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Another Game They Should Have Had: Tampa Scores Seven Unanswered for Win



August 10

E-Rod pitches for the Sox against Patiño. Devers leads off the bottom of the second with a booming homer to right to make it 1-0 Sox. This is his twenty-eighth of the year as Patiño’s hopes for a no-hitter vaporize within nine pitches. With two out, Renfroe doubles down the left-field line, but a pop out ends the inning. Lowe hits the 25-home run plateau when he ties it up at 1-1 with a shot down the right-field line. The Sox put two on with two out in the bottom of the fourth, setting up Renfroe’s round-tripper to left-center that makes it 4-1 good guys. It’s his nineteenth of the year.

Yet again, the aforementioned good guys lead us into a false sense of security. Zunino leads off the top of the sixth with a double to left-center before moving up to third on a groundout. A walk puts runners at the corners for Franco, who singles to center to score Zunino and make it 4-2. E-Rod is pulled after that, though looking back, maybe he should have stayed in at least a little longer, having only thrown 82 pitches. Sawamura gets out of his jam. A runner is at first with one out in the top of the seventh for Lowe, who doubles off the Monster to put two in scoring position. Pinch-hitter Choi doubles off the Monster to bring them straight home and tie it at 4-4. He leaves right after that clutch double with an injury. Joey Wendle is the pinch runner. A walk puts two on, but a groundout ends the inning. Arozarena leads off the ninth with a ground-rule double to right. A walk with one out puts two on. A walk loads the bases with two out for Mejía, who clears the bases and makes it 7-4 in the blink of an eye with a double to the right-field corner. Barnes’ exit also marks the mass exodus that comes with knowing this one’s over. Lowe singles to center one pitch after to score Mejía and plunge the dagger into Boston’s night right there at 8-4. Remember when it was 4-1? Yeah. 8-4 is the final. Another day, another loss. Now they’re five back after losing another whole game in the standings. You know, I didn’t expect this to be a cakewalk, but this club, if you can still call it that, has been botching winnable games left and right over the last month. Something’s got to change, or else this team is going to be on its collective couch watching the playoffs and wondering what might have been. When you point fingers, look to the four pointing back at you.