The Boston Red Sox snapped a four-game losing streak with a 7-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on Wednesday.
Boston improved to 8-11 on the young season while Toronto fell to 12-7.
You can view the full box score here.
ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
The Red Sox might have gotten a real diamond in the rough with starter Michael Wacha. The former Tampa Bay Ray started to change his approach late last season and has gotten off to a phenomenal start in 2022.
One of the bigger adjustments he made was to throw his cutter less frequently, a pitch that got hit at a .375 clip a year ago. Paired with a much-improved curveball, Wacha has pitched like an ace all April long.
Wacha, 30, threw a season-high six innings against the Blue Jays, allowing just four hits, an earned run and two walks while striking out five. His lone run allowed would not have crossed the plate had Trevor Story been able to handle either of his two double-play opportunities in the third inning.
Through four games, Wacha is 2-0 with a 1.77 ERA with 17 strikeouts to nine walks in 20 1/3 innings.
It’s nice to see the bats come alive, but that was inevitable. Wacha potentially being the Red Sox’s latest find under chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom should be the main story of the night.
STARS OF THE GAME
— Xander Bogaerts had a great night at the plate, going 4-for-4 with two runs scored.
— Kiké Hernández led the Red Sox with two RBIs and scored a run, going 1-for-4 with a sacrifice fly.
— Wacha absolutely carved up a talented Blue Jays lineup, using his fastball-changeup pairing to mess with their timing all night.
WAGER WATCH
Kevin Plawecki made bettors some money with his third-inning lead-off single. The Red Sox catcher had -140 odds on DraftKings Sportsbook to record a hit. A $100 bet would have paid out $171.43.
ON DECK AT NESN
The Red Sox will play the final game of the four-game series against the Blue Jays on Thursday at Rogers Centre. First pitch is scheduled for 3:07 p.m. ET following an hour of pregame coverage, and you can watch it all on NESN.
