After a 2-4 road trip to San Diego and Houston, the Red Sox (66-56) are back at Fenway Park Friday night to open a five-game home stand with the Miami Marlins (58-63) and Baltimore Orioles (55-66).
Boston will look to reset after a rough stretch for the starting rotation. Lucas Giolito enters his 19th start with a 3.77 ERA over 100.1 innings, but he’s coming off a tough loss to the Padres in which he incurred four earned runs on five hits, walked six and only struck out one over 4.2 frames. It was the sixth time the veteran right-hander allowed four or more earned runs this season overall, but three of such outings are among his five starts since the All-Star break.
However, all three of these damage-filled starts in the second half have been on the road. Giolito has been largely excellent at home; four his six Fenway starts since May 24 were without an earned run. He went eight innings in his most recent home start on Aug. 3, a masterful performance in which he held the Astros to a solo home run and just two additional hits.
A bounce-back stretch by the starting rotation will be key for the Red Sox after slipping somewhat in the standings. They enter Friday five games back from the first-place Toronto Blue Jays in the American League East, and only 1.5 games ahead of the New York Yankees. In the AL Wild Card race, the Red Sox slid from the first to the second of the three spots.
Friday also marks the beginning of the three-day Players’ Weekend, which returns for a second consecutive season after a four-year hiatus. While the nickname uniforms won’t be back, fans can expect to see Red Sox and Marlins players to rocking unique bats, cleats, and other unique equipment for the theme of the day: Off-Field Interests, Causes, and Appreciation.
The Red Sox went 2-1 each of the last two Players’ Weekends in Baltimore (’24) and San Diego (’19).
Red Sox lineup
Roman Anthony DH
Alex Bregman 3B
Jarren Duran LF
Trevor Story SS
Wilyer Abreu RF
Romy Gonzalez 2B
Abraham Toro 1B
Ceddanne Rafaela CF
Carlos Narváez C
Marlins lineup
Check back later
Probable pitchers
RHP Sandy Alcantara vs. RHP Lucas Giolito
How to watch Marlins at Red Sox
When: 7:10 p.m. ET
Where: Fenway Park, Boston
Watch: Red Sox – NESN; Marlins – FanDuel Sports Network Florida, WBFS-TV
Listen: Red Sox – WEEI 93.7 FM, WCCM 1490 AM (Spanish), WESX 1230 AM (Spanish); Marlins – FOX Sports 940AM (WINZ), WAQI 710
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