Red Sox Offense Chases Kershaw In Game 1
The most frustrating aspect of facing the Boston Red Sox is not knowing which hitter will beat you if you make a mistake.
The Los Angeles Dodgers got an up-close look at an offense that continues to exemplify “by committee” at an extraordinary level.
The Boston Red Sox took Game 1 of the 2018 World Series with a 8-4 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers at Fenway Park on Tuesday night.
A huge pinch-hit homer in the seventh inning by Eduardo Nunez and strong nights from the Andrew Benintendi and J.D. Martinez led Boston on a cold night in Fenway.
Andrew Benintendi led the Red Sox with four hits in Game 1, including three off Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw.
He’s just the second left-handed batter to collect three hits off of the southpaw in his MLB career.
Matt Barnes (1-0) would get the win out of the bullpen for the Boston Red Sox. He pitched one inning, allowing one run on a hit while striking out one.
Boston scored five runs with two outs on Tuesday night, following a familiar theme for the team from the ALCS.
The Red Sox would collect a total of 16 baserunners in their home ballpark as they extended their postseason win streak to five games.
Manny Machado led the Dodgers with three RBIs on a 1-for-3 night in his first World Series game while Justin Turner collected a team-high three hits.
After Chris Sale gave the Boston Red Sox a clean first inning with two strikeouts, the Red Sox offense quickly jumped on Clayton Kershaw.
Boston scored twice in the first inning against Kershaw after RBI singles by Andrew Benintendi and J.D. Martinez got things going for the home team.
The Dodgers would answer by getting one back as Matt Kemp smoked a fly ball over the green monster in left field for his first homer of the postseason to make it a 2-1 game.
Los Angeles would tie the game in the third inning vs Chris Sale with a RBI single by Manny Machado as the Dodgers effectively raised Sale’s pitch count increasingly high at 73.
Just as he had done in the first inning, J.D. Martinez put his bat to good use with a two-out RBI double off Clayton Kershaw to put Boston back in front 3-2 in the third inning.
After a lead-off walk to Brian Dozier to open the fifth inning, Chris Sale would be relieved from the game by reliever Matt Barnes.
The Dodgers would capitalize on a wild pitch by Matt Barnes that advanced two runners to second and third as Manny Machado’s RBI groundout would tie the game again.
Sale finished his first career World Series start allowing three runs on five hits and two walks while striking out seven over four innings.
Not long after Chris Sale’s departure would be another departure as Clayton Kershaw, like Sale, would be relieved with no outs in the fifth inning following a walk to Mookie Betts and a single by Andrew Benintendi.
Ryan Madson would come on in the fifth inning and would immediately walk Steve Pearce to load the bases.
Boston would make Madson and the Dodgers pay as Xander Bogaerts beat out a throw at first to avoid a double play to give Boston the lead. Rafael Devers would add to it with a stinging RBI single to right field to give Boston a 5-3 edge.
Eduardo Nunez, pinch-hitting for Rafael Devers in the seventh inning, would continue the Red Sox hex over teams with two outs this postseason.
The Red Sox third baseman would blast a 1-0 curveball off left-hander Alex Wood as the Red Sox turned a one-run game into a four-run game as his three-run homer gave Boston a 8-4 lead on a frigid night in Boston that proved to be the difference.
Neither manager got what they wanted from their aces in Game 1, putting the fate of a 1-0 series lead in the hands of their bullpens.
The Red Sox won that battle as they tagged the Dodgers bullpen which had been sharp this postseason for three runs on four hits with two walks.
Alex Cora’s team, for as dominant as they’ve been this postseason now with a 8-2 record after the Game 1, they have not taken a 2-0 lead to begin a series in the playoffs.
With a suddenly hot David Price slated to start for the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday night, that’s exactly what Cora and the Red Sox are looking for tomorrow.
Five runs in four innings of work is not exactly what Dave Roberts had in mind for Clayton Kershaw in Game 1, but that’s what he received from his best arm.
Kershaw (0-1) had a rough outing, maybe most discouraging was after allowing Boston to take an early lead he was unable to keep the game tied on two occasions following two Los Angeles Dodgers rallies in the second, third and fifth innings.
The Los Angeles Dodgers offense threatened vs Chris Sale and the Red Sox bullpen but never got the hit to change the game.
The Dodgers finished the night 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position with seven men left on base.
Los Angeles has not hit with runners in scoring position throughout this postseason and came into the World Series as a team heavily reliant on the home run ball with a .218 team batting average.
They’ll now need to figure out a way to get a victory in Game 2 to avoid a 0-2 hole going back to Los Angeles for Game 3.
Hyun-Jin Ryu will take the mound for the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 2 on Wednesday night.
What are your thoughts on Boston’s Game 1 win? Leave your comments below!