12:10 PM EDT on Tuesday, October 7, 2003

BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

OAKLAND -- Bring on The Evil Empire.

The never-say-die Boston Red Sox are headed for the American League Championship Series for the first time since 1999, and, as happened in that season, their opponents will be their bitter rivals, the New York Yankees.

The Sox reached that destination by showing their trademark pluck and resiliency, capping a comeback from an 0-2 deficit to overtake the Oakland Athletics in the best-of-five American League Division Series.

The confident Red Sox made it three straight over the shell-shocked Athletics, holding on for a nail-biting 4-3 victory in Game 5 last night at Oakland's Network Associates Coliseum, with Pedro Martinez outdueling Barry Zito.

Journal photo / Ruben W. Perez THAT CLINCHES IT: Red Sox pitcher Derek Lowe is hoisted in celebration by catcher Jason Varitek after closing out last night's Game 5 of the ALDS. Lowe struck out two of the four batters he faced in the ninth inning.

Derek Lowe, who was victimized by a surprise game-losing bunt in the 12th in Game 1, rode to Boston's rescue out of the bullpen in an anxiety-filled ninth.

The sinkerballer slipped a called third strike past pinch-hitter Adam Melhuse with runners at second and third for the second out of the inning. And then, after walking Chris Singleton on a full-count pitch to load the bases, Lowe fired a called third strike past another pinch-hitter, Terrence Long, ending the game and prompting the Sox to charge out of the dugout for a celebration in the middle of the diamond.

"We've got a gutsy team, laying it all on the line," said right fielder Trot Nixon.

"That's the way it has been all year for us," added catcher Jason Varitek.

The only downer for the Sox was that they lost center fielder Johnny Damon, who suffered a concussion in a horrific collision with second baseman Damian Jackson as the two chased a shallow fly with two outs in the seventh. He was held overnight at a local hospital for observation.

"Something like that makes the game small," said Trot Nixon. "It's not the same celebrating without Johnny."

But while Damon clearly was on their minds, the Sox enjoyed the series win immensely with the requisite champagne-spraying antics taking place.

It was on the field, though, that the Red Sox proved again they wouldn't back down as they recovered from the 0-2 deficit as they had in 1999, when they shocked Cleveland.

Varitek's homer leading off the sixth against Barry Zito tied the game at 1-1 and ignited an inning that included Manny Ramirez's first lightning bolt of the series, a three-run homer off the tiring Zito, who was pitching on three days' rest.

But the offense, tops in so many categories in the majors for the regular season, did not spark the team into the next round of the playoffs.

"People talked about our offense, but it was our pitching that carried us," said Nixon, whose pinch-hit, game-winning 11th-inning homer in Game 3 started the Sox' rousing comeback in the series.

"We got a few big hits, but that's only because the pitching staff held us in there," he added.

Pedro Martinez did his share last night, permitting three runs on seven hits in seven-plus innings.

"Pedro pitched his heart out," said manager Grady Little.

The bullpen made it 21 retired batters in a row over the last four games until Scott Williamson, in his third straight day of duty, walked the first two batters he faced in the ninth.

That prompted the call for Lowe, who was an All-Star closer only four seasons ago.

Ramon Hernandez, whose bunt beat Lowe and the Sox in Game 1, sacrificed. After a discussion on the mound, it was decided Lowe would not walk the next hitter to set up a double play, or at the very least a force at the plate.

"Derek doesn't like to intentionally walk guys," said interim pitching coach Dave Wallace. "That gave him a chance to go after the hitters with the base open, and if he walked him, so what?"

Having the margin for error helped. Lowe didn't have to give in to Singleton, though he did end up walking him. His game-ending pitch to Long was a thing of beauty to Varitek.

"That was a front-door sinker that dropped about a foot," said Varitek. "The execution of that last pitch was the best thing I could have asked for."

For most of the series, the Sox and their fans have been asking for some contribution from their slugger, Ramirez. For the most part he had been missing in action, at least when it came to producing with runners in scoring position.

Entering last night, he was 1 for 7 with zero RBI in those situations. And last night, after looking confused in whiffing in his first two at-bats against Zito, he hardly seemed primed to produce a magical moment.

But with runners at first and second and one out in the sixth, Ramirez guessed right. And Zito obliged by giving him a fat fastball up and over the plate. Ramirez cranked it over the fence in almost the same spot where Varitek's homer had disappeared, giving the Red Sox a sudden 4-1 lead, quieting the crowd of 49,397.

He took his time going into his home-run trot, pausing as the ball cleared the fence to point to his teammates in the dugout.

"I told Ino (Guerrero, a Red Sox coach) that (Zito) was going to make a mistake and I was going to be waiting," said Ramirez. "I just go out there with my plan. I see the ball and hit it."

"We were all dying, expecting that from Manny," said his close friend and teammate David Ortiz. "And he broke that bat in two pieces. When he went to get the bat (for his next at-bat) he said, 'What's this? It's broken!' He hit a home run and broke his bat."

The Athletics crept back into it, though. Doubles by Erubiel Durazo and Miguel Tejada produced a run in the seventh, and Martinez was knocked out after surrendering a leadoff double to Singleton and a run-scoring single to pinch-hitter Billy McMillon as the Athletics closed to within 4-3.

And thanks to Lowe, that's the way it stayed.

So now, the Red Sox get to test their mettle against the Yanks.

"We welcome the opportunity," said Little. "I think it will be exciting."