Sox Beat Rays in Rain Shortened Game (10/4/22)

Mother Nature smiled on the Boston Red Sox tonight. Nathan Eovaldi (6-3, 3.87 ERA) was technically credited with a complete game shutout after pitching just five innings. Why? The Red Sox broke out to a 1-0 lead on the Tampa Bay Rays and old pal Jeffrey Springs on a third inning rbi by Christian Arroyo. In the bottom of the fifth, Xander Bogaerts belted a grand slam off Colin Poche and the Sox got another run off 2 errors on the same play.....and the rains came. Heavy rain had the tarp on the field and after an hour, the umpires saw the score and said "the hell with it". The Sox were declared the winners 5-0 at Fenway Park.

                                                     Cory Chase approves of the win

Eovaldi got the ball in the top of the first inning and Yandy Diaz grounded out to second to start. Wander Franco and Ji-Man Choi both struck out swinging to end the inning. Springs got the ball in the bottom of the first and Tommy Pham struck out swinging to start. Both Rafael Devers and Xander Bogaerts both grounded out to second to end the inning.

Isaac Paredes grounded out to second to start the top of the second and Jonathan Aranda grounded out to first. Christian Bethancourt struck out swinging to end the inning. The Sox struck first in the bottom of the second as Alex Verdugo walked to start. JD Martinez struck out swinging and Kike Hernandez popped up to third, but the returning Eric Hosmer singled to center. Christian Arroyo got a base hit to right to score Verdugo to put Boston on top. Connor Wong lined out to center to end the inning with the Sox ahead 1-0.

                                                             Arroyo drives in a run

Vidal Brujan flied out to center to start the top of the third and Taylor Walls popped up to third. Jose Siri singled to left but Diaz struck out swinging to end the inning. Pham took strike three to start the bottom of the third and Devers lined out to second. Bogaerts lined out to short to end the inning. 

The Rays threatened in the top of the fourth as Franco and Choi drew back to back walks to start. Paredes flied out to right to move Franco to third but Aranda grounded into a double play to end the inning. Garrett Cleavinger came in to pitch the bottom of the fourth and Verdugo struck out swinging to start. Martinez struck out swinging but Hernandez walked. Hosmer grounded out to short to end the inning.

Bethancourt popped up to third to start the top of the fifth and Brujan flied out to left. Walls doubled to left but Siri flied out to left to end the inning. Nobody knew it then but that was it for Eovaldi and he'd be given a complete game shutout after rain ended the game early. In his possible final start with Boston he allowed just 2 hits and 2 walks.

                                                       Thanks for the memories Eovaldi

The Sox exploded in the bottom of the fifth with Colin Poche now on the mound. Arroyo singled to right and Wong doubled to center, but Pham struck out swinging. Devers walked and Bogaerts crushed a grand slam, his 15th home run of the season to turn this game into a rout. Brooks Raley came in to pitch and Verdugo grounded out to first, but Martinez walked. Hernandez walked and Hosmer hit a routine grounder to Walls....thrown away for an error and also bobbled by Raley for another error to score Martinez. With the heavy rain already falling, the umpires said this game is over. The tarp came on the field and the Sox had won it 5-0.

                                                          Sox win

Hero of The Night is Xander Bogarts. His grand slam basically decided the game for the umpires to call it with nothing to lose by either team.

                                                        A grand slam fit for a Hero

The Good:

Kike Hernandez walked twice.

Eric Hosmer was 1 for 3.

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

Connor Wong was 1 for 2 with a run scored.

Nathan Eovaldi got the win by throwing 5 shutout innings allowing 2 hits and 2 walks.

The Bad:

Tommy Pham was 0 for 3 with a hat trick of 3 strikeouts.

The Ugly:

Rafael Devers was 0 for 2 but walked and scored a run.

Alex Verdugo was 0 for 2 with a strikeout but walked and scored a run.

JD Martinez was 0 for 2 with 2 strikeouts but walked and scored a run.

Final Thoughts:

It sounds cheap to end the game early but the Rays were treating this like an exhibition game to begin with since they're playing the Cleveland Guardians in 3 days. The only shame is this might be the last game for a lot of these guys who are most likely not coming back next year like Eovaldi. Its also worth noting that the Sox never really had their full lineup post trade deadline with Eric Hosmer missing all of September. Not that the pitching was going to hold up but their 1-9 with Hosmer and Trevor Story might have bopped their way into a few games. Then again, Triston Casas needed the experience. Whether or not Bogaerts plays tomorrow is up in the air but if that was his last big hit, at least he went out with a bang. Would be nice to see JD Martinez hit a grand slam too tomorrow but beggars can't be choosers. The epitaph of the 2022 Red Sox was a team that could have been great but Sox GM Chaim Bloom made too many off-season blunders. Banking on Franchy Cordero and Bobby Dalbec over Kyle Schwarber was a disaster, trading Hunter Renfroe for Jackie Bradley Jr was a mistake and the signings of Michael Wacha, Rich Hill and James Paxton looked foolish when all 3 got hurt. Not to mention their inability to beat the AL East. It all added up to a lost season in last place for the second time in three years. Still, they won tonight...thank you Mother Nature. The win improved the Sox to 77-84, good for last place in the AL East. The Sox have one last game this season tomorrow afternoon against the Tampa Bay Rays. Nick Pivetta goes for the Sox in the season finale against Josh Fleming of Tampa Bay. The game begins at 4:10 PM at Fenway Park.

Martinez, Sox Drop Orioles (9/29/22)

Before the game the Boston Red Sox made a roster move. Nathan Eovaldi was activated from the Injured List to make two more starts before the season is over. The rumor is he won't be coming back so this is audition time. Connor Seabold was optioned to Worcester and his season is over after going 0-4 with a 11.29 ERA. Better luck next year Connor.

                                                                          OUT

                                                                          IN

As for the game, its not only Nate Eovaldi that's auditioning for other teams. Xander Bogaerts and JD Martinez won't be coming back and Martinez was the hero in this one, breaking a 3-3 tie to put the Sox ahead with a home run. The returning Nathan Eovaldi lasted just 5 innings but only allowed 2 runs to the Baltimore Orioles. The Sox tied the game against Mike Baumann with two rbis from Triston Casas and Kike Hernandez. The Sox took a 3-2 lead but Kyle Stowers hit a home run off Matt Strahm in the seventh. With one out in the eighth, JD Martinez took Dillon Tate deep for a two run home run. Kaleb Ort slammed the door in the ninth and the Sox had taken three in a row from the Orioles including this one 5-3 at Fenway Park.

                                                  1999 Pedro Martinez approves of the win

Eovaldi got the ball in the top of the first and Cedric Mullins struck out swinging to start. Adley Rutschman doubled to left but Anthony Santander lined out to second. Ryan Mountcastle grounded out to second to end the inning. Baumann got the ball in the bottom of the first and Tommy Pham grounded out to short to start. Rafael Devers flied out to center but Xander Bogaerts got a base hit to right. Alex Verdugo doubled to right but JD Martinez flied out to right to end the inning.

Gunnar Henderson doubled to right to start the top of the second but Austin Hays popped up to second. Rougned Odor hit a bullet to Bogaerts who doubled off Gunnar to end the inning. Triston Casas grounded out to second to start the bottom of the second but Christian Arroyo doubled to left. Kike Hernandez and Connor Wong both grounded out to short to end the inning.

The O's struck first in the top of the third as Kyle Stowers got a base hit to right to start. Jorge Mateo got a base hit to left and both runners moved over on the swinging bunt by Mullins in front of the plate. Rutschman grounded out to first to score Stowers and Casas booted a grounder by Santander for an error to score Mateo. Mountcastle lined out to left to end the inning with the O's up 2-0.

                                                     "I don't got it" - Casas

The Sox beat the ball in the dirt in the bottom of the third as Pham grounded out to short to start. Devers also grounded out to short and Bogaerts grounded out to second to end the inning.

Henderson got a base hit to right to start the top of the fourth but Hays took strike three. Odor flied out to center and Stowers popped up to third to end the inning. The Sox struck back in the bottom of the fourth as Verdugo grounded out to second to start. Martinez doubled to left and and Casas atoned for his error with a double to left to score him. Arroyo struck out swinging but Hernandez drilled a base hit to right to score Casas. Wong took strike three to end the inning but the game was tied 2-2.

                                                             Hernandez ties it up

Mateo struck out swinging to start the top of the fifth and Mullins popped up to third. All of a sudden Sox manager Alex Cora bounded out of the dugout to take the ball after just 72 pitches. Eovaldi shouted at him and left under protest. How do you take a guy out of his potential last start in Boston out after 72 pitches? Eduardo Bazardo walked Rutschman but got Santander to ground back to the mound to end the inning. Eovaldi lasted 4 2/3 innings and allowed 2 runs on just 5 hits.

                                                              Eovaldi doesn't last long

Bryan Baker came in to pitch the bottom of the fifth and Pham flied out to right to start. Devers flied out to left and Bogaerts lined out to left to end the inning.

Mountcastle struck out swinging to open the top of the sixth and Henderson also went down hacking. Hays flied out to center to end the inning. The Sox got to Cionel Perez in the bottom of the sixth and Verdugo got a base hit to right to start. A wild pitch moved Verdugo to second but Martinez struck out swinging. Casas beat out a roller to short to put runners at the corners and Arroyo grounded out to third to score Verdugo. Hernandez grounded out to first to end the inning with the Sox up 3-2.

                                                           Casas scores a run

Matt Strahm came in to crap his pants in the top of the seventh as Odor grounded out to second to start. Stowers then hit a home run all the way to Sri Lanka to tie the game. Mateo struck out swinging but Mullins beat out a roller to third. Rutschman grounded out to second to end the inning with the game tied 3-3.

                                                                Stowers jacks one

Logan Gillaspie came in to pitch the bottom of the seventh and Abraham Almonte pinch hit for Wong. Almonte struck out swinging, Pham lined out to right and Devers struck out swinging to end the inning.

Zack Kelly came in to pitch with Reese McGuire behind the plate for the top of the eighth inning. Santander flied out to left to start and Mountcastle struck out swinging. Arroyo booted a grounder by Henderson for an error and Hays got a base hit to left. Odor forced Hays at second to end the inning. Dillon Tate came in to pitch the bottom of the eighth and Bogaerts walked to start. Verdugo forced Xander at second but Martinez blasted his 14th home run of the season to put the Sox on top. Casas walked but was forced at second by Arroyo. Hernandez forced Arroyo at second to end the inning with the Sox up 5-3.

                                                          Martinez puts Boston on top

Yu Chang came in to play second with Kaleb Ort in to close out the top of the ninth. Stowers struck out swinging and Terrin Vavra pinch hit for Mateo. Vavra grounded out to short but Mullins got a base hit to center. Rutschman grounded out to second to end the game. The Sox had won it 5-3.

                                                               Sox win

Hero of The Night is JD Martinez. His two run home run put the Sox up for good in the eighth.

                                                                      JD Hero

The Good:

Xander Bogaerts was 1 for 3 with a walk.

Alex Verdugo was 2 for 4 with 2 runs scored.

Triston Casas was 2 for 3 with a walk, rbi and a run scored.

Nathan Eovaldi allowed just 1 earned run in 4 2/3 innings off 5 hits.

Eduard Bazardo tossed 1 1/3 scoreless innings.

Zack Kelly got the win with a scoreless eighth inning.

Kaleb Ort earned his first save with a scoreless ninth inning.

The Bad:

Tommy Pham was 0 for 4.

Rafael Devers was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.

Connor Wong was 0 for 2 with a strikeout.

Abraham Almonte struck out as a pinch hitter.

Matt Strahm allowed a run in the seventh inning.

The Ugly:

Christian Arroyo was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout and and error but drove in a run.

Kike Hernandez was just 1 for 4 but drove in a run.

Honorable Mention:

Yu Chang played second base in the top of the ninth.

Reese McGuire caught the final two innings.

Final Thoughts:

Six games remaining and this might have been the final home run for JD Martinez and start by Nathan Eovaldi. They might shut them both down or they may not. But if this was it, that was a hell of a goodbye by Martinez. Its too bad Triston Casas wasn't around all year, Jarren Duran regressed and Trevor Story wasn't healthy because a lineup of Duran, Verdugo, Bogaerts, Devers, Martinez, Story, Casas, Christian Vazquez and Kike Hernandez would have been great. Then again, the problem was four of the five starters got hurt and couldn't beat the AL East as a result. The Sox just took 3 out of 4 against Baltimore but its too little, too late. It would be funny if the Sox win their last 6 in a row to end the year on a 10 game win streak...but that's very unrealistic. The only thing left to do is enjoy all these guys that most likely won't be back for the next six games. The win improved the Sox to 75-81, good for last place in the AL East. The Sox now travel to Toronto for their final road trip of the season against the Blue Jays, who's 13-3 against them this season. Nick Pivetta (10-11) goes for the Sox against Alek Manoah of Toronto.

Pham, Red Sox Walkoff Yankees in 10 (8/12/22)

Before the game the Greenville Drive released Devon Roedahl. He was a 27th round pick back in 2019 and looked to have been a future star when he went 7-5 with a 2.52 ERA for Salem. This year he was batting practice for Greenville as he went 4-7 with a 9.38 ERA. Sox GM Chaim Bloom says to hell with that and fired him. When you get hit THAT badly in High A, it might be time to hang them up.

                                                               Bye bye Roedahl

As for the game, the Boston Red Sox finally found a way to beat the AL East teams with their second win in a row. This time they walked off the New York Yankees and their formerly unbeatable closer. The Yankees jumped out to a 2-0 lead on Nathan Eovaldi on an Anthony Rizzo double and Aaron Judge home run. The Sox kept it close with a JD Martinez rbi single in the fourth but couldn't get much else off Domingo Germain. Then in the bottom of the ninth, Martinez drove in Xander Bogaerts to tag closer Clay Holmes with a blown save. Garrett Whitlock (3-2, 3.03 ERA) kept the Yankees off the board in the top of the tenth. Tommy Pham did the honors in the bottom of the tenth with a base hit off Lou Trivino to give the Sox a 3-2 victory over the Yankees at Fenway Park.

                                                      Matt Fitzpatrick approves of the win

The Yankees wasted no time getting to Eovaldi in the top of the first as DJ LeMahieu grounded out to third to start. Aaron Judge walked and Anthony Rizzo doubled to right to score him. Josh Donaldson got a base hit to right to move Rizzo to third but Gleyber Torres grounded into a double play to end the inning with the Yankees up 1-0.

                                                             Yankees go up early

Germain got the ball in the bottom of the first and Tommy Pham struck out swinging to start. Rafael Devers doubled off the Monster but Xander Bogaerts lined out to third. Alex Verdugo flied out to center to end the inning.

Old pal Andrew Benintendi flied out to left to start the top of the second before Jose Trevino singled to left. Isiah Kiner-Falefa singled in the hole at second but Aaron Hicks struck out swinging. LeMahieu grounded out to short to end the inning. JD Martinez got a base hit to center to start the bottom of the second but Eric Hosmer banged into a double play. Christian Arroyo got a base hit to center and Jarren Duran walked, but Kevin Plawecki flied out to right to end the inning.

The Yankees struck again in the top of the third as Judge hit a home run all the way to Egypt to start. Rizzo struck out swinging but Donaldson walked. Torres flied out to left and Donaldson was thrown out at second trying to steal to end the inning with the Yankees up 2-0.

                                                                Judge hits one a mile

Pham flied out to left to start the bottom of the third and Devers hit one up the elevator shaft. Bogaerts struck out swinging to end the inning.

Benintendi grounded out to short to start the top of the fourth before Trevino singled in the hole at short. Kiner lined out to center but Hicks got a base hit to right. LeMahieu forced Hicks at second to end the inning. The Sox struck back in the bottom of the fourth as Verdugo doubled to right to start. Martinez ripped a base hit to center to score Alex but Hosmer popped up to third. Arroyo grounded into a double play to end the inning with the Sox down 2-1.

                                                       Sox back within a run

Judge struck out swinging to open the top of the fifth before Rizzo popped up to third. Donaldson lined out to center to end the inning. Duran popped up to first to start the bottom of the fifth before Plawecki struck out swinging. Pham struck out swinging to end the inning.

Torres grounded out to third to open the top of the sixth before Benintendi singled in the hole at second. Trevino reached on a pop up force at second of Benintendi but Kiner forced Jose at second to end the inning. That was it for Eovaldi who held the Yankees to just 2 runs in 6 strong innings off 8 hits and 2 walks.

                                                            Eovaldi didn't get any support

Devers walked to start the bottom of the sixth but Bogaerts grounded into a double play. Verdugo lined out to center to end the inning.

Matt Barnes came in to pitch the top of the seventh and Hicks grounded out to first to start. LeMahieu got a base hit to center and Judge was hit with a pitch, but Rizzo struck out swinging. Donaldson took strike three to end the inning. Scott Effross came in to pitch the bottom of the seventh and Martinez grounded out to short to begin. Hosmer flied out to center and Arroyo struck out swinging to end the inning.

Ryan Brasier came in to pitch the top of the eighth and Torres grounded out to short to begin. Benintendi flied out to center and Trevino popped up to second to end the inning. Aroldis Chapman came in to pitch the bottom of the eighth with Bobby Dalbec pinch hitting for Duran. Dalbec struck out swinging, Plawecki flied out to center and Pham took strike three to end the inning.

Garrett Whitlock came in to pitch the top of the ninth with Jaylin Davis now in center. Kiner struck out swinging, Hicks popped up to third and LeMahieu lined out to right to end the inning. Clay Holmes came in to close out the bottom of the ninth and Devers grounded out to short to begin. Suddenly Bogaerts and Verdugo worked back to back walks to put the tying run at second. Martinez got a clutch hit with a single to center to score Bogaerts with the tying run. Verdugo made it to third and Wandy Peralta came in to pitch to Hosmer. Eric struck out swinging and Arroyo lined out to short to end the inning with the game tied 2-2.

                                                             Martinez ties it

Tim Locastro pinch ran for LeMahieu as the second base ghost runner to start the top of the tenth. Judge walked but Rizzo hit a bullet to Hosmer. Donaldson struck out swinging but the Yankees pulled off a double steal. Torres struck out swinging to end the inning. Marwin Gonzalez took over at second with Lou Trivino now on the mound and Christian Arroyo running at second base to start the bottom of the tenth. Davis grounded back to the mound to move Arroyo to third and Reese McGuire pinch hit for Plawecki. McGuire caught Trivino asleep with a bunt down the third base line to put runners at the corners. Pham did the honors with a base hit to left to score Arroyo to win the game 3-2.

                                                             Sox win

Hero of The Night is Tommy Pham. He drove in the winning run in the bottom of the tenth.

                                                       Tommy Hero

The Good:

Rafael Devers was 1 for 3 with a walk.

Alex Verdugo was 1 for 3 with a walk and a run scored.

JD Martinez was 3 for 4 with 2 rbis.

Jarren Duran walked in two plate appearances.

Reese McGuire got a base hit as a pinch hitter.

Nathan Eovaldi tossed 6 solid innings of 2 run ball. He allowed 8 hits and 2 walks while striking out 3.

Matt Barnes pitched a scoreless seventh inning.

Ryan Brasier pitched a scoreless eighth inning.

Garrett Whitlock got the win with 2 scoreless innings.

The Bad:

Eric Hosmer was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.

Bobby Dalbec struck out as a pinch hitter.

Jaylin Davis was 0 for 1 at the plate.

Kevin Plawecki was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.

The Ugly:

Xander Bogaerts was 0 for 3 with a strikeout but walked and scored.

Christian Arroyo was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout but scored a run.

Final Thoughts:

This year has been a pile of garbage but its always good to beat the Yankees. Not only did the Sox walkoff the Yankees, they hung a blown save on phenom Clay Holmes. He was this year's Joba Chamberlain and that was the first big blemish on his record. Good to see Pham get his moment in the sun as the new additions haven't been bad so far. Hosmer got the big rbi in their last win and now Pham gets the winning hit. If only the pitching would come around consistently the year might not be over just yet. Beating the AL East for once would help. The win improved the Sox to 56-58, good for last place in the AL East. The Sox look to make it three wins in a row and second straight against the Yankees tomorrow night when Kutter Crawford takes the hill against Frankie Montas of New York. The game begins at 7:10 PM at Fenway Park.

Royals Walkoff Red Sox (8/6/22)

Just when you think the Boston Red Sox have hit rock bottom they invent new ways to lose. The Sox have dropped their second game in three days against the pathetic Kansas City Royals as they let the hapless saps walk them off. The Sox and Royals battled to a 4-4 tie thanks to home runs by MJ Melendez of KC and Bobby Dalbec of Boston. The Sox also got a home run from Alex Verdugo to help but the Sox blew a rally in the top of the eighth inning. Garrett Whitlock (2-2, 3.08 ERA) shut down the Royals for almost three innings....almost. After getting the first two outs of the bottom of the ninth, Whitlock served up a walkoff home run to Nick Pratto to end the game. The Royals had won it 5-4 at Kauffman Stadium.

                                                                       Dammit

Daniel Lynch got the ball to start the top of the first and Tommy Pham led off by grounding back to the mound to start. Rafael Devers flied out to left and Xander Bogaerts grounded out to short to end the inning. The Royals wasted no time getting to Eovaldi in the bottom of the first as MJ Melendez hit a home run all the way to St. Louis on the first pitch to put KC on top. Bobby Witt Jr grounded out to third, Salvador Perez flied out to left and Vinnie Pasquantino grounded out to first to end the inning with KC up 1-0.

                                                                Royals take the lead

The Sox got lucky in the top of the second although Alex Verdugo took strike three to start. JD Martinez doubled to right and Christian Arroyo got a base hit to right to move JD to third. Dalbec hit a perfect double play ball to Witt...BOOTED FOR AN ERROR! Martinez scored to tie the game but Jaylin Davis flied out to center. A wild pitch moved both runners over but Kevin Plawecki grounded out to second to end the inning with the game tied 1-1.

                                                       Dalbec gets lucky

Hunter Dozier got a base hit to center to start the bottom of the second but Nick Pratto banged into a double play. Michael A Taylor flied out to center to end the inning.

Pham struck out swinging to start the top of the third before Devers popped up to short. Bogaerts lined out to right to end the inning. The Royals struck again to start the bottom of the third as Kyle Isbel singled to left to start. Nicky Lopez singled to center to move Isbel to third before he swiped second. Melendez struck out swinging but Witt Jr got a base hit to center to score both runners. Perez singled to right to move Witt to third but all Salvador could do was go to second on the fly out to left by Pasquantino. Dozier struck out swinging to end the inning with the Royals up 3-1.

                                                        Witt Jr puts the Royals on top

The Sox answered in the top of the fourth as Verdugo flied out to center to start. Martinez also flied out to center but Arroyo got a base hit to center. Dalbec then smashed his 11th home run of the season to tie the game. Davis got a base hit to center but Plawecki grounded out to short to end the inning with the game tied 3-3.

                                                            Dalbec goes yard

The Royals wasted no time getting the lead back in the bottom of the fourth as Pratto struck out swinging to start. Taylor grounded out to short but Isbel hit a home run all the way to the forest moon of Endor to put KC back on top. Lopez lined out to short to end the inning with the Royals up 4-3.

                                               Isbel puts the Royals back on top

The Sox swung at air in the top of the fifth as Pham went down hacking to start. Devers took strike three right down the middle and Bogaerts struck out swinging to end the inning. Melendez grounded out to first to start the bottom of the fifth before Witt Jr took strike three. Perez struck out swinging to end the inning. 

The Sox struck back in the top of the sixth as Verdugo launched his 7th home run of the season to start. Martinez struck out swinging but Arroyo singled in the hole at third. Dalbec flied out to right and Arroyo swiped third....but wait! Royals manager Mike Matheny challenged that Arroyo was out and sure enough, the call was overturned to end the inning with the game tied 4-4.

                                                    Verdugo ties it up

Pasquantino took strike three to start the bottom of the sixth and Dozier grounded out to third. Pratto struck out swinging to end the inning. That was it for Eovaldi who allowed 4 runs in just 6 innings of work along with 7 hits. He could have been better.

                                                      Mediocre performance by Eovaldi

Taylor Clarke came in to pitch the top of the seventh and Jarren Duran pinch hit for Davis. Duran struck out swinging, Plawecki lined out to center and Pham took strike three to end the inning. Garrett Whitlock came in to pitch the bottom of the seventh and Taylor struck out looking to start. Isbel popped up to first and Lopez grounded out to short to end the inning.

Scott Barlow came in to pitch the top of the eighth and Devers struck out swinging to start. Bogaerts was retired on a nubber in front of the plate but Verdugo got a base hit to center. Martinez walked but Arroyo forced JD at second to end the inning. Melendez popped up to third to start the bottom of the eighth and Witt Jr flied out to right. Perez grounded out to short to end the inning.

Dylan Coleman came in to pitch the top of the ninth and Dalbec grounded back to the mound to start. Duran grounded out to short and Plawecki grounded out to second to end the inning. Whitlock came back for the bottom of the ninth and Pasquantino popped up to short to begin. Dozier lined out to center and Whitlock had 2 strikes on Pratto.....then gave up a walkoff home run just over the head of Duran to win the game. The Royals had walked it off 5-4.

                                                           Royals win

Jackass of the Night is Kevin Plawecki. He was 0 for 4 including killing a rally early in the game that might have prevented Whitlock serving up the jack to Pratto in the ninth.

                                                         Nice going, Jackass

The Good:

Alex Verdugo was 2 for 4 with a home run.

JD Martinez was 1 for 3 with a walk and a run scored.

Christian Arroyo was 3 for 4 with a run scored.

Jaylin Davis was 1 for 2.

The Bad:

Tommy Pham was 0 for 4 with a hat trick of 3 strikeouts.

Rafael Devers was 0 for 4 with 2 strikeouts.

Xander Bogaerts was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.

Jarren Duran was 0 for 2 with a strikeout.

The Ugly:

Bobby Dalbec was just 1 for 4 but drove in 3 runs, 2 of them courtesy of a 2 run home run.

Nathan Eovaldi got tagged for four runs in 6 innings, allowing 7 hits while striking out 7.

Garrett Whitlock took the loss but allowed just the home run in 2 2/3 innings.

Final Thoughts:

Its not their year...its just not....their...year. The Red Sox seem to invent new ways to lose and today was one of them. The Royals looked like they were going down but the Sox just couldn't deliver the knockout punch. Kevin Plawecki failing in the second inning, Arroyo failing in the seventh inning and the top of the order's utter uselessness. Pham, Devers and Bogaerts were a combined 0 for 12 with 6 strikeouts, that's not going to cut it. Eovaldi was perfectly mediocre in this game but Whitlock was outstanding right until the fateful pitch to Pratto. Its a gutwrenching loss you can't really blame Whitlock for being in a position he shouldn't have been in. The only silver lining is the Sox are somehow, someway still in striking distance of the Toronto Blue Jays for the wild card. If they could win 7 out of 8 games moving forward they just might gain some ground enough to be considered a threat. Who knows if that will happen. The loss dropped the Sox to 54-55, 6 games behind the Blue Jays for the wild card. The Sox look to even the series tomorrow afternoon against the Royals when Kutter Crawford (3-3) takes on Brad Keller of Kansas City. The game begins at 2:10 PM Eastern time at Kauffman Stadium.

Vazquez Traded, Sox Defeat Astros (8/1/22)

After weeks of speculation, the rumors of the Boston Red Sox being sellers were absolutely true. The first to go was incumbent catcher Christian Vazquez and struggling reliever Jake Diekman. Vazquez was shipped out to tonight's opponent Houston Astros in exchange for 23 year old outfielder Wilyer Abreu who's hitting .249 with 15 home runs in AA and 23 year old slugger Enmanuel Valdez who's hitting .327 with 21 home runs between AA and AAA this season. Chaim Bloom has had almost zero success in his trades the last 3 years so we fully expect for Abreu to be mediocre in AA and Valdez to fall flat on his face in Worcester just like Nick Yorke, Tyreqe Reed and Joe Davis has done. The Sox also managed to dump Jake Diekman on the Chicago White Sox for a player to be named and catcher Reese McGuire....the same McGuire who was arrested for jacking off in public two years ago. If McGuire wasn't enough bad press, the Sox topped it by sending a player to be named to the Cincinnati Reds for noted hot-head Tommy Pham. Giving up the beloved Vazquez for McGuire and Pham may save owner John Henry a few bucks but PR is going to have a nightmare explaining this. To replace Vazquez and Diekman, the Sox activated Rich Hill off the injured list and promoted catcher Ronaldo Hernandez from Worcester.

                                                                     OUT

                                                                   IN

As for the game, somehow the rag-tag Sox defeated the American League champion Astros just minutes after Christian Vazquez was traded to them. Nathan Eovaldi (5-3, 4.11 ERA) pitched his best game in months, holding the Astros to 2 unearned runs in 6 1/3 gutty innings. After the awful Sox defense turned a 1-0 lead into a 2-1 deficit, Jarren Duran stepped up with a two run home run in the fifth inning to put Boston on top. John Schreiber and Tanner Houck stepped up the rest of the way to lead the Sox to a hard fought 3-2 victory over the Astros at Minute Maid Park.

                                                          Bruno Madrigal approves of the win

Luis Garcia got the ball in the top of the first inning as Jarren Duran flied out to center to start. Xander Bogaerts flied out to center and Alex Verdugo took strike three right down the middle to end the inning.  Eovaldi got the ball in the bottom of the first and Jose Altuve lined out to third to start. Yuli Gurriel effortlessly doubled to center and moved to third on the Yordan Alvarez grounder to second. Somehow Aledmys Diaz grounded out to third to end the inning.

JD Martinez flied out to right to start the top of the second inning before Christian Arroyo flied out to right as well. Franchy Cordero struck out swinging to end the inning. Kyle Tucker grounded out to first to start the bottom of the second before Jeremy Pena flied out to center. Chas McCormick walked and Jake Meyers got a base hit to left, but Martin Maldonado struck out swinging to end the inning.

The Sox struck first in the top of the third inning as Bobby Dalbec got a double to left to start Yolmer Sanchez popped up to first and Kevin Plawecki flied out to right, but Duran hit a ground rule double down the right field line to score Dalbec. A wild pitch moved Duran to third but Bogaerts struck out swinging to end the inning with the Sox up 1-0.

                                                            Duran drives in a run

The Sox defense reared its ugly head in the bottom of the third as Altuve hit a routine grounder to Arroyo who picked up the third base bag and threw it at the ball for an error. Gurriel hit a routine grounder to Bogaerts who picked up the second base bag and used it as a shield on the ball for another error to put runners at the corners. Alvarez hit a sac fly to left to score Altuve and Diaz doubled to left to score Gurriel to put the Astros on top. Tucker walked but Pena flied out to right and McCormick flied out to center to end the inning with the Astros ahead 2-1.

                                                                  A comedy of errors

Verdugo got a base hit to center to start the top of the fourth but Martinez banged into a double play. Arroyo got a base hit to right and Cordero grounded back to the mound to end the inning. Eovaldi recovered in the bottom of the fourth as Meyers popped up to first to start. Maldonado grounded out to short and Altuve grounded out to third to end the inning.

The Sox struck back in the top of the fifth as Dalbec walked to start. Sanchez struck out swinging and Plawecki flied out to left, but Duran clobbered his second home run of the year to put the Sox on top. Bogaerts flied out to left to end the inning with Boston ahead 3-2.

                                                        Duran stepping it up tonight

Gurriel grounded out to short to start the bottom of the fifth but Alvarez took strike three. Diaz took strike three as well to end the inning.

Verdugo popped up to third to start the top of the sixth but Martinez got a base hit to left. Arroyo flied out to center and Cordero grounded out to second to end the inning. Tucker grounded out to first to start the bottom of the fifth before Pena struck out swinging. McCormick also went down hacking to end the inning.

Dalbec took strike three to start the top of the seventh before Sanchez flied out to left. Plawecki grounded out to first to end the inning. Meyers took strike three to start the bottom of the seventh but Maldonado got a base hit to right to chase Eovladi. Nathan pitched his best game in over a month by allowing no earned runs in 6 1/3 innings. John Schreiber came in and got Altuve to ground into a double play to end the inning.

                                                                        Eovaldi gets it done

Phil Maton came in to pitch the top of the eighth and Duran grounded back to the mound to begin. Bogaerts struck out swinging and Verdugo took strike three to end the inning. Gurriel struck out swimnging to start the bottom of the eighth but Alvarez walked. Diaz got a base hit to right and both runners moved over on the Tucker grounder to the mound. With the game on the line, Pena was caught looking for strike three to end the inning.

Rafael Montero came in to pitch the top of the ninth and Martinez struck out swinging to start. Arroyo lined out to center and Cordero flied out to right to end the inning. If it wasn't for Duran's heroics the Sox would have been shut-out again. Jackie Bradley Jr took over in right with Tanner Houck in to close out the bottom of the ninth. McCormick grounded out to short and JJ Matijevic pinch hit for Meyers. Matijevic struck out swinging and Taylor Jones pinch hit for Maldonado. Maldonado grounded out to short to end the game. The Sox had won it 3-2.

                                                             Sox win

Hero of the Night is Jarren Duran. He drove in all three runs the Sox scored including the two run home run to put them on top.

                                                          Duran the Hero

The Good:

Bobby Dalbec was 1 for 2 with a walk and 2 runs scored.

Nathan Eovaldi got the win with 6 1/3 innings of 2 run ball. Neither run was earned and he allowed 5 hits and 2 walks while striking out 6.

John Schreiber tossed 1 2/3 scoreless innings.

Tanner Houck earned his seventh save with a scoreless ninth inning.

The Bad:

Xander Bogaerts was 0 for 4 with 2 strikeouts with an error.

Franchy Cordero was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.

Yolmer Sanchez was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.

Kevin Plawecki was 0 for 3.

The Ugly:

Alex Verdugo was just 1 for 4 with 2 strikeouts.

JD Martinez was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout.

Christian Arroyo was just 1 for 4 with an error.

Honorable Mention:

Jackie Bradley Jr played right field in the bottom of the ninth.

Final Thoughts:

Good win but it looks like the Sox are going to be sellers at the deadline. Trading one of the only guys with value in Vazquez and bringing in sub-par talent such as McGuire and Pham to play out the string is a dead giveaway that more moves are on the horizon. It looks like Xander Bogaerts is safe but JD Martinez is the top name on the trading block. He's pretty much said his goodbyes through social media if this is the end so its just a question of what they get back in return. With the trio of Schreiber, Houck and Whitlock nailing down the later innings, another bullpen arm could be the target if they unload Martinez. As for tonight's game, that was a pretty good win. Eovaldi tossed his best game since coming off the Injured List and Duran stepped it up tonight. The Sox committed more errors but Arroyo is not a third baseman and shouldn't be in there. Even the Sox mood isn't good as some of the players grumbled after the game. Good! I hope they get mad at how they played in July that took them from the top wild card spot to last place in the AL East. Maybe they need to get nasty in order to fight back after they humiliated themselves in July. There's one day left until the deadline so it'll be interesting to see what happens tomorrow and who stays or who goes. The win improved the Sox to 52-52, 3 games behind the Seattle Mariners for the third wild card. The Sox look to make it three wins in a row tomorrow night against Houston when they send rookie Kutter Crawford (2-3, 4.15 ERA) to the mound against Cristian  Javier of the Astros. The game begins at 8:10 PM Eastern time at Minute Maid Park.