The Boston Red Sox were the first ones to get on the board as Franchy Cordero hit a sac fly in the fifth inning that made it 1-0. But from there, a two-hour rain delay and nine runs over the next two half-innings for the Baltimore Orioles were the highlights of a gloomy day at Camden Yards to open the month of May.
A familiar theme presented itself early for the Sox Sunday — Boston left two on base in the second and Jackie Bradley Jr. squandered a bases-loaded chance in the third, while the Sox ended with 10 total men left on base. By the ninth, a J.D. Martinez grand slam that cut an eight-run deficit in half was a mere consolation prize.
Nick Pivetta was scoreless through four innings, though four hits in five at-bats for the Orioles prompted a call from the bullpen, and Austin Davis and Hirokazu Sawamura worked together to finish the fifth with the score lying at 3-1.
Kutter Crawford started the sixth and did the opposite of helping the cause as he let up a leadoff long ball to Rougned Odor before walking Ramon Urias on four pitches. Phillips Valdez came on in relief, but hit the first batter and loaded the bases with a four-pitch walk, and he let the floodgates open with three RBI hits that made it 9-1 Baltimore. With Boston eight runs behind the O’s, Valdez tossed a scoreless seventh despite letting two on base in a garbage time inning.
Then, the fun began. Sox catcher Kevin Plawecki went to the mound as the first Sox position player to pitch since Jonathan Arauz back in August of 2021, yielding a leadoff single but retiring the next three via the flyout.
With that, the Sox have an off day Monday before their three-game set against the Angels at home as they return to Boston after a 3-7 10-game road trip.
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