BOSTON — The Red Sox dropped an ugly one in the opener of their series with the Baltimore Orioles, falling to the O’s 4-0 Monday night at Fenway Park.
You can find a full rundown of the Red Sox’s offensive and defensive failures here, but let’s take a look a few additional tidbits from the evening.
— Nelson Cruz continues to torment Red Sox pitching. The outfielder went 2-for-4 with a walk and two runs scored in the game, improving his season average against Boston to .340.
— Brock Holt missed his third straight game as he continues to recuperate from an illness. Manager John Farrell said before the game that the utility man was improving but still unavailable to play. Mookie Betts again replaced Holt as Boston’s leadoff hitter and went 1-for-3 with a walk.
— Joe Kelly threw a career-high 120 pitches in the loss, allowing four runs (three earned) on six hits, three walks and two hit batters over 6 1/3 innings. Both Farrell and catcher David Ross praised his performance, but that didn’t ease the right-hander’s frustration.
“I hate losing,” Kelly told reporters after the game. “I’m probably one of the biggest poor sports in all of baseball.”
— David Ortiz came through with the Red Sox’s lone extra-base hit, doubling off Orioles reliever Brian Matusz in the eighth inning. It was Ortiz’s 546th career double, moving him to within one of former teammate Manny Ramirez for 27th on Major League Baseball’s all-time list. Monday also marked the designated hitter’s 1,647th game in a Red Sox uniform, passing Harry Hooper for sixth all-time.
— Ortiz had been 2-for-23 with 13 strikeouts lifetime against Matusz entering Monday.
— Rusney Castillo will make his debut at Triple-A Pawtucket on Tuesday as the PawSox host Game 1 of the Goverors’ Cup Finals. Farrell said the Cuban outfielder will play Games 1 and 2 but might be given a day off during the best-of-five series depending on the schedule. Castillo also is expected to play in the Triple-A National Championship should the PawSox advance.
— The Red Sox added former University of Connecticut pitcher Matt Barnes to the 40-man roster before the game. It’s the first major league call-up for the right-hander, who will be used in long relief.
— This series is the first back at Fenway for Orioles reliever Andrew Miller, who was traded by the Red Sox in July. Miller, who currently serves as Baltimore’s setup man but didn’t see action Monday, told The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo before the game that he would “love” to return to Boston next season, but only if the Red Sox’s offer is competitive.
Photo via David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports Images
