Rivals off to different starts
For the first time this year, the Red Sox and New York Yankees get to square off under their new managers, Alex Cora and Aaron Boone.
There will be energy at Fenway Park. Expect countless pitching changes and the games to take forever.
The two teams rank among the five slowest teams in baseball this year. Each has averaged 3 hours, 24 minutes per game. And this is after the Red Sox set the major league record last year when they averaged 3:21.
Each of the teams' shortstops is off to a great start but only one will be in action this week. Xander Bogaerts is hitting .368 with an 1.111
OPS but was placed on the disabled list yesterday with an injured foot. Didi Gregorius is hitting .375 with a 1.430 OPS for the Yanks.
Neither team has had a big impact from its superstar offseason acquisition. J.D. Martinez is hitting .226 with a .705 OPS and one home run while Giancarlo Stanton already has been booed in New York while hitting .167 with a .669 OPS and three homers.
But mostly the Red Sox (8-1) and the Yankees (5-5) have looked like two very different teams out of the gates.
Here are the five most noticeable differences through the first 10 days:
Yankees’ all-or-nothing at the plate vs. Red Sox’ nickel-and-dime approach:
The Yankees have struck out 89 times; the Red Sox just 56.
The Sox have one player who has struck out more than eight times: Martinez, with 11 strikeouts in 35 plate appearances.
The Yankees have four players who have struck out more than 10 times: Stanton (20 Ks in 48 PAs), Aaron Judge (13 Ks, 48 PAs), Brett Gardner (12 Ks, 51 PAs) and Tyler Austin (11 Ks, 31 PAs).
Under Cora and new hitting coach Tim Hyers, the Red Sox offense has made drastic changes in their plate approach through the first nine games. They've swung and missed at just 8.1 percent of the total pitches they've seen this year, lowest in the majors. And this despite their newfound aggression — they're swinging way more often than last year, from 43.9 percent (29th in MLB) to 47.2 percent (fifth).
Of course the Yankees have hit 13 homers, tied for fifth-most, while the Red Sox have seven homers, tied for 21st.
Cora’s moves are working, Boone’s aren’t:
Boone already has been on the back pages for questionable decisions during losses. Dellin Betances was left in for two innings and 40 pitches in the third game of the season and took the loss after allowing two runs in his second frame. In the next contest, Boone chose to intentionally walk the right-handedhitting Josh Donaldson to have right-hander David Robertson face switch-hitter Justin Smoak with the bases loaded. Smoak hit a grand slam.
After the Yankees lost on Friday night, Boone told reporters in New York that he slept at the ballpark to try to figure out a way to win on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Cora was questioned after the Opening Day loss for not using Craig Kimbrel in the eighth inning but has otherwise had a seamless first 10 days as manager. He's navigated his way through the late innings with a bullpen that lacks any sure-thing set-up guys. From Double-A to the majors, Bobby Poyner has become a key part of Cora's plans while Carson Smith, Matt
Barnes and Joe Kelly have gotten some important outs.
Red Sox come from behind, Yankees don’t:
The Red Sox are 4-0 this season when the opponent scores first. Because their starters have bounced back after giving up runs early, it's made it easier on the offense to slowly work its way back into games.
The Yankees are just 1-3 in games in which they didn't score first.
The Red Sox are 5-0 in one-run games; the Yankees are 0-1.
Red Sox are getting strong efforts from their starting pitcher almost every game:
Red Sox starters have a 1.70 ERA; the Yankees starters are at 3.19.
Chris Sale and David Price have been lights-out, as have Luis Severino and Masahiro Tanaka. Sale and Severino square off tonight; Price and Tanaka tomorrow. But the back end of the Sox rotation has outperformed the Yanks' by a large margin. And Sox starters are going deeper in games, averaging 5.9 innings per start compared to the Yanks' 5.4.
Overall, the Red Sox pitching staff has a 2.69 ERA, while the Yankees check in at 3.94. Sox hurlers have allowed five homers vs. the Yankees' 12. The Yankees pitching staff does have more strikeouts, however. They're leading the majors with 11.2 strikeouts per nine innings. The Red sox are seventh at 9.3.
Yankees have been hit harder by the injury bug
The Bogaerts news not withstanding, the Red Sox have been relatively fortunate with their health early this season.
Starters Eduardo Rodriguez, Drew Pomeranz and Steven Wright began the year on the disabled list, but Rodriguez already has returned and the other two are close. Eduardo Nunez was signed to provide a quality fill-in for Dustin Pedroia. Tyler Thornburg was never expected to be a reliever the Sox could count on. Overall, they haven't had any sizable holes because of injuries.
The Yankees, though, have already lost Gary Sanchez (questionable for tonight's game), Greg Bird (DL), Brandon Drury (DL), Jacoby Ellsbury (DL), Aaron Hicks (DL but could be activated today), Clint Frazier (DL), Tyler Wade (illness) and CC Sabathia (DL), among others.