Red Sox Notes: Boston Shows Improved Offensive Identity

The Boston Red Sox needed a complete offensive effort after a disappointing ending to their series loss against the Toronto Blue Jays.

They’d have to do that against a quality pitcher in Minnesota Twins starter Joe Ryan. Alex Bregman, who’s been as hot as any hitter in baseball and thrived against Toronto, immediately set the tone with a solo home run in the first inning. The Red Sox third baseman homered for the third time in four games.

That marked a good start for the bats, but Boston dropped its previous series with a lack of playing with speed and too many strikeouts that made the offense stagnant later in games and only scored two runs Thursday.

The Red Sox made sure that would not be the case Friday night. The lineup scored five runs in its final two trips to the plate to add necessary insurance and secure a 6-1 win. Boston kept the line moving and put runners in scoring position with four stolen bases against the Twins.

“We were facing a really good pitcher today,” Bregman told reporters, as seen on NESN’s postgame coverage. “He had it going, but the guys stayed in the fight and kept battling. Just some big at-bats there at the end of the game.”

“We put the ball in play,” Cora told reporters, as seen on NESN’s postgame coverage. “We hit the ball with two strikes. We took advantage of certain things and put pressure on them.”

Although they averaged six runs per game in the Toronto series, the Red Sox needed a well-rounded effort with improved run support for the pitching staff and delivered that for the win in the opener against Minnesota.

“We have one of the best offenses in the big leagues,” Rafael Devers told reporters, as seen on NESN’s postgame coverage. “I know we can compete against any pitcher against anybody. Obviously, we have a very complete team.”

Here are more notes from Friday’s Twins-Red Sox game:

— Triston Casas suffered a “significant knee injury” in Friday’s game. The Red Sox first baseman got carted off the field in the second inning and got transported to a local hospital for further medical attention.

— Brayan Bello did his job in his third start of the season. The Red Sox starter allowed just one earned run in 6 2/3 innings. He allowed just four hits with one walks and five strikeouts.

“Electric, it was good,” Cora said. “Good command of the fastball. Him and Wong work great together. Kept the ball down. Off-speed pitches to get back into counts. He was tremendous.”

“I think all of my pitches were working well,” Bello told reporters through team translator Carlos Villoria-Benitez, as seen on NESN’s postgame coverage. “… I feel like overall it was a good outing and a good feel for my pitches.”

— Red Sox starters have received six consecutive quality starts for their longest such streak since the 2022 season.

— Earlier Friday afternoon, the Red Sox placed Walker Buehler on the 15-day injured list with right shoulder bursitis. Hunter Dobbins earned the call-up and will start Saturday in the corresponding move.

— Boston improved to 3-0 in Friday home games this season.

— The Red Sox and Twins continue their three-game series Saturday afternoon at Fenway Park. First pitch is set for 4:10 p.m. ET. You can catch the game, plus an hour of pregame coverage, on NESN.