News, Lob, Kritik und Anregungen » Red Sox: LHP Brian Johnson (1-2, 4.50)

Give `em a hand: Tom Brady and the New England Patriots are heading back to the Super Bowl.

Brady shook off a hand injury and threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to Danny Amendola with 2:48 remaining Qadree Ollison Jersey , rallying the Patriots to a 24-20 comeback victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC championship Sunday.

Brady, wearing a black bandage on his right hand after needing stitches to close a cut that happened on a play during practice earlier in the week, showed no signs of being hampered.

And, with the game – and the season – possibly on the line, the Patriots star came up big again.

”I’ve had a lot worse,” Brady said. ”I didn’t know that on Wednesday. It was a crazy injury. Wednesday, Thursday, Friday was a little scary. Then I started getting some confidence and today we did just enough to win.”

Brady finished 26 of 38 for 290 yards and two touchdowns to Amendola for the Patriots (15-3), who’ll play Philadelphia in Minneapolis on Feb. 4.

It’s the eighth Super Bowl appearance for Brady and coach Bill Belichick, who have won five times – including last year’s 34-28 overtime rally against the Atlanta Falcons.

”It’s pretty amazing. Just to be on a team that wins these kinds of games, it’s just a great accomplishment,” Brady said. ”I’m just so proud of everyone on our team, we made so many great plays. Defense played so great when they needed to.”

Blake Bortles and the Jaguars (12-7) led 20-10 early in the fourth quarter, but couldn’t hold against the defending champions. The NFL’s second-ranked defense kept Brady and the Patriots at bay for most of the game, but lost linebacker Myles Jack and defensive tackle Marcell Dareus on consecutive plays on New England’s winning drive.

”It’s a locker room obviously with a lot of pain Ed Oliver Jersey ,” Jaguars coach Doug Marrone said. ”I’m sure they’re hurting inside. I’m hurting. The players are hurting.”

With New England trailing 20-17, Amendola returned a punt 20 yards to put the ball at the Jaguars 30. Brady hit James White for 15 yards, Amendola for 8 and then the quarterback ran up the middle for 2 yards and a first down.

On first-and-goal from the 5, White ran for a yard to set up the go-ahead score from Brady to Amendola.

Jacksonville – looking to reach the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history – had one more shot, but Bortles’ throw on fourth-and-15 to Dede Westbrook was knocked away by Stephon Gilmore.

”Guys are upset,” Bortles said. ”It’s not what anybody expects – contrary to popular belief. Those guys fully expected to win that game.”

The Patriots ran out the clock, with Dion Lewis’ 18-yard scamper with 90 seconds remaining sealing the victory. And they played most of the game without tight end Rob Gronkowski, who left late in the first half and didn’t return.

Brady’s hand was the most-scrutinized body part in Boston since his ankle before the 2008 Super Bowl, and Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling’s right ankle tendon – the bloody sock – in the 2004 playoffs.

Brady hurt his right hand during practice earlier in the week.

”Of all the plays, my season wasn’t going to end on a handoff in practice,” Brady said.

”Mentally, it probably stressed him out a bit,” Amendola said. ”It’s hard to throw a football with stitches in your thumb. Everybody knows how tough he is.”

Some Patriots fans were worried, but not Belichick.

”He’s a tough guy, we all know that Cody Ford Jersey ,” Belichick said. ”But we’re not talking about open heart surgery here.”

Brady warmed up without a glove on his hand, and he came out throwing. He completed his first six passes for 57 yards to march the Patriots down the field. The drive stalled when Brady was sacked by Dante Fowler Jr., and New England settled for Stephen Gostkowski’s 31-yard field goal.

A wide-open Marcedes Lewis gave the Jaguars a 7-3 lead 45 seconds into the second quarter with a 4-yard touchdown catch from Bortles .

Leonard Fournette gave Jacksonville a 14-3 lead midway through the second quarter with a 4-yard TD run, hushing the crowd at Gillette Stadium.

The Jaguars made some big mistakes just before halftime. Bortles completed a 12-yard pass to Lewis on third-and-7 from the Patriots 44, but Jacksonville was called for delay of game.

That wiped out a first down, and Bortles was sacked by Adam Butler on the next play to force a punt. Jacksonville was called for six penalties that cost the Jaguars 98 yards, while New England was penalized just once.

With just over two minutes left before halftime, New England’s offense took over and the fans chanted ”Braa-dy! Braa-dy!”

And their quarterback delivered – with some help from two big penalties.

On first-and-10 from the Patriots 40, Brady threw a long pass for Gronkowski, who was injured when he got popped by Barry Church. Church was called for unnecessary roughness, putting the ball at Jacksonville’s 45.

”It was a tough call,” Church said, ”but you’ve got to go with what they call.”

A.J. Bouye was called for pass interference on the next play. The 32-yard penalty gave the Patriots the ball at the Jaguars 13. After a 12-yard catch by Cooks, White ran it in from the 1 to make it 14-10.

Josh Lambo gave Jacksonville a 17-10 lead 4:37 into the third quarter with a 54-yard field goal. He added a 43-yarder 8 seconds into the fourth quarter to make it J.D. Martinez and the Boston Red Sox keep piling up big offensive numbers – not to mention wins – against the Los Angeles Angels.

Martinez hit his major league-leading 25th home run, Rafael Devers delivered a tiebreaking double and the Red Sox beat the skidding Angels 9-6 on Wednesday night after squandering a six-run lead.

Boston (54-27) moved into first place in the AL East Devin Singletary Jersey , a half-game ahead of the rival New York Yankees. After finishing their series with the Angels on Thursday night, the Red Sox play three games at Yankee Stadium this weekend.

The homer by Martinez capped a six-run second for the Red Sox, who won for the fifth time in six games. Eduardo Nunez and Sandy Leon also went deep in the inning. Boston improved to 5-0 against the Angels this season and has outscored them 45-10 with 18 homers and a .363 batting average.

It’s the most homers by any club in a season series of six games or fewer, according to the Red Sox.

”I don’t know. That’s just what it is, really. There’s no one explanation,” Martinez said. ”Maybe we just match up well against them.”

Martin Maldonado launched a three-run homer and Ian Kinsler had a solo shot for the Angels, who lost their fifth straight and 12th in 16 games.

Los Angeles reliever Jake Jewell was carted off the field with what appeared to be a gruesome injury to his right ankle after covering the plate on a run-scoring wild pitch in the eighth.

”He’s getting evaluated, I think, at Massachusetts General,” Los Angeles manager Mike Scioscia said. ”Hopefully we’ll get an idea of what’s happening sometime tonight.”

Angels star Mike Trout went 1 for 4 as a sprained right index finger kept him as the designated hitter for the eighth consecutive game.

Devers doubled off reliever Jose Alvarez (3-3) in the seventh, putting Boston back in front 7-6, and scored on Leon’s single in a game that took 4 hours.

”It was a weird game, slow pace,” Boston manager Alex Cora said. ”I’m glad we won the game. Not a pretty game to watch.”

Matt Barnes (2-2) worked a scoreless inning. Craig Kimbrel got four outs for his 23rd save, his first of more than three outs this season.

The Angels trailed 6-0 and looked as though they were in line for another lopsided loss to Boston before they charged back with a run in the fifth on Kinsler’s homer Dawson Knox Jersey , three in the sixth on Maldonado’s shot and two in the seventh.

”We battled back and got in the game. We’ll keep battling,” Scioscia said. ”But, at some point, obviously we need to put both ends together and get the pitching we need, get some early runs and get the game on our terms and we’re going to start to do things the way we can.”

Andrelton Simmons‘ RBI double off reliever Joe Kelly tied it.

Martinez’s shot went over the Green Monster in left-center, raising his big league-best RBI total to 64. In his first season with Boston, the slugger has the most home runs in Red Sox history before the end of June.

Nunez hit Andrew Heaney’s first pitch of the second into the center-field bleachers. Leon drove an inside fastball off a billboard above the Green Monster.

Boston starter Rick Porcello gave up four runs in 5 2/3 innings. Heaney was tagged for six runs in 3 1/3 innings.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Angels: INF Zack Cozart got a second opinion on his left shoulder after experiencing continued discomfort and plans to have surgery in Los Angeles soon to repair a torn labrum, the team said. … Scioscia said two-way rookie star Shohei Ohtani (sprained elbow ligament) will be re-evaluated Thursday. Three weeks ago, Ohtani’s elbow was injected with platelet-rich plasma and stem cells as he tries to avoid Tommy John surgery.

Red Sox: Cora said 2B Dustin Pedroia and knuckleballer Steven Wright will see Dr. Riley Williams III when the club is in New York to play the Yankees this weekend. Both are on the 10-day DL with left knee inflammation and had surgery performed by Dr. Williams. ”Maybe we can do something differently as far as the treatments,” Cora said about Pedroia, who has played in just three games since offseason surgery. … Drew Pomeranz threw a simulated game and Cora said the left-hander could start a rehab assignment with Triple-A Pawtucket on Monday.

NEW ADDITION

The Red Sox signed infielder Brandon Phillips to a minor league deal. The 36-year-old veteran has played with five teams over 16 seasons.

UP NEXT

Angels: RHP Jamie Barria (5-3, 3.40 ERA) is slated to pitch the series finale Thursday. It will be his first career start against Boston.

Red Sox: LHP Brian Johnson (1-2, 4.50) takes Wright’s turn in the rotation after he went on the disabled list Tuesday.

—