Some nights, there are plenty of heroes to share credit for a victory.
Then there are nights like Tuesday, when a handful were responsible for one of most gut-wrenching losses of this Red Sox season -- including one who wasn't even in the same country.
Had Tanner Houck chosen to get vaccinated, he would have given the ball for the ninth inning, with a good chance of repelling the Toronto Blue Jays' rally. But since he isn't vaccinated, he was back in Boston, while the Red Sox tried -- without success -- to cover for his absence.
The Red Sox had fought gamely to rebound from a three-run deficit, chipping away until they tied in the seventh, and finally went ahead in the eighth. They led 5-4 heading into the bottom of the ninth, looking like they were about to pull off a big comeback win and even the series, with a chance to win it Wednesday.
But that's when things went off the rails.
Manager Alex Cora had made the somewhat curious choice to use John Schreiber, his best reliever not named Houck, in the seventh inning. The Jays had their 3-4-5 hitters due that inning, and Cora liked the matchup to shut down the heart of the Toronto order after the Sox had finally pulled even in the top of the inning. After allowing a squibber to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to open the inning, Schreiber punched out Teoscar Hernandez and then got an inning-ending double play.
It could be argued that Cora would have been better off saving Schreiber for the ninth, but his thought process evidently was to use his best arm for the middle of the lineup. But when Schreiber needed just 10 pitches to record his three outs in the seventh, why not bring him back for the eighth?
"I mean, we've got a game tomorrow,'' said Cora, "and he's our best reliever right now.''
True enough, but that's almost always true -- the part about there being a game the next day -- and some managers are known to go for the win when it's in sight.
Instead, for the eighth, Cora chose Tyler Danish, who set down the Jays 1-2-3 to get the Sox to the ninth, where, to the surprise of many, Cora opted to go with Danish again, having not warmed anyone else up in the top of the ninth.
"That's the way I saw it,'' said Cora, more than a little defensively, "and that's the way I managed the game. I'm the manager here and I decided to go with him for two innings.''
That seemed curious, and when Danish allowed a leadoff single to pinch-hitter Alejandro Kirk and walked George Springer, it became even more suspect.
Even though the Jays had a string of righthanded hitters -- they're almost exclusively righthanded -- even lefty Matt Strahm would have seemed a better choice than Danish. Indeed, though the sample size isn't huge (25 at-bats), Strahm has limited lefties to a slash line of .200/.276/.280 with just two extra-base hits. Cora has consistently said that he trusts all three lefties in the bullpen -- Strahm, Jake Diekman and Austin Davis -- to get out righthanders and has even had Strahm close out a few games.
With Danish in trouble, Cora then summoned Hansel Robles, who may be a decent low-leverage piece, but is no one's idea of a strong ninth-inning option. His 7.71 ERA in the ninth before Tuesday and his three blown saves in the ninth telegraph that much.
Somewhat predictably, Robles allowed, in quick succession, the game-tying single to Bo Bichette and the game-winner to Guerrero.
Some pitchers aren't suited for the stress and demands of the ninth inning. The numbers suggest Robles fits that profile perfectly.
Game over. And let the second-guessing begin.
Cora was asked if the dispiriting loss had made him grow more frustrated with Houck's decision to remain unvaccinated.
"No,'' he said firmly.
Or having to manage games differently in the late innings because of Houck's absence.
"No,'' he said again.
Here's how Cora summarized the night: "We go with the 26 that are here and we tried to get 27 outs and we didn't do it.''
In some ways, Cora is in a no-win situation. It's impossible to imagine he's OK with Houck's absence, but if he publicly criticizes Houck for his stance, he risks alienating the pitcher, and with him, perhaps others in the clubhouse who feel he's not backing one of his players.
(For whatever reason, there seems to be no tangible resentment on the part of Red Sox players toward a key player who has put his own beliefs ahead of the concept of being a responsible teammate).
But faced with having to make do without Houck Tuesday, Cora made a series of questionable calls. His management of the bullpen is ordinarily a strong suit, and despite the team's now-14 blown saves, has improvised nicely at times.
Tuesday, however, wasn't one of those times.