The Boston Red Sox blew a two-run lead in the ninth inning on Friday night against the St. Louis Cardinals. Saturday’s game was unfortunately a horrible case of dé·jà vu for them.
Red Sox closer Kenley Jansen was the one who blew the save on Friday night. He was asked to redeem himself on Saturday, but struggled just as much.
The Red Sox took a 3-1 lead into the ninth inning, but it quickly evaporated due to Jansen’s struggles and some costly errors in the field.
Cardinals second baseman Nolan Gorman was the hero in Friday’s game with a go-ahead two-run home run. He came through when it mattered most again on Saturday, lacing an RBI double into right field to cut the deficit in half.
Gorman into the gap! #STLCards pic.twitter.com/V0dBLDPsb4
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) May 13, 2023
Jansen almost limited the damage and secured the Red Sox a victory. He forced Cardinals outfielder Alec Burleson to ground into what looked to be an inning-ending double play to win the game.
However, a bad throw by Red Sox shortstop Kiké Hernández that the first baseman couldn’t handle allowed the Cardinals to bring in two runners to take the lead.
NO QUIT IN THIS TEAM! #STLCards pic.twitter.com/7PCJW3VEpD
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) May 13, 2023
Cardinals closer Giovanny Gallegos would do what Jensen couldn’t and close the show, securing a 4-3 victory for St. Louis.
The MLB world took to social media to acknowledge the Red Sox latest collapse.
When will the Red Sox stop putting Kenley Jansen in?? You’ve gotta be kidding me. The guy is a bonafide BUM!
— BeatinTheBookie.com®️ (@BeatinTheBookie) May 13, 2023
Cardinals take advantage of a Red Sox error! pic.twitter.com/S2g7r4ytWa
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) May 13, 2023
https://twitter.com/SawxTakes/status/1657539892291809280
Unbelievable.
— Jared Carrabis (@Jared_Carrabis) May 13, 2023
how did the red sox choke that my god
— Sam Calhoun (@_samcalhoun) May 13, 2023
The back-to-back brutal collapses for the Red Sox are the first time since 2000 that the team has lost back-to-back games after leading in the ninth inning.
This is the first time the Red Sox have lost back-to-back games after leading in the 9th inning since June 27-28, 2000 (both vs the Orioles) pic.twitter.com/ogE1HjqXmy
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) May 13, 2023
With this loss and the New York Yankees’ win on Saturday, the Red Sox fall to last place in the AL East.
[St. Louis Cardinals on Twitter]
