BOSTON – Cam Schlittler grew up some 30 miles outside Boston’s limits in the green suburb of Walpole, Mass., frequently envisioning what it might be like to pitch from the slope of Fenway Park’s mound.
Nights like this weren’t what he had in mind.
Schlittler showcased his high-octane arsenal, but his latest homecoming went awry in a fifth inning derailed by an Amed Rosario error, leading to four runs in the Yankees' 6-3 loss to the Red Sox. The right-hander exited after 92 pitches (62 strikes) over five frames.
In the Boston fifth, Schlittler issued a leadoff walk to Masataka Yoshida and a Ceddanne Rafaela single to begin the inning. After a strikeout, Willson Contreras smoked a 112.8 mph grounder through Rosario’s legs at third base for a run-scoring error.
Jarren Duran followed with a shallow fly ball to left field, with Rafaela testing José Caballero’s arm. The throw trailed up the first-base line, tying the score. Caleb Durbin followed with a two-run homer that cleared the Green Monster in left field, giving Boston the lead.
All four runs off Schlittler were unearned, with his ERA dropping from 1.71 to 1.62. Schlittler scattered five hits, walking two and striking out nine.
Even before the fifth, it was an odd outing for Schlittler, who committed a throwing error on a first-inning pickoff attempt and allowed a Durbin pop-up to fall in front of him for an infield hit in the second.
Thursday marked Schlittler’s fourth career start against the Red Sox, including last year’s Game 3 of the American League Wild Card Series. This season, he’d allowed three runs (two earned) in his first 13 2/3 innings against the Red Sox, spanning two starts (1-0, 1.32 ERA).