On days where the heart of the order of the Boston Red Sox do nothing, generally they lose. Not tonight they didn't! The top 5 of the batting order went 3 for 19 against the Los Angeles Angels but a few role players stepped up. Hunter Renfroe hit a 2 run homer to give the Sox the lead but Matt Andriese gave up the lead for Nick Pivetta. Trailing 3-2 in the seventh, Bobby Dalbec launched a backbreaking two run bomb to give the Sox the lead. Adam Ottavino and Matt Barnes slammed the door as the Sox beat the Angels 4-3 at Fenway Park.
Pivetta got the ball in the top of the first inning and David Fletcher lined out to short to start. Shohei Ohtani doubled to left but Pivetta froze Mike Trout for strike three. Anthony Rendon flied out to left to end the inning. Canning got the ball in the bottom of the first inning and Michael Chavis struck out swinging to start. Alex Verdugo popped up to short but JD Martinez singled to left. Xander Bogaerts grounded into a force to end the inning.
Jared Walsh lined out to left to start the top of the second and Justin Upton took strike three. Old friend Jose Iglesias singled to right but Taylor Ward flied out to center to end the inning. The Sox struck first in the bottom of the second as Rafael Devers singled to left to start. Christian Vazquez took strike three and Marwin Gonzalez hit one up the elevator shaft but Hunter Renfroe smashed his fifth home run of the season to give the Sox the lead. Bobby Dalbec walked and stole second, but Chavis struck out swinging again to end the inning with the Sox ahead 2-0.
Pivetta cruised in the top of the third as Drew Butera took strike three to start. Fletcher popped up to Gonzalez in foul territory and Ohtani struck out swinging to end the inning. Verdugo grounded out to first to begin the bottom of the third but Martinez walked. Bogaerts struck out swinging and Devers also whiffed to end the inning.
Trout grounded out to short to start the top of the fourth before Rendon struck out swinging. Walsh took strike three to end the inning. The Sox blew a rally in the bottom of the fourth as Vazquez singled to center to start. Gonzalez also singled to center but Renfroe banged into a double play. Dalbec struck out swinging to end the inning.
Upton popped up to short to start the top of the fifth before Iglesias grounded out to second. Ward flied out to center to end the inning. Chavis took strike three for the hat trick to start the bottom of the fifth and Verdugo lined out to second. Martinez flied out to right to end the inning.
The Angels finally tagged Pivetta in the top of the sixth although Butera struck out swinging to start. Fletcher grounded out to third but Ohtani smashed a home run to Osaka, Japan to cut the lead. Trout flied out to right to end the inning with the Angels down 2-1.
The Sox failed to respond in the bottom of the sixth as Bogaerts grounded out to third to start. Devers also grounded out to third but Vazquez singled in the hole at second.....only to get thrown out trying to steal to end the inning.
Pivetta was chased in the top of the seventh as Rendon singled off the top of the Monster. Pivetta would be charged with 2 runs in 6 innings of work. Matt Andriese came in to crap his pants as Walsh singled to center and both runners moved over on the Upton fly ball to right. None other than Iglesias doubled both men home to give the Angels the lead. Iglesias moved to third on theWard grounder to first but Butera flied out to center to end the inning with the Angels ahead 3-2.
The Sox answered in the bottom of the seventh with Tony Watson now on the mound. Gonzalez struck out swinging but Renfroe singled to center. Dalbec stepped up by smashing his fourth home run of the season to give the Sox the lead. Chavis lined out to left and Verdugo grounded out to first to end the inning with the Sox ahead 4-3.
Adam Ottavino came in for the top of the eighth and Fletcher grounded out to second to start. Ohtani struck out swinging and Ottavino froze Trout for strike three to end the inning. Steve Cishek came in to pitch the bottom of the eighth and Martinez grounded out to first to start. Bogaerts singled up the middle but Devers struck out swinging. Vazquez grounded out to second to end the inning.
Matt Barnes came in to close out the top of the ninth and blew away Rendon to start. Barnes blew away Walsh and struck out Upton swinging on a nasty curve to end the game. The Sox had won it 4-3.
Hero of The Night is Bobby Dalbec. His 2 run homer was the difference in the game.
The Good:
JD Martinez was 1 for 3 with a walk.
Christian Vazquez was 2 for 4.
Marwin Gonzalez was 1 for 3.
Hunter Renfroe was 2 for 3 with a 2 run homer and 2 total runs scored.
Nick Pivetta tossed 6 solid innings of 2 run ball. He allowed 4 hits and struck out 7.
Adam Ottavino pitched a scoreless eighth inning.
Matt Barnes earned his ninth save by striking out the side in the top of the ninth.
The Bad:
Michael Chavis was 0 for 4 with a hat trick of 3 strikeouts.
Alex Verdugo was 0 for 4.
Matt Andriese vultured the win by giving up the tying and go-ahead runs in the seventh inning.
The Ugly:
Xander Bogaerts was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout.
Rafael Devers was just 1 for 4 with 2 strikeouts but scored a run.
Final Thoughts:
One of the weaknesses of the Sox this season was the lack of production from the bottom of the order on days where the top of the order does nothing. Tonight was one of the rare times the bottom of the order picked up the slack. Renfroe and Dalbec saved the Sox bacon tonight after the 1-5 hitters did nothing and Matt Andriese failed to protect the lead. The Sox woes in the late innings continues as nobody can consistently get from the starter to Barnes it seems. Pivetta is still dealing with the effects of the Covid vaccine so this was one time taking him out after 91 pitches wasn't the worst thing. The Sox are definitely going to be making some changes on Monday because guys are coming off the Injured List and there's nowhere to put them. Certain pitchers may be cut, certain guys may be demoted or released, it'll all work itself out in a few days. If Dalbec and Renfroe can find a groove the Sox will be in good shape going forward because there won't be too many days where Devers, Bogaerts and Martinez will go ice cold. The win improved the Sox to 24-16, 2 games ahead of the New York Yankees for first place in the AL East. Tomorrow the Sox to make it 3 wins in a row when Martin Perez (0-2, 4.01 ERA) looks for his first win of the season against Dylan "King Kong" Bundy of the Angels. The game begins at 4:05 PM at Fenway Park.
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