Pat Venditte makes MLB debut by getting outs using both arms

Switch-pitcher Pat Venditte made his long-awaited big-league debut at Fenway Park Friday night since beginning his long journey in the minors in 2008.

And the Oakland Athletics reliever was the first pitcher in 20 years to throw with both hands in the same game.

The ambidextrous hurler entered in the seventh inning— with the organist playing Joni Mitchell's "Both Sides Now" — and retired Brock Holt with his left arm and then, after allowing a single to Hanley Ramirez, got Mike Napoli to hit into a double play with his right.



Things got comical when the 29-year-old switch-pitcher faced switch-hitter Blake Swihart in the eighth and the glove and helmet chess match began.

Napoli calls Tanaka 'idiot' after serving up game-winning fastball (VIDEO)

Masahiro Tanaka probably didn't know the English word idiot from idol before Mike Napoli smashed a game-winning fastball off the Japanese pitcher Saturday night. But there was no need for a translator after the Yankees' ace shook off catcher Brian McCann's call for a splitter, then a slider before generously serving Napoli an ill-advised fastball.

FOX video cameras caught Napoli calling Tanaka the I-Word after he drilled a two-out, two-strike homer off of him in the ninth inning (Video at bottom) to give the Red Sox a thrilling 2-1 win at Yankee Stadium. 

FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal later caught up with Napoli, who backpedaled on the comment.

"Nothing toward him," Napoli said, according to Rosenthal. "I thought he was going to throw me a split in the dirt. He had been getting me out all night on it."

Idiot in Boston is still a good thing. Right?

In any language — not good.

Red Sox fan takes foul ball to chin (VIDEO)

This is one Red Sox fan who might be a little sore even after his team takes a 2-0 ALDS lead against the Rays into Sunday morning. After Will Middlebrooks' foul ball bounced off the Fenway Park tarp, it hit the guy square in the bottom half of his neatly-trimmed Van-Dyke beard.

Now if the guy had a Mike Napoli-style bush under his jaw, he wouldn't have felt a thing.

Red Sox website helps fans distinguish players by beard and add hair to their own faces (VIDEO)

The momentum building from the Red Sox players' beards this season has reached such a fever pitch in Boston that the team's website is featuring a template where fans can distinguish the players apart with a chart showing silhouettes of each bearded player's different facial hairstyle.

Similar to one of those ubiquitous barber shop posters, this chart at Redsox.com comes with the individual player's different beard style and a feature that allows you to put your own photo into one of the assorted selection of looks.  Each fashion comes with nickname so one day you can look like burly Mike Napoli with "The Siesta"  or a sleeker Shane Victorino sporting a "Pineapple" the next or even "The Sick Flow" of Dustin Pedroia anytime — all without shunning a razor for six months or picking remnants of lunch off your face before bedtime every night.

The best part for Sawx fans — knowing their Yankee counterparts can only look at their own clean-shaven team and never how it would feel to look like Derek Jeter in a Van Dyke.

Below,  MLB Network broadcasters discuss all the different Red Sox players' beards and their  beard template that is featured at #GETBEARD.

David Ortiz nitpicks Mike Napoli's beard after home run

Mike Napoli hit a game-tying two-run homer in the ninth inning of Wednesday's Red Sox game against the Blue Jays and — in what could possibly be the most disgusting dugout celebration ever — David Ortiz decided to check the first baseman's beard for something.

Whether or not Big Papi's nitpicking turned up any lice, treasure or remnants of Napoli's lunch isn't clear but at least we know the Sox players take their grooming seriously.