All you need to know, in quickie form, about the Red Sox' loss to the Yankees, complete with BSJ analysis and insight
HEADLINES
Bonkers night in the Bronx: In one of the strangest games of the season, the Red Sox saw what had been a 1-0 no-hitter turn on a dime within two innings. Nathan Eovaldi didn't allow a hit until two out in the fifth when he allowed two in a row -- a double by Greg Allen and a single by D.J. LeMahieu, erasing a 1-0 lead by the Sox. In the sixth, with Eovaldi lifted after 94 pitches -- many of them throw in the pouring rain -- Hirokazu Sawamura came in for the sixth and, after recording the first out, surrendered consecutive opposite-field solo homers to Gary Sanchez and Gleyber Torres. But that wasn't the half of it. Bench coach Will Venable and backup catcher Kevin Plawecki were ejected for vehemently disagreeing with first base umpire Manny Gonzalez, leaving the bases loaded in the top of the sixth. Then, as the Red Sox took the field in the bottom of the sixth, Alex Verdugo, who had been jawing with fans in the left-field stands all night, was struck in the lower back by a baseball thrown by a fan. An enraged Verdugo challenged fans, bringing teammates and umpires out to left to calm down inflamed tensions. For a time, Cora pulled his team off the field, concerned for their safety, but had them return at the urging of the umpiring crew.
Duran leaves his mark in debut: Rookie Jarren Duran had his scheduled major league debut wiped out Thursday when a COVID outbreak with the Yankees forced the postponement of the game. But delayed two days, Duran made up for it Saturday. Facing Gerrit Cole, Duran singled up the middle on the first pitch in his first at-bat, advanced to second on a comebacker and scored what turned out to be the only Red Sox run of the night when Christian Arroyo lined a single to left. All throughout, Fox cameras focused on Duran's parents and girlfriend in attendance, reacting from their seats. In addition to the first hit and first run scored, it's inconceivable that Duran will ever forget his major league debut -- or the events that surrounded it. "I felt like a weight was lifted off my shoulders,'' said Duran of his emotions at first base. "It was like, OK, I can relax now.''
Verdugo responds to being struck: Before Saturday night's game, Alex Verdugo, in a Zoom call with reporters, talked about how much he enjoyed jawing with and interacting with fans at Yankee Stadium. Presumably, several hours later, he had a different opinion. After Verdugo tossed a ball used in between-inning warmups toward a Red Sox fan in left, the ball landed with some Yankee fans, one of whom soon threw it back, aiming for Verdugo and hitting him in the lower back. "I come to expect it when I'm out here,'' said Verdugo. "The trash talking, the bringing up family members, having everybody chant '(Expletive) Verdugo,''' said Verdugo. "I'm used to that. I don't care. That's cool with me....But to hear someone say, 'Throw it back,'' and it felt like it was targeted at me...It don't sit right with me. I'm in my stance, getting ready, and as I take a peek, I see the ball heading down and then it hits me in my back. I don't care how much shit you want to talk. At the end of the day, we want to keep players healthy and safe. There's no reason to ever throw stuff back on the field, ever. There really isn't. As fans, bro, y'all gotta be better. It's just that simple. I don't care how much you hate a team, how much a rivalry is, you don't throw shit at people, man. It's just that simple.''
TURNING POINT
The Red Sox seemed on the verge of potentially breaking the game open in the top of the sixth. With the rain pelting down and Gerrit Cole having difficulty seeing the target -- much less gripping the ball adequately -- he issued two two-out walks sandwiched around an infield single for Hunter Renfroe. That brought Vazquez to the plate with a chance to add to the Sox' 1-0 lead. But on a 0-and-2 pitch, it appeared that Vazquez had sufficiently checked his swing. The Yankees, however, appealed to Gonzalez, the umpire at first, who ruled that Vazquez had swung, ending the threat. The Red Sox dugout erupted with rage, and as the inning ended, both bench coach Will Venable and backup catcher Kevin Plawecki were ejected -- Plawecki by home plate umpire Jeff Nelson and Venable by Gonzalez.
SECOND GUESS:
This was not meteorology's finest moment. First, the game was delayed by 50 minutes, with not a drop of rain falling. Then, after the teams played through monsoon-like conditions, the game was halted and 52 minutes later, the game was called. At the time, it was not raining. Again.
ONE UP
Nathan Eovaldi: In what was likely his best start of the season, Eovaldi tossed five innings and allowed just one run. In fact, through 4.2 innings, he hadn't allowed so much as a hit. Then, two hits produced the first Yankee run, and after 94 pitches and competing in torrential rain, Eovaldi was done.
TWO DOWN:
Hirokazu Sawamura: The solo homer has been the reliever's nemesis all season, and it struck again -- twice -- in the fateful sixth. Sawamura gave up in a row and that ended up being the difference.
J.D. Martinez: The DH was overmatched by Gerrit Cole three times, going down swinging each time.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
* The win was the first in eight tries for the Yankees against the Red Sox this season.
* J.D. Martinez saw his on-base streak come to an end at 29 games with three strikeouts.
* Sawamura has allowed nine homers in 37.1 innings this season.
QUOTE OF NOTE
"This is just a game. It's not life and death. It's a game. And the fact that people came to the ballpark and decided to throw a baseball at one of the players....I was in shock that that happened.'' Alex Cora.
UP NEXT
The teams finish up their pandemic-shortened series Sunday at 7:07 p.m. with LHP Martin Perez (7-5, 4.04) vs. RHP Jameson Taillon (4-4, 4.90)