The Red Sox (6-10) moved past the Pirates (3-14) by a 6-4 count in a nail biter playoff game under moody skies at the new Penn Field in Oak Bluffs on Tuesday night.
The Red Sox broke a 4-4 tie in the fourth inning to take a 5-4 lead, then added an insurance run in the fifth for the final tally. Aiden Rogers struck out the side in the Pirates’ sixth inning to nail down the win. The Sox move on to face the league-leading Cubs (14-1) in the next single-elimination round on Wednesday night, in the first week of play on a beautiful Penn Field.
Both teams were in playoff mode, particularly in the field. Both made all the got-to-make-’em plays and tossed in a handful of jaw-droppers.
This one was a seesaw battle from the get-go, with Red Sox starter Emily Mello and Pirates hurler Isaac Richards pitching to contact and relying on superb defense that featured a bunch of highlight-reel plays, including a diving catch of a line drive by Pirates third-sacker Felix Colon and a couple of Pedroia-like snatches by Sox second baseman Atlas Zack.
The Pirates took a 1-0 lead in the first on three singles sandwiched around a strikeout. Leadoff hitter Nick Cranston scored on a fielder’s choice as the Red Sox gloves limited the damage. The Red Sox tied it in the bottom of the inning when Owen DiBiaso scored on an Aiden Rogers groundout. After an Emily Mello single, Pirate third-sacker Colon robbed Aiden Marek of extra bases with a full-extension diving catch on a ball that was smoked.
The Pirates jumped on top 2-1 in the second, and threatened for more, before Atlas Zack tumbled into right field to come up with a short fly ball with two Pirates on base. In their third, the Red Sox struck for three runs. Aiden Marek singled to put the Red Sox ahead 3-2 before Aiden Rogers scored on a passed ball to make the score 4-2.
Back came the Pirates, knotting the game at 4-4 on RBIs from Isaac Richards and Jack deBettencourt in the fourth. A Red Sox double in the bottom of the inning scored Jakie Glasgow. The threat was ended on the play with two great Pirate relay throws to catcher Nico Arroyo, who blocked the plate to tag out a sliding Liam Marek.
The defending champion Red Sox scored an insurance run in the bottom of the fifth. Emily Mello provided some fireworks in that frame, hitting a bomb into the wind that was caught on the warning track in dead centerfield before the Pirates went quietly in the sixth.
The winner of Wednesday’s Cubs–Red Sox matchup moves on to the championship game on June 20.
