the joy of sox: G157: Red Sox 12, Rangers 10

September 24, 2019

G157: Red Sox 12, Rangers 10

Red Sox - 411 240 000 - 12 14  0
Rangers - 410 022 100 - 10 15  2

All 10 batters for the Red Sox had at least one hit and scored at least one run. Only six of them drove in runs, however, with J.D. Martinez leading the way with three, and Xander Bogaerts and Jackie Bradley chipping in two apiece.

Eduardo Rodriguez (5-11-7-3-6, 113) was allowed to pitch long enough to qualify for the win, his 19th of the season. Both the 11 hits and seven runs were season-highs (and by "highs", I mean lows). But: W! ... It was also the Red Sox's 82nd victory of the season, assuring them of finishing 2019 with a winning record.

The Rangers were down by seven runs, 12-5, at one point, battled back to within two, and threatened in the eighth inning. Matt Barnes walked the first two batters in that frame, allowing Texas to bring the go-ahead run to the plate. But Barnes was just teasing Texas (I guess), because he struck out Roughned Odor and Scott Heineman and got Jose Trevino to fly out to center. In the ninth, Brandon Workman issued a two-out walk to Elvis Andrus before Willie Calhoun grounded out to first.

Each team batted around in the first inning. Rafael Devers singled with one out, went to second on a wild pitch, and scored on Bogaerts's single. Another wild pitch put Bogaerts on second and Martinez knocked him in with a single. Mitch Moreland grounded out, but Andrew Benintendi reached on an infield single and Christian Vázquez walked. Jackie Bradley doubled home two runs and Vólquez (0.2-5-4-1-0, 27) was replaced by Ariel Jurado, who got the third out.

Rodriguez had two outs and runners on first and third, but crumbled. He walked Danny Santana to load the bases and he walked Odor to force in a run. Heineman's single made it 4-3 and Trevino's single tied the game.

Mookie Betts hit his 29th home run of the year to dead center in the second inning. Rodriguez gave up a leadoff triple to Delino DeShields and Andrus hit a sac fly. (Betts injured his left foot in the bottom of the second when he crashed into the wall chasing DeShields's triple. He was limping as he chased the carom and was replaced in right field before the bottom of the third.)

The Red Sox kept scoring. They got one run in the third when Mitch Moreland doubled and ended up scoring on an infield error. Marco Hernández and Gorkys Hernández singled to start the fourth and Devers doubled Marco home. Gorkys scored on Bogaerts's sac fly. The Rangers left the bases loaded in the fourth against EdRo.

In the fifth, Gorkys Hernández hit a bases-loaded sac fly, a run scored on a wild pitch, and Martinez hit a two-run single. (The Red Sox also received three walks in the inning, along with a Texas error.)

Rodriguez allowed two more runs in the fifth, Marcus Walden allowed two in the sixth (on three hits and a walk), and Andrew Cashner gave up one in the seventh.

There were six wild pitches in the game, four from the Rangers.