Eduardo Rodriguez got the ball to start the top of the first inning and got some help from his defense when Hunter Renfroe snared a line drive by Randy Arozarena to start. Wander Franco was frozen for strike three and the ice cold Brandon Lowe struck out swinging to end the inning. Collin McHugh got the ball to start the bottom of the first and Kyle Schwarber grounded out to short to start. Arozarena made a great running catch on a Kike Hernandez line drive but Rafael Devers dropped a base hit to right. Xander Bogaerts looked to have beat out a ground ball to short but Rays manager Kevin Cash challenged the call to overturn it for the third out to end the inning.
Rodriguez cruised in the top of the second as Nelson Cruz took strike three to start. Jordan Luplow struck out swinging and Yandy Diaz grounded out to third to end the inning. The Sox just missed in the bottom of the second as Alex Verdugo flied out to the centerfield wall to start. Kevin Kiermaier made a great diving catch to rob JD Martinez of a hit before Hunter Renfroe also flied out to the centerfield wall to end the inning.
Austin Meadows went down hacking to begin the top of the third before Mike Zunino popped up to second. Kiermaier grounded out to third to end the inning. Rays manager Kevin Cash made a fatal error by taking McHugh out and bringing in rookie Shane McClanahan to pitch the bottom of the third inning. Christian Vazquez got a base hit to center although Christian Arroyo flied out to right. Schwarber drew a walk but Hernandez flied out to left. Devers got the party started with a no doubt 3 run blast to center to put Boston on top. Bogaerts ripped a base hit to left and Verdugo belted a double off the Monster to score Xander. Martinez singled to left to score Verdugo and that was it for McClanahan. JT Chargois came in and Renfroe greeted him with a double to center. The game turned when Vazquez struck out to end the inning. The Sox led 5-0 but one more hit would have broke the Rays.
Rodriguez did his part in the top of the fourth although Arozarena singled to right to start. Franco popped up to first, Lowe struck out swinging and Cruz popped up to second to end the inning. Andrew Kittredge came in for the bottom of the fourth and Arroyo grounded out to short to start. Schwarber popped up to second and Hernandez grounded out to second to end the inning.
The Rays struck back in the top of the fifth inning as Luplow doubled to left to start. Diaz moved Luplow to third with a flyout to center and Jordan scored on the grounder to first by Meadows. Zunino grounded out to first to end the inning but the Rays were down 5-1.
The Sox did nothing in the bottom of the fifth as Devers flied out to left to start. Bogaerts flied out to right and Verdugo flied out to left to end the inning.
Rodriguez returned to start the top of the sixth but Kiermaier led off with a double to left to chase him. He did his job but Tanner Houck did not when he came in. Arozarena flied out to center but Franco hit a ball all the way to Metlife Stadium in New Jersey to inch Tampa closer. Lowe struck out swinging again and Cruz flied out to right to end the inning but Tampa was down 5-3.
Luis Patino came in to pitch the bottom of the sixth and Martinez dropped a base hit to left to start. Renfroe and Vazquez both struck out swinging before Arroyo grounded out to third to end the inning.
Ji-Man Choi was sent in to pinch hit for Luplow but Sox manager Alex Cora countered by bringing in lefty Josh Taylor. Taylor struck Choi out swinging before Diaz flied out to center. Meadows grounded out to second to end the inning. Josh Fleming came in to pitch the bottom of the seventh and the Sox gagged. Schwarber grounded out to first to start before Hernandez singled to left. Devers ripped a base hit to center to put runners at the corners and chase Fleming. Pete Fairbanks came in and Bogaerts gagged by hitting into a double play to end the inning.
Cora then made the wrong move by sending in Ryan Brasier to pitch the top of the eighth. Bobby Dalbec came in to play first but Zunino doubled to right to start. Kiermaier got revenge for last night by doubling to right to score Zunino and Arozarena dumped a base hit to right. Renfroe threw home but missed Kiermaier scoring by a mile and Arozarena took second. That was it for Brasier as Garrett "The Lock" Whitlock was summoned to stop the bleeding with the game tied and a man on second with nobody out. Franco flied out to right but Renfroe's throw to third missed both Bogaerts and Devers, luckily Whitlock backed up the throw. Lowe grounded back to the mound and Cruz grounded out to third to end the inning with the game tied 5-5.
Once again the Sox failed to score in the bottom of the eighth as Franco threw a ball hit by Verdugo away to start. Verdugo took second on the play but Martinez failed to advance him with a fly out to right. Renfroe then hit a ball to Kiermaier who gunned down Verdugo to end the inning....BUT WAIT! Sox manager Alex Cora challenged that Verdugo beat the tag. He did....but his hand came off the base and the call was upheld.
Whitlock returned for the top of the ninth and Choi grounded out to first to start. Diaz grounded out to second and Meadows flied out to left to end the inning. JP Feyereisen came in to pitch the bottom of the ninth and Vazquez lined a base hit up the middle to start. Arroyo dropped down a perfect bunt to move Vazquez to second and Travis Shaw pinch hit for Dalbec. Shaw hit a little roller to third and Diaz threw low to Choi and both runners were safe. Danny Santana was sent in to run for Vazquez and Hernandez drove him in with a sac fly to left to win the game. The Sox had knocked out the Rays 3 games to 1 to head to the ALCS with a 6-5 Game 4 win.
Hero of the Night is Garrett Whitlock. It was a team effort to score the winning run but Whitlock getting out of the eighth inning without allowing the go-ahead run kept the Sox in the driver's seat. Not bad for a Rule 5 pick the Yankees gave up on.
The Good:
Travis Shaw got credited with a single as a pinch hitter in the ninth inning.
Rafael Devers was 3 for 4 with a 3 run home run.
JD Martinez was 2 for 4 with an rbi.
Christian Vazquez was 2 for 4 with a run scored.
Danny Santana scored the winning run as a pinch runner.
Eduardo Rodriguez allowed just 2 runs in 5 plus innings of work. He struck out 6 and walked nobody.
Josh Taylor pitched a scoreless seventh inning.
The Bad:
Tanner Houck allowed a 2 run home run in the sixth inning.
Ryan Brasier allowed 2 runs in the top of the eighth on 3 hits.
The Ugly:
Kyle Schwarber was 0 for 3 but walked and scored a run.
Kike Hernandez was just 1 for 4 but drove in the winning run with a sac fly.
Xander Bogaerts was just 1 for 4 but scored a run.
Alex Verdugo was just 1 for 4 but drove in a run and scored.
Hunter Renfroe was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout.
Christian Arroyo was 0 for 3 but dropped down a key bunt in the ninth inning.
Honorable Mention:
Bobby Dalbec played first base in the last two innings.
Final Thoughts:
Say whatever you want about the faults and negatives of the Red Sox but they have balls of steel. Finishing the season 30-31 after July turned a lot of fans off and losing 5 of 6 to the Yankees and the 110 loss Baltimore Orioles to end September made things look bleak. Even after the Sox knocked the Yankees out of the Wild Card game, they got steamrolled in Game 1 in Tampa and were down 5-2 in the second inning of Game 2 with Chris Sale finished. Its been all Red Sox ever since and they showed poise and balls to win the series. This game had great and bad defense from both teams and it came down to who wanted it more. Chaim Bloom looks like a genius after trading for Nick Pivetta who saved their bacon in Game 3 and stealing Whitlock from the Yankees in the Rule 5 draft. Not to mention getting Schwarber for a low level prospect and Shaw for free bolstered this team's bench considerably. Before the season Cora was excited the Sox signed Hernandez and he was the difference maker in this series. The criticism of Cora was pulling starters too early all season and it ruined the bullpen by July, but now in the playoffs even the starters are in the bullpen. Cora can mix and match all he wants and he's been burned by that only once tonight. Hats off to Rodriguez, Taylor and Whitlock for pitching well, especially E-Rod after his Game 1 disaster. You can say all you want about how Chris Sale is broken, the other starters are bums and the bullpen is on fumes...but one thing you can't say is they don't have heart. The last three games were all gutsy wins by the Sox and this one sent them to the American League Championship series. The Houston Astros and Chicago White Sox game got postponed to tomorrow due to rain so the Sox don't know who they'll be facing yet. Still, the Sox weren't expected to do anything this season after they tanked last year, they weren't supposed to beat the Yankees in a one game playoff and they sure as hell weren't expected to steamroll the Rays. Alex Cora deserves a lot of flack for essentially collapsing down the stretch but he's now 4-0 in playoff series for the Red Sox as manager. No matter what happens against Houston or Chicago, you can't deny how great this season has been. The Sox are going from last place at the end of 2020 to being four wins away from the World Series. Game 1 either in Chicago or Houston starts this Friday and nobody knows who's pitching yet. Until then its time to enjoy the ALDS victory.
On to the ALCS
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