Tag: alex cora

Rafael Devers homers twice as Red Sox erase 5-run deficit and come from behind to beat Mariners, 6-5

The Red Sox once again fell behind early against the Mariners on Saturday but battled their way back at Fenway Park. Boston defeated Seattle by a final score of 6-5 to win their fourth straight game and third consecutive series while improving to 18-22 on the season.

Before the Sox could even take their first at-bats of the afternoon, they already found themselves trailing by four runs. Garrett Whitlock, making his sixth start of the year, allowed the Mariners to score four times in the top half of the first inning.

After getting through a scoreless second inning, the right-hander ran into more trouble in the third by giving up back-to-back two-out hits to Mike Ford and Luis Torrens, which resulted in another Seattle run crossing the plate.

The third would prove to be Whitlock’s final inning of work, as he wound up surrendering a season-high five earned runs on 10 hits, no walks, and three strikeouts on 71 pitches (48 strikes). The 25-year-old’s ERA now sits at 3.58.

To that point in the contest, the Boston lineup had yet to do anything of significance against opposing starter Chris Flexen. That changed in the bottom half of the third though, as Rafael Devers got his productive day at the plate started by crushing a 413-foot solo shot into the bleachers to get his side on the board and make it a 5-1 ballgame.

Fast forward to the fifth, after Tyler Danish had hurled two scoreless frames out of the Sox bullpen, and Devers struck again. Following a leadoff double from Enrique Hernandez, the left-handed slugger took Flexen 386 feet over the Green Monster for his second big fly of the game and ninth of the season.

Devers’ two-run blast, which had an exit velocity of 102.1 mph, cut the deficit down to two runs at 5-3. But the Red Sox were not done there. A J.D. Martinez double and Xander Bogaerts single chased Flexen from the contest and put runners on the corners for Bobby Dalbec, who greeted new Mariners reliever Sergio Romo by lifting an RBI single to center field to drive in Martinez and move Bogaerts up to third. Trevor Story followed with a sacrifice fly that scored Bogaerts to tie things up at five runs apiece.

From there, Jake Diekman punched out the side in the sixth, Hansel Robles worked his way around a two-out double in the seventh, and John Schreiber retired the only three batters he faced in the top of the eighth to keep the 5-5 tie intact.

With one out in the bottom half of the eighth, Franchy Cordero laced a 110.5 mph triple off the Green Monster to put the potential go-ahead run in scoring position for Christian Vazquez, who came through with the game-winning single off Drew Steckenrider that plated Cordero and gave the Sox a 6-5 lead.

Looking to protect that lead, Red Sox manager Alex Cora called upon Matt Barnes to take the mound in the ninth inning. Barnes, in turn, needed just 15 pitches (and a little defensive help from Hernandez) to slam the door shut on the Mariners and notch his second save of the season.

All told, five Boston relievers (Danish, Diekman, Robles, Schreiber, and Barnes) combined to toss six shutout innings in relief of Whitlock on Saturday. The Red Sox lineup, meanwhile, went 4-for-6 with runners in scoring position while putting together their largest comeback win of the season thus far.

Next up: Gilbert vs. Eovaldi in series finale

The Red Sox will look to close out the weekend with a four-game sweep over the Mariners on Sunday afternoon. Veteran right-hander Nathan Eovaldi will get the start for Boston opposite fellow righty Logan Gilbert for Seattle.

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

(Picture of Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Xander Bogaerts considered day-to-day with back discomfort after colliding with Alex Verdugo in left field on Friday

Xander Bogaerts is considered day-to-day after colliding with Alex Verdugo in the eighth inning of the Red Sox’ 7-3 win over the Mariners at Fenway Park on Friday night, manager Alex Cora announced.

“We’ll see how he feels tomorrow and go from there,” Cora said while adding that Bogaerts was specifically dealing with lower back discomfort on his left side.

On a 221-foot fly ball lifted to shallow left field off the bat of J.P. Crawford, both Bogaerts and Verdugo converged on the ball, with Bogaerts pedaling backwards and Verdugo charging inward.

Looking to avoid any contact, Verdugo began to slide but wound up taking out Bogaerts, who landed awkwardly on his left side and remained on the ground in visible pain. The ball the two were going after popped out of Bogaerts’ glove, thus allowing Crawford to move up to second base while Verdugo was charged with a fielding error.

After staying on the ground, Bogaerts got back to his feet upon receiving a visit from Cora and a trainer and stayed in the game for the rest of the half-inning. He was, however, pinch-hit for by Franchy Cordero in the latter half and was later replaced at shortstop by Enrique Hernandez as the Red Sox went on to win their third straight game.

Following Friday’s victory, Cora was asked if Verdugo should have called Bogaerts off since the outfielder has priority over the infielder in that particular situation.

“There’s 35,000 people here so it’s not that easy,” Cora told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo). “Here, lately with the wind, it feels like it’s playing different the last few years. Sam [Kennedy] is going to hate me, but with the buildings and everything that’s going on, it’s a little different out there.”

Before being removed on Friday, Bogaerts had gone 0-for-2 at the plate with one walk, one strikeout, and one run scored. Assuming the 29-year-old is out of Boston’s lineup on Saturday, it will mark his first off day since April 28, though he did pinch-hit in that game against the Blue Jays in Toronto.

(Picture of Xander Bogaerts: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Trevor Story stays hot with grand slam as Red Sox extend winning streak to 3 with 7-3 victory over Mariners

The Red Sox continued their winning ways on Friday night with a 7-3 victory over the Mariners at Fenway Park. Boston has now won three straight games for the first time in 2022 to improve to 17-22 on the season.

Matched up against reining American League Cy Young Award winner Robbie Ray out of the gate, the Sox did all of their damage in their half of the third inning.

There, Xander Bogaerts drew a two-out walk to fill the bases for Trevor Story. Coming off a historic three-homer night on Thursday, Story picked up where he left off by unloading the bases with a 378-foot grand slam over the Green Monster.

Story’s sixth home run of the season and fourth in the last 24 hours was caught by former Red Sox outfielder Jonny Gomes in the first row of Monster Seats and gave Boston an early 4-0 lead.

To that point in the contest, Michael Wacha was already through three scoreless frames in his first start since returning from the injured list earlier in the day. All told, the veteran right-hander allowed two earned runs on four hits and three walks to go along with three strikeouts over 4 2/3 innings of work.

Both of those Seattle runs came in the top of the fifth, when Wacha gave up a leadoff double to Eugenio Suarez that was followed by a two-run home run off the bat of Abraham Toro. He then retired two of the next four batters he faced before getting the hook from manager Alex Cora.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 75 (44 strikes), the 30-year-old hurler relied on his changeup 43% of the time he was on the mound Friday and induced six of his eight swings-and-misses with hit. He also sat between 90 and 96 mph with his four-seam fastball.

In relief of Wacha, Austin Davis came on with two runners on and one out to get in the fifth. The left-hander got that out by fanning J.P. Crawford on six pitches, then proceeded to retire the side in order in the sixth as well. Fellow southpaw Jake Diekman followed suit by stranding one runner in an otherwise clean seventh inning to pace the way for John Schreiber in the eighth.

Schreiber, working in yet another high-leverage situation, witnessed a scary moment when he got Crawford to lift a softly-hit, 22-foot flyball to shallow left field. While converging on the ball, a sliding Alex Verdugo took out Bogaerts, who appeared to be in serious pain as he landed on his back.

The ball popped out of Bogaerts’ glove during that sequence, allowing Crawford to reach second base safely while Verdugo was charged with a fielding error. Crawford came into score on an RBI single from Jesse Winker, but Schreiber was able to hold the Mariners to the one run. Bogaerts is now considered day-to-day with left back tightness.

After coming on as a defensive replacement for Christian Arroyo the previous inning, Jackie Bradley Jr. provided some late-game insurance in his lone plate appearance of the night in the bottom of the eighth. After J.D. Martinez and Franchy Cordero (pinch-hitting for Bogaerts) reached base, Bradley Jr. greeted new Mariners reliever Anthony Misiewicz by cranking a three-run homer 359 feet to the opposite field.

Bradley Jr.’s first big fly of the year put the Sox up 7-3. Matt Strahm then slammed the door on the Mariners in the ninth inning to secure his team’s third consecutive win.

Next up: Flexen vs. Whitlock

The Red Sox will go for their third consecutive series win in the third game of this four-game set against the Mariners on Saturday evening. Boston will turn to right-hander Garrett Whitlock while Seattle will roll with fellow righty Chris Flexen.

First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

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

Red Sox pitching prospect Connor Seabold scratched from start with Triple-A Worcester due to pectoral strain

Red Sox pitching prospect Connor Seabold was slated to make his eighth start of the season for Triple-A Worcester at Polar Park on Friday night. The right-hander has instead been scratched from his outing due to a pectoral strain, manager Alex Cora told reporters (including The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier) earlier Friday evening.

Seabold is currently regarded by Baseball America as the 10th-ranked pitching prospect in Boston’s farm system and has impressed early on with the WooSox this season. Over seven starts, the 26-year-old has posted a 2.45 ERA and 2.86 FIP with 37 strikeouts to 10 walks over 36 2/3 innings of work.

Among qualified International League pitchers, Seabold ranks 12th in strikeout rate (25.2%), 11th in walk rate (6.8%), 11th in swinging strike rate (12.5%), fourth in batting average against (.179), third in WHIP (0.93), sixth in ERA, third in FIP, and 22nd in xFIP (4.38), per FanGraphs.

Given that he made his major-league debut last September and is already on the Sox’ 40-man roster, Seabold — as noted by MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith — is one of Boston’s top depth starters at the Triple-A level alongside Kutter Crawford, Josh Winckowski, and Brayan Bello.

Cora relayed that the Red Sox do not believe Seabold’s injury to be serious, but it is unclear how long the righty will be sidelined for. In the meantime, left-hander Thomas Pannone will start in place of Seabold for the WooSox on Friday.

Should Boston need a starting pitcher to come up from the minors in the coming days or weeks, that responsibility will likely fall to Crawford or maybe even Winckowski.

(Picture of Connor Seabold: Katie Morrison/MassLive)

Red Sox option Ryan Brasier to Triple-A Worcester to make room on roster for Michael Wacha, per report

The Red Sox optioned veteran reliever Ryan Brasier to Triple-A Worcester following Thursday night’s 12-6 win over the Mariners at Fenway Park, reports Julian McWilliams of The Boston Globe.

The move to send Brasier down to Worcester allows the Sox to create a spot on their 26-man roster for fellow right-hander Michael Wacha, who is expected to be activated from the 15-day injured list and start against the M’s on Friday night.

Brasier was an obvious candidate to be demoted since he is in his final season with a minor-league option. Thus far in 2022, the 34-year-old hurler has struggled to the tune of a 6.28 ERA with 16 strikeouts to three walks over 18 appearances (14 1/3 innings pitched) out of the Boston bullpen. He gave up his fifth home run of the year to Julio Rodriguez in the ninth inning of Thursday’s victory.

By sending him down to Triple-A, the Red Sox are presumably hopeful that Brasier can work on some things with WooSox pitching coach Paul Abbott. The same sort of thing happened last year as well.

After returning from the 60-day injured list in September, Brasier produced a 10.09 FIP over his first five outings of 2021. Boston then optioned him to Worcester on September 17 and called him back up just four days later. From there, the righty did not allow a single run across his final eight appearances (7 2/3 innings) of the season.

Going back to the start of last September, no Red Sox reliever has made more regular season appearances than Brasier (31), so he is clearly someone manager Alex Cora likes to go to when he is on.

With that being said, perhaps Brasier can once again find something in Worcester and use that to turn his season around for the better.

(Picture of Ryan Brasier: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Trevor Story crushes 3 home runs, collects 7 RBIs as Red Sox overcome early deficit to defeat Mariners, 12-6

The Red Sox fell behind early, but ultimately prevailed against the Mariners for their second straight win on Thursday night. Boston defeated Seattle by a final score of 12-6 to improve to 16-22 on the season.

Rich Hill made his seventh start of the year for the Sox, but really served as more of an opener. The veteran left-hander allowed four earned runs on six hits and one walk to go along with two strikeouts over just two innings of work.

All four runs Hill surrendered on Thursday came in the top half of the second. He yielded a leadoff double to Eugenio Suarez and one-out single to Abraham Toro before Dylan Moore cranked a three-run home run over the Green Monster. Adam Frazier then reached base via a two-out walk and scored all the way from first on an RBI double off the bat of Ty France. That gave the Mariners a 4-0 lead before Hill was able to get through his second and final inning.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 56 (35 strikes), the 42-year-old southpaw may not have been able to provide Boston with length, but it had a fresh bullpen to work with following Nick Pivetta’s complete game two-hitter the night prior.

Before the Red Sox bullpen was called into action, the lineup got things going against Mariners rookie starter George Kirby in their half of the second. Alex Verdugo broke out of of a prolonged slump with a leadoff single. Trevor Story followed by crushing a towering two-run home run 402 feet to dead center field to cut the deficit in half at 4-2.

An inning later, Story struck again with a runner on base ahead of him. Following a leadoff single from J.D. Martinez, Story clubbed his second two-run blast of the game — a 403-foot shot down the left field line — to knot things up at four runs apiece.

To that point, Tanner Houck had already received the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen in relief of Hill and worked a 1-2-3 third inning. The right-hander picked up where he left off in the fourth by retiring nine of the next 11 Mariners he faced while keeping that 4-4 tie intact going into the middle of the sixth.

Seattle was ready to take Kirby out of the game in favor of veteran reliever Sergio Romo, but the rookie had to face at least one batter since he had already taken the mound. That one batter he did face, Verdugo, led the bottom of the sixth off with a sharply-hit double. Romo was then greeted by Story, who managed to plate Verdugo on a single back up the middle that was accompanied by a fielding error. After taking their first lead of the night at 5-4, Story stole third base and scored from third on an RBI double from Jackie Bradley Jr.

John Schreiber took over for Houck following his four impressive frames in the seventh and retired the side in order. In the bottom of the seventh, the Sox padded their lead as Bobby Dalbec, Christian Vazquez, and Bradley Jr. were either walked or hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.

The Mariners got one of those runs back in the top of the eighth when Hirokazu Sawamura loaded the bases with one out and Matt Strahm walked one of those runners in before ending the inning.

A half-inning later, Martinez and Bogaerts reached on back-to-back one-out singles to put runners on first and second for Story, who capped off his memorable night by depositing a 358-foot three-run home run into the Monster seats.

Story’s third big fly of the game and fifth of the season gave Boston a commanding 12-5 lead. Ryan Brasier gave one of those runs back on a Julio Rodriguez solo shot in the top of the ninth, but was able to slam the door on Seattle to secure a 12-6 victory.

Some notes from this win:

Trevor Story went 4-for-4 with three homers, seven RBIs, five runs scored, one walk, and one stolen base. It was the second three-home run game of the 29-year-old’s career and undoubtedly his best all-around performance with the Red Sox so far this season.

From MLB Stats, Story is the first second baseman in major-league history to hit three home runs and steal a base in the same game.

J.D. Martinez went 4-for-5 with three runs scored while Alex Verdugo went 3-for-5 with four runs scored.

Rafael Devers also extended his hitting streak to 13 straight games as part of a 1-for-5 night at the plate.

Alex Cora won his 300th game as Red Sox manager on Thursday.

Next up: Ray vs. Wacha

The Red Sox are expected to activate right-hander Michael Wacha from the 15-day injured list and have him start against the Mariners on Friday night opposite reigning American League Cy Young Award winner Robbie Ray.

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

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

Red Sox’ Darwinzon Hernandez undergoes surgery to repair torn right meniscus

Red Sox left-hander Darwinzon Hernandez underwent surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee, manager Alex Cora announced before Thursday’s series opener against the Mariners at Fenway Park.

“I don’t know about the timetable and all that,” Cora told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith) earlier Thursday afternoon, “but hopefully he’ll be back soon.”

Hernandez, who had been with Triple-A Worcester to start the season, tweaked his knee while throwing a bullpen session at Polar Park over the weekend. He was placed on the minor-league injured list this past Tuesday but is now likely headed for the 60-day injured list.

The Red Sox elected to option Hernandez to Worcester towards the end of spring training so that he could improve upon his command and mechanics while working on a starter’s schedule. Put another way, the Venezuelan-born southpaw would make his 2-3-inning start, and then use the days in between outings to work with WooSox pitching coach Paul Abbott in order to become more consistent with his delivery.

In eight appearances (seven starts) for the WooSox, Hernandez posted a 5.95 ERA and 4.42 FIP to go along with 30 strikeouts to 16 walks over 19 2/3 innings of work. Last time out against the Rochester Red Wings on May 13, the 25-year-old allowed just one unearned run on three hits, one walk, and three strikeouts across three innings pitched. He retired nine of the 13 batters he faced and 33 of the 43 pitches he threw went for strikes.

Abbott told Cora it was Hernandez’s best start of the season in regards to repeating his delivery.

“Forget the results,” said Cora. “Just repeating his delivery and getting him to where we wanted him to get. The fastball the last two or three, it was on point. He was taking the work that he was doing on the side in between starts to the game. And it sucks for the kid. But we know he’s going to bounce back and he’s going to be OK.”

(Picture of Darwinzon Hernandez: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Nick Pivetta tosses complete game 2-hitter as Red Sox take series from Astros with 5-1 win

The ball was once again flying out of Fenway Park on Wednesday night as the Red Sox bounced back with a series-clinching win over the Astros. Boston defeated Houston by a final score of 5-1 to improve to 15-22 on the season.

After Nick Pivetta surrendered a leadoff home run to Jose Altuve, the Sox lineup quickly responded by scoring two runs in their half of the first inning. Matched up against Jose Garcia, Rafael Devers ripped a one-out triple down the right field line and scored from third on a J.D. Martinez sacrifice fly that nearly left the yard.

Xander Bogaerts followed by actually leaving the yard, as he crushed a Garcia cutter 358 feet over the Green Monster for his fourth home run of the season. Fast forward to the third, Enrique Hernandez led off by reaching base on a fielding error and scoring all the way from first on a wallball double off the bat of Devers.

An inning later, Trevor Story drew a leadoff walk and moved up to second when Franchy Cordero reached base on an Altuve fielding error. Both runners were driven in on back-to-back run-scoring singles from Christian Vazquez and Hernandez, which gave the Red Sox a commanding 5-1 lead.

Pivetta, meanwhile, had settled in nicely after giving up that leadoff homer to Altuve. In what was his eighth start of the season for Boston, the right-hander retired 18 consecutive batters at one point before yielding a leadoff double to Michael Brantley in the top of the seventh. He stranded Brantley on second and then sat down the side in order in the eighth.

Coming back out for the ninth, Pivetta put the finishing touches on a complete game two-hitter as well as a 5-1 win with yet another scoreless frame. He becomes the first Red Sox starter to record an out in both the eighth and ninth inning of a game this season.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 112 (78 strikes), Pivetta wound up allowing just one earned run on two hits, no walks, and eight strikeouts over eight solid innings of work. It is the second complete game of the 29-year-old’s career.

The Red Sox have now won their last two series. While Martinez saw his hitting streak come to an end, Devers extended his to 12 consecutive games. Pivetta, on the other hand, picked up his first home win of the year while lowering his ERA on the season to 4.22.

Next up: Welcoming in the Mariners

The Red Sox will next welcome the Mariners into town for the start of a four-game weekend series on Thursday night. Veteran left-hander Rich Hill will be getting the start for Boston while rookie right-hander George Kirby will be doing the same for Seattle.

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

(Picture of Nick Pivetta: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Barring setback, Red Sox’ Michael Wacha will return from injured list and start against Mariners on Friday

Barring any sort of setback, Michael Wacha will come off the injured list and start for the Red Sox on Friday, Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo) before Wednesday’s game against the Astros at Fenway Park.

Assuming Wacha does return from the injured list for Friday’s bout with the Mariners, it will be his first outing since May 3. The right-hander was slated to start against the White Sox on May 8, but was scratched shortly before first pitch and was later placed on the 15-day injured list (retroactive to May 5) due to left intercostal irritation.

In the time since then, Wacha has cleared the necessary hurdles to return to the mound, such as throwing a 35-pitch simulated game on Monday and a short bullpen session earlier Wednesday afternoon.

Wacha’s return to Boston’s starting rotation will be a welcomed one. The 30-year-old hurler has impressed so far this season by posting a 1.38 ERA and 3.89 FIP with 19 strikeouts to 11 walks over five starts spanning 26 innings of work. The Red Sox went 4-1 in those outings.

Wacha, who turns 31 in July, is slated to become a free-agent this winter after signing a one-year, $7 million deal with the Sox last November.

With Wacha more than likely coming back on Friday, the Red Sox will be rolling with Rich Hill, Wacha, Garrett Whitlock, and Nathan Eovaldi in their upcoming four-game series against the Mariners that begins Thursday night.

(Picture of Michael Wacha: Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)

Xander Bogaerts homers after Red Sox fans call on team to re-sign him: ‘I heard it. If I struck out, it wouldn’t have helped my cause’

After a 98-minute rain delay, the majority of the 29,706 fans on hand for Monday night’s game between the Astros and Red Sox at Fenway Park had already left the premises.

The ones who stuck around, however, made their voices heard. Especially in the eighth inning as Xander Bogaerts stepped up to the plate looking to follow J.D. Martinez’s go-ahead RBI double with a productive hit of his own.

As Bogaerts prepared to face off against Astros reliever Hector Neris, the Red Sox fans still at Fenway began to break out into a “Re-sign Xander! Re-sign Xander!” chant.

On the sixth pitch he saw from Neris, Bogaerts turned on a 94 mph fastball and crushed it 397 feet over the Green Monster to score both Martinez and himself to give the Sox a 6-3 lead. That would go on to be Monday’s final score.

“I heard it,” Bogaerts told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo) early Tuesday morning. “If I struck out, it wouldn’t have helped my cause.”

Bogaerts has the ability to opt out of his contract with Boston and become a free-agent this winter. While the 29-year-old has expressed a desire to remain with the organization he began his professional career with for the foreseeable future, the two sides have yet to come to terms on a potential extension.

Despite the distractions contract extension talks can present, Bogaerts has not been phased by them to this point in the season. Following Monday’s clutch performance, the right-handed hitter is now batting .346/.403/.477 with three home runs and 15 RBIs on the year.

“He’s not the first guy in this situation,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said of Bogaerts. “From my end, he is the shortstop, he plays everyday, he posts and he’s a good player.”

Since debuting with the Red Sox in 2013, Bogaerts has gone from a soft-spoken rookie playing out of position to one of the more respected and admired individuals in the organization. Even while in the midst of his 10th season in the big-leagues, the Aruban still appreciates the support from fans that was on full display Monday night.

“You always feel the love and appreciation around here,” said Bogaerts. “Just coming up through the system and being here for a long time up to this point. It has been fun. A game that (was delayed), you don’t even know how many people are going to be sticking around to see if the game is going to go ahead. I heard it.”

(Picture of Xander Bogaerts: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)