College double header: Red Sox come out on top
The college double header is something that Red Sox fans look forward to every year. In both games this year, the Red Sox came out on top.
Joel Hanrahan was the talk of the game. The closer actaually started the game against Northeastern, which was unusual for him. He almost seemed a little lost about 30 minutes before game time.
“Should I get going? Should I wait? But I took it kind of as a real game when I was warming up,” he said. “I took my normal 18 pitches to get ready for a game, walked in the dugout, grabbed a drink of water and went out. It wasn’t bad.”
Hanrahan struck out two hitters in the first inning. He was originally brought in to anchor the Boston bullpen this season, but the Red Sox gave him the start for this game.
Northeastern’s Aaron Barbosa led off with a two-strike single, and that was the only hit Hanrahan allowed. He also hit another player at the plate.
“I was happy with how it went,” Hanrahan said. “I wasn’t planning on hitting that kid – poor guy. But I threw strikes for the most part so I was happy with that.”
Since it was an informal occasion, Boston came out to bat in the bottom of the seventh even though they were already winning 3-0. They scored two more runs, which weren’t included in the box score.
Boston used seven pitchers for an inning each, and none of them allowed more than one hit. Daniel Bard pitched the second, allowing a single to his first batter before striking out the next three.
“I’m satisfied,” Bard said. “Not perfect obviously but it’s a huge step in the right direction. It’s always good to get out the gate with some good results.”
Designated hitter Jarrod Saltalamacchia opened the scoring with an RBI double in the first, and Boston added additional runs in the fifth and sixth.
After the win against Northeastern, the Red Sox beat down the Boston College Eagles, winning the game 11-1. The Sox got things rolling with Mauro Gomez providing a leadoff double and scoring on Jeremy Hazelbaker‘s single.
The Eagles managed to tie the game at one a piece, but that was where the Eagles stopped.
The Red Sox used the bottom of the third to turn the game into mockery. Brock Holt broke the tie with a single, scoring himself when Jackie Bradley doubled to right, missing a home run by just a couple feet. Gomez knocked in two of his own before Daniel Butler finished it off with the Sox’ first homer of the year.
After that, it was all down hill for Boston College. The Sox scored a pair of runs in the fifth inning as well.
The Red Sox take on the Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday. John Lackey, who was sidelined all last year following elbow-ligament replacement surgery, is expected to pitch in that game.
