The San Diego Padres rolled with the bats against the Boston Red Sox in the first two games of the series. The visitors posted 20 runs at Fenway Park and clinched a series win with an 11-1 victory on Saturday.
Luis Arraez is the catalyst for a surging Padres lineup that showed off at Fenway Park.
Arraez followed up a multi-hit night on Friday with three more hits and a pair of runs scored in the victory over the Red Sox on Saturday.
Alex Cora showed respect for one of the sport's professional hitters who plays through 2024 as a two-time reigning batting champion.
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"He is who he is," Cora told reporters at Fenway Park. "He's a good at-bat. (Not even) hits. The approach. Taking pitches. He's a really good hitter with what he does for a while. Back-to-back batting titles. I know people talk about batting average. Forget the batting average. Just the quality of the at-bat."
"I joked with him, 'Just get it over with. One pitch. Get your hit,'" Cora added. "He's one of the best hitters in the big leagues. He's been very consistent since he was a platoon player in Minnesota."
The Red Sox look to contain Arraez on Sunday to salvage the series against the Padres.
Featured image via Eric Hartline/USA TODAY Sports Images
