Fenway Flashback: 1986 — April, Week 2: Baylor Breaks It Open, the Rotation Takes Over

April 14–20, 1986 · Week 2 of 4 · Record at close: 7–5

The first homestand of 1986 began with the wrong kind of welcome. Boston arrived from a 3–3 road trip and promptly lost its first two games at Fenway Park. Kansas City won the opener comfortably, then squeezed the Red Sox out of a one-run pitching duel. Eight games into the season, Boston was 3–5, and a home crowd waiting for a fresh start had instead watched its team score twice in two games.

By the end of the week, the picture had changed. Don Baylor delivered the swing that rescued the Royals finale, and the Red Sox swept three games from Chicago. A 4–2 week pushed Boston to 7–5. More revealing than the record was how it happened: a succession of long starts, narrow advantages protected, and enough offense at the right moments to reward the pitching.

Kansas City won 8–2, with six runs in the eighth inning turning a tied game into a lopsided finish. Oil Can Boyd was charged with six runs over seven innings, and Boston used Bob Stanley and Steve Crawford in relief. A game that had remained manageable suddenly demanded an offensive rescue the lineup could not provide.

Marty Barrett homered, but Boston managed only five hits. Charlie Leibrandt worked seven innings for the Royals, and Dan Quisenberry supplied two scoreless innings behind him. The visitors did not need a strikeout-heavy performance to control the afternoon; their two pitchers combined for no strikeouts while repeatedly turning contact into outs. For Boston, the problem was not putting the ball in play. It was making those balls produce something.

The defeat also showed why it is worth separating a final score from the path to it. Boston had not spent nine innings being overrun.…