Red Sox new win streak — five straight — the result of improved starting pitching

BOSTON — Last week, the Red Sox struggled mightily, losing two consecutive series as their starting rotation stumbled. At one point, the Sox allowed eight or more runs in five consecutive games.

Since then, they’ve done a nice reversal, winning their last five games in a row.

The difference? The starting pitching.

Monday marked the third time in that five-game stretch in which the starting pitcher did not allow a single run. In Baltimore, that group included Sonny Gray and Ranger Suarez.

On Monday, Brayan Bello, of all people, joined the club.

Making his first start since the first week of June, Bello was far from perfect. He walked two and invited traffic in nearly every inning, But in the end, though he was forced to labor through 103 pitches to get 15 outs, he kept the Los Angeles Angels off the scoreboard in a 5-2 Red Sox win.

During their five-game winning streak, their starting pitchers have combined to allow just four runs, which translates to an ERA of 0.93.

In the last four games, no starter has allowed more than a single earned run.

And suddenly, everything was right with the world again.

“It was important (for them to turn it around),” said interim manager Chad Tracy. “Obviously, that last homestand — to be fair, we were going through a pen day, a spot start, so we kind of knew we were going to grind through that period. But coming out of that on the backside with no day off, because of when we went to Baltimore, we had (had) a lot of usage in our pen that we get a run of good starts.

“So that’s five really good starts in a row — really good starts. It was important that we got to that place.”

In essence, while burying the Orioles in the wild card chase, the four-game sweep at Camden Yards allowed the Sox to reset their rotation. As often happens, one good start begat another, and the momentum not only carried them through that road series but transferred to the start of a six-game homestand.

“They’ve done a great job,” said catcher Adley Rutschman, who helped out the cause with a three-run shot off the right field foul pole in the the four-run second inning. “They’ve just filled up the zone, executed their game plan and just continued to impress. It feels like the staff executes really well. They have a great plan going in and they do a great job.”

Bello struggled at times and seemed to be consistently falling behind in the count. But he mixed his pitches well, gave the Orioles different looks, and despite the high pitch count, walked just two while fanning seventh.

He was re-introduced into the rotation to allow for extra rest for the remainder of the rotation — Thursday’s off-day will help there as well — but his effort could go a long way in earning him a spot back within the team’s circle of trust.

The Red Sox seemed understandably reluctant to give Bello another starting opportunity after he compiled a hideous 10.35 ERA in that role, but Monday’s effort may wear down their opposition going forward — should the chance present itself, that is.

In the meantime, with less than three weeks remaining in the regular season, the rotation could not be hitting its stride at a better time.

More Red Sox coverage

Read the original article on MassLive. Add MassLive as a Preferred Source by clicking here.