In less than 24 hours’ time, the Red Sox went from a sure-fire series victory to a disappointing setback against the Yankees.
After an unfortunate turn of events in Saturday’s extra-innings loss (more on that later), Tanner Houck helped put Boston in an early hole that his teammates on offense couldn’t climb out of in an 8-2 defeat in the rubber match on Sunday.
“Tough start,” Houck said postgame after Boston dropped its third consecutive series to fall to 2-7 following the All-Star Game. “But, that’s OK. We’ve got time to piece it back together and show up.”
Winning Weekend. #RepBX pic.twitter.com/9ihwcaB9Nk
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) July 29, 2024
The Yanks struck quickly with a run on Houck’s seventh pitch of the game, Aaron Judge knocking an opposite-field RBI single to right after old friend Alex Verdugo led off the game with a double.
A mere 13 pitches later, the Bronx Bombers had built a 3-0 lead after Gleyber Torres — he of the two-run double in Saturday’s come-from-behind, extra-innings Yankees victory — singled to plate a pair more.
“Definitely felt good, especially you know what they can do over there — especially here,” Yankees skipper Aaron Boone told me. “We’ve been through those (games) where you get out to a lead and they can put that inning on you, and it gets a little hairy.”
Houck allowed four runs, three earned, with five hits, four walks and just two strikeouts in his second straight rocky start (pun intended after allowing four runs on 10 hits over six in Colorado last Monday) coming out of the All-Star break.
“I’d say my stuff lately hasn’t been as up to par as I’d like it to be,” Houck added. “When that happens, execution really is what matters. So, didn’t execute.”
Boston jumpstarted its offense with back-to-back solo homers by Rob Refsnyder and Connor Wong to start the fourth and cut it to 4-2. The Sox had their chances, stranding eight runners while going 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position.
But New York sprinkled on some late offense to make it a relatively fair finish.
For what it’s worth, Jazz Chisholm Jr. enjoyed the experience — despite getting inadvertently clocked in the jaw by Romy Gonzalez rounding second in the ninth. The former All-Star went 1-for-5 in his New York debut — and his first taste of baseball’s greatest rivalry.
“Oh, it was sick,” Chisholm said when I asked him about his Red Sox-Yankees debut. “Today was actually my first time being part of a crowd like that. Being there for it and hearing the rivals and hearing everybody yelling, Yankees and Red Sox. I think it was pretty sick.”
Jansen debuts
In a surprise to no one, Boston made a pre-trade deadline transaction involving a player named Jansen.
Just not that one…
No, the Sox didn’t trade their former All-Star closer (yet), but instead acquired catcher Danny Jansen from AL East rival Toronto in exchange for minor leaguers Cutter Coffey, Eddinson Paulino and Gilberto Batista.
Jansen, sporting a .212 average, was in the starting lineup on Sunday night, but not behind the plate. He served as the designated hitter, batting seventh and finishing 2 for 3 with a walk.
“Good at-bats, man. Good at-bats,” Alex Cora said of Jansen’s debut. “Hit the ball hard, worked some counts, swing at the right pitches. This guy is gonna help us.”
The addition of Jansen forced another expatriated Blue Jay backstop off the roster. Boston designated catcher Reese McGuire for assignment earlier Sunday, ending the 29-year-old’s 2 1/2-year run with the Sox.
New castoff Blue Jays catcher, same as the old castoff Blue Jays catcher... #DirtyWater
— Gethin Coolbaugh (@GethinCoolbaugh) July 27, 2024
“Reese did a good job … He did an amazing job with our pitching staff,” Cora said pregame. "Offensively, it was tough because he wasn’t playing that much. … Coming into the season, I expected to play him more. But Connor (Wong) happened.”
Of Jansen’s bat, Cora acknowledged he liked the fit of the right-handed better than that of the lefty McGuire
“We’ve got a right-handed bat that we do believe fits into this stadium,” he said. “Pull hitter that hits the ball in the air.”
Cora summed up the move saying “As far as like the whole roster, we improve.”
That might be true on a technicality. As mentioned above, Jansen entered the game batting .212. McGuire hit .209 in 52 games this season. But it’s not like we’re talking about the Sox adding Vladimir Guerrero Jr. here…
Jansen, like James Paxton the day before, is a “roll the dice” type move you make throughout the course of a baseball season. He might work out, but he’s not someone you should be counting on to take you to the next level…
(And just as I’m writing this, Jansen just roped a nice opposite-field single to right in his first Red Sox at-bat in the third. Nice hack, I can’t deny it…)
It’s well-known that Boston has needed a right-handed bat. But if this is the only one they acquire prior to next week’s deadline, it should be considered a fail and an ‘L’ for Craig Breslow and the front office.
Personally, I don’t think that will be the case. There’s just no way they can justify Jansen as being the main offensive addition at the deadline, right? Well, maybe they’ll try… so perhaps that question should remain rhetorical.
Cora also said that the move might result in Wong taking more ground balls at first or second base in effort to maximize positional versatility.
I suppose that’s one way to make David Hamilton’s defense at second seem less terrible…
That close
Sunday’s result notwithstanding, the Red Sox could have — should have — won this series against the Yankees were it not for a misplayed fly ball by Tyler O’Neill in left-center that should have ended the ballgame with an 8-7 Red Sox win Saturday.
Instead, the Yankees rallied with three in the 10th to pull out an 11-8 victory to even the series after Boston earned a hard-fought 9-7 win in the opener.
It wasn’t the easiest play in the world to make. Certainly none of us would have made it. But armchair quarterbacking it after the fact, it’s probably one that an everyday outfielder in the major leagues should make — especially one who has played primarily in left this season.
Down to his final strike, Trent Grisham ties it for the @Yankees! pic.twitter.com/az1bZqUteo
— MLB (@MLB) July 28, 2024
O’Neill said the ball hit “high off the wall” — it didn’t — and was “unfortunately just out of my reach.” The problem with that is, had he not slowed up and taken a better route to the ball, that very well may not have been the case…
I get it, that Monster scoreboard isn’t exactly a soft trampoline out there and you have to weigh the cost of injury. That’s fair. But, factually speaking, that’s sometimes part of doing business as the left fielder for the Red Sox at Fenway Park, and he didn’t exactly sell out for it.
He also didn’t help his cause in right field on Sunday, bobbling a routine ball off the wall that rolled right to him which allowed Austin Wells to advance to second and later score on a sacrifice fly for New York’s fourth run of the night in the top of the fourth.
Didn't have Tyler O'Neill becoming a defensive puddle on my 2024 Bingo Card. pic.twitter.com/pY7b034kXj
— The Pesky Report (@ThePeskyReport) July 29, 2024
All in all, not the best look for a two-time Gold Glove winner…
It was an unfortunate turn of events, but that’s baseball sometimes. The Yankees are a desperate bunch who needed a win — and a series win — in the worst way. They put themselves in position to have a shot, and the ball just bounced in their favor.
Now, the Red Sox find themselves 6 1/2 games back in the AL East and
“We’re OK,” Cora insisted after Sunday’s defeat. “Today, we were a little bit sloppy obviously defensively, but overall, you know, the effort is there. We had a chance to win the series yesterday. It didn’t happen. So you’ve just gotta turn the page, be ready for tomorrow.”
Gethin Coolbaugh is a columnist for Boston Sports Journal. Follow him @GethinCoolbaugh on X/Twitter.