Didi Gregorius

Red Sox @ Yankees May 8-10 2018: Series Preview

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The Red Sox have had it easy in terms of their schedule over the last week and a half.  They played the Rays, Rangers, and Royals, taking 7 of 10 during that stretch.  But now they face the Yankees, who have won 15 of 16 against some of the AL’s best.  They swept the Twins, Indians, and Angels, and nearly swept Houston.  They have been boosted by the emergence of Miguel Andujar and Gleyber Torres, and are doing fine without 1B Greg Bird.  How will they fare against Boston, the only AL team that still has a better record than the Yankees?  They will fight for not just the AL East crown, but the American League crown in this series.  They are arguably the two best teams in baseball right now, which makes this intense rivalry even better.

Previous 2018 Results

The Red Sox have already played the Yankees once this season at Fenway Park.  The Yankees had even more injury problems and did not have Gleyber in the majors back in mid-April when this series occurred.  Despite losing Xander Bogaerts to the DL shortly before the series, the Red Sox, who had started 8-1 due to spotless pitching and an easy schedule, took advantage.  They took 2 of 3 in the series.  The Red Sox lineup had dominated in Game 1 to bring the Sox a 14-1 win.  David Price had a rough Game 2 and left early with an injury.  But the Red Sox attempted to come back, and after Tyler Austin spiked the infielder sliding into 2nd, Joe Kelly got revenge when he hit Austin.  It ended in a bench-clearing brawl that got Kelly and Austin suspended.  Porcello continued a strong start in the 3rd game as the Red Sox won, 6-3.  I did a recap of that game when the Sox and Bruins won important games on the same night.

Big Night For Boston: Sox, Bruins Win On Big Stage

 

How They Line-Up Now

Both teams have powerful, home-run hitting lineups.  But both of these lineups have a weak spot.  The Yankees have seen several hitters who are usually pretty good slump.  Brett Gardner, Giancarlo Stanton, and Gary Sanchez all have a batting average under .230.  Sanchez is batting .198.  It is balanced out by strong seasons from Didi Gregorius and Aaron Judge, as well as early success out of Andujar and Torres.  I was never too high on Gregorius, but he has really proven himself this year.   The Red Sox do not have reliable hitters at the end of the lineup.  Both regular catchers and JBJ are batting under .200, and Eduardo Nunez has also struggled.  But J.D. Martinez, Mookie Betts, Hanley Ramirez, and Xander Bogaerts have all thrived and led this team.

The Red Sox have the starting pitching advantage, but not all of the pitching match-ups in this series are favorable for the Red Sox.  The Red Sox don’t have too much of a bullpen to rely on, either.  Craig Kimbrel has been flawless, but the rest of the bullpen has not always stepped it up when the starter struggles.  The Red Sox have to rely on either an offensive explosion or a spotless, long-lasting starter to win quality games.

Pitching Match-Ups

Game 1 (5/8): BOS: Image result for drew pomeranzDrew Pomeranz (1-1, 6.14 ERA)

vs. NYY: Image result for luis severinoLuis Severino (5-1, 2.11)

By no means is Severino going to be easy to face but I could see Pomeranz stepping it up on the big stage here.  Once Severino leaves, it will be the offense’s turn to make an impact.

Note: Price has been scratched from his Wednesday start due to hand numbness.  I’m beginning to agree with that 98.5 caller who talked about the stress disorder with David Price.  Can he handle the pressure of a Red Sox-Yankees game?

Game 2 (5/9): BOS: Image result for rick porcello Rick Porcello (5-0, 2.14 ERA)

NYY: Image result for MASAHIRO TANAKAMasahiro Tanaka (4-2, 4.39 ERA)

Tanaka has been pretty good this year, but Porcello has been flawless this year.  Moving him a day up brings this pitching match-up into our favor.

Game 3 (5/10): BOS: Image result for Eduardo Rodriguez Eduardo Rodriguez (3-0, 5.29 ERA)

NYY: Image result for C.C. Sabathia C.C. Sabathia (2-0, 1.39 ERA)

I like Eduardo Rodriguez.  He has very high potential, but C.C. Sabathia has been great when healthy, and I’m wondering how E-Rod will perform under the pressure of Yankee Stadium.

My Prediction: Red Sox Take 2 of 3

 

 

Red Sox Offense Sparks Comeback vs. Yankees

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It was the bottom of the 7th, with the Sox down 6-3.  But the bases were loaded for Mookie Betts.  He flew out, but Vazquez scored from third.  That was followed by an Andrew Benintendi single that knocked in JBJ.  After Hanley Ramirez loaded the bases again with a walk, Mitch Moreland came in to pinch hit.  He got a nice pinch hit single, and both Nunez and Benintendi scored!  The Red Sox had taken the 7-6 lead with a 4-run 7th!  

The Red Sox won the series opener against the Yankees 9-6, in a back and forth game.  Drew Pomeranz did exit in the 4th with back spasms, and the bullpen gave up 6 runs in the next 3 innings.  However, the Red Sox were able to come back as the offense sparked and both Addison Reed and Craig Kimbrel had good outings.  

Pomeranz started off the night strong.  He struck out 4 and gave up just 4 hits in the first 3 innings.  Meanwhile, the Red Sox offense was ambitious to start off the game strong.   With 2 outs in the bottom of the 2nd, Xander Bogaerts hit a huge double off the monster that almost left the ballpark.  Then with Bogey on 2nd, the red hot Rafael Devers came up to bat.  Devers hit it in the same direction, right towards the monster.  But this one was gone!  Rafael Devers had hit another home run, his 7th career dinger, and he had only played 19 games so far.  


The Red Sox had a 2-0 lead through 3.  However, in the 4th, Pomeranz started throwing the ball way off, and they knew he was hurt.  He had to be pulled from the game.  Christian Vazquez extended Boston’s lead in the 5th though with a leadoff solo shot.  He crushed it and it almost left the park completely.  


But the Yankees struck back in the 6th.  Headley singled, and Todd Frazier hit a 2-run shot to left center.  The Red Sox were leading 3-2 but the Yankees were on a roll, and it continued in the 7th, starting with a Gary Sanchez leadoff solo shot to tie the game.  


The Yankees weren’t done after that.  Joe Kelly walked Gregorius and Headley singled to make it 1st and 2nd.  Then Heath Hembree came in, only to walk another batter and load the bases for Ronald Torreyes.  Torreyes hit a long single off the monster, and not just 1, but 2 runs scored.  It was now 5-3 Yankees.  

The Yanks weren’t done either.  A Brett Gardner walk loaded the bases again, and after Robby Scott, the third pitcher of the inning hit Aaron Hicks by the pitch, the Yankees had a 3-run lead!  The Red Sox ended up bringing in Addison Reed to finish the inning, their 4th pitcher in the 7th.  

But the Red Sox struck back in the bottom of the 7th.  Vazquez got on base again with a single, and JBJ walked to make it 1st and 2nd.  Nunez got on base on an infield single, and the bases were loaded with just 1 out.  Mookie Betts hit a sac fly to score in Vazquez.  Then with men on 1st and 2nd, Benintendi singled to knock in JBJ!  It was now just 6-5 Yankees.  The Red Sox were coming back, and Mitch Moreland got the lead back for Boston with a pinch hit 2-run single!  It was now 7-6 Red Sox going into the 8th.  

Addison Reed pitched a quality inning for the Sox, and they scored again in the 8th.  Devers singled and Vazquez walked.  With JBJ batting, they each stole a base!  So JBJ was up with 2 runners in scoring position, and single was enough to knock them both in.  Now the Red Sox were the team with a 3 run lead.  

Kimbrel came in and struck out the side to end the game!  The Red Sox had won 9-6!  What a game to start another series in this epic rivalry.  

Chris Sale takes the mound tomorrow in hopes of another 10+ K game, and a win for the Red Sox.  Will the Sox clinch the series with their ace on the mound?

Benintendi Hits 2 Dingers as Red Sox Cream Yankees

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With every win there’s a different Hero for this team.  Yesterday, it was Andrew Benintendi.  He was up at the plate in the 5th with 2nd and 3rd.  He had already hit a 3-run shot in the 3rd inning.  Then he nailed another one to right, and just like the last one, it was gone!  Benny had hit two 3-run jacks on the day.  


Early in the game, it was looking like a pitcher’s duel, as Luis Severino put up a 6-pitch 1-2-3 inning.  Pomeranz was ready to match that, he had pitched well all year.  But he let up a leadoff single to Brett Gardner.  He shut down Hicks and Judge, which was promising, but with Gardner still on first, Gary Sanchez hit a home run around the right field pole.  It was a relatively easy HR to hit, but the Yankees had taken a 2-0 lead.  That probably would’ve been a routine fly ball at Fenway, but this is Yankee Stadium.  


Both pitchers settled down in the 2nd inning, but the Red Sox offense was ready to rumble in the 3rd.  Severino started the inning well, as Devers lined out to left.  But after giving up 2 consecutive walks, Eduardo Nunez was brought up to the plate with 1st and 2nd.  He reached on an error to load the bases for Betts.  Would Betts hit a grand slam and put an end to the Yankee lead?  He didn’t hit a grand slam, but he did hit it past the shortstop for an RBI single.  Both JBJ and Vazquez scored, and it was a 2-2 tie game. 


Benintendi was up with men on 1st and 2nd.  He nailed the ball to right center, and it made it out of the park!  The Sox now took a 5-2 lead.  That’s what you can call payback for the Yankees’ 5 run inning on Friday night.  Were they done?  I didn’t think so after Hanley and Moreland singled back-to-back.  But Bogaerts lined out to left, and Hanley Ramirez was called out at 2nd.  It was a double play to end the inning, and another out on the bases for this team.  However, the Sox had secured a 3-run lead going into the bottom of the 3rd.  

Pomeranz had another solid inning, that was followed by a better inning by Severino, who struck out the side.  But the Yankees tried to strike back in the bottom of the 4th.  Gregorius got his 2nd hit of the day, and Frazier walked to make it first and second, and a Chase Headley hit loaded the bases.  Ellsbury, who had struggled all year, was up, but the bases were loaded with nobody out.  Although Ellsbury grounded out, a run came in to score.  It was now 5-3 Red Sox.  The lead had been cut short.  However, Pomeranz was lucky enough to shut down the next 2 batters and get out of the inning giving up just 1 run.  

The Red Sox didn’t want to let the Yanks come back on them, again.  So in the 5th, they went all out.  Nunez led off with a base hit, and he was sent to third by a Mookie Betts doubled.  Then, with two runners in scoring position, Benintendi came up to the plate.  He hit another one high into right field, and it was gone!  Andrew Benintendi had just hit his 2nd 3-run shot on the day!  The Red Sox had an 8-3 lead, and once again, they weren’t done after the dinger.  Moreland doubled to get on base, and Bogey reached on an error.  Severino was officially done.  With runners on the corners and just one out, Devers was up.  His double to center knocked in both Bogaerts and Moreland!  It was now a 10-3 Red Sox lead.   

It began to quiet down after that.  Pomeranz went 6.2 innings after a relatively strong 5th and 6th.  Brandon Workman got the final out in the 7th, shutting down Aaron Judge.  In the 8th, the Red Sox got three consecutive hits, but no runs scored.  Devers had singled, but he got out at 2nd.  Another out on the bases!   Although Vazquez and JBJ each had a single, the Red Sox couldn’t knock them in with 1 down as Benny didn’t get an at bat before the inning ended.  

In the bottom of the 9th, the Yankees still had something left in the tank though.  Chase Headley led off with a homer to center.  Ellsbury hit another homer to right to make it back to back jacks.  It was 10-5 Yankees.  Would the Yankees be able to come back after all this?  


No.  Robby Scott got 3 quick outs to end the game.  The Sox had won 10-5, tying the series.  Tonight, they will play the final game in this epic series.  Chris Sale, the AL leader in ERA, wins and strikeouts, will take the mound for Boston as Jordan Montgomery starts for the Yankees.  Sale has been great against the Yanks and he’s shut down Judge.  Will Sale give the Sox this series, or will the Yankees win it at home?  Find out tonight on Sunday Night Baseball.