SAN FRANCISCO — Rapid reactions from the Red Sox’ 7-5 victory over the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park Friday night.
1) Prior to Friday night, the Red Sox were 7-1 in their eight previous games, but those had been won mostly behind strong pitching as the Sox failed to score more than four runs in any one of those games. Friday, they yielded five runs, but more than made up for it with their bats. After being blanked in the first two innings, the Red Sox managed to score at least once in each of their next five innings, getting 11 hits across the lineup in a balanced attack.
2) Red Sox starter Hunter Dobbins was his own worst enemy. Coming in, he had a walk rate of just 4.5 percent, considerably below the MLB average of 8.6. But Dobbins walked the very first hitter he faced, walked the bases loaded in the second and issued yet another walk in the fifth. In all, three of the runs scored by the Giants were scored by hitters who had reached base via walks.
3) The expectation was that this was going to be a big Revenge Game for Rafael Devers, meeting his former teammate just five days after they traded him to the Giants. Devers has been hailed as a conquering hero by the fan base, which rose to give him a standing ovation in his first at-bat Friday night. In his first plate appearances, he was retired on a chopper to first. Leading off the third, Devers slammed a ball to left-center and for a second, it looked like it had a chance to leave the ballpark. But Ceddanne Rafaela tracked it and leaping into the wall, took extra bases away from his former teammate. After grounding out to short in the fifth, Devers then came to the plate with a runner on against Justin Wilson in the seventh and flied to center field. Finally, in the ninth, in a showdown with Aroldis Chapman, he struck out.
4) In an increasingly crowded outfield picture, playing time could become an issue. Already, there have been calls for Ceddanne Rafaela to move to the infield, paving the way for Roman Anthony to grab an everyday spot. But Rafaela, whose defense is already superb, has been hitting better and supplied three big hits Friday night. In third inning, he ripped a sharp double and came around to score. Then, in the fourth, he singled through the shortstop hole, delivering Wilyer Abreu from third. Finally, with the game tied 5-5 in the sixth, he cranked a pitch to straightaway center for his seventh homer, a solo shot.
5) David Hamilton isn’t known for his power. He’s the on the roster for his glove and speed, In fact, before Friday’s series opener, he hadn’t hit a homer since May 13. But in the top of the third, Hamilton got a ball that he could drive and sent it out to right-center, scoring Ceddanne Rafaeala ahead of him. For the time being anyway, Hamilton is going to get a lot of playing time at second, now that Kristian Campbell has been optioned to Worcester. If he can seize the opportunity and produce offense like that, he could make things interesting.
6) For a change, the Red Sox got some offense from the bottom of their lineup. Between Rafaela and Hamilton, they got two homers, five hits, three runs scored and four RBI. In this post-Devers Era, where runs are sometimes scarce, the Sox will take contributions from wherever they can get them.
7) Alex Cora had to nearly empty the bullpen when Dobbins supplied just 12 outs. He used six of his eight relievers. But if there were ever a time to do that, it would come after a day off on the schedule, when the bullpen had the benefit of some rest. It didn’t hurt that the Sox got a combined five shutout innings from their relievers.
8) Massachusetts native and New England baseball royalty Mike Yastrzemski had a chance to be the hero when he came to the plate with the bases loaded and two down in the eighth and his team trailing by two. Mike Yaz worked the count full against Garrett Whitlock, but swung through a slider below the zone, stranding three.
9) In the middle game of the weekend series Saturday, it will be RHP Brayan Bello (3-1, 3.49 ERA) vs. RHP Landen Roupp (4-5, 3.99) at 4:05 ET.