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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 21, 2020 17:41:02 GMT -5
Orioles @ Red Sox Tuesday 22nd September Embrace the Tank Week 730pm
Akin 1-1/3.88
Since entering the SP roto is 1-1/ 2.35. Punched out 9 in his last game vs the Braves.
Pivetta 0-0/ 15.88
Making his first start since the trade last month.
RHP Pivetta makes Red Sox debut against Orioles FLM
The Boston Red Sox get set to wrap up the home slate of a disappointing 2020 campaign as they welcome the Baltimore Orioles for a three-game series beginning Tuesday.
In recent years, a series against Baltimore in the last week of the season has represented a chance for an American League East top dog like Boston to pad its place in the standings. But for this year's Red Sox (20-34), the series' significance is solely in helping to determine which of the two teams will finish last in the division.
The Orioles (23-31) enter Monday still mathematically alive in the race for a wild-card spot in the expanded playoffs, but they are 4 1/2 games back with six games remaining.
Boston will see right-hander Nick Pivetta (0-0, 15.88 ERA) make his team debut in the opener Tuesday. Pivetta was acquired from the Philadelphia Phillies in a trade last month. Baltimore will counter with rookie left-hander Keegan Akin (1-1, 3.38).
The Red Sox enter the series in high spirits after a 10-2 rout of the New York Yankees on Sunday afternoon. The victory ended a 12-game losing streak for Boston against its most bitter rival, as rookie starter Tanner Houck stole the show by allowing just one unearned run on one hit over six innings.
"As far as beating the Yankees, we know what kind of team they have. We know we have to play a really good game," manager Ron Roenicke said. "We did a great job pitching today against them, and some guys busted out today offensively."
Michael Chavis went deep twice in the win, and J.D. Martinez hit just his sixth blast of the season. Rookie Bobby Dalbec added his seventh homer in 17 games.
Pivetta represents an interesting project for the Red Sox as a former prospect who never really found his footing with the Phillies. The 27-year-old went 7-14 with a 4.77 ERA in 33 games (32 starts) with Philadelphia in 2018 before being moved to the bullpen a year later. He'll make his first start in well over a year and face the Orioles for the third time in his career (2-0, 2.63 ERA in two previous outings).
Baltimore enters the series having snapped a four-game losing streak with a 2-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday in its last game at home. Left-hander John Means dazzled in the outing, striking out 12 in 5 2/3 innings.
"That was one of the better performances I've seen from him here in a year-plus," manager Brandon Hyde said.
Akin will look to pick up where Means left off as he makes his fifth career start Tuesday. Since moving to the rotation last month, the 25-year-old has a 2.35 ERA in 15 1/3 innings, striking out 24.
"He attacks hitters, trusts his fastball and I think the secondary stuff is improving," said Hyde after Akin's last outing, in which he whiffed nine Atlanta Braves.
Akin will face the Red Sox for the first time.
Boston has gone 3-4 against Baltimore this season. After this series, the Red Sox will conclude their season in Atlanta against the Braves, while the Orioles will face the Toronto Blue Jays at Buffalo, N.Y.
--Field Level Media
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 21, 2020 17:44:09 GMT -5
rest of series Wednesday..Kremen 1-0/ 1.69 vs Eovaldi 3-2/ 4.25 Thursday....Cobb 1-5/ 4.76 vs Perez 3-4/ 3.88
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 21, 2020 17:56:54 GMT -5
Nick Pivetta to make Boston Sox debut: Starter from Brandon Workman trade to pitch vs. Orioles on Tuesday
By Christopher Smith | csmith@masslive.com
Nick Pivetta, who Boston acquired from the Philadelphia Phillies in the Brandon Workman trade, will make his Red Sox debut Tuesday against the Baltimore Orioles at Fenway Park.
The Red Sox acquired Pivetta and pitching prospect Connor Seabold for Workman and Heath Hembree on Aug. 21.
Nathan Eovaldi will start for Boston on Wednesday. Martin Perez will start Thursday.
Boston has just six games remaining. It plays three games vs. the Orioles, then heads to Atlanta for three games against the Braves this weekend.
Pivetta ha pitched in simulated games at the alternate training site in Pawtucket. The Red Sox gained an extra year of control because they waited to promote him. He needed to spend 28 days in the majors during 2020 to hit free agency after 2023. Now he is not eligible for free agency until after the 2024 season.
The 27-year-old has good stuff but it hasn’t translated to results in the major leagues yet. He posted a 5.50 ERA, 4.64 FIP and 1.43 WHIP in 92 outings (71 starts) for Philadelphia from 2017-20.
His four-seam fastball averaged 94.6 mph in 2019 and 94.8 mph in 2018, per Statcast.
“He’s a big, physical, power pitcher,” Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said Aug. 21. “He’s got a really good fastball. Good breaking ball. He also has a changeup. A guy that’s shown the ability to carry a starter’s workload. And a lot of the underlying traits there have shown the potential for a lot more success than he’s enjoyed in terms of his results. Again, power pitcher that we think should be capable of holding down a rotation spot. Really feel like he’s a good fit going forward and that we’ve got a chance to help him reach a level he has not yet in his career despite his big stuff.”
Both Workman and Hembree have struggled with the Phillies. Hembree allowed four runs, all earned, four hits (one homer) and one walk in one inning for the Phillies on Sunday. He has a 12.54 ERA (9 ⅓ innings, 13 runs) and has allowed seven homers since the Red Sox traded him to Philadelphia.
Workman has a 6.39 ERA (12 ⅔ innings, nine earned runs).
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 22, 2020 4:25:18 GMT -5
Red Sox notebook Red Sox bring Nick Pivetta and his confounding stuff back to the bigs By Alex Speier Globe Staff,Updated September 21, 2020, 7:04 p.m.
As Nick Pivetta readies to make his Red Sox debut Tuesday against the Orioles, a question looms: What kind of plan of attack will the 27-year-old employ?
Pivetta possesses a curve and slider that have both, at times in his career, been devastating weapons. He also has a four-seam fastball that can reach the upper-90s. (Pivetta has made sparing use of a two-seamer and changeup in his career, as both have yielded poor numbers.) The raw materials are impressive.
“He has three or four really good, high-quality, major league pitches,” said Red Sox minor league pitching coordinator Shawn Haviland. “He’s had some success at that level. It’s kind of just about the consistency.”
What’s holding him back? Many teams and pitching coaches have wondered how someone with Pivetta’s stuff can have a career 19-30 record and 5.50 ERA.
Some of Pivetta’s struggles can be traced to his primary pitch. Despite the velocity of his four-seam fastball, it’s often been hit hard. Get 108 Stitches in your inboxEverything baseball every Monday-Friday during baseball season, and weekly in the offseason.
In the past, Pivetta has expressed greater comfort working down in the strike zone with his fastball, though he’s gotten shelled at times when doing so. In 2018, he thrived when working at or just above the top of the zone with his four-seamer (.190 average, .236 slugging, 23.7 percent swing-and-miss rate) and struggled at the bottom edge (.333 average, .733 slugging).
The Phillies, who sent him to the Red Sox last month in a deal for relievers Brandon Workman and Heath Hembree, wanted Pivetta to work with an elevated fastball in 2019 while spinning his two breaking balls down off of it. But his command to that spot proved inconsistent, with Pivetta uncomfortable attacking the top of the zone and ultimately getting hit hard no matter where he threw his fastball (.348 average, .697 slugging).
Given that the Sox envision him as a pitcher who should throw his fastball roughly half the time, where do they think he’ll be most effective while doing so?
“It plays all over the zone. It kind of matters how he got there,” said Haviland. “Obviously a guy like him who can really backspin it and has some velocity can have some success at the top of the zone, but we don’t try to cookie-cutter everything. As a starter, you need to be able to throw to all four parts of the zone.”
With starts against the Orioles on Tuesday and Atlanta in the regular-season finale Sunday, the Sox are hoping Pivetta will show the ability to do just that.
How best to judge Dalbec?
Bobby Dalbec has struck out more often (32 times) and at a higher rate (47.8 percent) in the first 17 games of his career than any other position player in major league history. Yet with seven homers, he’s also hitting .262/.328/.639.
Dalbec’s numbers bear intriguing resemblance to a player whom he just played during the Yankees series over the weekend. Aaron Judge, the 2017 American League Rookie of the Year, went into Monday’s games hitting .256/.318/.628 with nine homers and a 32.1 percent strikeout rate.
The proximity of their statistics is worth noting, given that Dalbec’s has the sort of rare power exceeded by few besides Judge. And like Dalbec, Judge struggled to make contact at the start of his career (44.4 percent strikeout rate through 17 games in 2016) before finding his way to greater offensive consistency the following year.
“There are going to be streaks in his game. Power guys usually come that way. But, wow, the way he impacts the ball is impressive,” Red Sox hitting coach Tim Hyers said of Dalbec. “There are going to be strikeouts in there, there are going to be ups and downs, but I know he’s battling to be more consistent. Me, personally, I think he can. I think there’s not going to be such a peak and valley with him.”
Dalbec isn’t alone with strikeout issues this year. The Red Sox have raw offensive numbers that cumulatively suggest a potential top-10 offense, that, through the weekend, was hitting .263 (sixth best in MLB) with a .326 OBP (12th) and .445 slugging mark (eighth). But they rank near the bottom of the league in OBP with runners in scoring position (.321, 25th) and first in the league in strikeout rate (26.2 percent) with runners on second and/or third, helping to explain why their runs per game average of 4.63 is slightly below the league average of .465. Raising the bar
Catcher Jett Bandy has appeared in 156 big league games and been teammates with some of the best players in baseball, including Mike Trout and Christian Yelich. Yet Bandy — who is at the Red Sox alternate site in Pawtucket — can be forgiven if he wasn’t star struck. After all, another family member worked as a teammate of a celebrity of even greater renown.
“My dad [John Bandy] taught Tom Cruise how to flip the bottles in the movie ‘Cocktail,’ ” Bandy said, referring to the 1988 movie. “He had a couple kids in diapers at the time. He got bored of just ice, vodka, orange juice, here’s your drink. So he said, I need to start making more tips. He started flipping bottles, got real good at it . . . and got the gig teaching Tom Cruise how to do all those bottle-flipping tricks. That was my dad’s whole routine.”
Bandy notes that his father had a trait that has proven a useful inheritance for a baseball career.
“Pretty good hand-eye coordination,” he noted.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 22, 2020 4:31:55 GMT -5
Trey Mancini yesterday completed his 6 months of chemo I for one hope nothing but good health for him and hope he is back playing next year for the O's
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 22, 2020 4:39:00 GMT -5
Mastrodonato: Red Sox looking more competitive, but it’s too little, too late
By Jason Mastrodonato | jason.mastrodonato@bostonherald.com | Boston Herald September 22, 2020 at 5:00 a.m.
This isn’t an example of a good team running out of time.
The Red Sox weren’t a good team. And they didn’t take advantage of the time they had.
Often in September we can look at losing teams and wonder what might’ve happened if the season was extended a month. Maybe that team was getting hot a little too late, or it figured out its bullpen roles and learned how to win close games. Something like that.
With the 2020 Red Sox, there has been some improvement and we can wonder how they’d look with another month of play added to the schedule. But this team isn’t a simple case of, “they ran out of time.”
At 20-34, they’re one of the worst teams in the big leagues and have far too many problems to be solved with one more month of play.
The weird thing is that the front office finally started showing the same compete level over the last two weeks that the position players were showing for the first two weeks.
Remember those first two weeks, when Xander Bogaerts was hitting .340 and trying to carry the team on his back, but made no secret that it was utterly demoralizing to try to win when the pitching staff was allowing eight runs a game?
The front office did little to help. Pitching reinforcements — quality ones, at least — didn’t arrive until mid-September, when the organization finally decided to call up Tanner Houck (11 innings, no earned runs, 11 strikeouts), got Darwinzon Hernandez and Nathan Eovaldi back from the injured list and were able to solve at least one struggling pitcher’s problems (Ryan Brasier).
If the season went on another month, Eovaldi, Martin Perez and Houck could lead the rotation while Hernandez, Brasier and Matt Barnes form a solid back-end of the bullpen to close out games. The offense is plenty good enough, even if it doesn’t look like it on the nights J.D. Martinez goes 0-for and leaves a Duck Boat full of runners on base.
Tuesday night will present another opportunity to see a new pitcher as former Phillies right-hander Nick Pivetta makes his Red Sox debut against the Orioles.
Pivetta, 27, is an interesting case. He has swing-and-miss stuff and his strikeout rate of 9.6 batters per nine innings is elite. Since he joined the big leagues in 2017, only 30 pitchers have thrown at least 300 innings with a K-rate that high. Of them, only six have an ERA over 4.00.
Pivetta, acquired in the trade for Brandon Workman and Heath Hembree last month, is the only one with an ERA over 5.00 (5.50).
Chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said Pivetta has “a lot of the underlying traits that show the potential for a lot more success than he’s enjoyed.”
A power pitcher, Pivetta averages 93-95 mph on his fastball and is just glad to be getting a chance to start again after the Phillies used him out of the bullpen.
“I think from a strength and conditioning standpoint, that’s the best I’ve ever felt,” he said recently. “Health-wise, I was dealing with a little shoulder discomfort late in the year last year and I think I missed about two and a half weeks and I went into the offseason and really worked hard and got myself around a really good group of guys. And I didn’t make some major changes with my arm, it was just trying to get it to more of an efficient arm path.
“But I think getting back to my mechanics in 2018 and going into 2019 and that spring training, that’s just what I’m looking to get back to that command of the strike zone, those really good off-speed pitches that allow me to put guys away quickly.”
He’s under team control for four more years, so the Sox have a chance to see him twice before the season ends and get a feel for his status heading into the winter.
Perez (3.88 ERA, 1.26 WHIP) has been picking up steam and making that $6.5-million option for 2021 look like a no-brainer. Starting depth is critical, as the Red Sox often prove (not in a good way), and with money to spend next year, Perez’s contract shouldn’t keep them from spending big in other areas.
Eovaldi has looked dominant since coming back from a calf injury, but his story is always the same. He’s often hurt and always leaves you wanting more.
On the position-player side, former first-round pick Christian Arroyo (.286 average, .896 OPS) is the most interesting player to keep an eye on down the stretch, but the second baseman has been sidelined the last two games and may not be available. Bobby Dalbec and Michael Chavis still have a lot to prove.
The final week of the season isn’t the exciting final week Red Sox fans are used to seeing. They’re likely to finish in last place in the American League East for the fourth time in nine years.
They haven’t shown a lot of reasons to get excited about the future, but at least they look better than they did a month ago.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 22, 2020 4:48:32 GMT -5
Baltimore Orioles 10 vs. Boston Red Sox Tuesday, September 22, 2020 at 7:30pm EDT Written by Adam Rauzino
The Boston Red Sox host the Baltimore Orioles in an AL East clash Tuesday night from Fenway Park. The Orioles have struggled down the final stretch and need a miracle to reach the playoffs. They will send Keegan Akin to the hill on Tuesday night. The Red Sox have been more competitive recently and have a chance to climb out of the basement in the AL East against the fourth-place Orioles. The Red Sox will give the call to Nick Pivetta. The Orioles lead the season series 4-3.
Akin Shines on Mound, Orioles Offense Slumps
Keegan Akin will make his seventh appearance of the season in this one. Akin was outstanding in his previous start, tossing five scoreless frames against a powerful Braves lineup, leading to his first career big-league victory. The rookie right-hander has been sharp in all but one of his starts this season, and he features a 3.38 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP accompanied by a 1-1 record in 18.2 innings. This will mark his first career start against the Red Sox.
The Orioles were in playoff contention for a good portion of the season and overall they have to be pleased with the progress. The offense has struggled since Anthony Santander went down with a season-ending injury. The O’s lost four of five to the Rays this past weekend and stand at 10-14 on the road.
Hanser Alberto has been effective against the Red Sox pitching this season, registering a .320 average in 25 at-bats. The 27-year old second baseman is slumping at the plate right now and only has three RBI’s this month. Alberto is hitting .286 with 17 RBI’s and a .706 OPS on the season.
The Orioles are averaging 4.50 runs per game, ranking them 17th in the Majors. They own a 4.38 team ERA, positioning them 15th overall.
Pivetta Makes Red Sox Debut, Boston Falls to Yankees
Nick Pivetta will make his fourth appearance and first since joining the Red Sox at the deadline. Pivetta struggled in his limited action with the Phillies this season, allowing 10 runs in only 5.2 innings of work. The veteran right-hander posted a terrible 5.38 ERA and a 1.52 WHIP in 30 outings with the Phillies in 2019. Pivetta has held the Orioles to only four runs in 13.2 career innings.
The Red Sox lost two of three against the Yankees this past weekend and overall they have been winning more games and have a chance to climb past the Orioles in the East. The offense has been a bright spot to counter a terrible pitching staff. Boston is 8-19 at Fenway Park.
Well, it hasn’t been a great season for JD Martinez but he has driven in five runs in his last seven games overall. The 33-year old slugger has filed a .205 average with only six home runs and 24 RBI’s on the season. Martinez is 7 for 28 with a solid five RBI’s against the Orioles this season.
The Red Sox are scoring an average of 4.62 runs, ranking them 16th overall. They remain last in the big leagues with a 5.80 team ERA.
The Baltimore Orioles are:
4-0 in their last 4 road games against a team with a home winning percentage below .400.
The Boston Red Sox are:
7-19 in their last 26 home games. 8-22 in their last 30 home games against a left-handed starter. 2-5 in their last 7 games in the first game of a series.
Orioles at Red Sox Tuesday, at 7:30 PM EST Partly Cloudy According to Forecast.io, it's expected to be 63° F with a 0% chance of precipitation and 14 MPH wind blowing left to right in Boston at 7:30 PM EST. Hourly Forecasts: Weather.com Forecast.io
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 22, 2020 8:01:19 GMT -5
Reviewing recent roster and player pool reconstruction By: Roch Kubatko September 22, 2020 4:03 AM
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The trade that brought right-hander Conner Loeprich to the Orioles organization was announced in the ninth inning of Sunday afternoon’s game against the Rays. In the middle of the filing frenzy, when most of the beat crew is rushing to get its stories ready to post after the final out - and hoping that the score and stats don’t require a late adjustment.
César Valdez was in the process of retiring the side in order for his second save. Leadoff hitter Willy Adames smoked a ball to the warning track in left field and visions of a massive rewrite danced in my head, but Austin Hays broke back and made the catch.
I thought the ball was clearing the fence from the moment that it left Adames’ bat.
Anyway, Loeprich didn’t get much attention due to the timing of the announcement and a frantic Google search with two outs didn’t produce much information.
I found out, as Valdez was facing his last batter, that Loeprich is a 23-year-old right-hander and California native selected by the Pirates in the 20th round in 2018 out of St. Mary’s College. He’s 6-8 with a 3.68 ERA and 1.356 WHIP in two minor league seasons and 55 appearances, including only eight starts.
Did I mention that he’s right-handed?
Loeprich pitched at the low and high Single-A levels in 2019. He averages 9.1 strikeouts per nine innings. I’m assuming that he also enjoys long walks on the beach.
The Orioles normally would assign him to Single-A Frederick, but we don’t know whether the Keys will be in operation in 2021 with teams losing affiliates.
The cost of Loeprich was international signing bonus slots, which the Orioles usually horde.
Elias-Stands-with-Radar-Gun-Sidebar.jpgThe trade is the latest step in funneling more talent into the lower levels of the farm system. The Orioles received shortstop Isaac De León from the Marlins as the player to be named later in the Richard Bleier deal, outfielder Mishael Deson from the Rockies as the PTBNL in the Mychal Givens deal and shortstop Victor González from the Mets as the PTBNL in the Miguel Castro deal. They’re headed to the Rookie-level Dominican Summer League.
To create more room in the 60-man player pool, the Orioles released outfielder Mason Williams and pitchers Rob Zastryzny and Chandler Shepherd.
Shepherd has a baby due any minute and gets to be home for the birth, so there’s a positive aspect to his release. And he could find a better financial situation in Korea, where teams in the past have expressed interest in him.
(Speaking of babies, my granddaughter arrived Sunday during the ninth inning. New life on deadline. That’s so 2020.)
Williams became expendable with Hays healthy, Cedric Mullins playing at an exceptional level in center field, Ryan Mountcastle becoming the team’s best player since his promotion and DJ Stewart going on a home run binge that’s been on hold for the last seven games.
Zastryzny never made it to Camden Yards. And I never learned how to spell his name without checking.
R-O-B.
Asher Wojciechowski cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Norfolk, which doesn’t ensure his return in 2021. He can become a free agent and the Orioles have other options for the rotation and in long relief. And Wojciechowski should be able to find a better situation, even if it’s just a more favorable competition.
There are six starters in the rotation as the Orioles approach the final week of the season - Alex Cobb, John Means, Keegan Akin, Dean Kremer, Jorge López and Bruce Zimmermann. The Ellicott City resident might piggyback in order to give him more work before Sunday’s finale.
Other starters are hovering below, waiting for a minor league season in 2021 and the chance to make their debuts. And there’s another wave behind them, led by first-rounder Grayson Rodriguez.
Wojciechowski always will be appreciated for his work in 2019, when starters routinely made early exits, the bullpen was fried and he gave the club much-needed innings and effort - along with some absolutely dominant performances against the Red Sox. But the rebuild has reached the point where he’s expendable based on his struggles this summer, both in the rotation and bullpen.
A business decision that shouldn’t give people short memories regarding past contributions from the guy with the long last name.
The Pirates claimed pitcher Carson Fulmer off waivers yesterday after losing him to the Orioles earlier this month.
The exposure of Fulmer to waivers again comes as a surprise, considering that he didn’t surrender a run in three relief appearances - though his delivery got out of whack in one of them - and the Orioles seemed to be committed to the reclamation project.
Fulmer is out of minor league options. The Orioles wanted him removed from the 40-man roster. And now he’s gone.
Asked about Fulmer on Sept. 8, manager Brandon Hyde said, “Carson threw yesterday and our pitching guys are ecstatic about the kind of stuff and what they saw from him in his bullpen session yesterday. It’s a top of the first round college guy that got to the big leagues really fast. I saw that early in Chicago. They used him in a variety of roles, never really got comfortable at the big league level. So it’s a big arm that we want to take a look at and hope we can find some opportunities to get him in and show what he can do.”
Three opportunities later, Fulmer packed his bags again and headed back to the Pirates.
The corresponding roster move for Fulmer will be announced later today and it can involve a player who isn’t on the 40-man roster. There are three open spots.
Reliever Shawn Armstrong is the only Oriole on the 10-day injured list who hasn’t been shut down - Chris Davis (knee) and Anthony Santander (oblique) are done for 2020 - but he has just started to pitch at the alternate camp site. He threw an inning over the weekend. Is that enough to activate him?
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 22, 2020 8:02:59 GMT -5
Well the rain has started a light breeze will be kicking into gear later tonight as Tropical Storm die down a bit then pick up again next morning not as strong as last year but Teddy will be a pain in the ass
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 22, 2020 9:50:56 GMT -5
Red Sox vs. Orioles Series Preview
A look at the final series at Fenway in 2020. By Matt_Collins@MattRyCollins Sep 22, 2020, 10:30am EDT
The opponent in one sentence
The Orioles stuck around in the postseason race much longer than anyone would have expected, but things have fallen off of late and they are now closer to last place than to the postseason. Record
20-34 Head-to-head record
Red Sox 3, Orioles 4 Trend
Down. Like I said, the Orioles have fallen out of the postseason race, and it’s really happened quite swiftly. They are coming off a five-game set against the Rays in which they won only a single game. Overall, they’ve won just three of their last 13 games. Pitching Matchups
9/22: Nick Pivetta vs. Keegan Akin, 7:30 PM ET
This is the last debut we have to look forward to this year as we get our first look at Pivetta, who was half of the return for Brandon Workman and Heath Hembree. Already 27 with a few years of major-league experience under his belt, the righty isn’t a prospect by any stretch of the imagination. On the other hand, he’s still a bit of an enigma given his big stuff and the lack of results to match. He has a big fastball and a pair of breaking balls that have been impressive in the past, but how he uses his fastball has been detrimental to his success. Things to look for in this debut are where in the zone he’s throwing the heat, and how often he’s utilizing his changeup.
Akin is a former second round pick who is in the midst of his first taste of major-league action. The southpaw started out in the bullpen but quickly made his way to the rotation, where he’s made four starts so far. In those four starts, he’s only allowed an earned run in one of them. He’s not going to go deep into the game, having yet to record more than 16 outs, but he’s been able to rack up strikeouts (25 in 18 2⁄3 innings) and his high groundball rate has worked to keep the ball in the yard. Akin allowed a homer in his first career appearance but hasn’t given any up in his five trips to the mound since. He’s coming off a great outing against the Braves in which he tossed five shutout innings with nine strikeouts and one walk. The lefty will throw a low-90s fastball, a slider and a changeup.
9/23: Nathan Evoaldi vs. Dean Kremer, 7:30 PM ET
It’s been a weird year for Eovaldi. Well, it’s been a weird year for everyone, but specifically Eovaldi. He was miscast as the staff ace coming into the year, had a tremendous debut, struggled a bit after that, went to the IL, and has looked solid since returning. In all, he still looks like a guy who can admirably serve a fourth rotation spot in an ideal rotation when healthy, and can probably be stretched into a number three if necessary. This season we’ve seen a return of the great control he showed off in 2018, which will need to stick around into 2021 if he’s going to repeat his success. He still needs to find a way to limit the homers, but overall I’d say it’s been more good than bad for the righty in 2020. This will be his third start against the Orioles this year, and he’s been great in the first two allowing just two runs over 13 innings of work.
Kremer was part of the return for Baltimore when they traded Manny Machado to the Dodgers a couple of summers ago, and he is in the midst of his rookie year right now. It’s only been three starts, but the righty has pitched very well thus far, allowing only three runs over 16 innings with 20 strikeouts and nine walks. The control has certainly been a bit of an issue, but the consistency from start to start has been remarkable. He’s pitched five or six innings in all three outings, allowing one run in each with three walks in each of them and either six or seven walks. He hasn’t been facing bad lineups, either, with two starts against the Yankees and one against the Rays. Kremer will offer a low-to-mid-90s fastball along with a curveball, a cutter and a two-seam.
9/24: Martín Pérez vs. Alex Cobb, 7:30 PM ET
There’s no doubt that Pérez has been the best pitcher for the Red Sox this year. Clearly that’s not a high bar to clear, but he’s been legitimately solid in the rotation, at least by the results. The lefty has pitched to a 3.88 ERA on the year, which is 16 percent better than league-average by park-adjusted ERA. He’s also coming off his best start of the year in which he totally shut down the Yankees over six shutout innings with seven strikeouts and a walk. The peripherals still suggest he’s pitching over his head (he’s striking out just under seven per nine while walking over four per nine), but the results are impossible to deny. This will be his second start against the Orioles this year. He got shelled in the first (his first start of 2020) before pitching very well in the second.
Early on in the season when the Orioles were surprising playoff contenders, Cobb was one of the most surprising players on the roster. He was looking like his prime self from his days in Tampa and providing some veteran stability in Baltimore’s rotation. Things have fallen off since then, though, and he’s now worse than league-average by both ERA and FIP. The righty has allowed at least five runs in three of his last five starts. That’s all good news for the Red Sox offense, but the bad news is they haven’t gotten to him. This will be the third time they’ve seen Cobb in 2020, with one of the previous two coming in that aforementioned five-game stretch. Overall they’ve managed just three runs over 10 1⁄3 innings with seven strikeouts and only one walk. The veteran righty will throw a low-90s fastball along with a splitter and a curveball.
Old Friends
José Iglesias was sneaky a huge part of the reason the Red Sox won it all in 2013, making an impact for them early in the year, then netting Jake Peavy in a trade, then making a massive error against them in the ALCS. Since then, he’s been a near-average regular almost every year thanks to plus-plus defense masking his shortcomings at the plate.
Travis Lakins was picked up off waivers by the Orioles this past winter and he’s settled into a middle relief role for them in 2020. Notable Position Players
Iglesias, as mentioned above, is usually well below-average at the plate. This season, though, he’s been shockingly great. The shortstop has a 152 wRC+ thanks to a sky-high BABIP and a ton of doubles early in the season. He’s also destroyed the Red Sox in both series they’ve played thus far.
Ryan Mountcastle spent his entire minor-league career looking for a position, and that part is still up in the air. As a hitter, though, he can rake, and he has done so as a rookie. He’s currently a 148 wRC+.
DJ Stewart is a three true outcome hitter, meaning he strikes out a ton, walks a whole lot and can hit the ball out of the ballpark with any swing.
Austin Hays was a potential breakout candidate coming into the year, but he’s struggled to hit the ball with authority this summer and has been well below-average because of that fact.
Hanser Alberto is going to put almost everything in play and not hit for much power, leading to a lot of his production being based purely on batted ball luck.
Cedric Mullins is a threat with his speed any time he gets on base, but he’s struggled to get on base at a high enough rate to really make a difference.
Renato Núñez is having his lack of plate discipline catch up to him a bit of late, but when he connect he’s always a threat to put one over the fence.
Pedro Severino was one of the big surprises for Baltimore early in the year, but he’s fallen off a bit since then.
Rio Ruiz just doesn’t get on base enough to make much of an impact at the plate, even with the power he can show when he does make contact. Bullpen Snapshot
Cesar Valdez has emerged as the Orioles closer to end this season, supplementing his average stuff with very good control and a ground ball tendency that can help limit damage.
Tanner Scott is the top lefty in this bullpen and he has big stuff but can also get into trouble with lapses of command.
Hunter Harvey is a former top prospect who has transitioned into a bullpen role, but he’s struggled to get going after a late start to his season. Injuries
Trey Mancini has missed the entire season due to his battle with colon cancer. We all hope he will be able to return to the field for the 2021 season.
Anthony Santander was Baltimore’s best player while they were in the playoff conversation, but he went out with an oblique injury in early September and won’t return.
Chris Davis was put on the IL with tendinitis in his knee earlier this month and will miss the rest of the year.
Wade LeBlanc left his start against the Red Sox the last time these two teams met and hasn’t been able to return since.
Shawn Armstrong has been dealing with a back issue and as of a week ago there was still hope he’d return, but time is clearly running out.
Richie Martin fractured his wrist in camp before the season and had to miss the entire season. Weather Forecast
There shouldn’t be any weather concerns at Fenway this week besides it being on the cooler side as the sun goes down.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 22, 2020 10:19:44 GMT -5
Could O’s fans be getting behind this team in playoffs? By: Steve Melewski September 22, 2020 8:19 AM
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When the Orioles made the American League playoffs in 2012, they ended a 14-season drought with no playoff baseball. On Sunday, the San Diego Padres clinched their first playoff berth since 2006. That ends a run of nine consecutive losing seasons and 13 straight seasons without seeing the postseason.
O’s fans can relate to how Padres fans must feel this year, ending the long postseason drought. Sadly for them, it comes at a time when they can’t even go to beautiful Petco Park to watch their team shine.
And they have been shining indeed. San Diego’s 34-20 record is second-best in their division only because of the Los Angeles Dodgers, who have the best record in baseball. San Diego has the second-best record in the National League and fourth-best in the majors.
Kirby-Hatless-White-sidebar.jpgAnd there are reasons that the Padres might provide a bit of a rooting interest for Orioles fans starting next week in the playoffs. The long drought is one reason. But two key players on the team are third baseman Manny Machado and right-handed starter Zach Davies, who are both original Orioles. Beyond that, former O’s coach Bobby Dickerson is manager Jayce Tingler’s bench coach. And former O’s coach Wayne Kirby is the Padres’ first base coach. Wonder if “Cooking with Kirby” has made its West Coast debut? Beyond that, former Oriole Ryan Flaherty has the long title of major league advance scout/development coach for San Diego. Yes, “Flash” is in San Diego, too.
Quite a few connections separated only by about 3,000 miles.
Machado was batting .200 on Aug. 17, but has been on a tear since. Over his last 30 games he’s batting .402/.431/.752 with 11 homers, 33 RBIs and an OPS of 1.183. For the year, he is batting .314/.376/.604. And his .980 OPS is his best since he posted a .963 OPS with the 2018 Orioles. The year, they would trade him to the Dodgers for a package of players that included Dean Kremer and Yusniel Diaz.
Machado is an MVP candidate and even though 21-year-old shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. is the emerging superstar on that team, his OPS of .931 is well behind Machado. But they sure make for a pretty great left side of the infield.
Former O’s scouting director Joe Jordan drafted Davies in the 26th round in 2011 and knew he would need a big overslot bonus to keep him from attending Arizona State. I can remember Jordan telling me about this skinny kid that didn’t throw very hard, but had an advanced changeup and really knew how to pitch. The O’s signed him for $575,000.
Davies would pitch very well on the O’s farm, but never made it to Baltimore. On July 31, 2015, with the defending AL East champion Orioles, six games out of first place and slumping on offense, they traded Davies to Milwaukee for outfielder Gerardo Parra.
Parra was supposed to pump life into the offense. He was batting .328 and had hit .435 that July. But then Parra stopped hitting about the minute he set foot in the O’s clubhouse. He was a bust here, batting .237. After the season, he signed a three-year deal worth $26 million with Colorado.
In hindsight, that was a real bad deal for the Orioles. The skinny kid had an ERA of 2.84 at Triple-A at the time of the deal. The previous fall, he had gone 3-0 with a 1.75 ERA in the Arizona Fall League. Davies went on to pitch well for Milwaukee. This season for the Padres, he is 7-3 with a 2.69 ERA in 10 starts.
So there sure are reasons for O’s fans to check in on the Padres when the playoffs begin next week. San Diego looks locked into the No. 4 seed in the NL. That means if they get by their first-round series (currently Miami), they’ll have to then get past the Dodgers.
It should be fun to watch a new team in the postseason. It’s one that just might be ready to make a deep run. Maybe some throughout Birdland will be watching.
Final trip begins: When play began in the majors Monday, the O’s team ERA of 4.36 ranked eighth-best in the American League. The seven teams in front of them all look likely to make the playoffs. So they are keeping better company and we’ve recently discussed the improved pitching here.
If the O’s dormant offense can come to life in this final week, it would be fun to see what the club can look like if it gets quality pitching and hitting at the same time. In the last 12 games, the Orioles have scored one run or less eight times. They have scored 34 runs in this stretch, getting 14 of them in one game. The team is batting .198 in this span.
Let’s see if some of that can come together this week as the O’s play their final two series on the road against Boston and Toronto.
Trey’s big day: Congratulations to the Orioles’ Trey Mancini, who completed his chemotherapy treatments on Monday. What a day for the Orioles and they didn’t even play. They did send him a nice gift, which as you can see, clearly made him emotional.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 22, 2020 11:03:07 GMT -5
Red Sox Notes @soxnotes · 1h In his last 31 games (beginning Aug. 14), Jackie Bradley Jr. has hit .306 with an .894 OPS.
According to Statcast, Bradley has recorded 6 outs above average, tied with Luis Robert for most in the majors among outfielders.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 22, 2020 14:12:42 GMT -5
Chris Cotillo @chriscotillo · 17m Before we see Nick Pivetta tonight:
Brandon Workman allowed 29 hits in 71.2 innings last year for the Red Sox. (1.88 ERA)
Has now allowed 22 hits in 12.2 innings since being traded to the Phillies. (6.39 ERA)
Hembree and Workman have combined to give up 22 earned runs and 39 hits in 22 innings with the Phillies.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 22, 2020 14:23:00 GMT -5
Game 55: Orioles at Red Sox lineups and notesBy Andrew Mahoney Globe Staff,Updated September 22, 2020, 10:30 a.m. After a day off, the Red Sox will open their final series at Fenway Park when they host the Baltimore Orioles tonight. Nick Pivetta will get the start for the Red Sox. Lineups ORIOLES (23-31): 1. Cedric Mullins (S) CF 2. Austin Hays (R) RF 3. Ryan Mountcastle (R) 1B 4. Renato Nunez (R) DH 5. DJ Stewart (L) LF 6. Pedro Severino (R) C 7. Hanser Alberto (R) 2B 8. Rio Ruiz (L) 3B 9. Ramon Urias (R) SS Pitching: LHP Keegan Akin (1-1, 3.38 ERA) RED SOX (20-34):1. Alex Verdugo (L) RF 2. Rafael Devers (L) 3B 3. Xander Bogaerts (R) SS 4. J.D. Martinez (R) DH 5. Christian Vazquez (R) C 6. Jackie Bradley Jr. (L) CF 7. Bobby Dalbec (R) 1B 8. Michael Chavis (R) LF 9. Jonathan Arauz (S) 2B Pitching: RHP Nick Pivetta (0-0, 15.88 ERA) Time: 7:30 p.m. TV, radio: NESN, WEEI-FM 93.7 Orioles vs. Pivetta: Holaday 1-3, Iglesias 0-2, Ruiz 0-3, Severino 0-2, Sisco 1-5, Valaika 2-2 Red Sox vs. Akin: Has not faced any Boston batters Stat of the day: Christian Vazquez is batting .309 in 25 games beginning Aug. 16 (29-for-94, 14 walks, 7 extra base hits, 5 RBI), including .349 in his last 11 games (15-for-43). Notes: Pivetta is facing the Orioles for the third time in his career (2-0, 2.63 ERA in two previous outings). ... Bobby Dalbec has reached base safely in 11 of his last 12 games, batting .326 during that stretch (14-for-43, four walk, hit by pitch). ... Jackie Bradley Jr. has hit safely in 7 of his last 8 games and in 26 of his last 31. He is batting .306 (34-for-111) with 13 extra base hits in his last 31 games. ... Rafael Devers has 186 extra base hits through 385 career games. The only Sox with more extra base hits through 400 career games are Ted Williams and Nomar Garciaparra (both 219). ... Since moving to the rotation last month, Akin has a 2.35 ERA in 15 ⅓ innings, striking out 24. Song of the Day: Scorpions "Rock You Like a Hurricane"www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yP1tcy9a10
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 22, 2020 15:07:45 GMT -5
Jen McCaffrey @jcmccaffrey · 4m Roenicke says Pivetta is scheduled for tonight's start and then the last day of the season on Sunday.
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