Alex Cora Explains Why He Pinch-Hit Chris Owings For Marco Hernandez Vs. Phillies

There’s really no hiding from the numbers: Chris Owings hasn’t set the world on fire since getting called up to the Boston Red Sox.

So him pinch-hitting (for Marco Hernandez, no less) in a huge spot Wednesday night was a bizarre decision before, during and after the at-bat.

With the Sox down 4-2 in the bottom of the eighth inning, a two-out double from Christian Vazquez put runners on second and third with Hernandez about to step in. Instead, manager Alex Cora turned to Owings, who entered the game 1-for-12 with eight strikeouts since getting recalled.

Owings struck out to end the inning, and the Red Sox ultimately lost 5-2.

The blame only can be put on Owings so much, as it’s clear he never should have been thrown into that situation. After the game, Cora explained why he put in the 28-year-old.

“We felt that was a good matchup for us,’’ Cora said, via Boston.com. “(Jose Alvarez is a) fastball-changeup guy, down in the zone. He has struggled with fastballs up in the zone. We felt the matchup was good. He got some changeups, he swung and missed. We were very patient today waiting for the perfect matchup for us to hit for Marco. We felt like there, second and third with two outs, it was a good one. It just didn’t happen.’’

With the Rays’ comeback victory earlier in the day, the Red Sox now trail in the wild card standings by seven games. They’ll continue their suspended game against the Kansas City Royals on Thursday afternoon before heading out to the West Coast.