BOSTON — The Red Sox have taken home-field advantage to a new level this season.
With a 10-3 win over the Colorado Rockies at Fenway Park on Wednesday, the Red Sox improved to 18-9 at home and have won 13 of their last 15 home games. And, after taking the first two against Colorado, the Red Sox have won five straight home series.
Manager John Farrell thinks it has a little to do with the dimensions of the ballpark, and a lot to do with the athleticism up and down the roster.
“I think you look at the quality of the players we have, our roster, our personnel has changed, and we’ve added young, energetic, athletic guys that are able to go first to third, which I think is key in this ballpark,” Farrell said after Tuesday’s 8-3 win. “Because men in scoring position, or men on base is not always a guaranteed run on a base hit, particularly on the left side of the field, and it’s just an all-field approach. And I think that’s the biggest thing. This notoriously has been a great doubles ballpark. Our hitting approach plays to that.”
And wouldn’t you know it, the Red Sox happen to lead Major League Baseball with 121 doubles with a lot of space between them and the second-place St. Louis Cardinals at 97. Eighty of those 121 doubles have come at Fenway Park, and the team’s .312 home average probably doesn’t hurt, either.
Boston also is averaging 6.85 runs and 11.11 hits per game over 27 home games, so either way you slice it, opposing teams so far aren’t enjoying their stays at Fenway.
Here are some notes from Wednesday’s win.
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— Jackie Bradley Jr. doesn’t like to talk about his now 29-game hitting streak much, but Farrell provided some insight what’s made JBJ so successful. A lot of it has to do with his ability to hit to the opposite field, which he did on a single and a double Wednesday.
“He’s been doing that so well with quality stuff,” Farrell said. “That’s the reason why we’re sitting here talking about 29 consecutive because he’s using the whole field.”
— Xander Bogaerts continued his hitting streak, too, launching a moon shot over the Green Monster to put the Red Sox on the board in the first inning.
Bogaerts also made a leaping grab to rob Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado of a hit in the third inning, but the shortstop came out of the game in the eighth inning after bending his thumbnail back applying a tag. Farrell said he should be good to go Thursday, though.
— Steven Wright logged a team-best eighth quality start in what continues to be a great season for the right-hander. It’s worth noting, though, that his knuckleball had some pretty wild movement on it at times, which Wright explained the only way anyone can explain that pitch, really.
“I mean, that’s the knuckleball,” Wright said. “I really don’t know. I just grip it and rip it. I just try to throw it over the plate, sometimes it moves more than others.”
— Dustin Pedroia left the game, too, with some hamstring tightness in the fifth inning, and the second baseman said he felt OK after getting stretched out for what he claimed was the first time in 10 years.
“I’m fine,” Pedroia said. “I appreciate John (Farrell) and everybody looking out. We obviously don’t want anything to happen like last year, but I’m good.”
Pedey also said he expects to be in Thursday’s lineup.
“Yeah, s—, unless I get benched,” Pedroia said.
— Travis Shaw added three RBIs, giving him 32 on the season and making him the fourth Red Sox to tally at least 30 RBIs so far. The third baseman’s 68 RBIs through 111 career games with Boston is the most for a Red Sox hitter since Jim Rice and Fred Lynn in 1974 and 1975.
— Boston’s rotation is showing improvement, delivering six quality outings in the last seven starts. The starters have a 2.83 ERA in that span.
— Farrell gave a pregame update on left fielder Brock Holt, who returned from tests with concussion specialist Dr. Micky Collins in Pittsburgh.
“He’ll begin some general conditioning (Thursday) when he gets back to us,” Farrell said. “So he’s still dealing with some symptoms, minor as they might be, and in the coming days, baseball activity will start at that point, so we’re going to miss him for a little bit. He’s going to need some time to get back to game speed for us. But we don’t feel like this is a real long-term type of scenario with Brock.”
— Blake Swihart joined Mookie Betts and Bradley in the multi-triple game club after hitting a pair of three-baggers to center field. Only three other players in all of baseball — Kolten Wong, Gregor Blanco and Trevor Story — have multi-triple games.
“It points directly to the type of players that we have,” Farrell said. “Good hitters that are very athletic, that can run. We ran the bases extremely well (Wednesday night).”
Thumbnail photo via Mark L. Baer/USA TODAY Sports Images
