The second baseman blasts a two-run home run into the Monster Seats in the bottom of the ninth, his first walk-off hit of any kind, as the Red Sox rally.

08:37 AM EDT on Tuesday, April 18, 2006

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- The hope, which was all the Red Sox had in the bottom of the ninth inning, was to get David Ortiz to the plate with a chance to win the game.

Ortiz had already smoked two home runs earlier in the day and had come within a foot or so of hitting a third in the eighth inning.

But Mark Loretta preempted the Sox' regularly scheduled programming. Jumping on a 2-and-0 fastball from closer Eddie Guardado, Loretta launched his first homer as a member of the Red Sox into the Monster Seats in left, scoring Kevin Youkilis ahead of him and securing a thrilling 7-6 Red Sox comeback win over the Seattle Mariners.

Loretta's homer, his first walk-off homer at any level, marked the fifth time in the game that the Sox had mounted a comeback. Seattle led, 1-0, 2-1, 4-2, 5-4 and 6-5, but was unable to put the Sox away.

"Just complete euphoria," said Loretta, describing the feeling as he rounded the bases and headed for the welcoming party gathered at home plate. "You have to take a step back and think, 'Is the game really over?' You do the math real quick. It's a tremendous feeling, to say the least."

"That," said winning pitcher Mike Timlin, "should welcome him into Red Sox Nation, put him deep in the fold."

Loretta's heroics wouldn't have been possible were not for the hustle of Youkilis, who beat out a two-out grounder just to the right of the second-base bag, setting the stage.

Youkilis beat Lopez's throw by a half-step. With two outs, there wasn't much margin left for error.

"I saw (Seattle second baseman Jose Lopez) dive," said Youkilis. "At that point, you have to just bury your head and go. If you watch the ball and try and track it, it might slow you down. Once I got a foot from the bag, I knew I was safe. But you never know how they're going to call it. (First-base coach Bill Haselman) said, 'Safe.' I said, 'Safe.' Maybe sometimes that helps."

It also helped that Guardado fell behind Loretta in the count.

"I'm coming up there looking for a pitch to drive," said Loretta. "Eddie comes right at you. I know he's aggressive and always comes after you."

Until the ninth, the Sox seemed almost entirely dependent on Ortiz. He homered in the first to tie the game the first time, then launched a two-run belt in the sixth to pull them even at 4-4.

"I'm just glad," said a smiling Ortiz, "that somebody else could do the job, so it doesn't have to be me all the time."

After just over a week at Fenway as a member of the home team, Loretta has already been struck by the intensity that exists on a daily basis. Unlike Milwaukee and San Diego, the other stops on his baseball itinerary before being dealt to Boston, Loretta has noted that the fervor doesn't cool after Opening Day.

"If anything, the intensity just continues to build," Loretta said, "and it's almost like a playoff atmosphere every night. That's what people told me, that it was going to be like this, and that I would have no idea what it feels like."

Now, Loretta has a little better understanding.

The Sox have made a habit of late-inning drama the last few years, with Ortiz often supplying the finishing touch. But yesterday, one of the many new guys got to provide the winning margin.

"The guys know that it's never over," said Red Sox manager Terry Francona. "Part of that is (because of) Fenway and part of is that is we've got good players. You put that together and that's a nice combination. You add Loretta to the mix and I definitely think it gets contagious."

"That wall out there," sighed Seattle manager Mike Hargrove, "it lends itself to things like that happening."

The victory was the fifth one-run win of the young season for the Sox and represented "the first time our offense picked up our pitching," according to catcher Jason Varitek.

In addition to Ortiz's two homers, the Sox were propelled in their comeback by Alex Cora (run-scoring double in the second) and Varitek (RBI single in the eighth).

"It ends up being a great day," said Francona. "You're one pitch away from saying, 'Well, we battled and we kept coming back' "

smcadam@projo.com / (401) 277-7340