The Boston Red Sox look to take care of business Tuesday night and advance to the American League Conference Series with a Game 4 victory against the New York Yankees.
The Boston Red Sox took back control of the American League Division Series with a whopping 16-1 victory over the New York Yankees in Game 3. On Tuesday night, the #DoDamage crew hope to eliminate their heated rivals for the second consecutive times the two have met in the playoffs.
Ironically, they have an opportunity to do it once again at Yankee Stadium.
As sweet as it would be to win in New York, all the pressure is on the Yankees in this one. After an embarrassing and historic playoff lost, the Bronx Bombers behind veteran pitcher C.C. Sabathia will not go down without a fight.
Riding the arm of Rick Porcello, the Boston Red Sox have to match whatever the Yankees bring to the field. The offense has to stay aggressive and the pitching can’t give up early runs and put the team in a whole right away.
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Despite the lopsided loss, young Yankees star Aaron Judge knows its a clean slate once the first pitch is thrown Tuesday night.
"“That’s the beauty of baseball,” Judge said, via MLB.com. “We’ll wake up tomorrow and it’s a brand new day, a brand new game. That’s what we’re going to do. Just get ready for tomorrow.”"
How to watch ALDS Game 4: Boston Red Sox vs. New York Yankees
Location: Yankee Stadium
First pitch: Tuesday, October 9, 2018 8:07 p.m. ET
TV: TBS (Check local listings)
Streaming: FuboTV
Pitching matchup: Rick Porcello (17-7, 4.28) vs. C.C. Sabathia (9-7, 3.65 ERA)
Lineup:
- Mookie Betts, RF
- Andrew Benintendi, LF
- Steve Pearce, 1B
- J.D. Martinez, DH
- Xander Bogaerts, SS
- Ian Kinsler, 2B
- Eduardo Nunez, 3B
- Jackie Bradley Jr, CF
- Chrisitan Vazquez, C
If the Boston Red Sox are to win the series in Game 4, here are three keys to clinching the ALDS.
Keep the pressure on
New York Yankees starter C.C. Sabathia named Mookie Betts as the Boston Red Sox toughest out and he has to be just that on Tuesday night.
The leadoff hitter broke out a little bit Monday night after two quiet performances in both Game 1 and Game 2. Of course, when the AL MVP candidate gets on base and produces, this team scores a lot of runs. The 16-run outpouring in Game 3 proved just that.
In order to keep the pressure on the Yankees and get Sabathia laboring, Betts has to work the court deep, while at the same time be aggressive when he gets a pitch to hit early in the count. If he gets on base, his base stealing ability will have Sabathia on his heels.
With that said, Xander Bogaerts and Steve Pearce will play key roles. If Betts is on base and in scoring position, Sabathia may chose to work around J.D. Martinez. That puts emphasis on the No. 4 and No. 5 hitters in the lineup to produce.
While the Red Sox can’t expect the production they got from the bottom of the order Monday night, any baserunners from the bottom third will make Mookie Betts just that more of a factor in this game.
A strong outing from Rick Porcello
Like Nathan Eovaldi, Rick Porcello has a history of pitching his best games against the New York Yankees.
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This season alone, he went 2-0 with a 2.31 ERA. Included in that was a complete game against the dangerous Yankees lineup. Needless to say, the Red Sox will need him to duplicate his success against New York at Yankees Stadium. In his one start there this season, Porcello allowed five earned runs in 5.1 innings pitched.
He has to erase that start from his memory and attack the plate like he did in his two strong performances against the Yankees.
"“I just think attacking their hitters,” Porcello said. “that’s the biggest thing. These guys are very good hitters. They’re very well coached. They have a solid approach. If you fall behind guys, you give them the opportunity to see pitches in the strike zone. That’s the only way you can get back into the count because they’re disciplined, and they don’t chase a lot. I think attacking, being aggressive, and go from there.”"
This is where Porcello has to be careful. The New York Yankees lineup will be even more aggressive at the plate. Any mistake by Rick Porcello could put the Yankees up quickly in this game. Although pitchers like David Price, Eduardo Rodriguez, Joe Kelly and the rest of the bullpen is available, it will be bad news if they have to turn to them too early in the game.
The Boston Red Sox will need the bullpen Tuesday night. Even if Rick Porcello throws seven strong innings, whoever is called upon must come out and deliver.
Whether it is David Price, Joe Kelly, Ryan Brasier or Brandon Workman, they must come in and shut the Yankees down, especially if the Red Sox are up in the game.
With this being the potential clinching game, expect Alex Cora to go for the kill if his team is tied or ahead in this game. While going to Price in an important spot at Yankee Stadium isn’t ideal, he is their second-best starting pitching and using him out of the bullpen may be another gamble Cora wins.
In the late innings, the Red Sox manager could turn to Craig Kimbrel for five or six outs if the team has a lead. Without a reliable setup man, using the closer for more than an inning will be an option as well. This could be a game in which the bullpen gets some redemption.
They just can’t be a disaster in perform the way they did in Game 1. The Boston Red Sox won, but the bullpen almost gave it away. They can’t do that Tuesday night.