Tag: tanner houck

Red Sox activate Rich Hill from bereavement list, option Tyler Danish to Triple-A Worcester

Before dropping Sunday’s series finale against the Rays by a final score of 5-2, the Red Sox activated Rich Hill from the bereavement list and, in a corresponding move, optioned Tyler Danish to Triple-A Worcester.

Hill spent five days on the bereavement list after his father, Lloyd, passed away at the age of 94 last week. The 42-year-old had been away from the team to attend his father’s services in Milton.

In his return to the mound on Sunday, Hill was certainly not at his best, but he still grinded his way through four scoreless innings of work at Tropicana Field. Over those four frames, the veteran left-hander yielded four hits and three walks while hitting one batter and striking out another.

With some defensive help from the likes of Rob Refsnyder and Christian Vazquez, Hill finished with a final pitch count of 62 (35 strikes) on Sunday. He relied primarily on his four-seam fastball and curveball combo and induced a total of three swings-and-misses on the afternoon.

While he did not factor into Sunday’s decision, Hill did lower his ERA on the season to 4.85 through three starts spanning 13 innings pitched. It is unclear when the Massachusetts native will make his next start, though it will likely come in Baltimore at some point next weekend.

With the Red Sox activating Hill earlier Sunday morning, they cleared a spot for the lefty by sending down Danish. Danish, 27, was called up from Worcester for the first time last Tuesday and appeared in two games with the big-league club.

In those two outings, the right-hander twirled three cumulative scoreless innings while allowing no hits and two walks. He also struck out five of the 10 batters he faced.

On the surface, it may appear as though Danish will be returning to the WooSox. That said, MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo reports that Danish is still with the Red Sox and is a candidate to be called up once more ahead of this week’s series against the Blue Jays in Toronto.

To add on to that, The Boston Globe’s Pete Abraham tweets that Danish is indeed flying with the team to Toronto and will be replacing a pitcher who is placed on the restricted list on Monday.

As noted by Cotillo, the Sox will be leaving a number of players — including Tanner Houck — behind for their trip north of the border since they are not vaccinated against COVID-19.

Regardless of the number of players placed on the restricted list on Monday, Danish will find himself back in the big-leagues and presumably pitching out of Boston’s bullpen at Rogers Centre.

(Picture of Rich Hill: Mike Carlson/Getty Images)

Red Sox score early, but not often in 5-2 loss to Rays

The Red Sox dropped the finale of their three-game weekend series against the Rays at Tropicana Field on Sunday. Boston fell to Tampa Bay in the rubber match by a final score of 5-2, marking their fourth loss in their last five games to drop to 7-9 on the season.

Both runs the Sox scored on Sunday came right away in the first inning off Rays starter Shane McClanahan. Trevor Story led off with a hard-hit double and immediately scored on a groundball single off the bat of Enrique Hernandez. Xander Bogaerts advanced Hernandez into scoring position and Alex Verdugo brought him in on an RBI single of his own.

So, on nine pitches, the Red Sox found themselves in possession of an early 2-0 lead to give Rich Hill a nice cushion out of the gate. Hill, making his third start of the year and first since returning to the bereavement list, managed to keep the Rays off the scoreboard while scattering four hits, three walks, and one hit batsman to go along with one strikeout over four innings of work.

Rob Refsnyder, starting in right field, aided Hill in the second inning when he gunned down Randy Arozarena, who was trying to stretch a two-out single into a two-out double, at second base for the final out of the frame.

Hill finished his day retiring five of the final eight batters he faced. 35 of the 62 pitches the left-hander threw went for strikes.

Before first pitch on Sunday, it was expected that Tanner Houck would piggyback off of Hill since Boston cannot use the right-hander during their series in Toronto. Rather than have Houck take the mound in the fifth, however, acting manager Will Venable first turned to Phillips Valdez out of the bullpen.

Valdez, in turn, recorded just one out while loading the bases on one walk and two hit batsman. Ryan Brasier then came on and allowed all three of the runners he inherited to score on a two-run double from Ji-Man Choi and RBI groundout from Manuel Margot that gave Tampa Bay their first lead of the day at 3-2.

Matt Barnes got the call for the sixth inning and yielded back-to-back one-out singles to Kevin Kiermaier and Arozarena. Kiermaier, the hero of Saturday’s contest, moved up to third on a Wander Franco groundout. Following a pitching change that saw Jake Diekman take over for Barnes, the speedy outfielder scored on a wild pitch to make it a 4-2 game.

Diekman remained in the game in the seventh and served up a solo home run to Yandy Diaz that gave the Rays a 5-2 edge. It was not until later in the inning when Houck finally emerged and sat down the only five hitters he faced in order to keep the three-run deficit intact at the end of eight.

Down to their final three outs of the ninth, Verdugo, Bobby Dalbec, and Travis Shaw went down in order against Ryan Thompson to seal a 5-2 defeat for the Red Sox.

Next up: On to Toronto

The Red Sox will board a flight to Toronto while leaving unvaccinated players such as Houck behind to open a four-game series against the Blue Jays on Monday night.

In the opener, it will be right-hander Nathan Eovaldi getting the ball for Boston and fellow righty Jose Berrios doing the same for Toronto.

First pitch from Rogers Centere is scheduled for 7:07 p.m. eastern time on NESN and MLB Network.

(Picture of Alex Verdugo: Mike Carlson/Getty Images)

Red Sox show late life, but come up short in 3-2 loss to Blue Jays

The Red Sox lost more than just their manager to COVID-19 on Thursday. Hours after Alex Cora tested positive for the virus, Boston came up just short and fell to the Blue Jays by a final score of 3-2 at Fenway Park. With the win, Toronto takes the three-game series and drops the Sox to 6-7 on the season.

Tanner Houck, making his third start of the year, allowed two earned runs on three hits and one walk to go along with four strikeouts on the afternoon. The right-hander retired six of the first seven batters he faced before running into some trouble in the top of the third.

There, Houck issued a leadoff walk to Gosuke Katoh and one-out single to Raimel Tapia that put runners at first and second base for Bo Bichette, who drove in his side’s first run on an RBI single through the right side of the infield. After advancing to third on that base hit, Tapia himself scored on a Vladimir Guerrero Jr. sacrifice fly.

Faced with an early 2-0 deficit, Houck was able to rebound as he stranded Bichette at second base before retiring the side in order in both the fourth and fifth innings to end his day on a positive note.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 71 (47 strikes), Houck turned to his four-seam fastball nearly half of the time he was on the mound Thursday. The 25-year-old hovered around 94-96 mph with the pitch and induced a game-high six swings-and-misses with it.

Houck’s next appearance will come out of the bullpen in St. Petersburg this Sunday, as he is ineligible to pitch in Toronto next week due to his unvaccinated status.

In relief of Houck, Ryan Brasier received the first call from acting manager Will Venable out of the Boston bullpen in the sixth inning. The righty yielded a one-out double to Guerrero Jr. and a two-out walk to Lourdes Gurriel Jr. He then got Matt Chapman to lift a 43-foot popup that was altered by the wind and fell in between Brasier, Christian Vazquez, and Travis Shaw, allowing Guerrero Jr. to score all the way from second.

Austin Davis came on for Brasier and recorded the final out of the sixth while also getting the first two outs of the seventh before issuing a two-out single to Tapia. Hirokazu Sawamura was then called upon to take over Davis, and he escaped any damage by getting Guerrero Jr. to fly out to center field.

Sawamura continued on in the eighth and put up another zero there, while Phillips Valdez did the same to hold the Jays to three runs on the day.

On the other side of things, a J.D. Martinez-less Red Sox lineup was once again held in check by a Blue Jays starter. Jose Berrios had the honor of doing so on Wednesday, and Kevin Gausman picked up where he left off on Thursday.

Facing off against a familiar foe in Gausman, the Sox were held to a pair of singles through four innings. In the fifth, Vazquez attempted to stretch a one-out single off the Green Monster into a double and was instead gunned down by Tapia for the final out of the frame.

Boston threatened again in the sixth when Christian Arroyo advanced to second base on a Trevor Story groundout, but was left stranded there after Devers grounded out to the catcher.

Gausman maneuvered his way around two more base hits in the seventh and made quick work of the bottom third of the Sox’ order in the eighth.

Down to their final three outs in the bottom of the ninth, Story led things off with a hard-hit single that at long last knocked Gausman out of the game. That proved to be the spark Boston needed.

With Jordan Romano now on the mound for Toronto, Devers drew a walk that moved Story into scoring position. Bogaerts scored the Sox’ first run by driving in Story on an RBI double down the left field line.

An Alex Verdugo groundout to the right side of the infield pushed across Devers and advanced Bogaerts — representing the tying run — up to third base. Dalbec then laced a 102.7 mph groundout that Bogaerts could do nothing with.

It was now all up to Jackie Bradley Jr., who got ahead in the count at 3-0 but ultimately grounded out to first base and lost a footrace to Guerrero Jr. for the third and final out.

Just like that, the rally was dead, and the Blue Jays just barely held on for a series-clinching, 3-2 victory.

Some notes from this loss:

The Red Sox went 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position on Thursday and left four runners on base as a team. They scored a total of five runs in this series.

Phillips Valdez has yet to allow a run through his first six appearances and eight innings pitched of the 2022 season. He has struck out 10 of the 28 batters he has faced thus far.

In their first homestand of the year, the Red Sox went 3-4 and find themselves back under .500 once again.

Next up: On the road

The Red Sox will now embark upon a 10-game road trips that includes stops in St. Petersburg, Toronto, and Baltimore.

For Friday’s series opener against the Rays at Tropicana Field, it will be right-hander Michael Wacha getting the ball for Boston and fellow righty Corey Kluber doing the same for Tampa Bay.

First pitch from Tropicana Field on Friday is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Christian Vazquez: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Nick Pivetta’s early-season struggles continue as Red Sox fall back to .500 in 6-1 loss to Blue Jays

On an emotional night in which they honored the late Jerry Remy at Fenway Park, the Red Sox fell to the Blue Jays by a final score of 6-1 on Wednesday. Boston drops back to 6-6 on the season and 3-3 at home.

Nick Pivetta, making his third start of the year for the Sox, was not particularly sharp. The right-hander surrendered five earned runs on seven hits, four walks, and four strikeouts over four innings of work.

The Jays overcame an early 1-0 deficit and got to Pivetta for all five runs in the top of the second inning. Raimel Tapia followed a Matt Chapman leadoff single by lifting a 404-foot two-run home run to right field. A pair of walks and a softly-hit single loaded the bases for George Springer, who plated an additional run on a sacrifice fly to center field. Bo Bichette capped off the rally by lacing a two-run single to left field that gave his side a commanding 5-1 lead.

If there were any silver linings, it’s that Pivetta was able to bounce back to some degree. After getting through the rest of the second unscathed, the Canadian-born hurler stranded one runner in a scoreless top of the third and stranded two more in a scoreless top of the fourth.

All told, Pivetta finished with a final pitch count of 95 (61 strikes) over his four innings. The 29-year-old relied primarily upon his four-seam fastball and knuckle curveball while hovering around 93.5 mph with the former and inducing just three swings-and-misses with the latter.

Through three starts this season, Pivetta has yielded 13 earned runs in 11 2/3 innings. That is good for an ERA of 10.03, which is certainly not what the Red Sox are looking for out of the righty.

In relief of Pivetta, Phillips Valdez received the first call out of the Boston bullpen from manager Alex Cora. Valdez retired five of the seven batters he faced before handing things over to Matt Barnes, who allowed one run to score in the seventh on a single and sacrifice fly in the seventh.

An inning later, Tyler Danish came on for his first appearance in a Red Sox uniform and his first overall appearance at the big-league level since 2018. The 27-year-old punched out the side in the top of the eighth and worked his way around a leadoff walk while striking out two more in a clean top of the ninth.

On the other side of things, the Red Sox lineup was matched up against Blue Jays starter Jose Berrios to begin things on Wednesday, and it appeared as though they were seeing their opponent well out of the gate.

J.D. Martinez followed a one-out double from Rafael Devers in the first inning by ripping a 105.7 mph RBI single to center field. Martinez advanced all the way to third on another single that left Alex Verdugo’s bat at 108.7 mph, but was stranded there.

After falling behind by four runs, Boston nearly staged a rally of their own in the second inning following back-to-back one-out hits from Jackie Bradley Jr. and Connor Wong. Despite having runners on the corners and two outs to work with, Enrique Hernandez and Devers both fell short against Berrios.

A scary moment arose in the bottom of the third. With two outs and a runner on second, Trevor Story was hit in the head by a 93 mph sinker from Berrios. The ball fortunately deflected off of Story’s helmet and the second baseman was able to remain in the game.

Story getting beaned came moments after Martinez led the inning off with a double but came up gimpy at second base. The 34-year-old slugger was pinch-ran for by Christian Arroyo and was later diagnosed with left adductor tightness. He is day-to-day.

Even with Arroyo and Story on base, Bobby Dalbec flew out to extinguish the threat in the third. In the fifth, Xander Bogaerts doubled with one out but was left stranded at third. In the sixth, Dalbec drew a leadoff walk and later advanced to second, but — like Bogaerts — was deserted there.

Arroyo and Bogaerts each singled off Blue Jays reliever with one out in the seventh and moved up an additional 90 feet on a Verdugo groundout. Alas, they too were unable to score from there and Bogaerts would turn out to be the last Red Sox hitter to reach base.

At the end of the day, Boston went a dismal 1-for-14 with runners in scoring position and left 11 runners on base as a team.

Next up: Gausman vs. Houck in rubber match

The winner of this three-game series will be determined on Thursday afternoon. The Red Sox will be rolling with right-hander Tanner Houck and the Blue Jays will be turning to fellow righty Kevin Gausman.

First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 1:35 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Nick Pivetta: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Tanner Houck says he is not vaccinated against COVID-19, meaning he will not be eligible to pitch in Toronto

Red Sox starter Tanner Houck revealed to The Boston Globe’s Julian McWilliams on Sunday that he is not yet vaccinated against COVID-19. As a result, the right-hander will not be eligible to pitch against the Blue Jays in Toronto.

The Red Sox will visit Rogers Centre for the first time this season later this month. Houck was in line to start the second of that four-game series on April 26, but will instead miss it due to his vaccination status.

“I think it’s a personal choice for everyone whether they get it or not,” Houck told McWilliams earlier Sunday morning. “So, that’s all I really got to say on it.”

Any individual traveling to Canada must be vaccinated against COVID-19. The Canadian government defines this individual as someone who has received at least two doses of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine, or one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Travelers must have received the second dose of Moderna/Pfizer or first dose of Johnson and Johnson at least 14 calendar days prior to entering the country.

For the Red Sox, these guidelines apply to their series against the Blue Jays in Toronto from April 25-28, June 27-June 29, and September 30 through October 2.

Besides Houck, it is already known that fellow Boston starter Chris Sale is not vaccinated against the virus. The left-hander is currently on the 60-day injured list as he continues to recover from a stress fracture in his right rib cage, so he was not going to be able to pitch in next week’s series north of the border anyway.

Still, unless either pitcher gets vaccinated or the Canadian government changes its rules, Houck and Sale will not be eligible to travel to or play in Toronto this season.

In Houck’s case, the 25-year-old hurler will be placed on the restricted list during the Sox’ series in Toronto. While away from the team, Houck will be placed on the restricted list and will not receive any pay or service time for the games he misses.

The Red Sox will, however, have the ability to replace Houck on the active roster while he is on the restricted list. Although the club has yet to announce who will take Houck’s turn in the starting rotation on April 26, it would not be surprising if that responsibility fell to Garrett Whitlock, who pitched in relief of Houck on Saturday.

“We knew it beforehand,” Sox manager Alex Cora said following Sunday’s 8-1 win over the Twins. “So, we’ll plan accordingly.”

As noted by McWilliams, Cora also indicated that Houck will not be the only player Boston places on the restricted list for their trip to Toronto. According to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo, “the identities of the others are unknown.”

(Picture of Tanner Houck: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Alex Verdugo and Xander Bogaerts both homer, Tanner Houck twirls 5 2/3 scoreless innings as Red Sox blank Twins, 4-0

The Red Sox used the power of the long ball to defeat the Twins at Fenway Park on Saturday evening. Wearing their marathon-inspired City Connect uniforms for the first time in 2022, Boston bested Minnesota by a final score of 4-0 to improve to 4-4 on the year.

Matched up against Twins starter Sonny Gray to begin things in the second of this four-game series, Alex Verdugo kicked off the scoring in the bottom of the second inning.

Moments after J.D. Martinez drew a leadoff walk, Verdugo swung at a 2-2, 92 mph sinker from Gray and deposited it 437 feet over the Sox’ bullpen and into the right field bleachers for his third home run of the season.

Verdugo’s two-run blast, which left his bat at a blistering 108.6 mph, gave Boston an early 2-0 lead. An inning later, with Josh Winder now pitching for Minnesota, Enrique Hernandez reached base via a one-out double down the left field line. After Rafael Devers grounded out to advance Hernandez to third base, Xander Bogaerts came through with a two-run shot of his own.

Coming into play Saturday in the midst of a 2-for-18 rut at the plate, Bogaerts broke out of his slump by unloading on an 0-1, 94 mph fastball from Winder and sent it exactly 400 feet over the Green Monster for his first big fly of 2022.

Bogaerts’ two-run homer put the Sox up, 4-0. While the Boston lineup was busy establishing that lead, Tanner Houck was putting together a solid outing on the mound.

Houck, making his second start of the season, kept Minnesota off the board while scattering just two hits and three walks to go along with four strikeouts over 5 2/3 impressive innings of work.

The right-hander struggled with his command early on, but — with the help of some double plays — was able to settle into a groove and retire nine of the final 11 batters he faced. With two outs in the top half of the sixth, Houck issued a four-pitch walk to Luis Arraez, which is how his day came to a close.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 89 (50 strikes), Houck relied on his four-seam fastball 34% of the time he was on the mound Saturday and averaged 94.5 mph with the pitch. The 25-year-old also earned his first winning decision of the season.

Matt Strahm got the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen from manager Alex Cora and stranded the lone runner he inherited by getting Jorge Polanco to fly out to Jackie Bradley Jr. in right field. The lefty also recorded the first two outs of the seventh before yielding a hard-hit double to Trevor Larnach.

At that point, Cora opted to turn things over to Garrett Whitlock, as he did in Detroit this past Tuesday. This time around, Whitlock was once again efficient. The righty reliever ended the seventh by fanning Gio Urshela on three pitches, struck out the side while stranding two runners in the eighth, and worked his way around a two-out hit in the ninth to close out a 4-0 shutout victory.

Some notes from this win:

Red Sox second baseman Trevor Story went 1-for-3 on Saturday. His lone hit, a fourth-inning single, came off Josh Winder and had an exit velocity of over 103 mph.

The Red Sox recorded three double plays on Saturday: Tanner Houck struck out Carlos Correa for the second out of the first inning, then Christian Vazquez gunned down Jorge Polanco at second base for the third and final out. In the third inning, Ryan Jeffers grounded into a 5-4-3 double play. And in the fifth, Gio Urshela grounded into a 6-4-3 twin killing.

Garrett Whitlock working on three days rest on Saturday: 2 1/3 innings pitched, 2 hits, 0 runs, one walk, and five strikeouts on 30 pitches (23 strikes). He topped out at 97.3 mph with his four-seam fastball.

Next up: Ober vs. Wacha

The Red Sox will rock their City Connect uniforms once again and go for their second straight win over the Twins on Sunday afternoon. Michael Wacha will get the ball for Boston and he will be opposed by fellow right-hander Bailey Ober for Minnesota.

First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 1:35 p.m. eastern time on NESN and MLB Network.

(Picture of Alex Verdugo: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

3-run eighth inning not enough as Red Sox fall to Twins, 8-4, in home opener at Fenway Park

The Red Sox opened the home slate of their 2022 schedule with an 8-4 loss at the hands of the Twins at Fenway Park on Friday afternoon. Boston’s two-game winning streak has come to an end and they have fallen to 3-4 on the young season.

Nick Pivetta, making his second start of the year for the Sox, lasted just two innings and allowed four runs (all earned) on five hits, two walks, and two strikeouts. The right-hander ran into trouble right out of the gate when Alex Verdugo lost a ball off the bat of Byron Buxton in the sun that would go down as a leadoff double.

Luis Arraez drove in the first run of the day on a line-drive RBI single, and Minnesota was on the board without yet recording an out in the top of the first. An inning later, Pivetta gave up three additional runs by serving up a two-run home run to Twins slugger Miguel Sano and RBI double to Arraez that put Boston in an early 4-0 hole.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 54 (32 strikes), Pivetta threw his four-seam fastball 44% of the time he was on the mound Friday. The 29-year-old hurler averaged 92.5 mph with the pitch, down 2.3 mph from where he was sitting with it last week.

Shortly after Pivetta’s day came to a close, the Red Sox lineup got something going against Twins rookie starter Joe Ryan. With one out and the bases empty in the bottom of the second, Alex Verdugo launched a 410-foot solo shot to the right field bleachers on the very first pitch he saw: a 94 mph heater down the heart of the plate.

Verdugo’s second homer of the season left the outfielder’s bat at 109.6 mph and trimmed the Sox’ deficit down to three runs at 4-1 heading into the third. Phillips Valdez got the first call out of the Boston bullpen in relief of Pivetta and turned in a quality outing by fanning four of the eight batters he faced over two scoreless frames of work.

In the fifth, Hirokazu Sawamura came on for Valdez and immediately issued a leadoff walk to Carlos Correa. Jorge Polanco followed by ripping a ground-rule double to right field to put runners at second and third with no outs. Former Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez plated both runs on a two-run single that got past a sprawling Xander Bogaerts.

Now trailing 6-1, Sawamura managed to get through the rest of the fifth and faced the minimum in the sixth after Christian Vazquez gunned down Arraez (who reached base via a two-out walk) at second base to end the inning.

Ryan Brasier was next up for the seventh, and he needed 18 pitches to punch out the side. Austin Davis stranded one runner in an otherwise clean eighth inning.

Offensively, the Red Sox were limited in what they could do against Ryan on Friday. After Verdugo homered in the second, Boston failed to push across another run.

Their best chance to score off Ryan came in the bottom of the fourth, when Rafael Devers and J.D. Martinez reached base on a pair of singles to put runners at the corners with one out. Verdugo, however, grounded into an inning-ending double play.

In the fifth, Trevor Stroy notched his first hit at home as a member of the Red Sox and Jackie Bradley Jr. followed with a bunt single of his own that put runners at first and second with one out. Once more, though, Vazquez flew out and leadoff man Enrique Hernandez flew out to extinguish the threat.

After Ryan completed his six innings of one-run ball, the Boston got back on track against Minnesota’s bullpen. Jhoan Duran, equipped with a 101-102 mph fastball, made quick work of Verdugo, Story, and Bobby Dalbec in the seventh, but yielded a leadoff double to Bradley Jr. to begin the eighth.

Vazquez was unable to advance Bradley Jr., but Hernandez did by lacing an RBI double down the left field line to plate Bradley Jr. and make it a 6-2 game. Devers made things more interesting by golfing a 1-1, down-and-in fastball that wasn’t even a strike 363 feet to right field.

Devers’ two-run shot — his second big fly of the season — had an exit velocity of over 103 mph and pulled the Red Sox to within two runs of the Twins at 6-4. Duran got through the rest of the eighth by punching out Bogaerts and Martinez.

After pushing across three runs to make it a two-run game, Matt Barnes struggled with is command of the strike zone in the ninth. The veteran reliever issued two straight one-out walks before surrendering a back-breaking RBI single to Max Kepler.

Barnes then plunked Sanchez in the wrist to load the bases before Trevor Larnach scored Polanco from third on a softly-hit groundout to first base. That increased the Twins’ lead to four runs at 8-4.

Down to their final three outs and now trailing by four in their half of the ninth, the Sox went down quietly against Emilio Pagan. Verdugo flew out and Story and Dalbec both struck out to kill any shot of a rally.

Some notes from this loss on Jackie Robinson Day:

Six different Red Sox pitchers (Pivetta, Valdez, Sawamura, Brasier, Davis, and Barnes) combined to walk eight and plunk two Twins batters on Friday.

The Red Sox went 2-for-6 with runners in scoring position on Friday and left three runners on base as a team.

Next up: Gray vs. Houck

The Red Sox, wearing their Boston Marathon-inspired City Connect uniforms, will look to even this four-game series at 1-1 on Saturday afternoon. Tanner Houck is slated to get the ball for Boston and he will be opposed by fellow right-hander Sonny Gray for Minnesota.

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

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

Bobby Dalbec comes through with go-ahead homer as Red Sox hold on for 4-3 win over Yankees to avoid sweep

The Red Sox will not be starting 0-3 for a second consecutive year, as they squeaked out a 4-3 win over the Yankees in the Bronx on Sunday night to avoid a sweep and improve to 1-2 on the young season.

Matched up against Yankees starter Jordan Montgomery to begin things in Sunday’s series finale, the Sox once again got on the board in their half of the first inning.

Rafael Devers and Xander Bogaerts each reached base via one-out singles, and both scored on a J.D. Martinez RBI double that was followed by a sacrifice fly from Christian Arroyo.

In possession of an early 2-0 lead, Sox starter Tanner Houck had an immediate cushion to work with. The right-hander was not at his sharpest on Sunday, though, as he allowed three earned runs on six hits, three walks, and one hit batsman to go along with three strikeouts over just 3 1/3 innings pitched.

The first of those three runs scored off Houck came with no outs in the bottom of the third, when Giancarlo Stanton plated Anthony Rizzo from second base to cut Boston’s lead in half at 2-1.

After Jonathan Arauz got that run back on a sacrifice fly off Yankees reliever Clarke Schmidt that scored Arroyo in the top half of the fourth, New York struck again in the latter half of the frame.

There, Houck issued back-to-back leadoff hits to Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Jose Trevino to put runners at first and second. He then punched out Josh Donaldson, who turned out to be the final batter he would face.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 78 (45 strikes), Houck turned to his four-seam fastball 45% of the time he was on the mound Sunday and hovered around 95.4 mph with the pitch.

In relief of Houck, Ryan Brasier got the first call from manager Alex Cora out of the Boston bullpen. Brasier, in turn, allowed both of the runners he inherited to score on a then-game-tying two-run single from Rizzo.

Kutter Crawford was next up in the fifth inning and impressed in his second appearance of the season. The 26-year-old righty stranded a pair of runners in scoring position in the fifth before striking out Rizzo and Aaron Judge in a scoreless sixth.

Moments before Crawford did that, Bobby Dalbec broke the 3-3 tie by cranking his first home run of the season off Schmidt. It came on the very first pitch of the sixth inning, a 94 mph sinker down the heart of the plate that Dalbec deposited 391 feet to right-center field to give the Red Sox a 4-3 advantage.

In the seventh, Crawford yielded a leadoff single to Stanton, representing the potential tying run, before making way for Matt Strahm. The left-hander proceeded to strand Stanton at first base by retiring the next three Yankees he faced in order.

From there, Hansel Robles maneuvered his way around a leadoff walk in an otherwise clean eighth inning. And in the ninth, Jake Diekman got his outing started in dramatic fashion by fanning the dangerous Judge on 11 pitches. He then got Stanton and Joey Gallo to strike out swinging as well to lock down his first save in a Red Sox uniform.

All told, five different Boston relievers (Brasier, Crawford, Strahm, Robles, Diekman), combined for 5 2/3 scoreless innings in which they scattered five hits and one walk while striking out a total of six.

Crawford, for what it’s worth, was credited with the winning decision — the first of his young career.

Some other notes from this victory:

From the Red Sox’ J.P. Long:

From The Boston Globe’s Pete Abraham:

Next up: To Detroit

The Red Sox will continue their season-opening road trip by heading to Detroit for a three-game set against the Tigers at Comerica Park.

Veteran right-hander Michael Wacha is slated to make his first start of the year for Boston in the series opener on Monday. Detroit will roll with fellow righty Matt Manning.

First pitch Monday is scheduled for 5:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Bobby Dalbec: Mike Stobe/Getty Images)

Red Sox go 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position, drop second straight to Yankees in 4-2 loss

For the second straight day, the Red Sox found themselves with an early lead over the Yankees but were unable to hold onto it in the end.

Boston fell to New York by a final score of 4-2 at Yankee Stadium on Saturday afternoon, marking their second consecutive loss to open the 2022 campaign.

The Sox lineup did all of their damage off Yankees starter Luis Severino in their half of the second inning. After going down in order in the first, J.D. Martinez led off the following frame with a single and was driven in when Alex Verdugo took Severino deep to right field for his first home run of the season.

Verdugo’s two-run blast came on a 2-1, 98 mph fastball from Severino and left his bat with an exit velocity of 104.1 mph. It also traveled 382 feet into the right field seats to give Boston the early 2-0 lead.

Nick Pivetta, on the other hand, was in the midst of his first start of the season when Verdugo went yard. The right-hander faced first the minimum nine batters through his first three innings on the mound.

Jackie Bradley Jr. helped him out by gunning down Joey Gallo, who was attempting to stretch a two-out single into a double, at second base for the final out of the second and recorded his first outfield assist of the year in doing so.

Josh Donaldson, the hero of Opening Day, led off the fourth with a line-drive single. Aaron Judge then lifted a 411-foot flyout to the deepest part of the park in straightaway center field that Enrique Hernandez was able to come up with.

Anthony Rizzo, who homered off Nathan Eovaldi on Friday, proceeded to mash his second two-run home run in as many days by depositing a 93 mph Pivetta fastball 389 feet to right field to pull the Yankees back even at two runs apiece.

After standing two more base runners in the fourth on a pair of walks, Pivetta bounced back by retiring the side in the fifth. He was unable to carry that momentum into the sixth, though, as he issued a leadoff walk to Judge and a booming, 437-foot two-run blast to Giancarlo Stanton that had an exit velocity of 112 mph.

Stanton would be the second-to-last batter Pivetta would face, as he was pulled by Red Sox manager Alex Cora after recording the second out of the inning. The 29-year-old finished his day having allowed four runs (all earned) on four hits, three walks, and four strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings of work. 50 of the 81 pitches he threw went for strikes.

In relief of Pivetta, left-hander Austin Davis came on to finish things in the sixth and did just that by getting Gallo to fly out to left. From there, Hirokazau Sawamura twirled a 1-2-3 seventh inning and Phillips Valdez did the same in the eighth. It was a combined perfect showing for the trio of relievers making their 2022 debuts.

While the likes of Davis, Sawamura, and Valdez did their job by holding the Yankees to four runs, the Yankees bullpen did their job by holding the Red Sox to just two.

Severino may have lasted just three-plus innings in his first start since 2019, but six different New York relievers held their own from there. The Boston bats stranded Rafael Devers at second in the third, and Bradley Jr. and Verdugo at first and third in the fourth.

Fast forward all the way to the ninth, Christian Arroyo came on to pinch-hit for Bradley Jr. and reached base off Aroldis Chapman via a throwing error committed by Isiah Kiner-Filefa.

Arroyo was able to advance to second on the error and brought the potential tying run to the plate with just one out in the frame. Chapman, however, did not lose his composure. The Yankees closer got Christian Vazquez to fly out and Hernandez to ground out to secure his first save and send the Red Sox to 0-2 on the young season.

Some notes from this loss:

The Red Sox went a whopping 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position on Saturday and left eight runners on base as a team. They did that while still outhitting the Yankees, 5-4.

Saturday’s contest took less than three hours to complete and was played in front of 46,882 spectators in the Bronx.

Next up: Houck vs. Montgomery

Looking to avoid a three-game sweep to start the year, the Red Sox will turn to right-hander Tanner Houck in Sunday night’s series finale against the Yankees, who will roll with left-hander Jordan Montgomery.

First pitch Sunday is scheduled for 7:08 p.m. eastern time on ESPN.

(Picture of Nick Pivetta: Dustin Satloff/Getty Images)

Tanner Houck fans 7 in final start of spring as Red Sox are shut out by Twins in 2-0 defeat

The Red Sox fell to 10-8 in Grapefruit League play on Monday afternoon following a 2-0 shutout loss at the hands of the Twins at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers.

Tanner Houck made his fourth and final start of the spring for the Sox and was solid, allowing only two earned runs on five hits, one walk, and one hit batsman to go along with seven strikeouts over six innings of work.

Both runs Houck surrendered on Monday came by way of the home run ball. The right-hander served up a solo shot to Miguel Sano with one out in the fourth before doing the very same to Max Kepler to lead off the sixth.

After Kepler went deep, Houck was able to retire three of the final four batters he faced. The 25-year-old hurler finished with a final pitch count of 82 (55 strikes), induced nine total swings-and-misses, and hovered around 94.7 mph with his four-seam fastball.

In relief of Houck, Hansel Robles received the first call out of the Boston bullpen to begin things in the seventh inning. Making his 2022 debut after signing a minor-league deal with the Sox last month, Robles maneuvered his way around a leadoff walk and one-out single by recording back-to-back strikeouts to retire the side. He threw 23 pitches (14 strikes) and averaged 95.3 mph with his heater.

From there, Jake Diekman recorded the first two outs of the eighth before Hirokazu Sawamura came on to end the inning.

On the other side of things, a Red Sox lineup that featured the likes of Xander Bogaerts, Rafael Devers, Enrique Hernandez, J.D. Martinez, Trevor Story, Bobby Dalbec, Jackie Bradley Jr., Christian Arroyo, and Kevin Plawecki was held in check by four different Twins pitchers.

It took until the fourth inning for Boston to record their first hit on a leadoff double off the bat of Bogaerts, but he was stranded at third after Minnesota starter Bailey Ober got Martinez to ground into an inning-ending double play.

The only other two hits the Sox had were singles from Bobby Dalbec and Yolmer Sanchez, though nothing came of either as Boston went 0-for-2 with runners in scoring position and left just two runners on base as a team on Monday.

Next up: Chairman’s Cup finale

The Red Sox wrap up their Grapefruit League schedule by taking on the Twins once again back at JetBlue park on Tuesday afternoon. With the head-to-head series now tied at three games apiece, Tuesday’s contest will determine the winner of the 2022 Chairman’s Cup.

Michael Wacha is slated to start for Boston and fellow right-hander Josh Winder is in line to do the same for Minnesota. First pitch Tuesday is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time. The game will be televised on NESN.

(Picture of Tanner Houck: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)