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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 8, 2022 2:46:14 GMT -5
Red Sox may have ace Gerrit Cole’s number but they could be in for a long weekend against Yankees By Peter Abraham Globe Staff,Updated July 8, 2022, 12:10 a.m.
It’s not exactly a bold statement to say the Yankees are going to win the American League East. They’re 60-23 and their closest competitor, the Tampa Bay Rays, are 14½ games behind.
So confident are the Yankees that manager Aaron Boone gave Aaron Judge the night off against the Red Sox on Thursday because of the dreaded lower-body soreness.
With Judge watching from the dugout, the Yankees beat the Sox, 6-5, before a crowd of 36,876, the largest of the season at Fenway Park.
But once the playoffs start, it won’t matter if the Yankees won 100, 110 or even 115 games. They’ll have to prove themselves all over again, especially if they draw the Red Sox at some point.
Counting the Wild Card Game last fall, ace righthander Gerrit Cole has started nine games against the Sox since joining the Yankees in 2020. He has a 5.27 ERA and has allowed 41 hits over 41 innings, nine of them home runs.
Cole had a 5-0 lead on Thursday before Rafael Devers belted a two-run homer to right field in the third inning and three-run shot to center in the fifth.
Devers is 6 for 23 against Cole in his career with six home runs and 15 RBIs.
“I’m open to suggestions,” Cole said when asked about facing Devers.
Cole also has a 5.85 ERA in eight career starts at Fenway including the playoff game last season. If the Red Sox can make their way to the postseason, they won’t be cowed by a matchup against the Yankees.
But that’s a question that defies predictions. After fighting to get back into contention for a playoff spot, the Sox have lost three straight and seven of 10.
They are 9-19 against teams in the division, getting outscored by 29 runs.
Rookie Josh Winckowski allowed five walks Thursday, three ahead of a grand slam by Josh Donaldson in the third inning. He gave up six runs.
What proved to be the winning run came in the fifth inning when Franchy Cordero fanned on a two-out popup between the mound and first base. It was a routine play he didn’t come close to making.
With Bobby Dalbec hitting .208, Cordero has made 31 starts at first base. He’s a defensive liability but the Sox believe in his potential at the plate.
It could be a long weekend. With Michael Wacha likely to go on the injured list, Connor Seabold gets the start Friday night. On Saturday, the Sox hope to use Kutter Crawford for four or five innings, either as a starter or following an opener.
Three consecutive rookies facing the Yankees is not ideal, especially with New York having Nestor Cortes set for Friday and Jordan Montgomery for Saturday.
Devers turned the game around Thursday, reaching down to crush a slider in the third inning then hammering a changeup in the fifth.
The Red Sox put the tying run on base twice but didn’t get another hit as Wandy Peralta, Michael King and the otherworldly Clay Holmes retired nine of 10 to finish the game.
Devers has 19 homers, 51 RBIs and a .985 OPS. That he doesn’t also have a lengthy contract extension at this stage of his career is something the Red Sox should be working feverishly to correct.
Those statistics aren’t a spike. That’s who he is. Last July 23, Devers also hit successive two-run and three-run homers against the Yankees at Fenway. The first was off Cole.
“He’s that good,” Sox manager Alex Cora said. “Raffy is a good player. Hopefully he’ll start in Dodger Stadium in a few weeks [in the All-Star Game].”
Devers wasn’t interested in talking about his home runs after the game.
“I can’t feel happy about tonight because we lost. That’s something that goes beyond everything else. I feel bad about tonight,” he said via an interpreter.”
That’s the right attitude for a Red Sox player to have after a loss against the Yankees. If the teams meet in October, the Sox will have confidence. But they have to get there first.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 8, 2022 2:48:31 GMT -5
Pete Abraham @peteabe · 7h Sox pitchers have 48 walks in their last 83.1 IP. Winckowski has 5 tonight.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 8, 2022 3:00:41 GMT -5
Red Sox notebook: Chris Sale likely to make season debut Tuesday at Rays Lefty suffered rib cage stress fracture in February
By Steve Hewitt | stephen.hewitt@bostonherald.com | Boston Herald PUBLISHED: July 7, 2022 at 7:00 p.m. | UPDATED: July 7, 2022 at 7:25 p.m.
Chris Sale’s time looks like it’s finally coming next week.
After Sale made his fourth rehab start in Worcester — a rough one in which he allowed five walks and was followed by an emotional outburst in the dugout tunnel — Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Thursday that the left-hander will make his next start on Tuesday. He didn’t specify definitively where, but indicated that it will come with the Red Sox, who will be at Tropicana Field against the Rays.
“There’s a good chance he’ll pitch with us,” Cora said.
Sale returned to Fenway Park on Thursday and threw a bullpen of around 15-20 pitches of all fastballs; the lefty said he was working on his direction a night after he lost his command in Worcester.
“I can tell you I’ve never in my life thrown a Day 1 bullpen and I did it today,” Sale said.” So knock on wood, my arm, I feel like it’s as strong as it could be. …
“I wasn’t expecting to do it today. But my arm feels whippy today. It felt good. If it feels good, I’m gonna use it. My next start is going to be … it doesn’t matter where my next start is actually, I’ve gotta be more sharp than I was last time out. That comes with reps. I just need more reps, get it done this week.”
Sale said that Wednesday’s outing — in which he threw just 42 of his 72 pitches for strikes — should benefit him in the long run.
“It’s obviously a thorn in the side, but working in traffic, right?” Sale said. “Having to work without your best command. Sometimes you’re not gonna have your best stuff. These are all things you’re just gonna have to deal with. And like I said, in hindsight, it’s almost better that that happened, that I had some high-leverage innings, runners on base, a lot of traffic and not working with my best of the best. It’s a character-building start. You roll with it and try to be better from it.” Wacha looks IL bound
Michael Wacha didn’t respond well to a bullpen he threw on Wednesday and is unlikely to make Friday’s start against the Yankees as he deals with a tired arm. Cora said they’re considering placing him on the injured list.
“He hasn’t been able to bounce back from bullpens or playing catch,” Cora said. “Nothing structural. We actually tested him. He had an MRI and all that and everything looks clean. Right now, just hasn’t been able to bounce back.”
Without Wacha, the Red Sox’ rotation — which is without Nathan Eovaldi and Rich Hill, who are both on the injured list — is in flux. Friday and Saturday’s starters are to be determined — Connor Seabold and Kutter Crawford seem to be in the mix to pitch significant innings — before Nick Pivetta takes Sunday’s start. Brayan Bello, who made his MLB debut in Wednesday’s loss to the Rays, will stay with the big-league club and likely start Monday’s game at the Rays.
Cora wasn’t concerned with the rookie facing the same lineup for the first two starts of his career.
“That’s the way the schedule works,” Cora said. “Somebody has to do it. It’s him. I think, yesterday, if you look at the whole thing, the changeup wasn’t great but the sinker was good. Two ground balls up the middle that went through and a pitch up in the zone that (Randy) Arozarena hit but that was it. He showed composure. The stuff is there. At one point in his career, he’s going to have to do that. He’ll be ready for that one.”
The Red Sox’ rotation is depleted, and they’re using a collection of Triple-A arms. That’s coming at a bad time, right in the middle of a tough stretch in which they’re playing no one but divisional teams. But Cora isn’t making excuses.
“From my end, we’ve got to keep rolling,” Cora said. “We have some kids that have to step up. It’s part of the equation. Last year, I don’t want to say we got lucky, but you don’t see that often, right? They stay healthy throughout the season? We just have to keep maneuvering and jabbing and moving around and trying to win games somehow, some way. Keep advancing and moving on. No one’s going to feel sorry for us.” Odds & ends
Garrett Whitlock (hip) is scheduled to pitch in Worcester on Friday, one or two innings. Kiké Hernandez (hip) will start a rehab assignment Friday in Worcester. Nathan Eovaldi (back) is slated to pitch three innings in Worcester on Sunday.
Cora isn’t sure yet if Eovaldi will only need one rehab outing before his return.
“We’ll see how it goes,” Cora said. “He’s been throwing. He’s been sound. It’s not an arm injury, but at the same time, you have to play the long game.” …
Reliever Tyler Danish was placed on the injured list with a right forearm strain. The Red Sox called up Triple-A pitcher Michael Feliz, who filled a 40-man roster spot that was empty after Hansel Robles was designated for assignment. …
Rafael Devers returned Thursday after missing two games with a sore hamstring and back. Yankees star Aaron Judge was out of Thursday’s lineup with lower body soreness.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 8, 2022 3:02:41 GMT -5
Lou Merloni @loumerloni · 5h Yankees bullpen is lights out. The last 2 years watching what the Sox have put out there has to be the most frustrating part of the Chaim Bloom experience.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 8, 2022 3:09:24 GMT -5
Red Sox Stats @redsoxstats · 7h Almost 0 quality strikes so far. Bad misses or over the heart of the plate.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 8, 2022 3:16:03 GMT -5
Yankees @ Red Sox Friday 8th July 2022 7pm @ Fenway Park
Cortes 7-3/2.44
Seabold 0-0/8.31
Red Sox search for answers against Yankees FLM
Prior to Thursday, the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees hadn't met since April 10.
So much has changed since the Red Sox salvaged the last of three games in New York on that date.
The Yankees have surged to the top of the major leagues, becoming the first team to 60 wins with their 6-5 triumph on Thursday in Boston. At the same time, the Red Sox remain in wild-card contention thanks in large part to a 20-6 June.
The four-game series between the archrivals continues on Friday, and Red Sox manager Alex Cora knows that every game from here on out will be a measuring stick.
"We won 45 games in the first half and we know where we're at in the standings and what we have to do," Cora said leading into the series. "Obviously, disappointed that this is the way we've been playing in the division, but we know we can hang with them, we can play better baseball and we can start winning games."
The Red Sox have work to do. After losing two of three to the Tampa Bay Rays earlier this week, they are 0-8 in series against American League East opponents this season.
Boston third baseman Rafael Devers did his part Thursday, hitting two home runs in a game for the second time this season and driving in all five runs off Yankees starter Gerrit Cole.
"The stage, he doesn't get caught up in the whole thing," Cora said. "He enjoys playing baseball and helping his team to win. Probably down there he's upset that we didn't win. He did everything."
Friday's game marked the first of two original "TBA" slots in Boston's rotation. It will be filled with right-hander Connor Seabold (0-1, 8.31 ERA), as Michael Wacha could be headed to the injured list with what Cora called "dead arm" earlier this week.
Left-hander Nestor Cortes (7-3, 2.44 ERA) is set to take the ball for New York, making his second career start against the Red Sox. In seven overall appearances vs. Boston, he has no decisions and an 8.16 ERA.
Cortes is coming off a Saturday win at Cleveland in which he struck out six across six innings of three-hit, one-run ball. It was his first victory since June 15 as he had allowed three and four runs in his two prior starts.
Despite posting a mediocre 4.15 ERA in June, Cortes is happy with his current form.
"My body is in a good place," said Cortes, who had a 1.50 ERA over his first 10 starts. "My arm is in a good place. Mentally, I'm good. It's a matter of riding the wave."
His only start against Boston came on Sept. 25, 2021, when he allowed two runs on four hits in 4 1/3 innings during a no-decision.
Seabold has three major league appearances (all starts) but none against the Yankees. He had a no-decision against the Chicago White Sox last September, lost to the Toronto Blue Jays on June 27 and then had a no-decision against the Cubs on Sunday, when he gave up one run in four innings.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone expects his team will see the best side of the Red Sox throughout the weekend.
"It's not surprising they're playing well and they're putting themself right back in the middle of the race," Boone said this week. "I think they're just reverting back to their baseball card as a team, who they are."
New York first baseman Anthony Rizzo (back soreness) and center fielder/designated hitter Aaron Judge (lower-body soreness) were both out of Thursday's lineup. The Yankees made up for it thanks to back-to-back homers by Josh Donaldson -- a grand slam -- and Aaron Hicks in the third inning.
Boone hopes Judge will be set to return on Friday.
--Field Level Media
Yankees at Red Sox Friday, at 7:10 PM EST Cloudy According to Forecast.io, it's expected to be 77° F with a 2% chance of rain and 8 MPH wind blowing out in Boston at 7:10 PM EST. Hourly Forecasts: Weather.com Forecast.io
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 8, 2022 8:51:24 GMT -5
Red Sox Stats @redsoxstats · 1h The 7-game winning streak has been followed by 3-7 over the next ten games, with the middle of the order struggling
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 8, 2022 8:52:23 GMT -5
Red Sox Stats @redsoxstats · 48m Nestor Cortes is pitching for the Yankees tonight, this year lefties are hitting .116/.156/.186 against him. Seems likely that Dalbec, Arroyo, and Refsnyder will all be in the lineup playing for lefties.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 8, 2022 9:52:03 GMT -5
Outside of Rafael Devers, a dreadful night to begin a dreary-seeming weekend for Red Sox
By Jon Couture July 8, 2022 | 10:25 AM
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COMMENTARY
Turns out Rafael Devers cannot beat the Yankees by himself. Red Sox brass would be wise to write that down for a potential arbitration rebuttal next spring.
I kid, of course. Franchy Cordero helped out on Thursday night as well, though the two rockets he hit just went for a fifth-inning double and a sixth-inning lineout that just about took Gerrit Cole’s glove off.
Not quite Devers’s two home runs, Nos. 5 and 6 for him off the all-world Cole. Oh, and there was also Cordero’s misplayed pop fly that ultimately scored the critical New York run in a 6-5 loss.
“I know [Cordero] doesn’t have a ton of experience in the infield,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone told reporters. “It kind of drifted on him a little bit. He was wary of the catcher, then you start scrambling and it’s too late.”
It’s fine. Really. Because it sure feels too late.
Trailing the Yankees by 15 games with half the season gone, the Red Sox catching them has felt off the table for weeks, to the point we’ve all just sort of accepted it. (Boston’s 20-6 June actually lost ground to New York’s 22-6, an absurd point I can’t help but repeat.)
And the idea this series is some sort of measuring stick or tone setter for the second half? Thanks to injuries, the Red Sox started Josh Winckowski on Thursday night, they’re starting Connor Seabold on Friday with Michael Wacha likely going to the injured list, Kutter Crawford looks in line for a majority of the innings Saturday . . . even with the Yankees sitting Aaron Judge and Anthony Rizzo in cautionary calls Thursday, yeesh.
It’s not a representative sample. Or maybe it is, given I think we all knew Wacha and Rich Hill weren’t likely to make 30-plus starts. Either way, this series might be of most value to those who appreciate history, given what New York is doing.
Boston had nine baserunners against Cole and three relievers, putting just three in scoring position in one of the most lopsided one-run games you’re ever going to see. The last ball any Red Sox not named Devers or Cordero hit with any authority was in the fourth inning.
Given the score, Boone called on lockdown-closer Clay Holmes for the ninth, the one-time class valedictorian who’s spun his potential-laden heavy stuff while in Pittsburgh to being the best closer in the game in less than a year. It hardly felt necessary.
So began a potentially defining aspect the rest of the way: Sixteen of the final 80 games of the season are against the Yankees, a gift only if New York opts not to chase 120 wins and starts lining up its playoff rotation on Aug. 1.
Given that pitching array, it feels reasonably safe to assume this will become the ninth straight American League East series the Red Sox don’t win. It’s a profound stat: The Red Sox are 9-19 against division foes, and 36-19 against everyone else. San Francisco is the only other .500 team who comes close to that futility, and it’s barely — they’re 12-12 in the NL West, and 29-28 beyond it.
It still doesn’t feel like a fair assessment of things, given Boston is a better-than-.500 team against better-than-.500 competition. Those 19 division losses include seven with a blown save and eight of their 13 one-run losses for the year — five of those overlap. But I’m reminded of that old line about financial markets, how they “can stay irrational longer than you can stay solvent.”
“We have some kids that have to step up. It’s part of the equation,” manager Alex Cora told reporters. “We just have to keep maneuvering and jabbing and moving around and trying to win games somehow, some way.”
They need 90 of them, somehow, some way, and they’ve clawed half of them already with 79 games left. Splitting half of their remaining 48 within the East — 15 against New York, 13 with Tampa, 11 with Baltimore, nine with Toronto — would mean they need to close 21-10 against an out-of-division array that includes contenders Houston, Minnesota, and Milwaukee, but also Kansas City, Pittsburgh, and Cincinnati.
Silly conversation for July, of course. But it was this or, spinning off Josh “Wrigley Field is stock standard” Winckowski pooh-poohing the 60-23 Yankees after they tagged him for six runs, mocking up an alternate career where he becomes a food critic unable to be impressed.
I suppose there are worse setups for a weekend than zero expectations, against a team so far ahead, in a league so structured toward ginning up competition among the second-rate, that even a single victory will feel like something.
Getting that single win, however, is no sure thing if Friday was any indication.
Unless they figure out how to get Rafael Devers up 12 times or so.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 8, 2022 13:45:52 GMT -5
Game 84: Yankees at Red Sox lineups and pregame notesBy Matt Pepin Globe Staff,Updated July 8, 2022, 9:27 a.m. After a solid month of June in which the Red Sox went 20-6 and surged into contention for a playoff spot, they’ve cooled off in July. The Red Sox have won just two of seven games this month. On Thursday, Rafael Devers did his part with a pair of home runs, but the Yankees held off the Red Sox to take the first game of the four-game set at Fenway Park. The Red Sox will turn to righthander Connor Seabold to start Friday’s game because scheduled starter Michael Wacha is not ready to return from an arm issue. Here’s a preview: Lineups YANKEES (60-23): 1. DJ LeMahieu (R) 1B 2. Aaron Judge (R) DH 3. Matt Carpenter (L) LF 4. Gleyber Torres (R) 2B 5. Josh Donaldson (R) 3B 6. Aaron Hicks (S) CF 7. Jose Trevino (R) C 8. Marwin Gonzalez (S) SS 9. Joey Gallo (L) RF Pitching: LHP Nestor Cortes (7-3, 2.44 ERA) RED SOX (45-38): 1. Rob Refsnyder (R) CF 2. Rafael Devers (L) 3B 3. J.D. Martinez (R) DH 4. Xander Bogaerts (R) SS 5. Christian Vazquez (R) C 6. Alex Verdugo (L) LF 7. Trevor Story (R) 2B 8. Christian Arroyo (R) RF 9. Bobby Dalbec (R) 1B Pitching: RHP Connor Seabold (0-1, 8.31 ERA) Time: 7:10 p.m. TV, radio: Amazon, NESN, WEEI-FM 93.7 Yankees vs. Seabold: Has not faced any New York batters Red Sox vs. Cortes: Christian Arroyo 0-1, Xander Bogaerts 1-7, Jackie Bradley Jr. 2-3, Bobby Dalbec 0-3, Rafael Devers 2-6, Jarren Duran 1-1, J.D. Martinez 0-5, Kevin Plawecki 2-2, Rob Refsnyder 1-3, Alex Verdugo 0-1, Christian Vázquez 2-5 Stat of the day: The Red Sox are 11-13 in one-run games this season. Notes: The Yankees became the first team to 60 wins with their victory on Thursday ... Cortes will make his second career start against the Red Sox. In seven overall appearances vs. Boston, he has no decisions and an 8.16 ERA ... Cortes is coming off a Saturday win at Cleveland in which he struck out six across six innings of three-hit, one-run ball. It was his first victory since June 15 ... Seabold has three major league appearances (all starts), but none against the Yankees. He had a no-decision against the Chicago White Sox last September, lost to the Toronto Blue Jays on June 27 and then had a no-decision against the Cubs on Sunday, when he gave up one run in four innings ... Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo (back soreness) and center fielder/designated hitter Aaron Judge (lower-body soreness) were both out of Thursday’s lineup. Yankees manager Aaron Boone hopes Judge will be able to return on Friday. Song of the Day: R.E.M. - Man On The Moon www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLxpNiF0YKs
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Post by Kimmi on Jul 8, 2022 14:10:45 GMT -5
Bill Koch @billkoch25 · 5h
#RedSox are 45-38. The Yankees scored the winning run on an infield pop that dropped for an RBI double.
My annoyance level with the Sox' inability to beat the AL East, especially the Yankees, is off the charts.
Another one run loss, due to a dropped infield pop up. This is why you can't really base much on wins and losses in close games.
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Post by Kimmi on Jul 8, 2022 14:12:50 GMT -5
Devers dominant when facing Yankees' ace Raffy homers twice, now has 6 vs. Cole: 'I just see him as a normal pitcher' Devers just does not give a $*@!!#.
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Post by Kimmi on Jul 8, 2022 14:13:51 GMT -5
Pete Abraham @peteabe · 7h Sox pitchers have 48 walks in their last 83.1 IP. Winckowski has 5 tonight. This could be a problem.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 8, 2022 14:29:43 GMT -5
Pete Abraham @peteabe · 7h Sox pitchers have 48 walks in their last 83.1 IP. Winckowski has 5 tonight. This could be a problem. It has been since ST hell, I get called out for naming them the gas can gang Black hole production at 1B is a killer, and the defense there last night angered the baseball gods The OF is a mess, i love Arroyo but there is no way in hell he should be in the OF, and we will likely see why in about 4 hours.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 8, 2022 14:40:25 GMT -5
Alex Speier @alexspeier · 2h Both Kiké Hernández and Garrett Whitlock have been added to the WooSox roster to start their rehab assignments.
Also: The WooSox announce that Nate Eovaldi is expected to start for them on Sunday.
.@jaynabardahl talked to Eovaldi and Plawecki after Eovaldi’s recent two simulated innings. Eovaldi looked very sharp in that setting - 2 innings, up to 96, good action on the whole mix, changed tempo in game-like fashion
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