Boston Red Sox outfielder Wilyer Abreu was supposed to have the first game of Sunday’s doubleheader against the St. Louis Cardinals off. Instead, he pinch-hit and delivered a walk-off hit.
So, how did Abreu follow that up in Game 2? All the 25-year-old slugger did was turn heads with another outstanding performance.
Abreu stayed red-hot at the plate, going 2-for-6 with three RBIs from the cleanup spot in the order as the Red Sox thumped the Cardinals, 18-7, at Fenway Park to earn the series sweep.
The strong showing earned Abreu, who dealt with a viral gastrointestinal illness at the start of spring training, a piece of franchise history, too. According to Red Sox senior manager of media relations and baseball information J.P. Long, Abreu’s .483 batting average and .595 on-base percentage are the highest of any Red Sox player in history through the first 10 games with a minimum of 25 plate appearances.
“I felt confident when I left spring training that I was healthy and ready to have a very good season,” Abreu told reporters following his walk-off hit through translator Carlos Villoria Benítez, per MassLive’s Christopher Smith. “Obviously this is way better than I expected.”
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By the end of Sunday’s rout, Abreu heard MVP chants when he came to the plate from the Fenway faithful, and for good reason, too. He got Boston’s offense rolling in the bottom of the first with a ringing single to right. In his next at-bat the following inning, he laced a double into the left-center gap, giving the Red Sox a 6-1 lead.
“Try to use the whole field,” said Abreu, who also took his walk-off hit to the opposite field. “It’s a huge help — even more here at Fenway when we try to use the Monster to our advantage. If I’m able to do that consistently, it’s going to be a very good year for me.”
But Abreu just didn’t do it with the bat. He also cut down Lars Nootbaar trying to go from first to third on a single from Willson Contreras in the top of the third. Abreu unleashed a picture-perfect throw to get Nootbaar as Alex Bregman didn’t even have to move his glove to apply the tag.
“He worked hard in the offseason with his swing, his body,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters, per NESN. “Right now, his start is amazing.”
