2020 OOTP sim: Luis Robert defeats Angels, 8-5
ANAHEIM — Luis Robert started his rookie year out very slowly, creating concern, particularly as fellow rookie Nick Madrigal took off almost from the get-go.
Well, Robert has found his get-go, and it's getting better by the day. On Friday, he singlehandedly strapped the flagging Sox to his back and dragged them to an 8-5 win over the Angels.
With two outs and the bases loaded in the first inning, Robert jumped on the first pitch from Julio Teheran and sent it 431 feet out to right-center for a grand slam. And in the top of the sixth, he raised that ante with a miraculous homer that simply needed to be seen to be believed.
With nobody out and Cheslor Cuthbert on first base with a single, Robert drove a ball deep into the gap in left center, rolling to the wall. With no misplay, Robert easily touched all the bases with a hit that 90%-plus of major league hitters would have been happy to get to second base on.
Sheer ridiculousness, reminiscent of Robert's turbo-triple against the San Francisco Giants this year in spring training.
The best thing that can be said about Reynaldo López's start is that he didn't manage to squander an 8-1 lead, giving up three earned over six innings. At this rate, projecting to 2021, López will be a bullpen piece.
Jace Fry continues to walk a tight with his outings. Called in to face three straight Angels lefties in the eighth, the southpaw surrendered a single-walk-RBI single that got Aaron Bummer up in the pen, in a panic.
But Fry gets to tear his bus ticket back to Charlotte up for now, because he rallied to induce an inning-ending 6-4-3 from Andrelton Simmons. Fry in fact came within a Trout hit batsman from finishing the game. But with Fry tiring, Alex Colomé entered to vulture yet another save this season. With three pitches, he induced an Anthony Rendon ground out to third to earn his fourth save of the season and keep his ERA a spotless 0.00.
Tomorrow, Gio González (3-1, 2.54 ERA) faces Andrew Heaney (4-1, 2.57 ERA) in a battle of early Cy Young contenders.