Tag: 2023 season

Kutter Crawford shines out of bullpen, but Red Sox come up just short in rain-filled 5-4 loss to Angels

On a chilly and rain-soaked Marathon Monday at Fenway Park, the Red Sox were unable to complete a four-game sweep of the Angels. Boston fell to Los Angeles by a final score of 5-4 to drop back to under .500 on the season at 8-9.

After first pitch of the annual Patriots’ Day contest was pushed back from 11:10 a.m. to 12:06 p.m., Brayan Bello made his first start of the season for the Sox. The young right-hander showed signs of rust in his 2023 debut, allowing five earned runs on eight hits, one walk, and one hit batsman to go along with five strikeouts over 2 2/3 innings of work.

Bello ran into trouble right away in the top of the first. After yielding a one-out single to Shohei Ohtani and plunking Taylor Ward to put runners at first and second, the righty served up a 355-foot three-run homer to Hunter Renfroe that cleared the Green Monster and gave the Angels an early 3-0 lead.

The Red Sox were able to get one of those runs back in the latter half of the first. Matched up against Ohtani on the mound, Raimel Tapia drew a leadoff walk before taking second and third on a pair of wild pitches. He then scored from third on an RBI groundout off the bat of Rob Refsnyder.

The Angels responded in the top of the second, though, as Bello gave up back-to-back singles to lead off the inning before yielding a run-scoring groundout to Renfroe to make it a 5-1 game. Bello came back out for the third and recorded the first outs. The skies then began to open up as a one hour and 25 minute rain delay commenced.

Since the delay lasted that long, Bello’s season debut was shorter than expected. The 23-year-old hurler finished with 72 pitches (48 strikes) and induced 10 swings-and-misses. He also averaged 95.4 and topped out at 96.9 mph with his sinker.

Once the tarpaulin was removed from the field for a second time, Kutter Crawford came on to pitch in relief of Bello. Crawford got the final out of the third and took over in an effort to preserve the rest of the Red Sox bullpen. Over 6 1/3 scoreless frames, the 27-year-old gave up just one hit and no walks while striking out five of the 21 batters he faced.

While Crawford was in the process of shutting down Angels hitters, the Red Sox struggled to get anything going offensively on the other side of the delay. In the bottom of the fourth, for instance, Rafael Devers led off with a double and Masataka Yoshida and Triston Casas filled the bases by drawing back-to-back one-out walks off lefty Tucker Davidson.

Davidson, however, did not give in. Instead, he got Enrique Hernandez to line out and Reese McGuire to fly out to escape the jam. An inning later, Jarren Duran reached base on a one-out double but was left at second after Tapia fanned and Devers grounded out to extinguish the threat.

After Crawford worked his way around a pair of throwing errors in the top of the sixth, Boston finally broke through in the bottom half of the inning. Refsnyder led off with a double and Casas ripped a one-out double off new Angels reliever Aaron Loup. Hernandez then plated Refsnyder on a sacrifice fly before McGuire drove in Casas by beating out an infield single on a feet-first slide into first base.

That sequence of events trimmed Los Angeles’ lead down to two runs at 5-3. In the seventh, Duran drew a leadoff walk off Matt Moore and immediately stole second base. Again, though, Duran was stranded in scoring position as Tapia, Devers, and Refsnyder were all retired.

Following two more scoreless innings from Crawford, the Red Sox were down to their final three outs and still trailing by two runs in the bottom of the ninth. With Carlos Estevez pitching for the Angels, Alex Verdugo came off the bench and led off with a pinch-hit single. A one-out walk from Tapia put runners at first and second for Devers, who scored Verdugo by lacing a 112.1 mph RBI single to right field.

Estevez then got Refsnyder to strike out and Yoshida to pop out to end the rally there. All told, the Red Sox went 2-for-14 with runners in scoring position and left nine runners on base as a team in Monday’s 5-4 loss, which technically took five hours and 24 minutes to complete.

McGuire throws out base stealer

With one out and runners on the corners in the top of the sixth inning, Reese McGuire threw out Shohei Ohtani at second base for his first caught stealing in 16 attempts to begin the year.

Duran’s 2023 debut

While Brayan Bello’s 2023 debut did not go according to plan,the same cannot be said for Jarren Duran. Batting out of the nine-hole and starting in center field, the speedy left-handed hitter went 1-for-3 with a double, a walk, and a stolen base.

Next up: Gray vs. Sale

The Red Sox will welcome the first-place, 10-6 Twins into town for the first of a three-game series on Tuesday night. Left-hander Chris Sale is slated to get the start for Boston opposite Minnesota right-hander Sonny Gray.

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

(Picture of Kutter Crawford: Paul Rutherford/Getty Images)

Red Sox pitching prospect Shane Drohan named Eastern League Pitcher of the Week

Red Sox pitching prospect Shane Drohan has been named the Eastern League Pitcher of the Week for the week of April 10-16, Minor League Baseball announced on Monday.

Drohan, 24, got the start for Double-A Portland this past Friday. Going up against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats at Delta Dental Stadium, the left-hander scattered just three hits and struck out six over six scoreless, walkless innings of work.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 71 (49 strikes), Drohan induced 12 swings-and-misses and ultimately earned the winning decision to improve to 2-0 on the young season.

Through his first two starts of the year for the Sea Dogs, Drohan has yet to allow a run and has posted a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 11-to-1 in 11 innings. He is holding opposing hitters to a .158 batting average against, which currently ranks seventh among qualified pitchers in the Eastern League.

Originally selected by the Red Sox in the fifth round of the COVID-shortened 2020 amateur draft out of Florida State, Drohan came into his third full professional season ranked by SoxProspects.com as the No. 12 prospect (fourth among pitchers) in Boston’s farm system after a strong showing in spring training.

As SoxProspects.com’s director of scouting Ian Cundall noted earlier this month, Drohan incorporated a new pitch (a cutter) to his arsenal over the winter while adding velocity to his fastball. The 6-foot-3, 195-pound southpaw now sits between 91-94 mph and tops out at 95 mph with his four-seamer after averaging 90.8 mph with the pitch last year. He also throws a curveball.

Drohan, who does not turn 25 until January, can become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft for the first time this winter if he is not added to Boston’s 40-man roster by the November deadline.

Given the start he has gotten off to in Portland the season , the chances of Drohan being added to the 40-man later this year are likely increasing. It also would not be too surprising if the lefty earned a promotion to Triple-A Worcester sooner rather than later.

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

Red Sox activate Brayan Bello, call up Jarren Duran in flurry of roster moves

Before wrapping up a four-game series against the Angels at Fenway Park on Monday morning, the Red Sox made a flurry of roster moves.

Boston reinstated right-hander Brayan Bello from the 15-day injured list and recalled outfielder Jarren Duran from Triple-A Worcester. In order to make room for Bello and Duran on the active roster, righty Jake Faria was designated for assignment while infielder Bobby Dalbec was optioned to Worcester, the club announced.

Bello will make his first start of the season in Monday’s series finale against Los Angeles. The 23-year-old began the 2023 campaign on the injured list after being shut down by right forearm tightness during the early stages of spring training.

Though he began the season on the injured list, Bello was never expected to be sidelined for long. He pitched in an extended spring training game down in Fort Myers and April 5 and made one rehab start for the WooSox at Polar Park last Tuesday.

In that outing, Bello allowed just one earned run on four hits, zero walks, and one hit batsman to go along with four strikeouts over six innings on 81 pitches (50 strikes). The Dominican-born hurler has the green light to pitch six innings again on Monday as he goes up against Angels superstar Shohei Ohtani.

Faria, meanwhile, spent one day on the big-league roster after having his contract selected from Worcester on Saturday. The Red Sox will have the next seven days to either trade, release, or waive the 29-year-old. If he goes unclaimed and clears waivers, Faria can refuse an outright assignment to the minor-leagues in favor of free agency since he has previously been outrighted.

Turning to the position players now, Dalbec was called up on April 10 in the wake of outfielder Adam Duvall being placed on the injured list with a fractured left wrist. In four games with the Red Sox, the 27-year-old went 2-for-9 (.222) at the plate with one stolen base, two walks, and five strikeouts. He also saw playing time at first base, third base, and shortstop.

Duran, 26, was a logical candidate to get promoted last Wednesday, but the Red Sox elected to go with the right-handed hitting Dalbec since the club was in the midst of facing a plethora of left-handed starters. Now that that portion of the schedule has passed, the left-handed hitting Duran will be batting ninth and starting in center field for Boston on Monday.

In his first 11 games of the season with the WooSox, Duran has batted .195/.353/.439 with two doubles, one triple, two home runs, six RBIs, eight runs scored, two stolen bases, 10 walks, and 11 strikeouts across 51 plate appearances.

(Picture of Brayan Bello: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Garrett Whitlock, Justin Turner power Red Sox to 2-1 win over Angels

Behind a strong start from Garrett Whitlock and one swing of the bat from Justin Turner, the Red Sox won their third straight over the Angels on Sunday afternoon. Boston defeated Los Angeles by a final score of 2-1 at Fenway Park to get back to .500 at 8-8 on the season.

Whitlock, making his second start of the year for the Sox, put forth a superb effort. The right-hander allowed just one run on three hits and two walks to go along with five strikeouts over seven fast-paced innings of work.

That lone run came in the top of the second. After Anthony Rendon led off with a double and moved up to third, Whitlock surrendered an RBI single to Brandon Drury to give the Angels an early 1-0 lead. The inning ended shortly thereafter, as Connor Wong gunned down Drury at second base to retire the side.

Fast forward to the bottom of the third, and Alex Verdugo reached base on a one-out single off Angels starter Reid Detmers. Verdugo promptly stole second base to put a runner in scoring position for Turner, who delivered by crushing a 386-foot two-run shot over the Green Monster for his first home run in a Red Sox uniform.

Turner’s blast, which left his bat at 103.2 mph, put Boston up, 2-1. Whitlock then took over by retiring 11 of the final 12 batters he faced from the beginning of the fourth through the middle of the seventh, at which point his day came to a close.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 99 (61 strikes), Whitlock becomes the first Red Sox starter to pitch into the sixth (and seventh) inning of a game this season. The 26-year-old hurler also picked up his first winning decision of the year while lowering his ERA to 4.50.

With six more outs to get, Red Sox manager Alex Cora was put in a precarious position in regards to his bullpen. Because Kenley Jansen (who had pitched two straight days) and Chris Martin (who had just been placed on the injured list) were both unavailable, Cora turned to Kaleb Ort in the eighth.

Ort gave up a leadoff single to Gio Urshela and issued a one-out walk to Drury. After getting Logan O’Hoppe to fly out, Ort ended the inning by picking off the pinch-running Brett Phillips at second base. Ryan Brasier followed by striking out Mike Trout and getting Shohei Ohtani to fly out as part of a 1-2-3 ninth inning to end it.

Brasier’s first save of the season put the finishing touches on a a Red Sox win that took all of one hour and 57 minutes to complete.

Yoshida returns to lineup

After missing the last four games with light hamstring tightness, Masataka Yoshida returned to Boston’s lineup on Sunday. Dropped down to sixth in the order and serving as the Sox’ designated hitter, Yoshida went 0-for-2 with a strikeout. He was also hit by a pitch in the second inning.

Wong strikes again

By snuffing out Brandon Drury at second base to end the top of the second, Connor Wong has now thrown out four of six possible base stealers to begin the year.

Next up: Bello goes up against Ohtani in season debut

Brayan Bello will come off the injured list and make his season debut for the Red Sox in Monday’s series finale against fellow right-hander Shohei Ohtani and the Angels.

First pitch from Fenway Park on Marathon Monday is scheduled for 11:10 a.m. eastern time on NESN and MLB Network.

(Picture of Justin Turner: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox place Chris Martin on 15-day injured list with right shoulder inflammation, transfer Wyatt Mills to 60-day injured list

Before taking on the Angels at Fenway Park on Sunday afternoon, the Red Sox placed veteran reliever Chris Martin on the 15-day injured list with right shoulder inflammation.

To take Martin’s place on the big-league roster, Jake Faria had his contract selected from Triple-A Worcester. In order to make room for Faria on the 40-man roster, fellow right-hander Wyatt Mills was transferred from the 15-day to the 60-day injured list.

Martin, who last pitched against the Rays this past Wednesday, underwent an MRI after reporting arm discomfort earlier in the week. The MRI revealed only inflammation as opposed to any structural damage. Because of that diagnosis, the Red Sox are optimistic that the 36-year-old’s stint on the injured list (which was backdated to April 13) will last the minimum 15 days.

“He’s a little bit banged up. It started with the bicep, now the shoulder,” manager Alex Cora said of Martin when speaking with reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo). “So we have to stay away from him. Actually, he’s getting checked by the doctor. There’s a good chance he’ll go on the IL. It’s nothing serious, serious. But it’s something we have to take into consideration. So we were talking about it and we’ll see what we do.”

Martin, for his part, told The Boston Globe’s Pete Abraham: “It’s something I’ve had before early in the season. It’s just inflammation, nothing structural. We can knock it out.”

Boston signed Martin to a two-year, $17.5 million deal back in December to serve as a setup man in the back of the bullpen. The righty has allowed just two runs through his first seven appearances (seven innings) of the season, but he has struggled to miss bats and has a 5.08 FIP to show for it.

Faria signed a minor-league pact with the Red Sox back in February and broke camp with Worcester last month. In three relief appearances for the WooSox thus far, the 29-year-old has yielded six earned runs on four hits, six walks, and five strikeouts over five innings of work.

The Red Sox did not need Faria to defeat the Angels on Sunday, as Garrett Whitlock, Kaleb Ort, and Ryan Brasier combined for nine innings of one-run ball in the 2-1 win. Considering that the club will need to make a corresponding move in order to activate Brayan Bello from the injured list for his start on Monday, it seems likely that Faria could be designated for assignment since he is out of minor-league options and is a candidate to go through waivers unclaimed.

Mills, meanwhile, was acquired from the Royals in exchange for relief prospect Jacob Wallace back in December. The 28-year-old began his first season in Boston on the 15-day injured list after being shut down with elbow discomfort at the end of spring training. Though he has resumed throwing, Mills will not be eligible to be activated (and pitch in the majors) until late May at the earliest.

Following Sunday’s series of roster moves, the Red Sox now have four players on the 60-day injured list in Mills, Zack Kelly, Adalberto Mondesi, and Trevor Story.

(Picture of Chris Martin: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox claim lefty reliever Brennan Bernardino off waivers from Mariners, transfer Zack Kelly to 60-day injured list

The Red Sox have claimed left-hander Brennan Bernardino off waivers from the Mariners, the club announced earlier Sunday afternoon. In order to make room for Bernardino on the 40-man roster, right-hander Zack Kelly was transferred from the 15-day to the 60-day injured list.

Bernardino, 31, was designated for assignment by Seattle last Wednesday and has since been optioned to Triple-A Worcester. The lefty made his major-league debut for the Mariners last July and made just two appearances for the club, allowing three runs (one earned) on three hits, two walks, and zero strikeouts in 2 1/3 innings of relief.

A native of California, Bernardino was originally selected by the Reds in the 26th round of the 2014 amateur draft out of Cal State Dominguez Hills. After four years in the Reds organization, Bernardino was released by Cincinnati in July 2018. He then latched on with the Guardians the following February, but was cut loose again shortly thereafter so he could pursue an opportunity in the Mexican League.

After spending parts of three seasons in Mexico, Bernardino returned to affiliated ball when his contract was purchased by the Mariners last June. He made 23 relief appearances for Seattle’s Triple-A affiliate in Tacoma last season and posted a 2.20 ERA with 35 strikeouts to 10 walks over 32 2/3 innings of work.

To begin the 2023 campaign, Bernardino surrendered 11 runs (eight earned) on 13 hits, one walk, and 11 strikeout in his first two outings (six innings) for the Rainiers before losing his spot on Seattle’s 40-man roster last week.

Listed at 6-foot-4 and 180 pounds, Bernardino operates with a two-pitch mix that consists of a low-90s sinker and a high-70s curveball. The southpaw should provide the Red Sox with some optionable, left-handed bullpen depth. As things stand now, Richard Bleier is the only lefty reliever on Boston’s big-league roster while Joely Rodriguez (right oblique strain) remains on the injured list.

Kelly, meanwhile, was initially placed on the 15-day injured list with right elbow inflammation on April 13. That came one day after the 28-year-old injured his right elbow in the fifth inning of last Wednesday’s loss to the Rays in St. Petersburg.

Though Kelly was visibly upset as he was taken out of the game, an MRI on Friday apparently revealed no structural damage to his right UCL (ulnar collateral ligament). Because Kelly had an internal bracing procedure on his right elbow in May 2020, though, the Red Sox have sent the results of Friday’s MRI to the physician who performed the surgery for a second opinion.

Regardless of the outcome there, Sunday’s decision means Kelly will not be eligible to be activated until mid-June at the earliest. Kelly becomes the latest player to be placed on Boston’s 60-day injured list, joining fellow reliever Wyattt Mills and infielders Adalberto Mondesi and Trevor Story.

(Picture of Brennan Bernardino: Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

Yu Chang ends hitless drought with homer, go-ahead single as Red Sox come back to defeat Angels, 9-7

The Red Sox overcame a pair of deficits to pick up their second consecutive win over the Angels on Saturday afternoon. Boston defeated Los Angeles by a final score of 9-7 at Fenway Park to improve to 7-8 on the season.

Nick Pivetta, making his third start of the year for the Sox, was not at his sharpest. The right-hander surrendered six earned runs on five hits, three walks, and one hit batsman to go along with four strikeouts over four-plus innings of work.

Four of those runs came on one swing of the bat in the top of the first. After loading the bases with a pair of two-out walks, Pivetta served up a 385-foot grand slam to Gio Urshela to put the Red Sox in an early 4-0 hole.

Boston quickly responded in the latter half of the first. With Tyler Anderson starting for Los Angeles, Rob Refsnyder reached base on a two-out double to deep center field that was just out of Mike Trout’s reach. That brought Rafael Devers to the plate for the first time, and he came through by clubbing a two-run shot over the Green Monster for his seventh home run of the season already.

Devers’ 410-foot blast cut the deficit in half at 4-2. Two innings later, Justin Turner made it a one-run game by scoring from third when Devers grounded into a 6-3 double play. In the fourth, the Red Sox were able to leapfrog the Angels in somewhat surprising fashion.

Connor Wong ignited the two-out rally by ripping a 100.2 mph double off the Monster. Yu Chang — who was 0-for-17 at the plate to begin the season coming into the fourth inning — followed by taking a 1-0, 88.9 mph fastball from Anderson and depositing it off the DraftKings sign in left field for his first home run in a Red Sox uniform.

Chang’s go-ahead, two-run shot put Boston up, 5-4. After Anderson put Alex Verdugo (single) and Turner (walk on base), Refsnyder added to the lead with an RBI single that drove in Verdugo from second to make it a 6-4 contest going into the fifth.

To that point, it appeared as though Pivetta had settled in by tossing three straight scoreless frames. But the righty ran into more trouble in the top of the fifth by giving up a leadoff double to the vaunted Trout. Shohei Ohtani moved Trout over to third with a single and Anthony Rendon plated him with a base hit of his own.

With his pitch count already at 99 (57 strikes), Pivetta was given the hook by manager Alex Cora in favor of Kaleb Ort out of the bullpen. Ort fanned Hunter Renfroe for the first out before giving up a softly-hit game-tying RBI single to Urshela. He escaped any further damage by retiring the next two batters he faced.

Richard Bleier took over for Ort in the sixth and immediately plunked the first batter he faced in Matt Thaiss. The lefty then got Taylor Ward to ground into a force out at second base. Ward, however, reached base safely and — after advancing to second on a wild pitch — came into score on a two-out RBI single from Ohtani.

The Angels took a 7-6 lead on Ohtani’s second hit of the day and that is where the score would remain after John Schreiber and Ryan Brasier each worked a scoreless inning of relief. The bottom of the eighth is where things got interesting.

Matched up against veteran reliever Ryan Tepera, Enrique Hernandez led off with a groundball single. The pinch-hitting Raimel Tapia then appeared to line out to left for what would have been the first out of the frame, but he was instead awarded first base after home plate umpire Cory Blaser ruled that Tapia’s bat made contact with the glove of Thaiss behind the plate.

Two batters later, catcher’s interference was called again while the pinch-hitting Reese McGuire was at the plate. That unique sequence of events filled the bases with one out for Chang, who delivered yet again with a go-ahead, two-run single through the left side of the infield. Both Hernandez and Tapia scored on the play. Refsnyder provided some added insurance later in the inning by drawing a bases-loaded walk.

Taking a two-run lead into the ninth, Kenley Jansen sealed the 9-7 victory for the Red Sox by recording his second save of the series and his fourth of the season overall.

Next up: Detmers vs. Whitlock

The Red Sox will look to take this four-game series from the Angels with another win on Sunday afternoon. Right-hander Garrett Whitlock will get the start for Boston opposite left-hander Reid Detmers for Los Angeles.

First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 1:35 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Yu Chang: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

Red Sox overpowered, swept by Rays as 7-run inning leads to 9-3 loss

Despite all the struggles they endured this week, the Red Sox had a chance to secure a winning road trip with a victory over the Rays on Thursday. Boston instead fell to Tampa Bay by a final score of 9-3 and were swept in four games as a result.

With the loss, their 13th straight at Tropicana Field, the Red Sox drop to 5-8 on the season. The unbeaten Rays, meanwhile, improve to a perfect 13-0, matching the 1982 Braves and 1987 Brewers for the best start to a season in major-league history.

Thursday’s series finale actually started in positive fashion for Boston. With old friend Jeffrey Springs starting for Tampa Bay, Rob Refsnyder gave the Red Sox an early 1-0 lead in the first inning by taking the lefty 409 feet deep to left field for his first home run of the year.

The Rays quickly responded, though, as Yandy Diaz crushed a leadoff home run off Red Sox starter Corey Kluber to begin things in the bottom of the first. Kluber would settle in, however, and Boston got back on the board in the top of the fourth.

After Springs was forced to exit with ulnar neuritis, Justin Turner greeted new Rays reliever Garrett Cleavinger by ripping a leadoff double to left field. Turner stole third base and then came into score on an Enrique Hernandez force out to put the Red Sox up 2-1. An inning later, Turner struck again, this time plating Christian Arroyo on an RBI single to make it a 3-1 game heading into the bottom of the fifth.

That is where things began to unravel for Boston. Kluber, who retired each of the last nine batters he had faced, yielded a leadoff double to Harold Ramirez. After issuing a one-out walk to Josh Lowe to put runners on the corners, Kluber gave up an RBI single to Francisco Mejia to cut the lead to one run at 3-2.

With two outs, Red Sox manager Alex Cora opted to pull Kluber for left-hander Richard Bleier. Bleier, in turn, allowed the then-game-tying run to cross the plate on an RBI single from Brandon Lowe that was just out of the reach of Arroyo. Randy Arozarena then gave the Rays their first lead of the afternoon with a groundball single of his own.

After plunking Wander Franco to fill the bases, the pinch-hitting Manuel Margot laid down a perfectly-executed bunt off Bleier to push across Lowe. Ramirez then broke it open with a bases-clearing, three-run double down the left field line to cap off a seven-run fifth inning and give the Rays a commanding 8-3 edge.

Kluber was charged with three of those seven runs. All together, the veteran right-hander surrendered four earned runs on four hits and one walk to go along with seven strikeouts over 4 2/3 innings of work. He was hit with the losing decision and is now 0-3 with a 6.92 ERA through three starts.

Bleier, on the other hand, was charged with the other four runs that crossed the plate in the fifth. Kutter Crawford, who was just recalled from Triple-A Worcester, took over the lefty and served up a solo homer to Brandon Lowe in the seventh. Besides that one blemish, the righty was effective in his three frames of relief.

Offensively, the Red Sox did not have a response for the Rays bullpen after the fifth inning. They went 1-2-3 against Kevin Kelly in the sixth, stranded a runner at scoring position in a hitless seventh inning, and then went down quietly against Braden Bristo in the eighth and ninth. In total, Boston had just four hits as a team while going 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position.

Casas’ 14-pitch walk

With one out and one runner on in the fourth inning, Triston Casas fouled off seven consecutive pitches in the process of working a 14-pitch walk off Rays reliever Garrett Cleavinger. Upon taking ball four, Casas flipped his bat and let out an emphatic yell towards the Red Sox dugout.

According to The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier, the last at-bat by a Red Sox hitter that lasted longer than 14 pitches came on April 25, 2012, when Adrian Gonzalez had a 15-pitch groundout against Liam Hendriks, who was then starting for the Twins.

Next up: Sandoval vs. Houck in first of four against Angels

On the heels of a 3-4 road trip, the Red Sox will head home and open a four-game weekend series against the Angels on Friday night. Right-hander Tanner Houck is slated to get the ball for Boston in the opener while left-hander Patrick Sandoval is expected to do the same for Los Angeles.

First pitch from Fenway Park on Friday is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time. The game will be broadcasted exclusively on Apple TV+.

(Picture of Corey Kluber: Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)

Red Sox place Zack Kelly on injured list, recall Kutter Crawford from Triple-A Worcester

The Red Sox have placed reliever Zack Kelly on the 15-day injured list with right elbow inflammation, the club announced prior to Thursday’s series finale against the Rays. In a corresponding move, fellow right-hander Kutter Crawford was recalled from Triple-A Worcester.

Kelly was visibly upset after injuring his right elbow in the fifth inning of Wednesday night’s 9-7 loss to Tampa Bay at Tropicana Field. The 28-year-old will undergo an MRI in Boston on Friday to determine the severity of the injury, but the fear is that it is serious.

Crawford, meanwhile, rejoins the Red Sox just two days after being optioned to make room on the roster for Garrett Whitlock. The 27-year-old made two starts to begin the season was sent down so that he could remain stretched out as a starter in Worcester, but he is back as a reliever for the time being.

As noted by MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo, Crawford last pitched against the Tigers on Sunday and is on three days rest, meaning he could be available out of the bullpen if the Red Sox need on Thursday. Crawford was a logical choice to take Kelly’s place since he is the only healthy pitcher on Boston’s 40-man roster with big-league experience.

It remains to be seen how the Red Sox plan on using Crawford moving forward. He could, in theory, remain in the bullpen in be utilized in a similar fashion to Josh Winckowski, who has thrived in multi-inning stints to this point in the season. The more likely option, though, is that Crawford will be sent back down to Worcester in the coming days so that he can start and so that Boston can add a more traditional reliever to its bullpen mix.

Doing that, of course, would require the Red Sox to clear a 40-man roster spot, but they could accomplish that by transferring Kelly to the 60-day injured list if his injury is severe enough. Potential options to come up from the WooSox include righties Jake Faria and Andrew Politi and lefties Ryan Sherriff and Oddanier Mosqueda.

(Picture of Kutter Crawford: Duane Burleson/Getty Images)

Red Sox reliever Zack Kelly emotional after leaving game with elbow injury

Red Sox reliever Zack Kelly left Wednesday’s game against the Rays with what appeared to be serious arm injury.

Kelly, who took over for starter Chris Sale in the fifth inning, had allowed two runs on two hits and a walk before facing Yandy Diaz with two outs. The right-hander plunked the Rays’ leadoff hitter with a 2-2, 81 mph changeup — the 23rd pitch of his outing.

While Diaz was in the process of taking his base, Kelly removed his glove and began grabbing at his right elbow. He then went into a crouch and became emotional as Red Sox manager Alex Cora and a member of the team’s training staff rushed to the pitcher’s mound to see what was wrong.

With tears in his eyes, Kelly left the field under his own power and made his way back towards the visitor’s clubhouse alongside Cora and a trainer. The Red Sox later described Kelly’s injury as “right elbow pain” but could not provide a more specific diagnosis.

When speaking with reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo) following the Red Sox’ 9-7 loss to the Rays on Wednesday night, Cora indicated that Kelly would undergo further testing back in Boston on Friday. Until then, there will be uncertainty surrounding the 28-year-old’s status for the rest of the season.

“It’s the elbow, he had surgery a few years ago,” Cora said. “Tough to see. Hopefully, there’s nothing wrong.”

Kelly, who first joined the Red Sox organization as a minor-league free agent in January 2021, previously underwent elbow surgery in May 2020. More specifically, he had an internal bracing procedure done in lieu of Tommy John surgery after tearing the UCL (ulnar collateral ligament) in his right arm.

Fast forward nearly three years since then, and Kelly said on Wednesday that he felt pain throughout the fifth inning. That pain only got worse and intensified to the point where he could not continue pitching. He did not feel a pop in his elbow, however.

“The last five or six pitches I threw, I felt it a little bit more,” said Kelly. “hat one, I just started turning the changeup over and didn’t really feel like I could turn it over like I’m used to.

“I told (Cora) after, I just tried to get through the inning and didn’t want to quick-start anybody in the bullpen,” he added. “Unfortunately, I just couldn’t do it.”

When asked about what led to him crying on the mound, Kelly responded by saying that his previous elbow injury and his unique journey to the major-leagues were both on his mind at that time.

“I was definitely emotional for two reasons,” he said. “One, because I care. I care about this game, these guys and I enjoy doing this. Two, just all the shit I went through to get here. It’s just a lot. Whenever something like that happens, you get emotional about it.”

A former undrafted free agent out of Division II Newberry College, Kelly made his big-league debut for Boston last August at the age of 27. He posted a 3.95 ERA in 13 appearances (13 2/3 innings) down the stretch and then made his first career Opening Day roster this spring.

Coming into play on Wednesday, Kelly had allowed just one earned run on four hits, five walks, and five strikeouts through his first five outings (6 2/3 innings) of the season. The Virginia native is now expected to be placed on the injured list ahead of Thursday’s series finale against Tampa Bay.

“I don’t want to assume the worst,” Kelly said. “I just want to wait until we get some imaging done and we’ll figure it out from there.”

The Red Sox will need to call up another pitcher to take Kelly’s spot on the roster. Fellow righty Kutter Crawford, who was recently optioned to Triple-A Worcester, is a logical choice under the pretense that he is still with the club.

UPDATE: Kelly was indeed placed on the 15-day injured list with right elbow inflammation on Thursday. Crawford was called up to take his place on the roster.

(Picture of Zack Kelly: Duane Burleson/Getty Images)