BOSTON RED SOX NOTES:
STATE OF THE SOX: The Red Sox snapped a 4-game losing streak last night…They’re 6-10 in their last 16 games since 9/2. At 75-76 (.497), Boston owns MLB’s 18th best record.
COMEBACK KIDS: The Sox scored 3 runs in the 8th inning last night to earn their 39th come-from-behind victory, 2nd most in the AL behind (BAL-48) and T-5th in MLB.
The Sox have come from behind in 3 of their last 4 wins as well as in 5 of their last 9…Each of those 5 have been come-from-behind wins by deficits of at least 2 runs.
SERIES BUSINESS: With a win today or tomorrow, the Red Sox would snap a 4-series losing streak and improve to 24-22-3 in series play. They would also improve to 11-11-3 in series on the road, surpassing their road series win total from 2022 (10-14-2). They’ve already surpassed their overall series win total from 2022 (22-24-6).
SOX & RANGERS: Boston is 4-4 at Globe Life Field since the venue opened in 2020, after going 7-3 at Texas from 2017-19. The Sox took 2 out of 3 vs. TEX at Fenway Park from 7/4-6…They’re 9-2 overall vs. TEX since the start of 2022. With a win today or tomorrow, the Red Sox would secure the season series over the Rangers for the 5th time in the last 6 full seasons (beginning 2017).
ON THE ROAD AGAIN: Tomorrow concludes the Red Sox’ 6-game road trip at TOR (3 games) and TEX (3). 6 of the Red Sox’ remaining 11 games will be on the road (2 at TEX, 4 at BAL). Boston is 9-8 in its last 17 road games since 8/18, and 2-2-1 in its 5 road series during that span.
STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE: 8 of the Sox’ remaining 11 games will be against teams that currently have a record of .500 or better (TEX-2, TB-2, BAL-4). The Red Sox have played 27 of their last 30 games against teams that are currently above .500…They’re 10-17 in those 27 games, including 5-15 in their last 20. BOS is 48-50 against teams with a current record of .500 or better, and 27-26 against teams below .500. The Sox have played 98 games this year against teams currently above .500, 2nd-most in MLB behind SD (101).
ON THE MEND: Zack Kelly and Kaleb Ort are currently on rehab assignments with Triple-A Worcester. Kelly retired all 3 batters faced Sunday vs. Syracuse (1.0 IP, SO, 11 pitches)…He’s tossed 5.2 innings over 6 outings with Single-A Salem (2), High-A Greenville (1), Double-A Portland (1), and Worcester (2). Ort tossed a scoreless inning for the WooSox Saturday vs. Syracuse, his 1st rehab appearance (SO, 18 pitches).
THE INCREDIBLE HOUCK: Tanner Houck is the Red Sox’ nominee for the 2023 Roberto Clemente Award, recognizing the player who best represents the game of baseball through extraordinary character, community involvement, philanthropy, and positive contributions both on and off the field. He will be honored in pregame ceremonies on Fri., 9/22, celebrating the 21st annual Roberto Clemente Day.
START ME UP: Red Sox starting pitchers have allowed 3 runs or fewer in each of the last 9 games, posting a 2.91 ERA (15 ER/46.1 IP) with 12.04 SO/9.0 IP (62 SO) in that span. Red Sox starters have gone at least 6.0 innings in each of their last 4 starts, the 2nd time they have done so this season (also 4 starts from 6/9-12).
The Red Sox are 33-14 when their starter goes at least 6.0 innings, including 15-5 in their last 20 games since 6/30.
NO FLY ZONE: Boston ranks 2nd in the AL and T-4th in MLB in outfield assists this season (29)…Since the start of 2021, the Sox lead the Majors with 94. Alex Verdugo leads the team and ranks T-3rd in MLB with 12 OF assists…Since he joined BOS in 2020, he ranks T-2nd in MLB with 36, behind only Adolis García (37). Verdugo also leads AL right fielders this year with 10 DRS.
TONIGHT’S STARTER: 89 TANNER HOUCK – RHP
W-L ERA G GS IP ER HR BB SO WHIP AVG
2023 5-9 4.94 18 18 93.0 51 12 34 87 1.33 .252
CAREER 14-18 3.77 71 38 239.0 100 20 86 251 1.21 .229
His lone outing vs. TEX came in relief on 5/15/22 in Arlington (3.0 IP, 1 R, 1 H). Threw a career-high 105 pitches over 6.0 scoreless innings Thursday vs. NYY-G1. Has pitched 5.0+ innings in each of his last 3 starts (14 of 18 this season). Is 2-1 in his last 3 starts, after going 0-8 in his previous 11 (3-0 in his first 4).
Has allowed only 1 HR in his last 3 starts (16.1 IP). Has allowed only 1 HR to his last 384 right-handed hitters faced (Gleyber Torres on 6/10/23), spanning more than 2 calendar years (9/10/21-present). Has received 2 runs of support or fewer in each of his 9 losses this season. Ranks in MLB’s 89th percentile in ground ball rate (52.9%).
TEXAS RANGERS NOTES:
WINS AND LOSSES: Texas lost to the Red Sox yesterday, 4-2, opening with a 0-1 record on this 6-G, 7-day homestand vs. BOS (0-1 + 2 G) and SEA (3 G)…club has 82 wins, most wins and 1st winning season since 2016 (95-67), and a 14- win improvement over 2022 (68)…team has lost 4 straight after a 6-G win streak from 9/2-7, a span which was preceded by a 4-G losing streak (9/4-8)…club is 7-8 in last 15 G and 7-11 in last 18 G…club is 10-20 (.333) in last 30 G beg. 8/16, T3rd-lowest win pct. in MLB over that span (LAA-.310, 9-20; CWS-.323, 10-21; COL/KC/TEX-.333, 10-20)…the 10-20 span began with a season-long 8-G losing streak from 8/16- 5, 2nd-longest for TEX since beg. of ’22 (0-9, 8/27-9/5/22)… team has dropped 21 of 33 and is 14-22 since a season-best 8-G win streak (8/1-8), longest for club since going 10-0, 5/9- 19/17…have gone 24-29 in last 53 G since a 6-G win streak (7/14-19) out of the break…team is 30-29 (.508) in the 2nd “half”, 7th-best record in the A.L…club’s 42-48 (.467) mark since 6/7 ranks 10th in A.L. and 21st in MLB…team was 12- 19 over a 31-G span from 6/7-7/9 to end the 1st “half”. At 82-68 (.547), TEX still has the T5th-best record in A.L., T8th in MLB…82 wins also rank T5th in A.L./T8th in MLB. The 82-68 mark is T9th-best 150-G record in Washington/ Texas franchise history (beg. 1961), best since 2016 (88-62). The Rangers have recorded 3 win streaks of 6+ games this season for the 7th time in franchise history (last: 4-2011).
STANDINGS: Texas is tied for 2nd place in the A.L. West for with SEA (also 82-68), holding a 1.5-G deficit behind 1st place HOU for a 2nd straight day…club has gained 1.5 G in division race during current 6-4 stretch (beg. 9/9)…TEX was a season-high 3.0 GB for 5 straight days from 9/6-10…club was alone or tied atop the division for 148 of season’s 1st 149 days (3/30-8/26), with sole possession of 1st place for 111 consecutive days from 5/6-8/24…club held season-best 6.5-G lead in West after win on 6/23 at NYY. TEX is currently tied with SEA for the 3rd and final Wild Card spot in the A.L., 1.0 G behind 2nd place TOR and 6.0 G ahead of 5th place NYY in the A.L. Wild Card standings… TEX has made the postseason as a Wild Card once in franchise history (2012 at 93-69).
SERIES STUFF: Rangers’ 0-3 finish in Cleveland last weekend dropped club to 2-3-0 in 5 series this month, and need to win each of the final 2 G of this series vs. BOS (0-1 +2 G) to avoid falling to 2-4-0 in Sept. series…prior to current 3-6-0 series span, club had a 5-0-0 stretch from 8/1-16 that was 2ndbest streak in 2023 (6-0-0, 5/19-6/7)…team is 27-19-2 overall in series in 2023: 14-8-2 at home; 13-11-0 on the road…TEX went 2-1 in last home series 9/8-10 vs. OAK, ending span of season-high 3 straight series losses in Arlington…team is still 6-4-0 in home series since the AS break. TEX has taken all games of a series 9 times this season
(5 since the AS break), as club recorded its 2nd undefeated road series of 2023 last week at TOR (4-0 from 9/11-14), the other a 3-0 finish 4/17-19 at KC.
AT HOME: TEX is 45-31 (.592) at home in ’23, 3rd-best in A.L. (TB-.667, 50-25; BAL-.600, 45-26) and 6th-best in MLB… best 76-G home start since 2016 (club-record 50-26)…club has won 2 of 3, but is 3-11 over last 14 G in Arlington (including a 6-G losing streak from 8/16-9/2), this after going 15-2 in 1st 17 home games after AS break…3-11 span came immediately after GLF record 9-G win streak from 7/23-8/15.
VS. BOSTON: Texas is 1-3 in 4 G against the Red Sox in ’23 and club has lost 7 of 8 and 10 of last 12 meetings with Boston dating back to 8/23/21…Rangers are 11-27 (.289) vs. the Carmine Hose since the start of 2017, lowest win pct. against any A.L. opponent in that span (12-26, .316 vs. CLE)…TEX has dropped season series in 4 of 5 years beg. 2017, lone win in that span coming in 2021 (4-3)…TEX is 4-4 vs. BOS at Globe Life Field, but have a 7-11 mark at home since 2017, going 1-4-0 in 5 home series in that span…Rangers trail alltime, 236-257, but retain a 141-105 edge in Arlington.
SIMMY START: Marcus Semien connected for a first-pitch leadoff home run in the bottom of the 1st inning last night…his A.L.-leading 9 leadoff HR this season rank 3rd in MLB to only LAD’s Mookie Betts (12) and PHI’s Kyle Schwarber (10), and are already the most-ever by a Ranger in a single season (prev. 7, 4x, last by Shin-Soo Choo in 2019)…3 of Semien’s 9 leadoff HR this season have come on the 1st pitch, T2ndmost such HR in MLB behind only Schwarber (4). Semien leads the A.L. with 113 runs scored this season, the most by a Texas batter in a single campaign since Ian Kinsler in 2011 (121)…his 214 R in 2 seasons with the Rangers (2022-23) are 3rd-most in MLB over that span to only LAD’s Freddie Freeman (241) and Betts (239).
WHAT’S BETTER THAN 24?: With last night’s 1st-inn. homer, Semien now has 25 HR in 2023…this is his 5th career season with 25+ HR: 25-2023, 26-2022, 45-2021, 33-2019, 27-2016…according to Stathead, he is now one of just 12 middle infielders (min. 80% of G at 2B or SS) in the Modern Era (beg. 1900) with as many as 5 career seasons of 25+ HR…the only middle infielders with more than five 25+ homer campaigns in that span? Álex Rodríguez (7), Cal Ripken Jr. (7), Robinson Canó (6), Dan Uggla (6), Miguel Tejada (6), Jeff Kent (6), and Ryne Sandberg (6). According to STATS LLC, Semien’s 211 career home runs are the most among active MLB middle infielders, as he passed NYM’s Francisco Lindor (210) with last night’s HR.
EVAN HELP US: Evan Carter recorded his 1st career triple in the 6th inning last night, and is slashing .286/.417/.500/.917 (8-28) with HR, 3B, 2B, 3 RBI, and 7 BB over 11 G with Texas since his contract was selected from Round Rock (AAA) on 9/8…the 21-year-old has reached base via H/BB in each of his first 10 G with at least one PA, and is now one game shy of matching the longest career-opening on-base streak in club history (11, 2x, last by Josh Smith from 5/30-6/28/22).
SOMEBODY SAVE ME: The Rangers have converted 27 of 58 (46.6%) save opportunities this season, good for the lowest save pct. in MLB (2nd-lowest is CWS-49.1)…in fact, Texas’ 31 blown saves in 2023 are the 2nd-most in club history (33-2002), and the 46.6% save pct. would be the 2nd-lowest mark TEX has ever posted in a single season (45.5-1976).
WHAT THE WHIFF: Jordan Montgomery struck out 8 batters in an ultra-quality start last night (ND, 7.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R-ER, 0 BB, 8 SO), just the 5th outing of his career with 8+ K’s and zero walks (last 9 SO/0 BB on 8/15/23 vs. LAA)…he generated a season-high 21 swing-and-miss strikes in the start, the 2nd-highest single-game mark of his career (22, 9/16/21 at BAL w/ NYY)…it was also the T5th-highest whiff total by a Ranger in ’23, most since 23 by Dane Dunning on 8/13 at SF. Since being acquired by Texas in a 7/30 trade with STL, Montgomery has gone 3-2, 3.29 ERA (20 ER/54.2 IP) with 47 SO/9 BB over 9 G/GS for the Rangers…he ranks among A.L.qualifiers since the beg. of August in BB/9 (4th, 1.48), innings (7th), SO/BB ratio (7th, 5.22), and WHIP (12th, 1.10).
EXIT HERE: Texas batters combined to go 2-for-5 (HR, 1B) on batted balls with exit velocities of 100+ mph last night (Statcast)…per Baseball Savant, the Rangers have produced an A.L.-high 1,030 batted balls with 100+ mph exit velo. in 2023, 3rd-most in MLB to ATL (1,236) and STL (1,041).
SHORTS: Chris Stratton leads MLB with 80.2 relief innings this season…Adolis García is just 3 R shy of becoming the 12th player (20th instance) in Washington/Texas franchise history with 100+ R and 100+ RBI in a single season, last done by Josh Hamilton in 2012 (103 R/128 RBI)…Nathan Eovaldi’s 1st career appearance at Globe Life Field came in start for the Red Sox on 4/30/21 at TEX (W, 6.0 IP, 1 R-ER)… Marcus Semien (6.7 bWAR) and Corey Seager (6.6 bWAR) rank 2nd and 3rd, respectively, among A.L. leaders in baseball-reference WAR behind only LAA’s Shohei Ohtani (10.0).
TONIGHT’S STARTING PITCHER – #17 Nathan Eovaldi, RHP (11-4, 2.96)
TONIGHT: The 33-year-old right-hander and former Red Sox (2018-22) is scheduled to make his 23rd start of the season tonight in game 2 of 3 against Boston here in Arlington…has gone 0-1, 7.71 (6 ER/7.0 IP) with 6 BB/7 SO and 3 HR allowed over 3 brief starts since he was activated from the 15-day Injured List on 9/5…was on IL from 7/27- 9/4 with a right forearm strain…has continued to build up his workload after returning without a rehab assignment, throwing an increasing number of pitches in his 3 starts since activation: 9/5 vs. HOU (35), 9/9 vs. OAK (47), Thurs. at TOR (73)…will pitch tonight on regular 4 days’ rest after starting Texas’ 9-2, series sweep-clinching win on Thurs. at TOR (see ‘Last Start’)…his club-high 11 wins are still T11th-most in the A.L., this despite his last victory coming on 7/18 vs. TB (W, 6.0 SHOIP), which his final outing before IL placement…this is the 3rd double-digit win season of his career (14-2015 w/ NYY, 11-2021 w/ BOS), as he has the 2nd-highest win total by any TEX pitcher since the start of ’20 (trailing only 12 wins by Martín Pérez in ’22)…logged a scoreless 2nd inn. for the A.L. in ’23 MLB All-Star Game in Seattle (1.0 IP, 2 H, 1 SO), his 2nd career All-Star selection (also ’21)…is 10-2, 2.50 ERA (32 ER/115.0 IP) over his last 19 starts (beg. 4/18)…remains 1 of 3 A.L. pitchers with multiple CG in 2023, and his 2 CG’s this season are the most by a Ranger since Mike Minor in ’19 (also 2)…Eovaldi signed a 2-year free agent contract with the Rangers on 12/27/22…joins Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan as the only graduates of Alvin (TX) High School to reach the Majors…Texas has gone 13-9 in Eovaldi’s 22 starts this season, winning 2 straight and 3 of the last 4.
STILL UP THERE: Eovaldi’s current ranks among A.L. pitchers (min. 130.0 IP): GIDP/9 (1st, 1.17), H/9 (2nd, 7.03), ERA (3rd, 2.96), HR/9 (3rd, 0.76), opp. BA (4th, .217), GB pct. (4th, 51.4), opp. GIDP (T5th, 17), BR/9 (6th, 10.06), opp. OPS (7th, .646), WHIP (8th, 1.09), FIP (10th, 3.56), and wins (T11th, 11).
NASTY NATE: Has gone 11-4, 2.96 ERA in 22 starts this season…joined Lance Lynn as 2nd TEX pitcher since ’13 with 10+ wins prior to All-Star break (Lynn was 11-4 in ’19). Recorded 111 SO and just 34 BB in first 19 GS, the 4th pitcher in club history w/ 111+ SO’s and 34-or-less BB in his 1st 19 GS with the club (Jon Gray, ’22 – 116 SO, 3 BB; Lance Lynn, ’19 – 123 SO, 26 BB; Gaylord Perry, ’75 – 115 SO, 29 BB). Over 16 GS from 4/18-7/18: 10-1, 2.17 ERA (26 ER/108.0 IP), 92 SO/31 BB, .188
opp. BA (70-373)…became first TEX pitcher to amass 9+ wins and post an ERA of 2.29-or-lower over a 15-start span since Cole Hamels from 6/7-8/25/16 (9-3, 2.17 ERA). 123.2 IP in 1st 19 GS were the most IP by a Ranger in 1st 19 GS of a season since Yu Darvish in ’14 (126.1 IP)…5.0+ IP in 1st 19 GS, most consecutive outings of 5.0+ IP by a Ranger to open a season since Darvish in ’13 (club record-tying 32 GS).
LAST START: Took no decision on Thurs. at TOR (ND, 3.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R-ER, 3 BB, 3 SO, 1 HR, 73 pitches/40 strikes)…both runs allowed on 2-run HR surrendered to 3rd batter faced (Vladimir Guerrero JR.) in the bottom of the 1st inning…held Jays scoreless after that point and exited with one out in the 4th, holding a 4-2 lead.
AT HOME: Has seen slightly worse results in 10 starts at Globe Life Field (5-3, 3.07 ERA) compared to 12 starts on the road (6-1, 2.88 ERA) in ’23…opponents are batting .212/.281/.389/.670 (42-198) w/ 7 HR in Arlington vs. .221/.285/.343/.628 (60-271) w/ 4 HR on the road…tossed 1st 9-inn. CG SHO of career on 4/29 vs. NYY (9.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 8 SO), 1st CG SHO by a Ranger since Martín Pérez on 5/20/22 at HOU (9.0 SHO IP), and the 1st CG SHO ever thrown by a TEX pitcher at Globe Life Field…1st career app. at GLF came in start on 4/30/21 at TEX w/ BOS (W, 6.0 IP, 1 R-ER).
