By Sean McAdam
CSNNE.com Red Sox InsiderFollow @sean_mcadam
NEW YORK -- It's likely that it's too late to change voters' minds, but Jacoby Ellsbury made a nice last-minute push for himself for American League MVP Sunday night.
Hours after hitting two homers in the afternoon game, a loss, and becoming the first Red Sox player to have 30 steals and 30 homers in the same season, Ellsbury launched a three-run homer to right-center to give the Red Sox a pulsing 7-4, 14-inning win over the Yankees.
"I don't care who hit it," said Terry Francona, "but it's kind of fitting (that it was Ellsbury)."
Of the nine runs the Red Sox scored in the two games Sunday, five came as the result of homers by Ellsbury.
Over the last 37 games, Ellsbury has hit safely in 35 of them, during which he's hit .348. In those 37 games, he's hit 11 homers and 29 RBI.
"With runners on first and second and two outs," said Ellsbury, "Yankee pitcher Scott Proctor threw me a first-pitch breaking ball and I was sitting on a fastball. Fortunately, he threw something over the plate and I was able to drive it out."
Boston Red Sox
Asked to put his day in context, Ellsbury remarked that he didn't have time to think too much about what he accomplished in the first game, including becoming just the seventh player in history to steal 30, hit 30 homers, score 100 runs, knock in 100 and collect 200 hits.
"I didn't have time to think about it after the first game," he said. "It was a quick turnaround. Hopefully, I'll have the time to reflect on it at some point."
Ellsbury has been mentioned as a possible AL MVP candidate along with teammate Adrian Gonzalez, Curtis Granderson and Robinson Cano of the Yankees, and Detroit's Justin Verlander, with Verlander seen as the prohibtive favorite.
But days like Sunday can't hurt Ellsbury's chances.
Sean McAdam can be reached at smcadam@comcastsportsnet.com. Follow Sean on Twitter at http:twitter.comsean_mcadam