Boston Red Sox roll the dice with Garrett Whitlock and it pays off
There is nothing like a little Friday night magic at Fenway Park. In walk-off fashion, the Boston Red Sox took down the struggling New York Yankees 3-2 in 10 innings.
No matter where these two teams are in the standings, this classic and historic rivalry always has some juice to it. On Friday night, Red Sox newcomer Tommy Pham was the ultimate hero delivering the winning hit, but it was Garrett Whitlock who made the comeback win possible.
Before J.D. Martinez delivered the game tying hit in the bottom of the ninth, Red Sox manager Alex Cora decided to do some gambling by putting Whitlock in the game in the top of the ninth. It was a roll of the dice he had to make given the team was short in the bullpen and as it always seems with Whitlock, it was a gamble that paid off.
"“We’re very short [in the bullpen],” Cora said following the game, via MLB.com. “And going to him there, it was just out of necessity more than anything else. Nothing against their guy [Clay Holmes], but we know what’s been going on the last month. We had the two lefties coming up with Raffy [Devers] and [Alex] Verdugo hitting behind Xander [Bogaerts].“We rolled the dice there. It was out of necessity, but at the same time, trying to maximize our lineup, understanding he was coming in and he’s struggled since the last time he was here.”"
Boston Red Sox took a good gamble on Garrett Whitlock
Whitlock pitched two strong innings to help his team get a win on Friday night, but it didn’t come easy. Yes, Whitlock retired 6 of the 7 batters he faced, but it’s the batters he had to get out while on the mound that made the young pitcher the hero of the night.
After retiring Anthony Rizzo, the Red Sox hurler mowed down both Josh Donaldson and Gleyber Torres. That of course set up the magic in the bottom of the 10th as Pham ended the Yankees and helped rally the Boston Red Sox to their second consecutive win.
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While the heroics went to Pham, even he quickly realized how important Whitlock was in stepping up to the moment. The veteran outfielder gave credit where credit is due.
"“To come in there in that situation, in that part of the order as well, that’s huge,” Pham said. “When he came in there and shut it down like that, I knew we were gonna win. It was destined. To get through their two, three, four in that lineup, that says something about Whit.”"
It certainly does, and it also kept the hope alive that this Red Sox team can put something together to get back in the midst of a playoff run. With a few of their key players set to return from injury, now is the time Garrett Whitlock and those boys must make something happen.
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Perhaps Friday night against a Yankees squad trying to find themselves again, the Red Sox can turn it up and get a consistent string of wins going.