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Red Sox vs Texas Rangers Postponed as Henri Approaches

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BOSTON – (Source: Official Red Sox News Release) – The Red Sox-Rangers game scheduled for today, Sunday, August 22, at Fenway Park has been postponed due to the potential impact of Hurricane Henri in New England. The current forecast calls for several bands of moderate to heavy rain throughout the day and sustained winds of 30-40 MPH in the Fenway area with more severe conditions including several inches of rain, flash flooding and hurricane force winds expected to the south and west. State and local officials are asking all residents to use caution throughout the day on Sunday and only travel if absolutely necessary.

Sunday’s game has been rescheduled for Monday, August 23, beginning at 1:10 p.m. Tickets for Sunday’s game will be good for admission to the rescheduled contest. Fenway Park gates will open 90 minutes before first pitch at 11:40 a.m.

There is rain in the forecast for Monday, so check listings and here on Digital Sports Desk.

Sox Announce 2022 MLB Schedule

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BOSTON – (Source: Official team news release) – In conjunction with Major League Baseball, the Red Sox released the dates for their 2022 regular season games. The club begins the season at Fenway Park on Thursday, March 31, when they welcome the Tampa Bay Rays in the first of a three-game series – marking the third year in a row the Red Sox will open at home.

The Red Sox will play the New York Yankees at Fenway Park three times – July 7-10, August 12-14, and September 13-14. The team will play at Yankee Stadium on April 7-10, July 15-17, and September 22-25.

The club will make a rare trip to Wrigley Field in 2022 for a three-game series against the Chicago Cubs July 1-3. The series will be the club’s first visit to Wrigley since 2012.

The Red Sox will travel to three other National League ballparks in 2022: Truist Park for a two-game series against the Atlanta Braves (May 10-11), PNC Park for a three-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates (August 16-18), and Great American Ball Park for a two-game series against the Cincinnati Reds (September 20-21).

Four National League teams will make trips to Fenway Park next season, including three from the Central division: the Cincinnati Reds (May 31-June 1), the St. Louis Cardinals (June 17-19), the Milwaukee Brewers (July 29-31), and the Atlanta Braves (August 9-10).

The Red Sox will host the Minnesota Twins for a four-game series on Patriots’ Day Weekend (April 15-18). The team will be home on Memorial Day, Monday, May 30, against the Baltimore Orioles, the first home game on Memorial Day since 2019. The club will face the St. Louis Cardinals at home on Sunday, June 19, which is both Father’s Day and Juneteenth. The Red Sox will also play at Fenway Park on Independence Day, Monday, July 4, against the Tampa Bay Rays.

The final home series of the regular season will be against the Baltimore Orioles (September 27-29), and the regular season will conclude with a three-game series on the road at the Rogers Centre in Toronto (September 30-October 2).

Red Sox Extend Matt Barnes

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BOSTON – (Source: Official Team News Release) – The Boston Red Sox today signed right-handed pitcher Matt Barnes to a two-year contract extension that spans the 2022-23 seasons, with a club option for 2024. Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom made the announcement before Sunday’s Red Sox game against Philadelphia.

Barnes, 31, has spent his entire career in the Red Sox organization since Boston selected him in the first round (No. 19 overall) of the 2011 June Draft. In 362 career major league appearances (two starts), the right-hander is 30-23 with 34 saves, a 3.94 ERA (164 ER/374.1 IP), and 500 strikeouts. His 360 relief outings rank fourth in Red Sox history behind only Bob Stanley (552), Mike Timlin (394), and Jonathan Papelbon (393), while his 362 total appearances rank eighth.

Since the start of the 2016 season, Barnes leads American League relief pitchers in appearances (325), strikeouts (453), and wins (27), and ranks second in innings (322.1). He was the only American League pitcher to make at least 60 appearances and throw at least 60.0 innings in each season from 2016-19, tied for the most such seasons in Red Sox history. Since the start of 2018, Barnes has struck out 37.8 percent of batters faced and averaged 14.47 strikeouts per 9.0 innings, the third-highest marks among pitchers who have thrown at least 150.0 innings in that time.

In addition to earning his first career All-Star Game selection this season via the Player Ballot, Barnes was named the American League’s Relief Pitcher of the Month for April. In 37 appearances this year, he has recorded 19 saves with a 2.68 ERA (11 ER/37.0 IP), 0.86 WHIP, .171 opponent batting average, 62 strikeouts, and 10 walks. Barnes is currently posting career bests in ERA, WHIP, opponent batting average, walks per 9.0 innings (2.43), and strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.20). According to FanGraphs, he ranks fourth among relievers in wins above replacement (1.7).

In 11 career Postseason outings, Barnes is 2-0 with a 0.87 ERA (1 ER/10.1 IP) and a .167 opponent batting average (6-for-36). He helped lead the Red Sox to the 2018 World Series title, earning wins in Game 2 of the ALCS against the Houston Astros and in Game 1 of the Fall Classic against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Barnes led Boston with 10 appearances during the Postseason, nine of which were scoreless.

Sox Continue Winning Streak at Oakland

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OAKLAND – Kiké Hernández took a swing at a 3-1 sinker ball and popped it up to lead-off the Boston Red Sox game against the Oakland Athletics Friday night. Miraculously, the ball did not leave the sold-out ballpark, as a crowd of 32,304 fans looked on. Hernández had hit a leadoff home runs in three of Boston’s five prior games (Sunday, Monday, Thursday) and was the only Red Sox player ever with three or more leadoff homers in a five-game span.

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Hernández went on to other heroics in the game as he drove in the go-ahead run with a broken-bat single in the 10th inning and then made a tremendous defensive play to throw out Oakland’s Seth Brown at home plate from center field in the bottom of the 10th inning, resulting in a 3-2 Red Sox victory.

The Boston win came after the usually dependable closer Matt Barnes allowed an Elvis Andrus home run in the bottom of the ninth. Barnes blew his fourth save and the Red Sox had to rely on reliever Adam Ottavino to pitch the extra inning, complete with Brown posted on second base to start off the inning.

The win was credited to Barnes (4-2) and Ottavino earned his sixth save of the season.

The Sox have won their last eight games, the AL’s longest active win streak and the club’s second-longest of the season behind the nine games they won from April 5-14th. Boston is a season-high 21 games over the .500 mark.

Red Sox Come From Behind (Again)

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BOSTON – Simply put, this season the Boston Red Sox are winning games they are not supposed to win.  Monday night against the Kansas City Royals, the Sox trailed 5-1 entering the bottom of the 2nd inning before scoring one run in the 2nd inning, three runs in the 4th, and another run in the 6th inning. Outfielder Hunter Renfroe homered twice, including the game-winning blast to spot the Red Sox their 6-5 come-from-behind victory. It was the club’s 26th such win this season.

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The victory, combined with a weekend sweep of the New York Yankees, allowed Boston a “W” in each of the last four games and lifted the club to a season-high 17 games above .500 (previous: 15 games, 3 times).

Renfroe led the way, going 2-for-4, with two runs scored, the two HRs, three RBI. He  hit a two-run HR in the 4th inning, cutting the Sox’ deficit to 5-4, then hit a go-ahead solo homer in the 6th inning.  It was his 13th career multi-HR game and what made Monday night special was the fact the HRs had projected distances of 439 feet (4th inning) and 434 feet (6th inning). Overall, his 11 HR this season have averaged 419 feet (4,608 total feet).

Kiki Hernandez went 2-for-3 with a run scored on his lead-off homer. He hit a solo HR to lead off the bottom of the 1st for the second consecutive game, his ninth career leadoff homer and his third in 2021.

The Royals lost their 6th straight game and are (1-6) to start the current 10-game road trip.

Boston closer Matt Barnes converted his 17th save of the season (20 save opportunities, 85%), retiring all three batters faced in a scoreless 9th inning.

 

While We’re Young (Ideas) – June 27

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By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – If there’s one thing the Boston Red Sox organization does better than any other franchise in sports, it’s the pregame ceremony and tribute. With things returning to a post-pandemic normal in the Fens, the Red Sox got back to business with a well-deserved tribute to the career of retired team captain and MVP second baseman Dustin Pedroia.

During recent years, the Red Sox franchise has lived the highs and lows of life in Boston. They’ve hit the high notes when they paid tribute to the likes of David “Big Papi” Ortiz and they’ve grieved with the community, helped victims of the Boston Marathon bombing mourn and strengthen their resolve through the very memorial services right on the baseball field.

It might sound “cliche” but the Red Sox bind the fabric of greater New England like few other sports franchises. The Sox share that honor and responsibility with the NFL Patriots, the NBA Celtics and the NHL’s Bruins in amazing fashion. Yes, like franchises elsewhere, the civic pride surfaces much more when the teams are winning but, in New England, winning became habitual, especially since the year 2000.

Since that turn of the century, Boston sports franchises won 12 tittles. The Patriots claimed an amazing six Super Bowl victories with Tom Bradyleading the way for wins in 2001, 2003, 2004, 2014, 2016 and 2018. The Red Sox won in 2004, 2007, 2013, 2018 while the Celtics took the NBA title in 2008 and the Bruins won the NHL’s Stanley Cup in 2011 with near misses against the Chicago Blackhawks in 2013 and a heart-breaking loss to the St. Louis Blues in 2019.

For each of the winners, the Boston faithful rallied around one, or maybe two, players to guide the team towards a highly demanding excellence. As noted, Brady led the Patriots who marched to the drum beat of team GM and coach Bill Belichick. The Celtics lifted the NBA’s Larry O’Brien Trophy in ‘08 and competed mightily for a number of others while Paul Pierce led the way in scoring and Kevin Garnett set a new standard in the Cs locker room. For the Bruins, team captain Zdeno Chara set the tone while his defensive partner, Dennis Seidenberg, personified team building and the atmosphere in the Bruins’ dressing room. As with all winning ice hockey teams, they all rallied around their goalkeepers, as in two-time Vezina Trophy winner Tim Thomas(2009 and 2011) and 2014 Vezina winner Tuukka Rask.

On the baseball diamond, it was Pedroia who led the Red Sox. While Ortiz provided the power, the pitching staff – both starters and relievers – stepped-up in a big way with Jon Lester, Jake Peavy and John Lackey in 2013 and the 11-man crew, led by David Price and Chris Sale got the job done in 2018, it was the leadership of Pedroia that provided team strength and chemistry, especially through adversity.

And, adversity might as well be Pedroia’s middle name from 2016-17-18 (played only three MLB games in ‘18) to 2019 (played only six MLB games) when he suffered severe left knee injuries and underwent multiple surgeries. Pedroia went from a career high 160 games played and an amazing and league-leading 724 plate appearances in 2013 to three games and 13 at bats in the 2018 season.

After fighting through evaluations, rehabilitation, set-backs and even total rest to heal his sore knee, Pedroia finally announced his retirement from the Red Sox and the majors this past February 1st, ending his 14-year MLB career. Unlike Tom Brady and Zdeno Chara, (and recently golf’s Phil Mickelson), Dustin Pedroia put another “W” in Father Time’s win column.

The Red Sox Friday night tribute and the way the sport of baseball can do like no other, reminded us of all that was good when Pedroia was playing at his Rookie of the Year (2007) and MVP levels (1st in 2008, 9th in 2011 and 7th in 2013). The tribute and video messages Brough the tough-minded Pedroia to tears, as did the “in-person” appearances of many of his former teammates.

With his family looking on, the Red Sox made special mention of the many charity activities Pedroia supported throughout his career and even brought the specific family members he helped during the marathon crisis. The ceremony was classy, succinct and poignant and Pedroia’s speech concise, meaningful and memorable.

The Red Sox invited marathon victim Jane Richard (who lost her young brother Martin and her leg from the bomb explosion in 2013) to sign the National Anthem and then had Pedroia toss a ceremonial first pitch to his former teammate and now Red Sox Manager Alex Cora.

It was also announced that the Sox will waive the customary waiting period and will induct Pedroia to the club’s Hall of Fame this year. … Only the surprise appearance of wrestling great Ric Flair – one of Pedroia’s all-time favorite celebrity athletes – could put an exclamation point on the tribute and, indeed, it did.

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HERE NOW, THE NOTES: The likes of Dustin Pedroia, Tom Brady, Zdeno Chara and many of the other Boston greats who captained and led their teams to victory calls for a non-comprehensive listing of some other sports icons who were the rallying point for their title teams. Here are a few that come to mind:

  • Lou Gehrig, New York Yankees
  • Jackie Robison, Brooklyn Dodgers
  • Bill Russell, Boston Celtics
  • Maurice “Rocket” Richard, Montreal Canadiens
  • Willis Reed, New York Knicks
  • Jean Béliveau, Montreal Canadiens
  • Franz Beckenbauer, Bayern Munich/Team Germany
  • Stan Mikita, Chicago Blackhawks
  • Tug McGraw, New York Mets
  • Willie Stargell, Pittsburgh Pirates
  • Jack Lambert, Pittsburgh Steelers
  • Thurman Munson, New York Yankees
  • Mike Eruzione, 1980 Team USA Hockey
  • Bobby Clarke, Philadelphia Flyers
  • John Elway, Denver Broncos
  • Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Los Angeles Lakers
  • Joe Sakic, Colorado Avalanche
  • Lawrence Taylor, New York Giants
  • Mia Hamm, Team USA
  • Denis Potvin, New York Islanders
  • Isiah Thomas, Detroit Pistons
  • Mark Messier, New York Rangers
  • Ray Lewis, Baltimore Ravens
  • Steve Yzerman, Detroit Red Wings
  • Derek Jeter, New York Yankees
  • Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
  • Sue Bird, Seattle Storm and Team USA
  • Christian Laettner, Duke University
  • Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts/Denver Broncos
  • Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls
  • Mario Lemieux, Pittsburgh Penguins
  • Simone Biles, Team USA Gymnastics
  • Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints

Without a doubt, there are dozens and dozens of others, especially in world sports (Futbol), college sports and women’s sports. Feel free to add your suggestion(s) in the comments section or on Twitter @WhileYoungIdeas

Red Sox Earn an Off-Day

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BOSTON – The Boston Red Sox eased into a single day break Thursday with a three-game winning streak but a (6-4) record over their last 10 games, but claimed a two-game mini-series sweep over the struggling Atlanta Braves and are (9-4) over their last 13 games.

The pair of 10-8 victories over the Braves indicated some of the symptoms facing the Sox starting rotation. In the opener against the Braves, SP Garrett Richards allowed  six runs, four earned. Richards holds a 4.36 ERA, overall, but in his last three starts (14 innings pitched), the right hander has allowed 26 hits and 11 earned runs.

Wednesday night’s starter, Eduardo Rodriguez, began the season 5-0 with a 3.82 ERA and .260 opponent batting average over his first six (33.0 IP, 33-for-127, 14 ER) games. He then went 0-4 with a 8.49 ERA and .331 opponent average over his six starts (29.2 IP, 41- for-124, 28 ER) leading into the Braves game. The Sox posted an early 5-0 lead for Rodriguez but the left hander gave up four runs off six hits and a walk, and allowed Atlanta to erase a five-run deficit to 5-4.

The trend was contagious for Martin Perez as he’s allowed 11 runs in 3.1 innings pitched in his last two starts and Nick Pivetta  who coughed-up six runs in his last start.

Starting pitching woes aside, the Sox are currently a season-high 15 games above .500 at (42-27) after concluding a testy 17 consecutive game-day stretch, all against 2020 MLB Playoff teams. They’ll pick it up again Friday night at Kansas City for a three-game series against the Royals.

Nick Pivetta, Martin Perez and Nathan Eovaldi will start for Boston over the weekend before the club earns another rare off-day this Monday.

 

 

Red Sox Defeat Marlins, 5-3

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BOSTON – Red Sox second baseman Christian Arroyo knocked-in two runs with a single in Boston’s half of the fourth inning, and the Sox defeated the Marlins 5-3 for their fifth straight victory.

Boston outfielder Alex Verdugo added two hits including an RBI double for the Red Sox, who were coming off their first three-game sweep at Yankee Stadium since June 2011.

Starling Marte hit a solo homer and had two base hits for Miami, which left 14 baserunners on base. It was the Marlins’ ninth loss in the last 10 games.

The Marlins completed a nine-game, 11-day road trip with just one win, with the first two losses coming in Fenway Park.

The Red Sox are a season-high 14 games over .500 at 37-23. The matchup was a makeup of the May 30 game that was rained out, with the conditions vastly different. The game-time temperature at Fenway Park was a stifling 90 degrees. When the Marlins were previously in town, it was chilly and rainy for the three days.

Red Sox Win in 10; Sweep Yankees

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BRONX – Boston all-star shortstop Xander Bogaerts laced a two-run single with two outs in the 10th inning and the Boston Red Sox completed a three-game sweep of the struggling New York Yankees by holding on for a 6-5 victory at Yankee Stadium.

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Red Sox slugger Bobby Dalbec opened the 10th with a walk on a pitch that resulted in New York hitting coach Marcus Thames screaming from the dugout and the ejection of bench coach Carlos Mendoza.

The Red Sox had runners at second and third following a sacrifice bunt by Christian Arroyo, and Bogaerts provided for Boston’s lead when he hit a 2-1 slider off Luis Cessa (1-1) to the gap in left-center field to give Boston a 6-4 lead.

Bogaerts had given the Red Sox a 4-3 lead with a sacrifice fly in the eighth, and his double gave Boston its first three-game sweep in New York since June 7-9, 2011.

The Red Sox blew a 4-3 lead when closer Matt Barnes (2-1) allowed a game-tying double to Gleyber Torres in the ninth. He stranded runners at first and third by striking out pinch hitter Rougned Odor on a full-count pitch that replays showed was outside and resulted in the ejection of New York third base coach Phil Nevin by plate umpire Gabe Morales.

Boston’s Phillips Valdez hit Clint Frazier with his first pitch of the 10th, got a double play on Miguel Andujar and allowed an infield single to Tyler Wade to make it 6-5. Wade took second on a throwing error by Marwin Gonzalez and, following an animated mound visit from manager Alex Cora, Valdez retired DJ LeMahieu on a groundout for his first career save.