Red Sox Make Roster Moves (11/18/25)

Just when you thought the off-season was going to be actually good for the Boston Red Sox after making the playoffs for the first time in four seasons, the front office reminded the fans that its all about money. The Sox made a bevy of roster moves not to improve the team, but to clear payroll. Let's get to the roster moves.

                                                                                 OUT

                                                                           IN

First and foremost, the Sox traded lefty Brennan Bernardino to the Colorado Rockies for 26 year old Albuquerque Isotopes centerfielder Braiden Ward. Ward was taken in the 16th round four slots after the Sox chose BJ Vela in the 2021 draft. Ward played only 97 games between AA and AAA last year although he did hit a combined .290. He's a speedster that swiped 57 bags but more importantly to John Henry, he's cheap. Bernardino was due to make 775K this coming season and Ward being a 16th round pick, only signed for 125K. The Sox shed 650k by trading one of their most dependable relievers for a triple A outfielder with no power.

But wait there's more! Another of the 2021 draft class bites the dust for the Boston Red Sox as they have traded Luis Guerrero to the Tampa Bay Rays for 29 year old utility infielder Tristan Gray. To make room for Gray on the 40 man roster, the Sox designated Nathaniel Lowe for assignment. Lowe was due 12 million this season and Guerrero was due 760K. Now Gray will make 820K this season but the real win for Henry was dumping Lowe's contract. So far that's 12.59 million saved.

Next up, the Red Sox traded relief pitcher Chris Murphy to the Chicago White Sox for 21 year old Single A catcher Ronny Hernandez. Hernandez hit just .251 with 4 home runs for the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers. Murphy was due 820K this coming season while Hernandez was a Dominican teenage signing back in 2022. Just for arguments sake lets say he makes 125K. That's another 700K saved bringing us to 13.29 million.

In a minor league deal, the Sox traded right handed pitching prospect Alex Hoppe to the Seattle Mariners for their 14th round pick in last year's draft, 22 year old Luke Heyman. Heyman didn't even play in rookie ball last year but supposedly has a good power bat. Hoppe was due to make 820K this season while Heyman signed for 230K. That's another 590K saved bringing us to 13.88 million.

Also, relief pitcher Josh Winckowski was designated for assignment to make room for three more guys. Winckowski was making 760K as well. so that brings it to 14.64 total saved.

Added to the 40 man roster was 2020 5th round pick left handed pitcher Shane Drohan. 2021 19th round pick right handed pitcher Tyler Uberstine and 24 year old right handed pitcher David Sandlin. None of them are projected to make the team out of spring training, this was mostly to protect them from the Rule 5 Draft coming up in December.

All in all this was a salary dump to clear out Bernardino, Guerrero, Murphy, Lowe and Winckowski. Gray is a utility infielder while Hernandez, Ward and Heyman are prospects. The glass half empty situation is this is Henry penny pinching to save money. Getting rid of proven players, especially Bernardino, just to save money is a sign of a bad franchise. The half full way to look at it is the Sox cleared out 14 million to use on other players. Bottom line is with Detroit dangling Tarik Skubal as trade bait, Pete Alonso, Alex Bregman, Kyle Tucker and Framber Valdez as free agents, the Sox better do something. They were a rash of injuries and a true second ace away from possibly winning the pennant despite everything that happened last year. The time to strike is NOW.

Yankees Drop Whitlock, Sox in Game 2 (10/1/25)

Well the post-season dominance by the Boston Red Sox over the New York Yankees finally ended in Game 2 of the American League Wild Card Series. Facing a scared Brayan Bello, the Yankees got to the Sox bullpen and forced Sox manager Alex Cora to ride everyone for as long as they could. The Yankees scored two quick runs against Bello but Trevor Story got two back against Carlos Rodon. Jarren Dropped a catchable ball to allow the Yankees to score a third run but a Story home run tied it again. In the bottom of the eighth, an exhausted Garrett Whitlock coughed up an rbi single to Austin Wells, scoring Jazz Chisholm. The Yankees bullpen slammed the door after Rodon left the game to tie the series up with a 4-3 victory over the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium.

                                                               The final image

Rodon got the ball in the top of the first inning and Rob Refsnyder struck out swinging to start. Trevor Story struck out swinging and Alex Bregman flied out to left to end the inning. Bello got the ball in the bottom of the first and Trent Grisham flied out to left on the first pitch. Aaron Judge grounded out to third but Cody Bellinger got a base hit to right. Naturally Ben Rice hit a home run all the way to the moon to put the Yankees up. Giancarlo Stanton grounded out to short to end the inning but New York was up 2-0.

                                                              Yankees strike first again

The Sox rolled over and died in the top of the second as Romy Gonzalez flied out to right to start. Carlos Narvaez flied out to center and Nate Eaton struck out swinging to end the inning. Jazz Chisholm Jr flied out to center to start the bottom of the second but Austin Wells walked. Anthony Volpe grounded into a double play to end the inning.

The Sox rallied in the top of the third as Jarren Duran ripped a base it to center to start. Ceddanne Rafaela walked and Nick Sogard caught Rodon asleep with a bunt, with Carlos throwing it away for an error to load the bases. Refsnyder struck out swinging but Story lined a base hit to center to score Duran and Rafaela to tie the game. Bregman grounded into a double play to end the inning with the game tied 2-2.

                                                                  Story ties it

The Yankees finished off Bello in the bottom of the third as Ryan McMahon singled to right to start. Grisham forced McMahon at second but Judge ripped a base hit to center. Sox manager Alex Cora saw that Bello was a deer in the headlights and yanked him after just 2 2/3 innings and 2 runs allowed. Justin Wilson came in and Grisham stole third with Judge taking second on a passed ball. Bellinger flied out to left and Rice lined out to Eaton to end the inning.

                                                           So much for Bello

Gonzalez popped up to second to start the top of the fourth before Narvaez struck out swinging. Eaton got a base hit to right but Duran grounded out to second to end the inning. Stanton grounded out to short to start the bottom of the fourth before Chisholm popped up to first. Wells grounded out to third to end the inning.

Rafaela took strike three to begin the top of the fifth before Sogard lined out to left. Refsnyder flied out to right to end the inning. The Yankees struck back in the bottom of the fifth against Justin Slaten as Volpe flied out to center to start. McMahon grounded back to the mound but Grisham walked. A wild pitch moved Trent to second and Duran dropped a sinking liner by Judge to score Grisham to put the Yankees on top. Steven Matz came in to get Bellinger to ground out to third to end the inning with the Yankees up 3-2.

                                               "I got it, I got it....I don't got it" - Duran

The lead lasted 8 seconds as Story smashed his first home run of the post-season to tie the game in the top of the sixth. Bregman walked on four pitches not even close but the Sox let him off the hook. On just two pitches, Gonzalez popped up to second and Narvaez grounded into a double play to end the inning with the game tied 3-3.

                                                           Story ties it again

Rice got a base hit down the third base line to start the bottom of the sixth but Stanton lined out to left. Chisholm struck out swinging but Wells got a base hit to left. Cora rolled the dice by bringing in Zack Kelly to face Volpe and somehow struck him out swinging to end the inning.

The Sox blew a rally in the top of the seventh as Eaton walked to start. A wild pitch moved Eaton to second and Duran was drilled to send Rodon to the showers. Fernando Cruz came in and Rafaela blew it by popping up the bunt to him. Sogard flied out to left and Masataka Yoshida pinch hit for Refsnyder. Yoshida beat out a roller past second but Eaton didn't even try for home to load the bases. Naturally Story flied out to the centerfield warning track to end the inning. Cora then put the game in the hands of his best pitchers available as Garrett Whitlock came in to pitch the bottom of the seventh. McMahon struck out swinging but Grisham doubled to right. Judge was frozen for strike three and Bellinger flied out to right to end the inning.

Devin Williams came in to pitch the top of the eighth and Bregman got a base hit to left to start. Cora then brought in Nathaniel Lowe to pinch hit for Gonzalez.....who grounded in to a double play. Narvaez struck out swinging to end the inning. The Yankees struck in the bottom of the eighth as Rice struck out swinging to start. Stanton grounded out to short but Chisholm walked. Wells dumped a base hit into the right field corner and Eaton failed to throw home in time, allowing Chisholm to score all the way from first. An exhausted Whitlock allowed a single to left by Volpe and a walk to McMahon to end his night after 47 pitches. Payton Tolle came in to make his post-season debut one month after making his ML debut with the bases loaded and got Grisham to ground out to second to end the inning with the Yankees up 4-3.

                                                               Yankees take the lead

David Bednar came in to close out the top of the ninth and Wilyer Abreu pinch hit for Eaton. Abreu struck out swinging, Duran took strike three right down the middle and Rafaela flied out to right to end the game. The Yankees had won it 4-3.

                                                         Yankees win

Jackass of the Night is Nate Eaton. He failed to score the go-ahead run for the Sox and failed to prevent the go-ahead run for the Yankees scoring.

                                                                Eaton Jackass

The Good:

Masataka Yoshida got a base hit in his only at-bat.

Trevor Story was 2 for 4 with 3 total rbis and a home run.

Alex Bregman was 1 for 3 with a walk.

Justin Wilson tossed 1 2/3 scoreless innings.

Steven Matz tossed a full scoreless inning.

Zack Kelly got the final out of the sixth inning.

Payton Tolle got the only man he faced out.

The Bad:

Rob Refsnyder was 0 for 3 with 2 strikeouts.

Romy Gonzalez was 0 for 3.

Nathaniel Lowe grounded into a double play in his only at-bat.

Carlos Narvaez was 0 for 4 with 2 strikeouts.

Wilyer Abreu struck out as a pinch hitter.

Nick Sogard was 0 for 2.

Brayan Bello crapped his pants allowing 2 runs in 2 2/3 innings, getting yanked after 4 hits and 2 walks.

Justin Slaten allowed a run in 2/3 of an inning.

Garrett Whitlock allowed a run in 1 2/3 innings of work to take the loss.

The Ugly:

Jarren Duran was 1 for 3 with a run scored but dropped a huge fly ball that turned into a run.

Ceddanne Rafaela was 0 for 3 with a strikeout but scored a run.

Final Thoughts:

Like I mentioned in Game 1, if that was it for the season, I'd be proud of this team. This game proved why they were frustrating to watch all season. With the game on the line, they couldn't get it done. Eaton not scoring in the seventh inning, not preventing the run in the 8th, Duran dropping the fly ball and on and on. The worst part was Cora pushed Whitlock as far as he could because he knows they're essentially screwed in Game 3. If he pulls Bello after 2 2/3 innings, what's he going to do when Connelly Early gets in trouble tomorrow night, a bullpen game? The only silver lining is they didn't use Arolids Chapman so he's available tonight. But good luck getting to him with all that's left is Greg Weissert after everyone else worked yesterday. If the Sox want to keep their season alive, they get a lead early for once. Playing from behind every game isn't sustainable. With Lucas Giolito out and Bello peeing down his leg, even if the Sox win Game 3, they have zero chance against Toronto on Saturday. But, there can't be a Saturday if they don't win tomorrow night. Cora will have to manage the game of his life if he wants to avoid elimination. The Sox look to keep their season alive in winner take all Game 3 tomorrow night. Connelly Early takes on fellow rookie Cam Schlittler. The game has been pushed back to 8:05 PM at Yankee Stadium.

Crochet, Sox Drop Yankees In Game 1 (9/30/25)

If the Boston Red Sox just won their final game of the season, Sox fans should be proud of the team this year. In their first playoff action in four years, the Sox opened the American League Wild Card Series by knocking off the New York Yankees for the 9th time in their last 10 post-season games. Garrett Crochet was a man possessed in his first post-season start. He held the Yankees to a single run in 7 2/3 innings allowing just 4 hits. The Sox accomplished nothing offensively against Yankees starter Max Fried and an Anthony Volpe home run put the Yankees up 1-0 going into the seventh. Yankees manager Aaron Boone foolishly yanked Fried and Luke Weaver allowed a backbreaking 2 run single to pinch hitter Masataka Yoshida. An Alex Bregman rbi double in the ninth followed by Aroldis Chapman Houdini'ng out of his own jam added up to a 3-1 victory over the Yankees in Game 1 at Yankee Stadium.

                                                 "That's one, Skip" - Crochet

Fried got the ball in the top of the first inning and Rob Refsnyder grounded out to short to start. Trevor Story struck out swinging but Alex Bregman got a base hit to right. Romy Gonzalez grounded out to third to end the inning. Crochet got the ball in the bottom of the first and Paul Goldschmidt singled to left to start. Aaron Judge ripped a base hit to left but somehow Cody Bellinger struck out swinging. Giancarlo Stanton banged into a double play to end the inning.

Carlos Narvaez struck out swinging to open the top of the second and Nate Eaton grounded out to second. Jarren Duran grounded out to short to end the inning. Ahmed Rosario grounded out to short to begin the bottom of the second before Trent Grisham struck out swinging. Anthony Volpe then hit a home run all the way to Queens to put the Yankees up early. Austin Wells popped up to first to end the inning but it was over already with the Yankees up 1-0.

                                                               Yankees strike first

Fried laughed at the Red Sox in the top of the third as Ceddanne Rafaela flied out to right to start. Nick Sogard got a base hit to left but Refsnyder flied out to center. Story struck out swinging to end the inning. Jose Caballero struck out swinging to begin the bottom of the third before Goldschmidt went down hacking as well. Judge flied out to left to end the inning.

The Sox blew a rally in the top of the fourth as Bregman struck out swinging to start. Gonzalez grounded out to third but Narvaez walked. Eaton slashed a double to right but Duran swung at strike three up in his eyes to end the inning. Bellinger grounded out to second to start the bottom of the fourth before Stanton struck out swinging. Rosario grounded out to short to end the inning.

The Sox blew another rally in the top of the fifth as Rafaela grounded out to second to start. Sogard flied out to center but Refsnyder walked. Story got a base hit in the hole at short but Bregman grounded out to third to end the inning. Grisham took strike three to start the bottom of the fifth before Volpe struck out swinging. Wells took strike three to end the inning.

Gonzalez struck out swinging to begin the top of the sixth but Narvaez drew a 9 pitch walk. Eaton grounded into a double play to end the inning but Fried was up to 99 pitches. Caballero flied out to center to start the bottom of the sixth before Goldschmidt flied out to left. Judge struck out swinging to end the inning.

Duran grounded out to first to begin the top of the seventh and that was it for Fried who tossed 6 1/3 shutout innings. Luke Weaver came in to face Rafaela and Ceddanne drew an 11 pitch walk. Sogard somehow doubled to right when Judge lollygagged after the base hit and Masataka Yoshida pinch hit for Refsnyder. The gamble worked as Yoshida blooped a base hit to center to score both runners to give the Sox the lead. That was it for Weaver as Fernando Cruz came in to face Story. Story struck out swinging but Bregman walked. Nathaniel Lowe pinch hit for Gonzalez and flied out to right to end the inning with the Sox up 2-1.

                                                    Yoshida gives the Sox the lead

Sox manager Alex Cora rolled the dice by bringing back Crochet for the bottom of the seventh and Bellinger popped up to short to start. Stanton grounded out to third and Rosario did the same to end the inning on just 6 pitches.

Jazz Chisholm Jr took over for Rosario with Devin Williams now on the mound to start the 8th inning. Narvaez walked and Wilyer Abreu pinch hit for Eaton. Eaton and Duran both popped up to third and Rafaela flied out to left to end the inning. Crochet returned for the bottom of the eighth and Grisham struck out swinging to start. Volpe got a base hit to center but Crochet froze Wells for strike three to end his night. He threw 117 pitches allowing just 1 run on 4 hits while striking out 11. Aroldis Chapman came in for the four out save and Volpe took second on a disengagement violation. Caballero then hit a ball to right and Abreu damn near cleaned out Rafaela running to catch the ball to end the inning.

                                                The War Pig gets the job done

The Sox added some insurance in the top of the ninth as David Bednar came in to pitch. Sogard took strike three and Yoshida grounded out to second, but Story got  abase hit to left. It looked like Story had second base stolen but Boone challenged the call.....safe, call stands. Bregman made the Yankees pay with a double down the left field line to score Story. Tim Hill came in to pitch to Lowe and Nathaniel lined out to center to end the inning with the Sox up 3-1.

                                                        Bregman the Yankee killer

Chapman returned for the bottom of the ninth and immediately got in trouble. Goldschmidt, Judge and Bellinger all stroked base hits to load the bases with nobody out. Yankee fans gladhanded each other saying it was in the bag but Stanton struck out swinging. Chisholm popped up to right, failing to score Goldschmidt and Grisham went down hacking to end the game. The Sox had stolen the game 3-1.

                                             Chapman pulls the Houdini to save the game

We have Co-Heroes of the Night. Hero number 1 is Garrett Crochet. He battled for 7 2/3 innings to earn the win. He allowed 4 hits and a run while striking out 11.

                                                Narvaez acknowledges our Hero

Hero number 2 is Masataka Yoshida. He was Boston's best hitter in September and his 2 run single put the Sox up for good in this one.

                                                      Jose Flores with our Hero

The Good:

Trevor Story was 2 for 5 with a run scored.

Alex Bregman was 2 for 4 with a walk and an rbi.

Carlos Narvaez walked 3 times in 4 plate appearances.

Nate Eaton was 1 for 3.

Nick Sogard was 2 for 4 with a run scored.

Aroldis Chapman earned the save with 1 1/3 scoreless innings.

The Bad:

Romy Gonzalez was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.

Nathaniel Lowe was 0 for 2.

Wilyer Abreu was 0 for 1 as a pinch hitter.

Jarren Duran was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.

The Ugly:

Rob Refsnyder was 0 for 2 but walked.

Ceddanne Rafaela was 0 for 3 but walked and a run scored.

Final Thoughts:

As mentioned earlier, if this was it for the Red Sox this season, kudos to them for a successful season. The Sox did the best they could with what they had this season despite all the injuries. Losing Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford, Hunter Dobbins, Richard Fitts, Dustin May, Triston Casas, Liam Hendricks, Marcelo Mayer, Roman Anthony and now Lucas Giolito for the season and being one win away from the American League Division Series is a miracle. Alex Cora for the first time all season managed with his eyes instead of the computer by letting Crochet going as far as he could and asking Chapman to get four big outs. Now the Sox have a victory and the rest of the bullpen arms are rested for tomorrow. Its amazing how it was Boone that pulled the starter too early and not Cora. Some Yankee fans said the Sox have the managerial advantage and its hard to argue that. Cora put on a masterclass with his pitchers and pinch hitting Yoshida to knock in the go-ahead runs. Once again the Sox had woes with men on base but they drove in the three big ones that mattered. Just the fact the Sox are one win away from knocking out the Yankees is a miracle, but here we are. Even if they get killed the next two games, Sox fans shouldn't get mad since they pushed it as far as possible with all the injuries they had to endure. Still, they might actually win tomorrow and advance. Alex Cora manages in October flying by the seat of his pants and he's going to have to with only 2 experienced starters remaining. The Sox look to finish off the Yankees tomorrow night when Brayan Bello makes his first ever post-season start against Carlos Rodon of New York. The game begins at 6:05 PM at Yankee Stadium.

Crochet, Sox Drop Royals (8/5/25)

Before the game the Boston Red Sox made a mercy roster move. Jorge Alcala was designated for assignment and the Sox called up Isaiah Campbell to take his place. Alcala started off in low leverage situations but once he was put into big game trouble, he crumbled. Now he can't even pitch in garbage time without giving up runs and baserunners. Campbell isn't much better, but he can't be worse...right?

                                                                          OUT

                                                                        IN

As for the game, make it seven wins in a row for the red hot Boston Red Sox. Garrett Crochet (13-4, 2.24 ERA) continued his march toward the AL Cy Young Award by tossing 7 innings where he allowed just 2 runs against the Kansas City Royals. Offensively the two teams fought to a 1-1 tie going into the sixth when  Trevor Story knocked in two runs in the bottom of the frame. The Royals got a run in Crochet's final inning but Wilyer Abreu hit a 2 run single. Story added another rbi and the bullpen locked it down. The Sox had taken their seventh game in a row with a 6-2 victory over the Royals at Fenway Park.

                                                     Naomi Russell approves of the win

Crochet got the ball in the top of the first inning and Jonathan India grounded out to short to start. Bobby Witt Jr struck out swinging and Vinnie Pasquantino hit one up the elevator shaft to end the inning. Bergert got the ball in the bottom of the first inning and Jarren Duran flied out to right to start. Alex Bregman lined out to center and Wilyer Abreu struck out swinging to end the inning. 

Maikel Garcia struck out swinging to start the top of the second inning before Salvador Perez grounded out to short. Randal Grichuk struck out swinging to end the inning. Trevor Story led off the bottom of the second with a grounder to third. Masataka Yoshida walked but Carlos Narvaez grounded into a double play to end the inning.

Nick Loftin struck out swinging to open the top of the third inning before Luke Maile went down hacking. John Rave grounded back to the mound to end the inning. The Sox struck first in the bottom of the third as Abraham "El" Toro grounded out to second to start. Romy Gonzalez got a base hit to center and took second on a fly out to center by David Hamilton. Duran ripped a double off the Monster to score Gonzalez to put Boston on top. Bregman flied out to right to end the inning with the Sox up 1-0.

                                                               Duran drives in a run

India took strike three to start the top of the fourth but Witt Jr tripled into the centerfield triangle. Somehow Pasquantino grounded out to first but Garcia doubled off the Monster to score Witt. Perez flied out to a running Abreu at the wall to end the inning but the game was tied 1-1.

                                                          Garcia ties it up

Abreu popped up to short to start the bottom of the fourth and Story took strike three. Yoshida grounded out to second to end the inning. 

Grichuk grounded out to second to start the top of the fifth and Loftin flied out to right. Maile got a base hit to left but Rave lined out to first to end the inning. Narvaez grounded back to the mound to start the bottom of the fifth and El Toro lined out to second. Gonzalez lined out to right to end the inning.

India grounded out to third to start the top of the sixth before Witt grounded out to second. Pasquantino grounded out to first to end the inning. The Sox struck back in the bottom of the sixth as Hamilton flied out to left to start. Duran grounded out to first but Bregman walked. Angel Zerpa came in to face Abreu and Wilyer doubled to left. Story then ripped a base hit to center to score both runners. Yoshida got a base hit to left and Ceddanne Rafaela ran for him. Narvaez lined out to right to end the inning with the Sox up 3-2.

                                                               Story drives in a pair

The Royals struck back in the top of the seventh as Garcia walked to start. Perez flied out to right but Grichuk doubled off the Monster just our of reach of Duran to score Garcia. Loftin and Maile both struck out swinging to end the inning. That was it for Sale who allowed just 2 runs in 7 innings off 4 hits and a walk while striking out 8.

                                                                    Crochet gets it done

The Sox iced the game in the bottom of the seventh with John Schreiber now on the mound. El Toro flied out to right and Gonzalez grounded out to third, but Hamilton walked. Duran singled to center and Bregman walked to load the bases. Abreu smacked a base hit to right to score both Hamilton and Duran. Story added a base hit to center to score Bregman with another run. Daniel Lynch 4th came in to face Rafaela and Ceddanne popped up to short to end the inning with the Sox up 6-2.

                                                           Abreu supplying the insurance runs

Greg Weissert came in to pitch the top of the eighth and Rave flied out to right to start. Bregman booted a grounder by India for an error but Witt Jr popped up to second. Pasquantino flied out to center to end the inning. Narvaez flied out to center to start the bottom of the eighth before El Toro grounded out to short. Gonzalez singled to right but Hamilton grounded out to first to end the inning.

Jordan Hicks came in to pitch the top of the ninth and Garcia singled to left to start. A wild pitch moved Garcia to second but Perez grounded out to short. Mike Yastrzemski pinch hit for Grichuk and popped up to third. Adam Frazier pinch hit for Loftin and grounded out to second to end the game. The Sox had won it 6-2.

                                                                 Sox win

Hero of The Night is Garrett Crochet. He held the Royals to just 2 runs in 7 dominant innings. He struck out 8 batters.

                                                                Hero Crochet

The Good:

Jarren Duran was 2 for 4 with an rbi and a run scored.

Wilyer Abreu was 2 for 4 with 2 rbis and a run scored.

Trevor Story was 2 for 4 with 3 rbis.

Masataka Yoshida was 1 for 2 with a walk.

Romy Gonzalez was 2 for 4 with a run scored.

Greg Weissert tossed a scoreless eighth inning.

Jordan Hicks pitched a scoreless ninth inning.

The Bad:

Ceddanne Rafaela was 0 for 1 at the plate.

Carlos Narvaez was 0 for 4.

Abraham Toro was 0 for 4.

The Ugly:

Alex Bregman was 0 for 2 with an error but walked twice and scored 2 runs.

David Hamilton was 0 for 3 but walked and scored a run.

Final Thoughts:

The Red Sox are rolling again and its been a total turnaround since falling to 41-44 on June 29th. The New York Yankees have also totally collapsed, going from 9 games up to now 3.5 games behind. Crochet continues to be worth every penny and prospect traded to get him and the Sox have a serious shot at October with him as the ace. The offense still may not have a lot of talent on paper but they've been getting on base. More importantly, unlike April, May and parts of June, the Sox are driving in runs with men on base. The Sox don't just score a few runs and try to sit on the lead anymore, they add to it. If Hicks ever learns how to control his fastball, the Sox would have one of the most devastating bullpens in baseball. Once Justin Slaten comes back, they're going to be VERY tough to beat. Still, if they can't beat or pass Toronto, they don't deserve to go anywhere when the weather gets cold. The win improved the Sox to 64-51, 3 games behind the Toronto Blue Jays for first place in the AL East. The Sox look to make it 8 wins in a row and a series sweep tomorrow night when Dustin May makes his Red Sox debut against old pal Michael Wacha of Kansas City. The game begins at 7:10 PM at Fenway Park.

Sox Hold Off Royals (8/4/25)

For seven innings the Boston Red Sox were cruising to an easy victory over the Kansas City Royals. The Sox jumped on Royals starter Bailey Falter for five quick runs in the bottom of the first, capped off by a Jarren Duran three run blast. Rob Refsnyder, Alex Bregman and Wilyer Abreu all drove in runs to add to the lead. Brayan Bello (8-5, 3.03 ERA) gutted through six solid innings allowing just one run. Then in the top of the eighth both Jorge Alcala and Justin Wilson got rocked for 4 runs, causing Sox manager Alex Cora to turn to his closing tag team in a game they led by 7. Garrett Whitlock and Aroldis Chapman slammed the door as the Sox won the game 8-5 at Fenway Park.

                                                    Kody Evans approves of the win

Bello got the ball in the top of the first inning and Jonathan India struck out swinging to start. Bobby Witt Jr popped up to third and Vinnie Pasquantino flied out to left to end the inning. The Sox wasted no time getting to Falter in the bottom of the first as Romy Gonzalez got a base hit to right to start. Alex Bregman got a base hit to center and Wilyer Abreu walked to load the bases. Rob Refsnyder got a base hit to center to score both Gonzalez and Bregman, but Trevor Story popped up to third. Ceddanne Rafaela popped up to first but Jarren Duran smoked a three run home run to dead center to put the Sox up big. Abraham Toro grounded out to short to end the inning but the Sox were up 5-0.

                                                     Duran puts the Sox up big

Maikel Garcia grounded back to the mound to start the top of the second but Salvador Perez doubled to center. Mike Yastrzemski struck out swinging and Adam Frazier lined out to short to end the inning. Connor Wong took strike three to start the bottom of the second before Gonzalez lined out to right. Bregman struck out swinging to end the inning.

The Royals threatened in the top of the third as John Rave got a base hit to center to start. Kyle Isbel ate up Bello on a grounder who threw the ball away for an error to move both runners into scoring position. Bello battled back to strike out India swinging, but India walked to load the bases. Pasquantino lined out to second and Garcia struck out swinging to end the inning. Abreu ripped a base hit to right to start the bottom of the third but Refsnyder banged into a double play. Story walked and promptly stole second. Rafaela stepped up with a base hit to center to score Trevor with another run. Rafaela swiped second but Duran grounded out to second to end the inning with the Sox up 6-0.

                                                               Rafaela drives in a run.

Things went south in the top of the fourth as Gonzalez booted a grounder by Perez to start. Yaz doubled to center and Frazier hit a sac fly to left to score Perez. Rave grounded out to first to move Yaz to third and Isbel lined out to left to end the inning with the Sox ahead 6-1.

                                                          Perez scores a run

El Toro got a base hit to left to start the bottom of the fourth and moved to second on a Wong grounder to second. Gonzalez grounded out to short but Bregman got a base hit to left to score Toro. Abreu flied out to center to end the inning with the Sox up 7-1.

                                                             Bregman drives in another

India flied out to left to start the top of the fifth but Witt Jr got a base hit to left. Pasquantino grounded into a double play to end the inning. Taylor Clarke came in to pitch the bottom of the fifth and Refsnyder grounded out to third to start. Story got a base hit off the glove of Clarke but Rafaela banged into a double play to end the inning.

Bello came back for one final inning in the top of the sixth as Garcia singled to right to start. Perez struck out swinging and Yaz hit one up the elevator shaft. Frazier flied out to right to end the inning. That was it for Bello who tossed 6 solid innings allowing 1 run, 6 hits and a walk.

                                                          Bello gets the job done

Sam Long came in to pitch the bottom of the sixth and Duran grounded out to third to start. Toro struck out swinging and Wong popped up to second to end the inning.

Steven Matz came in to pitch the top of the seventh and Nick Loftin grounded out to third to start. Isbel grounded out to short but India walked. Witt Jr took strike three to end the inning. The Sox got another run in the bottom of the seventh as Gonzalez doubled down the first base line to start. Bregman walked but Abreu singled to right to score Gonzalez. Refsnyder flied out to right to move Bregman to third but Story struck out swinging. Angel Zerpa came in to pitch to Rafaela and Ceddanne flied out to right to end the inning with the Sox up 8-1.

                                                     Abreu with the killshot

Jorge Alcala came in to pitch the top of the eighth and Pasquantino hit a home run to Kelly's Roast Beef to start. Maikel Garcia then hit a home run all the way to Bill & Bob's as the crowd booed. Perez struck out swinging but Yaz got a base hit to left. The ball went under Duran's glove to move Yaz to third and that was it for Alcala. Justin Wilson came in but Frazier got a base hit to center to score Yaz. Loftin doubled to center to score Frazier and Randal Grichuk pinch hit for Isbel. Grichuk struck out swinging and Garrett Whitlock had to come into the game. India walked to load the base and put the tying run at the plate. Witt Jr singled to right but Abreu gunned down Loftin at home to end the inning with the Sox up 8-5.

                                                           Yerrrr out!

Duran grounded out to second to start the bottom of the eighth and El Toro flied out to left. Wong struck out swinging to end the inning.

Aroldis Chapman came in to close out the top of the ninth with David Hamilton at second base and Pasquantino struck out swinging to start. Garcia flied out to center and Perez grounded out to third to end the game. The Sox had won it 8-5.

                                                          Sox win

Hero of the Night is Wilyer Abreu. He drove in 2 big runs and gunned down Loftin at the plate to preserve a 3 run lead.

                                                           Abreu Hero

The Good:

Romy Gonzalez was 2 for 4 with 2 runs scored.

Alex Bregman was 2 for 3 with a walk, rbi and a run scored.

Trevor Story was 1 for 3 with a stolen base, walk and a run scored.

Brayan Bello got the win by tossing 6 innings of 1 run ball allowing 6 hits and a walk while striking out 5.

Steven Matz pitched a scoreless seventh inning.

Garrett Whitlock got the final out of the eighth inning.

Aroldis Chapman earned his 21st save with a scoreless ninth inning.

The Bad:

Connor Wong was 0 for 4 with 2 strikeouts.

Jorge Alcala was charged with 3 runs in just 1/3 of an inning.

Justin Wilson allowed an inherited runner to score and one of his own in 1/3 of an inning.

The Ugly:

Rob Refsnyder was just 1 for 4 but drove in 2 runs and scored a run.

Ceddanne Rafaela was just 1 for 4 but stole a base and drove in a run.

Jarren Duran was just 1 for 4 with an error but the one hit was a 3 run home run.

Abraham Toro was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout but scored a run.

Honorable Mention:

David Hamilton played second base in the top of the ninth.

Final Thoughts:

Think its time to end the Jorge Alcala experiment as the Sox just got Steven Matz and have Brennan Bernardino buried in Worcester. The Sox had this game won and had no need to use Chapman and Whitlock. Cora was visibly angry with Alcala because he knows the less wear and tear on Aroldis and Garrett means possibly bullets left in October. If Steven Matz can keep doing what he's doing, that gives the Sox a 7-8-9 of Matz, Chapman and Whitlock which would be tough to beat. Bello did the good job and the Sox bats once again did a good job piling on rather than sit on the lead. The Sox are getting timely hitting and they'll take any run they can get. The Toronto Blue Jays crushed the Colorado Rockies tonight but the Texas Rangers beat the New York Yankees. The Sox now are up 2.5 games on them for the first wild card and 4 games in front of Texas for the third wild card. Its too early for a magic number but it would be 44 as of today. They still can set their sights on the first seed if they can catch Toronto and Detroit since they're only 3 games out. Winning 6 games in a row is great and hopefully they can keep the momentum going. The win improved the Sox to 63-51, 3 games behind the Toronto Blue Jays for first place in the AL East. The Sox look to make it seven wins in a row tomorrow night when Garrett Crochet (12-4, 2.23 ERA) takes on Ryan Bergert of Kansas City. The game begins at 7:10 PM at Fenway Park.