The Boston Red Sox Monday, May 7, 2018

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1 * The Boston Globe The Boston Red Sox Monday, May 7, 2018 The conditions were just as Chris Sale likes them, and it showed Peter Abraham ARLINGTON, Texas It was 84 degrees, humid and not even a small cloud dotted the big Texas sky when Sunday s game between the Red Sox and Texas Rangers got started. For Chris Sale, the pride of Lakeland, Fla., and Florida Gulf Coast University, it was ideal weather to pitch. Perfect, 100 percent, he said. This is what I love; this is what I grew up doing. I ll take 85-plus and muggy all day. It s a little bit easier to stay loose. It showed. Sale threw seven powerful innings as the Red Sox beat the Rangers, 6-1. Sale allowed one run on four hits, walked one and struck out a season-high 12. He s got nasty stuff. He put a foot down, Texas manager Jeff Banister said. With one exception, every four-seam fastball Sale threw was miles per hour. His 103rd and final pitch was a 97.7-mph heater that was grounded weakly to second base by Delino DeShields. I was told that he s done driving a Suburban and moving up to a Ferrari, pitching coach Dana LeVangie said. Sale s fastball had been for much of the season, which is more than enough to pitch well but not what he usually features. He blasted through those issues Sunday. Other than Jurickson Profar, every Texas batter struck out at least once against Sale. It seemed like he wanted to stop all the talk about not throwing hard, manager Alex Cora said. Sale struck out five of the first seven hitters and didn t allow a run until Ryan Rua homered in the seventh. By then the Sox had scored all they needed. Facing former teammate Doug Fister, Mitch Moreland had an RBI double in the first inning and Xander Bogaerts a run-scoring single in the third. Sandy Leon s three-run homer in the sixth inning opened the game up and J.D. Martinez knocked Fister off the mound with a solo shot in the seventh. The Sox took three of four from the Rangers. They have won eight of 12 overall. After the day off on Monday, the 25-9 Sox start a three-game series in New York against the Yankees. The Yankees have won six straight and 15 of 16. As the Yankees surge, the Sox are seeing steady improvement from their starters. It s what they expected. Cora and LeVangie cut back on the rotation s workload in spring training with the idea of having Sale and the other starters better prepared for September and what they hope will be a long postseason run.

2 Sale was limited to 14⅔ innings against major league teams in Florida. The Sox were willing to cede some velocity in April to pick up some up later on. Chris knew that, too, and he was OK with it, LeVangie said. He had a plan in his mind and he lived with it. We re going to keep taking care of them, too. Through eight starts, Sale has thrown 49 innings and 777 pitches. That s 9⅔ fewer innings and 91 fewer pitches than through eight starts last season. Will less mean more later on? Counting the Division Series, Sale allowed four or more earned runs in six of his final 12 starts last season. We think it s going to help over the long run, LeVangie said. But, no doubt, seeing him pitch like he did [Sunday] was great for everybody. On Sunday, Sale also had his best slider of the season along with a reliable changeup and sinker. The mix produced 23 swing and misses. He has four great pitches today, LeVangie said. Chris is who he is, we know what he can do. Sale is 6-2 against Texas in his career and in the last five starts has allowed only six earned runs over 35⅓ innings while striking out 54. That was vintage Chris Sale, Moreland said. He did a great job controlling the game from his first pitch. He was on point today. He had everything working. It s nice to play behind him on days like that. That the Rangers lead the majors in strikeouts was certainly a factor in all the flailing. But Sale had what he thought were his best mechanics of the season. We kind of got back to where we want to be, he said. That Leon caught him for the first time this season was part of it, too. The backup catcher prefers a quick tempo for his pitchers and that suits Sale. When you re feeling good, your catcher knows what s going on. Sale said. Mookie Betts left the game in the second inning with a bruised right shoulder, the result of being hit by a thrown ball while he was running the bases. He is day-to-day and the Sox expect he will be ready to play on Tuesday. What a difference a little power boost is having for the Red Sox Nick Cafardo ARLINGTON, Texas The Red Sox may be third in their own division in home runs (46) behind the Blue Jays (51) and Yankees (48) after Sandy Leon and J.D. Martinez both went deep in Sunday s 6-1 win over the Rangers, but what a difference the ability to hit the long ball makes in the outlook of the team offensively and the confidence it gives a pitching staff. Red Sox manager Alex Cora found out firsthand the value of home runs last year with World Series champion Houston, which finished second to the Yankees with 238 homers. Cora wanted to emphasize an attack style with the Red Sox and wanted Mookie Betts to be more like George Springer and hit homers from the leadoff spot. Betts leads the team with 13. It s big, Cora said. It seems like we re one swing away every day from creating a rally. Somebody gets on. I do care about strikeouts, but I really don t in certain situations. If there s nobody on and you go for it

3 and do damage, go for it. They re doing it with two strikes and two outs. It takes the air away from the other dugout. You re sitting there and all of a sudden someone hits a home run, you re saying, Oh God. Here we go again. They re doing a good job offensively. Knowing that with one swing of the bat, the Red Sox can tie, go ahead or win a game speaks volumes about the offensive remake of the team. The Yankees won Sunday s game with a walkoff homer from rookie Gleyber Torres in the Bronx to remain one game behind the Red Sox. When the two teams meet this week at Yankee Stadium there s at least the potential for some excitement as both teams can go deep at any time. Martinez has brought that feeling back to Boston. While he s only second on the team with eight homers to Mookie Betts s 13, the mindset of the offense has changed. Being sixth overall in the majors (with 46) beats 27th from last season. As much as the Red Sox wanted to downplay not having the ability to hit the long ball last season, it likely would have made a big difference. The Red Sox pretty much suffered a self-inflicted wound when they wouldn t bring in a power hitter because they didn t want to go over the luxury tax threshold. The Red Sox made the calculation they d be able to get away with it, but they didn t. By acquiring Martinez, who hit 45 home runs last season, everything changed Ask the Diamondbacks Torey Lovullo what Martinez did for that team when he arrived and hit 29 homers for them. It made them a sudden force in the NL West. Martinez s homer gave the Red Sox a 6-0 lead in the seventh inning, and in the sixth inning, Leon stroked a three-run homer, his first of the season, with two aboard to make it a 5-0 game. To be able to tack on that many runs on what was a 2-0 lead behind Chris Sale, allowed the talented lefty to relax and not have to make those pressure pitches when the game is close. The home runs eased that burden. Sale pretty much admitted that the uptick in Boston s quick strike offense has made a difference. Kind of where I ve been all year, Sale said. I don t get caught up with how many runs I might be out right there in any given inning because this lineup can put up six runs, easily. We get to the four, fifth and sixth inning and there are no runs on the board, you just have to trust the process. We ve got one of the best lineups in the league if not the best lineup in the league, and you have to trust that. Nobody gets it more than Martinez. Hitting home runs is the reason Dave Dombrowski acquired him. Yeah, of course they re important, Martinez said of home runs. It s a quick way to get back into the game. Quick way to take the lead. It definitely brings a lot of confidence to a team. Martinez still isn t completely where he wants to be even though he went 7 for 18 (.389) in the Texas series with a OPS. It comes and goes, Martinez said of his home run stroke. I m still feeling it out. Mitch Moreland agrees that the whole team has been able to hit homers throughout the lineup. The one exception has been Andrew Benintendi, who has hit just two on the season, but that s expected to improve. When you can hit a couple of homers and put some quick runs up there that just helps everyone relax and be your best, Moreland said. For whatever reason that didn t happen for us last year, but to be able to get a cushion out there for our pitchers I think is important. Hitting more homers also makes the Red Sox more entertaining to watch.

4 This is a team that plays its home games at Fenway. For so many years the Red Sox had sluggers who could hit the ball out of the park. They acquired sluggers to hit the ball over the Wall. After David Ortiz retired, their overall power went with him. But it s back and Martinez, by his own admission, hasn t cranked it up yet. Home runs are a beautiful thing. They ve made a huge difference in the Sox offense. That s why last season didn t make sense. No power. No glory. Mookie Betts leaves game with bruised right shoulder Peter Abraham ARLINGTON, Texas Mookie Betts left Globe Life Park with a large white bandage covering the right side of his back on Sunday. It looked like he had been hit by something larger than a baseball. But it was an errant throw by Texas first baseman Ronald Guzman that left a significant bruise and knocked Betts out of the game in the second inning. Betts singled to start the game. When Andrew Benintendi grounded to first base, Guzman tagged the bag and threw to second. The throw hit Betts on his shoulder blade. Not much meat there. It got me right on the bone, he said. Betts stayed in the game and scored a run. But he flexed his arm after lining out in the second inning and was taken out. It was numb, Betts said. But after I came out of the game it started to feel better. For manager Alex Cora, it was an easy decision. The Sox don t play again until Tuesday night against the Yankees in New York and Betts has time to recover. It s something day-to-day, Cora said. He should be, hopefully, ready for Tuesday. Blake Swihart went to left field. Andrew Benintendi then shifted to center and Jackie Bradley Jr. to right. Swihart was 1 for 3 in a game the Sox won, 6-1. Betts has been arguably the best player in baseball. He is hitting.355 with a OPS and has scored 36 runs. Moreland keeps hitting Mitch Moreland was 2 for 4 with an RBI double. The first baseman is 10 of 17 with five extra-base hits and six RBIs in his last four games. Moreland is hitting.347 with a OPS and 17 RBIs over 24 games in all. He s a good hitter, Cora said. He proved it last year. He had a great season and that s one of the reasons we brought him back. You take a look at what he s doing right now not only on the field but in the clubhouse, what he brings to the equation is great. He s putting pressure on the manager to play more. I like that. We do feel that he can hit lefties and righties. When his number is called upon, we feel very comfortable with him.

5 Bradley was 0 for 3 with two strikeouts and is 5 of 47 in his last 14 games. Bradley is hitting.178 and hasn t had an extra-base hit since April 20. Moreland s production could mean more games with Hanley Ramirez as the DH and J.D. Martinez in the outfield. Cora is considering lineups for the Yankees series that have Martinez in Yankee Stadium s cozy right field and Betts in center. Thornburg impresses Tyler Thornburg threw a scoreless inning for Triple A Pawtucket on Saturday night. He hit 97 miles per hour with his fastball according to Cora. The righthander has pitched three times for the Paw Sox on his rehabilitation assignment. Thornburg has given up two hits and one unearned run with two walks and five strikeouts. Everybody is happy with his performance, Cora said. With Pawtucket going on the road Thornburg could have his assignment transferred to Double A Portland so he can continue to get treatment from the major league medical staff. Thornburg is recovering well from thoracic outlet surgery, but the Sox still want to see him pass a few more tests before activating him off the disabled list. Back-to-back games, coming in situations with runners on. But we re very happy where he s at, Cora said. Thornburg s fastball returned in spring training. The Sox are more concerned about his secondary pitches, but those have been sharper in the minor league games. In general, Thornburg just needs more innings. He has not pitched in the majors since the end of the 2016 season. The shoulder injury kept him out all last season. We ve been very patient with him and he s been very patient, Cora said. But the way he s throwing the ball, I get excited because I know how good he was with the Brewers [2016]. He s another guy who can help us out in the bullpen. Feel the breeze Texas struck out 52 times over 35 innings in the series... Moreland is 13 of 24 with seven RBIs in eight games against Texas. He played for the Rangers from but was not offered a contract for That s when the Red Sox signed him. Moreland chose his words carefully when asked whether he had extra motivation against the Rangers. I ll just say I don t like making too many outs against them, he said... The Sox are 14-5 on the road. They also have homered in seven straight games, the longest streak of the season... Brock Holt left the team to start what is expected to be a two-game rehab assignment with Pawtucket at Lehigh Valley on Monday and Tuesday. He is coming back from a strained left hamstring... Sox starters are 17-6 with a 3.48 earned average... First base umpire Phil Cuzzi had a rough day. Two of his safe calls were reversed by replay in a span of three batters... With Doug Fister giving up six runs over 6⅓ innings, righthanded starters are 1-15 with a 7.48 ERA in 26 games against the Sox. The Sox are 21-5 in those games. * The Boston Herald Chris Sale overpowers Rangers with slider in 6-1 victory Stephen Hewitt

6 ARLINGTON, Texas Chris Sale possesses a fastball that can blow by opposing hitters as it consistently reaches the high 90s. But when his slider is cooking, the Red Sox ace is at his best. Sale s slider has been a work in progress this season, but over his last two starts, it s where he s wanted it to be. The lefty struck out a season-high 12, nine of which he put away with his slider, as he dominated the Rangers with overpowering stuff in the Red Sox 6-1 victory yesterday at Globe Life Park. The Red Sox are now 25-9 the best record in baseball and they re one game ahead of the Yankees as they head into their series in the Bronx that starts tomorrow. He s been working in between starts to get that slider and that s very important and you saw that (yesterday), Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. Sale started to turn a corner with the slider in his last outing vs. Kansas City, but continued to work on it. He looked at video with pitching coach Dana LeVangie and assistant pitching coach Brian Bannister, and diagnosed some adjustments to make, which included delivery and release point. It s probably been the main concern, Sale said of the slider. Like I said early on it wasn t where we wanted it to be. With Dana and Banny looking at some video, we actually looked at a lot of video and kind of got back to where we wanted to be with stiff front side and release point. A couple of other things, couple of other cues that get me where I needed to be. Without them I d probably still be lost. The homework clearly paid dividends yesterday. It definitely was a huge impact, swing and misses at it, LeVangie said. The full deception of the pitch with depth rather than lateral break. You want depth to the ball, lateral stays on bat path, so they go swing at it and miss it underneath the swing, so really good. We watched video and got back into his delivery, his right delivery. It allows him to have freedom to throw the slider, and it s paying off. Sale gave up one run, a solo homer to Ryan Rua in the seventh inning, but he was otherwise masterful. He struck out the side in the first inning, with each out pitch coming via the slider, and that set the tone for the afternoon. The lefty finished with a season-high 23 swinging strikes, with 12 of those coming on the slider, and that helped the rest of his pitch arsenal as he kept Rangers batters off-balance. When you have that going, your other pitches play a lot better off of that, especially with Sandy (Leon) being able to recognize that, too, Sale said. So different days bring you different things sometimes, but when you re feeling good and your catcher knows what s going on, he can guide you through that, it works well. The six runs were more than enough for the lefty. Leon provided his first home run of the season, a threerun homer in the sixth inning off former Sox pitcher Doug Fister, and J.D. Martinez produced his eighth homer of the season in the seventh. The Sox have now homered in each of their last seven games, and have 16 in that span. Red Sox notebook: Brief scare for Mookie Betts Stephen Hewitt

7 ARLINGTON, Texas The Red Sox got a brief scare when Mookie Betts went down in yesterday s 6-1 over the Rangers, but it doesn t seem like he ll be out long. The star right fielder had to leave the game with a right shoulder contusion after he was struck by a throw while running to second base in the first inning. Betts initially stayed in the game, but was taken out after he lined out to end the second inning. It s unclear if Betts will be ready for tomorrow s series opener against the Yankees in the Bronx, but Sox manager Alex Cora is hopeful. With a day off today, it gives Betts more time to recover. Betts had singled to lead off the game before Andrew Benintendi hit a grounder to first. Rangers first baseman Ronald Guzman picked it up and tagged first before firing the ball to second to try to gun down a running Betts. But the ball hit Betts in his right shoulder blade. Betts slid awkwardly after being hit by the ball and shook off his arm as he experienced some brief numbness. It hit him in the perfect spot, Cora said. So he wanted to keep going and I said, Nah. According to Cora, the team did not expect to send Betts for an X-ray. He got the feeling back, Cora said. He got some treatment and he was fine after that. Betts has been one of the best offensive players in baseball this season. He leads the majors in home runs (13), extra-base hits (25), runs (36), slugging percentage (.818) and OPS (1.252), and is second in batting average (.355). More from Mitch Mitch Moreland is making it tough for Cora to take him out of the lineup. Moreland played the last two games of this series against the Rangers, and went 4-for-7 with a home run, double and three RBI against his former team. He s 10-for-17 over his last four games, and he s hitting.347 this season. He s a good hitter, Cora said. He proved it last year. He had a great season. That s one of the reasons we brought him back. You take a look at what he s doing right now and not only on the field but in the clubhouse, what he brings to the equation, it s great. He s putting pressure on the manager to play more. I like that. We do feel that he can hit lefties and righties. When his number is called upon, we feel very comfortable with him. He hits fourth, he hits fifth, this guy, it doesn t matter. He s had a great career. He s been in winning situations and he s contributing to this one. First off Fister Sandy Leon hit his first home run of the season yesterday, a three-run shot in the sixth off former Red Sox pitcher Doug Fister. The catcher went 2-for-3 with a walk, his first multi-hit game of the season. It seems like he saw the ball well against Doug, Cora said. At one point, I was wondering if catching him or whatever, it helps you. I don t know if that s the case but he laid off some good pitches and he put a great swing on it.... You ve got to give him credit, man. He works and he understands the situation. He s not playing as much but whenever he s playing, he s doing the job behind the plate and he got that hit the other day, the game-

8 winner. Sometimes that s what you need, regardless of if you hit it hard or not, it gives him confidence and he had a good series. Take time with Tyler The Sox love what they re seeing in Tyler Thornburg right now, but they re still staying cautious on his eventual return. Thornburg pitched well in his third rehab appearance with Pawtucket on Saturday night, producing a scoreless inning with a strikeout. Cora said the reliever touched 97 mph with his fastball. Cora said the Red Sox next step with Thornburg, who s making his way back from surgery to relieve thoracic outlet syndrome, is to make a decision on if he ll stay with Pawtucket or join Portland. The decision should come today. There s a few hurdles that he has to go by, Cora said. Back-to-back games, coming in with situations with runners on, but we re very happy with where he s at. Our concern, and it wasn t a concern, but it was just like he didn t have that breaking ball in Fort Myers, and it seems with the competition obviously being better, he has to pitch, and he needs to use all his pitches. His secondary pitches have been phenomenal in two out of the three outings. As pleased as the Red Sox have been with Thornburg s progress, they re not rushing him back. I don t want to be unfair with him, Cora said. I think we ve been very patient with him. He s been very patient. The way he s throwing the ball, I get excited because I know how good he was with the Brewers. Sale plan paying off so far for Red Sox ace Stephen Hewitt ARLINGTON, Texas Through seven starts, Chris Sale s strikeout numbers and velocity are noticeably down from a year ago at this time. But that doesn t necessarily mean there s anything wrong with the Red Sox ace. Sale dominated opposing hitters at the beginning of last season with overpowering stuff. Last May, he tied an MLB record he already owned with eight consecutive games of recording at least 10 strikeouts, and he eventually led the majors in strikeouts. His 308 punchouts were 43 more than the next closest, Cleveland s Corey Kluber, and his strikeouts per 9, the most of his career, were significantly more than Kluber s But Sale knew he needed to dial it back. The lefty wasn t as fresh at the end of the season as he wanted to be, and he went into the offseason focused on making some adjustments. It s all a part of it, Sale said. I threw a lot of innings, threw a lot of pitches in those innings, too. I m sure there were a lot of factors that went into it but at the end of the day, every single pitcher that starts the year in the big leagues and ends the year in the big leagues, they re going to be tired, too, so I don t know if it s one thing you can pinpoint, but that s kind of why we re in this process of trying to stay a little bit fresher for longer. Part of those changes seem to be in his power early on this season. Last season, the average speed of Sale s four-seam fastball was at mph, according to Brooks Baseball, and this season it s at 93.58, the lowest it s been since His sinker is nearly 2 mph slower this season than last, averaging mph compared to last season s

9 This season, Sale is striking out 10.9 batters per nine innings, which is two fewer than last season, and he s struck out 10 batters just once. He s also putting less work on his arm. He s exceeded 100 pitches in just two of his seven starts this season, after doing it in 26 of his 32 regular-season starts in He s been just as effective overall, sporting a 2.14 ERA going into his start Sunday against Texas, which is to say he s been the quality pitcher the Red Sox expect him to be while not throwing as many pitches, which seems to be the idea. He s not featuring the velocity until he has to, and last year he got a lot of punchouts because he was coming out of the gates throwing 97 (mph), so those days are down the road, Red Sox pitching coach Dana LeVangie said. They re coming. But he s comfortable. He knows he can win and have success featuring 92. Sometimes, it s just as good to get early outs with less contact than keeping him in the game longer. They know it s a long season, and it s important to stay fresh for when the games matter most. Sale wore off a bit last season in August and September, and he was shelled in his Game 1 ALDS start against the Astros. He clearly wasn t as sharp as he was in April or May. We re playing for the long haul, not the sprint, LeVangie said. So when we get to August and September, October, he s pitching at his best, his full strength, rather than coming out of the shoot in March and spring training and blowing the gas right away. For Sale, it s just about finding ways to stay consistent throughout the entire year. Longevity, kind of thinking about the season as a whole as opposed to just day to day or start to start, Sale said. Last year sometimes felt like it was all or nothing. It was 10, 11 punchouts or I was giving up five or six runs, so you just want to look for a little more consistency and just kind of staying even throughout the entire year. * The Providence Journal Red Sox 6, Rangers 1: Sale dominant as Boston wins third straight Bill Koch ARLINGTON, Texas This was Chris Sale at his nastiest on Sunday afternoon at Globe Life Park, with the Rangers nearly helpless to break through. The Red Sox left-hander turned in seven strong innings to finish the four-game series in style, as Boston remains in first place entering its American League East showdown with the Yankees this week. Sale allowed a solo home run in the seventh and the Red Sox offense did the rest in a 6-1 victory over Texas. Sale struck out a season-high 12 and generated 23 swings-and-misses with his 103 pitches. His slider was particularly sharp, responsible for nine strikeouts and preventing Rangers hitters from gearing up for a fastball that topped out at 99 mph. Sale had a feeling it was going to be his day beginning with his pregame bullpen session, one he took to the mound with him on a sunny, warm afternoon. Different days, you show up and you ve got different things, Sale said. You ve got to kind of play the hand you re dealt. I felt it coming out pretty good today. He can dominate in different ways, Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. Last year he did it throwing 97 with the slider. In Chicago the previous year he did it throwing two-seamers and changeups. He s a good pitcher.

10 It was the slider that had Sale a bit vexed through his seven starts this season, an offering for which he couldn t quite find the feel. But he used the pitch on Sunday to finish each of his three strikeouts in the bottom of the first, as clear an indication as any that this game would belong to the native Floridian. This is what I grew up doing, Sale said. I ll take 85-plus (degrees) and muggy all day. It s a little bit easier to stay loose. The Red Sox teed off against former teammate Doug Fister, scoring in four innings and piling up nine hits against the right-hander. Sandy Leon s three-run homer in the sixth was the killer blow, as he jumped all over a 2-0 fastball and sent it to the stands in right. J.D. Martinez followed with a solo shot to almost the same place in the seventh, chasing Fister after 103 pitches. It seems like we re always one baserunner away from two runs, Cora said. They re putting good swings on it. Mitch Moreland lined an RBI double to the right-field corner in the first and Xander Bogaerts ripped an RBI single through the left side in the third, ultimately all the run support Sale and two relievers needed. Leon capped a two-out rally in the sixth with a little insurance, following a single from Eduardo Nunez and a hit-by-pitch from Jackie Bradley Jr. with some unexpected thunder out of the No. 9 spot. He laid off some good pitches and he put a great swing on it, Cora said. You ve got to give him credit. He works and he understands the situation. The Rangers managed just one real threat against Sale, that coming in the bottom of the second. Texas put the first two men on and extended the inning when Ronald Guzman reached on a Rafael Devers error at third base. Sale stabbed a head-high Carlos Perez liner back to the box for the final out and allowed just five more baserunners over the next five innings. Ryan Rua s solo homer leading off the seventh broke up the shutout, all the Rangers could muster. Sale retired the next three men in order and relievers Matt Barnes and Carson Smith took care of the rest. Red Sox Journal: Betts suffers shoulder contusion Bill Koch ARLINGTON, Texas For the second time in eight days, Red Sox outfielder Mookie Betts exited a game early due to injury. Betts left in the second inning on Sunday at Globe Life Park due to a right shoulder contusion. He s listed as day-to-day. Betts was hit in the back on a throw from first base, sliding into second with Andrew Benintendi grounding out behind him. Rangers first baseman Ronald Guzman stepped on the bag and attempted to complete the double play, but he nailed Betts near the shoulder blade instead. He s OK, Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. The ball hit him in the shoulder. He didn t feel great, so I just took him out. It just makes sense for us. Betts singled to center leading off the game and lined to center for the final out in the top of the second. He shook his right arm while walking back toward the dugout with first-base coach Tom Goodwin, conferred briefly with Boston staff members and headed for the clubhouse. Blake Swihart took over in left field, going 1-for-3 with a single, and the Red Sox eased to a 6-1 victory over the Rangers. He got the feeling back, Cora said, reporting Betts experience some brief numbness in his arm. He got some treatment and he was fine after that.

11 Betts left in the fifth inning of a 12-6 home loss to the Rays on April 28, sitting out the next two days due to right hamstring tightness. He entered as a defensive replacement in a 7-6, 13-inning loss to the Royals on Tuesday and belted three home runs in a 5-4 getaway day victory over Kansas City on Wednesday. Finding his swing Considering his struggles against left-handed pitching over the season s first six weeks, Benintendi figured he was due for a slice of luck. The Red Sox outfielder entered Saturday s game just 2-for-26 this season against southpaws and figured to have a tough matchup against Rangers veteran Cole Hamels. Benintendi was held hitless in his first two atbats before flaring an RBI single off the bag at second base. He then dropped a bloop double into short left against side-arming lefty reliever Alex Claudio in the seventh, one of the keys to a 6-5 comeback victory. Hopefully that gets me going, Benintendi said. I d like to think I ve hit a few balls hard this year that have been caught, so maybe it s starting to even out. For me, it s just a matter of time, Cora said. His approach is the right one. He might be pulling off a little bit, just a tick, but it s not like he s taking awkward swings against them. He s hanging in. Benintendi cracked a triple off the wall in right center against Texas right-hander Keone Kela in the ninth and scored the winning run on a sacrifice fly by Hanley Ramirez. It was Benintendi s fourth game with multiple extra-base hits this season, putting him halfway to his 2017 total of eight. I think it s just kind of a mental thing, Benintendi said. Once you see those fall you go up there expecting to get a hit. Base-running miscues There was more trouble on the bases for the Red Sox on Sunday. J.D. Martinez ran into an out at the plate in the top of the first and Sandy Leon was nailed attempting to go from first to third on Swihart s single to end the fourth. It was a topic Cora said was being addressed during his pregame remarks, but Boston still found a way to record its 16th and 17th putouts on the bases through 35 games this season. It s a work in progress, Cora said. If we want to get to where we want get, we have to take care of those outs. Just like defense you ve got to take care of the ball. Running the bases, you ve got to make sure they earn all the outs. You can t give them away. The Red Sox ran into 81 outs on the bases in 2017, most in the big leagues. Kimbrel becomes quickest to 300 saves Bill Koch ARLINGTON, Texas When and how Craig Kimbrel should be used out of the Red Sox bullpen was a topic for another night. Saturday saw the hard-throwing closer greeted by his teammates and coaching staff with a long postgame ovation in the visiting clubhouse at Globe Life Park. Kimbrel made big-league history in the 6-5 victory over the Rangers, setting a handful of records while becoming the fastest to reach 300 saves. The right-hander reached the milestone eight years to the day he received his first call to the majors while a member of the Braves.

12 It was nice to have these guys behind me and show their appreciation for me, Kimbrel said. It s really neat. Everything I do every night is to go out there and make sure what they do counts. At 30, Kimbrel is a year younger than Francisco Rodriguez was when he reached the 300 mark in It took Kimbrel 43 fewer games than Yankees great Mariano Rivera and five fewer saves opportunities than longtime Twins closer Joe Nathan. He s been nothing short of dominant along the way, averaging strikeouts per nine innings. He s been good for a long time, Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. For him to do it in that game is kind of appropriate. That one of Kimbrel s finest professional moments came a couple of short months after one of his most difficult personal struggles wasn t lost on Cora. Kimbrel left the club in spring training to be with his infant daughter, Lydia, who required a series of three heart surgeries at Boston Children s Hospital. Kimbrel walked through the home clubhouse with his baby girl in his arms on the final day of Boston s last homestand against the Royals. She was smiling, Cora said. The way he was carrying her it s unreal what he s doing. Let s be honest, for him to be locked in here with us and giving his best while everything was happening in spring training and in his life, that s unreal. In this age of analytics and high-leverage situations, credible arguments can be made that a pitcher like Kimbrel should be used before the game s final three outs. Tackling the heart of the Texas order in the eighth on Saturday could have been one of those times, with the two teams locked in a 5-5 tie. Instead, Heath Hembree found himself in a jam and Joe Kelly was called upon to produce an escape by striking out Joey Gallo and Jurickson Profar. On came Kimbrel for the ninth after a sacrifice fly by Hanley Ramirez scored the eventual winning run. A weak foul popup to first and a pair of strikeouts against the Rangers final three hitters was almost somewhat predictable. Kimbrel has been entrusted with recording the game s last out since being made Atlanta s closer in 2011, and he s piled up at least 31 saves over each of the last seven seasons. I ve been a part of a lot of great teams with a lot of save opportunities, a lot of chances, Kimbrel said. If it wasn t for that, we wouldn t be talking today, so I m very grateful for that. * MassLive.com Chris Sale's unhittable slider is back; Red Sox ace said that pitch was 'probably the main concern' Christopher Smith ARLINGTON, Texas -- Red Sox ace Chris Sale has his swing-and-miss slider back finally. "It's been been probably the main concern," Sale said about his slider. "Early on, it wasn't where we wanted it to be." Sale, pitching coach Dana LeVangie and assistant coach Brian Bannister examined video of his mechanics. "We actually looked at a lot of video and kind of got back to where we wanted to be with stiff front side and release point," Sale said. Sale featured his best slider and top velocity this season to dominate the Rangers here at Globe Life Park today. The Red Sox won 6-1.

13 The Red Sox ace pitched 7 innings, allowing only one run, four hits (one solo homer) and one walk while striking out 12. Sale got a season-high 23 swings-and-misses on all his pitches as well as a season-high 12 swings-andmisses on his slider. He combined for 23 swings-and-misses on the slider in his first seven starts. Swing-and-misses, per Baseball Savant: March 29 at Tampa Bay: 14 swings-and-misses; 4 swings-and-misses on 20 sliders. April 3 at Miami: 18 swings-and-misses; 1 swing-and-miss on 21 sliders. April 10 vs. Yankees: 21 swings-and-misses, 3 swings-and-misses on 18 sliders. April 15 vs. Baltimore: 9 swings-and-misses; 2 swings-and-misses on 25 sliders. April 21 at Oakland: 14 swings and misses; 4 swings-and-misses on 40 sliders. April 26 at Toronto: 15 swings-and-misses; 3 swings-and-misses on 17 sliders. May 1 vs. Kansas City: 14 swings-and-misses; 6 swings-and misses on 24 sliders. May 6 at Texas: 23 swings-and-misses, 12 swings-and-misses on 38 sliders. Interesting to note, Sandy Leon caught his starts in Oakland and Texas when he threw his most sliders. Christian Vazquez caught his other six starts. "He's been working in between starts to get that slider, and I think that's important," Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. "And you saw it today. He buried it against righties. It was OK early against lefties but then throughout the game he found it. And there were some bad swings on it." Sale added, "I'd assume that's my best out-pitch, too. When you have that going, your other pitches play a lot better off of that." Sale also featured some serious velocity today. His fastball averaged 92.4 mph over his first seven starts, per Fangraphs.com. His four-seam fastball averaged 96.6 mph today and topped out at 99.2 mph. His two-seamer averaged 93.7 mph and topped out at 96.5 mph. "It seemed like he wanted to stop all the talk about not throwing hard," Cora said. "Change of speeds, good changeup, good slider, on top of hitters, elevating the fastball. Velocity was up there. That was a great performance." Mookie Betts injury update: Boston Red Sox RF should be able to play Tuesday vs. Yankees Christopher Smith ARLINGTON, Texas -- Mookie Betts should be able to play Tuesday vs. the Yankees in New York after exiting today's game in the second inning with a right shoulder contusion. Betts was hit in the right shoulder blade with a throw from Rangers first baseman Ronald Guzman while running from first to second base on Andrew Benintendi's grounder to first during the first inning. "He didn't feel great," Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. "So I just took him out. Just makes sense for us. A day and a half off. It should be something day-to-day. Hopefully ready for Tuesday." He remained in the game and took his second at-bat in the second inning. But he didn't return for the bottom of the second. Betts shook his right hand after getting hit because he initially felt some numbness throughout the arm.

14 "It hit him in the perfect spot," Cora said. "He wanted to keep going." Chris Sale K's 12, hits 99.2 mph in Boston Red Sox win; J.D. Martinez, Sandy Leon bash homers Christopher Smith ARLINGTON, Texas -- This is the dominant Chris Sale we saw last season when he finished second to Corey Kluber for the American League Cy Young award. The Red Sox ace pitched 7 innings, allowing only one run, four hits (one solo homer) and one walk while striking out 12. Boston won 6-1 over the Rangers and took the four-game series 3-1. The Red Sox earned their ninth series victory. They have lost only two series. They head to New York tonight and open a three-game set with the Yankees on Tuesday. Sale's velocity Sale was superb, getting 23 swings-and-misses with all his pitches. He maxed out at 99.2 mph. His fourseam fastball averaged 96.6 mph, per Baseball Savant. His two-seamer averaged 93.7 mph. He got 12 swings-and-misses on his slider. He got four on the two-seamer and four on his four-seamer. Three came on his changeup. Leon and Martinez go deep Sandy Leon and J.D. Martinez provided the offense. The Red Sox catcher blasted a Doug Fister 88 mph two-seam fastball 398 feet with a exit velocity and 25 launch angle into the left-center field stands for a three-run homer. That put Boston ahead 5-0. Martinez went 2-for-4 and went opposite field for a 367-foot solo homer. His traveled at mph with a 30 degree launch angle. Sale makes the grab Sale, an excellent fielder, also made a reactionary catch on a ball hit back to the mound in the direction of his head. Moreland continues to hit Mitch Moreland stroked an RBI double to right field in the first inning to put Boston ahead 1-0. Xander Bogaerts' RBI single in the third inning made it 2-0. Moreland went 2-for-4. He's batting.347 with a.407 on-base percentage,.653 slugging percentage, OPS, five homers, seven doubles and 17 RBIs in 72 at-bats. Betts injury: Sox star exits with right shoulder contusion after being hit with throw running bases Christopher Smith ARLINGTON, Texas -- Mookie Betts exited the Red Sox's series finale against the Texas Rangers in the second inning with a right shoulder contusion.

15 Betts was hit in the right shoulder blade with a throw from Rangers first baseman Ronald Guzman while running from first to second base on Andrew Benintendi's grounder to first. He remained in the game and took his second at-bat in the second inning. But he didn't return for the bottom of the second. Blake Swihart entered the game in left field. Benintendi moved from left field to center field. Jackie Bradley Jr. moved from center field to right. Tyler Thornburg's secondary pitches 'phenomenal' as Red Sox reliever continues way back to Boston Christopher Smith ARLINGTON, Texas -- Tyler Thornburg threw a scoreless inning of relief in his third rehab outing for Triple-A Pawtucket last night. Manager Alex Cora said he hit 97 mph on the radar gun. The stadium gun had him up to 95 mph, Pawtucket Times' Brendan McGair reported on Twitter. He has allowed one unearned run in 2 2/3 innings over his three rehab outings. He has given up two hits and two walks while striking out five. His curveball has been extremely impressive. "He didn't have that breaking ball in Fort Myers (during extended spring training games)," Cora said. "And it seems with the competition obviously being better, he has to pitch. And he needs to use all his pitches. His secondary pitches have been phenomenal in two of three outings." "There's a few hurdles that he has to go by," Cora said. "Back-to-back games. Come in situations with runners on. But we're very happy where he's at." Cora doesn't want to rush Thornburg back despite how well he has pitched. "I don't want to be unfair with him," Cora said. "I think we've been very patient with him and he's been very patient. But the way he's throwing the ball, I get excited because I know how good he was with the Brewers. He's another guy that can help us out in the bullpen and we do have a great bullpen. We do feel that way. We mix and match." * RedSox.com Dominant Sale fans season-high 12 in victory Ian Browne ARLINGTON -- Red Sox ace Chris Sale had mastered the art of the strong start this season but was lacking the utter dominance his reputation has been built on. That all changed on Sunday afternoon when the lanky lefty put on a pitching clinic in leading his team to a 6-1 victory over the Rangers at Globe Life Park. Over seven innings, Sale (3-1, 2.02 ERA) recorded a season-high 12 strikeouts and one walk. He allowed four hits and just one run, which came on a homer by Ryan Rua in the seventh. "It seems like he wanted to stop all the talk about not throwing hard anymore," Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. "Change of speeds, good changeup, good slider that was on top of hitters. He was elevating the fastball. His velocity was up there, and that was a great performance."

16 This was Sale at his finest. His slider regained lethal status, inducing 13 of his season-high 23 swinging strikes. Sale's four-seamer averaged 96.6 mph, and he threw one pitch at 99.2 mph. "Yeah, I was able to get a pretty good feel for it," Sale said of his slider. "[Assistant pitching coach Brian Bannister] was in here early and saw something and he was trying to tell me how to correct that, and after that, it was pretty good." The Red Sox gave Sale plenty of support on a day he didn't need much. J.D. Martinez went 2-for-4 with a solo homer to raise his average to.349. Backup catcher Sandy Leon belted a three-run homer to break it open in the sixth. Mitch Moreland, who seems to contribute every time he starts, finished 2-for-4 with an RBI double against his former club. "He's a good hitter. He proved it last year. He had a great season," Cora said of Moreland. "That's one of the reasons we brought him back. You take a look at what he's doing right now -- and not only on the field but in the clubhouse, what he brings to the equation -- it's great. He's putting pressure on the manager to play more. I like that." The only down note for Boston in this one was star right fielder Mookie Betts leaving the game in the bottom of the second inning with a right shoulder contusion he sustained when he was hit by a throw in the first. After losing the opener in Texas on Thursday night, the Red Sox came back to win the next three games and take an MLB-best 25-9 record to New York for a three-game series against the torrid Yankees, which starts on Tuesday. Sale expressed disappointment that he won't get the chance to pitch in that big series, but he heads to the Big Apple secure in the knowledge that he has regained his best pitch -- the slider. "It's probably been the main concern," Sale said. "Like I said, early on, it wasn't where we wanted it to be. With [pitching coach] Dana [LeVangie] and Banny looking at some video -- we actually looked at a lot of video -- and I kind of got back to where we wanted to be with stiff front side and release point. A couple of other things, couple of other cues that get me where I needed to be, so without them, I'd probably still be lost." It says something about the standards Sale has set for himself that, for him, "lost" still amounted to a 2.14 ERA entering Sunday's start. "He was on point today," Moreland said. "He had everything working. It's nice to play behind him on days like that, especially when you get down to Texas and it's a little bit warmer. Advantage, Chris Sale. He did a great job from the first pitch." MOMENT THAT MATTERED Everyone in the dugout was ecstatic to see Leon hit his first homer of the season. The catcher has struggled at the plate, but he is widely respected for his selfless attitude and ability to handle the pitching staff. Leon's homer off former batterymate Doug Fister traveled a projected distance of 398 feet, according to Statcast, and gave Sale a 5-0 lead. "It seems like he saw the ball well against Doug," Cora said. "At one point, I was wondering if catching him or whatever, if it helps you. I don't know if that's the case, but he laid off some good pitches and he put a great swing on it. You've got to give him credit, man. He works and he understands the situation. He's not playing as much, but whenever he's playing, he's doing the job behind the plate." MOOKIE BANGED UP

17 The injury to Betts took place when he was advancing from first to second on a grounder by Andrew Benintendi. The throw by first baseman Ronald Guzman struck him on the right shoulder blade and caused a numbing sensation in his right hand. It was Cora's choice to take him out of the game. "He's OK," Cora said. "The ball hit him in the shoulder. He didn't feel great, so I took him out. It makes sense for us. Day-and-a-half off and it should be something day to day. Hopefully ready for Tuesday." SOUND SMART About to face their biggest road test of the season at Yankee Stadium, the Red Sox are 5-1 in road series (9-2 overall) this season. HE SAID IT "It'll be fun. They're rolling, we're catching our stride again, and it'll be fun. That'll be our first time going to New York, so I wish I was getting the ball in one of those games, but there's only so much you can do." -- Sale, on the upcoming showdown at Yankee Stadium MITEL REPLAY OF THE DAY Moreland is getting it done with his bat and glove. The Rangers had a chance to load the bases with two outs in the third when Jurickson Profar, up with two on, was called safe at first on a ground ball to third baseman Rafael Devers. However, after initially being pulled off the bag by the wide throw, Moreland was able to maneuver his foot back to the bag just before Profar crossed first. Profar was initially called safe, but the Red Sox challenged it, and it was overturned to end the bottom of the third inning. UP NEXT After a day off in New York on Monday, the Red Sox open a three-game series against the blazing-hot Yankees on Tuesday night in the Bronx. The Yankees have won 15 of their last 16 games, a streak similar to the one the Red Sox had at the start of the season when they captured 17 of 19. Lefty Drew Pomeranz pitches the opener for Boston. He will be opposed by Yankees ace Luis Severino. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. ET. Betts day to day with right shoulder contusion Ian Browne ARLINGTON -- Red Sox right fielder Mookie Betts, who is off to a sizzling start this season, had to leave Sunday's 6-1 win over the Rangers in the bottom of the second inning with a right shoulder contusion he sustained on the bases in the first. The hope is that Betts will be back in the lineup on Tuesday night, when the Red Sox open a three-game series in New York against the Yankees. "He's OK," Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. "The ball hit him in the shoulder. He didn't feel great, so I took him out. It makes sense for us. Day-and-a-half off and it should be something day to day. Hopefully ready for Tuesday." After leading off the game with a single, Betts got struck on the right shoulder blade on a throw by Rangers first baseman Ronald Guzman as he was running to second on a grounder by Andrew Benintendi. Betts was initially flexing his right hand. "It's kind of like numbness. It hit him in the perfect spot," Cora said. "So he wanted to keep going and I said, 'Nah.'" After a conference with Cora and a member of the training staff, Betts initially thought he was fine and remained in the game.