It wasn’t supposed to end like this. Monday’s Red Sox Home Opener at Fenway, the club’s 116th such game and the 105th at Fenway, had the feeling of one of those great Sox games.
In a back-and-forth affair all day, it finally felt as though momentum had tipped towards the Sox heading into the 9th inning with star closer Craig Kimbrel taking the mound. But it wasn’t meant to be. Kimbrel did what he hadn’t done in 357 previous relief appearances: he gave up a three-run home run.
In fact, entering today’s action, the four-time All-Star reliever had allowed just 18 total home runs over his six MLB seasons. Fourteen of the 18 were solo shots, just four were for two runs. Never more than that.
Just one out from finishing the inning with a tie, Orioles slugger Chris Davis took Kimbrel deep—very deep—into center field, absolutely stunning the Fenway faithful.
To add insult to the injury, Mookie Betts, who enjoyed a 3-for-5 day at home, led off the bottom of the 9th with a solo blast over the Green Monster. It should have been a walk off win, but now it still left Boston looking for at least two more. It was electric as Dustin Pedroia singled and Xander Bogaerts walked.
With no outs, David Ortiz strode to the plate, “the set up for a dramatic moment,” Manager John Farrell recalled after the game. Already 2-for-5 with an RBI, Ortiz would ground into a double play before Hanley Ramirez struck out to end the game.
Wild Ride
Rather than fight from behind, the Red Sox got off to an early lead Monday, tagging Orioles starter Yovani Gallardo for three quick runs in the 1st inning. With David Price for the Red Sox, how much more would Boston need? As it turned out, more than they could muster.
The Orioles muscled across five quick runs in the top of the third, buoyed by a three-run HR off the bat of Mark Trumbo. In all, Price would allow five earned runs on five hits. In 219 career games, it was Price’s 28th allowing 5 ER. Price is 6-22 in such games.
Afterwards Price admitted he didn’t execute, but was proud of the team effort that kept the Sox in the game. “After I gave up the five-spot in the third, I knew if I could just hold them there, don’t give them anymore, we were going to battle back. We were going to score more runs, but it just didn’t happen today,” Price said.
What you have to like about the 2016 club is their willingness to keep fighting back. Down two in the 4th inning, Boston tied the game. When Baltimore took the a one-run lead in the 6th, the Sox countered with another run of their own to re-knot the game. The tie stayed in place until the disappointing 9th inning.
The Orioles improved to 6-0 on the young season, a new club record. It was their 11th win in a row dating back to last September.