Baltimore @ Boston preview
Fenway Park
Last Meeting ( Jul 20, 2011 ) Boston 4, Baltimore 0
THE STORY: Although the Boston Red Sox still hold a two-game lead in the race for the wild card, things don’t look good for Terry Francona's club. With its pitching in shambles and its psyche at an all-time low, the Boston hosts the Baltimore Orioles in a crucial day-night doubleheader at Fenway Park on Monday. The Orioles seem to relish their role as spoilers. They have won four of their last five games against teams in the thick of the wild-card race.
TV: 1:05 p.m., 7:10 p.m. ET, MASN, NESN
PITCHING MATCHUP: Game 1: Orioles RH Jeremy Guthrie (8-17, 4.22 ERA) vs. Red Sox RH Kyle Weiland (0-2, 7.58 ERA)
Guthrie leads the majors in losses with 17, but has actually pitched quite well lately. He has won two straight starts, allowing just two runs in 14 innings in the stretch. Guthrie fanned a season-high 10 batters in a 6-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rays in his last outing. He is just 2-8 in his career against the Red Sox - including an 0-4 mark and a 4.41 ERA at Fenway Park.
Just the idea that Weiland is making a start in a pennant race shows how badly things are going in Boston. Weiland has struggled mightily in the majority of his five major league outings and he is no stranger to the Orioles. The rookie has faced Baltimore two times this season, going 0-1 with an 8.10 ERA. He’s allowed 24 hits and 10 walks in his 19 innings of work and is a strange choice to start such a big game.
ABOUT THE RED SOX (87-65): Boston has lost 12 of its last 16 games and is in the midst of a colossal collapse. No team has ever come from as far back as the Rays and made the playoffs, but the Red Sox seem intent on handing them a postseason spot. Boston not only isn’t winning lately, it rarely has held a lead. Tampa Bay won three of four games in Boston in the wraparound series and jumped out to leads in every contest. The Rays won 12 of 18 against Boston this season. Kevin Youkilis is still nursing a few injuries and is questionable for Monday’s twinbill. His replacement, Mike Aviles, has homered in each of the past two games and is the hottest hitter on the team.
ABOUT THE ORIOLES (62-89): Baltimore has won just three of 11 meetings against the Red Sox this season and is even worse at Fenway Park. In their last 52 games in Beantown, the Orioles have just 11 wins. Baltimore had its four-game winning streak snapped on Sunday as it dropped an 11-2 decision to the Los Angeles Angels. Nick Markakis snapped out of an 0-for-18 slide with a single on Sunday. Mark Reynolds did not play, one day after getting hit in the head by a pitch from Ervin Santana. Vlad Guerrero cracked his 13th homer of the season on Sunday.
FINAL PITCH: Boston has won eight of the last nine games against the Orioles, who would love to knock the Red Sox out of the playoffs. The teams were involved in a bench-clearing brawl earlier in the season and the bad blood still remains. Jed Lowrie has been cleared to play and is available to pinch hit.