As for the game, so much for Roenis Elias (0-1, 15.88 ERA) being the next fifth starter. The Seattle Mariners feasted on Elias for 7 runs in just 4 innings. Franklin Gutierrez by himself hit two home runs and drove in 6 total runs against him. His counterpart Hisashi Iwakuma lasted 7 innings and held the Sox to just 4 runs. A home run by David Ortiz was the lone highlight in this one as the Mariners opened their three game set against the Red Sox with an 8-4 victory at Fenway Park.
The Mariners wasted no time getting to Elias in the top of the first inning as Ketel Marte hit the first pitch off the top of the Monster so hard he was held to a single. Franklin Gutierrez then crushed a home run all the way to Saturn to give the Mariners the lead for good. Somehow Elias came back to strike out Robinson Cano swinging but walked Nelson Cruz on a borderline pitch. Dae-ho Lee popped up to center but Kyle Seager walked. Sox pitching coach Carl Willis sprinted to the mound to tell Elias that Hey Dude was on in the clubhouse. Elias got so excited he froze Chris Iannetta for strike three to end the inning with the Mariners ahead 2-0.
The Sox failed to respond against Iwakuma in the bottom of the first although Mr. Mookie Betts doubled off the top of the left field scoreboard to start. Dustin Pedroia grounded out to short, Xander Bogaerts popped up to shallow right and David Ortiz flied out in front of the left field wall to end the inning.
Elias settled down in the top of the second as Leonys Martin flied out to left to start. Nori Aoki grounded back to the mound and Marte grounded out to third to end the inning. Hanley Ramirez struck out swinging before Jackie Bradley Jr doubled off the Monster. Bradley moved to third on the fly out by Chris Young but Travis Shaw grounded out to first to end the inning.
The Mariners struck again in the top of the third as Gutierrez hit another home run into the Charles River to increase the lead. Cano grounded out to third, Cruz grounded out to second and Lee lined out to right to end the inning with the M's leading 4-0.
Leon got a base hit to left to start the bottom of the third but Mr. Mookie banged into a double play. Pedroia took strike three on the outside corner to end the inning.
Seattle finished off Elias in the top of the fourth as Seager walked to start. Iannetta flied out to right and Martin popped up to second, but Aoki singled to left and Marte beat out an infield single to short to load the bases. The pain in the ass Gutierrez missed an opposite field grand slam by about 3 feet, settling for a bases clearing double to ice the game. Cano then hit a double to center to score Gutierrez...but wait! Sox manager John Farrell challenged that Cano was actually out at second. The umpires looked at the replay and sure enough, Cano was out to end the inning with the M's leading 7-0. That was it for Elias who allowed 7 runs in just 4 innings of work. Dave O'Brien said it best "Elias quickly found out that success in AAA doesn't translate to the majors."
The Sox did manage to fight back in the bottom of the fourth as Bogaerts lashed a base hit to left to start. Ortiz then smashed his 18th home run of the season to cut the lead. Sox analyst Dave O'Brien pointed out the hit tied him with Sox hitting coach Chili Davis on the all-time hit list and tied Ted Williams for 19th on the all-time home run list with number 521. Marte threw a routine grounder by Ramirez into the dugout to advance Hanley to second on the error. JBJ popped up to third but Young whiffed. Shaw lined a base hit up the middle to move Hanley to third but Leon grounded out to Marte to end the inning. The Sox were down 7-2.
Heath Hembree took over for the top of the fifth and Cruz whiffed to start. Lee took strike three but Seager singled to left. Iannetta grounded into a force to end the inning. The Sox did nothing in the bottom of the fifth as Mr. Mookie struck out swinging to start. Pedroia lined out to center and Bogaerts lined out to the left field wall to end the inning.
Hembree returned for the top of the sixth and Martin took strike three to start. Aoki singled to right as Dave O'Brien said "Nothing says 'I love you dad' more than a jar of dirt." Marte flied out to a running JBJ and Gutierrez whiffed to end the inning. The Sox blew a rally in the bottom of the sixth when Ortiz walked to start. Hanley dumped a base hit to shallow right but JBJ flied out deep center and Young banged into a double play to end the inning.
The Mariners struck again in the top of the seventh when Cano became the all time American League home run king for a second basemen with his 247th career blast off of Hembree. Cruz then hit a ball in the hole at short as Bogaerts scooped it and threw high to first. Cruz evaded the tag but eagle eyed Hanley noticed Cruz never touched first base. Hanley chased him down and applied the tag for the out. Mariners manager Scott Service bolted out of the dugout to argue but the umpire showed him the foot never touched the bag and Service stormed off kicking and screaming. Lee popped up to first in foul territory and Seager grounded out to second to end the inning with the Mariners ahead 8-2.
The Sox tried to fight back in the bottom of the seventh as Shaw blooped a single to right to start. Leon doubled to left and Shaw scored on the sac fly by Mr. Mookie. Leon took third on the fly out by Shaw and scored on the sac fly by Pedroia to cut the lead in half. Bogaerts popped up to first to end the inning with the Sox down 8-4.
Tommy Layne came in for the top of the eighth and cruised. Iannetta lined out to short, Martin popped up to short and Aoki lined out to left to end the inning. David Rollins came in to pitch the bottom of the eighth and the Sox beat the ball in the dirt. Ortiz and Ramirez both grounded out to second before JBJ grounded out to short to end the inning.
Layne came back for the top of the ninth and Marte grounded out to third to start. Gutierrez grounded out to short and Cano flied out to center to end the inning. The Sox tried to rally in the bottom of the ninth as Young blooped a single over Lee at first to start. Shaw flied out to left but Leon chopped a base hit over the head of Lee to chase Rollins. Steve Cishek came in and Mr. Mookie beat out a double play ball to continue the inning. Betts took second on defensive indifference but Pedroia grounded out to short to end the game. The Mariners had won it 8-4.
Mariners win
Hide your face, Jackass
Jackass of the Night is Roenis Elias. The lefty allowed 7 runs in just 4 innings, 6 of them driven in by Franklin Gutierrez alone.
The Good:
David Ortiz was 1 for 3 with a walk and a 2 run home run.
Travis Shaw was 2 for 4 with a run scored.
Sandy Leon was 3 for 4 with a run scored.
Tommy Layne tossed 2 scoreless innings.
The Bad:
None
The Ugly:
Mookie Betts was just 1 for 4 with an rbi.
Dustin Pedroia was 0 for 4 with a strikeout but drove in a run.
Xander Bogaerts was just 1 for 4 but scored a run.
Hanley Ramirez was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout.
Jackie Bradley Jr was just 1 for 4.
Chris Young was just 1 for 4.
Heath Hembree allowed a run in 3 innings of work.
Final Thoughts:
Gadzooks the Sox are struggling lately! Its bad enough they're not getting good pitching, but now the offense has sputtered lately. Hopefully this is a temporary snag but the Sox can't keep falling behind by 4-5 runs by the third inning and expect to bop their way back into the game. It would be nice for the Sox to grab an early lead or for the pitching not to give up the runs, but oh well. Elias doesn't seem to be the answer so the Sox are gonna have to keep searching for another starter to go with Rick Porcello, David Price and Steven Wright. Elias, Henry Owens and Sean O'Sullivan failed to impress so Sox GM Dave Dombrowski may have to make a move or two. The worst part is the Sox lost when their top two competitors are facing each other. The Toronto Blue Jays whacked the Baltimore Orioles tonight which means Toronto moved into a tie with the Sox because of it. The Sox need to win the next two games against Seattle to gain ground on SOMEONE. The loss dropped the Sox to 37-29, a game behind the Orioles for first place in the AL East. The Sox look to bounce back tomorrow afternoon when they send "Slick" Rick Porcello (7-2, 3.81 ERA) up against Adrian Sampson of the Mariners. The game begins at 4:05 PM at Fenway Park.
No comments:
Post a Comment