If Red Sox's Xander Bogaerts Claims Batting Title, He'll Know Who To Thank

Bogaerts currently is one point behind Judge

Scott Neville | Sep 27, 2022

If Red Sox's Xander Bogaerts Claims Batting Title, He'll Know Who To Thank /

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Boston Red Sox

Boston Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts is right behind New York Yankees' Aaron Judge to claim the American League Batting Title this season. If he can overtake the 6-foot-7 beast and grab the honor, he won't have to go far to thank those who aided him most.

The Red Sox pitching staff not only limited Judge to just two hits in a four-game span, but appear to have started what is becoming a cold streak for the face of the Yankees franchise. Judge went 2-for-11 (.182) with a double, five walks and five strikeouts against Boston in their most-recent series, dropping his average from .317 to .314, which held in the Yankees' opening game against the Toronto Blue Jays.

Bogaerts, who did not have the most successful series himself, has dropped his average from .317 to .313 in the same span. Had the Red Sox pitching staff not contained Judge for four games, this race could be all but over.

As it stands now, Judge has a one-point advantage over both Bogaerts and Minnesota Twins' Luis Arráez, who will aim to foil Judge's attempt at an AL Triple Crown.

The Yankees slugger will have plenty on his mind, as he vies for the AL home run record, AL Triple Crown and AL Batting Title all at the same time. On top of personal achievements, the hulking slugger has World Series aspirations and a massive free agency decision coming up.

Bogaerts will have to hope the pressure gets to Judge, and he'll have his own pitching staff to thank for compounding the issue.

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Published Sep 27, 2022

SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the Boston Red Sox for Sports Illustrated's new page "Inside The Red Sox." Before starting "Inside The Red Sox", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer. His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join the Sports Illustrated Media Group in his current endeavor as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Red Sox" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu