Inside the players-only meeting that sparked energy for Monday’s win
BOSTON — It is debatable whether Saturday’s 10-1 blowout loss by the Red Sox to the Rangers, one in which Boston committed five errors and had numerous additional misplays, represented the low point of the team’s season. But it’s clear that the loss represented a looking-glass moment, one that forced team-wide introspection in advance of Monday’s 8-4 walkoff victory.
Manager Alex Cora decried his team’s “embarrassing” effort on Saturday night, yet that message wasn’t only delivered in his postgame remarks to the media.
“I try to keep our business here, in house. But I won’t go to the media just to go to the media sending messages,” Cora said on Monday morning. “[The players] know how I felt after the game the other day — not through you guys.”
The message, evidently, sank in. According to reliever Garrett Whitlock, prior to Monday’s 1 p.m. start, veterans Xander Bogaerts and J.D. Martinez called a players-only meeting. Bogaerts, Martinez, and lefthander Chris Sale spoke to their teammates.
“It was just great to have those guys lead us and push us forward,” Whitlock said in a postgame interview on WEEI. “Those are the guys that we look up to, especially as a rookie.”
Their message?
“This is our group. This is who we are,” Whitlock relayed. “We know we have got each other’s backs. We’re going to take it one day at a time and win each day.”
What does that mean in practical terms? During the Red Sox’s recent struggles, games rapidly mushroomed from bad to worse. The team often looked pulseless during a 7-15 stretch. Deficits made defeats feel preordained.
To outfielder Alex Verdugo, the meeting identified a necessary trait that had gone absent.
“Energy — that’s the biggest thing,” said Verdugo. “We had a little player meeting. We’re going to keep that in-house for the most part, but the biggest thing to come from it was just we want to play energized. That’s it. It doesn’t matter if something good is happening, bad is happening. It feels good to hear that. When you’re in the box and hear your guys cheering you on from the dugout, it makes a hitter lock in a little bit more.
“Some people think that’s what Little Leaguers do. Well, that’s what brings energy. That’s what gets you going. When I’m hitting and I hear guys cheering me on from my dugout, I take a foul ball and they’re like, ‘That a boy — you’re right on it!’ It fires you up. It definitely makes you want to get that next pitch that much more.”
Duran shipped down: The Red Sox cleared a roster spot for starter Tanner Houck by optioning Jarren Duran down to Triple A Worcester. Duran had seen his playing time diminish since Kyle Schwarber began playing in the outfield. He’s started in just two of the Red Sox’ past five games.
Duran made his majorleague debut on July 17. In 27 games, he hit .221/.236/.372, playing center field in nearly all of them.
“He’s not the first promising rookie to get sent down in this organization. He’s not the first outfielder who’s very fast that’s been sent down in the middle of the season,” manager Alex Cora said on Tuesday, referring to Jacoby Ellsbury in 2007.