Christian Vazquez missed the entire 2015 season after having Tommy John surgery. Vazquez made an immediate impact in his first appearance of 2016. Vazquez picked a runner off first base, had two hits and two runs scored in leading the Boston Red Sox to a 5-3 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays Friday night at Fenway park.
What may go unnoticed is what Vazquez did behind the plate. In Rick Porcello’s first game with Vazquez as his catcher, Porcello (2-0) turned in one of his finest performances since joining the Red Sox at the start of the 2015 season. Porcello allowed three runs on two hits and one walk, while striking out eight in 6.1 innings. Edwin Encarnacion did all the damage for the Blue Jays. He smashed two home runs, had all three hits for the Jays, and recorded all three RBI.
The Red Sox scored three first inning runs after the first two batters were retired. David Ortiz hit a run scoring double. Travis Shaw hit a two run double after Hanley Ramirez was able to reach on a passed ball on a strikeout.
Vazquez and Jackie Bradley JR combined for four hits at the bottom of the order. Ortiz reached base three times and recorded his first stolen base since 2013. Shaw also reached base three times. Junichi Tazawa, Koji Uehara, and Craig Kimbrel pitched 2.2 innings of scoreless relief. The Red Sox and Blue Jays will play game two of the four game series on Saturday afternoon at 4 PM. The scheduled pitching matchup is David Price (1-0) VS Marco Estrada (1-0).
