Lowe was loose from the start. While the Cardinals took batting practice, he sat alone in the Boston dugout, his hat backward and singing the little ditty, "If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands."

Lowe was equally relaxed on the mound. He gave up a leadoff single to Tony Womack, then retired 13 straight batters until Renteria doubled in the fifth. Renteria made it to third on a wild pitch, but Lowe struck out John Mabry — who unsuccessfully argued that it was a foul tip — and got Yadier Molina on a routine grounder.

At that point, the Cardinals were going quietly. About the only noise they made came when Molina, a 21-year-old rookie catcher whose two brothers catch for Anaheim, began yapping at Ramirez when the Boston star came to the plate in the fourth.

Red Sox manager Terry Francona quickly rushed out of the dugout to keep things calm.

Best known before this year for being Michael Jordan's manager in the minors, Francona made plenty of smart moves. Oakland's bench coach in 2003, he took over after Grady Little was fired last fall. Baltimore and the White Sox also interviewed the man who managed Philadelphia to losing seasons from 1997-2000.

And while many Boston fans hollered for him to bench the slumping Damon in the ALCS, Francona stuck with him and was rewarded when Damon hit a grand slam and two-run homer in Game 7.

Facing Marquis, Damon yanked a shot over the right-center field wall and before he could circle the bases, the chants of "Let's go, Red Sox!" began echoing from the upper deck.

Damon became the second Boston player to hit a leadoff homer in the Series. The other? Patsy Dougherty, who did it in 1903 for the Americans — renamed the Red Sox five years later.

A single by Ramirez and double by David Ortiz got the Red Sox ramped up again in the third. Pujols threw out Ramirez at the plate, trying to score on a grounder to first base, and a walk loaded the bases with two outs.

Nixon took three straight balls and Francona gambled, giving his good fastball hitter the green light. That's what Nixon got, and he drilled it off the right-center wall for a 3-0 lead.

Notes: Ramirez tied Derek Jeter and Hank Bauer for the longest postseason hitting streak at 17 games. ... Damon hit the 17th leadoff homer in Series history. Jeter (2000) was the last to do it. ... This was Jim Burton's 55th birthday. A rookie in 1975 for Boston, he gave up Joe Morgan's go-ahead single in the ninth inning of Game 7 against Cincinnati. Burton pitched only one more game in the majors. ... The Red Sox led for 34 of the 36 innings. ... Larry Walker put down his first sacrifice since 1991. He bunted in the first inning, but Lowe threw him out. ... Boston teams continued to bedevil St. Louis clubs. The New England Patriots beat the Rams in the 2002 Super Bowl, the Bruins swept the Blues for the 1970 Stanley Cup and the Celtics won their first NBA title by defeating the Hawks in 1957.