In 2017, Chris Sale and Corey Kluber vied for the American League Cy Young, finishing runner-up and winner, respectively.
In 2023, they’re teammates two of the game’s most veteran pitchers, just trying to leave years of injuries in the dust and prove they can still get the job done.
How to explain the role reversal between these two veteran pitchers between their starts last week and these? A baseball reboot of ‘Freaky Friday,’ perhaps.
After striking out 11 in last week’s start against the Twins, Sale didn’t get a single strikeout in Monday’s series opener in Baltimore.
Kluber had allowed 17 earned runs on 19 hits over his first four starts (18 innings), and was looking to rebound after getting shelled by the Twins for seven earned runs over five frames.
The 37-year-old righty not only bounced back, but finished the night with his best start of the season thus far. He kept the Orioles scoreless through four, and ended up completing six innings for the first time this year, en route an 8-6 victory and his first Red Sox win.
Despite only throwing 80 pitches, Kluber’s night was done after six. In addition to going deeper than any of his previous starts, it was his first game of the year without issuing a single walk, an encouraging sign for a pitcher who’s been elite at withholding free bases in his career, but struggled to limit walks in his first four starts.
“Command was great,” Alex Cora raved postgame. “This guy, been there, done that. He’s been hit around, made adjustments, Good one for him.”
An early explosion by the lineup certainly helped. For the second night in a row, the Red Sox scored first. They took a 3-0 lead in the second, and Jarren Duran’s first career grand slam (and first homer of the season) made it 7-0 in the third.
“I didn’t think it was gone,” he told NESN’s Jahmai Webster. “Just trying to help the team, that’s all I’ve been trying to do.”
The young outfielder has transformed this year, and says much of that is learning not to beat himself up too much when he struggles. Giving himself a break seems to be working; he went 3-for-4 with three runs scored, his first 3-hit game of the year, and had 12 hits in his first nine games of the year, including five doubles and the aforementioned slam.
“He stayed with the approach, and right now, it’s paying off,” the Red Sox manager raved.
However, as with Monday night’s 5-4 loss, after putting up a solid lead, the lineup quieted down for most of the game. Dominant pitching by Kluber and Josh Winckowski, who leads the majors with seven relief appearances of 2+ innings, is what set Tuesday apart from Monday; the Orioles only scored one run through the first eight innings.
The Red Sox tacked on one last run in the eighth, making it their eighth game with 8+ runs; only the Rays (12) and Rangers (9) have more. And it’s a good thing they tacked on another run, because things got dicey in the ninth.
Instead of a smooth landing, the Red Sox hit some major turbulence when Kaleb Ort took over for the final frame. Ort had allowed two earned runs over his last seven appearances (7 innings), but was coming off a rough outing in Milwaukee: no hits, but three walks and an earned run in one inning.
In Baltimore, the 31-year-old was out of control from the jump. He gave up a leadoff home run, then loaded the bases on a pair of singles and error by rookie infielder, Enmanuel Valdez, who’d been recalled from Triple-A earlier in the day to replace Yu Chang (hamate fracture). As Kenley Jansen began loosening in the bullpen, Ort served up a grand slam to Cedric Mullins.
Suddenly, the commanding 8-1 lead had whittled down to a stressfully slim 8-6.
The manager had no choice but to go to his closer. “Kaleb didn’t have it,” Cora told reporters after, noting that he’d wanted to stay away from certain pitchers.
Jansen got the job done quickly (and earned his 397th career save), so all’s well that ends well.
But no doubt, the way this game ended will leave a bit of a sour aftertaste. And wasting his dominance on this game could cost them down the road.