Tag: triston casas

Red Sox’ Triston Casas finishes third in AL Rookie of the Year voting; Masataka Yoshida also receives votes

Red Sox first baseman Triston Casas and outfielder Masataka Yoshida respectively finished third and sixth in 2023 American League Rookie of the Year voting. The results were revealed by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America on MLB Network earlier Monday evening.

Casas placed third behind Orioles infielder Gunnar Henderson — who won the award unanimously after securing all 30 first-place votes — and Guardians right-hander Tanner Bibee by receiving six second-place votes and seven third-place votes for a total of 25 points. Yoshida, meanwhile, placed sixth behind Rangers third baseman Josh Jung and Astros catcher Yainer Diaz by netting three third-place votes for three points. Twins second baseman Edouard Julien (two points) and Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe (one point) rounded out the ballot.

Casas, who last week became the first Red Sox player since Andrew Benintendi in 2017 to be recognized as a Rookie of the Year finalist, put together a strong first full season in the major-leagues after not initially getting off to the best of starts.

Having first debuted at the big-league level last September, Casas unsurprisingly made Boston’s Opening Day roster out of spring training this past March. But the former first-round pick-turned-top prospect struggled at the plate out of the gate and, by the end of April, found himself batting just .133/.283/.293 with three home runs and eight RBIs through his first 25 games of the year.

Despite those early struggles, the Red Sox stuck with Casas, who then rewarded the club for doing so by turning a corner offensively. As the calendar flipped from April to May, the 23-year-old slugger steadily raised his OPS and, after a solid showing in June, broke out to the tune of a ridiculous .349/.442/.758 slash line with seven home runs and 13 RBIs in 21 July contests to take home American League Rookie of the Month honors.

Even as the Red Sox began to fall out of contention in the AL East over the summer, Casas remained a force to be reckoned with in the batter’s box. From August 1 through September 13, the left-handed hitter batted .284/.389/.508 with eight home runs and 25 RBIs in 39 games. He then missed the final two-plus weeks of the season after being shut down with right shoulder inflammation.

Still, despite the disappointing finish, Casas managed to forge one of the more impressive Red Sox rookie seasons in recent memory by slashing a stout .263/.367/.490 with 21 doubles, two triples, 24 home runs, 65 RBIs, 66 runs scored, 70 walks, and 126 strikeouts over 132 total games (502 plate appearances). Altogether, he led Boston in walks, on-base percentage, and OPS (.856) while finishing second in homers and fourth in runs driven in.

Among qualified rookies in the junior circuit this season, Casas ranked second in homers, fourth in RBIs, fourth in runs scored, second in walks, seventh in batting average, third in on-base percentage, fourth in slugging percentage, second in OPS, fifth in isolated power (.226) and third in walk rate (13.9 percent), per MLB.com’s leaderboards.

On the other side of the ball, all but two of Casas’ 117 starts this year came at first base. The burly 6-foot-5, 244-pounder committed only five errors in 958 chances while logging 1,037 innings at first. In spite of the high fielding percentage, though, Casas graded poorly in other areas such as defensive runs saved (-4) and outs above average (-10). That likely did not help his case when it came to award voting.

Regardless of the defensive metrics, the 2023 campaign still served as an important stepping stone for Casas in which he established himself as the Red Sox’ first baseman of the future. To that end, Casas — who turns 24 in January — is a prime candidate for a pre-arbitration contract extension depending on how things shake out for Boston this winter.

Yoshida, on the other hand, spent the first seven years of his professional career in Japan before signing a five-year, $90 million contract with the Red Sox in December. As a major-league rookie this season, the left-handed hitting 30-year-old batted .289/.338/.445 with 33 doubles, three triples, 15 home runs, 72 RBIs, 71 runs scored, eight stolen bases, 34 walks, and 81 strikeouts in 140 games spanning 580 trips to the plate.

(Picture of Triston Casas: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Triston Casas named AL Rookie of the Year finalist

Red Sox first baseman Triston Casas has been named a finalist for the 2023 American League Rookie of of the Year Award, the BBWAA and Major League Baseball announced on Monday.

Already in the running for his first Silver Slugger Award, Casas was recognized alongside the likes of Guardians right-hander Tanner Bibee and Orioles infielder Gunnar Henderson. The 23-year-old will look to become the first Red Sox player to earn AL Rookie of the Year honors since Dustin Pedroia in 2007 when winners in each league are unveiled next Monday, November 13, on MLB Network.

Casas entered the 2023 season as one of the top prospects in Boston’s farm system after making his major-league debut last September. The former first-round draft selection expectedly made the Sox’ Opening Day roster out of spring training in March but struggled out of the gate. By the end of April, he found himself batting just .133/.283/.293 with three home runs and eight RBIs through his first 25 games of the year.

As the calendar flipped to May, though, Casas began to turn a corner offensively. His OPS continuously rose through the early summer months and he then broke out to the tune of a ridiculous .349/.442/.758 line with seven home runs and 13 RBIs in 21 July contests to take home Rookie of the Month honors in the junior circuit.

Casas remained hot at the plate even as Boston fell out of contention in the American League East, but his first full season in the major-leagues drew to a premature close when he was shut down with right shoulder inflammation in mid-September. Despite the disappointing finish, the left-handed hitter still put together one of the more impressive Red Sox rookie campaigns in recent memory by slashing a stout .263/.367/.470 with 21 doubles, two triples, 24 homers, 65 RBIs, 66 runs scored, a team-high 70 walks, and 126 strikeouts in 132 games (502 plate appearances).

Among 27 qualified rookies in the American League this season, Casas ranked ninth in batting average, fourth in on-base percentage, sixth in slugging percentage, third in OPS (.856), third in walk rate (13.9 percent), eighth in isolated power (.226), and fifth in wRC+ (129), per FanGraphs. He also ranked third in wOBA (.367), third in barrel rate (13.1 percent), and seventh in hard-hit rate (46.6 percent), according to Statcast.

Defensively, all but two of Casas’ 117 starts came at first base this year. The burly 6-foot-5, 244-pounder logged 1,037 innings at the position, committing five errors in 958 chances. In spite of the high fielding percentage, though, Casas graded poorly in other areas, including defensive runs saved (-4) and outs above average (-10). To that end, his value (i.e. WAR) took somewhat a hit.

When comparing Casas’ value this season to that of Bibee’s and Henderson’s, the Red Sox slugger accrued the least amount of fWAR (1.7) between the trio of rookies. Bibee (3.0) went 10-4 with a 2.98 ERA and 141 strikeouts to 45 walks in 25 starts (142 innings) for Cleveland. Henderson (4.6), meanwhile, hit .255/.325/.489 with 29 doubles, nine triples, 28 home runs, 82 RBIs, 100 runs scored, 10 stolen bases, 56 walks, and 159 strikeouts in 150 games (622 plate appearances) for Baltimore while providing plus defense at both third base and shortstop.

Taking all that into consideration, Henderson is viewed as the favorite to win the award next week. If Casas were to pull off an upset, though, the Red Sox would receive an additional pick following the first round of next year’s amateur draft as a result of MLB’s new Prospect Promotion Initiative. Casas, who meets those qualifications because he came into the season with fewer than 60 days of big-league service time and was a consensus preseason top 100 prospect, would also be credited with a full year of service time if he finishes first or second in voting. But that is a moot point anyway since Casas already spent the entirety of the 2023 season on Boston’s major-league roster.

Regardless of the results, Casas is the first Rookie of the Year finalist the Red Sox have had since Andrew Benintendi in 2017. After establishing himself as Boston’s first baseman of the future, Casas — who turns 24 in January — could be in line for a contract extension depending on how things play out this winter.

(Picture of Triston Casas: Maddie Malhotra/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)

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)

Justin Turner, Triston Casas, and Jarren Duran all homer as Red Sox snap four-game losing streak with 9-4 win over Mariners

The Red Sox put an end to their four-game losing streak with a series-evening victory over the Mariners on Tuesday night. Behind a four-run first inning, Boston defeated Seattle by a final score of 9-4 at Fenway Park to improve to 23-20 on the season.

With one of the most talented pitchers in baseball in Luis Castillo starting for the Mariners, the Sox drew first blood right away in the first inning. After leadoff man Alex Verdugo reached on a fielding error, Masataka Yoshida drove him in all the way from first with a line-drive triple off the center field wall. Justin Turner then gave Boston a 3-0 lead by depositing a 389-foot solo shot over the Green Monster for his fourth home run of the year.

Rafael Devers and Jarren Duran were both retired by Castillo, but Triston Casas extended the inning and his side’s lead by lacing a 373-foot solo homer into the right field seats. Casas’ sixth big fly of the season left his bat at 110.7 mph and provided Red Sox starter Nick Pivetta with a four-run cushion out of the gate.

Pivetta, making his eighth start of the year for Boston, cruised through the first three innings of Tuesday’s contest before running into some trouble in the top of the fourth. After giving up a two-out single to Eugenio Suarez and issuing a five-pitch walk to Cal Raleigh, the right-hander got Teoscar Hernandez to loft a 281-foot fly ball to center field.

Duran attempted to make a head-first diving catch, but he could not come up with the ball cleanly and it instead rolled all the way into the right-center field triangle. As a result, Hernandez plated both Suarez and Raleigh on a two-run triple to cut Seattle’s deficit in half. Moments after Hernandez reached third base safely, Taylor Trammell evened the score by crushing a game-tying, two-run home run to deep right field.

Though the Mariners had just come back to knot things up at four runs apiece, the stalemate did not last particularly long. That being the case because the Verdugo-Yoshida combination struck again in the latter half of the the fifth. The pair hit back-to-back doubles off Castillo to lead off the frame and put the Sox back up by one. Yoshida then advanced to third and scored on a wild pitch before Duran made up for his previous blunder by clubbing a first-pitch slider 417 feet over Boston’s bullpen to make it a three-run game at 7-4.

Castillo’s night came to a close after the fifth. The 30-year-old was charged with a season-high seven runs (five earned) on six hits. Pivetta, meanwhile, came back out for the top of the sixth and retired the final batter he faced in Hernandez.

Finishing with 98 pitches (58 strikes) Pivetta wound up allowing four earned runs on six hits and four walks to go along with six strikeouts over 5 1/3 innings of work. The 30-year-old hurler picked up his third winning decision of the season, though his ERA did rise from 6.23 to 6.30.

In relief of Pivetta, Ryan Sherriff received the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen from manager Alex Cora. Making his club debut, the left-hander sat down all three batters he faced before making way for Josh Winckowski, who scattered two hits over 1 1/2 scoreless frames.

While Sherriff and Winckowski were putting up zeroes, the Sox tacked on a pair of insurance runs with a Duran RBI single in the seventh and a Yoshida run-scoring groundout in the eighth. Justin Garza — who, like Sherriff was making his club debut — then put the finishing touches on a 9-4 win by making quick work of the Mariners in a 1-2-3 ninth.

All told, the Red Sox had 11 hits as a team on Tuesday. Seven of the nine hitters recorded at least one hit while Verdugo (2-for-4), Yoshida (2-for-5), Turner (2-for-5), and Duran (2-for-4) all registered multi-hit games.

Next up: Bello vs. Gonzales in rubber match

The Red Sox will send right-hander Brayan Bello to the mound on Wednesday night as they look to close out the homestand by taking this series from the Mariners, who will counter with left-hander Marco Gonzales.

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

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

Kenley Jansen records 400th career save as Red Sox cap off road trip with 5-2 win over Braves

The Red Sox salvaged a series split and a winning road trip with a hard-fought win over the Braves on Wednesday night. Boston defeated Atlanta by a final score of 5-2 at Truist Park to put an end to a two-game losing streak and improve to 22-16 on the season.

Having just placed Max Fried on the injured list with a left forearm strain, the Braves went with a bullpen game in Wednesday’s series finale. Atlanta relievers held Boston’s offense in check through three innings, but the Sox broke through against Collin McHugh in the fourth.

After Alex Verdugo walked and Justin Turner singled to simultaneously break up the Braves’ combined no-hit bid and lead off the inning, Enrique Hernandez and Jarren Duran went back-to-back on a pair of one-out RBI singles to give the Red Sox a 2-0 lead.

Brayan Bello, meanwhile, was in the midst of his fifth start of the season for Boston. The young right-hander was lights out out of the gate. He retired the first six batters he faced, escaped a jam (two on, no outs) in the third, and continued to keep Atlanta off the scoreboard through five.

In the sixth inning, though, Bello ran into trouble as the Braves lineup turned over for a third time. Ronald Acuna Jr. led things off by crushing a 470-foot solo shot to deep left field to cut the deficit in half. Austin Riley then ripped a one-out single and came into score the tying run on Eddie Rosario’s RBI single. Rosario, however, was thrown out at second base by Connor Wong for the final out of the inning.

All told, Bello allowed two earned runs on six hits and one walk to go along with five strikeouts over six strong innings of work. The 23-year-old induced 18 swings-and-misses on exactly 100 pitches (67 strikes). He topped out at 97.4 mph with his sinker and picked up his second win of the season while lowering his ERA to 5.01.

Although they had just seen their two-run lead disappear, the Red Sox wasted little time in getting back on the board. Duran and Triston Casas each drew a walk off A.J. Minter to lead off the seventh. After Wong and the pinch-hitting Rafael Devers each struck out, manager Alex Cora went back to his bench by having Raimel Tapia pinch-hit for Rob Refsnyder. Tapia then came through by lacing a two-out double down the right field line to bring in Duran from second and put Boston up, 3-2.

With Bello’s night done, Josh Winckowski received the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen from Cora and worked a 1-2-3 seventh. Chris Martin followed by maneuvering his way around a one-out single to toss a scoreless eighth and pave the way for Kenley Jansen in the ninth.

Before Jansen took the mound, Casas provided the veteran closer with some breathing room in the top of the ninth. After Duran laced a leadoff double, Casas launched a 442-foot two-run blast off Raisel Iglesias for his fifth home run of the year.

Jansen then came on with a three-run lead to protect and did just that by getting Sean Murphy to fly out, allowing a one-out double to Rosario, getting Ozzie Albies to fly out, and striking out Travis d’Arnaud to end the game and notch the 400th save of his career.

Jansen becomes the seventh pitcher in major-league history to record 400 saves, joining Mariano Rivera (652), Trevor Hoffman (601), Lee Smith (478), Francisco Rodriguez (437), John Franco (424) and Billy Wagner (422) as members of the exclusive club.

Next up: Wainwright vs. Paxton

Coming off a 3-2 road trip, the Red Sox will enjoy an off day back in Boston on Thursday. They will then open a three-game weekend series against the Cardinals at Fenway Park on Friday night.

Left-hander James Paxton is slated to make his season debut for Boston in Friday’s series opener. St. Louis will counter with right-hander Adam Wainwright.

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

(Picture of Kenley Jansen: Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Red Sox held to just 5 hits, see eight-game winning streak come to an end in 6-1 loss to Phillies

The Red Sox saw their eight-game winning streak come to an end at the hands of the Phillies on Sunday afternoon. Boston fell to Philadelphia by a final score of 6-1 in the series finale at Citizens Bank Park to drop back to 21-15 on the season.

Tanner Houck, making his seventh start of the year for the Sox, allowed three earned runs on five hits and one walk to go along with four strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings of work.

After facing the minimum through three scoreless frames out of the gate, Houck ran into some trouble in the fourth. The right-hander gave up back-to-back singles to Bryson Stott and Trea Turner to lead off the inning. He then issued a five-pitch walk to Bryce Harper, which filled the bases for Nick Castellanos.

Castellanos, in turn, opened the scoring by grounding into an RBI force out at third base. Had Rafael Devers fielded the grounder cleanly, he could have gone for the force out at home and possibly start a 5-2-3 double play. Devers instead bobbled the ball, which forced him to make a diving tag on Turner for the only out he could get.

Stott scored from third as a result of Devers’ bobble. Kyle Schwarber then doubled the Phillies’ early lead by plating Harper on a run-scoring single through the right side of the infield.

Despite falling behind first, the Red Sox quickly got one of those runs back in the top of the fifth. After Phillies starter Taijuan Walker retired Devers and Jarren Duran for the first two outs of the inning, Triston Casas cut the deficit in half by crushing a 416-foot solo shot into the trees in deep center field.

Casas’ fourth home run of the season left his bat at 106.4 mph and brought Boston back to within one run of Philadelphia at 2-1. Houck then made quick work of the Phillies’ 8-9-1 hitters in the bottom of the fifth and came back out for the sixth.

After giving up a one-out single to Harper, Houck got Castellanos to ground out for the second out of the inning. With Schwarber due to hit next for the Phillies, Red Sox manager Alex Cora made the somewhat surprising decision to bring in lefty reliever Richard Bleier.

Schwarber came out on top in the left-on-left matchup. The former Red Sox slugger took Bleier 434 feet deep to right field on a 1-0, 88.3 mph sinker down the heart of the plate for his eighth home run of the year. The towering two-run blast put the Phillies up, 4-1, and officially closed the book on Houck’s afternoon.

Finishing with a final pitch count of just 74 (50 strikes), Houck was charged with the tough luck loss. The 26-year-old did, however, induce a game-high 12 swings-and-misses while lowering his ERA on the season to 5.26.

Now trailing 4-1, the Red Sox got a scoreless seventh inning out of Ryan Brasier. The Phillies then put this game out of reach by pushing across two runs on a J.T. Realmuto two-run single off recent trade acquisition Zack Littell.

Down to their final three outs in the ninth, former Red Sox left-hander Matt Strahm put the finishing touches on his first save in a Phillies uniform by retiring Alex Verdugo, Masataka Yoshida, and Raimel Tapia in short order.

The one run the Red Sox pushed across on Sunday is the fewest they have scored in a game since April 10, when they were shut out by the Rays at Tropicana Field. Boston had just five hits and zero walks as a team, though Yoshida (2-for-4) was able to extend his hitting streak to 16 games with a first-inning single.

Wong throws out two more base stealers

Despite going hitless at the plate on Sunday, Connor Wong did throw out two more would-be base stealers. The 26-year-old gunned down his counterpart in J.T. Realmuto at second base for the final out of the second inning. He then threw out Edmundo Sosa at second for the final out of the seventh. Wong has now thrown out eight of 16 potential base stealers to begin the year.

Next up: On to Atlanta

With their eight-game winning streak behind them, the Red Sox will have an off day in Atlanta on Monday. They will then open a quick two-game series against the Braves on Tuesday night. Nick Pivetta is slated to get the start for Boston in the series opener opposite fellow right-hander Charlie Morton.

First pitch from Truist Park on Tuesday is scheduled for 7:20 p.m. eastern time on NESN and TBS.

(Picture of Raimel Tapia: Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)

Nick Pivetta settles in after shaky start as Red Sox top Blue Jays, 8-3, behind season-high 15 hits

The Red Sox once again rallied to earn a series victory over the Blue Jays on a rainy and chilly Wednesday night at Fenway Park. Behind a season-high 15 hits, Boston defeated Toronto by a final score of 8-3 to extend its winning streak to five and improve to 18-14 on the year.

Nick Pivetta, making his fourth start of the season for the Sox, allowed three runs on five hits and one walk to go along with six strikeouts over six quality innings of work.

Because the wind was blowing in from center field on Wednesday, Pivetta was able to avoid any serious damage in the top of the first despite consistently giving up hard contact. The same cannot be said for the second inning, as Daulton Varsho led it off by taking the right-hander 399 feet deep to right field for his second home run in as many nights.

An inning later, Pivetta served up a towering 450-foot solo shot to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. that cleared the Green Monster and had an exit velocity of 110 mph. Guerrero Jr.’s sixth home run of the season gave the Blue Jays a 2-0 lead going into the fourth.

That is when the Red Sox finally got on the board. Rafael Devers singled on a 112.5 mph line drive that deflected off Jays starter Alek Manoah and then moved up to second on a throwing error. A wild pitch from Manoah allowed Devers to move up to third before Jarren Duran drove him in with an RBI double. Duran took third after Manoah unsuccessfully tried to pick him off at second base and scored on a game-tying RBI single from Triston Casas that knotted things up at two runs apiece.

In the fifth, Kevin Kiermaier led off with a double and advanced to third on a George Springer flyout. With Bo Bichette at the plate, Pivetta allowed the then-go-ahead run to cross the plate on a controversial balk that drew the ire of both the righty and Red Sox manager Alex Cora. Though Toronto had just re-taken the lead at the midway point, it did not take long for Boston to respond.

With one out in the bottom of the fifth, Masataka Yoshida reached base on a throwing error committed by Santiago Espinal. Justin Turner followed with a hard-hit double and Duran was hit by a pitch to fill the bases with two outs. For the second time in as many at-bats, Casas delivered with a game-tying single through the left side of the infield that pushed across Yoshida. Fellow rookie Enmanuel Valdez kept the line moving by lacing a grounder that ate up Guerrero Jr. at first base.

Both Turner and Duran came into score as a result of Guerrero Jr.’s blunder, which was initially ruled an error but was later changed to a go-ahead, two-run single for Valdez. Pivetta preserved the Sox’ newfound 5-3 lead by retiring the final three batters he faced in the top of the sixth.

Finishing with 94 pitches (62 strikes), Pivetta induced 14 total swings-and-misses — 11 of which came on his slider. The 30-year-old hurler also earned his second winning decision of the season while lowering his ERA just below five at 4.99

With Pivetta’s night done, the Sox tacked on some insurance as the Jays began to dip into their bullpen in the latter half of the sixth. Connor Wong ripped a leadoff double, moved up to third on a groundout, and scored his side’s sixth run on a 109.6 mph line drive from Yoshida that glanced off Anthony Bass and went for an RBI single.

Following a scoreless top of the seventh from Chris Martin, Yoshida struck again by plating Enrique Hernandez on hard-hit opposite-field double. Hernandez returned the favor an inning later with a run-scoring hit of his own to give Boston a commanding 8-3 advantage heading into the ninth.

Kutter Crawford, who had already put up a zero in the eighth inning, recorded the first out of the ninth but was then forced to come out of the game with a trainer due to tightness in his left hamstring. Ryan Brasier took over for Crawford and got the final two outs of the frame to seal the win.

Yoshida extends hitting streak

With his sixth-inning single, Masataka Yoshida extended his hitting streak to 13 games, which is currently the longest active streak in the majors. Following Wednesday’s 2-for-5 showing, the 29-year-old raised his batting average on the season to .303.

In addition to Yoshida, every other member of the Sox’ starting lineup recorded at least one hit on Wednesday night. Yoshida, Turner, Valdez, and Hernandez each had two hits while Casas led the way by going 3-for-5 with two clutch RBIs.

Next up: Gausman vs. Bello

The Red Sox will go for the sweep of the Blue Jays in the finale of this four-game series on Thursday night. After going 3-16 against Toronto last season, Boston already has the chance to surpass that win total.

Brayan Bello, who dealt with a blister in his last time out, will get the start for the Red Sox. The Jays will counter with fellow right-hander Kevin Gausman.

First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 6:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Triston Casas: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Chris Sale fails to record strikeout as Red Sox blow four-run lead and fall to Orioles, 5-4, in series opener

The Red Sox blew a four-run lead in a series-opening loss to the Orioles on Monday night. Boston fell to Baltimore by a final score of 5-4 at Camden Yards to drop back to .500 at 12-12 on the season.

Matched up against Orioles starter Dean Kremer out of the gate, the Sox opened the scoring in the top of the second inning. With two outs and nobody on, Triston Casas took Kremer 426 feet deep to right-center field for his third home run of the year.

An inning later, Connor Wong drew a leadoff walk, advanced to second base on a Yu Chang groundout, and scored from second on a one-out RBI single off the bat of Alex Verdugo. Rafael Devers then doubled Boston’s lead by crushing a 387-foot two-run home run onto Eutaw Street.

Devers’ American League-leading ninth homer of the season left his bat at a blistering 115 mph and put the Red Sox up, 4-0, going into the middle of the third. To that point in the contest, Chris Sale had faced the minimum through his first two innings of work before running into some legitimate trouble.

Cedric Mullins, who was at the plate when Ramon Urias recorded the final out of the second by getting thrown out by Wong on a failed stolen base attempt, led off the bottom of the third with a line-drive double. After Jorge Mateo lined out, Adam Frazier plated the speedy Mullins on an RBI single for the Orioles’ first run of the night.

Sale escaped any further damage in the third by getting Austin Hays to ground into an inning-ending, 6-4-3 double play. But the O’s really got to the left-hander in their half of the fourth. Following back-to-back one-out hits from Ryan Mountcastle and Anthony Santander, Urias made up for his previous blunder by driving in both runners on a ground-rule double to cut the deficit to one. James McCann knotted things up at four runs apiece with another hard-hit single to right field.

In the fifth, Sale gave up a leadoff double to Jorge Mateo, who then scored the go-ahead run on a single from Hays. Sale yielded one more base hit before getting Mountcastle to ground into yet another inning-ending double play to end his night. The 34-year-old southpaw wound up allowing five earned runs on nine hits and one walk over five innings. He failed to strike out a single batter after punching out 11 in his last start.

Of the 83 pitches Sale threw on Monday, 52 went for strikes. He managed to induce just two swings-and-misses while being charged with the loss and seeing his ERA on the season inflate to 8.22.

To lead off the sixth inning, it appeared as though the Red Sox were ready to respond as Justin Turner reached on a line-drive single. A red-hot Masataka Yoshida followed with a single of his own, but Turner was thrown out at third base after unsuccessfully attempting to go from first to third. Yoshida moved into scoring position on the play, but he was stranded there after both Enrique Hernandez and Casas were retired.

Following a scoreless bottom of the sixth from Ryan Brasier, Wong drew a one-out walk off Baltimore reliever Bryan Baker, but he was thrown out at second in an otherwise quiet offensive inning for Boston. Newcomer Brennan Bernardino then took over out of the bullpen and scattered four hits across two shutout frames.

That sequence of events brought the Red Sox down to their final three outs in the top of the ninth. After Yoshida drew a leadoff walk, pinch-runner Raimel Tapia was able to move up to second base on a balk. Orioles reliever Yennier Cano then stranded the potential tying run at second by striking out both Hernandez and Casas before getting Jarren Duran to line out to end it.

All told, Monday’s loss took two hours and 29 minutes to complete. Yoshida accounted for three of Boston’s seven hits and reached base in all four of his plate appearances.

Chang leaves game with wrist injury

While batting with one out in the seventh inning, Yu Chang swung and missed on a 1-1, 83 mph slider from Bryan Baker and left the game with what the Red Sox later described as “left wrist pain.” Christian Arroyo took over for Chang mid-at-bat and struck out.

Fatse, Cora ejected

Red Sox hitting coach Pete Fatse was ejected by home plate umpire Junior Valentine in the top of the sixth inning for arguing balls and strikes. Manager Alex Cora was also ejected by third base umpire Quinn Wolcott at the end of the game, per The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.

Next up: Kluber vs. Bradish

The Red Sox will turn to Corey Kluber, who is in desperate need of a strong start, in the middle game of this three-game series on Tuesday. The Orioles will counter with fellow righty Kyle Bradish.

First pitch from Oriole Park at Camden Yards is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Chris Sale: Greg Fiume/Getty Images)

Triston Casas, Kutter Crawford lead the way as Red Sox finish off sweep of Tigers with 4-1 win

The Red Sox finished off a three-game sweep of the Tigers on Easter Sunday. Boston defeated Detroit by a final score of 4-1 to remain unbeaten on the road and improve to 5-4 on the season.

Kutter Crawford, making his second start of the year for the Sox, pitched well after getting roughed up in his 2023 debut last Monday. This time around, the right-hander allowed just one earned run on five hits and zero walks to go along with six strikeouts over five strong innings of work.

The one run Crawford allowed came right away in the bottom of the first. With two outs and runners on first and second base, Crawford gave up an RBI single to Spencer Torkelson to give the Tigers an early 1-0 lead. The Red Sox, however, wasted no time in responding.

Matched up against Detroit starter Matthew Boyd, Enrique Hernandez drew a one-out walk in the top of the second and promptly scored all the way from first on a line-drive RBI double off the bat of Triston Casas that had an exit velocity of 105.8 mph. Casas’ productive day at the plate was only just beginning.

Crawford, meanwhile, settled in by retiring the side in order in the latter half of the second, stranding one runner in the third, and striking out two in a 1-2-3 bottom of the fourth. Boston took its first lead of the afternoon in the following half-inning, as Connor Wong led off with a 106.9 mph double off Boyd and then came into score on a softly-hit single from Rob Refsnyder.

Taking a newfound 2-1 edge into the bottom of the fifth, Crawford ended his day by putting up another zero. The 27-year-old hurler finished with an economical final pitch count of 65 (44 strikes). He induced nine swings-and-misses en route to picking up his first winning decision of the year.

In relief of Crawford, John Schreiber received the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen from manager Alex Cora. Schreiber, who grew up just outside of Detroit, made quick work of the Tigers in the sixth. Justin Turner then tacked on another run to Boston’s lead by plating Refsnyder on a sacrifice fly off Alex Lange in the top of the seventh.

Following two more scoreless frames of relief from Josh Winckowski and Chris Martin, Casas led things off in the top of the ninth by taking new Tigers reliever Chasen Shreve 401 feet deep to right-center field for his second home run of the season and his first-ever off a left-handed pitcher. The ball left Casas’ bat at 107.4 mph and put the Red Sox up 4-1, heading into the bottom of the ninth.

There, Kenley Jansen made things interesting by loading the bases with one out. But the veteran closer did not falter and got out of the jam to record his second save in as many tries.

Duvall injures left wrist

With no outs in the ninth inning, center fielder Adam Duvall attempted to make a sliding catch on a fly ball off the bat of Spencer Torkelson. He instead landed awkwardly on his left wrist and was immediately taken out of the game.

Duvall was undergoing x-rays when Alex Cora was speaking with reporters afterwards, but no other updates were provided. It is a notable injury since Duvall underwent season-ending surgery on that same left wrist last July.

Next up: Looking to hand the Rays their first loss

The Red Sox will head south to St. Petersburg to take on the unbeaten (9-0) Rays for the first time this season. In the opener of this four-game series, right-hander Nick Pivetta will get the ball for Boston while left-hander (and old friend) Jalen Beeks will take the mound for Tampa Bay.

First pitch from Tropicana Field on Monday night is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. eastern time on NESN and MLB Network.

(Picture of Rafael Devers and Triston Casas: Duane Burleson/Getty Images)