Aroldis Chapman's historic season has occupied most of the discussion when it comes to the Red Sox bullpen. But Garrett Whitlock has been nearly as good, having pitched the most innings out of the pen and allowed just one earned run since the All-Star Break. But believe it or not, Whitlock still doesn't feel like he's "kicked the rust off" following last year's UCL surgery. (Peter Abraham, Boston Globe)
Aroldis Chapman allowed his first hit since July 23, and the Athletics rallied in the ninth inning to beat the Boston Red Sox, 5-4, avoiding a series sweep. Shea Langeliers led off the ninth with a double off Chapman (4-3), who had gone a span of 50 batters and a franchise-record 17 appearances, the third-longest streak in MLB history since 1901.
PHOENIX (AP) - Pinch-hitter Nick Sogard lined a late tiebreaking, two-run double, Aroldis Chapman extended his hitless streak to 17 appearances by striking out four in the ninth inning and Alex Cora got his 600th win as Boston manager when the Red Sox rallied to beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 7-4 on Sunday. Boston put two on in the ninth against Taylor Rashi (0-1) and Sogard followed with a double off Andrew Saalfrank. Carlos Narváez added a run-scoring single.
Slaten went down with shoulder inflammation back in May and has been sidelined ever since. Slaten made his big league debut with Boston in 2024 after being plucked from the Mets in the 2023 Rule 5 draft and has been excellent. The 27-year-old touts a 3.09 ERA and 2.78 FIP in 78 2/3 big league innings. This year, Slaten pitched in 24 games with a 3.47 ERA and 3.09 FIP.