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THEY HAD THE
CHANCE AND BLEW IT
Rafael Devers walks-off the Mariners
July 31, 2024
...
Rafael Devers delivered
the winning blow against Mariners lefty Jhonathan Diaz, a leadoff double off the
Green Monster in left-center to deliver automatic runner Tyler O’Neill from
second to give the Red Sox a 3-2
win in 10 innings.
Devers delivered Boston
its first winning series in four tries since the All-Star break. It was the
third walk-off hit of the star slugger’s career, and first since June 14,
2021.
With first base open, it
was natural to wonder if Devers would get walked intentionally. But the Mariners were
running out of relievers, and Diaz was the guy that manager Scott Servais
went to. With lefty destroyer Rob Refsnyder on deck, Devers got a chance to
hit. And on a 2-0 pitch, he
got enough of it to drive it off the wall and end the game.
One of those people who had to do more was Zack
Kelly,
who had given up six hits, five earned runs and three homers in his five outings
since the All-Star break. Kelly rebounded, working out of a bases-loaded,
two-out jam in the top of the 10th.
Danny Jansen caught
a 10-inning game with a pitching staff he had never worked with before. And it
was also Jansen who found a hole on the right side with a clutch, RBI single to
tie the game with one out in the sixth.
And there was reliever Lucas Sims,
in his first day on the active roster a day after being acquired,
coming on with runners at the corners and one out in the top of the seventh with
the game tied.
When the Red Sox look back at this triumph later in the season, it might
wind up being an example of how all wins aren’t created equal during a baseball
season. With this one, the Sox (57-50) snapped out of a 3-8 rut and won the
season series against a Seattle team it is jockeying for position in the Wild
Card standings. |
