ESPN

BOSTON -- Quick hits from a stirring win Saturday at Fenway:

Ortiz delivers

Sox slugger David Ortiz came to bat with the bases loaded in the ninth inning for the second time in as many games against Detroit. Friday night, he hit his ninth career grand slam, but that left the Sox a run short. Saturday, he delivered a game-winning, three-run double off Tigers left-hander Phil Coke.

Ortiz showed bunt on the first pitch, then drove a 2-and-1 fastball from Coke on a line into the gap in left-center, scoring Marco Scutaro, Jed Lowrie and Kevin Youkilis. Tigers manager Jim Leyland had ordered Youkilis walked intentionally to set up a double play against Ortiz, who was 0-for-8 in his career against Coke.

Boston players began racing onto the field before Youkilis had even dove across the plate for the winning score.

“I was trying to bunt, but he threw a pitch in the dirt and I took it,” said Ortiz. “I was trying to just put the ball in play. He [Coke] is the kind of guy that knows how to hit his spot with good stuff.”

“It’s actually a pretty smart move,” said manager Terry Francona of Ortiz’s surprise bunt attempt. “He got himself into a fastball count and really took a pretty swing.”

The double was the 18th walk-off hit of Ortiz’s career and the 15th he’s tagged while with Boston. He also extended his hitting streak to a season-high nine games, posting a .308 average (12-for-39) and driving in 12 runs in that span.

“We haven’t been able to come back lately,” Ortiz said. “So to come back today ... it felt good, man. It was a game where we weren’t able to score some runs in the opportunities we had, and to come back and win it, it feels great.”

“I’ve kept on saying that our team will be fine, it’s just the injuries have hurt us a lot.

“But now we’re getting guys like Pedey [Dustin Pedroia] and Tek [Jason Varitek] back. We’re going to move on.”

The winning run was the 500th run of Youkilis’ career.

“It’s unbelievable the way he does things,” Ortiz said of Youkilis. “He’s one of the best base runners we have on our team.”

The walk-off win was the fifth for Boston in 2010, the last coming on July 17 against Texas.

“It was a busy day,” summarized a relieved Terry Francona. “A long day, but it ended up being a good one. It didn’t seem that way for a while, but anytime you hear that music playing, you know something good happened.”

“Game over,” Ortiz said. “I don’t like playing extra innings, anyway.”

Walk on by

Putting Ortiz's penchant for dramatics in perspective, courtesy of Elias. Ortiz has the most walk-off hits in baseball since 2003 with 15. Albert Pujols is second with 12, Andre Ethier third with 11. Among the Sox over the last 50 years, Ortiz's 15 again are at the head of the class, with a trio of Hall of Famers trailing (Carl Yastrzemski, 11; Jim Rice, 9; Carlton Fisk 8).

Matsuzaka goes six

It appeared that Red Sox starter Daisuke Matsuzaka might not make it very far into the game after a rocky first inning. He served up a home run to Triple Crown threat Miguel Cabrera, the first baseman’s 26th this year, putting the Sox in an early 2-0 hole. The towering blast quickly disappeared over the Monster, driving in Will Rhymes to give Cabrera a league-leading 91 RBIs.

The first inning has not been easy for Matsuzaka this season, as he has allowed 18 runs in his 15 starts (10.50 ERA).

However, the right-hander would settle down over the course of the game, limiting the Tigers to two additional runs before exiting in the sixth inning after a leadoff double by rookie Austin Jackson. He finished with a line of 6-plus innings, 4 runs, 8 hits, 2 walks and 5 strikeouts in taking the no-decision. It was only the second time he’s allowed more than three earned runs in his last 11 outings.

Matsuzaka has pitched at least six innings in his last four starts, the longest such streak he’s had since a seven-start stretch in 2007.

Richardson recalled

The Sox promoted left-handed reliever Dustin Richardson, a roster spot opening when Ramon Ramirez was traded. Richardson was originally recalled on June 12 and spent time over five weeks with the big club before being sent back to Pawtucket on July 20. The southpaw performed admirably in that span, posting a 2.57 ERA over 13 relief appearances.

He began his second major league stint of the year on an encouraging note Saturday, entering in the seventh inning, after Austin Jackson’s leadoff double bumped Matsuzaka from the game. A successful sacrifice bunt by Rhymes moved Jackson to third with one out, but Richardson struck out highly touted Tigers rookie Brennan Boesch with a knee-high slider.

After an intentional walk to Cabrera, Scott Atchison came on and got Jhonny Peralta on a fly to right to end the inning.

BOSTON -- The Boston Red Sox made a couple of moves on deadline day, trading Ramon Ramirez to the San Francisco Giants and designating outfielder Jeremy Hermida for assignment.

To take Hermida’s spot on the roster, the Red Sox promoted 22-year-old prospect Ryan Kalish from Triple-A Pawtucket and immediately inserted him into today’s lineup, hitting eighth. Hermida had been penciled into the original lineup.

Kalish, who will wear No. 55, was hitting .294 in 37 games for Triple-A Pawtucket, with 5 homers, 18 RBIs, 22 runs scored and 12 stolen bases. Prior to being promoted earlier this season, he hit .293 with 8 homers, 29 RBIs, 35 runs scored and 13 stolen bases in 41 games for Double-A Portland.

It was immediately unclear what the Red Sox got from the Giants in return for Ramirez, who was 0-3 with a 4.46 ERA in 44 appearances this season. To take his spot, the Red Sox have promoted reliever Dustin Richardson.

Richardson’s stint in Boston could be a short one, as the team announced earlier in the afternoon their plan to convert lefty prospect Felix Doubront from a starter to a reliever. The team also could call up converted starter Michael Bowden in the Pawtucket bullpen.

Hermida, who was acquired from Florida via trade over the winter, struggled during his short time in Boston. He missed significant time with a rib injury and hit only .203 with 5 homers and 27 RBIs in limited time. The Red Sox now have 10 days to either trade or release him.

Richardson was promoted to Boston on June 12 and appeared in 13 games for Boston with a 2.57 ERA. He was optioned back to Pawtucket on July 21.

ESPNBoston.com's Joe McDonald contributed to this report.

BOSTON -- The Red Sox have traded right-handed reliever Ramon Ramirez to the San Francisco Giants, and have recalled left-hander Dustin Richardson from Triple-A Pawtucket.

Details of the trade are not known at this point.

Ramirez was 0-3 with two saves and a 4.46 ERA this season. Richardson was promoted to Boston on June 12 and appeared in 13 games for Boston with a 2.57 ERA. He was optioned back to Pawtucket on July 21.

More to come. . .

BOSTON -- The Red Sox made at least one move on trade deadline day, designating outfielder Jeremy Hermida for assignment and promoting outfield prospect Ryan Kalish from Triple-A Pawtucket.

The 22-year-old Kalish, who will wear No. 55, was immediately inserted into the starting lineup, batting eighth. Hermida had been penciled into the lineup originally.

Kalish was hitting .294 in 37 games for Triple-A Pawtucket, with 5 homers, 18 RBIs, 22 runs scored and 12 stolen bases. Prior to being promoted earlier this season, he hit .293 with 8 homers, 29 RBIs, 35 runs scored and 13 stolen bases in 41 games for Double-A Portland.

A source also said reliever Dustin Richardson was on his way to Fenway Park, but it was unclear whether he would be activated.

More on this to come ...

OAKLAND, Calif. -- The Boston Red Sox needed to make a few roster moves today in order to activate pitcher Clay Buchholz and infielder Jed Lowrie from the disabled list. As a result, first baseman Ryan Shealy was designated for assignment and lefty reliever Dustin Richardson was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket.

* Richardson impressed during his latest stint in Boston, including a big strikeout he recorded in a tie game with two runners on in the bottom of the 10th inning against the A’s on Tuesday.

“He’s not scared. He wants the ball,” Red Sox manager Terry Francona said. “That was a big situation [Tuesday] night. We knew he was going back to Triple-A but we were still going to use him. We like him. Sometimes you have to make a move organizationally, but there’s a lot to like.”

Francona likes the finish on the southpaw’s fastball and the fact that he competes and is athletic. The only thing Richardson needs to define is repetition with his delivery.

"When John Farrell likes a guy, I keep my eyes open because he’s not wrong too often,” Francona said. “It’s nice having a second lefty because it really helps with [Hideki] Okajima, but sometimes if you try to keep a second lefty, you’ll mess something else up so we’ll go with one.”

* Lowrie’s much-needed presence will allow Francona to give shortstop Marco Scutaro a day off time and again. Plus, Lowrie can play second and was actually taking grounders at first base on Tuesday afternoon.

“He’s taken ground balls over there before, but he’s never played a game there,” Francona said. “We’re not going to pinch-hit or pinch-run for Youk, but if something happens we’ll need someone to go over there.”

With second baseman Dustin Pedroia on the DL with a fractured left foot, Bill Hall has been playing the right side of the infield. Both Lowrie and Hall can play first base, if needed.

“Jed’s a guy we would put over there, so we just want to get him some grounders and get him as comfortable as possible. He’s not going to be a first baseman, we just want to cover ourselves in case something happens.”

“When a team is banged up, having versatility is really important,” added Francona. “That’s the thing we have right now.”

* Red Sox catcher Victor Martinez (thumb) hit in the cage for the second consecutive day and the next step will be using his glove and testing how much velocity he can handle on the impact.

“That’s the next big step,” Francona said. “He’s taking big strides. Once that comes, there’s not a whole lot left. Then he’ll have to start catching pitchers, which is different, too, but once he’s able to catch the ball without a lot of concern, it shouldn’t be a whole lot longer.”

There’s a strong possibility Martinez could return to the lineup later on this three-city road trip when the club is in Anaheim, beginning Monday.

* Red Sox outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury has been hitting off the pitching machine in the cage in Fort Myers, Fla., but he hasn’t participated in real intense baseball activities, according to the manager.

“He’s not there, yet,” Francona said. “The intensity is not to a point where he could play in a game.”

* Outfielder Jeremy Hermida will meet the team later tonight in Seattle and the club will have to make another roster move, which means Daniel Nava could be optioned back to Pawtucket.

“Hopefully [Hermida] will be ready to go tomorrow,” Francona said.