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Red Sox: Top five performances of opening series vs Pittsburgh Pirates

By Jimmy Longo |
Apr 5, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Chris Sale (41) pitches during the first inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 5, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Chris Sale (41) pitches during the first inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
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Baseball is back, and all is good with the Boston Red Sox so far. In the first series of the season, these plays and performances stood out the most.

Apr 5, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Chris Sale (41) pitches during the first inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 5, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Chris Sale (41) pitches during the first inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports /

Boy, it sure is a good feeling to see baseball scores online. Coinciding with the emergence of warmer weather in colder parts of the country, the start of the Boston Red Sox season is enough to warm all baseball fans up, regardless of geographical area.

While small in sample size as many teams are still completing their first series while others — Chicago and Cincinnati are trying to get games in — some gaudy and impressive performances have been had thus far to start the season.

Nothing too drastic has happened yet either, no team has lost every member of the rotation or lost someone to a freak injury. The Red Sox sure do have the flu bug going around and the Cardinals’ Stephen Piscotty was a ball magnet on Tuesday night, but it’s been rather calm thus far.

In what follows, you’ll find slides giving an overview of five of the top performances of the season thus far, both at the plate, on the mound and stellar web gems considered.

Apr 3, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Red Sox left fielder Andrew Benintendi (16) rounds third base after hitting a home run during the fifth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 3, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Red Sox left fielder Andrew Benintendi (16) rounds third base after hitting a home run during the fifth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports /

Andrew Benintendi

Needing some insurance runs against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the season opener on Yawkey Way Monday afternoon, the Red Sox turned to none other than rookie slugging aficionado, 22-year-old Andrew Benintendi.

Facing Pirates ace Gerrit Cole in the bottom of the fifth inning, Benintendi’s blast into the visiting bullpen gave the Red Sox a 5-0 lead, breaking the game wide open and giving Rick Porcello all he would need in his first start since winning the Cy Young Award.

For Benintendi, he became the youngest Red Sox hitter to homer in a season opener since young Tony Conigliaro did at the ripe age of 20.

Benintendi, as he was rounding the bases appeared to point to someone sitting in the left field corner. Post-game it was discovered that Benintendi was pointing to his parents. Not a bad way for two parents to watch their son’s first Opening Day baseball game.

Finally, something purely hypothetical at this point in time, but Tim Britton of the Providence Journal tweeted something interesting Tuesday morning following the victory. Thanks to a tip from another user, Britton came across an interesting comparison, placing one Red Sox and baseball legend looking eerily similar to Benintendi’s.

While Benintendi’s career may never equal that of Yaz’s, the prior still led his team to an Opening Day victory, playing an adequate left field while providing a big fly for the team to bust it wide open.

Sounds to me like one in the same.

Sep 19, 2016; Baltimore, MD, USA; Boston Red Sox center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. (25) catches Baltimore Orioles first baseman Chris Davis (not pictured) fly ball to end the game at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Boston Red Sox defeated Baltimore Orioles 5-2. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 19, 2016; Baltimore, MD, USA; Boston Red Sox center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. (25) catches Baltimore Orioles first baseman Chris Davis (not pictured) fly ball to end the game at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Boston Red Sox defeated Baltimore Orioles 5-2. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports /

Jackie Bradley

A large key to the factoring of a pitcher’s success lies in the defense that plays behind him — obviously. For Red Sox pitchers, no larger examples of that can be seen than in the plays that Jackie Bradley has made in the first two games of the year.

The first Gold Glove worthy catch Bradley made of the year came on Monday afternoon. In the top of the fourth inning in what was still a scoreless game at the time, Pirates catcher Francisco Cervelli tagged a ball off Rick Porcello headed towards the triangle — an absolute bullet.

Out of nowhere, Bradley came on towards the wall, reaching up in the air, practically over his shoulder to snag the ball, pin balling himself off of the home bullpen wall, saving extra bases and potentially a ball that gets over the wall.

Bradley’s catch would make a huge difference, as the Red Sox held on for a 5-3 win in game one of 162.

The second catch to mark the opening of the 2017 season potentially saved the game for the Red Sox in the second game of the season as well.

In Chris Sale’s first start of the season, a pitching duel brought the game to 0-0 after nine innings.

In the 11th with the score still scoreless and the bases empty, Pirates outfielder Gregory Polanco lifted a shallow fly ball to short center.

Avoiding Xander Bogaerts, Bradley again made a stellar catch, this time traveling 81-feet to make a sliding catch and keep the bases empty, setting up Sandy Leon‘s walk-off bomb an inning later.

Suffice to say, Bradley is on the early hunt for the Gold Glove in center field after arguably being robbed after last season.

Apr 3, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Rick Porcello (22) walks off the mound during the third inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 3, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Rick Porcello (22) walks off the mound during the third inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports /

Rick Porcello

Coming off of a Cy Young season, the typical hype around winners tends to be much of the same as of late. Clayton Kershaw‘s dominance is unquestioned, the prospects of Madison Bumgarner are established.

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The last Red Sox pitcher to have that kind of acknowledgement surrounding him was a late-90s Pedro Martinez.

Still, chatter around Boston raises the question of whether or not Porcello’s season was a fluke, and whether or not we will get the same pitcher we saw a year ago, or the same pitcher we saw have a disastrous first summer in Boston — or a mix of in between.

Porcello’s first start looked like the same we saw all of last season.

My personal opinion on the matter is that Porcello is really entering the cornerstone of his career. Surrounded by quality run support, an increased command of his pitches and bolstered in a staff that at times has all five starters as former All-Stars, Porcello’s real deal is the real deal.

All Porcello did was give the Red Sox six and one third innings of three-run baseball, leaving with the score 5-1 before Matt Barnes allowed both of his inherited runners to score.

Porcello struck out five Pirates and only surrendered one walk, a continuing plus for the Red Sox.

It was Porcello’s 42nd straight start of at least five innings of work, the second-longest streak for the Red Sox since 1913 and the active leader in the American League.

Apr 5, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Red Sox catcher Sandy Leon (3) hits a two-run walk-off home run during the twelfth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 5, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Red Sox catcher Sandy Leon (3) hits a two-run walk-off home run during the twelfth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports /

Sandy Leon

I watched all twelve innings of last night’s game. I’ll be the first to tell you that I’m not a huge fan of pitchers duels. I appreciate the art of a quality start but I’d rather combine that with the Red Sox tearing up an opposing pitcher versus having to watch 12 innings of zero run baseball.

Nonetheless, the Red Sox got what they needed when they needed it most, from one of the most pleasant surprises in Red Sox recent memory.

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Doubted by many of the validity of his numbers last year — and for track record sake, good reason — Sandy Leon has gotten off to another good start through the first two games of the year, going five for his first eight after having a tough spring at the plate as well.

One of those five hits was arguably biggest of his career to date, and got the Red Sox season off to a bang. Finally trying to break through against the Pirates in the home half of the twelfth, the Red Sox got their first two runners aboard, leaving Leon to do his business.

On a fastball from Pirates left-hander Antonio Bastardo, Leon crushed it, a no doubted that landed in the back of the monster seats, sending Fenway faithful into a frenzy.

It was Leon’s first walk off hit of his career.

Mar 21, 2017; Tampa, FL, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Chris Sale (41) throws a pitch in the second inning against the New York Yankees during spring training at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Butch Dill-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 21, 2017; Tampa, FL, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Chris Sale (41) throws a pitch in the second inning against the New York Yankees during spring training at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Butch Dill-USA TODAY Sports /

Chris Sale

The Chris Sale era in Boston began with a bang Wednesday night. In a game in which temperatures hovered near 40 degrees or lower the entire night, Sale defied the cold with a simple t-shirt underneath his jersey, showing Boston before his first pitch the kind of toughness on this guy.

The start for Sale on the Red Sox was quite the shock for some, and many are still just thoroughly surprised that the Red Sox were even able to acquire the lanky lefty this winter.

Sale’s night on the mound at Fenway was nothing short of everything they paid for. The immediate turnout for prospects Michael Kopech and Yoan Moncada sure is sweet, regardless of how their major league careers turn out. If anyone was skeptical at first glance, that skepticism may have been put to rest.

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Sale gave the Red Sox seven shutout innings, surrendering only three hits while striking out seven Pirates, using varied fastball velocities, as high as 97 and as low as 87, adding in his sweeping slider and changeup to give the Red Sox all they bargained for.

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