SOX 4, ROCKIES 2
First look at Velasquez
Right-hander Vince Velasquez, signed to a $3 million, one-year deal to provide back end rotation and long relief depth, made his first start in a Sox uniform and notched a pair of scoreless innings. Velasquez allowed three hard hits loading the bases with no outs in the second, then pitched out of the jam.
“Got a jam shot, got some groundballs, got some outs and got out of a tough jam,” said Velasquez, who admitted to pre-outing jitters. “That’s just the art of pitching and once I start to establish that confidence within my secondary pitches, that makes my fastball that much better to get out of jams.”
Rockie inning for Hendriks
Liam Hendriks needed 32 pitches to get through the third inning, walking three and leaving the bases loaded. He also took a comebacker off his right hamstring, scrambling to get an out at home and then waving off trainer James Kruk and pitching coach Ethan Katz, who checked the closer out anyway.
“But that wasn’t even the most painful thing in the outing. Walking three,” Hendriks said. “I got ahead fine and then couldn’t put them away. It’s a mentality thing that creeps up every now and then that we’re working to get back and get that little streak of confidence back, especially with two strikes.”
Highlights
Andrew Vaughn played right field, left field and first base and had two hits, Luis Robert (double) and Gavin Sheets (RBI) both hit to the opposite field producing a first-inning run, Luis Basabe homered, Danny Mendick stole second and third and scored on a Robert sacrifice fly, Garrett Crochet filled the strike zone in a perfect inning with one strikeout and lefty prospect Bennett Sousa struck out the side in the sixth on 13 pitches.
The Sox are 3-1 in Cactus League games.
On deck
Sox at Dodgers, 3:05 p.m., Glendale (NBCSCH, 1000-AM), Jason Bilous vs. TBD.
