Things went bad right from the start in the top of the first inning. Mr. Mookie Betts grounded out harmlessly then Andrew Benintendi flied out to left. Somehow Xander Bogaerts doubled but Mitch Moreland lined out to end the inning. Hector "The Insurance Policy" Velazquez got the start for the Red Sox and he struck out Whit Merrifield to begin the bottom of the first. Jorge Bonifacio and Lorenzo Cain worked back to back singles but Velazquez recovered to strike out Eric Hosmer. Mike Moustakas lined out to left to end the inning.
The Sox threatened in the top of the second inning although Hanley Ramirez grounded out softly to begin. JBJ flied out but Josh Rutledge was plunked. Pablo Sandoval miraculously singled but Christian Vazquez grounded out to end the inning. Velazquez hung tough in the bottom of the second inning. Cheslor Cuthbert singled to lead off but was erased on the Alcides Escobar force out. Alex Gordon and Drew Butera both flied out to JBJ to end the inning.
Once again the Sox failed to score in the top of the third inning. Mr. Mookie grounded out and Benny The Kid struck out, but Bogaerts singled again. He was nearly picked off first but Moreland grounded out to end the inning.Velazquez got tagged in the bottom of the third inning. Merrifield singled but was erased on the Bonifacio force. Cain flied out but Hosmer blasted a 2 run bomb to dead center to give the Royals the lead. Moustakas grounded out to end the inning but it was 2-0 Royals.
The Sox somehow struck back in the top of the fourth inning. Ramirez singled then JBJ smashed his 9th home run of the year to tie the game. Rutledge grounded out, Sandoval flied out and Vazquez grounded out to end the inning but the Sox had tied it 2-2.
Velazquez mowed them down in the botttom of the fourth inning. Cuthbert lined out, Escobar lined out and Gordon grounded out to end the inning.
The Sox failed to do anything against Hammel in the top of the fifth inning. Mr. Mookie grounded out, Benny The Kid flied out and Bogaerts flied out to end the inning. Velazquez cruised in the bottom of the fifth inning as Butera popped up, Merrifield grounded out and Bonifacio struck out to end the inning.
The Sox threatened in the top of the sixth but they crapped their pants. Moreland was hit with a pitch but Ramirez flied out. JBJ singled but Rutledge struck out. With a chance to do some damage Sandoval grounded out to end the inning. Velazquez returned briefly to retire Cain on a ground out before Sox manager John Farrell pulled the plug. Apart from one mistake to Hosmer, Velazquez pitched really well.
Fernando Abad came in and vomited up his intestines. He walked Hosmer and gave up a single to Moustakas before Farrell came out to get him. Some relief. Blaine Boyer had to come in to clean up Abad's mess. Cuthbert flied out and Escobar grounded into a force to end the inning.
The Sox had one last chance to hit Hammel in the top of the seventh and they failed miserably. Vazquez struck out and Mr. Mookie popped up but Benny The Kid singled. Bogaerts whiffed to end the inning. The Royals took the lead in the bottom of the seventh inning due to bad defense. Boyer returned to retire Gordon on a fly out but Butera jacked one deep to center, JBJ dove......and missed completely. Butera motored around for a triple as Ramon Torres pinch ran for him. Merrifield drove him home with a single and advanced to second on the grounder by Bonifacio. Cain singled home Merrifield to increase the lead. That was it for Boyer as Robby Scott came in to walk Hosmer. Moustakas grounded out to end the inning but the Royals were now up 4-2.
"Dadgummit I missed it!" - JBJ
Mike Minor came in to pitch the top of the eighth with Merrifield in right, Salvador Perez catching and Ramon Torres at second. Moreland flied out to right but Ramirez singled. JBJ singled as well to put the tying run on.....but Rutledge whiffed. Chris Young pinch hit for Sandoval and walked to load the bases. Naturally Vazquez grounded out to end the inning, yet another waste. Austin Maddox got the call to pitch the bottom of the eighth with Christian Vazquez now playing third with Sandy Leon behind the plate. Yes, its come to this...Vazquez playing third. Sox are going to need to call up someone tomorrow for sure. Luckily Vazquez didn't have to do much as Cuthbert flied out to right. Escobar blooped a single to center and swiped second. Maddox whiffed Gordon and Torres grounded out to end the inning.
The Sox had one last chance against closer Kelvin Herrera but unfortunately Mr. Mookie flied out to center. Benny The Kid somehow tripled to center to bring the tying run to the plate.....but Bogaerts lined out right to short. Moreland flied out to end the game. The putrid offense was exposed once again as Kansas City won it 4-2.
Jackass of the Night is Christian Vazquez. Yes Boyer coughed up the game and JBJ made the dive to miss the crucial play....but Vaz came up time and time again with men on base and failed. In a 2 run game, that's awful clutch hitting.
The Good:
Andrew Benintendi was 2 for 5.
Xander Bogaerts was 2 for 5.
Hanley Ramirez was 2 for 4 with a run scored.
Jackie Bradley Jr was 3 for 4 with a 2 run home run.
Pablo Sandoval was 1 for 3.
Chris Young walked as a pinch hitter.
Hector Velazquez pitched a decent game for a spot starter. He hung tough to toss 5 1/3 innings giving up the one mistake to Hosmer.
Robby Scott got the final out of the 7th inning.
Austin Maddox pitched a scoreless 8th inning.
The Bad:
Mookie Betts was 0 for 5.
Mitch Moreland was 0 for 4.
Josh Rutledge was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.
Fernando Abad faced 2 batters and they both reached.
The Ugly:
Blaine Boyer took the loss but only because JBJ missed a line drive that turned into the go-ahead runs scoring. He did manage to get out of the 6th inning jam before that.
Honorable Mention:
Sandy Leon caught the bottom of the eighth inning.
Final Thoughts:
Another horrible loss in a season that's rapidly spiraling down the drain. The New York Yankees are scuffling but the Sox just don't seem to want first place bad enough to win the games they have to. Jason Hammel is not Cy Young but the Sox made him out to be. How many more games are they going to lose by stranding tons of people on base? The loss dropped the Sox to 39-31, 1/2 game behind the New York Yankees for first place in the AL East. Our next defeat is scheduled for tomorrow night as Chris Sale looks to be the hard luck loser against the future hall of shamer Matt Strahm. The woes begin at 8:15 PM.
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