The 2025 Red Sox are eager for the chance to compete in cold October conditions over the next few months.
However, temperatures below 40 degrees are quite another matter, particularly during the first few weeks of the new baseball season.
Following Tuesday's 6-1 defeat against the Blue Jays, which had a first pitch temperature of 35 degrees—the third coldest ever recorded for a Red Sox home game— according to Baseball Reference — The rematch against Toronto on Wednesday was welcomed… with temperatures at 46 degrees for the first pitch.
And in keeping with the dismal weather plaguing the Commonwealth at present, the The Red Sox's previously powerful batting lineup at Fenway Park is now entirely covered with ice.
Yeah, there's no excuse," Alex Bregman stated regarding the weather following Wednesday’s 2-1 defeat against Toronto in 11 innings. "Both teams had to play under those conditions. We need to improve. And it begins with me. I need to step up my game.
After scoring 44 runs over a four-game span from April 3-6, the Red Sox have now scored four total runs over their first three games against the Blue Jays on their homestand — unsurprisingly dropping all three matchups as a result.
Although Toronto’s starting pitcher Kevin Gausman delivered an outstanding performance (8 innings, 4 hits, 10 strikeouts), the Red Sox failed to create many opportunities for extended plate appearances or making solid contact with the ball.
Boston’s four hits marked the fewest they’ve collected in a game since getting one-hit by the Rays on Sept. 19, 2024 — with the team now batting just 2-for-29 (0.68) with runners in scoring position over this three-game slide.
"A significant number of strikeouts," remarked an honest Alex Cora when discussing Boston’s batting strategy, noting that they struck out 14 times during Wednesday’s defeat.
Whenever Boston failed to capitalize on strike opportunities, their batters struggled against Gausman and the Blue Jays' pitchers. Gausman and relief pitcher Jeff Hoffman from Toronto needed just five pitches apiece to navigate through the seventh and ninth innings smoothly.
I believe some of these players—you don't want to let them reach two strikes since they have some really effective off-speed pitches," Bregman commented about Toronto’s pitchers. "Therefore, occasionally you might attempt to be proactive with your swings. Clearly, it didn’t pan out tonight, but we'll devise a fresh strategy for tomorrow and take another shot at them.
“I believe they've thrown some effective pitches against us, but clearly we haven't matched that with our own high-quality plate appearances,” he said additionally. “So, let’s focus on tomorrow and aim to change that.”
Boston’s subdued performance at bat thwarted a promising beginning from Tanner Houck, who held Toronto to merely five hits and one run across 6.2 innings. Following the concession of three hits and that solitary run in the opening frame, he didn’t grant another hit until after 15 consecutive batters had been dealt with.
I mean, I have complete faith in them," Houck stated regarding Boston's bats coming alive. "I am aware that they put in tremendous effort and always appear ready. They invest their entire being into it, which is everything I could hope for from them. I understand that situations can change rapidly.
Over the past several seasons, the Blue Jays have had great success playing at Fenway Park—securing victory in seven out of their last nine games there.
Triston Casas — batting just .163 on the year — is looking forward to more matchups against the Blue Jays moving forward, starting with Thursday’s matchup between Walker Buehler and Chris Bassitt.
It's great that we'll get many opportunities to face them since we required these batting practices," Casas stated. "We had to experience failure as it will help us make the necessary adjustments, perform better when we step up next time.
Subscribe for Red Sox news
Receive daily updates and insights via email throughout the baseball season.
The post As a cold front strikes Fenway Park, the Red Sox's bats are turning icy. appeared first on Diwida | .
