Kyle Schwarber walked. That was it, nothing more and nothing less. Or maybe ...
While the two hits that seemingly defined the Red Sox' sixth walk-off win of the season Saturday were Rafael Devers' three-run, seventh inning homer and Alex Verdugo's game-ending, two-out hit in the ninth.
But there was something about Schwarber's seemingly innocuous at-bat in the seventh that should be highlighted.
Hitting out of the designated hitter spot, Schwarber stepped to the plate in the seventh with two outs, one one and the Red Sox locked in a scoreless game with Cleveland. The Indians had just brought in reverse-split righty reliever Blake Parker to face the lefty hitter, hoping to strand Christian Vazquez at third base.
After taking a first-pitch fastball at the top of the zone for a strike, Schwarber watched one offering after another sail just centimeters off the outside edge. Ball. Ball. Ball. And ball. He walked.
The image was striking considering the Red Sox' issues all season chasing the kind of pitches Schwarber has consistently stared down.
But Schwarber reaching base wasn't the real payoff. That came one at-bat later when Rafael Devers took his teammate's lead.
Same deal: Three pitches right on the outside edge of the strike zone and three takes from Devers. That led to a 3-2 count, which ultimately paved the way for the third baseman tearing into a 91 mph, middle-of-the-plate fastball for the 419-foot blast.
“Yeah, he’s been a huge help from the moment he got here," said Devers of Schwarber through a translator. "We’re learning a lot from him and just having him batting in front of me, I just try to just see the way they’re pitching him because they’re probably going to pitch me pretty similar as well. Just trying to get good at-bats and do what I can when I’m at the plate but he’s been a huge help for this team overall.”
For what it's worth since Schwarber's introduction to the Red Sox lineup on Aug. 13, Alex Cora's club has taken the fourth-most pitches per plate appearance in the big leagues. Prior to that, they had the 19th-best rate.
"We’re playing a different brand of baseball, which is great," said the Red Sox manager. "I don’t mind it. We’re bunting. We’re taking pitches. We’re keeping the line moving. We’re doing everything to maximize our lineup. We know we bunch all those guys on top of the lineup. Jonathan (Arauz) and Jack (Lopez), they’re gonna do their part. Today they did again. Three sac bunts, a walk, they play great defense. It’s not about names. It’s about a team, right? Sometimes the roster is gonna be different, right? Certain days. It’s been different four days. It just happens that we started playing good baseball."