Paxton got the ball in the top of the first and Kevin Newman grounded out to second to start. Matt McLain singled to right but Jonathan India struck out swinging. Spencer Steer flied out to right to end the inning. Weaver got the ball in the bottom of the first inning and Alex Verdugo grounded out to short to start. Rafael Devers flied out to right and Justin Turner struck out swinging to end the inning.
Tyler Stephenson flied out to right to start the top of the second before Stuart Fairchild struck out swinging. Nick Senzel pounded a ground rule double down the right field line but Jose Barrero popped up to short to end the inning. The Sox struck first in the bottom of the second as Masataka Yoshida smashed his seventh home run of the season to put Boston on top. Rob Refsnyder grounded out to short and Jarren Duran struck out swinging. Kike Hernandez also went down hacking to end the inning with the Sox up 1-0.
Luke Maille struck out swinging to start the top of the third before Newman lined out to third. McLain grounded back to the mound to end the inning. Enmanuel Valdez flied out to left to start the bottom of the third but Connor Wong drilled a base hit to center. Verdugo grounded out to first but Devers doubled to left to score Wong. Turner grounded out to third to end the inning with the Sox up 2-0.
India flied out to center to start the top of the fourth before Steer struck out swinging. Stephenson struck out swinging as well to end the inning.
Yoshida grounded out to short to start the bottom of the fourth before Refsnyder struck out swinging. Duran popped up to third to end the inning.
Fairchild struck out swinging to begin the top of the fifth and Senzel also went down hacking. Barrero walked and Maile doubled to center to score Barrero. Newman got a base hit to right to move Maile to third but McLain struck out swinging again to end the inning with the Reds down 2-1.
The Sox answered in the bottom of the fifth as Hernandez flied out to right to start. Valdez then blasted his fourth home run of the season to increase the lead. Wong flied out to center but Verdugo singled to right. Devers struck out swinging to end the inning with the Sox up 3-1.
That was it for Paxton who tossed five innings of one run ball, striking out eight. Kutter Crawford came in to pitch the top of the sixth and India walked to start. Steer walked but Stephenson flied out to left. Jake Fraley pinch hit for Fairchild and flied out to center, but Senzel singled to center to score India. Josh Winckowski came in to pitch to Barrero and struck him out swinging to end the inning with the Reds down 3-2.
Turner got a base hit to left to start the bottom of the sixth but Yoshida grounded into a double play. Refsnyder doubled to left to chase Weaver. Ian Gibaut got Duran to ground out to first to end the inning.
The Reds tied it in the top of the seventh as Devers threw a grounder by Maile away for an error to start. Newman got a base hit to right and Will Benson pinch ran for Maile. McLain got a base hit to left to load the bases and India grounded into a double play, scoring Benson to tie the game. Steer then hit a home run all the way to Munich, Germany to ice the game. Stephenson struck out swinging to end the inning with the Reds up 5-3.
Curt Casali took over for Barrero to start the bottom of the seventh and Hernandez grounded out to first to start. Valdez reached on catcher's interference but Wong flied out to center. Alex Young came in to face Verdugo and Alex singled to left. Devers walked to load the bases....but Turner grounded out to short to end the inning.
Chris Martin came in to pitch the top of the eighth and Fraley struck out swinging to start. Senzel grounded back to the mound and Casali struck out swinging to end the inning. The Sox rallied in the bottom of the eighth as Lucas Sims took over on the mound. Yoshida doubled to center to start but Refsnyder flied out to left. Duran doubled to left to score Yoshida and Raimel Tapia pinch hit for Hernandez. Tapia lined out to center and Valdez struck out swinging to end the inning with the Sox down 5-4.
Duran drives in a run
Pablo Reyes took over for Tapia with Nick Pivetta now on the mound for the top of the ninth. Benson grounded out to first to start but Newman was hit with a pitch. McLain flied out to center and India struck out swinging to end the inning. Buck Farmer came in to close out the bottom of the ninth and Wong struck out swinging to start. Verdugo grounded out to third and Devers flied out to the centerfield wall to end the game. The Reds had won it 5-4.
Reds win
Jackass Winckowski
Jackass of The Night is Josh Winckowski. He got no help from Devers but he still allowed 3 runs in the seventh to put the game out of reach.
The Good:
Alex Verdugo was 2 for 5.
Masataka Yoshida was 2 for 4 with a home run and 2 runs scored.
Enmanuel Valdez was 1 for 3 with a home run.
James Paxton allowed just 1 run in 5 innings off 4 hits and a walk while striking out 8.
Chris Martin pitched a scoreless eighth inning.
Nick Pivetta pitched a scoreless ninth inning.
The Bad:
Kike Hernandez was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.
Raimel Tapia was 0 for 1 as a pinch hitter.
Kutter Crawford allowed a run in the sixth inning.
The Ugly:
Rafael Devers was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout and an error but walked and drove in a run.
Justin Turner was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout.
Rob Refsnyder was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout.
Jarren Duran was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout but drove in a run.
Connor Wong was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout but scored a run.
Honorable Mention:
Pablo Reyes played short in the top of the ninth.
Final Thoughts:
A mediocre team plays mediocre games and this was one of them. James Paxton had zero command as he was only able to go 5 innings which led to the bullpen melt-down. Kutter Crawford and Josh Winckowski allowing 4 runs combined led to their doom. The Sox still had their chances at the plate but Turner failing with the bases loaded and the peculiar decision to pinch hit Tapia for Hernandez. Sometimes move work, sometimes they don't. That didn't work. Still, if Valdez had gotten another hit then it would have been a moot point. The Sox have been in a rut for pretty much all season so this was just par for the course. If Paxton rediscovers his command, things will go better for him and the rest of the team. The less said of this disaster, the better. The loss dropped the Sox to 28-27, good for last place in the AL East. The Sox look to get revenge on the Reds tomorrow night when Chris Sale goes one on one with Hunter Greene of Cincinnati. The game begins at 7:10 PM at Fenway Park.
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