Red Sox @ Royals Game Thread/ 1rst - 3rd September 2023

RED SOX REINSTATE OUTFIELDER WILYER ABREU FROM PATERNITY LIST
Club Options Infielder David Hamilton to Triple-A Worcester
4:23 PM ADT

BOSTON, MA—The Boston Red Sox today reinstated outfielder Wilyer Abreu from the Paternity List. To make room on the active roster, the club optioned infielder David Hamilton to Triple-A Worcester.

Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom made the announcement.

Abreu, 24, has gone 6-for-17 (.353) with two doubles, one home run, and five RBI in five games for the Red Sox, his Major League debut. The left-handed hitter has also batted .274 (82-for-299) with 11 doubles, one triple, 22 home runs, and 59 RBI in 86 games for Worcester in 2023. Acquired from the Houston Astros in August 2022, the Venezuela native is ranked as the Red Sox’ No. 17 prospect by MLB.com.

Hamilton, 25, has played in 15 games for the Red Sox this season, his Major League debut, going 4-for-33 with two doubles, six walks, and two stolen bases. The left-handed hitter has also batted .243 (82-for-337) with 15 doubles, 15 home runs, and 49 stolen bases in 88 games for Worcester in 2023. Acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers in a four-player trade on December 1, 2021, the Texas native is ranked among the Red Sox’ top 30 prospects by both MLB.com (No. 19) and Baseball America (No. 22).

RED SOX NOTEBOOK
Pitching, defense to blame for Red Sox’ downturn and up for analysis after an ugly month of August
By Julian McWilliams Globe Staff,Updated August 31, 2023, 7:59 p.m.


The Astros cut out the lights at Fenway Park when they swept the Red Sox this week, spoiling any chance at a postseason run.

In truth, though, the Red Sox were doomed well before that. It comes down to pitching and defense.

The Red Sox banked on pitchers Chris Sale, Tanner Houck, and Garrett Whitlock to get them through the August storm. In translation, it was up to guys returning from injury who had spent much of the summer on the injured list. After covering much of July with bullpen games in two rotation spots, Sale and Houck were supposed to help amplify the rotation despite the pair’s pitch-count limit. Whitlock, meanwhile, was supposed to amplify a bullpen that looked like it was establishing itself as one of the best in the big leagues.


But the Sox had other issues before their returns. James Paxton began to fade, posting a 4.81 ERA in his first five starts following the All-Star break. You began to see Brayan Bello show some fatigue, too, when he came out of the break with a 5.34 ERA over five starts. Yet Sale and Houck were better options than running out Chris Murphy as the bulk guy every five days, or even Nick Pivetta, who thrived in that role. The collateral damage to Pivetta’s success was a spent bullpen.


Turns out, the returns of Sale and Houck were more of a hindrance given their limitations and underperformance. Sale was reinstated from the injured list Aug. 11 and Houck returned Aug. 22. Since Aug. 11, the Sox starters have posted a 5.11 ERA while throwing just 88 innings in 19 games and averaging just under 4⅔ innings.

“It’s very difficult,” said manager Alex Cora of finding a way to win while also considering a pitcher’s health. “It’s a balancing act. But at the same time, we’re in the business of winning. When you’re in that chair, and have those 26 guys and everybody in the organization, we’re in the business of winning. But at the same time, you’re not going to jeopardize somebody’s career because we have to win today. That’s for later on in the year. Late September and in October. [At that time] everybody goes in spikes on and we go.


“But right now, at this point, it’s very hard to push Chris to 110 pitches. It’s hard to push Houck to 100 pitches against the Dodgers.”

Whitlock, meanwhile, has been a shell of himself since returning Aug. 13, tallying a 6.75 ERA with opponents hitting .326 against him. The bullpen began to show fatigue, too, yielding a whopping 6.14 ERA for August.

As for the defense, it, by far, is the most concerning part of not just the Red Sox’ current issues, but their future issues.

The Sox have committed the most errors in the game (92). The club ranked 26th in the majors in defensive runs saved as of Thursday (minus-17).

Rafael Devers has taken a step back defensively, and though Cora has backed his third baseman, saying that he is confident Devers can stay at the position, it’s fair to question that assessment. Having to question that, considering the Sox committed $300 million to Devers, should cause some uneasiness within the Red Sox crowd.

Masataka Yoshida is a below-average defender in left field, too. Triston Casas is a below-average defender at first base, but could improve considering he’s just 23. Yoshida, meanwhile, is 30, and likely is who he is in left.


While Yoshida profiles more as a designated hitter, he has only 13 homers in his first big league season. He’s an Alex Verdugo at the plate with a little bit more power, yet lacks the right fielder’s defensive skills. That’s a problem.

The Sox are locked into the trio of Devers, Yoshida, and Casas for at least the next four years, and if primary DH Justin Turner re-signs with the club (he has an option for next year that he certainly will decline considering his offensive production), what do they do to improve defensively? Having a full year of Trevor Story will help at shortstop, but running out three below-average defenders will likely negate Story’s presence.

“We are where we are because we have struggled in certain areas of the game,” Cora said. “And it’s catching up to us.”

Defense, even more than pitching, has determined the Sox’ fate.
Roster expansion includes Valdez, Walter

On Friday, major league rosters can expand to 28 players, with a maximum of 14 pitchers. Infielder Enmanuel Valdez and lefthander Brandon Walter will be the club’s September call-ups from Triple A Worcester and will join the team in Kansas City for a three-game series against the Royals. Outfielder Wilyer Abreu was reinstated from the paternity list and center fielder/shortstop Ceddanne Rafaela will remain on the roster, but infielder David Hamilton was optioned to Worcester . . . The Sox’ rotation for this weekend is as follows: Paxton, Houck, Sale. Kansas City will send Jordan Lyles to the mound for the series opener, then TBD for Saturday, and Zack Greinke for Sunday.

Paxton chased as Boston's postseason hopes fade
Veteran lefty gives up six runs, Red Sox fall 6 1/2 games back in Wild Card race
2:10 AM ADT
Jackson Stone

Jackson Stone
@jackson_Stoneee



KANSAS CITY -- Time is running out for the Red Sox.

After a disappointing homestand to cap August, the start of September got away in a hurry.

The Red Sox lost 13-2 in a spiritless opener against the Royals on Friday night at Kauffman Stadium. Boston has now dropped six of its past seven games, falling back from 3 1/2 games to 6 1/2 games for the final American League Wild Card spot in six days.

The Red Sox (69-66) have lost five in a row. They have 27 games to turn it around.

“We’re getting punched, but we have to bounce back tomorrow,” manager Alex Cora said. “It hasn’t been easy. Obviously we are running out of time here. We need to play better baseball. … Hopefully now that we’ve lost five we get into a hot streak and start playing better baseball.”

For that to happen, the Red Sox need to get more innings out of their starting pitchers. Boston starters have failed to go at least five innings in six straight games, the last being Kutter Crawford who went five in a loss to the Dodgers on Aug. 25.

James Paxton was the latest Red Sox starter to depart early, throwing just 1 1/3 innings and allowing six runs on five hits and two walks against Kansas City. It was the second shortest start of Paxton’s career, and the first time this season that he ended an outing without a strikeout.

“I’m not executing on pitches very well,” Paxton said. “I’m not throwing my breaking ball for strikes. I’m falling behind in the count and leaving fastballs in places where they can get to them. Those are not recipes for success.”

Paxton threw his fastball 24 times, his curveball eight and his changeup three times. He threw just one cutter. Without feel for his breaking pitches, the lefty saw Royals batters attack him early, including back-to-back homers in the first inning. Paxton, who has thrown 96 innings this season after combining for just 21 2/3 innings over the past three seasons, has now allowed four or more earned runs in three straight starts.

“Not a lot of feel with the breaking ball right now. Fastball feels lifeless,” Paxton said. “Trying to figure things out mechanically. It’s just not feeling good right now.”

The Royals scored a season-high 13 runs and snapped their six-game losing streak with their biggest win by run differential since 2020. Paxton entered with a 4-0 record and a career 1.51 ERA against Kansas City, which included a scoreless start against the Royals on Aug. 10.

“To be an elite pitcher, you have to be able to throw breaking balls for strikes,” Paxton said. “These guys are too good to throw one pitch. So I have to be able to throw that for a strike and execute my fastball location so I give myself a chance out there.”

Paxton held a 2.73 ERA across 10 starts in the first half, but that number has spiked to 6.98 since the All-Star break. Boston has received reinforcements with Tanner Houck and Chris Sale -- who will each start in this series against Kansas City -- returning to the rotation, but the Red Sox will need Paxton to return to his first-half form if they want to make a serious run at the postseason.

But the opportunity for Boston to gain ground is there.

The Red Sox will travel to Texas, which currently holds the final AL Wild Card spot, and Toronto, the other team ahead of Boston in the postseason picture, later in September. Boston has already clinched the postseason tiebreaker against Toronto (7-3), and holds a 2-1 advantage against Texas with three to go.

“This was a tough one, obviously, started by me. But we just have to get back to doing the little things,” Paxton said. “Focus on having good at-bats, throwing quality starts, getting ahead of hitters and ultimately winning ball games.”

After two more games in Kansas City, the Red Sox will play 19 of their final 25 games against teams currently above .500, but the feeling around the clubhouse hasn’t changed. Boston believes it has the pieces to make a run during the season’s final month.

“This team is good. We have a lot of professionals, a lot of vets, guys who know how to bounce back from this,” said Alex Verdugo, who provided Boston with its only offense with a two-run homer in the eighth inning. “This is just one game. Chalk it up and be ready tomorrow.”