Few Red Sox games this season have started as well as Tuesday night in Houston, when three consecutive extra-base hits by Jarren Duran, Wilyer Abreu and Triston Casas gave Boston an immediate 3-0 lead.
In addition, few Red Sox games have gone downhill so quickly, as Nick Pivetta gave up those runs right at the end of the first inning.
This was just the beginning of a tough contest that was equal parts baseball and tug-of-war and culminated in a 6-5 victory for the Red Sox after nearly three hours.
It was Duran’s night from the first pitch, which he turned into his 38th double of the season, which ties for the American League lead. He finished the night 4-for-4 with three runs, two batted in and a walk. It was his fourth four-hit game this season, but his first since the All-Star break. He led the lineup with eight total bases.
The Red Sox leadoff man, often described by his manager Alex Cora as the team’s “spark plug,” capped off his night with another crucial hit: Duran’s 17th home run of the season, a solo hit to left-center field, gave Boston the lead back in the eighth inning. This time, they didn’t give it up.
It was a big night for Casas, too. In his first four games since his “crazy” rib cartilage injury in late April, the Red Sox first baseman had five hits, including two two-hit performances, but no extra-base hits. He hadn’t hit a home run or scored a run since April 19, the day before his injury. But with the score tied at 1-1, Astros starter Ronel Blanco served up a slider and the Red Sox first baseman slammed it 384 feet to right for a two-run home run.
Casas also fell victim to a new quirk: the automatic strike. Houston had scored one in the series opener, and Boston was set to do the same in the middle of the set. With the bases loaded, Casas tried to call a second timeout and was given an automatic strike, which was the second out of the inning.
“I am my own biggest critic,” Casas told NESN’s Jahmai Webster.
It was an unspectacular evening for both starting pitchers, who each allowed five earned runs on six hits. Before the game, Red Sox pitchers had allowed 59 home runs since the All-Star break; no other team had allowed more than 47. And for the fifth game in a row, Pivetta allowed multiple home runs, tying the franchise record set by Josh Beckett in 2009. In five innings, he allowed five earned runs on six hits, issued three walks, struck out two players and allowed two home runs by Jon Singleton and Yainer Diaz. Blanco did not make it past the fourth inning.
After a very rough month for the Boston bullpen, Tuesday night saw a refreshing change. Greg Weissert, Zack Kelly and Luis García each threw a scoreless inning. For García in particular, it was an important performance to bounce back after allowing at least one run in six consecutive appearances.
Ironically, the bullpen performed better than it had in the last few games with a tie and a narrow lead by a larger margin. Not that the Red Sox didn’t have chances to do better. As they often do, they put themselves in positions to win, but then squandered them, putting 4 of 13 runs in scoring position and leaving 11 men on base.
As of Tuesday, 28 of 30 MLB teams had at least one grand slam this year. The last two teams without Salami played in Houston. But after Casas’ frustrating automatic out, Rafael Devers struck out with momentum to end another unsuccessful frame.
Only three teams have hit more home runs on away fields than the Red Sox, but the slam still eludes them. Taking advantage of opportunities has generally been a struggle. The Red Sox entered the contest leading the American League (and second in the major leagues) with 1,140 hits. However, they were in the same position in the left-on-base rankings with 889 men.
The Red Sox also lead the majors in Productive Out Opportunities, a metric that measures the various ways to advance or bring home a baserunner when one out is made. Boston’s 129 successful Productive Outs Made were the fifth-most in the majors, but their Productive Outs Percentage of 27.2% is well below the league average and the 11th worst.
The Red Sox loaded the bases twice, including in the ninth inning, so Kenley Jansen came in to tie the game at one. He also gave the Astros no chance. A 1-2-3 ninth inning sealed one of Boston’s bravest and strangest victories of the season.
“We knew we were going to have our hands full this week with this series,” Casas said. “We play good baseball and today was a team effort.”
The series concludes Wednesday afternoon with Cooper Criswell and Justin Verlander on the mound. The Red Sox are off Thursday and then return to Fenway Park on Friday to host the Arizona Diamondbacks for the weekend.
Originally published:
