The Boston Red Sox entered their Wednesday afternoon battle against the Oakland Athletics with a chance to earn a series sweep, and that's exactly what they did, winning 1-0 at Oakland Coliseum.
Nick Pivetta, who gave up just one run and earned a loss in his first outing of the season, pitched another impressive five innings of five-hit, no-run ball. That was followed up by four scoreless from the combination of Joely Rodriguez (0.2 innings, one hit), Justin Slaten (1.1 innings, no hits), Chris Martin (one inning, two hits) and Kenley Jansen (one inning, two walks).
From the offense, left fielder Jarren Duran was impressive again, going 4-for-4, but no one else had more than one hit. Second baseman Enmanuel Valdez scored the sole run of the game on a sacrifice fly.
Center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela continued to flash the leather, as he made another beautiful jumping catch.
Your daily Ceddanne Rafaela defensive gem. pic.twitter.com/S0Qi20FLow
— Red Sox (@RedSox) April 3, 2024
Things got a little hairy in the ninth, as Jensen allowed two base runners and Valdez had an off-target throw to first baseman Triston Casas, allowing the tying run to get to third.
Luckily, Jansen recorded a strikeout against the last batter of the game, securing the win, earning his second save of the season and sending Boston into their off-day on a good note.
