MILWAUKEE -- The Red Sox’s series finale against Milwaukee could be aptly summed up by two scenes, the dichotomy between which couldn’t have been clearer.
Out on the field, the Brewers reveled among themselves, spraying water bottles everywhere in front of a raucous American Family Field crowd while celebrating yet another walk-off win. In Boston’s dead-silent clubhouse, players sat stone-faced, left to process the 6-5, 10-inning loss that sent their losing streak to a season-high five games.
While the Red Sox have spent the entire series insisting that their luck will eventually turn, they were forced to follow a sweep-clinching defeat by discussing the various miscues and errors that brought them four games below .500 for the first time since the end of the 2023 season.
“We didn’t play well today,” manager Alex Cora said. “The score will say that it was a good baseball game, but we didn’t play well today.
“Me and [bench coach Ramón Vázquez] were talking throughout the game; the way we were playing, the way they were playing throughout the series. They ran the bases better than us, they played good defense. The little things … they moved guys over. Overall, as far as fundamentals and clean baseball, they were a lot better than us.”
The Red Sox came into Wednesday seeking two things they felt would help snap their losing streak -- a lengthy outing from starter Brayan Bello and the clutch hits they’ve desperately sought all series long. Early on, it seemed they would receive both.
Bello breezed through the first four frames, needing just 64 pitches while allowing one run. A homer from Ceddanne Rafaela and a two-run single from Rafael Devers provided an early lead.
Come the fifth, though, Cora opted to pull Bello after a run-scoring groundout cut Boston’s then-lead to 3-2 with two outs and a man on third. The right-hander finished with a season-low 77 pitches.
“Obviously I feel a little bit frustrated,” Bello said via interpreter Carlos Villoria-Benítez. “I felt like I had a little more in the tank. But at the same time, it’s their decision and you have to respect that.”
Though righty Hunter Dobbins gave up the lead in the sixth during his first big league relief outing, another clutch hit -- Wilyer Abreu's seventh-inning solo blast -- knotted the game at 4-4 and seemed to provide enough fuel for Boston to get over the hump.
But an avalanche of mistakes, the kind a club in the Red Sox's position can’t afford to make, derailed those hopes in a hurry.
Thanks to Trevor Story’s first sacrifice bunt since 2016, Boston had a runner at second with one out in the eighth. The threat was promptly thwarted by two strikeouts. A bases-loaded ninth-inning rally was stifled by Nick Sogard’s inning-ending K.
Come the 10th, clinging to a 5-4 lead, reliever Justin Slaten failed to cover first in time on Sal Frelick’s leadoff single.
“It’s inexcusable,” Slaten said. “That’s Day 1 stuff. You get taught to get to the bag when you first get on the mound for kid-pitch.”
One play later, second baseman Kristian Campbell tried to catch the automatic runner at home on a grounder, but the throw was well off-target for Boston’s third error of the day. Caleb Durbin then capped Milwaukee’s victory with a walk-off sac fly.
In the aftermath, a Red Sox team that was above .500 just five days ago was left to deal with the sting of one of their most frustrating stretches of the season. The team had been adamant throughout the series that nobody’s belief was shaken, that everyone still had faith in a turnaround.
While that remained the case after Wednesday’s loss, the reality of the situation was hard to ignore.
“It sucks,” Slaten said. “Nobody in here is happy about anything. People are pissed. I don’t really know how else to describe it.”
The Red Sox departed Milwaukee never more certain of what needs to be done to end this losing streak, yet still struggling to find the execution necessary to finally get the job done. As that fact sets in, so, too, does the realization that pointing to the calendar to ease concern is no longer an option.
“It’s not early anymore,” Cora said. “We know where we’re at, we know who we have on the roster, and it’s not going to change.”