Brock Holt returns to the Boston Red Sox’s starting lineup Saturday.
Boston’s lone All-Star representative sat Friday night as the Red Sox kicked off their second half against the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. Holt, who held down second base while Dustin Pedroia was on the disabled list, is expected to bounce around now that Pedroia has returned. The super utility man will start at first base Saturday night against Angels right-hander Garrett Richards.
Mike Napoli will sit to begin Saturday’s game, which is another ominous sign for the struggling first baseman. Napoli is hitting just .191 with a .294 on-base percentage in 313 plate appearances after going 0-for-3 with a strikeout and a walk in Friday’s series opener. The current seven-game road trip marks an important stretch for Napoli, though it’s hard to make an impact from the bench.
Alejandro De Aza will start in right field for the second of four games against the Halos. The Red Sox are looking to bounce back from a crushing, 1-0 loss highlighted by Mike Trout’s walk-off home run.
Boston already received some good news Saturday, as the New York Yankees lost to the Seattle Mariners 4-3. The Red Sox entered the day 7 1/2 games back of the division-leading Yankees in the American League East, so a win would trim the deficit back to 6 1/2 games.
The complete lineups for Saturday’s Red Sox-Angels matchup are below.
RED SOX (42-48)
Mookie Betts, CF
Dustin Pedroia, 2B
Xander Bogaerts, SS
David Ortiz, DH
Hanley Ramirez, LF
Pablo Sandoval, 3B
Alejandro De Aza, RF
Brock Holt, 1B
Ryan Hanigan, C
Rick Porcello, RHP (5-9, 5.90 ERA)
ANGELS (49-40)
Johnny Giavotella, 2B
Kole Calhoun, RF
Mike Trout, CF
Albert Pujols, 1B
Erick Aybar, SS
David Freese, 3B
C.J. Cron, DH
Matt Joyce, LF
Carlos Perez, C
Garrett Richards, RHP (9-6, 3.53 ERA)
Thumbnail photo via Kevin Jairaj/USA TODAY Sports Images
