, the Red Sox ranked 26th among all major league teams, with only Pittsburgh, Seattle, Houston and Cleveland fanning less.

Strikeouts tend to kills rallies and end innings with baserunners stranded. Put the ball in play, however, and you stand a chance of a ball snaking through the infield, or a misplay by the opposition, or even, as Pearce demonstrated, drawing a walk which either extends the inning or results in a run itself.

"There are certain situations that a strikeout is not just an out,'' said Cora. "We put (pitches) in play. They did it again tonight and that's why we won the game.''

Part of their success draws from philosophy -- the importance of contact. But some of it is attitude.

"Everyone is talking about that, about coming through with these two-out things,'' said Martinez. "But to me, I just feel that we do a really good job of not giving up, not giving that last out away.''

As he is with most matters pertaining to hitting, Martinez is the leader in that regard.

"That guy,'' marveled a scout recently about Martinez, "never, ever gives away at-bats. He's up there focused, all the time. Doesn't matter what the score is or what the situation is. He approaches every at-bat like it's the biggest one of the game, and I would imagine that, eventually, that rubs off on the rest of the hitters.''

"You only get 27 outs and we don't give them away,'' said Betts. "We make pitchers work for it. We build innings.''

The Red Sox have just one homer through the first two games of the Series, but the lack of thump hasn't cost them, because they extend innings and show a relentless approach.

The fifth inning Wednesday was the perfect illustration. After Kinsler grounded out and Jackie Bradley popped up, the Sox were at the bottom of their order. But a seemingly innocent, opposite-field single by Christian Vazquez got things started. Before the inning was over, the Sox would go on to send five more hitters to the plate after Vazquez, with two of them scoring.

Some of that has to be the result of a hyper-focus at the plate, a commitment to ensure that the inning will keep going.

"I think we just lock it in,'' explained Andrew Benintendi, "and try to be a tough out. These are all good pitchers we're facing and a lot of them we haven't faced yet, especially (in the World Series).  We just try to put together good at-bats and make those at-bats as difficult as possible (for the pitcher). And when you're successful, you're excited and you start to gain a little momentum.

"And whenever you can deflate an opposing team ... that's what we're trying to do.''

"We just continue to grind it out,'' concluded Mitch Moreland. "No matter how many outs there are, we're constantly up there trying to grind out at-bats, put pressure on the other team, get guys on base and build innings. And we've been able to do that, not only in the postseason, but during the regular season, too.''