Steven Matz got the ball in the top of the first inning and Jose Peraza flied out to left to start. Kevin Pillar flied out to right but JD Martinez singled to third and took second on a throwing error by Jeff McNeil. Xander Bogaerts grounded back to the mound to end the inning. Somehow Perez didn't puke on himself in the bottom of the first as Amed Rosario grounded out to short to start. Pete Alonso also grounded out to short but McNeil singled to second. JD Davis whiffed to end the inning.
The Sox struck first in the top of the second when Christian Vazquez clobbered his 3rd home run of the season to center to start. Alex Verdugo singled to first but Michael Chavis whiffed. Verdugo then got picked off second as Andrew Benintendi drew a walk. Jonathan Arauz lined out to third to end the inning with the Sox ahead 1-0.
Michael Conforto walked to start the bottom of the second but Yoenis Cespedes took strike three. Conforto was thrown out stealing by the alert Vazquez before Brian Dozier took strike three to end the inning.
Peraza singled to left to start the top of the third but Pillar flied out to left. Peraza took second on the grounder by Martinez but was thrown out trying to steal third to end the inning. Perez finally fell apart in the bottom of the third as Wilson Ramos walked to start. Brandon Nimmo was plunked before Rosario beat out a double play ball. Alonso walked to load the bases and McNeil effortlessly singled to left to score Bimmo and Rosario to give the Mets the lead. Davis flied out to center and Conforto whiffed to end the inning but the Mets were up 2-1.
The Sox fought back in the top of the fourth when Bogaerts got a lucky hit down the third base line to start. Vazquez continued his hot streak with a 2 run blast to almost the same spot as before to give the Sox the lead back. Verdugo whiffed but Chavis got his first hit of the season to right. Benintendi flied out to center and Arauz grounded out to second to end the inning with the Sox ahead 3-2.
Cespedes hit a routine grounder to Peraza who spun in a circle and heaved the ball directly out of Citi Field for an error to start the bottom of the fourth. Dozier banged into a double play and Ramos whiffed to end the inning.
The Sox failed to score in the top of the fifth as Peraza popped up to first to start. Pillar walked but Martinez lined out to second. Bogaerts grounded into a force to end the inning. Somehow Perez cruised in the bottom of the fifth as Nimmo grounded out to first to start. Rosario and Alonso both flied out to right to end the inning.
Nothing happened in the top of the sixth as Vazquez whiffed to start. Verdugo singled to left to chase Matz. Drew Smith came in and Chavis whiffed again. Benintendi grounded back to the mound to end the inning. Perez got McNeil to line out to right to start the bottom of the sixth. Davis walked but Conforto lined out to left. For some ungodly reason Sox manager Ron Roenicke felt Perez couldn't get one more batter. Still, Perez looked a hell of a lot better than his season debut. He tossed 5 2/3 innings of 2 run ball to put himself in line for the win. Heath Hembree came in to strike out Cespedes swinging to end the inning.
The Sox did nothing in the top of the seventh inning as Arauz lined out to center to start. Peraza whiffed and Pillar grounded out to second to end the inning. Hembree got in trouble in the bottom of the seventh as pinch hitter Robinson Cano singled to right to start. Andres Giminez pinch ran for Cano and swiped second but Ramos grounded out to short. Nimmo whiffed and Rosario grounded out to short to end the inning.
Jeurys Familia shut down the Sox in the top of the eighth as Martinez whiffed to start. Bogaerts flied out to right and Vazquez whiffed to end the inning. Matt Barnes came in to give everybody a heart attack in the bottom of the eighth inning. Alonso was plunked to start before McNeil lined out to left. Davis singled Alonso to third and Ryan Cordell pinch ran for JD. Barnes stepped up by blowing away Conforto but Cordell swiped second and Cespedes walked to load the bases. Somehow Barnes got Gimenez to ground out to first to end the inning after throwing 37 pitches.
The Sox got some much needed insurance in the top of the ninth against the wild Edwin Diaz. Verdugo walked and Chavis hit a cue shot into right field to start. Benintendi walked and Rafael Devers pinch hit for Arauz. Devers swung and missed at a pitch up in his eyes for strike three but Peraza was hit twice in the same at bat to score Verdugo. Paul Sewald came in and got Pillar swinging and Martinez to fly out to center to end the inning, but the Sox were ahead 4-2.
Brandon Workman came in to nail down the save in the bottom of the ninth working his third game in a row. Ramos grounded out to third but Nimmo singled to bring the tying run to the plate. Workman struck out Rosario and Alonso swinging to end the game. The Sox had held on to win 4-2.
Hero of the Night is easy. Christian Vazquez carried the offense with 2 home runs, 3 total rbis and throwing out a runner trying to steal
The Good:
Alex Verdugo was 2 for 3 with a walk and a run scored.
Michael Chavis was 2 for 4.
Andrew Benintendi walked twice in four plate appearances.
Martin Perez got his first win of the season with 5 2/3 innings of 2 run ball while striking out 5.
Heath Hembree tossed 1 1/3 scoreless innings.
Matt Barnes pitched a scoreless eighth inning.
Brandon Workman earned his second save with a scoreless ninth inning.
The Bad:
Jonathan Arauz was 0 for 3.
Rafael Devers struck out as a pinch hitter.
The Ugly:
Jose Peraza was just 1 for 4 with 2 errors but was hit with a pitch to drive in a run.
Kevin Pillar was 0 for 4 with a strikeout but drew a walk.
JD Martinez was just 1 for 5 with a strikeout.
Xander Bogaerts was just 1 for 4 but scored a run.
Final Thoughts:
That's more like it Martin Perez. The Sox offense is still having trouble scoring but the trio of Hembree, Workman and Barnes plus Christian Vazquez is trying to strong arm the Sox out of their early funk. If the Sox had ONE more proven starter whether its Rick Porcello or somebody off the scrap heap like Martin Perez, they'd actually be somewhat competitive until Eduardo Rodriguez returns. With guys testing positive for Covid left and right, this could be a season of last man standing. Tonight was a good, much needed win because it showed the Sox could come back and win the close ones. The good news ends right there because the New York Yankees are on the horizon. Not only are they going to be at home, the Sox will be throwing out their bottom three "starters". But wait there's MORE! Hembree, Barnes and Workman are taxed and will probably be unavailable for tomorrow night's game. If there ever was a strategic loss, tomorrow night could be it. As for this game, good win! The win improved the Sox to 3-4. The Sox now pack their bags and head about 200 yards to face the Yankees. Ryan Weber (0-1, 14.73 ERA) goes for the Sox against Jordan Montgomery at 7:05 PM at Yankee Stadium....god help us.
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