Recap
On the third pitch of the game, Ceddanne Rafaela homered and the Sox were off and running. Yippee! 1-0.
Then in the second, Payton Tolle gave up a homer that scored two. Ouch! He then proceeded to load the bases. Yikes! It was a nerve-wracking inning, though a ball that would have likely scored two runs ended up landing just foul, bouncing right over the line in front of Wilyer Abreu. The old July luck was clearly still with the Sox because Tolle managed to get out of the inning with only those two early runs.
It felt like an August miracle. Dodgers 2-1.
Rafaela repeated with another homer to left field in the third inning, tying it up, 2-2.
Although Tolle struggled early, he settled down after that rough second inning, at one point striking out four in a row across the fourth and fifth innings. He finished with 9 H, 2 ER, 2 BB and 7K, not his best game by any means, but pretty darn impressive anyway, with how he turned things around. It looked like it would be a short outing, but he ground it out, didn’t have any further issues, and turned it over to the bullpen after six full innings. The bullpen was spot-on, giving the offense (other than Rafaela) a chance to show up.
By the bottom of the sixth inning, the Dodgers had out-hit the Sox 9-2. The Sox held there until a ground-rule double by Andruw Monasterio in the eighth. He was followed by Jarren Duran who bunted to put men on the corners. Connor Wong then grounded into a double play – but the good kind, the kind that allows the runner to score from third. Hooray for small ball! Sox took the lead 3-2.
It held there as the Sox won their eighth consecutive series. Everybody showed up. Great win.
Studs
Ceddanne Rafaela
Two carbon-copy home runs early? Nuff ‘Cedd.
Defense
With special mention to Wilyer Abreu, who was particularly busy in right field. His night was highlighted by two put-outs at second when the runners either overlooked or challenged his arm.
The defense was tight and smooth, with two sweet double plays. Connor Wong had a successful ABS challenge that resulted in a ninth-inning strikeout of the dangerous Max Muncy. Everyone was on point.
Bullpen
You couldn’t ask for more. Justin Slaten got the Dodgers 1-2-3 in the seventh, on just 8 pitches. He continues his run of excellence. Tyron Guerrero pitched an inning and did his job, giving up just one hit. Aroldis Chapman came on for the save and it was glorious.
Duds? Not really.
Masataka Yoshida didn’t have a hit, and as DH, he wasn’t involved in any defensive magic (as some other hitless players were). But my complaints are few; these things happen.
Play of the Game
Should it be Rafaela’s first or second homer? Take your pick, I’ll go with #2. Two beautiful swings and a typically smiley post-game interview. Love it.
