Minor leaguer has his Hall of Fame moment

COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. – The weather held, the players relaxed and Boston Red Sox fans crammed every inch of Cooperstown on Monday.

And although the Red Sox lost to the Detroit Tigers 6-4 in the 59th annual Baseball Hall of Fame Game, no one seemed to mind.

“Red Sox Nation has invaded Cooperstown,” said Boston first baseman Kevin Millar. “If you’re a baseball fan, it’s exactly like you’d picture it.”

Doubleday Field turned into Fenway Park West for Red Sox faithful, many of whom paid up to 10 times the face value of a ticket for a chance to cheer their 2004 World Series champions. Fans walked shoulder-to-shoulder down Main Street in Cooperstown before the game, and a sellout crowd of 9,773 found its way into Doubleday Field on a partly cloudy afternoon that offered cool temperatures but no rain.

“This is sacred as far as I’m concerned,” said Tigers manager Alan Trammell, whose team won when minor league outfielder Derek Nicholson hit a two-run, walk-off homer in the bottom of the ninth inning. “We need to remember the roots, and Cooperstown is the roots of baseball. We are all very fortunate.”

Trammell and the Tigers had every reason to feel differently after a tough trip to Cooperstown the day before.

“Yesterday was a wreck,” said Tigers infielder Brandon Inge, whose team endured a three-hour rain delay against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday before losing 1-0. “We sat around until 4 o’clock, played the game, bused to the airport, flew into Albany and then had an hour and 40 minutes to get here on the bus.

“But it was all worth it. It’s a great place to play.”

The Tigers took control of the game early off Red Sox minor league pitcher Anibal Sanchez, who was called up from Class A Wilmington, N.C. for the game. First-inning RBI singles by Craig Monroe and Ramon Martinez gave Detroit a 2-0 lead, and homers by Carlos Pena – who went 4-for-4 and was named the game’s MVP – and Rondell White sandwiched around an unearned Boston run gave Detroit a 4-1 advantage.

But the Red Sox rallied to tie the game in the seventh on back-to-back homers by Michael Lockwood (a two-run shot) and Willy Mota.

The game seemed headed for a tie for the first time since 1996 until Russell Cleveland doubled off loser Barry Hertzler with two out in the ninth. Nicholson then followed with a two-run shot to left field to end it.

Notes

Red Sox manager Terry Francona was all business before the exhibition game that annually features the defending World Series champions, tersely answering questions from the media. He seemed more interested in talking about games with Toronto and the New York Yankees this week than reflecting on his visit to Cooperstown.

“I really don’t give that stuff much thought,” said Francona, whose team is 25-18 through the first 43 games of its World Series title defense. “Maybe someday when I’m old.

“Once we had our ring ceremony, we haven’t looked back. We’ve put (the World Series championship) in the rearview mirror and we’ve done it really well.”

• Francona said there’s no timetable for the return of pitcher Curt Schilling, who has been out since April 27 with a bone bruise on his right ankle… . Red Sox infielder Kevin Millar did not dress for Monday’s game, but enjoyed his second fame game experience. He played in the 2001 game with the Florida Marlins.