Tag: rays

RECAP: Chris Sale stays dominant and earns first victory in a #RedSox uniform.

Chris Sale is a stud, plain and simple. A bona-fide ace who can handle the media and criticism is Boston, unlike other players who have put on a Red Sox uniform. Chris Sale is a calming presence in the Red Sox clubhouse. I don’t know how much confidence I would have on this team if it were not for Chris Sale. During spring training, there were plenty of injuries to key players like David Price and Tyler Thornburg. The fact that the Red Sox acquired Chris Sale seemed to mask any angst Red Sox fans may have had. Having one of the most dominating pitchers in baseball can do that. What I’m saying is Chris Sale may reach icon status in Boston sooner rather than later.

Anyway, Chris Sale looked dominant today as he recorded 12 strikeouts over 7 innings while only giving up three hits and three walks. Sale really never found himself to be in any troublesome situations today, as an Evan Longoria single that scored Kevin Kiermaier was the only run that scored for the Rays. Sale left after pitching seven innings of run ball and obtaining his first victory for the Red Sox was still in question. Matt Barnes came in relief for Sale in the eight and despite allowing two walks and only getting one out, was able to get out of trouble when Evan Longoria grounded into an inning ending double play. Craig Kimbrel came in for the save in the ninth and was able to get the Rays in shutout fashion. Kimbrel recorded his 4th save of the season and extended his save streak to 22 straight save opportunities, despite all the concern.

The Red Sox offense only scored two runs today, and Mitch Moreland scored both of them. The first one was on a solo home run, Moreland’s first of the season, and the second came on a Sandy Leon ground out. The starting pitcher for the Rays today was Jake Odorizzi. After only pitching one shutout inning, Odorizzi had to be taken out because of an issue he was having with a hamstring. The Rays had to rely on their bullpen with four different pitchers pitching eight innings and only giving up two total runs, which is not too shabby. The game was tied for most of the game, as the Red Sox did not take the lead until the bottom of the seventh. After splitting the first two games in this series, the Red Sox will look to win out and take this series from the Rays over the next two days.

6 down, 88 to go. 

RECAP: Porcello struggles against Rays; Red Sox lose 10-5

Red Sox ace Rick Porcello did not look like himself last night, as he gave up a whopping eight earned runs over 4.1 innings pitched. It was a very unusual start for Porcello, in fact, it was his worst start since 2015. So, some credit goes to him for being so good for that extended period of time. Pitching 15 quality starts in a row before his outing last night is really impressive stuff. Anyway, the weirdest part of Porcello’s night had to be giving up four home runs, including a grand slam from Rays first baseman Logan Morrison. I’m not going to say Rick Porcello was awful before last night, but we certainly haven’t seen the Rick Porcello that locked down the American League Cy Young Award last season. Through three starts, Porcello has given up 25 hits over 16.2 innings, certainly not Cy Young Award winning stuff. With an ERA in the sevens and a WHIP of 1.74, Porcello will need to turn things around next time he takes the mound. In relief of Porcello, the Red Sox bullpen did not do anything to help the team. Robbie Ross Jr. struggled last night, as he gave up two more runs in 2.2 innings pitched. Fernando Abad and Robby Scott were able to hold it down though, pitching a combined two shutout innings while only allowing the Rays to reach base twice.

Rays starter Chris Archer recorded his first win against the Red Sox since 2012, pitching 5.2 innings of one run ball. The Red Sox offense couldn’t put anything together against Archer. Catcher Sandy Leon has cooled off modestly as his batting average now sits at .296. Xander Bogaerts continues to see the ball well, collecting another three hits while driving in a run. Mookie Betts had his best offensive game of the 2017 thus far, reaching base 4 times on 4 hits, including a double. 10 games into the season and I’d say I am most impressed with what Andrew Benintendi has been doing at the plate. Sure, he’s not hitting for a phenomenal average, .263, but he has reached base in all 10 games, and he has already collected 7 RBIs. Put it this way, in 105 AB’s last season, Benintendi only collected 14 RBIs. Through 38 AB’s this season, he already has collected 50% of that amount, so there is clearly a progression there. Most of the damage the Red Sox did last night came in the bottom of the 9th, scoring 3 of their 5 runs. The Red Sox actually out hit the Rays last night, despite taking the loss. Also, Mitch Moreland sadly failed to record a double last night. Hopefully, he can start a new streak today.

5 down, 89 to go.