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| Author: | yyys123 [ Wed Feb 19, 2020 3:19 pm ] |
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BOSTON -- David Price is in quite a groove, one perhaps even better than his 2012 American League Cy Young Award winning season. Price pitched a five-hitter for his third complete game of the season, Wil Myers had a two-run single, and the surging Tampa Bay Rays won for the 19th time in 22 games by beating the Boston Red Sox 5-1 on Wednesday night. Price (5-5) needed only 97 pitches -- 72 strikes -- for his seventh career complete game. He struck out four and didnt walk a batter. Since returning from a 47-day stint on the disabled list because of a triceps strain, he is 4-1 with a 1.76 ERA in five starts -- with three of the last four complete games. "Absolutely," Price said when asked if he is better now than any time a year ago. "Last year, I feel like I had complete control of two pitches. Right now, honestly, I feel like I have four pitches I can throw at any time." The 27-year old left-hander overpowered Bostons hitters, relying on a hard mid-90s fastball and sharp slider to lower his career ERA to 1.96 in Fenway Park. That is the lowest mark among active pitchers with at least 20 innings there. "I didnt know what to expect when he came back," Rays manager Joe Maddon said. "Its just hard to imagine a guy pitching better than he is now. I dont think Ive seen it in regards to quality of pitches and stuff, location against a good hitting ballclub." Even Price, 20-5 with a 2.56 ERA last season, feels like the clubs pitchers are dominating at an amazing pace. "Its just like hitting," he said. "You hear it all the time -- hitting is contagious. So is pitching. Weve been on a good groove, Its been fun. We feel like we have five guys that can go out there and win anytime. I dont think there are many teams in the majors that can say that." Since dropping into the AL East basement by percentage points on June 23, the Rays have relied on starting pitching to go 22-5. Tampa Bays starters have a majors best 2.21 ERA during the run. "He was throwing strikes all night long," Boston manager John Farrell said of Price. "I think up until about the sixth inning he was right around 80 per cent strikes, which is almost unheard of. He never gave us a chance to build any kind of inning. Tip your hat. He pitched one heck of a game against us." James Loney had two hits and drove in a run for the Rays. Tampa Bay moved within a half-game of the AL East-leading Red Sox. Mike Napoli homered for Boston, which lost for the fifth time in eight games. Felix Doubront (7-4) gave up three runs and six hits. He walked two and struck out six in 6 2-3 innings. It was his 13th straight game allowing three runs or fewer, the best stretch by a Red Sox left-hander since at least 1920. "The bottom line is were still in first place," Doubront said. "Thats how I look at it. Give credit where credit is due. David Price pitched a great game." Boston lost for the fifth time in 15 games against the Rays. Tampa Bay jumped ahead with three runs in the third on Myers two-run single and Sean Rodriguezs sacrifice fly. Myers bloop fell into shallow centre after the Rays loaded the bases on two singles and a fielders choice. In the seventh, Napoli homered over the seats above the Green Monster and out of the park. Loney and Jose Molina each had RBI singles off Matt Thornton to push the Rays lead to 5-1 in the eighth. Like in the opening game of the series when left-hander Matt Moore threw a two-hitter in a 3-0 victory, the Red Sox had trouble stringing hits together. In the fifth, Napoli had a leadoff double, but the next three hitters flied out. Boston also had leadoff singles in the second and fourth, but Price retired the side easily both times. Doubront had been 3-0 with a 1.83 ERA in his previous six starts, allowing two earned runs or fewer in all of them. NOTES: Maddon juggled his lineup, moving Evan Longoria up to the No. 2 spot. "Hopefully hell see a different type of pitching," Maddon said. Longoria had homered in three of his previous five games, but hit just .136 in his previous 18 with one homer. Maddon inserted hot rookie Myers in the cleanup spot. ... Boston sends John Lackey (7-7, 2.95 ERA) against Tampa Bays Jeremy Hellickson (9-3, 4.62 ERA) in the series finale on Thursday. ... Rays highly touted prospect RHP Taylor Guerrieri underwent ulnar collateral ligament surgery on Wednesday in Pensacola, Fla. He is expected to miss the rest of this season and part of next season. . -- Bryant McKinnie came out of his stance and lowered his shoulder into a practice squad player, causing a crisp thud to reverberate in the Miami Dolphins practice bubble. . President of baseball operations Larry Beinfest was fired Friday after 12 years with the Marlins. The move came as the team neared the end of its third consecutive last-place season in the NL East. . Its 1987 and a Brazilian playmaker, known as Mirandinha, is being paraded around St James Park to the passionate Newcastle fans. .com) - The Montreal Canadiens embark on their first road trip of the season as they head out west to battle the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night. . -- Timbers coach Caleb Porter didnt stray from his business-like approach to the season even after Portland downed the two-time defending league champion Los Angeles Galaxy to gain crucial playoff position. Chittagong: 62 for 5Englands seven-Test marathon began in Bangladeshs port city and they only just managed to stay afloat. They had a narrow lead heading into their second innings which was almost squandered. Shakib Al Hasan, who had formed a twin new-ball spin attack with teenager Mehedi Hasan, claimed three including the key wicket of Joe Root. In the end, Ben Stokes superb 85 gave them just enough to defend but it was a warning sign of what was to come.Dhaka: 69 for 5 and 10 for 64Those warning signs that flashed in Chittagong, blared at full volume a few days later in Dhaka. In the first innings England lost the top half of their innings for 69 - after Bangladesh themselves had lost 9 for 49 - before the lower order managed to haul them to a small lead. But there was no escape second time around as they lost all ten wickets for 64 in 22.2 gruesome overs after Alastair Cook and Ben Duckett had opened with an aggressive stand of 100 in 23 overs. It all changed first ball after tea on the third evening when Mehedi speared one through Duckett. It turned into a magical afternoon for Mehedi as he secured match figures of 12 for 159 - the best by a Bangladesh bowler in Tests. It was a shock England would never really recover from.Visakhapatnam: 80 for 5 and 10 for 83After brief respite in Rajkot, where they pushed India hard, the worst fears about England in India started to come to fruition. In the face of Indias 455 the match was basically lost in the final session of the second day. Mohammad Shamis pearler to Cook began the first slide, but the run out of Haseeb Hameed and Roots carve into the deep were self-inflicted. Faced with five sessions to secure a draw, England opted for the blockathon approach as Cook and Hameed added 75 in 50 overs before a grubber trapped Hameed lbw. Then, with what became the final ball of the fourth day, Cook was lbw to Ravindra Jadeja which meant the last morning began with the vulnerable Duckett in the middle rather than their captain. Despite having eight wickets in hand there was an air of inevitably and the match ended shortly after lunch: all 10 wickets had gone in 47 overs.Mohali: 107 for 6Despite an underwhelming first innings, England were still in the contest when they removed Virat Kohli tto leave India 204 for 6.dddddddddddd But the last four wickets added 213 and England went into bat again starring at a deficit of 134 instead of somewhere near parity. Still, it was not entirely beyond the realms of possibility that India could be left with a testing chase but that notion disappeared as they fell to 78 for 4 on the third evening - the batting order having been reshuffled due to Hameeds broken finger. They slipped further on the fourth day before a modicum of pride of restored through Hameeds gritty defiance, but the damage - in every sense - had long since been done. And it wasnt just spin that did them on this occasion, Shami producing a rapid new-ball burst to break the belated resistance. Mumbai: 6 for 15Rarely had a total of 400 been made to look so inadequate (well, at least until England outdid themselves a week later in Chennai) as Kohli made a career-best 235 alongside M Vijays century and Jayant Yadavs stylish maiden hundred - Indias first by a No. 9. As in Vizag, England were eyeing parity with India 307 for 6 only for them to return to the crease 231 runs behind. They played their shots, in a forlorn hope to set India some sort of final-day target, but from the moment Stokes fell shortly before the close on the fourth day the lower order was zapped for just 15 runs as R Ashwin claimed an astonishing 6 for 7 in 37 balls.Chennai: 10 for 104 including 6 for 15Was there time for one final collapse? There sure was. At lunch on the final day in Chennai it appeared England had managed to restore a small sense of order after being pummelled for 759 by Indias batsmen. Cook and Keaton Jennings had reached the first break on 97 without loss with two sessions left to leave having shown some fight. Yet, in the end, India won with time to spare. Cook fell to his nemesis, Jadeja, for a sixth time in the series then a raft of soft shots from Jonny Bairstow, Moeen Ali and Stokes led to a swift unravelling. It was fitting that the final two wickets of the series fell in the space of four deliveries. Now all that was left was for England to collapse into the plane seats for the journey home. ' ' ' |
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