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The Boston Red Sox have had a flair for the dramatic this spring.
The Red Sox already have a couple of walk-off wins in their back pockets. On Tuesday, they added a crazy comeback win over the Tampa Bay Rays at Charlotte Sports Park in Port Charlotte, Fla.
Boston trailed 8-2 going into the ninth inning, but the offense exploded for nine runs en route to an 11-8 victory. Tuesday’s game featured mostly backups and minor leaguers, particularly in the later innings.
Let’s dive into some Red Sox notes regarding Tuesday’s developments.
— The Red Sox sent 15 batters to the plate in the ninth inning. The first nine reached base.
“I don’t how it stacks up,” Red Sox manager John Farrell told reporters with a smile when jokingly asked where the win ranks. “It’s a spring training game and we were able to string a bunch of hits together.”
— Several players contributed to Boston’s ninth-inning comeback, including Rusney Castillo, Daniel Nava and Deven Marrero. But Blake Swihart’s contributions were especially noteworthy.
Swihart, a switch-hitter, drilled a two-run triple into the right-center field gap from the left side. He then produced an RBI single from the right side of the dish.
Swihart, who turns 23 this week, is expected to start the season at Triple-A Pawtucket, as the Red Sox would like for him gain more seasoning, particularly defensively, in the minors before being turned loose at the major league level. Boston’s catching situation is less than ideal with Christian Vazquez sidelined, though. A hot start by Swihart at Pawtucket could lead to a call-up sooner rather than later.
— Speaking of the catching situation, Sandy Leon made his Red Sox debut.
Leon, who was acquired from the Washington Nationals on Monday, caught five innings and went 1-for-2. The 26-year-old has a lot of ground to make up before Boston’s April 6 season opener.
“They traded for me for (a reason),” Leon told reporters of his chances of cracking the Opening Day roster. “I think it’s going to be good for me. I’ll just have to wait (for a few days) and see what happens.”
Leon caught Edward Mujica, Junichi Tazawa, Tommy Layne and Anthony Varvaro on Tuesday.
— David Ortiz could see work at first base in the coming days as the Red Sox prepare for their season-opening interleague series in Philadelphia. Boston, of course, won’t have the luxury of a designated hitter for its first three regular-season contests.
“We haven’t set up anything definitively,” Farrell told reporters. “Ideally, yes, he gets on the field (at first base) so we’ve got him in the starting lineup at first base when we get to Philadelphia. But I don’t want to rush into something in three days and do something that affects a number of games.”
— Koji Uehara threw long toss Tuesday. He’s expected to start the season on the disabled list after feeling more discomfort in his strained hamstring following a bullpen session Monday.
“That’s pretty much the extent of his throwing,” Farrell said Tuesday. “As we look at his throwing program, it’s pretty much a day-to-day type thing (depending on) how the hamstring feels and the intensity he’ll throw in a given session.”
— Wade Miley confirmed his first start of 2015 will come in the Red Sox’s second series against the New York Yankees.
That suggests Boston will open the season with Clay Buchholz, Rick Porcello, Justin Masterson and Miley, in that order. Joe Kelly still is a question mark, given his biceps injury earlier in camp.
Thumbnail photo via Reinhold Matay/USA TODAY Sports Images
