When we look back on the 2016 Boston Red Sox, “clutch” might not be the word we use to define their season. Boston’s batting average with the bases loaded is still bad. Like really, really bad. And the Sox haven’t been known for their cardiac comebacks this year like they have been in years past. In fact, Boston has a losing record in one-run games.
But a 441-foot walk-off home run from Hanley Ramirez against the New York Yankees at Fenway Park on Thursday night should remind us of one thing as the postseason inches closer: There are plenty of guys on this baseball team that can come to the plate on any given night and change the game with one swing.
Of course, David Ortiz is the King of Clutch. The guy lives for October and he continues to remind American League pitchers of that every postseason.
And then there’s Dustin Pedroia, a guy that Manager John Farrell called “the heartbeat of this team” earlier in the season. Before Thursday’s improbable victory over the rival Yankees, Pedroia was the one who had the biggest hit of the 2016 season. The 11-year veteran keyed a five-run ninth inning with a three-run home run off Huston Street and the Los Angeles Angels for a 5-3 win July 31. Had the Red Sox lost that night, it would have been eight losses in 10 games.
And then there’s Hanley Ramirez. The guy who can’t keep his helmet on to save his life. The disgraced left fielder who led the league defensively in all the wrong categories a year ago. A man who came to spring training on a Major League Baseball roster without a glove.
Regardless of the Hanley-being-Hanley moments, he continues to prove his importance to this particular team in this ever-changing pennant race. Thursday’s walk-off home run wasn’t just a major momentum swing – it was a defining moment for Ramirez’s return to Boston. It solidified him on a list of players that will be indispensable on this roster once October comes.
Those three veterans bring 42 years of experience to the ballpark with them every single day. They have all proved time and time again that they can thrive in tense situations – when an entire city is watching, when their team needs them to come through more than anything. Not only does it take a little pressure off young guys like Mookie Betts and Xander Bogaerts, but it gives this Red Sox team a chance to win any night, no matter the odds.
And when it comes to postseason baseball, too much clutch is never a bad thing.
Fox Sports commentators John Smoltz and Matt Vasgersian say Andrew Benintendi and Aaron Hill have moved in with Dustin Pedroia. Fox reported during Saturday’s game that Pedroia’s wife, Kelli, returned to the family’s offseason home in Arizona, opening up some space for the second baseman’s teammates.
Pedroia said he didn’t put much thought into welcoming Benintendi, who was called up from Double-A in August, and Hill, acquired by the Sox in a trade on July 8, into his home.
“They needed a place to stay and that was basically it,” Pedroia said last week. “My kids are in school, so they went back to Arizona. … They were looking for places to stay and I just said … ‘it’s just me at the house, so if you want to stay with me’ … and that’s basically it.”
And he keeps good company. Pedroia’s neighbor, according to Fox Sports? New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.
Maybe Brady has even been putting the trio to work to stay sharp during his four-game suspension.
As the Red Sox emerge virtually unscathed from a crucial week in the season, the road ahead doesn’t get much smoother.
Following tonight’s series conclusion against New York, Boston will travel to Baltimore for a four-game set before visiting Tampa Bay for three games.
The Orioles are the only team in the AL East that has posted a winning record in games against the Red Sox this season.
On a positive note, only the Rockies, Yankees and Mariners have held the Baltimore lineup to a lower batting average against this season than Boston. The Orioles are hitting .230 against the Red Sox, .175 in three games against Colorado, .229 in 16 games against New York and .224 in seven contests with Seattle.
Boston is 9-7 against Tampa Bay this year. If that record were to hold, it would be just the second time since 2008 that the Red Sox took the season series from Tampa Bay. Boston has a 69-78 record against the Rays since 2008 for a .469 winning percentage.
Comcast Sports Net’s Nick Friar pointed out after Saturday’s 7-5 win over the Yankees that “no matter the scenario or the obstacle, (the Sox) seem to be up for the task. Something you’d expect from a playoff team. Which – in case you haven’t caught on – is exactly what this Boston Red Sox team is.”
This week can make or break that theory. A winning record over their next seven games could shore up a playoff spot before the Sox even get to the Bronx for a three-game series Sept. 27.
And it’s never too early for champagne showers.
(Michelle Berthiaume can be reached at 369-3338, mberthiaume@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @MonitorMichelle.)