Time and time again this Red Sox season has proven their resiliency this season, and Tuesday nights game was no different.
Felix Doubront took to the hill for the Sox, and he put together what was probably the most dominant start of his career.
Doubront would start the game by allowing a single on the first pitch of the game to Desmond Jennings, but got out of the inning unscathed.
The score would remain at 0s until Daniel Nava Launched a solo homer over the bullpen for his 10th of the season and a 1-0 lead.
Kelly Johnson led off the third inning with a single for the Rays, and that would be the last baserunner they would get off Doubront.
Doubront went on to retire the next 18 batters in a row he would face, unfortunately, the sox offense couldnt do anything else either and the score remained 1-0 heading to the 9th inning.
Heading to the ninth, Manager John Farell had a decision to make. Send out Doubront, who had thrown only 93 pitches and retired 18 in a row, or send out closer Andrew Bailey, who was struggling lately, and has always struggled against the Rays. Farrell Made absolutely the wrong decision in sending out Bailey. On just the second pitch he threw, Bailey gave up a homer to Kelly Johnson to tie the game at one, and in an instant, eight beautiful innings from Doubront had gone to waste.
Bailey got out of the rest of the inning without any damage and we headed to the bottom of the ninth tied at one. After Nava drew a walk, the struggling Jonny Games absolutely bombed a two run homer over the monster, his fifth of the year, to walk off the Sox to a 3-1 win. After todays doubleheader sweep, lets take a look at the AL East Standings.
1. Boston Red Sox: 44-29
2. Baltimore Orioles: 41-31 2.5GB
3. New York Yankees: 38-31 4.0GB
4. Tampa Bay Rays: 36-35 7.0GB
5. Torontoo Blue Jays: 34-36 8.5GB
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
Tuesday Game one recap: Sox Beat Rays 5-1 in long affair
It took over six hours from first pitch to last, but the Sox got the job done in their first game of their doubleheader, thanks to some heroics from David Ortiz. The Sox got on the board right away in the first, after Ellsbury led off with a double, he got to third on a groundout, then scored on a sac fly from Pedroia.
Aceves got in trouble in the top of the second, walking three, and loading the bases with just one out with the game tied at one. He got a double play from Escobar to get out of it however, and the score remained tied at one.
The big blow would come in the third, when Ortiz laced a single up the middle with Victorino at second and Ellsbury at third, scoring both to give Boston a 3-1 lead. They would tack on a couple runs of insurance, and there was a little 3 hour rain delay in between, but it was an easy little 5-1 win.
Aceves got in trouble in the top of the second, walking three, and loading the bases with just one out with the game tied at one. He got a double play from Escobar to get out of it however, and the score remained tied at one.
The big blow would come in the third, when Ortiz laced a single up the middle with Victorino at second and Ellsbury at third, scoring both to give Boston a 3-1 lead. They would tack on a couple runs of insurance, and there was a little 3 hour rain delay in between, but it was an easy little 5-1 win.
Sunday Recap: Os 14 hit attack downs Sox 6-3
I am a few games behind in the recaps for the Sox, so this is for Sundays game.
Jon Lester took the mound against the Orioles on Sunday looking to get out of his recent slump. He hasnt won a game since May 15th, one of the worst slumps of his career. Through the first two innings, it looked like he may be on the right track. Lester looked in command through the first two, using his cutter effectively and not allowing any runs. Unfortunately, the sox makeshift offense, missing Victorino, Pedroia, and Napoli, wasnt doing anything either.
In the 3rd, thing spiraled out of control for Lester. A leadoff single by markakis spelled potential trouble, but Lester buckled down to get the next two outs. Unfortunately, with only one out left before getting out of the inning. Adam Jones laced a double down the line to score Markakis to make it 1-0, then Chris Davis launched a blast out of the park to make it 3-0, and all of a sudden Lester was looking bad again.
In the fifth, things got worse, as three hits, including two doubles, staked the orioles to two more runs and a 5-0 lead.
When things looked hopeless for the Sox, a Mike Carp double and Salty single set up a potential rally in the seventh. Middlebrooks followed with an opposite field homer to make it 5-3 and all of a sudden it was a ballgame again.
Unfortunately the bullpen would not hold. The Os got a run back in their half of the seventh on a Hardy single, extending the lead back to 3, halting any momentum the Sox had.
The offense would not do anything of note in the final two innings, allowing for a 6-3 final, and giving the Sox their first series loss since losing 2 of 3 to the White Sox in late May.
Jon Lester took the mound against the Orioles on Sunday looking to get out of his recent slump. He hasnt won a game since May 15th, one of the worst slumps of his career. Through the first two innings, it looked like he may be on the right track. Lester looked in command through the first two, using his cutter effectively and not allowing any runs. Unfortunately, the sox makeshift offense, missing Victorino, Pedroia, and Napoli, wasnt doing anything either.
In the 3rd, thing spiraled out of control for Lester. A leadoff single by markakis spelled potential trouble, but Lester buckled down to get the next two outs. Unfortunately, with only one out left before getting out of the inning. Adam Jones laced a double down the line to score Markakis to make it 1-0, then Chris Davis launched a blast out of the park to make it 3-0, and all of a sudden Lester was looking bad again.
In the fifth, things got worse, as three hits, including two doubles, staked the orioles to two more runs and a 5-0 lead.
When things looked hopeless for the Sox, a Mike Carp double and Salty single set up a potential rally in the seventh. Middlebrooks followed with an opposite field homer to make it 5-3 and all of a sudden it was a ballgame again.
Unfortunately the bullpen would not hold. The Os got a run back in their half of the seventh on a Hardy single, extending the lead back to 3, halting any momentum the Sox had.
The offense would not do anything of note in the final two innings, allowing for a 6-3 final, and giving the Sox their first series loss since losing 2 of 3 to the White Sox in late May.
Sunday, June 16, 2013
Lackey rebounds from rough first inning to lead Sox to 5-4 win
Despite losing tough games the last two nights, I have to admit I was a bit unmoved by the tough couple games. Even though Baltimore was creeping up in the standings, the losses didnt affect me that much because I knew this Sox team was a good team just slumping through a couple games, and I was 100% confident theyd bounce back for a win Saturday. Well, twenty minutes into this game, my optimism for this game seemed out of place.
After the Sox went down easy in the first inning, it looked the bats would go right back to the struggles they endured the night before. To make matters worse, the bottom of the first was a disaster. Nate Mclouth led off with a single, followed by a Machado double to make it 1-0. Markakis followed with a single of his own, and then Adam Jones hit his second infield single of the series and Baltimore led 2-0 before an out was even recorded. Lackey was able to get out of the first miraculously without any damage, but 2-0 still seemed somewhat daunting considering the way the offense was going.
the second and third innings only led to continued problems for the offense, but then finally in the fourth inning, the bats awoke and the game turned in an instant. Dustin pedroia hit a single, followed by a two run blast by Mike Carp to even up the game. On the next pitch, Jonny Gomes hit a single through the infield, and then stephen Drew laced a double down the line to score Gomes and give Boston their first lead of the series, 3-2.
Ellsbury singled to lead off the fifth inning, and good basrerunning got him to third with one out, where Pedroia grounded out allowing him to score and extend the lead to 4-2. In the bottom of the fifth, it looked like things could get disastrous. Taylor Teagarden led off the inning with an infield single that could have easily been an error, then nate Mclouth reached on an error, and what should have been two outs with nobody on, was actually 1st and 3rd with no outs. Mclouth was caught stealing for the first out, then Lackey buckled down to get the next two outs without allowing the runner on 3rd to score and the lead remained at two.
In the sixth, Jonny Gomes extended the lead with a solo shot, his fourth of the season for a 5-2 lead, which would remain until the ninth inning.
Andrew Bailey came on to save the game in the ninth, and gave a couple runs, we wont get into the dirty details because he averted disaster and the Sox hung on by their fingernails for what should have been an easy win, but a win is a win. The lead in the division is back up to 2.5 games, and the Yankees just keep losing so the lead over them has swelled to 4 games. Tampa continues to stay at a comfy 5 games back.
The finale of this four game set comes tomorrow at 1:35. Will the Sox extend their division lead to 2.5 games? or will it shrink back to 1.5? thats a big difference so tomorrow is certainly a big game.
After the Sox went down easy in the first inning, it looked the bats would go right back to the struggles they endured the night before. To make matters worse, the bottom of the first was a disaster. Nate Mclouth led off with a single, followed by a Machado double to make it 1-0. Markakis followed with a single of his own, and then Adam Jones hit his second infield single of the series and Baltimore led 2-0 before an out was even recorded. Lackey was able to get out of the first miraculously without any damage, but 2-0 still seemed somewhat daunting considering the way the offense was going.
the second and third innings only led to continued problems for the offense, but then finally in the fourth inning, the bats awoke and the game turned in an instant. Dustin pedroia hit a single, followed by a two run blast by Mike Carp to even up the game. On the next pitch, Jonny Gomes hit a single through the infield, and then stephen Drew laced a double down the line to score Gomes and give Boston their first lead of the series, 3-2.
Ellsbury singled to lead off the fifth inning, and good basrerunning got him to third with one out, where Pedroia grounded out allowing him to score and extend the lead to 4-2. In the bottom of the fifth, it looked like things could get disastrous. Taylor Teagarden led off the inning with an infield single that could have easily been an error, then nate Mclouth reached on an error, and what should have been two outs with nobody on, was actually 1st and 3rd with no outs. Mclouth was caught stealing for the first out, then Lackey buckled down to get the next two outs without allowing the runner on 3rd to score and the lead remained at two.
In the sixth, Jonny Gomes extended the lead with a solo shot, his fourth of the season for a 5-2 lead, which would remain until the ninth inning.
Andrew Bailey came on to save the game in the ninth, and gave a couple runs, we wont get into the dirty details because he averted disaster and the Sox hung on by their fingernails for what should have been an easy win, but a win is a win. The lead in the division is back up to 2.5 games, and the Yankees just keep losing so the lead over them has swelled to 4 games. Tampa continues to stay at a comfy 5 games back.
The finale of this four game set comes tomorrow at 1:35. Will the Sox extend their division lead to 2.5 games? or will it shrink back to 1.5? thats a big difference so tomorrow is certainly a big game.
Saturday, June 15, 2013
Friday Night recap: Bats go silent as Sox fall to Os for second straight night, 2-0
Well it was bound to happen eventually. After the offense lit the world on fire the first ten games or so of June, it was inevitable they were going to come crashing down at some point. A team cant sustain a .300+ batting average for more than a couple weeks, and even thats incredibly hard to do. The Red Sox would only manage three hits in this game, one from Shane Victorino, and two from who else but Jose Iglesias, who is now hitting .451 on the season. Iglesias is a guy I have neglected to talk about, bt considering he was the only bat that showed up for this game, now is a good time.
Jose Iglesias is not some young phenom, he has been around for a while. In well over 200 career games in the minors, he has hit an even .200. After it was apparent the Sox wouldnt make the playoffs last year, Iglesias was promoted to the majors to see what he could do. The answer: not much. In 25 games last season, Iglesias managed just 8 hits, hitting .118 in those 25 games. Any chance Iglesias had at being a mainstay in the majors appeared gone after that performance. After an injury to Stepehen Drew in spring training, the Sox had no chance but to give Iglesias a second chance to play until Drew recovered. Iglesias shockingly took off, and no one really knows how in the world this guy has improved so well in such a short time. In 25 games this year, same sample size as last season, iglesias has an eye popping 37 hits and is hitting .451. He always plays incredible defense, always making amazing plays with the glove. When the season started, everyone thought Iglesias was here temporarily, but now it appears hes here to stay.
The MVP of the game has to go to Ryan Dempster, who took the loss but it was by no fault of his own. Dempster went 7.2 innings, allowing just five hits and two runs, an ERA of 2.50 for the game.
Chris Davis got the Os on the board with a solo shot in the second innings, his 22nd of the season, most in the majors. Adam Jones infield single with two outs in the third made the lead 2-0, and that would be all the offense they would need.
Just chalk this one up as cant win them all, one of those tough games that are inevitable in a long season. This offense is to good for them to play like this every night, so expect a bounceback, hopefully in the next game.
Jose Iglesias is not some young phenom, he has been around for a while. In well over 200 career games in the minors, he has hit an even .200. After it was apparent the Sox wouldnt make the playoffs last year, Iglesias was promoted to the majors to see what he could do. The answer: not much. In 25 games last season, Iglesias managed just 8 hits, hitting .118 in those 25 games. Any chance Iglesias had at being a mainstay in the majors appeared gone after that performance. After an injury to Stepehen Drew in spring training, the Sox had no chance but to give Iglesias a second chance to play until Drew recovered. Iglesias shockingly took off, and no one really knows how in the world this guy has improved so well in such a short time. In 25 games this year, same sample size as last season, iglesias has an eye popping 37 hits and is hitting .451. He always plays incredible defense, always making amazing plays with the glove. When the season started, everyone thought Iglesias was here temporarily, but now it appears hes here to stay.
The MVP of the game has to go to Ryan Dempster, who took the loss but it was by no fault of his own. Dempster went 7.2 innings, allowing just five hits and two runs, an ERA of 2.50 for the game.
Chris Davis got the Os on the board with a solo shot in the second innings, his 22nd of the season, most in the majors. Adam Jones infield single with two outs in the third made the lead 2-0, and that would be all the offense they would need.
Just chalk this one up as cant win them all, one of those tough games that are inevitable in a long season. This offense is to good for them to play like this every night, so expect a bounceback, hopefully in the next game.
Friday, June 14, 2013
Bats go cold as Sox lose 13 inning game 5-4
Baltimore blooped their way to a victory Thursday night, walking off to a 5-4 win, just the second time this season the Red Sox have been walked off on.
After Felix Doubront looked impressive for the Red Sox in the first two innings, not allowing a hit, things unraveled a bit in the third. Danny Valencia led off the inning with a home run to give Baltimore the early 1-0 lead. The Ryan Flaherty blooped a double that barely dropped signifying this may be a night where Boston may not get any luck. Then three straight singles, two of which were weak ground balls that barely got through the infield, and all of a sudden the lead balooned to 3-0.
In the top of the fourth, the Red Sox began to chip away at that lead, with back to back home runs From David Ortiz and Mike Carp to cut the lead to 3-2.
The lead would be increased back to 4-2 when Matt Wieters squeezed out a two out single in the fifth inning, another rough luck moment.
The Red Sox put their rally shoes on in the top of the seventh inning, starting off with three straight singles to load the bases with nobody out. Stephen Drew would follow up with a deep ball in the left field power alley, initally looking like it would get down for a double, but ending up hanging up long enough to be caught for a sacrifice fly, to cut the lead to 4-3. Then Jacoby Ellsbury barely beat out a double play, allowing the tying run to score. Unfortunately from the 8th-13th innings the Red Sox would not get a single hit, and only one baserunner, on a catchers interference call.
It would be a bullpen duel until the bottom of the 13th, when it looked like it may be an easy innings, Alex Wilson walked JJ hardy with two outs and nobody on. Then a single by Adam Jones moved Hardy to second, and a bloop single that barely fell from Chris Davis allowed Hardy to score and the game ended 5-4.
My MVP of this game for the Red Sox is going to be Andrew Miller. Miller threw two full innings, striking out four, and looked downright filthy his whole time out there. If he can continue to pitch that well, it will really go a long way to bolstering the pen.
Will Middlebrooks was the only player to record more than one hit for Boston, and one of his hits was pure luck, so it was not a flagship night for the Sox offense. Aside from back to back jacks, and three straight singles, it was actually a non existant night for the offense.
One positive from the offense, Mike Carps home run was his seventh of the year, making him to be on pace for about 20. I am shocked that Mike Carp has made such an impact on this offense. He is now hitting .330 on the season, and .441 in the month of June. Hes one example for why this team has been so good, guys not expected to produced have gone above and beyond.
With the win, the Orioles move into second place in the division, bumping the Yankees down to third.
After Felix Doubront looked impressive for the Red Sox in the first two innings, not allowing a hit, things unraveled a bit in the third. Danny Valencia led off the inning with a home run to give Baltimore the early 1-0 lead. The Ryan Flaherty blooped a double that barely dropped signifying this may be a night where Boston may not get any luck. Then three straight singles, two of which were weak ground balls that barely got through the infield, and all of a sudden the lead balooned to 3-0.
In the top of the fourth, the Red Sox began to chip away at that lead, with back to back home runs From David Ortiz and Mike Carp to cut the lead to 3-2.
The lead would be increased back to 4-2 when Matt Wieters squeezed out a two out single in the fifth inning, another rough luck moment.
The Red Sox put their rally shoes on in the top of the seventh inning, starting off with three straight singles to load the bases with nobody out. Stephen Drew would follow up with a deep ball in the left field power alley, initally looking like it would get down for a double, but ending up hanging up long enough to be caught for a sacrifice fly, to cut the lead to 4-3. Then Jacoby Ellsbury barely beat out a double play, allowing the tying run to score. Unfortunately from the 8th-13th innings the Red Sox would not get a single hit, and only one baserunner, on a catchers interference call.
It would be a bullpen duel until the bottom of the 13th, when it looked like it may be an easy innings, Alex Wilson walked JJ hardy with two outs and nobody on. Then a single by Adam Jones moved Hardy to second, and a bloop single that barely fell from Chris Davis allowed Hardy to score and the game ended 5-4.
My MVP of this game for the Red Sox is going to be Andrew Miller. Miller threw two full innings, striking out four, and looked downright filthy his whole time out there. If he can continue to pitch that well, it will really go a long way to bolstering the pen.
Will Middlebrooks was the only player to record more than one hit for Boston, and one of his hits was pure luck, so it was not a flagship night for the Sox offense. Aside from back to back jacks, and three straight singles, it was actually a non existant night for the offense.
One positive from the offense, Mike Carps home run was his seventh of the year, making him to be on pace for about 20. I am shocked that Mike Carp has made such an impact on this offense. He is now hitting .330 on the season, and .441 in the month of June. Hes one example for why this team has been so good, guys not expected to produced have gone above and beyond.
With the win, the Orioles move into second place in the division, bumping the Yankees down to third.
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Daniel Navas two run home run enough offense for Sox to hang on for 2-1 win.
Two months ago, Alfredo Aceves famously blamed the offense for a loss in which he pitched awfully in a 13-0 loss. After that game, Aceves was sent to the minors, and many Red Sox fans had hoped they would never have to see him on the mound in the majors again. But baseball is funny, it often provides second chances, and after a 14 inning game Monday left the Sox short on rested pitchers, they really had no other options but to give Aceves a start tonight.
Aceves ran with the opportunity, pitching 6 strong innings, allowing only one run, a homer from Evan Longoria, who homered in every game in the series. It wasnt without trouble. In the second, the Rays had the bases loaded, but Aceves got out of it. In the third, it was first and second for the Rays with zero outs, but Aceves got a double play and got out of that with zero runs as well.
Meanwhile, the Red Sox only offense of the game came about in an unlikely way. With two outs and nobody on in the third, Jacoby Ellsbury cracked a single. Two out singles are usually harmless and doesnt bother pitchers much, this one however would be different. Nava worked a long at bat before finally cracking a two run home run for a 2-0 lead. Twice in the inning the Rays were one strike away from the inning ending, and if they had done it, we may have seen a 1-0 game. For that two run blast, Daniel Nava earns MVP of the game.
Tonight was another example of why Daniel Nava should be an all star. This guy has become my favorite red sox player this year and one of my favorites ever. Nava is 30 years old, and just recently working as a fast food attendant. He had a minor league contract with the Indians, but the Indians cut him, and, after 28 other teams passed on claiming him, the Red Sox bought out his contract from the Indians for one dollar. Yes, one dollar!! He made the team this year mostly because of injuries, and has shown he should have been a major leaguer all along. Hes hitting .300 this year with nine home runs, and has the highest on base percentage on any outfielder in the entire league. He is the Sox second best hitter to Pedroia, in terms of grinding out at bats, working counts, and he draws a ton of walks. Hes also good with the glove, as he is pretty good out in left field. I love this guy.
So the Sox take a pretty sizable 5 game lead over the Rays in the standings. Up next is a four game set in Baltimore, against whom the sox currently own a 3.5 game lead against.
Aceves ran with the opportunity, pitching 6 strong innings, allowing only one run, a homer from Evan Longoria, who homered in every game in the series. It wasnt without trouble. In the second, the Rays had the bases loaded, but Aceves got out of it. In the third, it was first and second for the Rays with zero outs, but Aceves got a double play and got out of that with zero runs as well.
Meanwhile, the Red Sox only offense of the game came about in an unlikely way. With two outs and nobody on in the third, Jacoby Ellsbury cracked a single. Two out singles are usually harmless and doesnt bother pitchers much, this one however would be different. Nava worked a long at bat before finally cracking a two run home run for a 2-0 lead. Twice in the inning the Rays were one strike away from the inning ending, and if they had done it, we may have seen a 1-0 game. For that two run blast, Daniel Nava earns MVP of the game.
Tonight was another example of why Daniel Nava should be an all star. This guy has become my favorite red sox player this year and one of my favorites ever. Nava is 30 years old, and just recently working as a fast food attendant. He had a minor league contract with the Indians, but the Indians cut him, and, after 28 other teams passed on claiming him, the Red Sox bought out his contract from the Indians for one dollar. Yes, one dollar!! He made the team this year mostly because of injuries, and has shown he should have been a major leaguer all along. Hes hitting .300 this year with nine home runs, and has the highest on base percentage on any outfielder in the entire league. He is the Sox second best hitter to Pedroia, in terms of grinding out at bats, working counts, and he draws a ton of walks. Hes also good with the glove, as he is pretty good out in left field. I love this guy.
So the Sox take a pretty sizable 5 game lead over the Rays in the standings. Up next is a four game set in Baltimore, against whom the sox currently own a 3.5 game lead against.
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
Lester struggles yet again as Sox fall 8-3
After last nights long game, the Red Sox desperately wanted their supposed ace Jon Lester to take them deep into this game. Seven innings was preferred, but six would be acceptable. As it turned out, Lester only would give them four and two third innings, and four and two third crappy innings at that.
It looked early on like the bats for the sox would be on fire yet again to start the game, as Ellsbury and Victorino both singled to lead things off. Hernandez buckled down however, and only allowed one run out of that, on a Dustin Pedroia sac fly, giving Boston a 1-0 lead early on.
Lesters first inning was disastrous, as he walked four batters and threw nearly thirty pitchers, but thanks to a double play, he also only allowed one run, making the game a 1-1 score after an inning of work.
In the second Lester allowed a two out homer to deep left center to Desmond Jennings to give the Rays a 2-1 lead, quelling any chance of it being a solid innings work.
In the top of the third, with the bases loaded and two outs, Mike Napoli blooped a two out single to give the Sox a 3-2 lead, and it appeared we may be in for a back and forth game. Unfortunately, that would not be the case, as from here on out the Rays would dominate.
Lester gave the lead right back in the third, allowing four hits, a walk, and two runs, both with two outs, and the Rays again led 4-3.
The Red Sox would go down 1-2-3 in the 4th, and Longoria homered in the bottom of the inning, again with two outs, to give the Rays a 5-3 lead, Matt Joyce chased Lester with a two run homer in the fifth which made it a 7-3 lead, again with two outs.
From here Jose De La Torre, came in and pitched very well for the Sox. He went the remaining one and a third innings giving up only one run, and allowing the rest of the bullpen a rest. For that he earns MVP of the night.
A loss after the big win last night was pretty expected. The Rays simply dont get swept at home, so it was pretty inevitable. Its ok, onto the next one, rubber game tomorrow.
It looked early on like the bats for the sox would be on fire yet again to start the game, as Ellsbury and Victorino both singled to lead things off. Hernandez buckled down however, and only allowed one run out of that, on a Dustin Pedroia sac fly, giving Boston a 1-0 lead early on.
Lesters first inning was disastrous, as he walked four batters and threw nearly thirty pitchers, but thanks to a double play, he also only allowed one run, making the game a 1-1 score after an inning of work.
In the second Lester allowed a two out homer to deep left center to Desmond Jennings to give the Rays a 2-1 lead, quelling any chance of it being a solid innings work.
In the top of the third, with the bases loaded and two outs, Mike Napoli blooped a two out single to give the Sox a 3-2 lead, and it appeared we may be in for a back and forth game. Unfortunately, that would not be the case, as from here on out the Rays would dominate.
Lester gave the lead right back in the third, allowing four hits, a walk, and two runs, both with two outs, and the Rays again led 4-3.
The Red Sox would go down 1-2-3 in the 4th, and Longoria homered in the bottom of the inning, again with two outs, to give the Rays a 5-3 lead, Matt Joyce chased Lester with a two run homer in the fifth which made it a 7-3 lead, again with two outs.
From here Jose De La Torre, came in and pitched very well for the Sox. He went the remaining one and a third innings giving up only one run, and allowing the rest of the bullpen a rest. For that he earns MVP of the night.
A loss after the big win last night was pretty expected. The Rays simply dont get swept at home, so it was pretty inevitable. Its ok, onto the next one, rubber game tomorrow.
Game 66: Boston Red Sox (40-25) At Tampa Bay Rays (34-29)
Game 2 of 6 on Road Trip (1-0)
Game 8 of 19 Vs Rays (6-1)
Game 31 of 81 on the road (19-11)
After both teams emptying their bullpen and then some last night, the Rays and Sox will both hope for their starting pitchers to go deep into the game to give the pen a night off tonight. Luckily for the Red Sox, they have their ace on the mound, while the Rays have probably their weakest starting pitcher.
Jon Lester comes in with a 6-2 record and a 3.60 ERA. he will face Roberto Hernandez who is 3-6 with a 5.03 ERA. Advantage sox right? Well Lesters numbers are a bit deceiving, he hasnt been nearly as good lately. In April, Lester went 4-0 with a 3.11 ERA. In May, Lester was 2-2 with a 3.92 ERA. That number includes a complete game shutout, take that game out and Lesters ERA was 4.43 in May. Lester has made one start in June and allowed three runs in six innings against the Rangers. Lester is 0-1 with a 5.12 ERA in his last three starts, compared to Hernandez who is 1-2 with a 4.50 ERA over his past three starts.
Here are tonights lineups
Boston Red Sox
1. Jacoby Ellsbury:.280
2. Shane Victorino: .283
3. Dustin Pedroia: .331
4. David Ortiz: .314
5. Mike Napoli: .263
6. Daniel Nava: .300
7. Stephen Drew: .232
8. David Ross: .207
9. Jose Iglesias: .446
Tampa Bay Rays
1. Desmond Jennings: .247
2. Sean Rodriguez: .246
3. Ben Zobrist: .274
4. Evan Longoria: .305
5. Yunel Escobar: .254
6. James Loney: .327
7. Ryan Roberts: .238
8. Jose Molina: .239
9. Matt Joyce: .251
So David Ross gets the start at catcher to give Salty a night off after catching fourteen innings yesterday, no surprise there. Iglesias back at third for tonight after Middlebrooks went 1-7 yesterday in his first game back from injury. Mike Napoli is back in the five spot after his night off last night. Lots of changes for the Rays also. Jennings back to the leadoff spot, Kelly Johnson not in the lineup, Matt Joyce moves from leadoff to ninth, Escobar moves from ninth to fifth, and Ryan Roberts gets the start as well.
AL East Standings
1. Boston Red Sox: 40-25
2. New York Yankees: 37-26 2.0 GB
3. Baltimore Orioles: 36-28 3.5 GB
4. Tampa Bay Rays: 34-29 5.0 GB
5. Toronto Blue Jays: 27-36 12.0 GB
Game 8 of 19 Vs Rays (6-1)
Game 31 of 81 on the road (19-11)
After both teams emptying their bullpen and then some last night, the Rays and Sox will both hope for their starting pitchers to go deep into the game to give the pen a night off tonight. Luckily for the Red Sox, they have their ace on the mound, while the Rays have probably their weakest starting pitcher.
Jon Lester comes in with a 6-2 record and a 3.60 ERA. he will face Roberto Hernandez who is 3-6 with a 5.03 ERA. Advantage sox right? Well Lesters numbers are a bit deceiving, he hasnt been nearly as good lately. In April, Lester went 4-0 with a 3.11 ERA. In May, Lester was 2-2 with a 3.92 ERA. That number includes a complete game shutout, take that game out and Lesters ERA was 4.43 in May. Lester has made one start in June and allowed three runs in six innings against the Rangers. Lester is 0-1 with a 5.12 ERA in his last three starts, compared to Hernandez who is 1-2 with a 4.50 ERA over his past three starts.
Here are tonights lineups
Boston Red Sox
1. Jacoby Ellsbury:.280
2. Shane Victorino: .283
3. Dustin Pedroia: .331
4. David Ortiz: .314
5. Mike Napoli: .263
6. Daniel Nava: .300
7. Stephen Drew: .232
8. David Ross: .207
9. Jose Iglesias: .446
Tampa Bay Rays
1. Desmond Jennings: .247
2. Sean Rodriguez: .246
3. Ben Zobrist: .274
4. Evan Longoria: .305
5. Yunel Escobar: .254
6. James Loney: .327
7. Ryan Roberts: .238
8. Jose Molina: .239
9. Matt Joyce: .251
So David Ross gets the start at catcher to give Salty a night off after catching fourteen innings yesterday, no surprise there. Iglesias back at third for tonight after Middlebrooks went 1-7 yesterday in his first game back from injury. Mike Napoli is back in the five spot after his night off last night. Lots of changes for the Rays also. Jennings back to the leadoff spot, Kelly Johnson not in the lineup, Matt Joyce moves from leadoff to ninth, Escobar moves from ninth to fifth, and Ryan Roberts gets the start as well.
AL East Standings
1. Boston Red Sox: 40-25
2. New York Yankees: 37-26 2.0 GB
3. Baltimore Orioles: 36-28 3.5 GB
4. Tampa Bay Rays: 34-29 5.0 GB
5. Toronto Blue Jays: 27-36 12.0 GB
Red Sox win 10-8 in wild 14 inning affair
well, I could not have predicted a game like this as the first game of my daily red sox recaps. Nearly five years ago the Red Sox defeated the Rangers in a crazy 19-17 game. It is very possible this was the craziest Red Sox game since that 19-17 game. This game was insane from start to finish.
The game started with the Rays ace Alex Cobb on the mound. Cobb owned one of the best ERAs in the league coming into the game. The Red Sox didnt care. the first 8 Red sox of the game reached base, seven of them via hit, one on a walk. Before an out was even recorded in the game it was 6-0 Red Sox. Cobb finally got his first out on his 37th pitch of the night. Heading to the bottom of the first with a six run lead it the hope of many this would be an easy win for the Sox. No such luck. The Rays immediately cut into the lead with a leadoff home run. 6-1. The Longoria hit a home run two batters later. 6-2 after one inning. the Sox didnt get a hit in the second inning. 6-2 after two innings. The Sox didnt get a hit in the third inning. In the bottom of the third the Rays loaded the bases with no outs, seemingly setting up a big rally, but Lackey somehow got out of it allowing only one run. 6-3 after three innings. The Sox didnt get a hit in the fourth inning. In the bottom of the fourth the Rays contnued to chip away, striking for one more, 6-4 after four innings. The Red Sox finally picked up a pair of hits their first since the first inning, but failed to score. We headed to the seventh with still a 6-4 score. In the bottom of the 7th, James Loney hit a deep home run, the third of the night for the Rays and the score was now 6-5. Not hits for the Sox in the eighth. In the bottom of the 8th, the real craziness was about to begin.
With the tying run at third and Junichi Tazawa on the mound with two outs, Tazawa unloaded a wild pitch, allowing the tying run to score. 6-6. 6-0 lead blown. only two hits for the Sox in the past eight innings. We headed to extras tied at six, when in the tenth, Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit a two run single with two outs to give the Sox a 8-6 lead, and seemingly clinch the win. Andrew Bailey took the mound in the bottom of the tenth, and the nightmare begun. Jose Lobaton started the bottom of the tenth with a home run. 8-7. Then a walk, then another walk. then a single. Bases loaded, nobody out. Then another walk. 8-8, still bases loaded, still nobody out. At this point the game seemed over, but Bailey got a double play, then a groundout, and we headed to an eleventh inning tied at 8.
The 11th-13th innings saw very few chances for either team, then in the fourteenth a base hit from Daniel Nava gave the Sox a 9-8 lead, followed by an insurance hit from Salty to make it 10-8. After a leadoff single by the Rays in the bottom of the 14th, it seemed the craziness may continue. However, a fly out, followed by a double play, finally ended this one, 5 hours and 24 minutes after it started.
Adding to the craziness of this game was the benches clearing in the sixth inning after Lackey hit Matt Joyce with a pitch in the back. A brawl nearly broke out but thankfully didnt
To track the craziness of this game, fangraphs, which tracks win expectancy, gave the Sox a 97.4% chance of winning after the six run first inning. Then down to 27% after it was tied. Then up to 83% after the two run tenth. Then down to 6.9% with the bases loaded and no outs for the Rays in the tenth. Then back to win. Crazy
MVP of the Game: Jarrod Saltalamacchia: Salty followed up his two homer game Sunday by going 4-7 with 3 RBIS, all in extra innings.
Its hard to feel to good about this one because the Sox used way more pitchers than they would have liked. It promises to be a long, crazy summer, because I have a feeling there will be plenty more crazy AL East games like this with how tight the division race promises to be.
The game started with the Rays ace Alex Cobb on the mound. Cobb owned one of the best ERAs in the league coming into the game. The Red Sox didnt care. the first 8 Red sox of the game reached base, seven of them via hit, one on a walk. Before an out was even recorded in the game it was 6-0 Red Sox. Cobb finally got his first out on his 37th pitch of the night. Heading to the bottom of the first with a six run lead it the hope of many this would be an easy win for the Sox. No such luck. The Rays immediately cut into the lead with a leadoff home run. 6-1. The Longoria hit a home run two batters later. 6-2 after one inning. the Sox didnt get a hit in the second inning. 6-2 after two innings. The Sox didnt get a hit in the third inning. In the bottom of the third the Rays loaded the bases with no outs, seemingly setting up a big rally, but Lackey somehow got out of it allowing only one run. 6-3 after three innings. The Sox didnt get a hit in the fourth inning. In the bottom of the fourth the Rays contnued to chip away, striking for one more, 6-4 after four innings. The Red Sox finally picked up a pair of hits their first since the first inning, but failed to score. We headed to the seventh with still a 6-4 score. In the bottom of the 7th, James Loney hit a deep home run, the third of the night for the Rays and the score was now 6-5. Not hits for the Sox in the eighth. In the bottom of the 8th, the real craziness was about to begin.
With the tying run at third and Junichi Tazawa on the mound with two outs, Tazawa unloaded a wild pitch, allowing the tying run to score. 6-6. 6-0 lead blown. only two hits for the Sox in the past eight innings. We headed to extras tied at six, when in the tenth, Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit a two run single with two outs to give the Sox a 8-6 lead, and seemingly clinch the win. Andrew Bailey took the mound in the bottom of the tenth, and the nightmare begun. Jose Lobaton started the bottom of the tenth with a home run. 8-7. Then a walk, then another walk. then a single. Bases loaded, nobody out. Then another walk. 8-8, still bases loaded, still nobody out. At this point the game seemed over, but Bailey got a double play, then a groundout, and we headed to an eleventh inning tied at 8.
The 11th-13th innings saw very few chances for either team, then in the fourteenth a base hit from Daniel Nava gave the Sox a 9-8 lead, followed by an insurance hit from Salty to make it 10-8. After a leadoff single by the Rays in the bottom of the 14th, it seemed the craziness may continue. However, a fly out, followed by a double play, finally ended this one, 5 hours and 24 minutes after it started.
Adding to the craziness of this game was the benches clearing in the sixth inning after Lackey hit Matt Joyce with a pitch in the back. A brawl nearly broke out but thankfully didnt
To track the craziness of this game, fangraphs, which tracks win expectancy, gave the Sox a 97.4% chance of winning after the six run first inning. Then down to 27% after it was tied. Then up to 83% after the two run tenth. Then down to 6.9% with the bases loaded and no outs for the Rays in the tenth. Then back to win. Crazy
MVP of the Game: Jarrod Saltalamacchia: Salty followed up his two homer game Sunday by going 4-7 with 3 RBIS, all in extra innings.
Its hard to feel to good about this one because the Sox used way more pitchers than they would have liked. It promises to be a long, crazy summer, because I have a feeling there will be plenty more crazy AL East games like this with how tight the division race promises to be.
Monday, June 10, 2013
Game 65: Boston Red Sox (39-25) AT Tampa Bay Rays (34-28)
Game 1 of 6 on Road trip (0-0)
Game 7 of 19 Vs Rays (5-1)
Game 30 of 81 on the Road (18-11)
Well, here we are. 64 games into the season and the Red Sox are in first place. The good times are rolling at Fenway again and there's excitement in the air for the first time in a long time. The Red Sox are 5-2 so far in June and are hitting a jaw dropping .343 in those seven games as a team. Starting tonight, they open up ten straight games against division foes, so I thought this would be a good time to begin daily coverage of the Red Sox. So starting tonight, i will try to do previews and recaps of every Sox game. 98 games to go, can the Sox win just their second division title in my lifetime? Im still not convinced this will happen, but Im really starting to think a playoff berth is a likelihood for this team.
Tonight the Red Sox open up a three game series against the Rays at Tropicana Field. The Rays come into this game four games behind the Red Sox in the standings. As hot as the bats have been lately for the Sox, the bats have been ice cold against the Rays so far this season. In six games against the Rays Boston bats are hitting just .190 against Tampa. Despite this, the Red Sox have a 5-1 record against the Rays this year. This is the third of six series this year against the Rays and second of three at Tropicana Field.
The Pitching match up tonight is John Lackey vs Alex Cobb. Lackey, in the fourth year of his contract, has finally put together a decent season. He has just a 3-5 record, but has posted an impressive 2.79 ERA. He will face Alex Cobb who has a 6-2 record with a 2.39 ERA. He is 2-0 in his last three starts with a 1.21 ERA while Lackey is 1-1 in his last three starts with a 1.89 ERA. So we could have a pitchers duel tonight.
One thing that has been drastically different between this years Rays and last years Rays is offensive improvement. Last year the Rays finished 18th in runs scored and 27th in team batting average with a .240 average. This year they are 6th in runs scored and 9th in team average with a .260 average. this s puzzling because the lineup is basically the same as last years.
Now lets take a look at tonight lineups
Boston Red Sox
1. Ellsbury .279
2. Victorino: .280
3. Pedroia: .333
4. Ortiz: .322
5. Nava: .299
6. Carp: .318
7. Saltalamacchia: .273
8. Middlebrooks: .201
9. Drew: .234
Tampa Bar Rays
1. Joyce: .253
2. Zobrist: .260
3. Johnson: .260
4. Longoria: .306
5. Loney: .325
6. Scott: .230
7. Jennings: .246
8. Lobaton: .294
9. Escobar: .250
Whos hot for the Sox heading into this series: Jacoby Ellsbury continues to be red hot. Since his batting average bottomed out at .243 he is 16 for his last 32 for a .500 average over the past two weeks. Ortiz is also red hot with four home runs in the last seven games.Whos not? Mike Napoli, who went 3 for 21 on the homestand, and is getting the day off today to get a rest and hopefully break out of that slump.
Pitcher of the week: Every Monday we'll look at a pitcher of the week who had a great week pitching for the Sox. Junichi Tazawa is that pitcher this week, throwing three scoreless innings over the course of the week, and picking up the win on Thursday.
Now a look at the AL East standings heading into tonight's game
1. Boston Red Sox: 39-25
2. New York Yankees: 37-26 1.5 GB
3. Baltimore Orioles: 35-28 3.5 GB
4. Tampa Bay Rays: 34-28 4.0 GB
5. Toronto Blue Jays: 27-35 11.0 GB
Game 7 of 19 Vs Rays (5-1)
Game 30 of 81 on the Road (18-11)
Well, here we are. 64 games into the season and the Red Sox are in first place. The good times are rolling at Fenway again and there's excitement in the air for the first time in a long time. The Red Sox are 5-2 so far in June and are hitting a jaw dropping .343 in those seven games as a team. Starting tonight, they open up ten straight games against division foes, so I thought this would be a good time to begin daily coverage of the Red Sox. So starting tonight, i will try to do previews and recaps of every Sox game. 98 games to go, can the Sox win just their second division title in my lifetime? Im still not convinced this will happen, but Im really starting to think a playoff berth is a likelihood for this team.
Tonight the Red Sox open up a three game series against the Rays at Tropicana Field. The Rays come into this game four games behind the Red Sox in the standings. As hot as the bats have been lately for the Sox, the bats have been ice cold against the Rays so far this season. In six games against the Rays Boston bats are hitting just .190 against Tampa. Despite this, the Red Sox have a 5-1 record against the Rays this year. This is the third of six series this year against the Rays and second of three at Tropicana Field.
The Pitching match up tonight is John Lackey vs Alex Cobb. Lackey, in the fourth year of his contract, has finally put together a decent season. He has just a 3-5 record, but has posted an impressive 2.79 ERA. He will face Alex Cobb who has a 6-2 record with a 2.39 ERA. He is 2-0 in his last three starts with a 1.21 ERA while Lackey is 1-1 in his last three starts with a 1.89 ERA. So we could have a pitchers duel tonight.
One thing that has been drastically different between this years Rays and last years Rays is offensive improvement. Last year the Rays finished 18th in runs scored and 27th in team batting average with a .240 average. This year they are 6th in runs scored and 9th in team average with a .260 average. this s puzzling because the lineup is basically the same as last years.
Now lets take a look at tonight lineups
Boston Red Sox
1. Ellsbury .279
2. Victorino: .280
3. Pedroia: .333
4. Ortiz: .322
5. Nava: .299
6. Carp: .318
7. Saltalamacchia: .273
8. Middlebrooks: .201
9. Drew: .234
Tampa Bar Rays
1. Joyce: .253
2. Zobrist: .260
3. Johnson: .260
4. Longoria: .306
5. Loney: .325
6. Scott: .230
7. Jennings: .246
8. Lobaton: .294
9. Escobar: .250
Whos hot for the Sox heading into this series: Jacoby Ellsbury continues to be red hot. Since his batting average bottomed out at .243 he is 16 for his last 32 for a .500 average over the past two weeks. Ortiz is also red hot with four home runs in the last seven games.Whos not? Mike Napoli, who went 3 for 21 on the homestand, and is getting the day off today to get a rest and hopefully break out of that slump.
Pitcher of the week: Every Monday we'll look at a pitcher of the week who had a great week pitching for the Sox. Junichi Tazawa is that pitcher this week, throwing three scoreless innings over the course of the week, and picking up the win on Thursday.
Now a look at the AL East standings heading into tonight's game
1. Boston Red Sox: 39-25
2. New York Yankees: 37-26 1.5 GB
3. Baltimore Orioles: 35-28 3.5 GB
4. Tampa Bay Rays: 34-28 4.0 GB
5. Toronto Blue Jays: 27-35 11.0 GB
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