GAME #94, MONDAY, JULY 15, 2019, TORONTO BLUE JAYS @ BOSTON RED SOX

[Schloicka]

7:10pm Eastern

RED SOX

Rick Porcello (R)

1. Mookie Betts (R) RF
2. Rafael Devers (L) 3B
3. Xander Bogaerts (R) SS
4. J.D. Martinez (R) DH
5. Andrew Benintendi (L) LF
6. Michael Chavis (R) 1B
7. Jackie Bradley Jr. (L) CF
8. Sandy Leon (S) C
9. Brock Holt (L) 2B

BLUE JAYS

Trent Thornton (R)

1. Eric Sogard (L) DH
2. Freddy Galvis (S) SS
3. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. (R) LF
4. Cavan Biggio (L) 2B
5. Randal Grichuk (R) CF
6. Justin Smoak (S) 1B
7. Danny Jansen (R) C
8. Billy McKinney (L) RF
9. Brandon Drury (R) 3B


Gametime Temp: 82°F
Chance of Precip: 0%

[Bill-806]

As  DAD would say, "SON, LIKE SAND THRU THE HOUR GLASS, SO ARE THE DAYS OF OUR RED SOX" !!!!!  SOX  need to go on a RUN starting NOW GRASSHOPPER !!!!!  Shake up that ROSTER !!! iono iono iono

[Murph]

Red Sox Notes
‏

@SoxNotes
1h1 hour ago
More
Xander Bogaerts and Mike Trout are the only AL players batting .300+ with 20+ HR.

Bogaerts leads the Sox in HR (20), RBI (71), and OPS (.948).

According to FanGraphs, Bogaerts ranks 4th among position players in WAR (4.1) behind Trout (6.5), Bellinger (5.7), and Yelich (5.2).

[SeaBeachFred]

Porcello?????  The guy has been a human pinata all season giving up tons of hits and runs.  No way the Red Sox can be that stupid to resign this guy to a new contract. After this season they need to send his ass out of town without looking back.  Tonight?  Don't expect much from this bum unless the Red Sox go out there and put nine runs on the board, although after last night's total choke-up performance the team must be traumatized as they've been all year when facing a good team........Tonight the Torontoans might look like a powerhouse against our choking dogs.

[SeaBeachFred]

Red Sox Notes
‏

@SoxNotes
1h1 hour ago
More
Xander Bogaerts and Mike Trout are the only AL players batting .300+ with 20+ HR.

Bogaerts leads the Sox in HR (20), RBI (71), and OPS (.948).

According to FanGraphs, Bogaerts ranks 4th among position players in WAR (4.1) behind Trout (6.5), Bellinger (5.7), and Yelich (5.2).

And yet in the ninth inning with two on and two out he did what he almost always does in these situations.....HE STRUCK OUT!!!------JUST AS i SAID HE WOULD WHEN HE CAME TO THE PLATE.. He is having a good season, avery good season and contributes on most occasions but almost never in the type of occasion we saw last night.  Then, again, the loss wasn't his fault.  The pitching was good between the book ends but David was not sharp and /Cora's favorite Velasquez, who should be sent out of town yesterday, did what he has done al season-----stink up the joint.  Today I am as pissed off as I have even been this season.  Losing to the Dodgers just eats me up alive.

[longgame]

Porcello certainly isn't worth the big bucks he gets.  He can throw some great games and then he can give up 5 runs in a hurry too.  But listening to the stats last night, he's really not the problem, nor is Betts.  It's Sale and the 5th rotation spot.  We have 5 wins between the 1st and 5th rotation spots.  We have numerous games given up by the bullpen.  This just magnifies other errors because there is no room for those errors.  If they simply had 5 more wins out of those two slots and 3 out of the pen, this season would be completely different.  We all know why - from Spring Training to not filling out a full staff given Eovaldi's past (he must have set a record for money earned in a 7 inning losing relief appearance!) to letting two good arms go and not replace them. 

So you can't fix those things, but you can address them going forward and Cashner was part of it, but they need at least two more reliable arms in that bullpen.  Also, when all of your problems are pitching, doesn't some blame have to go on the pitching coach?  Why hasn't this guy been run out of town yet?

[longgame]

Red Sox Notes
‏

@SoxNotes
1h1 hour ago
More
Xander Bogaerts and Mike Trout are the only AL players batting .300+ with 20+ HR.

Bogaerts leads the Sox in HR (20), RBI (71), and OPS (.948).

According to FanGraphs, Bogaerts ranks 4th among position players in WAR (4.1) behind Trout (6.5), Bellinger (5.7), and Yelich (5.2).

And yet in the ninth inning with two on and two out he did what he almost always does in these situations.....HE STRUCK OUT!!!------JUST AS i SAID HE WOULD WHEN HE CAME TO THE PLATE.. He is having a good season, avery good season and contributes on most occasions but almost never in the type of occasion we saw last night.  Then, again, the loss wasn't his fault.  The pitching was good between the book ends but David was not sharp and /Cora's favorite Velasquez, who should be sent out of town yesterday, did what he has done al season-----stink up the joint.  Today I am as pissed off as I have even been this season.  Losing to the Dodgers just eats me up alive.

3 -5 with 2 runs scored, an RBI and a HR.  He can't do it all Fred.  JD Martinez left a few on there behind Bogey too.

[SeaBeachFred]

Red Sox Notes
‏

@SoxNotes
1h1 hour ago
More
Xander Bogaerts and Mike Trout are the only AL players batting .300+ with 20+ HR.

Bogaerts leads the Sox in HR (20), RBI (71), and OPS (.948).

According to FanGraphs, Bogaerts ranks 4th among position players in WAR (4.1) behind Trout (6.5), Bellinger (5.7), and Yelich (5.2).

And yet in the ninth inning with two on and two out he did what he almost always does in these situations.....HE STRUCK OUT!!!------JUST AS i SAID HE WOULD WHEN HE CAME TO THE PLATE.. He is having a good season, avery good season and contributes on most occasions but almost never in the type of occasion we saw last night.  Then, again, the loss wasn't his fault.  The pitching was good between the book ends but David was not sharp and /Cora's favorite Velasquez, who should be sent out of town yesterday, did what he has done al season-----stink up the joint.  Today I am as pissed off as I have even been this season.  Losing to the Dodgers just eats me up alive.

3 -5 with 2 runs scored, an RBI and a HR.  He can't do it all Fred.  JD Martinez left a few on there behind Bogey too.

Oh I know that too Ted.  I was just making a point that in that kind of situation XB has always been deficient in that regard.  Certainly he is less culpable than so many others in the lineup for that horseshit performance of the team last night.  I hate it like hell to lose to the Dodgers.

[longgame]

I'm hoping they put on a more entertaining show, although the late innings had some excitement last night.  But baseball is tiresome when every at bat is a walk, an error, a HR or a K.

[elktonnick]

You bring up a good point, I have become concerned that there is too much emphasis on the strike out.  Pitchers are forgetting how to pitch to contact.  Purcello was a better pitcher when he was a sinker baller who induced ground outs. 

I wonder how much Lavangie's lack of actual pitching experience has contributed to the clubs current pitching woes or is he merely another symptom of this organization's total lack of success at pitcher development.

[longgame]

You bring up a good point, I have become concerned that there is too much emphasis on the strike out.  Pitchers are forgetting how to pitch to contact.  Purcello was a better pitcher when he was a sinker baller who induced ground outs. 

I wonder how much Lavangie's lack of actual pitching experience has contributed to the clubs current pitching woes or is he merely another symptom of this organization's total lack of success at pitcher development.

Probably both.  Pitcher development has suffered for a while but Lavangie seems to be affecting the veterans.

[longgame]

The Jays may wear blue, but they are no Dodgers.  5-0 Sox in the first on the Chavis Grand Slam!

[Sea Dog 23]

The Jays are showing some fight and made it 5-4 now in the third.  What has happened to Rick?

[elktonnick]

Porcello is getting clobbered.  The effective Porcello pitched down in the zone.  This version is up constantly.  I don't understand why they aren't working with him on this.  No one on the NESN broadcast is mentioning this but I recall this was the common commentary years past that is to be effective Rick Porcello had to pitch down in the zone.   Why the change? 

[elktonnick]

Why is Manager Neuman letting Braiser continue to pitch.