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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 18, 2023 13:22:14 GMT -5
Red Sox @ Padres Friday, May 19th 2023 940pm @ Petco Park
Paxton 0-0/ 3.60
Snell 1-5/ 4.61
Friday, May 19, 2023 at 9:40pm EDT Written by The Admiral
Boston Red Sox (24-20) vs. San Diego Padres (20-24)
The 2023 MLB season continues Friday, May 19, with the Boston Red Sox taking on the San Diego Padres in the interleague showdown at Petco Park in San Diego, California, and the first pitch is set for 9:40 PM ET.
These two foes meet for the first time since 2019 when Boston won two out of three games in San Diego. The Padres open as -145 moneyline favorites, while the totals are listed at 9.0 runs.
The Sawx aim for their third win on the spin The Boston Red Sox are coming off Wednesday’s 12-3 thrashing of the Seattle Mariners. They clinched a three-game set at home to break out of their mini-slump, as the Red Sox were swept by the St. Louis Cardinals in a three-game home series last weekend. Boston started the Mariners series with a heavy 10-1 defeat but bounced back with a 9-4 win in the middle contest.
The Sawx boast the third-highest scoring offense in the majors, tallying 5.64 runs per game. They lead the MLB in doubles (100) and rank third in OPS (.793). The Red Sox are 9-6 in May, slashing .299/.359/.480 with 18 home runs and 39 extra-base hits across 521 at-bats. Masataka Yoshida is hitting a majestic .340/.397/.566 with two homers, five extra-base hits, and 12 RBI this month, while Justin Turner is 18-for-56 with three dingers and nine RBI over his last 15 appearances.
James Paxton will get the starting call Friday in San Diego. The 34-year-old left-hander made his season debut last Friday, throwing five innings of a two-run ball in a no-decision against the Cardinals. He fanned nine while scattering four hits. It was Paxton’s first appearance since 2021 when he landed on the injury list after getting just four outs in his season debut with the Seattle Mariners.
The Padres continue to let down their fans The San Diego Padres are the biggest disappointment of the 2023 season given their massive payroll and lineup full of superstars. They’ve only won two of their previous 11 games overall while losing four consecutive series in the process. Last Wednesday, they suffered a 4-3 defeat to the lowly Kansas City Royals and dropped a three-game home set.
San Diego is scoring just 3.91 runs per game (26th in the majors) on a poor .226/.317/.382 slash line (.248/.321/.408 league average). The Padres are hitting .225/.323/.348 with 11 home runs and 27 extra-base hits across 494 at-bats in May which is horrendous. Juan Soto has improved lately, tallying 19 hits, ten doubles, two homers, and nine RBI in his last 56 at-bats, while Ha-Seong Kim is 13-for-46 with a pair of round-trippers and nine RBI this month. The Padres continue to let down their fans The San Diego Padres are the biggest disappointment of the 2023 season given their massive payroll and lineup full of superstars. They’ve only won two of their previous 11 games overall while losing four consecutive series in the process. Last Wednesday, they suffered a 4-3 defeat to the lowly Kansas City Royals and dropped a three-game home set.
San Diego is scoring just 3.91 runs per game (26th in the majors) on a poor .226/.317/.382 slash line (.248/.321/.408 league average). The Padres are hitting .225/.323/.348 with 11 home runs and 27 extra-base hits across 494 at-bats in May which is horrendous. Juan Soto has improved lately, tallying 19 hits, ten doubles, two homers, and nine RBI in his last 56 at-bats, while Ha-Seong Kim is 13-for-46 with a pair of round-trippers and nine RBI this month.
Blake Snell will be on the bump Friday, and the 30-year-old southpaw is 1-5 with a 4.61 ERA, 1.54 WHIP, and 43/25 K/BB ratio in eight starts (41 innings pitched) this season. Snell has allowed a couple of earned runs in four of his previous five showings. Last Friday, he tossed six frames of a two-run ball in a no-decision against the Los Angeles Dodgers, allowing four hits and four walks while punching out four. Snell is now in the 12th percentile in walk percentage and the 22nd percentile in expected slugging percentage.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 18, 2023 13:23:05 GMT -5
Boston is off Thursday. Here’s the schedule (and the pitching probables) for this weekend’s series against Xander Bogaerts and the Padres.
Friday, 9:40 p.m. ET -- LHP James Paxton (0-0, 3.60 ERA) vs. LHP Blake Snell (1-5, 4.61 ERA)
Saturday, 10:10 p.m. ET -- LHP Chris Sale (3-2, 5.40 ERA) vs. RHP Joe Musgrove (1-1, 6.63 ERA)
Sunday, 4:10 p.m. ET -- RHP Corey Kluber (2-5, 6.41 ERA) vs. RHP Michael Wacha (4-1, 4.06 ERA)
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 18, 2023 13:24:12 GMT -5
Pete Abraham @peteabe · 18m #RedSox announce they optioned LHP Ryan Sherriff to AAA. Opens a spot for Kutter Crawford to come off the IL.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 18, 2023 13:27:27 GMT -5
Rafael Devers is looking forward to seeing Xander Bogaerts, even in a different uniform By Alex Speier Globe Staff,Updated May 18, 2023, 54 minutes ago
For most of six seasons in Boston, Rafael Devers and Xander Bogaerts seemed attached by Velcro. They were neighbors in the lineup, in the infield, in the clubhouse. They were generally inseparable from the time they arrived at the ballpark until the time they left — and sometimes not even then.
And so, this season has been one in which Devers encounters a palpable void every day when he shows up to work. Bogaerts is now in San Diego after signing an 11-year, $280 million deal in the winter. Devers remains in Boston as the anchor of the Red Sox thanks to the 10-year, $313.5 million extension that he signed.
On Friday, when the Padres and Red Sox kick off a three-game series in San Diego’s Petco Park, the two will once again be together at a ballpark, but under very different circumstances, with Devers getting his first in-person look at Bogaerts in a Padres uniform.
“It’s going to feel a little bit weird because we spent so much time together playing here with the Red Sox,” Devers said through translator Carlos Villoria-Benítez. “It’s going to feel a little bit off.”
The two remain close. Devers said he and Bogaerts call each other every day, discussing what they see in each other in games but also the rhythms of their lives.
Still, even with daily check-ins, the dynamic has changed.
“Of course it feels weird to not be able to talk to him every day here and just do it over the phone,” Devers said. “It’s obviously something different and weird, but I’m glad the place that he is right now.
“The good thing is the relationship didn’t stop when he left. That’s the thing that I’m really happy about, that we kept that relationship and we still have that good relationship.”
And at 26, Devers is mature enough to accept that the business of the game requires adjusting to shifting relationships. He expresses happiness for both his good friend and his own situation.
“He is a great player with a great contract,” said Devers. “I’m really happy here with a great contract. For both of us, I think it worked very well.”
Teammates describe Devers’s bubbly, joyfully competitive personality as unchanged by the shifting circumstances of his career and financial outlook.
“Same guy. That’s a term of endearment,” said infielder Christian Arroyo. “He’s still the same Raffy.”
Yet there are subtle differences that suggest Devers has a growing voice within the team. He was extremely deferential to Bogaerts and J.D. Martinez, the little brother who relied on his more experienced siblings to assume the largest voices in the room.
With both gone, Devers has been a more active contributor in several settings.
“It’s a change of perspective,” said third base coach Carlos Febles. “He knows he’s the guy. That’s the bottom line. He still eats the humble pie, and it’s not like he’s acting different because of his contract. But he knows, like, ‘I’m the man now. There’s no J.D. here. There’s not a Bogey anymore. It’s me.’
“He’s more vocal in meetings. Whenever he’s got something, he says it now. He might go through two weeks without saying anything, but when he does, people definitely listen.
“It might be about approach, like saying, ‘You have to step on this guy’s neck,’ or, ‘The catcher’s framing, so get on top of him so the umpire can’t see it.’ Stuff like that.”
Kiké Hernández noted that Devers speaks up more in the clubhouse, in the batting cage, and during mound visits.
“You can tell he’s a little more comfortable talking and he’s showing a little bit more mature side of him,” said Hernández. “He’s showing more of a leader role.”
Even Bogaerts is aware of the shift.
“That’s my guy. I’m proud of him,” said Bogaerts. “He’s taking on a bigger role now after getting his contract, talking to other players or [the media] and getting comfortable with speaking English.
While his role in the team’s culture is shifting, Devers’s place in the heart of the Red Sox lineup remains unchanged.
“He’s still the threat in the middle of our order,” said hitting coach Pete Fatse. “He’s the guy everyone has circled. And obviously he’s a big part of what we’re doing here.”
In some ways, it has been an uneven start to the season for Devers. He is crushing the ball with metronomic regularity to all fields. His average exit velocity is currently 93.0 m.p.h.; he has averaged between 92.9 and 93.1 every year since 2020.
His power numbers remain impressive. Devers has 11 homers (tied for sixth in baseball), and his brilliance with runners on base (.329/.377/.711 with a 13 percent strikeout rate) has helped him drive in 40 runs, second in the big leagues. Yet Devers frowned when taking stock of his overall performance en route to a .259/.304/.524 line.
“I have good numbers, but I don’t feel comfortable with those numbers,” he said. “I’m an average hitter as well. I think that I have more to give and to improve. I haven’t felt 100 percent in the box. I haven’t felt really comfortable.
“That’s something that, when everything clicks, I’m going to get really hot. I’m looking forward to that day.”
While that remains his primary focus, Devers is also looking forward to Friday — and the chance to once again be at the ballpark with his good friend.
“I’m excited and looking forward to that game,” he said.
Peter Abraham of the Globe staff contributed to this report.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 18, 2023 13:31:31 GMT -5
Xander Bogaerts has no regrets about leaving Red Sox, even as Padres struggle to meet high expectations By Peter Abraham Globe Staff,Updated May 18, 2023, 7:54 a.m.
SAN DIEGO — The smiling face of Xander Bogaerts looks out over 10th Avenue from a billboard hanging high up on the side of Petco Park, a bat resting on his shoulder.
Venture inside and you can purchase three different versions of his No. 2 Padres jersey. Sales have been brisk based on an unscientific postgame survey of passing fans taken from the patio at Social Tap, a sports bar with views of the ballpark.
“There’s a lot of excitement here,” said Bogaerts, the new shortstop in town after playing 10 seasons with the Red Sox. “At Fenway Park, they’re used to success and winning. They’re anxious for that here.”
That feeling — along with $280 million over 11 years — lured Bogaerts to the Padres. He’s now part of a lineup that includes Manny Machado, Juan Soto, and Fernando Tatis Jr.
In an exclusive interview with the Globe before playing against his former team for the first time Friday night, Bogaerts said he has no regrets about leaving the Red Sox as a free agent. He sees that as management’s decision, not his.
“I talk to my guys there all the time, the players and coaches, almost every day,” he said. “That team will always be a part of me. But once I could meet with other teams, I saw what they thought of me. I really had no choice in the end.”
Bogaerts now wakes up with a view of boats bobbing in the Pacific Ocean through the window of his apartment on Coronado Island, a short drive from the ballpark.
“I can’t complain about that,” he said.
But true to his deliberate nature, Bogaerts decided to rent and get to know the area first before deciding where to buy a house.
“I definitely need a house,” he said. “I’m going to be here for a long time.”
His mother and siblings have taken turns making the trip from Aruba to visit.
“It’s been cool,” Bogaerts said. “I like having my family around. I don’t really have any buddies here yet. Obviously, I know everybody on the team. But the off-the-field stuff, that will come over time. I won’t rush it. That time will come.”
The on-the-field stuff has been more awkward. A team built to contend for a championship is 20-24 with losses in seven of its last eight games.
The Padres, who have a $246 million payroll, were frequently and loudly booed in the final innings of a 4-3 loss to the Kansas City Royals Wednesday.
“I don’t blame them,” manager Bob Melvin said. “There’s a lot of expectations on us and we’re not performing right now.”
The seventh inning was typical of San Diego’s frustrating season.
Down by a run, the Padres loaded the bases with one out. Trent Grisham struck out looking against Aroldis Chapman. With Bogaerts on deck, Chapman threw a high fastball past catcher Salvador Perez.
Soto broke for the plate as the ball ricocheted off the backstop right back to Perez. Soto was out by 10 feet and heard it from the fans.
The Padres held a lengthy team meeting after the game, the doors to the clubhouse remaining closed for 31 minutes.
The Bob Marley classic “Three Little Birds” was playing on the sound system when reporters were allowed in. But the notion that every little thing’s gonna be all right with the Padres is grounded more in hope than reality at the moment.
“We have to clean a lot of stuff up and pay better attention to detail,” Bogaerts said. “I don’t have to say what it is. You can look at the games. I don’t fault the effort, but we have to be better.”
The Padres also learned Wednesday that they could be without Machado for the Red Sox series. He has missed the last two games with a small metacarpal fracture in his left hand.
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” Machado said when asked when he could return.
Bogaerts has reached base in 41 of 43 games and leads the Padres in runs (25) and hits (44). He also has played well defensively.
But he is 6 for 39 (.154) with runners in scoring position and his .805 OPS is well below the .845 he averaged during his last seven seasons in Boston.
“If you look at all-around, I’ve been good,” Bogaerts said. “But I started out really well, then left my swing in Mexico when we played there. It’s been a constant battle since. I went through that last year also.
“It’s like my mind wants to do one thing and my body does something else. That is really frustrating because my plan and my approach have been good.”
Has his contract created pressure?
“No. Not yet,” Bogaerts said. “It hasn’t. But I know I can play better.”
The Padres have yet to win a World Series and their last National League pennant was in 1998. Bogaerts grew up playing for a franchise now defined by its success. Here the story has yet to be written.
“They brought Bogey in here to put them over the top,” said Jake Peavy, the former Padres ace who played with Bogaerts in Boston. “He has that championship credibility, that leadership. They’re hungry to win there, from ownership on down.”
In a clubhouse with some high-maintenance personalities, Melvin saw Bogaerts as a perfect fit.
“Xander is fantastic,” he said. “He was in Boston for so long, but two days into spring training you feel like he’s been here for quite a while.
“Very impactful, hard-working, an elite player. He comes as advertised, and there aren’t many guys you can say that about.”
Melvin, who has managed four teams over 20 seasons, tends to let players dictate the relationship they want to have with him.
“From the day he had his press conference [in December], it was comfortable,” Melvin said. “He’s a true pro. One of the really unique people in the game.”
Bogaerts joked that he will try to bunt for a hit against Rafael Devers this weekend.
“It’s going to be fun for me to see them, not sad,” he said. “We all know this is a business. We have to beat them.
“When I played there, I thought I’d be there forever. But as you get older, as you grow up, life changes. Decisions are made that are out of your control. In the end, the relationships that you build are what matters.
“There ain’t no looking back now, I’ll tell you that.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 18, 2023 17:37:57 GMT -5
A Red Sox reunion in San Diego this weekend 5:16 PM ADT Ian Browne
Ian Browne @ianmbrowne ;
They played the big brother/little brother thing to perfection for five-and-a-half seasons in the heart of the Boston batting order and on the left side of the infield.
Xander Bogaerts was the teacher and Rafael Devers was the pupil, and they fed off each other while combining to mash opposing pitching staffs.
Friday at Petco Park will represent something very different for both. For the first time, they will play on opposite sides.
“Of course, it’s going to feel a little bit weird because we spent so much time together playing here with the Red Sox and it's going to feel a little bit off, but at the same time, it’s just baseball and we need to adjust,” Devers said. “We’ll see what happens. I'm excited and looking forward to that game on Friday.”
This past winter, both landed contracts they could only dream of when they were learning how to play the game. The only drawback was they couldn’t stay together.
The 30-year-old Bogaerts landed an 11-year, $280 million contract with the Padres, ending an association with the Red Sox that started when he was signed out of Aruba as a 16-year-old in 2009. A month later, the Red Sox, facing backlash from their passionate fanbase for losing Bogaerts, quelled the masses to some extent by extending the 26-year-old Devers with an 11-year, $331 million pact.
“This is a business and I think everybody makes a decision, and he doesn’t have to look back to see whether he made the right decision or not,” Devers said. “I think he's a great player with a great contract. I'm really happy here with a great contract. I think both of us did very well.”
Though now in different uniforms, they remain the best of friends.
“We talk every day,” Devers said.
The topic is very often baseball.
“We always go back and forth. When he sees something in my game, like, say, these last few games, they’ve been throwing a lot of sliders, he will tell me that. I’ll get back to him and let him know anything that I see in his games,” Devers said. “It’s a good relationship, and we still keep that going. We just try to have fun and not only be about the game. It’s just about everything.”
With Devers as the centerpiece of Boston’s lineup, the Red Sox (24-20) are third in the Majors in runs with 248. The Padres, who had much bigger expectations from the prognosticators than the Red Sox, are 20-24.
The series is important for two teams trying to move up in the standings.
For Devers and Bogaerts, it is also for bragging rights.
There is also likely to be a meal involved. Who is picking up the tab?
“I think he will be the one paying because he’s older than me and he has more money than me, so I think he’ll be picking up the tab,” Devers said while chuckling.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 19, 2023 4:38:59 GMT -5
RED SOX NOTEBOOK Red Sox view Nick Pivetta’s assignment to the bullpen as a positive By Alex Speier Globe Staff,Updated May 18, 2023, 5:42 p.m.
What now for Nick Pivetta?
Red Sox manager Alex Cora announced after Wednesday’s game that Pivetta (3-3, 6.30 ERA, with an 8.10 ERA in his last six starts) has been moved from the rotation to the bullpen. The team plans to have him join Kutter Crawford and Josh Winckowski in a multi-innings role.
Though Pivetta has made clear his desire to be a starter, he took a high-minded approach to the change.
“I enjoy pitching,” he said. “I enjoy playing for this team. Any time I can help this team win, that’s what I want to do. I’ve got to pitch better and I’ve got to go and start and do that [in relief]. The better I do out of the bullpen, the more I can help the team win and move us towards our overall goal of winning the World Series.”
While Pivetta has been a starter for nearly all of his Red Sox career, he has made three relief appearances, two of which were memorable. l
In Game 162 of the 2021 season, he was summoned to preserve a 7-5 lead against the Nationals with a postseason berth on the line. Pivetta struck out Juan Soto on a curveball to set in motion a celebration.
Then, in Game 3 of the ALDS against the Rays, Pivetta put up zeros in the 10th, 11th, 12th, and 13th innings, striking out seven over four innings and pitching with emotion while positioning the Sox to claim a walkoff victory.
“Our experience of Nick out of the bullpen is electric,” said chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom. “[Cora] and the staff have done a great job showing that starters in the bullpen as multi-inning relievers is critical and can really help you win games.
“You put a starter out there and you’re not putting him in the witness protection program. You’re putting him out there to leverage him and help you win. He cares about that, so I think he’ll be fine.”
With Garrett Whitlock (ulnar neuritis) likely to return to the rotation by the end of the month, might the Sox have another round of musical chairs for their starters coming soon?
“I hope so, because it means we continue to have this good problem,” Bloom said, a reference to having more starters than spots. No more tricks
On Wednesday, MLB sent a memo informing clubs that efforts by batters to bait pitchers into pitch-timer violations would be treated as circumvention of the rules and result in a warning and then automatic strikes.
The memo came four days after Cardinals DH Willson Contreras tricked Sox closer Kenley Jansen into three violations by giving the illusion of being engaged — Contreras was looking at Jansen with his bat in a ready position — while keeping one foot out of the box. Jansen, on a day when his control was imprecise, was charged with two automatic balls, contributing to a walk and ultimately a blown save.
Jansen expressed appreciation for MLB’s efforts to eliminate such deception.
“I’ve got to give MLB props for continuing to try to make the game better,” said Jansen. “Nobody wants the rules in a high-leverage situation to cost a game. No excuses. It kind of flustered me a little bit, which I shouldn’t have let happen.
“It sucks, but sometimes stuff like this has to happen. I’m glad it happened with me because I could deal with it, move forward, and the game can be better.”
Reyes of sunshine
A week ago, Pablo Reyes was marooned on the Triple A roster of the A’s, the worst team in baseball. But with Christian Arroyo joining Trevor Story, Adalberto Mondesi, and Yu Chang on the injured list, and with Kiké Hernández navigating hamstring discomfort, the Sox wanted a righthanded-hitting middle infielder who could offer solid defense.
Reyes, who was hitting .257/.385/.351 for Las Vegas, fit the bill at minimal cost. The Sox acquired him for cash considerations last Friday. According to a major league source, the Sox sent $75,000 to the A’s.
Reyes, 29, has started five straight games at second and short since joining the Sox Saturday, going 8 for 19 (.421) with three doubles. He also made a one-inning cameo on the mound.
“It caught me off guard, and even more so being traded to this team, which is a team that in my early life I had a dream to play for,” Reyes said through a translator. “I feel happy to be here right now.” Outlook is good
As of Thursday afternoon, outfielder Alex Verdugo, who was removed from Wednesday’s game as a precaution with left groin tightness, was expected to be available for Friday’s game … Lefthander Ryan Sherriff, who made scoreless appearances Tuesday and Wednesday, was optioned to Triple A Worcester to clear a roster spot for Crawford (hamstring), who is expected to be activated from the injured list Friday … Righthander Jake Thompson, a 2017 fourth-round pick by the Sox who’d been pitching in Worcester, was released, as was infielder Edwin Diaz.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 19, 2023 13:11:20 GMT -5
Red Sox Stats @redsoxstats · 2h Bogey comes into the series hitting .214/.340/.333 over the last month and .254 with a .712 OPS since April 6th. This season he's had a huge drop in out of zone swing% which has him walking at a career best 12% Savant has his defense at 100th percentile outs above average, and 18th percentile in arm strength. Defensive Runs Saved is a more modest +1. Only 360 innings so we'll see where all this settles. His power looked back in his first few games, but has been dead since. Another one of those areas where it'll be very interesting to see where it levels off going forward. We'll probably end up with Don calling him hitting one off the apartment building tonight lol.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 19, 2023 13:16:19 GMT -5
Why the Red Sox Way of teambuilding might soon feel plenty familiar across baseball The Red Sox join nearly every other MLB team at this point in the season as a team with playoff hopes, despite not spending this offseason like the Padres.
By Jon Couture May 19, 2023 | 10:08 AM
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COMMENTARY
We know the argument against what the San Diego Padres have been doing for the last three winters. Intimately.
Xander Bogaerts frankly feels like an old example after the last three weeks.
The Florida Panthers moved to 9-4 in the NHL playoffs at 1:54 a.m. Friday morning, beating Carolina in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final three hours after it first looked like they did. A .500 team on the road for a six-month regular season, they’ve won seven straight there, beating two proverbial Stanley Cup favorites and taking an early lead on a third.
The Miami Heat are 10-3 since losing their play-in game to Atlanta on April 11, their worst-in-the-NBA offense during the regular season nearly four points better after deciding to start making 3-pointers. Miami’s expected record in the regular season was sub-.500, 19 games worse than the Celtics they just swiped home court from in their Eastern Conference final.
This is the bargain we accept when we commit to caring about sports in America. The best team not only doesn’t always win, it usually doesn’t win. To the point we tell ourselves that, actually, the Bruins weren’t the best team because their last three games matter more than the prior 86.
I feel like too few people understand the correlation between that and the situation we will find ourselves in this weekend, staring at Bogaerts in Padres’ brown and yellow, wondering why exactly the guy nobody really wanted to leave did.
“I talk to my guys there all the time, the players and coaches, almost every day. That team will always be a part of me,” Bogaerts told the Globe prior to this weekend’s three-game Red Sox visit to Petco Park. “But once I could meet with other teams, I saw what they thought of me. I really had no choice in the end.”
I’ll end that throughline here. We have 72 hours of Bogaerts navelgazing to slog through, and if I’m going to hate-think about something, the time’s better spent on the Celtics.
The Red Sox in No. 2’s wake are, we can safely say, fun. When I talk to people about them, I get the impression they’re better than a lot thought. That surprises me. Being 24-20 is an 88-win pace . . . winning a couple more than .500 is never really out of reach for a competent team builder given a relatively ample budget.
Yes, those elements still exist in your baseball franchise. Even during the “FSG Family” era.
Fourteen come-from-behind wins. Seven five-run innings, which is already halfway to last year’s season total from what was a top-10 offense. Alex Verdugo is a quarter of the way to a genuine breakout year. (Until reading Alex Speier’s latest on him, I’d largely lost in the team’s general defensive crapulence just how good Verdugo’s been in right field.) A rotation deep enough, at least for a moment, it can shuttle innings-eater Nick Pivetta to the bullpen.
That the Sox arrive out west with better records than two of the teams they’ll face there makes me chuckle, mostly because the one they don’t is the Diamondbacks (25-19). A quarter of a regular season is still a small sample size, and those only matter in the playoffs.
Twenty-seven of baseball’s 30 teams on Friday morning are within five games of a playoff spot. Nineteen, last of which is the Padres, are within three games. It feels like we’ve seen a lot, but we haven’t seen a thing.
The budding superteam in the Gaslamp District, just 20-24, was called “lost” on Friday morning in the pages of the San Diego Union-Tribune. San Diego welcomes the Red Sox, losers of nine of 11, and with Manny Machado — a new MLS owner, by the by — sporting a broken hand. They’re 1-5 against the rival Dodgers, the team they finally solved last October.
There’s also a ton of time for their collection of individual stars to find some semblance of cohesion. A lineup with Juan Soto, Fernando Tatis Jr., Bogaerts, and Machado will not hit .226 all year, never mind .196 with runners in scoring position. Those numbers are neck and neck with Oakland, for goodness sakes.
At some point across six months, talent finds its level.
At which point we throw half the league in a pool, wipe the records, and declare whatever chaos ensues as a narrative for all history.
The older I get, the more I hate it. (Which, when you were kvetching like a retiree at age 25, is a heck of a thing.) The concept of the World Series made a ton of sense 100 years ago when you had two genuinely separate leagues, and you put the champion of one against the other.
With each subsequent dilution of that structure — divisions in 1969, wild cards in 1994, additional wild cards in 2012 and 2022 — much has been gained. Playoffs are exciting. They draw attention. They draw money. That’s why they exist.
But they inevitably lead to the question of what motivation is there to truly excel. To annually build a Dodgers, who for all their billions and all their 100-win seasons you view as flawed because it’s amounted to one championship (and it’s the 2020 weirdo one).
The NFL, NBA, and NHL all have deep playoff structures, the NFL feeling like it’d love to deepen theirs every year. But they also have salary caps and salary floors, taking the spending disparities of baseball largely off the table in the face of postseason randomness.
Something like England’s Premier League allows teams to spend as much or as little as they want, without any revenue sharing beyond splitting broadcasting rights fees. But that spending directly results in championships because there are no playoffs: 38 games, and the best team gets the giant trophy.
Baseball? The worst of both systems! The Dodgers spent $270 million last season to win 111 games, the Guardians spent $67 million to win 92, and they each lost in the Division Series.
Is the LA Way going to give a franchise more bites of the playoff apple than the Cleveland one? Sure. There isn’t no motivation to spend in Major League Baseball. Far from it. The top five spenders all made the playoffs last year.
But what did the Dodgers avoid relative to Cleveland, or San Diego, or Tampa Bay, or Toronto, or Philadelphia? A single three-game series. Hardly the best return on investment.
It’s a lot of things, some good, some bad. But chief among them is it’s a drag on spending to truly excel the way the Red Sox used to and the way the Mets, Padres, and others of recent vintage have.
Yes, there’s something to making the six-month ride as fun as possible. But when the seventh month can invalidate so much of it so quickly, it offers pause.
And it means there will almost always be another Bogaerts, looking weird in someone else’s uniform colors, looking forward when so many of us can’t stop looking back.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 19, 2023 13:23:52 GMT -5
Game 45: Red Sox begin road trip facing Xander Bogaerts in San DiegoBy Andrew Mahoney Globe Staff,Updated May 19, 2023, 2 hours ago The Red Sox will see a familiar face when they begin their nine-game, 10-day road trip in San Diego Friday night. It will be the first time the team sees former teammate Xander Bogaerts in his new surroundings after he signed an 11-year, $280 million deal in the winter with the Padres. The Globe’s Peter Abraham caught up with Bogaerts in San Diego ahead of this weekend’s series. Things have not gone according to plan for the Padres, who have lost nine of the last 11 games to drop four games below .500 into fourth place in the National League West, 7½ games behind the Dodgers in first. Here are the standings. By taking two of three against the Mariners, the Red Sox improved to 9-4-1 in series play. After this weekend’s set in San Diego, the Sox will head to Los Angeles for three games with the Angels. After a day off, they will close their trip with three games at Arizona. RED SOX (24-20): 1. Alex Verdugo (L) RF 2. Justin Turner (R) 1B 3. Rob Refsnyder (R) LF 4. Rafael Devers (L) 3B 5. Masataka Yoshida (L) DH 6. Enrique Hernandez (R) SS 7. Pablo Reyes (R) 2B 8. Jarren Duran (L) CF 9. Connor Wong (R) C Pitching: LHP James Paxton (0-0, 3.60 ERA) PADRES (20-24): 1. Fernando Tatis Jr. (R) RF 2. Ha-Seong Kim (R) 3B 3. Xander Bogaerts (R) SS 4. Juan Soto (L) LF 5. Nelson Cruz (R) DH 6. Jake Cronenworth (L) 2B 7. Brandon Dixon (R) 1B 8. Austin Nola (R) C 9. Adam Engel (R) CF Pitching: LHP Blake Snell (1-5, 4.61 ERA) Time: 9:40 p.m. TV, radio: NESN, WEEI-FM 93.7 Red Sox vs. Snell: Rafael Devers 1-9, Kiké Hernández 0-1, Rob Refsnyder 2-6, Raimel Tapia 2-6, Justin Turner 3-14, Alex Verdugo 1-5 Padres vs. Paxton: Xander Bogaerts 7-23, Matt Carpenter 1-5, Nelson Cruz 0-3, Adam Engel 1-2, Manny Machado 4-9, Austin Nola 0-1, Rougned Odor 7-28 Stat of the day: The Padres are hitting .196 with runners in scoring position, worst in the majors. The Sox are second with .294, trailing only the Rangers at .331. Notes: Devers has 22 RBI in his last 23 games. … The Sox have scored at least nine runs in 10 games this season, good for second in MLB behind the Rays and Rangers, who have each done it 11 times. … Paxton is 1-1 with a 1.98 ERA, a 1.527 WHIP and a .241 opponents’ batting average in three starts against the Padres. … The Padres are 1-7 in Snell’s starts, but he has a 3.54 ERA in his last five outings. In 12 career starts vs. the Red Sox, he is 7-3 with a 2.59 ERA. Song of the Day: Night Ranger - Sister Christian www.youtube.com/watch?v=z92bmlcmyq0
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 19, 2023 17:58:35 GMT -5
Ian Browne @ianmbrowne · 13m Kutter Crawford is active for tonight's game.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 19, 2023 18:28:31 GMT -5
Jen McCaffrey @jcmccaffrey · 56m Xander Bogaerts said he had a good idea last March that he wouldn’t be returning to Boston based on the teams offer then. He said there was aways a chance but he was resigned to the fact it was probably his last season.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 19, 2023 23:12:42 GMT -5
Red Sox win 6-1
Paxton was pretty good
6ip/ 5/1/1/2bb/5k/107-66
Devers with 2 dingers and 4 rib eyes
Turner left game with knee discomfort
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2023 2:25:56 GMT -5
Devers (2 HRs) indeed 'a dangerous guy' Bogaerts' scouting report spot-on before Sox slugger collects 4 RBIs 52 minutes ago Ian Browne
SAN DIEGO – It turned out to be a case of wishful thinking for Xander Bogaerts, who spoke about playing against Rafael Devers for the first time a couple of hours before Friday night’s game.
“Hopefully he [doesn’t] hit [any] homers,” said Bogaerts. “Listen, that’s a dangerous guy, you know, especially when he's in that box. He’s truly one of a kind and hopefully he takes it a little light on us because he can do damage.”
Light? Devers chose heavy.
Boston’s left-handed-hitting masher hammered two homers and drove in four, leading the Red Sox to a 6-1 victory over the Padres at Petco Park.
“Yeah, I was very happy today that I was able to hit two home runs, but this is baseball,” Devers said. “You have to take it day by day, and you have to keep making adjustments every day.”
Devers, the star the Red Sox extended for 11 years in January after being unable to find common ground with Bogaerts a month earlier, put his imprint on this three-game series early.
It was mentioned to Bogaerts before the game that the Red Sox are now Devers’ team.
“It is [his team],” Bogaerts said. “And I think he’s the perfect guy, perfect person for that. He’s very dangerous when he’s up there, and obviously we know his defense is getting better every year and he wants to improve. But his bat will make you pay big time.”
When those comments were relayed to Devers, a smile came across his face.
“Yeah, it makes me very happy to hear that he says those things about me and even more when we're such good friends,” Devers said. “And it means a lot to me, those words coming out of his mouth because of what he’s represented for this organization and what he means [to] me. “
It was Devers who opened the scoring in the top of the second inning, when he ripped a solo shot to right against Blake Snell.
An inning later, Devers roped a towering, three-run shot to center (No. 13 on the season) that landed on some shrubbery. His second homer against Snell was drilled at an exit velocity of 109.4 mph and a Statcast-projected distance of 435 feet.
“He's awesome. His swing is just amazing,” said Red Sox lefty James Paxton, who earned his first win since Aug. 15, 2020. “He’s so good on offense and does a great job at third base, too, He’s just an all-around, fantastic player. Fun to watch.”
Bogaerts could only watch in frustration as his team (20-25) lost for the third straight time and 10th in the last 12 games. Meanwhile, the Red Sox (25-20) have emerged nicely from a recent skid to win their last three games.
For the Red Sox, the exciting thing is that Devers hasn’t gotten red-hot just yet. The two-time All-Star has a slash line of .264/.309/.557 with 13 homers and 44 RBIs.
Does Devers feel like he is starting to get hot?
“Right now I feel comfortable at the plate and I feel very good, but we need to see what’s going to happen in the next few games,” Devers said.
While Devers took center stage, Paxton fired six strong innings (five hits, one run, five strikeouts) for Boston. The “Big Maple” has been strong in his first two starts off the injured list.
“For him to come here and contribute and get that ‘W’ is big for the organization,” said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. “The people in Fort Myers, all the trainers, the strength coaches, everybody has been with him through the same process. He opted in [with his contract]. Nobody thought that was going to happen. He decided to stay here because he trusted the process. He trusted the people here and they got rewarded.”
And once again, the Red Sox got rewarded by having Devers as the centerpiece of their lineup.
“That’s a bad man,” Bogaerts said.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2023 2:27:09 GMT -5
Injuries & Moves: Turner (knee) hopes for Sunday return 2:59 AM GMT-3
LATEST NEWS May 19: DH/1B Justin Turner exits with left knee soreness Turner had to exit the Red Sox's 6-1 victory in San Diego because of left knee soreness. Manager Alex Cora indicated Turner will rest on Saturday with the hope of returning for the series finale Sunday.
"He felt it in the first inning, the first time he swung and he felt it underneath [his knee]," said Cora. "He will probably be down tomorrow, but hopefully he will be back on Sunday."
May 19: RHP Kutter Crawford reinstated from 15-day IL The 27-year-old was placed on the injured list on May 5 (retroactive to May 4) with a left hamstring strain. He made his lone rehab appearance Tuesday with Triple-A Worcester and allowed one run on three hits in three innings against Lehigh Valley, striking out four batters and walking none. Crawford has a 3.51 ERA in seven big league outings (two starts) this season, including a 1.08 ERA in five relief appearances. In 29 career outings (15 starts) with Boston, Crawford has a 5.31 ERA.
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