Tag: jd martinez

Red Sox set roster for ALDS vs. Rays: J.D. Martinez active; Matt Barnes, Jarren Duran among those left off

The Red Sox have released their roster for their matchup against the Rays in the American League Division Series, which kicks off at Tropicana Field later Thursday night.

After being left off the Sox’ Wild Card game roster earlier this week on account of a left ankle sprain, J.D. Martinez is back in the fold and will be active for this upcoming series, though it remains to be seen if he will be able to start in Game 1.

Martinez had to be held out of action in Tuesday’s win over the Yankees after tripping over the second-base bag while jogging out to right field in Sunday’s contest against the Nationals at Nationals Park.

The 34-year-old slugger twisted his left ankle as a result and was left with an injury that Red Sox manager Alex Cora had previously described as “very serious” due to the level of swelling.

Joining Martinez on Boston’s ALDS roster after being left off for the Wild Card Game are left-handers Chris Sale and Martin Perez and utility man Danny Santana. Sale is expected to start Game 2 of this series on Friday.

In order to accommodate the additions of these four, the Sox removed the likes of catcher Connor Wong, infielder Jonathan Arauz, and outfielder Jarren Duran after including the young trio in their Wild Card Game roster for depth purposes.

Matt Barnes, who was active but did not pitch in Tuesday’s victory over New York, was also removed, making him one of the more notable omissions from Boston’s ALDS roster.

On top of that, Hirokazu Sawamura and Darwinzon Hernandez were also left off the team’s roster after neither reliever was active for Tuesday’s Wild Card Game at Fenway Park.

With this series of transactions, the Red Sox will be rolling with 13 pitchers and 13 position players against the Rays after going with 12 pitchers and 14 position players against the Yankees.

As previously mentioned, Barnes being left off is notable, though it does not come as much of a surprise given how things have gone for him lately. The 31-year-old right-hander began the 2021 season by locking down the closer’s role out of the Boston bullpen.

Through the end of July, Barnes had posted a 2.30 ERA and 2.15 FIP while converting 23 of a possible 27 save opportunities in the process of being named to his first All-Star team. He also signed a two-year, $18.75 million contract extension on July 11, but has not been the same since the calendar flipped to August.

From the start of August through the end of the season, Barnes struggled to the tune of a 9.26 ERA and 7.11 FIP over 17 appearances (11 2/3 innings pitched) while also testing positive for COVID-19 and missing a significant amount of time as a result.

Without Barnes on the ALDS roster, the Sox added Sale — who was not available to pitch on Tuesday after starting on Sunday — and Perez, who becomes the extra pitcher after being inactive for the Wild Card Game.

While Barnes is undoubtedly the most notable player left off Boston’s roster for their best-of-five series against Tampa Bay, Santana is the most surprising addition.

Despite having not played in a big-league game since September 10, Santana was activated off the COVID-19 related injured list and added to the club’s ALDS squad.

In order to make room for Santana on the 40-man roster, the Red Sox outrighted infielders Jose Iglesias and Yairo Munoz to Triple-A Worcester.

By outrighting Iglesias, who was not eligible for the postseason since he signed after Sept. 1, the Sox were able to create space for the switch-hitting Santana, who is capable of providing the club with defensive versatility and speed off the bench.

Full Red Sox ALDS Roster:

Pitchers (13): Ryan Brasier, Austin Davis, Nathan Eovaldi, Tanner Houck, Adam Ottavino, Martín Pérez, Nick Pivetta, Garrett Richards, Hansel Robles, Eduardo Rodriguez, Chris Sale, Josh Taylor, Garrett Whitlock

Catchers (2): Kevin Plawecki, Christian Vázquez

Infielders (5): Christian Arroyo, Xander Bogaerts, Bobby Dalbec, Rafael Devers, Travis Shaw

Outfielders (4): J.D. Martinez, Hunter Renfroe, Kyle Schwarber, Alex Verdugo

(Picture of J.D. Martinez: Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)

Xander Bogaerts and Kyle Schwarber both homer as Red Sox defeat Yankees, 6-2, in American League Wild Card Game

No J.D. Martinez? No problem. With their star slugger nursing an ankle sprain, the Red Sox took care of business against the Yankees on Tuesday night.

In the first-ever American League Wild Card Game to be played at Fenway Park, Boston held on for a 6-2 victory over New York to eliminate their division rivals from the postseason.

Matched up against Yankees ace Gerrit Cole to begin things on Tuesday, a Martinez-less Sox lineup got the scoring started right away — or with two outs in the bottom of the first inning to be more precise.

On the heels of a six-pitch walk drawn by Rafael Devers, Xander Bogaerts followed by taking Cole deep on a 2-1, 89 mph changeup that was grooved down the heart of the plate.

Bogaerts took that tantalizing pitch and crushed a two-run home run 427 feet to dead center field, giving the Red Sox their first lead of the night at 2-0 on his third career postseason homer.

Kyle Schwarber tacked on another run to Boston’s early lead two innings later, as he led off the bottom of the third with a 435-foot solo blast that left his bat at a scorching 110.3 mph.

Schwarber’s first October home run in a Red Sox uniform put his side up 3-0, and it also marked the end of the line for Cole after the righty put two more runners on in the third inning without recording an out.

Unlike Cole, Sox starter Nathan Eovaldi was locked in on Tuesday night. In what was his first postseason start in nearly three years, Eovaldi limited his former team in the Yankees to just one run on four hits and zero walks to go along with eight strikeouts over 5 1/3 strong innings of work.

The veteran right-hander kicked off his outing by retiring 16 of the first batters he faced, taking a shutout bid into the top of the sixth before the New York lineup flipped over for a third time.

After getting Rougned Odor (pinch-hitting for No. 9 hitter Andrew Velazquez) to punch out for the first out of the frame, Eovaldi served up a solo shot that wrapped around Pesky’s Pole in right field to Yankees leadoff man Anthony Rizzo, thus making it a 3-1 game. He then yielded an infield single to Aaron Judge to bring the tying run to the plate.

Taking no chances with the dangerous Giancarlo Stanton looming in the on-deck circle, Red Sox manager Alex Cora went to his bullpen right then and there, as he gave Eovaldi the hook in favor of Ryan Brasier.

Brasier, in turn, gave up a hard-hit, 114.9 mph single to Stanton that bounced off the Green Monster and was corralled by Enrique Hernandez in center field. Judge attempted to score all the way from first base on the play, but was instead thrown out at the plate after Hernandez threw the ball in to Bogaerts and Bogaerts gunned him down to complete the relay.

So, instead of having runners at second and third with one out, the Yankees had just one runner at second (Stanton moved up from first) with two outs. Brasier, in the process of officially closing the book on Eovaldi’s night, capitalized on that by getting Joey Gallo to pop out to retire the side in the sixth.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 71 (54 strikes), Eovaldi turned to his four-seam fastball 49% of the time he was on the mound Tuesday. Of the 35 four-seamers the 31-year-old hurler threw, six induced a swing-and-miss.

A half-inning later, the Red Sox got the lone run Eovaldi surrendered right back while Luis Severino was pitching for the Yankees.

With one out and a runner on first following a Bogaerts walk, Alex Verdugo came through with his first of two clutch hits on the night. He first drove in Bogaerts all the way from first on a line-drive RBI double to right field that gave Boston a 4-1 lead.

Following a scoreless top of the seventh from Tanner Houck, Verdugo delivered once more, this time coming up to the plate with two outs, the bases full, and the opportunity to put this one away.

On the second pitch he saw from Yankees reliever Chad Green, Verdugo did just that by drilling a two-run single back up the middle that brought in both Schwarber and Hernandez to make it a 6-1 contest in favor of Boston.

From there, Hansel Robles tossed a perfect inning of relief on the eighth to make way for Garrett Whitlock in the ninth.

Whitlock, despite giving up a solo homer to Stanton, somewhat fittingly closed the door on the Yankees’ season. The righty recorded the final three outs of the ninth to preserve a 6-2 Wild Card victory for the Sox.

With the win, not only do the Red Sox eliminate the Yankees, but they also advance to the American League Division Series. Boston will open a best-of-five series with the Rays at Tropicana Field on Thursday night.

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

J.D. Martinez’s ankle injury ‘very serious,’ Red Sox manager Alex Cora says

The Red Sox will attempt to advance to the American League Division Series without J.D. Martinez in their lineup for Tuesday’s Wild Card Game against the Yankees at Fenway Park.

Martinez sustained a left ankle sprain when running out to right field in the fifth inning of Sunday’s game against the Nationals at Nationals Park (a National League ballpark where the designated hitter does not apply).

“For him not to post, it’s very serious,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “It is what it is. That thing looks huge. Humongous. He’ll get treatment today and we’ll go from there. But for tonight, it was a no.”

Upon jogging to his position Martinez tripped over the second-base bag and twisted his ankle, resulting in him getting pinch-hit for by Jose Iglesias a half-inning later.

Two days after suffering the injury, Martinez arrived at Fenway Park Tuesday morning with the swelling in his ankle having yet to go down, so he was promptly left off Boston’s Wild Card Game roster.

“The way it happened, I mean, J.D. has been stepping on that bag for 10 years,” said Cora. “It just happened that he slipped and he’s out now.”

With Martinez out of the lineup, Cora altered things significantly, as Kyle Schwarber will serve as designated hitter and bat leadoff, while Enrique Hernandez will start in center field and bat second and Bobby Dalbec will get the start at first base.

Even with Schwarber filling the void left behind by Martinez, Cora acknowledged that playing in a win-or-go-home game without the 34-year-old slugger is disappointing, though he does expect him to contribute in other ways.

“He’ll be the best assistant hitting coach in the world tonight,” Cora said. “The goal is obviously hopefully we can do what we do, play a good baseball game and advance, and see where we’re at for the next round.”

(Picture of J.D. Martinez: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox unveil lineup for Wild Card Game vs. Yankees: Kyle Schwarber leads off while Bobby Dalbec starts at first base

For the first time since its inception in 2012, the Red Sox are hosting the American League Wild Card Game against the Yankees at Fenway Park on Tuesday night.

It took until the final day of the regular season on Sunday, but the Sox finished ahead of the Yankees in the Wild Card standings despite both clubs having identical records (92-70) on account of winning the season series against their division rivals, 10-9.

Because of this, the 2021 installment of the American League Wild Card Game will be taking place in Boston as opposed to New York, meaning the Red Sox will have home-field advantage.

With ace right-hander Gerrit Cole starting for the Yankees, the left-handed hitting Kyle Schwarber will serve as the Sox manager Alex Cora’s leadoff leadoff hitter Tuesday night. He will be doing so while serving as the club’s designated hitter, as J.D. Martinez was left off Boston’s Wild Card roster due to a left ankle sprain.

Enrique Hernandez will start in center field and bat behind Schwarber, marking the first time all year the 30-year-old has started a game as the Sox’ No. 2 hitter after primarily batting leadoff throughout the regular season.

On account of Martinez’s absence from the roster, it will be third baseman Rafael Devers, shortstop Xander Bogaerts, and left fielder Alex Verdugo comprising the Nos. 3, 4, and 5 spots.

Hunter Renfroe rounds out the outfield and the middle third of Boston’s lineup, as the strong-armed 29-year-old gets the start in right field while batting sixth behind Verdugo and ahead of Kevin Plawecki.

Plawecki will be catching right-hander Nathan Eovaldi to begin things on Tuesday. Over the course of the regular season, Eovaldi posted a 3.28 ERA and .644 OPS against in 17 starts (96 innings pitched) with Plawecki behind the plate as opposed to a 4.77 ERA and .766 OPS against in 13 starts (66 innings pitched) with Christian Vazquez doing the same.

After Plawecki, Bobby Dalbec will be getting the start at first base and batting eighth, while Christian Arroyo will be getting the start at second base and batting ninth.

Of these nine hitters, Bogaerts, Devers, Hernandez, Schwarber, Shaw, and Verdugo have all homered off Cole at least one time in either the regular or postseason.

Hernandez specifically is 5-for-11 (.455) in his career against Cole, as he took the Yankees ace deep back in June.

Additionally, the Red Sox will have the likes of Jonathan Arauz, Jarren Duran, Travis Shaw, and Connor Wong available off the bench if needed.

First pitch from Fenway Park Tuesday night is scheduled for 8:08 p.m. eastern time on ESPN.

(Picture of Kyle Schwarber: Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)

Red Sox set roster for Wild Card Game vs. Yankees: J.D. Martinez, Chris Sale among those left off

The Red Sox have released their Wild Card Game roster, announcing the 26 players who will take the field for Tuesday night’s pivotal matchup against the Yankees at Fenway Park.

J.D. Martinez was among those who was left off the roster, as the veteran slugger sprained his left ankle in Sunday’s regular season finale against the Nationals.

While running out to take right field in the fifth inning of Sunday’s contest, Martinez tripped over the second-base bag and twisted his ankle as a result. The 34-year-old was able to remain in the game for the bottom of the fifth, but was pinch-hit for by Jose Iglesias a half-inning later.

According to MLB Network’s Jon Heyman, an MRI on Martinez’s sprained ankle revealed no structural damage, which is certainly encouraging. Still, it was not enough to clear the four-time All-Star to return to action.

In addition to Martinez, the Sox also left the likes of left-handers Chris Sale, Darwinzon Hernandez, and Martin Perez and right-hander Hirokazu Sawamura off the roster.

Sale had started Sunday’s season finale in Washington, needing 62 pitches to get through 2 1/3 innings of work. The 32-year-old ace tried to convince Red Sox manager Alex Cora he would be available if needed on Tuesday, but that did not work out in his favor.

With Hernandez and Perez not making the cut, it was somewhat surprising to see that Josh Taylor is on the roster. The left-handed reliever last pitched on September 22, shortly before being placed on the 10-day injured list on account of a low back strain on Sept. 26.

Joining Taylor in the Boston bullpen for Tuesday’s Wild Card Game will be Eduardo Rodriguez and Nick Pivetta, both of whom pitched in relief of Sale in Sunday’s victory over the Nationals.

On the flip side of things, the Red Sox added three players to their roster who had ended the 2021 regular season with Triple-A Worcester in catcher Connor Wong, infielder Jonathan Arauz, and outfielder Jarren Duran.

Wong will serve as Boston’s third catcher behind starter Kevin Plawecki and Christian Vazquez, while Arauz will serve as infield depth who has major-league experience at second base, third base, and shortstop.

Duran, on the other hand, could come off the bench at any time, as he represents the top pinch-running option the Sox have to offer on account of his elite speed.

Jose Iglesias, who had primarily been playing second base since joining the Red Sox last month, was left off the club’s Wild Card Game roster since he was ineligible to play in the postseason after not signing with Boston until after the August 31 deadline.

Because of this, Christian Arroyo will get the start at second base as the Sox go up against Yankees ace Gerrit Cole on Tuesday night. Fellow righty Nathan Eovaldi will get the ball for Boston.

—

Pitchers (12): Matt Barnes, Ryan Brasier, Austin Davis, Nathan Eovaldi, Tanner Houck, Adam Ottavino, Nick Pivetta, Garrett Richards, Hansel Robles, Eduardo Rodriguez, Josh Taylor, Garrett Whitlock

Catchers (3): Kevin Plawecki, Christian Vázquez, Connor Wong

Infielders (6): Jonathan Araúz, Christian Arroyo, Xander Bogaerts, Bobby Dalbec, Rafael Devers, Travis Shaw

Outfielders (4): Jarren Duran, Hunter Renfroe, Kyle Schwarber, Alex Verdugo

Infielder/Outfielders (1): Kiké Hernández

—

First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 8:08 p.m. eastern time on ESPN.

(Picture of J.D. Martinez: Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)

J.D. Martinez twists ankle in win over Nationals, leaving status for Wild Card Game against Yankees up in air

The Red Sox may have secured their spot in the American League Wild Card Game with a hard-fought, 7-5 win over the Nationals on Sunday night, but they lost J.D. Martinez to injury in the process of doing so.

Martinez, who got the start in right field for Sunday’s series finale with there being no designated hitter in a National League Ballpark, sustained a left ankle sprain in the middle of the fifth inning.

While jogging out from the visitor’s dugout to take his position, the 34-year-old slugger tripped over the second-base bag and came up lame as a result.

That prompted Red Sox manager Alex Cora and a team trainer to pay Martinez a visit in the outfield, though he was able to talk his way into staying in the game at that point.

After moving very slowly on Alex Avila’s two-run double to right field in the bottom of the fifth, however, Martinez’s day ultimately came to a close, as he was pinch-hit for by Jose Iglesias in the top of the sixth and replaced by Hunter Renfroe in right in the bottom of the frame.

Following Sunday’s dramatic, come-from-behind victory over the Nationals, Cora provided an update on Martinez, who was at least able to celebrate with his teammates despite being hobbled.

“He twisted his ankle on the way to right field,” Cora told reporters via Zoom Sunday night. “He stepped on the bag and twisted his ankle. He grinded that inning defensively.”

In Martinez’s place out of the No. 5 spot in Boston’s lineup, Iglesias, who took over at second base while Enrique Hernandez moved to centerfield, went 2-for-3 with a pair of singles and one run scored.

“We took [Martinez] out, Iggy did a good job. Got two hits, played good defense,” said Cora. “And the guys stepped up. That’s what we do. Somebody goes down, somebody has to come in and do the job, and tonight was really good.”

When asked if Martinez would be ready to go for Tuesday’s highly-anticipated Wild Card Game against the Yankees at Fenway Park, Cora could only respond by saying he and the team will know more on Monday.

Before his removal from Sunday’s contest, Martinez had gone 0-for-1 with a strikeout while also getting plunked by a pitch.

That said, the four-time All-Star finishes his 2021 campaign having slashed .286/.349/.518 with 42 doubles, three triples, 28 home runs, 99 RBI, 92 runs scored, 55 walks, and 150 strikeouts over 148 games and 634 plate appearances.

(Picture of J.D. Martinez: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Rafael Devers crushes 2 homers as Red Sox come back to clinch Wild Card berth with 7-5 win over Nationals

It was no simple task, but the Red Sox secured a spot in the American League Wild Card Game by finishing off a three-game weekend sweep of the Nationals on Sunday.

Boston held on to top Washington by a final score of 7-5 at Nationals Park, which ensures that they will not have to play in a tiebreaker on Monday.

Chris Sale, making his ninth and final start of the regular season for the Sox, was unable provide length in his first-ever appearance against the Nationals.

After getting off to a solid start in which he struck out the side in the bottom of the first, the veteran left-hander ran into some trouble in the second when he gave up a leadoff double to Josh Bell. Jordy Mercer followed by ripping another double off Sale that brought in Bell and gave Washington their first lead of the day at 1-0.

The Nationals doubled their advantage an inning later, as Sale loaded the bases with one out on a walk and a pair of singles before issuing another free pass to Ryan Zimmerman that plated Lane Thomas from third to make it a 2-0 contest.

Despite throwing just 62 pitches (37 strikes), Sale’s afternoon came to a close right then and there, with Red Sox manager Alex Cora forced to turn to his bullpen far earlier than expected.

Hirokazu Sawamura was the one who got the first call from Cora out of the Boston bullpen, and despite inheriting a mess, he officially closed the book on Sale’s outing by getting Mercer to ground into a huge inning-ending, 6-4-3 double play.

To that point, the Red Sox lineup had been stymied by Nationals starter Joan Adon, managing all of one hit off the right-hander making his first career big-league start on Sunday.

Rafael Devers changed that quickly, though, as he led off the fourth inning by clubbing a 432-foot solo blast to deep center field off a 1-2, 95 mph sinker on the outer half of the plate from Adon.

Devers’ 37th home run of the season cut Boston’s deficit in half at 2-1, but that was all they got in the fourth after J.D. Martinez struck out, Alex Verdugo unsuccessfully tried to turn a one-out single into a one-out double, and Hunter Renfroe fanned on three straight pitches.

Sawamura continued to keep the Nationals off the board in the bottom of the fourth, presenting the Sox with the opportunity to get something going in the top of the fifth after the pinch-hitting Christian Arroyo and Enrique Hernandez reached base with one out on a walk and base hit.

A wild pitch from Adon allowed both runners to advance into scoring position, but Boston could not capitalize — as Kyle Schwarber and a struggling Bogaerts rolled over back-to-back groundouts to extinguish the threat.

Perhaps taking advantage of the Sox’ inability to score, the Nats jumped on the newly-inserted Garrett Richards in their half of the fifth. Richards yielded a leadoff double to Alcides Escobar and intentionally put the dangerous Juan Soto on base.

A passed ball from Richards moved Escobar and Soto up to second base for Bell, who drew a five-pitch walk himself to fill the bases once again. Richards recorded the first out of the inning, but allowed Escobar to score from third on an RBI groundout off the bat of Mercer before serving up a two-run double down the right field line to Alex Avila.

Avila, playing in his final major-league game on Sunday, put Washington up 5-1, though is counterpart in Christian Vazquez got one of those runs back in the sixth when he drove in Jose Iglesias on an RBI single off Nationals reliever Patrick Murphy — thus making it a 5-2 ballgame.

Iglesias came into the game as a pinch-hitter for Martinez, who suffered a left ankle sprain after tripping on the second-base bag while running out to right field in the middle of the fifth inning. He was replaced in right field by Renfroe, while Iglesias took over at second base and Hernandez shifted to center field.

Following all that defensive shifting, Martin Perez took over for Richards in the bottom of the sixth inning. The left-hander maneuvered his way around a two-out walk in an otherwise clean frame of work.

A half-inning later, the Boston bats continued to chip away at the deficit in front of them while matched up against Erick Fedde.

Schwarber ignited the rally with a one-out single that was followed by another base hit courtesy of Bogaerts. Devers then plated Schwarber from second on an RBI single to trim Washington’s lead down to two runs. He also moved Bogaerts up to third base.

Iglesias may have popped out to foul territory for the second out of the seventh, but Verdugo did not let a prime scoring opportunity go to waste.

Making up for his earlier base-running gaffe, Verdugo laced a game-tying, two-run double to the gap in right-center field, driving in Bogaerts from third and Devers all the way from first.

Verdugo’s clutch double knotted things up at five runs apiece, and Garrett Whitlock — who was activated from the injured list on Sunday after a two-week absence — kept it that way going into the eighth by fanning two in a scoreless bottom half of the seventh.

Bobby Dalbec pinch-hit for Whitlock in the top half of the eighth, which paved the way for Eduardo Rodriguez to take over for the right-hander. Rodriguez, who threw 93 pitches in his start on Friday, needed all of eight pitches — six of which were strikes — to retire the Nats in order in the latter half of the eighth.

Potentially down to their final three outs in the ninth, Schwarber led off against Kyle Finnegan by reaching base on a fielding error committed by Mercer, which would prove to be costly for Washington.

That being the case because after Bogaerts struck out, Devers came through with the hit of the night — if not the season.

On a 2-1, 87 mph splitter on the outer half of the plate from Finnegan, Devers obliterated his second home run of the day, with this one leaving his bat at a scorching 113.4 mph and traveling a whopping 447 feet over the center-field wall.

By going yard for the 38th time this season, the 24-year-old slugger not only came through for the Sox yet again, but he also gave them their first lead of the day at 7-5.

Nick Pivetta, who made his most-recent start on Thursday, was called upon to end things in the bottom of the ninth. The right-hander did just that by slamming the door on the Nationals to preserve the 7-5 victory for the Sox and notch his second career big-league save.

With the win, the Red Sox finish the regular season with a record of 92-70. They also punched their ticket to the postseason, as they will be hosting the Yankees, who defeated the Rays on Sunday, in the American League Wild Card Game at Fenway Park on Tuesday.

Boston will turn to right-hander Nathan Eovaldi for that all-important contest, while New York will roll with fellow righty Gerrit Cole.

First pitch from Fenway Park on Tuesday night is scheduled for 8:08 p.m. eastern time on ESPN.

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

Late rally lifts Red Sox to 5-3 victory over Nationals after Tanner Houck tosses 5 scoreless innings

It took nearly four hours to complete, but the Red Sox managed to hold off the Nationals on Saturday afternoon to ensure that their season will extend beyond Sunday one way or the other.

Powered by a four-run outburst in the ninth inning, Boston outlasted Washington by a final score of 5-3 at Nationals Park, marking their second straight win that tightens their grip on one of the two American League Wild Card spots.

The Sox did not announce a starter for Saturday’s contest until a few hours before first pitch, but who they ultimately rolled with — Tanner Houck — turned in quite the outing to put the finishing touches on his rookie season.

Houck, making his first start since September 17, twirled five perfect innings in which he kept the Nationals off the scoreboard while striking out eight and walking none in the process of retiring each of the first 15 batters he faced in order.

The right-hander got through those five flawless frames on just 53 pitches (39 strikes), but given the fact he had just thrown 41 pitches this past Tuesday, the 25-year-old’s day came to an end as soon as he recorded the final out of the fifth.

In the process of witnessing Houck put together a bid at a perfect game, the Red Sox got very little production out of their lineup while matched up against Nationals starter Josiah Gray.

Rafael Devers put Boston on the board by crushing his 36th home run of the season off Gray with two outs in the top of the fourth, but that was all they could push across while Houck was still on the mound.

In relief of Houck, Garrett Richards got the first call from Red Sox manager Alex Cora out of the Boston bullpen, and he saw the combined perfect game bid come to a close when he issued a two-out single to the pinch-hitting Gerardo Parra in an otherwise clean sixth inning.

Ryan Brasier, taking over for Richards in the seventh, got himself in and out of trouble, as he loaded the bases with two outs on a pair of singles and a walk before emphatically punching out Jordy Mercer on five pitches to extinguish the threat.

Brasier, who completed his fourth straight scoreless appearance in as many days, celebrated getting out of the jam by pounding his chest, though the Sox lineup found themselves in a similar situation just a half-inning later.

After Enrique Hernandez, Kyle Schwarber, and Xander Bogaerts had each drawn a walk with two outs in the eighth, Devers had an opportunity to put this one way, but instead struck out against Nationals reliever Tanner Rainey.

With the score remaining at 1-0 in favor of Boston, Adam Ottavino appeared well on his way to recording the first two outs of the bottom of the eighth rather quickly. The veteran righty punched out Carter Kieboom on three straight strikes and proceeded to get Ryan Zimmerman to lift a 288-foot fly ball in the direction of center fielder Hunter Renfroe.

Renfroe, however, lost the ball in the sky, which allowed Zimmernan to reach base safely on a double that allowed the Nats to fill the bases when Ottavino yielded back-to-back walks to Lane Thomas and Alcides Escobar.

At that moment, the dangerous, left-handed hitting Juan Soto was looming in the on-deck circle for Washington, which prompted Cora to turn to the left-handed throwing Austin Davis out of the bullpen.

Davis got Soto to hit a 303-foot sacrifice fly to deep center field that brought in Zimmerman from third to tie things up at 1-1, but followed that up by getting Josh Bell to line out to shortstop to retire the side there.

Potentially down to their final three outs in the ninth, J.D. Martinez led the inning off by drawing a 10-pitch walk that put the go-ahead run on base.

Jose Iglesias took over for Martinez as the runner at first, and he came in to score all the way from first when Christian Vazquez unloaded on a first-pitch fastball from Rainey and laced a run-scoring single to deep right field.

Travis Shaw followed by plating Vazquez on an RBI single of his own, and the Red Sox had themselves a 3-1 lead just like that. Hernandez provided what would turn out to be some much-needed insurance when he greeted new Nationals reliever Mason Thompson by clubbing a 401-foot tow-run shot to left-center field.

Hernandez’s 20th home run of the year gave Boston a commanding 5-1 lead going into the bottom half of the ninth. And although Davis gave two of those runs back on a two-run homer off the bat of Andrew Stevenson, Hansel Robles took over from there.

Robles worked his way around a two-out walk in relief of Davis and ultimately slammed the door on the Nationals to secure the 5-3 victory for the Sox as well as notch his 14th save of the season.

With the win, not only do the Red Sox improve to 91-70 on the season, they also move into a tie with the Yankees, who lost on Saturday, for the top American League Wild Card spot.

Additionally, Boston remains one game ahead of the Blue Jays, who also won on Saturday, while remaining one game up on the Mariners, who defeated the Angels on Saturday.

That being said, the Sox have ensured that they will be playing beyond Sunday’s series finale regardless of who wins and loses elsewhere. Whether their first action after Sunday comes in the form of a tiebreaker on Monday or the American League Wild Card game on Tuesday has yet to be determined.

Next up: Sale vs. Adon in regular season finale

While their plans could change, the Red Sox — at the moment — are slated to give the ball to ace left-hander Chris Sale in Sunday’s finale against the Nationals.

The Nationals in turn, will have right-handed pitching prospect Joan Adon make his major-league debut and close out their season.

First pitch Sunday is scheduled for 3:05 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Bobby Dalbec and Enrique Hernandez: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Hunter Renfroe and Bobby Dalbec go back-to-back as Red Sox hold on for 4-2 win over Nationals

The Red Sox prioritized offense over defense with their starting lineup for Friday’s series opener against the Nationals, and it paid off in a tremendous way.

Boston came out on top over Washington, 4-1, at Nationals Park to kick off the month of October and their final series of the regular season with a crucial.

Eduardo Rodriguez may have very well made his final start for the Sox on Friday, but the impending free-agent-to-be certainly put together a solid outing.

Over five-plus innings of work, the left-hander kept the Nationals off the scoreboard while scattering five hits and three walks to go along with six strikeouts on the night.

After retiring nine of the first 11 batters he faced, Rodriguez ran into some trouble in the bottom of the fourth when he loaded the bases with no outs for the bottom half of Washington’s lineup. The lefty did escape the jam, however, as he got Jordy Mercer to punch out and Carter Kieboom to fly out into foul territory before Andrew Stevenson dribbled a grounder in the direction of second baseman Enrique Hernandez.

The ball left Stevenson’s bat at 75 mph, which forced Hernandez to charge towards the infield grass, grab the ball with his barehand, and make a side-armed toss to an awaiting Bobby Dalbec while going into a head-first dive.

To Dalbec’s credit, the first baseman himself made an athletic play to record the out and keep the potential go-ahead run from scoring going into the fifth — another frame in which Rodriguez put up a zero.

At that point, the Red Sox lineup had been held in check by Rodriguez’s counterpart in Nationals starter Josh Rogers, though that changed when Xander Bogaerts, who was celebrating his 29th birthday on Friday, led off the top of the sixth with a groundball single.

Another base hit from J.D. Martinez put runners at first and second with one out for Hunter Renfroe, who greeted Rogers after a brief mound visit by crushing a towering three-run blast 423 feet to center field.

Renfroe’s 31st home run of the season gave Boston their first lead of the night at 3-0, but Dalbec quickly added on to that by going deep himself off the very next pitch from Rogers — a hanging 79 mph slider down the heart of the plate — moments later.

Dalbec made it a 4-0 contest on his 25th homer of the year. It also allowed Rodriguez to bat for himself (he hit a 101.2 mph groundout) and come back out for the bottom of the sixth, though he did not remain on the mound for long after issuing a leadoff walk to Josh Bell that was followed by a single off the bat of Keibert Ruiz.

That sequence marked the end of the line for Rodriguez, as he promptly got the hook from Red Sox manager Alex Cora in favor of Ryan Brasier.

Brasier continued his impressive run since being recalled from Triple-A Worcester on September 21, as he got Mercer to ground into a force out at third base before fanning both Kieboom and Stevenson to strand the runners he inherited and officially close the book on Rodriguez’s night.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 93 (62 strikes), the 28-year-old ultimately earned his 12th winning decision of the year while lowering his ERA on the season down to 4.77.

Matt Barnes took over for Brasier in the seventh and got the first two outs of the inning before serving up a solo shot to Alcides Escobar, resulting in Cora turning to Darwinzon Hernandez to face off against the left-handed hitting Juan Soto.

Hernandez walked Soto on six pitches and proceeded to yield a hard-hit single to Josh Bell that was corralled in right field by Martinez. Soto attempted to test Martinez’s arm strength by heading towards third base, but Martinez — with the help of a swift tag from Rafael Devers — made him pay by gunning him down there for the final out of the inning.

Martinez’s fourth outfield assist of the season kept the score at 4-1 in favor of Boston. Adam Ottavino, however, made things a bit more interesting in the eighth by surrendering another solo blast to Mercer that cut his side’s lead down to two runs.

Ottavino did get through the eighth, though, and Hansel Robles — despite walking two — followed by slamming the door on the Nationals in the ninth to preserve a 4-2 victory for the Sox as well as notch his 13th save of the year in doing so.

With the win, the Red Sox improve to 90-70 on the season. They maintain a one-game lead over the Blue Jays, who won on Friday, for the second American League Wild Card spot and now trail the Yankees, who lost on Friday, by just one game for the top Wild Card spot.

The Mariners lost to the Angels on Friday night, so they, too, remain one game back of the Red Sox.

Next up: TBD vs. Gray

The Red Sox have yet to name a starter for Saturday afternoon’s contest against the Nationals, who will counter with right-hander Josiah Gray — one of four players they acquired from the Dodgers in the blockbuster trade that sent Max Scherzer and Trea Turner to Los Angeles back in July.

First pitch Saturday is scheduled for 4:05 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Hunter Renfroe: Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)

Despite recent slump, Xander Bogaerts remains in Red Sox lineup for Friday’s series opener against Nationals

Xander Bogaerts may be in the midst of a prolonged slump at the plate, but he is once again starting at shortstop and batting third for the Red Sox in their series opener against the Nationals at Nationals Park Friday night.

Bogaerts, who is celebrating his 29th birthday, comes into play Friday having gone just 3-for-25 (.120) with a .185 on-base percentage and .120 slugging percentage over his last seven games dating back to September 22.

In Thursday’s crushing 6-2 loss to the Orioles, Bogaerts grounded into a pair of crucial double plays as part of an 0-for-3 showing at the plate that certainly did not help the Red Sox avoid their fifth defeat in their last six games.

“Just not getting it done,” Bogaerts told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo) Thursday night. “The quality of my at-bats have been bad… just have had very unproductive at-bats and it sucks, bro. It sucks. I have three more games to get going and try to help this team try to turn this around.”

The Red Sox will need to get the most out of their All-Star shortstop in their final series of the regular season this weekend if they want to play postseason baseball. While dropping five of their last six contests, Boston has averaged just a little more than three runs per game.

With those struggles in mind, it appears as though Sox manager Alex Cora is looking to maximize his lineup’s offensive potential as they go up against left-hander Josh Rogers in the first of three against the Nationals in the nation’s capital.

That being the case because Cora is going with a right-handed heavy lineup — and is sacrificing defense in order to do so.

Enrique Hernandez will lead off while making his 43rd start of the year at second base and he will be followed by Kyle Schwarber in left field.

Bogaerts and Rafael Devers will bat third and cleanup at their respective positions, while J.D. Martinez will get the start in right field since there is no designated hitter at a National League ballpark.

Hunter Renfroe is batting sixth and making just his fourth start of the season in center field. He will be followed by first baseman and Christian Vazquez, who will be catching Eduardo Rodriguez.

Of these eight hitters, only Bogaerts (0-for-1), Devers (1-for-1), and Vazquez (1-for-2) have previously faced off against Rogers, who spent parts of the 2018 and 2019 campaigns with the Orioles.

In what could be his final regular season start in a Red Sox uniform, Rodriguez will be going for his 12th win of the year on Friday. The 28-year-old left-hander has made three prior starts interleague in interleague play this season and owns an ERA of 7.30 across 12 1/3 innings of work in those outings.

Friday will mark just Rodriguez’s second-ever start at Nationals Park. The Venezuelan southpaw previously pitched there on July 4 of the 2018 season and tossed six scoreless innings while scattering just three hits and one walk to go along with six strikeouts.

Considering the fact that Rodriguez, a lifetime .000 (0-for-23) hitter, will be batting for himself on Friday, it’s safe to assume he could have a relatively short leash if the Red Sox need some offensive production out of the No. 9 spot in their lineup.

All that being said, first pitch Friday is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Xander Bogaerts: Rob Carr/Getty Images)