BOSTON (AP) - The Latest on the World Series (all times local):
12:03 a.m.
Andrew Benintendi, J.D. Martinez and the Boston Red Sox came out swinging in the World Series opener, seizing every advantage in their quirky ballpark to beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 8-4 on a chilly Tuesday night.
Benintendi delivered four hits, Martinez drove in two early runs and pinch-hitter Eduardo Nunez golfed a three-run homer to seal it. The 108-win Red Sox got a solid effort from their bullpen after an expected duel between aces Chris Sale and Clayton Kershaw never developed.
Xander Bogaerts hit into a go-ahead forceout in the fifth and Rafael Devers followed with an RBI single for a 5-3 lead.
After Manny Machado hit a sacrifice fly in the seventh for his third RBI, Nunez homered over the Green Monster off Alex Wood in the bottom half.
Boston’s David Price faces Hyun-Jin Ryun in Game 2 on Wednesday. This marks just the third World Series in which both starting pitchers in the first two games are lefties.
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11:35 p.m.
Pinch-hitter Eduardo Nunez’s three-run homer off Alex Wood gave the Red Sox an 8-4 lead in the seventh inning.
Manny Machado’s sacrifice fly against Ryan Brasier had pulled the Dodgers to 5-4 in the top half. With runners on second and third, Eduardo Rodriguez relieved and retired Cody Bellinger on an inning-ending flyout.
Andrew Benintendi led off the bottom half with a double against Julio Urias that kicked off the glove of Bellinger in short left, Benintendi’s fourth hit of the game. Bellinger had just entered the game in the top half.
Pedro Baez struck out Mitch Moreland, intentionally walked J.D. Martinez and struck out Xander Bogaerts.
Nunez batted for Rafael Devers, Wood relieved and Nunez sent a knuckle-curve just over the Green Monster.
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10:51 p.m.
Red Sox reliever Joe Kelly used his 100 mph heat to restore order to a grinding game, preserving Boston’s 5-3 lead after six innings.
Kelly retired three straight Dodgers, the first solid effort by a bullpen guy this evening. Los Angeles reliever Julio Urias then did the same thing in the bottom half.
Good hitters are coming for both teams as Game 1 heads to the seventh.
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10:40 p.m.
The Red Sox are back in the lead, 5-3, after five innings and the teams have turned it over to their bullpens in Game 1 of the World Series.
Chris Sale and Clayton Kershaw both got pulled after allowing baserunners to start the fifth. After the Dodgers tied it 3-3 in the top half and chased Sale, Kershaw walked Mookie Betts to lead off the bottom and then gave up Andrew Benintendi’s third hit of the game.
Ryan Madson loaded the bases by walking Steve Pearce on four pitches, bringing up J.D. Martinez, who already had two hits and two RBIs in the game. He struck out on three pitches.
Xander Bogaerts gave Boston the lead with a fielder’s choice groundout, then Rafael Devers made it 5-3 with a single.
In all, Kershaw was charged with five runs on seven hits and three walks. He struck out five and stands to take the loss if the Dodgers can’t rally.
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10:35 p.m.
Red Sox starter Chris Sale is out of the game, leaving after walking Brian Dozier to lead off the fifth. Matt Barnes gave up Justin Turner’s single and then, with one out, threw a wild pitch that allowed the runners to advance to second and third. Dozier scored on Manny Machado’s groundout to tie it.
Sale was charged with three runs on five hits and a walk, striking out seven in four innings plus one batter.
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9:58 p.m.
Boston Red Sox starter Chris Sale left in the top of the fifth inning of the World Series opener despite a 3-2 lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Sale walked Brian Dozier leading off the fifth and was replaced by Matt Barnes. Sale threw 91 pitches, allowing five hits with seven strikeouts and two walks.
Clayton Kershaw, starting his second straight World Series opener for the Dodgers, threw 69 pitches in the first four innings and retired five straight batters after J.D. Martinez’s tiebreaking double in the third. Kershaw had given up six hits with five strikeouts and two walks.
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9:40 p.m.
J.D. Martinez put Boston ahead 3-2 with a booming double in the third inning - and also put a scare into Red Sox fans at Fenway Park.
Martinez lined a long drive against Clayton Kershaw that hit off the garage door on the center field wall. But the big designated hitter slipped rounding the bases, his left foot skidding off the bag at second.
Martinez scrambled safely back to the base, and a trainer went to look at him. After a few moments, he jogged into shallow center field and stayed in the game.
The crowd gave a big cheer to the slugger who led the majors in RBIs this season.
Manny Machado, constantly booed by the home fans, hit an RBI single off Chris Sale that made it 2-all in the top of the third.
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9:10 p.m.
The Dodgers are liking this designated hitter thing.
Los Angeles DH Matt Kemp homered in the top of the second inning on Tuesday night to cut Boston’s lead in Game 1 of the World Series to 2-1. The 34-year-old spent most of his time as an outfielder in the NL this season but also played five games as DH, batting .389 with a homer in 18 at-bats.
The designated hitter is used in the AL parks only in interleague play, including the World Series.
Kemp hit a 3-2 pitch from Chris Sale 389 feet into the front row of the Green Monster Seats. Perhaps a bigger problem for Boston is that Sale needed 51 pitches to get through two innings.
Dodgers starter Clayton Kershaw was at 37 pitches, thanks in part to an inning-ending double play after Boston put runners on first and third in the bottom of the second.
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8:45 p.m.
Run-scoring singles by Andrew Benintendi and J.D. Martinez against Clayton Kershaw in the first inning gave the Boston Red Sox a 2-0 lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series opener.
Chris Sale pitched a one-hit top of the first, allowing a two-out single to David Freese before retiring Manny Machado on a flyout.
After Freese allowed Mookie Betts’ foul pop behind first to fall on a blustery night, Betts led off the bottom half with a single, stole second and scored on Benintendi’s single to right.
Yasiel Puig’s throw home had little chance to catch Betts, and Benintendi took second on the toss. One out later, Martinez singled past a diving Machado at shortstop, and Benintendi came home without a play as Kershaw looked on in disgust.
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8:30 p.m.
The Los Angeles Dodgers became the first team to start nine right-handed batters in a World Series game, none of them switch-hitters.
There were 20 previous instances in which all nine of a team’s batters in the starting lineup hit righty, including switch-hitters, according to Major League Baseball.
And there were 46 games in which a team started eight right-handed batters.
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7:55 p.m.
Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts received a big cheer from the Boston fans when he was introduced before Game 1 of the World Series.
Roberts is still beloved in Boston for his brief tenure with the Red Sox. It was his stolen base in Game 4 of the 2004 AL playoffs that turned things around for the long-futile franchise. The Red Sox came back to tie it the ninth inning and rally from an 0-3 deficit in the series to beat the New York Yankees and then win their first World Series in 86 years.
But the love-fest didn’t last long.
Second baseman Brian Dozier was introduced next, and the cheers turned to boos.
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6:45 p.m.
The field at Fenway Park was cleared in anticipation of bad weather before the World Series opener.
“Attention fans: Due to severe weather in the area, please take cover in the concourse or under the grandstands immediately,” a message on the video board read 90 minutes before the scheduled start as lightning flashed. “Thank you for your patience.”
Afternoon showers were followed by clearing, and three rainbows appeared by the ballpark: two behind the Green Monster in left field and one in back of the stands on the first-base side. A narrow storm line could pass through just before or after the scheduled 8:09 p.m. EDT start.
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5:25 p.m.
A trio of gorgeous rainbows showed up over Fenway Park ahead of Game 1 of the World Series. There were two beyond the Green Monster, and another brilliant ’bow far past the right-field stands.
A good omen for Boston? Well, there was a wonderful rainbow over Fenway in 2013 while the Red Sox worked out a day before the World Series. They went on to beat St. Louis in six games.
The rain has stopped, and a few players from both the Red Sox and Dodgers trickled into the outfield to limber up.
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5:10 p.m.
Second baseman Brian Dozier was set to hit leadoff for the Los Angeles Dodgers, who started nine right-handed hitters in the World Series opener against the Boston Red Sox and Chris Sale.
Third baseman Justin Turner was next, followed by first baseman David Freese, shortstop Manny Machado, left fielder Chris Taylor, designated hitter Matt Kemp, center fielder Enrique Hernandez, right fielder Yasiel Puig and catcher Austin Barnes.
In a matchup of left-handers, Clayton Kershaw was to start for the Dodgers.
Right fielder Mookie Betts hit leadoff for Boston, followed by left fielder Andrew Benintendi, first baseman Steve Pearce, designated hitter J.D. Martinez, shortstop Xander Bogaerts, third baseman Rafael Devers, second baseman Ian Kinsler, catcher Sandy Leon and center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts had Cody Bellinger, Max Muncy and Joc Pederson all on the bench.
Boston had been starting Eduardo Nunez against left-handers.
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4:35 p.m.
With a steady rain falling, batting practice has been canceled and the tarp is on the field for Game 1 of the World Series.
But Major League Baseball says the game is still scheduled to start on time at 8:09 p.m.
Forecasts had called for temperatures around 50 and rain during the afternoon. It was expected to taper off by game time.
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noon
The Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers each added a fresh left-handed reliever to their World Series rosters.
Boston put Drew Pomeranz on its roster Tuesday in place of right-hander Brandon Workman. Los Angeles swapped lefties, adding Scott Alexander and dropping Caleb Ferguson.
Knuckleballer Steven Wright failed to make Boston’s roster after throwing a simulated game Sunday. Wright was removed from the Division Series roster following the opener against the New York Yankees, a day after reinjuring his left knee during a workout.
Pomeranz gives the Red Sox another matchup left-hander to use against the Dodgers. He made 11 starts, then was sent to the bullpen in August and had a 5.96 ERA in 15 relief appearances, striking out 22 and walking 12 in 22 2/3 innings while allowing 27 hits.
Workman allowed seven hits and three walks while facing 13 batters over three appearances in the Division and League Championship Series.
Alexander made one appearance in the Division Series against Atlanta, throwing a 1-2-3 ninth inning in the Dodgers’ Game 3 loss.
Ferguson, a rookie, did not allow a hit or walk while facing 10 batters over three innings in six postseason appearances. He was replaced on the Championship Series roster by fellow lefty Julio Urias.
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11:45 a.m.
The World Series opens in October chill on Tuesday night, with Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw pitching at Fenway Park for the first time and facing a Red Sox team that had the best record in baseball.
Kershaw will confront a lineup loaded with the likes of Mookie Betts and J.D. Martinez that carried Boston to 108 wins this season.
Chris Sale gets the start for Boston, pitching 10 days after his last outing and nine after he was hospitalized with what the team called a “stomach illness.” What precisely was wrong with Sale is unclear. He joked - possibly - that it was from a piercing gone bad.
Forecasts call for the temperature to be around 50 degrees for the first pitch a little after 8 p.m., with a drop as the night goes on.
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