BOSTON — Last Saturday in Seattle
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The Mariners haven’t won since as they head into Friday night’s rematch between the two pitchers in the opener of a three-game series on Friday night at Fenway Park.
The Red Sox won the Sunday game in Seattle and then lost the first two games in Minnesota before rebounding a 9-2 win and Rick Porcello’s ninth win of the season on Thursday.
After losing the game Sunday, the Mariners were swept in a three-game series by the Yankees in the Bronx — to start a difficult 10-game swing through the East that concludes with a four-game series in Baltimore.
LeBlanc, who has been pitching well in his latest role, is 3-0 with a 2.63 ERA and has yielded only 11 earned runs in nine starts — capped by 7 2/3 shutout innings (two hits, no walks, nine strikeouts) against the Red Sox.
He is just 33-35 with a 4.23 ERA in his career, but much of the negative numbers are in the past — at least for now.
After beating the Red Sox, he said, “That’s a stout lineup over there, but the fact that me and Z (catcher Mike Zunino) were able to mix things up and put them in the rocking chair makes things easier. Everything was executed and that’s really all I can say. It’s the most important thing for me — it’s to execute pitches. Today, me and Z were able to do that.”
But the team has faltered since
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“Coming in here, we have been playing very good baseball,” said Seattle manager Scott Servais, whose team has dropped five of its last seven. “We know what kind of ballclub they have with the power and the bullpen. I thought we were right in the game the last couple of days.
“But you have to hit on the road. You have to get big hits on the road. We just didn’t get it done. It doesn’t detract or take away from anything that we’ve done to this point. Our guys are not down at all.”
The Boston bats snoozed through the first two games in Minneapolis, wasting starts by Chris Sale and David Price. The bats broke out Thursday, avoiding the sweep and leaving the Red Sox (50-26) as one of three American League teams with 50 wins.
“I think it was just a couple of tough days,” Mookie Betts, who hit is 19th homer of the season Thursday, said after the game. “We came out ready to swing it and it just showed what we can do.”
Wright has been outstanding since making his delayed 2018 debut (after knee surgery and a 15-game MLB suspension). He is 2-1 with a 1.23 ERA and gave up just the one losing run in the matchup with LeBlanc.
“He’s been great. Outstanding, really,” Cora said. “I heard a lot of good things about him before I got here and he’s showed why.”
He is 2-2 with a 1.31 ERA in four games (two starts) against the Mariners. Kyle Seager is 3-for-9 and Nelson Cruz 2-for-6 (both .333)
http://www.buccaneersauthorizedshops.com/authentic-vita-vea-jersey , and Zunino is 1-for-8 (.125) and Dee Gordon 1-for-6 (.167) against the knuckleballer.
LeBlanc is 1-0 with a 3.24 ERA in three career starts against Boston. The Current Red Sox roster is a combined 3-for-16 against him. J.D. Martinez is 2-for-3 (.667) and no one has with more than three at-bats against him.
The playoff field for the Western Conference is almost set.
Patrik Berglund and St. Louis are going to Colorado to try for the final spot.
Berglund scored three times to help the Blues beat the Chicago Blackhawks 4-1 on Friday night, setting up a showdown with the Avalanche for the conference’s last wild card.
”When you have to win your last game, it’s intense,” Blues coach Mike Yeo said. ”Obviously there’s lot of pressure. I hope our guys embrace that because it’s going to be a fun game.”
Carter Hutton made 19 saves as St. Louis stopped a three-game slide that included a 4-3 home loss to Chicago on Wednesday night on Duncan Keith’s power-play goal with 8.5 seconds left. Jaden Schwartz also scored in the third after an ugly turnover by the Blackhawks.
St. Louis (44-31-6) moved one point ahead of idle Colorado (42-30-9) heading into their finale Saturday night. The Blues have won three of four against the Avalanche this season.
Colorado needs a regulation win to make it to the postseason, while St. Louis takes the spot if it goes to overtime.
”Final game, 82 all on the line at Denver,” Hutton said.
Erik Gustafsson scored for Chicago, and Jean-Francois Berube made 31 saves. The last-place Blackhawks (33-38-10) finished with an 18-18-5 record at home.
Veteran forward Patrick Sharp got the start in what was likely his final game at the United Center. The 36-year-old Sharp, who has 10 goals and 11 assists in his 15th NHL season, said he probably will retire after the finale Saturday night in his native Winnipeg.
”It’s never easy, but I’m just ready to take that next step in my life
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The team honored Sharp with a highlight video in the third period, and he waved his stick and tapped his heart to acknowledge the sustained roar from what was left of the announced crowd of 22,218. With his parents, wife and children watching from the stands, he took another spin around the rink after the game was over and waved as the crowd cheered again.
”It was a tough game out there, tough to concentrate with what was going on inside my head,” said Sharp, a key part of three Stanley Cup-winning teams in Chicago. ”But thankful that I was able to do that. The Hawks put that video on for me in the third which was really special. The guys staying on the ice and making me do a lap was something I’ll always remember. So, special night.”
Berglund redirected a shot by Joel Edmundson past Berube with 1:43 left in the first period. The Blues carried the 1-0 lead into the third, but Gustafsson whipped a wrist shot by Hutton on the stick side at 8:08.
Just 16 seconds later
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”I think we all played a pretty good game today,” Berglund said. ”It’s good for everybody’s confidence and now we know what we have to do tomorrow.”
NOTES: The Blackhawks honored Hall of Fame forward Stan Mikita with ”One More Shift” before the game. The 77-year-old Mikita, who is the franchise’s career leader in games played, points and assists and is second in goals to Bobby Hull, has a brain disorder called Lewy body dementia, so his three grandsons represented him on the ice for the national anthem. … Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews missed his seventh straight game with an upper-body injury. Anthony Duclair (lower body), John Hayden (upper body) and Tomas Jurco (illness) also were scratched, and Chicago went with seven defensemen. … The Blues scratched G Jake Allen, and G Ville Husso was the backup for Hutton. Allen is expected to start against the Avalanche in the finale.
UP NEXT
Blues: Visit Colorado on Saturday night.
Blackhawks: Visit Winnipeg on Saturday night.
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Jay Cohen can be reached at .
