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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2021 3:34:26 GMT -5
Bill Koch @billkoch25 · 5h Cora on Richards -- 'He's been working hard since the first day of spring training. He and (Dave Bush), they have a great relationship.' #RedSox
Cora -- 'It's important to win the series. We have a chance to win it.' #RedSox
Cora on the quick start -- 'We put good at-bats from the get-go.'
'We kept adding on.' #RedSox
Cora pointed to the Vazquez at-bat in the 1st keeping the line moving -- RBI groundout. Bobby Dalbec followed with an RBI double. #RedSox
Cora -- 'Loved the fact that Raffy went the other way a few times. That's important. Bobby did the same thing.' #RedSox
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2021 3:34:54 GMT -5
Bill Koch @billkoch25 · 5h Cora -- 'If #MLB decides to play in San Juan, we'll take that too. You have to adjust.'
'I'm happy (the Blue Jays) are playing.' #RedSox
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2021 3:35:52 GMT -5
Bill Koch @billkoch25 · 5h Hernandez -- 'Getting a five-run lead in the 1st inning makes everything a little bit easier. Sometimes you've just got to tip your cap. Hyun Jin (Ryu) did a great job last night.' #RedSox
Hernandez -- 'We did a great job of adding on that (1st) inning, taking advantage of Stripling's mistakes.' #RedSox
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2021 3:37:54 GMT -5
Bill Koch @billkoch25 · 5h Richards -- 'It's been fun to watch these guys go about their business. You get the sense these guys know how to win.' #RedSox
Richards -- 'I didn't start the season off the way I wanted to or the way anybody wanted me to. Just getting back to a simple delivery.'
'I'm kind of growing into a complete pitcher I guess you would say. Being able to compete on a day where I don't have my best stuff.' #RedSox
Richards on taking the mound with a five-run lead -- 'I hope I have to do that every single time I pitch.' #RedSox
Richards on the Semien base running mistake at third in the 1st -- 'Any time they're going to give you free outs like that it's huge.' #RedSox
Richards on the conference in the 1st -- 'I just needed to take a deep breath I guess. Continue to make pitches.'
'Fastball command today was really good.' #RedSox
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2021 3:42:10 GMT -5
Alex Speier @alexspeier · 7h Devers is having a spectacular night defensively.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2021 3:42:37 GMT -5
Gary M @nuggetpalooza · 8h First time since 2005 and 4th time since 2000 that #RedSox have opened the first inning with 5+ consecutive hits.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2021 3:43:59 GMT -5
Alex Speier @alexspeier · 5h Garrett Richards: ‘Today wasn’t great in my eyes. ... it was a good battle day.’
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2021 3:47:53 GMT -5
Red Sox Notes @soxnotes · 6h Garrett Richards’ season ERA is down to 3.72.
First 3.0 innings of 2021 – 8 ER 45.1 innings since – 12 ER (2.38 ERA)
Last 5 starts (2.27 ERA): 7.0 IP, 1 R 5.0 IP, 1 R 7.0 IP, 4 R 6.0 IP, 0 R 6.2 IP, 2 R
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2021 3:50:21 GMT -5
Why Boston Red Sox’s Garrett Richards, in 8th major-league season, thinks he’s finally becoming a ‘complete pitcher’ Updated 1:56 AM; Today 1:56 AM
By Chris Cotillo | ccotillo@MassLive.com
Different numbers tell different stories when it comes to describing the amount of experience Red Sox starter Garrett Richards has in the majors. The righty turns 33 in a week and has more than eight years of service time, so he has been around a while. But due to injuries, he has only thrown 853 innings -- far fewer than a healthy eight-year veteran would have.
Richards’ talent has always been there, dating back to his best years with the Angels in 2014 and 2015, but injuries have cost him the opportunity to learn how to pitch at baseball’s highest level. Now fully healthy, more than 2 ½ years removed from Tommy John surgery, the righty finally believes he’s getting that chance.
Richards’ outing Wednesday night against the Blue Jays wasn’t the prettiest, as he allowed seven hits and walked five batters in 6 ⅔ innings. But, given a five-run lead before he even took the mound in the first inning, he battled all night, getting the win as the Red Sox beat Toronto, 7-3.
“It was a good battle day,” Richards said. “I didn’t necessarily feel like I had my best stuff but was able to make it work.”
The start was the kind of outing Richards might not have had in previous years, though he feels the knowledge he has gained in his first year with the Red Sox has put him in a position to succeed. Working closely with pitching coach Dave Bush, Richards has bounced back from a brutal start to the season and has posted a 2.27 ERA in 31 ⅔ innings over his last five starts.
“I’m kind of growing into a complete pitcher, I guess you would say,” Richards said. “Be able to compete on days you don’t have the best stuff. Recognizing situations, recognizing counts, reading swings. These are some things that take reps and take you getting burned a few times before you realize it. It has been a learning period of time and I think we’re trending in the right direction so I’m stoked about that.”
Injuries limited Richards to fewer than 77 innings in each season from 2016 to 2019, and even a fully healthy season in 2020 presented a limited workload (51 ⅓ innings) due to the shortened season. In 14 appearances (10 starts), Richards posted a 4.03 ERA and struck out 46 batters in what ended up being an audition for the Red Sox, who guaranteed him $10 million as a free agent this winter.
“We identified a few pitchers throughout the off-season and he was on top of the list,” said manager Alex Cora. “We know the stuff. Obviously, last year, it seemed like he was finding himself coming from surgery. It was just a matter of time. We felt that way.
“We trusted the player, we decided to move on (him) and now he’s here and he’s doing an outstanding job,” Cora said.
Two of Richards’ first four outings were brutal, and after the second implosion -- in which he walked six Jays in a loss on April 27 -- it appeared there was a chance his leash was getting short. At that time, Richards and Bush went back to the drawing board and began to focus on simplifying the righty’s delivery, making it more vertical and allowing for a more consistent release point. The results have been immediate.
“Obviously, I didn’t start the season off the way I wanted to or anybody wanted me to,” Richards said. “Just getting back to a simple delivery that would allow me to throw strikes and get back in the zone, I think kind of simplified things for me not only physically but mentally. I’m very much locked in one pitch at a time right now.”
Richards has found success by throwing more curveballs, elevating his fastball and throwing a cutter on his arm side, which is a departure from the past. By taking his turn every fifth day, he has been able to work out kinks in his game that were impossible to fix while he was sidelined.
“I’m doing some things this year that I never really opened up as far as my arsenal or how I go about pitching, which kind of sucks but at the same time I’m excited about moving it into that next level,” Richards said.
Richards’ recent success has lowered his ERA to 3.72 and the Red Sox have won four of his past five outings. Slowly but surely, the righty has become a consistent force in Boston’s rotation.
“Sometimes you try to make big adjustments, and for him, it was the other way around,” Cora said. “It was simplifying the windup, being more in a straight line to the plate and throwing more competitive pitches. He has done that and he is going deep into games. He was one pitch away from giving us seven today. We’re very pleased with the way he’s throwing the ball.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2021 3:51:31 GMT -5
Boston Red Sox notebook: Christian Vázquez breaks six-week homerless streak; Hunter Renfroe has Gold Glove goals in mind Updated 2:27 AM; Today 2:27 AM
By Chris Cotillo | ccotillo@MassLive.com
Six games into the season, Red Sox catcher Christian Vázquez appeared to be on the verge of a power surge. Vázquez homered twice in the span of 16 hours against the Rays, hitting a game-tying shot in the ninth inning of Boston’s win on May 6 and adding a two-run homer in a blowout win the next day.
But since then, the power has been shut off for Vázquez. Entering his eighth-inning at-bat against Blue Jays reliever Jeremy Beasley on Wednesday night, the catcher -- who hit 30 home runs in 185 games over the last two years -- had not left the yard in 126 plate appearances. He broke his streak with a towering shot to left field that gave the Sox an insurance run late in a 7-3 win.
The homer -- just Vázquez’s third of the year -- came one night after he crushed a 100.8 mph, 349-foot flyout at windy TD Ballpark in Dunedin, Fla.
“Don’t get caught up on the homers. The homers will happen,” said manager Alex Cora. “He put a good swing in there. It was a line drive that just kept going. He can do that. Yesterday, he had a 3-2 count, stayed on a breaking ball and hit it hard. Hopefully, this is the beginning of something good for him.”
Vázquez got off to a torrid start (.458 average, 1.333 OPS) through seven games but had been in a prolonged slump entering Wednesday’s action. In 31 games from April 10 to May 18, the backstop hit .208 (22-for-107) with a .492 OPS and just three extra-base hits (all doubles).
“He’s working the count, he’s getting into hitters count, but he’s expanding a little bit,” Cora said. “He’ll get in trouble there. That (homer) was good to see.”
Vázquez’s home run pushed Boston’s lead from three runs to four and allowed Cora to go to lefty Josh Taylor instead of closer Matt Barnes in the ninth inning.
“It was a big home run right there, a big run for us. In these conditions, every run counts,” Cora said.
Renfroe has Gold Glove goals
One of the biggest surprises of the season for the Red Sox has been the defense of Hunter Renfroe, who has emerged as an elite right fielder. The former Padre and Ray has consistently wowed teammates and fans with his play, including a couple highlight-reel worthy outfield assists in the last week.
Renfroe, known as a power hitter in San Diego, believes his defensive abilities have gone underrated throughout his career.
“I hope so. I take a lot of pride in my defense,” he said. “Always have and I’m always looking forward to getting better.”
Renfroe recalled how during exit meetings after his rookie year in 2017, Padres coaches told him that they believed his defense needed to improve as his career continued. Inspired by the play of teammates Jon Jay and Will Venable (who is now Boston’s bench coach), Renfroe took the coaches’ advice to heart and began to focus on his glove work.
A Gold Glove quickly became a career goal.
“I told people in ’18 or ’19, I’d much rather win a Gold Glove than a Silver Slugger award,” Renfroe said. “Obviously, both of them would be great but one of my things is that I feel like a Gold Glove is helping your teammates a lot more than a Silver Slugger.”
Renfroe said his spectacular outfield assist against the Athletics a week ago -- which drew Mookie Betts comparisons from teammates Eduardo Rodriguez and Xander Bogaerts -- ranks among the top three throws of his carer.
“I’ve made some good throws,” Renfroe said. “I’ve definitely thrown harder throws. But that’s probably top three, maybe two.”
Bush making an impact
Cora has enjoyed his first year working with pitching coach Dave Bush, who was hired as pitching coach after the 2019 season. Cora actually hired Bush to the position but had to wait a year to work him after being let go last January and re-hired in November.
Cora has been particularly impressed with how Bush has handled the team’s five starters, all of whom have very different styles from one another. Righty Garrett Richards, in particular, has cited Bush as a major factor in his recent turnaround.
“He has been really good about simplifying stuff. Big communicator,” Cora said. “This is not an easy staff.”
Before being hired as the pitching coach, Bush worked in a variety of capacities for the Sox, including as a pitching development analyst and minor-league pitching coordinator (performance). Cora got to know Bush and respect his work throughout his first stint as manager.
“He did a good job for us a few years ago helping in the minor leagues and whenever he came up here,” Cora said. “He’s doing an amazing job.”
Cora mum on Mercedes controversy
Cora, who enjoys a close relationship with White Sox manager (and former Red Sox consultant) Tony La Russa played coy when asked for his feelings on the Yermín Mercedes-Willians Astudillo controversy from earlier in the week.
With Chicago, leading 15-4, in the ninth inning Monday night, Mercedes swung at a 3-0 pitch from Astudillo -- a position player forced into mop-up duty -- and crushed it for a home run. La Russa has repeatedly called Mercedes out for what he perceived as a lack of sportsmanship and there appears to be a growing rift between the Hall of Famer and some of his players over the topic.
Cora wouldn’t choose a side, only vowing that the Red Sox would “keep it in the clubhouse” if such an issue arose.
“I just hope I don’t have to use a position player this season,” Cora said. “We’ll keep it at that.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2021 3:54:59 GMT -5
Red Sox Stats @redsoxstats · 9h Jays pitching prospect Alek Manoah (1st rd, 2019) is flat out nasty. He's pitched 9 innings vs. Worcester this year: 9 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 18 K
He's like 6'6, 260, and throwing flames.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2021 3:56:07 GMT -5
Red Sox Stats @redsoxstats · 8h First inning
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2021 3:57:01 GMT -5
Red Sox Stats @redsoxstats · 6h Whitlock has allowed at least 1 run in 4 of 5 May outings, 7.1 IP, 12 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 3 HR, 33 batters faced
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2021 4:12:01 GMT -5
Red Sox @ Blue Jays Thursday, 20th May 2021 730pm @ TD Ballpark
Pivetta 5-0/3.16
Opponents are hitting .189 vs him and he has allowed 2 runs or fewer in 6 of his 8 starts.
Matz 5-2/ 4.29
Tossed his first scoreless start in his last game vs the Phillies. Allowed just 3 runs in his first 3 games however has allowed 17 over the next 4.
Boston Red Sox vs. Toronto Blue Jays Thursday, May 20, 2021 at 7:37pm EDT Written by Doug Gilghrist
The Boston Red Sox and the Toronto Blue Jays play the rubber game of their three-game series on Thursday evening in Toronto's home away from home in Dunedin, Florida. The Blue Jays won game one on Tuesday by a score of 8-0, before the Red Sox bounced back with a 7-3 victory on Wednesday. The season series is tied 2-2 between these two teams. Boston comes into Thursday's game clinging to a one-game lead over the Tampa Bay Rays, while the Toronto Blue Jays and the New York Yankees are just 1.5 games out of first place in the highly-competitive American League East.
In the middle game of the series, on Wednesday, the Red Sox jumped on the Blue Jays early, scoring five runs in the first inning, as they were powered by home runs by Alex Verdugo and J.D. Martinez. Boston had 13 hits in the game, three of which came off the bat of Enrique Hernandez, who hit his fifth home run of the season. Christian Vazquez also went deep for the Red Sox. Marcus Semien had a double and a home run for the losing Blue Jays, while Teoscar Hernandez and Reese McGuire also had a pair of hits in the game. Toronto was just 1-9 with runners in scoring position.
Red Sox look to keep lead in AL East The Boston Red Sox' lead in the American League East has been shrunk to just one game, as there are now four teams within 1.5 games of the lead in the division. The Red Sox have struggled a little bit over the last week-and-a-half, as they are just 4-5 in their last nine games overall. They are in the midst of a six-game road trip that takes them to Philadelphia on Friday to take on the Phillies. Boston continues to have one of the best hitting teams in the Major Leagues, but they have dropped to second (behind the Houston Astros) with a .263 batting average this season. The Red Sox have hit the fifth-most home runs in the majors (and second-most in the AL) with 57 long balls. Rafael Devers and Martinez lead the way in the power department with 11 home runs and 34 RBI apiece. Xander Bogaerts leads the team with a .346 batting average, while Martinez isn't too far behind at .329 this season. Boston's pitching staff come into action on Thursday with a 3.89 ERA.
Nick Pivetta look to remain undefeated this season, as he goes to the mound on Thursday evening for the Red Sox. He is 5-0 with a 3.16 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP this season in eight starts. Pivetta gave up two runs on four hits in six innings of work in his last game against the Los Angeles Angels on Friday. He has given up four hits or fewer in six of his eight starts this season. Opposing batters are hitting just .189 against Pivetta this season. He has faced the Blue Jays twice in his career, going 0-1 with a 5.40 ERA.
Blue Jays look to bounce back from loss The Toronto Blue Jays suffered a rare loss on Wednesday against the Red Sox. Toronto has been one of the better teams in baseball recently, as they have won six of their last eight games and 12 of their last 18 games. They have had three three-game winning streaks this season. One of the big reasons for the Blue Jays' turn around has been the recent play of Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. After a prolonged slump that saw his batting average dip to .312 on May 8, Guerrero, Jr. has hit .368 in his last nine games, which includes three three-hit games. He has also hit four home runs since May 11 after going 11 straight games without a home run. Guerrero, Jr. is currently on a six-game hitting streak, as he has raised his batting average back up to .327, which is ninth in the majors. He is also in the top 10 in home runs (11), RBI (31), and OPS (1.053). Randal Grichuk leads the team with 32 RBI this season. Four players for the Blue Jays have at least seven home runs this season, as they lead the American League (and are tied for second in the Major Leagues) with 58 round trippers for the season. Toronto is also fourth in batting average with a .253 mark this season. The Blue Jays have a 3.82 ERA this season.
Steven Matz takes the ball for Toronto in Thursday's series finale. He is 5-2 with a 4.29 ERA this season in nine starts. In his last outing, on Friday, Matz threw five scoreless innings, giving up four hits and striking out a season-high nine batters. Opposing batters are hitting .250 against him this season. Matz, who has spent his entire career before this season in the National League, has faced the Red Sox just once in his career. He is 0-1 with a 5.06 ERA in 5.1 innings pitched.
Red Sox at Blue Jays Thursday, at 7:37 PM EST Clear According to Forecast.io, it's expected to be 82° F with a 0% chance of precipitation and 20 MPH wind blowing right to left in Toronto at 7:37 PM EST. Hourly Forecasts: Weather.com Forecast.io
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on May 20, 2021 7:21:03 GMT -5
Peter Gammons @pgammo · 2h Where MLB is today is a little more than 70% of last season's schedule. This year, close to 74% remains to be played.
So, when the Red Sox had lost two in a row and have to face Nola, Wheeler this weekend in Philly, that Alex Cora used Josh Taylor to finish--4 runs is not a lot in a windy spring training field--he has only used Matt Barnes and is 15.5/3 K/BB ratio on consecutive daqys 4 times.
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