Latest news with #Boston Red Sox
Washington Post
12 hours ago
- Climate
- Washington Post
Twins top Red Sox 5-4 on 2-run single in 9th by Brooks Lee after 90-minute rain delay
MINNEAPOLIS — Brooks Lee hit a two-run single off Jordan Hicks in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Minnesota Twins a 5-4 victory over the Boston Red Sox after a 90-minute rain delay Monday night. After Roman Anthony put Boston in front with an RBI single off Twins closer Jhoan Duran (6-4) in the top of the ninth, the grounds crew hustled out the tarp to beat a downpour.
New York Times
2 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Red Sox closer Aroldis Chapman leaves game in eighth inning
Days before the trade deadline, Boston Red Sox closer Aroldis Chapman exited Sunday's game in the middle of the eighth inning. With the Red Sox clinging to a 4-3 lead against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chapman entered the game to face a tough pocket in the lineup beginning with No. 9 hitter Miguel Rojas. He walked Rojas on five pitches, the last ball coming on a pitch clock violation. Chapman's velocity, noticeably down, with his fastball averaging 94.7 mph compared to his normally electric 98.5 mph average this season, as he struggled to find the zone. Advertisement The left-hander stayed in and walked Mookie Betts on five pitches before getting Shohei Ohtani to fly out before manager Alex Cora and a trainer came out to the mound. After a brief discussion, Chapman exited the game and Jordan Hicks entered to finish off the eighth. Hicks collected his second save for the Red Sox with 1 2/3 scoreless innings. Chapman pitched Saturday night, making 17 pitches and picking up the save in a 4-2 win. The Red Sox have not yet announced a status update for Chapman. The 37-year-old closer is in the midst of one of the best seasons of his 16-year career with a 1.30 ERA and 0.82 WHIP, along with a 39.1 percent strikeout rate and a career-low 7.1 percent walk rate heading into Sunday. Chapman signed a one-year, $10.75 million deal last offseason with the Red Sox, who won an important series against the Dodgers but now approach the trade deadline with concerns over the lefty's health.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
ESPN names ‘best fits' for Red Sox ahead of MLB trade deadline
The MLB trade deadline is 10 days away and the Boston Red Sox have made it clear they want to bolster their roster. How they end up doing that remains unclear, but ESPN's Jeff Passan and Kiley McDaniel tabbed eight players as 'best fits' for Boston. Here are the candidates: No. 4: Sandy Alcantara, starting pitcher for Miami Marlins (No. 3 last time) No. 8: Kris Bubic, starting pitcher for Kansas City Royals (new) No. 11: Mitch Keller, starting pitcher for Pittsburgh Pirates No. 13: Merrill Kelly, starting pitcher for Arizona Diamondbacks No. 14: Josh Naylor, first baseman for Arizona Diamondbacks No. 15: Ryan O'Hearn, first baseman for Baltimore Orioles No. 17: Taj Bradley, starting pitcher for Tampa Bay Rays No. 18: Edward Cabrera, starting pitcher for Miami Marlins The Red Sox could certainly be in the market for a first baseman after Triston Casas suffered a ruptured patellar tendon that will sideline him for the remainder of the season. The corner position has been an issue since Casas' injury between lack of depth and Rafael Devers' — who was ultimately traded to the San Francisco Giants — unwillingness to move to first. And while Romy Gonzalez and Abraham Toro have filled in fine at first since Casas' injury, chief baseball officer Craig Breslow said the Red Sox will be "open-minded about the opportunities to bring in a bat that can play first base." The Red Sox would also benefit from adding pitching helping — both starters and relievers after losing Hunter Dobbins for the year due to a torn ACL and Tanner Houck remaining on the injured list after his rehab assignment. Lucas Giolito and Brayan Bello have shown signs of improvement, but starters not named Garrett Crochet have struggled to find a consistent groove. Boston is in a Wild Card position and is looking to return to the postseason for the first time since 2021. It's an important deadline for Breslow, who's been adamant about improving the team come the July 31 deadline. More Red Sox coverage Could Red Sox land starting pitcher from Diamondbacks? MLB insider weighs in In Red Sox lineup, Masataka Yoshida the odd man out vs. Phillies ace Monday night Ex-Red Sox pitcher called up by Royals, will pitch for 14th MLB team (report) Red Sox outfielder ranked No. 3 on ESPN trade candidates list Ex-Red Sox catcher, 2018 World Series champion added to Braves roster Read the original article on MassLive.
New York Times
5 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Red Sox takeaways: Inconsistency, stealing strikes, and a homecoming
With the trade deadline looming next week — and with losses in four of their five games coming out of the break — it would be reasonable to question whether the Boston Red Sox will be buyers. But internally, the team seems confident that it can make a run. That belief stems from parity in the American League playoff picture and an ability to stick in close games, as they have lately. Advertisement The Red Sox have shown a frustrating imbalance, alternating between lackluster losses and gritty victories, with Wednesday's 9-8, 11-inning win over the Philadelphia Phillies falling into the latter category. It was a playoff-like game against a strong opponent and Alex Cora managed like it, sending Aroldis Chapman into the game in the seventh to face the dangerous Kyle Schwarber with one out and one on. Chapman got the job done, but he gave up a game-tying homer the next inning. However, the Red Sox badly needed a win, and they ultimately prevailed. They battled back from a 5-0 deficit on Romy Gonzalez's grand slam to take a lead, lost it with their closer on the mound in the eighth, went ahead again in the 10th and then did it again for good in the 11th on a Carlos Narvaez homer. Desperation might be too strong of a word, but Chapman's early entrance highlighted an mistakable sense of urgency. The Red Sox scuffled entering the trade deadline last season and made middling moves with three pitchers who were quickly injured. The previous year, they were in wild-card contention and didn't add much, as then chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom labeled them underdogs. Prior to the break, Cora was forthright about why the club has faltered after the break in recent years. 'When teams add and you stay put, other teams get better,' he said. 'It's not that you got worse. It's just that other teams took a step forward, and we haven't done that in a few years here.' Here are a few takeaways from a tough series in Philly as the Red Sox head home for a three-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers beginning Friday: The Jekyll-and-Hyde offense that has plagued the Red Sox all season resurfaced after the break. Boston's offense still ranks among league leaders, partly due to 16 games in which the Red Sox have scored 10 or more runs. Advertisement Wednesday's six-run outburst in the fifth inning was the fourth time this month the club has scored six or more runs in an inning, tops in the majors. Still, it's been a struggle for the Red Sox to post consistent numbers throughout the season. In their first five games out of the break, they scored 10 runs, but six came in Sunday's win in Chicago. They'd scored four runs in their other four games. The Red Sox have undoubtedly faced tough pitching, particularly in Philadelphia against Zack Wheeler and Cristopher Sanchez, but their inability to even put the ball in play hurt them as the strikeout numbers ballooned again. Through the first two games in Philadelphia, the Red Sox struck out 28 times: 16 in the first game and 12 in the second game. On Wednesday, they struck out 16 more times, albeit over 11 innings. They'd found a way to curb those whiff rates during their 10-game winning streak, but that hasn't been the case lately. They sit in ignominious company with the third-most strikeouts behind the Rockies and Angels. On Wednesday, they showed what they can do when they have a more patient approach and don't let innings snowball. The lack of offense has led to more one-run games, something the club battled earlier in the season, too. Their 33 one-run games are tied with Seattle for most in the AL. It's tempting to suggest a big bat is what the Red Sox need at the deadline, and while they are looking for more help at first base, is one bat the solution? When the lineup goes through tough offensive stretches, it's a team-wide issue. Moreover, the lineup is already crowded as Cora juggles to find a versatile group searching for playing time. Of course, if they add a first baseman, it would seem like they'd move on from Abraham Toro (versus Gonzalez, with whom Toro has split time. Gonzalez mashes left-handed pitching and is a more versatile defender). Either way, the offensive struggles have hurt the team, and if the Red Sox are pushing for the postseason, they'll face just as many tough pitchers. Rookie catcher Carlos Narvaez has been among Boston's most valuable players, leading all catchers with 16 Defensive Runs Saved and third with 11 Outs Above Average, while hitting .266 with a .778 OPS over 78 games. He unexpectedly took over as the team's starting catcher when incumbent starting catcher Connor Wong went on the injury list in April after breaking a finger on a catcher's interference call. Advertisement The catcher's interference calls have been costly for the Red Sox, and they came into focus again this week in Philadelphia. On Monday night, in a strange play that gave the Phillies a walk-off win in extra innings, home plate umpire Quinn Wolcott ruled Narvaez had interfered with Edmundo Sosa's bat path on a check swing with the bases loaded, forcing in the go-ahead run. It was the first time since 1971 that a game ended in a walk-off on a catcher's interference call. On Tuesday, Narvaez was docked again on another run-scoring catcher's interference when he stepped in front of the plate before the pitch, attempting to get Bryce Harper trying to steal home. The more traditional bat-clipping-mitt interferences have been on the rise across the league, but the Red Sox lead the league in such calls with eight, according to Stats Perform, with St. Louis second at five. Last year, San Diego led the league with nine calls through 162 games. The increase across the league is due in large part to catchers setting up closer to the plate. That helps catchers frame pitches better — the idea being that there's less movement for a ball to stray out of the zone if it's caught closer to the plate. 'The interferences around the league are way up,' Cora said on WEEI radio Wednesday. 'We're pushing our catchers — not only us — but as an industry, closer to hitters to steal strikes. That's the reality of it.' In recent years, as teams have searched for every advantage possible, tracking hitter positioning in the box with cameras around the ballpark and with internal data has become a focus. While Narvaez has been docked four times, he's also among MLB's best pitch framers. Per Statcast's catcher framing runs, he's tied for fifth league-wide with five. Veteran pitchers on the Red Sox have lauded Narvaez for his presence behind the plate and game-calling skills, but whether the Red Sox adjust his set up to prevent more interference calls remains to be seen. Advertisement The Red Sox knew this tough stretch was coming, and it hasn't been any less foreboding upon arrival. Each of their first three opponents after the break — Chicago, Philadelphia and Los Angeles — lead their respective National League divisions. The Red Sox dropped two of three in Chicago and Philadelphia. They weren't blown out in those games, but losses are losses. The Dodgers come to Fenway this weekend, and for as good as they've been this season, they're in the midst of their own struggles, having gone 7-11 in July. They did pull off a walk-off win on Wednesday against the Twins. Mookie Betts is hitting just .238 on the season and .185 with a .548 OPS in July. With Brayan Bello, Garrett Crochet and Walker Buehler due to start this weekend, the Red Sox need to find a way to use Fenway to their advantage, as their 32-20 home record indicates compared to a 22-29 road record. Cora said this past week that Alex Bregman should be a full-go, which will likely help the club. Since returning sooner than expected from a severe quad injury, Bregman has played two out of three games in each of the past three series. He was off Wednesday ahead of the team's scheduled off day Thursday, and while he hasn't been running at full speed on the bases, he has said he's felt he can push it if needed. Though the Red Sox are healthier than last year at this point, their pre-break surge and post-break struggles have been eerily similar to 2024, when they came out of the break with five losses in six road games in Colorado and Los Angeles. If the Red Sox can capitalize on the Dodgers' scuffles while playing at home, it would help in the days leading up to the trade deadline.
New York Times
22-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Twins lose again as trade deadline looms: ‘We know the situation'
LOS ANGELES — For the moment, it looks like the Twins should sell before next week's trade deadline. After losing two of three games in Denver over the weekend and again on Monday, six teams are ahead of Minnesota in the wild-card standings. But the beauty, or perhaps it's the absurdity, or maybe even the challenge of the third wild-card spot, is it provides teams a false sense they're never quite out of the playoff picture. Four good days in a row can change an organization's plans. So too can a few bad ones determine what a club does by the July 31 trade deadline. Advertisement Even though they're only five games behind the Boston Red Sox for the third and final spot, the Twins' chances of making the playoffs are minimal. But they aren't damned, either. With time still on the clock until the front office makes a determination, Twins manager Rocco Baldelli wants his players focused on nothing more than that night's game. 'The next couple weeks of baseball might change the course of the season in one direction or another,' Baldelli said. 'So be it. That's the reality of it. That's what we have to own. We have to do our part to keep our group playing well and together and not worry about it in a negative sense. Think about it in a positive light and try to go in the direction that we want to go.' The Twins are struggling all season to stay on the correct course. They played brilliant baseball for 13 straight games in May, a stretch Baldelli described as one of the best he'd ever been a part of in his career. Prior to the loss of Pablo López, the team's pitching staff ranked first in strikeout-to-walk ratio, Wins Above Replacement, according to Fangraphs, and sixth in earned-run average. The same team is also 35-52 in the rest of its games and produced a horrendous 9-18 June. The Twins lost two of three games to a Colorado squad which won only two of its previous 31 series. With Carlos Correa and Royce Lewis both struggling to hit, the offense was 20th in runs scored entering Monday and 16th in weighted Runs Created Plus, rating as below average. The defense ranks 26th in Defensive Runs Saved with minus-27, according to Sports Info Solutions. In essence, the club is being propped up by the brilliance of Byron Buxton, Joe Ryan and bullpen which leads the majors in WAR. 'Finding consistency is hard in this game,' Correa said. 'We can sit down and have a two-hour conversation about things that can be done better and things that have been going great, and all these things that we could do or not do. But at the end of the day, it's all about wins and losses. We gotta figure out ways to get wins.' Advertisement As if winning isn't already difficult enough, Twins players are now dealing with deadline distractions. Ryan and Buxton both were asked questions at last week's All-Star Game about potential trades at the deadline, the latter noting he's not going anywhere because of his no-trade clause. The pundits are out in force wondering not if but when the Twins will sell. And rival scouts are watching every at-bat and pitch to determine which players might make the most sense for their team. Lefty reliever Danny Coulombe would love to win with the Twins, but he prefers winning wherever it happens. He's also considered how a deadline trade could impact family logistics. But seeing his name recently surface on the apps prompted him to put down his phone. 'I'm simply staying off social media,' Coulombe said. 'There's a lot of stuff going around I can't control. I can control the pitch I throw and my execution and that's about it. I want to win. I'm getting to the point in my career where that's the only thing that matters. Whether it's here or somewhere else, we'll see what happens.' Wanting to keep as many players as possible, Baldelli is monitoring the situation and intervening only when necessary. He'll handle an affected player if it's needed. But Baldelli sees addressing the entire team on the topic as counterintuitive when the focus should instead be on an upcoming game. 'The only thing that matters is being ready to pitch and hit and make the plays and be in a good head space,' Baldelli said. 'Have there been occasions where I've grabbed guys on the side if I think it's affecting them in any sort of way? Yeah. Do I make team speeches? No. I don't do that. … I don't tend to spend a lot of my energy on worrying about the trade deadline. If we play really good baseball from here until the trade deadline, we're going to keep playing and probably not going to be trading anyone.' Advertisement Still, the Twins — as assembled — likely won't have enough time. There are fewer than 10 shopping days left until the trade deadline and nobody in the clubhouse can control what the front office will do. 'We all see what the date is, the time that is coming,' Buxton said. 'We know the situation. It's definitely thought about for sure.' Carlos Correa hit a 106.6 mph laser off the bat. Everyone in the Twins dugout thought it was gone and the game was tied. But similar to how their season is playing out, Correa's bid to silence a Dodger Stadium crowd booing him into oblivion came up short. Correa flew out to the center-field fence and the Twins fell 5-2 to the Los Angeles Dodgers in front of 51,121. Buxton homered off Ohtani to start the game but the Twins offense didn't score again until the ninth inning despite myriad chances. Now THIS is how you start the series!! 😤 — (@twinstv) July 22, 2025 Ohtani answered Buxton's first-inning homer with one of his own, a two-run shot off David Festa. Will Smith belted two more solo home runs off Festa and Andy Pages hit a solo shot off Cole Sands. Even with all the homers, the Dodgers didn't put the Twins away until James Outman caught Correa's drive at the wall. Buxton, who went 2-for-4, started a ninth-inning rally with a walk. The Twins loaded the bases and cut a four-run deficit to three on Kody Clemens' sac fly. Correa, who was booed all night, ripped a 1-2 pitch from Kirby Yates to the wall in center. Though Outman didn't jump, he caught the ball with his glove positioned above the top of the fence. Carlos Correa was inches away from silencing the booing Dodgers crowd, but James Outman reeled it in for the final out — Talkin' Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) July 22, 2025 'He crushed that ball,' Baldelli said. 'That ball is tattooed. … Everyone on our side of the field was surprised. My guess is everyone on their side of the field is probably surprised, too. Not sure how it didn't go out of the ballpark, but it didn't and we have to live with that fact.' Ty France is disturbed when he sees his numbers on the scoreboard. He's healthy. He's pleased with his process. The swings are good. But the results are not and France is well past laughing about his struggles. France carried a .245/.309/.348 slash line with six home runs and 42 RBIs into Monday's game. His struggles were exacerbated by a long weekend in Denver where all but one of five hard-hit balls found a glove. Advertisement He was robbed of extra bases by Ryan McMahon on Friday. On Sunday, a pair of hard-hit balls carrying expected averages of .469 or better resulted in two runners thrown out at home plate. Another potential hit found a glove Friday. 'I'm the furthest thing from laughing right now,' France said. 'This is frustrating. It's not a mechanical thing. It's not a timing thing. It's placement. That's tough to control. It is what it is unfortunately. I'm going to keep swinging and hopefully they start falling.' France spent the All-Star break working on and diagnosing his swing. He estimated he took at least 1,000 hacks. That's what a slow first half full of bad luck can do to a player. France is hitting the ball harder than ever. His barrel rate is the highest since 2020. His hard-hit rate is high, too. But his batting average is 22 points below his expected one and his expected slugging percentage is 99 better than his real slug. France was dogged by bad healthy in 2024 and it resulted in him signing a one-year prove it contract with the Twins in February. But France said health has no bearing on performance. 'Right now, I'm chalking it up to luck,' France said. 'I look up at the numbers every day and I'm not pleased with where they're at. I look at my expected numbers and there's really not much more I could be doing. I'm hitting the ball right to people for some reason. Aside from the double against the Cubs, I can't think of the last time I had a bloop hit or a broken-bat single. I'm not striking out, either. I'm just hitting the ball right to people. I feel like I'm in a really good spot. I feel like I showed it in Colorado.' (Photo of Byron Buxton celebrating his solo home run off Shohei Ohtani:)
