Monday, June 29

BOSTON – For weeks, the Red Sox have been teetering. Players have acknowledged the team will have no choice but to become sellers at the Trade Deadline unless things change dramatically, and soon.

They need to rip off a long stretch in which they win a lot more than they lose. Is it possible they at last generated some momentum during a memorable weekend at Fenway Park in which they pulled off a four-game sweep of the rival Yankees, capped by a walk off hit by Jarren Duran in the bottom of the 10th?

It marked the first time the Sox have had a four-game winning streak this season, and there was a vibe throughout the four games that hadn’t been felt at Fenway all season.

There is still work to do. Boston is 36-46. Yet, thanks to a watered-down American League, interim manager Chad Tracy’s team is in semi-striking distance for the third AL Wild Card spot, trailing by 4 1/2 games.

With 12 games left before the All-Star break, this is survival time for the Sox and everyone knows it. These next two weeks will likely determine the direction the front office takes in advance of the Aug. 3 Trade Deadline.

“I mean, it has to be,” said Sonny Gray, who pitched brilliantly on Sunday (7 1/3 scoreless innings, one hit). “This is coming down to [the wire] for us. So that was a fun weekend for us, for sure.”

Tracy has stayed even-keeled throughout, and has also tried to stay realistic.

“There's a long way to go,” said Tracy. “We talked to the guys, just said we still got a lot of work to do, but we have some momentum now and maybe the best momentum we've had. We haven't had a four game winning streak, so this is the best momentum we've had. We got to just try to keep riding it for as long as we can. We're playing really good baseball.”

Sunday, when Aroldis Chapman blew the save after Gray’s masterpiece, and the Sox trailed by two entering the bottom of the 10th inning, could have been a gut punch of a defeat. Instead, the Sox rose up and pulled off a stirring three-run comeback to win in the bottom of the inning.

Maybe it will wind up being the start of something?

“Let’s hope so,” said Duran. “It's baseball and stuff happens, but it was a good sweep. Four hard-fought games, and we’ve just got to keep carrying it over. We’ve got a lot of energy on this team, and I'm excited to see what we can continue to do.”

The Nationals come to Fenway for a three-game set that starts Monday. After a day off on Thursday, the Sox go to Anaheim for a weekend series. In the final week before the All-Star break, they’ll play three in Chicago against the White Sox and three in New York against the Mets.

By that time, the front office should have a better idea of what lane they will take on the trade market.

The devastating earthquakes that struck Venezuela earlier this week have hit the Red Sox hard. The club has five Venezuelans on the roster in Willson Contreras, Ranger Suarez, Wilyer Abreu, Carlos Narváez and Andruw Monasterio.

Contreras was emotional about what his homeland is dealing with when he spoke following Friday’s win over the Yankees.

“It's really tough to see what's going on in Venezuela,” Contreras said. “It's really sad to live through this. It's really hard to separate or fake that we are good just because we have to work. I mean, we're professionals. We have to show up and work.

“But it's really tough when you know what's going on in Venezuela, you're here playing for your team, trying to win the game, trying to perform, and at the same time trying to seek ways to help. I wish I could be there, to be honest, to find people. That's where my heart is.”

Contreras had “Pray for Venezuela” stitched into his hat this weekend. 

The Red Sox have taken action on behalf of Venezuela, collecting monetary donations at the Fenway Park gates before and after games on this homestand, which wraps up on Wednesday. All proceeds will be directed toward disaster relief efforts for those affected by the earthquakes.

Among the Red Sox employees spotted taking up collections for Venezuela over the weekend? None other than Hall of Famer David Ortiz, who hails from the Dominican Republic. 

Franklin Arias and Anthony Eyanson are Boston’s top two prospects per MLB Pipeline, and they are both having seasons worthy of their rankings. Together at Double-A Portland, Arias, a shortstop, and Eyanson, a righty starter, have become must-watch every time they take the field. 

Together, they led the Sea Dogs to a 5-2 win at Hartford on Saturday night.

Arias, who was known mainly for his top-shelf defense coming into the season, mauled the go-ahead homer in the top of the eighth. He has gone deep 15 times in 240 at-bats. In his first three pro seasons, Arias had a total of 18 homers.

He seems likely to get promoted to Triple-A Worcester in the near future. 

As for Eyanson, he allowed one run over 5 2/3 innings. He is scorching hot in June, notching a 0.52 ERA in 17 1/3 innings.

The ascension of Eyanson, who was the third of the three SEC righties the Red Sox took within their first four picks of last year’s Draft, has been impressive. He started the season at High-A Greenville and was promoted to Portland on May 5.

As excitement builds for the first season of the WPBL (Women’s Professional Baseball League), two players from the Boston entry – Beth Greenwood from Amherst, N.H., and Katie Reynolds of Watertown, Mass. – threw out ceremonial first pitches prior to the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry matchup on Saturday.

On Sunday, the WPBL Countdown Tour continued as several players from the league showcased their skills and interacted in fan events at Campanelli Stadium, home of the Brockton Rox of the independently-affiliated Frontier League.

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