Red Sox Split First Two Games of ALCS with Astros
After Saturday night, when the Houston Astros beat the Boston Red Sox 7-2, things looked bleak. Literally nothing went right for Boston. The manager got ejected, Chris Sale looked like a number five starter, the offense failed to show up, the defense didn’t play well (Eduardo Nunez), and the bullpen did its thing. Then fans had a David Price postseason start to look forward to. Great.
Surprisingly, Price did his job in game 2. He wasn’t good by any means, but he wasn’t terrible. He kept the Red Sox in the game and even kept the lead when they went up on Jackie Bradley Jr.’s three run double.
After Price exited, the bullpen actually pitched great. Matt Barnes had his curveball working, Ryan Brasier came out firing bullets, and Rick Porcello in the eighth? Outstanding. Craig Kimbrel giving up a run in the 9th is a little concerning based off of how he has performed recently, but the Sox had enough cushion to secure the 7-5 victory.
Now it is on to Houston. The Sox have three games there before they can even get back to Fenway Park so they have to win at least one down in Texas. They can do it if they play like they did last night. The offense was hitting with guys on base and there were not many defensive miscues.
The main thing is they did not beat themselves. The Astros didn’t really win game 1, it felt as if the Red Sox lost it. If they continue to play solid baseball and Nathan Eovaldi (the starter for Tuesday) pitches like he did in Yankee Stadium one round ago, the Red Sox aren’t in bad shape at all.
-Jarrod Ribaudo (@Jribs53)
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