The Boston Red Sox dropped their series opener to the Cleveland Guardians, leaving Fenway Park with a 5-2 loss Friday night.
Boston fell to 13-14 on the campaign, while Cleveland improved to 13-13.
You can check out the full box score here.
ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
The Red Sox's lack of consistent starting pitching is starting to catch up to them.
Nick Pivetta was the latest starter to dig Boston into a hole, giving up four earned runs on five hits across five innings pitched. Was it a catastrophic performance? No. Was it good enough to keep the Red Sox in the fight throughout the middle innings? No.
Though the start wasn't so terrible, it did push the Red Sox's team ERA among starters to an abysmal 6.44, the second worst mark in the majors. In 130 innings pitched, Boston's starters have allowed 93 earned runs, according to Christopher Smith of MassLive.
In another troubling trend, the Guardians started things off with two runs in the first inning. They were the 26th and 27th runs allowed in the first inning, bringing Boston's team ERA to 9.00, the second worst in the majors. On the flip side in this game, Shane Bieber allowed just two runs across seven dominant innings in which he struck out just four.
It's hard to win games when you're constantly starting behind the opponent.
STARS OF THE GAME
-- Bieber was great for the Guardians, pitching his way around trouble to put together a quality outing. The performance dropped his season ERA down to 3.11.
-- Jarren Duran continues to crush the baseball, belting three doubles in the loss. He finished 3-for-4 from the dish to push his season slash line to .421/.442/.684.
-- Will Brennan belted his first home run of the season Friday and scored to runs in the win.
WAGER WATCH
Bieber was given +145 odds to record a win by DraftKings Sportsbook. That bet cashed following his seven great innings, netting $100 bettors a $245 payout.
ON DECK AT NESN
The Red Sox and Guardians will play the middle game of their three-game set at Fenway Park on Saturday afternoon. First pitch is set for 4:10 p.m. ET following an hour of pregame coverage on NESN.
