Stanton strikes again
Two-run shot in sixth off Pivetta the difference
Alex Cora would’ve had to remove one of his most trusted pitchers in favor of someone -- anyone -- from an unproven, uncertain bullpen.
And that would’ve been too much to ask.
It didn’t matter that Nick Pivetta had been demolished the third time through the order during the 2021 season, or that the Yankees hit the ball hard against him in the fifth inning, or that his velocity was tailing off by the time Giancarlo Stanton reached the plate in the sixth on Saturday.
Cora’s decision came down to this: Pivetta, or anyone in the Sox’ bullpen not named Garrett Whitlock.
With Whitlock unavailable after pitching Friday, Matt Barnes battling a tight back and Josh Taylor on the injured list, Cora chose Pivetta.
Pivetta served up a hanging slider that didn’t slide and Stanton clobbered it for a two-run homer that was the difference in the Red Sox’ 4-2 loss to the Yankees in the Bronx.
“I think where we were today, you have to think about not only today but we have a game tomorrow and three more games in Detroit and we’re a man down,” Cora told reporters in the Bronx. “Whitlock is down, too. You have to think about the present and the future.
“Pivetta’s stuff was good. We built him up to do this. You look up and the pitch count and everything, you felt comfortable there.”
Pivetta was the Sox’ most dominant pitcher in spring training, when he struck out 22 batters in 15-2/3 innings with a 3.45 ERA. And while it’s hard to gauge spring training results, Pivetta’s arm strength and action on his pitches was convincing enough to make him the No. 2 starter behind Nathan Eovaldi. “We trust the guy,” Cora said.
If the Sox had another high-leverage reliever they trusted, it might’ve been a different decision on Saturday.
But they don’t, and that’s why Cora ignored last year’s numbers: Pivetta held batters to a .700 OPS the first time through the order, a .640 OPS the second time through and a whopping 1.011 OPS the third time through.
“I’m not perfect all the time, just made a mistake, the ball came out of my hand weird and it was a hanger,” Pivetta said.
Pivetta had allowed just two runs the first two times through the order on Saturday, but he walked Aaron Judge to start the sixth and then threw an 83-mph slider that barely moved on the inner half and Stanton walloped it.
“He was built up to throw 90 pitches today in six innings; that’s what we did in spring training,” Cora said of Pivetta, who came out after 81 pitches. “Yeah, third time through the lineup and all that stuff. But he made some good pitches to Donaldson to end the fifth. Velocity was OK. It was just that pitch, the slide step slider, that just hung up there.”
To have gone from being a forgotten pitcher with the Phillies to one of Cora’s most trusted right-handers is a big leap for Pivetta, but a deserving one after his dominant postseason left the Red Sox inspired by the 29-yearold.
“His stuff is really good, his fastball is really good,” Cora said. “If we had to take one pitch away it was probably his slider which stayed in the zone too long… it was a good start. Unfortunately we didn’t swing the bat well today.”
If the Red Sox are going to survive in a difficult American League East, they’re undoubtedly going to need to sort out their ‘pen. In two games thus far, they’ve used Whitlock, Matt Strahm, Jake Diekman, Hansel Robles, Ryan Brasier, Kutter Crawford, Austin Davis, Hirokazu Sawamura and Phillips Valdez.
With time, some of these guys will become trusted weapons for Cora. Robles and Brasier were in that category late last year, but both pitched Friday. Brasier warmed up Saturday, but was never used after the Sox fell behind.
If Barnes is hurt or doesn’t get his velocity back, the Sox could be looking at a situation where they’re short one ace reliever (or two, or three).
But early in the year, with so much uncertainty in the bullpen, it’s hard to fault a manager for trying to rely on his starting pitcher.
The biggest issue Saturday was that the offense looked uninspired. Alex Verdugo had a great game on both sides of the ball and the Sox were able to push Luis Severino out of the game after he recorded just nine outs.
But the Yankees’ bullpen held the Sox without a hit over the final six innings.
“Early in the game we had chances,” Cora said. “Severino made good pitches. We got him out quickly, so that was really good. We just didn’t get the hit with men in scoring position.”
The Sox went 0-for-10 with men in scoring position.
It’s too bad, too, because they played a spectacular defensive game. Verdugo made some great plays in left field, Kiké Hernandez might’ve stolen a home run at the warning track and Jackie Bradley Jr. collected his first outfield assist of the year by throwing out Joey Gallo at second base.
Rafael Devers added a web gem at third.
It wasn’t a bad game by the Red Sox. They didn’t play poorly on Friday, either.
Cora just needs to figure out who he can trust on his pitching staff.