First things in the first
Early aggression at plate works, then neutralized
Each of the first six Red Sox players to hit at Tropicana Field on Sunday afternoon swung at the very first pitch of the at-bat.
Three of them connected on base hits right away. Another singled on the second pitch. And the remaining two generated outs later in the at-bats.
Aggression has been the Red Sox’ calling card this year, for better or worse, as Sox hitters see fewer pitches per plate appearance than any other team in the big leagues.
It worked for one inning on Sunday, but the Rays made an adjustment and the Sox were held to just two hits in the final eight innings as they lost, 5-2. They lost two out of three in the series and scored just eight runs.
They’re now 7-9 on the season. They’ve lost all three series against American League East teams so far, going 1-2 each against the Yankees, Blue Jays and Rays.
“Largely we talk about getting in the strike zone, swinging at strikes, a willingness to use the whole field… that’s going to be the story with our group,” acting manager Will Venable told reporters in St. Petersburg, Fla. “I know these guys will figure it out.”
It was particularly concerning given the Rays seem to make an adjustment quicker than the Red Sox in this one.
Rays starter Shane McClanahan started the first two batters with first-pitch fastballs and Trevor Story and Kiké Hernandez smoked them into the outfield for a pair of hits. McClanahan then went to first-pitch breaking balls to the next three batters. And on his sixth batter, he started throwing a changeup.
Four of the first six batters reached safely with base hits, but from the sixth batter on, McClanahan starting throwing his changeup more than ever before.
A pitch that he threw just 8% of the time last year and just 13% of the time entering Sunday’s game, McClanahan’s changeup was used 27% of the time against the Red Sox. Of the 23 changeups he threw, 15 of them were swung at and nine of them were whiffed at. In total, McClanahan generated a remarkable 21 swings-and-misses against this ultra-aggressive Red Sox team.
“We were aggressive in the zone… but then McClanahan was relentless with his off-speed stuff, used it to get back into counts and we just weren’t able to adjust,” Venable said. “The consistent full game we expect from these guys just didn’t happen this series.”
It’s no different than usual for them. The Sox rank 30th out of 30 while seeing just 3.7 pitches per plate appearance this year. They chase bad pitches outside the zone 32% of the time, the worst rate in the big leagues.
Hitting coach Peter Fatse called it a “double-edged sword” when discussing their approach this week. He likes that his hitters are being aggressive, but it hasn’t been working thus far.
“It can work in our favor and it can hurt us at times,” Fatse said. “I think it’s selectively aggressive, is what it is. It’s aggressive with what you’re looking for. The goal is to start in the middle of the plate and work out. It’s to our benefit to continue to be aggressive, it’s just aggressive in the right area.”
But the Red Sox have been held to four runs or fewer in each of their last seven games. They’ve gone 2-5 while scoring 2.3 runs per game in that stretch.
“For me, you have to be ready to take advantage of strikes when they present themselves, whether that’s the first pitch or the fourth, fifth, sixth pitch of the at-bat,” Fatse said. “You have to be prepared to take advantage.”
A big issue has been finding a leadoff hitter.
Hernandez and Story have shared that spot and have posted a combined .254 on-base percentage out of the leadoff spot, which ranks 24th in MLB. Story is 4-for17 since being moved to the top of the order.
Story is starting to hit the ball hard, but his .234 average and .592 OPS isn’t getting it done thus far. Hernandez is hitting .180 with a .603 OPS, Bobby Dalbec is struggling at .154 with a .483 OPS and Christian Vazquez is stalling at .189 with a .470 OPS.
Xander Bogaerts and Alex Verdugo have been the most locked-in of the offensive players, but there’s no question Sox hitters are still figuring out how to be successful while swinging the bat as often as they do.
It doesn’t help that the Sox have been without J.D. Martinez, who is out with left adductor tightness.
“Obviously we have work to do,” starting pitcher Rich Hill said. “Going up to Toronto is not going to be an easy series at all, either. With that said, we are fully capable of going on a nice run here. We just have to make things small. Get back into that one pitch at a time mentality, one swing at a time, and ultimately build up those small successes into Ws.”