The Boston Red Sox’s offense went quiet after the first inning Thursday night, and they hope the return of Andrew Benintendi will give them a spark.
The young left fielder got the day off Thursday as he continues to work through an 0-for-26 slump, but he returns to the cleanup spot in the order for Friday night’s game against the Oakland Athletics at Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum.
Red Sox ace Chris Sale will get the start as he looks to record his eighth straight outing with at least 10 strikeouts. The hard-throwing left hander has been dominant early in the season and continues to lead Major League Baseball in strikeouts.
Sandy Leon will handle the catching duties for Sale and hit in the No. 8 spot in the order against A’s starter Kendall Graveman. The right-hander got off to a solid start this season but has struggled recently, giving up 12 earned runs over his last 16 innings pitched.
Here are the full lineups for Friday’s Red Sox vs. Athletics game.
RED SOX (21-19)
Mookie Betts, RF
Dustin Pedroia, 2B
Xander Bogaerts, SS
Andrew Benintendi, LF
Hanley Ramirez, DH
Mitch Moreland, 1B
Jackie Bradley Jr., CF
Sandy Leon, C
Deven Marrero, 3B
Chris Sale, LHP (4-2, 2.15 ERA)
ATHLETICS (18-23)
Rajai Davis, CF
Adam Rosales, SS
Jed Lowrie, 2B
Khris Davis, LF
Trevor Plouffe, 3B
Ryon Healy, 1B
Mark Canha, RF
Chad Pinder, DH
Josh Phegley, C
Kendall Graveman, RHP (2-2, 3.95 ERA)
Thumbnail photo via Mitch Stringer/USA TODAY Sports Images
