Tag: alex cora

Red Sox’ Franchy Cordero suffers right ankle sprain, will undergo MRI on Tuesday

Red Sox left fielder Franchy Cordero sprained his right ankle in the fifth inning of Monday’s 4-3 loss to the Rays at Tropicana Field.

With one out and one runner on, Cordero attempted to track down a 358-foot fly ball off the bat of Randy Arozarena. He wound up running into the wall, however, as his right cleat got caught in the padding of the left field fence. That caused him to land awkwardly and hit the ground in pain.

After remaining on the warning track for a brief period, Cordero was visited by Red Sox manager Alex Cora and associate head athletic trainer Brandon Henry. Unable to put any weight on that right leg, Cordero was carted off the field and replaced in left by Rob Refsnyder.

While Cordero was initially diagnosed with a right ankle sprain, Cora provided an update after the game and revealed that the 28-year-old would be undergoing an MRI on Tuesday to ensure that there is no ligament damage.

“Franchy, he’s OK,” Cora said. “He’s going to get an MRI tomorrow to see if there’s ligament damage. We doubt it. But of course, we have to wait and see. He’s sore, of course, but we’ll wait and see for tomorrow.”

Both Cora and Cordero feared for the worst when contact was made with the wall. But Cordero seemed to be in better spirits despite being on crutches when explaining what went wrong on the play that ultimately resulted in an RBI double for Arozarena.

“I tried to field the ball and in this ballpark with the artificial grass you don’t feel the warning track, so you don’t know how close you are to the wall,” Cordero said through interpreter Carlos Villoria Benítez. “But so far the scans of everything have been negative. It’s just a sprained ankle.

“In the beginning, it felt really bad, but as I was coming to the clubhouse it was feeling better,” he added. “At first, I felt it was something worse than it was.”

As of now, it is not yet clear how much time Cordero — who went 0-for-2 with a pair of strikeouts on Monday — will miss because of this ankle sprain. Tuesday’s MRI will likely provide the Red Sox with more information as well as a possible timetable.

(Picture of Franchy Cordero: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Alex Verdugo homers and Michael Wacha deals, but Red Sox blow late lead in 4-3 loss to Rays

The Red Sox saw their five-game winning streak come to an end at the hands of the Rays on Monday night. Boston fell to Tampa Bay at Tropicana Field by a final score of 4-3 to drop to 67-69 on the season.

Alex Verdugo got the Sox on the board right away in the first inning. With one out and the bases empty, Verdugo clubbed a 368-foot solo shot to right field off Rays starter Luis Patino for his ninth home run of the year. It left his bat at a blistering 106.5 mph.

Michael Wacha, making his 18th start of the year for Boston, gave that run right back in the latter half of the first. Former Red Sox prospect Manuel Margot led off with a line-drive single. He then went from first to third on a David Peralta base hit and scored on a blooper of an RBI single from Harold Ramirez to tie things up at one run apiece.

That stalemate did not last long, though, as the Red Sox responded with two more runs in the third. With two outs and runners on first and second after Tommy Pham and Verdugo each drew a walk, Rafael Devers and Trevor Story went back-to-back on a pair of run-scoring hits. Devers advanced to third base on Story’s 22nd double of the year, but was stranded there after Triston Casas popped out to end the inning.

Wacha, meanwhile, settled in and spun three consecutive scoreless frames before running into some trouble in the fifth. After reaching base on a leadoff single, Jose Siri scored all the way from first on a 358-foot double off the bat of Randy Arozarena.

Franchy Cordero had been tracking that fly ball in left field, but he went down awkwardly after colliding with and getting his right cleat caught in the wall’s padding. Cordero remained on the ground in visible pain before manager Alex Cora and team trainers came out to check on him. Unable to put any weight on his right foot, Cordero was carted off and replaced in left field by Rob Refsnyder. He was later diagnosed with a right ankle sprain and will undergo an MRI on Tuesday.

With Siri scoring on Arozarena’s double, Tampa Bay had cut the deficit down to one run at 3-2. But Wacha did not buckle and wound up retiring the final five batters he faced through the end of the sixth. The veteran right-hander gave up just the two runs on seven hits, zero walks, and seven strikeouts over six quality innings of work.

While Wacha did not factor into Monday’s decision, he did reach a personal milestone. By punching out Taylor Walls to end the sixth, the 31-year-old recorded the 1,000th strikeout of his major-league career.

In relief of Wacha, Jeurys Familia received the first call out of the Boston bullpen from Cora. With the likes of Garrett Whitlock and John Schreiber unavailable after a busy weekend, Familia struggled in a high-leverage spot in the seventh.

After a questionable hit-by-pitch of the pinch-hitting Vidal Brujan, who stole second base and moved up to third on a groundout, Familia surrendered a game-tying double to Margot. He was then pulled in favor of Zack Kelly, who got the second out of the inning but could not escape before allowing the go-ahead run to score on a Peralta RBI double down the right field line.

Kelly bounced back by tossing a 1-2-3 eighth inning, giving the Red Sox a chance to tie it in the ninth. With two outs and Verdugo at second base representing the tying run, Xander Bogaerts got ahead in the count at 2-0 before striking out looking on a 99 mph heater at the bottom of the zone.

Despite coming up short there, Bogaerts made history by going 2-for-5, thus extending his multi-game hitting streak to nine consecutive games. He becomes the fourth player in Red Sox history to accomplish the feat, joining the likes of Kevin Youkilis (2009), Jim Rice (1978), and Roy Johnson (1934).

All told, the Red Sox went 2-for-7 with runners in scoring position and left nine runners on base as a team. With Monday’s loss, they are now 4-10 against the Rays this season and 18-37 against divisional opponents.

Next up: Hill vs. Rasmussen

The Red Sox will look to bounce back against the Rays on Tuesday night. Veteran left-hander Rich Hill will get the start for Boston while right-hander Drew Rasmussen will do the same for Tampa Bay.

First pitch from Tropicana Field is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Alex Verdugo: Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Xander Bogaerts and Trevor Story lead the way as Red Sox finish off sweep of Rangers with 5-2 win; Triston Casas records first career hit in debut

The Red Sox completed their four-game sweep of the Rangers on Sunday afternoon. Boston defeated Texas by a final score of 5-2 at Fenway Park to extend its winning streak to five and improve to 67-68 on the season.

Josh Winckowski, starting in place of the injured Kutter Crawford, allowed two earned runs on three hits and three walks to go along with three strikeouts over four innings of work.

Both of those Rangers runs came right away in the top half of the first, as Winckowski began his day by issuing a four-pitch walk to Marcus Semien. The rookie right-hander then gave up a one-out single to Nathaniel Lowe, which put runners on the corners for Adolis Garcia, who ripped a run-scoring ground-rule double down the right field line. Jonah Heim followed by driving in Lowe with a groundout to give his side a 2-0 lead right out of the gate.

Despite that early deficit, the Red Sox lineup quickly responded in their half of the first. Matched up against Rangers righty Dane Dunning, Tommy Pham and Alex Verdugo both reached base on a pair of hard-hit singles before Xander Bogaerts came through with a ground-rule double of his own to cut Texas’ lead in half.

After Rafael Devers popped out into foul territory, Trevor Story took aim at the National Car Rental sign above the Green Monster for a 382-foot three-run blast. Story’s 16th home run of the season was accompanied by a bat flip and had an exit velocity of 101.9 mph. It also gave Boston its first lead of the day at 4-2.

An inning later, Connor Wong drew a leadoff walk, advanced to second base when Pham was hit by a pitch, and moved up to third on a Verdugo flyout. Bogaerts then drove him in with a sharply-hit opposite field single.

Winckowski, who had already retired the side in order in the top of the second, continued to settle into his outing by tossing two more scoreless innings. The 24-year-old hurler threw 82 pitches (47 strikes) and induced nine swings-and-misses while lowering his ERA on the season to 5.75.

In relief of Winckowski, Kaleb Ort received the first call out of the Boston bullpen from manager Alex Cora. Ort worked his way around a walk in the fifth and recorded the first two outs of the sixth before Wong threw out Leody Taveras at second base to end the inning.

Jeurys Familia and Matt Strahm each faced the minimum in the seventh and eighth, paving the way for John Schreiber to come on in the ninth. Schreiber, in turn, notched his second save in as many days by punching out two in a 1-2-3 inning. As a result, Ort was credited with the first winning decision of his big-league career.

Speaking of firsts, Triston Casas made his highly anticipated major-league debut on Sunday. The 22-year-old recorded his first career hit on an infield single in the fifth inning as part of a 1-for-4 day at the plate. He made solid contact on three separate occasions and provided stout defense at first base.

Story, meanwhile, provided some stellar defense of his own in the sixth inning. Playing in shallow right field as part of the shift, Story left his feet and made a fantastic leaping grab to rob Heim of a 107.7 mph line-drive single. On the other side of the ball, the 29-year-old finished a triple shy of the cycle and is now batting .464 (13-for-28) over his last seven games since returning from the injured list on August 27.

To the right of Story, Bogaerts went 3 for 4 with a double, two RBIs, and one run scored. He has now compiled eight straight multi-hit games to raise his batting average to an American League-leading .317.

Next up: On to St. Petersburg

Even on the heels of their first series sweep since late June, the Red Sox still trail the Blue Jays by 7 1/2 games for the third and final American League Wild Card spot. They will look to make up more ground in that race as they open a three-game series against the Rays in St. Petersburg on Monday.

Veteran right-hander Michael Wacha is slated to get the start for Boston in the series opener. Tampa Bay has yet to name a starter.

First pitch from Tropicana Field is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN and MLB Network.

(Picture of Trevor Story: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox to promote top prospect Triston Casas, option Bobby Dalbec to Triple-A Worcester

The Red Sox are planning to promote top prospect Triston Casas ahead of Sunday’s series finale against the Rangers at Fenway Park, according to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo. In a corresponding move, fellow first baseman Bobby Dalbec will be optioned to Triple-A Worcester, reports The Boston Globe’s Julian McWilliams.

Casas, 22, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 3 prospect in Boston’s farm system and the No. 28 prospect in all of baseball. The Red Sox originally selected the Miami-area native with the 26th overall selection in the 2018 amateur draft out of American Heritage High School (Plantation, Fla.). They swayed him away from his commitment to the University of Miami by signing him for roughly $2.553 million.

After making his professional debut in the rookie-level Gulf Coast League, Casas spent the majority of 2019 with Low-A Greenville before earning a late-season promotion to High-A Salem. With the 2020 minor-league season being wiped out as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Casas was limited to working out at the Sox’ alternate training site that summer.

Last year, Casas received his first invite to major-league spring training. He later broke camp with Double-A Portland, but was limited to just 77 games with the Sea Dogs while being away on international duty and helping Team USA win a silver medal in the Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

Upon returning from Japan, Casas closed out the 2021 campaign in Worcester and also represented the Red Sox in the Arizona Fall League. He and teammate Kole Cottam were both named AFL All-Stars. And while the lockout dominated this past off-season, Casas was able to remain in contact with the Red Sox since he is not yet on the 40-man roster.

On the heels of such a busy year, it appeared as though Casas would be able to settle in with the WooSox on a full-time basis in 2022. But he sustained a high right ankle sprain on May 17 and wound up being sidelined for nearly two months as a result.

Following a brief rehab assignment in Fort Myers, Casas returned to Worcester’s lineup on July 22. The left-handed hitter was slashing .296/.404/.504 (140 wRC+) with 11 doubles, one triple, five home runs, 16 RBIs, and 23 runs scored over his last 36 games. On the 2022 campaign as a whole, he is batting .273/.382/.481 (127 wRC+) with 20 doubles, one triple, 11 homers, 38 runs driven in, 45 runs scored, 46 walks, and 60 strikeouts across 72 games (317 plate appearances) for the WooSox.

Listed at a hulking 6-foot-5 and 250 pounds, Casas stands out both in the batter’s box and on the field. His hard-hit rates are to be reckoned with, as is his ability to play first base since he was recently identified by Baseball America as the best defensive first baseman in the International League.

Casas is slated to become the fifth player to make his major-league debut with the Red Sox this season, joining Josh Winckowski, Zack Kelly, Jeter Downs, and Brayan Bello, who is listed right ahead of Casas in Baseball America’s Red Sox prospects rankings.

While there will be plenty of buzz surrounding Casas’ debut, the Red Sox will first need to add the infielder to their 40-man roster. They can easily accomplish this by placing closer Tanner Houck, who will undergo season-ending back surgery next week, on the 60-day injured list.

From there, Boston can simply swap Dalbec for Casas, who figures to split time at first base with the right-handed hitting Christian Arroyo while Eric Hosmer remains on the injured list because of low back inflammation.

Dalbec, on the other hand, will head to Worcester, meaning this is the first time the 27-year-old has been optioned since he made his major-league debut for Boston in August 2020.

After ending 2021 on a strong note, Dalbec has struggled mightily on both sides of the ball this year. The right-handed hitter is batting just .211/.282/.362 (78 wRC+) with nine doubles, two triples, 11 home runs, 36 RBIs, 38 runs scored, three stolen bases, 29 walks, and 113 strikeouts over 111 games (340 plate appearances). He has also posted negative-4 defensive runs saved across 635 innings at first base.

Although it took until the beginning of September, it seems as though Chaim Bloom, Alex Cora, and the rest of the Red Sox’ key decision makers were ready to send down Dalbec and see what Casas can do over the final few weeks of the regular season.

Because he is just being called up now, Casas — who turns 23 in January — will maintain his rookie status heading into next season. That is important when you consider the fact that, under MLB’s new collective bargaining agreement, the Red Sox could receive a compensatory draft pick if Casas makes the club’s 2023 Opening Day roster and finishes in the top three in American League Rookie of the Year voting.

(Picture of Triston Casas: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox closer Tanner Houck to undergo back surgery

Red Sox closer Tanner Houck will undergo back surgery on Tuesday, manager Alex Cora announced ahead of Saturday’s 5-3 win over the Rangers at Fenway Park.

Houck, who last pitched on August 2, will miss the remainder of the 2022 season. But he is expected to make a full recovery and subsequently be ready for spring training in February.

Boston originally placed Houck on the 15-day injured list with lower back inflammation on Aug. 6. The 26-year-old right-hander was later diagnosed with a disc issue in his lower back after being examined by a spine specialist in the city.

While the Red Sox elected to briefly shut down Houck, they were hopeful he would respond positively to treatment. That appeared to be the case when he resumed playing catch last week and was scheduled to throw live batting practice in Worcester on Tuesday. But that did not happen as scheduled, as Houck was completely shut down from baseball activities due to continued back soreness.

“It’s disc related,” Cora said (via MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith) of Houck’s impending surgery. “He should be fine for spring training. Obviously we pushed it to pitch. But the strength is not back. He was almost there. But it didn’t work out. So everybody decided this is the best course of action and he should be OK.”

With his year now over, Houck has finished his third year in the big-leagues having posted a 3.15 ERA and 3.31 FIP with 56 strikeouts to 22 walks over 32 appearances (four starts) spanning 60 innings of work. The 6-foot-5, 230-pound hurler made all four of those starts in April before moving to the bullpen on a full-time basis on May 15.

From there, Houck ultimately assumed the role of Boston’s closer while pitching to a 1.49 ERA (3.18 FIP) to go along with 33 strikeouts and 11 walks across 25 relief outings (36 1/3 innings). He also converted eight of nine save opportunities.

“I thought he was solid,” Cora said. “Obviously as a starter, he did his thing. Then, we moved him to the bullpen and I think he was really good in the bullpen. The stuff is really good.”

Cora added that during the off-season, the Red Sox will sit down and talk about how to best utilize Houck and fellow righty Garrett Whitlock. The pair now have experience starting and closing out games at the major-league level, which is a valuable asset.

“We know they can do both,” said Cora. “Obviously that’s a bigger conversation to where we’re going to go and what we’re going to try to do in the off-season. But they can impact the game on either side — the first five innings or the last four innings. They’re that good. And Tanner, he’s done it as a starter and a reliever. He made some strides. I think he learned a lot about himself. He actually willed himself for a while there to be available, which is very important.”

Houck, who does not turn 27 until next June and is under club control through 2027, will likely be placed on the 60-day injured list. That would allow the Red Sox to create an opening on their 40-man roster for the impending promotion of Triston Casas.

(Picture of Tanner Houck: Maddie Mayer/Getty Images)

Red Sox scratch Kutter Crawford from scheduled start on Sunday due to shoulder soreness

When the Red Sox go for a four-game sweep of the Rangers on Sunday afternoon, right-hander Kutter Crawford will not take the Fenway Park mound as originally planned.

Crawford has instead been scratched from his start due to shoulder soreness, manager Alex Cora said following Saturday’s 5-3 win over Texas. Boston has yet to announce who will start in his place on Sunday.

The shoulder soreness Crawford is currently experiencing stems from him playing catch on Friday. The decision to scratch the 26-year-old was made out of an abundance of caution, as the Red Sox will know more about his status later Saturday night or early Sunday morning.

“He wasn’t moving well today after he played catch yesterday so we’re not going to push him,” Cora told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo) while adding that a stint on the injured list is a possibility.

With Crawford unable to go on Sunday, fellow righty Josh Winckowski is a candidate to start in his place. The 24-year-old was optioned to Triple-A Worcester on August 24, but has since been added to the big-league club’s taxi squad.

Winckowski last pitched for the WooSox one week ago Sunday, allowing four earned runs on five hits, three walks, and four strikeouts over four innings against the Syracuse Mets. In 13 starts for Boston this season, the 6-foot-4, 202-pound hurler owns an ERA of 5.83.

Crawford, who last pitched for the Red Sox in Minnesota on Tuesday, has posted a 5.47 ERA and 4.35 FIP with 77 strikeouts to 29 walks over 21 appearances (12 starts) spanning 77 1/3 innings of work this season. He has been tagged for 18 runs (17 earned) in his last three starts (12 2/3 innings) dating back Aug. 19.

As Cotillo suggested, Winckowski will likely be called up from Worcester if Crawford does indeed require a stay on the injured list. If he does not, Boston could elect to go in the direction of a bullpen game for Sunday’s series finale.

(Picture of Kutter Crawford: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Brayan Bello tosses 6 scoreless innings to earn first major-league win as Red Sox defeat Rangers, 5-3

The Red Sox extended their winning streak to four straight on Saturday afternoon by taking their third straight from the Rangers. Boston held on for a 5-3 victory over Texas at Fenway Park to move within two games of .500 by improving to 66-68 on the season.

Brayan Bello got the start for the Sox and wound up putting together the best outing of his young career so far. The rookie right-hander scattered just three hits and one walk to go along with five strikeouts over six scoreless innings of work.

Boston provided Bello with an early lead, which certainly didn’t hurt. After Xander Bogaerts reached base with two outs in the bottom of the first, Rafael Devers drove him in with a 337-foot RBI double to left field off Rangers starter Dennis Santana.

Bello continued to roll by keeping Texas off the board through the middle of the fifth. In the bottom half of the frame, Enrique Hernandez and Alex Verdugo each drew a pair of walks off reliever Brock Burke. Burke then balked, allowing both runners to advance an additional 90 feet. With only one out and two runners in scoring position, Bogaerts ripped a chopper to the left side of the infield.

Hernandez took off as soon as contact was made. Rangers shortstop Corey Seager attempted to gun down his former teammate at home plate. But his throw was mishandled by catcher Meibrys Viloria, allowing Hernandez to score on a missed catching error. Verdugo also moved up to third on the play, then scored the second run of the inning when Devers beat out a potential inning-ending double play.

Taking a 3-0 lead into the sixth, Bello ended his day by retiring the final three batters he faced. The 23-year-old hurler threw 88 pitches (60 strikes) and induced nine swings-and-misses en route to picking up his first big-league win.

In relief of Bello, Red Sox manager Alex Cora first turned to Garrett Whitlock out of the bullpen. Whitlock responded by stranding one base runner in an otherwise clean top half of the seventh. A half-inning later, Boston yet again took advantage of sloppy defense from Texas.

Bogaerts reached via a one-out single off Koehi Arihara. Devers followed with a single of his own, but Bogaerts was able to go from first to third on an Adolis Garcia fielding error. He then scored from third on a J.D. Martinez grounder that was misplayed by third baseman Ezequiel Duran. Trevor Story promptly drove in Devers on an opposite field double, making it a 5-0 contest in favor of the Sox.

Whitlock came back out for the eighth and surrendered hits to three of the first four batters he faced, including a two-run home run from Marcus Semien and a solo blast off the bat of Nathaniel Lowe. Those two big swings cut Boston’s lead from five runs down to two.

Looking to protect that lead in the ninth, Matt Barnes loaded the bases while only managing to record the first out of the inning. That prompted Cora to pull Barnes in favor of John Schreiber, who fanned Semien on three pitches before getting Seager to ground out to end it. As a result, Schreiber notched his fifth save of the year.

Next up: Going for the sweep

The Red Sox will go for a four-game sweep over the Rangers on Sunday afternoon. Kutter Crawford was originally supposed to start the series finale for Boston, but has since been scratched due to a sore shoulder. Fellow righty Josh Winckowski, who is currently on the taxi squad, is a likely candidate to start in his place. For Texas, it will be right-hander Dane Dunning taking the mound.

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

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

Red Sox closer Tanner Houck likely to undergo back surgery

UPDATE: Before Friday’s game, Cora announced that Houck will likely undergo back surgery. He also indicated that more information will be available later Friday night or more likely on Saturday, per MLB.com’s Ian Browne.

Red Sox closer Tanner Houck may not pitch again this season, manager Alex Cora said before Thursday’s series opener against the Rangers at Fenway Park.

Houck has been on the injured list since August 6 with lower back inflammation. It was later revealed that the right-hander had a disc issue in his lower back after being examined by a spine specialist in Boston.

Following a brief period of rest and a positive response to treatment, Houck resumed playing catch last week and was slated to throw live batting practice in Worcester on Tuesday. That did not happen as scheduled, as Cora initially revealed that the 26-year-old was still dealing with “continued back soreness.”

Two days later, and Houck has been completely shut down. It remains to be seen if his 2022 campaign is now over, though Cora told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith) “there’s a good chance” when asked about that possibility.

“There’s no baseball activities,” Cora said. “He went to see a back specialist. “We’ll know more throughout the day or tomorrow.”

If Houck’s year is indeed over, the righty would have posted a 3.15 ERA and 3.31 FIP with 56 strikeouts to 22 walks over 32 appearances (four starts) spanning 60 innings of work. He began the season in Boston’s starting rotation and made those four starts before moving into the bullpen on a full-time basis on May 15.

From that point forward, Houck produced a 1.49 ERA (3.18 FIP) to go along with 33 strikeouts and 11 walks across 25 relief outings (36 1/3 innings). He also converted eight of nine save opportunities.

With Houck sidelined for the foreseeable future, Cora will have to continue to rely upon the likes of John Schreiber, Garrett Whitlock, and Matt Barnes in the late innings of games.

(Picture of Tanner Houck: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Xander Bogaerts crushes grand slam, drives in 5 runs to power Red Sox to 6-5 win over Twins

The Red Sox avoided a three-game sweep at the hands of the Twins on Wednesday night. Boston held on for a 6-5 win over Minnesota at Target Field to end a three-game losing streak and improve to 63-68 on the season.

Matched up against Twins rookie starter Joe Ryan to begin things on Wednesday, the Sox drew first blood in their half of the third inning. Following a pair of back-to-back singles from Kevin Plawecki and Tommy Pham, Alex Verdugo reached on a fielder’s choice to load the bases with no outs for Xander Bogaerts.

Bogaerts, who walked in his first plate appearance, took a first-pitch strike from Ryan and then unloaded on a hanging slider by lacing it 392 feet over the left field wall for a grand slam. The ball left his bat at a blistering 113 mph (his hardest-hit ball of 2022) and cleared the fence in just 3.6 second. It was also good for his 12th home run of the season and gave the Red Sox an early 4-0 lead.

After Rafael Devers flew out, J.D. Martinez went deep for the 11th time this year by depositing another slider from Ryan 394 feet into the left field bleachers. Martinez’s second big fly in his last four games made it a 5-0 contest in favor of Boston.

To that point, Michael Wacha had yet to allow a run two innings into his 17th start of the season. That changed in the third, as the veteran right-hander recorded two quick outs before giving up a softly-hit single to No. 9 hitter Sandy Leon. Moments later, Luis Arraeez made Wacha pay for extending the inning by cranking a three-run homer to right that trimmed Boston’s lead down to three runs at 5-2.

Fast forward to the sixth, and the Sox got one of those two runs back. Kevin Plawecki greeted new Twins reliever Jovani Moran by roping a leadoff double to right field. After Pham and Verdugo each struck out, Bogaerts came through yet again with an RBI single that would prove to be more important than it seemed at the time.

Wacha, who ended his night by escaping a jam in which Minnesota had runners at second third with only out, wound up yielding just two earned runs on four hits and one walk to go along with seven strikeouts over six strong innings of work. The 31-year-old hurler threw 98 pitches (64 strikes) and induced eight swings-and-misses en route to picking up his 10th winning decision of the year.

In relief of Wacha, Garrett Whitlock received the first call out of the Boston bullpen from manager Alex Cora. Whitlock was not as sharp as he usually is, as he began the seventh inning by giving up a leadoff double to Nick Gordon. Gordon advanced to third on a groundout and scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Arraez. Whitlock’s struggles extended into the eighth inning, as a pair of singles put runners on the corners with two outs for Gordon.

Gordon proceeded to rip a two-run double to right field that he attempted to extend into a triple. But Verdugo tracked the ball and, with his momentum carrying him towards the field, made a nice throw to gun down Gordon at third base and limit the damage to two runs.

Verdugo’s sixth outfield of the season allowed Matt Barnes to take the mound in the ninth with a 6-5 lead to protect. Barnes, in turn, made things interesting by putting the first two batters he faced on base before retiring Arraez and getting Carlos Correa to ground into a game-ending 6-4-3 double play. By doing so, Barnes notched his fourth save of the year while securing a one-run victory.

With the win, the Red Sox finish the month of August with a 12-16 record. Coming into September, they still trail the Blue Jays by eight games for the third and final American League Wild Card spot.

Bogaerts’ third-inning slam was the first from a Red Sox hitter since May 22nd. It was also the sixth of Bogaerts’ career, which moves him into sole possession of first place for most among shortstops in Red Sox history. He was previously in a three-way tie with Nomar Garciaparra and Vern Stephens, who each hit five over the course of their respective careers.

Plawecki, meanwhile, went 3-for-4 with a double and two runs scored out of the nine-hole on Wednesday. He is now 11-for-21 (.524) over his last seven games dating back to Aug. 20.

Next up: Back to Boston

The Red Sox will return home and open a four-game weekend series against the Rangers on Thursday night. Veteran left-hander Rich Hill, fresh off striking out a season-high of 11 across seven scoreless innings in his last time out, will start the series opener for Boston. On the opposite side of the spectrum, rookie right-hander Glenn Otto will take the mound for Texas.

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

(Picture of Xander Bogaerts: David Berding/Getty Images)

Kutter Crawford, Ryan Brasier combine to give up 7 runs as Red Sox fall to Twins, 10-5

The Red Sox dropped their second straight to the Twins on Tuesday night. Boston fell to Minnesota by a final score of 10-5 at Target Field despite having a 4-3 lead at one point.

Kutter Crawford, making his 12th start and 21st overall appearance of the season for the Sox, surrendered five runs — four of which were earned — on four hits and four walks to go along with five strikeouts over 4 1/3 innings of work.

Three of those runs came within the first two innings. Crawford retired the first two batters he faced in the bottom of the first before issuing a pair of two-out walks to Max Kepler and Jose Miranda. The rookie right-hander then gave up a two-run double to Nick Gordon that got the Twins on the board first.

An inning later, Jake Cave led off the bottom of the second by taking Crawford 400 feet deep to left-center field for just his third home run of the season. Crawford put together his first scoreless frame of the night in the third and did it again in the fourth.

The Red Sox lineup, meanwhile, finally broke through against Twins starter Chris Archer in their half of the fourth. An Alex Verdugo leadoff single and Xander Bogaerts double put runners at second and third with no outs for Rafael Devers. Devers drove in Verdugo with a sacrifice fly to make it a 3-1 game in favor of Minnesota. J.D. Martinez followed by drawing a six-pitch walk, but Trevor Story grounded into an inning-ending double play to extinguish the threat.

In the fifth, however, the Sox were able to mount a rally. With Enrique Hernandez and Reese McGuire on the corners following a pair of one-out singles, Tommy Pham trimmed Boston’s deficit to one with a run-scoring base hit through the right side of the infield. That knocked Archer out of the game in favor of Caleb Thielbar.

McGuire moved up to third base when Verdugo grounded into a force out at second. With runners at the corners yet again, Bogaerts greeted the new Twins reliever by blooping a 241-foot game-tying single to left field to push across McGuire and move Verdugo to third. Devers then drew a bases-filling walk, prompting another Minnesota pitching change.

Michael Fulmer was dispatched to face Martinez, but he first airmailed a wild pitch to the backstop that allowed Verdugo to score the go-ahead run on a feet-first slide. The Red Sox had a chance to add to their newfound 4-3 lead, but Martinez struck out against his former teammate to leave things there.

Crawford came back out for the fifth and got Luis Arraez to fly out to Pham for the first out of the inning. It appeared as though Crawford was going to get the second out when he got Carlos Correa to lift a 318-foot flyball to Verdugo in right field.

Verdugo failed to make a clean catch, though, as the ball deflected off his glove, allowing Correa to reach first base safely. Correa then issued another walk to Kepler, which is how his night would come to an end as Red Sox manager Alex Cora pulled the righty for Ryan Brasier.

Brasier, in turn, made a sticky situation even worse by plunking the first batter he faced in Jose Miranda to load the bases. Gordon, already in the midst of a productive evening at the plate, took full advantage of the spot he was in by unloading the bases with a 416-foot grand slam over everything in right field.

Gordon’s sixth homer of the season officially closed the book on Crawford, who finished with a final pitch count of 76 (43 strikes). The 26-year-old hurler managed to induce just seven swings-and-misses while raising his ERA on the season to 5.47 (7.58 ERA in August). He was also hit with his sixth losing decision of the year.

Brasier, on the other hand, was tagged for two runs after getting through the rest of the fifth inning unscathed. The recently-turned 35-year-old has now allowed 14 runs (13 earned) to cross the plate in 14 relief appearances (12 innings) this month. That is good for an ERA of 9.75.

Boston’s bullpen struggled continued into the sixth inning, as Jeurys Familia served up a solo shot to Gary Sanchez. The Red Sox got that run back in the top of the seventh, when Verdugo plated Pham all the way from first base on a 410-foot RBI double to right-center field that would have been a home run in 16 of 30 MLB ballparks.

Verdugo’s second hit of the contest brought the Sox back to within three runs of the Twins at 8-5. Bogaerts moved Verdugo up to third base on a groundout, but Devers stranded him there by striking out.

Following a 1-2-3 seventh inning from Zack Kelly in his second big-league appearance, a resurgent Matt Barnes ran into more trouble in the eighth by walking one and giving up three straight hits to Sanchez, Arraez, and Correa. Arreaz and Correa each drove in runs with their singles, which gave the Twins a commanding 10-5 lead going into the ninth.

Down to their final three outs, Hernandez led off with a walk, but McGuire, Pham, and Verdugo went down quietly against Emilio Pagan to seal another defeat.

With the loss, the seventh in their last nine games, the Red Sox drop to 62-68 on the season. The Blue Jays won on Tuesday, so Boston now sits nine games back of Toronto for the third and final American League Wild Card spot.

Next up: Wacha vs. Ryan in series finale

The Red Sox will look to salvage something out of this series with the Twins on Wednesday night. Michael Wacha is slated to start for Boston. Fellow right-hander Joe Ryan is expected to do the same for Minnesota.

First pitch from Target Field is scheduled for 7:40 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Kutter Crawford: David Berding/Getty Images)