Friday night saw the Boston Red Sox facing off against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first of a three-game series at Dodger Stadium. Unfortunately for Alex Cora’s team, they suffered a 4-1 defeat.
Boston’s starting pitcher, Nick Pivetta, delivered an impressive performance, pitching six scoreless innings with just two hits allowed and eight strikeouts. Zack Kelly took over for 1 1/3 innings, giving up two walks, before Brennan Bernadino entered the game in the eighth. Bernadino, who has been struggling lately, surrendered a grand slam to Freddie Freeman, resulting in the Dodgers scoring all four of their runs in the game with only four hits. Greg Weissert closed out the last 2/3 of an inning.
The Red Sox offense managed to collect nine hits, but their only run came from a solo home run by Jarren Duran (2-for-4) in the fifth inning. Tyler O’Neill (3-for-4) was the only other player to reach base multiple times. Despite numerous opportunities, Boston failed to capitalize on scoring chances, finishing the night 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position.
This loss brought Boston’s overall record to 53-43, with a road record of 29-18. The two teams will face each other again for the second game of the series on Saturday at 7:15 p.m. ET.