After going through the winning stretch that the Boston Red Sox put together, you knew they would hit a bump in the road at some point. Little did anyone know that it would come against the Athletics and the Toronto Blue Jays.
After dropping two of three to the Athletics at Fenway Park, Boston then dropped three of four to the Blue Jays in Canada. However, they avoided being swept with a 7-0 win on Thursday afternoon behind Payton Tolle and Caleb Durbin.
The Red Sox will look to avoid a third straight series loss against the Pittsburgh Pirates beginning on Friday night in Pennsylvania. Boston announced who will be their starting pitchers this weekend.
Boston Red Sox Announce Starters Against Pirates
Pittsburgh avoided a sweep at the hands of the Miami Marlins on Thursday afternoon with a 13-1 win in South Florida. However, this will be the only series between the two teams this season. Here are the scheduled starters for both teams.
- Friday: Jake Bennett (7-5, 3.17 ERA) vs. Bubba Chandler (5-8, 4.26 ERA), 6:40 p.m.
- Saturday: Sonny Gray (14-3, 2.79 ERA) vs. Jared Jones (2-4, 5.03 ERA), 7:15 p.m.
- Sunday: Patrick Sandoval (1-1, 3.30 ERA) vs. Paul Skenes (9-11, 3.88 ERA), 1:35 p.m.
Bennett was the only starter not to pitch in Toronto. He was acquired from the Washington Nationals over the winter. Bennett has been a big addition given the injuries the starting rotation has dealt with this season. The 25-year-old has been roughed up in August, allowing seven earned runs in 11 innings against the Athletics and Los Angeles Dodgers.
Gray will come back on five days’ rest and will be looking for his 15th win of the season on Saturday. The veteran right-hander worked six innings against Toronto on Monday night. He allowed two runs in a 2-1 loss.
On Sunday, Sandoval draws the assignment to go up against Paul Skenes. However, this hasn’t been a great season for Skenes. He was roughed up on Opening Day against the New York Mets, and things haven’t gotten better. The 24-year-old reigning Cy Young Award winner is two games below .500, but he does have 166 strikeouts in 134.2 innings.
Boston Red Sox Looking To Rebound Against Pittsburgh Pirates
Boston avoided disaster against the Blue Jays with a win on Thursday. The good news is that they avoided All-Star Braxton Ashcraft, but they get Skenes on Sunday. The Red Sox went six days last time through the rotation; however, they are going on the normal five days this time around.
After this series, Boston returns home to host the Arizona Diamondbacks and San Francisco Giants. This is a chance to gain some ground on the New York Yankees. The Red Sox are three games back for the first wild-card spot. They do have a four-game series at the end of the month in the Bronx. Home-field advantage in the wild-card round would be huge.
Furthermore, Pittsburgh has faded in the National League wild-card race. They have lost seven of their last 10 games and are now six games out and fading fast. Pittsburgh has not won a series since taking two out of three from the Cleveland Guardians coming out of the All-Star break.
Boston Red Sox Announce Starting Pitchers for Pittsburgh Pirates Series