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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 7, 2021 2:00:37 GMT -5
‘Good to see him smile’: Red Sox happy for Franchy Cordero after he broke 0-for-25 slump "He looked confident and relaxed and swung at good pitches."
COMMENTS By Tom Westerholm May 6, 2021
Franchy Cordero has had a rocky start to his Red Sox tenure, batting just .153 in his first 23 games with the team after an 0-for-25 slump dropped his average from .348.
On Thursday, however, Cordero replaced Kiké Hernández in the lineup and broke out with a 3-for-5 performance that included an RBI double and three runs as the Red Sox outlasted the Tigers 12-9.
Cordero was asked about his slump after the game.
“Obviously, it was tough,” Cordero said through a translator. “This is a hard game. If it was easy, then everyone would be able to do it. I just kept working. I was working hard with the coaches, spoke to a lot of guys. A lot of my teammates came up to me and would always try to give me some advice as well. Coaches such as [Jason] Varitek, he came up to me and spoke to me about hitting. Everyone, it was a team effort trying to get me right, and I’m just happy I was able to have a good game today.”
Cordero said Varitek, also a lefty, gave him some advice on his approach and other “minor details,” but he said Varitek mostly just wanted to be there.
That was a common theme for the Red Sox, who were universally happy for the 26-year-old outfielder who arrived in Boston as part of the deal that sent Andrew Benintendi to Kansas City.
“Great kid,” Christian Vazquez said. “He’s still learning, he’s young. I think he’s going to be good for us. He needs to continue to work and be confident in the play. Like today, he looked confident and relaxed and swung at good pitches. That’s him, he enjoyed the game. He had a great game today.”
Alex Cora praised Cordero’s fielding as well, noting that it was “good to see him smile.”
“It’s not easy, hitting at this level is not easy,” Cora said. “People think that he’s not putting work, but he’s putting in work. He was aggressive right away, and that gave him confidence. He got the hits and he made contact when it mattered at the end. He hustles all the time, which is great. He puts pressure on the defense, and we were able to score.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 7, 2021 2:05:36 GMT -5
Red Sox’ high-scoring win over the Tigers shows how much work they need to do By Julian McWilliams Globe Staff,Updated May 6, 2021, 5:31 p.m.
A four-run eighth inning saved the Red Sox from what would have been their worst series loss of the season Thursday, as they pulled out a 12-9 win over the Tigers at Fenway Park.
The Tigers, the worst team in baseball, had the Red Sox on the ropes, leading, 9-8, in the bottom of the eighth.
With Rafael Devers at first after reaching on an error, Detroit reliever Alex Lange fanned both Marwin Gonzalez and Hunter Renfroe. But after Kevin Plawecki negotiated a two-out walk, manager Alex Cora called on Christian Vázquez to pinch hit.
Vázquez worked the count full, then he stung a 97-mile-per-hour heater down the third base line for a single that tied the game.
The next batter, Franchy Cordero, hit a slow tapper that Tigers third baseman Jemeir Candelario couldn’t handle, allowing pinch runner Christian Arroyo to come home with the go-ahead run.
A wild pitch moved the runners to second and third, and Alex Verdugo’s single up the middle scored them both.
“It’s a big league win,” Cora said. “And you’ve got to take them. We have to address a lot of stuff. We know that we’ve been saying that over the course of the first month. And for us to get to where we want to go, we have to be a lot better. Today was a reminder.”
Despite the Red Sox’ 19-13 record, which leads the American League East, this series highlighted some of their deficiences. The pitching staff allowed 22 runs over the three games. That’s against a Tigers offense that ranked 28th in runs entering Thursday’s game. The bullpen allowed 10 runs in the series. Nate Eovaldi allowed six runs (all earned) in his start on Thursday.
Garrett Whitlock has proven to be human, surrendering four runs (three earned) in his last two appearances. That included a three-run homer in the 10th inning Wednesday, the deciding runs in the Tigers’ 6-5 win. Matt Andriese, who allowed just two earned runs in his first 12⅔ innings, has yielded four in his last three appearances.
Franchy Cordero did break an 0-for-25 skid on Thursday, going 3 for 5 with a double, a positive sign in what has been a horrific start to his Red Sox career.
“It was tough,” Cordero said through interpreter Bryan Almonte. “This is a hard game. If it was easy, then everyone would be able to do it. But I just kept working hard with the coaches. I spoke to a lot of my teammates.”
Thursday’s game might represent a turning point for Cordero, whose teammates said he looked more confident at the plate.
Nonetheless, the Red Sox lineup remains imbalanced, specifically the 6 through 9 spots in the batting order. In 476 plate appearances entering Thursday, that part of the order had just a .550 OPS (third-worst in the majors).
Renfroe, Gonzalez, and Bobby Dalbec were a combined 1 for 13 Thursday with six strikeouts (each with two). Dalbec continues to sputter, but Cora said he’s going to stick with the rookie.
“We just have to keep working with him,” Cora said. “At this level, it’s not that easy. And I know he was very successful last year. But we know that there’s still work to do. We’re going to keep working with him to get out of this.”
The Sox on Friday night begin a four-game set against an Orioles team that swept them in three games at Fenway to start the season. Though the Red Sox returned the favor a week later at Camden Yards, the Orioles have proven to be a gritty bunch, playing roughly .500 baseball.
Looking toward that series, Cora knows the Sox have to be more locked in, understanding what could happen if they aren’t.
“The same way we were hot in April,” Cora said, “you can go the other way around, if we don’t keep working and keep getting better.”
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