All you need to know, in quickie form, about the Red Sox' 15-1 win over the White Sox, complete with BSJ analysis and insight:
BOX SCORE
HEADLINES
Red Sox score early and often: White Sox starter Manny Banuelos retired the first eight Red Sox hitters of the night. Then, the roof caved in. The Red Sox strung together 10 straight hits, leading to nine runs and the rout was on. Christian Vazquez managed two hits in the same inning, while the Red Sox belted three homers in the inning, including back-to-back shots from Xander Bogaerts and Michael Chavis. The half-inning took more than a half hour to conclude and the outburst was all the more remarkable because it began after two were out. Every member of the lineup reached base in the inning, some more than once. The 10 straight hits after two outs were the most by a major league team since the Colorado Rockies did it in 2010. But the Sox weren't done in the third -- not by a long shot. In the fourth, they continued their offensive assault, with some help from Chicago first baseman Jose Abreu, who committed two errors in the inning.
Chavis keeps mashing: It's been quite a first two weeks in the big leagues for Michael Chavis. On Friday, he hit the longest home run for a Red Sox player this season at 459 feet. But, as it turned out, he was just warming up. Chavis smashed two more homers Saturday and added a double, giving him 10 total bases. He now has six homers in his first 14 games in the big leagues; Sam Horn is the only Red Sox player to have done that. In 48 at-bats, Chavis is now hitting .354 and has an OPS of 1236 with six homers and 13 RBI. "I usually play my best when I'm having fun,'' said Chavis, "so I try to stay relaxed and have fun out there. I honestly just feel blessed just to be on this team. I think I've learned more here in my short time than I have in the past year.'' On nights like Saturday, it doesn't appear that Chavis needs any additional education. He's shown himself capable of hitting good fastballs as well as breaking pitches.
ERod uses support to pick up his third win: Starter Eduardo Rodriguez was nicked for a run in the bottom of the first, but that was the extent of the damage against him. He didn't permit another run over the next five innings and allowed just four more hits -- two of which never left the infield. He walked two -- a significant improvement over his last outing when he walked two straight one inning after getting ahead 0-and-2 on both hitters -- and fanned six. Perhaps most impressive was the fact that Rodriguez wasn't bothered by the long wait times between innings as his teammates piled on the runs. After the Sox scored nine in the third, Rodriguez retired the White Sox in order in the bottom of the inning. And after they tacked on five more in the top of the fourth, Rodriguez did the same thing again by getting the White Sox 1-2-3 in the bottom of the fourth.
SECOND GUESS
This is the second night in a row in which Chicago manager Rick Renteria made a head-scratching decision regarding his pitching staff. On Friday night, he brought in a position player to pitch the ninth inning despite trailing by only five runs. On Saturday, he allowed Banuelos to absorb a beating, and as line drives rocketed all over -- and out of -- the ballpark, Renteria was slow to get somebody out. He finally lifted Banuelos, but not until the 10th straight hit had registered.
TWO UP
Steve Pearce: Pearce came into the game hitless in his last 14 at-bats, but broke out with two hits and two RBI.
Christian Vazquez: The Red Sox catcher had a four-hit night, lifting his average from .218 at the start of the game to .253 by the end. And just for good measure, he closed the game out by playing second base for the second time this season.
QUOTE OF NOTE
"Everybody was having a good time. You can't help but have a good time while that's going on.'' β Chavis on the atmosphere in the Red Sox dugout during the nine-run third inning.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING:
- The Red Sox are now 35-11 when Rodriguez goes six innings or more.
- Boston's starters have a 3.09 ERA over the last 21 games.
- The Sox were 8-for-19 with runners in scoring position.