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Masataka Yoshida Heating Up In Miami

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MIAMI – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Three weeks since returning from injury, Boston Red Sox designated hitter Masataka Yoshida is starting to get back into a groove.

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Yoshida is 5-for-9 with three RBIs through the first two games of Boston’s series against the Miami Marlins. On Wednesday, his groundout drove in the eventual winning run in a 7-2 victory.

Boston eyes the sweep in the finale today, on a 4th of July soiree.

“Overall, I’ve been able to see the ball well and identify (location) and swing at pitches I can hit,” Yoshida said via a translator. “Obviously take one game at a time. I want to be part of a team that keeps winning. It’s all about keeping it simple. If it’s an outside pitch, go the opposite way, just stay with it. That’s the approach.”

The 30-year-old is 11-for-25 since June 24, which has boosted his OPS from .617 to .691. Though he’s hit only seven home runs since the 2023 All-Star break, the Red Sox are pleased with the progress.

“We like the hitter; we like the at-bat,” Boston manager Alex Cora said. “I think people get caught up in the (slugging percentage) and not hitting the ball in the air. But this guy is a quote-unquote professional hitter, right? We know that he can hit. I think he’s getting his rhythm back and that’s very important.”

Boston has received quality starts in the first two games of the series and will be hoping for more when righty Nick Pivetta (4-5, 4.52 ERA) takes to the mound Thursday. Pivetta is 2-5 with a 5.23 ERA in 13 career appearances (nine starts) against the Marlins.

The Marlins, meanwhile, will be looking to snap a three-game slide in which they’ve been outscored 22-11. They’ve allowed 434 runs, third most in the majors. Only the Colorado Rockies (506) and Chicago White Sox (438) have given up more.

Jesus Sanchez has been Miami’s most effective hitter through the two games, going 4-for-8 while driving in two of the team’s five runs.

After turning to the bullpen only twice in the series opener, the Marlins used five relievers on Wednesday after starter Trevor Rogers went only three innings. Despite a short effort, manager Skip Schumaker wasn’t putting the loss on Rogers.

“I actually thought it was maybe his best stuff of the year,” Schumaker said. “Unfortunately, the line definitely doesn’t show that. But there’s a lot to like about what’s been going on with Trevor the last few weeks.”

Miami will turn to righty Kyle Tyler (0-1, 3.38 ERA) as they try to salvage the series finale. With an injury-depleted rotation, Tyler, who will be facing the Red Sox for the first time in his career, moved into a starting role late last month. He’s tossed 146 pitches over 8 2/3 innings in two outings as a starter, allowing three runs on seven hits, walking five and striking out six.

Tyler knows he needs to tighten up on the mound.

“Just being more efficient, limiting the long at-bats,” he said last weekend. “If I can limit that, it’ll give me a much better opportunity to go deeper.”

–Field Level Media

MLB Postseason: Marlins at Phillies

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PHILADELPHIA – (Staff and Wire Service Report by Field Level Media) – If last year’s success was any indication of what the Philadelphia Phillies can do with a wild-card berth, the Miami Marlins could be in some serious trouble.

Philadelphia will look to replicate its playoff run from a season ago, and it will begin its journey on Tuesday when it hosts Miami in Game 1 of a best-of-three National League wild-card series.

The Phillies are coming off a 90-72 finish in the regular season that allowed them to lock down the NL’s top wild-card position after grabbing the third and final spot in 2022.

While it might not have been presented with the most favorable draw last year, Philadelphia thrived, going all the way to the World Series and coming within two wins of its first championship since 2008.

But what’s in the past is in the past, and the Phillies know they have to prove themselves once again.

“Nothing is going to be easy,” Philadelphia designated hitter Kyle Schwarber said. “They’re all really good teams in the postseason. Miami is a really good team. We’ve got to do what we do.”

Right-hander Zack Wheeler (13-6, 3.61 ERA) will look to help the Phillies get off to a fast start when he takes the mound for Game 1.

Wheeler made his final start of the regular season on Thursday, allowing one run on four hits in four innings to take a no-decision against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

In 22 career starts against the Marlins, Wheeler is 10-4 with a 2.48 ERA. He has never faced Miami in the postseason, where he has gone 1-3 with 2.78 ERA in six starts overall.

Left-hander Jesus Luzardo (10-9, 3.63) will get the start for the Marlins, who went 84-77 to grab the NL’s second wild card.

In his last outing of the regular season, Luzardo gave up one run on four hits in 7 1/3 innings against the New York Mets on Thursday. He didn’t earn a decision, though, as the game was suspended in the ninth and never made up.

Luzardo is 3-0 with a 3.26 ERA in five career starts against the Phillies. He hasn’t faced Philadelphia in the playoffs, where he has struggled, going 0-1 with a 5.91 ERA in three appearances (two starts).

Miami finds itself in unfamiliar territory, as it heads to the playoffs in a regulation-length season for the first time since 2003 when they won the World Series as the Florida Marlins. The team didn’t return to the postseason until the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign.

Although Miami will be thrown into a hostile environment right out of the gate, manager Skip Schumaker believes his team is ready for the challenge.

“This is one of the better places to play, just because the fans are so passionate,” Schumaker said of Philadelphia, where he faced the Phillies in the NL Division Series in 2011 as a member of the St. Louis Cardinals. “It’s a special place.

“If you don’t have a little bit of nerves, that means you don’t care. … I know that these guys are really excited, they’ll probably be a little bit nervous, and that’s OK, but I think there’s more excitement than nerves.”

Schumaker said second baseman Luis Arraez, the NL batting champion, should be good to go for Game 1 after being hampered by an ankle injury.

Arraez hit .354 during the regular season.

–Field Level Media

Bello Shines But Marlins Sweep Sox

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Despite Boston Red Sox starter Brayan Bello flirting with a no-hitter, the visiting Miami Marlins rallied late and completed a three-game series sweep with Thursday night’s 2-0 win.

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The Marlins ended Bello’s no-hit bid and later took the lead — thanks to Jon Berti’s RBI single to center — during an eighth-inning rally.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. doubled the Miami lead with his second home run in as many games to straightaway center in the ninth. He has nine blasts.

Joey Wendle went 2-for-4 and starter Jesus Luzardo allowed just three hits and struck out nine over 6 1/3 scoreless innings.

Tanner Scott and A.J. Puk pitched two combined innings of one-hit ball following winning reliever Andrew Nardi (6-1). Puk logged his 13th save.

Jean Segura led off the eighth with Miami’s first hit — an single up the middle that diving Red Sox shortstop Enrique Hernandez knocked down behind second base.

After Wendle’s single to right moved Segura to third, Berti knocked an RBI single to center against reliever Chris Martin. A 5-2-3 double play ball and a strikeout of Jorge Soler ended the inning without any further damage.

Bello (5-5) struck out five and was charged with one run on two hits and one walk over seven-plus innings.

Marlins Go for 3-Game Sweep Over Sox

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – After winning the first two games by a combined 16-3 score, the Miami Marlins aim for a road series sweep of the Boston Red Sox on Thursday night.

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Miami has won four straight and 10 of its past 13 games, including a 6-2 win on Wednesday to set up the opportunity for the sweep.

“This is my fourth year here and I’m not gonna lie, this is probably the most fun I’ve ever had in the big leagues playing baseball,” Miami center fielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. said. “I always try to have as much fun as I can, but this is a different level of fun with these guys in there.”

The Marlins are also 11-3 in their past 14 road games, having won six straight outside of Miami, and they sit 13 games over .500 for the first time since 2009.

Reinforcements have helped the team’s recent success in Boston, as Chisholm and third baseman Jean Segura have just returned from injuries.

Chisholm, out since May 14 due to turf toe, went 3-for-4 with three RBIs in Tuesday’s series opener in his first game back, then hit an eighth-inning home run on Wednesday.

Segura, sidelined for nearly two weeks because of a hamstring strain, homered on Tuesday in his return. He added a two-run single on Wednesday.

“They’ve had a lot of time off and probably watching the team doing really well without them and wanting to be part of this thing,” Marlins manager Skip Schumaker said on Tuesday. “I think the pressure (was) a little bit off of them, too, because they don’t have to come back feeling like they have to be the hero. Just (being) who they are is good enough for us.”

The Marlins will finish the series with a second straight left-hander on the mound. Jesus Luzardo (6-5, 3.77 ERA) is set to oppose Boston for the first time.

Luzardo, 25, leads the Miami staff with 103 strikeouts through 16 starts. He fanned nine batters — his second-highest total of the season — across seven shutout, two-hit innings on Sunday against the Pittsburgh Pirates, his eighth quality start.

The Red Sox, who are on a four-game skid and have a 2-12 home record against National League teams this season, will attempt to salvage the series finale.

Alex Verdugo had a 13-game hitting streak snapped on Wednesday.

The emergence of Brayan Bello (5-4, 3.27 ERA) as a consistent starter has been a major bright spot of Boston’s season to this point. The 24-year-old right-hander will attempt to continue his success on Thursday.

Bello has worked at least six innings in each of his past four starts and five of his past six, which includes back-to-back, seven-inning outings against the New York Yankees earlier this month.

In his most recent start, Bello worked 6 2/3 innings of one-run ball to beat the host Chicago White Sox on Friday.

“My goal is always (to) try to go deep into the game so I can help the bullpen, and that has been my mentality since I came up here,” Bello said. “I’m trying to get quick outs. I’m not trying to strike out anybody, and that’s been the key to go deep into the game.”

Prior to Bello, the most recent Red Sox pitchers to post a sub-2.50 ERA in a 10-start span before turning 25 years old were Jon Lester, Aaron Sele, Roger Clemens and Dennis Eckersley.

Bello’s work ethic has been impressive.

“He’s very hungry,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “He understands that he’s good, but obviously there’s a lot of work that we have to do for him to get to where we want to.”

Bello will be making his first career appearance against Miami.

–Field Level Media

Miami: 10 Runs, 19 Hits vs Red Sox

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Following a 10-1, series-opening triumph on Tuesday, the Miami Marlins will look to keep up their winning ways when a three-game series against the Red Sox continues in Boston on Wednesday.

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Miami has won three straight games and nine of 12, and the Marlins remain in a National League playoff position at nearly the halfway mark of the season.

Marlins right-hander Sandy Alcantara, who got the win on Tuesday in one of his best outings of the season, said, “Everybody’s happy. Everybody’s supporting each other. But what we are doing this year is something that people will know (about), because we surprised a lot of people this year, and we’ve just got to keep doing what we’re doing.”

Braxton Garrett (3-2, 3.64 ERA) takes the ball for Miami in the second of three games against Boston. It will be the 25-year-old’s first career start against the Red Sox.

While the Marlins’ rotation also includes reigning Cy Young Award winner Alcantara and star rookie Eury Perez, Garrett is in the midst of an strong run of his own. The left-hander has allowed just two earned runs — one in each of his two most recent starts — over his past 18 1/3 innings.

Despite taking a no-decision on Thursday in his start against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Garrett became the first left-hander in Marlins history to record 13 strikeouts without walking a batter. He allowed just two runs, one earned, on three hits across seven innings.

“This guy can really pitch,” Miami manager Skip Schumaker said. “If you have stuff and pitch, you’ll be an All-Star. He might be an All-Star. He’s pitching like one and putting together some really good outings for us.”

Another exciting piece of Miami’s success is Luis Arraez’s chase for .400. The second baseman went 2-for-5 on Tuesday and has a 10-game hit streak while sitting at .399.

The Marlins’ lineup as a whole banged out 19 hits to tie a season high on Tuesday. Joey Wendle went 4-for-4 with two runs.

The Red Sox did not officially name a Wednesday starter following the Tuesday game, though manager Alex Cora named Kaleb Ort (1-1, 5.79 ERA) as the “most likely” option to get that nod.

Only one of Ort’s 17 appearances this season was a start, when he went 2 1/3 innings to help Boston in its June 18 doubleheader sweep of the New York Yankees.

He has since pitched twice in relief, most recently recording the last two outs of the eighth inning on Sunday against the Chicago White Sox.

After finishing 26-50 against American League East opponents last season, the Red Sox have taken their lumps during interleague play this year. Boston is 11-16 against the NL — including 2-11 at home, which is the worst mark in the majors.

All in all, Boston is exactly a .500 team for the first time in more than a week and will look to step it up in the dog days of the summer.

“40-40, yep. No more, no less,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “Like I said, we’re not great, we’re not bad. We are where we’re at. Obviously, we’ve got a long way to go. (Wednesday) is the halfway game of the season and we just got to be better, man. That’s the bottom line.”

Cora’s club has been held to a single run in back-to-back games for the third time this season. The Red Sox also had a three-game stretch in May when they managed a total of one run.

On Tuesday, Alex Verdugo had two doubles and Triston Casas went 3-for-4 to lead the Boston offense. It wasn’t nearly enough as Garrett Whitlock allowed 11 hits and six runs in 4 2/3 innings.

–Field Level Media

Sox Back Home for Marlins

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BOSTON – With the MLB All-Star break approaching in two weeks, a crucial stretch of games stands ahead for the Boston Red Sox.

After dropping a three-game set to one of the worst teams in the American League in the Chicago White Sox, Boston returns home for a three-game interleague series with the Miami Marlins beginning tonight.

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The series begins a stretch of nine straight games for Boston against teams currently in playoff position. The Red Sox had won six straight before dropping four of five games, including Sunday’s 4-1 series finale in Chicago.

“It’s just baseball. That’s the way it works,” Boston infielder Justin Turner said. “You can go out there and beat up on really good pitchers and sometimes pitchers that on paper that you’re supposed to beat up pitch really well. … We had a winning streak going but can’t take anything for granted.”

Turner has reached base multiple times in nine of his past 15 games.

In Sunday’s game, the Red Sox managed just two hits after the third inning. Outfielder Adam Duvall had two of the team’s five hits.

“There’s a lot of good teams out there,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “We’ve just got to play good baseball.”

The Marlins are one of those strong clubs, entering Monday with the third-best record in the National League. Garrett Whitlock (4-2, 4.50 ERA) will be the first Boston starter to face them in the series.

Whitlock, who has never started against Miami, has worked seven innings in back-to-back starts but took a no-decision after allowing four runs on eight hits and striking out six last Wednesday at Minnesota. His past three decisions dating back a month have been wins.

In the series opener, the Red Sox will be up against a tough starter in reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Sandy Alcantara (2-6, 5.08).

Alcantara will look to follow up yet another impressive performance by 20-year-old rookie Eury Perez, who struck out nine and extended his consecutive scoreless innings streak to 21 in Sunday’s 2-0 win over Pittsburgh.

Miami has 16 wins during the month of June, including three of the past four games.

“It’s been a lot of fun. Winning is fun,” Perez said. “So we’ve got to continue winning a lot of games. Our next step is the playoffs. That will be the next step. (I) want to stay healthy so I can continue competing with all my teammates and win more games.”

Leading the way offensively, second baseman Luis Arraez enters the series with a .399 average, falling below the .400 mark after back-to-back one-hit games. He has not struck out since June 14.

Despite Alcantara’s overall struggles, he has pitched at least seven innings in three of his past four outings and six in total this season.

However, he has given up five runs and 10 hits in each of his two most recent games. All five runs in his start against Toronto last Wednesday came in the second inning.

“I’m going to bet on Sandy. Our clubhouse is going to bet on Sandy,” Miami manager Skip Schumaker said. “Obviously, we need him to be that version (from the end of the game) moving forward if we want to get to where we want to get to.”

Alcantara’s only career start against Boston was on Sept. 15, 2020, working six innings of one-run ball.

–Field Level Media

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.

Sox Win Rain-Shortened Game vs Miami

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BOSTON – It was a wash-out. The Boston Red Sox defeated the Miami Marlins, 5-2, in a Friday night drench-fest, delayed following the top of the 6th inning at 9:19 p.m and finally called at 10:44 p.m. The win brought the Sox to a season-high-tying 11 games above .500 (31-20) after winning six of their last nine games.

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Red Sox starter Martin Perez pitched 5.0 innings, allowing five hits and only two runs while striking-out four Miami batters. Perez allowed three earned runs or fewer for the ninth time in 10 starts this season, including each of his last seven outings. Perez retired 12 of his 13 batters faced, including a double play, following a home run surrendered to Miami’s Jorge Alfaro in the 2nd inning.

Boston’s J.D. Martinez went 2-for-3, as he hit a two-run double in the 3rd inning, tying the score at 2-2. Martinez also singled in the 5th. The two-run double marked the 300th and 301st RBI of his Red Sox career.

Red Sox outfielder Hunter Renfroe went 2-for-2, with doubles and runs scored in the 3rd and 5th innings. Each of Renfroe’s last four hits have gone for extra bases (three 2B, one HR). In 22 games this month, is batting .286 with an .838 OPS, 11 extra-base hits, and 13 RBI.

Miami starter Cody Poteet went 4.1 innings, held the Sox scoreless through two while eventually allowing four hits, five runs, with two walks and six strike-outs. He threw a career-low in innings and took his first career loss. The Marlins have lost each of their last two games after winning four of their previous five.