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Boston Red Sox vs Oakland Athletics Series Recap

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The Red Sox will be back home in Boston after their 11 day road trip. Facing the Oakland Athletics are Rick Porcello, Eduardo Rodriguez, and Chris Sale. The Sox have won the last seven out of 13 games, while Oakland won five out the last 12 games. The Red Sox will face pitcher Sean Manaea for the first time since his no hitter game in April. The Sox hope that being on Fenway soil will help them defeat the Athletics. This series will also be the last time that the Red Sox will face the Athletics during the regular season.

Porcello vs. Manaea

 

Sean Manaea pitched a no hitter to the Red Sox last month. J.D. Martinez and Rafael Devers each hit a solo home run for the Red Sox. Porcello let up five runs and nine hits over six innings, and struck out five. Trailing in the fourth inning, the Athletics grasped the lead with three runs. Lucroy had a two-run double into the left-field corner before Fowler tripled off the Monster. The Red Sox caught up 4-3 in the fifth, when Hanley Ramirez scored a run with a ground ball. J.D. Martinez hit straight out to the Sox bullpen in the eighth to score. Benintendi and Ramirez got back to back RBI singles. Unfortunately, it was not enough, and Oakland won Monday night’s game 6-5.

“We talked about not expanding down in the zone,” Boston manager Alex Cora said. “Overall, we did a good job of it. His stuff is still good.”

“2B Dustin Pedroia (recovering from offseason left knee surgery) started a rehab assignment with Triple-A Pawtucket. He singled and scored a run in three at-bats while playing five innings at second base.”

Rodriguez vs. Mengden

Due to the weather, the 7:10 start time moved to 8:50 on Tuesday night. As a result, Oakland beat the Sox in nine innings. Rodriguez took his first loss of the season after Oakland had six hits through the first three innings, starting with back-to-back singles by Semien and Pinder to start the game. Piscotty hit a monster home run out of Fenway Park in his first at-bat against Rodriguez. Piscotty’s home run was the first he had hit since his mother’s death on May 6th. Andrew Benintendi hit a homer and Mitch Moreland hit two doubles.

“It was pure joy. It’s been an emotional week,” said Piscotty, whose mother, Gretchen, died May 6 after a one-year battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. She was 55.”

“We haven’t been able to put them away,” Boston manager Alex Cora said. “They’re young and it seems like they’re turning a corner. Whatever they’re doing over there is pretty good.”

 

Sale vs. Cahill – A Sale Day Win to Avoid an Athletics Series Sweep

In Rafael Devers’s 100th major league game, the Sox came out with a win. Xander Bogaerts hit a three run homer, and J.D. Martinez hit a two run homer. Chris Sale gave up two runs and two hits in five innings. Sale also struck out nine and walked four. Trevor Cahill gave up three runs out of the first four batters he faced. After Sale’s career high 15 strikouts in his last outing, he struggled, but hung on long enough to keep the Sox up over the Athletics. Craig Kimbrel grasped his 12th save of the season and avoided the Sox meeting their season high losing streak. The Sox beat the Athletics 6-4 after Xander and J.D. had quite the night.

“It’s pretty impressive what he does when you’re behind looking at him,” Bogaerts said. “Normally I’m a guy who gets to the on-deck circle a little bit later. I’ve got to get there early if he swings at the first pitch and gets a hit. He hits some bombs on the first pitch.”

“Four walks, that’s not my game,” Sale said. “That’s not who I am. Obviously, you want to be better than that. Anytime your bullpen throws almost as many innings as you do, that’s not what you’re looking for.”

 

Up Next

The Red Sox will be at home again to face the Orioles for a four game series starting Thursday. David Price will be up first for his Fenway return. Dustin Pedroia will play another game in Pawtucket by the end of the week as Tuesday night’s game was postponed due to the weather. Jackie Bradley Jr. is still spending an immense amount of time on the bench as he has constantly had bad games. Cora is hoping that Bradley Jr. will come out of his slump soon, as he has been working on improving both his defense and his offense.

Sources

Statcast

MLB

Red Sox Twitter

NESN

ESPN

Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees Series Recap

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The long-awaited face off has arrived since the early April bench clearing brawl. The Red Sox and Yankees rivalry was in full blast as Joe Kelly and Tyler Austin went at it after Austin was hit by a pitch. The meeting of the two teams was highly anticipated by all.

Pomeranz vs. Severino

Tuesday night, the Sox fell to the Yankees 3-2, allowing the two teams to tie for first place. Betts and Benintendi made it on base to lead to the Sox first run of the game. In the second inning, Drew Pomeranz broke a nail, causing some concern to bring the trainers out. Giancarlo Stanton hit two solo home runs. Luis Severino struck out 11 players against Drew Pomeranz’s six strikeouts. Mookie Betts hit an RBI triple in the seventh to tie the game. Joe Kelly came in to a sea of boos and chants from all of Yankee Stadium. Kelly came out as the Yankees loaded the bases with only one out to prevent more runs. The Yankees are now on a 16-1 win streak, and are showing true competition for first place as Porcello will face Masahiro Tanaka.

“They’re good hitters. They were fighting off a lot of pitches. They have a great team. I was trying my best, but I was battling.” -Severino on the Sox at bat

“We’re playing good baseball, doing it a lot of different ways. Tonight was tough. Boston is really good. They battle, battle, battle; kind of hung around. ” -Manager Aaron Boone on the win against the Yankees biggest rivalry

The 24 Hour Yankees AL East Lead Porcello vs. Tanaka

Rick Porcello pitches a game earlier than normal, as David Price was sent to Boston for x-rays. In the past few games, he had experienced problems in his hand, causing the x-rays to be needed. Later we found out that Price was okay and would be pitching in the upcoming series. Hanley Ramirez, Andrew Benintendi, and Mitch Moreland all hit homers on Wednesday night. But it was nothing compared to the electric eighth inning that the Yankees had. Brett Gardener hit a triple allowing two to score, and Aaron Judge’s 117 MPH homer allowed the Yankees to go up 9-6. Rick Porcello only struck out three players, ending Wednesday with a 2.79 ERA. The Yankees have taken the lead over the Sox to be in the AL East first place. Tomorrow Eduardo Rodriguez will face CC Sabathia in the series finale.

“It got my attention. I looked around a little bit that inning. It’s May and it’s bedlam.” -Aaron Boone on the win to bring the Yankees into first place.

The Sox and Yankees are Tied Again Rodriguez vs. Sabathia

The rain never stopped the Red Sox as they were 4-0 at the delay in the fifth inning. The Red Sox escaped a Yankees sweep with a 5-4 win on Thursday night. The Yankees scored four runs in the seventh to tie the game, but Martinez wanted the win and hit a homer in the eighth to take the win. Joe Kelly came in again to clean up the mess of players on base and got Giancarlo Stanton out on a grounder to retire the side. Craig Kimbrel has his 110th save. Ramirez hit a homer to the visiting bullpen to allow the Sox to reach the rain delay with a lead.

“Definitely. You saw it today. They don’t give up. I’m very confident in what we’ve got. This is our team right here and we’re concentrating on what we can do and see what we can do better to keep winning.” -Hanley Ramirez when asked if the Sox and Yankees rivalry is the best in baseball

“I hit it, and I was like blowing, praying, doing everything I can to push it over. I knew it had a chance.” -J. D. Martinez on his homer that won the game

Up Next for the Sox

The Red Sox will travel to Toronto to face the Blue Jays before heading back home to play the Oakland Athletics. Up first in the series against Toronto will be Chris Sale and Aaron Sanchez. David Price will return to pitch this series after x-rays in Boston. Alex Cora also reported that Jackie Bradley Jr. will be back in the Saturday line up while Brock Holt will return on Friday.

Sources

Red Sox Twitter

MLB.com

ESPN

Statcast

Opening Weekend 2018 was a Success for the Sox

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Red Sox Home Opener- Thursday

Opening Day at Fenway finally arrived. David Ortiz and Aly Raisman yelled “play ball”, and Sox Nation rose to their feet. David Price had yet another successful game. Still with a 0.00 ERA, he held off runs for all seven innings he pitched. The frigid temperature couldn’t hold the Sox back from winning their home opener. The game was lacking any action until the seventh inning, when Tampa scored two runs. Then the eighth inning rolled around, and the Sox were running out of time… or so you thought. The Red Sox came back in the eighth inning to tie the game. Extra innings approached, and Fenway was still alive. Now into the 12th inning, Fenway started to heat up. Bases were loaded with Hanley Ramirez up at bat. Hanley hit a fly ball towards center field to carry in Mookie Betts to win the game 3-2. Bobby Poyner made his first appearance and struck out three Rays.

The Sox Grand Slam Has Arrived – Saturday

Xander Bogaerts has been on fire. He ended Saturday’s game with six RBI’s, and the coveted honor of hitting the first grand slam since September of 2016. Then, J.D. Martinez finally hit a long-awaited home run over the Monster. The defense was playing in a way that is something the organization could get used to. Jackie Bradley Jr. continued to show his strength in the outfield, along with a solid resume for a Gold Glove. Rick Porcello continued the great pitching from the starters, striking out seven of Tampa Bay Rays players. With Bogaerts’s grand slam, the Rays began to run through their bullpen. Ending the game at 10-3, the Red Sox were up 7-1 and still first in the AL East.

“He’s been an unbelievable hitter every year, Now he’s doing it with power. He’s a big threat at the plate. He always had that ability.” said Rick Porcello on Xander’s hitting.

“We can do that often. We feel we have a good offensive team. It’s just a matter of time,” said Alex Cora on the Red Sox defense.

The Best Comeback – Sunday

Eduardo Rodriguez made his official debut for the season. And Boston came back from a five run deficit. Up until the eighth inning, the Sox lineup had only gotten four hits. With six runs in the eighth, the Red Sox took the lead. Andrew Benintendi finally had his game winning moment. Hitting an RBI to bring in Mookie Betts, Benintendi hit to the warning track. For the first time in franchise history, the Red Sox are on an eight game win streak, with an 8-1 record so far. A final score of 8-7 the Sox swept the Rays at Fenway to prepare for the Yankees. Unfortunately, Xander Bogaerts was taken off the field with an ankle injury, which placed him on the DL, and Tzu Wei Lin was called up.

“First of all we pushed them to bring him in early. After that it was good at-bat after good at-bat. It was fun to watch.” said Cora.

“He’s human, so everybody can kind of go through a stretch. But we’re some good hitters, too,” Betts said. “I think it’s a mix of us putting together some good at-bats and putting some pressure and making him make pitches.”

Sources

Red Sox

MLB

ESPN

Opening Day Is Just One Game of 162

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Started the Season with an Upset

Clearly Opening Day didn’t end the way Red Sox Nation had hoped it to. Playing Tampa Bay was supposed to be an easy win. The Sox were doing great up until the 8th inning. Tampa Bay had the bases loaded and only one out. Sox Nation’s worst nightmare was coming into fruition. The Tampa Bay Rays had a chance to win the game after trailing 4-0 all day.

The Bullpen

Sale Day is always taken very seriously with the Red Sox, and he certainly proved why he was the Opening Day pitcher. He wasn’t perfect, as he showed some rustiness on the mound. He pitched six scoreless innings with nine strikeouts. Matt Barnes replaced Sale first. He had a quick appearance but held off any runs. Then possibly the biggest disappointment happened. Joe Kelly was on the mound, allowing Matt Duffy to hit and RBI double to cut the Sox lead 4-1. Carson Smith was the final pitcher for the Sox, he struck out one batter, providing a little bit of hope. Denard Span, Tampa Bays left fielder, drove in three players, causing Tampa to tie the game. Allowing Hechavarria to bring in Span, and unfortunately win the game.

Eduardo Nuñez

He re-signed with the Red Sox organization at the beginning of Spring Training. Nuñez had to prove to the organization that he is still a good addition to the team. In the top of the second inning, Eduardo Nuñez hit a two run homer in a picture perfect way. The play went straight out to center field where Kiermaier and Span both dove for the ball, but the ball went right past them. Nuñez ran the bases in a speedy 15.87 seconds. Pregame polls showed that fans thought either Mookie or J.D. Martinez would hit the first home run of the season. No one expected it to be Nuñez. But with Pedroia still on the DL, Nuñez holds the potential and ability that the Sox need.

Opening Day Is Only Game One

Luckily we have today to look forward to. It was Alex Cora’s first game as a manager. The loss is not his fault. It’s baseball. Some lose and some win. The next eight games are split between Tampa and Miami. Two teams that should be easy to beat. Fenway Opening Day is under a week away, and the Sox can finally play at home. Then there are the games we’ve been waiting for. NYY vs. BOSTON. Giancarlo Stanton vs. J.D. Martinez. Arguably, the biggest rivalry in MLB. It’s only game one of the season, and there’s plenty of wins and records to look forward to.

Sources

Boston Red Sox

Billie Weiss

Tampa Bay Rays

Winter Weekend: The Special Surprises

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Winter Weekend 2018 was one for the books. The event was full of surprises for both the fans and the team. Here is a look at the incredible weekend:

Town Hall Review

Winter Weekend all started with an introduction of the 2018 team. From the shock of Andrew Benintendi’s new hair to new manager Alex Cora, everyone was smiling and cheering. Seven thousand people filled the theatre to catch a glimpse of what the players who will call Fenway their home this year. The players left and out came the owners, managers, and also a few special guests.

Red Sox Nation held back nothing when it came to bringing up the situation with J.D Martinez to Dave Dombrowski. In response he made sure to voice that winter is not over and that there are still over one hundred free agents available.

“You have to remember as a club, the number of good players that are on this team.”
-Dave Dombrowski

Town Hall Surprises 

Dombrowski expressed the fact that the Red Sox are already a strong team that can excel this season. Afterward David Ortiz and Pedro Martinez made a dazzling entrance.

Then my time to ask a question came. I became close with Tom Caron over the past year and he had a surprise up his sleeve. He shared with the theatre that I was a cancer survivor and recently had surgery, along with the fact that I was a die-hard Sox fan. Next thing I knew, I was called up onto the stage and was immediately wrapped in Big Papi’s arms. After that I proceeded to hug Alex Cora, Pedro Martinez, Sam Kennedy, Dave Dombrowski, and Tom Werner. They all shared their congratulations and best wishes. The rest of the night carried on with the two comedic special guests to light up Town Hall.

 

Saturday: Surprises, Autographs, and Fun 

Everyone that was present at Town Hall quickly learned about my story along with my Twitter handle. So did Andrew Benintendi, my favorite player on the team. A member of the front office gave my family and I a special pass to meet Benintendi later on that afternoon. The morning first started out with meeting Brock Holt and Luis Tiant. One half of the Flow Bros and a legend. The day then proceeded with an interview on NESN about my experience at Town Hall. The ballroom was full of activities for young and old fans. They were having a blast with current and former players attending the event received interviews from Tom Caron.

Benintendi Time

The time for one of the biggest surprises of the weekend quickly approached. We were up next to meet Andrew Benintendi and Ben Taylor. I walked up to him and he smiled while I introduced myself and told him I was the cancer survivor from Town Hall. While I was in the middle of asking if he could sign my jersey he dashed around the table to give me a huge hug. I was in complete shock, and so was my family. Andrew quickly pulled out his phone and asked for a picture. As some may know, in 2013 Benintendi’s mother battled breast cancer, so he was very aware of my situation. Throughout that time everyone yelled, “It’s Benny biceps. She did it. She met him”. It felt like I was dreaming during the whole experience. To this day I’m still in shock because it felt so unreal.

Ortiz and Pedro Are at It Again

David Ortiz and Pedro Martinez are always a hit at Town Hall. In similar fashion they stole the show again during each of their panels. The two sat on stage and cracked each other up. They are truly best friends and it also shows. Finally, we ended the day with “The Teammates for Life” panel, which featured David Ortiz, Jason Varitek, Tim Wakefield, and Pedro Martinez. They discussed the bond they have created through the organization. It was absolutely hilarious. They shared stories and laughed for an hour.

Unfortunately the evening came to an end to mark the conclusion of Winter Weekend 2018. It’s safe to say that Sox Nation are now excited for the season to begin.  

Photo and Video Credits

Red Sox Organization

NESN