G40: Athletics 8, Red Sox 3

Red Sox   - 200 100 000 - 3  6  0
Athletics - 300 302 00x - 8 13  0

Hector Velazquez (5-9-6-2-4, 101) allowed three home runs, including back-to-back shots in the first inning.

The Red Sox made Sonny Gray (6-4-2-3-8, 103) throw 31 pitches in the first inning. Mookie Betts and Dustin Pedroia both singled. Hanley Ramirez's single scored Betts and, after a walk to Mitch Moreland loaded the bases, Chris Young's fly to center scored Pedroia.

The A's wiped that lead away very quickly. Rajai Davis singled, but was thrown out trying to steal second. Matt Joyce walked and went to second on a wild pitch. Jed Lowrie crushed a two-run homer to center and Khris Davis followed by hitting a solo shot to right an 0-2 pitch.

Velazquez retired the A's in order in the second and wriggled out of trouble in the third. Davis appeared to have tripled to center, but after the Red Sox challenged the call at third, he was ruled out. (After his slide, he came off the bag for a split second and Deven Marrero tagged his leg.) Joyce and Lowrie then both singled, but Davis grounded into a double play.

Moreland tied the game with a home run in the fourth, but Oakland retook the lead in the bottom half. Ryon Healy singled and scored with one out on Trevor Plouffe's double. Chad Pinder followed with a two-run home run. The bottom of the order added two more runs off Robbie Ross in the sixth.

Boston remains 4 GB in the East.

Hector Velazquez / Sonny Gray

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

Hector Velazquez, who was signed out of the Mexican League exactly three months ago, will make his major league debut in Oakland. In five starts for Pawtucket, Velazquez, a 28-year-old right-hander, has a 1.55 ERA.

You can find Velazquez's PawSox game log here. In each start, he pitched a little deeper than the start before: 4.2 innings, 5.0, 6.0, 6.1, 7.0. He has allowed five earned runs in those starts, but three of them came in his first start. Since then, he has an 0.74 ERA (two earned runs in 24.1 innings). Overall, he has walked five and struck out 20.

If you are asking "Who Is Hector Velazquez?", SoSH's Brandon Magee has the answer. After seeing Velazquez pitch in spring training, manager John Farrell offered this assessment: "A very efficient delivery. Repeatable. He threw strikes. There was a decent depth to his cutter, slider. But he looked very comfortable on the mound for just joining camp."

G39: Red Sox 5, Cardinals 4 (13)

Red Sox   - 000 000 220 000 1 - 5 11  0
Cardinals - 130 000 000 000 0 - 4 12  2

Damn sorry I missed this one.

After rallying to tie the game in the late innings, the Red Sox got a 13th-inning rally going after there were two outs. Mitch Moreland hit a ground rule double to left. Jackie Bradley, who had got the Red Sox on the board with a two-run homer in the seventh, was intentionally walked. Chris Young batted for the pitcher and singled to center, scoring Moreland.

After Rick Porcello (6-9-4-3-6, 87) left, the Red Sox used eight relievers. Fernando Abad pitched the eleventh and twelfth innings, allowing one walk and facing only six batters. Ben Taylor issued a two-out walk in the thirteenth, but held on for the save.

It was the first game in Red Sox history that the team had eight different relievers appear in a game and allow no runs.

Rick Porcello / Mike Leake

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

Leake leads the National League in ERA (1.94) and is third in WHIP (0.993).

G38: Red Sox 6, Cardinals 3

Red Sox   - 110 020 020 - 6  6  0
Cardinals - 003 000 000 - 3  6  3

From Mookie Betts leading off the game with a home run to Craig Kimbrel striking out the final St. Louis batter with a 99-mph fastball, this game was pretty much positive from start to end.

Eduardo Rodriguez (6-5-3-2-5, 110) stumbled in the third and the Red Sox lost the lead for a short time. But he bounced back, and the bullpen did its job. Only six of the final 26 Cardinals batters - starting with the first out in the third inning - reached base and none of them advanced past first.

Jackie Bradley hit a solo homer in the second inning. (That blast was to the opposite field, as was his seventh-inning single, a good sign.) Armed with a 2-0 lead, Rodriguez allowed a single to Kolten Wong, the #8 hitter, to start the third and then he hit opposing pitcher Lance Lynn with a pitch. Dexter Fowler doubled to left, scoring Wong. Tommy Pham's sacrifice fly to center scored Lynn. Fowler took third on that fly and scored when Matt Carpenter popped to short left-center. Xander Bogaerts went out and made a sliding catch; his throw home was on target, but late. The Cardinals led 3-2.

The Red Sox's fifth-inning rally sort of mirrored the Cardinals' third, with the bottom of the order setting the table. Bradley walked and Deven Marrero reached on an infield error. Rodriguez's dribbler in front of the plate accomplished the same thing as a bunt, advancing the runners to second and third. Bradley scored on Betts's groundout to short, and Dustin Pedroia's single put the Red Sox in the lead, as Marrero scored.

Boston tried to get some insurance in the seventh against Jonathan Broxton. Bradley singled and Marrero bunted him to second. But JBJ was stranded there as pinch-hitter Chris Young flied to center and Betts grounded to short.

The Red Sox had better luck in the eighth. Sam Tuivailala retired Pedroia, but Bogaerts dumped a single into short right. Lefty Brett Cecil came in and before throwing a pitch, he seemed to have picked off Bogaerts. But Bogaerts took off for second and somehow slid head-first around Aledmys Diaz's tag, pulling his left arm back and rolling slightly towards the outfield, jabbing his right hand at the base. The Cardinals challenged the safe call - and it was upheld.

Cecil then threw nine pitches, walking Andrew Benintendi (bsbbb) and Mitch Moreland (bbbb), leaving the bases loaded for the next reliever. That was Miguel Socolovich, against whom Christian Vazquez lifted a fly to short right-center. Fowler made the catch and Bogaerts took off from third. Even though the fly ball was not deep, the throw had to be perfect - and it was not. Bogaerts slid across the plate, making it 5-3. More fun ensued when Bradley popped a pitch over by the left field line. Pham was standing in foul territory when he tried to catch the ball; it hit off his glove and landed in fair territory. Benintendi scored easily but Moreland, running hard from first with two outs, was thrown out at the plate (though it was somewhat close).

After Rodriguez pitched six innings, Robby Scott issued a one-out walk in the seventh, but got the next man before handing the ball to Heath Hembree, who got a force play to end the inning. Matt Barnes was warming up while the Red Sox batted in the top of the eighth, but it was Hembree who returned to the mound. He retired the first two batters, gave up a single, and then got the final out on a popup to third.

Kimbrel threw only eight pitches. Randal Grichuk popped to right, Wong flied to left, and Mike Adams struck out, being utterly overmatched on the last two pitches, both of which he swung at and missed. ... Kimbrel has now retired 23 of his last 24 batters.

Eduardo Rodriguez / Lance Lynn

Betts, CF
Pedroia, 2B
Bogaerts, SS
Benintendi, LF
Moreland, 1B
Vazquez, C
Bradley, CF
Marrero, 3B
Rodriguez, P

The Red Sox (19-18, 4 GB) have two games in St. Louis before going to Oakland for four games. Then a day off next Monday before the Rangers and Mariners visit Fenway.

Craig Kimbrel's last 15 batters:

K
K
K
K
K
K
K
Infield single
K
K
K
K
6-3
K
K

MLB: Slow To Learn & Mookie Improves On 2016

David Schoenfield, ESPN:

The changing face of the leadoff hitter is a revolution that has long been called for by statistical analysts, stressing that getting on base is a more important factor in scoring runs than speed and the ability to steal bases. Some managers are finally willing to toss aside any notion of convention by putting these sluggers in the leadoff spot.

It is astounding that it has taken so long - as in more than 100 years long! -- for the people in charge of constructing baseball teams/lineups to realize that perhaps the most "important factor in scoring runs" is "getting on base". I would call it an essential factor.

What is even more amazing is there are people in high management positions in this multi-billion-dollar industry who seem to have not yet realized this. As Branch Rickey wrote, almost 65 years ago, in a seminal piece of baseball analysis: "Baseball people generally are allergic to new ideas."

Matt Collins (Over The Monster) explains that after his fantastic 2016 season, Mookie Betts is still improving: fewer strikeouts, more walks, still aggressive on pitches in the zone while avoiding non-strikes, and more power.

A commenter: "I also think any article about Betts should remind everyone that he was a second baseman throughout his minor league career. So, in addition to his awesome hitting, Betts is providing (way) above average value playing RF, while only having two-ish seasons worth of pro experience at that position. When we consider other position change experiments (Hanley to LF, Swihart to LF), that is... astonishing."

G37: Rays 11, Red Sox 2

Rays    - 110 100 107 - 11 16  1
Red Sox - 100 010 000 -  2  6  1

Any thought of a Red Sox comeback was put to rest when Robbie Ross and (especially) Heath Hembree imploded in the ninth inning.

Drew Pomeranz (3-3-2-3-3, 57) left the game with left triceps soreness after throwing his fourth-inning warm-up pitches.

Mookie Betts walked and stole second in the first inning, and he scored on Xander Bogaerts's double. Dustin Pedroia's two-out single scored Deven Marrero in the fourth.

Evan Longoria's single off Matt Barnes in the seventh gave Tampa Bay a two-run lead, 4-2. That seemed like enough of a cushion even though the Red Sox had three innings remaining in which to bat. It turned out to be an accurate assessment, but the Rays put seven more runs on the board anyway. It was 5-2 when Hembree entered the game with two outs. The first three batters he faced drove in a run with a single, then Steven Souza hit a three-run homer. Hembree also gave up a double before finally getting the third out.

The game took 4:32 to play, missing the record for a nine-inning game by only 13 minutes.

David Price's scheduled minor league start for Pawtucket was rained out, so he threw a simulated game indoors instead. After throwing 75 pitches, Price said, "I threw all of my pitches to both sides of the plate. I did really well today." He plans on pitching for the PawSox in Buffalo on Friday.

Matt Andriese / Drew Pomeranz

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

David Price will start for Pawtucket today. He is scheduled for five innings or 70-75 pitches.

Craig Kimbrel has faced 59 batters this season and struck out 33 of them. His K/9 of 17.8 would be the highest of his career. Kimbrel has walked only two batters all year, both coming on April 9. Since then, he has faced 48 batters without issuing a base on balls.

Mookie Betts became the Red Sox's current leadoff hitter last Saturday; he has 12 RBIs in his last six games at the top of the order. Betts is the first player with three games of three or more RBIs from the leadoff slot over a span of five days (4-1-3-0-3) since Alfonso Soriano (Cubs, 2008). The only other Red Sox players to do that were Tommy Harper (1973) and Darren Lewis (1998).

In yesterday's Padres/White Sox game, Jose Abreu reached on an error. Avisail Garcia was at the plate. San Diego pitcher Trevor Cahill had this sequence: ball, foul, swinging strike (Abreu to second on wild pitch), ball (Abreu to third on wild pitch), ball, ball (García walked; Abreu scored on wild pitch). Cahill also threw a wild pitch earlier in the game and now has eight this year.

G36: Red Sox 6, Rays 3

Rays    - 010 020 000 - 3  3  0
Red Sox - 002 040 00x - 6  7  0

After losing the lead in the top of the fifth, the Red Sox quickly grabbed it back in the bottom half. Chris Sale (7-2-3-2-12, 111), Joe Kelly, and Craig Kimbrel limited the Rays to three hits.

The two clubs traded home runs in the early innings. Logan Morrison's solo shot got Tampa Bay on the board in the second. Mookie Betts gave the Red Sox a 2-1 lead, as Sandy Leon had walked before he went over the Wall. In the fifth, Sale walked Derek Norris with two outs and Kevin Kiermaier followed with a dong, giving the Rays a 3-2 edge.

Leon worked a nine-pitch walk against Blake Snell (5.2-6-6-3-5, 113) to start the Red Sox's fifth. Jackie Bradley doubled to left and Leon went to third. Deven Marrero doubled to center, scoring both baserunners, and then he scored when Betts doubled to left. Dustin Pedroia bunted Betts to third and he scored on Xander Bogaerts's groundout.

Armed with a three-run lead, the Red Sox pitchers shut down any attempt by the Rays to get back into the game. After Sale walked Daniel Robertson with one out in the sixth, he struck out Evan Longoria and Rickie Weeks. Corey Dickerson reached on an infield single with one out in the eighth, and Kelly responded by whiffing Steven Souza and Brad Miller. Kimbrel set down the Rays in order in the ninth, striking out the final two hitters.

Sale struck out at least one batter in every inning (223 112 1), including seven in the first three innings. It was his seventh straight start with 10+ strikeouts.

Blake Snell / Chris Sale

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

The Red Sox (18-17, 4.5 GB) have been unable to generate any momentum this season, as the results from their 35 games show:

W W
L L
W
L
W
L
W
L
W W W W
L
W
L L
W
L L
W
L
W
L
W W
L L
W W
L L
W
L

That is the very definition of "treading water".

However, I will admit that it's nice that their longest losing streak is only two games. The Red Sox and Orioles are the only two teams that have not had a losing streak of three or more games this year.

G35: Rays 5, Red Sox 4

Rays    - 000 230 000 - 5 11  3
Red Sox - 000 000 400 - 4  5  2

After the Red Sox were silenced by Alex Cobb for six innings - they managed only one single and two walks - they broke through for four runs in the seventh. But they could not do anything more against the Rays bullpen, squandering a prime scoring chance in the eighth before going down quietly in the ninth.

The Rays built a 5-0 lead off Rick Porcello (6-9-5-0-7, 105) in the middle innings. After an infield error (yep, by the third baseman), a single, and a passed ball, Tim Beckham drove in two runs with a two-out single in the fourth. Tampa Bay began the fifth with Derek Norris's single and Corey Dickerson's run-scoring double. One out later, Evan Longoria homered to left.

This was all that Cobb (6.1-4-4-3-5, 107) allowed through the first six innings: Xander Bogaerts's single with two outs in the first, a walk to Bogaerts with one out in the fourth, and a leadoff walk to Mitch Moreland in the fifth.

With one out in the seventh, however, everything changed (thanks in no small part by some sloppy Rays fielding). Chris Young doubled to right. Moreland drew another walk. Josh Rutledge reached on infield single and Young scored on Cobb's throwing error. Sandy Leon followed with a ground-rule double to right, scoring Moreland and Rutledge. After Jose Alvarado relieved Cobb, Rays second baseman Brad Miller made two errors on Jackie Bradley's grounder, allowing Leon to score the fourth run. Erasmo Ramirez came in from the pen with the potential tying run at second and retired Mookie Betts and Dustin Pedroia.

Ramirez dug a hole for Tampa Bay in the bottom of the eighth when Bogaerts doubled and Benintendi walked. After Young flied out - and Bogaerts took third - Rays manager Kevin Cash called on Danny Farquhar. He struck out Moreland. Then Alex Colome got Rutledge to ground out to third. Colome remained on the mound and retired Leon, Bradley, and Betts in the ninth.

ESPN's Scott Lauber thought that Rutledge's spot in the eighth inning would have been a perfect spot for Hanley Ramirez to pinch-hit, but "manager John Farrell said Ramirez told him Friday morning that he would need at least one more game off after experiencing spasms in his right trapezius muscle Wednesday in Milwaukee".

The Red Sox are 18-17.

Alex Cobb / Rick Porcello

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

Red Sox Announcement: "Due to sustained periods of rain expected Saturday evening, first pitch of Saturday's Red Sox-Rays game has been rescheduled [from 7:10 PM] to 1:05 PM."

ESPN's Scott Lauber writes about the black hole that is third base:

Through 34 games, the Boston Red Sox already have used six third basemen. And between them, Pablo Sandoval, Brock Holt, Marco Hernandez, Steve Selsky, Josh Rutledge and Deven Marrero have posted a .574 OPS, dead last in the majors at the position. Worse yet, they have combined for 12 errors, four more than any other team's total at third base.

ESPN's stats actually have Boston's third basemen's combined OPS at .587, still 30th out of 30 teams (also well below the AL average of .752). The Red Sox's third basemen are 28th in on-base percentage (.267), 29th in slugging (.320), and 26th in batting average (.216).

Two words that we may be hearing sooner rather than later: "Rafael Devers". Sox Prospects on Devers, who is 20 years old and currently in Portland (AA):

All-Star potential regardless of position due to his value at the plate. Potential to be a plus hitter for average with plus-to-better power. One of the most exciting young players in the system in years. Mature approach for his age, has shown the ability to handle aggressive assignments.

New Book By David Ortiz Will Make You Hate Bobby Valentine Even More Than You Do Now (Which Should Still Be A Lot, Even Though He's Been Gone For Nearly Five Years)

From Papi: My Story, by David Ortiz with Michael Holley (to be published May 16, 2017):

Everyone I knew was unimpressed with Valentine, the new manager of the Red Sox. He was hired in late November 2011, and the negative reaction from my baseball friends was instant. There were the sarcastic "good luck" messages. There were ominous warnings to get ready. Some even suggested that, at 36 years old, I probably wanted to retire rather than play for someone like him. ...

I did some research and learned that there was basically one person in the organization, team president Larry Lucchino, who really wanted to hire Valentine. That was it. One person. Still, I had to perform regardless of who was managing. How bad could Bobby V really be?

The drama began almost immediately in spring training. I remember fighting the thought, very early, We're going to have an absolutely terrible year.

It was all about him in the spring. It was as if he wanted to prove how smart he was by running us through all these drills he'd used while managing in Japan, drills we had never done before. Bobby was in his own bubble, and I just wanted to get him out of it and tell him, "F--- you." ...

The bigger issue was how he expected players who had been in the big leagues a long time to immediately do things his way without any missteps. There had been a lot of conversations about our team the year before and how our lack of accountability led to our September collapse. Maybe Bobby was told to come in and boss around full-grown men. Maybe the Red Sox wanted to hire a daddy, not a manager. ...

I was competitive enough to think that we could win a bunch of games despite Bobby's ego. It didn't take long for me to realize I'd been too optimistic. And when I say not long, I mean the first series of the season. We opened in Detroit and were swept by the Tigers. It was impossible to ignore the comments from my teammates about Bobby's managing, how he made decisions that didn't make sense and how generally clueless and distant he was. The next stop on our trip was Toronto. On the flight there, I experienced a first in my career.

Bobby's seat was in the middle of the plane, and the players were in the back. That day I was near the front of our section. I remember looking up and seeing a line of my teammates walking toward me. They were pissed. They said, "We want that mother------ fired before the airplane lands."

Valentine relates his side of the story here. (Spoiler: He comes off as an asshole.) It's disgusting to hear the two announcers falling over themselves to kiss his ass.

I am curious to see Nick Cafardo's reaction, since he pushed for Valentine to be hired even before BV was considered a viable candidate and believes to this day that hiring Valentine was the correct and smart move. ... Also: SoSH discussion and the Cafardo thread.

NESN: Dave O'Brien Forgets Basic Facts - Day After Day After Day

The Red Sox played three games in Milwaukee this week, and Dave O'Brien, NESN's play-by-play announcer, displayed an ongoing forgetfulness that had me wondering if he had perhaps struck his head on something hard during the first game of the series and decided not to seek medical attention.

Tuesday

Mookie Betts, as Boston's leadoff hitter, was the first man to bat in the game. The first inning was only a couple of minutes old when Brewers starter Wily Peralta threw Betts a full-count fastball. O'Brien made the call:

And the 3-2 to Betts ... There's a shot, drilled to deep left-center field, sailing back, and she is out of here! ... He put a charge into that one, for his fourth home run of the season, and all of a sudden, the Red Sox, these last several games, have been hitting them all over the ball park. [Jerry Remy offered his thoughts.] So the Red Sox on top just like that, 1-0.

The Brewers scored five times in the bottom of the first inning and never looked back. Eric Thames batted with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning. O'Brien:

The Red Sox have never led and have never tied Milwaukee in this game.

Wednesday

The Brewers scored two runs in the first inning. The Red Sox tied the game with single runs in the second and fourth innings, and prepared to bat in the fifth. O'Brien:

The Red Sox two and the Brewers two. The Red Sox have not had a lead yet, in this series.

Thursday

Betts began the afternoon game with a double, and eventually scored on an infield error. O'Brien:

And the Red Sox, for the first time in the series, have a lead.

Boston was still holding onto that 1-0 advantage as Mitch Moreland batted in the top of the sixth. O'Brien:

The Red Sox did not have a lead in the first two games here. Got a run quickly in the first inning [today], but that's been the scoring.

During most broadcasts, when an announcer says something that is clearly incorrect, he will correct himself - and fairly quickly. Either he realizes his own mistake, his booth partner tells him (silently or otherwise), or someone in the production truck relays the proper information via his headphones. However it happens, it usually happens. But for whatever reason, O'Brien made the exact same mistake four times in three games - on something that he witnessed with his own eyes and told us about - and he never realized it. And no one at NESN noticed it either or thought to correct him.

And because O'Brien annoyed me throughout yesterday's game (actually, he annoys me every game), and I took a lot of notes, I will share them with you.

Other Stuff

O'Brien made a mistake after the top of the second inning on Thursday. The Red Sox had just left the bases loaded and he said Boston had left five men on base through the first two innings. They had actually left four. (It was only two innings, it should be easy to keep track of the LOB.)

O'Brien loves to say, when the count is 0-2, that the count is "quickly 0-2". No, an 0-2 count never arrives "quickly". It always takes two pitches to get to 0-2 - exactly two - every single time. Despite the obviousness of this, O'Brien did this at least four times yesterday: for Jackie Bradley and Domingo Santana in the second inning, for Jimmy Nelson in the third ("quickly in the hole 0-2"), and for Aguilar in the fifth ("quickly out in front 0-2").

Towards the end of yesterday's game, O'Brien noted that the Red Sox were 8-1 in their last nine day games. How in the world is what they did in different parks in different cities against different players  (and maybe not even having the same players in their lineup, but certainly having different pitchers working) at all relevant? It was, like a lot of what is said during games, nothing more than noise pollution.

Eric Thames

Finally, and more seriously, O'Brien made vague comments about Eric Thames throughout the series. The fact that Thames had played in Korea, hit a bunch of home runs, then come back to North America and blasted 11 homers in April (and 13, to date) had, in O'Brien's words, "raised a lot of eyebrows". Thames had become "the talk of baseball" - and it was clear he did not mean that in a good way.

So why were those eyebrows raised, Dave? What is everyone in baseball talking about? Not surprisingly, in roughly 11 hours of broadcasting over three days, O'Brien never actually said. He implied vaguely that Thames might be, you know, using performance-enhancing drugs - even though the guy had been tested four times by the end of April, including twice in one week. O'Brien must have forgotten to pass along that fact. (MLB says all of its tests are completely random.)

(Also, two other players in addition to Thames have hit 13 home runs this year, two others have hit 12, and four guys have hit 11. So 13 is not a crazy high number. Have those other eight guys also been subject to wild rumours about illegal drug use? Has O'Brien cast unfounded doubt on their accomplishments? ... Maybe I shouldn't give him any ideas.)

O'Brien's approach is a cowardly tactic. O'Brien - and every other announcer who sinks to the level of this tawdry bullshit - should have the guts to be forthright. Say what you mean or, please, STFU.

G34: Red Sox 4, Brewers 1

Red Sox - 100 000 003 - 4  8  0
Brewers - 000 001 000 - 1  5  2

The Red Sox had squandered numerous scoring opportunities on both Wednesday night and Thursday afternoon. Over the two games (nine innings last night and the first eight today), Boston was 3-for-23 with RATS.) They had left the bases loaded in both the second and eighth innings before Mookie Betts, who doubled and scored Boston's first run, crushed a three-run homer in the top of the ninth, providing a huge wave of relief. And Craig Kimbrel showed just how fucking filthy he is right now, striking out two in the eighth (ending the Brewers' threat with the potential go-ahead run on third) and fanning Milwaukee's 3-4-5 hitters in the ninth on nine pitches.

Eduardo Rodriguez (6-3-1-0-5, 87) was superb. He allowed a one-out double to Keon Broxton in the first inning, but after Christian Vazquez erased Broxton on an attempted steal of third, Rodriguez retired the next 13 batters (with only three balls leaving the infield). Manny Pina singled to open the sixth and scored on Jonathan Villar's double into the left field corner.

With the game tied 1-1, Manager John Farrell had a tough decision in the top of the seventh. Josh Rutledge singled and the pitcher's spot was up with one out. Rodriguez had looked bad trying to bunt in the second, so Farrell sent up Chris Young as a pinch-hitter, ending Rodriguez's day at only 87 pitches. (Oh, how we love playing baseball by two sets of rules!) Home plate umpire Ben May ruled that Young was hit by Jimmy Nelson's 1-0 pitch, but after the Brewers challenged, it was overturned, as the ball had actually hit the knob of the bat. Young eventually struck out and, after a pitching change, so did Betts. (Mookie reached base in his other four plate appearances, however, walking in both the second and fifth.)

Joe Kelly allowed a double to deep left to Travis Shaw in the bottom of the seventh, before striking out Domingo Santana on three pitches for the second out. Jesus Aguilar smoked a hard grounder to third that Rutledge made a fantastic back-hand pick of, saving a run, and throwing to first to end the inning.

After leaving the bases loaded in the second, the Red Sox could not advance a runner past first for the next five innings. Corey Knebel, who finished the seventh in relief of Nelson (6.2-4-1-4-8, 106), fell behind Dustin Pedroia 3-1 before FY smoked a double to right-center. Knebel's 1-1 pitch to Xander Bogaerts got away from Pina, but Pedroia did not get a good look at the ball and by the time he did, he wisely decided to stay put. Bogaerts singled through the infield into left and Pedroia (who obviously would have scored from third) could advance only one base. During Andrew Benintendi's at-bat, Bogaerts stole second. Benintendi popped out to second. Knebel then walked Mitch Moreland, loading the bases. Knebel kept all of his pitches to Jackie Bradley up, between the belt and the chest. Bradley was ahead in the count 3-1, but then swung and missed twice. Knebel followed that by striking out Rutledge, leaving leave three Boston runners on base. (Pedroia had stranded three runners in the second.)

In the bottom of the eighth, Matt Barnes walked Orlando Arcia with one out. Eric Thames was announced as a pinch-hitter for the pitcher - and Farrell brought in Kimbrel (who had retired 30 of his last 32 batters). Kimbrel simply overpowered Thames, striking him out on a 98-mph fastball down the heart of the plate. Villar grounded a 1-1 pitch back at Kimbrel. It went through his legs (Kimbrel was sideways in his follow-through and could not reach back and down for the ball) and caromed to Pedroia, who tried for the force at second, but was too late. Kimbrel threw a wild pitch that put Arcia on third, but he struck out Broxton for the third out.

Neftali Feliz was on the hill for the top of the ninth and he had a lot of trouble throwing strikes (and perhaps a lack of concentration). He fell behind Vazquez 3-0 and after a called strike, walked him. Deven Marrero - who took over at third on a double switch when Kimbrel came in - took a ball before bunting to the first base side. Feliz grabbed the ball and threw to second. The throw was a little high but Arcia had it easily - and then dropped it. Both runners were safe and Boston had the top of the order coming up, with no one out. Betts took two balls and looked at a called strike before being unable to check his swing on a slider that was way outside and low. It's a pitch that Betts rarely even thinks about offering at, and it looked odd to see him miss so badly. Then Feliz came in with his 2-2 - and Betts smoked a rocket to deep left. It was his fifth home run of the season; his 22 RBI are tied for the team lead with Benintendi.

Pedroia followed the dong with a single to left-center, but foolishly tried for a double and was thrown out very easily. Feliz was pulled, and Carlos Torres got the next two Sox hitters.

In the ninth, Kimbrel faced Hernan Perez (called, swinging, swinging), Shaw (called, foul, called), and Santana (foul, swinging, swinging).

There was an interesting play in the top of the third. Bogaerts singled and, after Benintendi flied out, Moreland hit a line drive up the middle. The ball was sinking and Villar caught it near the ground behind second base. Then the ball came loose and he turned and flipped it to Arcia at second for the force and Arcia threw to first for an inning-ending double play. Both Bogaerts and Moreland thought the ball had been caught. Bogaerts never moved from first base and Moreland, who started running when he saw Villar's flip to Arcia, nearly collided with him at the bag.

NESN's Jerry Remy - a second baseman like Villar - said he was "convinced" Villar had deliberately dropped the ball. As far as it being an accident, Remy said, "I'm not buying that." The umpires gathered and discussed the play, and allowed the double play to stand. While they were talking, NESN showed some replays, but they were all from too far away, so the ball was either a tiny speck or not visible. After the commercial break, they had a better look, and it sure looked like Villar dropped the ball on purpose.

The Red Sox finished the road trip 3-3 and are headed home for a weekend series against the Rays.

Top of 1st Inning: Mookie Betts doubles, Dustin Pedroia bunts him to third, and he scores on an E3 on Xanders Bogaerts's grounder.

And then Dave O'Brien: "The Red Sox, for the first time in the series, have a lead." (Then he said the same thing in the top of the sixth.)

Does O'Brien have a brain disorder? ... I am fairly serious when I ask that question.

Eduardo Rodriguez / Jimmy Nelson

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

Roster Move: Kyle Kendrick to Pawtucket, Robbie Ross to Boston.

The Big Question Before The Third Game At Miller Park: Will Dave O'Brien claim - for the third time since he saw Mookie Betts give the Red Sox a 1-0 lead on Tuesday night - that the Red Sox have never held a lead in this series?

G33: Brewers 7, Red Sox 4

Red Sox - 010 100 011 - 4 11  2
Brewers - 200 041 00x - 7 13  0

Top of 5th: Just walked in*, turned on NESN, and the first words I hear are from Dave O'Brien. He says the game is tied 2-2, and then:

The Red Sox have not had a lead yet in this series.

WTF?!? Why does he keep saying that? He made the exact same mistake last night. ... Did I dream Mookie Betts's leadoff home run last night?

The Brewers scored two runs in the first inning after Kyle Kendrick (4.1-10-6-1-2, 87) retired the first two hitters. The Red Sox tied the game at 2-2 after Jackie Bradley homered in the second and Betts singled in Christian Vazquez in the fourth.

Once I started watching, however, the roof fell in. Kendrick allowed hits to four of the first five batters in the fifth and Milwaukee soon led 6-2.

Boston's other two runs scored on a double play and a groundout to third.

The Red Sox left nine men on base and went 2-for-16 with RATS. ... It was a night of missed opportunities:

1st: Men at second and third, one out. No runs.
3rd: Man on second, no outs; men on first and second, one out. No runs.
5th: Men at first and second, one out. No runs.
6th: Leadoff walk erased by double play.
7th: One-out walk erased by double play.
8th: Bases loaded, no outs. One run scores on GIDP.

*: After watching Erie beat Mississauga 5-2 in Game 4 of the Ontario Hockey League's Championship Series.

Kyle Kendrick / Chase Anderson

Betts, RF
Pedroia, 2B
Bogaerts, SS
Benintendi, LF
Ramirez, 1B
Bradley, CF
Rutledge, 3B
Vazquez, C
Kendrick, P

Mookie Betts is 7-for-10 in the last two games, with two singles, three doubles and two home runs.

G32: Brewers 11, Red Sox 7

Red Sox - 100 030 120 -  7 12  1
Brewers - 500 103 20x - 11 13  1

Mookie Betts began the game with his fourth home run of the season; walks to Dustin Pedroia and Andrew Benintendi gave the Red Sox men on first and second with only one out. While they did not score any more runs in the inning, there were plenty of positive vibes.

Drew Pomeranz (4-7-6-2-2, 78) wiped away all of those good feelings by allowing a pair of two-run home runs in the bottom half. (In the span of only five pitches, he allowed three hits and three runs.) Eric Thames and Keon Broxton took the lefty deep, dumping the Red Sox in a hole they could not climb out of. (Boston closed the gap to 6-4 in the fifth, but stranded men at first and third.)

Betts reached base in all five of his plate appearances. He followed his first-inning home run with a single in the third, a run-scoring double in the fifth, a walk in the seventh, and another double that drove in two runs in the eighth. Betts scored twice and drove in four runs.

Benintendi had two singles, a double, and a walk, and two RBI. ... Xander Bogaerts extended his hitting streak to 12 games with a double in the seventh. ... Pedroia doubled and walked twice, but also hit into two double plays.

For the Brewers, Broxton had a Bettsian night, collecting a single, triple, home run, and HBP, scoring three times and driving in four runs.

NESN Notes: I remain stumped when it comes to figuring out what goes on in Dave O'Brien's head. In the top of the second, he stated: "Both of these starters are off to similar starts tonight." It was hard to square that statement with the very obvious fact that the score was 5-1. ... Then, in the bottom of the eighth, O'Brien told us that the Red Sox had neither led in this game nor been tied with the Brewers at any point.

Drew Pomeranz / Wily Peralta

Betts, RF
Pedroia, 2B
Bogaerts, SS
Benintendi, CF
Moreland, 1B
Young, LF
Leon, C
Rutledge, 3B
Pomeranz, P

Xander Bogaerts is batting .381 during his 11-game hitting streak and already has four multi-hit games in May. He has struck out only once in 32 plate appearances this month.

Also: MFY (21-9) at Reds and Nationals at Orioles (21-10). Boston is 17-14, 4.5 GB.

Playing In The World Series

Imagine you are a professional baseball player.

You make your major league debut in 2003 with the Florida Marlins. In October, the Marlins beat the Yankees and win the World Series.

Then, before the 2004 season begins, you are traded to the Boston Red Sox. And - after three weeks of unforgettable playoff games - the Red Sox make history when they become World Champions.

You end up wearing a Chicago White Sox uniform in 2005 ...

You play in the major leagues for 14 seasons, for the Marlins, Red Sox, White Sox, Cardinals, back to the Red Sox, Phillies, Giants, Rangers, Giants again, Cardinals again, Giants for a third time, Royals, and, finally, Cleveland. The odds are beyond astronomical, but by some quirk of fate, you played in the World Series for 14 straight seasons ...

And yet you still did not play in more World Series games than Yogi Berra did!

Berra played 19 years in the major leagues. He appeared in 14 World Series and won 10 rings (in bold): 1947, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1960, 1961, 1962, and 1963.

When people talk about baseball records that will never be broken, Berra's achievement of playing in 75 World Series games should be near or at the top of the list. Seventy-five games - that's also how many World Series games have been played over the last 14 years, from 2003 to 2016.

G31: Red Sox 17, Twins 6

Red Sox - 300 012 01(10) - 17 15  0
Twins   - 000 040 02  0  -  6  6  1

In his first six starts of 2017, Erwin Santana allowed 1, 0, 0, 1, 1, and 0 runs. After Santana had thrown only 13 pitches on Sunday afternoon, he had already allowed three runs to the Red Sox, thanks to a solo home run by Dustin Pedroia and a two-run dong from Andrew Benintendi.

This game was not the pitchers duel one might have expected from the two starters' stats. Santana (6-5-6-3-4, 93) ended up allowing four home runs for the first time since May 2013.

Of Sale's first nine outs, seven were by strikeout. But he, too, stumbled, as the Twins cobbled together three singles, two walks, one HBP, and a passed ball to score four times in the fifth, tying the game at 4-4 (two of the runs scored on sac flies). However, Sale (6-4-4-3-10, 108) did hit double digits in strikeouts for the sixth straight game.

And, as you can see from the linescore, the Red Sox's offense exploded in the ninth. After not scoring more than eight runs in any of their first 29 games, the Red Sox, in Game #31, scored 10 runs in the ninth inning alone, sending 16 men to the plate against three Twins relievers and turning what had been a close game into a laugher. (WEEI's John Tomase called it "the closest 17-6 game in baseball history".)

When the dust cleared, Boston had hit a season-high five home runs: Pedroia and Benintendi in the first, Mookie Betts in the third, and Sandy Leon in both the sixth and ninth. Of the starters, every one had at least one hit, one run scored, and one RBI - except Deven Marrero, who ended the day with absolutely nothing, going 0-for-5.

Leon and Mitch Moreland each drove in four runs, Bogaerts and Benintendi scored three runs each, and Betts had three hits (missing the cycle by a triple). Hanley Ramirez went 1-for-2 with four walks. ... And the Red Sox went 7-for-12 with runners at second and/or third.

I won't recap the game because (1) it would take too long and (2) I actually watched only the top of the first before work called me away, but I will post the lengthy top of the ninth. The 10 runs are the most the Red Sox have ever scored in the ninth inning of a game.

Matt Belisle pitching. Red Sox leading 7-6.
Mookie Betts grounded out second-to-pitcher.
Dustin Pedroia (cbfbb) walked.
Xander Bogaerts (bcf) doubled to left, Pedroia to third.
Andrew Benintendi intentionally walked (bases loaded).
Hanley Ramirez (c) singled to left center, Pedroia scored, Bogaerts to third, Benintendi to second (bases loaded). 8-6.
Mitch Moreland (cf) doubled to deep right, Bogaerts and Benintendi scored, Ramirez to third. 10-6.
Chris Young (c) doubled to deep right, Ramirez and Moreland scored. 12-6.
Justin Haley relieved Belisle.
Sandy Leon (bb) homered to right, Young and Leon scored. 14-6.
Deven Marrero grounded out shortstop-to-first.
Betts (bb) doubled to deep left center.
Pedroia (c) safe at first on error by third baseman, Betts to third.
Chase d'Arnaud ran for Pedroia.
Bogaerts (cbf) tripled to right, Betts and d'Arnaud scored. 16-6.
Benintendi (bbcfbfff) walked.
Craig Breslow relieved Haley.
Ramirez (cbfbb) walked, Benintendi to second (bases loaded).
Moreland (bbssb) walked, Bogaerts scored, Benintendi to third, Ramirez to second (bases loaded). 17-6.
Young (bfb) lined out to center.
10 runs, 7 hits, 5 walks, 1 error. 16 batters, 56 pitches.

In the bottom of the ninth, it looked like at least seven of the eight pitches Joe Kelly threw to Jorge Polanco could have been called strikes, but somehow Polanco walked. Dan Iassogna was behind the plate.

Here is MLB's Gameday's graphic from that at-bat:

And here is the data from Brooks Baseball:

That is some bullshit, right there.

And so is Matt Barnes facing three batters to start the bottom of the eighth (trying to protect a 7-4 lead) and allowing a home run and two walks. Two of those three batters scored. But as I said, I did not see him pitch and the Red Sox won big, so I'm going to pretend that his appearance today never happened. (But I should also point out that later in that inning, Craig Kimbrel came in with the potential tying run at third with one out and struck out Joe Mauer and Max Kepler.)

Chris Sale / Erwin Santana

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

As good as Chris Sale has been (1.38 ERA in 45.2 innings), Erwin Santana has been even better (0.66 ERA in 41 innings).

The Elias Sports Bureau says this will be only the third game in the last 35 years in which both starting pitchers have an ERA below 1.40.

Santana has pitched at least six innings in each of his five starts this season and allowed no more than four hits in any of them; he's giving up only 3.5 hits per 9 innings. He has allowed 10 fewer hits than Sale (16 to 26) and he leads MLB with a 0.707 WHIP.

Sale leads all MLB pitchers with 63 strikeouts, having struck out at least 10 batters in each of his last five starts.

The 2017 Red Sox scored in double digits for the first time yesterday (Game #30). Their previous high in runs was eight (April 11 and April 18). ... Last season, Boston scored in double digits only once in their first 31 games (April 26, Game #20) before scoring 11+ runs in four straight games (May 9-12).

G30: Red Sox 11, Twins 1

Red Sox - 080 010 101 - 11 16  0
Twins   - 001 000 000 -  1  8  1

The Second Inning:

Tepesch pitching. Hanley Ramirez grounded out to third. Mitch Moreland flied out to center. Chris Young homered to left-center. (1-0) Sandy Leon singled to center. Josh Rutledge grounded into a fielder's choice to catcher, Leon safe at second on error by shortstop. Mookie Betts walked, Leon to third, Rutledge to second. Dustin Pedroia doubled to left center, Leon, Rutledge, and Betts scored. (4-0) Xander Bogaerts singled to right, Pedroia to third. Andrew Benintendi doubled to left, Pedroia and Bogaerts scored, Benintendi to third on throw. (6-0) Rucinski relieved Tepesch. Ramirez singled to right, Benintendi scored. (7-0) Moreland doubled to left, Ramirez scored. (8-0) Young struck out swinging.

Two outs, bases empty. ... Then the Red Sox go to work, and score eight runs!

And Rick Porcello (7-7-1-0-6, 109), blessed with that bushel of runs, came out for the third inning and struck out the first two Twins. After surrendering two singles, he struck out Eddie Rosario for the third out. ... Robbie Grossman homered on Porcello's first pitch in the third. ... Porcello retired the side in order only once, in the fourth.

Young hit his second home run of the game leading off the fifth. ... After hits by Moreland and Leon, Rutledge's single made it 10-1 in the seventh. ... Leon homered in the ninth.

Bogaerts, Benintendi, and Leon each had three hits. Moreland and Young each had two. Everyone in the starting lineup scored at least one run except Moreland (though Deven Marrero, who pinch-ran for Moreland, scored in the seventh).

Searching online, I found two teams that scored 13 runs in an inning with two outs.

July 7, 1923: Cleveland scored 13 runs with two outs in the sixth inning against the Red Sox in the first game of a doubleheader. Cleveland also scored in all eight of the innings in which it batted and won 27-3. (I don't know if the two outs were made by the first two batters in the inning.)

April 21, 1956: The Kansas City Athletics scored 13 runs with two outs in the second inning against the White Sox and won 15-1. (However, the inning began with a single and a double before two groundouts.)

(I also saw a game from August 8, 1954 mentioned, in which the Brooklyn Dodgers scored 12 runs after there were two outs in the eighth inning against the Reds. Looking at Baseball Reference, I see that Brooklyn scored 13 runs in the inning, 12 of which came with two outs. So that's different. ... According to the play-by-play, after the second out, Roy Campanella was walked intentionally with no one on base! The Dodgers won 20-7.)

Bonus: On May 23, 1901, Washington led Cleveland 13-5, with Cleveland coming to bat in the bottom of the ninth. The first two hitters were retired, before Cleveland rallied, scoring nine times and winning 14-13.

Double Bonus: In the first game ever played by the Detroit Tigers, on April 25, 1901, they scored 10 runs in the bottom of the ninth and beat Milwaukee 14-13. Then, the next day, the Tigers scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth and won 6-5. They beat Milwaukee 13-9 the following day. And the day after that (April 28), the Tigers scored three times in the bottom of the eighth and four in the bottom of the ninth to beat Milwaukee 12-11.

Rick Porcello / Nick Tepesch

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

Nick Tepesch started a total of 39 games for the Rangers in 2013 and 2014, but his only appearance in the last 2+ seasons was a four-inning start for the Dodgers in June 2016 (he allowed five runs).

Rick Porcello has given up only four earned runs in his last three starts. ... Since April 23, Jackie Bradley is 3-for-36 (.083).

Boston (15-14) is 4 GB the Yankees in the AL East.

G29: Twins 4, Red Sox 3

Red Sox - 001 000 002 - 3  9  0
Twins   - 200 000 101 - 4 10  0

I do not like Matt Barnes. His first few bad games have been burned into my brain and I am certain that no matter how many good things he does for the Red Sox in the future, I will always not like him.

Tonight, I really do not fucking like him.

After the Red Sox clawed back to tie the game in the top of the ninth, with pinch-hitter Chris Young driving in two runs, Barnes gave up a one-out walkoff blast to Joe Mauer in the home half. The Twins have had 26 walk-off home runs since 2004 (Mauer's first season), but this was the first walkoff dong for him in those 14 seasons.

Eduardo Rodriguez (6-7-3-1-6, 106) overcame a rocky first inning in which he hit a batter and then gave up a triple and a single.

Andrew Benintendi homered in the third. Boston loaded the bases against Phil Hughes in the sixth - actually, the Twins walked Mitch Moreland intentionally to load them up for Josh Rutledge - but Rutledge flied out to center.

In the ninth, Moreland singled and Deven Marrero ran for him. Rutledge was safe on an infield single. Jackie Bradley (now batting .175) grounded out, but moved the runners to second and third. Young batted for Christian Vazquez and came through with a hit to left.

Barnes wiped all that away. After Kennys Vargas grounded to first, Mauer took Barnes deep on a 1-2 pitch.

Eduardo Rodriguez / Phil Hughes

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

In his last two starts, Rodriguez has allowed only one run in 12 innings, while striking out 16 batters. He has issued more walks (seven) in those two starts than hits allowed (six). ... Hughes has a 5.06 ERA in five starts.

Good news on David Price, who will throw another simulated game on Tuesday. Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski says he does not have a specific time Price might rejoin the rotation:

But if there wasn't any setbacks he'd probably go four innings the next time, four to five the next time after that, to six. ... We're being careful to put any timelines on it just in case there's any little bit of setback. He feels right now at this time, I talked to him myself the other day and he said "Dave, I'm good." He said "I feel really good." He's throwing the ball like he's good. I mean I'm sure you'll find out his last pitch was 95. ... And he was sitting there consistently 93 to 95 the whole time period. And his other pitches were sharp too. And he walked off the dirt and he feels great. Always the kicker is how do you feel the next day? But encouraging at this point.

Programming Note: Because I'm at work tonight and this weekend, if I get a chance to watch the games in Minnesota, it will be without sound. So I won't be complaining about NESN for a few days!

NESN: O'Brien, Eckersley Talking Nonsense Re Gausman Ejection

In the bottom of the first inning of Thursday night's Red Sox/Orioles game, Andrew Benintendi struck out and Mookie Betts came to the plate. And NESN viewers heard this exchange:

Dave O'Brien: Now back to last night and Gausman getting thrown out. [Replay shown.] This was ridiculous. On a 77-mph curveball, no hesitation by Holbrook at all. Now I gotta tell you, he has leeway here. He doesn't have to throw anybody out of the game.

Dennis Eckersley: Well, that's good to know. Because that tells me, did he see the spin on the breaking ball? I mean, did he not see that? Because if he didn't see that, that's his only excuse.

O'Brien: Mm-mmm. I know the Commissioner and Joe Torre told everyone to knock it off, in a conference call with the managers and the general managers. That doesn't mean that the umpire is compelled to throw everyone out of the game. What would have happened if that was a change-up, on someone's elbow? Does he throw him out of the game?

Eckersley: The trigger was ready to go off at any given time. And he was just so conscious of it, is what it comes down to.

O'Brien: I understand the need to maintain order. Holbrook's a good umpire.

Eckersley: I mean, he couldn't very well just say, oh well, never mind, that was a curveball. Once he made the move, he was done. Can't change your mind.

First, O'Brien states the obvious: "He doesn't have to throw anybody out of the game."

Then, he exaggerates wildly to make Holbrook's action seem extreme: "That doesn't mean that the umpire is compelled to throw everyone out of the game."

We all know Holbrook did not eject everyone after Bogaerts was hit by the pitch. It is a silly comment and devalues any point O'Brien wants to make. (Actually, Holbrook may have shown restraint by not also tossing Buck Showalter at the same time, but perhaps that only happens if warnings were given earlier in (or before) the game.)

Then, O'Brien invents a situation that never happened and wonders what Holbrook would do: "What would have happened if that was a change-up, on someone's elbow? Does he throw him out of the game?"

Playing the "What if X happened instead?" game instead of talking about what actually occurred strikes me as the arguing tactic of a seven-year-old.

And as long as I am thinking about this, Eckersley's comments completely baffle me. The fact that an umpire is not obligated to eject anyone during a game should not be "news" to him, either as a former player or a member of the media who watches games for a living.

Eckersley says "that [news] tells me" something, but we never find out what it is, because he asks two questions instead. Also, if he read any of the stories online or in today's papers, he would know if Holbrook knew what kind of a pitch Gausman threw. (Spoiler: He knew.)

Eckersley contradicts himself with his last comment. Up until this moment, he had agreed with O'Brien that the ejection was completely unwarranted. Now Eck seemed to say that Holbrook had to eject Gausman (that he was obligated, even), that simply because the pitcher threw a curveball doesn't mean the umpire should say, oh, okay, it's fine to hit him with a curve, carry on.

G28: Orioles 8, Red Sox 3

Orioles - 001 520 000 - 8 17  0
Red Sox - 201 000 000 - 3  9  1

Kyle Kendrick (4-8-6-2-1, 69), pitching in his first major league game since October 2015, escaped trouble in the first inning, but gave up one run on a double steal in the third and five more in the fourth. Manny Machado's three-run homer snapped a 3-3 tie and propelled Baltimore to victory.

Two infield singles and a throwing error by Josh Rutledge put Orioles at second and third with one out in the top of the first. Kendrick got out of that jam by getting two pop-ups, Chris Davis to left and Mark Trumbo to first.

In the bottom half, Mookie Betts and Hanley Ramirez singled with two outs. Xander Bogaerts dropped a hit into right-center. Betts scored, Ramirez went to third, and the throw came into second base. The Orioles caught Bogaerts halfway between first and second and it looked like he would be tagged out in a rundown. Ramirez raced for the plate and scored - and somehow the Orioles suddenly had no one near first base and Bogaerts got back easily. Mitch Moreland flied to center, but the Red Sox led 2-0.

In the third, with two outs and runners at first and third, Machado stole second base. Christian Vazquez's throw was late and he probably shouldn't have thrown down to second at all, but he did, and that allowed Seth Smith to score on a steal of home.

Boston upped its lead to 3-1 on Dustin Pedroia's first home run of the season.

The Orioles loaded the bases against Kendrick in the fifth with no outs on singles by Jonathan Schoop and Hyun Soo Kim and a walk to J.J. Hardy. Kendrick got an out, but Seth Smith doubled to left for two runs. Adam Jones struck out looking, but Machado launched a 1-1 pitch over everything in left-center for a three-run dong.

Baltimore scored two more runs in the fifth against Ben Taylor as Hardy and Jones drove in runs. (The Orioles saw a total of 66 pitches in the fourth and fifth innings.)

Smith reached base in all five plate appearances, going 4-for-4 with a walk. He went 3-for-3 against Kendrick and is now 14-for-25 (.560) against him in his career. ... The Orioles' 17 hits tied a season-high by an opponent this season. The Orioles also had 17 hits in a 12-5 win on April 12.

Tyler Wilson / Kyle Kendrick

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

To make room for Kendrick on the roster, Marco Hernandez was placed on the disabled list.

Alex Speier notes that when pitching for the Red Sox on zero days of rest, Craig Kimbrel is 12-for-12 in save opportunities with a 0.00 ERA, 27 strikeouts, and no walks in 12.1 innings. (That's 27 strikeouts among the 37 outs.)

It seems that the Orioles are incapable of not whining:

Pitcher Kevin Gausman:

I didn't know who he threw out at first. Just complete bush league, to be honest. To throw me out in that situation after what Sale did yesterday. Throwing 98 behind a guy. On purpose. Everybody knew it, and you're going to throw me out for hitting a guy on a curveball. 0-0, in the second inning. I mean, it's pretty bush league. [So, not hitting someone with a pitch is somehow worse than actually drilling a batter?]

Manager Buck Showalter:

It's frustrating. You keep trying to do the right thing and take the high ground and the club keeps, it's frustrating. It's hard to keep turning the other cheek, but you're trying to.

Catcher Caleb Joseph:

Now, we're having to sit here and answer questions while the Red Sox are on their way home. It's malarkey. That's what it is. It's a bunch of malarkey. It's unacceptable. It's too bad. It's too bad. ... I am the most excited person to get the hell out of Boston.

Let's look at what has actually happened to each team in the last six games these teams have played:

Red Sox

Pedroia spiked in leg, missed three games
Barnes suspended for four games
Betts HBP
Bogaerts HBP

Orioles

Gausman ejected from game for hitting Bogaerts with pitch

That's it.* Outside of having their staring pitcher ejected last night - and he had a 7.50 ERA, so maybe replacing him wasn't all that harmful - absolutely nothing has happened to the Orioles. Manny Machado had a few pitches thrown near his body, but none of them actually hit him. (And that fact won't change no matter how many expletives he peppers his post-game comments with.)

*: In the game following the one in which Pedroia was spiked, both Jonathan Schoop and Marco Hernandez were hit by pitches. I did not watch the game (last Saturday) but since neither incident has been mentioned since they happened, I did not include them above.

In Minnesota: An Oakland fan brought a Dennis Eckersley puppet to the A's/Twins game last night.

Steven Wright Will Have Season-Ending Surgery

Steven Wright will undergo season-ending surgery on his left knee next Monday.

Wright's 2017 season was a disaster. He allowed at least four runs in four of his five starts and had an 8.25 ERA. He allowed at least seven hits in each start (and gave up 40 hits in only 24 innings of work). Opposing batters hit .377 against him with a 1.148 OPS.

G27: Red Sox 4, Orioles 2

Orioles - 000 002 000 - 2  9  2
Red Sox - 010 300 00x - 4  6  2

Kevin Gausman hit Xander Bogaerts in the ass with a 76-mph curveball (Gameday called it a slider) to start the bottom of the second inning - and was promptly ejected by home plate umpire Sam Holbrook. Both Gausman (1-0-1-1-0, 20) and catcher Caleb Joseph were furious and Orioles manager Buck Showalter came out for a discussion.

On NESN, Dave O'Brien and Dennis Eckersley were about as incredulous as the Orioles. Eck said right away that Holbrook was "clueless" and ought to be "embarrassed"; O'Brien called the ejection "unfair". O'Brien also implied he possesses the ability to read minds when he stated "there was not a hint of intent" on Gausman's part. Later in the game, O'Brien mentioned that Gausman had been ejected, "inexplicably". Inexplicably?!? Seriously? Has O'Brien actually been watching these past few games?

Pitchers do not intentionally drill batters with non-fastballs, traditionally. But perhaps Gausman figured if he plunked a Boston player with something off-speed, he wouldn't get caught. Showalter replaced him with Richard Bleier, who made his 2017 debut. He pitched four innings and then, in the sixth, Showalter brought in tomorrow night's starter, Ubaldo Jimenez. The move baffled me, but because Buck is a certified genius, it must have made good sense.

Before Bogaerts was HBP, Drew Pomeranz wriggled out of trouble in the first inning. Joey Rickard started the game with a soft fly that landed on the right field foul line for a double. Adam Jones reached on an error by Marco Hernandez (his sixth (!) of the season), who hurt himself on the play and was replaced by Josh Rutledge. Pomeranz struck out Manny Machado on a brilliant low, inside pitch. Mark Trumbo flied to center and, after Chris Davis walked to load the bases, Pomeranz struck out Jonathan Schoop. (Pomeranz threw 16 pitches to the first two batters and needed 34 to finish the inning.)

When Bleier took over, with Bogaerts on first, he missed with his first six pitches, walking Mitch Moreland and falling behind Chris Young. Young forced Moreland at second, before Rutledge's single to left scored Bogaerts.

Pomeranz retired eight in a row before Davis singled through the shift with one out in the fourth. Schoop struck out, but Trey Mancini reached on an infield single and both runners took an extra base when Rutledge's throw to first was wild. Pomeranz stranded both runners by striking out J.J. Hardy.

Hardy's tough time in the infield in this series continued. Bogaerts's grounder to open the bottom of the fourth went through Hardy's legs for an error (or an "air", as Eckersley says). Moreland lined a single off the base of the Wall, putting runners at first and third. Young doubled to left-center to score one run and when Rutledge grounded to shortstop, Hardy made a wild throw home and Moreland scored. (No error was charged, however.) Dustin Pedroia's sacrifice fly made it 4-0.

With one out and a man on first in the top of the fifth, Jones took a 2-1 pitch that appeared to be up and a bit outside. Holbrook made a delayed strike call, which pissed off Jones, and when he swung and missed at the next pitch, he unloaded on Holbrook and was ejected. Now, every player knows that arguing balls and strikes will lead to an ejection, but when you also grab your nuts and later tell the umpire several times to (if my lip-reading skills are solid) to go fuck himself, you probably won't be in the game much longer. either.

The Orioles got on the board in the sixth. Trumbo walked (although Pomeranz clearly struck him out with Pitch #6, which Holbrook - who was shitty to both sides all night - called ball 4). Here are the strike zones of MLB and Brooks:

Davis struck out looking, but Schoop hit a ground-rule double to center and Pomeranz (5.1-5-2-2-7, 100) left with runners at second and third. Heath Hembree was not as sharp as usual and allowed both runners to score, with Mancini's sac fly and Hardy's single bringing home the runs. When Caleb Joseph followed with a single, the Orioles brought the potential go-ahead run at the plate. Hembree came through by fanning Rickard on a 3-2 pitch.

Matt Barnes set down the Orioles in order in the seventh and got the first two men in the eighth, but Mancini reached on an infield hit and Hardy singled to center. Seth Smith was announced as a pinch-hitter for Joseph and John Farrell brought in Robby Scott. Showalter countered and went with Francisco Pena as the pinch-hitter. It was Pena's first plate appearance of the season and he grounded to third, where Rutledge forced Mancini to end the threat.

Craig Kimbrel breezed through the ninth, striking out the side. Over his last 10 appearances, Kimbrel has retired 30 of 32 batters, striking out 19 of them.

Also, during the middle of the game - which lasted 3:24, but seemed to drag on much longer - Eckersley mentioned that Andrew Benintendi had a pitch thrown at his head by Donnie Hart on Tuesday night. That was good to hear. Okay, it came about 22 hours late, but hey ...

Can someone tell me why Dave O'Brien is so obsessed when the team with fewer runs has more hits? He mentions it in every game in which it happens (usually starting in the fifth inning or so) and referred to it at least five times tonight. I don't think it's that noteworthy. ... Looking at the schedule and working backwards, it happened twice on Tuesday, twice on Monday, twice on Sunday, once on Saturday, and five times last Friday. (There were also several games in which the two teams had the same number of hits.) So in only five days, this wild and crazy thing happened 12 times. Stop making a fuss about this, Dave, it's not that big of a deal.

Kevin Gausman / Drew Pomeranz

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

Kyle Kendrick will get the ball on tomorrow night, starting in place of Steven Wright, who is on the DL. Kendrick, 32, has a 6.00 ERA in 27 innings (four games) this year for Pawtucket. Kendrick last pitched in the major leagues in 2015, with the Rockies.

So Hanley Ramirez is totally on fire with the bat, right? Eight-game hitting streak, four home runs in his last four games, 1.478 OPS in his last six games. He doesn't think so. "Not yet. Not yet. I'm getting close. Getting close."

Manny Machado did not appreciate Chris Sale throwing a pitch behind him last night:

I mean, if you're going to fucking hit me, hit me. Go ahead. Fucking hit me. Don't let this shit keep lingering, fucking around and keep trying to hit people. It's fucking bullshit. ... Fucking pussy shit. Coward stuff. I mean, that's the stuff you don't fucking do. But I mean, I'm not on that side. I'm not in that organization. They're still thinking about that same slide that I did. There was no intention on hurting anybody, and I'm still paying. I'm still trying to get hit at, get thrown at on my fucking head. They're fucking throwing everywhere. ... You have pitchers out there with fucking balls in their hands throwing 100 mph trying to hit people. I've got a fucking bat too. I could go up there and crush somebody if I wanted to, but you know what, I'll get suspended for a year -- and the pitchers only get suspended for two games. That's not cool.

Sale's response: "Whatever, man. Not losing any sleep tonight."

It appears that no one asked Andrew Benintendi how he felt about Donnie Hart throwing a pitch directly at his head. ... (I'm pretty sure I saw this happen in the seventh inning last night. Or maybe I imagined it?)

I should have included this in the previous post about Pedro Martinez and Sale: The major league record for most consecutive starts with 10+ strikeouts is eight: set by Pedro (August 19-September 27, 1999) and - how about this! - Sale, when he was with the White Sox (May 23-June 30, 2015).