Red Sox News & Links: Down Goes Duran

Well, we initially heard that Jarren Duran was day-to-day with the toe injury that he suffered in the last game of the Yankees series, but word came out in the middle of the night that he’ll be going on the 10-day IL. Duran’s been struggling lately but, nevertheless, this is a blow to a team that had really come to rely on his dynamism. Wilyer Abreu will get the call from Worcester to fill in. (Julian McWilliams, Boston Globe)

Duran isn’t the only familiar face who will be missing from the Red Sox dugout. Relief pitcher Chris Murphy, who has found a lot of success in a bulk role since joining the team in June, was optioned to make way for the return of tonight’s starter, Tanner Houck. (Christopher Smith, MassLive)

Coming back from injury and immediately pitching against the Houston Astros lineup won’t be easy for Tanner Houck, but the Red Sox aren’t going to have anything easy from here on out. Of the four teams competing for the Wild Card — the Sox, the Astros, the Seattle Mariners, and the Toronto Blue Jays — the Red Sox have the hardest remaining schedule, by far. (Sean McAdam, MassLive)

But it doesn’t matter how good or bad your opponent is if you can’t catch and throw the baseball. Last night, the Sox lost in large part thanks to sloppy defense, with Rafael Devers once again being a primary culprit. (Gayle Troiani, NESN)

Maybe Kevin Millar can will some good defense into existence with his words. After all, it seems to possess the ability to do that on the offensive side of things. (Connor Ryan, Boston Globe)