David Price, Steve Pearce Send Red Sox To Ninth Championship With 5-1 Win Over Dodgers

Players of the Day for Sunday, October 28, 2018

World Series Game 5: Boston Red Sox 5 LA Dodgers 1

Pearce: Series MVP

In a fitting end to the 2018 baseball season, the American League's Boston Red Sox thumped the Los Angeles Dodgers, representing the National League, 5-1, ending the World Series, four games to one.

David Price pitched a solid seven-plus innings for the win, allowing one run on three hits, fanning five and walking three, the sole Dodger run coming on the first pitch Price threw to David Freese to open the bottom of the first inning. Freese blasted a Price fastball into the stands in right field.

For the Dodgers, Freese's homer supplied some hope after Steve Pearce rocked LA starter, Clayton Kershaw, for a two-run home run in the top of the first.

Following Freese's home run and a walk to Justin Turner, Price delivered the best mound effort of the series. Starting with a double play to erase Turner and batter Enrique Hernandez, he then struck out Manny Machado to end the inning with Boston holding a slim, one-run lead.

Price: Game 5 winner

Price allowed a single by Yasiel Puig in the second, and a David Freese triple on a misplayed fly ball by J.D. Martinez in the third, after which he set down the Dodgers in order, retiring 14 straight Dodger batters. He was relieved by Joe Kelly after walking Chris Taylor to lead off the Dodger eighth.

By then, however, the lead had grown to 5-1, on solo homers by Mookie Betts in the sixth, Martinez in the seventh, and a second home run by Pearce. Kelly struck out the side in the eighth, and Chris Sale did the same in the ninth, getting Turner, Hernandez and Machado swinging to close out the game, the series and the 2018 season.

In addition to his game two win, Price won his second game of the series and was 3-1 in the post-season with a 3.46 ERA. Steve Pearce was named World Series MVP. During the post-season, he batted .289 with four homers and 11 RBI. In the five games against the Dodgers, he batted .333 (4-for-12) with three home runs and eight RBI.

The Red Sox won 108 games during the regular season, took out the Yankees in four games in the ALDS, and wiped away the Houston Astros in five games in the best-of-seven AL championship series.

Steve Pearce's 4 RBI Deliver Game Four Red Sox Win; Boston Leads World Series, 3-1

Players of the Day for Saturday, October 27, 2018

World Series Game Four: Boston Red Sox 9 LA Dodgers 6

Pearce: 2-4, 2B, HR 4RBI

Just when it seemed the Dodgers had found new life, the Red Sox hammered another nail in the coffin, erasing a 4-0, sixth-inning LA lead with nine runs in the final three frames for a 9-6 victory and a three games to one lead in the best-of-seven series.

After Yasiel Puig had put the Dodgers up 4-0 with a three run blast off Boston starter, Eduardo Rodriguez, Boston bats came to life. Mitch Moreland socked a three-run, pinch-hit home run to close the gap to one run in the seventh and Steve Pearce's solo shot tied it in the eighth. With Boston hurlers keeping the Dodgers off the bases, the Red Sox struck for five runs in the ninth to put the game away.

Rafael Devers singled home Brock Holt from second base to give the Red Sox the lead and Pearce delivered again, stroking a bases-loaded double in the right-center gap, driving in three additional runs. Xander Bogaerts delivered Pearce with an RBI single to complete the Boston scoring.

The Dodgers' responded with two runs via an Enrique Hernandez home run in the bottom of the ninth, but it was not nearly enough, sending the series to game five, Sunday night in LA, 8:15 pm ET.

A Boston win on Sunday would finish the series and give the Red Sox their ninth championship and fourth in the 21st century. Boston has won the World Series in 1903, 1912, 1915, 1916, 1918, 2004, 2007, and 2013.

Max Muncy's 18th-Inning Homer Lifts Dodgers Over Boston; Red Sox Lead Series, 2-1

Players of the Day for Friday, October 26, 2018

World Series Game Three: LA Dodgers 3 Boston Red Sox 2 (18 innings)

Muncy: Game-winning HR in 18th

The longest game in World Series history came down to one pitch, a 3-2 offering from Nathan Eovaldi to Max Muncy, a two-seam fast ball that Muncy deposited in the left field stands at Dodger Stadium.

It was well after midnight in Los Angeles (after 3:00 am ET) when Muncy finalized the 18-inning marathon, giving the Dodgers new life with a 3-2 win and the Red Sox up two games to one. Muncy, who scored a tying run in the 13th after Boston had taken a 2-1 lead in the top of the inning, socked his third post-season home run with no outs and the bases empty.

Eovaldi was starting his seventh inning of relief work after being called out of the bullpen by manager Alex Cora to start the 12th inning. He was the ninth Boston pitcher to go to the mound. The Dodgers also employed nine hurlers. Alex Wood worked a hitless top of the 18th for Los Angeles to receive the win.

Muncy finished the game 2-for-6 with two runs and the lone RBI from his walk-off homer. His other hit was a two-out, ground rule double in the 10th inning, but he was left stranded when Manny Machado popped out to short. Muncy had come close to ending the game in the bottom of the 15th when he lofted a fly ball down the right field line that hooked just short of the foul pole and into the stands.

The game lasted seven hours and 20 minutes, and was four innings longer than the previous record of 14, which had been done three times, according to USA Today. In 1916, Game 2, the Brooklyn Robins beat the Red Sox, 2-1. In 2005, Game 3, the Chicago White Sox beat the Houston Astros, 7-5, and in 2015, Game 1, the Kansas City Royals beat the New York Mets, 5-4.

Noteworthy numbers:

• Red Sox hitters went 7-for-57; LA batters were 11-for-61.
• There were three home runs, all solo shots: one by Boston's Jackie Bradley Jr. which tied the game in the eighth inning at 1-1, and two by the Dodgers: Joc Pederson's third inning blast, and Muncy's game-winner.
• 18 pitchers were used, nine by each side
• Red Sox hurlers threw 283 pitches, 186 for strikes, struck out 15 and issued five walks.
• Dodger pitchers threw 278 pitches, with 173 strikes. They fanned 19 and walked seven.

Game four is scheduled for 8:09 pm ET Saturday at Dodger Stadium. Eovaldi had been scheduled to start for the Red Sox, but he threw 97 pitches in relief. Left-hander Rich Hill starts for the Dodgers. The Red Sox will likely start Drew Pomeranz, who was 2-6 during the regular season.

Red Sox Take World Series Game One Over Dodgers; Andrew Benintendi 4-for-5

Players of the Day for Tuesday, October 23, 2018

World Series Game One: Boston Red Sox 8 LA Dodgers 4

Benintendi: 4-5, RBI, 3R

With superstars like Mookie Betts and J.D. Martinez surrounding him in the Boston lineup, left fielder Andrew Benintendi doesn't get much attention, but he came to play in game one of the World Series, going 4-for-5 with three runs and an RBI to help the Red Sox gain an early edge in the best-of-seven series.

Benintendi drove in the first Boston run with a single in the first inning, driving in Betts and taking second on Yasiel Puig's errant throw to the plate. He scored when Martinez lashed a single up the middle, giving Boston a quick 2-0 lead.

He singled again in the third, but was put out at second on a fielder's choice. In the fifth, Benintendi singled again, coming around to score on Rafael Devers' two out single, as Boston plated two runs to break a 3-3 tie.

After the Dodgers had cut the lead to 5-4, Benintendi smacked a ground rule double to lead off the seventh inning and was aboard when Eduardo Nunez broke the game open with a three-run homer.

Benintendi is batting .304 in the 2018 post-season, with five RBI and 12 runs.

Boston has been making a habit of winning opening games in World Series. Their game one win was the sixth straight time they've done it, dating back to 1975.

The Red Sox outhit the Dodgers, 11 to 8, and worked out five walks to three for LA. Matt Kemp's solo homer in the first inning was the Dodgers' only extra-base hit. Manny Machado drove in three of LA's four runs, with a single, a ground out and a sac fly.

Game two is scheduled for an 8:09 start Wednesday night at Fenway Park. Hyun-Jin Ryu will be on the hill for the Dodgers. David Price gets the start for Boston.

Yasiel Puig, Cody Bellinger Power Dodgers Over Brewers In NLCS Game Seven

Players of the Day for Saturday, October 20, 2018


National League

NL Championship Series Game 7: LA Dodgers 5  Milwaukee Brewers 1

Puig: 3-for-4, 3-run HR

The Los Angeles Dodgers advanced to the World Series with a 5-1, game seven win over the Brewers in Milwaukee Saturday. Cody Bellinger socked a two-run home run in the bottom of the first and Yasiel Puig's sixth-inning, three-run homer sealed the deal for Dodger starter, rookie Walker Buehler, and five relief pitchers.

Bellinger: 2-run homer

Buehler worked 4 1/3 innings and did not get the win. That went to Ryan Madsen, the only reliever to allow a hit, for his 1 2/3 innings in the sixth and seventh. Dodger relievers allowed one hit over the final 4 2/3 innings, striking out seven. Buehler gave up six hits and the only run for the Brewers - Christian Yelich's first-inning solo shot - while fanning seven. 14 of the 27 Milwaukee outs were strikeouts.

Kenley Jansen struck out three in 1 1/3 hitless innings, and Clayton Kershaw closed out the win with a perfect ninth inning, fanning two of the three batters he faced.

The Dodgers will be off until Tuesday when they open the World Series at Fenway Park in Boston. Game one is slated for a 8:09 pm ET start at Fenway Park. Every game of the World Series will be televised exclusively on FOX. Game two is also in Boston, while games three, four, and five (if necessary) will be played in Los Angeles. Should the series extend to games six and seven, they would be back in Boston.

Jesus Aguilar Delivers, Milwaukee Forces NLCS Game Seven

Players of the Day for Friday, October 19, 2018

National League

NL Championship Series Game six: Milwaukee Brewers 7 LA Dodgers 2

Aguilar: 3-for-4, 2R, 3RBI

With elimination staring them in their collective faces, the Milwaukee Brewers proved undaunted, getting a huge effort from one of the players that carried them through the regular season, Jesus Aguilar.

Largely frustrated by the Rockies and Dodger pitchers, Aguilar hadn't been much of a factor in any of Milwaukee's eight postseason games - 5-for-29 (.172) 2 HR, 3 RBI - until Friday night. Going 3-for-4 with two runs and three RBI, Aguilar factored in five of the seven Brewers' runs.

After the Dodgers took a 1-0 lead on David Freese's first-inning home run, Aguilar responded in the bottom of the frame with a two-run double and later scored, as the Brewers plated four off Dodger starter, Hyun-Jin Ryu.

Nursing a 5-2 lead, Aguilar led off the seventh inning with his second double, moved to third on a ground out and scored on a wild pitch by Kenta Maeda. In the eighth, Aguilar singled in Lorenzo Cain with the Brewers' final run.

Aguilar had a excellent regular season, batting .274 with 35 homers and 108 RBI.

Milwaukee's win evened the series at three games apiece, bringing up game seven and a trip to the world series to face the AL champion Boston Red Sox. Game time is 8:09 pm ET in Milwaukee. The pitching match-up is the same as game three with Walker Buehler on the mound for Los Angeles against Milwaukee's Jhoulys Chacin. The Brewers won game three, 4-0, behind 5 1/3 inning of shutout ball by Chacin, who is unscored upon this postseason.

David Price, Rafael Devers Send Boston To World Series

Players of the Day for Thursday, October 18, 2018

American League

AL Championship Series Game Five: Boston Red Sox 4 Houston Astros 1

Price: 6IP, 3H, 0ER, 9K

Boston's David Price and Houston's Justin Verlander dueled through six innings until Red Sox third baseman, Rafael Devers, delivered the winning blow, a three-run sixth-inning homer that effectively finished off Verlander and the Astros, sending the Red Sox to a 4-1 win and a trip to the world series.

Verlander suffered his first loss of this post-season, previously notching two wins, over Cleveland in game one of the ALDS and game one against Boston in the championship series. It was Houston's only win against Boston as the Red Sox won four straight.

Devers: 3-run homer

Price evened his 2018 post-season record at 1-1, tossing six innings of shutout ball, nursing a 1-0 lead from the third inning on J.D. Martinez's solo homer run. Price allowed just three hits, didn't issue any walks and fanned nine. The Astros never threatened. With Price on the mound, they never had more than one baserunner per inning, none advancing past second and they went down in order in the third, fifth. and sixth.

This will be the first Red Sox world series appearance since they defeated St. Louis in 2013, four games to two. Boston's experience in the 21st century has been a positive one, winning the World Series in all of their appearances, previously winning in 2004 and 2007. They swept the Colorado Rockies in 2007 and also swept the Cardinals in 2004, taking the title for the first time since 1918.

National League

The NL Championship Series continues Friday in Milwaukee with game five beginning at 8:39 pm ET. The Dodgers lead the Brewers, three games to two.