Tag: kyle schwarber

Red Sox struggle with runners in scoring position, come up short, 11-5, in series finale against Indians

Despite a plethora of opportunities, the Red Sox were unable to finish off a series sweep and extend their winning streak to five consecutive games on Sunday afternoon, as they fell to the Indians by a final score of 11-5 at Fenway Park.

It was a day that started with uncertainty for the Sox, with Nick Pivetta being scratched from his start on account of being placed on the COVID-19 related injured list.

Instead of Pivetta, Boston was forced to turn to pitching prospect Kutter Crawford, who had been on the club’s taxi squad after making just six appearances (five starts) above the Double-A level this season.

Crawford’s inexperience showed on Sunday, as the right-hander surrendered five runs — all of which were earned — on five hits and two walks to go along with two strikeouts over just two-plus innings of work.

While he did not necessarily get shelled, Crawford did fall victim to some poor luck, as evidenced by his loading the bases with no outs in the top half of the first.

Cleveland did get to Crawford for two runs on a pair of sacrifice flies after loading the bases, and they got to him for an additional run an inning later when Owen Miller led off with a double and came around to score on a two-out RBI single off the bat of Myles Straw.

In the third, Crawford served up a monstrous 419-foot solo shot to Franmil Reyes to lead off the inning, and the righty’s day quickly came to a close after issuing a six-pitch walk to Bobby Bradley.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 57 (40 strikes), the 25-year-old hurler threw 26 four-seam fastballs, 15 cutters, 13 curveballs, two sinkers, and one changeup. He induced nine total swings-and-misses while averaging 93.8 mph with his four-seamer.

In relief of Crawford, John Schreiber got the first call out of the Boston bullpen, and he officially closed the book on the starter’s outing by giving up a hard-hit double to Harold Ramirez that was followed by a softly-hit two-run single from Bradley Zimmer to give Cleveland a commanding 6-0 lead.

Schreiber, to his credit, managed to escape the third inning without giving anything else up before stringing together two scoreless frames in the fourth and fifth innings in what was his Red Sox debut.

At that point, the Sox, still trailing by six runs, finally got to Indians starter Zach Plesac, as Hunter Renfroe led off the bottom of the fifth with a line-drive double to center field.

Renfroe did not stay at second base for long, though, with J.D. Martinez getting his productive afternoon of the plate started with an RBI double to left field.

After an Alex Verdugo walk, Kevin Plawecki snuck a run-scoring single back up the middle to bring in Martinez, while Travis Shaw came up just inches short of a three-run homer, but settled for an RBI single that scored Verdugo and put runners at first and second with no outs.

Bobby Dalbec failed to advance either runner on a flyout to left field, and — at that moment — Red Sox manager Alex Cora got aggressive by dispatching Rafael Devers, who initially had the day off, to pinch-hit for Jack Lopez.

Devers, however, was unable to get the job done off the bench, as he punched out on seven pitches before Jonathan Arauz also struck out to leave two important runs at second and third base.

Still, after Schreiber and left-hander Stephen Gonsalves combined to put up a zero in the top of the sixth, the Boston bats kept things going against the Cleveland bullpen.

Matched up against Nick Wittgren, the Renfroe-Martinez combination struck once more, with the former reaching base via a one-out single and the latter clearing the bases on a 401-foot two-run home run into the Red Sox bullpen.

Martinez’s 25th homer of the season made cut the Sox’ deficit down to just one run at 6-5, and Verdugo kept the pressure on by ripping a line-drive double to put the potential tying run in scoring position.

Plawecki moved Verdugo up to third base on a softly-hit groundout, but Shaw was unable to bring him in and instead grounded out to first base to extinguish the threat.

From there, Ryan Brasier bounced back from a shaky 2021 debut on Friday by facing the minimum of three batters in the top of the seventh, and the Red Sox offense had another chance to pull even with the Indians in the bottom half.

Taylor Motter, who replaced Lopez at second base earlier in the contest, had drawn a one-out walk off Trevor Stephan and remained there when Arauz flew out to left field. With Kyle Schwarber at the plate, though, Motter was picked off at first base, thus ending the inning.

Hansel Robles kept Cleveland at six runs with a 1-2-3 eighth inning, but this one got away from Boston when Phillips Valdez took the mound for the top half of the ninth.

After twirling two shutout frames on Saturday, Valdez got rocked for five runs on five hits on Sunday afternoon.

That meltdown of an inning allowed the Indians to jump out to an 11-5 lead, and that would go on to be Sunday’s final score.

In total, the Sox went 3-for-18 with runners in scoring position and left 12 runners on base as a team on Sunday.

With the loss, the Red Sox fall to 79-60 on the season, though they remain just a 1/2 game back of the Yankees, who lost to the Orioles on Sunday, for the first American League Wild Card spot.

Next up: Rays on deck

The Red Sox will celebrate the Labor Day holiday on Monday by welcoming in the Tampa Bay Rays into town for a three-game series at Fenway Park.

Left-hander Chris Sale will get the ball for Boston in Monday’s series opener, while fellow lefty Ryan Yarbrough will do the same for Tampa Bay.

First pitch Monday is scheduled for 1:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN and ESPN.

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

Red Sox mash 4 homers, hold on to 8-5 victory over Indians for third straight win

It was no simple task, but the Red Sox kicked off Labor Day weekend in style with a series-opening, 8-5 victory over the Indians at Fenway Park on Friday night to extend their winning streak to three consecutive games.

Matched up against Indians starter Cal Quantrill to begin things on Friday, the Sox received an immediate boost from leadoff man Kyle Schwarber, who crushed a 428-foot solo shot to dead center field on just the second pitch he saw in the bottom half of the first inning.

Schwarber’s 29th home run of the season, which left his bat at 106.8 mph, gave Boston an early 1-0 lead.

Kevin Plawecki doubled his side’s advantage an inning later, as he, too, took Quantrill deep by drilling a 390-foot solo homer over the Green Monster to make it a 2-0 contest.

Those two home runs took some off the pressure off Nathan Eovaldi out of the gate, and that proved to be quite beneficial.

Eovaldi, making his 27th start of the season for Boston, was — for the most part — exceptional on Friday night, allowing a total of three runs on six hits and two walks to go along with nine strikeouts over 6 1/3 solid innings of work.

The veteran right-hander began his evening by retiring nine of the first 11 Indians he faced, but saw his shutout bid come to an end when he served up a leadoff home run to the dangerous Jose Ramirez in the top of the fourth.

The Red Sox offense, however, returned the favor in the bottom half of the fourth, as Jonathan Arauz clubbed his second big fly of the year — both of which have come against the Indians — to right field off a Quantrill sinker, thus allowing his side to maintain its two-run lead.

After giving up the home run to Ramirez, Eovaldi responded by putting together another impressive run in which he strung together two more scoreless frames, but ran into some trouble with one out in the seventh.

At that point, Eovaldi had given up a one-out single to Bobby Bradley which was promptly followed by a game-tying, two-run blast off the bat of Austin Hedges moments later.

Having seen a 3-1 lead become a 3-3 stalemate, Eovaldi’s night came to a close after he yielded another base hit to Andres Gimenez, which led to him getting the hook from Red Sox manager Alex Cora.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 98 (66 strikes), the 31-year-old did raise his ERA on the season to 3.73, though he did not factor into Friday’s decision.

In relief of Eovaldi, Adam Ottavino got the first call out of the Boston bullpen, and — after allowing Jimenez to steal second base — he stranded the lone runner he inherited by punching out Myles Straw and Amed Rosario back-to-back to end the inning.

While the Sox did lose hold of their lead over the Indians momentarily, they quickly got it back in their half of the seventh, and it all started when the pinch-hitting Travis Shaw drew a leadoff walk off Quantrill.

Arauz followed by lacing double to center field that put runners at second and third base with no outs for Schwarber, who greeted new Indians reliever Trevor Stephan by ripping a two-run double to the right-center field gap.

With an exit velocity of nearly 109 mph, Schwarber’s second run-scoring hit of the night put the Red Sox back in front at 5-3.

Stephan did manage to get the first two outs of the frame by punching out Rafael Devers and J.D. Martinez, but Cleveland opted to intentionally walk the left-handed Alex Verdugo so that their right-handed reliever could face Hunter Renfroe.

The right-handed hitting Renfroe made the Tribe pay dearly for that decision, as he worked a nine-pitch at-bat and — on the ninth and final pitch he saw — deposited a 2-2, 84 mph slider on the outer half of the plate a nice 369 feet over everything in left field.

Renfroe’s 26th homer of the year gave the Sox a commanding 8-3 lead going into the eighth, and it gave Ryan Brasier a comfortable cushion to work with as well.

Brasier, making his 2021 debut on Friday after dealing with a plethora of injuries, got the first two outs of the eighth inning rather quickly, but allowed the next three batters he faced to reach base, with the third and final one — Bradley — lifting an RBI single to left field to cut Boston’s lead down to four runs.

That set the stage for rookie sensation Garrett Whitlock to come on in an attempt to get the final out of the eighth, and he did just that by getting Hedges to fly out to right field.

Coming back out for the ninth, Whitlock did surrender a run that made things even more interesting, but ultimately slammed the door on the Indians with two clutch strikeouts to notch his second save of the year while also securing an 8-5 victory for the Sox.

With the win, the Red Sox improve to 78-59 on the season as their lead over the Athletics for the second American League Wild Card spot increases to three games.

Brasier’s 2021 debut

Of the 21 pitchers Brasier threw in his season debut on Friday, 11 went for strikes. The right-hander turned to his four-seam fastball 71% of the time he was on the mound in the eighth inning and averaged 94.4 mph with the pitch.

Lopez’s first major-league hit

Since making his big-league debut earlier this week, infielder Jack Lopez had been hitless in eight plate appearances leading into Friday. The 28-year-old rookie came through in the second inning, though, as he picked up his first career hit — a 370-foot double — with two outs in the frame.

A first for Devers at second

After Shaw pinch-hit for Lopez to lead off the seventh inning, Danny Santana was inserted as a pinch-runner once Shaw reached base upon drawing a six-pitch walk.

As a result of that substitution, Santana took over for Bobby Dalbec at first base and Dalbec slid over to third base, leading Devers to fill in for Lopez at second base.

That being said, Friday night marked Devers’ professional debut at second base, as he had never played the position at the minor- or major-league level beforehand.

Next up: Houck vs. Morgan

The Red Sox will turn to right-hander Tanner Houck as they go for the series win over the Indians on Saturday afternoon.

The Indians, meanwhile, will hand the ball to fellow rookie righty Eli Morgan as they look to prevent that from happening.

First pitch Saturday is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Kyle Schwarber, Alex Verdugo, and Hunter Renfroe: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

Red Sox rally comes up short in 8-5 loss to Rays as team’s COVID-19 outbreak continues to grow

The road trip from hell rolled on for the Red Sox at Tropicana Field on Tuesday night.

In addition to having two more players — Hirokazu Sawamura and Xander Bogaerts — testing positive for COVID-19, the Sox committed two errors and fell to the Rays by a final score of 8-5, marking their third consecutive loss.

Matched up against Rays starter Ryan Yarbrough to begin things on Tuesday, Bogaerts actually got the Red Sox on the board first, as he followed up a two-out double from J.D. Martinez by ripping an RBI single to right field to give his side an early 1-0 lead.

Bogaerts was, however, removed from this contest in the middle of the second inning after his latest test came back positive, and it all started to go downhill for Boston from there.

That being the case because Brad Peacock, who was just acquired from the Indians on Mondy, got somewhat roughed up for five runs — all of which were earned — on two hits, two walks, one hit batsman, and zero strikeouts over 2 1/3 innings of work in his first start with the Red Sox.

After needing just seven pitches to get through a scoreless bottom of the first, Peacock served up a solo home run to Randy Arozarena with one out in the second inning, thus allowing the Rays to even things up at one run apiece.

The veteran right-hander did manage to get out of the second, but ran into some more trouble in the bottom half of the third when he issued a leadoff walk to Kevin Kiermaier and plunked Francisco Mejia.

A mental mistake and poor throw from Alex Verdugo on a fly ball to center field off the bat of Brandon Lowe allowed both of those runners to advance an additional 90 feet, and Peacock promptly loaded the bases with one out by walking Nelson Cruz.

Rookie sensation Wander Franco broke the 1-1 stalemate and brought in two of those runners on a hard-hit single to right field that was corralled by Hunter Renfroe, but Renfroe’s throw back to the infield got past Bobby Dalbec, which subsequently allowed both Kiermaier and Mejia to score as opposed to just Kiermaier. Dalbec was charged with a fielding error as the Rays went up on the Sox, 3-1.

Franco’s go-ahead hit also marked the end of the line for Peacock, who got the hook from Red Sox manager Alex Cora while leaving runners at second and third base with one out in the third. The 33-year-old hurler finished with a final pitch count of 48 — 25 of which were strikes.

In relief of Peacock, left-hander Stephen Gonsalves, just selected from Triple-A Worcester, officially closed the book on Peackock’s night by allowing both runners he inherited to score on a wild pitch and Austin Meadows RBI single.

Gonsalves then plunked Arozarena to put runners at first and second, and Yandy Diaz took full advantage of that by blooping a softly-hit, 73.7 mph two-run double in between Yairo Munoz and Renfroe in right field.

Kiermaier proceeded to strike out on a foul tip to end the inning, but the damage had already been down since the Red Sox suddenly found themselves in a 7-1 hole.

To his credit, Gonsalves — in what was his first major-league outing in nearly three years — tossed two additional scoreless frames to keep the deficit at six runs through the end of the fifth.

Kyle Schwarber trimmed that deficit to five runs at 7-2 by crushing his 28th homer of the season off Yarbrough to lead off the top of the sixth, but Tampa Bay responded by getting that (unearned) run back off Phillips Valdez on an HBP, Dalbec fielding error, and sacrifice fly in the bottom half of the frame.

Valdez managed to keep the Rays off the scoreboard in the seventh and eighth innings, while Rafael Devers pushed across another run as he collected his 97th RBI of the year in the top half of the eighth.

Devers’ run-scoring single made it an 8-3 game in the eighth. In the ninth, after Schwarber and Martinez made things interesting with a pair of run-scoring singles, it came down to Devers.

Matched up against Rays closer Andrew Kittredge, Devers came up to the plate representing the tying run with two outs and runners at first and second. He fanned on four pitches to cut the rally short as 8-5 would go on to be Tuesday’s final score.

With the loss, the Red Sox fall to 75-59 on the season while dropping 10 full games back of the Rays for first place in the American League East. Boston began the month of August trailing Tampa Bay by just 1/2 a game for the top spot in the division.

Tuesday’s defeat also wraps up a disappointing August in which the Sox went 12-16, marking the first time this season they finished a month with a losing record.

Next up: Sale vs. Rasmussen to begin September

The Red Sox will turn to ace left-hander Chris Sale on Wednesday night as they look to put an end to this three-game skid and start the month of September on a positive note. Rosters on Wednesday will expand from 26 players to 28 players for the remainder of the season.

Wednesday will mark Sale’s fourth start of the season since returning from Tommy John surgery on August 14. It also represents his toughest test thus far considering the opponent he will be going up against.

The Rays, meanwhile, will send right-hander Drew Rasmussen to the hill as they go for yet another series victory over their division rivals.

First pitch Wednesday is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Alex Cora: Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)

Chris Sale tosses 5 scoreless innings in second start back as Red Sox blank Rangers, 6-0, to snap 3-game skid

The Red Sox remain unbeaten in games started by Chris Sale in 2021, as they took care of business in the first of a three-game set against the Rangers at Fenway Park on Friday night.

Boston came out on top over Texas by a final score of 6-0, with Sale leading the way by putting together his second straight solid outing after returning to the major-league mound for the first time in nearly two years last Saturday.

Sale, in what was his second start of the season for the Sox, kept the Rangers off the scoreboard while scattering just five hits and one walk to go along with five strikeouts over his five innings of work.

Granted, he was going up against one of the worst lineups in the American League, but the veteran left-hander still strung together five scoreless frames despite dealing with his fair share of traffic on the base paths.

In the top of the first, Sale gave up a one-out double to Isiah Kiner-Falefa, but followed that with two straight strikeouts to get out of the inning. In the top of the second, he issued a one-out walk and single to Yohel Pozo and Yonny Hernandez, but countered that by getting a strikeout and flyout to retire the side. In the top of the fourth, he yielded back-to-back one-out base hits to Jonah Heim and Pozo that put runners on the corners, but that runner on third was stranded there.

That being the case because Sale got Hernandez to bunt into a force out at second base before getting Jason Martin to fly out to left field to end things in the fourth. He then maneuvered his way around a leadoff single in the fifth and capped off his night by sitting down the final two batters he faced in order thanks to a nifty 6-4-3 double play on a Brock Holt grounder.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 71 (49 strikes), the 32-year-old hurler ultimately earned his second winning decision of the season while lowering his ERA to 1.80.

While Sale was in the process of weaving his way through the Rangers lineup, the Red Sox lineup was able to wake up to some degree after a sleepy series in the Bronx earlier this week.

Matched up against rookie right-hander Dane Dunning, the Boston bats got things started right away in their half of the first, and Enrique Hernandez proved to be the catalyst for that with a leadoff double.

After advancing up to third base on a passed ball, Hernandez came into score on an RBI single off the bat of Xander Bogaerts, who kicked off his productive night at the plate by giving his side an early 1-0 lead.

Christian Vazquez followed suit in the second, as he, too, ripped a leadoff double to right field, moved up to third on a Jarren Duran groundout, and was plated on a sharp line-drive RBI single from Hernandez to double Boston’s advantage to 2-0.

Fast forward to the fifth, right after Sale’s outing had come to a close, and the Red Sox did most of their damage off Dunning — all with two outs in the inning.

Following outs from Hernandez and Rafael Devers, Bogaerts drilled an 0-1, 84 mph changeup down the heart of the plate 371 feet down the left field line and over the Green Monster for his 20th home run of the season.

Kyle Schwarber followed by drawing a seven-pitch walk, while J.D. Martinez put runners at second and third for Alex Verdugo by lacing a two-out double to left field.

Verdugo took full advantage of that, as he tattooed a two-run double 101 mph off the Green Monster off the very first pitch he saw from Dunning.

That piece of impressive hitting gave the Sox a commanding 5-0 lead, though Hernandez tacked on one more to that an inning later when he plated Duran from third on another run-scoring groundout to make it a 6-0 contest.

Red Sox bullpen takes over for Sale

In relief of Sale, Hansel Robles got the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen to begin things in the top half of the sixth, and he worked his way around a leadoff walk by sitting down the next three batters he faced in consecutive order.

From there, after Hernandez provided some insurance and made it a 6-0 game, Austin Davis tossed a scoreless seventh inning with some defensive help from Devers and Bogaerts, Hirokazu Sawamura punched out two in a 1-2-3 top of the eighth, and Matt Barnes — in a nonsave situation — shut the door on the Rangers in the ninth.

It was Barnes’ first relief appearance since last Sunday, and it was one in which he struck out the side en route to securing a 6-0 shutout victory for the Sox.

With the win, the Red Sox improve to 70-54 on the season to snap a three-game skid. They are — at the moment — six games back of the Rays for first place in the American League East and tied with the Athletics for the second American League Wild Card spot.

Some assorted offensive notes from Friday’s win:

Enrique Hernandez went 2-for-5 with a double, one run scored, two RBI out of the leadoff spot.

Xander Bogaerts went 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBI out of the No. 3 spot.

Kyle Schwarber went 2-for-2 with two walks and a run scored out of the cleanup spot.

Next up: Rodriguez vs. Lyles

The Red Sox will send left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez to the hill on Saturday night as they go for the series victory over the Rangers.

The Rangers, in turn, will counter with veteran right-hander Jordan Lyles as they look to even things up.

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

(Picture of Chris Sale: Omar Rawlings/Getty Images)

J.D. Martinez homers in second straight game as Red Sox finish off sweep of Orioles with 6-2 win; Kyle Schwarber records first 2 hits with Boston

The Red Sox capped off one of the more memorable weekends of the 2021 season by finishing off a three-game sweep of the Orioles with a 6-2 victory at Fenway on Park on Sunday.

Eduardo Rodriguez, making his 23rd start of the year for the Sox, put together yet another solid outing, as he has done since the calendars flipped to August.

Over six innings of work against his former team, the left-hander surrendered just one unearned run while scattering three hits and three walks to go along with six strikeouts on the afternoon.

The lone Rodriguez gave up came right away in the top half of the first after he issued a one-out walk to Austin Hays that was followed by a Trey Mancini single.

Anthony Santander ripped a single to left field of his own that should have just loaded the bases, but a poor throw from J.D. Martinez allowed Hays to score all the way from second to give his side the early 1-0 lead.

Martinez’s throwing error also put a runner at third base, but Rodriguez was able to escape the jam by recording back-to-back punchouts.

Despite falling behind by a run before even taking their first at-bats, the Sox lineup was undeterred, as they were matched up against Orioles starter Keegan Akin, who came into play Sunday the owner of a 8.23 ERA on the season.

With that favorable matchup in mind, Martinez did not waste any time in making up for his defensive miscue, as he came to the plate for the first time with two outs in the first and two runners on.

On the fourth pitch he saw from Akin, a 2-1, 86 mph slider on the outer half of the plate, Martinez clobbered a three-run home run 396 feet over the Green Monster and off the National Car Rental sign to give Boston their first lead of the day at 3-1.

While Martinez’s 23rd homer of the season looked like it would set the tone for another explosive day from the Red Sox offense, they actually did not get on the board again until their half of the sixth.

Between the time the Sox scored their first and last runs of the afternoon, Rodriguez was in the midst of stringing together five consecutive scoreless frames after he got pushed around a bit in the top half of the first.

From the beginning of the second inning through the middle of the sixth, the point in which his outing came to a close, Rodriguez retired 14 of the final 17 Orioles hitters he faced to end his day on an extremely encouraging note.

Though he certainly would have liked to have pitched beyond the sixth inning, the 28-year-old hurler did finish with a final pitch count of 83 — 55 of which were strikes.

In completing six quality frames, Rodriguez was able to pick up his ninth winning decision of the year while also lowering his ERA on the season down to 4.97.

Moments after Rodriguez’s outing had concluded, the Sox lineup picked things up again in their half of the sixth inning.

There, with old friend Fernando Abad on the mound for Baltimore, Kyle Schwarber made his impact felt by leading things off with a line-drive double to deep right field, marking his first hit in a Red Sox uniform and his first of two doubles on the day.

Back-to-back one-out walks drawn by Alex Verdugo and Christian Vazquez filled the bases for leadoff man Enrique Hernandez, who greeted new Orioles reliever Tanner Scott by lacing an RBI single that deflected off the leg of third base umpire Will Little and brought in Schwarber while also keeping the bases loaded.

Hunter Renfroe took advantage of that by drawing a bases-loaded walk to record an RBI while bringing in Verdugo from third, and Xander Bogaerts followed by beating out a double play on a ground ball that plated Vazquez, thus giving the Sox a commanding 6-1 lead.

From the top of the seventh inning on, the Red Sox bullpen took over in relief of Rodriguez, with Adam Ottavino getting the first call to action.

Making his first appearance out of the bullpen in exactly one week, Ottavino was clearly rusty, as he plunked the first batter he faced in Pedro Severino before throwing two wild pitches that allowed Severino to move all the way up to third base.

A one-out walk of Maikel Franco put runners at the corners for Jorge Mateo, who promptly laced a 105 mph off Ottavino’s left shoulder that scored Severino and would ultimately force the veteran righty to exit, as he was later diagnosed with a left shoulder contusion.

Garrett Whitlock, who was already warming up in the Boston bullpen, was forced to enter sooner than he may have expected, but he kept Baltimore at bay by stranding Mateo at first in the seventh and striking out the side in order in the eighth to hold the opposition at two runs.

That paved the way for Matt Barnes to enter in the ninth in a non-save situation, and despite allowing two of the five batters he faced to reach base, the Red Sox closer was able to shut the door on the Orioles to preserve the 6-2 victory for his side.

With the win, not only do the Sox finish off their first series sweep of at least three games since early July, but they also improve to 69-51 on the season and move to 3 games back of the Rays for first place in the American League East.

Next up: On to the Bronx

The Red Sox will board a flight to Newark Sunday evening and enjoy a well-deserved off day in New York on Monday before opening up a three-game, two-day series against the Yankees in a split doubleheader on Tuesday afternoon.

Right-handers Nathan Eovaldi and Tanner Houck are slated to start for Boston in Tuesday’s twin bill at Yankee Stadium, though the order in which the two will pitch has not yet been determined.

The Yankees, meanwhile, will go with right-hander Luis Gil for Game 1 and left-hander Jordan Montgomery for Game 2.

First pitch of the day cap on Tuesday is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time on NESN and MLB Network, while the night cap will begin at approximately 7:05 p.m. ET and also be broadcasted on NESN and MLB Network.

(Picture of Xander Bogaerts, J.D. Martinez, and Rafael Devers: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Bobby Dalbec leads the way offensively as Red Sox clobber Orioles, 8-1

The Red Sox opened a portion of their schedule on Friday that they absolutely need to take advantage of, and they got off to a strong start by kicking off the weekend with a blowout 8-1 victory over the lowly Orioles at Fenway Park.

Matched up against O’s rookie starter Spenser Watkins to begin things on Friday, the Sox lineup — after being held to one run on Thursday — broke out for four runs alone in the bottom of the second inning, and the rally started with a leadoff single off the bat of Hunter Renfroe.

Kyle Schwarber, making his Red Sox debut Friday, followed by drawing a six-pitch walk off Watkins, while Kevin Plawecki advanced both runners an additional 90 feet to fill the bases with no outs.

That set the stage for a pair of rookies to take over, and they did just that, as Jarren Duran plated his side’s first run on an RBI single and Bobby Dalbec got a productive night at the plate started by lacing a two-run double off the top of the scoreboard at the base of the Green Monster.

Dalbec’s laser, which had an exit velocity of 113.3 mph, made it a 3-0 game and flipped the lineup for leadoff hitter Enrique Hernandez, who proceeded to rip a sacrifice fly that was hit deep enough to left field to bring in Duran from third.

Boston’s four-run second proved to be a comfortable cushion for Nick Pivetta, who put together his second straight quality outing in what was his 23rd start of the season.

Over six quality innings of work, the right-hander yielded just one earned run while scattering three hits and two walks to go along with eight strikeouts on the night.

The lone run Pivetta surrendered to the Orioles came by way of the home run ball, as he served up a 320-foot solo shot to Richie Martin that just snuck past Pesky’s Pole in right field to lead things off in the top of the third inning.

Martin’s homer cut the Sox’ deficit down to three runs, but they got that run right back in the home half of the frame when Schwarber and Plawecki each drew two-out walks and Duran plated Schwarber on another RBI double to right field.

Xander Bogaerts tacked on another run in the fourth, with the star shortstop clubbing his 18th home run of the season that just snuck over the Monster and put the Sox up 6-1.

Given another sizable lead to work with, Pivetta was able to keep the O’s off the board over his final three innings on the mound and retired nine of the final 11 hitters he faced with Renfroe robbing DJ Stewart of a home run in the top of the fourth in the process of doing so.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 93 (63 strikes) the 28-year-old hurler was able to pick up his ninth winning decision of the season while also lowering his ERA on the year down to 4.20.

While Pivetta’s night was done after six innings, the Sox offense was not finished yet, as Dalbec mashed his 12th home run of the season (a 411-foot solo shot to dead center field) in the bottom half of the sixth and Renfroe followed by crushing his 20th big fly of the season (a 423-foot solo shot over everything in left field) in the bottom half of the seventh.

Those two mammoth homers gave the Red Sox an 8-1 advantage, and Garrett Richards — working in relief of Pivetta and out of the bullpen for the first time this season — closed things out with three scoreless innings from the seventh through the ninth to secure the 8-1 victory and earn his first save of the year.

All in all, Renfroe, Plawecki, Duran, and Dalbec (Boston’s 5, 7, 8, and 9 hitters) combined to go 9-for-15 (.600) at the plate on Friday with two homers, six RBI, and five runs scored.

Schwarber went 0-for-2 with a pair of walks, two runs scored, and a strikeout in his Sox debut.

With the win, the Red Sox improve to 67-51 on the season, though they remain five games back of the Rays for first place in the American League East.

Next up: Sale Day on Saturday

For the first time in just over two years, ace left-hander Chris Sale will make his return from Tommy John surgery and take the mound for the Red Sox in the middle game of this three-game weekend series on Saturday afternoon.

Sale is scheduled to face off against Orioles right-hander Jorge Lopez.

First pitch Saturday is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

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

Red Sox activate Kyle Schwarber from injured list, designate Marwin Gonzalez for assignment

Before opening up a three-game weekend series against the Orioles at Fenway Park on Friday night, the Red Sox activated first baseman/outfielder Kyle Schwarber from the 10-day injured list.

In order to make room for Schwarber on the major-league roster, utility man Marwin Gonzalez has been designated for assignment, Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo) earlier Friday afternoon.

Schwarber, who Boston acquired from the Washington Nationals last month in exchange for pitching prospect Aldo Ramirez, will start at designated hitter and bat out of the six-hole in his Red Sox debut on Friday.

The 28-year-old slugger initially sustained a right hamstring strain while with Washington on July 2, resulting in him being placed on the 10-day injured list a day later.

Prior to getting injured, Schwarber was in the midst of a career year for the Nationals, as he had slashed .253/.340/.570 to go along with nine doubles, 25 home runs, 53 RBI, 42 runs scored, 31 walks, 88 strikeouts, and one stolen base over 72 games (303 plate appearances) while being named to his first-ever All-Star team.

In the month of June alone, the left-handed hitter clubbed 16 of his 25 homers, 12 of which came over a 10-game stretch from June 19 through June 29.

While a member of the Nationals, Schwarber exclusively played left field, which has essentially been his primary position throughout his big-league career.

That being said, the Sox acquired the 6-foot, 229 pounder with the idea that he could play some first base — in addition to left field and designated hitter — as well.

Despite the fact that he suffered a setback in that he experienced some left groin tightness while working his way back from his strained hamstring, Schwarber was in line to make a rehab appearance for Triple-A Worcester at Polar Park on Thursday.

That game for the WooSox in which they were slated to take on the Syracuse Mets wound up getting rained out, but those at the major-league level — including Cora and chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom — must have felt as though Schwarber would be good to go on Friday regardless based off the way his workouts have gone.

Taking all those points into consideration, Schwarber, donning the No. 18 for his new team, will make his Red Sox debut against the Orioles on Friday night.

Gonzalez, meanwhile, winds up getting designated for assignment in order to create a space for Schwarber on Boston’s 26-man major-league roster.

The 32-year-old switch-hitter originally signed a one-year, $3 million deal with the Red Sox in late February, but could never really find his footing at the plate.

Despite the fact he made at least one appearance at every defensive position besides catcher and center field, Gonzalez posted a dismal .202/.281/.285 slash line with 14 doubles, two home runs, 20 RBI, 25 runs scored, three stolen bases, 19 walks, and 70 strikeouts over 77 games (271 plate appearances) in his time with Boston.

By designating Gonzalez for assignment, the Red Sox cleared a 26-man roster spot for Schwarber as well as a spot on the 40-man roster, which will likely be used when left-hander Chris Sale is activated from the 60-day injured list ahead of his start against Baltimore on Saturday.

On top that, Boston now has seven days to either trade, release, or waive Gonzalez. Assuming the versatile veteran out of Venezuela clears waivers, he will more than likely decline an assignment to Worcester and instead elect free agency.

Update: The roster moves have been made official.

(Picture of Kyle Schwarber: Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)

Red Sox likely to option Tanner Houck to Triple-A Worcester; other roster moves appear to be on the horizon as well with returns of Chris Sale and Kyle Schwarber looming

The Red Sox are planning on optioning Tanner Houck to Triple-A Worcester, manager Alex Cora said following his team’s 8-1 loss to the Rays at Fenway Park on Thursday night.

Houck, who made his sixth start and eighth overall appearance for Boston in Thursday’s series finale, allowed four runs (three earned) on six hits and zero walks to go along with eight strikeouts over five-plus innings of work.

While it seemed as though Houck had become a permanent member of the Sox’ starting rotation with Garrett Richards and Martin Perez being moved to the bullpen, the right-hander will actually come off Boston’s major-league roster for the time being beginning on Friday.

That being said, Houck should still make his next start for the Red Sox as scheduled, as the club has an off day on Monday and a doubleheader against the Yankees on Tuesday that will allow for some roster flexibility.

Because Tuesday will feature a doubleheader between Boston and New York, the Sox would be able to call up Houck as their 27th man for the twin bill and start him on regular rest in one of the two games at Yankee Stadium.

In the interim, the Red Sox can option the 25-year-old hurler down to Worcester and, in turn, gain an extra arm in the bullpen or position player on the bench.

“He’ll be with us soon,” Cora said of Houck Thursday night. “We still have some flexibility in the roster in the upcoming days. That’s something we — Chaim [Bloom] and the group — are going to talk about after we’re done with you guys. He’s still contributing. He’ll contribute again soon with us. Let’s put it that way.”

As things currently stand, the Sox’ 26-man major-league roster is obviously at full capacity. However, a potential roster shakeup could be on the horizon depending on the statuses of certain players who were/are away from the team for different reasons.

Alex Verdugo, who was placed on the paternity list on Sunday, arrived in Boston from Los Angeles on Thursday. If the 25-year-old clears the necessary COVID-19 protocols, the plan is for him to be activated ahead of Friday’s series opener against the Orioles, per Cora.

Christian Vazquez, who was placed on the bereavement list on Wednesday, is expected to return to the Red Sox on Saturday, according to Cora. It seems likely optioning Connor Wong to Worcester would be the corresponding move to get the veteran backstop back on the big-league roster.

Kyle Schwarber, meanwhile, was slated to kick off a rehab assignment in Worcester on Thursday, but the WooSox’ game against the Syracuse Mets was postponed due to inclement weather.

Thursday’s rained-out contest will be made up as part of a single admission doubleheader at Polar Park on Friday night, though it is no sure thing Schwarber will partake.

That being the case because earlier Thursday, Cora revealed that the 28-year-old slugger could make his Red Sox debut “sooner rather than later.”

The Sox acquired Schwarber, who has been on the injured list with a right hamstring since July 3, from the Washington Nationals in exchange for pitching prospect Aldo Ramirez on the eve of the trade deadline — July 29.

Since that time, Schwarber has been working his way back and — despite a minor setback on account of some groin tightness — has been getting work in at a relatively new position in first base.

Prior to injuring his hamstring last month, Schwarber appeared in 72 games for the Nationals, all of which came as a left fielder, which has essentially been his primary position throughout his major-league career.

As noted by MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo, though, the Red Sox — in addition to using him at first base — also plan on using the 6-foot, 229 pounder in the outfield as well as at designated hitter, which would lead to J.D. Martinez getting more playing time in left field.

Taking all that into consideration, it would seem as though Franchy Cordero would be the odd man out in this scenario, as Schwarber can provide the Sox with the left-handed bat they need at first base while Schwarber, Martinez and Verdugo would figure to see the lion’s share of playing time in left field.

Cordero, who has minor-league options remaining, only solves part of the problem, though, as the Red Sox will have to make an even more significant move when it comes time to activate Chris Sale off the 60-day injured list ahead of his 2021 debut on Saturday.

Sale was placed on the 60-day IL back in February and was taken off Boston’s 40-man roster as a result. With the ace left-hander’s return to the mound drawing ever closer, the Sox will have to find a way to create a spot for him,

The same can be said about right-handed reliever Ryan Brasier, who was placed on the 60-day injured list because of a left calf strain in early May.

Like Schwarber, Brasier was slated to appear in Thursday night’s contest between the WooSox and Syracuse Mets while on a rehab assignment, but those plans have since changed.

It does not appear as if Braiser is in line to return and make his 2021 debut with the Red Sox this weekend like Sale is, but it is something the club will need to keep in mind nevertheless.

On top of Sale and Brasier nearing their returns from the 60-day injured lists, Matt Andriese, Darwnizon Hernandez, Christian Arroyo and Danny Santana are all on the 10-day injured list as well.

So, whether it be optioning someone like Cordero or Jonathan Arauz to Worcester to make room for someone who is already on the 40-man roster or designating a struggling veteran like Marwin Gonzalez to make room for someone who needs to be added to the 40-man roster, the Red Sox — led by chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom — could very well be on the verge of a major-league shakeup as they look to keep their postseason hopes alive down the final stretch of the season.

“We’ll talk about it,” Cora said of the possibility of the club making roster moves in the near future. “There’s certain parts of our roster that we have to be better. Overall, to win ballgames, it takes 26 guys. And not everybody’s playing well, not everybody’s contributing the way they’re capable of. So, we’ll talk about it.

“Obviously, there’s a lot of stuff going on this weekend and next week with the IL, Alex [Verdugo] coming back, Christian [Vazquez] coming back on Saturday,” added Cora. “So, that’s something we’ll talk about as a group and we’ll go from there.”

(Picture of Tanner Houck: Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Alex Cora on Kyle Schwarber as slugger nears return from injury: ‘Don’t bet against him’

After an encouraging workout at Fenway Park on Wednesday, first baseman/outfielder Kyle Schwarber appears to be on the verge of beginning a rehab assignment, according to Red Sox manager Alex Cora.

Schwarber, who the Sox acquired from the Nationals in exchange for pitching prospect Aldo Ramirez in late July, has been on the injured list because of a right hamstring strain since July 3.

This past weekend in Toronto, the 28-year-old slugger suffered a minor setback in his recovery on account of some left groin tightness, but it was one that did not throw off his timetable by that much, if at all.

Because of that, Schwarber could very well start a rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester on Thursday. Per MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo, he is eve expected to be in the WooSox’ starting lineup for their matchup against the Syracuse Mets at Polar Park.

That being said, it is unclear at the moment how long Schwarber’s rehab assignment with the WooSox will last. As noted by Cotillo, the left-handed power hitter has been held out of action since July 2 and is also learning to play first base — a relatively new position for him — on the fly.

“If it’s up to him, he’ll probably say hi to the guys and come back and perform,” Cora told reporters Wednesday (including Cotillo). “I think we’ve done everything possible to get him to a spot that, offensively, he feels right. Indoor, outdoor, with everything. Velocity, spin, everything.”

At the time he sustained that right hamstring strain last month, Schwarber was in the midst of a career year for the Nationals and was named to his first career All-Star team as a result.

Over 72 games with Washington, the 6-foot, 229 pounder slashed .253/.340/.570 to go along with nine doubles, 25 home runs, 53 RBI, and 42 runs scored across 303 trips to the plate, primarily as a left fielder.

In the month of June alone, Schwarber went on an absolute tear in regards to hitting the ball out of the ballpark, as he clubbed 16 of his 25 homers — 12 of which came in a 10-game span from June 19 through June 29.

On top of the production he can provide from the left side of the plate, Schwarber is no stranger to adversity, either.

Going back to the 2016 season, the former Cubs fan favorite tore the ACL and LCL in his left knee in early April, but returned just in time for that October’s World Series, where he posted a .971 OPS en route to Chicago’s historic triumph over the Cleveland Indians in seven games.

This feat is something Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom has alluded to in the time since Boston acquired Schwarber, and it’s also something Cora pointed to on Wednesday.

“You guys saw what happened when they won the World Series (in 2016),” Cora said. “How quick he came back and how good he was when he did what he did when the Cubs won the World Series. Don’t bet against him. He feels great, he moves well and we’ll go from there.”

(Picture of Kyle Schwarber: Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)

Brandon Workman elects free agency after Red Sox outright reliever to Triple-A Worcester

Before wrapping up a three-game weekend series against the Rays in St. Petersburg on Sunday night, the Red Sox outrighted reliever Brandon Workman off their 40-man roster, the club announced.

Workman, in turn, had the option to accept an assignment to Triple-A Worcester, but instead elected to become a free agent.

The Sox initially designated the veteran right-hander for assignment this past Thursday in order to make room on its 40-man roster for the acquisition of All-Star outfielder Kyle Schwarber from the Nationals.

Workman, who turns 33 later this month, opened the 2021 season with the Cubs, but was released in late April after posting a 6.75 ERA and 6.28 FIP over 10 relief appearances spanning eight innings pitched with Chicago.

Shortly after being let go by Chicago, though, Workman inked a minor-league deal to return to Boston — the organization he began his pro career with as a second-round draft choice in 2010 — in early May and was later added to the major-league roster on June 3 after impressing with the WooSox.

Upon rejoining the Red Sox’ bullpen, however, Workman endured the same struggles he endured earlier in the season as well as in his time with the Phillies last year.

Over 19 outings (20 innings of work) from June 3 through July 29, the Texas native put up an unsightly 4.95 ERA and .864 OPS against while striking out as many batters as he walked (14) in his second stint with the Sox.

Now that he is back on the open market, it should be interesting to see how willing Workman will be to sign a minor-league pact with another club seeing how that is likely his best path back to the majors.

(Picture of Brandon Workman: Rich Schultz/Getty Images)