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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Aug 16, 2023 18:42:48 GMT -5
Old friend Micheal Chavis who looks like Captain Caveman goes deep to LF
1-0 Nats
3rd
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Aug 16, 2023 19:03:13 GMT -5
Red Sox bats as usual are quiet meanwhile Garret just took Paxton deep to RF
2-0 Nats
4th
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Aug 16, 2023 20:10:20 GMT -5
Reyes with a 2 run dinger to tie it in the 8th
2-2[/font]
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Aug 16, 2023 20:24:19 GMT -5
Whitlock serves up a 3 run dinger in the 8th
5-2 Nats
and there goes another one.....
6-2 Nats
and that is it for me
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Aug 17, 2023 4:29:10 GMT -5
Reyes a bright spot as lineup struggles in August 2:06 AM ADT Ian Browne
Ian Browne @ianmbrowne
WASHINGTON -- While the spotlight was on Garrett Whitlock after his rough eighth inning for the Red Sox in Wednesday’s 6-2 loss to the Nationals, the more troubling storyline for Boston is the continued sporadic offense in August.
Through the first seven innings on Wednesday, the Red Sox generated one hit. They wound up with just four in the game. Only in the eighth, on a game-tying, two-run homer from Pablo Reyes, did the bats provide some spark.
At this critical juncture of the season, in which the Red Sox (63-57) trail the Blue Jays (67-55) by three games in the quest for the third American League Wild Card spot, Boston needs its offense to get going again and loosen the stress on the pitching staff.
“It is what it is,” said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. “We haven't been great. We’ve just got to be ready for [Thursday].”
In July, Boston showed what it was capable of offensively, putting together a sturdy batting line of .284/.340/.475 during a 15-8 month.
August has been a completely different story. In the first 14 games of the month, the Sox are 7-7 largely due to a lineup that is slashing .236/.293/.404.
Rafael Devers, the club’s most dangerous hitter, has just one homer and three RBIs so far this month. He has a slash line of .225/.367/.375. The solid on-base percentage for a hitter who isn’t particularly patient demonstrates that teams are pitching around him regularly.
They are doing this because they can afford to. If some other key bats in the lineup can start creating some more havoc, opposing pitchers will have to challenge Devers -- but that hasn’t happened yet.
Masataka Yoshida has hit something of a rookie wall while adapting to the more rigorous schedule in the Major Leagues versus Nippon Professional Baseball. His OPS is .602 in August, and like Devers, he has only three RBIs. Yoshida didn’t start either of the past two games, though he did get two at-bats off the bench on Wednesday and hit a deep flyout to left. Perhaps a more rested Yoshida will start doing some damage on Thursday.
Justin Turner, one of the team’s best hitters all season, is playing through a painful left heel injury. He is grinding, with a .796 OPS for the month, but his only two RBIs in August have come on solo homers. Much like Devers, Turner, who is a tremendous situational hitter, is likely to thrive with more crowded basepaths.
Jarren Duran, a spark plug for the Sox for much of the season, has two hits in his past 27 at-bats. The good news is that Duran had a similar slump in May and broke out of it in a big way. Given Duran’s speed, his resurgence would do a lot to get the Boston bats back on track.
Trevor Story’s recent return is going to help the Red Sox, given that he is likely the team’s best all-around player. In his first seven games back from right elbow surgery, Story is 7-for-26 with four doubles. He is still looking for his first RBI.
Triston Casas continues to give his team good at-bats, with an .824 OPS, three homers and seven RBIs in August. But Casas can’t do it all himself.
The gift that keeps on giving is Reyes, who smashed a two-run homer to tie the game in the eighth inning on Wednesday, only to have his effort go for naught when Whitlock allowed four straight batters to reach in the bottom of the frame, including back-to-back homers by Keibert Ruiz and Stone Garrett. It was Whitlock’s second appearance since returning from the injured list. He will likely get sharper the more he pitches.
Reyes was the clear bright spot of the night. After belting a walk-off grand slam on Aug. 7, he continues to be the one of the team’s most pleasant surprises.
“Oh, it was huge,” starter James Paxton, who allowed two runs over six innings, said of the equalizer by Reyes. “Getting the ballgame tied right there at 2-2, getting us a chance to come back and win that game, it was a big moment.”
However, much as things have gone for the better part of the last two weeks, the Sox didn’t have enough big moments offensively to turn that clutch knock into a victory.
They hope those fortunes begin to change in Thursday’s rubber game.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Aug 17, 2023 4:30:18 GMT -5
Injuries & Moves: Houck, Mondesi, Yoshida updates August 16th, 2023
LATEST NEWS
Aug. 16: RHP Tanner Houck dominates in last rehab start The Red Sox got exactly what they were looking for from Houck in his third and final rehab start for Triple-A Worcester on Wednesday. The righty fired four scoreless innings, allowing one hit and no walks while striking out four. Houck threw 59 pitches (36 strikes). Barring anything unexpected, he will start for the Red Sox on Monday night in Houston.
“I actually watched the game," said manager Alex Cora. "He threw well, he threw strikes, the slider was OK. We'll see how he reacts. If he bounces back, then we'll go from there. ... The goal is for him to be with us on Monday.”
Aug. 16: INF Adalberto Mondesi shut down again Mondesi has simply been unable to recover from the torn left ACL he suffered on April 26, 2022. After a shutdown of several weeks from baseball activities, Mondesi tried to ramp back up recently, but manager Alex Cora reported on Wednesday that he has been shut down again. Given the calendar, it seems unlikely that Mondesi will play for the Red Sox this season. The pending free agent was acquired from the Royals for left-handed reliever Josh Taylor in January.
"It’s been on and off. He started again with baseball activities, he didn’t feel well, so we had to shut him down. He's just getting treatment," said Cora. "It’s been that battle, how he feels and where he's at. We've done everything possible to get him right. He's done everything possible to get it right. It's just a matter of jumping that last hurdle. And we haven't been able to do that."
Aug. 16: OF Masataka Yoshida has 'good chance' to start Thursday Yoshida is still trying to fully adapt to the more rigorous travel schedule of MLB compared to NPB in Japan. For that reason, manager Alex Cora had the left fielder out of the lineup for the first two games of the three-game series against the Nationals. Yoshida will likely make his return in Thursday's series finale. Including Monday's team day off, he was able to rest for three days.
“He’s doing well. Like I said, we have to take care of him," said Cora. "There’s nothing going on. We’re just staying away from him for now. There’s a good chance he’ll play tomorrow, and then we’ll go. I talked to him about it, what we’re trying to accomplish, and it's just reset, recharge and go.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Aug 17, 2023 4:34:30 GMT -5
Red Sox lose: Garrett Whitlock gives up back-to-back HRs to break late tie
Updated: Aug. 16, 2023, 9:40 p.m.|Published: Aug. 16, 2023, 9:37 p.m.
By
Chris Cotillo | ccotillo@MassLive.com
WASHINGTON, D.C. — One night after the Red Sox bullpen dominated in a one-run win, one of its most talented contributors faltered mightily in a tough loss.
Entering with the game tied in the eighth inning, Garrett Whitlock surrendered back-to-back homers (including a go-ahead Keibert Ruiz three-run shot) as the Red Sox fell to the Nationals, 6-2, on Wednesday night. The Red Sox, who couldn’t get anything going against Nats starter MacKenzie Gore, had only four hits and plated each of their runs on a Pablo Reyes game-tying two-run blast in the eighth. The Sox suffered just their third loss in nine games and fell to 63-57.
Before the eighth-inning drama, starters James Paxton and MacKenzie Gore dueled deep into the game. It was Gore who one-upped Paxton as the Nationals took an early 2-0 lead on solo homers by Michael Chavis and Stone Garrett.
Gore retired the first 10 he faced before Justin Turner hit a one-out single in the fourth; in total, the Sox had just three baserunners against the lefty, who struck out seven in 6 ⅓ scoreless innings before leaving with a trainer. Paxton, the team leader in ERA, gave up one hit through two innings before Chavis, the former Red Sox infielder, bashed a curveball to the left field seats for his second home run of the season. The next inning, Garrett hit a leadoff shot to make it 2-0. The Nationals were able to tag Paxton for five hits in six strong innings; he took a no decision as his ERA dropped to 3.34.
With Gore out of the game, the Red Sox were able to briefly tie it in the eighth. Alex Verdugo reached on a one-out single before Reyes, who has had a flair for the dramatic in recent weeks, lifted his second homer of the season to left field to make it 2-2.
Whitlock, who impressed in his two-inning return from the injured list Sunday, immediately ran into trouble. He allowed a leadoff single to Lane Thomas, then hit Joey Meneses with a pitch before Ruiz crushed a low changeup into the right-field seats to put Washington on top. Three pitches later, Garrett crushed a sinker 442 feet over the center field wall to make it 6-2. Whitlock suffered the loss after the Red Sox failed to score in the ninth against righty Kyle Finnegan.
The Red Sox are now 19-23 in interleague play this season and snapped a six-game winning streak against Washington. They fell to 21-13 when facing a left-handed starter.
Sale gets finale
Chris Sale (5-2, 4.52 ERA) will get the start for the Red Sox in Thursday’s series finale. The Nationals will send southpaw Patrick Corbin (7-11, 4.85 ERA) to the mound.
First pitch is earlier than usual — at 4:05 p.m. ET. The Red Sox will then take a train to New York for their three-game series against the Yankees, which begins Friday night in the Bronx.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Aug 17, 2023 4:36:13 GMT -5
Garrett Whitlock, Red Sox make no excuses for ‘bad outing’ in tough loss
Published: Aug. 16, 2023, 11:01 p.m.
By
Chris Cotillo | ccotillo@MassLive.com
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Garrett Whitlock’s last Nationals Park experience was much better than the one he had Wednesday night.
Before Wednesday, the last time Whitlock pitched at the stadium was Oct. 3, 2021, when he struck out two in a 1-2-3 seventh inning as the Red Sox stormed back and clinched a postseason spot with a 7-5 win on the final day of the regular season. That capped off a dominant rookie campaign for Whitlock, a Rule 5 pick who pitched to a 1.96 ERA while striking out 81 batters in 73 ⅓ innings as a multi-inning relief weapon.
The years since have been rocky for Whitlock, who has been limited to just 133 innings due to injuries over the last two seasons while bouncing back and forth between the rotation and the bullpen. Wednesday marked his second appearance since coming off the injured list, where he spent a month and a half with elbow inflammation. It didn’t go well.
With the game tied, 2-2, after Pablo Reyes tied things up with a two-run homer in the top of the eighth, Whitlock gave up a leadoff single to Lane Thomas, then hit Joey Meneses with a pitch before leaving a fastball over the plate to Keibert Ruiz. Ruiz took launch with a go-ahead three-run homer and the next batter, Stone Garrett, made it 6-2 with his second homer of the night. A dejected Whitlock was a man of few words postgame.
“Not good,” he said.
Manager Alex Cora, who praised Whitlock after he returned from the IL with three strikeouts in two shutout innings against the Tigers on Sunday, didn’t use the layoff as an excuse. Still, though, it might have played a factor. Whitlock’s velocity was down Wednesday. His fastball averaged just 93.8 mph, which was down from the 96 mph average he flashed Sunday at Fenway Park. Ruiz took him deep on a four-seamer that caught the plate; Garrett crushed a changeup to dead center.
“He wasn’t able to locate... It’s gonna happen,” Cora said. “He’s not perfect. We’ve just got to turn the page.
The Red Sox once again expect Whitlock to be a dominant weapon out of the bullpen after he struggled (5.23 ERA) in 51 ⅔ innings over 10 starts to begin the season. He has landed on the injured list three times so far this year. First, the start of his season was delayed until April 11 as he finished his recovery from hip surgery. He missed 27 games from April 25 to May 27 with ulnar neuritis in his elbow. Most recently, inflammation in the same elbow cost him 32 games from July 3 to Aug. 13.
On Tuesday, Cora cited Whitlock as critical to Tuesday’s win despite the fact he didn’t pitch. By going two innings Sunday, Whitlock allowed Cora to rest his other high-leverage relievers, which paid off when five of them (Brennan Bernardino, John Schreiber, Chris Martin, Josh Winckowski and Kenley Jansen) combined for 4 ⅔ near-perfect innings in a 5-4 win. On Wednesday, things didn’t work nearly as well, for Whitlock or the Red Sox.
“It was just a bad outing,” Cora said. “That’s it.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Aug 17, 2023 5:00:12 GMT -5
RED SOX NOTEBOOK So far, Red Sox pitchers have passed on ride from Nationals bullpen cart By Alex Speier Globe Staff,Updated August 16, 2023, 7:43 p.m.
WASHINGTON — Red Sox bullpen members are confronting a Cartesian conundrum that has nothing to do with the eponymous French philosopher.
For the first time in the careers of most Red Sox relievers, the visit to Nationals Park has presented them with an unfamiliar choice: Should they ride into the game on a bullpen cart?
All six Red Sox pitchers who came into Tuesday’s game from the bullpen — a group that included starter Nick Pivetta, who is applying his bullpen routine to his starts — declined the opportunity to take a lift on the electric-powered, baseball-shaped vehicle. The five Nationals pitchers who entered the game from the bullpen likewise declined a ride.
Instead, an unaccompanied driver took the cart for a forlorn one-way drive around the track before parking it behind the center-field fence in anticipation of another round of rejection.
“That thing is just riding in circles, unfortunately,” said Red Sox lefthander Brennan Bernardino.
For some, the bullpen cart — a staple of the sport in the 1970s and ‘80s that was revived and then re-retired in recent years at Chase Field in Arizona — elicits strong emotions.
“They’re just dumb,” Red Sox closer Kenley Jansen said. “I would never go in one. I’m so used to that jogging getting your body right, getting your body warm. It’s not in my nature, to be honest with you.”
Several Sox pitchers agreed with Jansen that they’d miss the aerobic exercise of jogging in from the bullpen. They also acknowledged discomfort with the potential blowback from teammates.
“If you’re in good health, you should be able to jog in from the bullpen,” said lefthander Chris Murphy.
“You’d probably have to answer to 25 ballplayers on your team after you rode the cart in, ‘Oh, you’re the guy who rode the cart,’ ” said bullpen coach Kevin Walker. “You’d probably get heckled.”
There are also practical considerations associated with the cart. With the vehicle parking in front of the visitors’ dugout instead of by the infield, Bernardino worried about the unknown duration of his journey to the mound.
“If it wasn’t for the [pitch] clock, I think I would try it once just to try it. But with the pitch clock, what if the driver is a little slower? What if I don’t have enough time?” said Bernardino. “You put extra pressure on yourself riding on that thing.”
Still, he hadn’t fully abandoned the idea of catching a lift before the Sox leave Washington.
“I’m still thinking about it. We’ll see,” he said. “It looks like fun.” Turner lets it go
On Tuesday night, Justin Turner fouled off four 3-and-2 pitches before getting called out on strikes by umpire Bruce Dreckman on a breaking ball that was 5.2 inches outside — the farthest outside pitch to produce a called strike on a full count since 2019, according to Statcast data. Turner briefly put his hands on his head after the blown call but quickly let it go.
“It sucks, but they’re human. It is a tough job,” said Turner. “And as long as they’re willing to have the conversation about it and want to be better, which was the case with Bruce last night, there’s not a whole lot you can do to move on.”
Despite a pivotal call that marked the difference between a two-out walk and an inning-ending strikeout, Turner sounded unenthused about shifting to an automatic system for calling balls and strikes.
“I have a pretty good relationship with most [umpires] and I understand it’s a very, very difficult job,” said Turner. “I don’t necessarily want to move away from the human element, go to the ABS system, but that’s not really my decision. It’s whatever the league and the Players Association decide to do.”
Meanwhile, Turner said the bone bruise in his right heel has improved enough to restore his base as a hitter, and that his primary discomfort occurs when he runs. Though he continues to take ground balls in the infield, manager Alex Cora said Turner won’t play defense “for a while.”
With Turner unavailable for the field, Pablo Reyes is the backup first base option to Triston Casas.
Houck close to return
In his third and likely final rehab appearance with Triple A Worcester, Tanner Houck — working back from facial fractures suffered on June 16 — threw four shutout innings, allowing just one single while striking out four, walking none, and getting six ground outs. He threw 36 of 59 pitches for strikes and elicited 11 swings and misses, six on sliders. As long as Houck doesn’t experience a physical setback, he’s expected to start against the Astros on Monday . . . Lefthander Chris Sale will be working with a limit of roughly 75 pitches against the Nationals on Thursday. He threw 58 pitches over 4⅔ innings in his return from a stress reaction in his shoulder last Friday . . . Outfielder Masataka Yoshida was out of the starting lineup but is likely to return on Thursday. He entered in the eighth as a pinch-hitter and went 0 for 2. “There’s nothing [physical] going on,” said Cora. “It’s just reset, recharge, and go.” . . . Righthander Zack Kelly, on the injured list since mid-April after undergoing an ulnar nerve surgery, threw a 25-pitch bullpen session Tuesday. He could return this season . . . Shortstop Adalberto Mondesi, who’d resumed baseball activities last week, experienced discomfort and has once again been shut down. The Sox haven’t given up on the idea he can play this year but acknowledge he’s running out of time. “We’ve done everything possible and we’re still doing everything possible to get him back,” said Cora. “It’s not for lack of effort, because from his end and from our end, I’ll tell you, we’ve done everything. We’ll see what happens.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Aug 17, 2023 5:04:57 GMT -5
Red Sox @ Nationals Thursday, 17th August 2023 4pm @ National Park
Sale 5-2/ 4.52
Corbin 7-11/4.85
Red Sox send Chris Sale to face Nationals in rubber game FLM
Chris Sale makes his second start since returning from the injured list when the Boston Red Sox meet the host Washington Nationals in the rubber game of their series on Thursday.
Sale (5-2, 4.52 ERA), who had been out since early June because of a stress reaction in his shoulder, returned last Friday and allowed two runs on one hit -- a home run -- in 4 2/3 innings against the Tigers. He struck out seven without a walk and retired the first 14 Tigers he faced.
"He's going to keep getting better and getting more innings and he's going to be part of this," Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. "For us to play in October, we need everybody to contribute. For him to come out here today and be healthy and compete with us, it means a lot to the group."
The left-hander is 0-0 with a 5.06 ERA in three games -- one start -- versus Washington.
The Nationals will counter with veteran left-hander Patrick Corbin (7-11, 4.85 ERA). Corbin allowed an unearned run on one hit and seven walks in five-plus innings during his last start, a no-decision against the Phillies last Thursday.
"If you walk seven guys, you don't give up as many hits," he said. "That's one way to do it. ... Not ideal. You're not trying to walk those guys. You try to stay on the corners, you try to stay on the edges, I was just a little bit off today."
Corbin is 0-2 with an 8.22 ERA in two previous starts against Boston.
The Red Sox rallied to tie the score 2-2 on Wednesday thanks to Pablo Reyes' homer in the eighth inning, but Keibert Ruiz hit a three-run homer in the bottom half and Stone Garrett followed with his second solo shot of the game to give the Nationals a 6-2 win.
"I feel like I'm just not trying to do too much," Ruiz said. "I'm just being more patient, waiting for my pitch. I'm having good results. I just have to keep it going."
Ruiz has hit 10 of his 15 home runs this season in the seventh inning or later.
Garrett, who enjoyed his first career multi-home run game, is 8-for-17 (.471) with two doubles, two home runs, eight RBIs, three walks and four runs scored over his last five games.
Michael Chavis added a solo homer against his former team.
Washington left-hander MacKenzie Gore dominated Boston for 6 1/3 scoreless innings before leaving his best start in the majors because of a blister on his left middle finger.
Boston had won six of eight, but was held to four hits, two by Reyes. The infielder is hitting .321 this season with 34 hits, 15 RBIs and 16 runs scored in 106 at-bats.
Reliever Garrett Whitlock, in his second appearance since returning from the injured list, pitched a forgettable eighth inning. He allowed four runs on three hits -- two of them homers -- and hit a batter.
"He wasn't able to locate," Cora said. "It's gonna happen. He's not perfect. So we just got to turn the page. ... It was just a bad outing."
--Field Level Media
Red Sox at Nationals Thursday, at 4:05 PM EST Partly Cloudy It's expected to be 85° F with a 19% chance of precipitation and 10 MPH wind blowing out in Washington, D.C. at 4:05 PM EST. Hourly Forecasts: Weather.com
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Aug 17, 2023 8:04:19 GMT -5
One issue that continues to plague the Red Sox
By Justin Turpin WEEI 93.7 9 hours ago
“It is what it is. We haven’t been great.” That was the bleak assessment Red Sox manager Alex Cora gave on his team’s offensive play so far in August following a frustrating 6-2 loss to the Washington Nationals on Wednesday night.
Boston’s offense mustered just four hits on the night, which marks their fewest in a game since June 29, which was a 2-0 loss to the Miami Marlins. Nationals’ starter MacKenzie Gore tossed 6 ⅓ innings of one-hit baseball for the Nats before leaving the game with an apparent injury.
Aside from a two-run home run off the bat of the red-hot Pablo Reyes, the Red Sox offense was completely lifeless on Wednesday night.
The Red Sox have shown they can be among the most dangerous offensive units in Major League Baseball. The issue has been the consistency. After leading the majors in batting average in July, the Red Sox have cooled off significantly in August. Through 14 games in August, the Red Sox are batting just .236 with a .293 on-base percentage, a significant drop off from their .284 average and .340 on-base percentage in July.
The Red Sox pitching staff is certainly capable of competing, especially with the returns of Chris Sale and Tanner Houck, but if the Red Sox are going to have any chance of sneaking into the Wild Card, the offense needs to wake up, and they need to do so fast.
It starts with their big bats. Though Pablo Reyes has been an incredible story as he has made his case as an everyday player, he can’t be Boston’s top offensive threat. It’s up to guys like Rafael Devers and Trevor Story to pick up the slack for the offense.
The Red Sox will have a good opportunity to break out of their offensive slump in the series finale with the Nationals on Thursday, as the Nats turn to Patrick Corbin. The 34-year-old lefty has struggled for the Nats this year, posting a 7-11 record with a 4.85 ERA.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Aug 17, 2023 9:42:29 GMT -5
Ian Browne @ianmbrowne In July, the Sox went 15-8 with a batting line of .284/.340/.475. So far in August? The team is 7-7 with a line of 236/.293/.404. How quickly the Red Sox can break out of this slump could well determine if they can get into the playoffs. 11:53 PM · Aug 16, 2023 ·
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Aug 17, 2023 10:00:32 GMT -5
Game 121 lineups and notes: Chris Sale starts as the Red Sox aim for a third straight series winBy Greg McKenna Globe Correspondent,Updated August 17, 2023, 27 minutes ago Chris Sale makes his first start away from Fenway Park in nearly three months as the Red Sox close a three-game set at Nationals Park Thursday afternoon. After taking the series opener, the Sox rallied to tie the score 2-2 on Wednesday thanks to Pablo Reyes’s home run in the eighth inning. Garrett Whitlock gave up four runs on back-to-back homers in the bottom half of the inning, however, and Boston remained three games behind Toronto in the race for the final AL wild card spot while the Mariners moved to within one game of the Blue Jays. The Sox, trying for a third consecutive series win, turn to Sale, who returned from the injured list last Friday after more than two months out because of a stress reaction in left shoulder. The seven-time All-Star was largely dominant in his return against the Tigers, retiring the first 14 batters he faced and striking out seven before allowing two runs on one hit — a solo homer — in 4⅔ innings. Lineups RED SOX (63-57): Rob Refsnyder (R) CF Rafael Devers (L) 3B Trevor Story (R) DH Adam Duvall (R) RF Masataka Yoshida (L) LF Pablo Reyes (R) SS Triston Casas (L) 1B Connor Wong (R) C Luis Urias (R) 2B Pitching: LHP Chris Sale (5-2, 4.52 ERA) NATIONALS (54-67): Lane Thomas (R) RF Joey Meneses (R) 1B Keibert Ruiz (S) DH Stone Garrett (R) LF Riley Adams (R) C Michael Chavis (R) 2B Ildemaro Vargas (S) 3B Alex Call (R) CF Jeter Downs (R) SS Pitching: LHP Patrick Corbin (7-11, 4.85 ERA) Time: 4:05 p.m. TV, radio: NESN, WEEI-FM 93.7 Red Sox vs. Corbin: Adam Duvall 12-35, Pablo Reyes 0-6, Trevor Story 10-30, Justin Turner 16-39, Luis Urías 3-9, Alex Verdugo 0-2 Nationals vs. Sale: Lane Thomas 0-1 Stat of the day: The Sox are an MLB-best 50-7 (.877) when they score more than five runs. They’ve done so in just four of their last 13 games. Notes: The Sox are 9-3 in Sale’s starts this season, including each of his last four outings. He’s 4-0 with a 2.43 ERA, .178 opponent BA, and 48 strikeouts in his last seven starts (40⅔ innings). ... Reyes’ two-run shot Wednesday, which followed his walk-off grand slam last Monday, marked the first time he’s hit big league homers in consecutive weeks since Aug. 2019. Since June 9, Chris Martin has allowed just one run in his last 25 outings (22⅔ innings). His 0.40 ERA over that span leads MLB (min. 20 innings). ... Corbin allowed an unearned run on one hit and seven walks against the Phillies last Thursday. He’s given up five homers in 17 innings over his last three starts. ... The Sox have won each of their last four series against the Nationals since 2015. Song of the Day: The Rolling Stones- You got me rocking www.youtube.com/watch?v=84PETdu743A
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Aug 17, 2023 16:57:10 GMT -5
Pretty disgusting effort again 4 hits so far, and the only hard one was a Casas HR 2 dumb errors, 84 now this season and the Gas Can Gang bullpen goes off in a bad way
8-1 Nats bottom 6
and that is enough of this shit for me.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Aug 18, 2023 4:19:51 GMT -5
'One of those days' comes at wrong time for Sox Boston's late rally isn't enough against Nats as schedule stiffens in AL Wild Card chase August 17th, 2023 Ian Browne
Ian Browne @ianmbrowne ;
WASHINGTON -- This road series in the nation’s capital was supposed to be a soft landing spot for the Red Sox as they started a grueling stretch of 16 games in 16 days that includes a three-game series at Yankee Stadium, four games at Houston, three home games against the Dodgers and another three against the Astros at Fenway Park.
Instead, it was an annoying pothole, particularly on Thursday afternoon’s getaway day, as Washington took a huge lead, then staved off a furious comeback to take the rubber match, 10-7, at Nationals Park.
Losing two out of three against the Nats (55-67) wasn’t what the Sox (63-58) had in mind given where they are in the American League Wild Card standings.
A missed opportunity?
“They all are,” manager Alex Cora said. “We lost the series, so we have to be ready for the Yankees.”
The Red Sox head for their latest rivalry weekend in New York trailing the Blue Jays by 3 1/2 games for the third AL Wild Card spot. The Mariners, the other team the Sox are chasing, are just a half-game behind Toronto.
With head-to-head record determining tiebreakers in the standings, the Red Sox do have the edge on the Jays, having already clinched the season series. Boston and Seattle finished 3-3. In a two-way tie between those clubs, the next tiebreaker is intradivisional record. At this point, the Mariners hold that edge.
If the Sox, Jays and Mariners finish in a three-way tie, then the team with the best combined winning percentage against the two other clubs would get that final Wild Card spot. Boston has already clinched that tiebreaker.
But for those tiebreakers to matter, the Sox need to play better baseball than their 7-8 record so far in August.
Prior to the finale against the Nats, Cora was asked how the team balances the dog days of August versus this critical upcoming stretch against tough opponents.
“Very easy,” Cora said. “If you want to play in October, you better show up every day.”
The good news for the Red Sox is that the offense showed up for the second half of the finale in Washington. This, after a stretch of 20 innings that started with the middle of Tuesday’s game and ended in the sixth inning on Thursday in which they mustered just three runs. Your browser does not support HTML5 video tag.
Trailing by eight runs, Luis Urías belted a grand slam with one out in the seventh. Later in the inning, Rafael Devers hit a titanic, two-run shot that traveled a Statcast-projected 453 feet and it was 9-7.
After the Nats got an insurance run in the eighth, the Sox again threatened to move in front when pinch-hitters Alex Verdugo (single) and Jarren Duran (double) opened that final frame with hits.
When Devers came to the plate representing the potential tying run, it felt like something magical could happen for the Sox, who last overcame an eight-run deficit to win a game in 1967. However, Devers struck out.
Then it was Trevor Story’s turn. His 0-for-12 series against the Nats was capped when he hit a 96.8 mph bullet that had an expected batting average of .640 right into the glove of second baseman Michael Chavis to end the game.
“One of those days, kind of,” Story said. “Got some action there in the ninth and it was definitely my best swing of the day. Just bad aim."
Early in the game, Chris Sale was not nearly as sharp in his second start back from the injured list as he was in the first. But when he walked off the mound with runners at the corners and one out in the fifth, the game was still tied at 1.
Not for long. Normally trusty reliever Josh Winckowski, who had a 1.56 ERA in his previous 14 outings, allowed both runners he inherited from Sale to score, plus another three in a five-run frame that put the Sox in a big hole.
Despite the late-game fight from the offense, it wasn’t enough.
“I think if we play the way that we want to play and the way we can, then we'll be where we want to be when the playoffs come,” Story said.
Sale echoed his teammate.
“As long as we’ve got a chance, I like where we're at,” Sale said. “This team responds well when we’ve got our backs against the wall. We're not gonna give up.”
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