Tag: seattle

RECAP: David Price and Xander Bogaerts Lead #RedSox to 2-1 Win over Mariners.

Coming off a three game sweep in Baltimore, the Red Sox continued their ten game road trip by kicking off a four game set against the first place Seattle Mariners in Seattle last night. Owning two of the three best winning percentages in all the American League entering Thursday, this series has potential to be a postseason preview.

Making his 14th start of the season in this one, David Price put together his best performance since he tossed that complete game against the Orioles back on May 17th.

In seven full innings pitched, the lefty allowed just one run on five hits, zero walks, and a HBP while notching seven strikeouts on the night.

There was really no point last night where Price found himself in too much trouble. The only run he gave up came in the fifth inning, when after Kyle Seager and Ryon Healy both led things off with singles, Guillermo Heredia drove in Seager from third on a sacrifice fly for the first out.

Other than that though, the Tennessee native shut the Mariners down from that point on up until the conclusion of the seventh inning. With the help of some slick defense from Xander Bogaerts, Price got out of the sixth unscathed.

And in his final frame of work, with his pitch count getting up there, it looked as though Price was going to get the hook after giving up another single to Healy with two outs in the seventh. Instead, Alex Cora let him stay in the game after a meeting on the mound, and Price responded by striking out the last batter he faced to retire the side.

Finishing with 106 pitches (73 strikes) on the night, the 32-year-old hurler reached a maximum velocity of 95.5 MPH on his four-seam fastball, which he threw 23% of the time in those seven innings.

In his last seven starts, not only are the Red Sox undefeated, but Price himself has been outstanding. Over his last 44.1 innings pitched in those even outings, the southpaw owns a 2.64 ERA while opponents are hitting a measly .205 off of him. It must have all started with that carpal tunnel scare back in early May, because David Price has been one of the better pitchers in the American League since then.

Back to the game, the Red Sox bullpen would be responsible for the last six Mariners outs with a run lead to protect. As he usually does, Joe Kelly tossed a shutdown eighth inning to pick up his 14th hold of the year, and that set up another save situation for Craig Kimbrel in the ninth.

It certainly was not easy, as the first two Mariners in the inning on consecutive walks, but the Red Sox closer bounced back, struck out Kyle Seager for the first out of the inning, and with some help from Xander Bogaerts at short, got out of the jam thanks to an inning-ending double play off the bat of Ryon Healy. 22nd save of the season secured. Fifth straight win for the Red Sox also secured.

On the flip side of things, I gotta start off by tipping my cap to M’s starter Felix Hernandez. A franchise legend in Seattle, King Felix’s best years are definitely behind him, but I would be lying if I said I was not impressed with the performance he put together against the Red Sox last night, 7 IP, 8 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 6 K’s.

Of all people, Jackie Bradley Jr. got the scoring started for the Red Sox in the top of the second when he drove in Rafael Devers from second on an RBI double to put his team on the board first.

Fast forward to the sixth, and Xander Bogaerts came through with the go-ahead run on a 404 foot solo shot off of Hernandez. Good for his 10th home run of the season on what was a terrific night for the Red Sox shortstop.

Like I said, that solo homer put the Red Sox up by one and they would not have to look back on their way to the series opening win.

Some notes from this W:

From @SoxNotes: Red Sox starters have allowed 2 ER or fewer in 10 of the club’s last 11 games, including each of the last 7.

Another one from @SoxNotes: Xander Bogaerts hit his 10th HR of the season tonight. The Red Sox are the only team with as many as 6 players with 10+ HR (Martinez, Betts, Benintendi, Bogaerts, Devers, Moreland).

Rafael Devers extended his hitting streak to nine games last night. Over that span, Devers is slashing .314/.333/.514 with one home run and four RBI.

The Red Sox are 17-3 in the last 20 games Christian Vazquez has started behind the plate.

—

Heading into the middle game of this series later tonight, Rick Porcello will be getting the start for the Red Sox. He will be matched up against lefty James Paxton for the Mariners, who has already thrown a no-hitter this season back on May 8th in Toronto. We could be in store for another pitchers’ duel here. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 PM local time.

 

RECAP: Sale dominates, Devers goes yard, and the #RedSox end their losing streak with a 4-0 win.

I’ll be honest, I don’t feel great today so this is going to be really short, apologies.

Chris Sale looked great, seven shutout innings, eleven strikeouts, great. Blaine Boyer was not great in his first appearance since he got hurt, which led to Craig Kimbrel entering the game in a save situation. He struck out the only two batters he faced. Since the beginning of the road trip last Friday, Sale has held his opponents to zero runs over his last thirteen innings, and the only wins the Red Sox got on this trip came when he was pitching.

Offensively, the Red Sox scored in the second, third, and fourth inning. Mitch Moreland drove in Hanley Ramirez on a sac-fly in the second, Rafael Devers hit his first career home run in the third, and Sandy Leon scored JBJ along with himself with his sixth home run of the season in the fourth. That Devers home run was also his first career hit as well, so it was a special day for the rookie as well. Also, Yoan Moncada and Lewis Brinson got their first career home runs yesterday. The rookies were feeling it yesterday and the Red Sox ended the west coast trip with a win. David Price pitches tomorrow, and I’m interested to see how the fans will react when Price takes the mound.

56 down, ? to go. 

RECAP: #RedSox drop fourth in a row in another marathon game.

I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t stay up to watch the end of this game. I fell asleep around 2, woke up at 4, realized I missed the end of the game, and checked my phone only to be disappointed with what I saw. The Red Sox love playing long games, it would be better if they won more of them.

Drew Pomeranz was matched up against King Felix, who like James Paxton has had a pretty solid month of July. Pomeranz looked like his old self really, in terms of the pitch count, but he himself did not have a bad start. He made one mistake pitch in the second inning, a pitch that resulted in a three-run shot off the bat of Miguel Heredia. Other than that though, he did not give up any runs. The four walks in five innings weren’t great, but he did manage to strike out seven as well. All and all, not to blame for the loss, that would go on the bullpen. First off, Heath Hembree gave up the tying run in the seventh. Matt Barnes, Brandon Workman, and Craig Kimbrel combined to pitch three innings without giving up a run, then came Doug Fister. He got through the eleventh and twelfth without giving up anything, then the thirteenth happened. With two outs, a wild pitch scored the tying run, then Jean Segura drove in the go-ahead run, giving the Mariners the win. Since his solid debut at Fenway, Fister has gotten progressively worst, going from the rotation, to the bullpen, back in the rotation. and back to the bullpen. In a Red Sox uniform, Fister owns an ERA of 7.46, so it may not be much longer until he is Designated For Assignment.

It looked like Felix Hernandez was about to go on and do what James Paxton did the night before, as he only allowed one run in the first four innings, that being Hanley Ramirez’s seventeenth homer of the season. Dustin Pedroia tied things up in the sixth, driving in Rafael Devers and Andrew Benintendi on a two-run double to left field. Jackie Bradley Jr. drove in Dustin Pedroia who did represent the go-ahead run at that time with an RBI single. It was surprising to see King Felix struggle the way he did, but the Mariners bullpen did a solid job of keeping the Red Sox in check. Hanley Ramirez scored in the thirteenth on a Sandy Leon single. That should have won the game right there, but Doug Fister happened.

A few things to take away from this game are Rafael Dever’s debut and the fact that the Red Sox acquired Eduardo Nunez from the Giants for two pitching prospects. Devers failed to record a hit in his debut, but he did reach base twice and looked like he could handle himself at third. There’s a lot of speculation that Devers will get sent back down now that Nunez is here, but I could see both of them being on the 25-man roster simultaneously since Nunez can play all over the field.

Today just happens to be Sale Day, and the Red Sox have not won a game since his last start Friday in Anaheim.

55 down, ? to go. 

RECAP: James Paxton dominates #RedSox lineup as offensive struggles continue.

What’s up? I’m back from a week-long break. Haven’t watched since last Monday, but I have been paying attention. The David Price / Dennis Eckersley conflict and the promotion of Rafael Devers stand out, obviously. Anyway, let’s get onto the recap…

The Red Sox did not have a great time in Anaheim, and things have not gotten any better thus far in Seattle. On Sunday, it was leaked by The Boston Globe that David Price basically bullied Dennis Eckersley on a team flight last month. That sounds bad, but I think most would tell you the worst part of this story is the fact that there were players applauding Price for what he did. This has led to many calling out this team for being unlikeable and being poorly run.

In the first game since this was leaked, the Red Sox did not do much to provide any sort of distraction. Eduardo Rodriguez was matched up against James Paxton, who has had an outstanding July. ERod was not at his best, but he still managed to keep the Red Sox in the game. 5.1 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, and 6 K’s isn’t outstanding, but it’s not awful either. A three run second is what got the Mariners out in front. They tacked on another run in the fourth, and Rodriguez would go on to pitch into the sixth. In relief, the bullpen was solid and also gave the offense a chance to come back. Brandon Workman and Doug Fister combined to pitch 2.2 shutout innings without giving up a hit. Last season, the Red Sox seemed to be capable of coming back from a four-run deficit, but it doesn’t look like they are capable of doing something like that right now.

Four hits. James Paxton only gave up four hits, and the first one did not come until the fifth, off the bat of Jackie Bradley Jr. They had a chance to score some runs in the sixth, but that was about it.

This team is in first place, but it wouldn’t seem that way with how things have been going recently. Since returning from the All-Star break, the Red Sox are a lackluster 5-7, losing the last three. They need a jolt, really, and it looks like Rafael Devers could be that spark, we’ll see later tonight.

55 down, ? to go. 

RECAP: Rick Porcello struggles as #RedSox drop series finale 5-0.

Saturday’s game was described by many as the best Red Sox victory of the season. Brian Johnson threw a complete game shutout and the Red Sox got their sixth straight win. Well, that high didn’t last that long, as Sunday’s loss was filled with plenty of frustrating moments. Rick Porcello was matched up against M’s righty Christian Bergman, and the best pitcher was not who you’d expect. Porcello found himself in jams throughout the game, surrendering 11 hits in only 6.1 IP. The only inning in which Porcello did not allow a hit was the sixth. After allowing two of the first three batters to reach base in the seventh, Porcello was relieved for Robby Scott. Scott got Robinson Cano to fly out to Mookie Betts, and that was the only hitter he faced. Heath Hembree would be used next, and he allowed an inherited runner to score before getting out of the inning. Hembree also pitched the entire eighth inning, and he gave up a solo home run to Guillermo Heredia. Fernando Abad, whose had a quietly good season up to this point, started the eighth, and he only recorded one out while giving up a two-run home run to Robinson Cano. The last pitcher who saw action for the Red Sox was Blaine Boyer, a 35-year-old journeyman reliever who just got called up Sunday morning. Boyer had a fine debut, getting Nelson Cruz and Kyle Seager out on a foul out and a line out. Yeah, so, Rick Porcello’s recent performances haven’t been awful, but they haven’t been 2016 Cy Young Award winner performances either. And for as good as the numbers are, this bullpen is far from perfect, I’m just waiting for Carson Smith to come back.

Not much to report on the Red Sox offense. They made Bergman look like an ace Friday afternoon, which is something they have done before this season. Dustin Pedroia was the only batter who reached base more than once. Plenty of opportunities were given to this lineup, but they failed to capitalize on them. Red Sox hitters grounded into four double plays, and Andrew Benintendi grounded into two of them. What I have been paying attention to recently is how Mookie Betts’ average has dipped over the past few weeks. On May 14th, Betts began that day with a BA of .305 and a OBP of .381. After today’s 0-4 performance, Betts’ BA and OPS stand at .269 and .352. You obviously hope this slump is just a blip in Mookie’s season, since for a good part of the season, he has looked like a legit MVP candidate.

David Price pitches in Chicago against the White Sox tomorrow, 2:10 EST is first pitch. Should be interesting to watch, I’m expecting the worst but hoping for the best.

27 down, ? to go. 

RECAP: Brian Johnson throws complete game shutout in third career start; #RedSox win 6-0.

After his start in Toronto on April 18th, in which he allowed four earned runs in five innings pitched, it didn’t look like Johnson would be back up anytime soon. Well, with the Red Sox looking for one last spot start before David Price is activated, Johnson get another opportunity to prove himself, and that is exactly what he did. Once again, I was at this game and watching Johnson pitch a complete game was quite a treat. Over those nine innings, Johnson scattered five hits and struck out eight, while not walking a single batter. In my opinion, what was most impressive was how Robinson Cano, Nelson Cruz, and Kyle Seager, the 3-5 hitters, did not get a single hit off Johnson, going a combined 0-12 with 5 K’s. I’m not trying to exaggerate, but today’s gem from Johnson may be the best pitching performances I’ve ever seen in person. Also, hats off to Jackie Bradley Jr. and his glove, made two outstanding catches Saturday that had a real impact on the outcome of this game. Here’s the one from the ninth:

http://www.espn.com/video/clip?id=19480095

Credit to Rob Whalen here, I honestly thought that guy wouldn’t make it out of the first inning, but he managed to pitch into the sixth. After leading the bottom half of the first off with a walk, Mookie Betts scored on a Xander Bogaerts single, and X would score on a single from Andrew Benintendi. The last run of the inning would be driven in by Sandy Leon, whose single allowed Benintendi to score from third. The inning could have continued if Hanley Ramirez stopped at third, but he ran through the stop sign and was tagged out at home plate. The Red Sox bats would go silent until the sixth, when Jackie Bradley Jr. launched his fifth home run of the year into the Red Sox bullpen, scoring Mitch Moreland along with him. The scoring wrapped up in the eighth, Mitch Moreland recorded his 26th RBI of the season when he drove Hanley Ramirez in on a single off the Monster.

Six wins in a row, this team is rolling, got to get the sweep tomorrow. The Mariners haven’t even scored a single run in the series, that’s how bad they have been recently. It stinks that Johnson got optioned back down to Pawtucket after the game, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s up sooner rather than later.

27 down, ? to go. 

RECAP: Eduardo Rodriguez pitches six scoreless innings; #RedSox beat Mariners 3-0 for fifth win in a row.

Up to this point in the season, I believe Eduardo Rodriguez can best be described as a solid number three starter out of the Red Sox rotation. He’s not an innings eater, but he is highly capable of limiting opposing teams in terms of hits and runs. Rodriguez gave up exactly one hit in every inning he pitched, except the sixth. He also struck out four while walking three. This performance lowered the 23 year old’s ERA down to a nice looking 2.77 on the year. The Red Sox bullpen didn’t allow any Mariners to cross the plate in a combined three innings of work. Heath Hembree got the seventh, Barnes got the eighth, and Craig Kimbrel recorded his thirteenth save of the season, unfortunately for Kimbrel, he failed to get any strikeouts. Next up for ERod, the Chicago White Sox, in Chicago.

The Red Sox offense managed to leave 19 runners on base Friday night, and they really didn’t have any trouble winning this game. The first run of the game was scored in the second, when Hanley Ramirez scored on a Josh Rutledge ground out. No more runs would score until the sixth, where the Red Sox scored twice without driving in either run. With one out and the bases loaded, Josh Rutledge scored on a wild pitch from M’s starter Yovani Gallardo. Later in the inning, Jackie Bradley Jr. scored on a Mike Zunino passed ball. That would be it in terms of scoring for the Red Sox bats. They had plenty of opportunities to score more runs, but failed to come up big with runners on base.

Like the title says, this team is low-key rolling with five straight wins. I may be too woke, but the Red Sox started this streak the day after Manager John chewed out Drew Pomeranz in front of the cameras, so there’s that.

26 down, ? to go.