All you need to know, in quickie form, about the Red Sox' 17-6 win over the Orioles, complete with BSJ analysis and insight:
BOX SCORE
HEADLINES
Bradley at home in Baltimore: Back in May, Jackie Bradley Jr. turned in what may turn out to be the catch of the year in taking away a sure homer by Trey Mancini. This series, it's been more about his bat. On Friday, he collected two singles for his sixth multi-hit game of the season, And on Saturday, it was time for him to flash some power. Bradley swatted a three-run homer to left field to get the Red Sox going. Then, after lining out in his next at-bat, he chipped in with another three-run belt in the fifth, giving him six RBI for the night, one shy of his career-best. In his first 49 games, Bradley didn't hit a single homer. In the last 50 games, he has 11 while boosting his average from .144 in mid-may to his present .232.
Porcello a lingering concern: Rick Porcello picked up his third straight win with five innings of work, but that doesn't tell the story of his night, or how he's been pitching of late. Porcello coughed up a 5-0 lead when he gave up five runs in the bottom of the third. He went on to add two scoreless innings, but the recent trend is troubling. In his last four outings, he's given up 21 runs in his last 18 innings, and while he's 3-0 with a no-decision in those four starts, that's a testimony to the incredible run support he's been getting, and hardly indicative of pitching well. When Porcello was tagged in his last start by the Blue Jays, he claimed that pitching coach Dana LeVangie had detected something in his delivery which allowed him to finish with three shutout innings. Problem solved? Hardly, based on the results he got Saturday. "I know I've got to be better,'' said Porcello. "I'm more than frustrated inside. I promise I'm doing everything mentally and physically to get it right. I've just got to keep grinding.''
Betts on the upswing: For the last two months, the Red Sox offense has been operating at near-peak level, but they've done it with little in the way of contributions from Mookie Betts. Initially, not even restoring him to the leadoff spot got him going. But in the last three weeks, Betts has started to take off. Coming into last night, he was slashing .351/.435/.532 and the hot streak continued with a 3-for-6 night that included a homer, single and double. He's also scoring runs at an incredible pace, with 17 runs scored in his last 12 games and 27 in his last 20. He's scored at least once in 14 of his last 15 games. Ultimately, that's one of the keys for being a successful leadoff hitter -- Betts is on pace to score almost 150 runs -- but it's only been in the last little while that Betts has made the same sort of offensive impact that he made all of last year when he was named the A.L. MVP.
TURNING POINT: After Porcello had squandered a 5-0 lead by allowing five in the bottom of the third, it looked to be the start of a frustrating night for the Red Sox. But in the top of the fourth, to their credit, the Sox rebounded and sent 11 men to the plate, scoring eight times to pull away from the O's a second time. This time, it stood, as the Orioles scored just once more over the final six innings.
TWO UP:
Darwinzon Hernandez: The fire-balling lefty continued to show power, fanning three in an inning of work and overpowering Orioles hitters in the process.
J.D. Martinez: Martinez broke out of a slump that had him hitless in his last 10-bats, bashing out three hits and knocking in a run.
ONE DOWN:
Andrew Benintendi: Benintendi was given Friday night off, but that didn't seem to help much. He was 0-for-4 with three strikeouts in his return to action and stranded four baserunners.
QUOTE OF NOTE:
"It's a bounce-back win. We needed a game like this. They beat us pretty bad (Friday), so it was good for us to respond.'' Jackie Bradley Jr.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING:
- Mookie Betts extended his hitting streak to 12 games.
- The Red Sox have scored 50 runs in Rick Porcello's last four starts.
- Rafael Devers hit his eight homer of the month.
- The Sox improved to 15-3 in their last 18 road games.