The Red Sox are trying to find that mojo they had in winning games. What was once just looking at the second wild-card spot looks to be higher for the Yankees as they creep closer to second place. The Rays look to add more ground and the Jays look to go higher up. Let’s see what happened during this week and what is to come during the weekend in the MLB American League East.
TAMPA BAY RAYS
The Rays faced the Mariners this week. Michael Wacha pitched four innings and gave up six runs. Randy Arozarena went 2-for-3 with a walk and his 15th home run. Nelson Cruz went 2-for-4. They lost 8-2.
Luis Patino pitched five innings and gave up three runs. Arozarena went 3-for-4 and hit his 16th home run. Austin Meadows went 2-for-4. The Rays lost 4-2.
They avoided the sweep on Wednesday with a 4-3 win. Arozarena went 2-for-4. He is a player that could be tough to get out right now. Mike Zunino hit his 21st home run. Josh Fleming went five innings and gave up two runs.
The Rays will face the O’s during the weekend. With how the Red Sox have been playing, they can possibly gain games in the division.
BOSTON RED SOX
Garrett Richards pitched four innings and gave up three runs to the Tigers. Hunter Renfroe hit his 17th home run. Jarren Duran went 2-for-5. J.D. Martinez went 2-for-3 with a walk. Christian Vazquez went 2-for-4. The offense only scored two runs in the 4-2 loss.
The Sox offense responded with four runs of their own in game two. Martinez hit his 21st home run of the season. Enrique Hernandez and Duran went back-to-back with home runs. Eduardo Rodriguez pitched five scoreless innings. The only run given up to the Tigers was by Josh Taylor. Sox won 4-1.
Taking the lead with J.D. pic.twitter.com/XEgRALx0QX — Red Sox (@RedSox) August 4, 2021
Not sure what the Sox will do with Martin Perez when Chris Sale returns. Perez only pitched 1.1 innings and gave up three runs. It was like he was an unplanned opener the Sox didn’t need. Phillips Valdez went 2.2 scoreless innings. Newcomers, Hansel Robles and Austin Davis gave up a combined five runs that sealed the deal for the game. Rafael Devers went 2-for-5 and Kevin Plawecki went 2-for-4. The Sox lost 8-1.
Now being 1.5 games back, the Sox face the Blue Jays in Canada for four games in three days. Nathan Eovaldi, Nick Pivetta, Tanner Houck, and Garrett Richards are scheduled to pitch. With a doubleheader on Saturday, the Sox can use a bullpen-free day on Friday with Eovaldi handing the ball to Matt Barnes.
NEW YORK YANKEES
Monday’s game was the Yankee Stadium in pinstripes debut for Anthony Rizzo, Andrew Heaney, and Joey Gallo. Heaney didn’t impress much with giving up four home runs in his first start as a Yankee. He lasted four innings. Rizzo was 0-for-2 but got an RBI on a sac fly. Gallo went 1-for-3 with a double that broke the no-hitter Jorge Lopez had going into the 6th inning. The offense only scored one run on three hits. They lost 7-1. Later Aaron Boone announced that Gerrit Cole was tested positive for COVID and will not pitch his scheduled start the next day.
Tuesday’s game started with news that Jordan Montgomery was also tested positive for COVID. The Yankees called up Luis Gil to start for Cole. In his debut, he went 6 scoreless innings. Rizzo, Giancarlo Stanton, and Aaron Judge went 2-for-5. Both Stanton and Judge hit home runs which were their 17th and 22nd respectively. Everyone but Gallo got a hit in game two’s win. Stephen Ridings and Brody Koerner also made their major league debut. Koerner gave up the only run to the O’s. Yanks won 13-1.
Pressure seems to be on Jameson Taillon now that he