Tag: alex cora

Red Sox catcher Reese McGuire avoids serious injury after X-rays on right hand come back negative

Red Sox catcher Reese McGuire appears to have avoided a serious injury scare after taking a hard-hit foul tip off the top of his throwing hand in the late stages of Saturday night’s 5-4 loss to the Brewers at American Family Field.

McGuire had X-rays that revealed no broken bones in his right hand, which was struck by a Willy Adames foul tip in the bottom of the eighth inning. The 28-year-old remained in the game and even hit in the top of the ninth. That, in part, was due to the fact that McGuire had already pinch-hit for Connor Wong in the seventh, meaning the Red Sox had no other available catchers to come off the bench.

McGuire, who flew out to end the game, expressed optimism that he would not need to miss any time with the injury when speaking with reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo) on Saturday night.

“It’s a little swollen, a little bruised,” McGuire said. “But I just got some X-rays and all is negative. That’s really good news. I had a smile on my face because it was kind of throbbing. I’m going to go get ice right after this and be ready for tomorrow.”

After McGuire was hit by Adames’ foul tip, Red Sox manager Alex Cora and a member of the team’s training staff went out to check on him. Athletic tape was applied to McGuire’s hand, but the backstop quickly removed it after some of his practice throws to reliever Kutter Crawford were off the mark.

With no true emergency catcher on the roster according to Cora, McGuire toughed it out and caught the rest of the inning. As noted by Cotillo, first baseman Triston Casas — who did not play on Saturday — was the only other player left on Boston’s bench.

“He didn’t fight it,” Cora said of McGuire. “He was like, ‘(expletive) it, let’s go, we’ve got to go.’ It’s not perfect but this is the nature of everybody’s roster. There’s certain games you have to be aggressive to hit for them.”

Though the ball caught McGuire in a familiar spot for foul tips, McGuire acknowledged that the pain lingered more it usually does.

“As a catcher, you’re kind of used to getting baseballs all over,” he said. “I got some on the forearm the other night. It’s one of those things you shake off at first but that one kind of stung. When I looked down, it was starting to swell up a little bit. Life of a catcher right there.”

McGuire and Wong, who have started nine and 13 games behind the plate, respectively, are currently the only two catchers on Boston’s 40-man roster. The Red Sox do have a plethora of catching depth (Jorge Alfaro, Caleb Hamilton, and Ronaldo Hernandez) at Triple-A Worcester, but they would need to clear a 40-man spot in order to add either of them to the active roster.

(Picture of Reese McGuire: Larry Radloff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Garrett Whitlock gives up another home run to Rowdy Tellez as Red Sox fall to Brewers, 5-4

The Red Six threatened late, but they could not come through with another come-from-behind win over the Brewers on Saturday night. Boston instead fell to Milwaukee by a final score of 5-4 at American Family Field to drop back to .500 on the season at 11-11.

Garrett Whitlock, making his third start of the year for the Sox, took a step backwards after tossing seven innings of one-run ball against the Angels last Sunday. This time around against the Brewers, the right-hander allowed five earned runs on eight hits, one walk, and one hit batsman to go along with just one strikeout over four-plus innings of work.

Milwaukee first got to Whitlock in the bottom of the second. William Contreras led off with a double and quickly came into score the first run of the game on a blooper of a ground-rule double off the bat of Brian Anderson. An inning later, with two outs Christian Yelich already on base, Whitlock served up a 412-foot two-run blast to noted Red Sox killer Rowdy Tellez.

Tellez’ second homer of the series and 14th in 37 career games against the Red Sox gave the Brewers an early 3-0 lead. It took until the top of the fifth inning for the Boston bats to respond.

After getting shut out by old friend Wade Miley for four innings, Christian Arroyo reached on a one-out single. Two batters later, Yu Chang continued his power surge by taking the lefty 399 feet deep to left field to cut the deficit to one at 3-2. Chang’s third home run (and fourth hit) of the season left his bat at a blistering 107.3 mph.

It did not take the Brewers long to retaliate, however. In the bottom of the fifth, Blake Perkins led off with a single and promptly scored all the way from first on a line-drive RBI double from Yelich that sailed over the head of center fielder Enrique Hernandez. Whitlock then plunked Jesse Winker and gave up a single to Willy Adames to fill the bases with no outs.

Having already thrown 81 pitches (54 strikes), Whitlock was given the hook by Red Sox manager Alex Cora in favor of Richard Bleier. Bleier, in turn, officially closed the book on the 26-year-old’s night by allowing one of the runners he inherited to score when he got Tellez to ground into a 3-6-1 double play. But the left-hander avoided any further damage and kept the Brewers at five runs by getting Contreras to ground out to end the fifth.

Another old friend, Joel Payamps, took over for Miley in the sixth. Justin Turner led off with a single and remained at first after the pinch-hitting Jarren Duran struck out. Rafael Devers then unloaded on a 3-2, 93.2 mph fastball at the top of the zone and deposited it 416 feet into the right field seats for his eighth big fly of the year already.

Devers’ 110 mph laser brought Boston back to within one run of Milwaukee at 5-4. After John Schreiber and Kutter Crawford put up zeroes in the sixth and seventh innings, the Sox threatened again in the eighth when Turner laced a one-out double. But Turner was stranded at second as newly-inserted Brewers reliever Hoby Milner (a lefty) fanned both Duran and Devers to escape the jam.

Crawford retired the side in the bottom of the eighth, taking the Red Sox down to their final three outs in the ninth. Masataka Yoshida made it somewhat interesting by reaching on a one-out single off Devin Williams, but the Brewers closer rebounded and sat down both Raimel Tapia and Reese McGuire to end it.

All told, the Red Sox went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position and left four runners on base as a team. Whitlock was charged with the loss and now carries a 6.19 ERA through his first three starts. Turner, Devers, and Yoshida accounted for six of Boston’s eight hits.

More history for Devers

With his sixth-inning homer, Rafael Devers became just the third Red Sox player to have eight-plus home runs and 20-plus RBIs in the team’s first 22 games since the turn of the century. Carl Everett accomplished the feat in 2000 and Hanley Ramirez was previously the last to do it in 2015.

McGuire’s X-rays come back negative

Reese McGuire, who pinch-hit for starting catcher Connor Wong in the seventh inning, took a foul ball off his throwing hand in the bottom of the eighth. He was able to stay in the game, but was clearly in discomfort as he had issues throwing the ball back to Kutter Crawford.

Following the loss, McGuire had X-rays taken on his right hand. Fortunately for him, those X-rays came back negative.

Next up: Bello vs. Burnes in rubber match

The Red Sox still have a chance to take this three-game series from the Brewers on Sunday afternoon. Brayan Bello will get the start for Boston in the rubber match opposite fellow righty Corbin Burnes for Milwaukee.

First pitch from American Family Field is scheduled for 2:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN+.

(Picture of Rafael Devers: John Fisher/Getty Images)

Alex Verdugo homers again as Red Sox open series against Brewers with 5-3 win

Playing at American Family Field for the first time since 2017, the Red Sox kicked off their road trip with a series-opening win over the Brewers. Boston defeated Milwaukee by a final score of 5-3 on Friday night to get back over .500 and improve to 11-10 on the season.

Matched up against Freddy Peralta out of the gate, the Sox drew first blood against the Brewers in their half of the third inning. Jarren Duran led off with a hard-hit single and advanced to second on a successful sacrifice bunt from Yu Chang. As the lineup flipped over, Alex Verdugo delivered with a 366-foot two-run home run down the right field line.

Verdugo’s third homer of the season — and second in as many days — had an exit velocity of 98.3 mph. It also gave his side an early 2-0 lead as Nick Pivetta was in the midst of his fourth start of the year for Boston.

After stranding one runner, who Reese McGuire helped pick off, in the first and putting up another zero in the second, Pivetta ran into some trouble in the bottom of the third. There, the right-hander gave up a one-out single to Owen Miller, who stole second base and came into score from second on a two-out RBI single off the bat of Christian Yelich.

Milwaukee then leapfrogged Boston in the fourth. With one out in the inning, Pivetta served up a game-tying solo shot to noted Red Sox nemesis Rowdy Tellez. William Contreras followed by making some more hard contact in the form of a line-drive double. Two batters later, Brice Turang provided the Brewers with their first lead of the night by plating Contreras on a groundball single through the right side of the infield.

Despite falling behind, 3-2, the Sox were able to respond in the top of the sixth. Enrique Hernandez and Triston Casas drew back-to-back two-out walks to knock Peralta out of the game. With left-handed reliever Hoby Milner set to take over for the Brewers, Red Sox manager Alex Cora dipped into his bench by having the right-handed hitting Rob Refsnyder pinch-hit for McGuire, a left-handed hitter

Refsnyder made the most of the opportunity, as he greeted Milner by lofting a game-tying single to right field. Hernandez came into score from second to knot things up at three runs apiece. Moments later, Duran broke the tie by driving in Casas on a 100.4 mph liner that could not be handled cleanly by Miller.

As a result, the Red Sox went up, 4-3, going into the latter half of the sixth. Pivetta then recorded the first two outs of the inning before issuing a four-pitch walk to Brian Anderson, which marked the end of his night. The 30-year-old hurler wound up allowing just the three earned runs on seven hits and one walk to go along with seven strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings of work. He finished with exactly 100 pitches (65 strikes) and induced 12 swings-and-misses before ultimately picking up his first winning decision of the year.

In relief of Pivetta, Josh Winckowcki received the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen from Cora. The righty stranded the lone runner he inherited in the sixth by getting Turang to fly out to left fielder Masataka Yoshida. A half-inning later, Yoshida provided Boston with an important insurance run by pushing across Justin Turner on a 107.3 mph RBI double off Bryse Wilson.

Yoshida’s clutch two-base hit gave the Red Sox a 5-3 lead at stretch time. Winckowski picked up where he left off by tossing a 1-2-3 seventh inning. The Brewers threatened in the eighth when Tellez drew a two-out walk and Contreras followed with a single to put runners on the corners, but Winckowski did not falter. Instead, he fanned Anderson on a 95.1 mph fastball to escape the jam.

That paved the way for Kenley Jansen to enter in the ninth. The veteran closer made quick work of the Brewers, punching out two and getting Joey Wiemer to pop out into foul territory to notch his fifth save of the season and secure the 5-3 victory.

Next up: Whitlock vs. Miley

Winners of six of their last eight games, the Red Sox will look to take this series from the Brewers on Saturday night. Right-hander Garrett Whitlock is slated to take the mound for Boston while former Sox left-hander Wade Miley is expected to do the same for Milwaukee.

First pitch from American Family Field is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Alex Verdugo: Larry Radloff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Red Sox reliever Zack Kelly to undergo elbow surgery

Red Sox reliever Zack Kelly will require elbow surgery, manager Alex Cora announced to reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo) prior to Wednesday’s 10-4 loss to the Twins at Fenway Park.

Kelly will undergo an “ulnar nerve transposition revision” on a date that is still to be determined, according to the team. The right-hander’s UCL (ulnar collateral ligament) and internal brace are still intact.

After injuring his right elbow in last Wednesday’s loss to the Rays at Tropicana Field, Kelly underwent further imaging in Boston on Friday. The 28-year-old’s MRI came back clean, but the Red Sox still sent the results to the physician who performed his internal bracing procedure in May 2020 in order to get a second opinion.

Additionally, Kelly visited an orthopedic surgeon in Alabama in recent days. The result of that visit was the “best case scenario,” per Cotillo.

“The ulnar nerve wasn’t damaged but it’s not attached to whatever it has to be,” Cora said of Kelly. “He’s going to have surgery. We have to wait on when. As far as surgeries, the doctor is backtracked with all that stuff so we have to wait. But he’ll be out for a while.”

Because he underwent an internal bracing procedure on his right elbow in lieu of Tommy John surgery nearly three years ago, Kelly has dealt with this sort of issue before. He was with the Angels at that time and would have missed the entirety of the 2020 minor-league season had it not been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Kelly was released by Los Angeles shortly thereafter and joined the Red Sox as a minor-league free agent that December.

At this point in time, it is not yet known if Kelly will be able to pitch again this season. The righty currently owns a 3.68 ERA with six strikeouts to six walks in his first six relief appearances (7 1/3 innings) of the season after making his first-ever Opening Day roster last month. He was transferred from the 15-day to the 60-day injured list this past Sunday.

When he left last Wednesday’s game, Kelly was visibly upset and had tears in his eyes. At that moment, his previous elbow injury and unique journey from going undrafted out of Division II Newberry College to the major-leagues were both on his mind.

“I was definitely emotional for two reasons,” said Kelly. “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.”

(Picture of Zack Kelly: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Corey Kluber’s struggles continue as Red Sox fall to Twins, 10-4; Enmanuel Valdez records 2 hits in debut

The Red Sox fell behind early and could not recover against the Twins on Wednesday night. Boston fell to Minnesota by a final score of 10-4 at Fenway Park to drop back to under .500 on the season at 9-10.

Corey Kluber, making his fourth start of the year for the Sox, was unable to reverse his early-season struggles. Instead, the veteran right-hander got shelled for seven runs (all earned) on six hits, two walks, and two hit batsman to go along with four strikeouts over five innings of work.

The Twins got to Kluber right away in the top of the first. After Max Kepler drew a leadoff walk and Byron Buxton ripped a one-out double, Trevor Larnach drove in the first run of the game by plating Kepler on an RBI groundout. Moments later, Edouard Julien gave Minnesota a 3-0 lead out of the gate by clubbing a 418-foot two-run home run into the right field bleachers.

Kluber managed to get through a scoreless second inning but ran into more trouble in the third. After walking Larnach and plunking Julien to put runners at first and second with one out, the righty gave up an RBI single to Jose Miranda. Joey Gallo followed by unloading on a hanging, 2-2 curveball and sending it 417 feet to deep right field.

Gallo’s three-run blast put the Twins up, 7-0, heading into the bottom of the third. The Red Sox then got one of those runs back when Raimel Tapia scored Triston Casas from third base on an RBI groundout off opposing starter Joe Ryan.

Kluber, for his part, retired the side in order in the fourth and stranded two runners in a scoreless fifth inning. Still, it was a discouraging outing for the 36-year-old, who finished with 103 pitches (65 strikes) and is now 0-4 with an ERA of 8.50 to begin his tenure in Boston.

With Kluber’s day over, the Red Sox lineup struck again in the latter half of the fifth. Jarren Duran led off with a hustle double, moved up to third on an Enmanuel Valdez single, and then scored his side’s second run as Alex Verdugo grounded into a 3-6-1 double play.

Trailing 7-2 going into the sixth, Ryan Brasier received the first call out of the Boston bullpen from manager Alex Cora. Brasier sandwiched a Max Kepler double in between the first two outs of the inning before issuing a six-pitch walk to Buxton. He then served up a 423-foot three-run home run to Larnach that gave the Twins a commanding 10-2 advantage.

Enrique Hernandez took Ryan 371 feet over the Green Monster with two outs in the bottom sixth for his third home run of the season and the 100th of his career. After Richard Bleier and Kaleb Ort combined for three scoreless innings of relief, the Red Sox made things somewhat interesting in the ninth.

Hernandez, Reese McGuire, and Casas all reached to fill the bases with no outs. Duran then plated Hernandez from third with a sacrifice fly to make it a 10-4 game. But Twins reliever Brent Headrick got Valdez to line out and Verdugo to fly out to kill any chances of a comeback.

All told, the Red Sox went just 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position and left six runners on base as a team in Wednesday’s 10-4 loss, which took two hours and 37 minutes to complete.

Valdez has two hits, fielding error in debut

Second baseman Enmanuel Valdez made his major-league debut on Wednesday night after getting called up from Triple-A Worcester earlier in the afternoon. The 24-year-old began his day by singling to the opposite field in each of his first two plate appearances. He then struck out swinging in the seventh and lined out in the ninth to finish 2-for-4 with two left on base.

Defensively, Valdez committed the game’s only error. With two outs and one runner on in the top of the fifth, Valdez could not come up with a 201-foot flyball off the bat of Joey Gallo that landed between him and Alex Verdugo in the right field glass. He was charged with a fielding error as a result.

Hernandez’s 100th career home run

By taking Joe Ryan deep into the Monster seats in the sixth inning of Wednesday’s loss, Enrique Hernandez notched the 100th home run of his big-league career. The solo shot left his bat at 101.4 mph and travelled 371 feet at a launch angle of 30 degrees.

Next up: Maeda vs. Houck to close out homestand

The Red Sox will once again look to secure a series victory over the Twins on Thursday afternoon before embarking on a two-city, six-game road trip. Tanner Houck is slated to start for Boston opposite fellow right-hander Kenta Maeda.

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

(Picture of Corey Kluber: Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)

Red Sox prospect Enmanuel Valdez starting at second base, batting ninth in major-league debut

Red Sox infield prospect Enmanuel Valdez will make his major-league debut against the Twins at Fenway Park on Wednesday night.

Valdez was called up from Triple-A Worcester after fellow infielder Yu Chang was placed on the paternity leave list. The 24-year-old will start at second base and bat ninth for manager Alex Cora in the middle game of this three-game series with Minnesota.

Acquired from the Astros with outfield prospect Wilyer Abreu for catcher Christian Vazquez last August, Valdez is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 19 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The Red Sox added the Dominican Republic native to their 40-man roster in November so that he would not be eligible for minor-league free agency or the Rule 5 Draft.

Valdez closed out the 2022 season with the WooSox and played with Toros del Este of the Dominican Winter League over the winter. He then showed flashes of his potential in his first spring training with the Red Sox by clubbing two home runs and posting a .389 on-base percentage in 15 Grapefruit League games before being optioned in mid-March.

Though Valdez returned to Worcester for the start of the 2023 minor-league season, he had not gotten off to the best of starts leading up to Wednesday’s promotion. In 11 games with the WooSox this year, the left-handed hitter has batted just .179 (7-for-39) with three doubles, one home run, six RBIs, three runs scored, one stolen base, six walks, and 15 strikeouts in 45 plate appearances.

While those numbers may not look too encouraging, Valdez recently came through with three clutch hits — a solo homer, a game-tying double, and a walk-off single — in Saturday’s 6-5 victory over the Columbus Clippers at Polar Park.

As he prepares to debut with the Red Sox, Valdez will first be going up against Twins starter Joe Ryan to begin things on Wednesday night. Ryan, a righty, has held opposing left-handed hitters to a measly .103/.133/.310 slash line through three starts so far this season. Valdez, meanwhile, has gone 7-for-27 (.257) with that one home run against right-handed pitching in 2023

On the other side of the ball, all 11 of Valdez’s starts this season have come at second base, where he has committed just one error and been involved in six double plays while logging 88 2/3 innings at the position. The versatile 5-foot-8, 191-pounder has past experience at a plethora of other positions as well, but it appears the Red Sox are most comfortable using him at the keystone to kick off his first stint in the majors.

Valdez will wear the No. 47, which was last worn by Yolmer Sanchez last year. He will also become the second Red Sox player to make their big-league debut this season, joining Japanese outfielder Masataka Yoshida, who evidently is out of Wednesday’s starting lineup.

Taking all of that into consideration, it is worth mentioning that Valdez may not be with Boston for long if the plan is to send him back to Worcester once Chang is ready to return to action in the coming days.

Additionally, it is disappointing to relay that Vazquez, who is now with Minnesota, is not in his new team’s lineup after starting in the opener. Ryan Jeffers will instead be getting the start behind the plate for Rocco Baldelli’s American League Central-leading Twins.

With that, first pitch from Fenway Park on Wednesday night is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN+ and MLB Network. While Ryan will be starting for Minnesota, fellow right-hander Corey Kluber is slated to make his fourth start of the season for Boston.

(Picture of Enmanuel Valdez: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox call up infield prospect Enmanuel Valdez from Triple-A Worcester, place Yu Chang on paternity list

The Red Sox have called up infield prospect Enmanuel Valdez from Triple-A Worcester, the club announced prior to Wednesday’s contest against the Twins. In order to make room for Valdez on the active roster, fellow infielder Yu Chang was placed on the paternity leave list.

Valdez, 24, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 19 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The Red Sox originally acquired Valdez alongside outfield prospect Wilyer Abreu from the Astros for catcher Christian Vazquez last August.

After closing out the 2022 season with Worcester, Valdez was added to the Sox’ 40-man roster in November in order to avoid reaching minor-league free agency and becoming eligible for the Rule 5 Draft. He showed flashes of his potential in his first spring training camp with Boston by clubbing two home runs and posting a .389 on-base percentage in Grapefruit League games.

“He can hit,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said of Valdez back in February. “This kid, he can hit. He controls the strike zone. He can hit. So we’ll try to help him defensively. More comfortable at second than other places. Both of them, Abreu and Valdez, they control the strike zone. They do damage in the strike zone. I’m excited to see them.”

To begin his first full season in the Red Sox organization, Valdez has not gotten off to the best of starts offensively. In his first 11 games with the WooSox this year, the left-handed hitter has batted just .179 (7-for-39) with three doubles, one home run, six RBIs, three runs scored, one stolen base, six walks, and 15 strikeouts in 45 plate appearances.

Despite the slow start at the plate, Valdez did come through with three clutch hits (a solo homer, a game-tying double, and a walk-off single) in a 6-5 win over the Columbus Clippers at Polar Park this past Saturday. For his career at the Triple-A level, the Dominican Republic native is a lifetime .256/.323/.472 hitter with 18 home runs and 68 RBIs in 93 total games spanning 412 trips to the plate.

Defensively, Valdez has proven to be quite versatile since first signing with the Astros for $450,000 as an international free agent coming out of San Juan de la Maguana in July 2015. So far this season, the 5-foot-8, 191-pounder has seen all of his playing time come at second base. With the WooSox last year, though, he also logged 24 innings at third base and 25 innings in left field.

Valdez, who does not turn 25 until December, is slated to become the second member of the 2023 Red Sox to make their major-league debut this season, joining Japanese outfielder Masataka Yoshida. With that being said, Valdez’s first stint as a big-leaguer may not last too long.

That being the case because, according to MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith, the Red Sox promoted Valdez “with the idea it might be for only a short period of time” since he is only replacing Chang while his counterpart is out on paternity leave. Chang and his wife, Ling, are expecting the birth of their second child soon.

Regardless of the circumstances, Valdez’s first call-up comes at a fitting time since Vazquez is in town with the Twins. As he prepares to make his big-league debut on Wednesday night, Valdez will be batting ninth and starting at second base for the Red Sox.

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

(Picture of Enmanuel Valdez: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Chris Sale strikes out 11, Alex Verdugo comes through with wonky walk-off single to seal comeback as Red Sox defeat Twins, 5-4, in extras

The Red Sox came back to walk off the Twins in wonky fashion on Tuesday night. Boston defeated Minnesota by a final score of 5-4 in 10 innings at Fenway Park to get back to .500 and improve to 9-9 on the season.

With Sonny Gray starting for the Twins, the Sox quickly drew first blood in their half of the first. Alex Verdugo led off with a line-drive double and then came into score the first run of the game on an RBI single from Rafael Devers.

Chris Sale, meanwhile, made his fourth start of the season for Boston. The veteran left-hander looked like his vintage self, as he allowed just one run on three hits, two walks, and two hit batsman to go along with 11 strikeouts over six strong innings of work.

After tossing four scoreless frames out of the gate, Sale ran into some trouble in the fifth. There, a walk, hit-by-pitch, and infield single filled the bases with no outs. Sale then struck out Donovan Solano, but Carlos Correa followed with a run-scoring sacrifice fly to pull the Twins back even with the Red Sox at 1-1.

Sale avoided any further damage and ended his night by stranding former battery mate Christian Vazquez in an otherwise clean sixth inning. The 34-year-old southpaw finished with 94 pitches (63 strikes), inducing 19 swings-and-misses and topping out at 96.1 mph with his four-seam fastball.

With Sale’s day done, Josh Winckowski received the first call out of the bullpen from Red Sox manager Alex Cora in the seventh. Right away, Winckowski was greeted by Max Kepler, who took a 1-0, 85 mph slider on the inner half of the plate and deposited it 385 feet into the visitor’s bullpen to give the Twins a 2-1 lead.

That is where the score would remain as Winckowski held Minnesota at two runs through the middle of the eighth. The latter half of the inning is where things started to get interesting.

Enrique Hernandez led off with a line-drive single off new Twins reliever Griffin Jax. After Triston Casas struck out for a fourth time, the pinch-hitting Reese McGuire reached base on a catcher’s interference. Hernandez was able to go from first to third on the play since the ball was technically live when McGuire grounded to third.

That bizarre sequence put runners on the corners with one out for Jarren Duran, who proceeded to hit a chopper to second baseman Nick Gordon. With his momentum carrying him in that direction, Gordon attempted to throw out Hernandez at home. Gordon’s throw, however, was mishandled by Vazquez at the plate, which allowed Hernandez to score the tying run.

Closers Kenley Jansen and Jhoan Duran exchanged 1-2-3 innings in the ninth, sending this one into extras. In the top of the 10th, John Schreiber plunked Solano and walked Correa to fill the bases with no outs. The Twins then pushed across two runs on a Byron Buxton sacrifice fly and Jose Miranda RBI groundout.

Trailing 4-2 going into the bottom of the 10th, Kutter Crawford (the pitcher) entered the game as the ghost runner at second base for the Red Sox. With a short bench due to Christian Arroyo’s hamstring injury, Cora was forced to use Crawford (who pitched 6 1/3 innings of relief on Monday) as a pinch-runner after making a double switch and burning his designated hitter earlier in the game.

Representing the tying run, Hernandez led off the 10th by striking out, but he reached first safely as a result of a wild pitch on strike three from Jovani Moran. Crawford advanced to the third on the play and Casas followed by drawing a six-pitch walk to fill the bases for McGuire.

McGuire came through with a game-tying, two-run single, plating both Crawford and Hernandez by roping a 188-foot base hit to left field. Duran then re-loaded the bases by ripping a groundball single back up the middle, but Rob Refsnyder followed by grounding into a 5-3 double play.

Down to their final out in the 10th, the game was fittingly in Verdugo’s hands. Verdugo delivered by lifting a 300-foot single down the right field line. Out of the box, Verdugo thought it was foul, but the ball barely landed in fair territory as it bounced off the portion of the right field wall in front of the Pesky Pole.

After a lengthy umpire review, it was determined that the ball did indeed land in fair territory. As a result, Verdugo was credited with the sixth walk-off RBI of his career and the Red Sox went home winners despite going 5-for-20 with runners in scoring position and leaving 13 runners on base as a team.

Next up: Ryan vs. Kluber

The Red Sox will look to secure a series victory over the Twins on Wednesday night. Corey Kluber will get the start for Boston while fellow right-hander Joe Ryan will do the same for Minnesota.

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

(Picture of Alex Verdugo: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Christian Arroyo out ‘a few days’ after tweaking right hamstring on Monday

The Red Sox could be without second baseman Christian Arroyo for the entirety of this week’s three-game series against the Twins at Fenway Park.

Arroyo tweaked his right hamstring while running out a groundball in the third inning of Monday’s 5-4 loss to the Angels. The 27-year-old came up gimpy on the play but he remained in the game until Alex Verdugo pinch-hit for him in the bottom of the ninth.

When speaking with reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo) earlier Tuesday afternoon, manager Alex Cora indicated that Arroyo was dealing with tightness in his right hamstring and would be held out of action for at least “a few days” as a result.

“He’s doing OK,” Cora said of Arroyo. “We’ll stay away from him today, maybe tomorrow. Kind of like the same situation as [Masataka] Yoshida (who missed four games last week due to hamstring tightness). ” I don’t think it’s an [injured list] thing. We’ll take care of him and he will be ready in a few days.”

Arroyo has not gotten off to the best of starts at the plate this season. Through his first 16 games, the right-handed hitter has batted just .160/.192/.200 with two doubles, three RBIs, three runs scored, one stolen base, two walks, and 13 strikeouts in 53 plate appearances. He has, however, provided quality defense at second base thus far.

With Arroyo out of the lineup for Tuesday’s series opener against Minnesota, Enrique Hernandez will start at second (his third different position this season) for Boston. Additionally, Yu Chang will start at shortstop alongside Hernandez while Jarren Duran will get the start in center.

(Picture of Christian Arroyo: Billie Weiss/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)