I must say I came to Boston with some preconceived notions that people would pronounce things a bit funny and the home town fans would be a bit on the hostile side. Although there were a number of times where I smiled at the pronunciation of "Fenway Paak", the fans where very accepting. I loved the walks through the city, the stadium and the food too. Baltimore might be known for their blue crab but I had some amazing crab cake benedict at The Lansdowne Bar on Lansdowne street. The Orioles fans and Sox fans even had commonalities in their "Yankees Suck" chants. The games left much to be desired as an O's fan.
This was Alex Cobb's first start and a lot was riding on this game. Over the offseason, he took over the mantle as the Orioles highest pitcher in franchise history. The previous title holder, Ubaldo Jimenez, did not fair well to say the least and the contact and his performances were a stain on the club. Enter Alex Cobb. After signing late in the offseason, Cobb started in extended spring training until now. A 43 degree Boston afternoon is not the ideal weather to start a season for a pitcher with an injury history.
Cobb didn't do anything to dispel fears of another overpriced pitcher and a weak rotation as he gave up 3 runs and Hanley Ramirez 2 run home run before he recorded his first out. He wasn't quite Chris Tillman bad as he went 3.2 innings and gave up 8 runs but it was a disheartening scene for the O's and their fans.
The Red sox got a scare early when they plated their first run. MVP candidate, Mookie Betts, twisted his ankle as he slide awkwardly into home plate. He braved it out for a few more innings before being replaced by Blake Swihart in the 3rd. His presence in the lineup and the field was not missed however as Jackie Bradley Jr. made several outstanding diving catches in right and JD Martinez provided the power with a solo shot.
Boston came away with a 10-3 victory with 2 games left in the series including the Boston Marathon morning game. The Red Sox are 12-2. The Orioles, on the other hand, are 5-10 and are in danger of being out of the hunt by the end of April. Next stop is New York, New York.