Red Sox All-Star third baseman missing second straight game against Blue Jays
The Red Sox snapped their losing streak on Tuesday night, defeating the Blue Jays 6-3 at Fenway Park.
Jarren Duran once again proved why he’s been the most valuable member of the Red Sox this season. The speedy outfielder homered to lead off the bottom of the first inning, his 20th blast of the season. He also threw out a runner at second base and began a perfectly executed 8-6-2 relay to throw a runner out at the plate.
Duran’s blast went 369 feet, and he became the first player in major league history with 10 triples, 20 home runs, 30 stolen bases, and 40 doubles in a season, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
The American League All-Star MVP entered Tuesday night’s game with a 6.4 fWAR, the best amongst Red Sox players, according to Baseball Reference. Rafael Devers has the second-highest WAR on the team at 4.4.
Devers, who missed Tuesday night’s game dealing with shoulder soreness is out for a second straight game. Romy Gonzalez will start in his place for a second night in a row at the hot corner. It’s not clear if Devers will return for the finale on Thursday with the Jays.
“If he needs two or three, we’ll do it,” said Alex Cora. “We have to take care of him.”
Boston will turn to Brayan Bello for the fourth game of the series on Wednesday night. The righty is coming off a rough start against the DBacks over the weekend, where he was erratic on the mound, working deep into counts and failing to put away hitters.
Bello gave up five runs on seven hits while allowing four walks in over 5 1/3 innings of work. His four walks tied a season high; he gave up four free passes on May 22 on the road against the Rays. The 25-year-old was tagged for five runs for the sixth time this season.
Rich Hill was promoted from Triple-A Worcester following one outing with the WooSox last Friday. The veteran southpaw isn’t sure how the organization will use him on the 26-man roster but will embrace whatever role.
“Any role at any time,” Hill said. “Being prepared for that and built up, whether that’s short duration, long duration, starting, bulk innings, whatever it might be.”
With the Red Sox’ win on Tuesday, coupled with a Minnesota Twins loss, Boston has pulled within four games of the final wild-card spot with just 30 games remaining on the schedule.
Red Sox vs. Bassitt: Wilyer Abreu 1-5, Triston Casas 1-2, Rafael Devers 7-14, Jarren Duran 1-10, David Hamilton 0-3, Tyler O’Neill 1-9, Ceddanne Rafaela 1-3, Rob Refsnyder 1-3, Connor Wong 0-5, Masataka Yoshida 4-13
Bassitt will face the Sox for the sixth time in his career. He last faced Boston on June 24 at Fenway Park, tossing seven innings, allowing two runs on five hits with one walk and two strikeouts. The veteran righty has made three career starts at Fenway Park, posting a 2-0 record with a 2.14 ERA and 18 strikeouts.
Blue Jays vs. Bello: Addison Barger 2-4, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 8-19, Spencer Horwitz 1-3, Alejandro Kirk 3-6, Davis Schneider 0-3, George Springer 8-20, Daulton Varsho 2-6
Blue Jays rookie Will Wagner belted his first career homer on Tuesday night. He took left-hander Brennan Bernardino deep for a solo homer in the top of the sixth inning. Wagner finished the game 3-for-4 with two doubles and a homer with an RBI. The son of former big league closer Billy Wagner is hitting .326 with an .867 OPS since his promotion to the big leagues.
Red Sox (68-64) lineup vs. the Blue Jays (65-69):
Jarren Duran CF
David Hamilton 2B
Tyler O’Neill LF
Triston Casas 1B
Wilyer Abreu RF
Masataka Yoshida DH
Connor Wong C
Romy Gonzalez 3B
Ceddanne Rafaela SS
SP: RHP Brayan Bello (11-6, 4.95 ERA)
The first pitch is at 7:10 p.m. and can be seen on NESN, FuboTV, or Sling, and it can be heard on WEEI 93.7 FM.
