All you need to know, in quickie form, about the Red Sox' 6-2 loss to the Yankees, complete with BSJ analysis and insight:
BOX SCORE
HEADLINES
Price face-plants: Any hope that this one might go differently from all the other postseason starts David Price has made -- here and elsewhere -- was dashed two batters in when Aaron Judge, the second hitter of the game, hit a moon shot homer. They were obliterated when Gary Sanchez hit one even harder and farther to lead off the second. And after getting two outs, Price proceeded to issue walks to the Nos. 8 and 9 hitters, then surrendered a wall double to Andrew McCutchen and was summarily lifted after 1.2 innings. "I didn't execute enough pitches and that was that,'' said Price. "You have to go out there and execute pitches in big spots in counts. And that's something I wasn't able to do tonight.'' This outing stretches his winless streak in the postseason to 10 and begs the question: what now? In the short term, the Red Sox might turn to him to pitch out of the bullpen at some point in the series. He was effective there last October. But long-term, with four more years remaining on his landmark deal, how viable is Price for the Red Sox going forward when he can't seem to win in the postseason and has his worst game against the team's chief rivals?
Offense shuttered: Nearly lost in the Price stink-bomb was an offense that was almost totally ineffectual. The quick-strike ability that the Red Sox demonstrated in Game 1 was nowhere to be found. They managed only five hits and, unless you count the home run trot by Xander Bogaerts in the fourth, didn't put a man in scoring position until the seventh when Ian Kinsler banged a double off The Wall. Some credit goes to New York Yankees starter Masahiro Tanaka, but the Red Sox didn't exhibit much discipline at the plate. "We expanded,'' lamented Alex Cora, noting that the Sox too often chased sliders or splitters out of the strike zone and allowed Tanaka to get back into good counts. The top three hitters in the Red Sox lineup -- Mookie Betts, Andrew Benintendi and J.D. Martinez -- combined to go 1-for-11 with a single and walk.
Sloppy play: The defense was every bit as guilty as Price and the offense. Third baseman Eduardo Nunez, who started at third base because he's seen as more reliable, committed one throwing error in the fifth and made another errant throw that pulled Ian Kinsler off second base. The Red Sox challenged the play and eventually got the out-call, but their overall play lacked its usual crispness. Worse, in the seventh inning, Aaron Judge hit a chopper to the right side which Mitch Moreland gloved as he went to his right. But Rodriguez never made much of an effort to go cover the bag, and when he finally did, it was half-hearted, allowing Judge to reach. That proved big when, three batters later, Sanchez hit his second homer of the night, a three-run shot, that salted the game away for New York.
https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1048768224224051200
SECOND GUESS
Before the game, Cora seemed to make an unorthodox move in starting Eduardo Nunez against the right-handed-throwing Tanaka, rather than the lefty-swinging Rafael Devers, citing Nunez's ability to provide more reliable defensive play at third. But that backfired when Nunez was charged with a throwing error after making a terrific stop to his left on a ball hit by Judge in the fifth inning. And Nunez offered little at the plate, going 0-for-3 with a walk.
TWO UP
Joe Kelly: Who knew? Called upon in the second after Price imploded, Kelly was easily the best Red Sox pitcher all night, providing 2.1 scoreless innings, allowing only one hit while not issuing a walk.
Xander Bogaerts: He got the Red Sox on the board in the fourth with a long solo homer into the center field bleachers.
https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1048749923221614592
ONE DOWN
Mookie Betts: Betts didn't provide his customary spark at the top of the Red Sox lineup, failing to reach base in any of his four plate appearances.
QUOTE OF NOTE
"My spirits aren't down, my confidence isn't own. I'm looking forward to getting back out there and getting another opportunity.''
β David Price.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
- This ALDS is the only one of the four to be tied after the first two games and the only one in which the visiting team got a win.
- The Sox allowed three homers; during the season, they were 22-25 when allowing multiple homers.
- Kelly hasn't allowed a run in six postseason outings with the Red Sox.
- Kinsler became the oldest Red Sox player (36 years old) to ever steal a base in the postseason.
- Mitch Moreland has hit safely in all of his four postseason starts with the Sox.