Fenway Park, in all its historic charm, can be a cruel mistress — and the Boston Red Sox learned that lesson the hard way Tuesday night.
In a tightly contested 2-1 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies, the Red Sox found themselves battling not just a Cy Young-caliber arm, but also the unique dimensions of their own ballpark. The culprit? A 105.6 mph rocket off the bat of Wilyer Abreu that, in any other major league stadium, would have been a game-tying home run.
The drama unfolded in the bottom of the seventh inning. With the Phillies clinging to a 2-0 lead and ace Zack Wheeler dealing, pinch-hitter Mickey Gasper sparked hope with a 104 mph single. Then Abreu stepped to the plate and unloaded on a 3-2 sweeper, sending a deep fly ball to right field that had everyone — including the NESN camera crew — thinking "gone."
Instead, Phillies right fielder Adolis Garcia camped under it on the warning track, 374 feet from home plate. The blast would have cleared the fences in 29 of 30 MLB ballparks. Fenway's notoriously deep right field was the lone exception.
"Me, and everybody thought that was out," Abreu said afterward. "There's nothing I can say about that. It was a really good hit and just didn't go out."
The Red Sox didn't let the disappointment deflate them. Trevor Story followed with a single, and Ceddanne Rafaela delivered an RBI flare to right field, cutting the deficit to 2-1. But with runners on the corners and two outs, top prospect Marcelo Mayer smoked a 106.2 mph grounder right at shortstop Trea Turner to end the threat.
Credit where it's due: Wheeler, the three-time All-Star and perennial Cy Young candidate, was in vintage form. After Kyle Schwarber opened the scoring with a first-inning homer, Wheeler needed just six pitches to breeze through the first inning and a mere 16 pitches through three frames. The Red Sox offense was left chasing shadows.
"The first three innings were too quick for us," Abreu admitted. "We had to change our approach and try to see more pitches and try to get a mistake."
Wheeler's dominance forced Boston to battle for every inch. They finally got to him in the seventh, but Fenway Park had the last laugh. For the Red Sox, it was a night of what-ifs — and a reminder that even the most majestic swings can fall short in baseball's most iconic park.