Boston

Red Sox

This is the perfect example of why the Red Sox felt Campbell was MLB-ready despite his poor spring training batting average. Campbell has an elite understanding of the strike zone and a mental approach to the game well beyond his years. The surface-level stats have come around as well, with the 22-year-old slashing .305/.412/.474 on the season with two steals and 10 RBI. Sometimes, surface-level spring training stats can be misleading.

Rafaela needed to start hitting since he’s likely the player currently holding off top prospect Romany Anthony from debuting with Boston. Yet, Rafaela is a talented young player in his own right and has a hit in nine of his last 12 games, going 12-for-44 (.272) with two home runs, nine RBI, and four steals over that span. Given that he also plays elite defense in center field, that’s going to convince the Red Sox to keep him in the lineup for the time being.

Duran was a prime buy-low candidate given his quality of contact, but that window may be shut closed after he’s gone 7-for-11 with three RBI and a steal in his last two games. The 28 year old figures to be a catalyst for the Red Sox lineup again, and it was only a matter of time before he got hot.

Bello had thrown five shutout innings before a walk, a bloop single, and a three-run home run in the sixth drastically changed the box score. Still, it was a microcosm of the frustrations for Bello over the last two years. With a 9-0 lead in the fifth inning, he was throwing 3-2 breaking balls and almost unwilling to go to his fastballs, which led to walks and getting behind in the count. On the day, Bello had a 20 percent whiff rate and 21 percent CSW with just a 44 percent zone rate. He continues to struggle to locate his changeup and slider, yet has been able to produce in his first two outings. There is enough upside that Bello should be added in most leagues ahead of his start against the Twins next week.

Wong has been out since early April recovering from a fractured left finger. He figures to be ready to return to stabilize Boston’s catching mix at some point next week.

Abreu has been left off Boston’s lineup card to open Sunday’s series finale with lefty Logan Allen taking the ball for Cleveland. The 25-year-old slugger blasted a three-run homer — his fifth round-tripper of the season — during the opening contest of Saturday’s doubleheader. It’ll be lefty-mashing veteran Rob Refsnyder in right field on Sunday afternoon.

Duran’s straight steal of home was Boston’s first since Jacoby Ellsbury did it on the same date in 2009. He’s 8-for-10 stealing bases this season, even as he’s been a disappointment in the other categories to date.

All of the runs came in the fourth, an inning which featured a Jhonkensy Noel homer. Buehler finished with three strikeouts and seven whiffs in the 87-pitch outing. We still wouldn’t go recommending him in mixed leagues, but the Red Sox will remain satisfied with average results. He’ll probably make his next start Friday against the Twins, though Thursday in Toronto is also an option.

Devers had gone hitless in five straight games, but he again seemed to move past his timing issues today and raised his OPS from .657 to .722 between the two games.

Abreu was left standing in the on-deck circle in the ninth inning when Trevor Story – with the tying run at third base to end the contest. The -year-old outfielder took Guardians starter Ben Lively deep in the opening frame for his fifth round-tripper of the season. It wound up being his lone hit in three at-bats, although he did draw a walk in the contest. He’s an extremely underrated fantasy contributor at this stage of his career considering his immense power upside.