ALDS 4: Astros 5, Red Sox 4

Astros  - 110 000 021 - 5 12  0
Red Sox - 100 020 001 - 4  9  1

If not for the magnificent and occasionally historic performances of Chris Sale and Craig Kimbrel this summer, the Red Sox would not have won the American League East. They may not have even qualified for the postseason. So it was both strange and sad that those two pitchers, with the Red Sox six outs away from forcing a winner-take-all Game 5, could not hold a one-run lead.

Sale began his fifth inning of relief by giving up a game-tying home run to Alex Bregman leading off the eighth. Sale turned the game over to Kimbrel with two outs and a man on first, but Kimbrel was initially overthrowing his pitches and had poor command in general. He threw a wild pitch, walked George Springer, and gave up the go-ahead run on a hit to Josh Reddick. In the ninth, Kimbrel hit a batter and gave up two more hits, the last being a run-scoring double by Carlos Beltran.

That fifth Houston run was crucial because Rafael Devers opened the bottom of the ninth with an inside-the-park home run (on an 0-2 pitch!). It was Boston's third home run of the afternoon and it cut the score to 5-4. It also electrified Fenway Park, but Houston's Ken Giles retired the next three batters: Christian Vazquez grounded to third, Jackie Bradley struck out, and Dustin Pedroia grounded to second.

And so the 2018 season has begun ...

The first three innings of Game 4 were packed with drama. In keeping with the pattern of these postseason games, the Red Sox fell behind in the first inning. Springer began the game with a double to left-center. Rick Porcello (3-5-2-3-4, 70) threw a wild pitch before walking Reddick. Boston got two outs when Jose Altuva grounded into a double play, but Springer scored the day's first run. Porcello then walked Carlos Correa and plunked Marwin Gonzalez before getting the third out.

In the bottom half, Xander Bogaerts (0-for-14 in the ALDS) homered into the Red Sox bullpen. Mookie Betts singled with two outs and stole second, but Mitch Moreland struck out.

Porcello's experience in the first inning was repeated in the second. Yuli Gurriel tripled to right field. The ball was hit so hard Betts had to dive to his left to try to cut it off, but it bounced past him. Without the dive, Betts still would have chased the ball it into the corner. Porcello bore down and struck out both Evan Gattis (sasahe!) and Brian McCann, but Springer singled, giving the Astros a 2-1 lead. Porcello allowed a hit to Reddick and he walked Altuve before getting Correa on strikes.

This is probably the right time to talk about what a piece of garbage Mark Wegner is as an umpire. After also being forced to endure Angel Hernandez and Ted Barrett behind the plate in this series, the evidence is clear: this is one serious shitshow of an umpiring crew. First, the Red Sox were screwed on three separate checkswing calls: Moreland was called out to end the first (he did not swing), McCann was not called out in the second (Porcello ended up fanning him anyway), and Altuve (the pitch was ruled ball 4).

Wegner made his mark on this game in the bottom of the second. In the bottom of the second, Hanley Ramirez and Rafael Devers both singled and Christian Vazquez walked. Bases loaded, none out. Bradley had a 2-1 count. Wegner called strike 2 on a questionable low pitch and then called Bradley out on a pitch that was well outside.

Wegner then rung up the next batter, Dustin Pedroia, on a 2-2 pitch that was out of the strike zone.

Pedroia was livid. John Farrell argued and was eventually ejected.

Morton's 0-1 pitch to Bogaerts was low and after Wegner correctly called it a ball, the crowd at Fenway cheered him loudly. Bogaerts popped out to right and a promising inning that had begun with three baserunners was aborted by several blown calls. As it turned out, with Boston losing by one run, this inning turned out to be highly significant.

It cannot be disputed that: The outcome of this game was altered by Wegner's blown calls. Situations like this happen all the time, to every team, but MLB does not care. If MLB actually wanted the correct calls to be made as often as possible in its games, it would do something to solve this problem. But MLB sees no problem.

There were so many bad calls in such a short amount of time -- all of which went against the Red Sox, either extending an Astros's rally or cutting off Boston's chances to score - that it felt like the fix was in. It is a horrible feeling when you are watching a game and you see clear, unambiguous, objective evidence that the wrong calls are being made - and there is nothing you can do about it. You are angry and annoyed and frustrated, but there is more. You are forced to accept as your new reality what you know is clearly not true. You saw that pitch go out of the strike zone - but you have to accept it as an inning-ending, rally-killing, strike three. Everyone saw your team's runner beat the throw to the bag - but he will be forever remembered as being thrown out on the play. (Armando Galarraga pitched a perfect game on June 2, 2010. That is absolutely true. But in "reality", he didn't.)

It's not a good feeling when your favourite team cannot execute (as we have just seen). It's bad, but when the umpires are at fault, it's different. There is a second layer of distance. We know we cannot affect the outcome of a game, sitting in the stands or at home. But when we watch our team's players also unable to right an obvious wrong, there is a greater feeling of helplessness. And because MLB is (so far) unwilling to fix these blatant problems, our only choices as fans are: accept it or walk away. (I'll admit there was a point in 2016 when I thought I would have to walk away. But that's a post for another day.)

The Red Sox hit the ball hard in the third and came up empty. Andrew Benintendi singled but was doubled off first when Betts lined a bullet to third. Moreland doubled to right and when Ramirez dropped a single into short left, he tried to score. He was easily thrown out.

Chris Sale began warming up in the top of the third and he took the mound in the fourth. (It was his first relief appearance since May 8, 2012.) He struck out McCann, got Springer on a pop to second and retired Reddick on a comebacker. It went so smoothly that, even though Boston still trailed 2-1, the entire mood of the game changed for me. I got a little optimistic. In the fifth, Devers ran in on the grass, bare-handed Altuve's bunt, and made an exceptional throw to first. Sale then struck out Correa and Gonzalez popped to center.

During that inning, Justin Verlander began warming up for the Astros. It wasn't an elimination game for Houston, but manager A.J. Hinch was not taking any chances. So when Morton walked Bogaerts with one out in the bottom of the fifth, Verlander came in. It was apparently his first relief appearance ever, as he did nothing but start in college, the minors, and the majors. He ended up pitching 2.2 innings and allowed only one hit, but it was a doozy. Benintendi, his first batter, crushed a 2-2 pitch to right field for a two-run homer. The Red Sox led 3-2. For the rest of the inning, the crowd chanted both "Jus-tin, Jus-tin" and "Up-ton, Up-ton".

Sale struggled in the top of the seventh. Springer led off with a single and Correa singled with two outs. Sale struck out two batters, including Gonzalez to end the inning, but he was not as sharp as he had been. He threw 24 pitches in the inning, bringing his total to 65. It was unclear what acting manager Gary DiSarcina was going to do. Stay with Sale? Use Addison Reed in the eighth and Kimbrel in the ninth? Use Kimbrel for two innings?

Sale took the mound for the eighth, with Kimbrel warming behind him. (Maybe if someone got on, Kimbrel would come in for a four- or five-out save.) It did not work out that way. Alex Bregman hit Sale's 2-1 pitch into the Monster Seats - and the game was tied at 3-3. After Gurriel grounded out, Gattis lined a ball over the third base bag. Devers thought it was foul, as did the ball attendant, who gloved it. But umpire Dan Bellino had called it fair. Gattis was awarded first base and Cameron Maybin ran for him. McCann lined to right for the second out and the Red Sox made the move for Kimbrel. (After the game, Farrell defended using Sale in the eighth.)

Kimbrel was overthrowing his first few pitches, yanking them outside to Springer. One of them was wild and Maybin took second. Springer fouled off a 3-0 pitch before walking. After a mound visit, Kimbrel faced Reddick. The count went full and Reddick fouled off two pitches before grounding a single into left, bringing Maybin in with the go-ahead run. Altuve flied to center, but the damage - as they so often say - had been done.

Houston's closer Ken Giles relieved Verlander (2.2-1-1-2-0, 40). He needed only 11 pitches to set the Red Sox down, and eight of those were to Betts, who tapped back to the hill. Moreland grounded to third and Ramirez grounded back to the mound.

Looking at my scorecard now, Kimbrel had a much worse outing that I remember as it was happening. Not that I thought he was good, but it had to have been one of his worst games of the year. He had no command of his fastball and missed with a lot of pitches up and out of the zone. He struck out Correa to start the ninth, but hit Gonzalez on the back foot. Bregman flied to the edge of the track in center. But the third out was elusive. Gurriel singled to right and pinch-hitter Carlos Beltran fell behind 1-2 and fouled off four pitches before doubling off the wall in left, a ball that looked catchable, but scraped the wall on the way down. Reed came in and quickly got McCann for the third out.

Kimbrel threw 38 pitches and got only three swings and misses - and they all happened in a four-pitch span to start the ninth. (Kimbrel: "I went out there and gave everything I had. It wasn't quite good enough today."

Houston's final, fifth run loomed large, especially when Devers hit a fly (again, on an 0-2 pitch) that caromed off the wall above Springer's leap towards right-center. When Devers sprinted across the plate standing up, the Astros had not even got the ball back to the infield. (Devers is the youngest player in postseason history to hit an inside-the-park homer.)

Red Sox Postseason Inside-The-Park Home Runs
Patsy Dougherty - October 2, 1903 - World Series Game 2, against Pirates
Larry Gardner - October 11, 1916 - World Series Game 4, against Dodgers
Rafael Devers - October 9, 2017 - American League Division Series Game 4, against Astros

Fenway was rocking - but the Red Sox were still down by one. And Giles retired the next three hitters without allowing the ball out of the infield.

Perhaps the biggest question for the winter: Who will manage the Red Sox's next game?

Charlie Morton / Rick Porcello

Pedroia, 2B
Bogaerts, SS
Benintendi, LF
Betts, RF
Moreland, 1B
Ramirez, DH
Devers, 3B
Vazquez, C
Bradley, CF

Now I know that the Astros were specifically advised to not let the Red Sox win yesterday. Did they listen? They did not. And now ... well, there is no telling what might happen.

[11:40 AM: Rain is in the forecast. One SoSHer: "Pouring now at the park"]

Postseason Series In Which The Red Sox Needed To Win
Three (Or Four) Consecutive Games To Avoid Elimination - And Did

1986 ALCS - Down 1-3 to Angels, won next three games: 7-6 (11), 10-4, 8-1
1999 ALDS - Down 0-2 to Cleveland, won next three games: 9-3, 23-7, 12-8
2003 ALDS - Down 0-2 to A's, won next three games: 3-1 (11), 5-4, 4-3
2004 ALCS - Down 0-3 to Yankees, won next three games: 6-4 (12), 5-4 (14), 4-2, 10-3
2007 ALCS - Down 1-3 to Cleveland, won next three games: 7-1, 12-2, 11-2

ALDS 3: Red Sox 10, Astros 3

Astros  - 300 000 000 -  3 13  2
Red Sox - 013 000 60x - 10 15  0

Alive!

Six minutes after the first pitch of this game, Houston held a 3-0 lead, punctuated by Carlos Correa's home run to dead center. Fenway Park seemed like a morgue and it was clear: this series - and season - were over.

But who among us could have imagined even a portion of what would transpire over the next 3.5 hours?

In short, the Red Sox took their first lead of the ALDS by scoring three times in the third (Rafael Devers hit a two-run homer) after the first two batters had struck out. Before that, though, Mookie Betts robbed Josh Reddick of a three-run homer that would certainly have broken the Red Sox's backs. David Price pitched four crucial innings out of the bullpen - the longest postseason relief stint for a Boston pitcher since Pedro Martinez's six no-hit innings against Cleveland in the 1999 ALDS. The Red Sox eased the growing late-inning tension by batting around in the seventh; the first five batters reached base and Jackie Bradley homered for the final three runs on a fly ball down the right field line that Reddick knocked into the stands with his glove. All that, and about two dozen other amazing moments, too.

Our prayers - and David Ortiz's prayers, too - were answered.

The damage today was done by the lower half of the lineup:

#1-4:  3-for-18, 2 runs scored,  0 RBI, 0 extra-base hits
#5-9: 12-for-20, 8 runs scored, 10 RBI, 2 doubles, 2 home runs

Mitch Moreland (3-for-5, double, 3 runs): Began the second inning with a single. Started the third-inning rally with a double off the garage door in center. With two on and no outs in the seventh, he singled off Chris Devenski, just in from the pen, to load the bases and set things up for the scorchingly-hot Hanley Ramirez.

Hanley Ramirez (4-for-4, double, 2 runs, 3 RBI): Singled in the second. Hit an RBI-single in the third and hustled to second on an outfield error. With the bases loaded in the seventh, fouled the first pitch off, then took three straight balls before doubling into the gap in left-center, increasing the lead from 4-3 to 6-3. (In Fox Sports' studio, Ortiz liked watching it.)

Rafael Devers (2-for-3, home run, walk, 2 runs, 3 RBI): Drew a key walk in the second inning. Greeted reliever Francisco Liriano with a two-run homer in the third - which gave Boston its first lead in its last five postseason games. Showed both poise and patience in the seventh, poking a run-scoring single to left.

Jackie Bradley (1-for-4, home run, 3 RBI): Home plate umpire Ted Barrett was so bad behind the plate that I may have to revise my stance that Angel Hernandez is the worst umpire in MLB. Barrett called an outside pitch a strike on Bradley in the second, making the count 1-2. The next pitch was to the exact same spot and Bradley, knowing he could not risk being called out on another blown call, especially with the bases loaded, swung and missed. In the seventh, Reddick ran a long way to get to his fly ball. He leapt at the short wall and had the ball in his glove...

Mookie Betts singled, walked, and scored a run, but his biggest contribution to this game was robbing Reddick (!) of a three-run homer in the top of the second. Houston had runners on second and third. Doug Fister (1.1-4-3-1-1, 38) had already been pulled and Joe Kelly was facing Reddick with two outs. Reddick crushed the eighth pitch of the at-bat to deep right. Betts raced back and with his back nearly to the infield, reached out and into the stands and calmly caught the ball.

Mookie Betts saves the day for the @RedSox https://t.co/hwoVH793dK

— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) October 8, 2017

Oldtimers like me were reminded of Dwight Evans's game-saving catch against Joe Morgan in the 11th inning of Game 6 of the 1975 World Series. If Betts had not made that grab, the Astros would have led 6-0 and I feel pretty confident that we'd all be cursing another quick exit from the postseason right now. (Reddick must have been very frustrated. Little did he know ...) With a man on first in the third, Betts made another nice running catch on Alex Bregman's liner to right-center.

David Price (4-4-0-1-4, 57): Took over in the third inning with the Red Sox ahead 4-3. He allowed at least baserunner in each of his four innings, but came up big when necessary. Yuli Gurriel (4-for-4) singled with one out in the fourth, but after Brian McCann lined to right, Price struck out George Springer. In the fifth, Reddick and Jose Altuve both singled. Correa forced Reddick at third for the first out. Price overcame a bad call from Barrett on 1-2 that should have been a strikeout by hanging tough and getting Marwin Gonzalez to swing and miss for the K. Bregman then grounded to shortstop and Xander Bogaerts threw to second for the inning-ending force.

Gurriel singled with one down in the sixth, but McCann and Springer both flied to Betts. Price walked Altuve with one out in the seventh. Correa lined to right and Gonzalez struck out. After Gonzalez fanned and the inning was over, catcher Sandy Leon tossed the ball in the air slightly with his glove. Gonzalez actually tried to knock it out of his glove with his bat, making contact with Leon. At the same time, Price was walking off the mound and he was yelling towards the plate. I initially thought he was telling Barrett what he thought of his pitch-calling skills (his day was done, so who cared if he got tossed?), but he might actually have been yelling at Gonzalez. As Price got closer to the dugout, he was also motioning towards the first base umpire.

Price faced the most batters of any pitcher in the game and only Astros starter Peacock (2.2-6-3-1-4, 58) threw more pitches. Or pitch, since it was only one more. It was a bit scary that manager John Farrell had no one warming up in the pen as Price began the seventh. (The score was still only 4-3.) Price began the inning at 42 pitches, more than he had thrown in any of his previous six relief appearances. After the first out, Addison Reed began tossing.

And it was Reed who came in for the top of the eighth, needing to hold a now-comfortable seven-run lead. He gave up only a two-out hit, and needed just seven pitches to retire the Astros. Carson Smith pitched the ninth. Springer reached on an infield hit but was erased on a double play. Altuve singled to third, but Smith got Correa looking at strike three - and the dirty water flowed.

Hammerin' Hanley: "We don't give up, we keep working."

Ortiz, on Fox Sports: "This game's gonna be a game changer for the whole organization."

After Bradley's home run, the crowd at Fenway began chanting Reddick's name to the tune of that famous ditty from 1986, "Dar-ryl, Dar-ryl". Reddick: "I think everybody in Foxboro heard them chanting my name. It's good to see they still love me here. ... Just the ball kept curling over. I had enough time to get over, I thought. I thought I timed the jump pretty well on my part, just in and out. ... It's very unfortunate for myself and the team. Nothing you can do."

The time of tomorrow's Game 4 has not been decided. It depends on whether today will be YED 2017.

Brad Peacock / Doug Fister

Bogaerts, SS
Pedroia, 2B
Benintendi, LF
Betts, RF
Moreland, 1B
Ramirez, DH
Devers, 3B
Leon, C
Bradley, CF

It's Sunday, and we need some faith.

One definition describes faith "a firm belief in something for which there is no proof". You may not feel overly optimistic or particularly hopeful about the Red Sox's chances today (or in this series), but having faith is appropriate because to date we have seen no proof that the AL East champs can keep up with the Astros.

           AVG   OBP   SLG    OPS
Astros    .343  .418  .686  1.103
Red Sox   .227  .278  .288   .566

Of Houston's 24 hits, 12 have been for extra bases (50%), while the Red Sox have only four extra-base hits among their 15 hits (27%).

The team that has won the first two games of a previous best-of-5 series has come out on top 66 of 75 times (88%). Since MLB adopted the current 2-2-1 format, teams up 2-0 have won 35 of 39 times (90%). Teams losing the first two games on the road - as these Red Sox have done - are 2-20 (10%). However, the two teams that came back in that scenario were the 1999 Red Sox (against Cleveland) and the 2003 Red Sox (against Oakland).

Never forget that we have seen miracles - and they can happen again. ... So we watch, and hope.

Speaking of Our Man of Miracles, the 2017 Red Sox could benefit from an impassioned rallying speech this afternoon:

And the Big Man has some words from Paul's First Epistle to the Corinthians for those of us watching his brothers toil in the garden this afternoon:

Be watchful, stand firm in the faith ... be strong.

Also, it wouldn't hurt if Pedroia sent some kid out to the liquor store for a couple of fifths of JD and some paper cups.

ALDS 2: Astros 8, Red Sox 2

Red Sox - 010 000 001 - 2  7  1
Astros  - 202 004 00x - 8 12  0

For the second consecutive day, the Astros utterly dominated the Red Sox. Boston never had a chance. As we saw today, and on Thursday, the Red Sox made a little noise in the early innings, squandered some scoring opportunities, then took the rest of the game off.

Manager John Farrell seemed at a complete loss as to what to do. He sent pitchers to the mound as though he was drawing their names out of a hat and he made two pinch-hitting decisions with no regard for the available statistical evidence.

After Chris Sale allowed a season-high seven runs in Game 1, Boston needed Drew Pomeranz to shine. Sadly, the lefty recorded only six outs and was pulled after facing his 12th batter (2-5-4-1-1, 47). The Red Sox have shown no reason to believe their season will last beyond Sunday afternoon. Doug Fister will be the starting pitcher at Fenway Park.

Once again, Houston struck in the first inning. Pomeranz retired the first two batters, but Jose Altuve singled and Carlos Correa homered to left-center. Pom's 2-2 pitch was a 91 mph fastball, down the heart of the plate, perhaps a tad higher than middle-middle. It deserved to be crushed - and it was. The Red Sox scored in the second, but squandered chances for more. Chris Young doubled and stole third. Christian Vazquez walked. Deven Marrero struck out, but Jackie Bradley singled to center, cutting the score to 2-1. With men on first and second, and one out, both Xander Bogaerts and Dustin Pedroia struck out swinging.

And, of course, the Astros began pulling away soon after that. George Springer led off the third with a homer to center. Alex Bregman doubled and scored on Altuve's single. Carson Smith came in and walked two batters, loading the bases. After Josh Reddick lined out to third, Farrell brought in David Price. (If Farrell had Price up and was planning on bringing him in, why waste Smith? Why not just have Price relieve Pomeranz?) Price got Yuli Gurriel and Marwin Gonzalez on popups to escape the jam.

Price worked around a one-out double and an intentional walk to Altuve in the fourth by getting Correa to pop to second. Price threw a perfect fifth, striking out two. Farrell then called on Eduardo Rodriguez, but stayed with him for only two batters: a single and HBP. (Again: WTF?) Addison Reed got a fielder's choice and a sac fly for two quick outs. It was 5-1. Then he walked Altuve intentionally and gave up a first-pitch double to Correa for two runs and a first-pitch single to Evan Gattis for one run.

Austin Maddox loaded the bases in the seventh, but got Bregman to foul out to first and he fanned Altuve. (Maddox's celebration after the inning-ending strikeout was more than a little misplaced.)

After Bradley's single in the second inning, Dallas Keuchel (5.2-3-1-3-7, 96) retired the next 13 Boston batters, six by strikeout. When he walked Hanley Ramirez with two outs in the sixth, Astros manager A.J. Hinch brought in Chris Devenski. Farrell countered with pinch-hitter Mitch Moreland.

Farrell's move was as moronic as anything we saw from Grady Gump back in 2003. On a list of lowest batting averages in over 100 years by a right-handed pitcher against left-handed hitters, Devenski's 2017 season (.111) ranks #4. His full line is .1l1/.178/.236. ... So when Farrell sees this destroyer of lefties coming in to pitch, what does he do? He removes the right-handed hitter who had doubled and lined out and sends up a lefty. Moreland battled gamely for eight pitches, but popped out to shortstop.

That was bone-headed, but it gets better. In the next inning, Vazquez led off with a single. Devenski is still on the mound. Farrell decided to hit for Marrero, who had fanned twice. So he sends up ANOTHER LEFTY! This time it's Rafael Devers, who strikes out looking on four pitches. The stupidity of these decisions is mind-blowing. Couple that with having (seemingly) no game plan regarding the bullpen at all - and I sincerely hope that this is the final week we have John "The Jaw" Farrell at the helm of the Red Sox.

Angel Hernandez - quite possibly the worst umpire in professional baseball - was behind the plate. So the game was a shit show on another level, as well. If you watched the game, you know Hernandez flat-out sucks. He is incapable of calling a game properly. Ian Kinsler was right: Hernandez is "ruining" baseball games and he needs to "find another job". To think that he "earned" a spot on a postseason crew speaks volumes about how much MLB cares about the integrity of the umpiring in the most important games of the year.

Here is Hernandez's strike three call on Hanley Ramirez (#6) in the third inning.

Another Hernandez call:

Also, MLB's Gameday decided as early as the 5th inning that the Astros were going to win Game 2, and updated their graphics to show Houston with a 2-0 lead in the series.

MLB changed it back towards the end of the game, but then, of course, had to restore it because they were, in fact, 100% correct. This game was essentially over in the fifth inning.

The Red Sox have not led at any point in these two games and have been outscored 16-4.

Drew Pomeranz / Dallas Keuchel

Bogaerts, SS
Pedroia, 2B
Benintendi, LF
Betts, RF
Ramirez, 1B
Young, DH
Vazquez, C
Marrero, 3B
Bradley, CF

Chris Young has replaced Eduardo Nunez on the Red Sox's ALDS roster.

Nunez admits he tried to play before his body was ready: "I really believed I was ready to play at least DH. ... [Y]ou think what you're doing before when you do practice. But in the game obviously it's more intense, it's more reacting and you don't have control of yourself. ... I thought I was a little more ready than what I am."

Doug Fister will start Game 3 in Boston on Monday.

ALDS 1: Astros 8, Red Sox 2

Red Sox - 010 100 000 - 2  8  0
Astros  - 200 212 10x - 8 12  0

Jose Altuve hit three solo home runs and Marwin Gonzalez and Brian McCann - the bottom two hitters in the Houston lineup - had big two-RBI hits as the Astros dominated the Red Sox on Thursday afternoon.

Chris Sale - who had a 4.09 ERA in his last 11 starts of the regular season (August and September) - lasted two batters into the sixth (5-9-7-1-6, 100). He allowed at least one hit in every inning and he tied a season-worst mark by allowing seven runs.

Since divisional play began in 1969, the winner of the first game of a best-of-five series has gone on to win the series 71% of the time. Boston will pin its hopes to lefty Drew Pomeranz at 2 PM tomorrow in what has to be considered "a must win".

Four pitches into the game, the Red Sox got some bad news. Eduardo Nunez, starting over Hanley Ramirez at DH and batting with one out in the top of the first inning, grounded the first pitch to third. He stumbled out of the batter's box, hobbled most of the way towards first base, then crumbled in the dirt. Nunez, with a re-injured right knee, had to be carried off the field. (How he managed to hit and run and slide in practices and be deemed ready to play, yet re-injure himself on his first step out of the box, is a bit of a mystery.)

The Red Sox were knocked further back on their heels when Sale gave up back-to-back home runs to Alex Bregman and Altuve in the bottom of the first. (Altuve's dong came on an 0-2 pitch.)

Boston got a run back in the top of the second. Mitch Moreland and Dustin Pedroia walked against Justin Verlander (6-6-2-2-3, 99) with one out. Rafael Devers struck out, but Sandy Leon singled into the shift towards right field. Pedroia was thrown out at third base and the umpires ruled that Moreland had not crossed the plate before the tag for the third out was made. The Red Sox challenged and the call was overturned. The run counted.

Boston tied the game at 2-2 in the fourth. Mookie Betts doubled into the left field corner and went to third on Moreland's opposite field single to left. Pedroia fouled to the catcher but Devers - who could not lay off Verlander's high fastballs - got his bat on something that was not out of the strike zone and flied to short right, scoring Betts.

That good feeling did not last long. With one out in the bottom of the fourth, Evan Gattis doubled off the left field wall. Josh Reddick flied to left-center and Jackie Bradley made a diving catch - according to left field umpire Mike Everitt. However, it looked (even while watching the play live) like Bradley had trapped the ball and when the Astros challenged the call, it was quickly overturned. Reddick was given a single and Gattis remained at second. Yuri Gurriel flied to left for the second out, but Gonzalez doubled to the gap in right-center, scoring both baserunners and giving Houston a 4-2 lead.

After Sale had struck out the first two batters in the fifth, Altuve belted a first-pitch home run to left-center. Sale gave up a double to Gattis and a walk to Reddick to open the sixth - and John Farrell brought in Joe Kelly. Gurriel singled to right-center, loading the bases with no one out. Kelly struck out Gonzalez (getting him to swing and miss at a change-up, ending a 10-pitch at-bat). McCann fell behind 1-2, but lined a single to right-center, scoring two runs. Altuve went deep for the third time leading off the seventh against Austin Maddox.

After the fourth inning, the Red Sox's offense was nowhere to be found. Ramirez singled with one out in the fifth, but Andrew Benintendi (as the potential tying run) grounded into a double play. Verlander retired the side in order in the sixth and Chris Devenski did the same in the seventh. Benintendi and Betts both singled off Will Harris with two outs in the eighth, but Francisco Liriano came in and retired Moreland on a grounder to second. Joe Musgrove pitched a clean ninth, ending the game by striking out Leon.

Devers is now the youngest position player to ever start a postseason game for the Red Sox. He is the third youngest Boston player over all, behind pitchers Ken Brett (19 in 1967) and Babe Ruth (20 in 1915).

TV: Bob Costas and Jim Kaat called the game for the MLB Network. They both looked like warmed-over death and by the middle of the first inning, I was reaching for the radio option. Listening to the Astros radio guys (Robert Ford and Steve Sparks) was not ideal - they got a bit too giddy as the game went on - but they must have been far easier on my ears than Costas/Kaat. ... Are those two really the best that the MLB Network can hire? It seems hard to believe that the best analyst they can find is a 79-year-old white guy who was yelling at "players today" to get off his lawn two decades ago.

A few Costas-related tweets: "Bob Costas is already talking about the Red Sox 2018 season in the sixth inning of Game 1 in a three-run game." ... "Bob Costas is an all time shitty personality, announcer, and human being. Holy shit Bob you need to disappear" ... "I wish I was as funny as Bob Costas thinks he is".

Chris Sale / Justin Verlander

Bogaerts, SS
Nunez, DH
Benintendi, LF
Betts, RF
Moreland, 1B
Pedroia, 2B
Devers, 3B
Leon, C
Bradley, CF

In Sale's last seven regular season starts, he allowed 7, 0, 3, 0, 4, 0, and 5 runs. ... Sale did not face the Astros in 2017. ... This will be the first postseason game of his career.

Sale: "I'm 28 years old, so I've been waiting for this for about 23 years. This has been a long time coming."

Verlander made five starts (all in September) after joining the Astros. He allowed only four runs in 34 innings (1.06 ERA), while walking five and striking out 43. ... He had a 1.31 ERA over his last eight starts.

Verlander faced the Red Sox twice as a member of the Tigers in 2017: on April 10, he allowed one unearned run in seven innings, and on June 10, he pitched five innings and allowed three runs.

(The Red Sox's ALDS roster and some of Alex Speier's observations are in comments. The game thread is here.)

Over The Monster's Matt Collins notes that Sale is pitching on eight days rest:

[It's] the second time he's gotten that much rest this season. The other, of course, was coming out of the All-Star Break. All he did in that game was toss 7.2 scoreless innings with 13 strikeouts and two walks against a dynamic Yankees lineup. ...

The lefty has made 24 career starts with at least six days of rest ... this includes Opening Days, for what it's worth — and he has a 1.88 ERA with 189 strikeouts and 34 walks in 167.2 innings. ... Among the 140 pitchers with at least 100 innings on six-plus days of rest since 2010, only Clayton Kershaw has allowed a lower OPS to his opponents. If you're curious, Justin Verlander is 21st on this list with a .646 OPS that is tied with David Price.

As far as coming back in Game 4, Sale has never* pitched on three days rest in his major league career. (*: While Sale did have just three days rest before a start on May 12, 2012, he had pitched only one inning of relief in the prior appearance.)

Collins adds that Red Sox manager John Farrell needs to be flexible with Craig Kimbrel:

Houston's lineup is absolutely loaded with right-handed talent. This is where John Farrell comes in. At some point before this series, he needs to let Kimbrel [who allowed RHB a .109/.156/.180 line in 136 PA] know that he is liable to come in at any point over the last few innings depending on the situation. ... That means, if the top of the Astros lineup is coming up for the eighth inning, that's when Kimbrel needs to enter the game. ...

The Red Sox will need a big performance from their bullpen in this series if they are going to advance to the ALCS, and that starts with Kimbrel. ... Farrell and company cannot mess around in these situations and rely on their second-tier relievers despite how good they've been all year. In Kimbrel, Boston has a unique weapon seemingly designed to shut down this Astros team. It's just up to them to be unafraid to use it.

Evan Drellich, NBC Sports:

[I]f Addison Reed is in trouble with two on in the eighth inning and none out and the heart of the order up, it's going to be difficult for Farrell to justify reserving Kimbrel for the ninth, or for a four-out save.

"Without the intent of using him in the ninth?" Farrell said when asked Tuesday if he'd go to Kimbrel in the eighth. "It would probably depend upon who was used prior to that. ... I feel like there's probably two or three guys down there who are interchangeable at the highest-leverage spots of the game right now." ...

Kimbrel, however, is not one of those guys. He is, per FanGraphs, the second most valuable reliever in the majors this season, behind the Dodgers' Kenley Jansen. Price may be awesome. He's looked it so far. Reed's dominant too.

But Kimbrel is a different weapon, and by far the most valuable Farrell has. ... Farrell must be willing to remove Kimbrel from the ninth inning entirely if need be.

John Tomase, WEEI:

Farrell touched on a number of issues, including the potential use of closer Craig Kimbrel, who could get the eighth inning instead of the ninth if the situation warrants it.

"I think that's going to depend on how the lineup stacks up," Farrell said. ... "Kimbrel in the eighth vs. someone else in ninth, Craig and I will speak. It's something we've talked internally about already." ...

What Farrell described as the "all-hands-on-deck" nature of the postseason, however, often calls for relievers to be deployed more aggressively, as the Indians proved last year with Andrew Miller. So Farrell will not mess around in the eighth if the Red Sox get in trouble -- he'll summon Kimbrel.

Farrell rarely thought very far out of the box during the regular season. But the Red Sox need a Playoff Assassin in the dugout. I'll be honest: I have absolutely no idea if Farrell will be (or can be) flexible with his relievers. (How David Price is used as a multi-inning reliever will also be interesting. In three games over a four-day span, Price retired 12 of 14 batters, with seven strikeouts. WEEI's Rob Bradford sees Carson Smith as a semi-secret weapon.)

Boston went 3-4 against the Astros in 2017:

At Houston
June 16: Red Sox 2, Astros 1
June 17: Astros 7, Red Sox 1
June 18: Red Sox 6, Astros 5

At Boston
September 28: Astros 12, Red Sox 2
September 29: Astros 3, Red Sox 2
September 30: Red Sox 6, Astros 3
October 1: Astros 4, Red Sox 3

Projected Starters
Boston

1B Mitch Moreland     .246/.326/.443   .769 OPS    99 OPS+
2B Dustin Pedroia     .293/.369/.392   .760 OPS   100 OPS+
SS Xander Bogaerts    .273/.343/.403   .746 OPS    95 OPS+
3B Rafael Devers      .284/.339/.482   .821 OPS   112 OPS+
LF Andrew Benintendi  .271/.352/.424   .776 OPS   103 OPS+
CF Jackie Bradley     .246/.324/.405   .729 OPS    90 OPS+
RF Mookie Betts       .264/.344/.459   .803 OPS   108 OPS+
C  Christian Vazquez  .291/.331/.406   .738 OPS    92 OPS+
DH Hanley Ramirez     .242/.320/.429   .750 OPS    94 OPS+

Houston

1B Yuri Gurriel       .297/.330/.481   .811 OPS   123 OPS+
2B Jose Altuve        .347/.411/.549   .961 OPS   166 OPS+
SS Carlos Correa      .315/.391/.550   .941 OPS   159 OPS+
3B Alex Bregman       .285/.353/.477   .830 OPS   129 OPS+
LF Marwin Gonzalez    .303/.375/.530   .905 OPS   149 OPS+
CF George Springer    .283/.367/.522   .889 OPS   145 OPS+
RF Josh Reddick       .314/.367/.484   .847 OPS   134 OPS+
C  Brian McCann       .241/.323/.436   .759 OPS   110 OPS+
DH Evan Gattis        .263/.311/.457   .767 OPS   111 OPS+

(Those OPS+ numbers are extremely depressing.)

MLB Ranking of 10 Postseason Teams

OPS

1. Astros       .823
2. Cleveland    .788
3. Yankees      .785
4. Nationals    .782
5. Rockies      .781
6. Cubs         .775
7. Diamondbacks .774
8. Dodgers      .771
9. Twins        .767
22. Red Sox     .736

Opponents OPS

1. Dodgers      .671
2. Cleveland    .673
3. Yankees      .680
4. Nationals    .703
5. Diamondbacks .707
7. Red Sox      .712
8. Cubs         .713
9. Astros       .720
20. Rockies     .771
22. Twins       .776

Runs per Game

1. Astros       5.53
2. Yankees      5.30
3. Rockies      5.09
4. Cubs         5.07
5. Nationals    5.06
6. Cleveland    5.05
7. Twins        5.03
8. Diamondbacks 5.01
10. Red Sox     4.85
12. Dodgers     4.75

Run Differential

1. Cleveland    +254
2. Yankees      +198
3. Astros       +196
4. Dodgers      +190
5. Diamondbacks +153
6. Nationals    +147
7. Cubs         +127
8. Red Sox      +117
9. Rockies      + 67
12. Twins       + 27

SoSHer KillersBs:

The key question for me is: how does a team with a 92 OPS+, 92 WRC+ score 785 runs, 4.85 per game, better than AL average of 763 runs or 4.71 per game? ...

1. The team was 8% better than league average with RISP, and 14% better with 2 outs RISP.

2. Baserunning. Even tho they led the league in Outs on Base, they were near top of league in stolen base and other base running stats, such as going 1st to 3rd.

Tim Britton, Providence Journal:

[Rajai] Davis is the kind of runner who can steal a base when everyone knows he's going to steal a base, which is important because, when he pinch-runs this month, everyone will know he's going to steal a base. ... The Astros are not a team with many weaknesses, but their inability in holding runners glares like the Texas sun. Opponents were successful on 102 of 116 attempts stealing against Houston. ... Houston's four highest-leverage relievers combined to allow 26 steals on 29 attempts.

Alex Speier, Globe:

The Red Sox outperformed the league [ERA] by 15.3 percent — their biggest margin since Babe Ruth was a member of the rotation in 1918. ...

The Red Sox bullpen, for the year, received credit for a 10.63 WPA — the highest in team history, nearly 30 percent better than any other team in the majors, and the eighth-highest mark by any team since the statistic has been tracked (starting in 1974).

Solid pitching and smart, aggressive baserunning will be the keys, and maybe the bats will get hot a couple of times.

After Sale and Drew Pomeranz in the first two games, it's possible that Doug Fister could start Game 3 with either Rick Porcello or Eduardo Rodriguez in Game 4. ... Game 3 will be on Sunday at 2:30 PM.

Eduardo Nunez says he's ready to play. Manager John Farrell: "Everything points to him being available." Since the 19-inning marathon on September 5, Nunez has played in parts of only three games: September 6 (7 innings), September 9 (2 innings), and September 25 (5 innings).

Among SB Nation's predictions: ALDS: Astros 6 votes, Red Sox 3 votes.

G162: Astros 4, Red Sox 3

Astros  - 000 000 400 - 4  8  1
Red Sox - 000 300 000 - 3  7  1

Collin McHugh / Hector Velazquez

Davis, LF
Holt, 2B
Vazquez, DH
Devers, 3B
Young, RF
Bradley CF
Travis, 1B
Leon, C
Marrero, SS

G161: Red Sox 6, Astros 3

Astros  - 000 000 201 - 3  8  0
Red Sox - 000 230 10x - 6 10  0

The Red Sox clinched the AL East title.

Lance McCullers / Drew Pomeranz

Bogaerts, SS
Benintendi, LF
Betts, RF
Moreland, 1B
Ramirez, DH
Devers, 3B
Vazquez, C
Holt, 2B
Bradley, CF

G160: Astros 3, Red Sox 2

Astros  - 001 020 000 - 3  6  0
Red Sox - 000 011 000 - 2  5  1

Charlie Morton / Doug Fister

Bogaerts, SS
Pedroia, 2B
Benintendi, LF
Betts, RF
Moreland, 1B
Ramirez, DH
Devers, 3B
Leon, C
Davis, CF

The Red Sox's Magic Number is 1. One Boston win or one New York loss = the first time in divisional play that the Red Sox have won the AL East in consecutive years. (They have not finished in first place in the league or division in two straight years since 1915-16.)

G159: Astros 12, Red Sox 2

Astros  - 320 401 200 - 12 17  1
Red Sox - 020 000 000 -  2  6  0

I would tell you there was nothing redeemable about this game, but I stopped watching after four innings, so I cannot be absolutely sure. Maybe something worth seeing occurred in the eighth.

The lopsided score certainly had something to do with my decision, but a bigger reason was that Joe Castiglione and Tim Neverett could not stop talking about how amazingly wonderful and powerful and successful and talented and just totally awesome the Astros have been (and are!). It might have been more extreme than Sunday Night Baseball's love affair with Aaron Judge. I wondered not only if the two radio guys remembered that they worked as Red Sox announcers, but I questioned whether they knew there was even a second team on the field.

Eduardo Rodriguez (1.2-6-5-2-2, 50) recorded five outs and allowed five runs. His successor, Blaine Boyer, recorded five outs and allowed four runs. Boston ended up using seven pitchers, with Austin Maddox throwing the most innings: 2.1.

In both of the first two innings, Rodriguez had serious trouble getting the third out. A walk and two singles loaded the bases with one out in the first. Rodriguez got Evan Gattis looking at strike three and an escape seemed possible, but then Marwin Gonzalez smoked a 1-1 pitch into the gap in right-center and three runs scored. Rodriguez retired the first two batters in the second, then gave up a single, home run, double, and a walk. Fifty pitches, and that was his night. He was booed as he walked off the field.

MFY Watch: There was good news in New York. The Rays wiped out the Yankees' 4-1 lead when they exploded for seven runs in the fifth. Tampa Bay won 9-6, so the Red Sox's Magic Number is now 1. Which means if Boston wins any of its next three games or if New York loses any if its next three games, the Red Sox win the AL East. ... It's as simple as that.

Brad Peacock / Eduardo Rodriguez

Bogaerts, SS
Pedroia, 2B
Benintendi, LF
Betts, RF
Moreland, 1B
Ramirez, DH
Devers, 3B
Vazquez, C
Bradley, CF

The final four games of the regular season are also a possible ALDS preview. The Red Sox won two of three games against the Astros back in mid-June: 2-1, 1-7, 6-5.

Rodriguez has a 1.78 ERA in his last four starts.

MFY Watch: The Yankees are 3 GB with 4 games to play. The Red Sox's Magic Number to clinch the AL East is 2. ... TBR/MFY.

G158: Red Sox 10, Blue Jays 7

Blue Jays - 301 100 002 -  7 10  1
Red Sox   - 135 000 10x - 10 13  1

The Red Sox moved one step closer on Wednesday night to winning the AL East. Xander Bogaerts went 3-for-5, driving in four runs. His three-run homer in the third inning was the big blow, increasing the Red Sox's lead from 6-4 to 9-4. Rajai Davis doubled, singled, stole a base, and scored twice in the first three innings. Hanley Ramirez, Dustin Pedroia, and Mitch Moreland also had two hits each.

Rick Porcello (5.2-7-5-2-8, 95) gave up back-to-back doubles to Josh Donaldson and Justin Smoak in the first inning, before hanging a curve that Jose Bautista lined into the Monster Seats. (Bautista cannot really catch up to most fastballs these days, so why is anyone bothering with off-speed stuff? For the rest of the game, the Corpse of Joey Bats got nothing but gas; he struck out, fouled to the catcher, and grounded to shortstop.)

Darwin Barney took Porcello deep in the fourth, the 38th long ball Porcello has allowed this year. That tied him with Tim Wakefield (1996) for the most home runs allowed in a season by a Red Sox pitcher. Right behind them is Earl Wilson (37 in 1964) and Josh Beckett (36 in 2006). If you are curious, the major league record is 50, by Bert Blyleven of the Twins in 1986.

Porcello was let off the hook, however, with some early run support. Andrew Benintendi singled with two outs in the bottom of the first. Ramirez doubled to the base of the left field wall, and Teoscar Hernandez botched the play, allowing Benintendi to score. First, the ball was catchable, but Hernandez did not go back far enough. Then he dropped the carom. And then kicked the ball away.

Boston took a 4-3 lead in the second. Christian Vazquez swung at a high 3-2 pitch - which should have been ignored for ball 4 - and fouled it off. Then Marco Estrada threw what looked like strike 3, but home plate umpire Larry Vanover called it ball 4. So Vazquez got his walk after all! Rafael Devers struck out. Davis doubled into the left field corner. Jackie Bradley - who learned before the game that he had been credited with a hit on a ball originally ruled an error back on September 20 (thus making his current 0-for-25 skid merely 0-for-16) - grounded to second, scoring Vazquez. (By the end of the night, it was at 0-for-20.)

Bogaerts singled to center to tie the game. On a 2-2 pitch to Pedroia, Bogaerts took off for second. Pedroia singled to right-center. Bogaerts never stopped running, beating Kevin Pillar's throw to the plate with a headfirst slide. Vanover was only 2-3 feet away and staring right at the play. He called Bogaerts out - and X jumped up, made the safe sign, and immediately yelled at the Red Sox bench to challenge the call. He said something to Vanover and it was clear the umpire was telling him, Nope, you were most certainly out. The replays clearly showed Bogaerts was safe - and, sure enough, the call was reversed. (NESN, of course, was so busy showing one particular replay (for, like, the 7th time) that it missed the umpires' changed call. All we heard was the crowd cheering the decision.)

The Jays tied the game in the third when Donaldson singled, Smoak walked, and Kendrys Morales singled to center. Boston batted around in the home half. First, Ramirez crushed a 2-2 pitch over everything in left. Moreland and Vazquez singled, and the Toronto bullpen began stirring. Devers forced Vazquez at second and Davis's right-field single scored Moreland. Luis Santos took over for Estrada (2.1-9-8-1-2, 80). Bradley lunged at a full-count outside pitch and struck out, but Bogaerts hit his 10th home run of the season, a hard shot to left-center.

After Pedroia singled, Benintendi went down on strikes. His out was the first of 11 straight Red Sox hitters that were retired by the Jays' bullpen. Only one of the 11 batters hit the ball out of the infield.

At the same time, Porcello settled down. He allowed the home run to Barney, but struck out three in the fourth. He walked the leadoff man in the fifth, but got a foul pop-up and a double play. In the sixth, he quickly set down the first two before John Farrell called on David Price. Ryan Goins tapped back to the mound for the final out. Price struck out the side in the seventh. (This was Price's first time pitching at Fenway since July 16.)

Moreland homered down the right field line in the seventh. Addison Reed allowed a two-out single in the eighth. Brandon Workman pitched the ninth, and was hit for a one-out double by Goins and a two-out home run by Hernandez. It seemed as though if anyone else got on base, Farrell would go to Craig Kimbrel (it was now a "save situation", after all), but Workman made that decision unnecessary, by getting Donaldson to line out to first.

Even with all the scoring, the game was played in only 2:57.

MFY: The Yankees beat the Rays 6-1. The Red Sox are 3 GA with 4 games to play. The Magic Number is 2.

Marco Estrada / Rick Porcello

Bogaerts, SS
Pedroia, 2B
Benintendi, LF
Ramirez, DH
Moreland, 1B
Vazquez, C
Devers, 3B
Davis, RF
Bradley, CF

When you lead your division by three games and there are only five games remaining on the schedule, it is probably not time to talk about "must wins". But, Red Sox, you seriously better win this game tonight.

Gregor Chisholm, MLB.com:

Mookie Betts (left wrist), Dustin Pedroia (left knee) and Eduardo Nunez (right knee) are day to day. An MRI on Betts showed no structural damage, and there's at least a chance he will play on Wednesday. The same could be said about Pedroia, but it seems highly unlikely Nunez will be back before the final series of the regular season against the Astros.

With a less-than-ideal lineup, the regulars who are healthy have to step up. And Jackie Bradley has not been doing his part. He's 0-for-his-last-25 and hitting .167/.235/.295 in September. His slump at the plate actually goes back to the end of July: .194/.293/.319 since July 30.

MFY Watch: The Yankees are 3 GB with 5 games to play. The Red Sox's Magic Number to clinch the AL East is 3. ... TBR/MFY.

G157: Blue Jays 9, Red Sox 4

Blue Jays - 101 030 040 - 9 13  0
Red Sox   - 100 000 030 - 4  8  1

Losing two games to the division's basement dwellers is not how the Red Sox wanted to begin their final homestand. Chris Sale (5-8-5-2-8, 92) gave up four home runs, while his teammates could do nothing against J.A. Happ (7-4-1-0-9, 107).

Toronto's second decisive victory at Fenway Park in as many nights, coupled with the Yankees beating the Rays 6-1, left the Red Sox with a three-game lead in the East with five games to play. It remains highly probable that Boston will win the division, but these losses, coupled with injuries to Mookie Betts and Eduardo Nunez, are creating more drama than is necessary.

The Blue Jays hit five dongs in the game: two each by Josh Donaldson and Teoscar Hernandez and one from Kendrys Morales. Donaldson hit solo shots in the first and third, while Hernandez lost Sale's first pitch of the fifth. Two outs later, Jose Bautista doubled and Morales gave the Jays a 5-1 lead. Hernandez put a cap on the victory with a three-run blast off Heath Hembree in the eighth.

(A blown strike three call by home plate umpire David Rackley drastically changed the situation early in the eighth. Instead of a runner at third and two outs, Boston had to deal with runners at first and third and only one out. The Blue Jays led 5-1 at the time and the Red Sox's bats were quiet most of the night, so perhaps it would not have changed the outcome, but I'd prefer to have the players decide that, rather than a mistake-prone umpire.)

Back in the first inning, the Red Sox tied the game very quickly, as Xander Bogaerts reached on an infield single and scored on Chris Young's double off the left field wall. It was a promising beginning, but then Happ retired the next 16 batters  - with only four of them hitting the ball out of the infield. With one out in the sixth, Bogaerts and Young both singled, but Happ set down the next five before turning the game over to the Toronto pen.

Sandy Leon homered down the left field line off Matt Dermody to start the bottom of the eighth. Facing Tom Koehler with two outs, Young tripled to dead center. Pinch-hitter Rajai Davis doubled into the left field corner and Hanley Ramirez grounded a run-scoring single to right. But that was all the Red Sox would get. Ryan Tepera struck out Sam Travis to end the eighth and Luis Santos retired the side in order in the ninth.

The four home runs allowed by Sale tied a career-high. He allowed four long balls to the Rangers on August 23, 2013 when he was with the White Sox.

J.A. Happ / Chris Sale

Bogaerts, SS
Young, RF
Benintendi, LF
Ramirez, DH
Travis, 1B
Devers, 3B
Marrero, 2B
Leon, C
Bradley, CF

Before his last start, it was announced that Chris Sale needed 13 strikeouts to become the second Red Sox pitcher in history to reach 300 for the season. I was convinced there was no way he would get there.

Facing the Orioles, Sale had struck out nine in the first six innings, but he was at 82 pitches and the Red Sox were up 6-0. It was pretty clear that I had been right. ... I was dead wrong. Sale struck out three batters in the seventh and came out for the eighth with an 8-0 lead. He recorded his 13th strikeout with his 111th, and final, pitch of the night.

Sale is now 13 strikeouts away from the team's all-time single-season record of 313, set by Pedro Martinez in 1999. In three starts this year against the Blue Jays (all in Toronto), Sale has allowed zero runs in 22 innings. He has also struck out 35 batters, an average of 14.3/K9. I'm keeping my mouth shut about his chances tonight.

Sale leads all major league pitchers in strikeouts, of course. He also ranks #1 in swinging strikeouts (221), strikeouts on four-seam fastballs (139), strikeouts on in-zone pitches (154), strikeouts on 0-2 counts (74), and strikeouts against right-handed batters (259).

MFY Watch: The Yankees are 4 GB with 6 games to play. The Red Sox's Magic Number to clinch the AL East is 3.

G156: Blue Jays 6, Red Sox 4

Blue Jays - 140 000 001 - 6 11  0
Red Sox   - 200 010 010 - 4  6  0

The Blue Jays scored four times after there were two outs in the second inning, with Teoscar Hernandez and Josh Donaldson both hitting two-run doubles off Drew Pomeranz (2-7-5-1-0, 47). Tonight was the 31st start of the season for Pomeranz (a career high), but it was also his shortest outing of the year as he faced only 13 batters and recorded six outs.

The loss kept the Red Sox's Magic Number at 3, but the team is likely more concerned about possible injuries to Eduardo Nunez and Mookie Betts. Nunez returned to the lineup for the first time since September 9. He doubled in the first inning, but was not running smoothly. He apparently re-aggravated his right knee on a swing in the third. Nunez finished the at-bat, but that was the end of his night. Betts was bothered by his left thumb or wrist after singling in a run in the fifth. Betts played the outfield for three more innings, but Andrew Benintendi pinch-hit for him in the eighth.

Benintendi hit his 20th home run in that at-bat, a shot to dead center, bringing the Red Sox to within one run. But Ryan Goins's solo shot down the right field line restored Toronto's two-run lead. In the ninth, Rafael Devers flied to deep right, and was perhaps robbed of a home run by Ezequiel Carrera, but the next two batters grounded out.

Josh Donaldson took Pomeranz deep in the top of the first, but Boston got two runs in the bottom half off Brett Anderson (5-6-3-3-3, 80). Xander Bogaerts singled to right and Nunez doubled to right-center. Although Betts and Hanley Ramirez both grounded out, a run scored on each play. For Betts, it was his 100th RBI of the season.

After allowing a leadoff single in the top of the second, Pomeranz got a double play, but he had a lot of trouble getting the third out. Darwin Barney walked and Goins and Luke Maile reached on infield hits. Hernandez doubled in two runs and Donaldson did the same before Justin Smoak ended the inning with a fly to center. Pomeranz started the third, but after Jose Bautista's leadoff single, John Farrell went to the pen.

Christian Vazquez was responsible for two outs in the top of the sixth. Goins singled with one out and tried to steal second on Blaine Boyer's first pitch to Maile. Vazquez's throw was high, but Deven Marrero leapt up and brought down a quick tag. Maile doubled and when Hernandez swung and missed on Boyer's 0-1 offering Vazquez fired the ball to Marrero and picked Maile off second base.

Brett Anderson / Drew Pomeranz

Bogaerts, SS
Nunez, DH
Betts, RF
Ramirez, 1B
Vazquez, C
Devers, 3B
Young, LF
Marrero, 2B
Bradley, CF

MLB.com: "Since late May, no starting pitcher has been more consistent for the Red Sox than Pomeranz. The lefty is 13-2 with a 2.61 ERA in his past 22 starts."

Since May 24:

             STR     IP     ERA   Opp OPS   TEAM
Pomeranz      22   127.2   2.61    .673     17-5
Chris Sale    22   143.2   3.01    .622     16-6

John Farrell, on athletes kneeling or sitting or remaining in the clubhouse during the National Anthem:

I follow it closely. As it relates to our players, if they were to choose to express themselves in the way we've seen other athletes in other sports, we would fully support them. We strive to create an environment that's inclusive. We would have their back as an organization. If that's the expression they chose to do, it's their constitutional right.

John Tomase, WEEI, noting Donald Trump's "breathtaking" combination of "insecurity, bigotry, narcissism and ignorance":

The unstated subtext of Trump's comments, of course, concerns black men in America not knowing their place. That he would criticize NFL players at an effectively all-white Republican rally in the deep south isn't an accident. Forget about dog whistles; that sound is shrill enough to signal the end of Fred Flintstone's workday.

As the ACLU of New York tweeted on Saturday:

If peaceful protests did nothing, the powerful wouldn't try so hard to silence them.

MFY Watch: The Yankees beat the Royals 11-3 this afternoon, so they are 4.5 GB. The Red Sox's Magic Number to clinch the AL East is 3.

G155: Red Sox 5, Reds 4

Red Sox - 000 010 040 - 5  5  2
Reds    - 100 020 100 - 4  9  0

The Red Sox won their 11th game of the season in which they trailed going into the eighth inning*. Mookie Betts tied the game with a three-run double and scored the go-ahead run (from second base) on an infield by Rafael Devers, who had homered in the fifth. Boston has won six straight games, nine of their last 10, and 14 of their last 17.

*: By comparison, the Yankees, Astros, and Dodgers have won eight, and Cleveland and the Nationals have won six.

The Blue Jays beat the Yankees 9-5, so Boston has a five-game lead in the AL East with seven games left. The Red Sox's Magic Number for clinching the division is now 3, and they can do that as early as Tuesday night.

Doug Fister (5.1-9-3-0-9, 86) allowed a first-inning run, but kept the game at 1-0 until Devers tied it with a solo home run in the fifth. The Reds took a 3-1 lead with two outs in the bottom half. Jackie Bradley committed a throwing error on Jackson Stephens's single to short center. That scored one run and then Stephens scored on Billy Hamilton's triple into the right-field corner. Hamilton also scored in the seventh. He walked and, after being caught in a rundown when Brandon Workman tried to pick him off, raced around the bases and scored when Dustin Pedroia made an errant throw.

In the eighth, Christian Vazquez walked and Xander Bogaerts singled to left. Raisel Iglesias (who has eight six-out saves this year) came in from the pen and got Pedroia to ground back to the mound, but the runners advanced to second and third. Andrew Benintendi walked. Betts cleared the bases with a double to left-center, tying the game at 4-4. Mitch Moreland fouled to first. Devers hit a roller to third. Eugenio Suarez's throw to first was a bit off-target, forcing Joey Votto to dive towards the outfield. Devers was safe and Betts alertly sprinted to the plate to give Boston the lead. Betts has 21 RBI in his last 14 games - and 99 for the season.

Addison Reed pitched a perfect eighth, striking out two, and Craig Kimbrel pitched a clean ninth, getting a called third strike on Jesse Winker to end the game.

Kimbrel has not allowed a run in his last 11 appearances (11 IP, 3 H, 3 BB, 19 K). He has 122 strikeouts this season, the most ever by a Red Sox reliever not named Dick Radatz (who fanned 144 in 1962, 162 in 1963, and 181 in 1964). When Radatz followed those three years with 121 strikeouts in 1965, he did it in 124.1 innings; Kimbrel got the same number of Ks this year in 66 innings.

Red Sox relievers have not allowed a run in their last 21.2 innings. In the team's current 14-3 stretch, the bullpen has a 1.11 ERA (nine earned runs in 73 innings; 95 strikeouts).

With only seven home games remaining on the schedule, Boston finished its road schedule with a 45-36 record. In the previous 32 seasons (since 1985), the Red Sox have won as many as 45 road games only five other times: 45 in 1999, 51 in 2002, 45 in 2007, 45 in 2011, and 46 in 2016.

The Red Sox's eight extra-inning wins on the road (against only two losses) tied the franchise record set in 1956. Overall, the Red Sox have also won each of their last seven extra-inning games, their longest season streak since winning seven straight in 1972. The 1938 team won its first eight extra-inning games.

The Red Sox finished with a 16-4 record against the National League. In the 21 years since the introduction of interleague games, Boston has won 15+ games only twice (16-2 in 2006).

The Red Sox (91-64) have won 90+ games in 13 of the last 20 seasons, which is tied with the Yankees for the most 90+-win seasons during that time.

A note from yesterday: Reds pitcher Luke Farrell pitched the ninth inning against the Red Sox. Elias says it was the first time in major league history that a pitcher appeared in a game against a team managed by his father. However, that is only pitchers. ... ESPN's Scott Lauber notes that Moises Alou of the Cubs played against the Giants (managed by Felipe Alou) in 2004.

Doug Fister / Jackson Stephens

Bogaerts, SS
Pedroia, 2B
Benintendi, LF
Betts, RF
Moreland, 1B
Devers, 3B
Bradley, CF
Leon, C
Fister, P

MFY Watch: The Yankees remain 4 GB. The Red Sox's Magic Number to clinch the AL East is 5.

G154: Red Sox 5, Reds 0

Red Sox - 100 003 100 - 5  7  0
Reds    - 000 000 000 - 0  3  2

Boston rolled to its 90th victory of the season behind the sharp pitching of Eduardo Rodriguez (7.2-3-0-2-6, 112) and a three-run homer from Mitch Moreland. In their last 16 games, the Red Sox are 13-3.

As they did in Friday's game, the Red Sox scored in the opening frame. Xander Bogaerts doubled, went to third on a passed ball, and scored on Brock Holt's sac fly to center. And this time, the Reds came up empty in the bottom half, with Rodriguez setting them down on nine pitches. The Reds did not get their first hit until Joey Votto singled in the fourth - and he was thrown out at second on the play trying for a double.

In the sixth, after Holt reached on an error and Andrew Benintendi walked, Moreland hit his 20th home run to center field. With two outs in the seventh, Amir Garrett walked both Bogaerts and Holt. Benintendi singled to left, scoring Bogaerts. Holt was thrown out at third.

Rodriguez departed with two outs in the eighth and a man on first. Carson Smith struck out Jesse Winker, his only batter. The Reds did not hit a fair ball against any of Joe Kelly's 28 pitches in the ninth. He struck out Phillip Ervin, then walked Zack Cozart and Votto. He closed out the game by striking out Eugenio Suarez and Scooter Gennett.

Mookie Betts was scratched from the original lineup because of a left foot contusion. He fouled a ball off his foot on Friday.

MFY Watch: The Yankees beat the Blue Jays 5-1 and clinched a wild-card spot. They remain 4 GB and the Red Sox's Magic Number to clinch the AL East is now 5.

Eduardo Rodriguez / Robert Stephenson

Bogaerts, SS
Benintendi, LF Holt, 2B
Betts, RF Benintendi, LF
Moreland, 1B
Vazquez, C
Devers, 3B
Holt, 2B Young, RF
Bradley, CF
Rodriguez, P

MFY Watch: The Yankees are 4 GB and the Red Sox's Magic Number to clinch the AL East is 6. ... MFY/TOR (4 PM).

G153: Red Sox 5, Reds 4

Red Sox - 100 400 000 - 5  6  0
Reds    - 400 000 000 - 4  8  1

Rafael Devers erased the Reds' 4-2 lead with a three-run homer and a trio of relievers - David Price, Addison Reed, and Craig Kimbrel - made that 5-4 advantage stand up.

Boston's Magic Number for clinching the AL East is now 6 - because the Blue Jays beat the Yankees 8-1. Not only did Ryan Goins hit a grand slam, but he got Todd Frazier to fall for the ol' hidden ball trick.

The Red Sox began the night by loading the bases with no outs. Xander Bogaerts singled before Sal Romano walked Dustin Pedroia, threw a wild pitch, and walked Andrew Benintendi. It was disappointing that the Red Sox could bring home just one run as Mookie Betts struck out, Mitch Moreland hit a sacrifice fly to left, and Christian Vazquez popped to first.

In the bottom of the inning, the night could not have begun any worse for Rick Porcello. Billy Hamilton singled, Zack Cozart doubled to deep right-center (Jackie Bradley nearly made yet another fantastic catch, but the ball glanced off his glove), Joey Votto walked on four pitches, and Scooter Gennett hit a first-pitch grand slam to right. Thirteen pitches - and Cincinnati had a 4-1 lead.

Gennett became the first player in baseball history with four grand slams and a four-home run game in the same season. He hit four dongs on June 6; his first three grand slams were hit on June 6, August 10, and August 19. (Lou Gehrig is the only other player to accomplish both at any point of his career. Biscuit Pants hit four homers on June 3, 1932 (he nearly hit a fifth one in the ninth inning) and totaled four grand slams in 1934 (May 10, May 13, June 10, July 5).)

Boston rallied in the fourth. Betts doubled to right and Moreland walked. Vazquez doubled to right-center, scoring Betts. And Rafael Devers homered to deep right, turning a two-run deficit into a one-run lead. It was Devers's first long ball since August 19 (116 plate appearances). And it atoned for his baserunning error in the second inning. Devers led off with a double to left, but stepped off the bag as the ball was being thrown in from the outfield and was tagged out by Cozart.

David Price relieved Porcello (4-4-4-3-3, 57) for the fifth inning. Price allowed a one-out single before getting two fly outs. In the sixth, Scott Schebler hit a leadoff single before Price struck out the next three hitters.

And then Price opened the top of the seventh with a first-pitch, opposite-field single. It was the third hit of his major league career, coming long after singles on June 17, 2009 and June 20, 2010. Since the beginning of 2011, Price had gone 0-for-37 (3 walks and 19 strikeouts).

Price allowed a single and a walk in the seventh before Addison Reed got Eugenio Suarez on a fly to center. The Reds got a harmless two-out single in the eighth. And when Cozart singled with one out in the ninth, Craig Kimbrel got Votto to ground into a game-ending double play. Moreland gloved the grounder and stepped on the bag, then ran towards Cozart, who had stopped running halfway to second. The rundown went Moreland-to-Bogaerts-to-Kimbrel-to-Pedroia (3-6-1-4).

Long At-Bat: Jon Jay of the Cubs saw 15 pitches when he led off the fifth inning against the Brewers. Jay fouled off ten straight pitches against Brandon Woodruff: fsbbffffffffff-single. Jay is the third player this season to hit 11 foul balls in an at-bat, joining Shane Peterson and J.D. Martinez. Remarkably, all three players ended their long at-bats with a hit.

Rick Porcello / Sal Ramono

Bogaerts, SS
Pedroia, 2B
Benintendi, LF
Betts, RF
Moreland, 1B
Vazquez, C
Devers, 3B
Bradley, CF
Porcello, P

ESPN's Scott Lauber asks: "Is Craig Kimbrel The Best Reliever Of This Decade?"

Here are some factoids about the Red Sox's success in extra innings:

Extra Innings: 15+ Wins & .833+ Winning Percentage

1949 Cleveland   18-1   .947
1959 Pirates     19-2   .905
2012 Orioles     16-2   .889
2017 Red Sox     15-3   .833
1927 Cubs        15-3   .833

• One more victory would make the Red Sox only the 14th team since at least 1913 to get to 16 extra-inning wins in a season. Just five clubs in that time have reached 17, with the 1959 Pirates the only club at 19.

• [The Red Sox have] gone at least 12 on eight occasions and at least 15 on four occasions ... Those four contests of 15-plus frames (3-1 record) are tied for the most in a season in Sox history with the 1951 club (also 3-1). They also account for nearly half of the nine total MLB games this season to go at least 15.

• Red Sox pitchers have combined to allow eight earned runs in 57.2 extra innings, for a 1.25 ERA. They have allowed a .185/.258/.231 line, with 55 strikeouts and just five extra-base hits. Despite facing the most batters in extra innings of any team, Boston's .489 OPS allowed trails only the Cubs (.421), who have played just six extra-inning games.

MFY Watch: With the Yankees 3 GB, the Red Sox's Magic Number for clinching the AL East is 8. ... MFY/TOR.