Red Sox @ Rays Game Thread/ 4th-6th September 2023

Cora: ‘This week is going to be huge for us’
Boston turns to upcoming homestand looking to stay in WC race after series loss to Rays
12:09 AM ADT
Ian Browne

Ian Browne
@ianmbrowne


ST. PETERSBURG -- As the Red Sox packed their bags and left Tropicana Field following an overpowering performance by Tyler Glasnow (six innings, 14 strikeouts) in a 3-1 loss to the Rays in the rubber match of a three-game series, they were ready to enjoy the upcoming off-day at home and then get back to business on Friday night at Fenway Park.

Though this will be the penultimate homestand, in which the Orioles come in for three games followed by the Yankees for four, it could be Boston’s last stand in the fight for the postseason.

With 22 games left and a five-game deficit to the Blue Jays in the American League Wild Card standings, the Red Sox don’t have room for another misstep like their last homestand, when they went 1-5 against the Dodgers and Astros.

While the Sox could have gained ground on the Rangers and Blue Jays with a win on getaway Wednesday at the Trop, Boston manager Alex Cora struck a positive tone rather than dwelling on what could have been.

“Not this one,” said Cora, when asked if the losses by Texas and Toronto made the defeat harder to stomach. “I’m telling you, we’re ready to go home. There was a lot of good stuff that happened tonight. Showing up and grinding the way we did where we were bullpen-wise. I know it sucks and there are no moral victories, but we feel good.

“We’re going home now. If you want to gain ground, we have a chance now. We have the best team in the American League and then we have the Yankees and we have Toronto and Texas [on the next road trip]. This week is going to be huge for us.”

It was an interesting response from Cora, considering the Sox let an 11th-inning lead slip away on Tuesday, which would have given them their first series victory at Tropicana Field since 2019.

What Cora appreciated most was a gritty albeit not great start by Nick Pivetta (4 2/3 innings, three earned runs, five strikeouts), who took the start on three days of rest after a three-inning save on Saturday in Kansas City.

Pivetta has pitched in every role possible this season, and Cora let him know that his latest effort was appreciated.

“He’s been great,” Cora said. “I told him on the mound, ‘Thank you, bro.’ Every time he takes the baseball he’s been outstanding. He prepares. He wants to compete.”

Considering that FanGraphs gives the Sox just a 4.1 percent chance to make the playoffs, they’ll need all the “compete” they can get from everyone from here on out.

It is easy to wonder what could have been, had the Sox played clean defense and gotten better health and performance from their starting rotation.

“It’s hard,” said Cora. “Let’s be honest, we haven’t played good baseball, either [at times]. We put ourselves in that spot in certain weeks. We just have to keep grinding. We came here for three days and they won the series, but we were right there. We just have to keep playing good baseball. Friday night at Fenway, we’ve got Tanner [Houck]. We have a good team coming and we just have to be ready.”

The last homestand was perhaps the low point of the season for the Red Sox. They would like to turn this next one into a high point.

“I think last homestand was pretty rough, offensively and defensively, but I think we found something in Kansas City those last couple days,” said first baseman Triston Casas. “We put together really good at-bats the first day here, and then yesterday, and today, just faced a lot of good pitchers and ran into a buzzsaw today with Glasnow.”

The quickest recipe for a hot streak for the Red Sox would be for the offense to get on one of those big runs they’ve had multiple times this season, particularly in July.

“We live to play baseball,” Pivetta said. “We love playing and showing up every single day for the fans, for the organization, for each other in this room. It’s just the fight of every single dog in this [clubhouse]. You really see it with this coaching staff, the training staff, the guys in the room. It’s a team effort, but everybody gives 100 percent no matter what’s going on. And I think the fight is always within us.”

With time growing short, the fight will have to be matched by performance

Red Sox limited to five hits, miss chance to gain ground in playoff chase

Published: Sep. 06, 2023, 9:13 p.m.


By

Sean McAdam | sean.mcadam@masslive.com

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The opportunity was there. But as they did with so many of the pitches thrown by Tyler Glasnow Tuesday night, the Red Sox missed it.

With two teams in front of them losing, the Red Sox could have returned to Boston having made up ground. Instead, they had a feeble offensive showing and dropped their second straight to the Tampa Bay Rays, 3-1.

The Red Sox were unable to get much done offensively all night, and in particular, against Glasnow, who tied a career-high with 14 strikeouts over six innings. In all, the Sox fanned 17 times.

In all the Sox managed just five hits, including only two over the final six innings — a two-out, pinch-hit double by Ceddanne Rafaela in the eighth inning that was, ultimately, wasted, and a single by Triston Casas with one down in the ninth.

In all, the Red Sox produced just three baserunners the Red Sox managed after the third inning. The other was the result of a leadoff walk by Trevor Story to start the fifth.

Once more, the Sox exhibited some poor situational hitting, going 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position. In the third, they had a baserunner on third and two outs, but the next three hitters failed to deliver the run.

Tied at 1-1, the Rays notched solo runs off starter Nick Pivetta in both the fourth and fifth.

Isaac Paredes hammered a four-seamer into the left field seats with two out in the fourth for the second homer by the Rays in as many innings.
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In the fifth, Pivetta’s control deserted him and he paid for it. After issuing consecutive walks to Yandy Diaz and Brandon Lowe to start the inning, Pivetta got Randy Arozarena to hit into a double-play as Diaz advanced to third.

That left Pivetta an out away from getting out of the jam, but an aggressive Harold Ramirez jumped on a first-pitch fastball and hit it to straightaway center, off the wall. That was all for Pivetta, who gave way to Brennan Bernardino.

The Red Sox insisted in the aftermath of their excruciating 11-inning loss Tuesday that they would be able to put the defeat behind them, and indeed, they got on the scoreboard first.


Enmanuel Valdez led off the third with a single to left and was driven home when Connor Wong drove a ball the other way to the warning track in right. Tampa outfielder Luke Raley allowed the carom to get away, and Wong wound up on third with a run-scoring triple.

It didn’t take long for the Rays to counter, however. In the bottom of the inning, with two out, Brandon Lowe connected on a first-pitch fastball from Pivetta and drove it out to right for his second homer in as many nights against the Sox.

Heading home

The Red Sox are off on Thursday before beginning a seven-game homestand Friday with the first of three with the first-place Baltimore Orioles. After that, the Sox host the New York Yankees in a four-game series to conclude their second-to-last homestand of the season.

Red Sox insist they have fight left in them, but it’s results they now need | McAdam

Published: Sep. 07, 2023, 6:00 a.m.


By

Sean McAdam | sean.mcadam@masslive.com

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — They arrived here on the wings of a modest two-game win streak, and to their credit, rolled over the Tampa Bay Rays Monday to snap a hideous 13-game losing streak at Tropicana Field.

On Tuesday, they rallied from being down three runs, cut down the winning run at the plate in the bottom of the 10th, then took the lead in the top of the 11th.

And on Wednesday, with yet another depleted bullpen, they gamely battled with a starter operating on three days’ rest and brought the potential tying run to the plate in the ninth.



Just one problem: for all their effort and fortitude, they lost the last two games of the series. Moreover, while they didn’t lose ground in the scramble for the final wild card spot in the American League, they didn’t gain any either.

And that, like the hokey-pokey, is what it’s all about. Getting closer. Moving up. Winning.

Instead, they saw two more games come off the calendar, which, like the Blue Jays and three more teams in the AL West, has become an enemy.

Time is ticking — on the season, on the Red Sox.

For the second straight night, Alex Cora stood in the manager’s office and proclaimed the pride he felt in his team. Also for the second straight night, the words rang a bit hollow, given the final score: Rays 3, Red Sox 1.

“We didn’t do much offensively,” said Cora. “We competed today. It was good. Today, there was a lot of good stuff that happened here tonight. Showing up and grinding the way we did, with where we were bullpen-wise...I know it sucks and there’s no moral victories. But we feel good. We’re going home now, and if we want to gain ground, we’ve got a chance now.

“This week is going to be huge for us. Regardless of what people think, I’m very pleased with the way we played today.”

In truth, there wasn’t a whole lot to criticize. Pivetta gave them 4.2 innings on short rest, and made two mistakes with fastballs that were hit out. The lineup couldn’t get any traction against Tyler Glasnow, who racked up 14 strikeouts, tying a career high in six innings, but few teams would have done damage against an elite starter at the top of his game.
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There was a botched rundown play in the fourth after Pivetta dropped a throw in the basepath, but ultimately, that didn’t cost them.

That aside, Pivetta battled, and given that he stepped in when the Red Sox decided to skip James Paxton, and started a game four days after saving one in his last appearance, Cora felt it necessary to deliver a personal message when he pulled him in the fifth.

“I told him on the mound, ‘Thank you, bro,’ " said Cora. “What he did today, that was good to see...He wants to compete and he’s been amazing for us.”

“It’s just fight all the time,” said Pivetta, characterizing the team’s approach. “We look forward to the challenges that are ahead, but just stay steadfast and enjoy the moments.”

From the offensive side, despite being limited to five hits, the Red Sox see progress, noting the 29 runs they had scored in the previous four games before Wednesday’s shutdown.

“We’re always moving in the right direction,” maintained Triston Casas. “We’ve been putting together good at-bats. I like where we’re at, in terms of our lineup.”

But the raw numbers reflect the improbability of the task at hand. Since Aug. 2, the Red Sox are now under .500 (15-17) and the chances of them winning, say, two-thirds of the remaining 22 games that they need would seem slight.

Cora referenced the hole the Red Sox have dug for themselves and acknowledged how difficult it could be to navigate.

“Let’s be honest — we haven’t played good baseball (for stretches),’' he said. “We put ourselves in a rough spot in certain weeks. We just have to keep grinding. We want to get to the next level. We want to make it. We want to make it, I’m telling you. We came here for three days and they won the series, but we’re right there.

“We’ve got to keep playing good baseball. We’ve got a good team coming (to town) and we just have to be ready.”


Readiness and willingness to compete are nice attributes, but again, they take a back seat to wins, of which there have not been nearly enough.

Of the next 13 games, nine will come against teams ahead of them in the standings, including six with two of their closest competitors.

That may represent an opportunity, but unless the Red Sox start matching their talk with better outcomes, it won’t mean much.

Once again, the randomness of baseball and the reason why you can't get too upset about losing close games.

Last night, another close game loss.