Red Sox rout Yankees behind Porcello, JBJ

May 1st, 2016

BOSTON -- Rick Porcello didn't allow a run for the second straight start while recording his fifth straight victory to open the season, leading the Red Sox to an 8-0 rout over the Yankees.
In top form from the start, Porcello (5-0, 2.76 ERA) held the Yankees to five hits over seven innings, walking one and striking out six.
"Subjectively, you watch the way he goes about it, he's pitching with a lot of confidence," said Red Sox manager John Farrell. "The numbers bear it out with the consistency that he's showing. More than anything, he takes the mound with a lot of confidence. He's able to get two outs with one pitch with that sinker. He's been a model of consistency."
Jackie Bradley Jr. carried the offense with two triples, a double and three RBIs.
David Ortiz drilled his 49th career homer against the Yankees, a solo shot over the Boston bullpen in right-center. Mookie Betts added a bloop two-run single and an infield RBI single.
"We had a number of really good at-bats up and down the lineup, using the whole field," said Farrell. "Obviously Jackie is swinging a very good bat right now. David with a big swing to stretch it to 5-0. We did a number of things well in this game tonight."
Michael Pineda took the loss for the Yankees, giving up five hits, two runs and three walks over five innings. The Yankees have lost 12 of their last 16 games, managing three runs or fewer in 14 of those contests.
Behind ace David Price, the Red Sox will go for the sweep on Sunday night.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Bradley on tear: Bradley is turning into a legitimate weapon for the Red Sox in the No. 9 spot in the batting order. After belting a game-tying double on Friday, Bradley came up with three more extra-base hits in this one. In the second, he smoked a double to left, setting the stage for the two-run single by Betts. In the sixth, Bradley hammered an RBI triple to the gap in right-center for an insurance run. Bradley scorched a two-run triple that rolled to the wall in right during a four-run seventh that put the game away for the Red Sox.

"I think my approach is to try to -- it sounds simple -- but just put the barrel on the ball," said Bradley. "I don't want to try to force things, because sometimes when I try to force things, I manipulate my swing. I just want to put the fat part of the bat on the ball." More >
Big Mike hangs in, but bats silent: Pineda didn't have his best stuff, scattering five hits and three walks, but he managed to limit the damage to Betts' bloop single that fell in front of Carlos Beltran and brought in Boston's first two runs. With Porcello in command of the Yanks' slumbering lineup, the two runs off Chasen Shreve and Kirby Yates in the sixth inning seemed to put the game away.
"It's tough. You believe in your team, that everything is going to be better," Pineda said. "We'll be OK. Just continue grinding and fighting every day and everything will be better."
Porcello with great backup: With two outs in the fifth, Chase Headley nailed a hard single off the glove of third baseman Travis Shaw. Brock Holt came up and fielded it and tried to nail Didi Gregorius at third. As his throw sailed past the glove of Shaw, Porcello was in perfect backup position in foul ground and made a diving stop on the throw, saving a run.

"I don't know that I had to dive. I played it out a little too much," quipped Porcello. More >
Help wanted: The Yankees have been held to three runs or fewer in each of their last seven games, their longest such stretch since Sept. 12-18, 2014, and now rank last in the American League in runs scored. At 8-14, they are six games under .500 for the first time in the Joe Girardi era (2008-present).

"We haven't been hitting," Girardi said. "I thought Michael battled his butt off for five innings. We had a couple of opportunities. We're just not hitting. We're putting ourselves in a bad position because we're not scoring runs." More >
SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
Bradley has feasted against the Yankees of late. In his last nine games against them, he is 14-for-31 with nine extra-base hits. Bradley's four triples in April tied a club record last reached by Jose Offerman in 1999.
WHAT'S NEXT
Yankees: Right-hander Nathan Eovaldi took a no-hitter into the seventh inning of his last start on Monday in Texas vs. the Rangers, settling for seven scoreless frames of two-hit ball as he picked up his first victory of the season. Eovaldi is 2-0 with a 4.24 ERA in three career starts vs. the Red Sox.
Red Sox: Price gets his first taste of the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry in Sunday night's 8:05 ET finale of this three-game series. Price is 13-7 with a 4.04 ERA lifetime against the Yankees. In his last start, Price equaled a career high with 14 strikeouts over eight frames in a win over the Braves.
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