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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Apr 25, 2021 16:21:02 GMT -5
Bill Koch @billkoch25 · 45m Replying to @billkoch25 Rodriguez -- 'I'm all the way back already. From the first start of the season.' #RedSox
Rodriguez on his fielding play in front of the mound in the 6th -- 'They've started calling me an athlete now. That feels good.' #RedSox
Rodriguez -- 'I can throw every pitch with confidence. That's a big improvement from earlier in my career.' #RedSox
Rodriguez thanks his veteran teammates -- currently Sale, previously the likes of Price and Porcello -- for helping him develop into a reliable starter. #RedSox
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Apr 25, 2021 16:22:04 GMT -5
Bill Koch @billkoch25 · 33m Christian Vazquez on Eduardo Rodriguez -- 'His command -- he's a pitcher. He's not a thrower now.' #RedSox
Vazquez -- '(Rodriguez) has better weapons. Before he had more velo, but now he has the cutter he learned here. The front-hip sinker. He was pitching up before -- now he dots it better.' #RedSox
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Post by scrappyunderdog on Apr 25, 2021 18:08:34 GMT -5
Bill Koch @billkoch25 · 33m Christian Vazquez on Eduardo Rodriguez -- 'His command -- he's a pitcher. He's not a thrower now.' #RedSox
Vazquez -- '(Rodriguez) has better weapons. Before he had more velo, but now he has the cutter he learned here. The front-hip sinker. He was pitching up before -- now he dots it better.' #RedSox For all the talk, now might be the time to put some money on the table. Give him the McCullers offer.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Apr 26, 2021 2:01:39 GMT -5
'Steady Eddie' comes up aces vs. Mariners Rodriguez (8 K's) rights ship with 32nd consecutive start of at least 5 innings April 25th, 2021 Ian Browne
Ian Browne @ianmbrowne
BOSTON -- Eduardo Rodriguez, who perhaps should start going by the moniker of “Steady Eddie” instead of E-Rod, did what manager Alex Cora called on him to do 24 hours earlier and saved the homestand on Sunday afternoon.
Behind their ace lefty, the Red Sox salvaged a split of this four-game series against the Mariners by grinding out a 5-3 victory. In fact, they split all three series to finish 5-5 in what was a season-long homestand. In so doing, Boston got back to .500 at Fenway Park (8-8) as it embarked on a six-game road trip against the Mets and Rangers.
Now 14-9 on the season, the American League East-leading Sox are 4-0 in Rodriguez’s starts and 10-9 when everyone else starts.
With the club looking completely out of sorts in all facets on Saturday, Rodriguez did what he does best and steadied the ship with another strong outing. Over seven innings, Rodriguez struck out eight and scattered six hits and three runs with no walks.
“That’s what aces do, right? They put their team on their back and carry us to a ‘W,’” Cora said. “It didn’t start well, but the fact he’s throwing so many strikes and getting swings and misses is good. He was able to elevate with the fastball and use his cutter and the changeup, and gave us seven strong.”
This marked the 32nd consecutive start dating to May 4, 2019, that Rodriguez went at least five innings. To show you what kind of company Rodriguez is keeping these days, the only two pitchers in the Majors with a longer current streak in that department are 2020 AL Cy Young Award winner Shane Bieber (37 starts) and Justin Verlander (33).
“I mean, that's the goal of a starting pitcher,” Rodriguez said. “I think I learned the hard way, because I was going 4 2/3 and four innings most of the times back in the day. I've got to say thanks to those veterans who were here with me, and the one who is still here, which is [Chris] Sale. They helped me a lot, they’ve been pushing me all the time even AC [Cora]. I mean, those guys helped me to get to this point.”
Veterans like David Price and Rick Porcello now watch proudly from afar as Rodriguez has embraced all the responsibilities that come with leading a staff.
At 28 years old, Rodriguez is on top of his game, even after missing all of 2020 due to COVID-19 and a subsequent heart condition (myocarditis).
While Rodriguez used to excel mostly because of his stuff, he now thrives due to his pinpoint command of that stuff. In 23 innings this season, he is 4-0 with a 3.52 ERA and has yielded just two walks to go with 26 strikeouts.
“It's been big for me with the command that I have now, that I can throw every pitch with confidence,” Rodriguez said. “That's what I think is a big improvement that I have in my career is that I can go out there and throw every pitch with confidence, to have success with every pitch that I throw.”
Never did that serve Rodriguez better than on Sunday, when he went to warm up with longtime batterymate Christian Vázquez prior to the game, and he could tell that he didn’t have that much power behind his throws. In fact, Rodriguez topped out at 93 mph and averaged 91.8 mph with his two-seamer and 91.2 mph with his four-seamer on Sunday.
“I will say at the beginning of my career, I was just trying to throw hard and that's when I’d give up a lot more runs because I was missing spots,” Rodriguez said. “I learned that from my teammates from the old guys and veteran guys like Porcello, DP, when they were here, too, that even if you don't have that power on the fastball, you’re going to try to locate whatever you have. That’s how I did it today. I knew my fastball wasn't there, so I was trying to locate those fastballs right where me and Vazqy want it.”
Nobody has had a closer look at the leap Rodriguez has made than Vázquez.
“Now, he looks like he dots everything,” Vázquez said. “High fastballs, cutters backdoor, front door, sinkers, all those pitches. I think that’s what pitchers do. Good pitchers dot all their fastballs, all their pitches.”
And not only is Rodriguez a good pitcher -- he’s the best the Red Sox have right now.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Apr 26, 2021 2:03:54 GMT -5
Notes: Cordero 'working hard'; Sale update Richards working on his mechanics, delivery; Verdugo (cramps) late scratch April 25th, 2021 Ian Browne
Ian Browne @ianmbrowne
BOSTON -- The slumping Franchy Cordero could get three days to reset himself. This is because the Red Sox faced a lefty starter (Nick Margevicius) on Sunday, have a scheduled off-day on Monday and then will face another lefty on Tuesday in David Peterson when they open a two-game series against the Mets at Citi Field.
But manager Alex Cora has no plans to shy away from Cordero in his role of starting against right-handed pitchers.
This, even though the left-handed hitter entered Sunday with just one hit in his last 22 at-bats and 15 strikeouts over that span.
“You’re not going to give up on a player on April 25,” Cora said. “If not, we made the wrong choice with our roster. So we’ll keep pushing. We’ll keep encouraging him. Showing him video and keep working with him.”
Cora hopes the Red Sox can get some time on Monday so Cordero can get in some extra work in the cage.
“Keep working hard. That’s the most important thing. He’s in between right now,” Cora said. “He’s late on fastballs and out in front on offspeed pitches, and that’s not a good place to be. It’s very uncomfortable because you know you’re behind, you know you can’t catch up to the fastball, but at the same time, they’re going to bounce a breaking ball, and on the changeup, you don’t feel like you can stay back. Yesterday morning, he came in, did some work. Same thing today. Just keep working on his craft. All you can do is keep working.”
With Cordero getting just 53 at-bats last year due to injuries and a shortened season, perhaps it shouldn’t be a surprise that he’s still searching for his swing. Cordero only has 329 career at-bats.
“It’s very hard. We can talk about Franchy, but I can talk about a lot of guys who are in the Minor Leagues right now. They didn’t play last year,” Cora said. “Maybe they were hurt two years ago and didn’t play winter ball.”
Due to the delayed Minor League season, Cora thinks it would make little sense to option Cordero to the alternate training site.
“Right now, people might say, ‘Let’s send him down to get competitive at-bats.’ Where? Where are the competitive at-bats?” Cora said. “I mean, if I can get that answer, well, we might make a decision like that, but there are no competitive at-bats in the Minor Leagues right now. There are no competitive at-bats in Spring Training or in Triple-A right now in Worcester. We’re going to stick with the player, trust the player.”
Richards working on delivery
Tuesday will be a big game for the Red Sox to see if lanky righty Garrett Richards (0-2, 6.48 ERA) can get himself on track. Mechanical adjustments are ongoing.
“He’s trying to take command of his delivery a little bit, just to find some more consistency,” pitching coach Dave Bush said. “The other day, he just felt off a little bit. His timing wasn’t quite right. He always throws across his body. He always has. He has big stuff.
“The command comes and goes. When he gets his command dialed in, he’s really consistent with his left lift, and I think it syncs up and times up much better, so that’s been the focus of our work in the bullpen between starts, just clean up delivery, be more consistent, making sure he can stay on line and have a little better posture and then just let the ball go and trust it’s going to be in the strike zone.”
With a pitcher who has the build of Richards, there are a lot of moving parts.
“He’s long and lanky and throws across his body a little bit and that’s why he cuts the ball, naturally,” Bush said. “That’s why his fastball is really good when he throws strikes; he has a lot of velo and natural cut to it. It also helps him shape his slider and breaking ball. So, blessing and a curse. When he’s on, it’s really good. But he fights his delivery quite a bit so that’s been the biggest focus recently.”
Setting Sale to Florida
Red Sox ace Chris Sale will head to Florida on Monday to continue his progression back from Tommy John surgery, but the club still doesn’t have a timetable on when he will get on the mound for the first time, let alone return to the active roster.
“He's been feeling great. I just finished throwing with him right before I came in to talk to you guys,” Bush said. “He’s making a lot of progress.
The last month or so that he's been here with us has been very, very good for him. Mentally and physically he feels like he's in a really good spot.
“I think a mound progression is going to happen sometime soon. He's been adding long toss and adding intensity pretty regularly up here. He's made a lot of progress in the last five or six weeks. I'm excited for him. He feels really good about it. I think he sees the horizon for the first time in a while and he's excited and ready to go, and wants to get back here as soon as he can."
Progress for Brasier
Any update on setup man Ryan Brasier, who hasn’t pitched this season due to a left calf strain?
“He still has a little ways to go. He's in Florida. He's throwing," Bush said. "I don't believe he's thrown in any game situations yet, but he is throwing and working back physically. He has been starting a limited running program and he has been throwing quite a bit, so I'm hoping he gets back on the mound soon and then finishes his buildup. I don't have a finish date for him yet, but he's on the right path.”
Vaccine update
Cora still isn’t sure when or if the Red Sox will get to an 85 percent vaccination rate. Sunday was the third day this week that vaccines were available to players at the ballpark.
“There’s another group that will get vaccinated today here at Fenway. We’ll have a better idea in the upcoming days [on the 85 percent], but we’re getting closer I guess,” Cora said.
Clubs were informed just before Opening Day that MLB and the MLBPA have agreed to relax certain health and safety protocols contained in the 2021 Operations Manual for fully vaccinated Tier 1 Individuals and for clubs where 85% of their Tier 1 Individuals are fully vaccinated. As part of that memo, players and staff were again strongly encouraged to receive one of the approved COVID-19 vaccines when eligible.
“I just talk to the players,” Cora said. “If they have questions, I give them answers. We provide them with different people that can guide them to make a decision. A few days ago, we had a Spanish-speaking doctor talk to our Latino players. That was really good. They had their questions answered. Some of them decided to get vaccinated today.”
Verdugo a late scratch
Outfielder Alex Verdugo was originally in the lineup on Sunday, but he was scratched roughly an hour before game time. Verdugo experienced cramping in his legs during Saturday’s loss and it showed when he was running the bases. Rafael Devers moved up to the No. 2 spot. Enrique Hernández started in center field instead of second base. Christian Arroyo, who was not in the original lineup, started at second base.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Apr 26, 2021 2:24:28 GMT -5
Eduardo Rodriguez’s precision finally on display as Red Sox beat Mariners, 5-3, to split series By Alex Speier Globe Staff,Updated April 25, 2021, 4:09 p.m.
Six years ago, Eduardo Rodriguez burst on the major league scene with a single calling card. The lefthander could overpower opponents with an electrifying mid-90s fastball.
At times, that pitch alone allowed Rodriguez to dominate. But in outings when he didn’t have premium velocity, Rodriguez panicked, and would typically try to overthrow and lose his command.
“I was just trying to throw hard,” Rodriguez recalled.
On Sunday, the 28-year-old recognized that his fastball lacked oomph while warming up in the bullpen, and the 34 four-seamers he threw against the Mariners averaged 91.1 miles per hour — his lowest fastball velocity in any start of his career.
But Rodriguez recognized that he had something else at his disposal: Spectacular command of a complete arsenal. Over seven innings, Rodriguez displayed artful precision, dissecting the Mariners in a 5-3 Red Sox victory.
“That’s what aces do,” said manager Alex Cora.
Rodriguez permitted three runs on six hits, yet that line does a disservice to his performance. All but one of the hits came on groundballs — one an infield single, and four almost comically well-placed doubles, marking the first time since April 2019 that any team had as many as four groundball two-baggers. The Mariners either whiffed (eight strikeouts) or made feeble contact against the Sox starter.
For most of the afternoon, Rodriguez — who did not issue a walk — looked like he was playing catch with Christian Vázquez, whose mitt remained stationary on the lion’s share of offerings.
“He’s not throwing 96, 97, 94 (mph) like when he came to the big leagues,” said Vázquez. “But now he looks like he dots everything — high fastballs, cutters backdoor, front door, sinkers.”
That was certainly the case against Seattle. Despite Rodriguez’s pedestrian radar gun readings, the Mariners often proved late when flailing at it by virtue of their need to respect the pitcher’s changeup.
Among his 99 offerings, Rodriguez pulled the ripcord on 36 changeups, getting seven swings-and-misses on both that offering as well as his four-seamer. He also clipped the corner to both sides of the plate with a smattering of cutters and sliders, leaving the Mariners smirking with bemusement.
In some ways, it was an outing reminiscent of ones delivered by former teammate David Price, whom Rodriguez credits (along with Rick Porcello) as one of the key mentors who helped transform him from a thrower to a pitcher. Rodriguez certainly appears to be worthy of the latter designation, even more than was the case during his breakout 2019 season (19-6, 3.81 ERA) and before he missed the 2020 campaign due to a heart condition that arose from a COVID-19 infection.
Rodriguez is 4-0 with a 3.52 ERA, 26 strikeouts, and just two walks in 23 innings. He’s walked no more than one batter in any of his four starts this year, the longest such streak of his career. He’s less reliant than ever on his four-seamer, creating unpredictability that is unbalancing opposing lineups. And with awareness of how his mix plays, Rodriguez is attacking as never before, throwing strikes at a 70 percent rate — a huge jump from his 63 percent prior to 2021.
“He’s one of the best pitchers in the league,” said Vázquez. “No matter what happens, he’s there for us.”
Seattle’s top two hitters, Mitch Haniger and Ty France, opened the game by bouncing grounders through the left side of the infield, both of which rolled through the outfield for doubles and an early 1-0 advantage. Yet Rodriguez shook off the bad luck to retire 12 of the next 13 hitters.
By the time Seattle scraped for two more runs in the fifth, the product of an infield single and a groundball double down each line, the Red Sox had taken a commanding lead thanks to a capsizing Mariners pitching staff.
Entrusted with that 1-0 lead in the first, Seattle starter Nick Margevicius immediately loaded the bases on a Kiké Hernández single and two walks. While the lefthander struck out Xander Bogaerts on a fastball off the plate, Vázquez delivered a one-out RBI single to right to score Hernández.
Margevicius not only proved unable to douse the rally, but instead dumped kerosene on it, forcing in runs with bases-loaded walks to Hunter Renfroe and Marwin Gonzalez. Mariners manager Scott Servais decided he need not see anymore, lifting Margevicius after 32 pitches and just one out recorded.
Reliever Drew Steckenrider offered no immediate reprieve, instead drilling Christian Arroyo in the hand with a fastball to force in a fourth run. Though he escaped the first without further harm, Steckenrider walked two straight Red Sox to open the second, setting the stage for a one-out RBI double by Xander Bogaerts that gave the Red Sox a 5-1 lead.
The Seattle bullpen finished the contest with 6⅔ scoreless innings from there, but Red Sox pitchers made the early rally stand.
After Rodriguez departed, Adam Ottavino delivered a scoreless eighth aided by a beautiful 6-4-3 double play instigated with a glove-hand flip from Marwin Gonzalez — giving Bogaerts a breather from the field for a day — to Arroyo. Barnes then overpowered the Mariners with a perfect ninth (two strikeouts) for his fourth save, as the Red Sox closed out their longest homestand of the year with a modest 5-5 record, but a 2½-game lead in the A.L. East.
“We’re not thrilled, but we’re not upset,” Cora said of the homestand. “We’ll take it. If you asked me before the season would you take this record [14-9] going into [Tuesday’s series against the Mets in] New York, absolutely, 100 percent. Everybody in this clubhouse is happy that we have this record, but at the same time, everybody in this clubhouse knows we’ve got to play better baseball and we have to keep improving.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Apr 26, 2021 2:26:32 GMT -5
RED SOX NOTEBOOK Franchy Cordero’s struggles testing Red Sox patience as potential help closes in By Alex Speier Globe Staff,Updated April 25, 2021, 5:20 p.m.
Franchy Cordero wasn’t in Sunday’s lineup with the Mariners starting lefthander Nick Margevicius on the mound. But Cordero’s recent results — 1-for-22 with 14 strikeouts his last eight games — have raised questions about whether he’ll be able to maintain his role as a left-handed platoon option in left field.
For the season, Cordero is hitting .200/.265/.244, striking out in 23 of 49 plate appearances, a gruesome 46.9 percent that ranks second highest in the majors among players with at least 40 plate appearances.
“He’s in between right now,” manager Alex Cora said. “He’s late on fastballs and out in front on offspeed pitches and that’s not a good place to be. It’s very uncomfortable.”
The problem is not just pitch types. Cordero is also chasing pitches outside the zone and taking pitches in it, a formula for struggle. It shouldn’t necessarily come as a surprise given that injuries have limited him to 111 plate appearances since the start of 2019.
Evaluators agree that Cordero has the gifts to be an above-average big league corner outfielder, but his lack of playing time in his mid-20s represents a considerable hindrance to his development. Yet that also presents a chicken-and-egg problem for the Sox: Cordero’s future production likely depends on steady exposure to big-league pitching, but it’s hard to afford him playing time if he doesn’t produce.
The issue is further complicated by the fact that the minor-league season isn’t scheduled to start until May 4, something of which the Sox were aware when they acquired Cordero from the Royals in the Andrew Benintendi deal.
“We have to keep working with him,” said Cora. “People might say, ‘Let’s send him down to get competitive at-bats.’ Where? Where are the competitive at-bats? That’s, I mean, if I can get that answer, well, we might make a decision like that, but there are no competitive at-bats in the minor leagues right now. There are no competitive at-bats in spring training, or in Triple A right now in Worcester. We’re going to stick with the player, trust the player. … We know the swing-and-misses. But it’s not like he doesn’t have talent.
“You’re not going to give up on a player on April 25. If not, you made the wrong choice with our roster,” Cora added. “So we’ll keep pushing.” Related: Eduardo Rodriguez’s precision finally on display as Red Sox beat Mariners, 5-3, to split series
Cordero may be nearing a crossroads, however. He can be optioned to the minors, and the Triple-A season is slated to start next week. Meanwhile, superutility option Danny Santana, signed to a minor league deal this spring, is playing in minor league spring training games in Fort Myers as he returns to health following a foot infection that sidelined him in mid-March.
Santana’s minor league deal included an April 30 opt-out if not called up to the big leagues, but according to a major league source, he and the club have an informal understanding that they’ll push back that opt-out date by a couple of weeks.
“He’s feeling good,” Cora said of Santana. “He’s progressing well.” Injury concerns for Arroyo, Verdugo
Second baseman Christian Arroyo shouted in pain after he got drilled in the hand by a Drew Steckenrider fastball with the bases loaded in the bottom of the first inning. But after a brief visit from a team trainer, Arroyo — who as a Giants prospect missed the final two months of the 2017 minor-league season due to a broken hand suffered on a hit-by-pitch — remained in the game.
However, the 25-year-old was clearly uncomfortable, repeatedly looking at his hand throughout the game to reassess. X-rays taken after the game came back negative.
“[It] hurt pretty bad, but he was able to play defense,” said Cora. “I told him just don’t worry about your at-bats. If you can play defense, just grind it out, and he did.”
Arroyo wasn’t originally part of the lineup on Sunday, but the Red Sox inserted him about an hour before first pitch to give Alex Verdugo (originally slated to play center, with Kiké Hernández at second) the day off. Verdugo experienced what he described as cramping in his hamstring on Saturday. The Sox initially planned for him to play, but with a wet outfield on a drizzly Sunday, trainer Brad Pearson suggested that Cora remove Verdugo from the lineup.
After Monday’s off-day, Cora said he might also rest Verdugo on Tuesday against the Mets, but expected him to be back in the lineup by Wednesday against Jacob deGrom.
With Verdugo out, Hernández played center and Arroyo started at second. Xander Bogaerts got a partial day of rest as designated hitter, while Marwin Gonzalez got his third start of the year at short. Hernández made an impressive shoestring catch in front of the Red Sox bullpen on a ball that appeared to take a hard right, while Gonzalez made a brilliant glove-hand flip to Arroyo on an eighth-inning grounder to initiate a 6-4-3 double play.
Chris Sale continues ascent
Lefthander Chris Sale, who was at Fenway during the just-completed 10-game homestand, will head to Fort Myers to continue his rehab from Tommy John surgery. Pitching coach Dave Bush said Sale is close to pitching off the mound for the first time since March 1, 2020. “He feels great. He’s making a lot of progress,” said Bush. “I think he sees the horizon for the first time in a while and he’s excited and ready to go and wants to get back here as soon as he can.” Bush said there’s still no timetable for when Sale might return to the big-league rotation . . . Ryan Brasier (calf) is throwing and doing light running in Fort Myers, but has yet to start throwing off a mound. “He still has a little ways to go,” said Bush. “I don’t have a finish date for him yet, but he’s on the right path” . . . Red Sox players continued to get COVID-19 vaccinations on Sunday. Cora said that the team brought in a Spanish-speaking doctor last week to answer questions from members of the team, and that some who participated in the session got vaccinated prior to the series finale against Seattle.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Apr 26, 2021 2:37:39 GMT -5
Boston Red Sox injuries: Christian Arroyo undergoing X-rays on hand; Ryan Brasier (calf) begins throwing; Danny Santana playing in games Updated Apr 25, 2021; Posted Apr 25, 2021
By Christopher Smith | csmith@masslive.com
Update: Christian Arroyo’s X-rays after the game came back negative, MLB.com’s Ian Browne reported.
Red Sox’s Christian Arroyo took a 93.8 mph four-seam fastball off his left hand during an at-bat in the first inning Sunday. He stayed in the game but he will undergo testing.
“He’s going to get X-rays right now,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “Hurt pretty bad. But he was able to play defense. I told him just, ‘Don’t worry about your at-bats. If you can play defense, just grind it out.’ And he did. He turned a nice double play with Marwin (Gonzalez). Not an easy play for the second baseman because you don’t expect that flip. He stayed with it and was able to turn it. So we’ll know a little bit more later on today.”
Arroyo was hit with the bases loaded, forcing in Boston’s fourth run. The Red Sox won 5-3 over the Mariners at Fenway Park behind a strong pitching performance from Eduardo Rodriguez.
Brasier begins throwing
Reliever Ryan Brasier, who strained his calf late in spring training, has begun throwing again.
“He still has a little ways to go,” Red Sox pitching coach Dave Bush said. “He’s in Florida. He is throwing. I don’t believe he’s throwing in any game situations yet, but he is throwing and working back physically. I don’t know exactly what he’s doing today. But he has been starting a limited running program and he’s been throwing quite a bit. So I’m hoping he gets back on the mound soon and then finishes up his buildup. I don’t have a finish date for him quite yet but he’s on the right path.”
Brasier was expected to begin the regular season on the injured list anyway after dealing with a right pinkie fracture this past offseason. Brasier also was behind after leaving camp for a personal reason in February.
Verdugo scratched
Alex Verdugo was scratched from the lineup Sunday, one day after experiencing a hamstring cramp.
“He was in the lineup but then obviously the conditions weren’t perfect,” Cora said. “(Head trainer) Brad (Pearson) came down and talked to me a little bit about it. So I decided to scratch him.”
Cora said he might give Verdugo another day off Tuesday but he’ll likely be in the lineup vs. Mets ace Jacob deGrom on Wednesday.
Danny Santana playing in games in Fort Myers
Danny Santana, who bashed 28 home runs for the Texas Rangers in 2019 and signed a minor league contract with the Red Sox in March, began playing in minor league spring training games this past week down in Fort Myers.
He spent time in the hospital during spring training with a foot infection.
“He’s going through his progression. He’s getting his at-bats,” Cora said. “He’s feeling good. Actually, I’ve been in touch with him every other day. And he’s progressing well.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Apr 26, 2021 2:38:57 GMT -5
Boston Red Sox notebook: Kiké Hernández makes shoestring catch; Marwin Gonzalez makes glove-hand flip; Alex Cora gives team C+ for homestand Updated Apr 25, 2021; Posted Apr 25, 2021
By Christopher Smith | csmith@masslive.com
A difficult wind forced Kiké Hernández to readjust and make a shoestring catch down near his cleats in the Red Sox’s 5-3 victory over the Mariners at Fenway Park on Sunday.
He made the play on Kyle Seager’s 370-foot drive for the final out of the third inning.
“It’s very windy at the ballpark,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “It’s playing different than two years ago or three years ago. It feels so windy out there. When he hit that ball, Kiké said that ball was going toward the triangle and it just stopped in the air and he had to reroute and make the play.”
Hernández initially was scheduled to play second base. But he moved to center field when Alex Verdugo (hamstring cramp) was scratched. Verdugo might receive another day off Tuesday but he’s expected in the lineup Wednesday in New York against Mets ace Jacob deGrom.
Gonzalez, Arroyo turn double play
Adam Ottavino walked Mitch Haniger to lead off the eighth with a two-run lead. But Marwin Gonzalez then turned a terrific double play with a glove-hand flip to second baseman Christian Arroyo.
“Marwin played excellent shortstop,” Cora said.
Cora also was impressed with Arroyo.
“Not an easy play for the second baseman because you don’t expect that flip,” Cora said. “He stayed with it and was able to turn it.”
Arroyo stayed in the game despite taking a 93.8 mph four-seam fastball off his left hand during an at-bat in the first inning Sunday.
Arroyo’s X-rays after the game came back negative, MLB.com’s Ian Browne reported.
“I told him just, ‘Don’t worry about your at-bats. If you can play defense, just grind it out.’ And he did,” Cora said.
Cora gives Red Sox a C+ for the homestand
The Red Sox went 5-5 on the homestand. They split four-game series against the White Sox and Mariners. They split a two-game series against the Blue Jays.
“It wasn’t perfect. We need to be better at home,” Cora said. “But we played some good teams. The three teams that we played, I do believe they are going to keep playing well throughout the season. These guys (the Mariners), they pitch really well. They have a tough bullpen. You saw it. It seemed like we were going to break it open and they kept bringing in arms and getting strikeouts and weak contact. Overall, C+ I guess if you want to put a grade. We’re not thrilled but we’re not upset. We know we have to keep getting better. And we will. We’ll take this one, enjoy the off day tomorrow and go at it in New York.”
Red Sox improve to 14-9
The Red Sox improved to 14-9 and remain in first place in the AL East.
“If you asked me before the season if you’d take this record going into New York, absolutely, 100%,” Cora said. “And everybody in the clubhouse is happy we have this record. But at the same time, everybody in this clubhouse knows we need to play better baseball and we have to keep improving.”
More players to be vaccinated Sunday
Another group of players will receive their first COVID-19 vaccine Sunday.
“A few days ago, we had a Spanish-speaking doctor to talk to our Latino players,” Cora said. “And I think that was really good. They had their questions answered. And some of them decided to get vaccinated today. So that’s good, too.”
Cora is unsure if least 85% of team personnel will receive the vaccination. MLB and the players union sent a memo to teams earlier this month telling them that COVID protocols will be relaxed if 85% of players and field staff are vaccinated, per the Associated Press.
“We’ll have a better idea in the upcoming days,” Cora said
Cora wants to split up Eovaldi and ERod
Nathan Eovaldi and Eduardo Rodriguez have been pitching back-to-back in the starting rotation. But Cora said he eventually would “love” to split them up.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Apr 26, 2021 2:40:14 GMT -5
Red Sox Notes @soxnotes · 11h Since getting swept by the Orioles, the Red Sox haven’t lost a series (3-0-3).
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Apr 26, 2021 2:42:44 GMT -5
Red Sox Stats @redsoxstats · 12h Eddie off to a good start: 23 IP, 18 H, 4 HR, 2 BB, 26 K, 3.55 ERA, 2.80 xFIP
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Apr 26, 2021 7:03:56 GMT -5
Peter Gammons @pgammo · 15h How important is Eduardo Rodriguez to the Red Sox? He's gone at least five innings in his last 32 starts. Since the beginning of the 2018 season, the Red Sox are 49-12 with him starting. Today, with the bullpen taxed, he pitched them into the 8th.
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