The Cincinnati Reds (24-29) continue its two city road trip tonight with the start of a three game series against the Boston Red Sox (28-25) at historic Fenway Park. First pitch is at 7:10 EDT.
The Red Sox come into this series three games over .500, yet find themselves in fourth place and 9.5 games behind the division leading Tampa Bay Rays, thanks to being in the AL East, the best division in baseball. The Red Sox have won with with its offense. They are third in the AL in OPS at .762, fourth in batting average at .262, and third in RBIs.
The Red Sox’s pitching staff has what’s hurt them. Their team ERA is 4.68, with only the White Sox, Royals, and A’s being worse. Their staff has also pitched the least amount of innings in the AL and has given up 75 home runs.
Lineups
Cincinnati Reds
|
Boston Red Sox |
| CF TJ Friedl | RF Raimel Tapia |
| SS Matt McLain | 3B Rafael Devers |
| 2B Jonathan India | DH Justin Turner |
| DH Jake Fraley | LF Masataka Yoshida |
| C Tyler Stephenson | CF Jarran Duran |
| 1B Spencer Steer | 1B Triston Casas |
| 3B Kevin Newman |
SS Enrique Hernández |
| LF Will Benson | 2B Enmanuel Valdez |
| RF Stuart Fairchild | C Reese McGuire |
Nick Senzel was a late scratch from the lineup. Kevin Newman is now starting at third base.
Starting Pitchers
Ben Lively
When Nick Lodolo went down with a calf injury, everyone wondered who would step up in his place. Through 17.0 innings and two starts, right-hander Ben Lively has done an excellent job. He allowed only two runs and struck out eight in 5.2 innings against the Yankees, and in his most recent start, Lively pitched six full innings, allowing only two runs (two solo homers) and striking out another eight batters.
It might be impressive that Lively’s only walked three batters in 17 innings, but actually he’s never really walked a lot of batters in his career. In his entire career, both majors, minors and KBO, he’s only had a BB/9 greater than 4.00 three times in ten years.
Career Splits
| Split | PA | H | 2B | 3B | HR | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| RHH | 288 | 68 | 20 | 1 | 7 | 5% | 21% | .258 | .307 | .421 |
| LHH | 301 | 78 | 14 | 3 | 14 | 10% | 13% | .293 | .370 | .526 |
Pitch Usage – 2023
| 4-Seam | 2-Seam | Cutter | Curve | Slider | Change | |
| Velo | 91.2 | 91.7 | 89.0 | 76.5 | 80.5 | 84.9 |
| Usage | 32.1% | 19.1% | 4.2% | 8.0% | 26.0% | 10.7% |
Brayan Bello
Twenty-four year old Brayan Bello is in his sophomore season and having a fairly average season to date. He hasn’t been good, but he also hasn’t been terrible. His ERA is sitting at 4.08 in 35.1 innings. In his most recent start against the Angels on 5/23, he allowed two runs, both home runs, on six hits with six strikeouts and zero walks. He pitched seven innings that start, his longest outing of the season.
Bello has five pitches, but almost never throws his curve ball. He replies on his two-seam fastball, while mixing in a four-seamer, change up and slider.
Career Splits
| Split | PA | H | 2B | 3B | HR | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| RHH | 244 | 65 | 16 | 1 | 4 | 9% | 24% | .298 | .365 | .436 |
| LHH | 181 | 49 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 10% | 18% | .308 | .378 | .440 |
Pitch Usage
| 4-Seam | 2-Seam | Curve | Slider | Change | |
| Velo | 96.2 | 95.7 | 84.2 | 85.5 | 87.7 |
| Usage | 20.1% | 37.4% | 0.3% | 20.8% | 21.4% |
Details:
- Time: 7:10 pm EDT
- Place: Fenway Park, Boston, MA
- Forecast: 63 degrees, mostly sunny, 0 percent chance of rain
- TV: Bally Sports Ohio
- Radio: 700 WLW
News and Notes
Chattanooga pitcher Tommy Eveld received some accolades for his performance last week.
Stat of the Day
From the beginning of the season through 4/23, the Reds led baseball with 7 one-run losses.
Beginning 4/24 through last night’s games, the Reds rank T3rd (w/ the Rays) with 7 one-run wins.
— Jamie Ramsey (@Jamieblog) May 30, 2023
Final Thoughts
This series has me reminiscing about my trip to Boston and Fenway Park exactly a year ago. If you ever have a chance to visit Fenway, I would highly recommend taking that opportunity. It’s a magical place, and worth every penny to see it.
Since the Reds are in Boston, here’s a throwback to when the Reds were at Fenway exactly one year ago. Boston is now one of my favorite cities I’ve visited, and Fenway is in my top 5 favorite ballparks. pic.twitter.com/zpWxacugep
— Ashley Davis (@AshleyDavis32) May 30, 2023
