Dustin Pedroia talks Hall of Fame
BALTIMORE - During his weekly appearance recently on the 'Jones and Mego Show' Red Sox manager Alex Cora said in passing that he believed the Orioles were the best team in the American League East.
Considering the Yankees came into Monday with a two-game lead over Baltimore and a run-differential significantly better than the O's (Plus-92 to plus-61) it seemed like a "you must know something we don't" kind of proclamation.
Judging by the display put on by the Orioles in their series opener against Cora's club, the Sox skipper might have been on to something.
The Orioles dominated the Red Sox in every form and fashion Monday at Camden Yards, coming away with a 11-3 win over Cora's club.
It was the Red Sox' fourth loss in as many tries against the Orioles this season, having now been outscored 34-113. They are also 4-10 vs. Baltimore dating back to April 24, 2023. The Sox are also now just 10-19 against teams with records of better than .500.
“We've had a lot of injuries, guys have really fought to be .500 (27-27)," said Red Sox outfielder Rob Refsnyder. "The Baltimore Orioles have been so good. (Cole) Irvin did a really good job today keeping us off balance. When we got guys on base, we did a really good job of getting out of those spots. But yeah, right at .500, third in the division, right there in the Wild Card."
He added, "Obviously, I think all of us can agree that we'd like to be playing better offensively. You know, we just need to get some breaks and just keep having better at bats, honestly. With runners in scoring position, we need to do a better job of capitalizing on that, we all know that. We’re working behind the scenes and trying to get better at it and I think a breakthrough is coming, honestly. So just keep going. I doubt a lot of people would think we would be .500 with this many injuries, especially some of our key players like Tristan and Trevor (Story) and Lucas (Giolito) in Spring Training. But the young guys are figuring it out. I like where we’re at, honestly. I feel like we’ve got some good baseball ahead of us."
The loss also marked the third time in their last four games the starting pitcher has surrendered at least five runs. This time it was due to Cooper Criswell's worst outing as a starter, with the righty allowing seven runs (6 earned) over four innings.
"As a competitor I think you want to face the best teams in the division," Criswell said. "Obviously it didn’t go the way we wanted it to but any time you play the best teams, you need to bring your best stuff.”
Newcomer Brad Keller went the rest of the way after Criswell's exit, giving up four runs in his four innings.
The only Red Sox runs came after they had fallen into an 11-run deficit, with Romy Gonzalez notching a bases-clearing, bases-loaded triple.
As for the Orioles - who are now 8-2 against American League East clubs - they have won five straight while getting to roll out their top two starters (Grayson Rodriguez, Corbin Burnes) for the series' final two games.
"We have to continue to pitch. We have to be better defensively. I think the other aspects of the game are going to be fine," said Cora when talking about the Red Sox making it through the first third of the season. "Obviously, we’re missing three big bats in the lineup. But the guys who are playing are doing an outstanding job. Romy had a good game today. Ref did the same thing. Dom had good at-bats. We feel good where we’re at. Obviously, it’s not enough, but I feel really good with the group and what we have been able to do in this first part."