After dropping two of three to the Mariners this week at Fenway Park, the Red Sox begin a six-game road trip in Cleveland on Friday.
The big issue for Boston is the ongoing slump of designated hitter Rafael Devers, who is 0 for 15 over the last five games and is hitting .194. However, the Red Sox are confident Devers will find his groove.
“The group is grinding, he is grinding, he knows it. Hopefully we find it in Cleveland,” manager Alex Cora said.
The Guardians are a half-game behind the Tigers in the AL Central after taking two of three from the AL East-leading Yankees.
Here’s a preview of Friday’s series-opener, which could be affected by the weather. According to AccuWeather, there’s a 61 percent chance of rain at gametime.
RED SOX (14-13): Duran LF, Devers DH, Bregman 3B, Story SS, Abreu RF, Campbell 2B, Casas 1B, Rafaela CF, Narváez C
Pitching: RHP Tanner Houck (0-2, 7.66 ERA)
GUARDIANS (14-10): Kwan LF, Jones RF, Ramírez 3B, Manzardo DH, Santana 1B, Naylor C, Arias SS, Schneeman 2B, Martínez CF
Pitching: RHP Ben Lively (1-2, 3.86 ERA)
Time: 7:10 p.m.
TV, radio: Apple TV, WEEI-FM 93.7
Red Sox vs. Lively: Wilyer Abreu 1-4, Triston Casas 0-4, Rafael Devers 0-5, Jarren Duran 2-8, David Hamilton 0-2, Ceddanne Rafaela 0-5, Rob Refsnyder 3-3
Guardians vs. Houck: Gabriel Arias 1-3, Austin Hedges 0-3, Steven Kwan 2-7, Bo Naylor 0-2, José Ramírez 2-13, Brayan Rocchio 1-5, Carlos Santana 1-3
Stat of the day: Red Sox third baseman Alex Bregman is 7-for-14 with five RBIs in the last four games, and batting .320 on the season.
Notes: Cleveland is 7-2 at home this season and has not lost a series in Cleveland. … The Guardians had won five straight prior to losing to the Yankees on Wednesday, and are 11-4 after losing six of their first nine contests. … Scheduled Boston starter Tanner Houck has a 1.78 ERA and a 1-1 record in four career starts vs. Cleveland. The righthander allowed two runs and eight hits over 15 innings of his two starts against the Guardians in 2024. … Guardians righthander Ben Lively has yet to post a quality start in any of his five starts this season, but only yielded four hits and a walk through 5 1/3 innings in Saturday’s 3-0 victory at Pittsburgh. … Lively has a 1-1 record with a 2.25 ERA in four career starts vs. the Red Sox.
Information from Stats Inc., and Field Level Media was used in this report.
Matt Pepin can be reached at matt.pepin@globe.com.
