Alex Verdugo giving Red Sox some spark

Alex Verdugo had an eventful Sunday night against the Yankees.

The outfielder extended his hitting streak to seven games, recorded an outfield assist and stole a base in a 4-2 Red Sox loss in the Bronx.

Verdugo went 2-for-4 with a single and a bullet double off the wall in right. He’s on a 10-for-28 roll with four extra-base hits, four runs scored and four RBI. Verdugo has clubbed all five of his homers in his last 11 games after being shut out through his first 11. [...]

Alex Verdugo had an eventful Sunday night against the Yankees.

The outfielder extended his hitting streak to seven games, recorded an outfield assist and stole a base in a 4-2 Red Sox loss in the Bronx.

Verdugo went 2-for-4 with a single and a bullet double off the wall in right. He’s on a 10-for-28 roll with four extra-base hits, four runs scored and four RBI. Verdugo has clubbed all five of his homers in his last 11 games after being shut out through his first 11.

"I like the timing of his hitting now," Red Sox manager Ron Roenicke said. "He’s on time a lot more to catch that fastball, but also staying back enough to hit the off-speed."

Verdugo’s assist was his fourth of the season, tying him with Kevin Kiermaier (Rays) and Bryan Reynolds (Pirates) atop the big leagues. Mike Tauchman sliced a line drive to left and Verdugo sprinted toward the corner, fielding and spinning to make a strong throw back toward the infield. Tauchman was out by a good five feet at second, temporarily holding off a New York rally in the bottom of the third inning.

"The play in the outfield was outstanding," Roenicke said.

Verdugo stole third base in the top of the seventh with two outs and the tying run at the plate. That’s generally a no-no according to conventional baseball wisdom unless you can take the extra bag standing up. Verdugo dove in head first and was safe by a few feet.

"If they know they can make it and they’re sure they’re going to make it, it’s a good play," Roenicke said. "Obviously you can’t get thrown out in those situations."

bkoch@providencejournal.com

(401) 277-7054

On Twitter: @BillKoch25