As for the game, what a difference a year makes. Last year the Sox couldn't buy a win against the AL East and not only did they sweep the Toronto Blue Jays four straight in May, they beat the New York Yankees 2 out of 3 last week and just crushed the Yankees tonight. Justin Turner lit up the Yankees with a grand slam and a 2 run homer to pace an offense that blew away Domingo German and the Yankees bullpen. Masataka Yoshida drove in 3 runs, Pablo Reyes drove in a pair and the Sox as a unit pounded out 17 hits & 15 runs. Meanwhile Tanner Houck was lifted after just 4 innings and a run allowed after taking a line drive to the face the bullpen got tagged for four runs. It wasn't nearly enough as the Sox ran away with this one 15-5 at Fenway Park.
The Yankees wasted no time getting to Houck in the top of the first as Jake Burger doubled to right to start. Giancarlo Stanton took strike three but Gleyber Torres got a base hit to left to move Burger to third. Anthony Rizzo grounded out to second to score Burger to put the Yankees on top. Josh Donaldson struck out swinging to end the inning with the Yankees up 1-0.
The Sox answered in the bottom of the first as Alex Verdugo grounded out to second to start. Justin Turner doubled to left and Rafael Devers walked, but Adam Duvall took strike three. Masataka Yoshida doubled to center to score Turner and Devers to put Boston on top. Christian Arroyo was hit with a pitch but Triston Casas grounded out to first to end the inning with the Sox up 2-1.
Yoshida drives in a pair
Willie Calhoun grounded out to first to start the top of the second and Billy McKinney grounded out to second. Kyle Higashioka grounded out to short to end the inning. The Sox struck back in the bottom of the second as Connor Wong walked to start. Pablo Reyes grounded into a double play but Verdugo doubled to center. Turner then launched his ninth home run of the season to increase the lead. Devers grounded out to first to end the inning with the Sox ahead 4-1.
Turner hits one out
Anthony Volpe walked to start the top of the third but Bauers popped up to second. Stanton popped up to second and Torres forced Volpe and second to end the inning. The Sox poured it on in the bottom of the third as Duvall doubled to start. A wild pitch moved Duvall to third and Yoshida got a base hit to right to score Duvall. Arroyo doubled to center to chase German. Matt Krook came in to pitch and Casas grounded out to second. Yoshida got thrown out at home on a grounder to third by Wong but Reyes beat out a roller to third to score Arroyo. Verdugo beat out a roller to first to load the bases and Turner belted a grand slam to turn this game into a laugher. Devers popped up to third to end the inning with the Sox ahead 10-1.
Rizzo flied out to left to start the top of the fourth but Donaldson got a base hit to right. Calhoun flied out to right and McKinney flied out to left to end the inning. The Sox weren't done yet in the bottom of the fourth as Duvall lined out to second to start. Yoshida beat out a roller to first but Arroyo forced him at second. Casas walked and that was it for Krook. Albert Abreu came in to pitch and Wong got a base hit to right to score Arroyo and Casas. Reyes got a base hit to left to score Wong and Verdugo flied out to left to end the inning with the Sox up 13-1.
Disaster struck in the top of the fifth as Higashioka lined a baseball off the face of Houck, knocking him out of the game. Tanner allowed 1 run in the 4 innings off 4 hits and a walk, hope he's ok. Joe Jacques came in to pitch and Volpe grounded into a double play just like that. Bauers grounded out to first to end the inning.
Turner grounded out to second to start the bottom of the fifth and Devers swung at air for strike three. Duvall whiffed to end the inning.
The Yankees struck back in the top of the sixth as Stanton singled to left to start. Reyes bobbled a grounder by Torres for an error and both runners moved over on a wild pitch. Rizzo doubled home both runners but moved to third on the grounder to short by Rizzo. Calhoun took strike three but McKinney singled to left to score Rizzo. Higashioka struck out swinging to end the inning but the Yankees were down 13-4.
Yoshida led off with a double to center to start the bottom of the sixth but Arroyo grounded out to third. Nick Ramirez came in to pitch and Torres threw a grounder by Casas away for an error to score Yoshida. Wong struck out swinging and Reyes grounded out to second to end the inning.
Corey Kluber came in to pitch the top of the seventh and Volpe singled to center to start. Bauers flied out to right, Stanton flied out to center and Torres flied out to center to end the inning. Verdugo flied out to center to start the bottom of the seventh and Turner grounded out to short. Devers struck out swinging to end the inning.
The Yankees struck again in the top of the eighth as Rizzo struck out swinging to start. Donaldson hit a home run all the way back to New York and Calhoun singled to right. McKinney flied out to center to end the inning with the Yankees down 14-5.
Donaldson hits one out
Isiah Kiner-Falefa the infielder came in to pitch the bottom of the eighth and Jarren Duran pinch hit for Duvall. Duran doubled to center and Rob Refsnyder pinch hit for Yoshida. Refsnyder flied out to center and Arroyo popped up to first. Casas doubled to left to score Duran but Wong grounded out to short to end the inning with the Sox up 15-5.
Brennan Bernardino came in to pitch the top of the ninth and Volpe walked to start. Bauers grounded into a double play and Stanton grounded out to second to end the game. The Sox had won it 15-5.
Sox win
Hero Turner
Hero of The Night is Justin Turner. He belted a grand slam, a two run homer and drove in 6 runs.
The Good:
Alex Verdugo was 2 for 5 with 2 runs scored.
Duran doubled and scored a run in his only at-bat.
Masataka Yoshida was 4 for 4 with 3 rbis a run scored.
Triston Casas was 2 for 4 with a walk, rbi and a run scored.
Pablo Reyes was 2 for 4 with 2 rbis and a run scored.
Tanner Houck allowed just 1 run in 4 innings before leaving with injury.
Brennan Bernardino pitched a scoreless ninth inning.
The Bad:
Rob Refsnyder was 0 for 1 at the plate.
Joe Jacques allowed 3 runs in 2 innings.
The Ugly:
Rafael Devers was 0 for 4 with 2 strikeouts but walked and scored a run.
Adam Duvall was just 1 for 4 with 2 strikeouts but scored a run.
Christian Arroyo was just 1 for 4 but was hit with a pitch and scored two runs.
Connor Wong was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout but walked, drove in a run and scored two runs.
Corey Kluber allowed a run in 2 innings of work.
Final Thoughts:
Nice to crush the Yankees like that but losing Houck like that is a big loss. Sox fans remember Bryce Florie and Matt Clement were never the same after being hit in the face so its very concerning to see if Houck gets the jitters when he comes back. That overshadowed what should have been a great night where they scored 15 runs against their blood rivals. After taking 2 of 3 last week, winning tonight helps erase the bitter memories of last year where the Sox were incompetent against the AL East. Its only one game and the middle of June, but the vibe is a lot better this time around. The Sox don't get consistent pitching and still need to work on that, but when clicking their offense is as good as anyone. Turner was a one man wrecking crew and Yoshida going 4 for 4 was great to see as well. Hopefully the Sox can keep up the momentum since the AL is weak this year....except for the AL East. Have to win when it matters. The win improved the Sox to 35-35, good for last place in the AL East. The sad part is they'd be tied for first place in the AL Central with the Minnesota Twins. The Sox look to make it two in a row against the Yankees tomorrow night when Nick Pivetta (3-4) takes on Michael King of New York. The game begins at 7:10 PM at Fenway Park.
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