Nick Pivetta and the Red Sox are assured that higher days are forward this season for the right-hander. Right now, there’s nowhere actually to go aside from up.
And the Red Sox will definitely want extra from their No. 2 starter.
For a second consecutive begin, Pivetta struggled badly. The Blue Jays teed off on him in a five-run second inning, and that was an excessive amount of for the sleepy Red Sox offense to beat in a 6-1 loss at Fenway Park on an evening when a few their stars suffered damage scares.
Pivetta was trusted by Alex Cora coming into the season to carry down a spot on the prime of a rotation that gained’t have Chris Sale till at the very least June – a job he earned after a powerful first full season in Boston – however to this point, the outcomes haven’t been there. He was knocked round in final Friday’s dwelling opener, and he was crushed within the second inning of Wednesday’s loss in what proved to be the distinction.
In three begins to open the season, Pivetta owns a ten.03 ERA.
The righty’s fastball velocity has been down from final season – although it was up a bit Wednesday – and his curveball, certainly one of his go-to pitches, has been inconsistent. Cora stated Pivetta’s mechanics haven’t been proper, one thing he continues to work on with pitching coach Dave Bush in between begins. But the outcomes have been related Wednesday.
Pivetta labored via a scoreless first however bumped into bother instantly within the second. Matt Chapman singled and Raimel Tapia took a curveball deep to proper, and the floodgates opened. Pivetta in the end walked three and gave up two extra hits in a 43-pitch inning, because the Jays opened a 5-1 lead that the Sox couldn’t recuperate from.
Pivetta responded with back-to-back shutout innings within the third and fourth, nonetheless, to maintain the sport shut and maybe carry some momentum into his subsequent begin. But an evening after recording simply three hits however nonetheless profitable, the Red Sox produced 10 hits Wednesday – together with three doubles – however couldn’t rally. They went 1-for-14 with runners in scoring place.
Other takeaways from Wednesday’s loss:
– J.D. Martinez left the sport within the third inning with left adductor (hip) tightness after hitting a leadoff double. The designated hitter appeared to grimace as he rounded first and pull up as he approached second, and after the following batter Xander Bogaerts took one pitch, a coach got here out and Martinez exited quickly after.
It wasn’t the one scare the Red Sox confronted in that inning. Three batters later, Trevor Story was hit within the head with a 93 mph fastball from Blue Jays starter Jose Berrios. The Red Sox second baseman went down in ache and gathered himself for a couple of minutes – attended to by Cora and the coaching employees – earlier than he in the end stayed within the recreation and took his base.
– Matt Barnes didn’t have a clear seventh inning, however the reliever took some encouraging steps as he continues to work in the direction of changing into a trusted bullpen arm for Cora. He ought to have had a shutout inning, as he struck out Tapia on a curveball. But a dropped strike allowed him to achieve first and in the end permit the Jays to attain on a sac fly.
– Jackie Bradley Jr. has quietly change into one of many Red Sox’ finest hitters. With two singles on Wednesday, the outfielder is now 8-for-21 in his final seven video games, a stretch that features 4 doubles.
Source: www.bostonherald.com