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Four games, 59 runs conceded: the Red Sox are in an impressive historic slump

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Four games, 59 runs conceded: the Red Sox are in an impressive historic slump


Things have gotten so bleak in Purple Sox Nation in latest days that Saturday afternoon’s 4-1 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays counted as a vivid spot. Sure, Boston as soon as once more misplaced to an AL East opponent and fell additional away from an more and more unlikely playoff spot, however not less than this time it wasn’t essentially the most embarrassing common season loss in franchise historical past.

It wasn’t simply that the Purple Sox did one thing that they had by no means finished earlier than on Friday night time, specifically surrender 28 runs in 9 innings. No, it was the way during which it occurred. Their 28-5 loss to the Blue Jays was a clinic in how to not play baseball. It got here full with a beginning pitcher getting knocked out early, an overworked bullpen failing to get outs and fielders brutally botching defensive performs.

The defining second of the sport and, barring a turnaround, the Purple Sox’ season, got here with the bases loaded within the third inning when Toronto’s Raimel Tapia hit what ought to have been an inning-ending flyball. As a substitute, outfielder Jarren Duran utterly misjudged it, allowed the ball to drop after which inexplicably stood nonetheless for a second whereas the Jays ran the bases. The consequence was one of many rarest of baseball oddities: an inside-the-park grand slam. That one inexplicable play gave Toronto a 10-0 lead and successfully ended any suspense left within the sport.

Nonetheless, there isn’t any mercy rule in Main League Baseball, so the Purple Sox needed to maintain throwing pitchers on the market to toss batting observe to a relentless Toronto lineup. Of their final two video games earlier than the All-Star break, the Purple Sox misplaced to their outdated rivals the New York Yankees 14-1 and 13-2. By dropping Friday’s sport by such a large margin, the Purple Sox managed to place collectively the worst three-game run differential in MLB since 1900.

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In mitigation, a kind of losses to the Yankees was an impromptu bullpen sport necessitated by beginning pitcher Chris Sale struggling a freak hand harm after getting hit by a comebacker. Maybe the Purple Sox will take some consolation in that truth, however they most likely shouldn’t. After Saturday’s comparatively drama-free loss, they’ve gained simply 5 of their final 19 video games.

Boston’s July implosion isn’t some unexpected occasion. Even after they have been successful video games earlier within the season, principally towards much less formidable opponents, that they had a knack of turning what ought to have been comparatively painless victories into nerve-racking nail-biters. In the meantime, Boston have but to win a collection towards anyone in their very own division.

The two August MLB commerce deadline is quick approaching and there’s no method that they’ll ponder being consumers. As of Sunday morning, they’re only a half-game above the last-placed Baltimore Orioles within the AL East (and 16.5 behind the Yankee and whereas a playoff spot is inside attain from a mathematical standpoint, the Sox have finished little to recommend they deserve one.

Since John Henry purchased the crew in 2002, the Purple Sox have hardly ever been sellers on the commerce deadline. This might very effectively change shortly, notably contemplating that Sale is doubtlessly out for the season. Perhaps, this time round, Henry and firm will secretly be relieved to flee from the shackles of expectations.

Past their present collapse, Sox followers are apprehensive that the crew appears curiously bored with negotiating with two of their All-Stars: Xander Bogaerts, who can decide out after this season and Rafael Devers, who’s signed till the top of the 2023 season. After the lingering emotional fallout from the indefensible Mookie Betts commerce, there’s a rising sense in New England that the crew is solely not thinking about paying both participant’s subsequent contract. The truth that chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom’s earlier tour of responsibility was with the notoriously frugal Tampa Bay Rays has finished nothing to calm these fears.

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It was simply final October that the Purple Sox have been dealing with the Houston Astros within the American League Championship Collection, finishing a completely surprising season-to-season turnaround. Whereas most followers have been nonetheless sad about dropping Betts, who had simply helped the Los Angeles Dodgers win a World Collection, there was a palpable sense of renewal after the bleakness and dangerous vibes of 2020.

Now? The Purple Sox have put collectively possibly the worst stretch in crew historical past and the season is slipping away. Worse that that, they could half methods with their two greatest remaining homegrown hitters and begin a self-inflicted prolonged rebuild.

It’s a sudden fall from grace, however not an surprising one. Final yr’s crew overachieved – that’s what made it so enjoyable for followers – however in the course of the offseason, the Purple Sox stood nonetheless as the remainder of the division bought higher. A regression was to be anticipated, though no mannequin might have predicted what we’ve seen in these final 4 video games.

In the end, the Purple Sox can’t actually inform themselves that they’re totally dedicated to successful. This begins with an possession that has been content material to coast on the fond reminiscences of latest championships. That perspective has trickled right down to the gamers, and it’s arduous to not really feel like it is a crew prepared to surrender.





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Boston, MA

Greater Boston enjoys a light snow, travel not significantly impacted – The Boston Globe

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Greater Boston enjoys a light snow, travel not significantly impacted – The Boston Globe


The snow showers come from a weakening system approaching from the Great Lakes that tapped into some of the moisture from a strong storm passing south of New England.

The region was spared the worst precipitation of the storm thanks to persistent sub-freezing temperatures earlier this week, which pushed it south toward its current location off the coast of North Carolina, Nocera said. New England’s light snowfall is on the northern fringes of the storm.

Nocera added that this weekend’s “decorative snow” will not significantly impact ground travel.

The Massachusetts Port Authority issued a travel advisory for flight delays at Boston Logan International Airport. According to the flight tracking website Flight Aware, as of around 1:00 p.m. 212 flights were delayed at Boston Logan and another 15 were cancelled.

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Margo Griffin, a teaching associate at the University of Cambridge in England, was initially worried about driving through the snow on her way to get coffee in Cambridge, but said the view from the Charles River was worth the trek.

“I thought it might be a problem, but I just decided to go ahead with the plan, and I’m enjoying walking through the snow,” Griffin said.

People walked along a snow-covered path at the Arnold Arboretum in Boston Saturday, as a winter storm brought light accumulation to New England.

Erin Clark / Globe Staff

Other Boston-area residents who spoke to the Globe Saturday morning were happy to wake up to the winter scene on Saturday.

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“I am feeling wonderful about the snow. I haven’t seen it in a long time,” said Barbara Delollis, a communications lead at Harvard Business School.

Delollis already made snow day plans.

“We want to go out and have some fun in the snow, and take a lot of pictures and just remember this moment, because we don’t know how much more snowfall we’re going to see in the Boston area anymore with climate change,” Delollis said.

Talia, a Cambridge resident, said that the snow had no effect on her plans to attend synagogue with her two-year-old son Saturday morning.

“It feels nice and seasonal, which is cool because climate change is terrifying,” she said.

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Snowstorms can still occur, despite warming temperatures from climate change, Nocera said. Although Saturday’s snowfall cannot guarantee heavy snow this winter, there is a slightly higher chance of snow towards the end of the month as cold temperatures ease.

A frostbite sailor passed snow covered houseboats while headed out to race on the Annisquam River in Gloucester, Mass. Jan. 11, 2025. John Blanding/Globe Staff/The Boston Globe

Materials from previous Globe stories were used in this report.





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Boston, MA

Boston College drops Hockey East contest to Merrimack

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Boston College drops Hockey East contest to Merrimack


The second-ranked Boston College men’s hockey team suffered its first home loss of the season, falling to Merrimack by a score of 5-2 in Hockey East action on Friday night at Kelley Rink. The Eagles jumped out to a 2-0 lead early in the second, but the Warriors scored the next five. BC falls to 12-4-1 overall and 6-3-1 in Hockey East, while Merrimack improves to 8-10-1 overall and 4-5-1 in league play. The Eagles opened the scoring midway through the first period when Oskar Jellvik one-timed the rebound off an Aram Minnetian shot that was saved by the Merrimack goaltender. Minnetian’s shot fell right into the path of Jellvik for the quick shot into the open net to put the Eagles in front. BC added to its lead shortly into the second period when Brady Berard scored a short-handed goal. Merrimack responded 32 seconds later with a power-play goal to get on the board, before scoring the game-tying goal less than one minute after that. The Warriors took the lead nearly three minutes later when Merrimack scored its third goal of the period. The Warriors scored twice in the third period to push their lead to three. Jacob Fowler made 23 saves while Nils Wallstrom had 27 stops for Merrimack.



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Syracuse men’s basketball: predictions and poll vs Boston College

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Syracuse men’s basketball: predictions and poll vs Boston College


The Syracuse Orange (7-8, 1-3) are back on the road tomorrow to face the Boston College Eagles (9-6, 1-3). The game tips off at 3:00 ET on The CW and here’s what we’re predicting in this #OrangeEagle battle:

Kevin: Syracuse 82, Boston College 80

I’m thinking this is higher scoring than the metrics suggest because neither team defends well. I also have a feeling that Elijah Moore hits double-figures in this one. Moore didn’t make a shot against Georgia Tech, but he didn’t commit a turnover and I’m looking for him to get an early 3 to drop and for him to find space as the Eagles try and contain JJ Starling and Eddie Lampkin. It’s not going to be pretty, but I’m taking Syracuse to get their 1st road win of the year.

Max: Syracuse 72, Boston College 65

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The Orange finally have some momentum going into this one and a lowly Eagles team is just what the doctor ordered for another win. Believe it or not, Syracuse’s offense shoots better from the field and commits fewer turnovers than BC (and most of those numbers are without Starling). We’ll see if Donnie Freeman suits up, but hopefully, it doesn’t matter against a Boston College defense that allows its opponents to shoot over 57% in conference play (worst rate in ACC).

Dom: Syracuse 79, Boston College 73

BC’s offense over the course of the year is very much hot or cold, but I don’t expect a repeat performance of the Orange’s defense compared to how things turned out against Georgia Tech. That being said, if both defenses are going to be suspect, Syracuse will have the best scorer on the floor and I think this is the game we see J.J. Starling have a pre-injury-like performance that propels Syracuse to the win column once again.

Szuba: Syracuse 78, Boston College 71

Syracuse has certainly struggled and has been shorthanded this year, but it still hasn’t fallen to the Boston College threshold. BC doesn’t do much of anything well — it rebounds decently, it shoots from three at a fair clip but overall the offense is poor and its defense is worse. I would think Syracuse should be able to score the ball more effectively in this game as opposed to last. Starling leads the way once more with solid contributions from Lampkin and the supporting cast as the Orange win its second straight conference game.

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Sam: Boston College 72, Syracuse 70

This prediction hinges on Donnie Freeman not playing, if he does, I’d probably lean towards Syracuse by a point or two. Without him, I’m just not confident enough to pick the Orange on the road – a building they lost in last year – even against a bad Boston College team. There’s undoubtedly a path to a win, specifically, if the Orange can force about 15 or more turnovers, and convert off of them. A true toss-up game for me.

Mike: Syracuse 78, Boston College 70

Two really bad defenses should make these not-so-great offenses look better for one afternoon. Like Sam said this is the definition of a toss-up and I really think it’ll be close all the way through. This should be a time where Lampkin can use his size in the paint and be the one to break the stalemate.

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Now it’s your turn

Poll

Who wins the game between Syracuse and Boston College?

  • 50%
    Syracuse wins and maybe?

    (3 votes)

  • 50%
    Boston College wins and nope!

    (3 votes)



6 votes total

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