David Ortiz looks back on one of the greatest speeches in Red Sox history
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Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Are Yankees' struggles over after 2 months? Here's their take on 5-1 surge
ST. LOUIS — Yankees manager Aaron Boone says he likes it when he can walk into the clubhouse after a game and not tell if his team just won or lost. Other than the music and Jazz Chisholm sipping on a bottle of beer, the mood was tempered Sunday after the Yankees rallied late for an 8-4 victory to sweep three from the Cardinals and make it five out of six counting last week's series win over the Twins in New York. This last week probably was more of a relief than satisfying for the Yankees, who realize two good series doesn't make up for damage in the standings caused while they were losing 31 of 51 games from June 13 to Aug. 10. 'Look, I think we know we're a good team,' Boone said. 'We believed that even through some of the down times and some dark moments of the season. I don't think we've ever lost that confidence. So we're capable of this. We got to go prove it though.' They're hoping this past week was a start to proving it, but they know they'll probably need a long stretch of winning baseball to repeat as AL East champs, which remains their No. 1 regular-season goal. With 38 games to play, the Yankees still are third in the division, but they gained ground on both teams ahead of them on Sunday, pulling to 5 ½ games behind the first-place Blue Jays and a half-game of the second-place Red Sox. The Yankees also stretched their lead over the Guardians for the third AL wild-card spot to 3 ½ games. 'We've been saying it all year, when we play like we're supposed to play like these are the results you're going to get,' rookie right-hander Will Warren said after his 4 2/3-inning, 3-run no-decision. 'We've been staying with the process. We haven't strayed from anything we've done. 'Just head down, keep going and we're starting to win again.' The Yankees had some help on Sunday. After scoring a seventh-inning run to make it a 4-4 game, they scored four in the ninth on only one hit thanks to two very costly errors by Cardinals second baseman Thomas Saggese. His throwing error on Jose Caballero's leadoff chopper gave the Yankees a runner on second base with nobody out and his boot on Cody Bellinger's bases-loaded, one-out grounder scored two to put the Yankees ahead 6-4. 'The value of putting the ball in play there at the end and taking advantage of mistakes … it was a good way to finish it off going into the off day,' Boone said. The Yankees have Monday off in Tampa, then play the Rays two games at their spring training ballpark before returning to New York for four big ones against the Red Sox and then three with the Nationals. The Yankees are optimistic that their worst of times finally are over. 'When I got here, the boys were down a little bit,' said third baseman Ryan McMahon, who was traded by the Rockies to the Yankees in late July. 'You could feel it. But we're picking up play and it's all about momentum in this game.' The Yankees felt like they had a lot of momentum winning five in a row from July 6 to July 11, but that led into a lot more struggles, nine wins in their next 24. 'We've got a long way to go in this and it's always really good getting a sweep, but we've got to keep going,' Boone said. 'We're not a finished product yet. We know we're capable of a lot, but we got a ways to go.' The Yankees still want to repeat as division champs, then get back to the World Series and this time win it. This past week were baby steps that may or may not be the start of an extended surge after a couple months of serious underachieving. 'I hope so,' first baseman Paul Goldschmidt said after a three-hit game. 'These last six weeks will tell. Obviously this is a good week for us to win five out of six games, but there's a lot of tough opponents coming up. We'll try to play well and keep going.' Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting us with a subscription. Randy Miller may be reached at rmiller@
New York Times
5 hours ago
- New York Times
Red Sox takeaways: Bullpen concerns, Wilyer Abreu's injury, more
BOSTON — The Boston Red Sox's bullpen has been among the best in baseball this season, yet this weekend proved forgettable for the relief corps and highlighted a potential weakness for the team as it fights for a postseason spot. On Saturday, in a 7-2 game, Isaiah Campbell entered in the ninth and gave up three runs, necessitating closer Aroldis Chapman to enter and close out the win. Advertisement Chapman, who'd also made 11 pitches on Friday, wasn't available on Sunday, and his teammates couldn't pick him up. Greg Weissert gave up a game-tying homer in the ninth and Steven Matz subsequently surrendered a two-run shot, turning a 3-2 Red Sox lead and chance at a series sweep of the Miami Marlins into a 5-3 loss. 'It sucks to be the person that is responsible for it,' Weissert said. 'Garrett (Crochet) goes out there every game and it's always a chance to win, and to not be able to pick up Chappy being down, it sucks.' Boston's bullpen entered Sunday with a 3.38 ERA, best in the American League and third in the majors. But beyond Chapman, Garrett Whitlock (who allowed a run in the eighth on Sunday) and Justin Wilson, there are some concerns in the bullpen. Weissert has been solid overall and entered Sunday having given up just one run since July 2. But with a heavy workload early in the year, Weissert's innings have been managed a bit by manager Alex Cora over the last two months to help him maintain his effectiveness. Weissert leads the team with 56 appearances. Matz, meanwhile, had not given up a run since arriving via trade two weeks ago, but is more of a multi-inning reliever than a high-leverage setup man, a role he was forced into on Sunday. Jordan Hicks should have given the Red Sox depth in that department, but he is still searching for consistency. The Red Sox may see some relief help arriving soon in the form of Justin Slaten, who is ramping up after being out since June 1 with a shoulder/neck injury. He threw his third bullpen on Friday and is scheduled for a live batting practice session on Monday. If all goes well, his next step would be another live BP or a rehab assignment. The Red Sox have been surging of late, but tough losses like Sunday's highlight the need to keep up their winning pace. Had Boston (68-57) held on for a win, it would have pulled within four games of the Blue Jays (73-52) for first in the American League East and fortified its wild-card position. The loss also wasted another solid start from Crochet, who allowed one run on three hits and a walk, striking out eight in seven innings. Advertisement 'It's difficult to lose a game like that and even more with where we are in the standings right now,' Wilyer Abreu said. Abreu gave the Red Sox the lead with a two-run homer in the fourth inning on Sunday and scored on a sacrifice fly from Abraham Toro in the seventh. But in the next half inning, he exited the game with right calf tightness. The right fielder, who leads the team with 22 homers, said it cramped up as he was tagging up from third to score. 'It's a little bit tight,' he said. 'Right now, I'm day-to-day to see how I wake up tomorrow. Hopefully be ready, take probably two or three days and be ready for New York.' Abreu didn't think an IL stint would be necessary, but losing him for more than a few days would be an obvious blow to the offense. In his last 16 games, he's hitting .300 with an .860 OPS. Prior to the trade deadline, we reported that the Red Sox planned to give outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia playing time at first base in Triple-A Worcester. Garcia has done pre-game work at first over the last two weeks for the WooSox, but played in his first game at the position on Sunday, making a nice pick on one play. Nice pick from Jhostynxon Garcia for an inning ending double play. — Ian Cundall (@IanCundall) August 17, 2025 Garcia is hitting .308 with a .945 OPS in Worcester, but there's little room for him in the big league outfield at the moment. Expanding his defensive versatility might give him a better path to the majors. Meanwhile, Kristian Campbell has continued to excel in Worcester, hitting .323 with a .943 OPS in 26 games since the All-Star break. But when asked this weekend about Campbell's progress, Cora was evasive. 'I've been watching the at-bats,' Cora said. 'He's producing, but there's still work to do.' Advertisement Cora admitted the reality of Campbell's situation: He needs to get better at facing big-league pitching, but he's not seeing big-league pitching in Triple A. 'The same things that he struggled here (in the majors) with — pitch recognition, covering certain shapes of fastballs,' Cora said when asked about what Campbell needs to improve on. 'That's something that is hard, because he's not going to get that down there. The velo here is harder. It's faster. Locations are on point here. With all due respect to players down there, the gap is a big gap. So it's just one of those that, we've got to keep working, and he has to keep working and see what the future holds.' In 67 games with Boston, Campbell hit .223 with a .664 OPS. Like Garcia, Campbell has gotten reps at first base in Worcester, but has mostly played second. He played center field for Worcester on Sunday, the first time he'd done so at Triple A after playing seven games in center earlier this season while in Boston. Now that Marcelo Mayer is officially out for the year with wrist surgery, perhaps the Red Sox will find time for Campbell on the roster at second base, but that remains to be seen. Kutter Crawford spoke with reporters on Friday for the first time since season-ending wrist surgery on July 2. Crawford posted a 4.36 ERA over 33 starts last season, but hasn't played at all in 2025, beginning the year on the IL with a knee injury that he suffered last season and reaggravated just before spring training. As he was working his way back from the knee injury, Crawford described injuring his wrist while doing some routine maintenance around his house. 'It's been tough,' he said. 'I was really close to starting a rehab assignment before I had this incident with the wrist the day before my last live BP. Advertisement 'I was outside, kind of moving some stuff and when I went to move something, it got hung up and it turned my wrist the other way, and I kind of felt a subtle pop,' he said. Crawford took time off from throwing and tried to return to the mound, but still experienced pain. He'd torn the subsheath that holds the tendon in place in his wrist. Over the past six weeks, Crawford has been in the early stages of rehab and noted that with the rest, his knee feels as good as it's felt in 'three or four years.' He's hopeful that issue is behind him and he can focus on his wrist recovery. The plan is to begin throwing in October so that he can be ready by the start of spring training. 'I take pride in being healthy and available and just grabbing the ball every fifth day and competing to the best of my ability,' he said. 'It's been frustrating not being able to go out there and compete and go to battle with my teammates.' (Photo of Wilyer Abreu scoring in the seventh inning, after which he left the game: Bob DeChiara / Imagn Images) Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle
Newsweek
7 hours ago
- Newsweek
Aliyah Boston Breaks Caitlin Clark's Franchise Record in Historic Fever Comeback
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Despite losing teammate Sophie Cunningham to a worrying knee injury in the second quarter and star guard Caitlin Clark still on the mend from a nagging groin injury that's kept her out for the last month, Sunday was a monumental day for two Indiana Fever stars. Kelsey Mitchell knocked down a career-high 38 points to lead Indiana a 21-point comeback victory over the Connecticut Sun — the largest come-from-behind win in Fever history — and Aliyah Boston also wrote her name in the team's record books. Trailing by 21 points early in the third quarter, the Fever were desperate for some offense. Enter Mitchell. More WNBA: Fever Lose Sophie Cunningham to Concerning Injury vs Sun The 29-year-old guard scored 34 of her 38 points after halftime, including a key and-1 with just 44.7 seconds left in the fourth quarter to tie the game up. After Tina Charles put Connecticut ahead again, Boston hit 16-foot jumper to tie it again and send the game to overtime. Mitchell scored 10 of Indiana's 15 points in the extra period to seal the comeback win (Lexie Hull hit a 3-pointer and which teammate Caitlin Clark believes put her firmly in the MVP conversation. More WNBA: Caitlin Clark Makes Bold WNBA MVP Declaration After Fever-Sun Caitlin Clark #22 of the Indiana Fever talks with Aliyah Boston #7 against the Chicago Sky during the fourth quarter in the game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on June 01, 2024 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Caitlin Clark #22 of the Indiana Fever talks with Aliyah Boston #7 against the Chicago Sky during the fourth quarter in the game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on June 01, 2024 in Indianapolis, while Mitchell's impressive performance deserved celebration, so too did Boston's. The Fever announced after the game that Boston, a former No. 1 overall pick, had passed Clark for the most single-season double-doubles in team history. "AB, the double-double machine 💪. Congrats to Aliyah Boston on becoming the new franchise leader for most double-doubles in a single season with 15 & counting!" the Fever wrote on X. More WNBA: Kelsey Plum Breaks Silence After Backlash Over Viral Caitlin Clark Diss AB, the double-double machine 💪 congrats to Aliyah Boston on becoming the new franchise leader for most double-doubles in a single season with 15 & counting! — Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) August 17, 2025 Boston came close to breaking Clark's record last season, which is also when Clark set the record herself, missing out by just one game. It's also not the first record Boston has broken in her WNBA career. She also set the Fever franchise record for single-season rebounds last season as well. Boston's WNBA resume includes three WNBA All-Star selections, three Rookie of the Month honors, two Player of the Week honors, a Rookie of the Year win, and an All-Rookie Team selection. More WNBA: Sophie Cunningham Could Receive Another WNBA Fine After Latest Remarks More WNBA: Angel Reese Sends Cryptic 3-Word Message Before Sky vs Sun More WNBA: Fever Coach Stephanie White Gives Major Caitlin Clark Injury Update More WNBA: A'ja Wilson Becomes First WNBA Player to Accomplish Rare Feat
