Roller-coaster Red Sox debut for Kiké

BOSTON -- Kiké Hernández has come to Boston to enthusiastically set a more energetic tone for a team coming off of back-to-back disappointing seasons.

Be it with his bat at the top of the order, his spectacular glove on defense and his peppy personality in the dugout, Hernández couldn’t wait for Friday, when he could finally put his imprint on Red Sox baseball.

It’s just that this imprint was one he would like to forget in a 3-0 loss to the Orioles. And surely, Hernández will have it out of his mind by the time he takes the field for the second game of the season.

That’s the beauty of baseball -- you never have to wait long for redemption.

At least off the bat, the Red Sox looked like they would accentuate the strength of their team on Opening Day -- their deep offense.

Hernández led off the bottom of the first with a lined single to right and it seemed Boston just might be off and running in this season in which they are desperate to turn away the negative vibes of 2020.

But with one out, Hernández stumbled back to first on a pickoff play, and the Orioles challenged the safe call and had it overturned after a review of two minutes and 32 seconds.

This game, Hernández was swiftly reminded, sure can be a roller coaster.

“Yeah, got my first hit out of the way,” Hernández said. “Felt good at the moment. Quickly, didn’t feel great about it after getting picked off. I rolled my ankle and I came off the bag for a half a second and [Trey Mancini] happened to put the tag on me.”

As it turns out, the Sox should have savored Hernández’s hit at that point, because Orioles lefty John Means didn’t allow them another one for the rest of his stellar (seven innings, one hit) afternoon. They would have just one hit -- a J.D. Martinez double with two outs in the bottom of the ninth -- the rest of the way.

“I'm used to it,” quipped Red Sox manager Alex Cora. “That's my third Opening Day [loss]. We're 0-3 with me managing. We knew we were going to lose during the season, so we got it out of the way, I guess.”

Even without the surprising lack of firepower, the Red Sox were right in this game. In fact, the game was still locked in a scoreless tie in the top of the sixth. Matt Andriese on, in relief after a solid start by Nathan Eovaldi, looked like he was about to induce a double-play ball to get his team out of the inning.

After all, Hernández is probably the best defensive player the Red Sox have -- and one of the best in the game. And second base is his best position.

So when Anthony Santander hit that 107.9-mph screamer at Hernández -- the hardest-hit ball of the game per Statcast -- he didn’t blink. He prepared to make the play that would get his team back to the dugout. Instead, the ball bounced off Hernández's glove and rather than having two outs, the Red Sox had no outs on the play.

As tends to happen in baseball, the next batter made the Red Sox pay for the miscue. Baltimore phenom Ryan Mountcastle belted a two-run double to left and Boston never recovered.

“The error I made, hard-hit, topspin, tried to come get it, didn’t get the hop that I wanted,” Hernández said. “Made an error. I think I would have traded that base hit for catching that ball and the outcome of the game would have been different. We probably still would have been playing. Yeah, tough time to make an error there.”

Really, there wasn’t much else to say about it. It was a play Hernández will make far more times than he doesn’t, especially as he gets used to his new playing surface at Fenway Park and the temperature gets past frigid.

“He just missed it. The ball was hit with topspin, he tried to get the hop and he just missed it,” said Cora.

There will be plenty of days this season when the Red Sox pick up Hernández or whomever after a miscue with their high-powered offense.

But on Opening Day, they got stuck in neutral by Means and Baltimore’s bullpen.

“I don't think we made adjustments,” said Cora. “Obviously it's Opening Day and sometimes emotions take over and you want to do a lot. Just a tough one. We didn't do much.”

Yet there are another 161 chances at a more satisfactory day -- starting with Saturday.