Chris Sale strikes out 10 as Red Sox top Phillies, 5-3, for seventh straight win

The Red Sox kicked off a five-game road trip with a series-opening win over the Phillies on Friday night. Boston defeated Philadelphia by a final score of 5-3 at Citizens Bank Park to extend its winning streak to seven and improve to 20-14 on the season.

With Zack Wheeler starting for the Phillies, the Sox drew first blood in the top of the first inning. Raimel Tapia led off by reaching second base on a 333-foot flyball to left field that was dropped by old friend Kyle Schwarber. He then advanced to third on a Masataka Yoshida groundout and scored the first run of the game on a sharply-hit RBI single off the bat of Rafael Devers.

Two innings later, Tapia and Yoshida led off with back-to-back singles to put runners on the corners. Turner followed by plating Tapia on an RBI groundout. Enrique Hernandez then put Boston up, 3-0, on a two-out single that brought in Yoshida.

Chris Sale, meanwhile, was in the midst of his seventh start of the season for the Red Sox. The left-hander impressed out of the gate by piling up strikeouts over three scoreless frames. The fourth inning was a bit of a different story, however.

Trailing 3-0, Bryce Harper led off with an infield single that Sale could not field cleanly and immediately scored all the way from first on a Nick Castellanos RBI double that rolled down the left field line. J.T. Realmuto followed with an extra-base hit of his own and pushed across Castellanos with a run-scoring triple. Alec Bohm then drove in Realmuto on a single to pull the Phillies back even with the Sox at three runs apiece.

It appeared that Philadelphia may have had Sale on the ropes after Bohm took second base on a wild pitch. But the lefty did not falter and instead stranded Bohm at second by getting Josh Harrison to ground out and both Edmundo Sosa and Dalton Guthrie to punch out. He struck out two more in the bottom of the fifth, paving the way for Boston to break the tie in the sixth.

A leadoff double from Jarren Duran immediately put a runner in scoring position for Hernandez, who lofted a bloop single to center field to put runners at first and third. Triston Casas then brought in the speedy Duran with a 401-foot flyout to deep center. Following a Phillies pitching change, Enmanuel Valdez greeted new reliever Connor Brogdon with an RBI single through the right side of the infield.

Valdez gave the Red Sox a 5-3 lead, which is where the score would remain. Sale ended his night by putting up another zero in the latter half of the sixth. So the 34-year-old southpaw wound up allowing just the three earned runs on seven hits, one walk, and one hit batsman to go along with 10 strikeouts over six quality innings of work. He reached 99 mph with his four-seam fastball, finished with 98 pitches (69 strikes), and induced 17 swings-and-misses en route to picking up his third winning decision of the year.

With Sale’s day done, Richard Bleier received the first call out of the Boston bullpen from manager Alex Cora. The lefty worked his way around a two-out single in an otherwise clean frame before making way for Chris Martin, who made quick work of the Phillies in the bottom of the eighth.

Taking a 5-3 lead into the ninth, Kenley Jansen made his first appearance since tweaking his back at Fenway Park last Saturday. Jansen made things somewhat interesting by issuing a one-out single and walk to bring the potential winning run to the plate. Like Sale, though, Jansen did not buckle. He instead responded to the challenge by fanning Schwarber and Trea Turner to seal the win and notch the 398th save of his career.

Yoshida extends hitting streak

With his third-inning single, Masataka Yoshida extended his hitting streak to 15 games, which is the longest active streak in the majors.

Game delayed due to medical emergency

In the top of the first inning, the game was delayed for approximately 10 minutes after a fan fell into the visitors’ bullpen. That fan, who was trying to retrieve a ball that was thrown to him, was carted off in a stretcher and taken to a local hospital.

Next up: Kluber vs. Falter

Looking for their eighth straight win, the Red Sox will aim to take this series from the Phillies on Saturday night. Right-hander Corey Kluber will get the start for Boston opposite left-hander Bailey Falter for Philadelphia.

First pitch from Citizens Bank Park is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. eastern time on FOX.

(Picture of Chris Sale: Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)

Red Sox pitching prospect C.J. Liu throws seven-inning no-hitter for Double-A Portland

Red Sox pitching prospect Chih-Jung “C.J.” Liu threw a seven-inning no-hitter in Game 1 of Double-A Portland’s doubleheader against the Akron RubberDucks on Friday night.

Making his fifth start of the season for Portland on the road at Canal Park, Liu walked just two and struck out six over seven scoreless, no-hit frames. The right-hander took a bid for a perfect game into the bottom of the third before issuing a two-out walk to Connor Kokx. He then retired the next eight batters he faced before giving up another free pass to Kokx with out in the sixth.

Liu once again stranded Kokx at first base by recording back-to-back strikeouts of Julian Escobedo and Angel Martinez. He preserved the no-hit effort by sitting by inducing one groundout and two flyouts in a 1-2-3 seventh inning.

All told, Liu sat down 21 of the 23 RubberDucks hitters he faced on 91 pitches (48 strikes). With Stephen Scott handling catching duties, the 24-year-old hurler induced 12 swings-and-misses and earned the winning decision with the first complete game shutout of his professional career.

Liu becomes the second Sea Dogs pitcher in franchise history to throw a complete game, seven-inning no-hitter. Brayan Bello, who is now with the Red Sox, first accomplished the feat at Hadlock Field exactly one year ago Friday.

Through five starts with the Sea Dogs to begin the 2023 season, Liu has posted a 3.65 ERA and 1.22 WHIP with 29 strikeouts to 11 walks over 24 2/3 innings of work. Opponents are hitting just .216 against him.

A native of Taiwan, Liu originally signed with the Red Sox for $750,000 as an international free agent coming out Tainan City in October 2019. He was considered to be a switch-hitting two-way player at that time but has since been converted into a full-time pitcher. Liu did not name his pro debut until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and closed out the 2022 campaign with Portland after earning a late-season promotion from High-A Greenville.

Listed at 6-feet and 185 pounds, Liu throws from a three-quarters arm slot and operates with a four-pitch mix that consists of a 93-95 mph fastball that tops out at 98 mph, an 80-82 mph changeup, an 83-86 mph slider, and a 78-80 mph curveball, per his SoxProspects.com scouting report.

Liu, who just turned 24 in April, is currently regarded by SoxProspects.com as the No. 58 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks 24th among pitchers in the organization. He can become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft for the first time in his career later this year if he is not added to the Sox’ 40-man roster by the deadline to do so in November.

(Picture of C.J. Liu: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox acquire reliever Zack Littell in minor trade with Rangers

The Red Sox have acquired right-handed reliever Zack Littell from the Rangers in exchange for cash considerations, according to MLB.com’s Kennedi Landry.

Littell had been with Texas’ Triple-A affiliate in Round Rock and was not the club’s 40-man roster. The 27-year-old will report to Triple-A Worcester in the coming days, per MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo.

A former 11th-round draft selection of the Mariners out of Eastern Alamance High School (N.C.) in 2013, Littell made his major-league debut for the Twins at the age of 22 in 2018. He spent parts of three seasons in Minnesota, pitching to a 4.52 ERA in 43 appearances (two starts) spanning 63 2/3 innings of work.

Littell was outrighted off the Twins’ 40-man roster at the conclusion of the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign and signed a minor-league contract with the Giants the following February. The righty enjoyed a breakout year in 2021 by posting a 2.92 ERA over a career-high 63 appearances (two starts, 61 2/3) innings) for San Francisco. He then fell back to earth in 2022 (5.08 ERA in 44 1/3 innings) and most notably got in a heated argument with manager Gabe Kapler after getting pulled from a game last September.

The Giants subsequently parted ways with Littell in November, which allowed him to sign a minors pact with the Rangers earlier this spring. For his career, Littel owns a lifetime 4.08 ERA with 151 strikeouts to 60 walks across 145 outings (four starts) and 169 2/3 innings at the major-league level. Ahead of Friday’s trade, he had forged a 2.25 ERA with 16 strikeouts to two walks in eight relief appearances (12 innings) for Round Rock to begin the 2023 season.

Listed at 6-foot-4 and 220 pounds, Littell operates with a three-pitch mix that consists of a mid-90s four-seam fastball, a high-80s slider, and a mid-80s splitter, per Baseball Savant. The North Carolina native should provide the Red Sox with some emergency bullpen depth in Worcester alongside the likes of Taylor Broadway, Jake Faria, Justin Garza, Andrew Politi, and Ryan Sheriff, among others.

As things stand now, the Red Sox currently have four relievers on the injured list in Kutter Crawford, Zack Kelly, Wyatt Mills, and Joely Rodriguez. Crawford was placed on the 15-day injured list because of a left hamstring strain earlier Friday afternoon. Kaleb Ort was recalled from Worcester to take his place on the big-league roster for the time being.

(Picture of Zack Littel: Ben Ludeman/Texas Rangers/Getty Images)

Red Sox place Kutter Crawford on 15-day injured list with left hamstring strain, recall Kaleb Ort from from Triple-A Worcester

The Red Sox have placed right-hander Kutter Crawford on the 15-day injured list with a left hamstring strain, the club announced prior to Friday’s series opener against the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. In a corresponding move, fellow reliever Kaleb Ort was recalled from Triple-A Worcester.

Crawford strained his left hamstring in the ninth inning of Wednesday night’s 8-3 win over the Blue Jays. Perhaps it was due to pitching in wet and rainy conditions at Fenway Park, but the 27-year-old hurler appeared to be in visible discomfort after retiring Alejandro Kirk.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora was optimistic that Crawford would be able to avoid a stint on the injured list but that is no longer the case. Crawford, who was in Boston’s Opening Day rotation to begin the year, has since emerged as a versatile multi-inning reliever alongside Josh Winckowski.

Including Wednesday’s injury-shortened outing, Crawford has posted a 1.08 ERA and 3.66 FIP with 12 strikeouts to just one walk in five relief appearances (16 2/3 innings) dating back to April 13. He currently ranks in the 95th percentile in walk rate (2.9 percent) and the 98th percentile in chase rate (39.5 percent), per Baseball Savant.

Because his stint on the injured list was backdated to May 4, Crawford will not be eligible to be activated until May 19 at the earliest. In the meantime, Cora and Co. will need to find a way to cover the innings he would have been responsible for out of the bullpen.

Ort, meanwhile, was optioned to Worcester this past Sunday as a corresponding move for the activation of Chris Martin. The 31-year-old did not appear in a game for the WooSox and is now back with the big-league club less than a week after getting sent down.

After making his first career Opening Day back in March, Ort got his 2023 season off a tough start by posting a 7.30 ERA and 6.28 FIP with 12 strikeouts to six walks in 12 relief appearances (12 1/3 innings). He surrendered five runs (four earned) to the Orioles on April 25. Opponents are now batting .308/.383/.577 against him.

As those numbers indicate, Ort has struggled when it comes to missing bats so far this year. According to Baseball Savant, the hard-throwing righty ranks in the second percentile of all big-league pitchers in whiff rate (15.7 percent), the 21st percentile in chase rate (24 percent), the 35th percentile in barrel rate (9.3 percent), and the 37th percentile in hard-hit rate (41.9 percent). Not ideal.

With that being said, the Red Sox still remain intrigued by Ort’s arsenal, which at present consists of a mid-90s four-seam fastball, a mid-80s slider, and a low-90s changeup. Pitching coach Dave Bush alluded to as much when speaking with reporters (including MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith) last weekend.

“A lot of it is command,” Bush said. “Being able to put the ball where he wants to. We do like the stuff. We still like it. The fastball quality’s there. The slider shape is good. At times, the changeup has been a really effective pitch for him. But the command has been off. Pitching behind in the count and putting too many guys on base.

“The message we sent to him is to get down and work on his delivery so he can throw the ball where he wants to,” added Bush. “Because we do like the stuff. The stuff is still big. He’s still a power guy. But he has to command the ball where he wants to and throw more strikes. That was the directive when he went down and there’s some things to work on in Worcester to get back to being the guy we know he can be.”

(Picture of Kutter Crawford: Omar Rawlings/Getty Images)

Red Sox tally season-high 16 hits, complete four-game sweep of Blue Jays with 11-5 win

The Red Sox won three games against the Blue Jays all of last season. They surpassed that total by completing a four-game sweep of their division rivals on a chilly Thursday night at Fenway Park.

Aided by a five-run second inning and a solid start from Brayan Bello, Boston defeated Toronto by a final score of 11-5. With the victory, the Red Sox extended their winning streak to six and improved to 19-14 to get to five games over .500 for the first time this season.

After dominating the Red Sox to the tune of a 2.65 ERA in six starts (34 innings) last year, Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman did not have the same kind of fortune this time around. The Boston bats instead throttled the veteran right-hander for eight runs in just 3 2/3 innings.

Masataka Yoshida, who signed with the Red Sox as a free agent over the winter, introduced himself to Gausman by opening the scoring in the first inning with a 400-foot solo shot into the home bullpen. By hitting his sixth home run of the season, Yoshida extended his hitting streak to 14 consecutive games, which is the longest in the majors.

An inning later, Triston Casas and Enmanuel Valdez both reached base to put runners on the corners with one out. Reese McGuire drove in Casas by blooping a softly-hit RBI single to center field and Raimel Tapia brought in Valdez by beating out a would-be double play. Tapia then stole second base and advanced to third on a wild pitch before scoring his side’s fourth run on a Yoshida RBI single that snuck under the glove of second baseman Cavan Biggio.

Justin Turner followed with a base hit of his own to put runners at first and third for Rafael Devers, who laced a 110.9 mph two-run double down the right field line. Both Yoshida and Turner scored on Boston’s seventh hit of the inning, which made it a 6-0 contest going into the third.

The Red Sox maintained that six-run lead through three innings. With one out in the top of the fourth, starter Brayan Bello served up a towering solo blast to fellow countryman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. It did not take long for Boston to respond, though, as Tapia doubled to lead off the bottom half of the inning and came into score on another RBI single from Yoshida.

Yoshida effectively knocked Gausman out of the game with his third hit of the night. Jarren Duran then plated Yoshida with a run-scoring single off new Blue Jays reliever Tim Mayza to put the Sox up, 8-1.

Bello, however, ran into some trouble in the fifth that may have stemmed from a blister on his right index finger that also bothered him in his last time out. After allowing just one run through the first four innings on Thursday, the young righty issued a one-out walk to Kevin Kiermaier. George Springer followed by reaching base on a Devers fielding error. Bo Bichette pushed across Kiermaier with an RBI single before Guerrero Jr. doubled in Springer. Daulton Varsho then brought in Bichette on a sacrifice fly to cut the deficit to four runs at 8-4.

The fifth inning proved to be Bello’s last. The 23-year-old hurler wound up yielding four runs (two earned) on six hits, one walk, and five strikeouts. He finished with 87 pitches (54 strikes) and was later credited with his first winning decision of the year.

In relief of Bello, Brennan Bernardino received the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen from manager Alex Cora. The lefty retired the side in order in the sixth and recorded the first out of the seventh before making way for John Schreiber, who needed all of 16 pitches (14 strikes) to get out of the inning and put up a zero in the eighth as well.

Turner provided some insurance in the bottom of the eighth with a hard-hit RBI single that scored Tapia. Devers then broke things open by cranking a 408-foot two-run shot to deep right field off reliever Zach Pop for his American League-leading 11th home run of the season and the 150th of his career.

Ryan Brasier surrendered one run on two hits and one walk in the ninth, but ultimately closed it out to put the finishing touches on an 11-5 win and a four-game series sweep.

Boston’s Nos. 2-5 hitters (Yoshida, Turner, Devers, and Duran) each had three hits. McGuire had two while Tapia and Casas each had one as the Red Sox surpassed their season-high in hits with 16 as a team.

Next up: Sale vs. Wheeler in Philly

Coming off a 6-1 homestand, the Red Sox will now hit the road for a two-city, five-game road trip. They will first travel to Philadelphia and open a three-game weekend series against the reigning National League champion Phillies on Friday night.

Left-hander Chris Sale is expected to get the start for Boston in Friday’s series opener opposite Philadelphia right-hander Zach Wheeler.

First pitch from Citizens Bank Park is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Rafael Devers and Justin Turner: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Shane Drohan named Eastern League Pitcher of the Month for April

Red Sox pitching prospect Shane Drohan has unsurprisingly been named the Eastern League Pitcher of the Month for the month of April, Minor League Baseball announced on Thursday.

In his first four starts of the season for Double-A Portland, Drohan has posted a miniscule 0.78 ERA and 1.53 FIP to go along with 26 strikeouts to just four walks over 23 innings of work. The left-hander is currently holding opposing hitters to a .163 batting average against.

Among 32 qualified Eastern League pitchers, Drohan ranks 10th in strikeouts per nine innings (10.17), second in walks per nine innings (1.57), fourth in strikeout rate (30.6 percent), second in swinging-strike rate (17.3 percent), second in walk rate (4.7 percent), first in batting average against, first in WHIP (0.74), second in ERA, first in FIP, and fourth in xFIP (2.79), per FanGraphs.

Drohan, 24, was originally selected by the Red Sox in the fifth round of the COVID-shortened 2020 amateur draft out of Florida State. The Fort Lauderdale native signed with the club for $600,000 and has since emerged as one of the more intriguing pitching prospects in the organization.

After closing out the 2022 campaign in Portland, Drohan made an effort to put on weight during the offseason. He came into the spring listed at 6-foot-2, 190 pounds and impressed at camp by displaying a newly-implemented cutter as well as a fastball with increased velocity.

Per SoxProspects.com’s director of scouting Ian Cundall, Drohan now sits between 92-94 mph and tops out at 96 mph with his heater after averaging 90.8 mph with the offering last year. In addition to the cutter, the southpaw also operates with an 83-76 mph changeup and 75-89 mph curveball.

Given the uptick in velocity and strong start to the season, Drohan is now regarded by SoxProspects.com as the No. 5 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks tops among all of the club’s young pitchers. He is slated to make his fifth start of the year for the Sea Dogs in Erie on Thursday night.

With that being said, Drohan could soon be in line for a promotion to Triple-A Worcester if he continues to impress with Portland. Although he does not turn 25 until next January, Drohan can become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft for the first time in his career later this year. As things stand now, he has already made a legitimate case to be added to the Sox’ 40-man roster in November.

(Picture of Shane Drohan: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox’ Kutter Crawford day-to-day after leaving Wednesday’s game with left hamstring tightness

UPDATE: Prior to Thursday’s series finale, Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters (including The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier) that Kutter Crawford is day-to-day with tightness in his left hamstring. The right-hander will avoid the injured list for now.

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Red Sox reliever Kutter Crawford left the ninth inning of Wednesday night’s 8-3 win over the Blue Jays with left hamstring tightness, the club announced.

Crawford entered Wednesday’s contest in the top of the eighth. The right-hander yielded a two-out single and walk before getting Daulton Varsho to ground out to escape the jam. He then came back out for the ninth and got leadoff man Alejandro Kirk to ground out to second base on the 12th pitch of a lengthy at-bat.

After retiring Kirk, it became clear that Crawford — who was pitching in cold and rainy conditions at Fenway Park — was in discomfort as he flexed and grabbed at his left hamstring. That prompted Red Sox manager Alex Cora and head athletic trainer Brandon Henry to emerge from the home dugout and check up on him.

Following a brief conference on the mound, Crawford departed with Henry and was replaced by Ryan Brasier, who recorded the final two outs of the game. When speaking with reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo) shortly thereafter, Cora indicated that the Red Sox would know more about Crawford’s condition on Thursday.

“We’ll know probably, tomorrow, what’s going on,” said Cora.

Crawford, 27, opened the 2023 season in Boston’s starting rotation but has since emerged as a valuable multi-inning reliever out of the bullpen alongside Josh Winckowski. After being called back up from Triple-A Worcester on April 13, the hard-throwing righty came into play Wednesday having posted a 1.17 ERA and 3.50 FIP with 12 strikeouts to zero walks over four relief appearances spanning 15 innings of work.

As noted by Cotillo, the Red Sox already have five pitchers on the injured list in Zack Kelly, Wyatt Mills, James Paxton, Joely Rodriguez, and Garrett Whitlock. All three of Paxton, Rodriguez, and Whitlock are on the verge of returning to action, though.

(Picture of Kutter Crawford and Brandon Henry: Omar Rawlings/Getty Images)

Nick Pivetta settles in after shaky start as Red Sox top Blue Jays, 8-3, behind season-high 15 hits

The Red Sox once again rallied to earn a series victory over the Blue Jays on a rainy and chilly Wednesday night at Fenway Park. Behind a season-high 15 hits, Boston defeated Toronto by a final score of 8-3 to extend its winning streak to five and improve to 18-14 on the year.

Nick Pivetta, making his fourth start of the season for the Sox, allowed three runs on five hits and one walk to go along with six strikeouts over six quality innings of work.

Because the wind was blowing in from center field on Wednesday, Pivetta was able to avoid any serious damage in the top of the first despite consistently giving up hard contact. The same cannot be said for the second inning, as Daulton Varsho led it off by taking the right-hander 399 feet deep to right field for his second home run in as many nights.

An inning later, Pivetta served up a towering 450-foot solo shot to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. that cleared the Green Monster and had an exit velocity of 110 mph. Guerrero Jr.’s sixth home run of the season gave the Blue Jays a 2-0 lead going into the fourth.

That is when the Red Sox finally got on the board. Rafael Devers singled on a 112.5 mph line drive that deflected off Jays starter Alek Manoah and then moved up to second on a throwing error. A wild pitch from Manoah allowed Devers to move up to third before Jarren Duran drove him in with an RBI double. Duran took third after Manoah unsuccessfully tried to pick him off at second base and scored on a game-tying RBI single from Triston Casas that knotted things up at two runs apiece.

In the fifth, Kevin Kiermaier led off with a double and advanced to third on a George Springer flyout. With Bo Bichette at the plate, Pivetta allowed the then-go-ahead run to cross the plate on a controversial balk that drew the ire of both the righty and Red Sox manager Alex Cora. Though Toronto had just re-taken the lead at the midway point, it did not take long for Boston to respond.

With one out in the bottom of the fifth, Masataka Yoshida reached base on a throwing error committed by Santiago Espinal. Justin Turner followed with a hard-hit double and Duran was hit by a pitch to fill the bases with two outs. For the second time in as many at-bats, Casas delivered with a game-tying single through the left side of the infield that pushed across Yoshida. Fellow rookie Enmanuel Valdez kept the line moving by lacing a grounder that ate up Guerrero Jr. at first base.

Both Turner and Duran came into score as a result of Guerrero Jr.’s blunder, which was initially ruled an error but was later changed to a go-ahead, two-run single for Valdez. Pivetta preserved the Sox’ newfound 5-3 lead by retiring the final three batters he faced in the top of the sixth.

Finishing with 94 pitches (62 strikes), Pivetta induced 14 total swings-and-misses — 11 of which came on his slider. The 30-year-old hurler also earned his second winning decision of the season while lowering his ERA just below five at 4.99

With Pivetta’s night done, the Sox tacked on some insurance as the Jays began to dip into their bullpen in the latter half of the sixth. Connor Wong ripped a leadoff double, moved up to third on a groundout, and scored his side’s sixth run on a 109.6 mph line drive from Yoshida that glanced off Anthony Bass and went for an RBI single.

Following a scoreless top of the seventh from Chris Martin, Yoshida struck again by plating Enrique Hernandez on hard-hit opposite-field double. Hernandez returned the favor an inning later with a run-scoring hit of his own to give Boston a commanding 8-3 advantage heading into the ninth.

Kutter Crawford, who had already put up a zero in the eighth inning, recorded the first out of the ninth but was then forced to come out of the game with a trainer due to tightness in his left hamstring. Ryan Brasier took over for Crawford and got the final two outs of the frame to seal the win.

Yoshida extends hitting streak

With his sixth-inning single, Masataka Yoshida extended his hitting streak to 13 games, which is currently the longest active streak in the majors. Following Wednesday’s 2-for-5 showing, the 29-year-old raised his batting average on the season to .303.

In addition to Yoshida, every other member of the Sox’ starting lineup recorded at least one hit on Wednesday night. Yoshida, Turner, Valdez, and Hernandez each had two hits while Casas led the way by going 3-for-5 with two clutch RBIs.

Next up: Gausman vs. Bello

The Red Sox will go for the sweep of the Blue Jays in the finale of this four-game series on Thursday night. After going 3-16 against Toronto last season, Boston already has the chance to surpass that win total.

Brayan Bello, who dealt with a blister in his last time out, will get the start for the Red Sox. The Jays will counter with fellow right-hander Kevin Gausman.

First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 6:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Triston Casas: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Alex Verdugo regrets criticizing Alek Manoah in podcast interview

Red Sox outfielder Alex Verdugo made headlines last month for taking an unprompted shot at Blue Jays right-hander Alek Manoah. For the first time since that incident, the two are slated to face off against one another at Fenway Park on Wednesday night.

Verdugo, though, told MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo on Tuesday that he is not more excited about facing Manoah as opposed to any other pitcher. He added that he regrets taking his feelings towards Manoah public.

“I think for me, it’s just another game,” Verdugo said. “I regret saying what I did, at least to the media, because it’s something I think I should have just, man-to-man, said it to him. I feel like at some point now, I would like to have a conversation with him. I’d like to talk to him. Just me and him. Kind of clear out some air, just be professional about it.

“Obviously, he’s one of those guys who’s a good pitcher and he carries a chip on his shoulder,” continued Verdugo. “We’re just going to see what happens. For me, it’s not going to be to go up there and try to get emotional with it.”

Back on April 4, Verdugo appeared on Audacy’s “Baseball Isn’t Boring” podcast. In a one-on-one conversation with WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford, Verdugo — seemingly out of the blue — went on somewhat of a tirade about the way Manoah carries himself on the mound.

More specifically, Verdugo referenced a Manoah start at Fenway Park last July in which the righty stared down and exchanged words with Franchy Cordero and Bobby Dalbec after striking each of them out.

“I’ll say it right now, I think Alek Manoah goes about it the wrong way, 100 percent I think he does,” Verdugo told Bradford. “You can find videos of him, footage of him in Triple-A going like this to hitters. Last year, telling Franchy and Bobby like ‘go sit’ and [expletive] like that while looking right at them.”

“So it’s like, [expletive] like that just pisses me off,” he added. “It’s not the way it should be played. It should be played like you’re celebrating it with your team, you’re not [expletive] disrespecting another player who is – at the end of the day we’re just trying to compete, man, that’s it.”

It did not take long for Manoah to respond to Verdugo’s comments. He told Rob Langley of The Toronto Sun that same night: “Coming from him? I don’t give a (expletive). My job is to pitch and get guys out.”

Earlier this week, Manoah told The Boston Globe’s Julian McWilliams that he had never spoken with Verdugo and has never had a problem with him. Verdugo, for his part, said on Tuesday that while he wouldn’t take back his comments, he does wish he went about it in a different way.

“It’s not necessarily that I take back what I said because he’s good, man. When you’re good like that, you don’t need to do some of the other antics stuff that he does sometimes,” said Verdugo. “We’ve had some bad blood here and there. There are some times when I felt like it was a little bit too much and crossing the line.

“I talked to a lot of Blue Jays, a lot of guys in general who all say he’s a good teammate, a good guy,” Verdugo added. “Just when he’s on the field, he’s a different person with a different mindset out there. Part of me, I can respect that and I understand that’s what he might need to get amped up. At the same time, this game is hard, man. This game will humble you. There are a lot of things and I feel like if you go about it more the right way, you’re going to get more respect, not only from fans but from opposing players.”

Verdugo has had success against Manoah — who finished third in American League Cy Young voting last season — in the past. The 26-year-old has gone 7-for-16 (.438) with two doubles, one home run, and three RBIs in 17 career plate appearances against the Blue Jays ace. He has never been hit by a Manoah pitch and expects things to remain that way on Wednesday.

“I really don’t care about getting hit,” Verdugo said. “(Getting) hit is just extra on-base percentage. I don’t think it’s going to get to that. I don’t think we’re at that kind of beef. I still expect everybody to be professional and to go about it the right way, for him to try to make his pitches and get me out.”

Regardless of how Wednesday’s contest plays out, Verdugo is hopeful that he will be able to talk to Manoah at some point before the Blue Jays leave town for Pittsburgh on Thursday night.

“I’m not going in there being like, ‘Oh, man, we’ve got this beef going’ because at the end of the day, I want to have a one-on-one and I want to talk to him and just kind of clear the air on my side,” Verdugo said. “If he wants to accept it, then we accept it. If not, then we can continue doing what we are. I ain’t got nothing against him as a person. It’s just more some of the antics that I’ve seen against us that have rubbed me the wrong way.”

(Picture of Alex Verdugo: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Connor Wong powers Red Sox to 7-6 win over Blue Jays with first career multi-homer game

The Red Sox survived a six-run fifth inning from the Blue Jays and held on for their fourth straight win on Tuesday night. Powered by four home runs, including two from Connor Wong, Boston defeated Toronto by a final score of 7-6 at Fenway Park to improve to 17-14 on the season.

With left-hander Yusei Kikuchi starting for the Jays, the Sox opened the scoring in their half of the second inning. Following back-to-back groundouts from Enrique Hernandez and Masataka Yoshida, Christian Arroyo got his side on the board by crushing a 404-foot solo shot over the Green Monster for his first home run of the year.

An inning later, Alex Verdugo led off with his second double in as many at-bats and then scored from second on a one-out RBI single off the bat of Rob Refsnyder. In the third, Yoshida extended his hitting streak to 12 consecutive games by taking his countryman in Kikuchi 392 feet deep into Boston’s bullpen for his sixth homer of the season. The 103.1 mph blast put Boston up, 3-0, going into the fifth.

To that point in the contest, Red Sox starter Tanner Houck was cruising. The right-hander kicked off his sixth start of the year by tossing four straight scoreless frames. He than ran into some serious trouble in the top of the fifth. Back-to-back one-out singles from Danny Jansen and Kevin Kiermaier followed by a two-out walk from Bo Bichette filled the bases for Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

Guerrero Jr. came through by plating both Jansen and Kiermaier on a two-run single to left field to cut Toronto’s deficit to one. Bichette, who went from first to third on the play, then scored the tying run on a passed ball. The Blue Jays were not done there, though. After Matt Chapman singled to put runners on the corners, Daulton Varsho deposited a 406-foot three-run home run into the right field bleachers.

Just like that, the Blue Jays were in possession of a 6-3 lead. The Red Sox, however, wasted little time in responding to Toronto’s six-run rally. Verdugo was hit by a pitch and Justin Turner singled to lead off the bottom of the fifth. Refsnyder then drove in Verdugo on his second run-scoring hit of the night. Two batters later, Yoshida brought Boston back to within one run by pushing across Turner off new reliever Zach Pop.

Despite struggling in the fifth, Houck came back out for the sixth on account of the Red Sox having a short bullpen on Tuesday. He bounced back and kept the deficit at one by retiring the final three batters he faced. And so the 26-year-old wound up allowing six earned runs on six hits and three walks to go along with five strikeouts over six innings of work. Of the 96 pitches he threw, 57 went for strikes.

After Houck blanked the Jays in the top of the sixth, Wong led off the latter-half of the inning with his first homer of the night — a 368-foot laser off Pop that deflected off the top of the Monster and knotted things up at six runs apiece. Following two scoreless innings of relief from John Schreiber and lefty Richard Bleier, Wong was yet again in the spotlight.

Going up against Erik Swanson to lead off the bottom of the eighth, Wong took aim at the Green Monster once more. This time, he took a 2-1, 93.1 mph fastball down the heart of the plate and demolished it 353 feet into the first row of Monster seats. The towering blast gave the Red Sox a 7-6 edge heading into the ninth.

With closer Kenley Jansen and setup man Chris Martin not available, manager Alex Cora turned to Josh Winckowski, who had just pitched two innings on Monday. Winckowski responded to the call by working his way around a one-out single and inducing a game-ending double play. He earned the first save of his career as a result.

Wong stays hot, literally

In his first career multi-homer game, Connor Wong went a perfect 4-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs scored. He may have finished a triple shy of the cycle, but his four hits left his bat at 113.6 mph, 105.4 mph, 98.2 mph, and 105.2 mph.

Next up: Manoah vs. Pivetta

The Red Sox will look to ensure a series victory over the Blue Jays with another win on Wednesday night. Nick Pivetta is slated to get the start for Boston opposite fellow right-hander Alek Manoah for Toronto.

First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN and MLB Network.

(Picture of Connor Wong: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)