The Boston Red Sox were not supposed to go far into the playoffs. They went only 5-5 in to finish the regular season, following weeks of lackluster play and several disappointing losses that didn’t inspire much hope for the postseason. But fast-forward to October 11, the Sox are celebrating with champagne showers in the locker room after eliminating the 100-win Tampa Bay Rays in a best-of-five series and preparing for an ALCS matchup with the Houston Astros.
The Sox had just come off a wild card game win against their rivals, the New York Yankees, when they entered the ALDS against the Rays. Game 1 of the series produced similar results to the regular season matchups of these two teams, with the Rays thumping the Sox 5-0. However, things changed in Game 2 when Boston turned the tables and dropped 14 runs on Tampa to pick up a 14-6 win.
Game 3 and 4 were full of exciting baseball and both concluded in dramatic walk-off wins. Christian Vazquez hit a two-run homer in the 13th inning to pull off the win for the Red Sox, while Kiké Hernandez played hero the next night with a sacrifice fly to give his team a 3-1 series win and send them to the ALCS.
Hernandez was a clutch player for the Red Sox throughout the entire series. He went 9-for-20 in the box with four runs, six RBIs, and two homers, becoming a problem that the Rays weren’t able to solve. Without a doubt, Hernandez left his mark on this series.
Boston will face the Astros in the ALCS, who just came off a four-game series win against the Chicago White Sox. Game 1 will take place on Friday, Oct. 15 to start off the best-of-seven series.
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