Color me surprised at a really pleasant weekend of baseball!
Who knew the Red Sox could catch one of the best pitchers in baseball in an absolute meltdown?
This game was defined by pitching, and Lucas Giolito made only one real mistake. After giving up a solo blast to Carlos Correa, he settled down and tossed a masterclass. The bullpen probably owes him a steak and a bottle of wine after giving them an extreme amount of relief from yesterday’s usage.
On the other end, I thought Framber Valdez was going to completely shut down the Sox and it would be up to the bullpen if they could do anything. In five career starts entering this one, Valdez had a 1.96 ERA. Yeah, as it turns out, one frame with four hits, a walk, a balk, two wild pitches, a bunt error, and two separate mound visits is as rough a one as Valdez could get, to the delight of Bostonians. Apparently infield hits infuriate Valdez and he sure seemed rattled with the amount of small ball that worked out in that inning. You could see the gears turning for the Red Sox, trying for bunts, Rafaela’s swinging bunt, Wilyer’s that got past Valdez that frankly should have been playable, it was 4D chess.
I also have to give credit to the defense, namely Alex Bregman who made some spectacular deep throws from the hot corner.
I would have been happy with a 1-2 weekend against a first place team. To sweep them feels really discombobulating in a good way. Just absolutely subverting my expectations. Let’s see how long they can keep the ride going for.
Three Studs
Lucas Giolito (8.0 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 Ks)
Gio and Bello have really become a great 2-3 punch around Crochet and today was no different.
Ceddanne Rafaela (3-for-3, BB, 1 RBI)
He doesn’t need power all the time, and his contact hitting and speed proved to be a difference maker.
Trevor Story (2-for-4, 1 RBI, 1 K)
As Story goes, the Sox go, we say for the nth time in 2025. He’s had the most RBI in the Majors since June 1st.
Three Duds
Connor Wong (0-for-2, 1 RBI)
I know he had the sac fly, but his offense is really non existent.
Romy Gonzalez (0-for-3, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 K)
He had a slick defensive play, just not his day at the dish even with a walk.
Wilyer Abreu (0-for-2, 1 R, 1 RBI)
I think Wilyer got SO lucky with Valdez’ error. He’s in a little bit of a cold streak.
Play of the Game
I don’t think there was any one play that defined the game, but this one inning was clearly the difference maker.