Boston Red Sox

MLB News: Red Sox have “must-win” or go home game tonight

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The New York Yankees were out of the postseason when they lost to the Red Sox in the wild card. However, Boston has not stopped their winning ways but now have their backs against the wall in an elimination game tonight. The Astros are up three games to two in the ALCS.

Game One: The first game featured Sox Ace Chris Sales against the Astro’s Framber Valdez. Vazquez doubled in the top of the first, scoring Altuve from third as the Astros got on the board first. In the top of the third Kike Hernandez answered with a homer to the left-field stands to tie the game up at one apiece. Then, in the bottom, Altuve bungled a hit, and Bogaerts scored. Then Renfroe hit an RBI double to make it 3-1 Sox.

Jose Altuve tied it up with a two-run homer into the left-field stands in the bottom of the sixth inning. Carlos Correa put one up into the stands in left at the bottom of the seventh, putting the Astros up by one. At the bottom of the eighth, Altuve hit a sac fly scoring Gurriel from third, Astros 5 Boston 3. Kiki Hernandez hit another homer just into the stands in the top of the ninth, drawing the Red Sox one-run closer, but that was it for the Sox as the Astros took game one 5-4. The winning pitcher was Ryne Stanek, the loser was Hansel Robles, and the save went to Ryan Pressly.

Game Two:

The Red Sox entered the second game of the 2021 ALCS behind a game in the series, hoping to salvage one game at MinuteMaid Park in Houston. They did it, winning the second game by beating Houston 9-5. Nathan Eovaldi went into the sixth inning, giving up just three runs; Ottavino and Whitlock combined for 2.2 scoreless innings. Hernandez gave up two runs in his .02 innings of work, while Brasier finished it up for the Sox, getting the final out and win. Meanwhile, the Red Sox racked up nine runs in the contest.

J.D. Martinez and Rafael Devers put the game pretty much out of reach for the Astros by getting two Grand Slams in the game. It started poorly for the Astros and starter Luis Garcia when Martinez got his Slam in the first inning. Then, in the second, he gave up another run, which was the night for Garcia. To make matters worse for the Astros, the Sox loaded up the bases for Rafael Devers to hit his Grand Slam in the same inning. It’s the first time in postseason history that two Grand Slams had been achieved in the first two innings of a postseason game.

In the top of the fourth, Kiki Hernandez, who led the Sox in hits, this postseason hit his 3rd home run of the postseason making it 9-0 Red Sox. The Astros got three runs back in the bottom of the sixth, but it was far too little, far too late. That also signaled the end of Eovaldi’s pitching effort. At the bottom of the ninth, the Astros made a valiant attempt at a rally, and although scoring two home runs, it wasn’t enough. The loss for the Astros tied up the series at one apiece. The winning pitcher was Eovaldi and the loser was Garcia.

Game Three:

If the Houston Astros looked back to the last game at their home park as a miserable failure, they were in store for even greater embarrassment at Fenway Park last night. The Boston Red Sox piled on the runs, twelve of them to put the Sox up two games to one.

The Red Sox sent out Eduardo Rodriguez to start facing Jose Urquidy. Just like in the previous game, the Astros were out of the game early. The Red Sox scored nine runs in the first three innings. It was a chilly autumn night in Boston but even colder for the Astros. In the second inning, Boston got on board with an RBI hit by Christain Vazquez. Then, JD Martinez scored on a line drive that bounced off Jose Altuve. Boston 2-0. Then with the bases loaded, Kyle Schwarber got a Grand Slam Boston 6-0. In the third, Renfroe scored, then Christian Arroyo hit a two-run blast into the green monster stands to make it 9-0 Boston.

In the top of the fourth inning, Kyle Tucker hit a three-run homer for the Astros, but again just as in the last game, it was too little too late. Meanwhile, Boston starter Eduardo Rodriguez pitched masterfully through six innings. In the bottom of the sixth, J.D. Martinez struck again, this one a two-run shot into the green monster to make it 11-3 Boston. In the bottom of the eight, Devers tacked on another run up into that same monster for the final score of 12-3 Boston, putting the Red Sox up two games to one in the series with two more games at Fenway. The winning pitcher was Rodriguez and the loser Urquidy.

Game Four:

Game four was a turnaround for the Astros as they won the second game at Fenway Park 9-2. In the very first inning, the Astros struck early with an Alex Bregman homer over the green monster against Boston pitcher Nick Pivetta. In the bottom, with one on Xander Bogaerts shot one onto Landsdown St. putting the Red Sox up by one. Unfortunately, that would be the Red Sox only scoring for the night. Neither team would score another run in the next six innings.

In the top of the eighth inning, Jose Altuve who had been 0 for 12 in this series launched a solo shot that hit the Nationals rental sign over the green monster making it a tied game at two apiece. But there was much more to come as the Astros scored another seven runs in the top of the ninth inning. With starter Nathan Eovaldi on the mound pinch-hitter Castro with one on doubled driving in a run. That did it for Eovaldi being replaced by Perez in a bases-loaded jam. Brantley hit a bases-clearing double to center. Alverez doubled driving in Brantley. Just like that it was 9-2 Astros a deficit the Sox couldn’t recover from.

Game Five:

In game five the Houston Astros did a repeat of Tuesday night scoring another nine runs to the Red Sox 1 run, forcing the series back to MinuteMaid Park in Houston. The first inning was scoreless for both teams. At the top of the second Alverez slammed one into green monster stands to put the Astros up by one. In the sixth with two on Alverez doubled to the left-field wall driving in another Astros run. Gurriel drove in another run. Siri with two on popped into center driving in both runs and it was 6-0 Astros.

Houston scored another run in the top of the seventh. In the bottom, Rafael Devers who homered just to the left of the Pesky Pole in right for the Red Sox only run of the game. In the top of the ninth inning with the bases loaded Gurriel singled driving in two more Astros runs, and making it 9-1 Astros. The Sox remained scoreless at the bottom.

Game Six:

Tonight is game six of the seven-game series back at MinuteMaid Park in Houston. This is an elimination game for the Red Sox, they must win or go home as the Astros go on to the World Series, facing either the Los Angeles Dodgers or the Atlanta Braves. The Red Sox are again sending out Nathan Eovaldi to start. The Astros starter will be Luis Garcia. Game time is at 8:08 pm EDT, and will be broadcast natinally on FS1.

This series between the Red Sox and the Astros have been a home run-fest for anyone who likes a lot of action in a baseball game. There have been three Grand Slams, 19 home runs and a total of 59 runs scored. But that was not the only excitement in the games. Both teams have made some fantastic defensive plays. Just when it looked like the Red sox couldn’t be stopped the Astro came roaring back to win the last two.

MLB News: ALCS, Boston leads 2 games to 1, Sox scored 12 last night

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The New York Yankees were out of the postseason when they lost to the Red Sox in the wild card. However, Boston has not stopped their winning ways leading the ALCS two games to one. They have two more to play at Fenway Park before moving back to Houston if necessary.

Game One: The first game featured Sox Ace Chris Sales against the Astro’s Framber Valdez. Vazquez doubled in the top of the first, scoring Altuve from third as the Astros got on the board first. In the top of the third Kike Hernandez answered with a homer to the left-field stands to tie the game up at one apiece. Then, in the bottom, Altuve bungled a hit, and Bogaerts scored. Then Renfroe hit an RBI double to make it 3-1 Sox.

Jose Altuve tied it up with a two-run homer into the left-field stands in the bottom of the sixth inning. Carlos Correa put one up into the stands in left at the bottom of the seventh, putting the Astros up by one. At the bottom of the eighth, Altuve hit a sac fly scoring Gurriel from third, Astros 5 Boston 3. Kiki Hernandez hit another homer just into the stands in the top of the ninth, drawing the Red Sox one-run closer, but that was it for the Sox as the Astros took game one 5-4. The winning pitcher was Ryne Stanek, the loser was Hansel Robles, and the save went to Ryan Pressly.

Game Two:

The Red Sox entered the second game of the 2021 ALCS behind a game in the series, hoping to salvage one game at MinuteMaid Park in Houston. They did it, winning the second game by beating Houston 9-5. Nathan Eovaldi went into the sixth inning, giving up just three runs; Ottavino and Whitlock combined for 2.2 scoreless innings. Hernandez gave up two runs in his .02 innings of work, while Brasier finished it up for the Sox, getting the final out and win. Meanwhile, the Red Sox racked up nine runs in the contest.

J.D. Martinez and Rafael Devers put the game pretty much out of reach for the Astros by getting two Grand Slams in the game. It started poorly for the Astros and starter Luis Garcia when Martinez got his Slam in the first inning. Then, in the second, he gave up another run, which was the night for Garcia. To make matters worse for the Astros, the Sox loaded up the bases for Rafael Devers to hit his Grand Slam in the same inning. It’s the first time in postseason history that two Grand Slams had been achieved in the first two innings of a postseason game.

In the top of the fourth, Kiki Hernandez, who led the Sox in hits, this postseason hit his 3rd home run of the postseason making it 9-0 Red Sox. The Astros got three runs back in the bottom of the sixth, but it was far too little, far too late. That also signaled the end of Eovaldi’s pitching effort. At the bottom of the ninth, the Astros made a valiant attempt at a rally, and although scoring two home runs, it wasn’t enough. The loss for the Astros tied up the series at one apiece. The winning pitcher was Eovaldi and the loser was Garcia.

Game Three:

If the Houston Astros looked back to the last game at their home park as a miserable failure, they were in store for even greater embarrassment at Fenway Park last night. The Boston Red Sox piled on the runs, twelve of them to put the Sox up two games to one.

The Red Sox sent out Eduardo Rodriguez to start facing Jose Urquidy. Just like in the previous game, the Astros were out of the game early. The Red Sox scored nine runs in the first three innings. It was a chilly autumn night in Boston but even colder for the Astros. In the second inning, Boston got on board with an RBI hit by Christain Vazquez. Then, JD Martinez scored on a line drive that bounced off Jose Altuve. Boston 2-0. Then with the bases loaded, Kyle Schwarber got a Grand Slam Boston 6-0. In the third, Renfroe scored, then Christian Arroyo hit a two-run blast into the green monster stands to make it 9-0 Boston.

In the top of the fourth inning, Kyle Tucker hit a three-run homer for the Astros, but again just as in the last game, it was too little too late. Meanwhile, Boston starter Eduardo Rodriguez pitched masterfully through six innings. In the bottom of the sixth, J.D. Martinez struck again, this one a two-run shot into the green monster to make it 11-3 Boston. In the bottom of the eight, Devers tacked on another run up into that same monster for the final score of 12-3 Boston, putting the Red Sox up two games to one in the series with two more games at Fenway. The winning pitcher was Rodriguez and the loser Urquidy.

This series between the Red Sox and the Astros have been a home run-fest for anyone who likes a lot of action in a baseball game. There have been three Grand Slams, 14 home runs and a total of 38 runs scored. But that was not the only excitement in the games. Both teams have made some fantastic defensive plays. With the Red Sox playing with their enthusiasm in the last two games, it’s hard to imagine that they can be stopped. The difference in the teams, other than the Grand Slams is that the Red Sox has had excellent starting pitchers with the last two starters going nearly twelve innings combined.

Mets Game Preview (9/21/21) vs. Miami Marlins (86-65)

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After receiving a day off, the New York Mets head up to Fenway Park to begin a three-game series with the Boston Red Sox. The Mets playoffs hopes are hanging on by a thread, and their trip to Boston could be what finally puts them and their fans out of their misery.

One-run games have been the theme of the Mets season as 61 of their 150 games have concluded in that fashion. While they dominated them early in the season, they have consistently fallen short has the offense produced less and less. After a slow, injury-plagued start to his Mets career, Javier Baez has been a different hitter since returning from the IL. Baez is slashing .305/.381/.565 with nine home runs and 19 runs batted in. He also has 11 walks in 37 games compared to just 15 in 91 games with the Cubs.

After a slow stretch that knocked them out of first place, the Red Sox have won five straight games. With the division out of reach, the Red Sox has a 1.5 game lead in the first wild card spot and looked primed for a playoff run. Five players with at least 20 home runs have helped lead their offense which has been one of the best in baseball. Nathan Eovaldi has stabilized the starting rotation enough for Chris Sale to return and take the reigns. In six starts, Sale has a 2.40 ERA along with a clean 4-0 record.

Pitching Matchup

Marcus Stroman makes his MLB leading 32nd start of the season and has been a true ironman for a team that has dealt with injuries all season. While he is unlikely to win the Cy Young Award, he certainly deserves some votes thrown his way. Stroman has a 2.88 ERA over 169 innings and is ninth in groundball outs this season. He was as great as ever during his last start against the St. Louis Cardinals, where he struck out eight while allowing two runs in six innings pitched.

Eduardo Rodriguez has struggled to find consistency all season, and it shows in his 5.00 ERA. Despite putting up his best strikeout and walk rates of his career, he is allowing just under ten hits per nine innings pitched. Rodriguez has also put together back-to-back six-inning outings just twice all season. He looked much better in his last start against the Seattle Mariners, where he held them to one run in six innings with six strikeouts.

Matchups To Lookout For

Marcus Stroman vs. Xander Bogaerts: 11-for-36 (.306), 2 Doubles, 2 Home Runs, 2 Walks, 8 Strikeouts

Marcus Stroman vs. Christian Vazquez: 7-for-19 (.368), Double, Walk, 3 Strikeouts

Eduardo Rodriguez vs. Francisco Lindor: 2-for-11 (.182)

New York Yankees: 4 Major takeaways from the Yankees win over the Angels

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joey gallo, yankees

The New York Yankees should have had a needed day off yesterday but instead had a makeup game with the Los Angeles last night. It was also the return of Gerrit Cole, the Yankee’s ace from the Covid list. At the end of the night, the Yankees and Cole won the game 2-1 going into a 3 game series with the Red Sox today.

After the first inning, the game was mostly a pitcher’s duel with Angels pitcher Jose Suarez matching Cole nearly pitch for pitch. There was only a total of 8 hits between the two teams. Only Aaron Judge had two hits in the game and scored once on Joey Gallo’s homer in the first inning.

Gerrit Cole is still the Yankee ace

After making his return from a bout on the Covid list, Gerrit Cole wanted to put Yankee fans on notice that he is still the ace of the New York Yankees pitching staff. Last night he showed the Yankees that he hasn’t missed a beat. He pitched into the sixth inning, allowing one home run while striking out 9 Angel hitters.

Cole’s last game for the Yankees was on July 29th when he stuck out 10. Going into last night’s game, few thought after the long layoff with the coronavirus that Cole might not go more than 60 pitches in his first game back, but he threw that many strikes in his 90 pitch night. Fletcher popped out to short. Upton reached on a bobbled play by Odor at third in the sixth inning, and Aaron Boone felt that was enough for Cole. In the first, Cole got his 11th win of the season, aided by Joey Gallo’s 112 mph two-run homer.

Yankees marvelous bullpen shines

In the sixth inning, with one more out to get, Gerrit Cole’s night was over. In a gutsy move, Boone called in Zack Britton, who had removed himself from a closer role after pitching so badly. Britton did his job and struck out Jared Walsh to end the inning scoreless. Albert Abreu was next pitching 1.2 innings of hitless ball. But when Shohei Ohtani came to the plate, Boone chose the young Joely Rodriguez to face the Angels MVP. J-Rod did nothing less than strike him out on four pitches for his 11th hold of the season.

Chad Green came in in the top of the ninth to secure the win for the New York Yankees. He allowed a hit, got a ground ball out, and stuck out two in the effort that won the game for the Yankees and gave him his fourth save of the season. Manager Aaron Boone has to be given credit for how he has handled the bullpen recently.

Joey Gallo getting the Yankee love

For Yankee fans, it’s been a long time since we heard that call “Derek Jeter” Derek Jeter echo through the crowds. But, last night, we heard a new chant, that of “Joey Gallo-Joey Gallo” when Gallo was at the plate in the third inning. It appears the Yankee faithful have accepted Gallo and wanted to show him some love after hitting a two-run homer in the first inning, supplying the Yankees with their only two runs of the game.

It should be noted that Joey Gallo strikes out a lot, an awful lot. But, if he can hit a homer in every four games the Yankees will gladly accept that. So far in his short time with the Yankees, he has already had a two-homer night.

The Yankees start a 3 game series with the Red Sox today!

Today will see another day-night doubleheader for the Yankees as they face their rival Boston Red Sox. It will also mark the return from the Covid list for Jordan Montgomery. The first game at 1:05 pm will feature Tanner Houck for the Red Sox facing Montgomery. The 7:05 pm installment will have Yankee sensation prospect Luis Gil on the mound facing the Red Sox’s Nathan Eovaldi.

The day game will be telecast on the YES Network, NESN, and MLBN out of market. The night game will be on WPIX and its affiliates, NESN, and MLBN out of market.

Yankees: Good news and bad news in disappointing loss to Boston

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New York Yankees, Domingo German

In what felt like a must-win game for the New York Yankees, the Boston Red Sox managed to secure a 5-3 victory at Fenway on Friday night. Starting pitcher Domingo German picked up the loss, lasting just 4.0 innings, allowing five hits and four runs, striking out just three batters. German currently hosts a 4.32 ERA this season, and while the bullpen performed adequately, the offense couldn’t pick up the slack.

“We’ve got to come out and grab it,’’ manager Aaron Boone said. “If we’re gonna be the team we expect to be, we’ve got to play better against the top teams in the division.”

Offensively, the Yankees recorded nine hits and 10 strikeouts, leaving two men on base in the ninth inning, in which DJ LeMahieu hit into a double play to finish the game.

Thanks to a Clint Frazier walk and LeMahieu single in the second inning, the Yankees managed to get some runs on the board, but Boston features a lucrative offense this year, despite a recent cold streak of just three runs in the past two games.

Ultimately, traveling into enemy territory in a sold-out Fenway Park with nearly 37,000 fans engaged and energized, the Yankees were always facing an uphill battle. They currently stand five games behind the Tampa Bay Rays in first place and 4.5 games behind Boston in the AL East.

With two games remaining in the series, the Yankees have an opportunity to bounce back, and with Jordan Montgomery facing off against Nathan Eovaldi on Saturday night — they must get back in the win column if they want to remain in the hunt.

In other news, former Yankee Jacoby Ellsbury appeared as an honorary all-time great for Boston. He joined his former teammates Mike Lowell and Tim Wakefield, as well as Pedro Martinez, who saluted Dustin Pedroia, who retired earlier this year.

It’s always exciting to see Ellsbury, who brought in millions of dollars without offering much in return. It almost has the feel of sabotage from Boston.

Mets Offense Hits New Low and Wastes deGrom’s Start in 1-0 Loss

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Just when you think the New York Mets offense cannot get any worse, they laugh in your face and waste another three hours of your time. To make matters worse, they wasted another terrific start from Jacob deGrom to allow the Boston Red Sox to steal a 1-0 victory.

By no means should this discredit the great Red Sox pitching but every hitter in the lineup looks like they barely belong at the big league level. From the flailing swings to barely hitting the ball out of the infield, it looks like deGrom is pitching against them every night. Red Sox pitching held the Mets to just two hits after their best scoring opportunity in the first inning.

Nick Pivetta struggled with walks to start the season and continued the trend by walking Brandon Nimmo and Francisco Lindor to start the game. In usual fashion, the following three batters all made outs without driving in a run. For the rest of the game, they were lucky to put the bat on the ball. Pivetta hurled five, one-hit innings with seven strikeouts. Garrett Whitlock followed with a very impressive two innings and struck out four. Adam Ottavino made it look easy in the eighth, and Matt Barnes struck out the side in the ninth to put the Mets to bed.

Same Old S…..

deGrom relived the nightmare scenario he has become so accustomed to. He was not at his best but still managed to strike out nine in six innings and hold the Red Sox to one run. Unfortunately, deGrom was just as cold as the rest of the offense as he went 0-for-2. Lately, the rest of the pitching staff has gotten the same treatment, and at some point, it needs to end.

From the beginning, it looks like the Mets are a team lacking the energy needed to win. It makes it tough to get going when Lindor cannot get himself going either. The Mets will move how he does, and as long as he remains cold, the rest of the team will. There may be the light at the end of the tunnel as Lindor lined out on a terrific leaping play by Marwin Gonzalez in his last at-bat. Hopefully, this is something Lindor can build upon as he moves forward.

After an off-day Thursday, the Mets head to Philadelphia to begin a three-game weekend series with the Phillies. Marcus Stroman will face off against Chase Anderson in game one of the series from Citizens Bank Park.

 

 

Mets Game Preview: (4/28/21) vs. Boston Red Sox (15-9)

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The New York Mets send their ace to the mound for the second and final game of their two-game series against the Boston Red Sox. They will try to provide more than the one-run of support as they aim for a split of the series. Wednesday’s game is an unusual 6:40 p.m. ET start from Citi Field.

The Mets have a very unusual offense that has no problem getting runners on base but struggles to score them. They are the only team in baseball hitting under .200 with runners in scoring position and have the worst slugging percentage in those situations at .252. Their offense’s problem is deeper than just hitting in clutch spots; there is very little power coming from anyone in the lineup. The Mets are second to last in doubles (22) and last in home runs (15). They have to consider themselves lucky to still be .500 and in first place.

Yesterday, the Red Sox showed why they have surprised baseball with their 15-9 record. Though it was not their usual offensive outburst, 10 strikeouts from Garrett Richards gave them all they needed to win. The offense pushed across two runs and used their power arms in the back of the bullpen to close out the win. The Red Sox bullpen has a 3.21 ERA and 102 strikeouts, fifth in MLB.

Pitching Matchup

Jacob deGrom has been absolutely masterful through his first four starts of the season. In 29 innings, he has 50 strikeouts which are the most through any pitcher’s first four starts in MLB history. deGrom is also doing it on both sides of the ball as well. He has only allowed one earned run while recording six hits and two RBIs this season. Not only will the Mets need him to deliver a victory, but they desperately need his bat in the lineup too.

Nick Pivetta is no stranger to Citi Field after beginning his career with the Philadelphia Phillies. He has settled in nicely during his first full season in Boston. In four starts, he has a 3.48 ERA with 18 strikeouts in 20.2 innings pitched. Pivetta has struggled against the Mets with a 6.07 ERA in 37 innings.

Matchups To Lookout For

Nick Pivetta vs. Jeff McNeil: 4-for-8 (.500), 2 Doubles, Home Run, Walk, Strikeout

Nick Pivetta vs. Dominic Smith: 4-for-9 (.444), Double, Home Run, 2 Walks, 3 Strikeouts

Jacob deGrom vs. Hunter Renfroe: 3-for-9 (.333), Double, 2 Home Runs, 2 Strikeouts

Richards 10 K’s Propels Red Sox To 2-1 Win Over Mets

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New York Mets, David Peterson

Another day, another game where the New York Mets failed to support a strong outing from their starting pitcher. The Boston Red Sox were not much better but pushed across enough runs to support a terrific outing from Garrett Richards. They only needed five hits to support themselves in the 2-1 victory in game one of their two-game set.

Darryl Strawberry called into the SNY telecast, and the Mets desperately needed his bat against Richards. He concocted the formula most pitchers have used to beat the Mets, bend but do not break. Richards pitched seven innings, allowed seven hits, and struck out 10 in his longest outing of the season. The biggest obstacle for Richards in the past was his inability to find the strike zone, but he did not any free passes on Tuesday.

Richards also had just one three-ball count during the entire outing. Jeff McNeil‘s second-inning home run was the only damage he allowed on the night. Richards also had help from J.D. Martinez in the outfield as he recorded an assist during a rare outfield appearance. Matt Andriese and Matt Barnes shut the door by throwing 1-2-3 innings in the eighth and ninth.

Sorry Petey

David Peterson received the deGrom treatment as the tough-luck loser. Peterson did a great job to quiet a very hot Red Sox offense. In six innings, he kept the Sox to just two runs on four hits. Peterson recorded 15 outs on the ground and served up weak contact all night. Bobby Dalbec tagged him for a third-inning solo homer, and Rafael Devers bloop single gave the Red Sox the lead in the sixth inning.

This loss was another example of how bad of an offensive funk the Mets are in. Manager Luis Rojas can mix up the lineup all he wants, but if the hitters do not produce, the team will not win. Hopefully, Michael Conforto‘s two hits, including double, shows his slump is coming to an end. The biggest concern is Francisco Lindor, who barely hit the ball out of the infield. Lindor is off-balanced, overswinging, and swinging at pitches outside of his zone. He needs just one solid drive into the gap to get himself going and out of his month-long slump.

Jacob deGrom hopes to get the Mets back in the win column on Wednesday against Nick Pivetta. The first pitch is an earlier 6:40 p.m. start from Citi Field.

Mets Game Preview: (4/27/21) vs. Boston Red Sox (14-9)

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After getting Monday off, the New York Mets return to action at Citi Field against the Boston Red Sox. They play the first of two against a Red Sox team that has shocked many throughout baseball to begin the season. The first pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET from Queens.

The Mets offense had its ups and downs during their series win against the Washington Nationals. They went from sinking to the bottom of the ocean to treading water enough that they could survive. J.D. Davis and Brandon Nimmo have continued to lead this offense, but it is slowly starting to get more help. Pete Alonso was 4-for-8 with three walks and a home run after he homered twice in Chicago. It is evident that Alonso is becoming more comfortable at the plate and starting to get into a groove.

Exceeding Expectations

The Red Sox are one of the true underdog stories in the American League. They join the Kansas City Royals and Oakland A’s as teams no one expected to hold first place at the end of April. Their offense leads MLB with 213 hits, 54 Doubles, a .276 batting average, and a .455 slugging percentage. All of that equals the Sox being second in runs scored in baseball. Combine all of that with average pitching, and you have their formula for success.

The big three of J.D. Martinez, Xander Bogaerts, and Alex Verdugo are the key parts of their offense. All are in the top-3 in the team’s offensive categories, and Martinez is tied for the AL lead with seven home runs. Since joining the Red Sox in 2018, Martinez has only played 104 games in the outfield due to his poor defensive ability. Despite the defensive shortcomings, it is hard to keep a bat as hot as Martinez’s on the bench.

Pitching Matchup

David Peterson gets the start against the team he made his MLB debut against. Peterson started strong in his last start against the Chicago Cubs but failed to get out of the fourth inning. He allowed six runs (three earned) on four hits and two walks in just 3.1 innings pitched.

Garrett Richards makes his fifth start of the season but has failed to give the Red Sox length in his first four outings. He has not pitched longer than five innings, and his inability to throw strikes is why. Richards has allowed 13 walks in 16.2 innings and has thrown just 58% of his pitches for strikes. In his last start, he threw 92 pitches, and only 48 were strikes. The Mets have the fourth-best on-base percentage in MLB, which should be a good matchup for them.

Matchups To Lookout For

Garrett Richards vs. Francisco Lindor: 1-for-8 (.125), Walk, 5 Strikeouts

David Peterson vs. Kevin Plawecki: 2-for-2 (1.000), Double

David Peterson vs. J.D. Martinez: 0-for-3 (.000), 2 Strikeouts

NASCAR Cup Series Preview 2021: Roush Fenway Racing

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RFR is seeking redemption after a brutal 2020 NASCAR season, as both Chris Buescher and Ryan Newman fell out of the top 20.

2021 Roush Fenway Racing Driver Chart
Driver Car No. Crew Chief Primary Sponsor(s)
Ryan Newman 6 Scott Graves Kohler Generators/Guaranteed Rate/Castrol
Chris Buescher 17 Luke Lambert Fastenal/Fifth Third Bank/Castrol

History

The team was originally founded by auto entrepreneur Jack Roush in 1988, enjoying instant success with future Hall of Famer Mark Martin behind the wheel of its long-standing No. 6 Ford. His organization expanded to a multi-car organization by 1992, with several renowned drivers passing through his facility, including Jeff Burton, Matt Kenseth, Kurt Busch, Greg Biffle, and Carl Edwards. After Martin finished in the runner-up on four occasions (1990, 1994, 1998, 2002), the team won consecutive Cup Series titles with Kenseth (2003) and Busch (2004). The latter for Busch, coming in the No. 97 Ford, was the first held under the NASCAR playoff system.

In 2007, the Fenway Sports Group, headed by Boston Red Sox owner John W. Henry, purchased a 50 percent stake in the team to operate it alongside Roush. The team has been a two-car operation since 2017, with Newman taking over the No. 6 in 2019 and Buescher arriving in the No. 17 (previously piloted by Kenseth and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.) a year later.

2020 in Review

Triumph nearly became tragedy at the Daytona 500. Newman, having previously won the event in 2008, was leading on the final lap, but inadvertent contact from runner-up Ryan Blaney launched him into an airborne wreck, one exacerbated when Corey LaJoie drove into the wreckage head-on. After several tense minutes, Newman was removed from the car was airlifted to the hospital, having sustained injuries described as serious, but he miraculously emerged from the clinic two days later with his daughters Brooklyn and Ashlyn by his side.

Newman vacated the car while he recovered, giving way to Ross Chastain. Thanks to the coronavirus-induced pause, he only missed three races, but he struggled upon his re-entry, earning only one top ten upon his return (a sixth at Talladega). His two top tens were the lowest tally of his full-time career.

As for Buescher, he took over the No. 17 from Stenhouse and got off to a good start with a third-place posting at Daytona. But the 2015 Xfinity Series champion failed to maintain that speed, earning only one other top-five posting (a fifth at the Daytona road course in August).

Meet the Drivers

Ryan Newman

Experience: 20th full season
Career Cup Victories: 18 (Last: spring Phoenix, 2017)
2020 finish: 25th
Best standings finish: 2nd (2014)

Set to enter his second decade of full-time Cup racing, Newman is a relic from the turn of the century as one of three full-time races that partook in “Winston” Cup racing (Kurt Busch and Kevin Harvick are the others). Ever since he beat out Jimmie Johnson for the Rookie of the Year award, few drivers have been as tenacious and hungry to win as Newman. Even when things were dire last season, Newman kept his drive…literally and figuratively, as he remained one of the hardest drivers to pass.

It’s clear that RFR isn’t the powerhouse it used to be, but Newman has made the most of the equipment before. He reached the playoffs, without a win, as recently as 2019, the first Roush Ford to make it there since Stenhouse won two races a couple of years prior.

Chris Buescher 

Experience: 6th full season
Career Cup Victories: 1 (summer Pocono, 2016)
2020 finish: 21st
Best standings finish: 16th (2016)

There’s no doubt that Buescher can compete at the NASCAR level. He took the underfunded Front Row Motorsports to the NASCAR playoffs in his first full season by virtue of leading at the time of inclement weather and owns championships at both the Xfinity and ARCA levels. Prior to his Roush endeavors, he drove another underfunded car, the No. 37 at JTG Daugherty, to a top 20 finish in the standings. But he struggled to find his footing last season, despite earning a career-best eight top tens. After consecutive top-tens at Bristol and Las Vegas during the playoffs, Buescher finished no better than 20th over the final six races. He should nonetheless be a threat to win at Daytona, where he has earned all but two of his six top fives at the Cup level.

Outlook

It’s not out of the realm of possibility for Newman or Buescher to steal a win and the playoff spot that comes with it in 2021. Nothing more needs to be said about Newman’s tough luck at the end of Daytona and Buescher has been at or near the front toward the end of several events at both Daytona and Talladega. But a more realistic goal for this couple should probably be getting back into the top 20 of the standings.

Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags