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RSNStats goes on the road

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Monday’s rain out of the Red Sox game in Kansas City set up a day/night doubleheader on Wednesday that just happened to work with your correspondent’s own travel schedule. A few clicks with the mouse and I found myself for the first time at Kauffman Stadium, home of the World Champion Royals, for Game 3 of the series, a Red Sox 5-2 win.

I was fortunate to snag a very good seat in Kauffman’s Crown Club, which offers phenomenal amenities for fans in the first four rows behind home plate. Unlike Fenway, these premium seats are only accessible through the club, which offers a wide variety of food and drink (and wait service at your seat) that’s included in the price of the ticket.

More importantly for a baseball fan, the Crown Club gives you great views of the action and abuts the two teams’ dugouts, so I was sure to strategically pick my seat as close as I could get to the Red Sox dugout. The results are some pretty good pictures, taken with the only camera at my disposal, the one on my phone. Perhaps my favorite shot of the night is the one shown above with Boston first baseman Hanley Ramirez, who connected with a very cute little Sox fan sitting right next to the dugout.

For more shots, visit the RSNStats gallery on Instagram.

No place like home

Set just across the way from Arrowhead Stadium, Kauffman has a modernized retro 1970s (as opposed to 1910s) vibe to it. For fifteen dollars I parked in the huge parking lots that service both fields. A virtual army of attendants guide you to your parking space. I was amazed how many fans were there early tailgating before the game, or perhaps leftover from the first half of the doubleheader earlier in the day.

There’s no place like home, fans. Fenway Park is the place to watch the Sox. But the sights, people, and midwest hospitality at The K, were all impressive. A nice night and, more importantly, a Red Sox win on Wednesday night in KC.


One & Done: Yankees Finished

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When all was said and done, after  a full slate of 162 games, the Yankees wound up playing one more than the Red Sox.

Tuesday’s 3-0 shutout, Wild Card victory by the Astros stung for New York fans, who soundly booed their team, after watching decent pitching but a nearly silent Yankee offense. All during the regular season, the Yankees were shutout just twice at home.

With just three hits, the Yankees were shutout in a postseason elimination game for only the 5th time since 1903. Remarkably, all five of those games have come at home in New York. In 379 postseason Yankees games since 1903, Tuesday’s was just the 15th with three or fewer Bombers’ hits.

New York had averaged 4.72 runs per game in the 2015 regular season, second only to the Blue Jays’ 5.50 mark, the best record in baseball. But of late, Yankee runs have been hard to come by. Over their last 12 games of the season the Yankees were 4-8, averaging just 3.0 runs per game.

The Astros face off against the Royals in the American League Division Series starting Thursday.


Sox home as Postseason begins

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WS15_PostseasonMarks_RGBThe Red Sox, baseball’s winningest Wild Card club ever, are spectators tonight. Those past wins, small consolation as the 2015 postseason begins again without them.

The season rolls on, however, for the Yankees and Astros tonight in the American League Wild Card game. One team will go on, one will go home.

For the Yankees, it’s their 52nd postseason appearance, the most of any MLB club ever. They’ve appeared in 18 of the last 21 postseasons.

The Astros will make their 10th postseason appearance on Tuesday, their first since joining the American League in 2013.  Houston was last in the postseason in 2005, advancing all the way to the World Series by way of the Wild Card.

Yankees are, no doubt, happy to be playing at home in this winner take all game. They were 45-36 in The Bronx this season, clinching a 24th straight winning record there. The 24 consecutive winning home seasons is the second longest such streak in MLB history. The only longer one was set by the Yankees from 1918 to 1964—a remarkable 47 years.

The Astros may have preferred to play at home, but they’re not intimidated by Yankee Stadium. The club beat New York 4-games-to-3 in the 2015 season set, including winning 2-of-3 in New York. In that three game set, Houston outscored the Yanks 21-4 including a 15-1 win in the start made by Astros pitcher Dallas Keuchel, who also starts tonight.

The winner of tonight’s game will face the Royals in the Division Series that starts Thursday.

Red Sox in the Wild Card

Though sitting home tonight, the Red Sox are baseball’s all-time leader with seven total Wild Card wins. The Yankees are next with four, followed by the Cardinals and Rockies (3 each).

Boston won the American League Wild Card games of 1998, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2008, and 2009.

AL East teams generally have fared well in Wild Card games with 15 winners coming from that one division, the most in all of baseball.

Former Red Sox ace Jon Lester started for the Athletics in last year’s AL Wild Card game allowing 6 runs (all earned) on 8 hits over 7.1 innings pitched. Despite Oakland’s 7-3 lead in the 6th inning, however, the Royals roared back to tie the game and, ultimately, win 9-8 in 12 exciting innings. Kansas City, of course, went on to win the Division & Championship series before losing the 2015 World Series to the Giants.


Royals acquire Jonny Gomes 

One-time Red Sox and fan favorite Jonny Gomes is heading to the Royals, Sports Illustrated reports. The deal that sends him from the Braves was executed just before the deadline to allow Gomes to appear on a postseason roster.

No surprise the Royals would want Gomes as they head to another postseason. Gomes’ reputation as a strong club house professional is well documented. The 34-year-old has appeared in four of the last five postseasons, including six World Series games with the 2013 World Champion Red Sox.

Gomes slashed .221 AVG/.325 OBP/.364 SLG with seven home runs and 22 RBI with Atlanta in 83 games this season. His .667 OPS overall this season is a strong .857 facing lefty pitchers.


Pitching concerns mount

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The AL-East leading Red Sox, the winners of their first three series of the season for the first time since 1952, dropped the series finale against the Washington Nationals Wednesday, 5-10.

With all the usual caveats that it’s early in the season, pitching remains the top concern for this 2015 club.

Red Sox offense is solid, averaging 6.2 runs per game, the 2nd-most in the majors behind the Royals’ 6.6 mark. Boston’s team batting average is .253, 5th-best mark in the American League.

But unlike the Royals, who have allowed just 2.6 runs per game (2nd-best in the majors), Boston opponents are avergaging 5.6 runs per game, the 2nd-worst mark in baseball. The only MLB pitching staff that’s allowed more opponent runs per game are the moribund Minnesota Twins (5.8).

Wide Miley, in his first-ever appearance at Fenway suffered the 3rd-shortest start of his career (108 games) lasting just 2.1 innings Wednesday and giving up 7 earned runs in the process. The off day on Thursday is lucky for the Boston bullpen, which pressed Anthony Varvaro, Robbie Ross, and Craig Breslow into service.

In 3 of their last 4, Red Sox starters have not gotten to the 5th inning. Worse, starters’ ERA is a whopping 6.16, the 2nd-worst mark in baseball behind the Mariners (6.43). Boston’s bullpen ERA, meanwhile, is 2.97.

Defensively, the Red Sox have 8 errors on the season, tied for the 4th-most in baseball. Their fielding percentage is .978, below the league average of .984.

It may seem odd to complain when your club is 6-3 and in first place, but we know that it’s a long season ahead. Without improvements in pitching the Red Sox will need continued great offense, fewer errors, and what can be that most elusive of characteristics—health to stay in contention.