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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 2, 2021 3:07:51 GMT -5
Bill Koch @billkoch25 · 4h Richards -- 'I'm kind of my own enemy at this point as far as (walks) go. I could be eating up a lot more innings.'
'I've been pleased with the way I've been able to make adjustments on the fly.' #RedSox
Richards -- 'I'm super pumped about being healthy and being able to compete every five days. Some familiar things are still coming back to me. I'm still far away from a finished product.' #RedSox
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 2, 2021 3:13:05 GMT -5
OverTheMonster @overthemonster · 4h Martinez, Bogaerts and Devers go 0-12 with six Ks tonight. Not ideal.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 2, 2021 3:14:59 GMT -5
Alex Speier @alexspeier · 5h Richards has had big control issues, but he's been effectively stubborn. Even when he gets in trouble with walks, he has rarely compounded that with an extra-base hit with runners on base. Though he's been in plenty of self-created jams, he's been consistently competitive.
Cora says Kiké Hernández will remain in the leadoff spot tomorrow. He’s in an 0-for-20 stretch.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 2, 2021 3:18:31 GMT -5
Rafael Devers, heart of Red Sox order continue struggles in loss to Astros Sox drop to 4-19 when scoring fewer than four runs
By Steve Hewitt | stephen.hewitt@bostonherald.com | Boston Herald PUBLISHED: June 1, 2021 at 11:34 p.m. | UPDATED: June 2, 2021 at 12:44 a.m.
Garrett Richards did his job. But once again, the Red Sox offense couldn’t keep up.
As good as their offense has been this year, it’s been sometimes puzzling to see the kinds of ruts the Red Sox have gone through at the plate. A day after producing barely anything in one of their worst losses of the season, the Red Sox were silenced again in a 5-1 loss to the Astros on Tuesday at Minute Maid Park, as they dropped the first two games of a pivotal seven-game road trip this week.
Richards pitched mostly well, but for a second consecutive day the Red Sox were outmatched by the Astros starter. They were shut down by Luis Garcia, who pitched seven innings of one-run ball and often made Red Sox hitters look silly at the plate. They swung and missed 19 times against Garcia, striking out six times.
“We haven’t been able to do too much,” manager Alex Cora said. “They’ve been doing a good job using their fastballs in certain spots and expanding with their breaking balls and we haven’t been able to make adjustments.”
The Red Sox looked like they were about to finally break through in the fifth when Hunter Renfroe doubled and Danny Santana singled to start the inning, but they only scored once to show for it. That was their only threat of the night.
For a second consecutive night, the Red Sox’ 3-4-5 hitters of J.D. Martinez, Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers — who have mostly carried them this year — weren’t up to the task as they combined to go 0-for-12. The trio is hitless in their first two games in Houston.
“They’re human,” Cora said. “That’s part of it, right? It’s gonna be part of 162 games. That’s why we always talk about the other guys have to step up. they’re not going to carry the offense for 162 games. …
“We’re going to run into this probably this month with everybody that we face. So we’ve got to make adjustments. We’ve done it before. We’ve done it before. We’ve just got to keep working with them, and the other guys have to step up.”
Devers, in particular, is running into major struggles against fastballs. He went 0-for-4 on Tuesday and saw all fastballs on the 20 pitches he saw across his four at-bats, as he struck out twice. The third baseman was hitting .165 against heaters going into Tuesday compared to .362 against breaking balls and .485 on offspeed pitches, so the gameplan is simple against him.
“It seems like he’s gotten away from who he is,” Cora said. “It seems like he knows a fastball is coming and he’s getting bigger and bigger. Sometimes we forget that he’s still young and he’s still learning at this level, and stuff like this is going to happen.”
The Red Sox’ offensive production has mostly hinged on their overall success this season. Tuesday continued that theme for them as they fell to 4-19 when they score fewer than four runs. On the flip side, they’re 28-3 when they score four runs or more.
Other takeaways from Tuesday’s loss:
— Richards, though he made some mistakes, more than gave the Red Sox a chance as he went six innings and allowed two runs, including a leadoff home run to Jose Altuve. But the right-hander won’t be happy about the four walks he gave up, a troubling trend that he said after his last start he needed to clean up if he wanted to take the next step in his progression. He’s allowed four walks in each of his last three starts, and 15 over his last four.
“If I can figure out how to not walk people anymore and I’ve said that before, or at least limit the walks, I’m going to go deeper into games, and that’s kind of our goal,” Richards said. “I’m kind of my own enemy at this point as far as that goes. I could be eating up a lot more innings, but I’m not, so that’s something I’m trying to get better at.”
— The Red Sox still trailed just 2-1 in the seventh but that’s when it got away from them in a messy inning. Devers and Marwin Gonzalez both committed errors that did no favors for Hirokazu Sawamura, who didn’t help himself with a wild pitch. Garrett Whitlock, in his first appearance in a week, replaced him and inherited the bases loaded with one out, and walked home a run on four pitches before giving up another run on a slow roller from Yordan Alvarez.
— Gonzalez has gone through a hard time at the plate as he’s seen his average dip below the Mendoza line. But Cora saw some hope in a swing he made on a fly ball in Monday’s loss. Though that has only translated into one hit over the last two weeks, he saw some more progress Tuesday, as he battled through a six-pitch at-bat and drove in the Red Sox’ first run on a ground out. It was his first RBI since May 7.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 2, 2021 3:20:09 GMT -5
Alex Cora: Kiké Hernandez will remain Red Sox’ leadoff hitter despite slump 2B/OF hitless in last 20 ABs
By Steve Hewitt | stephen.hewitt@bostonherald.com | Boston Herald June 2, 2021 at 1:26 a.m.
Kiké Hernández is going through major struggles at the top of the Red Sox’ lineup, but he’s not going anywhere.
After going 0-for-4 in Tuesday’s 5-1 loss to the Astros, Hernández is now hitless in his last 20 at-bats in the leadoff spot. But manager Alex Cora isn’t considering a shakeup.
“A week ago we were praising him and how good he was,” Cora said. “It’s part of the equation, part of 162 games. He’s going through a slump right now. That’s part of it. He’ll lead off tomorrow. He’ll lead off tomorrow.”
Cora targeted Hernández, who joined the Red Sox this winter, to be his new leadoff hitter early in spring training because he likes the veteran’s aggressiveness at the plate. But after a strong spring, Hernández has struggled with consistency in his role. He’s hitting just .234 with a .291 on-base percentage in 42 games.
Alex Verdugo, who succeeded in the Red Sox’ leadoff role last season, has been the No. 2 hitter for most of the year and is hitting .292 with a .348 OBP. But Cora is reluctant to change anything with an offense that ranks third in the league in runs per game but is sputtering of late (3.3 runs per game over their last seven) and could use a jolt.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 2, 2021 3:25:41 GMT -5
Boston Red Sox’s Rafael Devers hitting .165 against fastballs this season; Astros have thrown him 35 straight four-seamers in two games Updated 2:51 AM; Today 2:29 AM
By Chris Cotillo | ccotillo@MassLive.com
HOUSTON -- The Astros are using a simple gameplan to attack Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers -- and it’s working.
In two games in Houston, Astros pitchers have thrown 35 pitches to Devers, and they all have been fastballs. In seven at-bats, the Sox’ third baseman is hitless with five strikeouts. He has swung and missed nine times (26%).
The bizarre trend has been persistent throughout the entire season, as Devers is hitting just .165 (17-for-103) against fastballs while whiffing 39.3% of the time. While he has crushed breaking balls (.362 average, .745 slugging percentage) and offspeed pitches (.485 average, 1.000 slugging percentage), the 24-year-old has been beaten by the fastball all season.
After noticing the pattern, Red Sox hitting coaches Tim Hyers and Pete Fatse spent time working with Devers on his approach against fastballs during the club’s last homestand. So far at Minute Maid Park, that work has not paid off.
“The fact that he hits mistake pitches out of the ballpark is great, but at the same time, obviously this is a guy who can catch up with the fastball,” said manager Alex Cora. “He can get on top of it and shoot it the other way.
“It seems like he has gotten away from who he is,” Cora said. “It seems like he knows the fastball is coming and he’s getting bigger and bigger. Sometimes, we forget he’s still young and he’s still learning at this level. Stuff like this is going to happen.”
Devers has never struggled this badly against fastballs in his career, but his performance against heaters has gone up and down throughout his career. As a rookie in 2017, he hit .282 against them before struggling to a .226 average in 2018. In the best season of his career in 2019, he crushed four-seamers (.308 average) and only whiffed on them 24.6% of the time. His fastball whiff rate jumped dramatically to 35.2% in the shortened 2020 season.
All year, Devers has seemed to wait for opposing pitchers to hang a breaking ball or offspeed pitch and then do damage. That’s why his overall line (.274 average, 14 homers, 43 RBIs, .927 OPS) looks so good.
“Obviously, these guys, they attack him with fastballs, but he’s still hitting .280 and driving the ball around,” Cora said.
Devers wasn’t the only member of the Red Sox’ offense who struggled Tuesday night, as the club mustered just one run on five hits in its second consecutive lackluster showing at the plate. Combined, Boston’s top trio of Devers, Xander Bogaerts and J.D. Martinez were 0-for-12 with six strikeouts in the 5-1 loss; so far this series, the group is 0-for-21.
“They’re human,” Cora said. “It’s part of it. It’s going to be part of 162 games. That’s why we always talk about that the other guys have to step up. They’re not going to carry the offense for 162 games.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 2, 2021 3:27:47 GMT -5
Red Sox Stats @redsoxstats · 5h Kiké did all that good work, .813 OPS from 4/7 to 5/25, but a quick 0-20 here just tanked all his numbers again.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 2, 2021 3:37:09 GMT -5
Red Sox @ Astros June 2nd 2021 8pm @ Juice Box
Pivetta 6-0/3.88
Is unbeaten since joining Boston going 8-0/3.53 in 12 starts. In his last start vs the Braves he struck out 9 over 6. This ill be his first start vs the Astros.
Valdez 0-0/2.25
Missed the first 2 months of the season after breaking a finger during ST. Gave up 2 runs over 4 in his last start vs the Padres.
Boston Red Sox vs. Houston Astros Wednesday, June 2, 2021 at 8:10pm EDT Written by Chris Kubala
It’s the continuation of an early week set on the diamond between a pair of American League teams on the diamond down in the Lone Star State. The Boston Red Sox are on the road as they play the third game of a four-game set with the Houston Astros Wednesday night. In the opening game of the series Monday afternoon, it was the Astros pounding their way to an 11-2 victory to start things off on a positive note. The pitching matchup for Tuesday’s second game of the set saw Garrett Richards take the mound for Boston against Houston’s Luis Garcia. First pitch for the contest from Minute Maid Park was slated for 8:10 pm ET.
Boston Red Sox Looking to Regain Momentum Boston had won seven of their previous nine games entering Monday’s opener but they were hammered in that contest, bringing that momentum to a screeching halt. The Red Sox entered Tuesday second in the AL East, two games behind the Rays for the top spot in the division. In Monday’s game, Boston finished with only five hits with Hunter Renfroe (two runs, RBI) the lone player with two. He hit his seventh homer of the season in a losing effort while Alex Verdugo drove in the other run for the Red Sox. Eduardo Rodriguez (5-4) took the loss on the mound as he was tagged for six runs on seven hits with two walks and four strikeouts over 4.2 innings of work.
Nick Pivetta takes the mound to make his 11th start of the season for the Red Sox in this contest. He comes in 6-0 with a 3.86 ERA, a 1.267 WHIP, 26 walks and 59 strikeouts over 53.2 innings of work this season. Pivetta earned the win in his last start, which came at home against the Braves last Wednesday. He threw six innings, allowing four runs on seven hits with two walks and nine strikeouts in a game the Red Sox won 9-5. In his last three starts, Pivetta is 1-0 with a 5.29 ERA, a 1.29 WHIP, four walks and 24 strikeouts over 17 innings of work. Pivetta took the loss in his lone career start against the Astros, which came with the Phillies at home on June 25, 2017. He threw six innings, allowing five runs on six hits with one walk and seven strikeouts in a 5-0 Philadelphia defeat. In his 105th career major league appearance and his 84th start, Pivetta pitches at Minute Maid Park for the first time.
Houston Astros Trying to Gain Ground in AL West Houston won their second straight after dropping six of their previous seven as they rolled to the win in the opener of this set. The Astros entered Tuesday having climbed within half a game of the A’s for the top spot in the AL West race. Houston got three hits from Kyle Tucker (run, four RBI) while Jose Altuve (three runs, two RBI) and Carlos Correa (two runs, RBI) each had a pair. Altuve hit his seventh homer of the season in the victory. There was more than enough offense for Jose Urquidy (4-2) to earn the victory. He threw six innings, allowing one run on three hits with one walk and nine strikeouts before turning it over to the bullpen.
Framber Valdez is on the mound for the Astros as he makes his second start of the season after a lengthy stint on the IL. He comes in with no record, a 2.25 ERA, a 1.00 WHIP, two walks and four strikeouts on the year. Valdez didn’t factor in the decision in his last start, which was his season debut, at home against the Padres Friday. He threw four innings, allowing one run on two hits with two walks and four strikeouts in a game the Astros went on to lose by a 10-3 count. Valdez makes his third career appearance and first start against the Red Sox in this contest. He comes in 0-1 with a 3.38 ERA, a 1.50 WHIP, one walk and one strikeout over 2.2 innings of work against them. Valdez is 8-3 with a 3.41 ERA, a 1.218 WHIP, 46 walks and 106 strikeouts over 97.2 innings in 24 career appearances, 14 starts, at Minute Maid Park.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 2, 2021 10:08:06 GMT -5
Boston Red Sox notebook: Bobby Dalbec losing playing time to Danny Santana, Roger Clemens enjoying watching team; why Rafael Devers’ at-bats are ‘Comedy Central’ on TV Updated 10:46 AM; Today 10:46 AM
By Chris Cotillo | ccotillo@MassLive.com
HOUSTON -- For the second straight day Tuesday, Red Sox manager Alex Cora opted to start Danny Santana at first base over Bobby Dalbec against a right-handed starter. Dalbec, despite having the chance to take control of the first base position early in the season, now appears to be viewed as a part-time player.
After Dalbec hit .360 with three homers and three doubles in a seven-game stretch from May 7-15, he came back down to earth and struggled the same way he did for most of April. Since May 16, the 25-year-old has hit just .172 with two extra-base hits in 31 plate appearances. On the year, he’s hitting a dismal .146 with a .464 OPS against righties.
With right-handers José Urquidy and Luis Garcia starting the first two games of the series for Houston, Cora opted to play the switch-hitting Santana. The decision to sit Dalbec against Urquidy was a bit surprising, as righties have hit him better than lefties.
“Right now, obviously, he has been scuffling,” Cora said. “He has been chasing pitches out of the zone. He’ll be back in the lineup tomorrow. He’ll play the next two days in the series. I just feel like there’s certain matchups that we’ve got to try to avoid and we’ve got to protect him. I know (José), Urquidy yesterday, he was kind of like a reverse platoon guy, but where he’s at with the fastball, we felt like the two guys we played over Bobby, they had a chance.”
Part of the reasoning behind sitting Dalbec appears rooted in the desire to get Santana at-bats. The utility man, who debuted on May 21, hit home runs in his first two games with the Sox but has just two hits since. In eight games, he owns a .174 average (4-for-23) with 10 strikeouts.
“There’s a lot of swings and misses there,” Cora said. “That’s something we obviously need to be better. He hasn’t been able to stay on top of the fastball. It has been a struggle the last five or six games. This is a guy we really like and we’re giving him every chance to go out there and perform.”
Put simply, the trio of Dalbec, Santana and Marwin Gonzalez at first base has not gotten the job done offensively for Cora’s bunch this year.
Clemens in the house
Former Red Sox great Roger Clemens was on hand at Minute Maid Park on Tuesday to watch two of his former teams do battle. Clemens was at the park to present a new wheelchair to US Army veteran William Thomas through the Wheelchairs for Warriors program.
Clemens said he frequently watches NESN and is excited to get up to Boston a couple times this summer for charity events. He has kept tabs on the Sox and their surprising start this season.
“It’s a great surprise,” Clemens said. “It probably has a lot to do with Cora and the guys at the top keeping everybody in check. I’m not surprised. These young players are coming up now and getting after it right away
Watching Devers like ‘Comedy Central’
While spending the year at home in Puerto Rico during his suspension last season, Cora watched a lot of Red Sox baseball. Doing so gave him a new perspective to watch third baseman Rafael Devers.
Devers is known for his spirited reactions in the batter’s box and constantly makes faces, slams his bat and talks to himself while at the plate. From afar, Cora found it entertaining.
“It’s fun to watch,” Cora said. “From his breathing techniques to him talking to himself to slamming his helmet whenever he misses a fastball, it’s Comedy Central, to be honest with you. It’s a great show.”
Cora said he never feels like he needs to ask Devers to tone down the histrionics because of how good of an offensive player he is. The same used to apply to Cora’s former Dodger teammate Adrian Beltre.
“I played with Adrian Beltre,” Cora said. “Whenever he fouled a ball off his ankle, he would hit his ankle harder. So I’m used to that. I saw (Beltre) doing that a thousand times so it really doesn’t bother me.”
Devers’ approach is equal parts fascinating and amusing to his manager.
“As a player, the fact he can look so lost in one at-bat and then the next one, he can connect and go the other way and hit a homer or hit a laser the other way, it’s eye-opening,” Cora said. “He goes through his ups and downs, obviously, like everybody else, but it just feels watching — just on TV, not where I’m at now — that he has a chance to do damage on any pitch, from way up top to down to the bottom. Obviously, we would like him to do damage in the zone and not chase pitches out of the zone, but that’s who he is. It was fun to watch on TV. The fact you feel like he’s going to crush a pitch at anytime, I know the fans enjoy that.”
Taylor has earned bigger role
Reliever Josh Taylor rebounded from a rough April to have a stellar May, tossing eight scoreless innings and allowing just four hits in 11 appearances. The left-hander has become Cora’s preferred option in high-leverage spots early in games and usually comes in with runners on base.
Suddenly, Taylor is one of Boston’s three highest-leverage relievers, along with setup man Adam Ottavino and closer Matt Barnes.
“We always think the eighth and the ninth innings are the highest-leverage situations in the game but you’ve still got to get three outs before that,” Cora said. “There are some good left-handed hitters around the league, and when there’s traffic, he has been able to come in and put them out.”
Taylor has been particularly sharp against lefties all year, limiting them to a .522 OPS in 38 plate appearances. Cora is also impressed with his increased focus on conditioning.
“He’s in a good place,” Cora said. “He has made some adjustments physically. I do believe he’s taking care of his body a little bit better. He has been able to bounce back. He can go back-to-back with good stuff. Right now, he’s on a roll.”
Richards strong again
Righty Garrett Richards got only one run behind him for the second straight outing Tuesday night but was effective, holding Houston to two runs over six innings in the loss. Richards gave up a leadoff home run to Jose Altuve but settled in and kept the Sox in the game despite an offense that couldn’t get much going against Garcia.
“He gave us a chance to win,” Cora said. “He made some good pitches when it counted. He battled. He didn’t have his best stuff, but against a tough lineup, they only scored two in six innings.
“There’s going to be starts where you don’t have your best stuff and you’ve got to find a way,” Cora added.
Richards struggled with command a little, walking four batters for the third straight start and the fourth time this season. He knows the free passes will likely come back and bite him in future outings.
“If I can figure out how to not walk people anymore, or at least limit the walks, I’m going to go deeper into games,” Richards said. “That’s kind of our goal. I’m kind of my own enemy at this point as far as that goes. I could be eating up a lot more innings and I’m not.”
Kiké scuffling, but no leadoff change imminent
Kiké Hernández is in the middle of his worst slump of the season, as he is hitless in his last 20 at-bats. Despite the struggles, Cora is sticking with him in the leadoff spot.
“A week ago, we were praising him, how good he was,” Cora said. “It’s part of the equation. It’s part of 162 games. He’s going through a slump right now. It’s part of it. He’ll lead off tomorrow.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 2, 2021 10:14:14 GMT -5
Why we like watching Nick Pivetta pitch Current Time 0:01 / Duration 1:26
By Rob Bradford 2 hours ago
It was all Nick Pivetta knew growing up on Vancouver Island -- a place the pitcher describes as, "In a way it has it’s remoteness to it, but it’s not too remote."
"You end up playing baseball at the end of the day and having fun," the pitcher told WEEI.com. "I think that’s what it’s all about, enjoying the moment and letting things happen."
And this brings us to why people have come to relish Pivetta's starts.
It undeniably starts with the results, which in the case of the native of Western Canada have been pretty good. In his time with the Red Sox he is 8-0 with a 3.53 ERA, with his new team having won 11 of the 12 games Pivetta has pitched in.
There is also that pace. It doesn't take long for Pivetta to throw his next pitch after the last one, averaging 18.9 seconds between offerings. People like that, as well.
But what has truly piqued the interest of those witnessing the 28-year-old for the first time is his demeanor. He offers the kind of emotion that goes along way in this market. Just ask Pivetta's favorite pitcher growing up, Josh Beckett.
"I think Boston is one of those places where they would rather have a lot of that and a little less talent, than a shitload of talent and less bulldog," Beckett told WEEI.com. "The Boston fans, they rally around you if you have the bulldog mentality even if you’re struggling."
The emotions dripping off Pivetta aren't always sunshine and rainbows. The lowering of the heart rate can oftentimes be a good thing. But, no matter. In this market, for this player, it plays.
Beckett. Rick Porcello. Going way back, Oil Can Boyd. People like it.
"He's competitor," said Red Sox pitching coach Dave Bush. "He likes to work. He likes to throw. He takes his long toss seriously, he takes his side work seriously. When he gets on the mound, he is intense. He wants to pitch and be successful and do well. I like that. I like the way he competes. Sometimes we have to channel it and try to dial it back a little bit to make sure he directs his energy in the right way. With any emotional guy, it can sometimes take you off track a little bit. Sometimes with Nick, I've got to make sure he's refocused on the right stuff, and that he's putting all his energy and effort into making the pitch and getting the hitter out. But I'd rather have that problem, I'd rather have a guy with intensity and urgency, and make sure he channels it the right way."
It's not something Pivetta is trying to bring to the surface. It's just there.
"I wouldn’t say I’m super-animated and super-emotional," he said. "I like to think I keep my cool as much as I possibly can. I think it’s just being competitive. There are high-leverage, high-risk, high-reward situations that you want to come out on top and when you’re trying really hard and your’e doing the best you can in big moments you get excited.
"I guess it’s starting to come here and there a little bit more. You hear the rumblings, but you try to not pay attention to it too much because you have a job to do. At the end of the day our job is to win baseball games, and you try and not get caught up too much other than what our job is. I love our fans. I love hearing them in the park."
So, what is the root of this way of doing things?
As Pivetta explained it, this is about getting the chance to actually play the game of baseball, just as was the case when unintentionally hiding from scouts in the semi-small town of Victoria.
The celebratory shouts. The hard-to-hide mannerisms. The enjoyment of getting a chance to pitch. That was him and his childhood buddies. Now he just happens to buddying up with big-leaguers.
"It’s a little bit different than your traditional American sports," he said. "I think there is still a competitive nature to it. But especially when I was coming up it was hard to be seen by professional scouts, colleges and etc. We just played the game because we enjoyed playing the game. There are ways to get out, but at the beginning we’re just enjoying having fun.
"I'm having a ton of fun. I’m having a ton of fun right now. I think that’s what it is at the end of the day. Obviously, winning comes along with fun, and fun comes along with winning. That’s the most important thing. I think we have a really good vibe going on."
Fun. Winning. Popularity. Throw some emotions in the mix.
In Boston, that can go a long way.
"If you’re the 25th man on the roster there and you go to dinner, everybody knows who you are," Beckett said. "There are very few places like that. Boston is definitely one of them. It’s a different beast in itself. If you don’t have that belief system in yourself. It’s a hard place to go and be successful. I think he’ll probably do pretty well there if he believes in himself with that type of intensity. But I don’t believe you will have that intensity if you have doubts.
"I think those kind of guys generally do well there. You have to have a different type of belief system in yourself to play in those kind of markets. He will fit in just fine."
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 2, 2021 13:20:10 GMT -5
Tomase: Astros exposed a troubling Devers trend 30M ago / by John Tomase John Tomase RED SOX INSIDER
If you're a hitter with a weakness, you can trust that the Astros will find it.I
Two years ago, rookie Michael Chavis took the Red Sox by storm, homering 10 times in his first 28 games. Chavis didn't just leave the park, he obliterated it with one 400-foot moonshot after another. He looked like Boston's newest folk hero.
And then the Red Sox visited the Astros. Tomase: Is Betts' starting to validate Red Sox' trade decision?
In the course of three games, Houston fed Chavis a steady diet of fastballs above the belt. He went 2 for 11 with six strikeouts, and in the series finale struck out three times against Justin Verlander on 14 pitches -- all fastballs. Hitting .283 with a .967 OPS when the Red Sox arrived, Chavis would bat just .242 the rest of the way. The book on him that the Astros established endures to this day.
Fast forward two years and the Red Sox are back in Houston where a young hitter far more naturally gifted than Chavis is finding that there's a new book on him, too. And the Astros are exploiting it.
Fastballs wouldn't seem to be a problem for a slugger like Rafael Devers, who arrived in Minute Maid Park hitting .284 with 14 homers, 43 RBIs, and a .961 OPS. If Devers has taught us anything over the course of his career, it's that he hammers everything, consistently ranking among the league leaders in barrel rates and exit velocity.
It would stand to reason that a slugger that gifted must feast on fastballs -- especially after taking 102.8 mph from Aroldis Chapman over Yankee Stadium's left field fence as a rookie in 2017 -- and so naturally, teams have tried to retire him with offspeed stuff for years. Advertisement
But the numbers don't bear that out, especially not this year. Devers is hitting .362 on breaking balls and .485 on off-speed pitches. He has such tremendous bat control that he can hammer anything he can time.
Fastballs are another story. Devers is hitting just .159 on them with a staggering 52 strikeouts in 119 plate appearances, his swing growing less and less disciplined as he tries to catch up. It's actually the continuation of a career-long trend that no one seems to have noticed. Devers has only hit over .300 on fastballs once, and that was during his breakout 2019, when he hit them at a .308 clip. That same year he murdered offspeed pitches to the tune of a .385 average.
Over two ominous games in Houston, however, Devers has seen nothing but fastballs, and when we say nothing but fastballs, we mean it -- 35 pitches, 35 fastballs.
He's 0 for 7 with five strikeouts, and the Red Sox fully expect the approach to continue until Devers does something about it.
"It seems like he's gotten away from who he is," manager Alex Cora said. "It seems like he knows a fastball is coming and he's getting bigger and bigger. Sometimes we forget that he's still young and he's still learning at this level, and stuff like this is going to happen." Tomase: How alarming Polar Park stats could impact prospect evaluation
So what can the Red Sox do? In an offense built around four players -- Alex Verdugo, J.D. Martinez, Xander Bogaerts, and Devers -- they can ill-afford to have one of their linchpins so easily dispatched. Cora said that Devers will work with hitting coaches Tim Hyers and Peter Fatse to regain the approach that makes him a threat against any velocity.
"That's something we've been working on the last few days at home," Cora said. "We saw the trend. The fact that he hits mistake pitches out of the ballpark is great, but at the same time, obviously, this is a guy, he can catch up with the fastball. He can get on top of it and shoot it the other way. It's just a matter of him slowing it down. I think he's speeding up now. He knows it's coming. He had some good takes on some of them, but then he got big. We've got to make sure he's on time and gets on top of it. A good line drive to left field is probably what we're looking for right now. If he does that, he's going to be fine."
The Red Sox have two more games in Houston before visiting the Yankees this weekend. If Devers wants constant exposure to fastballs to fix his timing, he's in the right place.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 2, 2021 13:25:52 GMT -5
Red Sox Stats @redsoxstats · 14m The amount of fastballs (4-seam + sinkers) Devers has seen in 36-pitch rolling segments and where the majority of the peaks and valleys came from.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 2, 2021 13:40:32 GMT -5
Game 55: Red Sox at Astros lineups and notesBy Andrew Mahoney Globe Staff,Updated June 2, 2021, 33 minutes ago After dropping the first two games of their series with the Astros, the Red Sox will look to get their bats going Wednesday at Houston. The offense has struggled, limited to just three runs on five hits in the two losses. Nick Pivetta will get the start and will look to remain perfect with the Red Sox. He is 8-0 with a 3.53 ERA in 12 starts since joining the team last season. Lineups RED SOX (32-22): 1. Enrique Hernandez (R) CF 2. Alex Verdugo (L) LF 3. J.D. Martinez (R) DH 4. Xander Bogaerts (R) SS 5. Rafael Devers (L) 3B 6. Hunter Renfroe (R) RF 7. Bobby Dalbec (R) 1B 8. Christian Vazquez (R) C 9. Christian Arroyo (R) 2B Pitching: RHP Nick Pivetta (6-0, 3.86 ERA) ASTROS (30-24): 1. Jose Altuve (R) DH 2. Carlos Correa (R) SS 3. Alex Bregman (R) 3B 4. Yordan Alvarez (L) LF 5. Yuli Gurriel (R) 1B 6. Kyle Tucker (L) RF 7. Robel Garcia (S) 2B 8. Myles Straw (R) CF 9. Martin Maldonado (R) C Pitching: LHP Framber Valdez (0-0, 2.25 ERA) Time: 8:10 p.m. TV, radio: ESPN, NESN, WEEI-FM 93.7 Red Sox vs. Valdez: Bogaerts 1-1, Devers 0-1, Gonzalez 0-0, Hernández 2-4, Santana 0-1, Vázquez 0-1. Astros vs. Pivetta: Altuve 1-3, Bregman 1-1, Díaz 1-5, Gurriel 1-3. Stat of the day: Martinez, Bogaerts and Devers are a combined 0-for-21 with 12 strikeouts in the first two games of the series. Notes: Pivetta is one of two starters in the majors with at least six wins and no losses this year, along with Kevin Gausman of the San Francisco Giants. Pivetta leads Red Sox starters in strikeouts (59) and opponent batting average (.215). In his only start against the Astros, he allowed five runs on six hits and one walk with seven strikeouts over six innings in a 5-0 home loss with the Phillies on July 25, 2017 … Valdez is making his second start of the season. Song of the Day: Gene Autry "Deep in the Heart of Texas"www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAlVRs3xPUY
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 2, 2021 15:21:25 GMT -5
Jen McCaffrey @jcmccaffrey 23m It sounds like Workman is still in Worcester. We talk to Cora in about an hour so we may have an update then
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Post by Kimmi on Jun 2, 2021 16:09:12 GMT -5
Astros have a good team seems the zombies at mlb network want to gab about the Rays and still kiss the Yankees ass. Astros are tough. I'm not feeling good about even being able to split the series now. Oh well, one game at a time. Maybe the Sox can pull it out.
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