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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 26, 2023 4:21:12 GMT -5
Red Sox @ D backs
Friday, 26th May 2023
9:30pm @ Chase Field
Sale 4-2/ 5.01
Pfadt 0-1/ 7.65
After winning trip, Diamondbacks looking for more vs. Red Sox
FLM
The Arizona Diamondbacks are one of the biggest surprise teams of the season and are coming off a stellar road trip. But they also are mired in a down moment as they open a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox on Friday night in Phoenix.
It marks just the third time Boston will play in Phoenix. The Red Sox took two of three in 2007 and Arizona won two of three in 2019. Boston has won 13 of the 21 overall meetings.
The Diamondbacks appeared en route to their 30th win in just 50 games on Wednesday afternoon before blowing a 5-0 lead and losing to the host Philadelphia Phillies 6-5 in 10 innings.
Arizona finished 6-3 on a road trip that also included games against the Oakland Athletics and Pittsburgh Pirates. But seeing that 5-0 lead after 5 1/2 innings get away against the Phillies left some very unhappy Diamondbacks.
"It's great to win this series, but the baseball games you're supposed to win, you should win those baseball games," said Arizona right-hander Zac Gallen, the pitcher given that 5-0 lead.
"I think that's the sentiment for me, just as an organization really if we want to go where we want to go, we have to win the games we're supposed to win. Teams that have been successful the last few years, they just found a way to put games away and found a way to win baseball games.
Arizona won its previous four games, making the loss even tougher to accept.
"This game will rip your heart out," Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said.
Evan Longoria hit a two-run homer and Emmanuel Rivera had three RBIs for the Diamondbacks. Also, Ketel Marte extended his career-best streak of reaching base to 24 by going 2-for-5.
Boston has dropped four straight games, including losing three straight in Anaheim to the Los Angles Angels.
The Red Sox have been outscored 20-4 and have been blanked twice during the four-game skid that began after they won the first two contests of a nine-game road trip.
Boston lost 7-3 to the Angels on Wednesday but it had eight hits, including a homer by Connor Wong. The Red Sox had just one run and six hits over the first two games of the series.
"I think (Wednesday) was a lot better (offensively) than the last two nights," Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. "We took our walks and hit some balls hard. Obviously, at the end of the day it's how many runs you score, but I thought the approach was a lot better."
Boston star Rafael Devers hit two homers during a 6-1 victory over the San Diego Padres last Friday to start the road trip, but he has gone just 2-for-19 in the ensuing five games.
Boston left-hander Chris Sale (4-2, 5.01 ERA) will take the ball Friday for his 10th start of the season. Sale has struck out 62 in 50 1/3 innings but also has served up eight homers.
The 34-year-old pitched superbly in his last two outings. He gave up one and three in eight innings in a no-decision against the St. Louis Cardinals on May 13 and then allowed two runs and three hits over seven innings in a victory over the Padres on Saturday.
In his last four outings, Sale has 32 strikeouts against three walks in 27 1/3 innings.
Longoria is just 6-for-38 with 15 strikeouts in his career against Sale. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. is 3-for-18 with one homer.
Right-hander Brandon Pfaadt (0-1, 7.65) will make his fifth career start for Arizona. He has served up seven homers in 20 innings.
Pfaadt, 24, received a no-decision in his last outing when he gave up three runs and six hits in 5 1/3 innings against the Pirates.
--Field Level Media
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 26, 2023 4:24:08 GMT -5
Who knows if they show up for this series?
Anyway, here is who they are marching out to pitch for the rest of the series.
Saturday, 7:15pm, Whitlock 1-2/ 6.19 vs Henry 2-1/ 4.68
Sunday, 4pm, Houck 3-3/ 4.98 vs Kelly 5-3/ 2.98
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 26, 2023 4:48:11 GMT -5
RED SOX NOTEBOOK
Triston Casas still trusting his process despite ugly numbers, and so do the Red Sox
By Julian McWilliams Globe Staff,Updated May 25, 2023, 8:31 p.m.
ANAHEIM, Calif. — It was the 1-0 pitch that was the most puzzling, yet summed up Triston Casas’s first full season in the big leagues.
With the Red Sox trailing, 1-0, in the fourth inning with a runner on Tuesday, Griffin Canning delivered a four-seam fastball down the heart of the plate. Casas had a chance to do some damage. Perhaps unlock an offense that had been silent for most of this west coast swing.
Instead, he took it for a strike. Three pitches later, Casas swung through a changeup to end the inning in a game where Boston mustered just two hits.
Casas is known for the quality of his at-bats. He sees 4.16 pitches per plate appearance, safely in the top 20 percent of hitters, as is his 22.6 percent chase rate. But Casas can let the reins go, failing to complete his at-bats.
“Ultimately, I’m process-driven. I’m not results-based,” Casas said Wednesday. “But it’s important to finish those at-bats and get a hit or get a walk.”
Against Canning, Casas said he lost the cat-and-mouse game. Casas was hunting something offspeed or a breaking ball after he saw only one heater when he drew a second-inning walk. Understandable, but he’s also known to gear up for the fastball. Casas might have been thinking too much, swaying away from his strength based on an opponents previous tendencies.
Casas appeared as if he was turning a corner, batting .345/.444/.586 with a pair of homers in his first 10 games in May. But he’s 3 for 23 (.130) with a homer and just three walks since.
Is potentially being sent down to Triple A Worcester a thought that crosses his mind?
“It’s always in the back of my mind,” said Casas, whose .181 season average is worst among MLB first basemen with 150 plate appearances. “It’s something that every baseball player deals with at a certain point, but that’s what makes it fun. That’s what makes it a little more intense. That’s what makes it all worthwhile when you do finally succeed at this level, was the anxiety that you were facing [because of the potential] of failure. I embrace that challenge. I accept it.”
A demotion, however, doesn’t sound like it’s in the Red Sox plan. The Sox also trust Casas’s process, and believe the results will come based on some underlying numbers. His barrel rate — a measure of contact based on strong exit velocities and launch angles — is just outside the top 15 percent in baseball. (It’s second on the Red Sox, trailing only Rafael Devers.) However, just 46 percent of those barrels have turned into hits, the third-worst rate in baseball for hitters with a minimum of 10 barrels.
Casas stung two balls hard at the start of the Padres series. Neither was a hit, including one in which Fernando Tatis Jr. robbed Casas of extra bases.
“At one point, he’s gonna start hitting for average. He will do damage. He’s gonna get on base,” manager Alex Cora said. “Obviously, certain numbers don’t look right, but others, they look great. He’s gonna keep playing. He’s gonna be here. This is a guy that we trust.”
Still, Casas is beginning to learn that he can’t be too passive at the plate. The more aggressive he is in the zone, the more walks he will draw because pitchers will begin going to the edges out of respect.
“The slug will come,” Casas said. “Ultimately I’m just trying to get on-base. That’s what finishing an at-bat is.”
The Sox are in win-now mode. Winning at the big league level supersedes development, yet they remain committed to Casas and his approach, believing results — and thus more winning — will follow.
“It’s definitely a large enough sample size to be able to question whether my process is valid or not,” Casas said. “But I believe in myself, everybody else in this room does, and they make it easy for me to come out every day and put my best foot forward.”
Another piece released
Freddy Valdez, one of the prospects received in the Andrew Benintendi trade in February 2021, was released Thursday. The 21-year-old outfielder hit .216 in 52 appearances in the Florida Complex League the last two seasons. Franchy Cordero, also part of the five-player return for Benintendi, homered for the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate against the WooSox on Wednesday . . . Chris Sale (5.01 ERA) is scheduled to toe the slab against the Diamondbacks’ Brandon Pfaadt on Friday in Phoenix. Garrett Whitlock (6.19 ERA) will make his first start Saturday since being placed on the injured list last month, and Tanner Houck (4.99 ERA) will take the mound in Sunday’s series finale against Merrill Kelly (2.98 ERA). The Diamondbacks (29-21) are in second place in the National League West and have won seven of their last 10. The Sox have played eight series all-time against Arizona, the last when they lost two of three at Chase Field in April 2019.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 26, 2023 13:11:10 GMT -5
Pete Abraham
@peteabe
·
1h
Christian Arroyo is batting second and DH'ing for Worcester tonight. First game of his rehab assignment.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 26, 2023 13:16:03 GMT -5
A dispatch from baseball’s wide middle, where the Red Sox have clawed a place in the mix
The Sox have used 38 players, collected from various deals, signings, and promotions, this season.
By Jon Couture
May 26, 2023 | 10:34 AM
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COMMENTARY
On Friday morning, nine of Major League Baseball’s 30 teams sat within two games of .500: The Red Sox, Minnesota, and Seattle (26-24); Pittsburgh (25-24); the Mets and Toronto (26-25); San Francisco (25-25); Miami (25-26); and Detroit (23-25). It’s the vast, average middle, neither ticketed for nor disqualified from dreaming anything’s possible.
You could probably compel me to believe the Red Sox were the most average of them all, but I think it’s clearer that this group lacks anything particularly exceptional.
The roads to that yawning middle have been different. The Marlins are 15-4 in one-run games; the Twins are 4-10. The Tigers won 11 of 16 against the National League. Pittsburgh tumbled into it after a hot start, but is certainly still happy to be there. The big-money Mets were looking up at it until a good week, and certainly aren’t happy to be there.
The Red Sox still spend more like the Mets, even if you could just about drop a Pirates payroll today’s payroll and the one from five years ago. They certainly don’t expect like them, though. Not this year, anyway.
“We’re doing well,” manager Alex Cora said during his weekly WEEI appearance Wednesday. “We have an idea who we have and who we are right now. . . . We’ve just got to keep playing good baseball.”
“There’s obviously some things to be happy about, [but] we’ve got a long way to go,” chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said on WEEI Thursday. “A lot of the positive things that have happened, obviously, the record is what it is. It’s solid, but not spectacular. . . . There’s a lot of things to build off of, but we need to keep improving.”
What are these Red Sox truly good at? Mood swings. They’ve put together four four-game streaks in just 23 games — the eights wins in a row between April and May, and the rolling four losses, four wins, four losses ride. The latest is ongoing after the bats mustered just four runs across 96 hours in San Diego and Anaheim.
As Cora suggested, there’s saving grace in the starting pitching’s turnaround. He made official Wednesday the obvious move: Corey Kluber is out of the rotation effective Friday, with Tanner Houck penciled in Sunday after Garrett Whitlock’s scheduled Saturday return.
Much like Pivetta, it’s an awkward fit given walks and home runs are the problem. Given the road that’s gotten the Sox to their place in the middle, the greatest reason for hope from either is, well, look at the array of contributors so far.
Adam Duvall hit .455/.514/1.030 before he got hurt, knocking in 14 runs in just eight games. Yu Chang might’ve been their steadiest hand in the middle infield in his 17-game sample. Jarren Duran’s gone cold, carrying a 1 for 23 skid into Phoenix against the surprising Diamondbacks, but he’s still batting .300/.353/.483 this year.
Need we even mention Enmanuel Valdez, part of the Christian Vázquez trade last summer who has hit a little as a fill-in for a fill-in (Chang)? Pablo Reyes, cast off from Oakland’s Triple-A squad?
The shuffle is usually endless on teams in this middle, the perpetual search for short-term answers and those to take their place when the magic wears off. Boston’s already used 38 players in the field, tied with the mediocre Twins and not-mediocre Rays for 10th most this season.
They’ve used five different starters are three positions: Center field, plus both second base and shortstop. The former has been remarkable, Boston second in OPS at the position (.903). The latter two have at least held their own as they wait for a potential sixth starter: Presumed No. 1 Trevor Story, whose elbow issues threw the whole middle-infield picture out of whack in January.
The starting rotation has clarified. The bullpen, more of an offseason focus than any other portion of the team, has had its hiccups, but remains far better at locking down late leads and close games.
The offense is starkly feast or famine, averaging 7.5 runs and an .897 OPS in the 26 wins and just 2.8 and .608 in the 24 losses. (The win average gets skewed up by big totals, but Boston’s topped seven runs and failed to top three runs 17 times each.) Yet Cora feels like most of us do: They trust their approach — even from Triston Casas, whose .181 average is worst among first basemen with 150 plate appearances — and their injured guys are getting healthy.
It’s life in the middle, plain and simple. Until the schedule gets a little more AL East-centric — four with Tampa from June 2-4 and six with the Yankees mid-month — it’s going to be hard to really know what exactly we’re dealing with.
Even that may not say much. Nineteen of Boston’s final 25 games are in the division, which figures to be packed and may still have four of the division’s five with a chance to sneak in baseball’s October cut line.
It’s about getting in position and hoping your good days line up.
It’s about keeping the plates spinning long enough for the numbers to fall your way.
It’s the sport in 2023. Not just in Boston, but in an increasing majority of cities who know just trying to get into the dance is, increasingly, enough.
“This is a really long season, and even 50 games in, there’s just so much more left,” Bloom said on WEEI. “You’ve got to take a step back and cool off.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 26, 2023 13:24:12 GMT -5
Game 51: Red Sox at Diamondbacks lineups and notesBy Andrew Mahoney Globe Staff,Updated May 26, 2023, 1 hour ago After a day off, the Red Sox are in Arizona to conclude their road trip with a three-game series against the Diamondbacks. They will be looking to snap a four-game losing streak in which the bats were silent, with the Sox being outscored 20-4 in that stretch. The Diamondbacks return home after a 6-3 road trip that was capped by a disappointing loss to the Phillies, 6-5, in 10 innings. Arizona led 5-0 in the sixth inning before Philadelphia rallied for the win. The Diamondbacks are eight games above .500 and trail the Dodgers by 1½ in the National League West. Here are the standings. Chris Sale will be on the mound for the Sox. Garrett Whitlock gets the nod Saturday, and Tanner Houck will take the mound in Sunday’s series finale. Lineups RED SOX (26-24): . Raimel Tapia (L) CF 2. Alex Verdugo (L) RF 3. Justin Turner (R) 3B 4. Masataka Yoshida (L) DH 5. Rob Refsnyder (R) LF 6. Triston Casas (L) 1B 7. Enrique Hernandez (R) SS 8. Enmanuel Valdez (L) 2B 9. Connor Wong (R) C Pitching: LHP Chris Sale (4-2, 5.01 ERA) DIAMONDBACKS (29-21): 1. Ketel Marte (S) 2B 2. Emmanuel Rivera (R) 3B 3. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. (R) LF 4. Christian Walker (R) 1B 5. Evan Longoria (R) DH 6. Corbin Carroll (L) CF 7. Nick Ahmed (R) SS 8. Jake McCarthy (L) RF 9. Jose Herrera (S) C Pitching: RHP Brandon Pfaadt (0-1, 7.65 ERA) Time: 9:40 p.m. TV, radio: NESN, WEEI-FM 93.7 Red Sox vs. Pfaadt: Has not faced any Boston batters Diamondbacks vs. Sale: Lourdes Gurriel Jr. 3-18, Evan Longoria 6-38, Ketel Marte 1-6 Stat of the day: Since hitting a pair of home runs against the Padres last Friday, Rafael Devers has gone just 2-for-19 in the ensuing five games. Notes: In his last four outings, Sale has 32 strikeouts while allowing just three walks in 27⅓ innings. He gave up one and three in eight innings in a no-decision against the Cardinals on May 13 and then allowed two runs and three hits over seven innings in a victory over the Padres on Saturday. … Pfaadt is making his fifth career start for Arizona. He has allowed seven home runs in 20 innings.
Song of the Day: Van Halen - Can't Stop Lovin' You
www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_LbrEJUYRw
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 26, 2023 16:48:02 GMT -5
So an off day yesterday
another one coming Monday
and the Analytic assholes have Devers sitting
SSDD
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 26, 2023 17:43:14 GMT -5
J.P. Long
@soxnotes
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32m
Tonight will be Alex Cora’s 1,000th regular season game with the Red Sox.
He appeared in 301 games for Boston as a player (169-132), and tonight will be his 699th as the club’s manager (388-310).
Tomorrow, he’ll become only the 9th individual to manage 700 games with the Sox.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 26, 2023 18:53:31 GMT -5
Rafael Devers out of lineup as slumping Red Sox look to snap losing streak
Updated: May. 26, 2023, 6:39 p.m.|Published: May. 26, 2023, 6:20 p.m.
By
Sean McAdam | sean.mcadam@masslive.com
Having been swept in Anaheim and losers of their last four games, the Red Sox will turn to Chris Sale to help put them back on the winning track as they begin the final series of their nine-game West Coast road trip tonight in Phoenix. This is the team’s third four-game losing streak this season.
Sale has a 3.05 in his last six starts and was on the mound for their last win -- last Saturday in San Diego.
Since that victory over the Padres, the Red Sox offense has sputtered, scoring just four runs in the last four games and being shutout twice. Prior to that skid, the Sox had scored 31 runs in their previous four games.
Oddly, for a team battling to score runs, the Sox will not have their top run producer, Rafael Devers, in their lineup. Devers has just two hits in his last 19 at-bats. With Devers sidelined, the Sox will go with Justin Turner at third base.
Also missing from the lineup: outfielder Jarren Duran, who is without a hit over his last 19 at-bats, dating back five games. Friday will also mark the fourth time that Raimel Tapia has hit leadoff for the sox this season.
This three-game set is the first meeting between the clubs since the Sox visited Chase Field in 2019 as part of their disastrous season-opening road trip out West. The Diamondbacks took two-of-three from the Sox in that series.
After beginning the season by compiling an 11.25 ERA in his first three outings, Sale has looked more like his old self over the last month, with a 3.05 ERA while striking out 43 batters in his last 38.1 innings. He’s pitched at least six innings in each of his last four starts. He’s also exhibited far better control, issuing just four walks in his last five outings.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 26, 2023 18:55:07 GMT -5
Jesús Cano
@jesus_Cano88
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49m
Tucson native Alex Verdugo said there will be about 20 family members tonight to watch him. When asked if he visited them during the off day, he said: “We have this nice little resort-style hotel. So I was like, ‘Yeah, you guys come here and let’s all hang out here.’”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 26, 2023 18:56:39 GMT -5
Alex Speier
@alexspeier
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15m
Cora said Trevor Story us continuing to make steady progress. Is he being built up as a SS? “100 percent.”
Correction to earlier tweet on Duvall: His rehab assignment with the WooSox starts Tuesday. (Monday’s an off-day)
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 26, 2023 19:45:06 GMT -5
Pete Abraham
@peteabe
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44m
Devers has a tight left calf.
"Hopefully he's out there tomorrow," Cora said.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 27, 2023 1:28:50 GMT -5
Injuries & Moves: Duvall, Arroyo begin rehab assignments
May 26th, 2023
INF Christian Arroyo (right hamstring strain)
Expected return: During homestand that starts May 29
Arroyo, who hasn't played for the Red Sox since May 6, made his first rehab outing on May 26 with Triple-A Worcester. Manager Alex Cora said Arroyo will see a mix of DH and infield play. Arroyo will be evaluated when he flies back to Boston on Monday. (Last updated: May 26)
SS Trevor Story (right UCL surgery)
Expected return: July or after
Red Sox manager Alex Cora is encouraged by the progress Story is making in Fort Myers, Fla. Story is set to fly to Boston next week to be evaluated, Cora said. The shortstop is doing all baseball activities, including swinging, throwing and fielding. The key for Story will be to keep making progress with his throwing program. Story hopes to return around the All-Star break. On Jan. 9, Story underwent an internal bracing procedure of the right ulnar collateral ligament.
“Trevor is doing really well. He’s progressing the right way, we've just got to be patient," said Cora. (Last updated: May 26)
OF Adam Duvall (distal radius fracture, left wrist)
Expected return: June 9 at earliest
Duvall is set to start his first rehab assignment on Tuesday with Triple-A Worcester in his hometown of Louisville. Duvall will see action at DH and the outfield. Duvall hopes to return to the roster the first day he is eligible, which is June 9 at Yankee Stadium. (Last updated: May 26)
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 27, 2023 1:29:52 GMT -5
Sale stars again on mound, Red Sox snap skid by beating Diamondbacks 7-2
AP
PHOENIX (AP) Chris Sale's left arm was fantastic again, even if his stomach was not.
Sale threw five strong innings while battling a stomach bug, Kiké Hernández smacked a two-run homer and the Boston Red Sox snapped a four-game losing streak by beating the Arizona Diamondbacks 7-2 on Friday night.
“Everyone gets sick and has to go to work,” Sale said. “You got to do what you got to do sometimes.”
It was Sale's fourth consecutive impressive outing, raising hope that the veteran right-hander is ready to bounce back after four injury-filled seasons. The 34-year-old gave up one run on four hits while striking out three and walking one.
Sale was pulled after just 73 pitches because of his illness. He said having a stomach bug obviously wasn't ideal, but it did help him focus.
“When you're out there and you're not feeling well, you're not thinking about anything else other than sitting back down again," Sale said. “Our offense was unbelievable. It allowed me to just focus on throwing strikes and then hurrying back to the dugout.”
After a rough first few starts this season, the seven-time All-Star is 5-2 with a 4.72 ERA.
The Red Sox jumped ahead 3-0 in the second. Rookie Triston Casas and Connor Wong hit run-scoring doubles and Raimel Tapia drove home the third run with a single through the right side.
Boston went up 5-0 on Hernández's two-run homer into the left-center seats in the fourth. The Red Sox finished with 14 hits, three each for Alex Verdugo and Casas.
“I was just being aggressive in the middle of the zone,” Casas said. ”They made a couple mistakes on change-ups that I hit for extra bases."
It was another mediocre outing from D-backs rookie Brandon Pfaadt (0-2), who gave up five runs on eight hits over 3 2/3 innings. The right-hander has an 8.37 ERA in five starts. His status on the roster appears tenuous with right-hander Zach Davies poised to return from the injured list this weekend.
Arizona's Lourdes Gurriel Jr. hit an RBI triple in the fourth, cutting Boston's lead to 5-1. It also extended Gurriel's hitting streak to 17 games, which is the longest active streak in the majors. Ketel Marte singled in the eighth, reaching base for the 25th straight game.
The Diamondbacks were coming off a 6-3 trip, taking two out of three games from the Athletics, Pirates and Phillies.
CORA HITS 1,000
Boston manager Alex Cora was in uniform for his 1,000th game with the franchise. He appeared in 301 games with the Red Sox during his time as a player from 2005-08 and managed his 699th game on Friday night.
He'll become the seventh Red Sox manager to hit 700 games Saturday.
TRIBUTE FOR HAZEN
Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen and family, along with the Women's Board of Barrow, announced a $400,000 donation on behalf of the Nicole Hazen Fund for Hope to the Ivy Brain Tumor Center.
Nicole Hazen died from complications due to glioblastoma, which is a form of brain cancer, in August. She was 45. The family has four sons, Charlie, John, Teddy and Sam.
“It's obviously a very personal, important night for us,” Mike Hazen said. “At some point during this process, we knew that (Nicole) wasn't going to get out of it. But it was incredibly important for us to continue and try to find hope for other people - real hope.”
MAKING MOVES
Diamondbacks: Called up OF Jake McCarthy, sending OF Dominic Fletcher to Triple-A. Fletcher was batting .308 with two homers in 22 games, but his performance had tailed off recently. He hit just 6 of 39 (.154) over his past 10 games.
UP NEXT
The teams meet again Saturday night. RHP Zach Davies (0-0, 5.79 ERA) returns from an oblique injury to take the mound for the D-backs. The Red Sox will counter with RHP Garrett Whitlock (1-2, 6.19 ERA).
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 27, 2023 1:31:16 GMT -5
Red Sox break out of offensive funk, snap four-game losing streak with 7-2 win
Updated: May. 27, 2023, 12:47 a.m.|Published: May. 27, 2023, 12:29 a.m.
By Sean McAdam | sean.mcadam@masslive.com
Maybe the off-day Thursday did wonders for the Red Sox.
After managing just four runs in their previous four games, the bats came alive with a 14-hit attack and an easy 7-2 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks, snapping a four-game losing streak.
By the fourth inning, the Red Sox had scored more runs than they had in their previous series against the Los Angeles Angels. Seven of the team’s hitters in the starting lineup collected at least one hit and five had multiple hits. Alex Verdugo and Triston Casas led the way with three hits each and Kiké Hernandez had a two-run homer.
Meanwhile, Chris Sale limited the D’backs to a single run over five innings. Sale struck out just three, but walked just one and allowed only four hits. The lone run off him came in the fourth when Lourdes Gurriel Jr. tripled on a ball misplayed by Raimel Tapia, bringing home Emmanuel Rivera.
Sale was working on regular rest for the first time in a while, and his velocity at times dipped and he left after throwing a modest 73 pitches. Still, Sale was in control from the start and only once -- in the fourth -- did the Diamondbacks have more than one baserunner. Over his last five starts, Sale has pitched to a 2.33 ERA and the Sox have won four of his last five starts. In that span, he’s struck out 35 hitters in 32.1 innings while issuing just four walks.
Josh Winckowski contributed three innings of relief, allowing one run while Brennan Bernardino closed it out with a scoreless ninth inning.
It didn’t take long for the Red Sox to get untracked at the plate, with run-scoring doubles from Casas and Connor Wong, followed by an RBI single from Tapia.
In the fourth, Hernandez hit a rocket to left-center for his fourth homer of the season and first since April 19, some 96 at-bats ago.
Justin Turner drove home Verdugo in the sixth with a sharp single up the middle and Verdugo -- who brought an 0-for-14 skid into the game -- contributed his third hit of the night in the eighth, plating Wong.
The Sox amassed nine two-out hits, enabling them to extend innings.
The middle game of the series Saturday will see the return of Garrett Whitlock to the mound. Whitlock was placed on the IL a month ago with right elbow neuritis. He recently completed a short rehab stint with two starts for Triple A Worcester.
A win either Saturday or Sunday would give the Red Sox two series wins on their nine-game West Coast road swing. A series sweep against the Diamondbacks would give the Sox a winning record for the trip.
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