Patience was required on Sunday in Boston, beginning with rain that delayed the start of the game by 41 minutes. Then the Dodgers chased old friend Walker Buehler in the fifth inning thanks in part to five walks. But the Red Sox scored three in the fifth inning to take the lead, sending the Dodgers to a thoroughly frustrating 4-3 loss on a Sunday at Fenway Park full of missed opportunities.
Buehler didn’t allow a hit until Shohei Ohtani singled with two outs in the third inning. But that hit was surrounded
by three walks in a 31-pitch frame that allowed the Dodgers to tie the game at 1-1.
The Dodgers made Buehler throw another 35 pitches in the fourth inning, the first eight of which were seen by Michael Conforto, whose home run to center field gave Los Angeles its first lead of the day. Buehler got two outs after the home run, but Miguel Rojas and took advantage by stealing second base, the 16th steal in 17 tries against Buehler in 18 starts this season. Mookie Betts singled home Rojas to hang another run on the former Dodger.
That was enough to get Buehler out with two outs in the fifth inning, needing 104 pitches to get those 14 outs. His five walks were Buehler’s second-most in a start this season.
Conforto’s wild ride
In addition to his home run, Conforto also doubled twice on Sunday, his third game this season with multiple extra-base hits. But his time in left field was an adventure that produced choppy results.
Conforto botched a flyball in the first inning for an error, with didn’t cost Dustin May much other than the two extra pitches he needed to get the final out of the inning. In the fifth inning, Conforto misplayed a ball off The Green Monster, chasing it both to and fro. As the ball bounced back toward the infield, shortstop Mookie Betts was the one who retrieved it, allowing Abraham Toro to score all the way from first base on what ended up as a triple by Roman Anthony.
In reality, all that chasing ended up moot as May allowed a two-run home run to Alex Bregman on the next pitch, spoiling what might have been a promising start for the embattled right-hander with the 4.85 ERA.
Missed chances
After Buehler left, the Dodgers continued to threaten. Brennan Bernardino allowed his first two batters to reach base with two outs in the fifth, but Dalton Rushing flew out to end the threat.
Rojas doubled to open the sixth inning, but Betts, Ohtani, and Teoscar Hernández were retired in order. Two more reached with two outs in the seventh, but this time Will Smith was called on to pinch-hit for Rushing, and he flew out as well, keeping the Dodgers trailing.
Aroldis Chapman walked his first two batters faced in the eighth, setting up to the heart of the lineup again. But after Ohtani flew out, Chapman left with an injury. Hernández lined out to second baseman Ceddanne Rafaela, whose dive back to second base beat pinch-runner Hyeseong Kim for an inning-ending double play.
Jordan Hicks, who got out of that eighth-inning jam, issued a two-out walk to Conforto in the ninth. Pinch-runner Esteury Ruiz stole second base to put yet another run in scoring position. But Tommy Edman grounded out to end the game.
Notes
- Seventeen Dodgers reached base on Sunday, but they had one hit in 11 at-bats with runners in scoring position, including 0-for-7 with the tying run in scoring position after the fifth inning.
- Rojas walked three times in a game for the sixth time in his career, and the first time since July 22, 2021 while with the Marlins.
Sunday particulars
Home runs: Michael Conforto (9); Alex Bregman (13)
WP — Brennan Bernardino (4-2): ⅓ IP, 1 hit, 1 walk
LP — Dustin May (6-7): 5 IP, 5 hits, 4 runs, 5 strikeouts
Sv — Jordan Hicks (2): 1⅔ IP, 1 walk, 1 strikeout
Up next
Second stop on the road trip takes the Dodgers to Cincinnati, where Yoshinobu Yamamoto starts the series opener on Monday night (4:10 p.m. PT, SportsNet LA). Rookie right-hander Chase Burns starts for the Reds, making his sixth major league start.
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