BSJ Game Report, ALCS Gm. 4: Astros 9, Red Sox 2 - Series will go back to Houston after Sox implosion

All you need to know, in quickie form, about the Red Sox' Game 4 loss to the Astros, complete with BSJ analysis and insight:

BOX SCORE

HEADLINES

Red Sox implode in the 9th, send series back to Houston: Boston held a 2-1 lead, thanks to Xander Bogaerts' first-inning two-run homer, until the top of the eighth when Garrett Whitlock gave notorious first-ball hitter Jose Altuve a fat first-pitch fastball to tie it. In the ninth, Nathan Eovaldi entered and, after allowing a lead-off double and a one-out intentional walk and a strikeout, appeared to have strike three on Jason Castro but home plate umpire Laz Diaz (who Alex Cora argued with earlier in the game) disagreed.

(Pitch 4)

Castro went on to single a run in to give Houston a lead, and then all hell broke loose. By the end, Eovaldi was gone, Martin Perez didn't help much, and the Astros had batted around and scored seven runs to bust the game open.

"He was going to give us one inning and we felt right there in that pocket it was good for him," Cora said of bringing in Eovaldi. "I wasn't going to use him in extra innings because then I get tempted to use him for six, so I decided to use him in the ninth, and it didn't work."

Series will return to Houston: With the win, the Astros have grabbed home-field advantage back and the Series will travel back to Houston for a Game 6. The only question is which team will go to Texas with the all-important 3-2 series lead.

This is the seventh ALCS to be tied at 2-2 since the best-of-seven format was established in 1985. All teams that won Game 5 went on to win the ALCS with the exception of the 2017 Astros, who defeated the Yankees in seven games.

Red Sox disagreed with some balls and strikes calls: Cora got into it with Laz Diaz in the third inning, and then later he had a "discussion" with the ump.

"I got to take a look. Yeah. A lot of people thought it was a strike ... I got to take a look at the video and see how it went. I haven't had a chance to take a look at it," Cora said. "Like I said, I really disagreed with the one early on. It was the third inning, and 3-2 count. J.D. is very -- he doesn't argue too much, and the way he reacted, you know, I had to jump right away. I don't want him to get thrown out. We disagreed with that one, so I know it's early in the game, but it's first and second one out. It is what it is. It's a tough job. I know Laz since our days in Miami, you know? He used to cover our games when I played at the University of Miami. Every Friday he was the man in those games, so it's a hard job. I understand that. It's a hard job."

Said Nate Eovaldi: "Yeah, I thought It was a strike but, again, I'm in the moment. ... I felt like I made my pitch on the outside corner, and it didn't go my way, but I got to come back and I got to answer back and make another good pitch. 

Sox go cold at the plate: After Bogaerts' first-inning homer, the Red Sox managed just two more hits — a triple by Christian Arroyo with one out in the fourth; a one-out double by Bogaerts in the fifth — until the ninth inning. Despite drawing seven walks, the Red Sox couldn't push any more run to the plate, and struck out 10 times.

"We had a man on third, less than two outs with Kyle (Schwarber in the fourth), and we didn't drive in the run," Cora said. "We had chances. I think we had chances early in the game, too, but, I mean, we've been so good for so long that you are going to have games like that. But approach-wise, you know, seven walks is great. Overall we didn't get hits. We didn't produce too much, but I think the approach was good."

TURNING POINT 

Most will point to the non-strike three call on Jason Castro in the ninth, but the game still would have been tied. Entering the 8th inning, the Red Sox were still feeling good with Garrett Whitlock on the mound and Nathan Eovaldi warming in the pen for the 9th. If the Red Sox could have one pitch back, it would have to be Whitlock's 96.1 mph fat fastball on the first pitch to Jose Altuve. Not only had Altuve been hitless in his previous 12 at-bats in the series since Game 1, but he's a notorious first-ball hitter. Whitlock can't leave a pitch like that up in the middle of the plate. Altuve did what he does, and his homer tied the game and completely changed the complexion of the game. 

"He just hit a first-pitch fastball out," Whitlock said. "I was trying to get head and throw strikes, so tip my cap to him."

TWO UP 

Xander Bogaerts: Finally broke out his little slump and joined the party with his first-inning two-run blast, but he also added double in the fifth.

Nick Pivetta: For the second-straight game, the Red Sox got a good start from their pitcher as the righthander went five innings with just an Alex Bregman homer in the first to show for it. 

THREE DOWN

Martin Perez: Entered in a 3-2 game and then allowed four runs on two pitches to break open the game, including a three-run double to Michael Brantley. 

Hitters 5-8: Alex Verdugo, J.D. Martinez, Hunter Renfroe and Christian Vazquez were a combined 0 for 11 with four strikeouts (three from Martinez) and eight left on base.

Laz Diaz: Both teams were not happy with the home plate umpire's performance, to put it mildly.

QUOTE OF NOTE

"I don't think it's going to affect us at all. I don't expect us to really take too much from it. Just move on." - Pivetta.

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING 

• Overall, the Astros collected six hits and seven runs, as 12 Houston batters came to the plate in the ninth inning. Houston's seven runs were the most in a posteason frame in franchise history. Additionally, the seven-run inning matched the postseason record in the ninth inning, most recently accomplished by the Marlins in the 1997 World Series.
• Altuve has now delivered three game-tying or go-ahead Postseason home runs in the eighth inning-or-later, second-most all-time behind only Bernie Williams (4).
• Cristian Javier had 3.0 scoreless innings with three punchouts. Across three appearances this postseason, Javier has now delivered 7.2 scoreless frames with 13 strikeouts, four walks and a .115 opponent batting average.
• With another home run, the Red Sox have clubbed 21 round-trippers across their first nine games of the 2021 postseason. That's the second-most across a team's first nine games of a Postseason in MLB history, trailing only the 2004 Astros (22). Boston's 21 home runs are already a new franchise record for a single postseason.
• Hernández's 18 hits are an MLB Postseason record for any seven-game span in Major League history.

UP NEXT

ALCS Game 5 is at 5:08 p.m. today at Fenway Park and will feature LHP Chris Sale (5-1, 3.16/0-0, 14.73) vs. TBD for Houston, likely LHP Framber Valdez (11-6, 3.14/0-0, 7.71).

Game 6: 8:08 p.m., Houston.
Game 7: 8:08 p.m., Houston.*

*-In necessary.