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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 2, 2021 1:48:31 GMT -5
Red Sox @ A's Friday, 2nd July 2021 940pm @ Oakland Coliseum
E-rod 6-4/5.83
Eduardo Rodriguez was charged with two runs over six innings on Sunday in a win over the Yankees. The 28-year-old southpaw has struggled recently, allowing 44 runs (42 earned) on 74 hits with a 67/17 K/BB ratio across 55 2/3 innings over 11 starts since May 1. He'll carry a bloated 5.83 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 93/19 K/BB ratio across 78 2/3 innings (15 starts) into a road tilt against the Athletics on Friday.
Montas 7-7/4.72
Frankie Montas yielded two runs on two hits over five innings while taking a no-decision in Saturday’s 10-inning loss to the Giants. Through 16 starts covering 87 2/3 innings this season, Montas owns a 4.72 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 92/24 K/BB ratio.
Boston Red Sox vs. Oakland Athletics Friday, July 2, 2021 at 9:40pm EDT Written by Nick Raffoul
The Boston Red Sox will travel to the RingCentral Coliseum for the opening game of their weekend series versus the Oakland Athletics.
The Red Sox have a tight grip on the top spot in the American League East race. Boston sits 20-games over the .500-mark with a 51-31 overall record after extending its current winning streak to seven games on Thursday. The Red Sox routed Kansas City 15-1 to complete a four-game sweep of the Royals and push their lead in the AL East to 3.5-games over the second-place Tampa Bay Rays. Meanwhile, Oakland is trying to keep pace in the AL West, where it has fallen into second place, 1.5-games back of the division-leading Houston Astros. The Athletics own a strong 48-35 overall record but have dropped eight of their last 12 contests.
Can Oakland bounce back with a win at home against the Red Sox on Friday evening?
The Red Sox are expected to send southpaw Eduardo Rodriguez to the hill in Oakland for the series opener on Friday. The 28-year-old is 6-4 with a disappointing 5.83 ERA in 15 starts but he’s coming off of his first quality start in over two months. Last time out, Rodriguez limited the New York Yankees to just two runs and struck out eight batters without a walk in six innings of work to snap a personal four-game skid. The Red Sox lefty hadn’t won a start since May 7 and his previous quality outing came back on April 20 in his third start of the season.
Rodriguez’s season-long numbers might not reflect it, but the southpaw has made some noteworthy adjustments this season. He’s struck out a career-high 10.64 batters and walked a career-low 2.17 batters per nine innings of work this season. However, he’s been victimized by a whopping .374 BABIP while stranding only 62.4 percent of his baserunners for the season. Both of those marks represent, by far, the worst marks of his six-year MLB career.
Rodriguez has made seven career starts versus the A”s, going 2-3 with a 4.57 ERA in those matchups. Per Baseball Savant, Oakland’s current roster is batting .284 in 77 plate appearances off of the Red Sox lefty heading into Friday’s contest.
Montas bounces back with strong start vs. Giants Oakland will counter with staff ace Frankie Montas, who will toe the rubber in hopes of building off of a strong showing in his last start against the San Francisco Giants. After giving up eight runs in his previous trip to the mound, Montas bounced back with five innings of two-run ball but was rendered with a no-decision for his efforts on the road in San Francisco.
While he’s been consistent, for the most part, this season, Montas has been shelled on a few occasions, allowing six earned runs or more three times. As a result, he comes in with a 7-7 overall record and an inflated 4.72 ERA despite allowing three earned runs or fewer in 12 of his 16 starts.
While it hasn’t always been pretty for the A’s ace, he continues to post strong peripherals on the mound. In 87 ⅔ combined frames, he has truck out 9.44 batters and walked just 2.46 batters per nine innings of work. Montas is pounding the strike zone, throwing first-pitch strikes at 66.3 percent clip, the highest rate of his career. However, he’s struggled with runners on base, posting a career-worst 68.4 percent strand rate and a .315 BABIP so far this season.
Montas has made three career appearances against the Red Sox, including one start. He is 0-1 despite posting a 1.13 ERA in those matchups. According to Baseball Savant, current Red Sox are batting a blistering .406 in 38 plate appearances off of Oakland’s ace ahead of Friday’s contest.
Red Sox at A's Friday, at 9:40 PM EST Clear According to Forecast.io, it's expected to be 60° F with a 0% chance of precipitation and 10 MPH wind blowing out in Oakland at 9:40 PM EST. Hourly Forecasts: Weather.com Forecast.io
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 2, 2021 1:51:21 GMT -5
Pete Abraham @peteabe · 3h Pitching matchups for the #RedSox - #Athletics series that starts on Friday:
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 2, 2021 2:27:47 GMT -5
red sox notebook Red Sox ace Chris Sale is close to last leg of recovery process By Julian Benbow Globe Staff,Updated July 1, 2021, 2:33 p.m.
Red Sox ace Chris Sale is starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel in his long and challenging recovery from Tommy John surgery.
The lefthander threw a live batting practice session Wednesday at Fenway Park, with the full support of teammates and coaching staff watching from behind the plate. Seeing his fastball top out at 95 miles per hour was a positive, but coming back to the ballpark Thursday with nothing but the expected soreness was the strongest sign that he is close to returning to the mound.
“As soon as possible,” Sale said. “Yesterday was a good day, another step in the right direction. Came in today feeling really good, was able to move my arm around, and soreness in all the good spots. So just keep trucking forward.”
Sale is set to throw another two innings of live batting practice this weekend in Fort Myers, Fla., while the team is on the road. If that goes well, he will begin a rehab assignment with Triple A Worcester. Sale said he didn’t know how many rehab starts he would need but didn’t think it would take many.
“This is really my first time going through anything like this,” Sale said. “I wouldn’t assume it’s going to be a whole lot. I don’t think I need, like, seven starts, you know? If we keep having days like I had yesterday, then I would say sooner rather than later.
“But I also know not to get too far ahead of myself in this process. So I don’t have an exact answer for that question, but I’m feeling good and I know that if I keep doing what I’m doing, it’ll be quicker than not.” Related: Red Sox teammates Rafael Devers, Xander Bogearts earn All-Star starting nods
Much will depend on Sale throwing as well as he did Wednesday and having his body respond positively the day after.
“Those are the two biggest things for me right now,” Sale said. “How’s the ball look when I’m out there pitching, and when I wake up the next morning, what does it feel like? Those are going to be the two biggest keys from here on out more so than anything else.”
While the Sox lead the AL East, their starting rotation’s 4.57 ERA is 21st in the majors. Depth has been an issue, and Sale is the missing piece.
“Our staff has done a hell of a job up to this point,” Sale said. “These guys have been holding it down unbelievably well. We wouldn’t be in the position we are.
“We’ve got the best offense in baseball, there’s no doubt about that. But you’ve got to throw the ball too, and our guys have done an unbelievable job of keeping us in games and putting big starts up when we need it.
“And for me, I’ve just got to come in and do my job. I’ve got to continue that body of work that they’ve been doing the whole year.”
The excitement throughout the organization when Sale threw Wednesday was undeniable, and Sale knows the kind of impact he’s expected to make once he returns, but he still has to get through the last leg of the recovery process.
“I don’t want to get too ahead of myself,” Sale said. “But it is an exciting thought. I do know that when I do get back here and when we start rolling and getting into games and stuff like that, I’m going to be ready to go, that’s for sure.”
Eovaldi sparkles
Nate Eovaldi has three scoreless starts this season, and two have come in his last two outings. He shut out the Royals over seven innings in Thursday’s 15-1 win, giving the bullpen some much-needed rest.
Eovaldi struck out six and allowed five hits before handing the ball over to Matt Andriese.
“They started putting the ball in play early, he made adjustments, and he went deep into the game,” said manager Alex Cora. “If I wanted to, he could have gone nine innings there. But thinking about the group and what we need to do to get people better, we needed Matt to go there and pitch two innings because we need him to. But [Eovaldi] has been amazing.”
Over his last eight starts, Eovaldi is 5-2 with a 2.27 ERA.
“I don’t know where people see him as starters for All-Star or whatever,” Cora said. “But for me, he’s had a great first half and he started the second one on the right foot.”
The Sox are now 27-17 at home. After starting the season 10-11 at Fenway, they have gone 17-6.
Since dropping two of three to the A’s in May, their only series loss at home has come against Houston.
“We needed this place to be a home-field advantage,” Cora said.
Cora didn’t have to look far into the past for an example of the Sox struggling at home. In 2019, they went 38-43 at Fenway, including dropping eight of nine to the division-rival Rays.
“We never felt comfortable,” Cora said. “People would come here and beat us.”
Cora said having fans in the ballpark makes Fenway more difficult for opponents.
“It’s tough to play in this building, too, without fans, but they’re bringing it,” Cora said. “And I know the West Coast, we’ve got a lot of fans over there and hopefully they show up too and they help us.” Big picture
As the Sox navigate a stretch of 16 games in as many days, Cora gave Xander Bogaerts a breather Thursday, starting him at DH and plugging in Marwin Gonzalez at shortstop. Looking ahead, Cora plans to rest J.D. Martinez Friday and use Rafael Devers as the DH in the series opener against the A’s.
Cora said he was thinking about the long term.
“That’s something that we pay attention to,” he said. “And I know people sometimes question why give these guys an off day, but we’re not just thinking about the present, we think about the future. And we’re here for the long run.
“We know where we’re at right now. We expected to play deep into the season, and for us to be at the top of our game, we have to take care of players.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 2, 2021 3:00:31 GMT -5
Boston Sports Info @bostonsportsinf · 11h Red Sox have slugged 14 HR’s in their last 5 games
Hunter Renfroe - 3 J.D. Martinez - 3 Kike Hernandez - 3 Rafael Devers - 2 Christian Vazquez - 1 Bobby Dalbec - 1 Danny Santana - 1
American League Leaders in RBI's since 2018
1. J.D. Martinez - 317 2. Jose Abreu - 316 3. Xander Bogaerts - 296 4. Rafael Devers - 293
oh
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 2, 2021 3:03:30 GMT -5
Boston Sports Info @bostonsportsinf · 8h Red Sox relievers Since Spider Tack - 6/21
10 games - 33 appearances
36.2 IP - 0.98 ERA - 1.20 WHIP 20 BB - 40 K
looks like they adapted
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 2, 2021 7:25:59 GMT -5
Peter Gammons @pgammo · 3h Alex Cora: Boston Red Sox’s 7-0 homestand ‘started with a tribute to No. 15 (Dustin Pedroia) and we scored 15 in the last game’//www.masslive.com/ When Ben Cherington signed Pedroia to his extension, he said, "I hope that Dustin is the model by which all Red Sox teams play."
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 2, 2021 7:46:18 GMT -5
Tony Massarotti @tonymassarotti · 1h Red Sox now 27-17 at home, 24-14 on road, 34-20 vs RHP, 17-11 vs LHP, 24-17 vs teams w winning records, 27-14 vs teams w losing records, 14-7 in one-run games, 4-2 in extra innings. Only blemish? 8-13 vs AL West. They're in Oakland tonight.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 2, 2021 7:50:15 GMT -5
IMO the barn will be rocking all week-end
A's draw sparse crowd at full-capacity Coliseum, expect large Friday night turnout Matt Kawahara June 30, 2021 Updated: June 30, 2021 6:55 p.m.
The A’s reopened the Coliseum at full capacity on Tuesday night but still had lots of empty seats for their first game without attendance limits since 2019.
The A’s announced an attendance of 4,739 at their 5-4 loss to the Rangers. It was a larger crowd than the A’s drew for 18 of their first 42 home games this year under capacity limits but came in under their average of 5,510 for those games.
While Tuesday marked the Coliseum reopening in full, the A’s have designated Friday evening’s series opener against the Red Sox for an “official reopening celebration” with postgame fireworks included. The A’s expect a crowd of more than 30,000 for Friday night’s game.
On Sept. 15, 1997, the A’s reported an attendance of 4,651 for a home game against the Tigers, the last time they announced a smaller number than Tuesday’s for a game at the Coliseum under full capacity, according to attendance records on baseball-reference.com. Notably, that figure would have included season tickets sold; the A’s did not sell season tickets this season, so attendance numbers include only single-game tickets sold.
The A’s have topped 10,000 in attendance at two home games this season, their opener April 1 against the Astros and May 30 against the Angels, a Sunday afternoon. The A’s reached the halfway point of their schedule Tuesday night at 47-34 and 1 ½ games out of first place in the AL West.
Tuesday’s game marked a pivot from the A’s weekend series against the Giants at Oracle Park - the first at the Giants’ ballpark without capacity limits. The three-game weekend series, which included two night games and one day game, drew a total attendance of 106,016.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 2, 2021 7:52:46 GMT -5
off soon to get my 2nd vaccine shot today and get a nap in.....late game.... lucky that tonight is the sole late one until we see the Halos next week....
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Post by Kimmi on Jul 2, 2021 8:05:31 GMT -5
off soon to get my 2nd vaccine shot today and get a nap in.....late game.... lucky that tonight is the sole late one until we see the Halos next week....
West coast swings are always tough. I will be okay if come home with a 3-3 split. Outside of the late start times, it should be a really fun series.
Congrats on vaccine #2.
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Post by scrappyunderdog on Jul 2, 2021 9:10:09 GMT -5
IMO the barn will be rocking all week-endA's draw sparse crowd at full-capacity Coliseum, expect large Friday night turnoutMatt Kawahara June 30, 2021 Updated: June 30, 2021 6:55 p.m. The A’s reopened the Coliseum at full capacity on Tuesday night but still had lots of empty seats for their first game without attendance limits since 2019. The A’s announced an attendance of 4,739 at their 5-4 loss to the Rangers. It was a larger crowd than the A’s drew for 18 of their first 42 home games this year under capacity limits but came in under their average of 5,510 for those games. One of my tech friends out there explained it to me. Early in the day, before it became Silicon Valley, a lot of the serious tech work was originating from Boston. Once the tech worked started moving to Cali, they moved out there, but retained their RS fandom.
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Post by scrappyunderdog on Jul 2, 2021 9:18:45 GMT -5
off soon to get my 2nd vaccine shot today and get a nap in.....late game.... lucky that tonight is the sole late one until we see the Halos next week....
West coast swings are always tough. I will be okay if come home with a 3-3 split. Outside of the late start times, it should be a really fun series.
Congrats on vaccine #2.3-3 is fine. I'm starting to think along the lines that every day we are in 1st, is one day closer to Sale, Houck, Brasier & Duran joining us. Everyone prepare for your 3-hour naps.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 2, 2021 11:17:39 GMT -5
Red Sox Stats @redsoxstats · 1h Rafael Devers is now +3 defensive runs saved
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 2, 2021 11:18:33 GMT -5
Red Sox Notes @soxnotes · 1h The Red Sox have hit 19 three-run homers, most in MLB.
They have hit 4+ HR in a game 8 times, more than any other team.
During their current 7-game winning streak, the Sox are batting .335 with a .981 OPS and averaging 7.4 runs scored per game.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Jul 2, 2021 13:34:13 GMT -5
Red Sox at Athletics Series Preview
The Red Sox head out west to take on the Athletics. By Matt_Collins@MattRyCollins Jul 2, 2021, 2:01pm EDT
SB Nation Blog
Athletics Nation The opponent in one sentence
The Athletics are hanging around near the top of the AL West, just like they do every year, with a balanced roster and strong play on both sides. Record
48-35 Head-to-head record
Red Sox 1, Athletics 2 Trend
Down. The Athletics spent a lot of time atop their division this year, but the second half of June has not been very kind. They are coming directly off a series loss to the Rangers, and they have not won a series since the one they started against the Angels on June 14. Since that series, they have gone 5-8 and have lost eight of their last 12. Pitching Matchups
7/2: Eduardo Rodriguez vs. Frankie Montas, 9:40 PM ET
It has been a very strange season for Rodriguez, who is still looking for a way to consistently get the desired results despite continuing to put up strong peripherals. The good news is there was a little bit of improvement seen his last time out against the Yankees. In that start, the southpaw allowed only two runs, his lowest total since May 7, and struck out eight while walking one. One strong showing isn’t going to be enough to pull him out of his extended slump, and there were still five hits including a homer, but it’s also worth noting he had 35 strikeouts and only six walks over 26 June innings. There’s a real chance for a second-half bounceback coming up for Rodriguez, and I’m cautiously optimistic. Rodriguez faced Oakland earlier this year, allowing four runs over six innings on nine strikeouts and one walk.
Montas is a former Red Sox prospect who has since settled into Oakland’s rotation. Just a couple of years ago it appeared he’d be able to at least stick as a mid-rotation arm, but the last two seasons have not gone as well. This season, the righty has pitched to a 4.72 ERA, watching his strikeout rate fall some while his flyball tendencies have led to 14 homers in 16 starts. He had been finding a bit of a groove in late May and early June with four straight homer-less starts, but he’s allowed three over his last two outings with an 8.44 ERA in those starts. Montas will feature a pair of mid-90s fastballs along with a splitter and a slider.
7/3: Garrett Richards vs. Cole Irvin, 7:15 PM ET (FOX)
This is going to be a fascinating start to watch for Richards, who has been having a real rough go of it lately after MLB announced their crackdowns on pitchers using sticky substances to help grip the baseball. The righty has been open about this having an effect on him, and it’s certainly shown in the results, with a 9.18 ERA over his last four starts. The one glimmer of hope right now is that Richards did turn things around in his last start after blowing up in the first two innings, turning to a different repertoire with a new changeup and a slower curveball. That was a good sign, but it also came against a struggling Royals lineup and, again, came after he had already blown up. I’m skeptical, but Richards will get what could be his final chance in this rotation, at least for a bit, to show he can pitch without substances.
Irvin is a former Phillies prospect who made his way over to Oakland prior to this season in a deal with cash going back to Philadelphia. So far, the deal has worked out very well for the A’s, with Irvin pitching to a 3.64 ERA. The southpaw doesn’t have a ton of swing and miss stuff, consistently striking out fewer than 20 percent of his opponents, but he's shown impeccable control with a walk rate just over four percent. Irvin does give up a lot of fly balls as well, but to this point at least he has been great at keeping the ball in the yard. His ability to continue doing so will determine how long he can sustain this performance. The Red Sox are also catching him coming off his best start of the year, tossing eight shutout innings against the Giants with eight strikeouts and two walks. Irvin will feature a pair of low-90s fastballs along with a slider and a changeup.
7/4: Nick Pivetta vs. James Kaprielian, 4:07 PM ET
Speaking of former Phillies prospects looking better in their new digs, Pivetta gets the series finale for Boston on the Fourth. The righty has taken a bit of a step back since his peak back in May, but he is still going out there and pitching well often enough to be at least a good back-end starter. Right now, he appears to be on a one-on, one-off kind of routine, having tossing 6 2⁄3 innings of no-hit ball two starts ago before allowing six runs without getting out of the fifth against the Royals last time out. If the trend continues, things should be setting up for Pivetta to bounce back this time around.
Once upon a time, Kaprielian was one of the Yankees’ top pitching prospects, having been their first-round pick back in 2015. Injuries continued to derail any progress he was making in his development, though, and New York eventually sent him to Oakland in the deal that sent Sonny Gray to the Bronx. This has been Kaprielian’s first taste of regular time in a major-league rotation, and it’s gone very well. He’s only made nine starts after missing some time early in the year, but the righty has a 3.06 ERA. The peripherals suggest he should be much closer to average given some command issues, but the results have continued to come as he misses bats and racks up more than a strikeout per inning. This will be the second time Boston has seen him after he made his first major-league start against them back in May, allowing just one run over five innings. Kaprielian will feature a fastball that sits around 93 mph along with a slider and a changeup. Boston Red Sox World Series Travel Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images Old Friends
Montas, as mentioned above, is a former Red Sox prospect. He was traded away way back in 2013 when he was a part of the deal that brought Jake Peavy to Boston.
Mitch Moreland was of course a huge part of the 2018 team and turned himself into a fan favorite in Boston after just a couple of seasons with the Red Sox. With the team struggling last summer, he was sent to San Diego for Jeisson Rosario and Hudson Potts, and has spent this season as the DH for Oakland.
Jed Lowrie originally came up with the Red Sox back in the early 2010s, and has bounced around the league since then, working around injury issues to continue resurfacing on someone’s infield.
J.B. Wendelken was also part of that 2013 trade that sent Montas out of Boston, and Wendelken has somewhat improbably turned himself into a very good righty out of the bullpen. Notable Position Players
Matt Chapman is one of two Matts who lead this Oakland team. Chapman is best known for his all-world defense at third base, but he’s always been an underrated bat. That said, the offense has taken a bit of a dip this season, with the strikeout rate climbing enough to make the overall line just slightly above average.
Matt Olson is the other Matt, and this season he’s been the team’s best player. The first baseman is one of the best defensive players at his position as well, and at the plate he boasts huge power along with much-improved contact-making abilities.
Ramón Laureano is best known for his highlight reel plays in the outfield, but he also provides big punch in the middle of this lineup.
Tony Kemp will serve as the leadoff man on most days, and he’s been a great on-base guy this year with more walks than strikeouts.
Moreland, as mentioned above, is DH’ing these days with Olson at first base. It’s been a tough year offensively, however, as neither the power nor the patience have been able to get his line above average.
Sean Murphy is one of the more underrated backstops in the game, providing good defense behind the plate along with an above-average bat thanks to his power.
Lowrie had a massive start to the season, but since then has been reeling and his line is now down to exactly average (by wRC+) heading into this three-game set.
Elvis Andrus came to Oakland in a surprise deal with Texas that sent Khris Davis to the Rangers, and Andrus has been a disaster at the plate this season with a 57 wRC+.
Seth Brown is a platoon bat at the bottom of this Oakland lineup, and he’s seen his power output be negated by a sub-.200 BABIP. Bullpen Snapshot
Lou Trivino is not your traditional closer, as his stuff is just average rather than elite. Instead, he uses his modest strikeout rate and a solid ground ball rate to get big results in the ninth inning.
Jake Diekman is a tough lefty for the late innings, and he’s more of a traditional reliever in that he masks command lapses with consistent, big-time stuff.
Yusmeiro Petit is an even more extreme version of Trivino, posting a strikeout rate of just over four per nine innings, but still posting a 3.24 ERA. He’ll go for multiple innings when necessary, too. Injuries
Mark Canha just hit the injured list about a week ago with a hip injury, and he’ll miss this series, likely sitting out until after the break.
Trevor Rosenthal has been out all season after undergoing TOS surgery in early April, and the A’s are hoping to get him back on the mound in about a month.
Mike Fiers has been out for nearly two months with an elbow injury, and it doesn’t seem like things are progressing all that well.
Stephen Piscotty went down with a wrist injury in the middle of June, and it’s not clear when he’ll be able to make his way back.
Weather Forecast
The Red Sox escape the heat and humidity for a bit this week, as temperatures should be cool in the 70s and 60s with little to no threat of rain getting in the way.
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