Highlights
- Red Sox defeated Blue Jays by 6-5 in the major baseball league
- It was a pretty massive game for me. I wanted to defeat these guys: Nick Pivetta
- In this baseball league, the Red Sox have gone 33-13 since May 10 and have been mainly on a roll, but they have not yet performed well against opponents from the American League East.
The pleasure of baseball is that a crushing defeat one night may be atoned for by a gratifying victory.
After a tragic loss, the Red Sox’s 6-5 hammer victory against the Blue Jays in 10 innings on Wednesday was the ideal of a grind-it-out game.
Nick Pivetta, after the victory
The Red Hot’s Nick Pivetta, who played more than six supremely rewarding baseball innings, said, “I think the biggest thing is that we have shown the fight in the game.” The bullpen did a great job, we played well, and it was a great win.
For me, it was a tremendously important game, Pivetta said. I wanted to beat these guys. They play baseball quite well and always behave decently. They [1-9] are outstanding. They have really great batters and a positive mindset. They are constantly engaged in combat. They fought tonight, and we prevailed.
There was a moment when it appeared like the series finale would be another heartbreaker. Mainly when Ryan Brasier lost the lead in the bottom of the eighth for Boston’s 16th missed save of the season.
However, the Red Sox stood their ground. Matt Strahm, a reliever, did not either.
In this Major League Baseball playoff, any deadly hitters could have delivered the Blue Jays a walk-off victory. As a result, Kirk tied one to the right on the line drive and into Rob Refsneider’s glove. Strahm then nailed Bichette and Guerrero, and everybody on the Red Sox had a moment to breathe. They sent the Sox back in a tight sweep for their off-day in Chicago.
What did Alex Cora say about Strahmy and Verdugo’s performance?
The manager, Alex Cora, said, “Strahmy, he was well-rested.” He was making several pitches while pushing himself to the maximum.
Of course, Strahm’s outstanding performance in the ninth inning would not have mattered if Alex Verdugo’s heroics at the plate had not occurred. The ferocious left fielder gave Pivetta and the Red Sox the lead in the sixth inning by slamming a two-run homer off Blue Jays prodigy Alek Manoah.
A two-out, two-run double to the gap in left-center by Verdugo provided Strahm some insurance in the 10th inning after J.D. Martinez had been hit in the back with the loaded bases to give Boston the lead once more.
In the bottom of the ninth, after giving George Springer a leadoff walk, the lanky lefty faced Toronto’s terrifying 2-3-4 lineup of Bo Bichette, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and Alejandro Kirk.
It is tremendous, “Verdugo added.” You may observe how things transpired in the bottom of the 10th inning.
Tanner Houck was on the restricted list for this three-game series in Toronto because he was not immunized against COVID-19. So Boston’s bullpen had one final, breathless adventure in the tenth inning.
The Jays continued to fight on offense, as they often do, and Strahm, who threw a season-high 41 pitches, appeared to be running out of gas. He was one out of winning when he gave up three consecutive hits. Finally, Springer was struck out by Strahm on a popup, leaving the tying and winning runners on second and third.
Strahm remained unconcerned despite the disarray surrounding him.
In this significant baseball league, the Red Sox have gone 33-13 since May 10 and have been mainly on a roll. However, they have not yet performed well against opponents from the American League East.
That pattern persisted when Boston’s 19-4 record entering this major baseball league dropped the first two games at Toronto in June. The Sox advanced to 8-16 in divisional play this season on the strength of their victory on the last night of the game.
After the match, Verdugo said, “we’re pleased to win the ‘W,’ escape the sweep, and get one of three.” Yesterday’s game went well for us. We believed that we should have won two out of three. We did not have one of our people to finish it or handle it in any other way. However, it is a big deal to get this one out.
Given that he could go head-to-head with Manoah, Pivetta can be said to have owned this game.
What truly demonstrates is that although yesterday night was just that, we could go on and get a victory here tonight, which was crucial.