The Red Sox bats have been ice cold all week, and Tuesday the club managed just one run that only came in thanks to a wild pitch.
It’s almost impossible to win a game like that, though the Red Sox nearly pulled it off before watching it slip away in excruciating fashion
Carrying a 1-0 lead into the bottom of the ninth, closer Aroldis Chapman blew his first save of the season as the Milwaukee Brewers rallied to force extra innings before winning 5-1 on a walk-off grand slam by Christian Yelich in the 10th off Liam Hendriks.
Former Lexington High star Sal Frelick tied the game with an RBI single in the bottom of the ninth off Chapman, and with the loss the Red Sox (27-30) have now dropped four straight.
“We’ve got to be better,” manager Alex Cora told reporters following the game. “The margin for error, it’s hard to win games 1-0 and we didn’t do a good job with (runners in scoring position).”
With none of their usual starters available on regular rest thanks to this past week’s run of rainouts and doubleheaders, the Red Sox activated right-hander Richard Fitts from the 15-day injured list after just one rehab start and gave him the ball for Tuesday’s game in Milwaukee.
Fitts, as expected, was on a pitch count and only threw three innings, but the 25-year-old pitched well and kept the Brewers off the board. He allowed two hits and a walk while striking out two, and he threw 29 of his 44 pitches for strikes.
Milwaukee countered with Aaron Civale, a Connecticut native and former Northeastern University star who has also spent most of the season on the IL with a hamstring injury. Coming in Civale had allowed seven earned runs in seven innings through his only two starts of the season, but Tuesday he looked much more like the guy who helped pitch the Brewers to the playoffs last summer.
The Red Sox managed only three hits over five-plus innings against Civale, getting essentially nothing through the first three innings before picking up a pair of leadoff doubles in the fifth and sixth innings. Marcelo Mayer’s fifth inning liner didn’t bear fruit after the rookie was subsequently thrown out trying to tag up and advance to third on a shallow fly ball to the Gold Glove right fielder Frelick, but Rafaela did ultimately come around thanks to a bit of good fortune.
Rafaela’s ground rule double to left field chased Civale from the game, and the outfielder subsequently advanced to third against reliever Aaron Ashby on a Rafael Devers groundout and then scored on a wild pitch to put the Red Sox up 1-0.
Boston nearly gave up the lead in the bottom of the sixth after a rare defensive miscue by Rafaela, who charged a single by Jackson Chourio and allowed it to roll past him, putting the 21-year-old on second with no outs. Chourio advanced to third on William Contreras’ ensuing groundout, but Cora went to Justin Wilson and the left-hander shut down the rally with two quick outs to keep it a one-run Red Sox advantage.
All told Brennan Bernardino, Greg Weissert, Wilson and Justin Slaten combined to allow one hit and one walk over five dominant innings of relief. Slaten threw 1.1 scoreless, working around a leadoff walk in the eighth to keep the Brewers off the board, but Chapman fumbled the baton and couldn’t get the Red Sox over the finish line.
The closer first allowed a leadoff double to Yelich before walking Rhys Hoskins on a play where Yelich also stole third. That put runners at the corners, setting the table for Frelick to tie the game with an RBI single.
The Brewers nearly won it on Caleb Durbin’s ensuring line drive to right, but Wilyer Abreu made an incredible sliding grab to save the game. Chapman then struck out Joey Ortiz to finish the inning and send the game to extras.
But when the Red Sox couldn’t score in the top of the 10th, the writing was on the wall. Milwaukee loaded the bases after Brice Turang singled and Chourio walked, and then Yelich ended it with a towering grand slam.
“Credit to them, they did the little things, especially late in the game,” Cora said. “That’s why they won the game.”
Marcelo Mayer finished 2 for 3 with a double to improve to .333 with an .842 OPS through his first three MLB games. Rafaela went 1 for 3 with a double, but otherwise the Red Sox went 1 for 10 with runners in scoring position and stranded eight men on base.
Brayan Bello (2-1, 4.08) will take the hill on Wednesday as the Red Sox try to avoid the sweep. First pitch is scheduled for 1:10 p.m.
Newcomb traded
Prior to the game the Red Sox announced they had traded left-hander Sean Newcomb to the Athletics for cash considerations. The former Middleborough High star was designated for assignment earlier this week in order to clear roster space for some fresh bullpen arms, and now the 31-year-old will return to the club he spent two seasons with in 2023-24.
Originally signed as a minor league free agent, Newcomb made the Opening Day roster out of spring training as a non-roster invitee and posted a 3.95 ERA over 12 appearances (five starts) for the Red Sox.
Penrod activated
In addition to Fitts, the Red Sox also activated left-hander Zach Penrod from the 60-day IL and optioned him to Triple-A Worcester. Penrod missed the first two months of the season with a left elbow sprain but should provide additional bullpen depth for the big league club at some point.
Anthony homers again
Top prospect Roman Anthony is still in Triple-A for now, and Tuesday he made yet another statement by hammering a home run that was measured at 115.5 mph off the bat. Anthony also hit a 116 mph home run earlier this week and is now batting .320 with eight home runs and a .981 OPS in 48 games with the WooSox this season.
Originally Published: May 27, 2025 at 10:47 PM EDT
