If you use an RSS reader, you can subscribe to a feed of all future entries. [What is this?]
John Farrell is not shy with his use of challenges. After just one out in the game he asked Tom Hallion’s crew to take a closer look at Mookie Betts’s play at first where the center fielder was called out. The out call was reversed but the Red Sox didn’t capitalize on the call as David Ortiz grounded into an inning-ending double play. But in the second inning the Red Sox offense came alive. Mike Napoli, Blake Swihart, and Betts all drove in runs to build a five-run lead. Eduardo Rodriguez used that cushion well by holding the Royals to a single run in six and one-third inning of work. But the Red Sox’s Rodriguez wasn’t the one who made baseball headlines. Instead it was New York Yankee Alex Rodriguez, who homered off Justin Verlander for his 3,000th hit. Zach Hample, the season ticket-holder who caught the milestone piece of memorabilia, said he was keeping it. Hample said he has returned the first home run balls of Mike Trout and Didi Gregorious but that “this is something more special.” If Trout continues the path he is blazing, perhaps Hample will regret giving up that particular ball. Even though Major League...
Dustin Pedroia’s look of horror as he failed to glove Kevin Pillar’s pop-up in the fourth was reminiscent of Red Sox fans’ rictus of torture throughout the 2015 season thus far. One of the few moments of delight has been Eduardo Rodriguez’s rookie campaign, but he had his first rough outing against the white-hot Blue Jays offense. Earlier in the fourth Edwin Encarnacion took out Xander Bogaerts with his slide into the keystone sack. John Farrell came out to argue with second base umpire Jeff Kellogg. Farrell seemed to be trying to get tossed but he failed, continuing the same theme as in so many things around the organization this season. For more proof of this team’s futility, see Chris Colabello’s fifth-inning RBI single. This increased Toronto’s lead to 7-0. It didn’t stop there, but as far as this game goes I will. Game 64: June 14, 2015 Toronto Blue Jays34-30 13 W: Marco Estrada (4-3) 2B: Russell Martin (12), Ryan Goins (8), Jose Reyes (9)HR: Goins (2), Danny Valencia (2) Boston Red Sox27-37 5 L: Eduardo Rodriguez (2-1) 3B: Pablo Sandoval (1)HR: David Ortiz (9)...
Eduardo Rodriguez had another successful start: six innings pitched, three hits, three walks, and seven strikeouts. But the Red Sox batters were 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position for a total of nine strandings as a team. Even more frustrating was that the Orioles’ only run came on Matt Barnes’s wild pitch in the seventh. But Rodriguez has been a revelation on the mound, one of the few bright spots in a dismal season. Hanley Ramirez has had his ups and downs but is one of the few offensive standouts. When he went down writhing in agony in the third inning after a foul ball ricocheted against the inside of his left knee it looked like he could be done for the season. But he stayed in the box to work a walk before leaving the game. Dustin Pedroia’s head was inches away from colliding with Chaz Roe’s 90 MPH fastball. The ball grazed Pedroia’s hand instead of his head but Buck Showalter thought the ball didn’t touch the batter. Pedroia didn’t shake his opposite hand a la Eric Sogard to convince Jeff Nelson. Even if the replay didn’t confirm that Pedroia was grazed by the ball I’d give him...
Eduardo Rodriguez displayed his excellence in front of the Fenway faithful for the first time Wednesday afternoon. The rookie almost replicated his major league debut. He didn’t make it into the eighth this time and surrendered a homer to Brian Dozier in the third inning, but otherwise he walked a pair of batters and struck out seven, just as he did in Texas. He’s on his way to becoming the best Venezuelan pitcher in the majors. Oh wait, Felix Hernandez is from Venezuela? Okay, second best. Torii Hunter got a foul ball in the back of the thigh when his teammate Shane Robinson was at bat. Kurt Suzuki helped Hunter massage his 39-year old muscle. The unintentional hit didn’t keep Hunter out of the last game of the series, which is unfortunate, as we will see. The Red Sox bats came to life. Every hitter but Mookie Betts, Sandy Leon, and Rusney Castillo had at least one hit in the game. Dustin Pedroia went 4-for-5 in the leadoff spot, scored two runs, and drove in a run. Your browser does not support iframes. Time out of the lineup seemed to help recharge David Ortiz’s batteries. The designated hitter went 2-for-4...
After Eduardo Rodriguez’s dazzling major league debut Clay Buchholz huddled up close to the rookie sensation. Perhaps some of Rodriguez’s run support will rub off onto the other starters. Rodriguez pitched seven and two-thirds innings with three hits and two walks allowed. He struck out seven, including the hot-hitting Prince Fielder. David Ortiz took a break last night and the rest of the lineup came through in his absence. Hanley Ramirez clubbed a solo shot in the sixth to increase the lead to 2-0. He received a well-deserved hug from Dustin Pedroia in the dugout. Pedroia went 3-for-5 in the leadoff spot. A surprising offensive force was Blake Swihart in the eight-hole. He supported his rookie starter with a two-run single in the eighth. Every additional late-inning run helped with Tommy Layne toeing the rubber. Layne gave up an RBI single to Josh Hamilton, but that turned out to be a meaningless feel-good moment for the returning Ranger outfielder. One must enjoy a certain form of torture to want to be a catcher. Robinson Chirinos arranged the warm-up equipment in an almost ritualistic manner before his at bat. Perhaps it brings him luck, but more likely it’s a cypher saying...
If you use an RSS reader, you can subscribe to a feed of all future entries. [What is this?]
Photo courtesy of the Boston Public Library’s Sports Temples of Boston.