The Roman Anthony lessons
What's done is done.
The Red Sox loaded the bases for three straight innings against the Orioles Tuesday night without scoring a single run. Walker Buehler went just four innings, having now pitched five or fewer innings in nine starts. And the sellout Fenway Park crowd was ultimately left with a whole lot of frustration after Baltimore punctuated its two-game sweep with a 4-3, 11-inning win over the Sox.
The foundation for the uneasiness kept on coming.
There was third baseman coach Kyle Hudson choosing not to send Nate Eaton from third base with one out in the 11th inning on Roman Anthony's fly ball. There was the sudden inability to win close games, going 8-11 since the All-Star break in decisions of three runs or less. And, perhaps above all, there was having to wake up knowing the Yankees were on top of you in the standings by a full game.
OK. So, now what?
It's a feather in the Red Sox's cap that they can go into Yankee Stadium in late August and know the result may serve as a launching pad to actual October baseball in Boston. Four games can not only flip the script in the American League wild card standings, but could also mark Alex Cora's club's territory among the AL elite.
It seemingly happened before, courtesy of the pre-Rafael Devers trade sweep of the Yankees at Fenway Park, contributing to the Sox's current five-game win streak against New York.
Then there is the flip side of the Red Sox's coin.
What if the Sox aren't able to shake off this current three-game skid, the one that has put them just one game over .500 for August and only 2 1/2 games ahead of a Royals team that has won five straight?
This is, after all, a Yankees team that is feeling better about itself than they have in months, having won six of seven while figuring out a whole lot in the last two weeks.
Dating back to Aug. 6, the Yankees boast MLB's third-best OPS (.851), with the Red Sox coming in at 22nd (.682). Their starters boast the first-best ERA (3.75) over that span. And, perhaps most eye-opening, dating back to the last eight games, New York's late-inning relievers have been the best collection in baseball.
David Bednar: Three games, 0 hits, 0 walks, four strikeouts.
Luke Weaver: Three games, one hit, one walk, five strikeouts.
Devin Williams: Four games, 0 hits, one walk, eight strikeouts.
Meanwhile, the Red Sox have landed at this showdown seemingly just a tick off.
The good news for the Red Sox is that this team has shown a propensity to zig when everyone thought they would be zagging. That was certainly the case after they lost their first showdown against the Yankees this season before going on to beat them the next five times. It was the dynamic after many thought all was lost following the immediate downturn following Devers' departure. And, most recently, after the tepid trade deadline, the narrative was flipped thanks to a seven-game win streak.
But this undoubtedly represents the Red Sox's most non-negotiable challenge to date. Four against the Yankees, and then four more against a team that just handed you your first home losing streak since early June.
It seems like an important few days are upon us.