BOSTON — Rick Porcello shoots to become the Boston Red Sox’s first 10-game winner of the season when he pitches for Boston against the Los Angeles Angels
in the second game of a three-game series at Fenway Park Wednesday night.
The Red Sox remained a half-game behind the New York Yankees in the American League East by pounding out 10 extra-base hits in a 9-1 rout of the struggling
Angels Tuesday night. They now send Porcello (9-3
Denzel Ward Jersey , 3.44 ERA) out to face the Angels’ Andrew Heaney (4-5, 3.43) in the middle game of the series.
Boston is 4-0 against the Angels this season, winning those games by a combined count of 36-4.
“We haven’t solved them,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said after the Red Sox (53-27) hit four homers and six doubles in Tuesday’s win. “We’ve tried to make
some adjustments. We’re going to obviously work on it tonight and try to make
some adjustments and hopefully have a better shot tomorrow.
“They’ve taken it to us. There’s no way to sugarcoat it. We’ve got to do a lot of things better.
Porcello, who is 2-1 in four June starts, is just 7-7 with 5.51 ERA in 17 career starts against the Angels, who have lost 11 of their last 15 games.
In his one start against Los Angeles this season, Porcello pitched six shutout innings in Boston’s 9-0 victory on April 18.
Before Tuesday’s game, the Red Sox placed Thursday starter Steven Wright on the 10-day disabled list with a left knee problem. Brian Johnson
Tyron Smith Jersey , who has been in the bullpen, will make the start in the series and homestand finale.
Christian Vazquez and Jackie Bradley Jr., the bottom two hitters in the Boston lineup (a problem spot for the team this season), combined to go 5-for-8
with two homers and five RBIs on Tuesday.
Everyone in the starting lineup except Rafael Devers had at least one hit (in a 14-hit attack) and he scored a run.
“We’re swinging it great, you know, I think all up and down the lineup,” said Mookie Betts, who hit his 20th home run of the season. “It’s kind of contagious.
Everybody’s getting hits and what not.”
The ever-streaky Bradley is 6-for-7 in the last two games to raise his batting average to .199.
“You know, he’s been swinging the bat great
Denzel Ward Browns Jersey ,” Betts said. “A couple line drives that go five feet one way or the other, we’re looking at a completely different number
(average) that’s on the board.”
Heaney is also 2-1 in four June starts and has allowed two earned runs or fewer in eight of his 13 starts this season. He will make only his second
appearance against Boston, his first at Fenway. He beat the Red Sox in Anaheim
in 2015, yielding two runs in seven innings.
No one on the current Boston roster has more than three at-bats against Heaney. The team is 2-for-14 (.143) against him with Xander Bogaerts collecting
both hits in his three at-bats (.667).
Ian Kinsler is 11-for-22 (.500) against Porcello, while Albert Pujols is 10-for-29 (.345) with a homer, while Cole Calhoun is 7-for-22 (.318) with two
homers. Justin Upton is 2-for-12 (.167) and Luis Valbuena 4-for-19
(.211).
Jackie Bradley Jr. never doubted he would pull out of his slump, even as he hit .167 in June and fell further down Boston’s batting order.
He kept putting in the work. Kept tinkering with his stance and his swing. Kept believing he would snap out of it.
”You have to trust that what you’re doing is going to produce results,” Bradley said after his second straight three-hit game helped the Red Sox beat
the Los Angeles Angels 9-1 on Tuesday night.
”If it doesn’t early on, it’s a long season
Donte Jackson Jersey ,” said Bradley, who batted ninth and drove in four runs. ”You’ve just got to continue to grind. There’s no other way.”
Mookie Betts homered on John Lamb’s first pitch of the game, and J.D. Martinez hit his major league-leading 24th home run to back David Price’s six
strong innings and lead the Red Sox to their fourth win in the last five games.
The Angels lost their fourth straight game.
Christian Vazquez also hit one of Boston’s four homers to help Price (9-5) bounce back from his previous loss on Wednesday in Minnesota that was his first
since May 3. He allowed five hits on Tuesday, including a solo homer to Chris
Young, and two walks while striking out seven.
Bradley has now had back-to-back multi-hit games after producing just five in his previous 68 games this season. He had three hits, all singles, against
Seattle on Sunday but still entered the night hitting .189.
”We all want the results now,” Bradley said. ”Sometimes the game’s a lot tougher than that. You can do everything right and still be out.”
Two-time AL MVP Mike Trout, who began the game batting .387 in June
Bradley Chubb Jersey , singled in four at-bats for the Angels while serving as designated hitter to aid his recovery from a sprained right index finger. The
Angels went hitless in their last three innings against Boston’s bullpen and
fell into fourth place in the AL West for the first time since opening day.
SAFE BETTS
Betts’ homer into the Red Sox bullpen sent right fielder Michael Hermosillo crashing over the wall in pursuit. It was his 15h career leadoff homer,
extending his franchise record.
”Trying to set the tone against a good team,” Betts said. ”Just letting them know we’re here and we’re ready to go.”
SACRIFICIAL LAMB
Lamb (0-1) got just five outs. He allowed five runs, three earned, on six hits and a pair of walks.
He escaped more damage in the first after Betts’ 20th homer of the season, then was removed in the second after giving up Bradley’s two-run double and two
more run-scoring hits.
”It was just a nice welcome to Fenway ballpark I guess by one of the better baseball players in the game right now,” Lamb said. ”I tried to get ahead on the
outside part of the plate and they went ahead in the run column.”
Deck McGuire needed just one pitch to end that inning, but he surrendered solo homers to Bradley in the third and Vazquez in the fifth before Martinez hit
one in the sixth that made it 8-1.
IN A JAM
Price only had trouble in the third, when Young homered and then the Angels loaded the bases with two out on two singles
Cheap DJ Chark Jersey , a wild pitch and a walk. He retired Albert Pujols on a grounder to third to end the inning.
”Pujols can tie the game at that point,” Price said. ”To get that ground ball is big.”
TRAINER’S ROOM:
Angels: McGuire was checked out by the team athletic trainer after Christian Vazquez lined a ball up the middle in the third inning, but he remained in the
game.
Red Sox: Knuckleballer Steven Wright was put on the 10-day DL with left knee inflammation, and RHP reliever Justin Haley was recalled from Triple-A
Pawtucket.
UP NEXT:
Angels: LHP Andrew Heaney (4-5, 3.43 ERA) gets his first start since going seven innings and allowing one earned run on Friday against Toronto. Heaney has
pitched at least seven innings in three of his last four starts.
Red Sox: RHP Rick Porcello (9-3, 3.44) has allowed two earned runs or less in four of his last five starts, holding the Twins to one hit over seven scoreless
innings in his last turn on Thursday.
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