April 18th, 2024
Ian Browne
@IanMBrowneBOSTON -- Soggy and dreary were the fitting elements for the finale of a 10-game homestand in which very little went right for the Red Sox.
When the Sox came home after a 7-3 road trip to open the season, the vibes were good.
But then came a steady wave of errors, unearned runs and injuries. Thursday's 5-4 defeat to the Guardians put Boston at 10-10 as the club goes back on the road for a six-game journey to Pittsburgh and Cleveland that starts Friday night.
Here is an update on the current state of affairs.
The errors -- too many
With errors by third baseman Pablo Reyes and shortstop David Hamilton on Thursday, which led to three unearned runs in a one-run loss, the Sox have 20 miscues in 20 games. There was another play when Reyes couldn't get the ball out of his glove quick enough to start a 5-4-3 double play.
"We need to play better defense," said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. "That's the bottom line. We've just got to keep going. Show up early tomorrow, do early work, keep pushing them. They're good defenders, they are. We're not making plays right now."
The 20 errors lead the Majors. Oakland is second with 17. The unearned run count is 25, which is nine more than the next closest team (the Mets).
It would help the defense if the Red Sox had some of their best players in the lineup instead of being shelved by injuries.
The latest on the injuries
Shortstop Trevor Story is gone for the season after injuring his left shoulder on April 5 and that isn't changing. But having to also play without Rafael Devers in five of the 10 games on the homestand and Tyler O'Neill (the team's hottest hitter out of the gate) for the last three games has stretched the lineup too thin on offense and defense.
Devers was first sidelined by left shoulder pain that forced him out of two games in the first four games of the season and then four consecutive games on this homestand. No sooner had he gotten over the shoulder ailment than he developed a left knee injury, making a play on defense in Tuesday's loss. Initially, there was optimism as Devers was the designated hitter on Wednesday.
But he was back on the bench on Thursday and concerned enough to undergo an MRI, which fortunately only showed a bone bruise.
Will Devers need to go on the injured list?
"Yeah, I don't know yet," said Devers. "But the thing that I know is I don't want to go back too soon and go back to that place. I'm going to take my time to be ready."
That might not be what impatient fans want to hear, but the importance of Devers is great enough to the Red Sox that they need him healthy for the long haul rather than rushing back.
Devers expressed relief that the MRI revealed no structural damage.
"Yeah, obviously that feels good, but at the same time, I'm kind of disappointed that I've been having to deal with all these injuries when I haven't done it before in my career," Devers said.
As for O'Neill, he had a head-on collision with Devers in Monday's game that left him with eight stitches on his forehead. After two days of taking a wait-and-see approach with the outfielder, the Red Sox placed O'Neill on the seven-day injured list, reserved for players with concussions, before Thursday's game. The move was back-dated, and the earliest he can return is Tuesday in Cleveland.
"That's the goal for me, for sure," said O'Neill. "I want to be back out there in uniform with these guys. It's tough being sidelined in this sport, and I've had my fair share, unfortunately, but I've got to get healthy first. I've never had a concussion or anything like this before.
Pitching keeping them afloat
Pitching has been the team's overwhelming strength so far, particularly the starting rotation, which has a 1.82 ERA, the best in the Majors. But there are also injuries there.
Nick Pivetta (flexor strain in right elbow) and Garrett Whitlock (left oblique strain) are on the injured list. Pivetta will throw a bullpen session on Saturday and could be back relatively soon. Whitlock's absence isn't expected to be much longer than the 15 days he will serve on the injured list. He is first eligible to return on May 2.
"It's not panic time," said Devers.
"We're 20 games into the season. Every team goes through this obviously. The press makes it bigger than what it is," said Devers. "So we still have time to play and we have a lot of games in front of us."
