World Series: Martinez Moves Red Sox Ever Closer

In what may prove to be Pedro Martinez's last act in a Boston uniform the pitcher, who becomes a free agent at the end of the month, helped put the Red Sox on the verge of their first World Series title for 86 years.

They beat the St Louis Cardinals 4-1 in game three of the series to need only one more victory for their first title since 1918, when Babe Ruth was still on the Red Sox payroll and they won their fifth in 13 years. Even then, however, they never managed to build up a 3-0 lead, and until last week, when they overturned the Yankees' similar advantage, no team had thrown away such a lead in 25 attempts.

"I just used my experience and threw strikes and got them swinging," Martinez said later. "My team-mates did the work for me, did the dirty work, played some defence. I'm really happy and lucky to be one [win] out of one [attempt] in the World Series.

"I hope it's not the last one but if it is I just want the fans and everyone to understand that I did whatever possible to represent the city well, the team, and that my heart will always be with them."

It was Boston's seventh successive win and the Cardinals' first post-season defeat at home, easing the game four pressure on Boston's Derek Lowe, the man who pitched and won game seven of the American League series against the Yankees and who this morning was up against Jason Marquis and aiming to complete a famous sweep.

Martinez, a three-times Cy Young Award winner but making his World Series debut, had a shaky start but retired the last 14 hitters he faced, striking out seven, walking two and allowing only three hits for no runs. It was all over after 98 balls, 23 of them coming in the first inning.

"I thought early on Martinez was having a bit of a tough time with his command, getting a feel for the game," said the Red Sox manager Terry Francona. "But once he got out of that one inning he got in a groove and started pitching like he can pitch."

A day of steady rain had threatened to cause the game to be postponed and officials waited until just before the start to remove the covers. Then Manny Ramirez dampened the spirits of the majority of the 52,000 crowd when he smashed a two-out pitch from Jeff Suppan over the left-field fence to put Boston ahead in the first inning. It was his first homer in the World Series but the 18th post-season of his career, moving him into a tie for second on the all-time list with Reggie Jackson and Mickey Mantle.

The Red Sox added to their lead in the fourth, when Trot Nixon drove a single off the wall, scoring Bill Mueller, then doubled the lead in the fifth when Ramirez and Mueller batted in runners. Suppan, a former Boston pitcher, was the third Cardinals starter to fail to last five innings.

A ninth-inning homer by Larry Walker gave the crowd hope, but no more than that. "We're in about as difficult a spot as you can be," said Tony La Russa, the Cardinals manager.