Payton Tolle was the third of four pitchers the Red Sox used in Tuesday’s 4-3 home victory over the Atlanta Braves, but his performance stood out by a mile.
The Red Sox No. 1 prospect blanked the Braves for four innings, held them to three hits, struck out five and didn’t issue a walk. He threw 58 pitches, 45 for strikes (77.6%).
Tolle began his outing with a 1-2-3 fifth, but showed his true mettle by working out of an instant jam in the top of the sixth. Back-to-back singles by Luke Williams and 2018 World Series champion Sandy León put runners on the corners before Tolle could record an out. The Sox southpaw responded by getting a strikeout-looking, line out and force out.
After another 1-2-3, two-strikeout frame in the seventh, Tolle pitched his way out of another threat in the eighth. Jair Camargo’s leadoff double and Patrick Clohisy’s hit-by-pitch put Braves on the corners for the second time in Tolle’s outing, but he ended the rally bid with a José Azocar ground-out to shortstop Andruw Monasterio.
It was an impressive showing for Tolle, who’s competing for a spot on the Opening Day roster after, in the span of last season, making his professional debut, MLB debut and postseason debut.
The Braves bombarded the Red Sox 10-1 Saturday. Tuesday was a quieter affair.
Even with many of their regulars back in the lineup after their respective World Baseball Classic eliminations, the Red Sox were out-hit 9-6 by their guests. Jarren Duran was hitless in three plate appearances but drew a pair of walks. Ceddanne Rafaela struck out twice, but walked and scored a run.
Trevor Story led the offense with a 2 for 3 day at the plate; he’s hitting .424 with a 1.168 OPS in 11 Grapefruit League games, leading the club with seven extra-base hits, and his 14 hits are tied with speedy outfielder Braiden Ward for the most in camp. Story has also been flashing his speed on the basepaths; he has three triples this spring, the only Red Sox player with more than one.
Caleb Durbin also continues to impress in camp; the presumed, but still to-be-announced, everyday third baseman, is hitting .394 with a 1.106 OPS and went 1 for 3 with a run and strikeout. He’s leading camp with five doubles, and is tied with Ward for the most runs scored (10), even though Ward has played 20 games to Durbin’s 13. Durbin’s seven RBI are tied for second, behind Carlos Narváez, who took the team lead Tuesday by driving in a pair to bring his preseason total to eight.
New utility-man Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who played first base Tuesday, is also having a strong offensive preseason. With a hit and run scored on Tuesday, he’s batting .406 with a .955 OPS in 13 games.
Atlanta took a 2-0 lead against starter Sonny Gray in the third, but Boston answered back in the following frame. Narváez’s RBI groundout put the Red Sox on the board, and Nate Eaton’s two-run single gave them a lead they would maintain until the end.
Narváez’s second RBI, on a single in the sixth, proved to be the difference-maker when minor-league right-hander Kyle Keller faltered in the top of the ninth. A leadoff strikeout turned into Lizandro Espinoza reaching first on a Keller wild pitch, and back-to-back singles, the latter by Jordan Groshans, brought the Braves within a run. With men on first and second, Keller recollected himself and retired the next three batters to preserve the win.
Gray Day
Gray’s 3 ⅓ innings included two earned runs, four hits, three strikeouts and a quartet of walks.
The last metric is the standout for the veteran starter; he’s only issued five or more walks in six of his 330 career starts in the regular season.
It’s evident the righty, whom the Red Sox acquired from the St. Louis Cardinals early in the offseason and just named the No. 2 starter behind Garrett Crochet, is using these preseason starts to workshop (as is their purpose). He’s allowed two earned runs and issued walks in each of his four starts, including multiple walks three times.
Yoshida quiet in return from WBC
Masataka Yoshida served as both designated and leadoff hitter and went 0 for 4 in his return to camp, following Japan’s shockingly early exit from the WBC (thanks to none other than Red Sox teammate Wilyer Abreu’s go-ahead home run in Venezuela’s quarterfinals win over Japan).
It was just the second Grapefruit League game for Yoshida, who reported to the WBC earlier than Red Sox teammates who didn’t have to fly to Tokyo for their pool rounds.
Mayer closing in?
A late scratch from Sunday’s game due to knee soreness, Marcelo Mayer went hitless but walked and scored a run in Tuesday’s win. In nine games he’s 6 for 24 (.250) with a home run, four runs, two RBI, seven strikeouts and his six walks are tied for most in camp.
Mayer’s defense, in particular, has impressed manager Alex Cora this spring, but has the 23-year-old middle infielder earned a spot on the Opening Day roster yet?
“He’s playing well,” Cora told reporters at JetBlue Park after the game. “He’s playing really well. And obviously we have to make a decision. We haven’t made that decision, but so far, he’s been checking all the boxes.”
WBC wrapping up
Tuesday night’s 8 p.m. ET championship game between Venezuela and the U.S. is a current and former Red Sox star-studded affair.
Longtime Red Sox and 2018 World Series champion Eduardo Rodriguez will start for Venezuela, and the middle third of Team USA’s lineup all wore the Boston uniform at one point: Kyle Schwarber (2021), Alex Bregman (2025) and current superstar Roman Anthony.
Anthony and back-to-back Gold Glove-winning right-fielder Wilyer Abreu are both starting in left field, and batting sixth and seventh, respectively, in the USA and Venezuela lineups. Each has already given their team a game-winning home run in previous rounds.
The Red Sox were represented in this year’s World Baseball Classic by 14 players on nine teams: Mexico (Duran), Netherlands (Rafaela), Japan (Yoshida), Dominican Republic (Brayan Bello), Italy (Greg Weissert), Great Britain (Eaton, minor league RHP Jack Anderson), Puerto Rico (Jovani Morán, Eduardo Rivera); Venezuela (Abreu, Willson Contreras, Ranger Suárez), and USA (Anthony, Garrett Whitlock).