Basebawful Report of the Month

Matt Barnes - 2 Good, 1 Bad, 3 Ugly, 1 Jackass

Mookie Betts - 9 Good, 1 Bad, 14 Ugly, 2 Hero

Xander Bogaerts - 8 Good, 3 Bad, 11 Ugly, 3 Hero

Jackie Bradley Jr - 7 Good, 4 Bad, 12 Ugly

Bryce Brentz - 2 Good, 1 Bad, 3 Ugly

Clay Buchholz - 3 Good, 1 Ugly, 2 Jackass

Rusney Castillo - 3 Good, 2 Bad, 3 Honorable Mention

William Cuevas - 1 Good, 1 Ugly

Roenis Elias - 1 Jackass

Ryan Hanigan - 1 Good, 

Heath Hembree - 5 Good, 2 Bad, 1 Ugly

Marco Hernandez - 4 Good, 7 Bad, 1 Ugly, 3 Honorable Mention

Joe Kelly - 1 Bad

Craig Kimbrel - 7 Good, 1 Bad, 1 Jackass

Ryan LaMarre - 1 Good, 2 Bad, 2 Honorable Mention

Tommy Layne - 4 Good, 3 Bad

Sandy Leon - 9 Good, 2 Bad, 1 Ugly

Deven Marrero - 1 Bad, 1 Ugly, 2 Honorable Mention

Mike Miller - 1 Bad

David Ortiz - 16 Good, 9 Ugly

Dustin Pedroia - 13 Good, 3 Bad, 9 Ugly

Rick Porcello - 2 Good, 2 Bad, 1 Ugly, 1 Hero

David Price - 2 Good, 1 Bad, 2 Ugly, 1 Hero

Hanley Ramirez - 9 Good, 4 Bad, 10 Ugly, 1 Hero, 2 Jackass

Noe Ramirez - 1 Good, 1 Bad

Eduardo Rodriguez - 1 Bad, 1 Ugly, 3 Jackass

Robbie Ross Jr - 4 Good, 3 Bad

Josh Rutledge - 4 Bad, 2 Honorable Mention

Travis Shaw - 11 Good, 7 Bad, 5 Ugly, 1 Hero, 2 Jackass

Blake Swihart - 2 Good, 2 Ugly

Junichi Tazawa - 7 Good, 3 Bad, 1 Jackass

Koji Uehara - 6 Good, 2 Bad, 1 Jackass

Christian Vazquez - 7 Good, 10 Bad, 2 Ugly

Steven Wright - 2 Bad, 1 Ugly, 1 Hero, 1 Jackass

Chris Young - 8 Good, 4 Bad, 5 Ugly, 1 Jackass

Most Valuable Player is David Ortiz with 16 Good

Least Valuable Player is Christian Vazquez with 10 Bad

Ugliest Player of the Month is Mookie Betts with 14 Ugly

Hero of the Month is Xander Bogaerts with 3 Hero

Jackass of the Month is Eduardo Rodriguez with 3 Jackass

The Honorable Players of the Month are Rusney Castillo and Marco Hernandez with 3 Honorable Mention

O's Beat Sox, Take First (6/16/16)

So much for the first place Boston Red Sox. The Baltimore Orioles reclaimed first place for now with a big win in tonight's game. Eduardo Rodriguez (1-2, 6.97 ERA) once again was shelled for 5 runs and failing to last 5 total innings. The normally potent Red Sox offense was shut completely down by Tyler Wilson for no runs in 8 innings. Clay Buchholz had a decent outing out of the bullpen but that was the only bit of good news as the Orioles took over first place with a 5-1 victory at Fenway Park.

                                        Morty can't stand the Sox falling out of first

Rodriguez got the ball in the top of the first inning and Adam Jones popped up to Dustin Pedroia to start. Joey Rickard and Manny Machado both dropped base hits to right but Mark Trumbo advanced Rickard to third with a fly out to deep right. Chris Davis took an 86 mph fastball on the inside corner for strike three to end the inning. Wilson got the ball in the bottom of the first and Mr. Mookie Betts was robbed of a hit by Nolan Reimold to start. Dustin Pedroia popped up to Adam Jones in shallow left and Xander Bogaerts flied out to right to end the inning.

Matt Wieters swung and missed at a 94 mph fastball for strike three to start the top of the second. Jonathan Schoop whiffed on a 95 mph fastball and Reimold hit a grounder to second to end the inning. David Ortiz led off the bottom of the second by grounding out to second to start. Hanley Ramirez lined out to a running Jones and Jackie Bradley Jr grounded out to second to end the inning.

The O's struck first in the top of the third as Paul Janish walked to start. Jones homered onto the Mass Pike to put the O's up for good. Rickard doubled to the left field wall and Sox pitching coach Carl Willis ran out to tell Rodriguez that Bandidas with Salma Hayek was on in the dugout. Eduardo was so excited he got Machado to pop up to left. Trumbo whiffed on a changeup away and Davis grounded out to second to end the inning with the O's ahead 2-0.

                                                  Jones puts Baltimore on top

Rusney Castillo began the bottom of the third by flying out to center to start. Travis Shaw lined out to a running Rickard but Sandy Leon singled down the first base line. Mr. Mookie drew a walk but Pedroia popped up to Davis in foul territory to end the inning.

The O's tagged Rodriguez in the top of the fourth as Wieters walked to start. Schoop hit a double play ball to Bogaerts who flipped to Pedroia WHO DROPPED IT! He managed to gather the ball in time to get the force at second to avoid an error but the O's took advantage. Rodriguez got Reimold swinging but Janish dropped a hit to center to advance Schoop to third. Jones doubled to the left field wall to score Schoop to increase the lead. Rickard popped up to center to end the inning but it was 3-0 Orioles.

                                                     Jones does it again

Bogaerts grounded out to short to start the bottom of the fourth before Ortiz lined out to Davis. Ramirez grounded out to short to end the inning.

The O's finally finished off Rodriguez in the top of the fifth as Machado doubled off the centerfield wall to start. Trumbo popped up to Ramirez but Davis singled to left to score Machado and chase Rodriguez. Another disappointing start for E-Rod who lasted just 4 1/3 innings and would be charged with 5 runs. Matt Barnes came in and blew away Wieters but Schoop doubled past the diving Shaw to score Davis from first to wrap up the scoring for Baltimore. Reimold grounded out to third to end the inning but it was 5-0 O's.

                                                 "I sucked tonight!" - Rodriguez

Wilson continued his dominance in the bottom of the fifth as JBJ whiffed to start. Castillo took strike three as Sox analyst Jerry Remy quipped that he hasn't seen anything special from Castillo to justify his 72 million dollar price tag. Rickard robbed Shaw of a hit with a great catch to end the inning.

Barnes returned for the top of the sixth and Janish lined out to left to start. Jones lined out to a running JBJ but Rickard walked and stole second. Machado flied out to center to end the inning. Wilson cruised in the bottom of the sixth as as Leon grounded out to first to start. Mr. Mookie whiffed as Sox analyst Dave O'Brien mentioned Tyler Wilson wanted to be an orthopedic surgeon when his playing days were over. Pedroia grounded out to third to end the inning. Any hope Wilson can be a gunslinger too like Doc Holiday? 

Clay Buchholz came in for the top of the seventh and got Trumbo swinging to start. Davis popped up to left and and Clay blew away Wieters to end the inning. Bogaerts was robbed of extra bases by a great diving catch by Janish to start the bottom of the seventh but Ortiz sliced a double into the left field corner. O's manager Buck Showwalter challenged that Ortiz was out at second but the call was upheld, safe. Ramirez flied out to left but Ortiz moved to third on a wild pitch. JBJ grounded back to the mound to end the inning.

Bogaerts ran into centerfield to catch a pop up from Schoop to start the top of the eighth before Reimold hit a rocket to center for a base hit. Janish hit a bullet to Pedroia who doubled off Reimold at first to end the inning. Wilson finished with a flurry in the bottom of the eighth as Castillo whiffed to start. Shaw lined a base hit up the middle but Leon went down hacking. Mr. Mookie whiffed to end the inning. Wilson had tossed 8 shutout innings while allowing just 3 hits, he was outstanding.

Buchholz returned for the top of the ninth and Jones grounded out to second to start. Rickard whiffed but Machado singled up the middle. Trumbo went down hacking to end the inning. For what its worth, Buchholz was very sharp and hit 94 on the gun. Too bad he couldn't do this earlier as a starter.

                                                        Good work Clay

Brad Brach took over for the bottom of the ninth and Pedroia popped up to right to start. Bogaerts hit one up the elevator shaft but Ortiz broke up the shutout by belting his 17th home run of the year and his 520th of his career over the bullpen. Ramirez popped up to short to end the game. The O's had won it 5-1.

                                                       Sox lose but get one highlight

Jackass of the Night is Eduardo Rodriguez. Not that the Sox did anything with Tyler Wilson, but E-Rod didn't help by getting knocked out in the fifth inning after allowing 5 runs.

                                                Rodriguez the Jackass

The Good:

David Ortiz was 2 for 4 with a home run.

Travis Shaw was 1 for 3.

Sandy Leon was 1 for 3.

Clay Buchholz tossed 3 scoreless innings.

The Bad:

Dustin Pedroia was 0 for 4.

Xander Bogaerts was 0 for 4.

Hanley Ramirez was 0 for 4.

Jackie Bradley Jr was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.

Rusney Castillo was 0 for 3 with 2 strikeouts.

The Ugly:

Mookie Betts was 0 for 3 but walked.

Matt Barnes allowed an inherited runner to score but none of his own in 1 2/3 innings.

Final Thoughts:

Not much you can do when a pitcher completely shuts you down. The sad part it was by Tyler Wilson, not someone like Chris Tillman. Rodriguez stunk and everyone is getting frustrated with him. Jerry Remy made some cracks on commentary, Sox manager John Farrell was visibly frustrated and it just doesn't seem he has tenacity lately to get guys out. Nothing went right tonight other than Buchholz. If Farrell's plan is to bring Buchholz out of the bullpen to get guys out and get some confidence back, tonight worked to perfection. Too bad that's the only thing that went right as the Sox relinquished first place. Baltimore made great defensive plays and just seemed hungrier in this series. Its only June but its clear what the measuring stick in the AL East is. The loss dropped the Sox to 37-28, 1 game behind the Orioles for first place in the AL East. Tomorrow night the Sox look to bounce back when they start a set with the Seattle Mariners. Former Mariner Roenis Elias will be activated off the Disabled List to make the start for the Red Sox. Hisashi Iwakuma goes for the Mariners at 7:10 PM at Fenway Park.

Tillman Outduels Price, O's Beat Sox (6/14/16)

If this is the best David Price (7-4. 4.52 ERA) can do against the elite pitchers in baseball, the Boston Red Sox are in trouble. In a three series against the AL frontrunning Baltimore Orioles, the O's opened the salvo with their ace Chris Tillman shutting down the potent Boston attack. Price lasted 8 innings but allowed 3 runs compared to Tillman's 1. The Sox got a run off the Baltimore bullpen but it wasn't enough as the O's took game 1 of this crucial series 3-2 at Fenway Park.

                                             Price can't beat elite starters?

The O's wasted no time getting to Price in the top of the first. Adam Jones struck out swinging to start but Joey Rickard dumped a single right in front of Jackie Bradley Jr in center. Manny Machado then struck a 2 run home run just inside the Pesky Pole to put the O's up for good 3 batters into the game. Chris Davis took a fastball right down the middle for strike three and Mark Trumbo dribbled one to Price for the out to end the inning with the O's up 2-0.

                                                    That didn't take long

Tillman got the ball in the bottom of the first and Mr. Mookie Betts popped up to first to start. Dustin Pedroia lined a base hit to right-center and Bogaerts should have taken ball four but the pitch was called a strike way inside. Naturally Bogaerts banged into a double play to end the inning.

Price settled down in the top of the second as Matt Wierters grounded out to short to start. Jonathan Schoop also grounded out to short and Nolan Reimold was rung up on a check swing strike three to end the inning. David Ortiz led off the bottom of the second by having a blown ball four call, which led to him doubling down the right field line through the shift. Hanley Ramirez took ball four but Jackie Bradley Jr took strike three. Chris Young was blown away on a 93 mph fastball and Travis Shaw (5 for 38 in June) walked to load the bases. Christian Vazquez had a 3-0 count but grounded into a force to end the inning. That was a crucial misfire as the game went along.

Ryan Flaherty struck out swinging to start the top of the third before Jones also fanned. Rickard took strike three to end the inning. Mr. Mookie led off the bottom of the third by flying out to right to start. Pedroia doubled off the base of the Monster and moved to third on the Bogaerts grounder. Ortiz whiffed for strike three, leaving another runner at third.

Machado led off the top of the fourth by grounding out to third before Davis swung and missed for strike three. Trumbo waived at strike three in the dirt to end the inning, that's 8 K's for Price through four innings.

                                                            Price mowing them down

Hanley grounded out to third to start the bottom of the fourth before JBJ whiffed again. Young swung and missed at strike three to end the inning.

Wieters led off the top of the fifth by grounding back to Price to start. Schoop popped up to JBJ and Reimold flied out to right to end the inning. Price had retired 14 in a row after the Machado home run.

                                                           Betts hauls in the Reimold fly out

The Sox did nothing in the bottom of the fifth as Shaw popped up to Tillman to start. Vazquez popped up to right and Mr. Mookie was retired on a trickler to the mound to end the inning.

Flaherty nearly cleaned out Price with a broken bat grounder to second to start the top of the sixth. Jones flied out to the centerfield wall and Rickard grounded out to third to end the inning. The Sox did nothing in the bottom of the sixth as Pedroia was frozen for strike three to start. Bogaerts grounded out to short and Ortiz whiffed badly to end the inning.

Price made it 18 in a row when he struck Machado out swinging to start the top of the seventh. Davis whiffed for the third time but Trumbo broke up the streak with a base hit just past third base. Wieters grounded out to first to end the inning. The Sox finally broke through in the bottom of the seventh although Ramirez lined out to a running Rickard to start. JBJ then pounded his 11th home run to dead center to cut the lead. Young flied out to right and Shaw beat out a little roller up the middle to put the tying run on. Vazquez grounded out to first to end the inning but the Sox were back in it 2-1.

                                              JBJ takes Tillman yard

Just as soon as the Sox got back in it, Schoop iced it with a 7,000 foot bomb to increase the lead. Reimold was frozen for strike three and Flaherty grounded out to second, but Jones singled to left. Rickard grounded into a force to end the inning with the O's ahead 3-1. Price had tossed 8 innings and gave up just the two long balls, but when you're against Chris Tillman, 2 are too many.

                                                 Big home run for the O's

The Sox tried to fight back in the bottom of the eighth against Mychal Givens. Mr. Mookie chopped a double over the head of Flaherty at third into left to start. Pedroia flied out to right which moved Betts to third and Bogaerts walked to chase Givens. Zack Britton was brought in for the 5 out save with Ortiz at the plate. Britton blew away Ortiz with a 98 mph sinker but Ramirez got a base hit up the middle to score Betts and put the tying run at second. JBJ grounded back to Britton to end the inning with the Sox down 3-2.

                                                     Betts with the rally starting double

Sox closer Craig "The Buzzard" Kimbrel came in to pitch the top of the ninth and Machado was blown away on a high 98 mph fastball. Davis popped up to Bogaerts at short and Trumbo whiffed on a nasty curveball to end the inning. Britton closed out the bottom of the ninth as Young whiffed on a 97 mph fastball to start. Josh Rutledge pinch hit for Shaw and he struck out on a 98 mph fastball. Rusney Castillo pinch hit for Vazquez and whiffed to end the game. Britton struck out 4 of the 5 guys he faced and the O's had regained first place with a 3-2 win.

                                                     Dammit


Jackass of the Night is a tough one but I'll go with Chris Young. He was 0 for 4 with a hat trick of 3 strikeouts including the ninth inning with the game on the line.

                                                       Nice hat trick Jackass




The Good:

Dustin Pedroia was 2 for 4.

Hanley Ramirez was 1 for 3 with a walk and an rbi.

Travis Shaw was 1 for 2 with a walk.

Craig Kimbrel pitched a scoreless ninth inning.



The Bad:

Christian Vazquez was 0 for 3.

Josh Rutledge struck out as a pinch hitter.

Rusney Castillo struck out as a pinch hitter.



The Ugly:

Mookie Betts was just 1 for 4 but scored a run.

Xander Bogaerts was 0 for 3 but walked.

David Ortiz was just 1 for 4 with a hat trick of 3 strikeouts.

Jackie Bradley Jr was just 1 for 4 but the one hit was a home run.

David Price took the loss but tossed 8 innings of 3 run ball. The last home run to Schoop was the backbreaker although at one point Price retired 19 in a row and struck out 11 total batters.




Final Thoughts:

That loss stung because Price pitched well and the bats went silent again. It was almost the mirror image of the loss to Madison Bumgarner and the San Francisco Giants a week ago. The grumpy radio shows are already damning Price for failing to beat other team's ace pitchers. Can't even blame Sox manager John Farrell for bringing him back for the eighth inning because he had retired 20 out of 21 batters before the Schoop homer. It was a hard fought game but the Sox came up a little short. The loss dropped the Sox to 36-27, 1 game behind the Orioles for first place in the AL East. Tomorrow night the Sox look to rebound against the Orioles when they send Steven Wright (7-4, 2.09 ERA) to the mound against Tyler Wilson at 7:05 PM at Fenway Park.

Sox Pull Away Late, Thrash Twins (6/11/16)

For 7 innings the Boston Red Sox clung to a 5-4 lead with the lowly Minnesota Twins knocking at the door to take the lead. Then Xander Bogaerts started a 5 run rally in the top of the eighth and the Sox racked up 5 more runs in the top of the ninth to turn the game into a laughter. Sox starter Eduardo Rodriguez failed to get out of the 5th inning but the bullpen allowed no runs the rest of the way to lock down the 15-4 victory at Target Field.

                                        Assistant D.A. Casey Novak approves of the win

The Sox wasted no time clobbering Twins starter Kyle Gibson in the top of the first inning. Mr. Mookie Betts beat out an infield single just past the mound but Dustin Pedroia popped up to center. Xander Bogaerts pounded the left field fence with a double to score Betts to put the Sox on top. David Ortiz popped up a mile to third but Hanley Ramirez drew a walk. Jackie Bradley Jr put the Sox up big with a 3 run bomb to right, his 10th of the season. Chris Young lined one off of Gibson but he threw him out at first to end the inning with the Sox up 4-0.

                                                 JBJ with a bomb

Rodriguez got the ball in the bottom of the first and got Eduardo Nunez to swing at air to start. Joe Mauer flied out to deep left before Robbie Grossman took a walk. Trevor Plouffe was blown away on a 95 mph fastball to end the inning.

Travis Shaw was retired on a swinging bunt by Gibson to begin the top of the second inning. Sandy Leon poked an opposite field base hit to left but was erased on the Mr. Mookie double play to end the inning. Brian Dozier popped up to second to start the bottom of the second before Byung Ho Park swung at air and Max Kepler grounded out to second to end the inning.

Pedroia grounded out to short to open the top of the third before Bogaerts flied out to the centerfield warning track. Ortiz hit a bullet off the right field wall for a single but Ramirez took strike three at the knees to end the inning. Kurt Suzuki led off the bottom of the third by grounding out to short before Byron Buxton drew a walk. Nunez then hit a bullet off the right field wall to advance Buxton to third but Mr. Mookie gunned down Eduardo at second with a great throw. Mauer walked but Grossman popped up to Mr. Mookie to end the inning.

                                               YERRRR OUTTA THERE!

The Sox did nothing against Gibson in the top of the fourth inning as JBJ swung at a pitch in the dirt for strike three to start. Young popped up to short and Shaw grounded out to first to end the inning. Rodriguez finally got tagged in the bottom of the fourth although Plouffe popped up to Hanley in foul territory to start. Sox analyst Dave O'Brien was so bored he saw some random hot dog vendor and said it was Brett Farve. Dozier walked but Park took strike three on the inside corner. Kepler singled off the third base bag and Suzuki blasted a 67,000 foot home run to put the Twins back in the game. Buxton grounded out to third to end the inning but the Sox were now ahead 4-3.

                                            "Brett Farve" enjoys the Twins rally

Leon led off the top of the fifth with a base hit to left but Mr. Mookie lined out to a running Grossman. Leon was erased on the force by Pedroia and Dustin was picked off to end the inning. Rodriguez didn't make it out of the bottom of the fifth although Nunez grounded out to second on the first pitch. Mauer got a base hit up the middle before taking second on a passed ball. Grossman singled Mauer to third and Plouffe hit a 410 foot out to dead center although it scored Mauer with the tying run. Dozier slashed a base hit to left to chase E-Rod from the game. The two pitch Rodriguez got hammered the last two innings and left after just 4 2/3 innings. Heath Hembree (3-0, 1.85 ERA) came in and got Park to pop up to second to end the inning.

                                                       Not E-Rod's best stuff

The Sox wasted no time getting the lead back in the top of the sixth as Bogaerts golfed a single to left to start. Bogaerts took advantage of the shift by going all the way to third on a grounder to short by Ortiz with nobody covering third. Hanley drove home Bogaerts with a sac fly to give the Sox the lead. That was it for Gibson as Taylor Rogers was brought in to face JBJ. Bradley flied out to deep right to end the inning with the Sox ahead 5-4.

                                              Sox take the lead

Hembree returned for the bottom of the sixth and Kepler led off with a walk. Suzuki waived at strike three but a passed ball through the legs of Leon moved Kepler to second. Buxton drew a walk but Nunez popped up to right in foul territory. Sox manager John Farrell had seen enough of Hembree and brought in Robbie Ross Jr to pitch to Mauer. Mauer grounded into a force to end the inning with the Sox still in the lead.

Young led off the top of the seventh by flying out to left before Shaw popped up to Kepler in foul territory. Leon doubled off the third base bag to chase Rogers from the game. Ryan Pressly came in and Mr. Mookie grounded out to short to end the inning. One half of the Orient Express, Junichi Tazawa, came in for the bottom of the seventh and blew away Grossman with a fastball down the middle to start. Plouffe popped up to Pedroia in shallow center but Dozier pounded a base hit to left. Oswaldo Arcia pinch hit for Park and grounded out to second to end the inning.

                                                       Good work Taz

The Sox caught a break when Arcia dropped a routine pop up by Pedroia to begin the top of the eighth.

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

Bogaerts made the Twins pay with his 8th home run of the season (more than he hit in 2015) to increase the lead. Ortiz hit a 410 foot single off the centerfield wall but Ramirez flied out to right to chase Pressly. Buddy Boshers came in to pitch and JBJ whiffed, but Young drew a walk. Shaw hit a routine grounder back to the mound but Boshers airmailed the throw which allowed Ortiz to score as the boo birds rained down. Leon put the exclamation point on the inning with a base hit to left to score Young and Shaw. Mr. Mookie grounded back to the mound to end the inning but the Sox were ahead 10-4.

                                               X gon give it to ya!

The other half of the Orient Express, Koji Uehara, came in to pitch the bottom of the eighth and cruised. Kepler popped up to short, Suzuki watched strike three go by and Buxton swung at air for strike three to end the inning.

                                                  Good work Koji

JT Chargois came in to pitch the top of the ninth and the Sox had another rally left in them. Pedroia led off with a bullet right to first for the out but Bogaerts singled up the middle for his fourth hit of the day two days in a row. Ortiz lined a base hit to left and was lifted for Rusney Castillo to run for him. Hanley moved both runners over with a ground out and JBJ was plunked to load the bases. Young drove home Bogaerts and Castillo with a base hit before Shaw walked to re-load the bases. A passed ball scored JBJ with another run and Leon walked to once again re-load the bases. That was it for Chargois as Brandon Kintzler came in just to give up a base hit to Mr. Mookie that scored both Young & Shaw to wrap up the scoring. Pedroia's 16 game hitting streak was snapped as he popped up to second to end the inning with the Sox ahead 15-4.

                                              Party time for Castillo and the Sox

Clay Buchholz had mop up duty in the bottom of the ninth with Sox manager John Farrell emptying the bench. Shaw moved to first, Marco Hernandez took over for Pedroia at second, Josh Rutledge took over for Hanley Ramirez but played third and Castillo took over in right for Betts. JBJ made a nice running grab off a Nunez liner to start before Eduardo Escobar pinch hit for Mauer. Escobar and Grossman drew back to back walks but Plouffe banged into a double play to end the game. The Sox turned this one into a rout late to win it 15-4.

Hero of the Night is Xander Bogaerts. His heads up baserunning led to the go-ahead run scoring and his two run homer was all the insurance they needed to win.

                                                       X-Hero



The Good:

Mookie Betts was 2 for 6 with 2 rbis and a run scored.

David Ortiz was 3 for 5 with a run scored.

Rusney Castillo scored a run as a pinch runner.

Sandy Leon was 4 for 4 with a walk and 2 rbis.

Heath Hembree tossed a scoreless inning.

Robbie Ross Jr got the only man he faced.

Junichi Tazawa pitched a scoreless 7th inning.

Koji Uehara pitched a scoreless 8th inning.

Clay Buchholz tossed a scoreless 9th inning.



The Bad:

Eduardo Rodriguez failed to get out of the fifth inning, lasting just 4 2/3 innings while allowing 4 runs off 6 its and 4 walks.



The Ugly:

Dustin Pedroia snapped his 16 game hitting streak by going 0 for 6 but scored a run.

Hanley Ramirez was 0 for 3 but walked, drove in a run and scored.

Jackie Bradley Jr was just 1 for 4 but the one hit was a 3 run bomb, he also scored two total runs.

Chris Young was just 1 for 4 but walked, drove in 2 runs and scored twice.

Travis Shaw was 0 for 4 but walked and scored twice.



Honorable Mention:

Marco Hernandez played second base in the bottom of the ninth.

Josh Rutledge played third base in the bottom of the ninth.




Final Thoughts:

The Sox needed to beat around the worst time in the American League and so far they have done just that. Kyle Gibson was just coming off the disabled list and the Sox smacked him around. Pulling away late was fun too. Eduardo Rodriguez looked like dog turds but kudos to the bullpen for slamming the door from the 6th inning on. Bogaerts and Pedroia are on fire despite the hitting streak ending and its nice to see Leon come out of the chute hot with Blake Swihart out for the near future. The other good news is the Baltimore Orioles lost to the Toronto Blue Jays so the Sox jumped back into a first place tie. The AL East is wide open this season and the Sox are hanging in there so far. The win improved the Sox to 36-25, tied for first place with the Orioles in the AL East. Tomorrow the Sox look for the sweep when they send "Slick" Rick Porcello (7-2, 4.04 ERA) to the mound against Pat Dean at 2:10 PM Eastern time at Target Field.

Wright Tosses Gem, Sox Pound Twins (6/10/16)

Hard to believe when the Boston Red Sox traded Lars Anderson for Steven Wright (7-4, 2.09 ERA) that it would work out this good. In what's becoming a 1995 Tim Wakefield season, Wright lowered his ERA to 2.09 as he dazzled the lowly Minnesota Twins for 7 innings. Giving up just an un-earned run, Wright earned his 7th win of the season. Xander Bogaerts led the charge on offense with a 3 run bomb and 4 total rbis as the Sox got back to their winning ways with an 8-1 over the Twins at Target Field.

                                                 Ray Stantz approves of the win

Mr. Mookie Betts greeted Minnesota starter Tyler Duffey by waiving at strike three to start. Dustin Pedroia doubled off the right field wall to extend his hit streak to 16 straight games and Xander Bogaerts beat out an infield single to third, but all David Ortiz could do is advance the runners over with a grounder to first. The slumping Hanley Ramirez grounded out to third to end the inning. Wright got the ball in the bottom of the first and Eduardo Nunez was retired on a swinging bunt back to the mound to start. Robbie Grossman drew a walk but Joe Mauer banged into a double play to end the inning.

The Sox did nothing in the top of the second inning as Jackie Bradley Jr grounded out to second to start. Travis Shaw flied out to right and Chris Young grounded out to third to end the inning. Wright kept pace in the bottom of the second as Trevor Plouffe popped up to Hanley Ramirez in shallow right to start. Brian Dozier grounded out to third on the first pitch and Byung Ho Park whiffed to end the inning.

Christian Vazquez led off the top of the third by lining out softly to second. Mr. Mookie flied out to right and Pedroia grounded back to the mound to end the inning. Max Kepler led off the bottom of the third with a leadoff double and moved tp third on the Kurt Suzuki grounder. Wright got a big out when he whiffed Byron Buxton before Nunez popped up to JBJ to end the inning.

Bogaerts dumped a base hit to to left to open the top of the fourth and moved to second on the Ortiz grounder. Ramirez hit a routine grounder to third but Park dropped the throw and there were runners at the corners with one down on the error. The Sox blew a chance to take the lead when JBJ whiffed as guest analyst Torii Hunter said JBJ, Betts and Bogaerts were future studs on commentary. Shaw grounded out to first to end the inning. Wright got in trouble in the bottom of the fourth as Grossman dumped a base hit to center to start. Grossman was gunned down trying to steal by the alert Vazquez before Mauer lined out to center. Plouffe singled to left and Dozier hit a seeing eye single past Pedroia to put the pressure on. Wright got out of the jam by striking out Park to end the inning.

                                                                     Yerrrrr out!

The Sox struck first in the top of the fifth inning though Young whiffed to start. Vazquez beat out a squibber up the middle but he was erased on the fielder's choice by Betts. Pedroia lashed a base hit to right and Bogaerts pounded his 7th home run of the season to put Boston up big. Ortiz doubled past the diving Buxton but Ramirez grounded out to short to end the inning with the Sox ahead 3-0.

                                                             X gon give it to ya!

Wright almost gave it back in the bottom of the fifth although Kepler grounded out to second on the first pitch. Suzuki socked a single to left field but Buxton popped up to JBJ. Nunez singled in the hole at second and Bogaerts had to make a diving catch to prevent a throwing error by Wright. Grossman walked to load the bases and Sox pitching coach Carl Willis sprinted to the mound to tell Wright that Rick & Morty was on in the dugout. Wright was so excited he got Mauer to ground softly back to the mound to end the inning.

The Sox iced the game in the top of the sixth as JBJ doubled off the right field wall to begin. Shaw poked a single to center to put runners at the corners but Young hit a bullet right to Plouffe for the out. Vazquez chased Duffey with a seeing eye single past Plouffe and Nunez to score JBJ with another run. Kevin Jepsen came in and got Mr. Mookie to pop up to first. Pedroia doubled off the right field wall to score Shaw and advanced Vazquez to third. Bogaerts added another run with a seeing eye single that scored Vazquez. Ortiz flied out to deep right to end the inning but the Sox were on cruise control with a 6-0 lead.

                                                         Bogaerts with another hit

Wright cruised in the bottom of the sixth as Plouffe grounded back to him to start. Dozier grounded out to second as Sox analyst Dave O'Brien said that Park wanted nothing to do with Steven Wright after Wright caught him looking to end the inning.

Hanley led off the top of the seventh with a walk as Dave O'Brien brought up how Twins manager Paul Molitor had a 39 game hitting streak snapped in 1987 by a rookie pitcher from Cleveland named John Farrell. Yes, THAT John Farrell currently managing the Red Sox broke up the streak and had the classy Paul autograph the game ball for him. JBJ was rung up for strike three and Shaw swung at strike three up at his eyes. Young popped up to second to end the inning. Wright kept up his dominance in the bottom of the seventh as Kepler whiffed to start. Suzuki grounded out to third and Buxton watched strike three go by to end the inning.

Michael Tonkin took over for the top of the eighth and Vazquez whiffed to start. Mr. Mookie lined one off the ass of Tonkin for a base hit, thankfully Tonkin was okay. Pedroia went down swinging and Bogaerts grounded out to first to end the inning. Wright's quest for 4 straight complete games on the road was denied in the bottom of the eighth inning. Hanley snared a grounder by Nunez but tried to underhand flip to to Wright, only to airmail him and allow Nunez to take second on the error. Vazquez then completely missed a knuckleball to allow Nunez to reach third and Eduardo scored on the Grossman ground out to break up the shutout. Mauer singled to left to chase Wright after a brilliant performance. Steven tossed 7 1/3 innings of 1 run (un-earned) ball and put the Sox in line for the win. Matt Barnes came in and blew away Plouffe and got Dozier to fly out to the left  field warning track to end the inning with the Sox ahead 6-1.

                                                   Great start by Wright

The Sox tacked it on in the top of the ninth as Ortiz clubbed an opposite field single to start. Rusney Castillo pinch ran for him and Hanley finally got a base hit to left. JBJ then missed a 3 run home run by 5 feet but settled for a 2 run triple. He was stranded as Shaw grounded back to the mound, Young grounded out to short and Vazquez whiffed to end the inning with the Sox ahead 8-1.

                                             JBJ triples in a pair

Barnes returned for the bottom of the ninth with Marco Hernandez taking over at second with Josh Rutledge in to play third. Park led off by earning a golden sombrero with his fourth strikeout of the game before Kepler singled in the hole at second. Suzuki popped up to right and Nunez grounded into a force at second to end the game. The Sox had won this one easily 8-1.

                                                             Sox win

Hero of the Night is Steven Wright. He tossed 7 1/3 innings without allowing an earned run to win his 7th game of the season.

                                                       Wright the Hero

The Good:

Dustin Pedroia was 3 for 5 with an rbi and a run scored.

Xander Bogaerts was 4 for 5 with a 3 run homer and 4 total rbis.

David Ortiz was 2 for 5.

Rusney Castillo scored a run as a pinch runner.

Jackie Bradley Jr was 2 for 5 with 2 rbis and a run scored.

Christian Vazquez was 2 for 5 with an rbi and a run scored.

The Bad:

Chris Young was 0 for 5 with a strikeout.

The Ugly:

Mookie Betts was just 1 for 5 but scored a run.

Hanley Ramirez was just 1 for 4 with an error but walked and scored a run.

Travis Shaw was just 1 for 5 but scored a run.



Honorable Mention:

Marco Hernandez played second base in the bottom of the ninth.

Josh Rutledge played third base in the bottom of the ninth.

Final Thoughts:

Don't look now but Steven Wright is making a run at the All-Star game with the way he's pitching. If David Price has it figured out and Rick Porcello can continue his hot streak, this may be a trio that could carry the Sox to October. Of course, its only June but its fun to think about after 2 years of garbage. Good to see Shaw get a good hit tonight and Bogaerts was on fire. Hanley needs to bust out of his slump soon and hopefully tomorrow he can. The Baltimore Orioles lost tonight so the Sox gained ground on them with 2 more games left against the Twins. If the Sox want to jump in first, this is their chance with the Toronto Blue Jays and Orioles facing each other. The win improved the Sox to 35-25, 1 game behind the Orioles for first place in the AL East. The Sox are back in action tomorrow against the Twins with Eduardo Rodriguez (1-1, 5.40 ERA) taking on Kyle Gibson at 2:10 PM Eastern time at Target Field.

Giants Edge Price, Sox (6/8/16)

The good news was the Boston Red Sox and the San Fransisco Giants battled to a wonderful pitcher's duel between two ace pitchers. The bad news was the Sox came out on the losing end. David Price (7-3, 4.63 ERA) went the distance by tossing 8 innings of 2 run ball. The only problem was Madison Bumgarner tossed 6 innings of 1 run ball and the normally garbage Giants bullpen slammed the door. Mac Williamson clocked a solo home run in the bottom of the eighth to break a 1-1 tie and Sox manager John Farrell inexplicably made some peculiar pinch hitting in the ninth inning. When the dust settled the Giants won the duel 2-1 at AT&T Park.

                                       "That was not good enough, Price" - President Obama

Bumgarner got the ball to start the top of the first and Mr. Mookie Betts greeted him with a bloop single to center to begin. Dustin Pedroia whiffed but Betts swiped second on the throw. He was stranded as Xander Bogaerts popped up to short and Hanley Ramirez was retired on a check swing grounder back to the mound to end the inning. Price hung tough in the bottom of the first as Denard Span popped up to left to start. Kelby Tomlinson hit a bullet but Ramirez snared it and Brandon Belt flied out to a running Betts to end the inning.

Jackie Bradley Jr lined out to left to begin the top of the second before Chris Young flied out to right. Josh "Razor" Rutledge whiffed on a pitch that bounced in the dirt to end the inning. Matt Duffy led off the bottom of the second with a base hit up the middle but Brandon Crawford lined out to JBJ. Trevor Brown flied out to right and Jarrett Parker almost cleaned out Duffy on a broken bat grounder to second to end the inning.

The Sox blew a chance to get to Bumgarner in the top of the third inning as Christian Vazquez lined out to right to start. Price took strike three on the outside corner but Mr. Mookie blooped a single to left. Betts swiped second again although Pedroia walked this time. The rally ended as Bogaerts grounded out to third to end the inning. Price kept pace in the bottom of the third as Williamson went down swinging to start. Bumgarner lined out to a running Betts before Span grounded out to second to end the inning.

The Sox struck first in the top of the fourth inning although Ramirez lined out to left to start. JBJ was rung up for strike three but Young bashed his 5th home run of the season just over the left field wall to put the Sox on top. Rutledge popped up to first in foul territory to end the inning but the Sox were up 1-0.

                                              Young takes Bumgarner deep

The Giants wasted no time answering in the bottom of the fourth although Tomlinson was frozen for strike three to start. Belt then crushed a solo shot into McCovey Cove to tie the game. Duffy grounded out to second and Crawford grounded out to first to end the inning with the game tied 1-1.

                                            A Giants fan retrieves the home run ball

Bumgarner cruised in the top of the fifth inning as Vazquez popped up to center to begin. Price looked at a 74 mph curve right down the middle for strike three before Mr. Mookie grounded out to second to end the inning. Price matched Bumgarner in the bottom of the fifth as Brown popped up to Bogaerts in foul territory to start. Pedroia made a great play to rob Parker of a hit before Williamson took an 89 mph slider on the corner to end the inning.

Pedroia led off the top of the sixth inning by extending his hitting streak to 15 games with a base hit to left. Pedroia was erased on the Bogaerts grounder as Hanley lined out to a running Span in deep center. JBJ popped up to short to end the inning. Price did what he could in the bottom of the sixth by getting Bumgarner to waive at strike three to start. Pedroia made a great throw to get Span on a hard grounder to second but Tomlinson drew a walk. Belt grounded out to Rutledge in the shift to end the inning.

That was it for Bumgarner as Derek Law took the mound in the top of the seventh inning. Young tried to start a rally with a base hit up the middle to begin. Travis Shaw pinch hit for Rutledge and popped up to center to start. Vazquez popped up to center and Price whiffed to end the inning. Price continued his hot streak in the bottom of the seventh by freezing Duffy on a 95 mph heater to start. Crawford drew a walk and the wind caused Brown's home run ball to die on the left field warning track for the second out. Parker whiffed on a 93 mph fastball to end the inning.

                                                Price pitching well

Cory Gearrin took over for the top of the eighth with Gregor Blanco now in right field. Sox analyst "Psycho" Steve Lyons asked if every Giants pitcher all have the same hair as Mr. Mookie whiffed on a nasty slider to start. Belt dropped a pop up by Pedroia but Dustin ended up popping up to center anyway. Bogaerts whiffed on a slider down the middle to end the inning. The Giants took command in the bottom of the eighth when the slumping Williamson crushed his first major league home run just over the left field wall to put San Francisco up for good. Price battled back to get Blanco to ground out to Hanley and Span to swing at air. Tomlinson lined out to center to end the inning. Price held the Giants to 3 hits in 8 innings but unfortunately trailed 2-1.

                                            1st home run for Williamson is a big one

Joe Panik came in to play second with Giants closer Santiago Casilla coming in to close out the top of the ninth. The Sox caught a break when Williamson dropped Hanley's line drive for an error to start. With the tying run at second, JBJ took a borderline pitch for strike three before uncharacteristically barking at the umpire. David Ortiz got a standing ovation as he pinch hit for Young which prompted Giants manager Bruce Bochy to pull his closer in favor of old buddy Javier Lopez. Ortiz walked to put the go-ahead run at first base. Rusney Castillo pinch ran for Ortiz and with a chance to put the Sox on top....Shaw whiffed. Bochy then brought in Hunter Strickland to face Vazquez but Sox manager John Farrell bizarrely sent in Marco Hernandez to pinch hit with the game on the line. Naturally Hernandez grounded out to second to end the game. The Giants had just 3 hits in the game but won it 2-1 thanks to good pitching.

Jackass of the Night is Travis Shaw. He popped up with a man on base in the seventh and struck out with two men on in the top of the ninth inning.

                                              Nice clutch hitting, Jackass


The Good:

Mookie Betts was 2 for 4 with 2 stolen bases.

Dustin Pedroia was 1 for 3 with a walk.

Chris Young was 2 for 3 with a solo home run.

David Ortiz walked as a pinch hitter.

One of the rare times the losing pitcher ends up on the good list but David Price pitched well. He tossed a complete game 3 hitter while striking out 7, the only two mistakes were the two home runs. He did have a hat trick of three strikeouts too.




The Bad:

Xander Bogaerts was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.

Hanley Ramirez was 0 for 4.

Jackie Bradley Jr was 0 for 4 with 2 strikeouts.

Josh Rutledge was 0 for 2 with a strikeout.

Christian Vazquez was 0 for 3.

Marco Hernandez grounded out to end the game as a pinch hitter.




The Ugly:

None



Honorable Mention:

Rusney Castillo pinch ran for Ortiz in the top of the ninth.




Final Thoughts:

Great game, too bad they couldn't win it. The Boston talking heads on the radio after the game were whining that Price can't beat other teams aces. Guess they didn't see Bumgarner only lasted 6 innings and the Sox offense mustered nothing against the struggling Giants bullpen. On any other day, 8 innings of 2 run ball would be enough to win. Just goes to show how toxic the media can be around here. Still it was only one game and the Sox get to feast on the last place Minnesota Twins in their next series. The loss dropped the Sox to 34-25, 1.5 games behind the Baltimore Orioles for first place in the AL East. After an off-day tomorrow, the Sox head to Minnesota for a three game set with the lowly Twins. Steven Wright (6-4, 2.29 ERA) takes on Tyler Duffey on Friday night at 8:10 PM Eastern time at Target Field.

Late Rally Falls Short vs Jays (6/5/16)

Before the game it was announced that both Blake Swihart and Ryan Hanigan were both placed on the 15 Day Disabled List. Hanigan was more damage control than anything while Swihart was seriously injured in the wall crash yesterday. Also Noe Ramirez was optioned to Pawtucket which left some roster spots open. Returning to the Red Sox was Rusney Castillo, Heath Hembree and Sandy Leon. Leon will be making his season debut as the backup catcher after not being able to hit his weight last year.

                                                                      OUT

                                                                      IN

As for the game, once again the Boston Red Sox were stymied by the Toronto Blue Jays although the Sox made it interesting at the end. Marco Estrada held the Sox in check all game but they pounced on the bullpen for four runs, but ultimately it wasn't enough as the Jays took the game 5-4 and the series at Fenway Park.

                     
Eduardo Rodriguez (1-1, 4.50 ERA) pooped himself right out of the gate, allowing a leadoff home run to Jose Bautista off the top of the Monster 4 pitches into the game. Josh Donaldson grounded out to third, Edwin Encarnacion flied out to center and Russell Martin also grounded out to third to end the inning but the Jays were up 1-0.

                                                 That didn't take long

The Sox failed to answer in the bottom of the first against Estrada although Mr. Mookie Betts worked a walk to start the inning before advancing to second on a wild pitch. Dustin Pedroia walked but Xander Bogaerts forced Mr. Mookie at third with a terrible bunt that had both Sox analysts Dennis Eckersley and "Psycho" Steve Lyons scratching their heads. David Ortiz lined out to a running Kevin Pillar in center and Travis Shaw was rung up on a check swing to end the inning. What a waste.

Rodriguez was all over the plate in the top of the second inning although he got Michael Saunders to pop up to the warning track in left to start the inning. Devon Travis popped up to short and Pillar popped up to second to end the inning. Hanley Ramirez led off the bottom of the second by drawing a walk but Jackie Bradley Jr popped up to third. Psycho Steve said Hanley deserves a gold glove at first although Eck told him to pump the brakes. Chris Young popped up to first and Christian Vazquez grounded out to end the inning.

The Jays took control in the top of the third inning although Matt Dominguez flied out to right to begin. Darwin Barney golfed a home run into the Monster seats to increase the lead. Rodriguez got Bautista to pop up to right although Donaldson walked. Encarnacion blasted a two run home run off a flat fastball right down the middle much to Eck's chagrin. Lyons wondered when Vazquez would start to overrule E-Rod on his pitch selection. Martin walked as Sox pitching coach Carl Willis made a mad dash to the mound to remind him they're serving free hot dogs in the dugout. Rodriguez got so excited he got Saunders to fly out to center to end the inning with the Jays ahead 4-0.

                                              4-0 Jays, its starting to get ugly.

The Sox once again failed to respond in the bottom of the third inning. Mr. Mookie popped up to third, Pedroia grounded out to third and Bogaerts popped up to third to end the inning.

Pedroia made a great play to rob Travis of a hit to begin the top of the fourth inning. Pillar popped up to center and Dominguez hit a comebacker to the mound to end the inning. The Sox couldnt even get a hit off Estrada in the bottom of the fourth inning as Ortiz went down hacking to begin. Shaw gave one a ride but Pillar caught it at the centerfield wall. Ramirez flied out to right to end the inning.

Rodriguez walked Barney to start the top of the fifth but Bautista banged into a double play. Donaldson grounded out to third to end the inning. Once again the Sox went hitless in the bottom of the fifth as JBJ whiffed to begin the inning. Young lined out to left and Vazquez whiffed to end the inning. The Sox still didn't have a hit yet.

The Jays iced the game in the top of the sixth although Encarnarcion grounded out to second to start Then Martin lined a straight fastball into the Monster Seats to put the Jays up for good. JBJ had to run down a line shot by Saunders and Sox manager John Farrell had seen enough. He lifted the incompetent Rodriguez after giving up 4 home runs and 5 runs in just 5 2/3 innings while throwing 99 pitches. Not his best stuff at all.

                                       "I'm afraid of throwing sliders today" - Rodriguez

Heath Hembree came in and punched out Travis to end the inning but the Jays were up 5-0. The Sox still couldn't hit Estrada in the bottom of the sixth. Mr. Mookie flied out to center and Pedroia lined out to third before Bogaerts popped up a mile high to first to end the inning.

Hembree came back for the top of the seventh and got Pillar to pop up to first to begin the inning. Bogaerts made a sensational grab and throw to nail Dominguez at first but Barney walked. Bautista swung at air to end the inning. Estrada returned for the bottom of the seventh and Ortiz popped up to right, Shaw lined out to center and Bautista ran down a line drive by Ramirez to end the inning. Estrada was 6 outs away from a no-hitter.

Hembree whiffed Donaldson to start the top of the eighth and Encarnacion hit a comebacker to the mound. Martin whiffed to end the inning. Hembree really stepped up after Rodriguez faltered.

                                                  Hembree shuts the Jays down.

The no-hitter appeared to be in sight when JBJ popped up to third to begin the bottom of the eighth but Young ruined it with a solo home run to left and actually got booed by a few fans. Bautista made a running catch to rob Vazquez of a bloop single and Mr. Mookie whiffed to end the inning, but the Sox had ended the no-no and trailed 5-1.

                                            Young's homer ends the no-no

Clay Buchholz of all people was brought in to pitch the top of the ninth inning and he made quick work of the Jays. Saunders grounded out to third, Travis watched strike three go by and Pillar grounded out to third to end the inning. Estrada came back to finish the job in the bottom of the ninth and the Sox made him pay. Pedroia lined a double into the left field corner and Jays manager John Gibbons waddled to the mound to bring in closer Roberto Osuna. Bogaerts popped up as Sox announcer Dave O'Brien said there were only 6 hits in the game total. Lyons "Most of them ended up in the street." Ortiz pounded a double into the gap in right to score Pedroia to wake the crowd up. Rusney Castillo pinch ran for Ortiz but Shaw whiffed to put the Sox down to their last out. Ramirez lashed a 420 foot double off the centerfield wall to score Castillo and bring the tying run to the plate. JBJ lined a single to right to score Ramirez and put the tying run on.Young singled and the Sox had gone from 5 outs away from being no hit from a base hit away from tying the game. For whatever reason Sox manager John Farrell sent in ice cold Marco Hernandez to pinch hit for Vazquez. Naturally Hernandez whiffed after being up 3-0 in the count to end the game. The rally fell short and the Jays had won it 5-4.

Jackass of the Night is Eduardo Rodriguez. He lasted just 5 2/3 innings and gave up FOUR home runs. He didn't trust his breaking stuff and it showed as the Jays sat on his fastballs all game.

                                                             Look up, Jackass


The Good:

Dustin Pedroia was 1 for 3 with a walk and a run scored.

Rusney Castillo pinch ran for David Ortiz and scored.

Hanley Ramirez was 1 for 3 with a walk, rbi and a run scored.

Chris Young was 2 for 4 with a solo home run.

Heath Hembree tossed 2 1/3 scoreless innings.

Clay Buchholz pitched a scoreless 9th inning.



The Bad:

Xander Bogaerts was 0 for 4.

Travis Shaw was 0 for 4 with 2 strikeouts.

Christian Vazquez was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.

Marco Hernandez struck out to end the game.



The Ugly:

Mookie Betts was 0 for 3 but walked.

David Ortiz was just 1 for 4 but the one hit was an rbi double.

Jackie Bradley Jr was just 1 for 4 but with an rbi.




Final Thoughts:

Quite simply Rodriguez sucked today. He didn't trust his breaking stuff and you cannot beat a dead fastball hitting team with straight fastballs. He hee-haw'd around and threw 100 pitches in less than 6 innings while giving up 4 bombs. That's not gonna cut it. On the other side the Sox had their chance to get to Estrada early but Bogaerts made the idiotic decision to bunt when Marco had walked the first two hitters. After that Estrada was virtually unhittable. The late rally at the end was fun but the horrid pitching of Rodriguez was too much to overcome. The loss dropped the Sox to 33-24, tied for first place in the AL East with the Baltimore Orioles. After an off-day tomorrow the Sox go back to work Tuesday night in San Fransisco for an interleague series with the Giants. "Slick" Rick Porcello (7-2, 4.00 ERA) takes the ball opposite Albert Suarez. The game begins at 10:15 PM at AT&T Park.