Everyone knew the Boston Red Sox were capable of this. Whether it’s a case of “too little, too late” remains to be seen.
The Red Sox and their beat-up pitching staff earned a 5-1 win over the Cleveland Indians on Wednesday to take two of three in a pivotal series at Progressive Field. Xander Bogaerts homered twice, Rafael Devers continued mashing and seven pitchers combined to shut down the Tribe.
[nesn_embed_the_score team=”patriots”]
It was far from an easy victory, though. The Red Sox defense committed two errors and the team’s much-maligned bullpen had to nurse a 2-1 lead until Bogaerts hit a three-run homer in the seventh. Boston also had to deal with young Indians ace Shane Bieber, who was impressive over six innings.
The Red Sox improved to 64-59 with the win while the Indians dropped to 72-49 with the loss.
Here’s how it all went down:
GAME IN A WORD
Unforeseen.
Raise your hand if you thought the 2019 Red Sox were capable of winning a “bullpen game.”
ON THE BUMP
— Brian Johnson served as the “opener” and was serviceable.
The lefty pitched two scoreless innings before running into trouble in the third frame, in which he gave up a run before exiting with two outs and men on second and third. Overall, Johnson allowed one run on two hits and two walks over 2 2/3 innings.
— Marcus Walden forced Franmil Reyes to ground into a fielder’s choice to end the threat.
— Darwinzon Hernandez worked around a hit batter to pitch a scoreless fourth inning. The young lefty got the first two outs of the fifth but was pulled after allowing a single and issuing a walk.
— Josh Taylor retired Jose Ramirez to end the inning.
— Nathan Eovaldi pitched two scoreless innings, allowing just one hit. The hard-throwing right-hander looked strong, striking out two batters and forcing mostly weak contact.
— One day after earning the first save of his career, Andrew Cashner pitched another scoreless inning of relief. The right-hander allowed no baserunners and struck out one batter.
— Brandon Workman pitched a perfect ninth inning with a strikeout.
IN THE BATTER’S BOX
— The Red Sox got strong performances up and down their lineup (12 hits), but this game was all about Bogaerts and Devers.
— The young stars hit back-to-back homers in the third to give Johnson a 2-0 lead. Bogaerts’ blast was the 100th of his career, while Devers’ home run gave him hits in eight consecutive at-bats, a streak that ended during his next plate appearance. The Major League Baseball record for most hits in a row by a single player is 12, achieved by Pinky Higgins of the Red Sox (1938) and Walt Dropo of the Detroit Tigers (1952).
Dinger² pic.twitter.com/YwiVfH2ppM
— Red Sox (@RedSox) August 14, 2019
— Bieber kept the Boston bats quiet through his final three innings, but the offense broke through in the seventh when right-hander Nick Goody entered the game.
After Goody gave up a one-out double to Mookie Betts, the Indians elected to intentionally walk Devers (understandable), setting the stage for Bogaerts’ second blast of the game.
Bogie's insurance business is booming. pic.twitter.com/uEwETvLdAz
— Red Sox (@RedSox) August 14, 2019
— Bogaerts (3-for-4, one walk) now is hitting .307 with 27 home runs and 95 RBIs. Devers, who finished 2-for-4 with a walk, has 25 homers to go along with 94 RBIs.
— Betts, Sam Travis and Marco Hernandez finished with a hit apiece. Andrew Benintendi and Christian Vazquez each had two hits.
— Bradley and J.D. Martinez both finished hitless.
TWEET OF THE GAME
Just how they drew it up.
This is the second time in Sox history they used 7 pitchers in a nine-inning game and allowed one or fewer runs.
The other was 9-26-15, an expanded roster special when Craig Breslow and 6 relievers shut out the Orioles.
— Pete Abraham (@PeteAbe) August 14, 2019
UP NEXT
The Red Sox will get a much-needed day off Thursday before opening a three-game series in Boston against the Orioles. First pitch Friday night at Fenway Park is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET.
