Swihart’s ground rule double worth a Red Sox win in 13th inning
BOSTON Blake Swihart has been waiting for his chance to make an impact as the third catcher on a Red Sox team that is putting together a historic season.
On Monday night, he waited all the way until the 13th inning.
After entering the game in the 10th as a pinch-hitter, Swihart bounced a double into the Red Sox bullpen to score Eduardo Nunez in the 13th and give Boston a 2-1 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies. After the game, the Red Sox announced they had acquired second baseman Ian Kinsler from the Los Angeles Angels to replace the injured Dustin Pedroia.
“Ian’s a really good defensive player,” said president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, who also brought Kinsler to the Detroit Tigers when he was general manager there. “Basically, it’s what we hoped, early in the year, that Dustin would be.”
With the win, the Red Sox improved to a major league-best 75-33 for the season and a season-high six games ahead of the New York Yankees in the AL East. It was Swihart’s first career walk-off RBI. “He’s stuck with it all year long,” said Boston starter David Price, who allowed one run in eight innings but did not get a decision. “He hasn’t gotten a lot of opportunities early on. His number’s been called here recently, and he’s stepped up to it. It’s good when that happens, and I’m happy for him.”
Hector Velazquez (7-0) pitched a scoreless inning for the win and Austin Davis (1-1) took the loss after pitching a perfect inning before allowing Nunez’s leadoff single in the 13th. Luis Garcia, the 12th pitcher of the night, struck out Brock Holt but allowed Nunez to steal second.
Swihart lined the first pitch he saw toward the gap and into the bullpen on one hop.