Mr. Mookie Betts led off the game with a swinging strikeout. Sox analyist Dave O'Brien says he's gone ice cold since opening day. Dustin Pedroia grounded out to third and Xander Bogaerts attempted a bunt....failing miserably, popping it up to the catcher. Could Steven Wright (0-1) buck the trend of being down 2 or 3 to zip right out of the gate? NO! Kevin Pillar and Josh Donaldson hit back to back singles and advanced on the passed ball by Blake Swihart. Jose Bautista walked to load the bases. Edwin Encarnarcion lofted a ground ball to Bogaerts who flipped to Pedroia at second for the out who....heaved it into the stands, allowing both Pillar and Donaldson to score. Bing bang boom, 2-0 Jays.
Another passed ball advanced Encarnarcion to second but Troy Tulowitzky struck out. Michael Saunders flied out to end the inning. 32 pitches, 2 hits, a walk, 2 passed balls,....2 runs. Here we go again.
David Ortiz led off the top of the second with a ground out to short. Hanley Ramirez used aggressive baserunning to stretch a single into a double. Travis Shaw worked a walk to put the tying runs on. Chris Young got the start due to Brock Holt fouling a ball off his foot yesterday and missed badly at strike 3. Swihart popped up to end the inning. So much for a rally. Russell Martin grounded out to begin the bottom of the second inning. Ryan Goins walked but was erased on the Darwin Barney double play.
Jackie Bradley Jr opened the top of the 3rd with a single. Mr. Mookie continued his slump by looking at strike 3, he's now 1 for his last 19. Dustin Pedroia erased Bradley at second by grounding into a force. Xander Bogaerts doubled down the line but Pedroia was gunned down at home for the third out.....damn.
Pillar flied out to center to begin the bottom of the third. Wright somehow struck out Donaldson and got Bautista to fly out to center to end the inning.
Ortiz flied out to start the top of the 4th. Ramirez singled but Shaw popped up. Chris Young struck out again, begging the question why he's starting over Rusney Castillo against a right-hander. Wright began the bottom of the 4th by getting Encarnarcion and Tulowitzky to ground out to short. Then the Jays threatened as Saunders walked, Martin and Goins hit back to back singles. With the bases loaded, Wright got Barney to ground out to end the inning. 75 pitches through 4 innings for Wright, not the best but not the worst either.
Could the Sox rally in the top of the 5th? Swihart tried to with a single to center but JBJ flied out to left, Betts popped up and Pedroia whiffed to end the inning. Wright began the bottom of the 5th by getting Pillar to ground out and Donaldson to strike out. Bautista whiffed as Wright has been locked in since loading the bases in the first inning. Its too bad the Sox picked today to not score runs.
Bogaerts struck out to begin the top of the 6th. Ortiz and Ramirez both popped up and the heart of the order was done in less than 3 minutes. The Sox pounded Kluber, Carassco, Stroman and Dickey but got shut-out by Marco Estrada, go figure. Encarnarcion singled to start the bottom of the 6th but was erased on the Tulowitzky double play. Saunders grounded out to third to end the inning. If you told me before the game Steven Wright would pitch 6 innings of 2 run ball, I'd say the game was in the bag.
The Sox got the leadoff man on in the top of the 7th when Shaw walked on 4 pitches. Chris Young did himself no favors by popping up after getting ahead 1-0. Young should have taken until he threw a strike. Swihart whiffed badly and Bradley Jr struck out as well. Estrada has struck out 8, he's been outstanding. Wright was sent back to the mound for the bottom of the 7th with 102 pitches on his arm to eat up an inning if nothing else. He struck out Martin but Goins hit a ground rule double down the line. Barney grounded out on Wright's 118th pitch, a new career high. That was it as Farrell lifted Wright for Noe Ramirez. Wright pitched great, its too bad the Sox picked today not to score any runs.
Ramirez got Pillar to ground out to end the inning. What a shame.
Jays manager John Gibbons made the peculiar decision to lift Estrada for Drew Storen for the 8th. It looked like Estrada would last all the way. Betts flied out to continue his slump. Pedroia singled off the glove of Barney to bring the tying run to the plate. The bad luck continued as Bogaerts hit a rocket to Barney who dropped it, but had enough time to flip to second, on to first for the double play. Had Barney just caught it, it would have been 1 on 2 out, instead the inning was over. The Jays iced the game in the bottom of the 8th when Josh Donaldson smashed the first pitch Ramirez threw into the upper deck to increase the lead 3-0.
Bautista walked but Encarnarcion banged into a double play. Tulowitzky popped up but the damage was done.
Toronto closer Roberto Osuna took the mound to finish off the Sox. David Ortiz struck out but Ramirez got his third hit of the day. Shaw whiffed and Pablo Sandoval was brought in to pinch hit for Young. Ramirez took second on defensive indifference
Jackass of the Night is a tough one. I have to go with Chris Young. He struck out with 2 men on in the second inning, struck out with a man on in the 4th inning and flied out with a man on in the 7th inning. He could have tied or put the Sox ahead 3 times and failed all 3 times. Why did John Farrell start him against a right hander, I'll never know.
The Good:
One of the only times the losing pitcher is on the good list. Steve Wright pitched 6 2/3 innings allowing just 1 earned run (2 total). He gave up 6 hits, 3 walks and struck out 5 plus saved the bullpen for better days. Hanley Ramirez was 3 for 4. Blake Swihart and Jackie Bradley Jr were both 1 for 3.
The Bad:
Mookie Betts was 0 for 4 with 2 strikeouts. David Ortiz was 0 for 4 with a strikeout. Pablo Sandoval swung and missed at 3 straight fastballs in the 9th inning.
The Ugly:
Noe Ramirez gave up the home run to Josh Donaldson but escaped the 7th and got through the rest of the 8th unscathed. Dustin Pedroia was 1 for 4 with a throwing error that allowed the second run to score. Xander Bogaerts was just 1 for 4. Travis Shaw was 0 for 2 but walked twice.
Final Thoughts:
The Sox offense was due for a bad game and this was it. They mounted nothing all game and didn't have a runner reach third base once. Steven Wright pitched great but his start was wasted. Sox media was blistering John Farrell for pushing David Price back to Monday, but it looks like a great move now since the Sox generated literally no offense. Price (1-0) pitches the home opener against Baltimore tomorrow.
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