Jacoby Ellsbury Saves Red Sox's Season

Jacoby Ellsbury was already among the leading candidates for the AL MVP award. Sunday he might have cemented his place as the top one.

His two home runs in the first game of a day-night double-header were impressive enough, considering they vaulted him into uncharted territory as the first Boston Red Sox's player to achieve the 30-30 combo in home runs and steals on the same season.

But of course, the crowning blow – and the drive that might have saved Boston's season – came in the nightcap, when Ellsbury's three-run blast off Scott Proctor in the 14th inning provided the winning margin in the Red Sox's 7-4 win over the New York Yankees.

A loss would have dropped Boston into a tie with the Tampa Bay Rays for the wild card and further demoralized a team that can't seem to do anything right, as its 6-18 September record and 17 errors in 12 games attest.

As it is, the Red Sox take a one-game lead into their final series of the year at Camden Yards against the Baltimore Orioles, whom they have defeated nine of 15 times.

The Yankees easily won the opener of a double-header that showcased several MVP candidates, with AL RBI leader Curtis Granderson and Robinson Cano having convincing cases for the Yankees, and Ellsbury and Adrian Gonzalez for the Red Sox.

"This was a huge win," Ellsbury said after the five-hour, 11-minute nightcap, which ended at 11:43 p.m.. "It allows us to control our own destiny. We know if we win out, we're in. So we don't have to scoreboard watch or anything like that.

Ellsbury leads majors in total bases with 356, and the five-RBI day gave him 103 for the season even though all but 39 of his 646 at-bats have come out of the leadoff spot.