Roman Anthony goes 0-for-4 in MLB debut, Red Sox fall 10-8 in extra-innings to Rays

After he flew out in his first at-bat, Anthony nearly collected his first career hit in his second at-bat, roping a 111.2 mph line drive that went off Rays starter Shane Baz and deflected to third baseman Junior Caminero , who made the play for an out.

In the fifth inning, the Rays added to their lead after Jarren Duran misplayed a single from Brandon Lowe , allowing former Red Sox catcher Danny Jansen to score. Yandy Díaz added another run on the board with a single to right field that skipped under the glove of Anthony, which rolled to the fence for a run-scoring two-base error.

“Just can’t happen,” Anthony said. “It’s one of those plays I’ve dealt with that skip a million times in my career, and it’s tough when you lose a game like that; you feel like that’s the reason why you lost, little things like that. It’s tough, but, again, I’ve got to learn from it and be better.”

Anthony struck out in the sixth and drew a walk in the seventh before plating his first career RBI in the ninth. With the Sox trailing 7-5, Anthony stepped to the plate with one out and two men in scoring position. He lined a ball up the middle for a 6-3 putout, scoring Rafael Devers.

“Good,” Alex Cora said of Anthony’s big league debut. “He was able to slow it down, the walk; he hit the ball hard twice, stayed up the middle, and didn’t try to do too much. So it was a good first day.”

According to the Red Sox, the 21-year-old outfielder is the youngest Sox player to record an RBI since Devers in 2017, when he was 20. He’s the youngest to record an RBI in his MLB debut since Luis Alvarado did so at 19 in 1968.

Moments later, Kristian Campbell sent the game to extra innings with a towering infield chopper.

ANOTHER LOSS

Monday night’s game should have been all about Anthony’s debut; instead, it was overshadowed by another close Red Sox loss. Boston fell to 4-8 in extra-inning games. Boston engaged in a nightlong battle, exchanging blows on the scoreboard with the Rays.

As the game was heading to the 11th inning, Cora summoned reliever Zack Kelly to keep the game tied. Instead, Kelly walked three batters (one intentional walk) and was squeezed by the home plate umpire on two separate occasions. In fairness, both pitches were balls, but the inconsistency from the home plate umpire haunted the Sox in the home half of the inning. Kelly issued a bases-loaded walk and run-scoring infield single in the 11th as the Rays took a 10-8 lead.

Cora was ejected from the game in the bottom of the 11th after he argued with the home plate umpire on his inconsistent calls in the frame.

BELLO WAS BETTER

In between the excitement of Anthony’s debut and the ultimate letdown in extras, Brayan Bello started for the Red Sox and was more efficient in his start. The righty was charged with four runs (three earned) off seven hits with a walk, a hit batsman, and four strikeouts.

Bello came back out for the seventh, but a leadoff walk forced him out of the game. The overworked Brennan Bernardino came in to pitch, and the southpaw allowed a go-ahead RBI double by Josh Lowe that put Tampa Bay back in front.

Bernardino tried to pick off Lowe but threw the ball into center field for an error, and then threw a wild pitch that scored the runner. Cora later pulled the lefty after giving up an RBI single to Jonathan Aranda, which made it 6-3 Rays.

As Bernardino exited the field, he expressed his frustration by throwing his glove and hat into the dugout.

HOW THE SOX SCORED

You have to wonder how much longer the Red Sox can roster Connor Wong. The catcher is still looking for his first RBI of the season and had a chance to score. With the bases loaded in the second, Wong grounded out to Caminero at third.

He had another opportunity. In the fifth, with runners at the corners and no outs, Wong hit a grounder to short, enabling rookie Marcelo Mayer to score from third. But because the play resulted in a double play, Wong was not credited with an RBI.

With the Sox down 3-0, Boston finally scored a run in the fifth and then two more in the sixth when pinch hitter Romy González roped a two-out, two-run double down the right-field line against left-handed reliever Garrett Cleavinger  to tie the game, 3-3.

Boston added a pair of runs in the seventh, one on a run-scoring groundout by Abraham Toro and an RBI single up the middle by Trevor Story . 

The Sox shortstop then stole second to move into scoring position for Anthony, who drew a walk to reach base for the first time as a big leaguer, but Campbell struck out to end the inning. Story continues to show life in his bat, collecting two hits.

The Red Sox will look to win the middle game of their three-game series with the Rays on Tuesday night. Lucas Giolito  (1-1, 6.42 ERA) will start for Boston, and he will be opposed by Ryan Pepiot (3-5, 3.20).