Digital Sports Desk

Online Destination for the Best in Boston Sports

Archives for May 9, 2024

Cavaliers Look to Even Series

by

BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The visiting Cleveland Cavaliers look to even their second-round Eastern Conference semifinals series against the Boston Celtics when the teams play Game 2 of the best-of-seven series tonight. The top-seeded Celtics pulled away in the second half of Game 1 to earn a 120-95 victory on Tuesday.

YouTube player

“Obviously there’s a lot of areas that we can improve on,” Cleveland coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “Facing a team like Boston, I think it’s good to be able to play them and see them, and then play them again because you’re not used to the speed, the spacing, the shooting — all those things — until you get up against them. Especially coming from the series that we just came from (against Orlando) that was more of a half-court slugfest. … We’ll learn from it and we’ll be better on Thursday.”

Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell said the improvement has to start on offense. The fourth-seeded Cavaliers have failed to score 100 points in six of their eight playoff games.

“We got (42) 3s up and we hit 11,” said Mitchell, who scored a game-high 33 points in Game 1. “I think the biggest thing now is just being able to hit and knock them down.”

Boston received 32 points from Jaylen Brown and 25 from Derrick White, who sank seven 3 pointers.

“I think the most important thing is to win,” White said. “I’ve said before, it doesn’t matter if I score zero or score however many I scored (Tuesday). When we win, I’m doing enough.”

Cleveland was held to 15 points in the second quarter and trailed 59-49 at halftime. Boston led by 15 points after three quarters and opened the fourth on a 10-2 run.

“I thought we created some open shots,” Bickerstaff said. “I think we got some of the looks we were looking for; they just didn’t go. I think we missed four or five layups in that second quarter. Typically, we make those. We got some open 3s from guys who we wanted to take them. We’ll make more of those as the series goes along.”

Brown said it would be a mistake to read too much into the Game 1 result, especially since Cleveland had little time to recover after it advanced with a Game 7 victory over Orlando on Sunday.

“Anything can happen,” Brown said. “It’s the NBA playoffs. We’re just taking it one game at a time and that’s all we can control. And we try to come out, be the harder playing team. We stick to our agenda and we let the chips fall where they may. It’s gonna be tough for a team to have to beat us four times. But as long as we come out, we execute both ends, we’re the harder playing team, I think we’ll be fine.”

After Thursday, the series shifts to Cleveland for Game 3 (Saturday) and Game 4 (Monday). The Celtics won two of their three games against the Cavaliers during the regular season, but Cleveland won the only game it played at home.

“They came out here and did what they were supposed to do,” Mitchell said. “Now we have to find a way to steal Game 2.”

–Field Level Media

Sale, Braves Sweep Red Sox

by

ATLANTA – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Chris Sale threw six shutout innings and Marcell Ozuna hit two home runs to lead the Atlanta Braves to a 5-0 win over the visiting Boston Red Sox on Wednesday and a sweep of their two-game series.

Sale (5-1) scattered six hits, walked one and struck out a season-high 10 batters against his former team. The Red Sox were 0-for-6 with runners on base and left seven runners on base against Sale, whose scoreless outing was saved in the sixth when left fielder Jarred Kelenic reached over the wall to take away a homer from Garrett Cooper.

Ozuna was 2-for-3 with a walk, scored two runs and hit his 11th and 12th home runs of the season, most in the majors. Ozuna drove in four runs and leads the majors with 38 RBIs. It was Ozuna’s second multi-homer game of the season.

Atlanta got two scoreless innings from Dylan Lee. Ray Kerr threw a perfect ninth inning in his Atlanta debut.

Dodgers 3, Marlins 1

Gavin Stone went seven strong innings, Teoscar Hernandez had a home run with three RBIs and Los Angeles extended its winning streak to seven games and completed a 6-0 homestand with a win over Miami.

With the game tied at 1-1 in the sixth inning, Freddie Freeman hit a two-out double and scored on Hernandez’s full-count home run to left that just cleared the top of the wall over the outstretched glove of Marlins left fielder Nick Gordon.

Bryan De La Cruz hit a home run among his two hits and Ryan Weathers gave up three runs over six innings as the Marlins went 1-5 on a six-game road trip that also included a stop at Oakland.

Angels 5, Pirates 4

Willie Calhoun hit a sacrifice fly to cap a three-run rally in the sixth that lifted Los Angeles over host Pittsburgh.

Los Angeles’ bullpen took care of the rest, with Adam Cimber (3-0) striking out the side in the sixth, Matt Moore fanning two in 1 1/3 clean innings, and Luis Garcia getting the last two outs of the eighth.

Luis Ortiz (2-2) took the loss. Oneil Cruz and Connor Joe each had two hits for the Pirates.

Blue Jays 5, Phillies 3

Vladimir Guererro Jr. and Kevin Kiermaier each had three hits to lift Toronto past host Philadelphia, which saw its seven-game winning streak come to an end.

Davis Schneider added two hits and an RBI, while Kiermaier drove in two runs, and Guerrero and Bo Bichette hit RBI singles for the Blue Jays.

Nick Castellanos had two hits and Bryson Stott knocked in two runs for the Phillies, who had their 11-game home winning streak snapped.

Yankees 9, Astros 4

Juan Soto hit a two-run homer two batters into the bottom of the first inning and finished with five RBIs as host New York continued its recent success against Houston.

Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton added solo shots as the Yankees won their fifth straight and beat the Astros for the ninth consecutive time. It was the first time this season the trio homered in the same game. Judge had three hits, including a two-run double that pushed New York’s lead to 8-1 in the sixth. Carlos Rodon (3-2) allowed two runs on seven hits in 6 1/3 innings.

Kyle Tucker and Jeremy Pena homered, their 11th and fourth, respectively, but the Astros dropped their fourth game in a row. Jake Meyers hit an RBI triple that chased Rodon, and Altuve added an RBI single in the ninth.

Guardians 5, Tigers 4 (10 innings)

Brayan Rocchio delivered a walk-off single in the 10th inning as host Cleveland defeated Detroit to take two of three in the series.

Emmanuel Clase (2-1) picked up the win by pitching a scoreless 10th. Starter Tanner Bibee gave up four runs on five hits in four innings and struck out five. Kyle Manzardo singled in the seventh for his first major league hit.

Detroit starter Reese Olson limited the Guardians to two runs (one earned) and one hit in six innings. Alex Lange (0-2) took the loss.

Twins 6, Mariners 3

Willi Castro went 2-for-3 with a triple, a homer and two RBIs as the Minnesota pulled away for a win over Seattle in Minneapolis.

Carlos Correa and Trevor Larnach each added a solo home run for the Twins. Chris Paddack (4-1) held the Mariners to one run on eight hits in 5 1/3 innings while fanning 10. Jhoan Duran pitched a scoreless ninth for his third save.

Mitch Garver went 2-for-3 with a solo homer for the Mariners, and Cal Raleigh had a two-run double. George Kirby (3-3) allowed four runs on four hits, including three home runs, in five innings.

Royals 6, Brewers 4

Bobby Witt Jr. homered to lead Kansas past visiting Milwaukee in the rubber game of their three-game set.

Vinnie Pasquantino had two of the Royals’ nine hits while Michael Massey’s career-best 10-game hitting streak came to an end. Adam Frazier’s RBI hit in the three-run eighth snapped an 0-for-20 slide.

William Contreras drove in two runs for the Brewers, who have lost four of five.

Padres 3, Cubs 0

Dylan Cease pitched seven shutout innings of one-hit ball and San Diego got a few timely hits in its shutout win against host Chicago.

With the win, the Padres took the series over the Cubs, 2-1. They also won a three-game series against Chicago last month. Cease (5-2) racked up 12 strikeouts and gave up two walks in a masterful effort. It marked the fifth time in Cease’s last six outings that he gave up one or fewer earned runs.

Cubs starter Hayden Wesneski (2-1) was removed after pitching six innings. He gave up three runs on seven hits with three strikeouts in the loss.

Athletics 9, Rangers 4 (Game 1)

Shea Langeliers and Brent Rooker each homered while combining for six hits and eight RBIs, propelling Oakland over visiting Texas in the opener of a doubleheader.

Brett Harris also homered and the Athletics held the Rangers scoreless over the final five innings, helping Oakland snap a three-game losing streak.

Marcus Semien homered for the second consecutive day for the Rangers as part of a 3-for-5 performance. The homer was his seventh.

Rangers 12, A’s 11 (Game 2)

Adolis Garcia, Josh Smith and Jonah Heim had consecutive RBI hits in the eighth inning to help Texas outlast host Oakland and salvage a doubleheader split.

Evan Carter and Nathaniel Lowe produced insurance runs in the ninth with RBI singles, allowing the Rangers to survive a four-run uprising by the A’s in the last of the inning.

Heim finished with two hits, two runs and three RBIs, while Texas’ Marcus Semien and Ezequiel Duran chipped in with three hits apiece. Shea Langeliers hit his second homer of the day for the A’s, and Tyler Soderstrom also went deep.

Diamondbacks 4, Reds 3

Jordan Montgomery allowed just two runs over seven innings and Gabriel Moreno drove in the go-ahead run to lead visiting Arizona past Cincinnati.

Eugenio Suarez homered against his former team and collected two hits while Moreno also added two hits for the Diamondbacks, who won their third straight. Montgomery (2-2) scattered seven hits, striking out two and walking two, to end a personal two-game skid.

Jeimer Candelario had three hits and Tyler Stephenson and TJ Friedl each had two for the Reds, who suffered their seventh straight loss. The Reds snapped a 43-inning drought without a lead when they broke through in the second against Montgomery.

Orioles 7, Nationals 6 (12 innings)

Jorge Mateo singled home the go-ahead run in the 12th inning and Baltimore beat host Washington after blowing two-run leads in the ninth and 11th innings.

Mateo led off with a single against Jordan Weems (1-1) that scored Jordan Westburg. Mateo ended up on third via two Washington throwing errors on the play and scored on a wild pitch to make it 7-5.

Albert Suarez (2-0) pitched two innings for the win and Jacob Webb picked up his second save of the season despite allowing Luis Garcia, Jr.’s run-scoring double in the 12th.

White Sox 4, Rays 1

Paul DeJong hit his second home run in as many games as Chicago salvaged a win in its three-game series, beating Tampa Bay in St. Petersburg, Fla.

White Sox starter Chris Flexen (2-3) allowed one run on three hits in six innings to beat the Rays for the second time in two weeks. He fanned eight and walked one.

Tampa Bay got two hits from Harold Ramirez and an RBI double by Isaac Paredes, but the club produced just four hits as its season-high five-game winning streak ended.

Giants 8, Rockies 6

Michael Conforto had three hits, including a homer, Blake Sabol also had three hits, and San Francisco beat Colorado in Denver.

Matt Chapman and Mike Yastrzemski had two hits each for the Giants, who have won two straight after dropping four in a row.

Elias Diaz homered and singled, Sean Bouchard had three hits and Charlie Blackmon and Jordan Beck had two hits apiece for the Rockies, who have lost four in a row.

–Field Level Media