May 3, 2018

G31: Rangers 11, Red Sox 5

Red Sox - 001 200 020 -  5  9  3
Rangers - 022 600 10x - 11 11  2
It was one of the worst starts of David Price's career: 3.2-6-9-2-4, 86. It was only the third time he has allowed as many as nine runs. Despite throwing 34 pitches in the fourth inning, he could not get the third out, missing up and away to several hitters pitch after pitch after pitch.

When he was finally pulled, Texas led 6-3. Which wasn't so bad. But Hector Velazquez's first pitch to Nomar Mazara was wild, making it 7-3, and Mazara then belted a 3-1 offering to deep right-center for a three-run, coffin-nailing dong.

Price's ERA jumped from 3.78 to 5.11. Remember when Price threw 14 shutout innings to began the season? In his five starts since then, he has allowed 24 runs in 23 innings. ... The Red Sox also made three errors, two days after committing four against the Royals. ... Jackie Bradley is 2-for-his-last-29.

On the bright side, there is Mookie Betts. He hit a solo home run with two outs in the third (his MLB-leading 12th), brought in another run with a sac fly in the fourth, and hit a two-run double in the eighth. Betts also threw out a runner at third base (by about 12 feet) who foolishly tried to go first-to-third on a hit to right.

Betts's home run was his fourth in his last five at-bats. He has hit 10 home runs in his last 13 games. The only other Red Sox batter to hit at least 10 home runs in 13 or fewer games was Fred Lynn, who hit 10 in 13 games (August 5-17, 1979). ... According to this story: Cody Bellinger of the Dodgers hit 10 homers in 10 games last June. Shawn Green also hit 10 dongs in 10 games for the Dodgers, in May 2002. Troy Tulowitzki of the Rockies hit 11 taters in 10 games in September 2010.

Marcus Walden - who was recalled yesterday when Eduardo Rodriguez was put on the family medical leave list - relieved Velazquez in the bottom of the fifth. He ended up getting the final 11 outs, retiring the same number of batters as Price. Walden allowed only four hits and one unearned run, striking out four.

Boston's lead over the Yankees is now down to one game. The Red Sox visit the Bronx for three games next week.
WEEI's Tim Neverett called the end of the fourth inning, in which Texas scored six times:
Gallo hits a ground ball to first. Hanley will step on the bag and that'll put a tourniquet on things for now, as the fourth inning comes to a miserable conclusion. Five runs in, a home run for Mazara, he drives in three. We'll go to the fifth inning in Texas, it's the Rangers 10, the Red Sox 3 ...
In the next half-inning, the top of the fifth, the Red Sox had two men on and two outs. Neverett:
A chance for Blake Swihart to get a run in, top of the fifth inning, 10-3 Rangers. Rangers with a big five-run fourth inning, capped by a three-run home run by Nomar Mazara.
Besides reporting the number of runs scored in the inning wrong - twice! - Nevrett was incorrect about the third out in the fourth. The conclusion of that inning was the only non-miserable thing about it.
David Price / Mike Minor
Betts, RF
Ramirez, 1B
Martinez, LF
Bogaerts, SS
Devers, 3B
Nunez, 2B
Swihart, DH
Vazquez, C
Bradley, CF
The Yankees blew a 3-0 lead in the seventh inning this afternoon and trailed the Astros 5-3 going into the top of the ninth in Houston. They scored three times and won 6-5. Houston left runners at first and second in the bottom of the ninth. ... Boston's AL East lead is now 1.5 games.

MLB Leader
Batting Average:        Mookie Betts, .365
Slugging Percentage:    Mookie Betts, .823
OPS:                    Mookie Betts, 1.274
Adjusted OPS+:          Mookie Betts, 231 
Runs Scored:            Mookie Betts, 32
Runs Created:           Mookie Betts, 36
Extra-Base Hits:        Mookie Betts, 22 (tied with Albies)
Total Bases:            Mookie Betts, 79 
Home Runs:              Mookie Betts, 11 (tied with Trout)
Fewest ABs Per HR:      Mookie Betts, 8.7
Adjusted Batting Runs:  Mookie Betts, 18
Adjusted Batting Wins:  Mookie Betts, 1.7
Offensive Winning %:    Mookie Betts, .890
AL Leader
Onbase Percentage:      Mookie Betts, .451 (2nd in MLB behind Harper, .464)

In SoSH's Mookie Betts Appreciation thread:
Poulsonator:
Stolen from Reddit: Mookie "Mike "Mookie Betts" Trout" Betts

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