That’s it, that’s the tweet.

On Tuesday, Jayson Tatum took to his account on X, formerly Twitter notifying fans that he had officially hit the 6 month mark since undergoing surgery to repair a ruptured achilles tendon.

6 months

— Jayson Tatum (@jaytatum0) October 28, 2025

Tatum has been very visible in his recovery efforts and vocal about his desire to return to the court this season. The Celtics star sat down for an exclusive interview with Noa Dalzell of SB Nation & CLNS Media where he discussed where he’s at in his recovery process.

“I mean, yeah, I’ve been working my butt off, for the last 24 weeks now,” Tatum told Dalzell.  “Just trying to get healthy and trying to get 100%, and it’s just something that that motivates me, right? Every day I go to rehab and workout and I’m on the court, you know, something that I can, try to get to it’s like a goal, you know, myself and challenging myself every day.”

Tatum spoke to Dalzell following a surprise appearance at the Wang YMCA in Chinatown for an NBA Cares event centered around unveiling a newly renovated indoor basketball court. Tatum spent the afternoon playing basketball and board games with the kids and talked about why doing something like this is so important to him.

“My first memory of playing basketball was at the YMCA back in Saint Louis. I used to look forward to it. Saturday mornings, you know, when I was in 1st, 2nd, 3rd grade, even kindergarten, going to play at the YMCA on Saturday, and that’s really where, you know, I was playing organized basketball and I fell in love with the game. That’s just kind of where it all started for me.”

Jayson Tatum just surprised kids at an NBA Cares event at the Wang YMCA in Chinatown, and the kids are going nuts

It’s the 20-year anniversary of NBA Cares pic.twitter.com/CWGKrEHh9q

— Noa Dalzell (@NoaDalzell) October 28, 2025

Another way Tatum has stayed connected is by being around the Celtics as much as possible. He arrived at the event in Chinatown just hours after landing from New Orleans where the Celtics captured their first win of the season on Monday.

Tatum says it’s been difficult for him to not be able to be out there and help his team which has struggled in his absence, starting the season 1 and 3.

“It’s tough, you know. Still rehabbing and I’m getting better every day, but I’m not able to play yet, so, it was my first time starting the season and not being out there,” Tatum said. “I love to play, I love to compete and not being able to be out there with the team, it’s already tough enough, but I think just still traveling and being with them during meetings and the game and practicing shooting around, still trying to feel, as much a part of the team as I can, I think, really helps my mental health a lot.”

And added benefit to traveling with the team and not playing, Tatum gets to soak in the NBA atmosphere on the road and see just how many fans he and the Celtics have outside of Boston.

“There are a lot of Celtics fans when we travel on the road,” he said. “And I think, in a humble way, there’s a lot of Jayson Tatum fans out there. There are some cities, like New Orleans, where we only come once a year. I understand the value for people who only get to see us once a year and try to see their favorite player play. And I’m not able to play, but I can be out there. And, maybe I can make somebody’s day if I wave at them.”

The post Jayson Tatum’s Long Road Back Takes Detour for Surprise YMCA Visit appeared first on CLNS Media.

That’s not an insult by the way.

If you’ve followed the Celtics even a little bit these past few seasons you’ve witnessed several examples of Mazzulla’s trademark intensity and insatiable competitive drive. It’s what makes him one of the best coaches in the NBA and one of the reasons Banner number 18 hangs from the rafters at TD Garden.

Whether it’s getting all over a ref in a meaningless preseason game.

Or using a coaches challenge up 30 late in the 4th quarter.

Or trying to block an opposing player’s 3 point attempt after the whistle.

Or berating reporters who ask questions he doesn’t feel like answering.

Every interaction is viewed as combat. Kill or be killed.

That mentality crossed over into a “friendly” scrimmage versus the media earlier this week at the Auerbach Center in Boston.

The concept was great (even if hijacked and altered by Mazzulla at the last minute.) A chance for media members to play alongside Celtics coaches – led by the Celtics head coach and a collection of assistants with past NBA and D-1 college experience.

Fun!

The execution? Not so much.

What ensued was a – to be expected – 57-4 bludgeoning. 

When news of the score trickled out social media enjoyed a good collective belly laugh about it.

This game is traditionally media vs media. But this year Joe Mazzulla made the media face coaches presumably to embarrass them.

Diabolical. https://t.co/jsFt4vjiji

— John Zannis (@John_Zannis) October 14, 2025

But then details of the game started to emerge.

The 57 points were scored in only 12 minutes.

There was a shot clock.

And, an 8 second count to cross half court.

And, the group of former NBA and D-1 players – at Joe Mazzulla’s frantic urging – pressed and trapped the hapless and hopeless scribes full court the entire game. First person accounts estimate that the media team only crossed half court 4 or 5 times.

And, the ref assigned to the game swallowed his whistle despite some exceedingly physical play on the part of the coaches.

Oh, and the journos got punked in the presence of Celtics stars Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum and team President Brad Stevens who chuckled from the balcony as the media team got rolled.

Are we having fun yet?

After Mazzulla and co dismantled the media things mellowed out. The coaches and journalists spent a few moments palling around and then the media took part in the game they expected to play in versus one another. A much more competitive 27-23 affair.

By all accounts the reporters who played almost unanimously seem to have enjoyed the entire experience, beatdown included. Even though this isn’t what they initially signed up for.

This was more akin to being invited to a barbecue and being told when you arrive, ‘We’re going to eat later, but first, we’re going to hunt you. We’ll give you a 30 second head start. Go.”

Participants actually enjoyed it so much several scribes wrote glowing pieces about it afterwards, and have publicly declared that they look forward to the next opportunity to take on Joe and his coaches, vowing to do better next time.

Thank you sir, may I have another?

Mazzulla for his part, promised that he intends to stage another game like this during his first public appearance the following day. A scheduled interview with broadcast partner 98.5 the Sports Hub with “Zo and Beatle.”

The Celtics coach was however somewhat surprised that the hosts didn’t share his enthusiasm for the public flogging the press received as Marc Bertrand and Scott Zolak chided Joe about his decision to humiliate the media or as Zolak – a former professional football player – said “put them in their place.”

“(It’s) kind of the world we live in today,” Mazzulla responded. “Where one tweet doesn’t tell the whole story, or you missed the context of what the point of something like that is. The intention of it wasn’t to get out, but that’s kind of the world we live in.

It’s unfortunate that people don’t get the whole context of the day but we all got to be in a competitive environment together.”

No Joe. 

This was NOT a “competitive environment” any more than the African Savana is a competitive environment for a Zebra. Nor was it a “level playing field” as Mazzulla also suggested.

Bertrand then followed by asking the Celtics 3rd year coach the only question that really matters.

Why?

Why was the beating necessary to achieve the desired goal? To which Mazzulla – channeling his inner Hanz and Franz – quipped that maybe Bertrand doesn’t have “any competitive juices” flowing through him.

‘Don’t call me a bully you wuss!’

Or, maybe you’re just a little Girly Man.

“Well I could go down to the playground and beat a bunch of 4 year olds,” Bertrand clapped back. “If that’s what gets you going Joe.”

Honestly, a grown adult vs 4 year olds would probably have been more competitive than this.

Mazzulla continued to stress the bonding aspect of the exercise during his media availability the following day, spending more time on what happened after the beating than the impetus for it, which still remains unclear.

“Yesterday was very, very important,” Mazzulla said Wednesday before hosting the Toronto Raptors in a preseason game. “It will be laughed at and joked about, but it means a lot more to humanize (the coaches and media.) We have too many interactions where it’s the coach and you. Like, everyone’s doing their job.”

I mean yeah, that’s kind of how it goes.

“I felt like after yesterday we all had our guard down, “Mazzulla continued.” And we were all in the competitive arena together. And that meant a lot to lower everyone’s guard and bust balls and do all that stuff. So, it was cool to see everybody in a natural environment. And, sometimes, we’re coming from a competitive arena, and you’re not in a competitive arena — you’re just doing your job. And that’s where things get misinterpreted. But for all of us to be in the same arena, I think that says a lot.”

How exactly does 57-4 humanize the media? They were human before Joe, whether you realized it or not.

Also, please tell me how does the media get to “bust balls” back after the beating they took?

‘Hey Joe, remember that time where you trapped me with the shot clock winding down to zero, I pooped my pants, dribbled the ball off my knee and crashed to the ground in a heap trying to grab the ball before it rolled out of bounds?’

Boom Roasted!

Newsflash. Sports media and the people they cover are never on a level playing field. Not off the court and certainly not ON it.

Even the smartest, most knowledgeable writers on the beat bring a middle school level understanding of basketball to each Q & A session relative to the multiple PHD’s Mazzulla, his assistants, and the players possess. Same goes in other sports as well, Taylor Kyles notwithstanding.

These guys are on a different level, and we already know it.

The power dynamics in each media session are heavily tilted in Mazzulla’s favor. Perhaps even more so now. You shouldn’t need to humiliate people in an effort to humanize them. That humanity should already exist through a mutual understanding and respect that each person is here trying to do a job.

While I understand that the relationship between sports media and the people they cover can sometimes come off as adversarial, the reality is the majority of Celtics coverage is overwhelmingly positive and supportive.

I’ve made no secret in the past that I think Joe Mazzulla can be somewhat of a bully. Not the first coach in these parts to play that role either.

His tense exchanges with the media linger with some reporters long after they walk out of the press room. And before they return, they ruminate over how to approach the next interview without asking the type of question that will draw Joe’s ire and get them posterized or worse, they don’t ask those questions at all.

Maybe now that Joe has “humanized” the reporters who cover him on a daily basis he’ll mellow out and the back and forth between the two sides will be less combative.

Or perhaps Mazzulla did this to soften them up in the hopes that they won’t come at him as hard in the future. If so, well played.

Full disclosure. I had emailed the Celtics about my intention to play in this game when it was just media vs media. I wasn’t entirely sure whether I was going to go through with it more having to do with general laziness and the fact that I haven’t run full court in years. When I caught wind that the coaches were going to play I was glad to have sat it out. NBC Sports Boston play by play announcer Drew Carter said on the game broadcast Wednesday night he did the same thing, claiming he didn’t “want to get blown out or choked out.”

Call me a coward, but I didn’t feel like being the butt of a joke. And that’s before I knew Mazzulla was going to go full Psycho Joe on the brave souls who went through with it anyway. Though knowing what we know about Joe, I guess there was really no other way.

Was it textbook bullying by Mazzulla? I’m not sure. Even if it was bullying behavior it may not have been the intent. Just Joe being Joe.

I liken it more to fraternity hazing. Or breaking a horse.

Was there however a better way to bond and get on the “same level” as the people who cover the team which didn’t involve physical domination and public humiliation?

Absolutely. So, so, so so, SO many better ways.

Have the coaches play alongside the media to make the sides more even. How about bowling or mini golf, or axe throwing. You know, something where you can still compete but are actually on a level playing field and/or doing it together.

That’s something that Tuesday’s game did not accomplish. The two sides didn’t do anything together.

When given the opportunity to create a true bonding experience, Joe Mazzulla chose violence.

It was us vs you. And it was ugly.

Mazzulla said the other day, “The only thing that would have made it better is if we all went out for a beer afterwards.”

A beer with Joe Mazzulla? Sure, I’d be down with that. Just replace the word “afterwards” with “instead.”

Is there a Red Lobster nearby? My Treat!

The post For Joe Mazzulla, Even Bonding is a Battle appeared first on CLNS Media.

Jayson Tatum today underwent successful surgery to repair a ruptured right Achilles tendon. No timetable is currently available for his return, but he is expected to make a full recovery. Further updates will be provided when appropriate. pic.twitter.com/TTXziFtMQB

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) May 13, 2025

The injury naturally knocks Tatum out for the remainder of the NBA playoffs and will extend deep into next season if not cost him the entire year. Typical recover for achilles ruptures is 10-12 months.

The new comes less than 24 hours after Tatum crumpled to the floor late in the 4th quarter of the Celtics game 4 loss to the New York Knicks. The injury occurred with 3.07 left in the 4th quarter Tatum with the Celtics trailing 111-104. Tatum pushed off hard on his right foot trying to grab a loose ball and immediately went down clutching his right ankle.

Tatum stayed down writhing in pain for several minutes before being helped off the court. He was unable to put any weight on his injured leg.

ESPN cameras later captured a distraught Tatum making his way to the Celtics’ locker room in a wheelchair.

Jayson Tatum was emotional while leaving the game in a wheelchair from a non-contact injury. pic.twitter.com/ZtUGRedUzg

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) May 13, 2025

Tatum’s injury could have far reaching implications for not only his future but the Celtics as well. Boston will enter this offseason facing a massive luxury tax bill that could result in shedding some core players to reduce salary. With Tatum now likely out until the 206-2027 season, the rebuild or retool could take on an entirely different shape.

The post Breaking: Jayson Tatum Undergoes Surgery on Ruptured Achilles Tendon appeared first on CLNS Media.

The injury has hampered Brown for the last month or so. He missed 6 games in March and looks like he will close the season sitting out Boston’s final 3.

Boston Celtics forward Jaylen Brown received pain management injections in his troublesome right knee this week in an effort promote healing before the Celtics begin their title defense, league sources told ESPN. https://t.co/8WSceFfUwp https://t.co/8WSceFfUwp

— Ramona Shelburne (@ramonashelburne) April 12, 2025

There is some question as to what type of injection Brown is receiving, how effective it can be and for how long it can remain effective. It has been reported that Brown is suffering from a bone bruise. For context, Cleveland Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell received an injection for a bone bruise in early March of last season. He missed 12 of the Cavs final 14 games heading into the postseason. Mitchell played and came out looking good as new in round 1 but had to be shut down in the Cavs round two loss due to a calf strain.

The supposed bone bruise that’s been bothering him for a year is likely not really a bone bruise and probably more cartilage/meniscus irritation.

Also, “pain management” injections and “to promote healing” typically don’t go together unless it was an orthobiologic injection… https://t.co/P4lUhddHiD

— Brian Sutterer MD (@BrianSuttererMD) April 12, 2025

The last time Brown took the court he played 22 very ineffective minutes vs the Knicks, scoring only 6 points on 2 of 8 shooting. After that game Kristaps Porzingis expressed concern over Brown’s injury, pleading for his teammate to prioritize rest.

Brown has denied that reaching the 65 game threshold necessary for postseason award eligibility factored into his decision to play through the injury.

The post Jaylen Brown Receives Pain Killing Injection in Troublesome Right Knee Ahead of Playoffs appeared first on CLNS Media.

If you’ve been watching the past few Celtics games and found yourself wondering “what the f—k is Jaylen Brown doing out there? Well, you’re not alone.

The All-Star forward has been dealing with pain and discomfort in his right knee from a bone bruise. But rather than rest, Brown is “toughing it out” deciding to play through the injury, even though there’s no rational, earthly reason why. The games are meaningless in the standings, and have been for a while.

Brown has denied that reaching the 65 game threshold to be eligible for postseason awards has factored into his decision to play hurt. He also has said that rest “might not help” him get better.

Well, if something might not help, simple logic dictates that it also might.

No one knows for sure whether Brown is doing more harm than good by playing, or if there’s any benefit to it, but even his teammates are starting to wonder aloud.

“He’s a tough dude. He’s a tough dude,” said teammate Kristaps Porzingis. “He always preaches his warrior mindset, and he lives by it, but to what extent do we need that right now? Maybe he needs to take care of it and make sure he’s going to be ready for the most important moments.”

Wow.

Porzingis is always candid and refreshingly honest in interviews. He is also an extremely supportive teammate and Brown’s closest friend on the Celtics.

But right now Porzingis is all of us. Begging, pleading with Brown to stop playing, get some rest and be as healthy as possible heading into the playoffs, now less than 2 weeks away.

“I think we just have to encourage him to make sure he does everything he needs to prepare, to get it healthy, and to prepare for what’s going to come,” Porzingis added. “And I think he’s a smart guy. So he will. It just shows his heart and how bad he wants to be out there, even for games that don’t mean super much to us right now.”

Kristaps Porzingis asked about Jaylen Brown playing through his knee injury:

"He's a tough dude. He always preaches his warrior mindset. He lives by it. But to what extent we need that right now? Maybe he needs to take care of it and make sure he's going to be ready for the most… pic.twitter.com/tZaX3ChnPp

— Celtics on CLNS (@CelticsCLNS) April 9, 2025

On Tuesday night Brown played 21 minutes and change in a thrilling 119-117 overtime victory over the Knicks. He was yanked late in the 3rd quarter never to be seen again. When he was in the game, Brown lacked any explosiveness, was a traffic cone on defense and struggled to get clean looks. He finished with six points on two of eight shooting.

Yuck.

OG SHUTS DOWN JAYLEN BROWN

(via @nyknicks) pic.twitter.com/tOuL0BE10i

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) April 9, 2025

“We just got what we needed to get out of him as he continues to push himself and test himself,” Joe Mazzulla said when asked why Brown was pulled from the game and never returned. “We’ve still got games left, so it was just we got what we needed to get, what we needed to see, and we just continue to move forward.”

Not sure what the Celtics needed to get out of Brown or if they got it. But if Brown was truly pushing or testing himself, he failed. Once again begging the question, what is he doing out there?

The obvious answer is and has always been getting to 65 games. Entering Tuesday night, Brown had to play in three of the C’s final four games to be eligible and needed to log at least 20 minutes in one of the games and a minimum of 15 in the other two.

He played 22 minutes on Tuesday. If he plays around 15 minutes in two of the final three games left on the slate, well then guess what?

We all got played.

It’s understandable for an athlete to want to play in meaningless games late in the season to try and rack up awards or contract incentives.

Provided they are healthy. Brown, clearly is not.

Whether he’s making it worse, no one seems to know? Anyone with eyes and access to google can reasonably conclude that rest and recovery seems more prudent than playing through pain at a time when there’s simply no need.

“It’s tough,” said wingman Jayson Tatum. “We work really hard on our craft and try to prepare ourselves to be at our best. It’s tough mentally when you are out there and you maybe can’t do what you normally do. It’s a mental hurdle that you need to fight. That’s why it’s a team sport. You’ve got teammates that got your back, cover for you, and help you get through things.”

And therein lies the grim reality. We are past the point of no return. This injury is here to stay.

The Jaylen Brown who was named conference and NBA Finals MVP last season won’t be appearing in this year’s NBA playoffs. In his place will be the guy we all saw cosplaying with a #7 Celtics jersey gimping around the Madison Square Garden floor last night.

Were this the playoffs or the NBA Finals, what Brown is doing right now would be considered heroic. But right now, it’s at best foolish and at worst, selfish.

Title runs are hardly ever clean. And overcoming injuries can be part of the journey and is often how heroes are born.

Kristaps Porzingis foot injury last season. Curt Schilling’s bloody sock in 2004.

But it’s also how potential championship seasons can be derailed.

Larry Bird’s broken hand in 85. Kevin McHale’s broken foot in 87. Tom Brady’s ankle in 2007 and Gronk’s in 2011. Kevin Garnett’s knee in 2009. Kendrick Perkins missing game 7 of the Finals in 2010. Patrice Bergeron’s entire body in 2013 and his back in 2023. Jayson Tatum rolling his ankle against the Heat in 2023.

When those things happen, fans look back and wonder ‘what if.’

But if the Celtics stumble in their quest for Banner 19 this year because of a reduced and hobbled Jaylen Brown fans will ask a different question.

Why?

Did this need to be this way? If Brown is truly playing right now just to make himself eligible for individual honors, he may get his awards. But in doing so he could be putting the Celtics title hopes at risk and potentially tarnish his legacy in Boston forever.

The post Jaylen Brown Putting Celtics Title Hopes, Legacy at Risk by Playing Through Injury appeared first on CLNS Media.

Jones spoke to the media in Foxboro today and naturally was asked his thoughts about Travis Hunter, the two way sensation out of Colorado who excels at both receiver and cornerback and should be a top 4 pick in the upcoming NFL draft.

“I definitely understand the situation of playing both sides, but his level of how he was doing it and everything like that was definitely different from mine, but I hope the best for him,” Jones said of Hunter. “Just being able to do it in the league is definitely hard to do, but I hope that he takes advantage of the opportunity.”

On playing offense this season, Marcus Jones says he's busy learning a new defense, but "If it happens, it happens."

— Taylor Kyles (@tkyles39) April 8, 2025

While many league analysts believe it’s best for Hunter to pick and stick with a primary position in the NFL, the 2024 Heisman Trophy winner says he wants to play both receiver and cornerback full time. Something Jones believes will be challenging.

“I feel like it’s one of those situations where, whenever people were first saying, you can’t really play both sides in general in the league. And then, I get here and eventually, I start playing (both sides),” Jones said. “But playing both sides (full-time), I’m not going to say you can’t do it, but it’s a very long season.”

Jones debuted on the offensive side of the ball his rookie season in 2022, catching 4 passes for 78 yards. He took his first NFL offensive touch to the house on a 48 yard bubble screen week 13 against the Bills. Jones missed most of 2023 with injury and last season didn’t get any snaps on offense until he told former offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt that he could play both sides of the ball. He finished the season with only one reception for 18 yards and one rush for 5 yards.

Marcus Jones first offensive snap of the season goes for SIX! pic.twitter.com/7Tz0HyKc7C

— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) December 2, 2022

So what about this season under new head coach Mike Vrabel and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels?

“Same question every single time. If it happens, it happens,” Jones said when asked about playing offense this season. “My main thing is to learn a new defense and then kind of go from there.”

The post Marcus Jones Knows Challenges Travis Hunter Will Face Playing 2 Ways in NFL appeared first on CLNS Media.

That plus a dominant outing from Blue Jays ace Jose Berrios silenced the previously scorching hot Red Sox offense in a 6-2 defeat to Toronto in the opener of a four game set at Fenway.

The game, which was in jeopardy of being rained out surprisingly started on time, and right off the bat – literally – fans were treated to one of the best defensive plays they will see all season. Jays slugger Bo Bichette drove the first pitch of the game deep to the gap in right center. Sox centerfielder Ceddanne Rafaela came out of nowhere to make a spectacular sliding catch, crashing into the base of the bullpen wall.

The ball had an expected batting average of .820 and according to Statcast a catch probability of 5%. Rafaela covered 102 feet of ground to snag it in 5.2 seconds.

“Unreal,” said Red Sox starter Richard Fitts. “That’s the kind of guy that we want out there and I trust him wholeheartedly.”

Ceddanne are you kidding?! pic.twitter.com/904Nb7C2BN

— Red Sox (@RedSox) April 7, 2025

“Unreal,” said Red Sox starter Richard Fitts, whose reaction to the catch said it all. “That’s the kind of guy that we want out there and I trust him wholeheartedly.”

Things would start to fall apart for the Sox shortly after that. Starting catcher Connor Wong fractured his pinky after being hit on his glove hand by a George Springer swing in the top of the first. He remained in for the rest of the frame but was removed the next inning. “

He has a small fracture in the pinky area so he’s moving to the IL,” Alex Cora said after the game via the NESN postgame show. “How long we don’t know, late swing got him good.”

Springer wasn’t done doing damage. The Connecticut native went 4-for-4 on the night with three RBI singles.

Toronto opened up the scoring in the 3rd inning on an Andres Gimenez sacrifice fly and a Springer RBI single.

The Sox closed the gap to 2-1 on a Rafael Devers sacrifice fly in the bottom of the frame.

The Jays got it back in the 5th as Springer added an RBI single to make it 3-1 Toronto. That’s all they would get off Fitts though, who struggled with his command but was able to limit the Jays to 3 runs on 6 hits over six innings. He walked four, struck out four and threw a career high 102 pitches.

“I went out there in long sleeves and ended up starting to sweat a little bit, so I took my long sleeves off,” Fitts said. “Honestly, I felt pretty good out there. More than anything, the wind made the ball a little bit slicker. I was licking my fingers every pitch, trying to do anything to get grip.”

The Sox rookie has been a bright spot for Boston in his limited big league career, with a 2.76 ERA in six career starts dating back to last September.

Toronto added two more runs in the top of the seventh on RBI singles from Springer’s and Will Wagner, making the score 5-1 Jays.

The Red Sox offense which had been red hot coming in was silenced by Berrios who allowed only one run on four hits over 7 innings.

The Red Sox best chance to get back in the game came in the 8th. Boston got a run back on an RBI single by Triston Casas off reliever Yimi Garcia. The Red Sox had two men on and the potential tying run at the plate but Garcia got Trevor Story looking at strike 3 to end the threat. Toronto added one more run in the 9th on an RBI single by Nathan Lukes.

The Red Sox host Toronto at Fenway Park again on Tuesday night. First pitch is 6:45 p.m. Ace Garrett Crochet makes his Fenway Park debut. He is 1-0 so far on the season including a dominant outing his last time out against the Orioles.

The post Red Sox Win Streak Snapped as Bats Cool Off in 6-2 Loss to Jays appeared first on CLNS Media.

The Sox slugged three home runs, one apiece by Alex Bregman, Kristian Campbell and Tristan Casas to take the rubber game of a 3 game series with the Orioles 8-4 win.  over the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards 

The home runs were the first of the year for both Bregman and Casas who had both been scuffling at the plate to start the season. Bregman added two more hits, both doubles and another RBI to cap a 3-for-5 afternoon. 

The Sox 3rd baseman, who signed late in the offseason to a 3 year $120 million deal, had gone 6-for-26 to start the season entering Thursday’s game with no extra base hits, zero RBI and 6 strikeouts. 

“You start the season and you can be feeling great in spring training and swinging the bat well and then the season starts and you get that little bit of adrenaline that you don’t have during spring training,” Bregman said to reporters after the game. “Sometimes your swing gets a little big or sometimes your at-bats speed up on you a little bit.”

Bregman got things started quickly with a two-run homer in the first off Orioles starter Charlie Morton.

Breggy BOMB pic.twitter.com/f6KgRTXmSB

— Red Sox (@RedSox) April 3, 2025

The Orioles got one back in the bottom of the frame when Cedric Mulins took Sox starter Tanner Houck deep for a solo shot to make it 2-1.

But Sox rookie Kristian Campbell extended the lead with a two run homer down the line in left, his second of the season putting the Sox up 4-1. Campbell, who signed a 6 year $80 million extension on Wednesday is batting .417 through 7 games this season with four doubles, two home runs, four walks and six runs scored.

“He’s electric… I can’t speak highly enough of what he’s doing…” teammate Tristan Casas said of the Sox rookie phenom. “He’s the real deal.”

That one got out in a hurry! pic.twitter.com/vrWVwNKG3o

— Red Sox (@RedSox) April 3, 2025

Casas joined the home run brigade in the 7th. With the Sox now up 5-3 the Sox first baseman smoked a fastball from lefty Keegan Akin over the wall in left-center for a two-run homer that put the Sox ahead, 7-3. Coming into the game Casas had only 2 hits in 21 at bats with 9 strikeouts. After the game, Casas said he has maintained the same approach throughout his early season struggles.

Triston made it look easy. pic.twitter.com/GzINcNf9aP

— Red Sox (@RedSox) April 3, 2025

“I’m in there thinking about nothing, and I’m thinking about thinking about nothing,” the ever philosophical and always eccentric Casas told WEEI after the game. “So sometime I get to that unconscious space you want to reach as a player and then I get there and I’m like ‘oh dang’ this is it. Its just early in the season still, I still got a lot of jitters going up there opening day opening week. You want to get off to a good start and obviously hasn’t happened but today was hopefully a sign of good things to come.”

Sox starter Tanner Houck has his second straight so-so start of the season. He allowed three runs on six hits and a pair of walks over four-plus innings. He was pulled after hitting a batter to start the 5th.

As has been the case all season long, the Sox bullpen locked things down from there. Four different pitchers pitched the final 5 innings allowing only 3 hits and one run to secure the 8-4 win.

The Sox return to Boston to play their home opener on Friday against the St. Louis Cardinals at Fenway Park. First pitch 2:10pm. Walker Buehler gets the ball for Boston against the Cardinals Erick Fedde.

“Now it’s time to go to Boston,” said Bregman. “It’s gonna be an awesome opening weekend…the place is gonna be rocking.”

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Ace left-hander Garrett Crochet has reportedly agreed to a record-breaking $170 million, six-year contract with the Boston Red Sox. The extension kicks in in 2026 and includes an opt-out after 2030. It is the largest deal ever for a pitcher with four-plus years of major league service time. The news was first reported by ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

BREAKING: Left-hander Garrett Crochet and the Boston Red Sox are in agreement on a six-year, $170 million contract extension, sources tell ESPN. The deal starts in 2026 and includes an opt-out after 2030. By far the largest deal ever for a pitcher with 4+ years of service.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) April 1, 2025

The extension comes 4 days after Crochet’s self imposed March 27th deadline. The two sides did not reach an agreement before then and Crochet said he wanted to table talks until after the season to avoid any distraction. The tall lefty did tell WEEI’s Rob Bradford that he and the Sox were close, they just couldn’t get a deal done.

“I never got that feeling,” Crochet told Bradford. “You would rather it be that way than have the conversation one time and it’s a large gap, where I’m over here thinking I’m a really good pitcher and there would be a gap, meaning they’re thinking you are less than you.”

Red Sox Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow also stated publicly that the sides were seemingly done talking extension until after the season.

“Right now, Garrett is getting ready to throw the first pitch for the 2025 season. I think he has been outspoken about wanting to table conversations and be able to focus on the season,” Breslow said prior to the Red Sox season opener in Texas. “We absolutely want to respect that and we’re super excited about what he’s gonna do for us.”

The Red Sox paid a steep price just to acquire Crochet giving up four prospects (Kyle Teel, Braden Montgomery, Chase Meidroth and Wikelman Gonzalez) in a blockbuster trade with the White Sox in December.

Crochet, who turns 26 in June, will earn $3.8 million in 2025 before the extension kicks in the following season. He is eligible to opt out when he is 31.

The Sox ace next takes the mound Wednesday in Baltimore where he’ll look to improve on his opening day performance when he allowed 2 runs on 5 hits with 4 strike outs over 5 innings in a Red Sox 5-2 win, their only victory of the season.

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Unlike the majority of games on this trip, the B’s competed on Saturday night. But the reality is, their punchless lineup, depleted by trades and injuries makes it hard these days to muster any positive results. Still, interim head coach Joe Sacco says he’s liked how the Bruins competed.

“I like a lot about our game tonight. I thought our compete level was high,” said interim coach Joe Sacco via the Boston Bruins X account. “I thought there was a lot of intensity in our game tonight. It’s unfortunate that we didn’t come away with the result that we wanted to. It’s frustrating. I feel for the guys. But we gave a solid effort here tonight. We just fell short and we weren’t able to capitalize on our chances, especially at the end. but the effort was solid.”

Coach Sacco and Morgan Geekie react following the #NHLBruins 2-1 loss to the Red Wings on Saturday night in Detroit: pic.twitter.com/vETCbkX65D

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) March 30, 2025

“I think it was one of the more complete games we’ve played in a while,” added Morgan Geekie who scores Boston’s lone goal. “It’s tough when you don’t see the results at the end of that, but it’s something we can build off of and take positives out and come back at it on Tuesday (against Washington at the Garden).”

The Bruins playoff hopes are all but dashed but the Wings entered the game with an outside shot of sneaking their way into the postseason, 3 points out of the final Wild Card. So naturally, the Wings came out with some fight.

Alex DeBrincat and Andrew Peeke dropped the gloves just 1:06 into the game after DeBrincat challenged Peeke following a big hit.

Less than a minute later, Jakub Lauko got the worst of an exchange with bruising Wings forward Auston Watson who rained haymakers down on Lauko before body slamming him to the ice, earning him an extra 10-minute misconduct.

Austin Watson laid the BOOM on Jakub Lauko pic.twitter.com/97X6YnTE8R

— Spittin' Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) March 30, 2025

Detroit got on the board first following a turnover by David Pastrnak in the neutral zone. Marco Kasper raced out and beat Jeremy Swayman with a wrister from the top of the left circle. It was soft goal let up by Swayman who saw it the whole way but just whiffed with the glove.

A late hit by Nikita Zadorov put Detroit on the power play at the end of the first. The man advantage seeped into the second period where the Wings extended their lead on a goal by Lucas Raymond 53 seconds in.

Less than two minutes later the Bruins got one back. Morgan Geekie drew a penalty and then followed it with a power play goal – his 27th of the season to cut the lead to 2-1.

The Bruins carried the play the rest of the second period but failed to score. And then in the 3rd period. they just stopped trying. Boston didn’t record a shot on goal until there was less than 6 minutes to play in the final frame and they few they did land on net in the games waning moments they failed to convert.

Boston now sits at 69 points in a 3-way tie for the 6th worst record in the league. The Bruins realistically could sink as low as 4th worst, improving their lottery odds in what is considered to be a top heavy NHL draft.

The Bruins return home on Tuesday to take on the Washington Capitals. Puck drop is at 7 p.m. 

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