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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 25, 2023 5:07:55 GMT -5
Lou Merloni @loumerloni · 11h This is a big game tonight for the Sox. Never know how the rest of the season goes, but tie breakers for the Wild Card no longer have 1 game to decide it. It’s based on season record head to head. Season series vs Angels is currently 3-3. Angels are a team that may be in it.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 25, 2023 5:09:20 GMT -5
Red Sox Stats @redsoxstats · 15h Since May 7th the Red Sox are 5-9 and their offense ranks 25th (82 wRC+), hitting .235/.299/.376.
14th - barrel % 18th - babip 18th - strikeout % 20th - walk % 21st - hard hit % 23rd - batting average 25th - isolated power 26th - on base % 28th - fly ball %
The starters are 5-6 with a 4.07 ERA (14th) and 4.64 FIP (20th).
The bullpen is 0-3 with 5.77 ERA (26th) and 5.68 FIP (27th).
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 25, 2023 5:12:17 GMT -5
Pete Abraham @peteabe · 6h
Sox have lost 4 straight and 10 of 15 and have scored 4 runs in the last four games.
They're off on Thursday and open at three-game series Friday at Arizona.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 25, 2023 5:18:10 GMT -5
Some will be easy, some difficult, but Red Sox have roster decisions to make By Peter Abraham Globe Staff,Updated May 24, 2023, 9:16 p.m.
ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Red Sox made one major decision public on Wednesday, Alex Cora saying during his paid radio appearance that Opening Day starter Corey Kluber was going to the bullpen and Tanner Houck would stay in the rotation.
More changes are coming. And they’re needed.
The Sox were beaten again, 7-3, by the Angels. That’s four losses in a row and 10 of the last 15. As they work to regain their lost momentum, the roster is going to take on a different look in the coming days and weeks.
The next decision will come in Phoenix on Saturday when Garrett Whitlock is activated off the injured list to start against the Diamondbacks.
Dropping one of the relievers off the roster seems like an easy choice.
But it’s going to get complicated after that.
Infielder Yu Chang, who is set to start a rehabilitation assignment with Double A Portland on Friday, will be back soon. Chang, who broke the hamate bone in his left wrist on April 24, may only need a few games before coming back.
That is not the case for Christian Arroyo, who also is ready to start his minor league assignment. The Sox prefer he spend more time in the minors, playing second base, third base, and shortstop before returning.
Arroyo had a .660 OPS in 27 games before straining his right hamstring. He needs to get in a better groove at the plate, too.
“He needs at-bats,” Cora said.
Fitting Arroyo and Chang onto the roster could require sending Enmanuel Valdez back to Triple A. The rookie second baseman has hit well but needs work defensively.
Chang’s above-average defense at shortstop and second base has been missed.
Adam Duvall is eligible to come off the injured list on June 10 and that’s his goal. Even if it’s not that day, he’s getting closer.
Duvall hit .455 with 10 extra-base hits in eight games before he broke his left wrist. He can’t be expected to replicate those numbers, but the Sox will be eager to have him back in the middle of the lineup.
Where will that leave Jarren Duran, who is 1 for 23 on the road trip? Duran gave the Sox a huge lift when he was called up in April. Even if it’s in a part-time role, he deserves playing time assuming he emerges from his current slump.
It’s also fair to wonder how much rope Triston Casas has at first base.
The rookie is hitting .181 with a .666 OPS. To date, his most consistent contribution has been drawing 25 walks in 154 plate appearances.
“His on-base percentage is still good,” Cora said. “He’s not taking advantage of certain counts when he’s ahead in the count. That’s something that obviously he needs to do.
“At one point he’s going to start hitting for average. He will do damage … He’s going to be here. This is a guy we trust.”
Casas is hitting .071 when he’s ahead in the count, well off the major league average of .286. And while Cora lauded his .312 OBP, that’s below the league average of .320.
The walks are great, but how does Casas have only four doubles? His bWAR of minus-0.7 is the lowest on the team among the position players.
“If he stays with his process and swings at the right pitches, he’s going to get hot,” Cora said.
Down the road, perhaps at the All-Star break, Trevor Story will become part of the mix. He’s in Fort Myers working out and that includes a throwing program as he recovers from elbow surgery.
At some point the best Sox lineup could have Story at shortstop, Kiké Hernández at second base, Duvall in center, and Justin Turner getting more time at first base.
“The future is not next year or two years from now,” Cora said. “It’s next week or two weeks from now.”
That Kluber was demoted was a sign of that. He’s a respected veteran, but the Sox can’t afford to give games away, not in the American League East.
There are no more free passes for the sake of development or justifying contracts.
“When you have good players, stuff like this is going to happen,” Cora said. “This is part of it. Some guys don’t like it, but at the end it’s what you can do for this group.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 25, 2023 5:21:08 GMT -5
RED SOX NOTEBOOK Red Sox move Corey Kluber to the bullpen, will keep Tanner Houck in the rotation By Julian McWilliams Globe Staff,Updated May 24, 2023, 2:43 p.m.
ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Red Sox have moved Opening Day starter Corey Kluber to the bullpen and will leave Tanner Houck in the rotation.
Manager Alex Cora said the Sox were waiting to see how Houck came out of his start Monday and informed Kluber Tuesday of the switch.
The veteran righthander understood the move.
“Things haven’t been up to my expectations with the team thus far,” Kluber said before the series finale against the Angels Wednesday evening. “It’s a change in role, but at the end of the day pitching is still the same. I have to continue working and find ways to improve and ways to get better.”
Kluber is 2-6 with a 6.26 ERA in nine starts since being signed to a one-year, $10 million deal. He lasted only 2 ⅓ innings against the Padres this past Sunday, walking three and allowing five runs. Kluber said he wasn’t surprised by the move, knowing that he’s underperformed.
“I know it sounds cliche but I’ve always tried to take it day by day,” he said. “I’m not trying to look too far back as [to what got me here]. I sort of break it down and go day by day. We talked about it yesterday, and now looking forward I’m just trying to figure out ways to get better.”
Houck is 3-3 with a 4.99 ERA in nine starts. He allowed one run over six innings in a 2-1 loss to the Angels Monday. Cora said Monday that Houck was one of the team’s best starters and reiterated that Tuesday, adding that from a stuff perspective, Houck has the potential to be dominant and believes the righthander is trending in the right direction.
“Tanner is throwing the ball well,” Cora said. “After talking to [Corey] he knows right now those guys deserve to start. We’re going to keep working with him, get him better and help him.”
Kluber, 37, pitched once in relief in the playoffs for the Rays last season. His last regular-season game as a reliever was in 2013. Despite the inexperience in that role, which Cora said will involve Kluber going multiple innings, pitching is still pitching to the righthander. The veteran even noted that he will lean on some of his younger teammates who have had to shuffle between the bullpen and the starting rotation in the midst of a season.
“I think that there are definitely things routine-wise that will be a little bit different,” Kluber admitted. “But I’ll have conversations with guys like Tanner and Garrett [Whitlock], who have bounced back and forth a little bit before. I’ve got former teammates who have done the same thing and I’ll pick their brains about maybe what did or didn’t work. I’m not trying to make it this daunting thing. At the end of the day when the adrenaline hits and it’s your turn to pitch, I feel like as long as I prepare myself for it then I’ll be fine.” Rotation coming into focus
With Nick Pivetta and Kluber now out of the mix, the Sox’ five-man rotation (in order) is as follows: James Paxton, Chris Sale, Whitlock, Houck, and Brayan Bello. The six-man rotation benefitted Sale and Paxton, but the upcoming off days Thursday and Monday would have been too much rest in between starts for the entire rotation.
Paxton and Sale haven’t experienced a five-man rotation this year and Cora noted that the team will have to be cautious with the pair given their injury history. However, the manager is confident the lefthanders will adjust and perform despite missing that extra day of rest. Paxton got the start Wednesday night against the Halos.
“I think we’re in a stage with Paxton and Chris that they went through the repetitions,” Cora said. “In the case of Paxton, he pitched on regular rest like four or five times. It’s time to go. They haven’t pitched in a while. I know they want to pitch, so we’ll see where it takes us. Hopefully they can stay healthy.”
The Sox bullpen now features four multi-inning guys in Kluber, Nick Pivetta, Josh Winckowski, and Kutter Crawford.
“We’re in a good spot in the bullpen,” Cora said. Mayer delivers
Marcelo Mayer achieved a career milestone Tuesday. Could another soon be close at hand?
The top-ranked Red Sox prospect, a 2021 first-round pick (No. 4 overall) out of Eastlake High School in San Diego, drilled a pair of homers for the High A Greenville Drive in Rome, Ga., against Atlanta’s affiliate. It was the first multi-homer game of Mayer’s professional career.
Mayer’s first blast was an opposite-field shot to left that left the bat at 98 m.p.h. His second was pulled down the right-field line with an exit velocity of 105.
“To hit one down the left-field line and then to hit one down the right-field line was pretty impressive,” said Red Sox director of hitting development Jason Ochart. “The guy has shown a really impressive ability to just hit.
“He’s got power, but he’s also just a good hitter. He can use the whole field, he can battle with two strikes, he understands the situation. I’ve just been really impressed with how advanced he is as a hitter.”
Mayer is hitting a robust .312/.387/.576 with 7 homers and 18 extra-base hits in 30 games with Greenville. Though one of the youngest players in the South Atlantic League, the 20-year-old shortstop ranks among the league leaders in batting average (seventh), on-base percentage (15th), and slugging (fifth). In 13 games in May, he’s leading the league in homers (6), RBIs (18), slugging (.793), and OPS (1.196).
Mayer also has shown evidence of year-over-year development. He’s hitting the ball harder than he did a year ago, has cut down slightly on his strikeout rate, is hitting fewer ground balls, and is barreling the ball more frequently to the pull side.
His performance raises questions about whether Mayer might soon move up to Double A Portland. The Sox acknowledge that he is building an impressive case.
“You want players to force your hand [on promotions],” farm director Brian Abraham said in mid-May. “You want players to force those conversations.
“He does a lot of things really well, he works hard, he’s mature, has good baseball intellect, he’s a good teammate, he does all the things on the subjective side you’d hope to see. No doubt he’s knocking on the door. He’s pushing down the door. And he’s consistent. That’s what we want to see.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 25, 2023 7:18:34 GMT -5
The Red Sox could be good, but they have to start proving it
By Rob Bradford WEEI 93.7 6 hours ago Corey Kluber reacts to being sent to the bullpen
ANAHEIM - A year ago after their 50th game, the Red Sox dramatically changed their narrative ... at least for a while.
Following a home loss to the lowly Reds, dropping Alex Cora's club to 23-27, the Sox went on their most prolific tear of the 2022 season. They would win seven straight and 19 of their next 23 games.
After nearly two months of wallowing in a season of underachievement, the Red Sox finally seemed to find themselves. ADVERTISING
Following Game No. 50 this time around, it certainly seems this edition could use the same sort of definition.
The Red Sox are heading into their 51st game sitting at 26-24, having flown to Phoenix licking the same kind of wounds felt after that loss to the Reds. This time, the pain was inflicted courtesy a three-game sweep by the Angels, punctuated with Wednesday's 7-3 loss.
They are better than the trio of games that saw the Red Sox get outscored 13-4. At least that was certainly the reminder echoed throughout the visitors' clubhouse after the game.
"Part of 162," Cora said. "We’ve just got to be ready for Friday. We’ll make adjustments and we’re going to be ready."
"I think we do some things really well as a club. Obviously, we’re an aggressive group. We hit the fastball pretty well. I think teams have started to mix and match a little bit, the last few games specifically," explained Red Sox hitting coach Pete Fatse. "Just the regular ebb and flow of the season, things we are aware of and things we are game planning for."
It is convenient to simply say the talent is there, a few adjustments need to be made and better times are ahead.
This is a roster, after all, Cora suggested was better positioned for success than even the one landing two wins away from the 2021 World Series. There are (and will be), in fact, too many good players and not enough roster spots. Hence, Corey Kluber going to the bullpen, and the prospective roster crunches coming with the return of Christian Arroyo, Yu Chang, Garrett Whitlock, Adam Duvall, and, eventually, Trevor Story.
"When you have good players stuff like this is going to happen," said Cora before Wednesday's loss when addressing the move of Kluber to the bullpen. "The roster is a lot better than laster year. It's a lot better than '21. You might say position-player-wise it's a lot better than '19 as far as a lot of position players. It's part of it."
Makes sense, right? Until it doesn't.
That was the reminder found throughout this latest loss.
James Paxton's momentum since entering into the rotation was ground to a halt thanks to a three-inning outing that saw the lefty surrender five runs while not getting a single miss on any of his fastballs.
The recent foundation for the grind-it-out batting order - Jarren Duran, Alex Verdugo, Justin Turner, and Rafael Devers - have all experienced some of their biggest 2023 bumps in the road.
During this four-game losing streak, Duran, Turner and Verdugo have gone a combined 0-for-37, with Duran striking out in eight of his 15 at-bats. Devers went 2-for-15, still not having drawn a walk since May 9.
"They're attacking him a certain way," said Cora of Duran. "He's not hitting the ball hard, but he's not out of control. ... You've got to stay disciplined, swing at the right pitches. He's not going to hit .430. He has a .380 on-base percentage with a .300 batting average. So, you know, it's part of the season. He's going to be OK."
The good-time feeling of that recent eight-game win streak hasn't totally worn off. The same can be said about all the optimism regarding what might await with a starting rotation - Chris Sale, Brayan Bello, Tanner Houck and Whitlock - oozing potential. And how about all those proven players ready to burst off the injured list?
All sounds great. Sounds. As the Red Sox head into play a 29-21 Diamondbacks team, they need something better than murmurs.
What they could use is yet another Game 51 launching pad.
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