Red Sox go all in on Game 4 vs. Tampa Bay Rays in ALDS

BOSTON — Being in possession of two chances to close out their American League Division Series mattered little to Alex Cora on Monday. 

The Red Sox manager was prepared to go all-in again in Game 4 with the Rays. Nick Pivetta sacrificed a potential start to earn the victory in relief the previous night, a 13-inning classic that featured a walk-off home run from Christian Vazquez. 

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Eduardo Rodriguez took the ball for the 7:07 p.m. first pitch on Monday night, and only those in the Boston dugout knew for sure how long he would be allowed to keep it. A winner-take-all Game 5 is set for Wednesday evening at Tropicana Field, but the Red Sox would be just fine with skipping out on another trip to Florida. 

“There are some guys we’ll try to stay away from, but the game will dictate how we do it,” Cora said. “Obviously we get two shots, but we like the one shot tonight.” 

Aggressiveness is the order of the day in the postseason, and the timing of certain decisions can be jarring when contrasted with the marathon that is a 162-game schedule. The Rays summoned de facto closer Andrew Kittredge in the bottom of the third on Sunday, and he struck out J.D. Martinez to strand a pair of runners. Luis Patiño was ultimately the one to allow the Vazquez drive to the Monster Seats, the deciding swing in a 6-4 thriller. 

“With all hands on deck and those guys ready and eager to get the ball, it will be an exciting day,” Rays catcher Mike Zunino said. “We'll probably see plenty of arms.” 

Cora ruled out only Pivetta in terms of those ready to come on in place of Rodriguez. Game 2 hero Tanner Houck was ready despite only two days of rest and five innings of work in a 14-6 triumph. Nathan Eovaldi, the previous night’s starter, didn’t leave Fenway Park without popping his head into Cora’s office and appealing for an inning in relief. 

“Whenever (Cora) tells me to go out and get outs, I'm just going to get outs until he comes and takes the ball away from me,” Red Sox reliever Garrett Whitlock said. “That's pretty much how I've been going about things.” 

Rodriguez lasted just 1 2/3 innings in his Game 1 start, a 5-0 road loss in which Boston trailed from the bottom of the first. Chris Sale managed less in Game 2, allowing a grand slam to Jordan Luplow in the opening frame and departing after recording just three outs. The Red Sox bullpen has picked up the slack in impressive fashion, entering Monday with a 2.42 postseason earned-run average over 26 innings. 

“It’s not like we’re making stuff up throughout the process,” Cora said. “We have an idea of what we want to do on a daily basis. The game always dictates what we do.  

“In ‘18 we burned our starters, but we had capable guys who could pitch the next day and give us 15 outs. It just so happens that it’s Eddie again.” 

The constant reference point for Cora’s managerial style in October is that most recent run to the World Series. Eovaldi and Rick Porcello were deployed between starts as extra bridges to Craig Kimbrel. Boston appeared to throw caution to the wind in Game 3 against the Dodgers by riding Eovaldi for 97 pitches, and he allowed a Max Muncy walk-off homer in a historic 18-inning epic. 

Rodriguez responded the following day by working into the bottom of the sixth, and even a Yasiel Puig three-run homer couldn’t derail the Red Sox in their quest for a fourth championship this century. The left-hander gave Boston the length it required to set up its bullpen, and the offense awoke against Los Angeles pitching in time to secure a 9-6 victory. The Red Sox were celebrating on the field barely 24 hours later. 

“Obviously we wanted to win the division,” Cora said. “It didn’t happen. But we sacrificed a few innings early in the season for this. We worked hard for this.  

“At this point Nick is strong — he can do the things he did the last four days. It’s not that we just make stuff up or we take care of these guys just because. There’s a lot of information that goes into it and a lot of thinking ahead that we will play meaningful games in August and September.  

“For these guys to be able to post we have to sacrifice a few things early in the season for them to be ready.” 

bkoch@providencejournal.com  

On Twitter: @BillKoch25