After rain postponed the scheduled Thursday game, the Boston Red Sox and visiting Baltimore Orioles will begin their four-game weekend series with a split doubleheader on Friday.
It has been a tumultuous week for the Orioles, who ended an eight-game skid with an 8-4, 11-inning road win over the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday. It was their first victory under interim manager Tony Mansolino, who replaced the fired Brandon Hyde on Saturday.
“This whole thing isn’t about me,” Mansolino said. “We win the game and everybody is congratulating me for the first win — but I don’t really feel that way about it. It’s more for the players and the organization. The players have been through a lot here. We lost eight in a row and we obviously had the change in the organization.”
Adley Rutschman’s three-run home run in the 11th inning and Ryan O’Hearn’s four-hit performance propelled the Orioles to the much-needed victory, which was the team’s first since May 11 against the Los Angeles Angels.
Rutschman, whose long ball on Wednesday came on the third anniversary of his major league debut, emphasized the importance of the win on the club.
“You’re always going to get adversity over the course of a season, but you never know in what form it’s going to come or when,” Rutschman said. “But we have a great group in this locker room and a lot of guys with high character and there’s no other group I’d rather be around.”
Baltimore is scheduled to start left-hander Cade Povich (1-3, 5.23 ERA) in Game 1 on Friday, but the team had not announced a pitcher for the nightcap. Before the Thursday rainout, Charlie Morton (0-7, 7.68 ERA) had been scheduled to move back in from the bullpen to start on Friday.
Povich dealt a strong 5 2/3 innings of two-run ball with nine strikeouts on May 16 against the Washington Nationals. He is 0-2 with a 5.28 ERA in three career starts against Boston. Povich faced the Red Sox on March 31, getting a no-decision after allowing three runs in 4 1/3 innings.
Two of Boston’s only three wins in the past nine games came during the just-concluded series against the New York Mets. However, striking out a season-high 16 times and scoring just one run for the ninth time this year led to a 5-1 defeat on Wednesday.
Outside of Jarren Duran, Rafael Devers and Alex Bregman, Red Sox manager Alex Cora has tinkered with his lineup of late. The only Boston player with multiple hits in the most recent game was first baseman Nick Sogard, who has three such efforts in his past six contests.
“We’ve been (making moves in the lineup) throughout the month, moving guys around, trying to find the perfect match,” Cora said. “We’re going to continue to do that.”
Starting pitching length has also been a struggle for Boston recently. Brayan Bello (2-1, 4.02 ERA) has not completed five innings in any of his last three starts, including on Sunday when he allowed a season-high seven runs in 4 1/3 innings against the Atlanta Braves.
The 26-year-old, who is scheduled to start the opener on Friday, also has struggled with his command, issuing 12 walks in his last three outings.
“My changeup is my second-best pitch, and I haven’t been able to locate it,” Bello said. “For me, that’s a big issue. That’s the pitch I use for strikeouts and for hitters to chase.”
Lucas Giolito (1-1, 7.08 ERA) is slated to pitch the nightcap. He got started Saturday against Atlanta, lasting just four frames and allowing six runs on eight hits, three of which were home runs.
“They need to step up. That’s the bottom line,” Cora said. “We have to step up as a rotation. It’s not only Garrett (Crochet). It’s everybody. We have to do a better job as a group.”
Bello is 4-2 with a 3.66 ERA in six career starts vs. Baltimore. Giolito, who is on a three-start win streak, owns a 3-2 mark with a 5.19 ERA in five lifetime starts against the Orioles.
