ARLINGTON, Texas — It’s been a whirlwind of a week for right-hander Aaron Civale.
He was taken out of the Brewers’ rotation, requested a trade and saw that request granted two days later when he was dealt to the Sox.
You can add his new manager, Will Venable, getting his second career ejection in the first inning to the list.
“Any time the manager goes and fights with the players, that’s an awesome sign,” said Civale, who threw five innings and allowed two runs on six hits. “When you have each other’s backs, that’s how you know you’re in a good position and the culture’s good. When you’re fighting for each other, that’s important.”
The Sox were swept following Sunday’s 2-1 loss to the Rangers. They are on a five-game losing streak and a season-low 26 games under .500.
Venable’s quick toss was surprising for the reserved manager. But Venable reached his breaking point following a ball call from home plate umpire Marvin Hudson in Civale’s at-bat against shortstop Corey Seager that turned it into a 3-2 count, instead of a strikeout.
Venable quickly left the dugout and got in the face of Hudson to voice his displeasure. The two engaged in a back-and-forth shouting match, escalating to where the veins in Venable’s neck were popping out.
“There was early frustration, you could call it,” Venable said. “And obviously, you saw what happened.”
According to the MLB.com strike zone, Hudson made the right call as the ball was outside the zone, but Venable disagreed.
Venable has earned praise from his players for his steadiness and positive disposition. He’s communicative and as a nine-year MLB veteran, he understands the grind of being a player. On Sunday, he took up for his players more demonstratively.
But Venable’s ejection didn’t ignite a listless Sox offense. Offensively, the Sox (23-49) didn’t put up much of a fight and struggled to cash in with runners in scoring position (1-for-9).
With Ryan Noda on first with one out in the seventh, Josh Rojas singled to put runners on the corners. Rojas then tried stealing second and was caught stealing. Mike Tauchman was called out on strikes to end the inning.
“You’re making a move, one — expecting to steal the base successfully,” Venable said. “It was just one of those plays where we had a little something on the pitcher. [I] thought it was a good opportunity to go and it just didn’t work out.”
The Sox had another opportunity in the eighth when Andrew Benintendi’s one-out double got the Sox a runner on base. Miguel Vargas flew out in the next at-bat, but Kyle Teel hit a two-out single to put runners on the corners.
Teel promptly stole second, giving the Sox a prime scoring opportunity with Edgar Quero at the plate. Quero worked a full count against reliever Cole Winn, but lined out sharply to Seager to end the inning — according to Baseball Savant, the hit had an expected batting average of .830.
The Sox scored just six runs over the three-game series, and four came in Saturday’s loss.
Knowing the Sox’ propensity for drawing walks — they entered Sunday tied for fourth in the majors in walks — the Rangers were aggressive in the zone and the Sox didn’t adjust.
“They were aggressive, and we just didn’t match the aggression,” Venable said. “There were pitches in the zone we weren’t able to turn around.”
After going 4-for-26 with RISP, the players should also feel Venable’s frustration after being swept in a series they could have won.
