Franchy Cordero finally ends slump with three-hit day in Red Sox win: ‘Good to see him smile’

Franchy Cordero started Thursday on the bench and mired in a frustrating slump that had lasted nearly three weeks. But by the end of the day, the left fielder finally had a reason to celebrate.

After going hitless in 25 consecutive at-bats, Cordero was called upon as an injury substitute and helped lift the Red Sox in their wild 12-9 victory over the Tigers. He went 3-for-5, his first hits since April 19, contributed to the Red Sox’ game-winning run in the eighth as he reached on an error and even came up with some big plays defensively.

“Good to see him smile, contribute,” manager Alex Cora said. “It’s not easy, hitting at this level is not easy. People think that he’s not putting work, but he’s been putting work and he was aggressive right away. I think that gave him confidence. He got the hits and he made contact when it matters at the end. He hustles all the time, which is great. He put pressure on their defense and we were able to score.”

It was hard to justify keeping Cordero in the lineup and even keeping him on the big-league roster as his skid continued. But when Kiké Hernandez suddenly had to leave the game in the first inning on Thursday due to hamstring tightness, Cordero was ready.

Maybe it was because he didn’t have much time to think. But either way, Cordero made an instant impact, ripping an RBI double down the right-field line in his first at-bat that had his teammates and coaches excited in the dugout. He recorded two more hits, both singles, to match his career high with three, and also made a shoestring catch in left to end a Tigers threat in the sixth.

Cordero’s contributions were a long time coming, and it wasn’t without some major help from his coaches. He even credited Jason Varitek on helping him find his swing again.

“it was tough. This is a hard game. If it was easy then everybody would be able to do it. I just kept working. I was working hard with the coaches, spoke to a lot of the guys, a lot of my teammates came up to me and would try to give me some advice as well. Coaches such as Varitek, he came up to me and spoke to me about hitting. Just everyone. It was a team effort in trying to get me right and I’m just happy that I was able to have a good game today.” …

Cora was unsure about the severity of Hernandez’s injury, but knew he would be out for Friday’s opener in Baltimore.

Hernandez pulled his hamstring as he led the bottom of the first with a double. At first, he thought it was just a cramp but after advancing to third base on a ground out, it was clear to Cora that he couldn’t continue.

“I don’t know how serious it is,” Cora said. “I haven’t had too much time to talk to (trainer) Brad (Pearson). But we’ll talk about it and obviously we’ll stay away from him tomorrow. We’ll have more later on or (Friday).”

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/3uriRXQ