BOSTON – For a while, the story was Sonny Gray’s near no-hitter, which ended with one out in the eighth. Then, the focus shifted to Aroldis Chapman blowing his second save in a week and Wilyer Abreu having some rare defensive breakdowns in right field.
But in the end, it was all about a walk-off pile – just the second this season for the Red Sox, who capped off a rare four-game sweep of the rival Yankees in dramatic fashion, winning, 5-4, in 10 innings.
When interim manager Chad Tracy was holding his press conference after the game, fans could be heard from the concourse shouting, “Let’s go Red Sox!”
It was the type of deafening chant that hasn’t been heard often for a team that is 10 games under .500 (36-46) after its first four-game winning streak of the season.
“We hear it now, though,” said Tracy. “That was a special four days, and they were into it. That was loud.”
It was the first four-game rivalry sweep for the Sox since Aug. 2-5, 2018. Here is what mattered most from the wildest game of the season at Fenway.
1. Duran sends everybody home
The Red Sox would have taken a walk-off hit from anyone who wished to provide it. But the fact that it came from Jarren Duran could have a lasting impact. Duran has taken 90 at-bats in June, slashing .156/.181/.244 with no doubles, one triple, two homers, three walks and 33 strikeouts.
However, the outfielder is also one of those players who can go from cold to hot in a hurry when he gets a confidence-building hit. Though it was hardly a missile, Duran did what he needed to, placing it perfectly to an empty patch of grass in right. The outfield was playing in, and there were only two of them due to a five-man infield with the winning run on third and one out.
“It meant a lot,” said Duran. “I feel like I've let this team down a lot this year, and that moment felt like I let a little bit off my shoulders. So, it was a pretty good feeling.”
2. Rotation is blistering hot
This was inarguably one of the best of Gray’s 345 career starts, and it continued a ridiculous run for Boston’s rotation. Gray gave up just the one hit over 7 1/3 innings, walking one and striking out nine.
That made it 11 straight quality starts for the Red Sox, their longest such string since the 1988 Red Sox had 14 straight. During those 11 games, the starters are 7-1 with a 1.51 ERA.
There were some anxious moments when it seemed Gray’s vintage effort would go to waste. But he kept the faith.
“I just kept a positive mindset throughout,” Gray said. “And as soon as they tied the game and they took the lead, I just was in here [in the clubhouse], and I just kept telling everyone that was around, ‘We could still win this game. We could still win this game. We can still win this game.’ And we walk away with a win. So yeah, that was sick.”
3. Chapman will make history with next punchout
Though Chapman is in the first real slump of his two-season run in Boston, he put himself on the verge of history with two strikeouts, giving him 1,363 for his career to tie knuckleballer Hoyt Wilhelm for most ever by a relief pitcher.
“On the individual part, that's great,” said Chapman. “That reflects on my career and what I've done throughout my career. On the other side, I just want to be out there every time I can to help the team win and to save games.”
In his last five games, Chapman is 0-2 while converting two of his four save opportunities. He has three walks and four strikeouts over four innings. Earlier this month, Chapman was dealing with a hamstring issue. Is that still an issue?
“No, he's fine,” said Tracy. “He looks healthy. They just got him in the ninth. That's all.”
4. Yoshida at last finding stroke?
Much like Duran, Masataka Yoshida has struggled mightily all month. But over the last two games, he’s found something, going 3-for-4 with a double and a homer.
As a pinch-hitter in the winning rally, Yoshida laced a hustle double into the corner in right to put Andruw Monasterio in position to score on Tsung-Che Cheng’s game-tying sacrifice fly. What adjustment has Yoshida made at the plate?
“Trying to keep my shoulder closed and just stay through the zone,” said Yoshida. “That’s what I’m trying to do.”