By Tiffany Williams –
Thursday afternoon in Boston the Red Sox kicked off their 2023 season hosting the Baltimore Orioles at Fenway Park. Today’s home opener was the third time in the last four years that the Red Sox opened their regular season against the Orioles, it’s the fifth time since 1956 the two clubs have met for opening day at Fenway, and the 14th time overall, with today’s 10-9 loss for the Sox, the Orioles now own the series 6-8.
Top of the first, Rutschman opened this game up for the Orioles with a homer 402 feet to right. In the bottom of the first, Devers grounded out to first, and Verdugo made it over the plate to score for the Sox. End of the first it was a 1-1 tie game.
The Orioles owned this game at the top of the fourth with Urías hitting a homer 387 feet to left center to also get Henderson over the plate. Frazier scored off a wild pitch, and then Mateo scored. Going into the bottom of the fourth it was a 5-1, Orioles game. But in the bottom of the fourth, the Sox made it a 5-2 game with Duvall hitting a single to left to help get Devers over the plate.
Top of the fifth, this became an 8-2 ballgame for the Orioles with Mateo hitting a single to right to get Frazier over the plate. Rutschman then hit a single to left for Mateo and Mullins score.
After a scoreless fifth for the Sox, Devers and Turner both scored in the bottom of the sixth to make it an 8-4 game.
At the top of the seventh the Orioles got their ninth and tenth runs of the game with Frazier and Mullins both scoring to make it a 10-4 game.
After a scoreless seventh for the Sox, they grabbed three runs in the bottom of the eighth with Turner, Duvall and Yoshida scoring to make it a 10-7 game.
The Sox grabbed their eighth and ninth runs of the game with both Tapia, who just called up from the Triple-A club in Worcester, and Verdugo to make it a 10-9 game.
With Thursday’s home opener loss the Sox fall to 59-63-1 all-time on opening day, 25-20 in home games on opening day, including 22-20 at Fenway Park.
Masataka Yoshida made his MLB debut Thursday and hit an RBI single in the 6th inning to cut the deficit to 8-4. He was hit by a pitch in the 4th inning and singled, then scored, in the 8th.
Triston Casas who, played a much of the 2022 season with the Triple-A club in Worcester before making it to the big league club, became the 6th player all-time to start at 1st base on opening day for the Red Sox at age 23 or younger, and the first to do so since George Scott in 1967. Casas recorded his 5th career game with multiple RBI. He hit an RBI groundout in the 6th inning to cut the deficit to 8-4 and a sac fly in the 8th to cut the deficit to 10-5.
Corey Kluber who got the nod to start opening day at Fenway Thursday went 3.1 innings, allowing six hits, five runs and struck out four. He allowed a run in the first inning, then tossed 2.0 scoreless frames before exiting with the bases loaded and 1 out in the 4th.
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