All you need to know, in quickie form, about the Red Sox' 7-6 win over the Rangers, complete with BSJ analysis and insight:
BOX SCORE
HEADLINES
Ball flies at Fenway: The Sox had a tall order when they fell behind 4-0 in the very first inning. But they launched their comeback with everybody's favorite weapon of choice in 2019 -- the long ball. First came a solo homer from J.D. Martinez in the first. Then a three-run shot from Jackie Bradley Jr. in the second. Two more solo homers -- one from Michael Chavis in the fourth and another from Rafael Devers in the fifth finally pulled the Sox even. And, so, naturally, the game-winner in the seventh came by virtue of a homer, too, this one from Xander Bogaerts, who hit his 13th of the season to take over the team lead in that department. "It was fun today, hitting the ball out of the ballpark,'' said Alex Cora. "We put up good at-bats and found a way to win...We never felt we were out of the game.'' Four times this season, the Red Sox had hit four homers in a game, but this was the first time they managed to hit five.
https://twitter.com/RedSox/status/1139361332912885760
Price has a short night: From the first week of the season, David Price has unquestionably been the Red Sox' most consistent starter. Over his last nine outings before Thursday night, Price had allowed two runs or fewer on eight occasions and in the other, allowed just three. So it was somewhat shocking to see him struggle the way he did in the first and second innings. Eight Rangers came to the plate against him in the first inning, when he needed 38 pitches to get through the inning. And, after one out in the second, three more reached against him and two score, he was lifted after just an inning and a third. "I gave up more runs than outs I got,'' confessed Price. Cora attributed the struggles to poor fastball command. That point was reinforced with a walk and two hit batters among the 12 hitters he faced. The six runs allowed were the most for a Price start at home since May 1, 2016.
Hembree's forearm not really a concern: It seemed odd when Josh Smith came on for the ninth in a one-run game, but that was largely due to the fact the Heath Hembree, who had warmed up in the seventh inning, was unavailable because he felt some tightness in the forearm. That forced some rejiggering of the bullpen. "It just didn't feel right,'' said Hembree, "so we thought the best situation was just to shut it down for the rest of the night. I'm not worried about it at all. It feel like some soreness, but it was a little bit more than that. I've pitched with soreness and aches and stuff before, but it was a little bit more than that.'' Hembree said he's not worried about it, and neither is the training staff. "We'll see how it is (Friday),'' he said. "I know the difference between a good pain and a bad pain. But we'll just see how it goes day-by-day right now.''
TURNING POINT
The Sox spotted the Rangers a quick 4-0 lead in the top of the first, and after answering with a run in the bottom of the inning, handed the Rangers two more in the top of the second. But in the bottom of the second, the Sox got singles from Xander Bogaerts and Christian Vazquez, Jackie Bradley Jr. homered, bringing the Sox back to within two. Immediately, the dugout came alive and there was the sense that this one was perhaps not a lost cause after all.
TWO UP
Mike Shawaryn: He pitched 2.1 innings, the longest stint of any Red Sox reliever, and struck out two. He hasn't allowed a hit to the last 26 batters he faced.
Jackie Bradley: In addition to hitting a three-run homer to get the Sox back into the game, he also doubled and got himself over the .200 mark for the first time since April 1.
ONE DOWN
Andrew Benintendi: After a big day at the plate in Wednesday's win, Benintendi was hitless in four plate appearances.
QUOTE OF NOTE
"I just sucked, that's it.'' David Price explaining his brief outing.
BY THE NUMBERS
- The Sox are 16-10 when they hit at least two homers.
- Rafael Devers has 30 RBI in his last 29 games.
- The homer by Michael Chavis was his first since May 22.