BOSTON — As far as losses go, it doesn’t get much worse than what happened to the Red Sox on Saturday night.
The Los Angeles Angels demolished Boston 21-2 in a game that Red Sox manager John Farrell said he was embarrassed by. The contest was rough for everyone, as the pitching (obviously) imploded, the defense allowed seven unearned runs on a season-high four errors and the offense barely got on the board.
But Dustin Pedroia wasn’t ready to give up on his team quite so easily after the game.
“Yeah, absolutely we need to get out of (the slump),” the second baseman said. “We need to play better. But going into the year, we knew we were going to have a stretch like this. If everyone thought we were going to show up and win 140 games, that’s not how baseball works. You’re going to have bumps in the road, but what makes your team is how you find a way to get out of it and limit the losing streaks or the bad play.
“We’ve got to show up (Sunday) and win the series. Just chip away and win series at a time, and that’s how you get out of it. I know we lost by (19) runs, but we win tomorrow, we’re starting off the homestand pretty darn good. I don’t care if we lost by 20 or whatever. That’s what we’ve got to focus on.”
So was Pedroia as embarrassed as his manager was?
“I mean, we’re four games out of first place,” Pedroia said. “Dig in. Show up to work tomorrow and try to win. I’m not embarrassed to be a Boston Red Sock, by no means. We lost by 21 runs, or whatever the hell it was. So? There’ll be better days.”
Pedroia’s words likely will be encouraging for the Red Sox fans who’ve watched their team go 8-22 in their last 30 games.
Here are some more notes from Saturday’s loss.
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— Clay Buchholz’s rotation spot has been in flux all season, and Saturday’s start certainly didn’t help his case. The right-hander gave up six runs (three earned) on seven hits with one walk, one strikeout and two home runs over just 4 1/3 innings. And Farrell didn’t sound confident in Buchholz’s chances of making his next start.
“At this point, I’m not ready to commit to that,” Farrell said. “We’ll get through this series and evaluate where we are. We’ve got next Thursday as an off day to work around the rotation, so we’ll re-evaluate as we get through (Sunday).”
— Reliever Pat Light, who gave up half the runs in the Angels’ 11-run seventh inning, was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket after the game to make room for Sunday’s starter Sean O’Sullivan.
— Buchholz had one out in the fifth before he walked Kole Calhoun and gave up a single to Mike Trout, but he said after the game that he wasn’t ready to come out at that point.
“It’s a tough game sometimes,” Buchholz said. “I guess it’s just part of it. It’s definitely frustrating whenever you’re in the bullpen early (Friday) night — or a lot earlier than everyone expects for Steven Wright — and trying to go out there and eat up some innings, and I felt like I could have. It’s frustrating.”
— There was some good news for the Red Sox after the loss. Mookie Betts, who went 3-for-5 with two doubles, two runs, an RBI and a solo home run, became the third Red Sox hitter in franchise history to reach 70-plus runs, 100-plus hits and 15-plus home runs before the All-Star break, joining Manny Ramirez (2003) and Wade Boggs (1987).
Betts has 70 runs, 105 hits and 17 home runs on the season.
— The Angels deserve plenty of credit for their performance, as they accomplished some pretty impressive feats. First basemam C.J. Cron and catcher Carlos Perez became the first pair of teammates with five hits and five RBIs in a game since Gene Moore and Buck Jordan did it for the Boston Braves in 1936. The Angels also had three batters with five-plus RBIs for the first time in team history and only the sixth time in Major League Baseball.
Ironically, though, four-time All-Star and 2014 American League MVP Mike Trout didn’t knock in a single run.
— John Farrell gave and update on catcher-turned-outfielder Blake Swihart (ankle) and left fielder Chris Young (hamstring) before Saturday’s game.
“Blake will take (batting practice) in the cage from the left side of the plate,” Farrell said. “We’re still holding off on the right side just because of the stress that a right-handed swing will put on the left foot. But he’s making solid progress. Chris is still going through some normal rehab, no activity of any kind. This is more just straight therapy and rehab still with him.”
Thumbnail photo via Kim Klement/USA TODAY Sports Images
