BSJ Game Report: Cardinals 4, Red Sox 3 - Another rough ninth for Boston, Jansen sinks another strong start

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

BOX SCORE

HEADLINES

Jansen falters again: The Red Sox took the lead into the ninth for the second game in a row, and ... Kenley Jansen couldn’t put the game away for the second game in a row. Confusion with the pitch clock made things easy on the Cardinals at the plate, and just as it looked like he would get out of it, Kiké Hernández’s throwing error on what would have been a double-play to end it allowed St. Louis to take the lead. Heavy workload for Jansen these last two games, too. 

“They hit that double, and the walk, obviously put him in a bad spot,” Alex Cora said. “The walk to [Wilson] Contreras with the violation, we get a ground ball situation when we needed it. We don't turn the double play ... He was wild early on, they had traffic and put pressure on us.”

Sale steady on Saturday: Chris Sale went eight full innings, striking out nine and allowing just three hits and one run. In the top of the seventh, Sale gave up a lead-off bomb to Nolan Arenado (his second of the series) With John Schreiber warming for Boston, Sale didn’t falter as his pitch count crept closer to the 100s. Struck out the next three batters he faced to get out of it. He’s gone three-straight outings with at least six innings pitched.

“Good velocity. Good command,” Cora said. “The slider played there halfway through it. Gave us a chance to win. His stuff, it wasn't 99 mph like the other day, but I think he benefitted from the rest. He was really good.”

Sale said, “Our job as starters is to take up as much of the game as we can. … Anytime you can use as few guys as we can out there, it’s a plus.”

Reyes ready for debut: Just a day after being acquired from the A’s for cash, Pablo Reyes made a strong first impression. Going 2-for-3 with a double off the Monster and a run-scored. 

TURNING POINT

Top of the ninth: Yuck all around. Jansen couldn’t buy a strike early on before the trouble with the pitch clock. The Sox did what they couldn’t do – compound mistakes – and Kiké tried to be a hero, spiking his throw to Justin Turner at first, saying goodbye to the double-play and the win.

THREE UP

Chris Sale: Easily Sale’s best outing of the season. Stress-free from the start, and got out of the seventh after Arenado’s lead-off bomb. Made it through the eighth just fine, even if he wasn’t generating swings and misses. Slider was a strength today. Finished the day with 77 of 110 pitches going down as strikes. 

“It actually felt like [the slider] got better as the game went on,” Sale said. “You guys know, it’s been a work in progress since spring training. I’ve said all along, if I'm going to be successful at this level, that's definitely a weapon I'm going to need.”

Pablo Reyes: The utility man made Chaim Bloom look good in his first outing since coming over from Oakland. Hit the left-hander Steven Matz pretty well. Alert on the bases, advancing on a wild pitch before scoring in the third.  

Rob Refsnyder: Refsnyder did what he does against lefties, going 2-for-3 against Matz. Knocked in Reyes and Verdugo with a double in the third. Stole a base and added a single on the right-handed Andre Pallante for fun.

THREE DOWN

Kenley Jansen: Two straight blown leads for Jansen after giving up three runs (two earned) to squander the lead once again. As far as the pitch clock, at the eight-second mark, the hitter needs time to look up. By that point, Jansen had started going. 

“We all know the rules. The hitter needs to be in the box and alert at the latest at eight [seconds],” Cora said of the pitch clock mess. “The pitcher needs to give the hitter time to be in the box and alert. And I think the whole thing was like, you know, they we're getting in the box at eight, and Kenley was going already. They give you a warning and then after that it's an automatic ball.”

Kiké Hernández: Went 1-for-3 at the dish, but grounded into a double-play before popping out with two runners on in the eighth. Not the strongest day at the plate after he was the weakest link on Friday. Turns out the Sox could have used the insurance at the plate after his throwing error helped sink the win in the ninth. 

“You always try [to turn the double-play],” Cora said. “You don’t want to throw it away. It’s one of those things, where we took the chance. … He just rushed that one trying to make a play. The routine ones are the ones that you wonder what’s going on [if he throws it away]. That one, he’s trying to pick up his buddy, his closer. It just didn’t happen.”

Connor Wong: Wong’s gone fairly quiet of late after he was scorching for a stretch. Went 1-for-4 last night (with a homer) and followed it up with an 0-for-3 day at the plate with a strikeout and two flyouts. 

QUOTE OF NOTE

“I mean, I’ve got to pay attention if both feet are in the batters’ box,” Jansen said. “The second time, he’d look at me. Then when I’d come to home, he’d drop his hat, and his feet were out. It’s just clearly telling me that, yeah, they messed with me and it paid off. … That’s my fault and my responsibility to pay attention to that. … It sucks because I learned the experience today of the rules, and it cost me a game.”

UP NEXT

Third game of the three-game set will be on ESPN at 7:10 p.m. Sunday. RHP Corey Kluber (2-4, 6.29 ERA) will face RHP Miles Mikolas (1-1, 5.40 ERA).