BOSTON — Two Septembers ago, Carlos Pena hit a walkoff grand slam here at Fenway Park as a member of the Red Sox and called it the biggest hit of his career.
That one just became No. 2.
Late last night, Pena's 14th-inning, three-run blast over the Green Monster led the Tampa Bay Rays to a thrilling, 4-2 marathon win over his second favorite team.
According to his manager, it was Carlos being Carlos.
"That's what he does," said Tampa manager Joe Maddon. "He had a few times this series when he probably didn't come through. But it's a matter of time. Carlos is a clutch hitter. I'll be honest, I expected something big when he came up."
Pena said he didn't do anything special in his final at-bat.
"Mike Timlin is a very smart pitcher who has had a great career," said Pena. "He threw it outside, which was a good place to throw it. I just saw and hit it. I just got the barrel on it. To be honest, I didn't think it was a home run. I was just hoping it would hit the wall.
"But as I was running (to first base) I saw (Jason) Bay looking up high," said Pena. "I said, 'Man, I think it's a home run.'"
After a short slump in which the Rays lost six of seven games, Pena wonders if their two most recent wins might have a little extra meaning in the standings.
"These were two amazing wins," said Pena. "Think about it, we come back and beat (Jonathan) Papelbon. Nobody does that. Then we come here today, going against (Josh) Beckett, and for a while there it didn't look good. But I told everyone that there is something special here. I can't explain it. We are a team."
Pena had seven plate appearances, getting two hits in six at-bats. He also walked once.
"That's another thing I liked what I saw with Carlos," said Maddon. "Sure, he struck out a few times (five) in this series, but he also walked a few times. He wasn't swinging at bad pitches. When Carlos is doing that, he usually comes up big."
Pena and the first place Rays are off tomorrow, thus they will stay in Boston tonight. Then it's off to Yankee Stadium for a three-game weekend.
"We are going to enjoy this," said Pena. "We know we are a good team. Honestly, we've always known we could do this. When we get to New York, it will be all business. We still have a lot of baseball ahead of us. ... I can't wait."
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