Rick Porcello Didn’t Have to Be an Ace to Do His Job in the Red Sox Home Opener
On a festive Opening Day that saw Patriots head coach Bill Belichick show off his newest Lombardi Trophy as part of the pregame ceremony, Red Sox starter Rick Porcello took a page out of the Super Bowl Champions’ playbook and did his job.
Porcello didn’t need to pitch like Pedro Martinez, the Hall of Famer and former ace at 4 Yawkey Way. He didn’t even need to pitch like a starting pitcher set to make $95 million over the next five seasons. Mookie Betts and the offense did more than enough damage off Washington starter Jordan Zimmermann – exploiting some defensive lapses, stealing two bases on one pitch, and knocking a pair of baseballs into the Monster seats – for Porcello to deliver a winning performance.
Porcello’s job Monday was to eat innings and pitch deep into the game. On the heels of Clay Buchholz’s 3 1/3 inning disaster Sunday night in New York, Porcello gutted out eight innings despite not having his best stuff on the mound.
“Really I didn’t have to do a whole lot but throw strikes and keep the ball down,’’ Porcello told reporters after the game, praising the run support his teammates provided. Porcello allowed two home runs, and would have allowed a third if not for a spectacular defensive play by Betts in the top of the first inning, but he kept his pitch count down and overcame his own shortcomings in earning an ugly win.
“I think I’ve got some room for improvement with consistency,’’ Porcello said after the game. His self-criticism is on point – sinkerball pitchers like Porcello shouldn’t serve up three home runs in the span of two starts. But Porcello’s ability to salvage an effective start without his “A game’’ is an encouraging sign for a Red Sox team that should score enough runs to win plenty of games like Monday’s high-scoring home opener.
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