The Red Sox Pre-Cap Podcast: Recapping the Angels, previewing the White Sox

Welcome back to the latest episode of the The Pre-Cap Podcast, your place on the OTM Podcast Network to recap the latest series and look ahead to what’s next on the schedule. Yet again, the Red Sox played some bad baseball. This time, the opponent, the Los Angeles Angels. The Angeles entered Fenway playing great baseball, American League West leading great baseball.

In the series opener, the Red Sox looked to perhaps right the ship, and Wacha continued to be much more than advertised. He went 5 ²⁄₃ innings, allowed zero runs on two walks with two strikeouts and giving up three hits. He was simply dazzling, lowering his season ERA to 1.38. Rafael Devers and J.D. Martinez each mashed some solo blasts. While both Jackie Bradley Jr. and Franchy Cordero had two-hit days. The end result was a 4-0 win.

Game Story

Then, as the pattern has seemingly been, the Red Sox win the first game of a series, and then dominate for most of the second, only to lose, and then get their doors blown off in Game 3. It’s been an odd pattern. The Red Sox were a strike away from winning that second game, but Jake Diekman blew the save. Garrett Whitlock looked great one again in a starting role, tossing five innings while giving up two earned runs, striking out nine without walking anyone. The bullpen and the offense were the losers of the night. The Red Sox left 13 men on base, Matt Barnes came into the 10th and gets absolutely shelled. Boston ultimately 10-5.

Game Story

And then there was Thursday. Rich Hill gave his second impressive start in a row, pitching five innings, giving up one hit, zero runs, and striking out six. The issue in this game was Tanner Houck, who came on to piggyback and was greeted with the Angels bats, 7 earned runs. The Red Sox offense also, once again, went ice cold against a dominant Shohei Ohtani. Angels win 8-0.

Game Story

Up next for the Red Sox is welcoming in the White Sox for a little laundry series. The White Sox have been mightily struggling as well, and dealing with a great deal of injuries. Hopefully the Red Sox can pounce and win a series in 2022.