Tag: rafael devers

How did Red Sox pitching prospect Jose Bello (part of return for Rafael Devers) fare after trade?

After writing about James Tibbs III over the weekend, it feels like an appropriate time to examine how the other prospect the Red Sox acquired from the Giants in the Rafael Devers trade — Jose Bello — fared in the wake of the blockbuster deal being made in June.

Unlike Tibbs, Bello was not subsequently flipped at the trade deadline the following month and still remains in the organization. The 20-year-old right-hander was originally signed by the Giants for $47,500 as an international free agent coming out of Santo Domingo in January 2023. He spent the better part of his first two professional seasons in the Dominican Summer League before making his stateside debut in the Arizona Complex League last July.

Bello returned to the ACL Giants for the start of his 2025 campaign and posted a 2.00 ERA (1.89 FIP) with 28 strikeouts to three walks in eight relief appearances (18 innings) before being flipped to the Red Sox alongside Tibbs, Kyle Harrison, and Jordan Hicks on June 15. The young righty made the trek eastward and joined Boston’s Florida Complex League affiliate, compiling a 3.14 ERA (2.59 FIP) with 16 strikeouts to eight walks across his next five outings (one start) spanning 14 1/3 innings. He then received a promotion to Low-A Salem on July 25.

Tasked with his first full-season assignment, Bello pitched to a 3.09 ERA (4.04 FIP) with 17 strikeouts to 15 walks in seven appearances (four starts) totaling 23 1/3 innings for Salem. He ended the year on a high note in his September 7 start against Fayetteville, giving up just one unearned run on three hits, two walks, and four strikeouts over five strong frames.

Overall, Bello produced a 2.75 ERA (2.97 FIP) with 61 strikeouts to 14 walks over 20 appearances (five starts) between the ACL, FCL, and Salem in 2025. Opposing hitters batted .210 against him in 55 2/3 total innings across the three levels. That includes a 3.11 ERA (3.49 FIP) and a .234 opponents’ batting average across 37 2/3 innings after being traded from the Giants to the Red Sox.

Listed at 6-foot-1 and 164 pounds, Bello throws from a three-quarters arm slot and creates deception with his cross-body delivery. As noted in his SoxProspects.com scouting report, the athletic hurler features a four-pitch mix that consists of a 92-94 mph fastball that tops out at 96 mph, a 90-92 mph cutter, an 83-86 mph slider, and a seldom-used upper-80s changeup.

Bello, who does not turn 21 until May, is currently regarded by SoxProspects.com as Boston’s No. 54 prospect, which ranks 32nd among pitchers in the organization. Barring a trade or other surprise move this winter, he is projected by the site to return to Salem for the start of the 2026 season.

(Picture of Jose Bello: Suzanna Mitchell/San Francisco Giants/Getty Images)

Red Sox prospect James Tibbs III (acquired in Rafael Devers trade) homers for first time with new organization

Red Sox first base/outfield prospect James Tibbs III hit his first home run since being acquired from the Giants as part of last month’s blockbuster Rafael Devers trade in Double-A Portland’s series finale against New Hampshire on Sunday afternoon.

Batting third and starting at first base for the Sea Dogs at Hadlock Field, Tibbs homered off Fisher Cats starter (and top Blue Jays pitching prospect) Trey Yesavage with one runner on and two outs in the bottom of the third inning. The ball left his bat at 102.3 mph and traveled over the center field wall to give his side a 3-2 lead.

Tibbs finished the day going 2-for-4 with two RBIs, two runs scored, one walk, and one strikeout as Portland fell to New Hampshire, 10-5. The left-handed hitting 22-year-old is now batting .286/.378/.397 (127 wRC+) with two doubles, one triple, one home run, five RBIs, 10 runs scored, two stolen bases, nine walks, and 15 strikeouts in 16 games (74 plate appearances) for the Sea Dogs.

Defensively, Tibbs has been splitting his playing time with Portland between first base and right field. In addition to making three starts at first base, the 6-foot, 201-pounder has logged 107 innings in right field, where he has recorded one assist and committed one error in 23 chances. He has also started one game at DH.

Tibbs was one of four players the Red Sox acquired from the Giants for Devers (and the remainder of his $313.5 million contract) in a stunning move on June 15, joining left-hander Kyle Harrison, right-hander Jordan Hicks, and pitching prospect Jose Bello. The Georgia native was selected by San Francisco with the 13th overall pick in last summer’s draft out of Florida State (where he earned 2024 ACC Player of the Year honors). He netted a $4,747,500 signing bonus and was playing for High-A Eugene at he time he was traded, so he received a promotion upon switching organizations for the first time in his young career.

Tibbs, who does not turn 23 until October, is currently regarded by Baseball America as Boston’s No. 9 prospect, while MLB Pipeline has him ranked sixth and SoxProspects.com has him ranked eighth.

Looking ahead, Tibbs is batting second and starting in right field for Portland in Tuesday’s series opener against Hartford at Hadlock Field. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. eastern time.

(Picture of James Tibbs III: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Which two prospects did Red Sox acquire from Giants in blockbuster Rafael Devers trade?

In an absolutely stunning turn of events, the Red Sox have traded superstar designated hitter Rafael Devers to the Giants, the club announced earlier Sunday evening.

In exchange for Devers, who is in the second season of a 10-year, $315.5 million contract extension, Boston acquired left-hander Kyle Harrison, right-hander Jordan Hicks, minor-league outfielder James Tibbs III, and minor-league right-hander Jose Bello from San Francisco.

Harrison has been optioned to Triple-A Worcester, while fellow southpaw Zach Penrod was designated for assignment to make room on the Red Sox’ 40-man roster, which is back at full capacity.

As for the two prospects Boston acquired in this blockbuster deal, Tibbs stands out given the fact that he was just selected by San Francisco with the 13th overall pick, one pick after the Red Sox took Braden Montgomery (who was subsequently dealt to the White Sox in the Garrett Crochet trade), in the 2024 draft out of Florida State. The Georgia native received a $4,747,500 signing bonus and made his professional debut with Low-A San Jose last August.

Tibbs was ranked by Baseball America as the No. 3 prospect in the Giants’ farm system. The left-handed hitting 22-year-old spent the first two-plus months of the 2025 season with High-A Eugene, batting .246/.379/.478 with 10 doubles, one triple, 12 home runs, 32 RBIs, 41 runs scored, three stolen bases, 42 walks, and 45 strikeouts in 57 games (256 plate appearances) for the Emeralds. That includes a .316/.458/.553 slash line against left-handed pitching and a .231/.361/.462 slash line against right-handed pitching.

Defensively, Tibbs has seen the vast majority of his playing time as a professional to this point come in right field. The 6-foot, 201-pounder logged 402 1/3 innings in right for Eugene this year, recording five assists without committing an error in 87 chances. He also made nine starts at DH.

Tibbs, who does not turn 23 until October, is being assigned to Double-A Portland, according to Andrew Parker of Beyond the Monster. The Sea Dogs open a six-game homestand against the Akron RubberDucks at Hadlock Field on Tuesday night.

Bello, meanwhile, was not ranked among San Francisco’s top 30 prospects by Baseball America or MLB Pipeline. The 20-year-old righty originally signed with the Giants as an international free agent coming out of the Dominican Republic in January 2023. He made his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League shortly thereafter, spending the better part of two seasons there before moving up to the Arizona Complex League last July.

In eight appearances for the ACL Giants to begin the 2025 campaign, Bello posted a 2.00 ERA and 1.91 FIP with 28 strikeouts to three walks over 18 innings of relief. Opposing hitters batted .156 against the projectable 6-foot-1, 164-pound hurler, who currently features a four-pitch mix that consists of an upper-90s fastball, a cutter, a slider, and a changeup, per a brief Baseball America scouting report.

Bello, who just turned 20 late last month, has been assigned to the Florida Complex League Red Sox. With that being said, it would not be surprising if he received a promotion to Low-A Salem in due time.

(Picture of Rafael Devers: Jaiden Tripi/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Rafael Devers recognized in AL MVP voting

Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers finished tied for 17th in 2023 American League MVP voting, as was revealed by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America on MLB Network earlier Thursday evening.

Devers received one ninth-place vote from Paul Hoynes of Cleveland.com for a total of two points. The 27-year-old slugger was one of 23 players to net at least one vote and finished in a four-way tie for 17th place with the Mariners’ Cal Raleigh, the Rays’ Isaac Paredes, and the Twins’ Sonny Gray.

Angels two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani, who is now a free agent, won the award unanimously for the second time in three years. Rangers teammates Corey Seager and Marcus Semien finished second and third, respectively. In the National League, former Red Sox star Mookie Betts and Dodgers teammate Freddie Freeman were the runners-up behind the Braves’ Ronald Acuna Jr., who also won unanimously as a result of receiving all 30 first-place votes.

Devers, meanwhile, netted at least one MVP vote for the third straight season and for the fourth time in the last five years dating back to 2019. Much like reliever Chris Martin the AL Cy Young race, Devers was the lone Red Sox player to receive a vote on Thursday. That puts an end to an eight-year run (2015-2022) in which Boston had two or more representatives on the ballot.

By his own admission, the 2023 campaign can be described as “just average” for Devers. Still, the left-handed hitter paced the Red Sox lineup by batting .271/.351/.500 with 34 doubles, a team-high 33 home runs, 100 RBIs, and 90 runs scored, five stolen bases, 62 walks, and 126 strikeouts over 153 games (656 plate appearances) en route to winning his second career Silver Slugger Award.

Among qualified hitters in the American League this past season, Devers ranked 16th in hits (157), 10th in extra-base hits (67), tied for eighth in total bases (290), 15th in doubles, tied for fourth in homers and runs driven in, tied for 13th in runs scored, 17th in batting average, 13th in on-base percentage, seventh in slugging percentage and OPS (.851), and 10th in isolated power (.229), per MLB.com’s leaderboards.

According to Baseball Savant, Devers finished in the 98th percentile among all big-leaguers in hard-hit rate (55.1 percent) this year. He also ranked in the 96th percentile in expected slugging percentage (.536), the 95th percentile in average exit velocity (93.1 mph), the 94th percentile in expected weighted on-base average (.380), the 87th percentile in expected batting average (.280), and the 84th percentile in barrel rate (12.7 percent).

While Devers was among the best when it came to making loud contact in 2023, his defense at the hot corner lagged far behind. In the process of logging 1,293 innings at third base, the 6-foot, 235-pounder committed a team-leading 19 errors in 370 chances. He accrued -9 defensive runs saved and was worth -9 outs above average, but it does not appear as though the Red Sox will have him move off the position anytime soon.

Now a veteran of seven major-league seasons, Devers has come a long way since signing with the Red Sox for $1.5 million as an international free agent coming out of the Dominican Republic a little more than a decade ago. The two-time All-Star, of course, inked a 10-year, $313.5 million contract extension in January that will go into effect in 2024.

(Picture of Rafael Devers: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Rafael Devers wins second career Silver Slugger Award

Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers has been named a 2023 American League Silver Slugger Award winner, Louisville Slugger and Major League Baseball announced on Thursday.

Devers and rookie first baseman Triston Casas were recognized as finalists for the award at their respective positions last week. The former beat out the likes of Houston’s Alex Bregman, Tampa Bay’s Isaac Paredes, and Cleveland’s Jose Ramirez for his second career Silver Slugger while the latter came up short against AL batting champ Yandy Diaz of the Rays.

Devers, who first won the award two years ago, put together another strong season at the plate in 2023. In 153 games, the 27-year-old slugger batted .271/.351/.500 with 34 doubles, a team-high 33 home runs, 100 RBIs, and 90 runs scored, five stolen bases, 62 walks, and 126 strikeouts over 580 plate appearances.

Despite describing his personal performance as “average” this year, Devers still led qualified American League third basemen in slugging percentage, OPS (.851), extra-base hits (67), home runs, runs driven in, and hard-hit rate (41.4 percent). The left-handed hitter also ranked third in isolated power (.229), second in wOBA (.359), and third in wRC+ (124), per FanGraphs.

Devers, who was nominated for All-MLB consideration on Wednesday, becomes just the second third baseman in franchise history to take home multiple Silver Slugger Awards, joining six-time winner Wade Boggs. His Silver Slugger is also the 50th given to a Red Sox player since the award was first introduced in 1980.

This marks the second straight year in which Boston has had just one Silver Slugger recipient after Xander Bogaerts won it at shortstop last season. In the National League, former Red Sox outfielder Mookie Betts took home his sixth career Silver Slugger Award and his third as a member of the Dodgers.

(Picture of Rafael Devers: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Trio of Red Sox nominated for 2023 All-MLB Team

Three members of this year’s Red Sox have been nominated for 2023 All-MLB Team consideration, Major League Baseball announced on Wednesday night.

Third baseman Rafael Devers, designated hitter Justin Turner, and reliever Chris Martin were all recognized for the seasons they had and will have the chance to to earn either first- or second-team All-MLB honors next month.

Devers was one of 10 third basemen selected to the ballot on Wednesday. Already in the running for his second career Silver Slugger Award, the left-handed hitting 27-year-old was a second-team selection in 2021.

Turner, the recipient of the Red Sox’ 2023 MLBPAA Heart and Hustle Award, was one of eight designated hitters to make the cut. The 38-year-old slugger has yet to make an All-MLB team in his career and is currently a free agent after declining the player option in his contract last week.

Martin, meanwhile, was one of 24 relief pitchers named to the ballot after putting together the best season (1.05 ERA in 55 appearances) of his eight-year big-league career. Like Turner, the 37-year-old righty has never garnered All-MLB consideration before.

First introduced in 2019, All-MLB honors recognize the best player or players at each position across the majors for what they did over the course of the entire regular season. Besides Devers, shortstop Xander Bogaerts (2019 first-team) and outfielder Mookie Betts (2019 second-team) are the only other Red Sox players who have previously made an All-MLB team.

Unsurprisingly, Betts was yet again approved for All-MLB recognition on Wednesday after another standout season with the Dodgers. While Bogaerts came up short following his first season with the Padres, Kyle Schwarber (Phillies), J.D. Martinez (Dodgers), Nathan Eovaldi (Rangers), and Eduardo Rodriguez (Tigers) were among the former Red Sox players who made this year’s ballot.

Fans have until 8 p.m. eastern time on Sunday, November 19 to vote for who they believe should make the fifth annual All-MLB team. Fan voting will account for half of the selection process while the other 50 percent will be made up by a baseball media panel.

Of the 122 players who were nominated on Wednesday, only 32 will be named to the first- or second-team when winners are unveiled during MLB Network’s All-MLB Team Show on December 16.

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

Red Sox infielders Triston Casas, Rafael Devers named Silver Slugger Award finalists

Red Sox infielders Triston Casas and Rafael Devers have been named finalists for 2023 American League Silver Slugger Awards, Louisville Slugger and Major League Baseball announced on Thursday.

Casas, a first-time finalist at first base, was recognized alongside the likes of Tampa Bay’s Yandy Diaz, Texas’ Nathaniel Lowe (last year’s winner), and Detroit’s Spencer Torkelson.

Devers, who won the award in 2021, is a finalist at third base for the third consecutive year along with Houston’s Alex Bregman, Tampa Bay’s Isaac Paredes, and last year’s winner in Cleveland’s Jose Ramirez.

Casas, who first debuted for Boston last September, overcame a rough start to his first full season in the major-leagues and wound up putting together an impressive rookie campaign. In 132 games, the left-handed hitting 23-year-old batted .263/.367/.490 with 21 doubles, two triples, 24 home runs, 65 RBIs, 66 runs scored, 70 walks, and 126 strikeouts over 502 plate appearances. It should be noted that he missed the final two-plus weeks of the season due to bursitis in his right shoulder.

Between Casas the three other first basemen he is competing with, the former ranked second in home runs, second in walks, second in batting average, second in on-base percentage, second in slugging percentage, second in OPS (.856), first in walk rate (13.9 percent), first in isolated power (.226), second in line-drive rate (21 percent), second in barrel rate (13.1 percent), and second in wRC+ (129), per FanGraphs.

Casas, who turns 24 in January, is looking to become the first Red Sox first baseman to take home a Silver Slugger Award since Adrian Gonzalez did so in 2011. The former top prospect will likely finish as one of the top runner-ups in American League Rookie of the Year voting as well.

Devers, meanwhile, had another solid season at the plate in 2023. The left-handed hitting slugger slashed .271/.351/.500 with 34 doubles, a team-leading 33 home runs and 100 RBIs, 90 runs scored, five stolen bases, 62 walks, and 126 strikeouts across 153 games spanning 656 trips to the plate.

In terms of how he stacked up against the other three finalists at the hot corner this season, Devers ranked first in home runs, first in RBIs, second in runs scored, second in batting average, first in slugging percentage, first in OPS (.851), second in isolated power (.229), first in hard-hit rate (54.7 percent), first in barrel rate (12.7 percent), and third in wRC+ (124), according to FanGraphs.

Devers, who just turned 27 last week, is aiming to join Wade Boggs as the only other third baseman in Red Sox history to win multiple Silver Slugger Awards. Boggs, of course, won the award six times (1983, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991) as part of his illustrious 11-year career in Boston.

In addition to Casas and Devers, four former members of the Red Sox were named as finalists in the National League as well. They are Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts Phillies outfielder Kyle Schwarber, Dodgers designated hitter J.D. Martinez, and Padres shortstop Xander Bogaerts.

Since 1980, Silver Slugger Awards have been given out to recognize the best offensive players at each position in each league. Voting is done by major-league managers and coaches, who cannot vote for players on their respective teams.

This year’s Silver Slugger Award winners will be revealed during an hour-long broadcast on MLB Network beginning at 6 p.m. eastern time on Thursday, November 9.

(Picture of Triston Casas and Rafael Devers: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Rafael Devers earns American League Player of the Week honors

Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers has been named the American League Player of the Week for the week of September 11-17, Major League Baseball announced on Monday.

In seven games against the Yankees and Blue Jays, Devers went 8-for-20 (.400) with four home runs, five RBIs, five runs scored, seven walks, and two strikeouts. He was also hit by a pitch on two separate occasions in the process of reaching base in 17 of his 29 plate appearances.

Though the Red Sox went just 1-6 in that stretch, Devers is hardly to blame. After going deep twice in Boston’s final series of the year against New York at Fenway Park, the left-handed hitting slugger homered in the final two games of its series with Toronto at Rogers Centre.

On Saturday, Devers launched a two-run blast off Blue Jays starter Chris Bassitt to give his side a 2-0 lead going into the bottom of the sixth inning. The Red Sox then went on to fall to the Jays in the bottom of the 13th as a result of a softly-hit, walk-off infield single off the bat of Whit Merrifield that Devers himself could not field cleanly.

On Sunday, Devers came through in the clutch once more, this time crushing a game-tying solo shot to the opposite field off Erik Swanson with two outs in the top of the ninth. Yet again, however, the Red Sox were walked off on by the Blue Jays as Matt Chapman played hero with a game-winning triple off Garrett Whitlock in the bottom half of the frame.

Following Sunday’s performance, Devers now finds himself batting .276/.355/.521 with 34 doubles, a team-leading 33 home runs, 98 RBIs, and 87 runs scored, three stolen bases, 57 walks and 115 strikeouts in 142 games (614 plate appearances) for Boston this season. The 26-year-old is slashing a stout .350/.458/.650 in 16 games since the calendar flipped from August to September.

Among qualified big-league third basemen coming into play on Monday, Devers ranks third in homers, second in RBIs, fifth in runs scored, fourth in batting average, third in on-base percentage, second in slugging percentage, first in OPS (.876), third in isolated power (.245), second in hard-hit rate (54.5 percent), first in wOBA (.369), and second in wRC+ (130), per FanGraphs.

With 172 homers for his major-league career, Devers is currently tied with Hall of Famer Jim Rice for the most home runs by a Red Sox player before turning 27 years old. He also became the 22nd player in franchise history to record 400 career extra-base hits over the weekend and is the first to do so before his 27th birthday.

Devers, who turns 27 late next month, is the third Red Sox player to earn American League Player of the Week honors this season, joining Masataka Yoshida (May 6) and two-time winner Adam Duvall (April 1, August 26). In the National League, Devers’ fellow countryman — Padres outfielder Juan Soto — took home the award.

With hits in seven of his last nine games, Devers will look to keep things rolling as the Red Sox open a three-game series against the Rangers at Globe Life Field on Monday night. Devers is batting second and starting at third base for Boston. First pitch is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Rafael Devers: Mark Blinch/Getty Images)

Costly errors come back to bite Red Sox in rain-soaked 4-3 loss to Rockies

The Red Sox opened a three-game series against the Rockies in disappointing fashion on Monday night. Boston fell to Colorado by a final score of 4-3 in a rain-filled 10 innings at Fenway Park to drop below .500 on the season at 33-34.

With old friend Connor Seabold starting for the Rockies, the Red Sox had a golden opportunity to strike first in the first inning. Jarren Duran, Alex Verdugo, and Justin Turner led off the bottom half of the frame with three consecutive singles to fill the bases with no outs.

Though it already appeared as if they had Seabold on the ropes, the Red Sox got nothing out of it. Rafael Devers grounded into a 1-2-3 double play chasing a first-pitch changeup and tapping a comebacker back to Seabold, who then fanned Adam Duvall on five pitches to escape the jam unscathed.

Seabold continued to put up zeroes from there, as did his counterpart in James Paxton. Making his sixth start of the season for the Sox, Paxton allowed just one unearned run on four hits and one walk to go along with eight strikeouts over six-plus strong innings of work.

After giving up a leadoff double to the very first batter he faced in Jurickson Profar, Paxton settled into a nice groove. The veteran left-hander stranded Profar at third base and then retired seven straight Rockies before yielding a one-out double to Ryan McMahon in the top of the fourth.

With two outs in the inning, it seemed like Paxton was going to strand another runner in scoring position when he got Randal Grichuk to hit a routine grounder to shortstop Enrique Hernandez. Hernandez, however, bounced his throw to first and the ball got past Triston Casas, which allowed McMahon to score all the way from second to put the Rockies up, 1-0.

For Hernandez, it was his major-league-leading 14th error of the season, with 12 of those coming on throws. Paxton proved to be unaffected by the sloppy play, however, as that was the only run he surrendered in yet another impressive performance.

Finishing with 98 pitches (70 strikes), Paxton induced 16 swings-and-misses while mixing in a 94-98 mph four-seam fastball as well as a curveball, cutter, and changeup. The 34-year-old southpaw did not factor into Monday’s decision, though he did lower his ERA on the season to 3.09.

With Paxton’s night done, the Boston bats finally got to Seabold in the latter half of the sixth. After drawing a one-out walk, Verdugo came in to score all the way from first on a hard-hit, RBI double off the bat of Turner to knot the score at 1-1. Despite having a runner in scoring position with only one out in the inning, both Devers (strikeout) and Duvall (groundout) were retired to extinguish the threat.

Following a scoreless top of the seventh from Josh Winckowski, Christian Arroyo quickly untied the contest by taking lefty reliever Brent Suter 376 feet over the Green Monster for his second home run of the season. The Red Sox took a 2-1 lead on Arroyo’s solo shot, but the Rockies responded in the eighth by tagging Winckowski for a crucial run when Profar ripped a one-out double and — after a two-out walk — scored from second on a game-tying single from Elias Diaz.

The two sides were deadlocked at 2-2 going into the bottom of the eighth. Turner drew a two-out walk off Pierce Johnson to put the go-ahead run on base for Devers, who promptly laced a 105.8 mph line drive that appeared to be headed towards the Red Sox bullpen. But Rockies right fielder Nolan Jones made a sensational leaping catch against the fence to rob Devers of a potential two-run homer.

According to Baseball Savant, Devers’ blast had an expected batting average of .870 and would have been a home run in seven of 30 MLB ballparks, including Fenway Park had Jones not robbed him. Alas, that is what happened and the score remained tied heading into the ninth. Kenley Jansen worked a scoreless top half, and Daniel Bard — making his first-ever appearance at Fenway as a visiting pitcher — followed suit in the bottom half to send this one into extras.

Nick Pivetta came on for the 10th and recorded two quick outs before intentionally walking McMahaon to put runners at first and second. He then unintentionally walked Diaz to fill the bases and issued a five-pitch free pass to Grichuk, allowing the automatic runner (Mike Moustakas) to score.

That sequence of events prompted Red Sox manager Alex Cora to pull Pivetta in favor of lefty Joe Jacques, who was making his big-league debut. Jacques, in turn, induced what had the makings to be an inning-ending groundout to Jones. But Casas could not field the ball cleanly and was late with his throw to first. As a result, Jones reached base safely while McMahon scored an important insurance run on Casas’ fielding error.

At that point, the skies above Fenway began to open and an 89-minute rain delay commenced. On the other side of the lengthy break, the Red Sox got one of those runs back when Connor Wong scored on a Rob Refsnyder groundout. That was as close as they would get, though, as Verdugo grounded into a game-ending, 5-6-3 double play.

Next up: Crawford vs. Anderson

The Red Sox will look to even the series against the Rockies on Tuesday night. Kutter Crawford is slated to get the start for Boston while Colorado will counter with fellow righty Chase Anderson.

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

(Picture of Triston Casas: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Tanner Houck fires 6 strong innings, but Red Sox go down quietly in 3-1 loss to Yankees

The Red Sox received a strong outing from Tanner Houck, but were held to just one run and dropped the middle game of their three-game set against the Yankees as a result. Boston fell to New York by a final score of 3-1 at Yankee Stadium to drop back to under .500 at 32-33 on the season.

Houck pitched well in his 12th start of the year for the Sox. The right-hander allowed two earned runs on three hits, one walk, and one hit batsman to go along with six strikeouts over six innings of work.

After retiring the first nine batters he faced, though, Houck surrendered a leadoff home run to Gleyber Torres, who laced a first-pitch sinker 359 feet into the right field seats to open the scoring for the Yankees.

It took until the sixth inning for the Red Sox to respond. After leaving six runners on base through the first five frames, Rafael Devers led off the top of the sixth by taking Yankees starter Domingo German 417 feet deep to right-center field for his 15th home run of the season and his second in as many nights.

Devers’ 108.4 mph blast tied the score at 1-1. Adam Duvall followed with a single — his first hit since returning from the injured list on Friday — and stolen base, but he, too, was stranded in scoring position as Triston Casas and Christian Arroyo both struck out while Reese McGuire flew out to extinguish the threat.

Houck came back out for the latter half of the sixth and induced two quick outs before serving up a go-ahead solo shot to Willie Calhoun on a 1-2, 88.7 mph splitter at the bottom of the zone. Calhoun’s homer barely cleared the right-field fence, but it travelled far enough to put the Yankees back up, 2-1, heading into the seventh.

Finishing with 93 pitches (56 strikes), Houck induced 14 swings-and-misses while mixing in his slider, sinker, splitter, four-seamer, and cutter. Despite lowering his ERA on the season down to 5.23 on Saturday, the 26-year-old hurler was charged with the losing decision.

With Houck’s night done, Brennan Bernardino received the first call out of the Boston bullpen from manager Alex Cora. Bernardino gave up a leadoff single to Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who moved up to second base on a groundout. Josh Winckowski was then brought in to face Kyle Higashioka with two outs in the inning.

On the first pitch he saw from Winckowski, Higashioka ripped a sharp groundball up the middle. Arroyo, the second baseman, attempted to field the ball by diving for it, but it instead nicked off his glove and rolled away. As a result, Kiner-Falefa was able to score all the way from second since Arroyo’s throw back towards home plate did not have much behind it.

That sequence of events provided New York with some valuable insurance in the form of a 3-1 lead. Duvall led off the eighth by getting plunked by Tommy Kahnle, but he failed to move past first.

Down to their final three outs in the ninth, Alex Verdugo laced a one-out single off Yankees closer Clay Holmes to bring the tying run to the plate. Masataka Yoshida then punched out before Justin Turner grounded out to end it in two hours and 29 minutes.

All told, the Red Sox went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position on Saturday and left 11 runners on base as a team. They have won two of their last eight games and are averaging 2.38 runs per game over that stretch.

Devers passes Williams

Devers’ sixth-inning homer was the 21st of his career against the Yankees. With it, the 26-year-old slugger broke a tie with Ted Williams for the most against New York by a Red Sox player before turning 27.

Next up: Bello gets ball in rubber match

As the Red Sox look to avoid falling two games under .500 for the first time since April 14, they will send Brayan Bello to the mound in Sunday night’s series finale. The Yankees will counter with fellow right-hander Clarke Schmidt.

First pitch from Yankee Stadium is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time on ESPN.

(Picture of Tanner Houck: Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)