We get it, it's only June 23.
It's understood, Eduardo Rodriguez's six-inning, five-run outing isn't exactly going to shift the narrative surrounding the lefty.
Bobby Dalbec struck out four times. The Rays are playing poorly. Rafael Devers made another error.
The Red Sox' 11-inning, 9-5 win over Tampa Bay could certainly be simply classified as one that Alex Cora's team simply escaped with. But it was more than that.
Tuesday night offered the most powerful example to date of how this very imperfect Red Sox team has locked in on a most palatable path. They are good enough, and when it truly counts, even better than that.
"There was a lot of stuff. A lot of stuff," said Cora, whose team is now 1 1/2 games up on a Rays club that has lost seven in a row. "At the end, it’s a big league win against a team that they’re the American League favorites. Everybody thought coming into the season that team they have a chance to get back to the World Series and we did a good job against them."
The true measure of this win could be gauged in the final few frames. With the score tied, the Red Sox began each inning with a runner on base with nobody out. Adam Ottavino put a pair on base before retiring a hitter in the eighth. And Matt Barnes issued a leadoff walk before the reaping the benefits of the most bizarre play in a night chock full of bizarre plays ...
Btm 9th - Crew Chief reviews call that Kevin Kiermaier is safe at 2B; call overturned, runner is out. Powered by @Mitel. pic.twitter.com/iLyFR1lWtb
— MLB Replays (@MLBReplays) June 23, 2021
And in the 10th, it was Hirokazu Sawamura who managed to escape the always-uncomfortable extra-inning, man-on-second dynamic without giving up a run. That would pave the way for the Red Sox' four-run 11th, which in turned paved the way for a pretty important Red Sox win.
Maybe it was the Wander Franco-induced excitement at Tropicana Field. Perhaps it was baseball fans actually in attendance for a game that seemed to truly matter. But whatever the case, this one felt different.
The Hunter Renfroe homer. The big 11th-inning, two-run double from Devers. Connor Wong scoring his first major league run without a major league plate appearance. Even light-hitting Danny Santana somehow finding a way to plop a key bloop single into left field in the 11th to help start the rally.
This one felt like the 2021 Red Sox best resume-builder to date.
