BOSTON — Tuesday wasn’t a normal day at Fenway Park.
Maybe it was because the Red Sox returned home in shambles after a 1-6 road trip. Maybe it was because principal owner John Henry held court before the game to address Boston’s disarray. Heck, maybe it was the weather.
Whatever the case, it felt like a day in which the Red Sox needed a win. And for once, the struggling club stepped up in the clutch and did enough to earn a 1-0 victory over the Minnesota Twins.
The Red Sox can’t enjoy the win for long, as an important doubleheader looms large. But before shifting gears to Wednesday’s twinbill, let’s run down some notes from an interesting Tuesday at Fenway.
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— The biggest takeaway from Henry’s roughly 20-minute media availability centered on the job security of general manager Ben Cherington and manager John Farrell. Henry expressed extreme confidence in the tandem, suggesting neither is going anywhere anytime soon.
Farrell was asked about Henry’s pregame comments following the win. The skipper’s focus didn’t waver.
“We all share where we are today. You appreciate those comments, certainly,” Farrell said. “But the thing I care most about are the guys in that clubhouse and how we can get on a little bit of a run here, a little bit of a streak.”
— Henry offered additional praise for the Red Sox’s staff when asked how receptive players have been to making adjustments in conjunction with the coaches.
“This is a tremendous coaching staff. I think every player here feels lucky to have this set of coaches,” Henry said. “So, there’s no issue with them. No issue with the players, no issue with coaches.
“The issue has been with the production on the field, and that’s either going to change or this is going to be a terrible year.”
— Asked if he has any regrets about not re-signing Jon Lester, Henry laughed. He then said, “No.”
— Henry said he feels good about the team’s pitching despite outside criticism of the rotation. So he instead focused on the punchless offense, which, interestingly, he feels need to change its approach.
“You can see we’ve gone after hitters in the last year or two that aren’t necessary the most patient,” Henry said. “You can’t really call Pablo (Sandoval) a guy who’s waiting for a particular pitch in general. We think, in this day and age, that’s the kind of hitter we want to mix.
“You still have to get on base, you still have to look for your pitch. I shouldn’t get into all the technical details on this, but there are adjustments I think we need to make.”
— Regarding Hanley Ramirez’s shoddy defense in left field, Farrell said before the game, “We have to stay the course with that.”
— Dustin Pedroia has batted leadoff the last 10 games. He’s thrived in the role, so the Red Sox will stick with it for the time being.
However, Farrell didn’t rule out eventually revisiting the order. Pedroia’s preference is to bat second, according to Farrell, though it’s obvious the second baseman will do whatever helps Boston the most.
— Clay Buchholz threw just 92 pitches in his eight shutout innings, yet Farrell said the idea of leaving him out there to begin the ninth wasn’t all that tempting.
Buchholz has been under the weather in recent days and the Twins were in their fourth time through the order, with two of the scheduled hitters (Torii Hunter and Joe Mauer) each already having a hit against the right-hander.
— Rusney Castillo knocked in the game’s lone run. He singled home Xander Bogaerts in the seventh inning after Bogaerts planted a two-out double off the center field wall.
Castillo also made a catch with his back up against the right field wall in the eighth inning, so it was an all-around solid performance for the Cuban outfielder, who has had ups and downs since his call-up.
“I think with consistent at-bats he’s gaining some timing,” Farrell said. “Looks like pitchers are trying to pound him in with some pitches that he’s fighting off, and he gets a pitch over the plate for a base hit here tonight.
“He came to us last year in late September, more just kind of to get his feet wet. But now he’s in the thick of things (and) with each passing at-bat, the timing and the swings he’s put on balls is getting a little bit more consistent.”
— Tuesday’s game was the Red Sox’s shortest nine-inning game of the season at two hours, 21 minutes.
— Shane Victorino (left calf) is beginning to ramp up intensity in his rehab.
— Justin Masterson (shoulder) still is slated to make a rehab start Friday with Double-A Portland.
— Robbie Ross Jr. will be added as Boston’s 26th man for Wednesday’s doubleheader.
Thumbnail photo via Bob DeChiara/USA TODAY Sports Images
