Red Sox at Yankees
The Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees are still trying to figure out where they sit in the playoff race in the American League East, and whether they are good enough to remain in it for the duration. The Red Sox will try to creep closer to first place in the AL East and make the decision to sell a little easier for the Yankees when they visit their rivals in the opener of a three-game series on Friday.
Boston closed the first half strong with wins in six of its last seven games and used All-Star week to show off young stars like Mookie Betts, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Xander Bogaerts while 40-year-old departing slugger David Ortiz took his final turn on the Midsummer Classic stage. The Red Sox, who sit two games behind the Baltimore Orioles in the East, own the best offense in the majors but have several questions on the pitching staff that should keep the team active in trade rumors up until the July 31 deadline. New York has already been the focus of trade rumors, with other teams drooling over the possibility that relievers Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman may be available if the Yankees drift any further down the standings. New York took three of four from the AL Central-leading Cleveland Indians before the break to pull to .500 at 44-44.
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, MLB Network, NESN (Boston), WPIX (New York)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Red Sox LH Eduardo Rodriguez (1-3, 8.59 ERA) vs. Yankees RH Michael Pineda (3-8, 5.38)
A strong effort from Rodriguez would immediately alleviate some of the concerns about the Boston staff. The 23-year-old was expected to be a top-of-the-rotation arm behind David Price before a knee injury derailed his spring training, but he struggled when he came off the disabled list and eventually was bounced back to the minors after getting ripped for nine runs on 11 hits in 2 2/3 innings at Tampa Bay on June 27. Rodriguez made the necessary adjustments in two starts at Triple-A, allowing a total of two runs and five hits in 10 innings.
Pineda had a string of six straight starts allowing three earned runs or fewer come to an end when he was ripped for five runs in a loss at the Chicago White Sox in his final start before the break on July 6. The Dominican Republic native leads the Yankees with 113 strikeouts in just 95 1/3 innings but is yielding a .274 batting average against. Pineda was strong in a pair of starts against Boston earlier this season, allowing a total of four runs in 11 innings, but could not get enough run support to earn a win.
WALK-OFFS
1. Red Sox closer and All-Star RHP Craig Kimbrel will miss the next 3-6 weeks due to knee surgery.
2. New York 1B Mark Teixeira finished the first half with a .193 batting average and a .317 slugging percentage.
3. Ortiz, Bogaerts, Betts and Bradley Jr. combined to go 4-for-7 in Tuesday’s 4-2 AL win at the All-Star Game.