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TORONTO — Coming off a week in which Boston won four of six games against first-place teams in the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Yankees, a trip to Toronto could have been a time when the Red Sox let their foot off the gas against a Blue Jays team that’s been struggling.
Instead, they slammed on the accelerator.
The Red Sox departed Toronto with three more wins, securing a series sweep of the Blue Jays on Wednesday night with a convincing 7-3 victory. They’ve won a season-high-tying five games in a row and seven of their last eight, moving to 40-35. It marks the first time they’ve been five games over .500 since May 2.
“We can do a lot of stuff, and I’m very proud of the guys to beat the Phillies and the Yankees and get greedy and come here and play three great games. That was fun to watch,” manager Alex Cora said.
Upon arriving in Toronto on Monday, the Red Sox held a brief team meeting to make sure they didn’t get too caught up in their run last week and fall back into what’s been a familiar .500 malaise.
“We had a little bit of a talk just to make sure, like, ‘Hey, man, I know we played two tough teams, but we just gotta keep rolling,’” Jarren Duran said. “Our season doesn’t end because we played two good teams and won. So we got to keep rolling, and I was really proud of the way we played. We just kept doing our thing, especially coming in so late (Monday morning) and then sleeping and getting up and having to play again. But we did a really good job and I’m proud of this team.”
The Red Sox have a much-needed day off Thursday before three more games in Cincinnati this weekend. But before that, here are three takeaways from a strong trip to Toronto.
This kid gets it.
Happy Sweep Day to all who celebrate! pic.twitter.com/kRjn2ru30F
— Red Sox (@RedSox) June 20, 2024
The right-hander has scuffled over the past month, allowing 13 earned runs in his previous three starts with spotty command. Entering Wednesday, he’d thrown just 4 2/3 innings in each of his previous two starts.
Bello wasn’t perfect, but he worked around runners on base all night and finished with two runs allowed on seven hits and two walks, striking out six over six innings.
He stranded two base runners in each of his first three innings. The Blue Jays finally capitalized in the fourth, knocking three singles on his first four pitches of the inning, scoring a run and cutting into the Red Sox lead 2-1. Bello loaded the bases after a walk but got Justin Turner to ground into a double play. The tying run scored, but Bello happily took the outs before getting a lineout to end the threat. He worked around a double in the fifth, but then had a one-two-three sixth, his first such inning of the night.
“That’s what he needs to do,” Cora said. “Pound the strike zone and forget about the results. Just stay with the process and he did great.”
Offense tearing it up
Through 17 games this month, the Red Sox are hitting a major-league-leading .294 with an .824 OPS. On Wednesday, Duran’s solo homer in the fifth snapped a 2-2 tie, and the Red Sox kept adding.
In the sixth, Romy González hit a two-out single through the second base hole, scoring a run, and Duran drove in another run with an RBI single that knocked Jays starter Kevin Gausman out of the game. Earlier, David Hamilton singled in a run and Enmanuel Valdez hit a solo homer to give the Red Sox an early 2-0 lead.
During their strong stretch, it hasn’t been just one or two hitters carrying the offense, but the entire lineup has been producing and in different ways. Home runs have helped, but so, too, has the aggressiveness on the bases. The Red Sox stole five more bases Wednesday and lead the American League with 29 steals this month.
“I think we’re just playing our style of baseball right now and we’re just being really patient at the plate and taking what the opposing team is giving us,” Duran said. “We’re not trying to do too much. We’re just keeping it simple. And I love that about us.”
Part of the offensive rhythm might be attributed to a change they made a month ago in the format of their hitter meetings, but there’s also something to be said for rookies gaining confidence as they accumulate games and experience in the league.
Players returning
The Red Sox activated reliever Chris Martin from the injured list earlier this week after he missed 14 games dealing with symptoms related to anxiety. Martin pitched in his first game since May 30 on Wednesday night and recorded a clean inning, but he did take a tumble on a comebacker to the mound. He said he hit his head and had the wind knocked out of him, but he was able to finish the inning.
Meanwhile, Wilyer Abreu played right field for Triple-A Worcester on Wednesday and hit two home runs after an 0-for-4 day with a walk the previous game. Cora suggested Abreu might play one more game in Worcester as designated hitter, but after the solid night at the plate, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him back in the lineup Friday in Cincinnati.
Adding Abreu brings even more power and athleticism and likely means Bobby Dalbec will be optioned back to Worcester.
While Vaughn Grissom and Triston Casas are still building back up and not close to returning, Abreu’s bat will be another boost to an offense that’s already rolling.
As the Red Sox have battled injuries all season, Tanner Houck has been a workhorse, but the Red Sox are mindful of his 96 2/3 innings through 15 starts. Houck’s major-league high in innings pitched was 106 last season. With that in mind, he will get an extra day’s rest as the Red Sox plan to skip him Sunday in Cincinnati and move his next start to Monday at Fenway Park. The Red Sox will go with a bullpen game Sunday, with the opener to be determined based on which relievers are not used in the first two games against the Reds.
(Photo of Jarren Duran celebrating with teammates after his fifth-inning home run Wednesday: Cole Burston / Getty Images)
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Courtesy : https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5577633/2024/06/20/red-sox-sweep-blue-jays/