Red Sox beat Pirates in extra-innings on Sandy Leon walk-off home run

It took a few extra innings to do it, but the Boston Red Sox walked off with a win thanks to a home run from catcher Sandy Leon.

If you thought Sandy Leon got off to a scorching start once he took over as the primary catcher for the Boston Red Sox last season, wait until you see what he does for an encore.

A pitcher’s duel turned into an extra-innings affair that seemed as if it may never end as both teams traded zeros on the scoreboard. With an afternoon game looming a mere 14 hours away, a weary Red Sox team entered the 12th inning looking to put an end to the shutout.

That’s when the Sandyman came to the rescue.

With two on and one out, Leon stepped to the plate against left-hander Antonio Bastardo. The switch-hitting catcher abused lefties last season to the tune of a .373/.450/.612 slash line and that success was on display again tonight. Bastardo left an inviting pitch over the plate that Leon crushed into the Green Monster seats for a three-run walk-off home run.

A loss would have pinned part of the blame on Leon, who ran through a stop sign only to be easily thrown out at the plate on a Dustin Pedroia single in the third inning. The miscue became increasingly costly with each passing scoreless inning, but Leon redeemed himself and then some.

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Leon is now 5-for-8 (.625) at the plate through two games with a 1.750 OPS that currently places him second in the American League. Sure, it’s a minuscule sample size and he could just as easily be hitting below the Mendoza Line a few days from now. That’s how drastically statistics can fluctuate in a hurry early in the season.

Still, it’s a promising start from a catcher who many questioned whether or not he could recapture the magic from last year. He has Christian Vazquez vying for playing time with his elite defensive skills and Blake Swihart breathing down their necks from Pawtucket with the upside of his bat.

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As long as Leon keeps hitting while providing solid defense behind the plate, he’ll retain the primary catching job. Dramatic endings like this tend to stick in our minds for a while, so if Leon entered the season on a short leash he certainly gave himself a bit of a cushion tonight.