Dunning overcomes early blip to continue dominant stretch

BOSTON -- On a wet, sloppy Independence Day at Fenway Park, Dane Dunning did not get off to the start that he had hoped for. But nearly everything else after was sunshine and roses for the Rangers hurler.

Following a one hour and forty-seven-minute rain delay in the bottom of the eighth, the first of three games in Boston went the way of Texas, 6-2, behind a 10-hit effort and six innings of one-run ball from their starting pitcher, who settled in very nicely after allowing the leadoff hitter to score.

“I was just trying to get the ball rolling from the get-go,” explained Dunning. “The leadoff triple doesn’t help, but I was able to settle in after that.”

Just three pitches into his day, Dunning released an 83 mph slider to leadoff hitter Jarren Duran, who stroked a screaming shot to center field that came off the bat at 110.5 mph, per Statcast. The ball would drop and roll into the triangle, rattling at the wall’s apex and under the 420-foot marker.

Duran would come in to score when the next batter, Alex Verdugo, grounded out to shortstop.

Dunning brushed off the initial blow by Boston and retired eight straight batters following the triple, including a strike out of the side in the second, two of them looking.

“He’s been able to locate all of his pitches,” said catcher Mitch Garver of Dunning’s efforts. “His cutter usage is up more, and it keeps lefties off balance. He’s just been able to be in the strike zone, compete, get ground balls when he needs them. He rolls through innings pretty quickly, he’s not out there to throw 100 pitches in five innings.”

Red Sox opener Brennan Bernardino retired the first four Rangers batters before Nathaniel Lowe drew a slow roller to a shifted third-base side, beat it out for a single and set up a run of four straight hits. Ezequiel Duran followed with a single and then Garver took the first offering from Kaleb Ort and muscled it dead center for a 408-foot, three-run homer.

“This is the Mitch that we know,” said manager Bruce Bochy. “It was good to see him just let it go and just get some good ABs off.”

“I needed that,” a relieved Garver said postgame. “To get a start behind the plate, catch a good game and contribute offensively is food for me.”

Those runs would be all Dunning would need as he went on to allow five hits over the next five innings.

The Rangers right-hander, who has filled the rotation spot left open by Jacob deGrom’s season-ending injury, struck out four batters on the day and improved to 8-1 on the year. He also dropped his ERA to 2.61 and with just enough innings to qualify, he sat seventh in the Majors with that number after Tuesday's start.

“I can’t think of a pitcher that has brought more value,” Bochy said. “When you look at what he did in the pen and of course with Jacob [deGrom] he gets inserted into the rotation and here he is fourth in the league in ERA. He’s just a complete pitcher, moves the ball around, changes speeds, keeps the ball on the ground a lot, he’s got good poise out there. I don’t know what else we say, I’m kind of out of superlatives to give this kid. That’s how good he’s been.”

“I’m just trying to be needed as much as I can and trying to help the team as much as I can,” concluded Dunning.