Frankie Montas will try to make a better impression on Saturday night when he takes the mound for the New York Yankees in the second contest of their three-game series against the host Boston Red Sox.
The Yankees also could use a shot in the arm after losing for the eighth time in their past nine games in the series opener on Friday night.
New York carried a 2-1 lead into the ninth before dropping a 3-2 decision in 10 innings.
Montas (4-9, 3.59 ERA) was ineffective in his debut with the Yankees on Sunday, but it was a scramble for the right-hander just to make it to the road game against the St. Louis Cardinals.
He was traded from the Oakland Athletics on Aug. 1 and then went on the bereavement list following the death of his mother-in-law.
After arriving in St. Louis the night before his start, Montas struggled through three innings in the 12-9 loss. He surrendered six runs and five hits while striking out two and walking three.
“Certainly a tough situation for him, but he wanted to be out there. He wanted to compete,” New York manager Aaron Boone said. “We felt like he was ready to go and got this first one (out of the) way. He’s going to do big things for us.”
Montas said he didn’t feel in sync with his mechanics.
“I wasn’t having the best delivery,” he said. “I was all over the place, but my arm feels good, and that’s what I care about.”
While pitching for the A’s, Montas allowed four runs on six hits in six innings of a 5-2 setback to the Red Sox on June 5. He’s 0-2 with a 1.83 ERA in five career appearances (three starts) against them.
Boston third baseman Rafael Devers is 5-for-8 with two doubles and two RBIs in his career vs. Montas.
The Red Sox plan to start right-hander Kutter Crawford on the mound on Saturday.
Crawford (3-4, 4.30) earned his first major-league win against the Yankees on April 10, throwing two innings of scoreless relief in a 4-3 victory. He took the loss out of the bullpen vs. New York two days earlier after surrendering an RBI single to the first batter he faced in the 11th inning.
All three of his appearances against the Yankees, including the lone start, occurred this season. He is 1-1 with a 1.29 ERA in those games.
After giving up just one earned run in back-to-back starts, Crawford wasn’t as effective his last time out. He yielded five runs on as many hits in five innings of a 13-5 loss to the Kansas City Royals on Sunday.
“I did some pretty good things (in that game). I threw a pretty good splitter, so that’s come along,” he said. “Little bump in the road. We’re going to learn from it and keep working.”
Yankees left fielder Andrew Benintendi returned to Fenway Park for the first time since he left Boston following the 2020 season, his fifth with the Red Sox. He went 1-for-4 in the series opener Friday.
“Obviously, the connections I have with all those guys over there go beyond baseball,” Benintendi said before the game. “To come back, be able to see a lot of the familiar faces I’ve seen in the past and play against some old teammates, I’m looking forward to it. It’s going to be fun.”
–Field Level Media
