Red Sox Take a Littell Extra Batting Practice on Monday Night
Sox blow the doors off of Arizona's pitching in an 11-1 explosion.
Well, well, well...
I guess Bull Durham was right.
“This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball.”
At least where the Red Sox are concerned, the game really does seem simple when they actually do those three things, like they did on Monday night. Granted, Mitch Bratt and Zack Littell were more than willing accomplices in helping the Sox with the part of that trilogy that has escaped them for much of the season.
Boston returned to Fenway after a road trip that more closely resembled a college fraternity’s pledge-week bender than a professional baseball team’s week of work. Fortunately, in both cases, a night in your own bed can do wonders.
We should have known something was up when Alec Gamboa broke what felt like the second-longest streak in Red Sox history by throwing a scoreless first inning in a game Bryan Bello was scheduled to pitch.
In the bottom of the first, life briefly returned to normal when the offense stranded two runners on base. From there, however, the clouds parted, and the bright sunshine of just how beautiful baseball can be broke through.
Bello came out of the bullpen in the second inning like Mariano Rivera used to come out in the ninth and completely shut down the Diamondbacks. Well, maybe not the Diamondbacks, but you get the idea.
Meanwhile, the Amazon truck finally delivered the bats that had apparently been stuck in transit for the last two weeks, and away the Sox went.
Eli White and Nick Sogard each drove in a run in the second.
In the third, Contreras and Durbin combined for another.
In the fourth, it was Sogard and Rafaela.
In the fifth, Contreras homered, Durbin added another hit, and then, believe it or not, Monasterio and Mickey Gasper both produced runs without recording hits.
And that comparison to the “Great” Rivera…Yes, I admit that’s bordering on blasphemy, even for a Red Sox fan. But on Monday night? It really wasn’t that far off. While the Sox were treating Arizona’s pitching staff like piñatas, Bello retired ten Diamondbacks in a row, including perfect 1-2-3 innings in the third, fourth, and fifth.
The barrage just kept coming. Every starter in the lineup recorded an RBI, and even Adley Rutschman picked up two hits. The only starter to go hit-less was Monasterio. But who cares, Trevor Story is coming back!
Do Unto Others
I guess the Golden Rule applies to baseball as well as life.
After Patrick Sandoval was so accommodating to the Pirates’ offense on Sunday, baseball karma was on full display Monday night as Arizona arrived with some lovely housewarming gifts for its hosts.
The first came before the game even started, when perennial All-Star and off-season trade target Ketel Marte never reported to the ballpark and instead landed on the restricted list.
The second gift arrived in the form of 16 hits and 11 runs. Incredibly, none of them were surrendered by second baseman Ildemaro Vargas, who took the mound in the eighth inning.
Wait for Me!!!
Before the game, the Red Sox received some...news.
Trevor Story apparently believes he’ll only need a couple of rehab games before returning this weekend. Whether that’s good news or bad news probably depends on your personal level of masochism.
Personally, I’ve accepted the fact that he’s coming back. I just hope the organization is smart enough to keep him in the minors until he’s completely ready. If he returns too soon and gets off to a start similar to Adley Rutschman’s infamous 1-for-17 stretch with a mountain of strikeouts, I fear the next article I write will feature a different biblical reference.
One that didn’t work out nearly as well for the main character.
Just One More, Guys
Game One is safely in the win column. But, we’ve been here before.
It is absolutely imperative that the Red Sox win this series, by hook or by crook. Merrill Kelly and his 5.11 ERA will take the mound for Arizona on Tuesday, but I’m not arrogant enough to believe Boston is going to hang another 11 runs on the board.
That means Ranger Suárez needs to go out and give Chad Tracy, and perhaps more importantly, his teammates, a reason to believe he’ll be worth the contract he signed this off-season.
This start may go a long way toward determining just how legitimate the Red Sox’s postseason aspirations really are.
Image courtesy of https://www.mlb.com/news/brayan-bello-earns-win-in-2025-season-debut-for-red-sox