Red Sox Notes: Missed Opportunities Defining Second-Half Start
BOSTON — The Red Sox could not have had more momentum entering the All-Star break, especially after going 9-3 to start July at 11 games over .500.
That’s vanished since then as Boston is 2-7 since the All-Star break with three straight series losses. That came after an 8-2 loss to the New York Yankees to clinch that fate on Sunday night at Fenway Park.
From blown saves to leaving runs on the board, the Red Sox haven’t played bad baseball for the most part. Instead, it’s been an internal shortcoming of taking advantage of opportunities within their grasp.
“We’ve had chances,” Cora told reporters. “We had the ball in the ninth inning a few times and we didn’t finish games. Obviously, it doesn’t look great. From my end, I think we’re OK. Today, obviously a little bit sloppy defensively. Overall, the effort is there. We had a chance to win the series. Yesterday, it didn’t happen. Just gotta turn the page and be ready for tomorrow.”
Particularly, Boston’s once-sturdy pitching staff has shown signs of regression. With All-Star righty Tanner Houck on the mound, the Yankees scored three runs in the first inning for the second straight night. A short-handed bullpen without Chris Martin and Justin Slaten also continues to take a toll.
“Teams are going to make adjustments,” Cora said. “Guys are going to have bad games. That’s part of it, right? We just have to keep making adjustments. I don’t think a stretch of nine games dictates who we are, right?”
“You’re going to have your highs and lows,” Houck told reporters. “Keep showing up every day and doing the stuff that matters. Keep putting in that work. Tough start, but that’s OK. We’ve got time to piece it back together and show up.”
The Red Sox went from a two-game lead in the wild card race to sitting a game out and also trailing the Yankees by 5 1/2 games in the division and the leading Baltimore Orioles by 6 1/2 games.
Having a downturn with the trade deadline coming up on Tuesday does not help either. With that said, it should come as a sense of urgency for Boston to turn it around.
“It’s obviously a tough stretch,” Rob Refsnyder told reporters. “We played some good teams. We just haven’t been able to push through and win series as of late. We’ve got another really good team coming in in Seattle. … We gotta figure it out and figure it out fast. I’m confident in the group we have here that we can do that.”
Here are more notes from Sunday’s Yankees-Red Sox game:
— Rafael Devers became the first Boston hitter with 450 extra-base hits before the age of 28, per Red Sox PR.
— Boston has lost back-to-back Sundays for the first time this season after starting 2024 on a 15-1 stretch on Sundays.
— Tanner Houck recorded at least six innings for the 16th time in 21 starts for the Red Sox this season.
— Danny Jansen reached base three times with a pair of singles in his team debut.
“Great at-bats, man,” Cora said. “Hit the ball hard. Worked some counts. Swung at the right pitches.”
— Jansen and James Paxton both spoke pregame about joining Boston in the middle of a postseason push down the stretch after their weekend trades.
— The Red Sox begin a three-game series on Monday against the Seattle Mariners at Fenway Park. First pitch is set for 7:10 p.m. ET. You can catch the game, plus an hour of pregame coverage, on NESN.