Red Sox's Ceddanne Rafaela: Swats fourth homer Tuesday
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Rafaela went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Tuesday's 5-4 extra-innings win over the Rays.
It was a roller coaster night for the 23-year-old. Rafaela gave Boston a 3-1 lead in the fifth inning by taking Aaron Civale deep for his fourth long ball of the year, but his throwing error in the top of the 11th nearly gave Tampa Bay the win. The Red Sox were able to tie the game back up in the bottom of the frame though, in part thanks to Rafaela's sacrifice bunt, before winning it in the 12th. Rafaela has collected a hit in 10 of 12 contests in May, batting .275 (11-for-40) on the month with two doubles and two homers, but his 1:11 BB:K is a warning sign that his numbers could swoon quickly as they did in April (.515 OPS in 26 games.)
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Red Sox's Nick Pivetta: Eight Ks in no-decision
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Pivetta came away with a no-decision in Tuesday's 5-4 extra-innings win over the Rays, allowing two runs on four hits over 5.2 innings. He struck out eight without walking a batter.
The right-hander generated an impressive 32 called or swinging strikes among his 81 pitches, but both runs off Pivetta came on solo shots by Josh Lowe and Randy Arozarena, with the latter chasing him from the game one out short of his second quality start of the season. Pivetta has served up five homers in two starts since coming off the IL, a worrisome trend, but he'll carry a 3.48 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 22:2 K:BB through 20.2 innings into his next outing, which lines up to come on the road this weekend in St. Louis.
Duran has attempted five steals over the last 35 games, after he opened the season with six steals in the first six games.
There are a few factors that explain the drop in attempts, per Alex Speier of The Boston Globe. Opposing teams became aware of Duran's potential impact, and the Red Sox have been more judicious after running into several outs early in the season. Additionally, manager Alex Cora asked Duran to run less given that he plays every day.
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Red Sox's Liam Hendriks: Extends throwing program
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Hendriks (elbow) extended his throwing program out to 120 feet Monday, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.
Hendriks also threw pitches off flat ground. He believes he's on track for a return roughly at the trade deadline, which would be about the one-year anniversary of the reliever's Tommy John surgery.
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Red Sox's Garrett Cooper: Idle again
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Cooper is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Rays, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.
Cooper will be on the bench for a second consecutive contest, with the Red Sox shuffling the defensive lineup Tuesday. Reese McGuire will be behind the plate, Connor Wong will man the DH spot and Dominic Smith will handle first base. Cooper is slashing .234/.310/.359 across 71 plate appearances this season.
O'Neill went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run and a walk during Monday's loss to the Rays.
O'Neill's first-inning three-run blast provided all the scoring for the Red Sox on Monday. It was the first homer since April 27 for the slumping O'Neill, who hit .333 with nine homers over his first 19 games, but had gone just 7-for-44 (.159) with six walks and 22 strikeouts over the most recent 12 game homer-less stretch prior to Monday.
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Red Sox's Kutter Crawford: Allows season-high four runs
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Crawford (2-2) suffered the loss Monday, allowing four runs on seven hits and one walk over six innings against the Rays. He struck out six.
Crawford did not allow a long ball after having allowed one each over his past two starts (none over his first six outings) but did serve up three extra-base hits on his way to allowing four earned runs for the first time this season. A two-out triple in the first inning by Amed Rosario was the biggest blow while a fourth inning double by Jose Caballero set up Tampa's fourth run and ultimately served as the deciding run that sent Crawford to his second defeat. Despite the relatively subpar effort, Crawford maintains a high-quality 2.24 ERA that he'll take into his next start, tentatively slated to take place over the weekend when the Red Sox head to St. Louis for an inter-league matchup against the Cardinals.
Red Sox's Garrett Whitlock: Could need just one rehab start
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Red Sox manager Alex Cora said that Whitlock (oblique) could return from the 15-day injured list if all goes well in his rehab start Wednesday with Triple-A Worcester, Gabrielle Starr of the Boston Herald reports.
Whitlock has missed nearly a month with a left oblique strain, but the Red Sox apparently feel that he should be sufficiently built up after just the one rehab start. Cooper Criswell has performed well since joining Boston's rotation, but he could be headed to the bullpen or back to Worcester once Whitlock is activated.
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Red Sox's Garrett Cooper: Exits starting nine
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Cooper is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Rays, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.
Cooper enjoyed a productive weekend in the Red Sox's series victory over the Nationals, starting in two of the three contests while producing three hits (two doubles, one single), one run and one RBI over six at-bats. He'll cede first base to Dominic Smith on Monday, but Cooper still looks to be locked into a near-everyday role for the Red Sox until Triston Casas (rib) returns from the injured list.
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Red Sox's Tyler Heineman: Initiates rehab assignment
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Heineman (hamstring) began a rehab assignment Saturday with Double-A Portland and went 1-for-3 with a run and an RBI while serving as a designated hitter.
On the 10-day injured list since April 23 with a right hamstring strain, Heineman will likely need to make multiple starts at catcher during his rehab assignment before he's activated. Heineman still has one minor-league option remaining, so he could eventually settle at Triple-A Worcester once activated if both of the Red Sox's top two backstops (Connor Wong and Reese McGuire) are both healthy.
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Red Sox's Bryan Mata: Works two innings in rehab outing
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Mata (hamstring) began a rehab assignment in the rookie-level Florida Complex League on Monday and struck out two over two innings while allowing one run on three hits and no walks.
The 25-year-old Mata has yet to make his big-league debut, but because he has no minor-league options remaining, he'll eventually join the Red Sox once he completes what will likely be a lengthy rehab assignment across multiple affiliates. Mata, who is working his way back from a right hamstring strain, has worked almost exclusively as a starter during his time in the minors, but he'll presumably be in store for a low-leverage, multi-inning role out of the Red Sox bullpen upon his return from the 15-day injured list.
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Red Sox's Blaze Jordan: Diagnosed with fractured finger
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Double-A Portland placed Jordan on its 7-day injured list Sunday with a fractured left ring finger, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe reports.
Jordan suffered the injury during a play at home plate in Saturday's 10-7 loss to Binghamton and is expected to require multiple weeks to recover from the injury. The 21-year-old is hitting .283 with two home runs and a 9.9 percent strikeout rate in 25 games with Portland this season.
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Red Sox's Garrett Cooper: Two hits in win
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Cooper started at first base and went 2-for-3 with a double in Sunday's 3-2 win over the Nationals.
Cooper recorded his first multi-hit game since being acquired by the Red Sox on April 28. He was eventually pinch hit for by the left-handed hitting Dominic Smith in the eighth inning against a righty reliever with a runner in scoring position. With Triston Casas (oblique) on the 60-day injured list, first base has become a rotation involving Cooper, Smith and Romy Gonzalez.
Rafaela went 1-for-3 with a two-RBI double during Sunday's 3-2 win over Washington.
Rafaela scored Garrett Cooper and Vaughn Grissom in the second inning, notching a double off MacKenzie Gore. Rafaela has generated at least one hit in 11 of his last 13 games, batting .326 with 12 RBI and six runs scored during that stretch.
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Red Sox's Kenley Jansen: Converts for save No. 7
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Jansen picked up the save Sunday against Washington, allowing one hit and no walks over a scoreless ninth inning. He didn't log a strikeout.
Jansen got an assist from catcher Connor Wong, who ended the game by throwing out Jacob Young during an attempted steal of second base. The 36-year-old has converted on seven of his eight save chances, owning a 2.63 ERA with 19 strikeouts over 13.2 innings.
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Red Sox's Brayan Bello: Victorious in return
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Bello (4-1) picked up the win Sunday, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks over five innings against the Nationals. He struck out one.
Bello picked up right where he left off before going on the IL with a lat injury, tallying a third straight win and yielding fewer than three earned runs for a fourth consecutive outing. The two runs charged against Bello came in the fourth when Eddie Rosario swatted a two-run home run. Despite the long ball, Bello was extremely efficient, getting through five innings on 68 pitches. Bello's restrictions should lighten throughout his next few starts, beginning with a road bout with the Cardinals in St. Louis.
