Sox bats stay silent in defeat
RED SOX NOTEBOOK
MINNEAPOLIS — Where oh where has the Red Sox offense gone?
It was another eerily silent night from the bats in Minnesota, where the Sox collected just four hits and went 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position in a 4-1 loss to the Twins.
Lance Lynn, one of the five most inefficient starting pitchers in the majors, was painfully erratic last night, walking five in five innings, but the Sox scored just a single unearned run off him and were shut down by the Twins bullpen.
It was just the fourth time this season the Red Sox were held to four hits or fewer, and three of those occasions have occurred in the last two weeks, when the offense has nearly disappeared if not for a ninerun explosion against the Mariners on Sunday.
Since June 7 they’re averaging 3.15 runs per game, 27th in the major leagues, and they’re 17-for-104 (.163) with runners in scoring position in that span.
David Price was solid again, going six innings while allowing three runs, including two homers. It was his eighth straight start in which he’s allowed three runs or fewer.
Nunez takes break
The production hasn’t been there for Eduardo Nunez ever since he injured his knee late last year, but the Sox still believe in him.
Brock Holt started last night and has been in somewhat of a timeshare with Nunez at second base.
“I think it’s more about the offensive production right now,” Sox manager Alex Cora said. “We need (Nunez) to get going. I saw what he did last year. We know there’s more there. With Brock, he puts a good at-bat, and he’s a good defensive player.
“When (Dustin Pedroia) went down, and the last few, we’ll make sure we have the right matchup. I know sometimes it doesn’t look that way. It’s more about, ‘Hey, we need you. We need you offensively.’ Brock is playing today. He’s had some good games out there, good at-bats.”
At 31, Nunez is having the worst offensive season of his career, hitting .247 with a .625 OPS. He hit .321 with an .892 OPS for the Sox last year.
At second, he’s shown limited range, making two errors in 52 games.
“Yeah, he has his struggles at second, but we’ve been able to play good baseball too,” Cora said. “And we do feel that he’s gotten better. Is he a Gold Glover? No he’s not, but we know his limitations. We’re good with him, we’re good with Brock Tzu-Wei Lin when he was here, we were able to use him. We feel we’re going to be fine.”
Nunez was spotted taking early work at second base yesterday. He dropped a throw from Sandy Leon that would have nailed a runner in Tuesday night’s 6-2 loss.
“He asked me a few weeks ago how I would cover second and put the tag on,” Cora said. “He asked Pedey. It just happened that yesterday he was in a good position. The throw was to his left. He got the ball, but the slide knocked it out.
“The early work was scheduled. It was not because he dropped that one yesterday. He made a good one yesterday. He’s accountable. He’s like, ‘Man, if I retain that ball, he doesn’t have to throw 10 more pitches,’ which is what you want from your players.
“Pedey had some ideas, Brock was there working too. (Nunez) knows that he has to be better.”
Pomeranz update
Cora has yet to announce a decision about left-hander Drew Pomeranz’ usage when he returns.
Pomeranz played catch as he continues to rehab from a sore neck and biceps tendinitis. He’s expected to ramp it up at home tomorrow.
When Pomeranz shows he’s healthy, Cora will decide what to do with the rotation.
“I don’t want to get ahead of myself,” Cora said. “I know Steven Wright is throwing the ball well. Drew was struggling early, and then he found it for a little bit. Hopefully now that he’s healthy when he comes back, we’ll make a decision.
“As of now, the most important thing is for him to be healthy.”
Will the Sox need to have Pomeranz stretched out before he returns?
“We can’t get ahead of ourselves,” Cora said. “He’s done it in the bullpen, he’s done it as a starter. He was great last year. I honestly like what we had in the bullpen with Steven. I think he was becoming a weapon.
“But at the same time, he’s doing an outstanding job as a starter. We cannot hide that. We’ll see. The first thing is for Drew to be healthy.”
Pedroia feels better
The Red Sox are still counting on Pedroia to return at some point this year. He told the staff he was feeling a little better yesterday.
“He’s moving around. He was here today, he went out (on the field), which is, I guess, a step,” Cora said. “With him . . . you see him in the clubhouse, and the way he’s acting, (you can tell) if it’s a good day or if it’s a bad day. Obviously he’s doing his thing in the training room, but I talked to him today a little bit . ... He was feeling better, so we’ll see.”
Faster and faster
Entering last night’s action, the Red Sox led the majors in stolen base success rate (83.3 percent) and were third in total steals (55-for-66).
The Sox haven’t finished in the top five in steals since they had speedy outfielders Jacoby Ellsbury and Shane Victorino in 2013 . . . .
Bring a pair of new socks to Fenway Park this weekend against Seattle. The Red Sox Foundation will be collecting new, white athletic socks to benefit the Boston Health Care for the Homeless program.