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Angels in the Afternoon

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ANAHEIM – (Staff and Wire Service Report) The Boston Red Sox will send right-hander Richard Fitts to the mound Wednesday afternoon when they visit the Los Angeles Angels for the final contest of a three-game series.

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It will be Fitts’ second career start against the Angels, and he’s undoubtedly hoping it turns out better than his first one.

Fitts (0-3, 4.71 ERA) took the loss when Los Angeles beat host Boston 7-6 on June 2. The Angels hit three home runs during a six-run first inning that night. Fitts exited the game after recording three outs on 39 pitches. He allowed six runs (five earned) and four hits and walked one.

Zach Neto, Mike Trout and Jo Adell hit the first-inning home runs.

Fitts was sent to Triple-A Worcester following that performance. He gave up seven earned runs on 15 hits in 12 innings for Worcester, and was recalled to Boston on Sunday after the Red Sox placed right-hander Hunter Dobbins (strained elbow) on the 15-day injured list.

“I was really focused on what I needed to work on, and the build-up was a big part of that,” Fitts told MassLive. “I was redefining my shapes of my pitches and it feels really good. I feel really confident and feel like I’m in a really good spot.

“I’m here to do whatever they need me to do. I want to pitch and help the team win.”

Fitts will try to prevent the Angels from sweeping the Red Sox. Los Angeles prevailed 9-5 on Monday and won 3-2 in 10 innings on Tuesday.

Christian Moore, the eighth overall pick in last July’s MLB draft, hit two home runs for Los Angeles in Tuesday’s win, which extended Boston’s losing streak to four games. The Angels have a 4-1 record against the Red Sox this season.

Boston is 9-19 in one-run games and 5-9 in extra-inning games. The Red Sox are winless in six extra-inning road games.

“Losing is not fun,” Boston shortstop Trevor Story said. “Winning is fun. We have half the season to play, so to this point we’ve been one game under (.500). I think that’s the frustrating part, is we know how good we can be. We’ve shown flashes of that, but you have to find a way to do it on a more consistent basis.

“We’re gonna stay positive about it,” Story continued. “We’re not gonna give up, I know that. We know the type of team we have and I feel good about us showing that in the second half.”

Neto, the Angels’ starting shortstop, left Tuesday’s game after making an error in the ninth inning. Los Angeles bench coach Ray Montgomery said Neto jammed his right shoulder during a stolen base attempt in the eighth inning.

“It’s feeling good,” Neto said. “I mean, it’s not great. But you know, we’re gonna see how I feel (Wednesday) morning, and hopefully — hopefully — you know, I come (in) feeling great, and be back in the lineup.”

Lefty Yusei Kikuchi (2-6, 3.01) is Los Angeles’ probable starter Wednesday. Kikuchi is 0-3 with a 5.91 ERA in 42 2/3 innings over 10 career appearances against Boston. He allowed three runs in five innings when the Angels beat the Red Sox 4-3 in 10 innings on June 3.

–Field Level Media

Red Sox Try to Move Forward

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – For manager Alex Cora and the Boston Red Sox, it’s all about moving forward.

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Following a weekend series win in Atlanta, the Red Sox (29-32) look to continue down the right track when they begin a three-game home series against the Los Angeles Angels.

Garrett Crochet pitched the Red Sox to a 3-1 Sunday win to clinch the series over the Braves, striking out a season-high 12 over seven innings of one-run ball. A three-run double by Trevor Story in the first inning proved to be all the support the left-hander would need.

Climbing out of a five-game skid with the series victory was a start, but there’s plenty more room to grow, especially with younger players such as Marcelo Mayer and Kristian Campbell playing everyday roles.

“Now we need more,” Cora said. “We have to be better. I know we’re young, but we expect better from this group. I think the expectations are high for this organization. We’ve got to put everything behind us.”

Richard Fitts (0-2, 2.70 ERA) is back in the Red Sox rotation, having been activated from the injured list (right pectoral strain) to make a Tuesday start against the Milwaukee Brewers. He pitched three innings of scoreless, two-hit ball in Boston’s fourth straight loss at the time.

Monday will mark his fifth start this season and the first of his career against the Angels.

The Red Sox placed another righty on the injured list in Justin Slaten (right shoulder inflammation) before Sunday’s game, recalling Luis Guerrero from Triple-A Worcester.

“Just a matter of getting ahead of it and taking care of it before something major could happen,” Slaten said.

Cora had also planned to give Campbell his first start at first base, but Abraham Toro continued to swing the bat well in Atlanta. He went 6-for-11 in the series.

“Toro’s pushing the envelope,” Cora said. “He’s putting up good at-bats.”

The Angels suffered a 4-2 Sunday loss at the Cleveland Guardians, as they were no-hit through five innings and wound up dropping their third straight series. They now have a series losing streak in Cleveland that dates back to 2013.

Despite another series loss, the return of three-time American League MVP Mike Trout, who missed almost a full month with a bone bruise on his left knee, was a big lift.

Trout went 3-for-4 with an RBI double in Saturday’s 7-5 loss and had a pinch-hit RBI on Sunday. He was hitting just .179 in 29 games before the injury.

“It’s just awesome watching him play,” said Angels starting pitcher Kyle Hendricks, who played college baseball in New England at Dartmouth College. “Growing up as a fan of the game, it’s really cool being around him every day.”

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Trout was out of Sunday’s starting lineup after back-to-back days as the designated hitter, but was called upon as a pinch-hitter and delivered an RBI single.

“He’ll be back in there when we get to Boston,” Angels manager Ron Washington said.

The Angels hand the ball to 35-year-old lefty Tyler Anderson (2-2, 3.39), who has made just four career starts against Boston after spending the first seven years of his career in the National League. He is 1-1 with a 5.30 career ERA in the head-to-head series.

Anderson, who has not won since April 18, last pitched on Tuesday against another American League East foe, the New York Yankees. He allowed just two runs (one earned) on five hits in six innings but suffered his second loss.

–Field Level Media

Red Sox Take Series vs LA Angels

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BOSTON – (Staff Report) – Boston DH Masataka Yoshida hit a two-run home run, his first of the season, to give the Red Sox a 5-2 lead in the sixth inning as starting pitcher Brayan Bello threw a strong 5.1 innings of two-run ball to lead Boston to a x-x win over the Los Angeles Angels. It was Boston’s third series win (3-1-1) of the season.

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Bello limited the Angels to two runs and only six hits while striking out eight against two walks. Bello threw 107 pitches with 72 strikes in his 5.1 innings. RHP Justin Slater came on in relief of Bello in the sixth inning and threw 2.2 innings of one-run baseball.

The Red Sox started the scoring in the home half of the first as Tyler O’Neill and Triston Casas went back-to-back with solo homers. It was the third time Boston hit back-to-backs this season. It was O’Neill’s seventh homer of the season and it gave him both the AL and MLB lead in HRs.

LA first baseman Brandon Drury hit a solo homer in the second inning and the Angles scored another run in the third after a lead-off walk to No. 9 hitter Zach Neto, a base hit by Anthony Rendon and a grounder into a run-scoring fielder’s choice by second baseman Luis Rengifo.

All-Star centerfielder Mike Trout opened the eighth inning with a bullet, stand-up triple to center field and scored on a ground ball by Angeles’ left fielder Taylor Ward to make the score 5-3. It was Trout’s 54th career triple, second only to Jim Fregosi in Angels’ career triples.

Closer Kenley Jansen pitched the top of the ninth inning for Boston and allowed the Angeles to come within a run after loading the bases by hitting lead-off hitter Logan O’Hoppe with an 89 mph cutter, allowing a bloop hit by pinch hitter Mickey Moniak and walking Neto.

Rendon hit a sacrifice fly to center, scoring O’Hoppe and advancing Moniak and Neto to second and third base.

Jansen struck-out Rengifo and then had to face the Angeles (and one of MLB’s) best hitter in Trout. Jansen turned up the heat on Trout and threw six pitches in the mid-90s, including a 96 mph sinker to get Trout to swing and miss to end the game.

Bello earned the win and is (2-1) while Jansen earned his fourth save of the season and his 424th save of his career.

 

 

 

 

E-Sox Drop Another

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Angels outfielder Taylor Ward highlighted his three-RBI night with a home run while Reid Detmers threw 6 1/3 scoreless innings to lead the visiting Los Angeles  to a 7-0 win over the Boston Red Sox on Friday night.

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Ward became the last Los Angeles batter to record one of the team’s 12 hits when he socked a two-run shot in the sixth inning.

Anthony Rendon, Nolan Schanuel and Aaron Hicks were all repeat hitters for the Angels, supporting Detmers (3-0) who struck out seven while allowing just three hits — none after the third inning — and two walks in his start.

Boston’s defensive miscues behind starting pitcher Tanner Houck (2-1) helped the visitors to take immediate control, never looking back after turning in a three-run first inning.

After Anthony Rendon sent a single into right and Nolan Schanuel was hit by a pitch to begin the Angels’ at-bats, Mike Trout reached on a fielder’s choice to load the bases as Red Sox shortstop David Hamilton bobbled a potential double play turn.

Another double play that wasn’t finished allowed Ward to reach and Rendon to score the first Angels run before Hicks’ line single to center in the next at-bat doubled the lead. After a wild pitch, Brandon Drury’s grounder made it 3-0.

Schanuel led off the Los Angeles half of the third with a ground ball single to second and scored the fourth Angels run on Boston center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela’s relay throwing error following the second of consecutive hits by Hicks and Drury.

The Red Sox had chances to break through against Detmers, recording hits in each of the first three innings including a Jarren Duran double in the third. Double play balls extinguished two of those opportunities.

A run of three straight one-out hits in the fourth ended with Schanuel roping a fly ball double to deep center, scoring Zach Neto to extend the Angels’ lead to 5-0.

In the sixth, Ward’s two-out, two-run homer over the Green Monster and everything in left-center field followed a Mike Trout single. Houck’s day ended there after 5 2/3 innings, allowing seven runs (four earned) on 12 hits while striking out just two.

Relievers Luis Garcia, Jose Cisnero and Hunter Strickland preserved the shutout over the final 2 2/3 perfect frames.

–Field Level Media

Duran Holds Down CF for Red Sox

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ANAHEIM – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Jarren Duran is expected to be in center field Monday night for the Boston Red Sox when they play the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim, Calif., but it wasn’t such a sure thing not long ago.

Despite a decent spring training (6-for-18), Duran did not make the team to start the season. And he was hitting just .195 at Triple-A Worcester when the Red Sox decided to call him up on April 17.

But he has played in every game since, starting all but two, and has earned his keep. He’s hitting .330 with three homers, 19 RBIs, seven stolen bases and a .917 OPS in 31 games.

It’s a complete turnaround for the former seventh-round pick out of Long Beach State — struggles on the field in recent years resulted in mental health issues that Duran has confronted and managed.

“Oh, he’s great,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “For everything that he has talked about, and he’s been very open about it, you care about him, not only on the field, but off the field. This kid, he went to Puerto Rico in the middle of the pandemic just to keep working on his craft. We were able to connect and I’m very proud of him.”

The Red Sox are hoping to have DH Justin Turner back in the lineup Monday after he had to leave Friday’s game against the San Diego Padres because of soreness in his left knee.

It couldn’t have come at a worse time for Turner, who is having a successful May after struggling somewhat in April. He hit .250 with two homers and eight RBIs in April, but is hitting .316 with three homers and nine RBIs this month.

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Right-hander Tanner Houck (3-3, 5.48 ERA) will make his ninth start of the season for the Red Sox. He is 1-1 with a 9.72 ERA in three career games (one start) against the Angels.

Citius – Altius – Fortius – Ranius – Bucketius

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By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON – Citius – Altius – Fortius – Ranius – Bucketius.

The weather forecasters tried to ruin the best day of the year in Boston. They couldn’t. When they threw a misty mountain top of a morning at us, Boston answered with the 9:00am start of the men’s wheelchair race and Swiss racer Marcel Hug primed to win his sixth Boston Marathon.

Workers lay down a Boston Marathon decal on Boylston Street with sponsor John Hancock logo, the final time they will sponsor the race. (Jesse Costa/WBUR)

When they threw some headwinds at the racers, Boston countered with women’s wheelchair racer Susannah Scaroni, who finished in the Top 5 on five previous marathons, and she finally broke through for the win this year.

They threw dangerous cells of rain and some lightning at the runners and Boston countered with former NHL Bruins captain Zdeno Chara at ’em, and then doubled-down with Boston College and pro football legend Doug Flutie running the marathon yet again. It was Flutie’s fifth Boston Marathon and he raised $350,000 for autism research while he ran his 26.2 with a tweaked hamstring that kept him away from his final training runs for the past six weeks.

If that weren’t enough, Flutie was also nursing a pulled groin, suffered in a recent ice hockey game.

As the Marathoners got serious and the weather cleared, Evans Chebet and Hellen Obiri took honors in the men’s and women’s elite/professional categories for the 127th running of the Carnegie Hall of Marathons.

The New England weather got tough and Boston got tougher until late afternoon when the novice marathoners saw only slight drizzles as they took a right on Hereford Street and a left to Boylston.

While the marathoners ran to Boston from the starting line out in Hopkinton, the Los Angeles Angels were throwing the great Shohei Ohtani against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. The Sox won the first three games of their series against the Angels, but Boston chose to throw Brayan Bello back at ’em, and that proved disastrous as former Sox outfielder Hunter Renfroe plopped a 3-run homer into the lap of some Green Monster seat ticket holder in the very first inning of a game that was to be delayed for 56 minutes to start and a total of 2:21 on the day before Red Sox DH Masataka Yoshida popped up to LA’s Gio Urshela at third base to end the 5-4 Boston loss.

 

Can Sox Keep It Running?

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BOSTON – (Staff Report from Wire Service) – Following a four-game losing streak, the Boston Red Sox found a way to win back-to-back games against the Los Angeles Angels to get back on track.

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Boston will look to keep rolling on Sunday when it plays host to the Angels in the third game of the teams’ four-game series.

With Saturday’s 9-7 win, the Red Sox have come from behind in five of their first seven victories this season, while the team has yet to have a starting pitcher record an out in the sixth inning.

“It’s been tough,” Boston manager Alex Cora said. “We were able to survive, but it’s kind of too soon to survive, to be honest with you. We’ve got to be better early on. We will be.”

Garrett Whitlock (0-1, 9.00 ERA) hopes to shake off a tough Tuesday start at Tampa Bay with some home cooking at Fenway Park, where he is 7-2 with a 2.84 ERA in 41 career games (five starts).

The Red Sox have averaged 6.1 runs per game at home this season, but it took a pair of catcher’s interference calls loading the bases and a two-run single by Yu Chang in the eighth inning to nab Saturday’s game.

Chang, who also homered and finished the game with four RBIs, was 0-for-16 this season entering Saturday.

“I’m so happy that the team gave me the opportunity to play every day,” Chang said through a translator. “I didn’t do well in the beginning, but (Saturday), I just got the chance, and with that homer, I was so happy.”

Whitlock, who made nine starts while also working in a relief role last season, allowed five runs on a career-high three homers in five innings in his last outing.

Two of his 2022 starts came against the Angels. He allowed six runs and struck out 14 across nine combined innings.

While the Red Sox have shown the ability to come back, it’s been a different story for the Angels, who have led in six of their first seven losses.

“We were in position to win a game when our starter wasn’t at his best, and we just didn’t finish it,” Angels manager Phil Nevin said of Saturday’s setback.

Tyler Anderson lasted four innings and allowed six runs, but four Angels relievers combined to allow three, only one of which was earned.

Reid Detmers (0-0, 5.59) will be tasked with trying to get Los Angeles’ pitching staff in a rhythm.

Detmers is seeking his first career win against the Red Sox in his third-ever start against the team, though he worked 4 1/3 scoreless innings in a home outing against Boston on June 8 of last season.

Despite logging 12 strikeouts in 9 2/3 innings, Detmers has yet to record a decision this season. He fanned five across five innings last Sunday against Toronto, a game Los Angeles lost 12-11 in 10 innings.

Red Sox Come From Behind vs LAA

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BOSTON – The Boston Red Sox won their second straight game, following a 3-game losing streak, and are now 12-8 at home, 12-5 since being swept by Baltimore to open the season. With their 4-3 victory over the LA Angels, the Red Sox earned their MLB-best 16th come-from-behind win.

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Trailing 3-2 entering the bottom of the 7th inning, Boston rallied behind a single by RF Hunter Renfroe and 1B Bobby Dalbec‘s subsequent two-run home run. Renfroe had hit a two-run homer of his own in the Red Sox half of the 2nd inning to open the scoring. In Dalbec’s last six games (beginning 5/7), he is batting 7-for-21 (.333) with three home runs and nine RBI.

Shonhei Ohtani hit his American League co-leading 11th homer of the 2021 season for the Angels, who lost their third straight.

Boston reliever Matt Andriese (2-2) was credited with the win despite allowing José Iglesias’ two-run double in the seventh, and closer Matt Barnes struck out the side in the ninth for his ninth save of the year. Boston starter Nick Pivetta went 6.0 innings, allowing two runs on four hits while striking out seven. Pivetta, who earlier in the week was put on COVID-19+ protocol due to his reaction to his second vaccine, held LA scoreless before Ohtani’s two-out homer in the 6th.