BSJ Game Report: Rockies 4, Red Sox 3 (10) - Sox crumble after another quality start from Paxton

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

BOX SCORE

HEADLINES

Late collapse lands Sox back below .500: After the Red Sox had a chance to go home with a walk-off win in the bottom of the ninth, everything unraveled in the top of the 10th. Nick Pivetta couldn’t find the strike zone, walking in the go-ahead run with two straight walks after one intentional. A Triston Casas error on a grounder let the eventual winning run in before a late rain delay. Boston couldn’t muster more than a run in the bottom of the tenth. The Sox now sit at 33-34. 

Ice-cold offense squanders another strong start: James Paxton gave the Red Sox more than enough to win, going six strong innings and allowing one unearned run on four hits with eight strikeouts and just one walk. The Red Sox could only manage five hits and two runs of their own to support the Southpaw. They came up empty in the bottom of the first after three straight singles loaded the bases with no outs.

TURNING POINTS

Bottom of the eighth: With two outs and a runner on first, Rafael Devers hit a missile to right field, but Nolan Jones hauled it in just before the wall. Colorado tied it, 2-2, in the top half of the inning, and Devers' nearly made it 4-2 for Boston with a swing of a bat. Even if it didn't get over the wall, Justin Turner might still have scored from second for the lead.

Bottom of the ninth and top of the 10th: The Red Sox might have gotten going when Adam Duvall started the bottom of the ninth with a walk, but Casas hit into a double play before Connor Wong ended the inning with a groundout after a two-out double for Christian Arroyo. In the tenth, Pivetta started strong, but crumbled along with the Casas and the defense. 

“He missed it. It’s a routine ground ball,” Alex Cora said of Casas' error. “He hesitated, took a step back and it was a hop that was long and up and instead of catching it backhanded ... he missed it.”

THREE UP

James Paxton: Paxton with yet another strong outing on the hill. Gave Boston six strong innings and more than enough to win. Shame it came with little run support. Was especially strong with his breaking ball, getting 15 called strikes and whiffs on his knuckle curve.

Christian Arroyo: Big home run for Arroyo, who’s been nothing more than fine since coming back from injury. Added a double in the ninth as Boston looked for two-out magic. Any extra-base hit is a welcomed sight these days.

Justin Turner: Strong night at the plate for Turner, going 2-for-3 with a double, an RBI and a walk. By far their best bat tonight with Arroyo. 

THREE DOWN

Kiké Hernández: Another game, another costly throwing error at shortstop for Kiké. Had time to make a relatively easy throw in the fourth, but instead came up short, allowing Colorado to knock in a run. Add in an 0-for-3 night at the plate.

Triston Casas: Swung at a low-and-away ball to ground into a double play with a chance to win it in the bottom of the ninth, capping off an 0-for-4 night. Add in his error in the 10th that would have gotten Boston out of trouble but instead allowed Colorado to pad its lead right before the rain delay. Not to keep nit-picking, but should have come up with the scoop on Kiké’s throwing error, too. Rough night for the kid, who had been largely been better after a rough April. 

"[The rain] was coming down hard in that last half inning, and I thought the field had softened up a little bit, which is why I flipped the palm up on that ground ball," Casas said of his late error. "The ball checked up on me a little bit just because the field conditions were better than I thought or anticipated, and the ball I guess was hit a little harder than I thought."

Nick Pivetta: Pivetta looked to be in good shape to start the ninth, getting two outs through the first two batters with a groundout and a flyout, but he quickly fell apart after an intentional walk. Two straight walks sent in the go-ahead run for Colorado, leaving Joe Jacques to come on in an impossible spot for his debut. Sure, Pivetta definitely got squeezed with some bad calls behind the plate, but when it becomes clear the Rockies aren’t going to swing, you can’t nibble around the strike zone.

NOTABLE

The game was delayed 1:29 due to rain. 

Kenley Jansen tied Trevor Hoffman for the 10th-most strikeouts all-time by a relief pitcher (1,133).

Red Sox starting pitchers have allowed two or fewer earned runs in 18 of 24 games since May 17. Boston has scored more than two runs in 13 of those 24 games. They are 10-14 in that span.

Paxton has a 1.50 ERA in his last three starts (3.09 on the year).

QUOTE OF NOTE

“Not a good game,” Alex Cora said. “We made two errors, another two errors that obviously we don’t want. That kid beat us in that situation, you know. Just frustrating, you know, we didn’t make plays, and they scored runs. … They made plays when they had to and we didn’t. So that’s the bottom line.”

UP NEXT

Second of the three-game set will be Tuesday at Fenway with first pitch set for 7:10 p.m. RHP Kutter Crawford (1-3, 3.68 ERA) will face RHP Chase Anderson (0-0, 2.25 ERA).