Red Sox at Yankees
A pair of newcomers will be on the mound Friday when the Boston Red Sox visit the New York Yankees for the first of three games to renew their rivalry. Red Sox left-hander Wade Miley makes his team debut after coming over
from Arizona in a December trade, while hard-throwing Nathan Eovaldi
toes the rubber for the Yankees, who limp into the set after dropping
two of three to Toronto to begin the season.
Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira homered but New York could not dig out of an early hole in a 6-3 setback Thursday. Boston took two of three in Philadelphia to open things up, capped by a 6-2 victory in the series finale. Xander Bogaerts had a three-run triple while Justin Masterson - another newcomer in the Red Sox rotation - spun six solid frames and recorded two hits and an RBI. The Yankees are 9-3-3 in the last 15 season series after winning 12 of 19 encounters in 2014, which was the first year since 1993 that both teams failed to make the postseason.
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, MLB Network, NESN (Boston), WPIX11 (New York)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Red Sox LH Wade Miley (2014: 8-12, 4.34 ERA) vs. Yankees RH Nathan Eovaldi (2014: 6-14, 4.37)
Miley's win total has dropped and his ERA has risen over the last two seasons, following a breakout 2012 campaign that resulted in an All-Star appearance for the Diamondbacks, but he did make 33 starts and toss over 200 innings in both 2013 and 2014. The 28-year-old was 1-5 with a 4.85 ERA over his final 10 outings last season while issuing 29 walks in 55 2/3 innings. Miley, who owns a 3.31 ERA in 55 career games (54 starts) outside of Arizona, allowed three earned runs in 6 2/3 innings in his only prior start at Yankee Stadium on April 17, 2013.
Eovaldi had his first full season as a big leaguer in 2014 and led the National League with 223 hits allowed in 199 2/3 innings. He cruised into the All-Star break above .500 and with a respectable 3.61 ERA, but bottomed out after the intermission with a 1-10 mark and an ERA of 5.51. The former Los Angeles Dodger and Miami Marlin, who did rank seventh among qualified NL pitchers in fewest home runs allowed per nine innings (0.631), had a 1.93 ERA in five Grapefruit League outings.
WALK-OFFS
1. Since getting three hits in his first four at-bats - including two home runs - Red Sox 2B Dustin Pedroia is 0-for-8 with four strikeouts.
2. Rodriguez needs three runs to match former Yankee Derek Jeter (1,923) for 10th on baseball's all-time list.
3. Red Sox 3B Pablo Sandoval is 8-for-11 with a home run, three doubles and nine RBIs against Eovaldi.