G15: Rays 3, Red Sox (10)Also: The First 21-0 Game In National League History (After 145+ Years!)

Red Sox - 000 000 000 2 - 2  2  1
Rays    - 000 000 000 3 - 3  3  1

The Red Sox were no-hit for nine innings on Saturday before an almost pulled off a victory before losing a heartbreaker, 3-2 in ten innings, to the Rays. The loss dropped Boston (7-8) into fourth place, 3 GB the Blue Jays, who happen to be the Red Sox's next opponent.

Six Tampa Bay pitchers, none of whom recorded more than six outs, combined for a 9-0-0-5-5, 123 line. Although they had no hits, Boston put two runners on base in both the third and fourth innings (Rays shortstop Wander Franco made sensational plays in both of those frames), and single baserunners in the fifth and sixth.

It's the first time in 52 years that the Red Sox had two or fewer hits in an extra-inning loss on the road (May 24, 1970, a 2-1 loss at Baltimore).

The Rays are the first team in major league history "to throw a no-hitter through 9 innings, lose said no-hitter in extras, then end up winning the game via walkoff". (Note: I am applying an asterisk because of the FURMR (the Fuck You Rob Manfred Runner).)

For the Red Sox, starter Garrett Whitlock (4-1-0-0-7, 48) was superb, constantly getting ahead of hitters and getting 11 swings-and-misses. In his 51 major league games, Whitlock has a 1.76 ERA and an opponents OPS of .590. (Earlier this month, Whitlock, 25, signed a four-year contract extension ($18.5 million) that covers 2023-26 and includes club options for 2027 and 2028.) And to think, we got him for free from the Yankees!

Kutter Crawford pitched three scoreless innings, allowing one hit and striking out five, which was the exact opposite of what he had done in his previous two appearances. In two innings, he shit the mound to the tune of five hits, six walks, and seven runs.

Boston's top of the tenth began against Matt Wisler, with Jackie Bradley on second base. Wisler got ahead of Bobby Dalbec 0-2 before Dalbec lifted an outside slider towards the right field corner. Brett Phillips sprinted over and dove on the warning track, but the ball was tailing away from him and it fell just beyond his reach. Although Bradley had retreated to second to tag in case the ball was caught, he still scored easily.

This was the 15th major league game in which a team has allowed no hits through nine innings and then given up a hit in extra innings. It's the first time the first hit was a triple, however.

Christian Vázquez took a ball and hit a high fly to left. Josh Lowe made the catch in front of the warning track and Dalbec scored, giving the Red Sox a 2-0 lead. Travis Shaw lined to right and Trevor Story lined a single to left. Rafael Devers worked a full count, but went down swinging.

Hansel Robles (whose string of 20 consecutive scoreless appearances is the second longest active streak in the AL) struck out the first two Rays in the bottom of the tenth and had an 0-1 count on Taylor Walls. Then Robles balked when going into his set-position and EIR Randy Arozarena advanced to third. Robles fired another strike and he and the Red Sox were one strike away. A ball in the dirt was blocked by Vázquez. Walls hit a grounder to Story's right. He went down on one knee to backhand it where the infield dirt meets the fake grass. His throw seemed to be powered solely by his arm; the rest of his body was stuff. The throw skipped past Dalbec, who dove and tumbled to the right field side of the bag. Walls stayed at first.

Kevin Kiermaier was next and the Red Sox held a mound meeting. No real harm: tying run at first, two outs. Robles's first pitch was a changeup away. Kiermaier fouled off a fastball. After a pickoff attempt, Walls took off, stealing second on a pitch up and away. Robles 2-1 pitch was low. Kiermaier lined the next offering, a flat fastball on the inner half, to right field for a game-winning home run.

Robles is the second pitcher in Red Sox history to give up one hit, no earned runs, strike out two or more batters and be charged with both a blown save and a loss. Derek Lowe was the first, against the Mariners on September 1, 1998. (For what it's worth, in that 1970 loss to the Orioles, linked above, Red Sox reliever Sparky Lyle allowed two hits, one walk, one run, and was charged with a blown save and a loss.)

The first seven Red Sox were retired when Vázquez grounded a ball to the left of shortstop Wander Franco. The ball hit off his glove and went up in the air. Franco turned his back to the plate and somehow caught the ball on the outfield turf. He turned and then, a little bit off-balance, fired to first and nabbed Vázquez by a hair. (In the top of the fourth, Franco ranged far to his left to glove Alex Verdugo's grounder up the middle. Verdugo was initially called safe at first, but after a challenge, the call was changed to out.)

After Vázquez was retired, Rob Refsnyder walked and Trevor Story reached on an infield fielding error, before Rafael Devers popped out to second.

Boston had two baserunners in the fourth, as well, after the Verdugo groundout. Kiké Hérnandez and Jackie Bradley both drew walks, but Dalbec stranded them with a K.

Whitlock allowed a leadoff double to Brandon Lowe in the bottom of the fourth but held firm, getting a fly to right, a strikeout, and a fly to center.

Story walked and stole second with two down in the fifth, but Devers ended the inning with a fly to left.

After Verdugo's one-out walk in the sixth was wasted, the Red Sox were retired in order in the seventh, eighth, and ninth.

Tyler Danish (All-Pastry Team) walked Lowe to start the bottom of the ninth, but Danish earned his dough by getting a force and a double play, the latter off Randy Arozarena's bat.

The Cubs beat the Pirates 21-0, a franchise record for most runs in a shutout. (That's a franchise that goes back 146 years!) On May 28, 1886, the Cubs (then known as the White Stockings) blanked Washington 20-0.

Pirates - 000 000 000 -  0  3  2
Cubs    - 180 250 14x - 21 23  0

This was also the first 21-0 game in National League history and the first 21-0 major league game in 83 years!

May 7, 1889        - St. Louis Browns (now Cardinals) vs Columbus (American Association)
September 15, 1901 - Tigers vs Cleveland Blues (now Guardians) (American League, 8 innings)
August 13, 1939    - Yankees at Philadelphia Athletics (American League, 8 innings)
April 23, 2022     - Cubs vs Pirates (National League)

While Pittsburgh managed only three hits today, five different Cubs had 3+ hits, the first time the team has done that since Opening Day 2005. The Cubs had not scored 21+ runs since pounding the Rockies 26-7 on August 18, 1995.

Miguel Cabrera got his 3,000th career hit in the first inning on Saturday, a 13-0 win for the Tigers. He's  the 33th player to reach 3,000 hits and the seventh player to have 3,000+ hits and 500+ home runs. Miggy is also the third player to get #3,000 as a Tiger, joining Ty Cobb (August 19, 1921 vs Red Sox) and Al Kaline (September 24, 1974 at Orioles).

The Reds won on Opening Day, but have gone 1-13 since then. On Saturday, they lost their 11th consecutive game. Cincinnati has not scored more than 2 runs in any of their last eight games! 1, 2, 1, 1, 2, 0, 2, 0.