I’m not going to bury the lede here.
Tim Anderson injured himself in the fifth inning after coming in on a ground ball. He landed awkwardly on his right leg, and it looked pretty bad, too.
Anderson could not put any weight on his right leg, and an Achilles injury was in the back of plenty of our minds. Thankfully, the Sox announced a few innings later on Twitter that Anderson suffered just a sprained ankle, and X-rays were negative. Phew.
Anderson has been such a joy to watch this season, and it would have been a real shame if he missed an extended period of time.
So the game’s outcome really didn’t matter as much tonight. The win was the seemingly sunny Anderson injury news. The game itself was a bit of a different story, though.
The Sox did not put on any sort of defensive clinic to begin the game. Leadoff hitter Mookie Betts reached on an infield single and advanced to second on Anderson’s throwing error.
Rafael Devers then hit a high fly ball down the left field line that Eloy Jimenez may have ... thought was going foul? Regardless, Jimenez slowed down and let the ball fall right in front of him in fair territory, which scored Betts. It’s still a bit of an adventure for Eloy out there in left field. He’s been a bit better, but still ...
Carson Fulmer started the game and did not allow an earned run in his two innings pitched. He struck out three and gave up two hits and a walk.
The Sox took advantage of a Red Sox miscue the following inning, thanks to a Xander Bogaerts throwing error that put James McCann on second base. Jon Jay would knock McCann in later that inning for his first Sox hit. Jay picked up three hits tonight.
The Sox added two more in the top of the third inning. McCann doubled home Anderson, and Jimenez singled home McCann.
Seven Red Sox batters then faced Juan Minaya in the third inning. Minaya lasted two innings, giving up two runs on three hits. It’s tough to win a bullpen game against the Red Sox.
Jose Ruiz then came on and gave up three runs in his two innings of work. Josh Osich continued his recent string of success, throwing two innings of scoreless ball. Osich’s ERA is down to 4.78.
Three of Rafael Devers’ four hits were doubles. Not one other Red Sox had more than one hit.
The Sox fall to 36-41, with a Wednesday afternoon matchup against Chris Sale looming.