Tag: nathan eovaldi

Nathan Eovaldi, Red Sox melt down in 9-run fifth inning, fall to Blue Jays, 12-4; Boston drops to 1-7 in last 8 games

At one point Friday night, the Red Sox had a 2-0 lead over the Blue Jays in their first game at Rogers Centre in nearly two years.

Nathan Eovaldi, making his 22nd start of the season for the Sox, got off to a strong start in the opener of this four-game weekend series by retiring 12 of the first 15 batters he faced over four impressive, scoreless innings.

The Boston lineup, meanwhile, was matched up against rookie starter Alek Manoah for Toronto. After managing just one hit the first time through the order, Alex Verdugo led off the top side of the fourth with a line-drive double.

Verdugo advanced to third on a J.D. Martinez groundout and scored from third on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Xander Bogaerts to give the Sox the first lead of the night.

An inning later, Marwin Gonzalez reached base via a one-out infield single, moved up to second on a walk drawn by Christian Vazquez, and came in to score from second on a two-out RBI single courtesy of Enrique Hernandez.

Another free pass to Verdugo loaded the bases for the slumping — but still threatening J.D. Martinez, but Manoah managed to escape the jam by getting the All-Star slugger to weakly pop out to first base.

At that point, exactly halfway through the nine-inning contest, the Red Sox found themselves in possession of a 2-0 lead with a dealing Eovaldi seemingly on his way to a quality inning.

Instead, the bottom fell out for Eovaldi — and the Sox — in the latter half of the fifth, resulting in this game completely turning on its head.

There, back-to-back-to-back doubles from Toronto’s 7, 8, 9 hitters (Alejandro Kirk, Randal Grichuk, and Breyvic Valera) brought in their first two runs of the night to knot things up at 2-2, though they were not done there.

Eovaldi got George Springer to fly out, intentionally walked Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to set up a double play, and struck out Marcus Semien on three pitches for the second out. But the veteran right-hander was unable to finish the job, as he served up an RBI single to Bo Bichette, a two-run double to Teoscar Hernandez, and a two-run home run down the left field line to Lourdes Gurriel Jr.

Just like that, on the back of three straight run-scoring hits with two outs, the Blue Jays jumped out to a 7-2 lead and that subsequently marked the end of the line for Eovaldi as he got the quick hook from Red Sox manager Alex Cora.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 86 (57 strikes), the 31-year-old hurler wound up surrendering a season-high seven runs — all of which were earned — on eight hits, two walks, and four strikeouts over just 4 2/3 of work.

In relief of Eovaldi, newcomer Hansel Robles got the first call out of the Boston bullpen, although he certainly did not stop the bleeding. After issuing a single to Kirk, the righty plunked Grichuk on the elbow with a 96 mph fastball, sparking some drama as the Blue Jays dugout took exception to the beaning.

Though nothing came of Robles’ extra-curriculars sans both dugouts receiving warnings from home plate umpire Jim Wolf, the Jays tacked on two more runs with a 2-RBI double off the bat of Springer, thus capping off a nine-run bottom of the fifth for Toronto.

From there, Hunter Renfroe clobbered a two-run home run off Blue Jays reliever Ryan Borucki to cut the deficit to five runs at 9-4 in the top of the sixth, but the right fielder’s 18th big fly of the season did not make much of a difference in the end.

That being the case because after Austin Davis allowed one run to cross the plate in the bottom half of the sixth, Renfroe popped out with two outs and the bases loaded in the top of the seventh.

Martin Perez — on the same day he was demoted to the Red Sox bullpen and just one day after his start against the Tigers — took over for Davis and yielded one additional run on two hits in the seventh.

And in the eighth, Jonathan Arauz became the fourth position player to pitch for the Red Sox this season, and he also allowed one more run to score to make it a 12-4 contest in favor of the Blue Jays, which would go on to be Friday’s final score.

Of the 12 pitches (eight strikes) Arauz threw, four were identified by sliders and three were identified as curveballs. He topped out at 43.7 mph.

Anyway, with the loss, the Red Sox have now dropped seven of their last eight games and have fallen to 64-47 on the season as a result. They are now 2 1/2 games back of the Rays for first place in the American League East.

Next up: Doubleheader on-deck

The Sox and Jays will play two at Rogers Centre on Saturday, with Game 1 scheduled to begin at 3:07 p.m. eastern time and Game 2 to follow at 7:07 p.m. ET.

Right-hander Nick Pivetta is slated to face off against left-hander Robbie Ray in the day cap, while righty Tanner Houck will square off against fellow right-hander Jose Berrios in the night cap.

Both games will be broadcast on NESN.

(Picture of Nathan Eovaldi: Cole Burston/Getty Images)

Adam Ottavino blows save against former team as Red Sox waste Nathan Eovaldi’s gem, drop heartbreaker to Yankees, 4-3

The Red Sox appeared to be well on their way to a series-clinching victory over the Yankees at Fenway Park on Saturday evening, until the eighth inning happened.

Nathan Eovaldi had allowed just one earned run over 7 2/3 innings of work and handed things over to the bullpen with the Red Sox up 3-1 and needing just one more out to get through the top of the eighth.

Adam Ottavino came on in relief of Eovaldi, inheriting a situation in which New York had one runner on first base with the middle portion of their lineup due to hit.

The former Yankees reliever gave up a ground-rule double to Giancarlo Stanton that left the slugger’s bat at just 70.3 mph, but put runners at second and third for Rougned Odor, who cleared the bases on another two-base hit that knotted things up at three runs apiece.

Gleyber Torres followed by driving in Odor on a go-ahead RBI single, and just like that, the Red Sox found themselves trailing for the first time all day at 4-3.

Ottavino wound up getting charged with the loss and blown save, as the Sox fell to the Yankees in gut-wrenching fashion by a final score of 4-3.

Eovaldi’s strong start goes for naught

Eovaldi, making his 20th start of the season for Boston, was in cruise control through most of his outing on Saturday.

With the benefit of some early run support, the veteran right-hander put up seven consecutive scoreless frames to begin his day, never facing more than four Yankees in a single inning while retiring 20 of the first 25 batters he faced.

The eighth inning presented a different challenge for Eovaldi, though, as he served up a leadoff double to Estevan Florial and later let that runner score by giving up a two-out RBI single to Brett Gardner, which would be how his outing came to an end.

In came Ottavino after Eovaldi got the hook from Red Sox manager Alex Cora, and the righty allowed the lone runner he inherited to score before yielding two more runs of his own on three straight two-out hits that was capped off by Torres’ game-winning single.

As a result of how the top of the eighth inning ended for Boston, Eovaldi wound up surrendering two earned runs on seven hits, zero walks, and eight strikeouts over his 7 2/3 innings pitched. Of the 100 pitches the 31-year-old hurler threw, 82 — or 82% of them — went for strikes.

Red Sox offense gets on the board early, then sputters

Opposite Eovaldi to begin things in Saturday’s contest was fellow Houston-area native Jameson Taillon for New York.

Matched up against Taillon for a third time this season, the Sox scored early and often off of the right-hander.

Before the first out of the first inning could even be recorded, Kiké Hernández led off by lacing a hard-hit triple off the Green Monster. Upon reaching third base via a head-first slide, Hernández was able to score on an errant throw to third from Odor, giving the Red Sox an early 1-0 lead.

Kevin Plawecki doubled that advantage in the bottom of the second, as he drove in J.D. Martinez on an RBI double that left the backstop’s bat at an impressive 105.7 mph.

In the third, Jarren Duran’s elite speed on the base paths proved to be an effective weapon, with him reaching first and advancing to second on a ground ball that eluded Odor at second base and made its way to the outfield.

After advancing to third on a Xander Bogaerts groundout, Duran scored easily on a sacrifice fly from Rafael Devers, earning Devers his team-leading 80th RBI of the season to put the Sox up 3-0.

While it seemed like the Boston bats had Taillon’s number, the New York starter was able to settle in to the point where he held the opposition in check to the tune of seven quality innings of work in which only one of the three runs he gave up was earned.

Sox threaten late, but to no avail

Moments after the Red Sox saw the last of Taillon Saturday, the Yankees put together a four-run rally in their half of the eighth and essentially turned this game on its head in the process of doing so.

Finding themselves down by one all of the sudden, Boston threatened with two outs in the bottom of the eighth, as back-to-back singles from Bogaerts and Devers put runners at the corners for Martinez.

Martinez, matched up against Yankees reliever Jonathan Loaisiga, proceeded to rip a 90.3 mph line drive to right field, but it was one that was caught by Greg Allen to retire the side.

In the ninth, with struggling closer Aroldis Chapam on the mound for New York, the Sox nearly manufactured another late two-out rally, with Hunter Renfroe — pinch-hitting for Franchy Cordero — drew a two-out walk and Christian Vazquez — pinch-hitting for Michael Chavis — followed with a ground-rule double.

That dramatic sequence put the potential tying run at third base and the potential winning run at second base with two outs for Hernández, but he fell victim to a five-pitch strikeout that sealed a dispiriting 4-3 defeat for the Sox.

With the loss, the Red Sox see their four-game winning streak come to an end as they drop to 60-39 on the season.

The Rays, meanwhile, topped the Indians by a final score of 8-2 in their game on Saturday, meaning Tampa Bay and Boston will be tied atop of the American League East standings going into Sunday’s action.

Next up: Game No. 100

The Red Sox will play their 100th game of the 2021 season on Sunday afternoon as they go for the series victory over the Yankees.

Left-hander Martin Perez is slated to get the ball for Boston in the weekend finale, while right-hander Domingo German is lined up to do the same for New York.

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

(Picture of Adam Ottavino: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

Red Sox at the All-Star Game: Xander Bogaerts, Rafael Devers, J.D. Martinez combine for 3 hits; Nathan Eovaldi, Matt Barnes toss scoreless inning each in American League’s 5-2 win

The American League bested the National League by a final score of 5-2 in the 91st MLB All-Star Game at Coors Field in Denver on Tuesday night, and the Red Sox’ five All-Star representatives played a significant role in making that happen.

Xander Bogaerts

Bogaerts, making his second career All-Star Game start in his third overall appearance, got the start at shortstop for the American League while batting out of the three-hole.

The 28-year-old went 2-for-3 on the night with an RBI and a pair of singles, the second of which came off Marlins starter Trevor Rogers and drove in Orioles’ All-Star Cedric Mullins with two outs in the top of the fifth inning that gave the American League a 4-0 lead at the time it was hit.

Per Baseball Savant, Bogaerts’ two base hits had exit velocities of 109 mph and 92 mph respectively.

He also turned a nifty, unassisted double play to help fellow Sox All-Star Nathan Eovaldi to get out of the bottom of the fourth inning unscathed.

Rafael Devers

Devers, making his first career All-Star Game start in his first overall appearance, started alongside Bogaerts at third base as the two became the first pair of Red Sox teammates to start in the same Midsummer Classic on the left side of the infield.

Batting two spots behind Bogaerts out of the five-hole, the 24-year-old slugger followed a leadoff walk drawn by Aaron Judge in the top half of the second inning by lacing a 106.6 mph double off Brewers starter Corbin Burnes that advanced Judge up to third.

An RBI single courtesy of Blue Jays starter Marcus Semien brought in Judge from third, giving the American League their first lead of the night at 1-0.

Fast forward to the fourth, and Devers — matched up against Rockies All-Star German Marquez — grounded out to shortstop for the first out of the inning, but it was a grounder that left the left-handed hitter’s bat at a scorching 106.3 mph.

Devers, like Bogaerts, was pulled in the middle of the fifth inning.

J.D. Martinez

Martinez, making his fourth career All-Star appearance and his third with the Red Sox, replaced starting designated hitter Shohei Ohtani with no outs and runners in the corners in the fifth inning. He proceeded to strike out on three pitches against Rogers.

The 33-year-old also fanned on four pitches against Brewers All-Star Freddy Peralta in the top half of the seventh, so he finished the night going 0-for-2 with a pair of punchouts.

Nathan Eovaldi

Eovaldi, one of three first-time All-Stars the Red Sox sent to Denver along with Devers and closer Matt Barnes, got the call from his former manager Kevin Cash to take over for Rangers starter Kyle Gibson in the middle of the fourth.

Working on six days rest, the 31-year-old right-hander needed all of 10 pitches (8 strikes) to get through a scoreless frame of relief in which he faced the minimum three batters thanks to that aforementioned double play started by Bogaerts on a Nick Castellanos groundball.

Of the 10 pitches Eovaldi threw on Tuesday, three were splitters, three were four-seam fastballs, one was a curveball, and one was a cutter. The flame-throwing righty induced two total swings-and-misses while topping out at 99.2 mph with his heater. No 100+ mph heat from him.

Matt Barnes

Barnes, making his first career All-Star appearance, did not pitch in the ninth inning as he has primarily done for the Red Sox this season, but he was responsible for a bottom half of the eighth that had plenty of tension.

Fresh off inking a two-year extension to remain in Boston for the foreseeable future over the weekend, the 31-year-old entered with a 5-2 lead to protect, but proceeded to lad the bases on two singles and a walk in the process of recording the first two outs of the frame.

With one out to get, Barnes was matched up against a dangerous opponent in the form of the Cubs’ Kris Bryant, and he fell in behind in the count at 3-0 to make matters even worse.

On the fourth pitch of the at-bat, a 96 mph fastball on the outer half of the plate, the fiery right-hander got Bryant to lift a 296-foot lineout to Angels All-Star Jared Walsh in left field.

It was a lineout that required Walsh, who has never played left field at the major-league level, to make a superb sliding catch, but the out was recorded nonetheless to get Barnes and the American League out of the inning.

Of the 25 pitches (14 strikes) Barnes threw on Tuesday, 18 were four-seam fastballs and seven were curveballs. He topped out at 97.1 mph with his heater.

In tossing a scoreless eighth inning, Barnes wound up picking up the hold as White Sox closer Liam Hendriks shut the door on the National League in the ninth to notch the hold and secure a 5-2 victory victory for the American League.

With the win, the AL has now taken eight consecutive All-Star Games from the NL.

Blue Jays All-Star first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was named the game’s Most Valuable Player, as he hit the 200th home run in All-Star Game history, which also happened to be a 468-foot blast that left his bat at 110.2 mph.

Guerrero Jr., 22, becomes the youngest player to be named All-Star Game MVP in the game’s history, which dates back to 1933.

(Picture of Matt Barnes, Nathan Eovaldi, Xander Bogaerts, Rafael Devers, and J.D. Martinez: Boston Red Sox)

Red Sox’ Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers batting third and fifth in American League’s starting lineup for 2021 All-Star Game

Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers will become the first pair of Red Sox teammates to ever start in the same All-Star Game at shortstop and third base at Coors Field on Tuesday night, and they will do so while batting third and fifth in the American League’s starting lineup, respectively.

Rays manager Kevin Cash, who is also managing the American League squad in this year’s Midsummer Classic in Denver, announced his starting lineup and starting pitcher earlier Monday afternoon, as Angels’ two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani will bat leadoff as the starting designated hitter while also getting the start on the mound.

For Bogaerts, this will be his second All-Star Game start in addition to his third overall All-Star selection (2016, 2019, 2021).

The 28-year-old is currently hitting .321/.385/.545 with a league-leading 27 doubles, 15 home runs, 51 RBI, 57 runs scored, and five stolen bases over 85 games (361) plate appearances so far this season while primarily batting cleanup.

In the seven games he has hit out of the three-hole this year, Bogaerts has slashed .280/.406/.320 with one of his 27 doubles, three of his 51 RBI, and four of his 57 runs scored.

Devers, meanwhile, will be making his first career appearance in an All-Star Game after he — like Bogaerts — was voted in as a starter for the American League earlier this month.

The 24-year-old slugger wrapped up the unofficial first half of his 2021 campaign on Sunday sporting a solid .282/.350/.564 to go along with 25 doubles, one triple, a team-leading 22 home runs and 72 RBI, 59 runs scored, and three stolen bases over 87 games spanning 369 total trips to the plate.

278 of Devers’ 369 plate appearances (75.3%) this season have come with the left-handed hitter batting out of the five-hole. He owns an OPS of .931 when hitting in that particular spot in the order.

In addition to his stellar production at the plate, Devers has enjoyed moderate success defensively as well, as he has been worth one Defensive Run Saved at third base while also putting up an Ultimate Zone rating of 2.2, which translates to an UZR of 3.8 over 150 games.

According to FanGraphs, Devers (3.5 fWAR) and Bogaerts (3.9 fWAR) have been two of the most valuable infielders in the American League so far this season, meaning the dynamic duo has been a driving force when it comes to the Red Sox sitting in first place in the American League East at the All-Star break.

While Bogaerts and Devers will be starting for the American League in the 91st All-Star Game come Sunday night, the Sox have three more representatives who should be able to get into the game at well.

J.D. Martinez, who was selected as a reserve, will start on the bench behind Ohtani, and likely Twins designated hitter Nelson Cruz as well.

Red Sox closer Matt Barnes and starter Nathan Eovaldi are both first-time All-Stars, and the pair of fiery right-handers figure to be available out of the bullpen for Cash once Ohtani’s night is done.

On the other side of things, Nationals ace Max Scherzer will get the start for the National League, marking the fourth time the three-time Cy Young Award winner has had the honor of doing so over the course of his illustrious career.

First pitch for the 91st MLB All-Star Game on Tuesday is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. eastern time on FOX.

(Picture of Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers: Boston Red Sox)

Red Sox held in check by Shohei Ohtani, fall to Angels, 5-3

The Red Sox fell victim to the Shohei Ohtani experience and saw their mini two-game winning streak come to a close with a 5-3 loss at the hands of the Angels in Anaheim on Tuesday night.

In a starting pitching matchup that featured two first-time All-Stars in the middle game of this three-game series, it was Ohtani who came out on top against Sox right-hander Nathan Eovaldi.

Los Angeles’ two-way phenom held the Boston offense in check, limiting a typically-potent offense to just two runs on five hits, zero walks, and four strikeouts in seven strong innings of work.

Eovaldi, meanwhile, lasted just 5 2/3 innings, surrendering five runs — all of which were earned on nine hits, one walk, and one hit batsman to go along with nine punchouts on the night at Angel Stadium.

The Sox actually jumped on Ohtani early, with J.D. Martinez bringing in Enrique Hernandez on a sacrifice fly to give his side an early 1-0 lead right away in the first inning.

Alas, Eovaldi gave that run back and then some in his first frame of work, as Ohtani helped his own cause with a game-tying RBI double that was followed by a two-run home run off the bat of Angels catcher Max Stassi with two outs in the inning.

Eovaldi and Ohtani then proceeded to exchange scoreless frames from the beginning of the second up until the start of the sixth, at which point Martinez struck again by driving in Connor Wong, who led off with a hard-hit double for his first career extra-base hit, on a run-scoring single to right field.

That cut the Halos’ lead down to one run at 3-2, and Xander Bogaerts nearly erased that entirely by hitting a deep fly ball to right-center field with two outs that appeared destined to go over the fence, but was instead caught by a leaping Juan Lagares to rob the shortstop of a potentially game-altering two-run homer.

The Angels were able to capitalize on Lagares’ run-saving play in their half of the sixth, as hits from Phil Gosselin and Stassi followed by an RBI groundout from old friend Jose Iglesias made it a 4-2 game.

Eovaldi was chased shortly after that, but the book on his night was not closed until Brandon Workman allowed an inherited runner to score on a Fletcher RBI single, putting the Angels ahead 5-2.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 104 (71 strikes), the 31-year-old hurler end the first half of his 2021 campaign on a sour note by falling to 9-5 on the year while raising his ERA to 3.66.

After Workman recorded the final out of the sixth, the righty also tossed a shutout seventh inning before Yacksel Rios did the same in the eighth.

Down to their final strike with two outs in the ninth, Hunter Renfroe provided the Sox with a little bit of life by crushing his 13th big fly of the year off Angels closer Raisel Iglesias, but Iglesias rebounded by fanning Christian Arroyo to end things with a final score of 5-3.

With the loss, the Red Sox fell to 54-43 on the season and 3-2 on their West Coast Road trip. They currently have a four-game lead over the Rays for first place in the American League East.

Santana removed with left quad injury

Danny Santana, who started at first base for Boston on Tuesday, had to be removed in the seventh inning after he came up limping while running out a ground ball. He was replaced by Bobby Dalbec.

After the game, Red Sox manager Alex Cora said there is a 50/50 chance Santana winds up going on the injured list after he revealed the utility man suffered a left quad injury.

Next up: Rodriguez vs. Heaney

The Red Sox will send left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez to the hill on Wednesday afternoon as they go for the series win over the Angels, who will counter with fellow southpaw Andrew Heaney.

First pitch Wednesday is scheduled for 4:07 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Shohei Ohtani: Michael Owens/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Matt Barnes, Nathan Eovaldi, J.D. Martinez named to American League All-Star team, joining Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers for 91st Midsummer Classic in Denver

In addition to Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers, the Red Sox will be sending three more players to the All-Star Game in Denver next week.

Right-handers Nathan Eovaldi and Matt Barnes, and designated hitter J.D. Martinez were all selected to represent the American League as All-Stars, Major League Baseball announced earlier Sunday afternoon.

Eovaldi and Barnes will be two of the 12 pitchers on Rays manager Kevin Cash’s staff, while Martinez will be one of three designated hitters on the AL roster alongside Angels two-way phenom and starter Shohei Ohtani as well as fellow reserve Nelson Cruz of the Twins.

For Eovaldi and Barnes, Sunday marks the first time in their respective careers that they were chosen to play in the All-Star Game. The same can be said for Devers, who was voted in as a starter at third base on Thursday, as well.

Martinez, meanwhile, will be heading to his fourth Midsummer Classic and his third as a member of the Red Sox organization.

Bogaerts, like Devers, was voted in as a starter at shortstop for the second time in his career and will be making his third overall All-Star Game appearance.

By sending the likes of Barnes, Bogaerts, Devers, Eovaldi, and Martinez to Denver to represent them, the Red Sox will have the highest number of All-Stars among any major-league team partaking in the festivities at Coors Field from July 11 through July 13.

As noted by MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo, this is the second time in four years that Boston has had at least five All-Stars. They most recently did so in 2018 with Mookie Betts, Craig Kimbrel, J.D. Martinez, Mitch Moreland, and Chris Sale.

(Picture of Matt Barnes: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Rafael Devers, Danny Santana collect 5 RBI each as Red Sox crush Royals, 15-1, to finish off sweep and perfect homestand

Even on short rest, the Red Sox opened up the second half of their season by crushing the Royals, 15-1, at Fenway Park on Thursday afternoon to finish off a four-game sweep of Kansas City while also wrapping up a perfect 7-0 homestand.

With the win, Boston improves to 20 games over .500 for the first time this season at 51-31. They also increase their lead over the Rays, who were idle on Thursday, for first place in the American League East to 3 1/2 games.

Kiké Hernández got the scoring started for the Sox right away, as he led things off against Royals starter Kris Bubic by clubbing his third leadoff home run in the last five days in the first inning.

J.D. Martinez followed suit in the fourth, as he led the inning off with another solo shot — his 17th homer of the season — to give Boston a 2-0 lead.

A two-out walk drawn by Hunter Renfroe and two-out single from Marwin Gonzalez brought Danny Santana to the plate with the chance to do some damage, and the switch-hitter did just that by mashing an opposite field three-run blast into the Red Sox bullpen. Santana’s first big fly since late May put his side up by five runs.

The Boston offense put up another four-spot in their half of the fifth against Royals reliever Ervin Santana, with Alex Verdugo, Martinez, and Xander Bogaerts loading the bases with one out, and Rafael Devers plating a pair on a two-run single to center field.

The bases were re-loaded when Gonzalez was issued another free pass, and Santana came through in that spot by placing a softly-hit, 108-foot RBI single to second base that came as a result of the Kansas City infield playing in a shift.

A balk with Connor Wong at the plate brought in another run, and the Red Sox found themselves in possession of a 9-0 lead.

Devers tacked on three more runs on one swing of the bat in the sixth. With two outs and runners on second and third, the left-handed slugger absolutely obliterated a 98 mph sinker from Josh Staumont and sent it flying 426 feet — with an exit velocity of 110.2 mph — over everything in right field for his 20th dinger of the season.

Michael Chavis, pinch-hitting for Hernández, drove in an additional run on a sacrifice fly in the seventh, while Gonzalez and Santana wrapped up productive days at the plate by collecting one more RBI each in the eighth.

All in all, the Red Sox lineup totaled 15 runs on 17 hits on Thursday. Devers went 3-for-5 with a home run, three runs scored, and five RBI to tie a season-high in that department. Gonzalez went 3-for-4 with two runs scored, an RBI, and one walk. And Santana — in his best game in a Sox uniform to date — went 3-for-5 with a double, one run scored, an a season-high five runs driven in.

Eovaldi tosses seven scoreless frames

While the Red Sox were getting stellar production out of their lineup on Thursday, they also got yet another impressive start from Nathan Eovaldi.

Making his 17th start of the season in this one, the right-hander tossed seven scoreless innings while scattering just five hits and zero walks to go along with six strikeouts on the afternoon.

Four of the five hits Eovaldi allowed came within the first three innings. From the top of the fourth up until the middle of the seventh, the flame-throwing righty retired 12 of the last 13 hitters he faced.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 84 (63 strikes), the 31-year-old hurler picked up his team-leading ninth winning decision of the year while also lowering his ERA to 3.41. His next start should come against the Angels in Anaheim next Tuesday.

Andriese gives up shutout bid

In relief of Eovaldi, Matt Andriese came on the for the eighth inning, faced the minimum in the inning thanks to a double play, but was unable to keep the shutout going in the ninth when he served up an RBI double to Jarrod Dyson.

Still, Andriese did stay on until the end, and he saw the Sox’ 15-1 victory through to its completion.

Next up: Heading out West

The Red Sox will board a flight to San Francisco later Thursday afternoon and open up a three-game series against the Athletics in Oakland on Friday.

Left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez is slated to get the ball for Boston in the series opener, while right-hander Frankie Montas will be doing the same for Oakland.

First pitch Friday is scheduled for 9:40 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Danny Santana: Boston Red Sox)

Nathan Eovaldi dazzles with 7 2/3 1-run innings as Red Sox secure series win over Yankees with 4-2 victory; Connor Wong picks up first big-league hit in Fenway Park debut

The Red Sox did not need to tear the cover off the ball to get the job done against the Yankees at Fenway Park on Saturday night.

Boston scored two runs on two sacrifice flies in the second inning, an additional run on an infield single in the third inning, and one more on another sacrifice fly in the seventh inning.

Things got a bit shaky towards the end, but the Sox were able to hold on and pick up a series-clinching 4-2 victory over New York.

Matched up against Yankees left-hander Jordan Montgomery to begin things on Saturday, Xander Bogaerts proved to be the catalyst for that two-run bottom of the second by dribbling a leadoff single a mere four feet past home plate.

Rafael Devers followed by drawing an eight-pitch walk, and Hunter Renfroe loaded the bases with a hard-hit single that eluded Montgomery on the mound.

Following a brief mound visit, Enrique Hernandez brought in his side’s first run on a sacrifice fly to center field that brought in Bogaerts and advanced Devers to third, while Bobby Dalbec doubled an early lead by plating Devers on yet another sac fly, though this one only traveled 152 feet and was caught by Yankees first baseman Luke Voit in foul territory.

Still, Voit had to catch Dalbec’s pop fly with his back towards home plate, and that allowed Devers to come into score to make it a 2-0 game.

An inning later, the Sox offense struck with two outs, this time with Bogaerts ripping a two-out double, Devers reaching on an infield single, and Renfroe driving in Bogaerts on another infield knock that came as a result of the Yankees infield playing in a shift.

Fast forward to the seventh, and Bogaerts supplied what would prove to be an important insurance run when he brought in Michael Chavis on a run-scoring sacrifice fly to center field.

While the Red Sox lineup was soft-contacting the Yankees to death, Nathan Eovaldi put together one of his more impressive outings of the season against his former team on Saturday.

Over 7 2/3 innings of work, the veteran right-hander surrendered just one run while scattering seven hits and zero walks to go along with six strikeouts on the night.

That lone tally Eovaldi gave up came at the hands of the last batter he faced, as he served up a two-out solo homer to D.J. LeMahieu in the top half of the eighth.

Besides that one miscue, Eovaldi was thoroughly locked in, never facing more than four Yankees in a single frame thanks to keeping the ball on the ground for the most part and inducing a pair of double plays as a result of doing so.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 109 (72 strikes) to set a new season-high, the 31-year-old hurler ultimately improved to 8-4 on the season in addition to bringing his ERA down to 3.67. His next start should come against the Royals on Thursday.

Red Sox bullpen barely holds on

In relief of Eovaldi, Hirokazu Sawamura got the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen with one out to get in the eighth, and he proceeded to walk the bases loaded to bring the potential go-ahead run to the plate in the form of Voit.

That sequence prompted Sox manager Alex Cora to turn to Adam Ottavino, who got Voit to ground out to short to extinguish the threat.

With closer Matt Barnes unavailable, Ottavino was also responsible for the ninth inning as he had a 4-1 lead to protect.

The Yankees made things interesting in their half of the ninth, with LeMahieu plating a run to bring the possible go-ahead run in Aaron Judge. But Ottavino fanned Judge on six pitches, punctuating the at-bat with a nasty 96 mph sinker down and away to preserve the 4-2 victory and notch his fifth save of the year.

With the win, the Red Sox improve to 46-31 (22-17 at home) on the season while remaining a half game back of the Rays for first place in the American League East.

Wong’s first career hit in his first career start

Red Sox catching prospect Connor Wong made his first career start behind the dish on Saturday after debuting as a pinch-runner earlier this week.

The 25-year-old picked up his first big-league hit in the second inning as part of a 1-for-3 night at the plate. He also caught a decent game for Eovaldi and Co.

Next up: Cole vs. Rodriguez

The Red Sox will look to improve to a perfect 6-0 against the Yankees this season by going for the three-game sweep over their division rivals on Sunday afternoon.

Ace right-hander Gerrit Cole will get the ball for New York in the series finale, while left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez will do the same for Boston.

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

(Picture of Nathan Eovaldi: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

Rafael Devers walks it off as Red Sox salvage series split against Blue Jays with 2-1 victory

The Red Sox were three outs away from picking up a hard-fought, 1-0 shutout victory over the Blue Jays at Fenway Park on Monday.

Matt Barnes came on for the save in the top half of the ninth and got the first two outs of the inning easily before making the decision to pitch to one of the hottest hitters on the planet in Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

That decision would turn out to be costly for the Sox, as Barnes served up a towering, 451-foot mammoth shot of a game-tying home run in the process of being charged with his third blown save of the year.

Still, even with that setback, the Red Sox did not falter going into the bottom portion of the inning.

Matched up against reliever Rafeal Dolis, Alex Verdugo and J.D. Martinez led off with a pair of singles to eventually put a runner in scoring position with one out for Rafael Devers.

On the fourth pitch he saw from Dolis, Devers got a hold of a 95 mph sinker on the inner half of the plate and crushed it off the Green Monster.

Devers knew it was good for a hit as soon as it left the bat, as Verdugo came into score from second to seal a 2-1 walk-off victory for the Red Sox.

With the win, not only does Boston halt a two-game losing skid, but they also salvage a series split with Toronto in addition to improving to 40-27 on the season.

Eovaldi takes perfect game into fourth inning

The Sox were in desperate need of a quality starting pitching performance at on Monday, and that’s exactly what they got from Nathan Eovaldi.

Having seen his team get outscored 25-6 over its last two games, both losses, Eovaldi put together one of his most impressive outings of the season to date against the Blue Jays.

In what was his 14th start of the year, the veteran right-hander kept the Jays off the scoreboard while scattering just three hits and one walk to go along with four strikeouts over 6 2/3 pristine innings of work.

After retiring the first 10 hitters he faced, Eovaldi saw his perfect game and no-hit bid come to an end all at once when he yielded a one-out single to Bo Bichette in the top of the fourth.

Eovaldi escaped the inning without allowing Bichette to get past second base before sitting down six more Jays batters in order.

The seventh presented a bit of a challenge for the righty, as he gave up back-to-back singles to lead things off, but nullified that by inducing a 5-4-3 double play off the bat of Randal Grichuk; at which point his night came to a close.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 81 (55 strikes), the 31-year-old hurler turned to his four-seam fastball 40% of the time he was on the mound Monday, inducing just one swing-and-miss while topping out at 100.3 mph with the pitch.

Despite being hit with the no-decision, Eovaldi did lower his ERA on the season to 3.78. His next start should come against the Royals in Kansas City on Sunday.

Verdugo comes through early

The Red Sox lineup was matched up against an unfamiliar opponent in the form of Blue Jays rookie right-hander Alek Manoah, who was making his first career start at Fenway Park, to begin things on Monday.

While Manoah got through the first two innings unscathed, the bottom half of the third was somewhat of a different story.

With two outs and Enrique Hernandez at first base after reaching on a fielder’s choice, Alex Verdugo delivered what would turn out to be the most important Red Sox hit of the night.

On a 1-0, 94 mph fastball from Manoah, Verdugo laced a double to left field that was just out of the reach of left fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr.

Because the ball eluded Gurriel Jr.’s glove, Hernandez was able to hustle in to score all the way from first while Verdugo was credited with an RBI double.

Taylor shines again out of bullpen, Barnes earns win

By the time Nathan Eovaldi’s night had come to an end with two outs in the top of the seventh, left-hander Josh Taylor came on in relief of the starter.

Taylor fanned Rowdy Tellez on six pitches to end the inning and punched out two more in a shutout top of the eighth to extend his scoreless appearances streak to 18 consecutive games dating back to April 30.

Matt Barnes, meanwhile, was able to strike out Teoscar Hernandez after giving up that game-tying home run to limit the damage in the ninth, and he earned his third winning decision of the season since he was the last Red Sox pitcher to take the mound on Monday.

Next up: On to Atlanta

The Red Sox will board a flight to Atlanta for the start of a three-city, eight-game road trip on deck that starts with two against the Braves at Truist Park.

Left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez will get the start for Boston in the opening game of the two-game interleague series on Tuesday, while rookie southpaw Tucker Davidson will do the same for Atlanta.

First pitch Tuesday is scheduled for 7:20 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Rafael Devers: Omar Rawlings/Getty Images)

Nathan Eovaldi surrenders 5 runs on season-high 11 hits as Red Sox fall to Astros, 8-3

The Red Sox’ problems against the Astros ensued at Fenway Park on Wednesday night.

Boston fell to Houston by a final score of 8-3 on Wednesday in the process of getting outhit 17-4.

With the loss, the Sox drop back down to 37-25 (1-5 against the Astros) on the season. They remain 1 1/2 games back of the Rays for first place in the American League East.

Eovaldi gets bombarded

Nathan Eovaldi made his 13th start of the season for the Red Sox after missing the Astros in Houston last week.

Over 5 2/3 innings of work, the right-hander yielded five runs — all of which were earned — on a season-high 11 hits and three walks to go along with five strikeouts on the night.

The first of those five Astros runs came on a two-out ground-rule double in the top half of the second, while the majority of the damage was done an inning later.

A leadoff home run off the bat of Jose Altuve in the third set the tone for what would turn out to be a disastrous frame for Eovaldi, as he saw a 2-1 Red Sox lead turn into a 5-2 deficit after giving up three additional runs on three hits and a walk.

For how poorly as he pitched in the third, Eovaldi was able to rebound and — after escaping a bases loaded jam in the fourth — retired five of the six hitters he faced before issuing a two-out walk to Alex Bregman in the sixth. That would mark the end of his outing.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 107 (74 strikes), the 31-year-old hurler turned to his four-seam fastball 43% of the time he was on the mound Wednesday, inducing one swing-and-miss and topping out at 99.9 mph with the pitch.

Ultimately falling to 8-3 on the season while raising his ERA to 4.11, Eovaldi’s next start should come against the Blue Jays on Monday.

Red Sox bullpen takes over

After a busy Tuesday night, the Red Sox bullpen took over for Eovaldi with two outs in the top half of the sixth. Darwinzon Hernandez got the first call and sat down the only Astro he faced to end the inning.

From there, Garrett Whitlock surrendered one run on two hits and a sacrifice fly in the seventh, Phillips Valdez served up a two-run homer to Alex Bregman in the eighth, and Brandon Workman tossed a scoreless ninth to hold the Astros at eight runs.

Sox get out to early lead, then scuffle

On the other side of things, the Red Sox lineup was matched up against a familiar foe in Astros starter Jake Odorizzi, who they got to for three runs in just three innings last Thursday.

Once more, the Sox were able to take advantage of Odorizzi early on Wednesday, with Xander Bogaerts and Hunter Renfroe each picking up an RBI in the first inning on a sacrifice fly and run-scoring single to give their side an early 2-0 lead.

While it looked like Boston could be on the verge of an offensive breakout, they were held in check the rest of the way.

Bogaerts provided the only other offense when he belted a 413-foot solo home run to lead off things off in the bottom half of the fourth.

Besides that, they went 1-for-4 with runners in scoring position and left two men on base as a team in the process of falling to the Astros by a final score of 8-3.

Renfroe records seventh outfield assist, could have eight

In addition to notching his 26th RBI of the season on Wednesday, right fielder Hunter Renfroe also recorded his team-leading seventh outfield assist by gunning down Alex Bregman on a 98 mph dart to home plate in the first inning.

Renfroe very well could have picked up his eighth outfield assist of the year as well on a Myles Straw sacrifice fly in the seventh that allowed Michael Brantley to just barely score from third base.

His seven outfield assists are tied for the most in the major-leagues.

Next up: Greinke vs. Rodriguez in series finale

Looking to avoid getting swept at home, the Red Sox will send left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez to the mound for Thursday’s series finale against the Astros at Fenway Park.

Rodriguez will be opposed by Astros ace right-hander Zack Greinke.

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

(Picture of Nathan Eovaldi: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)