Final, Red Sox 11-1: That’ll do it. The Red Sox’ second game of the day has come to a close with Boston taking down Boston College 11-1. The win runs the Sox’ all-time record against the Eagles to 23-0.
This one was essentially over after the third inning. The Eagles had just tied the game 1-1 when the Red Sox put the game out of reach with an eight-run frame. Boston’s hurlers then dominated from there, and the end result was a three-hitter.
Dan Butler and Shannon Wilkerson each hit a two-run homer in the win, and the Red Sox finished with 11 hits, including three from Mauro Gomez.
Koji Uehara started the game against BC, and Andrew Bailey, Junichi Tazawa, Oscar Villarreal, Jose De La Torre, Terry Doyle and Brock Huntzinger each pitched an inning in relief. Tazawa gave up the only run Boston’s pitching staff allowed all day.
Xander Bogaerts finished the game 1-for-4, and Jackie Bradley Jr. went 1-for-3 with an RBI double and a run scored.
The Red Sox also picked up a victory in their first game of the day, blanking Northeastern behind a four-hitter from Joel Hanrahan and six others. The link is below, in case you missed that game.
The Red Sox will kick off their Grapefruit League schedule on Saturday against the Rays. John Lackey will get the start.
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Click here to read NESN.com’s Red Sox-Northeastern live blog >>
End 6th, Red Sox 11-1: Bogaerts decided enough was enough. After starting the game off 0-for-3, the Red Sox’ prized farmhand lined a 3-1 fastball to left-center field for a double.
For anyone interested in seeing a video of the double — and a number of other scenes from the day’s action — WEEI.com’s Mike Petraglia has posted a few TOUT videos. Click here to see them.
Bogaerts’ double actually went for naught, though, as the Red Sox failed to push across a twelfth run.
Brock Huntzinger will toe the rubber for the Sox in the seventh and final inning of the day.
Mid 6th, Red Sox 11-1: Pretty cool opportunity for Terry Doyle in the sixth. The Concord, Mass., native got to pitch against his alma mater, which is something you definitely don’t see every day.
Doyle sat down all three BC hitters he faced, meaning the Eagles will need a miracle in the seventh inning in order to walk away from this one with a win.
End 5th, Red Sox 11-1: The Red Sox have added two more runs thanks to a Shannon Wilkerson blast. It was Wilkerson’s first at-bat of the game, and he certainly made it count.
The Red Sox now have some other reserves in the game as well. Deven Marrero is in at shortstop, Peter Hissey is in center, Drew Hedman has taken over at first base, Brandon Jacobs is the new left fielder and Christian Vazquez is behind the plate. Alberto Rosario also pinch hit for DH David Refroe in the fifth.
Mid 5th, Red Sox 9-1: The Eagles are running out of opportunities to put up runs, as the Red Sox’ pitching success has carried over into their second game of the day.
Jose De La Torre had an easy inning in the top of the fifth. The main highlight came when Bogaerts made a nifty snag down at third and fired across the diamond for the out. As I mentioned earlier, Bogaerts has been coming up through the system as a shortstop although he’ll be playing third base in the WBC. Regardless of what position he plays in the future, though, his arm strength is obvious, and that’s an added bonus to the production he figures to provide at the plate.
End 4th, Red Sox 9-1: The Red Sox have put up nine runs, yet their top prospect — and probably the most intriguing player to watch in this game — is 0-for-3.
Xander Bogaerts fell behind 0-2 before hitting a frozen rope to deep left field. A leaping grab robbed Bogaerts of a hit, though. What a bust, huh?
In all seriousness, it’ll be interesting to see what Bogaerts has in store for the big stage of the World Baseball Classic. The infielder’s future is definitely bright, and it it could be his first chance to really make a name for himself outside of the Sox organization.
Mid 4th, Red Sox 9-1: BC needs to start putting up some runs, but Oscar Villarreal ensured it wasn’t happening on his watch. Villarreal kept the Eagles’ offense at bay, and Boston still holds an eight-run lead.
Villarreal is one of 19 non-roster invitees participating in the Red Sox’ major league spring training. The 31-year-old reliever has pitched for three different big league clubs over the course of his six-year major league career. He last pitched in the bigs in 2008 as a member of Astros.
End 3rd, Red Sox 9-1: It didn’t take long for the Red Sox to regain the lead in a big way. They pushed across eight runs in the bottom of the third.
Brock Holt knocked in the first run with a base hit, and Jackie Bradley Jr. followed that up with an RBI double off the base of the wall in right-center. That was just the start, though, as Boston scored six more runs to jump out to a commanding lead through three innings.
Jonathan Diaz chipped in a two-run double during the big frame, and Mauro Gomez added two more runs with a base hit. The explosion was capped off with a two-run homer from catcher Daniel Butler.
In the end, 12 batters stepped into the box against BC pitching, and we’ve suddenly got ourselves a rout at JetBlue Park.
Mid 3rd, 1-1: Boston College has answered back. John Hennessy, who singled to leadoff the game, doubled off Junichi Tazawa in the third, and BC was able to push across a run on an RBI groundout from Matt Pare.
It’s the first run of the day given up by Sox pitching, as Boston blanked Northeastern while allowing just four hits in Game 1.
End 2nd, Red Sox 1-0: The Red Sox are on the board first.
Mauro Gomez doubled to open up the home half of the second, and he was then knocked in by Jeremy Hazelbaker, who singled.
Xander Bogaerts, who was recently ranked the Red Sox’ No. 1 prospect, then dug in for his first at-bat of the afternoon. He grounded out softly to third base on the first pitch he saw. Jonathan Diaz and Daniel Butler grounded out as well.
As you can already see, this game will provide a heavy dose of minor league talent. The Red Sox actually have some solid organizational depth as we enter this season, which is a good thing considering the emphasis Ben Cherington is trying to place on player development going forward.
Click here to read about the Red Sox’ top prospects >>
Mid 2nd, 0-0: Andrew Bailey was the second Sox pitcher to get a crack at BC, and he looked impressive. Bailey enjoyed a 1-2-3 inning.
It’ll be interesting to see how Bailey adapts to his new role as a setup man this season. If he’s able to thrive in that capacity, Boston’s bullpen could find itself among the America League’s best units, as there’s certainly plenty of talent in the mix.
End 1st, 0-0: Lefty Nate Bayuk got the starting nod for Boston College, and he retired the Sox in order in the first.
Justin Henry flew out to begin the inning. Brock Holt then grounded out, and Jackie Bradley Jr. lined out to center.
Mid 1st, 0-0: Koji Uehara had mixed results in the first inning, but he kept Boston College off the board.
Uehara, who figures to be one of Boston’s setup men this season, surrendered a leadoff single to John Hennessy. Hennessy was wiped off the bases, though, when Blake Butera lined to right with Hennessy on the move. Matt Pare then reached on a throwing era by Jonathan Diaz, and Tom Bourdon singled to move him up into scoring position, but the inning ended when Uehara struck out Geoff Murphy.
4:15 p.m.: I’ve got some notes to pass along before we start this one up. This marks the 23rd time the Red Sox and Boston College have squared off — it’s the 21st consecutive year the two teams have played. The Sox won last year 6-3 in the first such clash at JetBlue Park.
Nine former Boston College Eagles have gone on to don a Red Sox uniform. Terry Doyle, invited to Red Sox major league camp as a minor league free-agent signing, is a former Eagle. He’s scheduled to pitch in this game.
4:10 p.m.: A touching moment kicked off the second game at JetBlue Park. Boston College president of baseball operations Peter Frates, who is battling ALS, presented the game ball. He was wheeled out by former BC teammate Terry Doyle and handed the ball to Red Sox manager John Farrell.
Click here to read more about Frates >>
3:55 p.m. ET: The Red Sox kicked off their spring training schedule on Thursday with a victory over Northeastern, but they’re not done for the day just yet. Next up for the Sox is a clash with Boston College at 4 p.m. ET.
While the Red Sox’ lineup for the first game included a number of regulars, Boston’s lineup against BC will consist entirely of minor leaguers. That doesn’t mean it won’t be an interesting game, though, as some of the organization’s top prospects, including Xander Bogaerts and Jackie Bradley Jr., will be in action.
Bogaerts, who is coming up through the system as a shortstop, will play third base against the Eagles. It’s a position many envision him eventually switching to, but him playing there against BC could just be to get him some more practice at the position before he mans the hot corner for Team Netherlands during the upcoming World Baseball Classic.
Just like the Red Sox did against Northeastern, they’ll roll out a new reliever to start Thursday’s contest against BC. Koji Uehara will get the nod first for the Sox in the seven-inning affair.
The Red Sox’ lineup is below.
Justin Henry, RF
Brock Holt, SS
Jackie Bradley Jr., CF
Mauro Gomez, 1B
Jeremy Hazelbaker, LF
Xander Bogaerts, 3B
Jonathan Diaz, 2B
Daniel Butler, C
David Renfroe, DH
Koji Uehara, P
Also scheduled to pitch: Andrew Bailey, Oscar Villarreal, Terry Doyle, Jose De La Torre, Junichi Tazawa
