Red Sox Wrap: Shohei Ohtani Handcuffs Boston In Series-Ending Loss

The Boston Red Sox were dealt another series loss Thursday at Fenway Park as Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Angels exploded in the eighth inning en route to a 8-0 victory.

The Red Sox, who dropped each of the final two games in the three-game set, fell to 10-16 on the season. Los Angeles improved to 17-10 on the campaign.

You can check out the full box score here.

ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
Ohtani was worth the price of admission for those who got a chance to see him. Ohtani, who did something Thursday at Fenway that no other player has accomplished since Babe Ruth, took the mound for the Angels in his fifth start of the season. Baseball’s unicorn held the Red Sox scoreless through seven innings while striking out 11 batters on 99 pitches (81 strikes). Oh yeah, and then Ohtani took the bat in the top half of the inning and was one of three Los Angeles batters to record multiple hits (2-for-4) while his RBI single in the eighth helped break the game open.

STARS OF THE GAME
— Red Sox starter Rich Hill gave the Red Sox a quality start while allowing merely one hit over five innings. Hill threw 40 of his 68 pitches for strikes and did not allow a run, exiting the game before Boston’s bullpen allowed all eight to cross the plate.

— Angels first baseman Jared Walsh got the best of both Red Sox pitchers Tanner Houck (two-run home run in seventh) and Kutter Crawford (two-run single in eighth) to finish with two hits (2-for-4) and four RBIs.

— Ohtani, as mentioned, was incredible.

WAGER WATCH
Ohtani easily eclipsed his strikeout total after entering Thursday with the over/under set at 6.5 (+120). Ohtani recorded seven strikeouts in the first four frames. A $100 bet on Ohtani’s Over would have resulted in a pay out of $220 based on the prices at DraftKings Sportsbook.

ON DECK AT NESN
The Red Sox return to Fenway Park on Friday night to host the Chicago White Sox in the first game of the three-game set. First pitch is set for 7:10 p.m. ET. Red Sox coverage will return to NESN on Saturday with first pitch against Chicago set for 4 p.m. ET following an hour of pregame.