HOUSTON -- Advantage Red Sox. Again.
Boston snatched home-field advantage back from the Astros with an 8-2 victory in Game 3 to take a 2-1 series lead thanks to home runs by Steve Pearce (solo shot) and Jackie Bradley Jr. (grand slam).
Winning at Minute Maid Park was no small feat. The Astros had been 10-1 here since the start of last year’s postseason.
The Sox continued their hot starts with three consecutive hits to start the game, including an RBI double by J.D. Martinez and an RBI groundout by Xander Bogaerts.
The Astros tied the game in the fifth with a double by Alex Bregman that should have at least been knocked down by Rafael Devers.
Didn’t matter. Pearce launched his homer in the next half inning, and then the Red Sox sent eight batters to the plate against Houston closer Roberto Osuna. His final three batters were: single, hit by pitch, hit by pitch, grand slam by Bradley.
THREE UP
Steve Pearce: His solo home run in the sixth inning turned out to the be the game-winner, and it came right after the Astros had tied it.
Nathan Eovaldi: Allowed just two earned runs — which could have been prevented by Rafael Devers — and was overall a complete stud in his six complete innings (six hits, two walks).
Jackie Bradley Jr.: Had a grand slam to send most Astros fans home, and make this one a laugher. ‘Nuff said.
THREE DOWN
Third base for Red Sox: Continues to be a black hole for Boston defensively as Eduardo Nunez had another misplay, and then Rafael Devers failed to knock down a fieldable ball with a runner on first, and he scored all the way to tie it in the fifth.
Ian Kinsler: Was 0 for 3 to drop his postseason average to .200 (4 for 20).
Christian Vazquez: Had a passed ball and was 0 for 3 at the play with two left on base.
LIVE COVERAGE FROM BEDARD
Top of the ninth
Rondon in.
Benintendi becomes first Sox with multiple hits.
He's quickly erased on double play ball by Martinez.
Bottom of the eighth
Barnes is in.
Just what you want after staking the bullpen to a six-run lead, a lead-off walk.
Gonzalez fielder's choice.
Reddick, which is apparently Houstonian for Kinsler, strikes out.
Kelly coming in.
Correa grounds out.
Top of the eighth
Osuna, the closer who has yet to pitch in this series, enters the game. Rust?
Martinez flies out loudly to right.
Swinging bunt down third-base line for a Bogaerts hit.
Again ... Bregman, ridiculous play to get Bogaerts at second on Pearce ground ball.
Devers beats the shift for a single.
Holt pinch-hitting for Kinsler (thank goodness).
Holt says he was hit with an 0-2 pitch. Looks like he was. Red Sox challenging.
Hit by pitch. Bases loaded and Moreland coming up for Vazquez.
1-2 pitch and Osuna drills Moreland. RUN: Red Sox 4, Astros 2.
Leon runs for Moreland.
No-doubt grand slam by Bradley on a 94.4-mph heater up and in. RUNS: Red Sox 8, Astros 2.
https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1052355974839902208
Bottom of the seventh
Ryan Brasier enters.
All 96-mph heats from Brasier to Kemp and it ends with a line out.
Springer strikes out.
Bunt single for Altuve in front of Bregman. This is huge.
With a 3-1 count, Brasier jams Bregman and it lands in Bradley's mitt.
Top of the seventh
Pressly in.
Strikes out Bradley.
Bregman makes another ridiculous play, this time barehanding a Betts slow roller and getting him at first.
https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1052347262678913024
Interesting story that seems to indicates the Astros were doing some hanky stuff in Game 1.
Benintendi strikes out.
Bottom of the sixth
A quick two outs, then Correa singles on a tough play in first-base hole that Pearce can't quite make. Clean single.
McCann takes a huge cut ... but flies out weakly to center.
If this is it for Eovaldi, and it probably will be, another outstanding start. Six innings, two runs, six hits, two walks. 92 pitches, 60 strikes.
Top of the sixth
RHP Joe Smith into the game.
Bogaerts pops out to short.
Pearce launches a home run to left field to give the Sox the lead right back. RUN: Red Sox 3, Astros 2.
https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1052339225247526917
LAUNCHED
https://twitter.com/DingerTracker/status/1052338043229798406
Devers walks.
Mike Schmidt, I mean, Alex Bregman makes another sensational play at third to end the inning.
Bottom of the fifth
Kemp grounds out to first.
Springer lines out to first. EO is dealing.
Matt Barnes is warming up.
Altuve walks.
Cora decides to stick with Eovaldi against his Instagram nemesis, Bregman, and it doesn't pay off. Bregman hits a ground ball to Devers that is ruled a double but at least should have been knocked down. Altuve scores. RUN: Red Sox 2, Astros 2.
https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1052337105605730304
Gurriel grounds out to short.
Top of the fifth
Betts grounds out 1-6-3.
Correa, perfectly positions, makes a great play on a liner by Benintendi and just beats him with the throw.
Martinez grounds out to third.
Bottom of the fourth
Reddick grounds out to second.
Correa whiffs.
Kemp lines out.
65 pitches for Eovaldi, 42 strikes.
Top of the fourth
Nunez singles to lead off but looks badly going down the line. Devers replaces Nunez.
Kinsler lines out right.
Devers takes off and Vazquez makes good contact — he's become a real good with the hit-and-run — but right at the right fielder.
Bradley grounds out.
70 pitches. 42 strikes for Keuchel.
https://twitter.com/Cut4/status/1052329131487240193
Bottom of the third
Springer singles to right to start the inning.
Nunez makes a nice pick — yup — but still can't get the double play.
Bregman walks again. He's dialed in on the strike zone.
Nunez makes a great play to nip Gurriel at first. Really the only play he had. Was way off-balance. Strange play but it worked. Two outs, both runners in scoring position.
Eovaldi gets away with a fat cutter to Gonzalez on a fly out deep to left.
Top of the third
Mookie flies out to left. Too high. What do you mean too high?
Benintendi grounds out to second. Eight-straight retired.
Martinez has a great battle and ends up walking to reach for the second time and end Keuchel's string of eight-straight retired.
Bogaerts also draws a walk to give the Red Sox two on with two outs.
Holy cow ... Pearce hits a high fly ball toward the left-field wall but Kemp elevates and appeared to catch it before it hit the wall. Very close — and you could hear a sound — to the ball going off the wall and into the glove.
Red Sox are challenging.
Call on the field is confirmed.
https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1052324675597082624
Bottom of the second
Correa bounces out to Nunez ... Hooray.
McCann strikes out. Both pitchers are starting to settle in.
Kemp flies out to center. Here we go. Now we're playing some baseball.
Top of the second
Kinsler flies out to right and Vazquez to center to start the inning. Keuchel has retired five straight since Martinez's double.
Bradley grounds out to third. Six straight retired. Let's see if Eovaldi can start matching him.
Bottom of the first
On a full-count Eovaldi gets George Springer to chase a cutter outside.
Altuve jumps on a 101-mph four-seamer and lines a sharp single to left.
Bregman hits a grounder through the shortstop hole and now it's the Astros who have first-and-second, one out.
Sox get a forceout at second on a groundball to Nunez, but Gurriel beats the relay to first. First-and-third, two down. Another shaky play from Nunez at third. Slipped again too.
Eovaldi gets Marwin Gonzalez to swing at two curveballs in the dirt before allowing a line single to right-center on a cutter down-and-in, scoring Altuve and moving Gurriel to third. RUN: Red Sox 2, Astros 1.
Gonzalez flies to Benintendi at the edge of the warning track and the Astros strand two.
Top of the first
For the third-straight time in this LCS, Mookie Betts leads off for the Red Sox with a base hit -- line single to center.
Benintendi slaps an opposite-field single to left, and the Red Sox have the first two on with no out.
J.D. Martinez goes the other way, too, a slices a double into the right-field corner, scoring Betts and sending Benintendi to third. RUN: Red Sox 1-0.
https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1052309169271844864
Xander Bogaerts grounds out to short, but it's enough to score Benintendi from third as Martinez moves from second to third. Second time in the ALCS and third time this postseason that the Sox have scored multiple runs in the first inning. RUN: Red Sox 2-0.
Another groundout, but with the Astros playing in, Martinez stays anchored to third as Pearce grounds out to second.
Nunez lines out to third and the Sox leave a baserunner in scoring position.
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- Lefty Chris Sale was en route to Houston with a number of executives and until he arrives, the Red Sox won't have a strong sense of his availability for his scheduled Game 5 start here on Thursday. "If you see him in the bullpen during the game,'' said Alex Cora, "it's not that he's coming in to pitch. If he has to throw a bullpen, he'll do it during the game.'' Cora said the Sox have a contingency plan in place for Game 5 if Sale can't go. "We still think he can do it,'' Cora said, "but obviously, we have to wait. This is more than us; it's about him and how he feels. I'm not going to put him in a situation where he gets hurt because he's not ready to pitch.'' Among the options available: lefty Eduardo Rodriguez or a combination of relievers.
- Cora said David Price could be available out of the bullpen for Game 4 on Wednesday, and perhaps even today. "He's always in the picture,'' said Cora. "All depends on how he feels. All these guys (starting pitchers), that's the cool thing about managing now - you don't have to ask them. They come in after BP and say, 'I feel great - let's go.' It doesn't mean you're going to use them, but they're willingness to do everything for the team is great.''
- Mitch Moreland (hamstring) is "feeling better,'' but with the lefty Dallas Keuchel pitching, isn't in the lineup.