BOSTON — The Red Sox aren’t resting on their laurels after an important win over the New York Yankees at Fenway Park. Nor are they afraid of the task that still sits in front of them.
Eduardo Rodriguez pitched well, Hanley Ramirez went deep and Boston’s bullpen hung on Saturday as the Red Sox defeated the Yankees 5-3. The victory slashed the gap between the first-place Yankees and the last-place Red Sox to 5 1/2 games, which is amazing considering where Boston once stood.
“It was a big win,” Red Sox manager John Farrell said. “We walk into that dugout knowing full well where we are when you look out to left field (at the standings board on the Green Monster). And knowing that we’ve got to continue to improve within our division, particularly against New York, (Saturday’s win) was I think a key win for us with a chance to win a series tomorrow.”
The Red Sox have faced some adversity this season. They were a season-high 10 games back in the American League East on June 20 and nine games back as recently as June 25. Pessimism engulfed the fan base and it was reasonable to wonder whether jobs might soon be in jeopardy.
From Pablo Sandoval’s Instagram snafu to Hanley Ramirez’s lackadaisical left field play and everything in between, there seemingly was a reason to write off the Red Sox at every bend.
Yet they’re still standing, right in the thick of things.
Boston hasn’t dug itself out of the AL East basement, so optimism should be tempered, especially with the Red Sox’s best starter, Clay Buchholz, landing on the 15-day disabled list Saturday. But all things considered, the Sox are in a far better place on the eve of the Major League Baseball All-Star break than they were just a few weeks ago. They’ve won five of their last six games and nine of their last 12.
“We’ve dealt with a lot, whether it’s been self-inflicted or otherwise,” Farrell said. “In addition to some injuries, we’ve I think shown quite a bit of resiliency as a team.
“Knowing that our job is still ahead of us, we still have a lot of work to do. And in light of the situation (Friday) with Clay, that’s going to be a hole in our rotation for the time being. The veteran players coming back to us, the addition of (outfielder Alejandro) De Aza, there’s some momentum and some further genuine belief in our group.”
Belief. The Red Sox are restoring it rather quickly.
Thumbnail photo via Mark L. Baer/USA TODAY Sports Images
