Rafael Devers cost his Boston Red Sox a run in the bottom of the fifth inning in Game 3 of the ALCS on Tuesday with a bad play in the field.
Alex Bregman was batting with two outs, Jose Altuve on first, and a 2-2 count from Nathan Eovaldi. Bregman took a pitch on the outside corner and chopped it down to third. A misplay by Devers allowed the ball to bounce into the left field corner. Altuve scored from first while Bregman made his way into second.
Another one for the IG story. #ALCS pic.twitter.com/jvBduFMVSL
— MLB (@MLB) October 16, 2018
That’s a tough play for Devers, but he has to be better on it. Even if he doesn’t field the ball cleanly to get an out to end the inning, at the least he has to work to keep it in front of him so it doesn’t get by. Had he at least knocked it down, Houston might have only had runners on first and second with two out. Instead, letting it bounce past him was the worst-case scenario, as it allowed Altuve to score.
That run tied the game at 2. Whether it’s Eduardo Nunez or Devers, the Red Sox can’t seem to find a third baseman who can reliably make plays at third base.
