The Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Angels may be a little fatigued in playing the final game of their four-game series due to last night’s game running into the wee hours of the morning
Los Angeles Angels at Boston Red Sox
Los Angeles is focused on trying to salvage a four-game split with Boston on Thursday afternoon at Fenway Park after winning its first game in the series Wednesday night. The Angels waited out a 2 hour, 35 minute rain delay in the fifth innings to ultimately pick up a 5-3 win in the 13th inning. “It was a game where there could have been some letdown,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia stated. “The guys hung in there and came out in the end.” Outfielder Vernon Wells had his best night in an Angels uniform with a two-run homer, a single and some key plays defensively. Los Angeles is 7-5 in day games this season and 71-40 over the last three years.
Angels starting pitcher Joel Pineiro will be making his second start of the season, coming off a quality start on the road against the Rays, giving up just a single earned run and four hits over seven innings. The right-hander produced a 3-5 record and 6.31 ERA in 10 road starts during the 2010 campaign compared to a 7-2 mark and 2.18 ERA in 13 home outings. Pineiro will be making his 12th career start versus the Red Sox, entering with a 3-6 record and 5.94 ERA, allowing 84 hits and 10 home runs in 63.2 frames.
Boston will look to maintain its dominance over Los Angeles in picking up its 16th win in 18 tries, but manager Terry Francona knows how dangerous the opponent is. “They’re a hard team to play,” he commented. “The way they play, we’ve had games in the past where they’ve run us into mistakes.” The two teams will lock horns about 10 hours after their previous contest ended. Outfielder Carl Crawford will look to keep it going despite the quick turnaround, going 7-for-16 in May to raise his average 33 points in that span. He managed to hit just .155 in April. Boston is 10-9 versus right-handed starters this season.
Red Sox starting pitcher John Lackey is 2-3 with a 5.65 ERA in five starts this season and will be making his second appearance versus the Angels in his past three outings. The right-hander tossed eight scoreless innings in picking up a victory over Los Angeles on April 24 and has allowed just three earned runs over his previous 20 innings against them. Lackey has a career 45-29 record with a 4.04 ERA in 98 games against AL West teams. He has allowed two or fewer runs in three straight starts after starting the season with a 15.58 ERA through two appearances.
Bettors will likely back the Red Sox due to their 4-0 record in Lackey’s starts against today’s opponent, while the Angels are 3-7 in Pineiro’s last 10 road outings.
