The Red Sox, fresh off of their 17th loss in one run games this season, were desperate for a win and some momentum as they head into the Bronx to take on the division rival New York Yankees. Though the afternoon started with yet another big first inning deficit, the young Sox offense kept punching back, until the final at bat. With a runner on in the bottom of the ninth, Ceddanne Rafaela delivered his third homerun of the series, this one snaked just around Pesky’s Pole for a walk off homerun.
It was yet another dreadful performance for a Red Sox starter. Lucas Giolito, coming off a solid game last time out, could not carry that momentum into this one. Zach Neto, who will be bummed out to leave Fenway, got the action started for the Angels once again with a double in the top of the first off of Giolito. After a Nolan Schanuel double, and a Mike Trout single, Taylor Ward delivered a haymaker on a fly ball to left center. Just like that the Sox were down 4-0 before Giolito even recorded one out. The Sox would answer with five of their own in the bottom half thanks in large part to a David Hamilton double with the bases juiced. However, the lead would be short lived as Giolito would surrender two more quick runs in the top of the second, eventually departing with two outs.
While it is true that the Sox are 6-17 in one run games, the offense (down Bregman and Casas) has been resilient. Coming into this afternoon’s game, the Sox rank 10th in Major League Baseball in batting average, 8th in runs per game, 4th in hits per game, 9th in home runs, 3rd in doubles, and 7th in RBI. As a team the Sox also have the 6th highest slugging percentage in the majors, as well as the 7th highest OPS. Ceddanne Rafaela home run was his third of the season, and Duran added two more doubles. The young bats are scrappy. However, young teams are often streaky, and can be demoralized by big first inning deficits. If there is a silver lining in this brief stint at home, its that the offense continues to punch back. The Red Sox can build on that.
It’s not atypical for any pitcher to struggle on his way back from Tommy John’s surgery. In fact, to some extent it’s to be expected. Giolito has been a bit up and down so far this season, but had only allowed one run in his last two starts spanning 11 and 1/3 innings pitched. He just never could settle in this afternoon. After giving up a leadoff double on a 3-0 count, Giolito was victimized by a Nolan Schanuel double Mike Trout single and a Taylor Ward HR. After that, he looked shell shocked. This was definitely a speed bump for Giolito who needs a big bounce back in his next start.
Carlos Narvaez went 2-4 with an RBI and a BB. He’s now batting .333 in his last 15 games, with 8 runs scored and 12 BBs during that span. He now looks to have firmly supplanted Conner Wong as the starting catcher. Now he gets to head back to the Bronx to exact revenge on the team that drafted and later traded him to the rival Sox. Narvaez has certainly been a bright spot for the Red Sox offense.
After playing 20 games in the last 21 days, the Sox will get a needed break before traveling to the Bronx Friday night to start a weekend season against the rival New York Yankees. The Yankees have a commanding lead in the AL East with the Rays, Blue Jays and Red Sox bunched tightly together behind them. This is the first meeting between the storied franchises in 2025, and one the Red Sox need to assert themselves in. Its perhaps a little too early to talk about the postseason, but anything less than wining this series over the weekend will be another setback for the 2025 Boston red Sox. If you would like to read more Boston Red Sox content, follow Dirty Water.
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