The Boston Red Sox were cruising through the first 4 1/2 innings of their Sunday afternoon matchup with the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park.
Alex Cora's team was up 1-0 after a Jarren Duran RBI single in the top of the fifth, and starting pitcher Cooper Criswell had pitched four perfect innings, striking out five without allowing a hit, walk or run to score.
However, in the bottom of the fifth inning, Cora removed Criswell from the game after just 52 pitchers and replaced him with 44-year-old veteran Rich Hill.
Hill immediately gave up the lead, surrendering a two-run home run to Spencer Torkelson, and Zack Kelly gave up a two-run home run to Zack McKinstry in the sixth inning.
Boston has been careful when using Criswell recently, but Cora's decision here will certainly be questioned, as he was really strong in his outing and may have kept the lead even longer.
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