|
Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 20, 2021 15:12:54 GMT -5
Arroyo collides with Kiki trying to make a play he is getting help off the field.
Pete Abraham @peteabe · 23m Left hamstring tightness for Plawecki.
Arroyo has a right shin bone bruise.
Now the Sox have only Danny Santana on the bench.
Sox seem headed for some roster moves before playing again Tuesday.
|
|
|
Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 20, 2021 15:48:26 GMT -5
The Gas Can Gang strikes again 7-2 Royals 7th gonna go take Abby out for a ice cream cone have a great night
Pete Abraham @peteabe ·
Losing 2 of 3 against Kansas City with the next six against the Rays and Yankees is not what you want.
|
|
|
Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 20, 2021 19:00:21 GMT -5
Nathan Eovaldi lasts just 4 innings, Boston Red Sox defense doesn’t help him in loss to Royals Updated 6:02 PM; Today 5:47 PM
By Christopher Smith | csmith@masslive.com
KANSAS CITY — Nathan Eovaldi lasted just 4 innings, giving up four runs (three earned) and seven hits. But he also didn’t receive much help from his defense.
The Red Sox lost 7-3 to the Royals here at Kauffman Stadium on Sunday to drop the three-game series, 2-1.
KC entered the series having lost 11 of its previous 12 games.
Bobby Dalbec booted a grounder with two outs in the second to allow a run to score.
Christian Arroyo then couldn’t make a play on Adalberto Mondesi’s 80.3 mph double that deflected off him and into foul territory in right field. It got stuck under the tarp for a ground-rule double.
Although it was ruled a hit, Arroyo should have been able to make the play. That set up a two-run double for Jarrod Dyson that put the Royals ahead 4-2. Dyson’s at-bat was 10 pitches.
Whit Merrifield’s two-run homer off Yacksel Ríos during a three-run sixth inning put the Royals ahead 7-2.
Rafael Devers’ 447-foot homer to center field cut the deficit to 7-3 in the eighth. The Red Sox then loaded the bases but Marwin Gonzalez grounded into an inning-ending double play.
Arroyo, Plawecki removed with injuries
Second baseman Christian Arroyo left during the fifth inning with a right shin bone bruise.
Backup catcher Kevin Plawecki was removed in the fourth inning because of left hamstring tightness.
Arroyo bruised his shin bone while running into center field to try to catch a 247-foot fly ball off the bat of Hunter Dozier. Arroyo and center fielder Kiké Hernández collided and the ball dropped in for a double.
Schedule ahead
The Red Sox have an off day Monday. They open a three-game series in Tampa Bay on Tuesday.
Eduardo Rodriguez (5-4, 6.21 ERA) will start for Boston on Tuesday, Garrett Richards (4-4, 4.36 ERA) on Wednesday and RHP Nick Pivetta (6-3, 4.36 ERA) on Thursday
|
|
|
Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 20, 2021 19:01:49 GMT -5
Boston Red Sox’s Alex Cora: ‘I thought our defense was horrible’ Updated 6:59 PM; Today 6:58 PM
By Christopher Smith | csmith@masslive.com
KANSAS CITY — Red Sox starter Nathan Eovaldi took the loss and lasted just 4 innings but it wasn’t all his fault.
“I thought Nate was good. I thought our defense was horrible,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said after Boston’s 7-3 loss to the Royals here Sunday at Kauffman Stadium.
Eovaldi allowed four runs (three earned runs) on seven hits.
Cora pointed to three defensive plays that changed the game.
Bobby Dalbec booted a grounder with two outs in the second inning, allowing a run to score.
“We didn’t make a play on a ground ball off the end of the bat,” Cora said.
Eovaldi contributed to the shaky defense when he failed to turn a double play on Carlos Santana’s grounder back to the mound in the third inning.
“I had a perfect double play ball comebacker,” Eovaldi said. “I kind of took my eye off it a little too soon. It hit off the tip of my glove and ended up hitting me. I was able to get the one out (at first base) out of it. But that situation right there, it’s a routine double play ball. I’ve got to be able to make that play. Any time on a hot day that you’re going to leave your defense out there, I just don’t feel like it’s a good combination.”
Whit Merrifield advanced to second base, then scored on Salvador Perez’s game-tying single.
Second baseman Christian Arroyo — who later left the game with a right shin bone bruise — then failed to make a play on Adalberto Mondesi’s 80.3 mph double that deflected off him and into foul territory in right field. The ball got stuck under the tarp for a ground-rule double.
That set up a two-run double for Jarrod Dyson who put the Royals ahead 4-2.
“Christian makes those plays. That’s a double play, too,” Cora said. “And when you give any lineup more than 27 outs, they’re going to make you pay. They put the ball in play. They grinded at-bats. They hit some balls hard. They hit some ground balls that went through. But I think defensively, we didn’t help him. He didn’t help himself, he’ll tell you. Just a grind all over. We still had a chance to win the ballgame, but I think our defense wasn’t good enough. And that put us in a bad spot.”
KC took two of three games against Boston after it entered the series having lost 11 of its previous 12 games.
“It’s always tough when you lose a series,” Cora said. “Like I’ve always said: big league games are big league games. And that team, regardless of their record, they pitched well against us. They put the ball in play. They don’t strike out. And today, it just seems like they found holes. And like I said, we didn’t play good defense.”
|
|
|
Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 20, 2021 19:05:39 GMT -5
Pete Abraham @peteabe ·
Sox lose 2 of 3 against a team that came in having lost 11 of 12.
|
|
|
Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 20, 2021 19:06:05 GMT -5
Pete Abraham @peteabe · 2h X-rays were negative for Arroyo. Sounds like Plawecki is more of a possibility for the IL than Arroyo is.
|
|
|
Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 20, 2021 19:06:37 GMT -5
Pete Abraham @peteabe · 28m #RedSox have split their last 12 games, going 1-2-1 in four series.
They have a 6.37 ERA and have been outscored 83-63.
With the Rays losing six straight, missed opportunities.
But still a half-game up.
|
|
|
Post by scrappyunderdog on Jun 20, 2021 22:12:06 GMT -5
The Gas Can Gang strikes again 7-2 Royals 7th gonna go take Abby out for a ice cream cone have a great nightPete Abraham @peteabe ·
Losing 2 of 3 against Kansas City with the next six against the Rays and Yankees is not what you want. Not like losing a series on the road, against a .449 team, is unheard of.
|
|
|
Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 21, 2021 1:59:28 GMT -5
Marc Topkin @tbtimes_Rays · 6h BREAKING: It's Wander time. Top prospect Wander Franco has been told by #Rays he is being called up and will join them Tuesday when they open series against #RedSox at Trop.
Jon Couture @joncouture · 7h Six losses in a row, and Tampa's breaking the glass.
|
|
|
Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 21, 2021 2:02:50 GMT -5
Sox set to 'turn the page' with Rays on tap Arroyo, Plawecki injuries, Eovaldi's short start are costly in KC rubber match June 20th, 2021 Jordan Horrobin
A limited set of off-days are sprinkled throughout baseball’s bustling six-month season, and teams usually appreciate each one they receive. The Red Sox just had a breather on Thursday, but they’ll certainly cherish the one coming on Monday, too, after the way their series ended at Kauffman Stadium.
“We had a day off three or four days ago,” outfielder Kiké Hernández said, “but it kinda doesn’t feel like it right now after those last three games.”
Hot, humid weather stuck to the Sox all weekend, which culminated in a clunker: Nathan Eovaldi’s shortest start of the year, combined with a pair of in-game injuries, made for a messy 7-3 loss to the Royals on a Father's Day afternoon. Boston dropped two of three in Kansas City for just its third road series loss of the season.
Then again, the losses on the field could be greater: Catcher Kevin Plawecki and second baseman Christian Arroyo both exited with leg injuries.
Plawecki, who was lifted due to left hamstring tightness, initially showed signs of discomfort while tracking down an errant throw home from the outfield in the third inning. He hopped around on one leg momentarily, was checked on by a trainer and ultimately stayed in the game. But when Plawecki’s spot came up to hit in the fourth, he was removed for fellow catcher Christian Vázquez.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora said the team will “know more tomorrow” regarding Plawecki, though his attempt to gut it out is a positive sign.
As for Arroyo, who sustained a right shin bone bruise in the fifth, there could be some good news as well. Though the second baseman is sore, X-rays came back negative and there’s no structural damage, Cora said.
“They moved his knee around,” the manager added. “It seems like he’ll be OK.”
Arroyo’s shin bone bruise was sustained in the fifth, when a shallow fly ball sent him out into center field. He and Kiké Hernández charged toward each other and collided, with Arroyo’s right leg hitting Hernández’s right shin. Arroyo laid on the grass in pain and required assistance from a trainer to leave the field. He was able to put some weight on his right leg.
“I wasn’t able to get out of the way because I was trying to keep up with the ball,” Hernández said, before adding that he feels “fine.”
By the time Arroyo was removed, a struggling Eovaldi had already been pulled from the game. His four-inning start was the shortest of his season, due in large part to laborious second and third innings.
Bobby Dalbec booted a second-inning grounder that brought in a run instead of ending the frame. In the third, Eovaldi juggled a comebacker that should’ve produced two outs, and instead turned into just one. Two batters later, Arroyo couldn’t come up with a hot shot to second, which ricocheted off him and under the tarp for a ground-rule double.
“I thought Nate was good; I thought our defense was horrible,” Cora said. “ … Just a grind all over. We still had a chance to win the ballgame, but I think our defense wasn’t good enough and that put us in a bad spot.”
Then came one particularly grinding at-bat, when Eovaldi lost a 10-pitch battle to Jarrod Dyson, who hit a two-out, two-run double to give the Royals a lead they would not relinquish.
Yes, the Red Sox brought the potential tying run to the plate with the bases loaded in the eighth. But Marwin Gonzalez hit into a double play to quickly end that threat.
With some missed chances, misplays and a pair of injuries, the Sox left Kansas City with a sour taste in their mouths. No time to wallow, though, with a massive series against the Rays and the top spot in the American League East on the line starting on Tuesday at Tropicana Field. Boston enters with a half-game lead after Tampa Bay was swept in a four-game set at Seattle.
“Now we’ve just gotta turn the page and get ready for Tampa,” Eovaldi said. “Turn the page as fast as we can and get ready to compete.”
|
|
|
Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 21, 2021 2:04:18 GMT -5
Notes: Leadoff spot shuffle; Dalbec's streak June 20th, 2021 Jordan Horrobin
Jordan Horrobin @jordanhorrobin
No team embodies the “It’s not how you start, but how you finish” mantra quite like the Red Sox, though that’s probably not something they take pride in.
With a star-studded heart of the order, Boston entered Sunday ranked fourth in the Majors in team OPS (.756). Yet their leadoff spot lagged almost 100 points behind, at an MLB-worst .662. The revolving door at leadoff has most prominently featured Kiké Hernández (45 starts), but Christian Arroyo (nine), Marwin Gonzalez (seven), Danny Santana (seven) and Michael Chavis (four) have also taken a turn.
“We’re working on it, trying to find good matchups, and hopefully the guy we put in the leadoff spot comes through,” manager Alex Cora said. “We’re trying to be consistent, but we haven’t been. That’s real.”
Recent games have magnified the problem. Four of the auditionees (with the exception of Chavis, who was optioned to the Minors this past week) have appeared at leadoff at least once in the previous 11 games, and the combined results: 7-for-46 (.152), three doubles, two walks, four runs scored, four RBIs and 12 strikeouts.
That's a .152/.188/.217 slash line (.405 OPS), which isn’t nearly good enough for the lineup spot that sees the most at-bats. Based on win probability, 10 of the past 11 leadoff performances have negatively affected Boston’s chance to win. In total, the 11 recent scores combine for a -.287 WPA. Over a full season, that’d be -4.23 WPA, or the value of more than four losses.
“Somebody has to step up,” Cora said. “Somebody has to come through.”
The right-handed-hitting Arroyo was expected to have his chance to win the role against Tampa Bay's lefty starters in a key series starting on Tuesday, but he exited Sunday's 7-3 series-finale loss to the Royals with a right shin bone bruise.
If the Red Sox can find even league average production from the leadoff spot, it’s easy to see how much more productive the offense could become. Their Nos. 2-5 hitters -- Alex Verdugo, J.D. Martinez, Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers -- all have a 120 OPS+ or better.
Cora was asked about, say, moving Verdugo up to leadoff, where he started 33 games last season. But he doesn’t want to tinker with the part of his lineup that isn’t broken.
“For now, we’re gonna keep these guys where they’re at,” Cora said. “There’s other pieces that we don’t want to move where they’re at, and we feel comfortable where we’re at with that group.”
Dalbec’s hot streak
First baseman Bobby Dalbec entered Sunday with an eight-game hitting streak, and one small tweak is largely responsible for that.
Dalbec began choking up on his bat about a week ago, which has shortened his swing and made it easier for him to bring the barrel to the ball.
“Easy way to create more time for myself and that’s what I needed to do,” he explained. “So if I am a little bit tardy, I have that to help me out a little bit.”
The adjustment is one he implemented on his own, and although choking up isn’t a new concept to him, the rookie has never done it so consistently. Of course, why stop now when he’s battering the ball to all fields?
On Saturday, Dalbec went 3-for-3 with a triple, a home run and three RBIs. The home run, as well as his second-inning single, were struck sharply to the opposite field. When he’s doing that, he knows his timing at the plate is where it needs to be.
“I haven’t really been trying to pull the ball this season,” Dalbec said. “I’ve just been late and rushed so it looks like that.”
Not so much these days, though. All 11 of his hits during the eight-game streak came with an exit velocity of 97.6 mph or higher. In that span, his OPS (.699) surged by more than 100 points.
“I’m just trying to ride the wave, you know?” he said. “Let go of things quicker, just not really put as much pressure on myself, day to day, pitch to pitch. Just trying to have more fun.”
|
|
|
Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 21, 2021 2:24:38 GMT -5
Painful Sunday in Kansas City as Red Sox outplayed, outslugged in series finale By Peter Abraham Globe Staff,Updated June 20, 2021, 5:48 p.m.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Royals had lost 11 of their previous 12 games when the Red Sox arrived at Kauffman Stadium for a three-game series on Friday. It was a perfect opportunity for the Sox to pick up at least two victories ahead of an important six-game stretch against the Rays and Yankees.
The Sox instead took a poorly timed step back.
Poor pitching and what manager Alex Cora accurately called “horrible” defense led to a 7-3 loss on Sunday. With a chance to win the series, four Sox pitchers allowed 15 hits, five for extra bases. The Sox were charged with only one error, but a series of misplays accounted for four runs.
“Our defense wasn’t good enough,” Cora said. “That put us in a bad spot.”
That wasn’t it for the bad news. Second baseman Christian Arroyo (right shin bone bruise) and catcher Kevin Plawecki (left hamstring tightness) left the game with injuries. They are day-to-day.
The first-place Sox are 3-2 on their eight-game road trip, with a day off on Monday before facing the second-place Rays on Tuesday at Tropicana Field.
In his first career appearance at Kauffman Stadium, Nate Eovaldi lasted only four innings and allowed four runs as the Royals ran up his pitch count. But his own mistake in the field, and two behind him, were a bigger issue.
With two on and two out in the second inning and the Sox leading, 2-0, Eovaldi got Michael A. Taylor to ground to first base. But Bobby Dalbec fumbled the ball for his sixth error and a run scored.
The Sox feel Dalbec has been a solid defensive first baseman, particularly given he transitioned from playing third base in the minors. But defensive metrics have him among the lowest-rated everyday first basemen in the majors.
With a runner on first in the third inning, Carlos Santana bounced a ball back to Eovaldi for what should have been a double play. But he couldn’t get a grip on the ball and only had a play at first base.
“I took my eye off it too soon,” Eovaldi said.
Salvador Perez followed with an RBI single. The next batter, Adalberto Mondesi, hit the ball sharply to Arroyo in shallow right field. The ball deflected off his leg and rolled into foul territory for what was scored a double.
“Christian makes those plays. That’s a double play, too,” Cora said.
With two outs, Jarrod Dyson fouled off five two-strike pitches before driving a two-run double to left field.
“That changed the game,” Royals manager Mike Matheny said. “One of the best at-bats of the year against a guy who has four swing-and-miss pitches.”
In all, Eovaldi threw 36 pitches in the inning.
“When you give any lineup more than 27 outs, they’re going to make you pay,” Cora said.
With the Sox down only 4-2, the Royals sent nine men to the plate in the sixth inning against Darwinzon Hernandez and Yacksel Ríos and scored three runs.
Ríos, a journeyman claimed off waivers from Seattle last week, entered with a runner on first and allowed three consecutive hits. The first was a home run by Whit Merrifield.
Kansas City starter Mike Minor (6-4) allowed nine hits but only two runs, and worked into the seventh inning. The Sox had 11 hits in all, but were 1 for 7 with runners in scoring position and left 10 men on base.
“Offensively we just didn’t get the big hit,” Cora said. “We started off well, but after that it was a grind.”
Kiké Hernández and Rafael Devers homered for the Sox. Hernández was 2 for 3 with a walk.
The Sox brought the tying run to the plate with one in the eighth inning, but Marwin Gonzalez grounded into a double play. He is 7 of 50 (.140) with runners in scoring position.
The 43-29 Sox have split their last 12 games, going 1-2-1 in four series. They have a 6.37 earned run average in that stretch and have been outscored, 83-63.
With the Rays losing six straight, the Sox have missed a chance to gain ground.
“Disappointed? It doesn’t matter if it’s the Royals or the Yankees, the Rays, the Astros. We don’t like losing series,” Cora said.
|
|
|
Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 21, 2021 2:26:24 GMT -5
Defense did Red Sox no favors Sunday, but Nate Eovaldi admits neither did he By Kris Rhim Globe Correspondent,Updated June 20, 2021, 8:45 p.m.
Just as things looked like they may be heading in the right direction for the Red Sox pitchers, they had another setback on Sunday afternoon against the Royals.
Nate Eovaldi came in playing well, earning the win in three of his last five starts and pitching a strong 6⅔ innings against the Blue Jays last Monday, striking out four and allowing no runs.
It was a different story Sunday, as Eovaldi was pulled after just four innings of an eventual 7-3 loss in Kansas City. He allowed seven hits, four runs (three earned), and struck out four in his shortest outing of the season.
While Eovaldi struggled, the Sox’ defense didn’t do him any favors.
“I thought Nate was good. I thought our defense was horrible,” manager Alex Cora said. “Defensively, we didn’t help him. We still had a chance to win the ballgame, but our defense wasn’t good enough, and that put us in a bad spot.”
In the bottom of the second with two on, two outs, and the Red Sox leading, 2-0, Royals center fielder Michael A. Taylor hit a ground ball to first baseman Bobby Dalbec which looked like an easy out. Dalbec struggled to control the ball, however, and Adalberto Mondesi scored on Dalbec’s sixth error of the season.
Eovaldi also had a defensive struggle of his own in the third, turning a potential double-play grounder by Carlos Santana into just one out when he struggled to secure the ball.
“I kind of took my eye off it too soon, and it hit off the tip of my glove,” he said. “In that situation, that’s a routine double-play ball, and I got to be able to make that double play.”
“Defensively, we didn’t help him, but he didn’t help himself; he’ll tell you that,” Cora said.
Two batters later, Mondesi hit a shot to Christian Arroyo in the right field, but the ball bounced off Arroyo’s leg and was ruled a ground-rule double.
“Christian makes those plays. That’s a double play, too,” Cora said. “When you give any lineup more than 27 outs, they’re going to make you pay.”
Later in the third, with two outs and the game tied, Jarrod Dyson hit a two-run double to left-center field. Kansas City took the lead, and never gave it back.
“I felt like he put together a really good at-bat. He fouled off some good pitches — you just tip your hat,” Eovaldi said.
Eovaldi allowed two hits and no runs in the fourth, and ended his day with 87 pitches.
“Anytime on a hot day that you leave your defense out there, it’s not a good combination,” he said. “On those hot days, you got to do a better job at getting those guys in the dugout so they can get a quality at-bat, and I feel like we were on the reverse side of things. I kept putting long at-bats on the plate, which was leaving our defense out there. It was a tough combination.”
|
|
|
Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 21, 2021 2:32:08 GMT -5
RED SOX NOTEBOOK Red Sox in holding pattern after Kevin Plawecki, Christian Arroyo depart injured By Peter Abraham Globe Staff,Updated June 20, 2021, 8:12 p.m.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Second baseman Christian Arroyo left Sunday’s 7-3 loss against the Kansas City Royals in the fifth inning with what the Red Sox said was a bone bruise on his right shin.
Arroyo was chasing a shallow Hunter Dozier popup to center field when he tripped over onrushing center fielder Kiké Hernández. As the ball fell in, both players were sprawled on the grass.
Arroyo was helped off the field by at first one, then two athletic trainers.
“He slid after the ball bounced and I wasn’t able to get out of the way,” Hernández said. “I was trying to keep up with the ball. We just happened to hit each other.”
The Sox also lost catcher Kevin Plawecki. Plawecki was injured in the bottom of the third inning chasing down an errant throw to the plate by Hernández, and left the game in the fourth with tightness in his left hamstring.
Initial indications were that Arroyo could avoid the injured list, and it’s wait-and-see for Plawecki.
“Christian, he’s sore. It’s right below the patella,” manager Alex Cora said. “He’ll be sore for a little bit. Nothing structural. He had x-rays; everything was good. They moved his knee around. It seems like he’ll be OK.”
The Sox seemed more concerned with Plawecki.
“He wanted to grind it out. We’ll know more [Monday],” Cora said. “I talked to [athletic trainer] Brandon [Henry] and he feels like with that one, we should wait to see where we’re at during the week.”
Catchers Ronaldo Hernández and Connor Wong are on the 40-man roster if Plawecki were to be replaced. Neither have major league experience. Hernández is in Double A and Wong has so far struggled at the plate in Triple A.
The Sox also have Jett Bandy and Chris Herrmann in Triple A. Both have major league experience, but adding them to the major league roster would require a 40-man roster move.
Jerry Remy returns
Jerry Remy was back on the air with NESN after missing seven games.
Remy, 68, left the broadcast booth at Fenway Park during the third inning of the June 11 game against the Blue Jays and was transported to Massachusetts General Hospital with shortness of breath. He was released four days later after undergoing tests. Related: NESN’s Jerry Remy released from hospital after five-night stay
In the third inning, Remy thanked the paramedics for getting him to hospital as quickly as they did, and the staff at MGH for their care. Remy’s breathing was a particular concern given his history with lung cancer.
“It was scary,” Remy said. “People ask me what happened, and I say to them, ‘[Bobby] Dalbec hit a home run and I lost my breath.’ That’s all I can say, I just lost my breath.”
NESN is not yet broadcasting road games on site, so Remy called the game from the network’s studios in Watertown with Dave O’Brien and Tim Wakefield. Royal flush
The Sox lost their first series at Kansas City since 2017. They won all six of their games at Kauffman Stadium in 2018-19 . . . Rafael Devers’ 447-foot home run to center field in the eighth inning was his second longest of the season. He has 18, and three in his last six games . . . Righthanded reliever Ryan Brasier is not yet back into baseball activities as he recovers from a concussion suffered on June 4. Brasier was struck by a batted ball while facing hitters. He has been on the injured list all season with a strained left calf . . . As is tradition on Father’s Day, the players, coaches, and umpires wore blue ribbons on their uniforms along with light-blue wristbands and socks to raise awareness and funds to fight prostate cancer. The teams also wore caps with blue logos. MLB says it donates all revenue from sale of the caps and socks to the Prostate Cancer Foundation and Stand Up To Cancer.
|
|
|
Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jun 21, 2021 2:36:53 GMT -5
Nathan Eovaldi struggles, Red Sox pitching woes continue in series loss to Royals
By Jason Mastrodonato | jason.mastrodonato@bostonherald.com | Boston Herald PUBLISHED: June 20, 2021 at 6:44 p.m. | UPDATED: June 20, 2021 at 6:57 p.m.
The Red Sox pitching staff looks like it’s running on empty.
Nathan Eovaldi didn’t have much working on Sunday, and when manager Alex Cora turned to the bottom part of his bullpen for help, it only made things worse.
The Red Sox took a 7-3 loss to the Royals, losing two out of three in Kansas City as they go into Monday’s off-day ahead of a critical three-game series with the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday.
“I thought Nate was good, I thought our defense was horrible,” manager Alex Cora said. “There were three plays today that we didn’t make, and it put us in a bad spot.”
Three takeaways:
1. Sunday’s game was a chance to get a little momentum before the Sox’ most critical six-game stretch of the season thus far. They’ll be in Tampa for three and then fly home to Boston for three more against the Yankees.
But the pitching staff continues to look worse and worse as the season goes on.
After Eovaldi allowed four runs (three earned) in just four innings, the Red Sox ERA is now 4.29, 19th in MLB. One month earlier, on May 20, they had a 3.92 ERA, 13th in MLB. And a month before that, on April 20, the Sox had a 3.60 ERA, good for ninth overall.
The drastic downfall has been a team-wide effort, with the papier-mâché starting rotation starting to unravel and the bullpen proving to lack depth, albeit with an elite closer in Matt Barnes.
Sunday, the Sox got out to an early 2-0 lead when Kiké Hernandez got a hanging slider and hit it more than 400 feet for a two-run shot, his sixth homer of the year. It was with two strikes and two outs, continuing the Sox’ dominance with two strikes as they’ve been the best team in baseball this year in such situations.
But Eovaldi couldn’t get it going in this one. He started the game with a six-pitch first inning, but needed 66 pitches to get through the next two frames.
The Royals scored one in the bottom of the second, when Alberto Mondesi smoked a dead-red splitter for a double, then later came around to score on Bobby Dalbec’s sixth error of the season at first base.
2. All year Eovaldi has struggled with one bad inning in most of his starts, and it came in the third inning this time.
After a leadoff single by Whit Merrifield, Eovaldi induced a weak groundball right back at him for a routine double play. But the veteran right-hander couldn’t handle it. The pitch went off his glove and he had to settle for one out at first.
In total, eight batters stepped up in the inning as the Royals had a pair of singles, a pair of doubles and a walk to score three and put the Sox in a 4-2 hole.
“I have to be able to make that play,” he said. “Any time on a hot day that you’re going to leave your defense out there, it’s not a good combination. It’s the same with the offense. Any time on those hot days, you have to do a better job getting back in the dugout so they can put together quality at-bats. I feel like we were on the reverse side of things. They were able to put long at-bats at the plate and grind out more pitches, which was leaving our defense out there. It’s a tough combination.”
He got sucked into long at-bats and couldn’t get strike three. The Royals fouled off a remarkable 20 pitches in Eovaldi’s four-plus innings of work.
“Yeah, they came out swinging the bat, that’s what it comes down to,” said Eovaldi, who now has a 3.90 ERA on the year. “They were taking good pitches. I was trying to get that first-pitch strike and expand a little bit. They weren’t swinging at anything when I expanded. Other times I wasn’t locating as well and they fouled off good pitches. I have to do a better job of attacking the strike zone and reading their swings a little better.”
Behind Eovaldi, relievers Darwinzon Hernandez and newly-acquired Yacksel Rios gave up three more runs to extend the Royals’ lead.
3. The Red Sox had a chance at a rally in the eighth inning.
Lefty Mike Minor — the same pitcher whose Texas Rangers team purposely dropped a fly ball against the Sox so he could have a chance at 200 strikeouts at the end of the 2019 season — held the Sox to just two runs in 6 2/3 innings.
But they put together a nice rally against the Royals’ bullpen. Rafael Devers hit a leadoff homer in the eighth, his 18th of the season, and the Sox then loaded the bases with one out for Marwin Gonzalez, who was in the game replacing the injured Christian Arroyo. Gonzalez then swung at a fastball under the zone and grounded into an inning-ending double play, lowering his season average to .195.
|
|